Tokyo Ravens - Volume 4 - Chapter Int2

Story 2 - The Men's Capriccio 
"......It's done." 
Tsuchimikado Natsume murmured quietly in the dark candlelight, a light smile suddenly emerging on her face. 
She carefully checked the shikigami standing in front of her again. Some areas were difficult to reproduce perfectly, but they wouldn't be a problem as long as she cleverly hid them. It was more than enough to deal with its intended use. 
"......Just you wait......" 
Natsume vowed revenge, the smile never once leaving her mouth. 

In General Onmyoudou, the synonym of modern magic that was normally called General-Style, practitioners were only allowed to use magic after obtaining qualifications. One had to obtain qualifications based on Onmyoudou guidelines - becoming a 'professional' Onmyouji. 
Among the facility cultivating professional Onmyouji, especially the gateway to success - the Onmyou Academy was the most famous. Hence, students from around the entire nation gathered in the Onmyou Academy. The Onmyou Academy had dorms for these students who came from outside, and Tsuchimikado Harutora was currently one student living in the dorms. 
"......Hi, morning......" 
This morning, Harutora walked downstairs from his second-floor classroom, walking bleary-eyed into the dorm cafeteria. He sat in front of a table carrying a tray with his breakfast. Though he had changed into his uniform, his hair was still messy. 
Someone had already sat down before Harutora in the seat next to him. That person was his classmate Ato Touji. 
"...Yo." He replied to Harutora, taking a teapot off the table and pouring hot tea into his cup. Different from the slothful Harutora, Touji was bright and refreshing in the morning. 
"You look worse than usual today, did you not sleep well?" 
"Yeah, it's the fault of that homework, it's way too hard......" 
"Homework? Are you talking about the simple shikigami?" 
"Right." 
Harutora nodded with a bitter face, putting the tofu and seaweed miso soup into his mouth. 
Simple shikigami, familiars who served Onmyouji - a type of shikigami. Practitioners infused their magical energy into manufacturable vessels that were named 'cores'. They were the most basic type of shikigami. 
Yesterday's homework was related to simple shikigami. The contents of the homework required that the students instructed a paper vessel to move. This counted as basic training in shikigami usage, not much of a difficulty for the level of Onmyou Academy students. 
"......That thing just didn't move no matter how much magical energy I put into it. I tried seriously again after getting up in the morning, but it didn't end up working." Harutora muttered in annoyance, chewing a mouthful of marinated fish. 
Harutora complained, but in the end he had been born in the Tsuchimikado former Onmyoudou clan. Maybe because he was the progeny of a famous family, his spiritual power, which was the basis of magical energy, was stronger than an ordinary person's. But he wasn't very good at manipulating his spiritual power to convert it into magical energy, and he lacked an understanding of magic theory, leading him to have plenty of horsepower but no way to use it, unable to perform 'magic'. 
"......H-H-Harutora-sama. I fear to transgress, but H-Harutora-sama has me as a guard, so I humbly believe that n-no other shikigami are needed......" Kon spoke quietly and cautiously from next to Harutora, evidently tense and anxious. 
"You can't mix those two things together. I don't mean to look down on you by doing this." Harutora smiled wryly. 
"......Yes......" 
An immature voice sounded, but the owner of the voice was nowhere to be seen. The one who had opened her mouth was Harutora's shikigami Kon who was always hiding herself and guarding Harutora by his side. Even knowing that it was homework, she seemed to have a hard time concealing her jealousy upon seeing her master single-mindedly pursuing another shikigami. 
"It would be simple if it could move by itself like you. Simple shikigami are so annoying." 
"Normally, defensive shikigami need to be used at all times, so they're of a much more difficult level." 
Touji replied to Harutora's complaint, and the two of them moved their chopsticks. 
Just then, another student appeared in the dorm cafeteria. "...Good morning." Brightness entered the gloomy male cafeteria. 
This student had a handsome appearance with a small, lean, and slim body. Bright black hair as beautiful as silk grew to waist-length, and androgynous features were even more prominent in the male dorm. 
Tsuchimikado Natsume, Harutora's childhood friend, and the next heir of the famous Tsuchimikado family. 
Once Natsume appeared, the gazes in the cafeteria all focused on her. Not only was her appearance outstanding, she was also a genius that everyone in the Onmyou Academy knew about. Unlike Harutora who was behind in his grades, she received quite a bit of attention from everyone. However, she always gave off a serious atmosphere from her and her personality was taciturn, and hence no one dared to approach her. Even inside the dorm, there were almost no students who dared to talk with Natsume. 
But...... 
"Yo, new arrival, yesterday must have been tough." 
"You almost scared me to death when you suddenly screamed out loud." 
