He heard a sound like shattering glass.
Carrying Natsume Mio, Kitahara Minakaze belatedly turned his head.
Only then did he realize that their surroundings had returned to normal.
Pedestrians suddenly appeared in Minakaze’s vision, letting out piercing screams as they discovered three bloodied bodies lying in the middle of the street.
It was only then that Minakaze remembered—unlike the first time, time hadn’t rewound.
They had just walked right out.
Would this cause any problems?
Minakaze turned his head and glanced at the three people lying on the ground.
But soon, he put his worries aside.
Even if there were problems, now wasn’t the time to care about them.
Mio had passed out, and his own condition wasn’t exactly great either.
Hospital first.
Carrying Mio, he pretended not to know the three people on the ground.
He slightly quickened his pace, ignoring the stares directed at him, and walked briskly toward the main road.
But soon, he was stopped.
Mio’s—and currently his nominal—Grandpa, dressed in pure white Shinto priest robes, suddenly stepped out from a shadowed corner and blocked his path.
Minakaze stopped in his tracks.
After a brief pause, he said, “Good timing, Grandpa. I’ll explain the details to you later, but please grab the phone from my pocket and dial 119.”
The old man glanced at Mio.
He frowned, his eyes flashing with heartache, but he made no move to make the call.
“You two, come home with me.”
Minakaze looked at him.
After a moment’s hesitation, he tried to negotiate.
“Grandpa… I know you look really cool dressed like that right now, and I can vaguely guess a few things, but how about we let modern medicine take a look first? She’s hurt pretty badly.”
The old man’s gaze slowly shifted upward to meet Minakaze’s eyes, and his tightly knit brows slowly relaxed.
“Don’t worry. She’s my granddaughter; I won’t harm her.”
“I get that, but look, the hospital isn’t far.”
“You brat, don’t use that tone on me like you’re trying to coax a stubborn old fool! A normal hospital can’t treat injuries like this. Listen to me! Come with me!”
The old man had managed two sentences of gentleness before turning irritable again, even looking like he was ready to get physical.
“…”
Minakaze silently used [Insight] and took a look at him.
After a moment of silence, he said, “Alright.”
Then, he walked briskly toward the shrine.
The old man’s pace wasn’t slow either.
Despite leaning on a cane, he was surprisingly fast, managing to keep right on Minakaze’s heels the entire way.
One old man, one young man, and an unconscious Mio.
Together, they returned to the shrine.
Under the old man’s lead, they entered the shrine’s main hall.
For the first time, Minakaze saw the enshrined deity object of the Natsume family shrine.
An old sword. Read this novel at g.com for the best experience.
“Put Mio down, then get out.”
Just as Minakaze was staring at the deity object, the old man pointed to the open space in front of the altar, gesturing for him to set her down.
Minakaze gently laid Mio down and pried her hands off his collar.
Standing back up, he asked, “That’s it? You don’t need me to prepare some kind of ritual or something?”
“I don’t need you. You’re not a priest, so you can’t stay in here. Get out. I’ll return a healthy Mio to you in a bit.”
The old man pointed at the exit of the main hall.
Minakaze glanced at Mio’s Grandpa.
The two locked eyes.
Minakaze sighed.
“Grandpa, things can’t keep going on like this. I actually quite like Mio. After this is over, I need to have a talk with you guys.”
The old man hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
Having received a satisfactory answer, Minakaze said no more, turned around, and left.
The moment he stepped outside, the doors of the main hall automatically shut behind him.
Soon, the ringing of kagura bells and the mystical chanting of Mio’s Grandpa echoed from within.
It really gave off the vibe of a shamanic ritual.
Minakaze glanced at the main hall, then sat down on the ground.
He pulled out the pack of cigarettes the previous owner of his body had bought and still hadn’t finished.
He originally intended to light one, but after a second thought, he put it back.
Instead, he took out his phone and dialed 119.
Which was the emergency number here in Japan.
Even though he had checked the other party’s stats and found Mio’s Grandpa’s Tier 40 evaluation quite reassuring, having an extra layer of security was never a bad thing.
Besides, even if Mio was fine, his own kidney had been stabbed.
He had to call an ambulance no matter what.
What if it stopped working…?
So, once the call connected, Minakaze made sure to emphasize the specific details of his stabbed kidney to the female operator on the other end.
Finally, amidst the operator’s exasperated shout of, ‘Please stop talking about your kidney’s condition and just give me an address first!’, he reluctantly hung up the phone.
The chanting and bell ringing inside the main hall hadn’t stopped.
Holding his phone, Minakaze looked into the distance.
Listening to the bells chiming from within, combined with his recent banter with the operator, his mood gradually calmed down.
The intense emotions, like his rage, slowly receded.
He had been truly furious earlier, so much so that he had charged in without even assessing the difference in strength between the enemy and himself, even threatening them like some edgy teenager.
Now that his anger had faded and he thought about it carefully, it was actually a bit embarrassing.
Good thing he won in the end.
Theoretically speaking, this completely fell under the category of ‘When I’m in a state of extreme anger…’
Thinking of that classic internet bragging template from his past life, Minakaze chuckled.
But soon, he couldn’t laugh anymore.
The very moment he felt he had calmed down, a burning sensation suddenly erupted from his internal organs.
And that feeling grew more and more pronounced.
He fell to his knees, clutching his stomach, and curled up into a ball.
The burning sensation grew increasingly intense.
It felt like his internal organs were catching fire.
[Burning Heart, Liver, Spleen, Lungs, and Kidneys; Bristling with Rage]
Gritting his teeth, Minakaze used [Insight] on himself, just in time to see these large, gold-rimmed words shining brightly, glowing…
“…”
Right before passing out, Minakaze spat out bilingual curses.
He only had time to spit out two words.
…
Inside the main hall.
At the exact same time Minakaze passed out, Mio’s Grandpa put down the kagura bells and stopped his chanting.
In front of the deity object, Mio—who had just been in a wretched state with a hole in her abdomen—was completely restored.
Even the slightest scratches had fully healed.
Her breathing was steady.
But in the next second, she suddenly sat bolt upright.
“Hah…”
She began to pant heavily.
Grandpa stood quietly to the side.
Sitting on the floor, Mio stared wide-eyed at the ground, panting for quite a while before she gradually calmed down.
“Grandpa?”
Finally noticing the figure beside her, Mio asked softly, her tone uncertain.
“Mm.” Grandpa rubbed her head.
“…” Mio’s entire body relaxed.
But soon, she tensed up again.
Grabbing her Grandpa’s collar, she asked nervously, “Where’s my stepbrother?”
Grandpa looked toward the exit and said, “Outside. He’s fine. He’s built as strong as an ox, what could possibly happen to him? Besides, for a minor injury like that, a real man can heal just by relying on his willpower.”
However, the moment his words fell, a flurry of hurried footsteps echoed from outside.
Along with a cacophony of voices.
“Hello? Where is the patient?”
“I think it’s this one!”
“Quick, get the stretcher! He’s just unconscious, he’s still breathing!”
“He’s burning up… A fever? Excuse me! Are the patient’s family members here!?”
“…”
Grandpa: “…”
“Willpower my foot, Grandpa!”
Mio glared fiercely at her Grandpa, her voice thick with tears.
She hurriedly scrambled up from the floor.