Several senpai made teasing remarks to her when they saw Natsume. Natsume's face was stiff. 
"Actually, Natsume's pretty interesting." 
"He just likes to make a fuss." 
"No no no, with a group of hungry beasts around, it's no wonder a 'beauty' like him raised his guard." 
"......Sorry." 
Laughs sounded one after another, and Natsume's body trembled from humiliation, a forced calmness still on her expression. 
She took a tray, walking to Harutora and Touji's seats, and greeted them in a bad mood. "......Good morning." 
Touji grinned maliciously. 
"That's great, Natsume. You instantly blended into the dorm life because of that surprise yesterday." 
"......Shut up, mind your own business." Natsume glared at Touji resentfully. 
Natsume was stern in front of outsiders, but she was actually just introverted. Once she faced Harutora and Touji, who she was familiar with, not only would her manner of speaking change, but also she would show an unexpected childish side. 
"But, this isn't just a joke, Natsume." It was Harutora's turn to speak about his worries. "Pretending to be a guy was already difficult, you really shouldn't have moved into the dorm." 
Harutora spoke good-naturedly, but the girl he had played with since he was small frowned immediately upon hearing that. 
Unlike Harutora's branch family, the Tsuchimikado main family that Natsume belonged to had 'family tradition' that dictated that 'the heir must show himself as a male to outsiders'. Even if this tradition was outdated, Natsume still strictly adhered to it, entering the Onmyou Academy to study while camouflaging her gender as male. 
In addition, after Harutora transferred half a year late into the Onmyou Academy, she had moved into Harutora's dorm, which was the male dorm. 
"Didn't you live in a room you rented outside before? Maybe you should move back." 
"Bakatora, why do you think I moved to the dorm?' 
"Why......" 
"I said before, the master and the shikigami can't be separated. Since your only choice was to move into the dorm, I can only cooperate." 
Natsume spoke firmly, moving her chopsticks hastily. Harutora and Touji looked at each other helplessly. 
Though he wasn't from the main family, the branch family that Harutora was from also had family traditions, one that said that members had to 'become shikigami serving the main family'. Obeying the family tradition was one of the reasons that Harutora, who couldn't be called outstanding, transferred into the Onmyou Academy. There was a pentagram mark under his left eye, the magic seal branded on to him when he had become Natsume's shikigami. 
"But life is really inconvenient in some areas when you live in the male dorm, right? Like going to the bathroom and bathing--" 
"Th, That's my own problem." 
"It's also an important question. Let me ask you, how exactly are you going to resolve it?" 
"H, How to resolve it...... I just use stealth magic to eliminate my presence at the necessary time." 
"Huh? In that case, you'd see......" 
"I, I didn't see! I honestly always closed my eyes! Also, I try to choose a time when no one uses the showers, so I can just bathe quickly." Natsume replied with a blush. 
Just then, Touji casually said: "The problem is that you should keep an eye open in the showers." Natsume showed a bitter expression again after hearing him joke about this. 
The 'unexpected incident yesterday' that Natsume was being teased about had happened in the showers yesterday evening. The male dormitory building was originally quite old, and only the showers were relatively new. They also had single-person stalls, hence Natsume had only used the showers to bathe since she moved into the dorm. 
But yesterday, she had run into other students. She had finished showering, walking out of the stall, and bumped into a swarm of several senpais - of course they weren't wearing clothes - walking in from the changing room. 
Fortunately, Natsume had wrapped her body with a towel before walking out of the stall, so her identity wasn't revealed. But...... After suddenly bumping into a big group of completely naked students, she screamed and almost fainted. Shocked, the senpais hastily moved up out of concern, making Natsume even more panicked, and she fled...... In the end, it evolved into a big commotion disturbing all of the dorm's students. 
"'This is humiliating' also became 'dis is fumiliading'." 
"What? I, I didn't say that!" 
"......How shameful......" 
"Kon? Kon said that, right! No one wanted your opinion, don't interrupt whenever you want!" Natsume stared fiercely behind Harutora. 
Kon was only subservient to her master, and her attitude towards others was inexplicably bad. Harutora couldn't help but sigh, warning her with "Kon, be quiet." 
"You should have predicted that these kinds of situations would happen long ago, but instead you were a bit too negligent." Touji shrugged his shoulders like he didn't care about things. "If you panic once you run into a sudden situation, you'd best not continue to live in the male dorm and move back to your rented room as early as possible." 
Harutora also commended Touji's opinion, and though she wasn't visible, Kon was definitely also nodding her head vigorously. 
However, before Natsume opened her mouth, a woman who didn't look like a student had already walked up next to the table of Harutora and the others. 
"Oh my, please don't move out, Natsume-kun, you just entered the dorm!" 
The woman who walked up was about twenty-six or twenty-seven. She had a head of short black hair and wore plastic-rimmed glasses. She gave off a leisurely atmosphere and was basically an agreeable, pretty woman. 
She was the male dorm manager, Fujino Mako. 
"I heard about yesterday's incident, but you don't need to take it to heart, Natsume-kun. It's not weird at all to feel embarrassed at others seeing you nude, since you're still young after all. It's a natural response, so don't feel bad about it." 
"......Uh, no, that......" Natsume spoke in a stammer, her face red. 
Honestly, nothing was more embarrassing than being consoled by Fujino like this, but she was extremely dense towards that aspect of things. In her brief dorm life, Natsume had understood this point extremely clearly. In the past, there had been a student who accidentally left his porn CD in the dorm cafeteria, and she had even especially run over to the academy building and asked all of the classrooms to find the student who had forgotten his CD, and returned the CD with a smile in front of the entire class of students. The next day, that student had moved out of the dorm crying. 
"......She doesn't seem to have any bad intentions......" 
"......Her character's just missing something......" 
Harutora and Touji whispered secretly. Of course, Fujino didn't notice, still wearing a carefree smile. 
"Don't worry, Natsume-kun. Don't move out of the dorm, I have great expectations for you all." 
"Huh? Great expectations? Why?" 
"Though you're different types, Natsume-kun and Touji-kun are both pretty boys." Fujino squealed, covering her cheeks with her hands in embarrassment. "That's weird, what about me?" Harutora muttered, but unfortunately no one paid him any heed. 
"Natsume-kun and Harutora-kun knew each other since they were small, right? And what's more both were born in the Tsuchimikado family! I originally thought that only Natsume-kun would enter the Onmyou Academy - I didn't think that half a year later, Harutora-kun would also transfer here as well - and not just him, he even entered the academy with his high school classmate Touji-kun! And the two of them are both living in the dorm! Then, Natsume-kun didn't want to get left behind and also moved into the dorm...... Oh my, don't you think that's too amazing and so dreamy? I'm so excited!" 
Fujino spoke in a torrent, her gaze moving who knew where. Natsume cast a pleading look towards Harutora, but Harutora didn't get what exactly was 'dreamy'. Touji ate his breakfast silently. 
"When I had tea with the female dorm manager before, we talked about it so happily. She was so jealous after she heard what I said, she told me to definitely tell her if there was any new information." 
"Wh, What exactly did you talk about......?" 
"Later, she sent me a message telling me that the female dorm students were also very excited after hearing about you guys." 
"No way, wh, what are you saying? What exactly are you talking about?" 
Natsume couldn't control her tone for a while, affected by an intense spurring of anxiety. Fujino smiled and: "It's fine, it's fine.", evading the questions. 
Incidentally, Natsume's room was on the second floor. Harutora's was next to it, and Touji's room was one more room over. Harutora's room was in between the three rooms, and judging by Fujino's words, that kind of arrangement might have resulted from her manipulating something from the shadows. 
"Anyway, you can come talk to me anytime if you have any trouble, I'll help you as much as I can." Saying this, Fujino turned around and left. Harutora and Natsume glanced at each other, sighing in unison. 
"......She doesn't seem to have any bad intentions......" 
"......Her character's just missing something......" 
"Whatever, never mind her. On the other hand, there's no way you can live in the male dorm." Harutora turned towards Natsume, continuing to persuade her. 
This childhood friend was actually extremely stubborn, though it couldn't be told from her external appearance. Even if she just said something once, it was very hard to change her mind. 
However, Natsume's face suddenly loosened, smiling for some reason. "You don't need to worry, I already prepared." She replied deliberately. "Huh? What did you prepare?" Harutora's face became doubtful when he heard this...... 
"...I'm heading out first, be careful not to be late to class." 
Touji put down the chopsticks from his hand, taking his tray and standing up. 
By now, only Harutora and the others were left in the dorm cafeteria. Harutora hastily looked at his watch in shock, noticing that there were only ten minutes until the bell for class would ring. 
Harutora and Natsume hastily wolfed down the rest of their breakfast. 

After the busy morning, the dorm was quiet and tranquil. Fujino watched the students go, washing the dishes, opening the window to let air flow into the dorm, and dragging a vacuum cleaner around to clean the dorm. 
Today was the day to make her routine report, but the time for that was in the evening, so she still had a bit of leisure time after the cleaning finished. 
Only Fujino's humming and the sound of the old vacuum cleaner's motor were audible in the silent dorm, but just as she planned on pulling the vacuum cleaner into the cafeteria, she suddenly heard the sound of footsteps from the staircase. 
It was the sound of someone going down the stairs. Could someone have overslept? But all of the students in the dorm had gone to the cafeteria and had eaten breakfast today. 
The footsteps came down the stairs like they were walking to the entrance. Fujino hurriedly turned off the vacuum cleaner, looking into the corridor from the cafeteria and managing to glimpse the figure of a back disappearing in the other end of the entrance. But she could recognize whose black hair that was at a glance -- 
"......That's weird?" 

"Ahhhh...... I'm so tired!" 
After the Onmyou Academy classes ended, Harutora immediately let out a long, powerless moan once he returned to the dorm. He walked to the dorm cafeteria, sprawling over the table. Touji sat lazily in the seat next to Harutora, and only Natsume stood next to the table, her hands on her hips. 
"Hey, you two are too lazy." 
"Don't be that bothersome in the dorm...... Today was too exhausting." 
"In the end, you expended your entire power just to make a simple shikigami move a little." Touji was like always, teasing the exhausted Harutora. 
There had been a surprise test in class today, the contents of which were to use a simple shikigami, the same as from their homework. As could be expected, Harutora had struggled bitterly. "It's such a waste of spiritual power." Even Natsume who had watched from next to him couldn't help but be stunned. Since his spiritual power was uncontrolled, it produced a reaction in the simple shikigami of another student next to him, even making it move. 
"In short, this kind of thing happened because Harutora's spiritual power - actually, his grasp of magical energy - isn't accurate enough and he can't fix it in a direction." 
"......I know, I know, don't mention the shikigami again." 
Harutora lay on the table, pleading resentfully. Natsume let out a long sigh, then immediately grinned. "I'm going back to my room, see you at dinner." After saying this, she left behind Harutora and Touji, leaving the cafeteria ahead of them. 
But, one short minute later, the frantic sound of footsteps came from the staircase and Natsume charged back into the cafeteria. "It's gone!" She shouted once she appeared, and Harutora unconsciously raised his head. Touji also frowned lightly. 
"What? What's gone?" 
"Sh, Shikigami - The vessel of my simple shikigami is gone, it's not in my room!" Natsume was panicked, and Harutora and Touji's expression became more and more puzzled. 
"Shikigami? A simple shikigami...... Yesterday's homework?" 
"No! It's the simple shikigami that I made myself yesterday! It was there when I left my room this morning, but it was gone when I went back just now!" 
"What? Did someone steal it?" 
Harutora raised his head, his face solemn. 
"......Oh no, this is bad, if someone else sees......" Natsume's spoke with a pale face. She didn't notice that she had returned to her 'original' voice, so it was evident that she had already fallen into a panic. 
"What kind of shikigami did you make?" Touji checked. 
"Uh, that--" Natsume stammered for some reason upon facing this natural question, and her gaze was evidently evasive. 
Just then, "Huh? That's weird? Natsume?" A student who had returned to the dorm from the academy building stopped when he came to the dorm cafeteria, looking at Natsume in surprise. 
"Natsume, how are you here?" 
"Huh? How am I...... I came back after school ended." Natsume didn't understand. 
That student scratched his head after hearing that, his face confused. "Uh...... When I walked out of the academy building just now, I thought I saw you walk in...... But since I came back directly and that person was entering the academy building, it couldn't be you...... I guess I got the wrong person--" Natsume had already bolted before that person finished speaking. 
She charged out of the cafeteria with all her power without so much as an explanation, and Harutora and the others were too late to call out to stop her. The student reflexively jumped back after seeing that hideous face and ferocity. 
"......Wh, What the hell is she doing?" Harutora was stunned, but Touji looked knowing, saying: "......I know what's going on." 
"Huh?" 
"Let's hurry back to the academy building, Natsume might be in trouble." 
Touji didn't heed Harutora furrowing his brows. He stood up from his chair, showing Harutora a wry smile. 

Momoe Tenma, an Onmyou Academy first-year, Harutora's classmate. 
He had a small stature and a somewhat slim body, a tacky hairstyle, and wore plain glasses on his face, carrying an immaturity different from Natsume's. His appearance was warm like the sun, and he looked like a sincere person. Actually, his heart was indeed quite good, he was just unusually clumsy. 
"That's weird? Where'd my wallet go?" After school ended, he only noticed that his wallet was no longer on him when he was just about to go back home. 
His face paled, but he immediately thought of where he might have dropped it. When the simple shikigami skills practice was being held today, he had turned out his pockets because he couldn't find the vessel he had prepared. Maybe he had dropped the wallet back then. 
The magic practice field where practical training was carried out was an underground room of the academy building. Tenma hastily ran to the changing room next to the magic practice field while praying that he would be able to find his wallet. 
A few days ago, Ohtomo-sensei's shikigami had flooded the changing room, but it had already been repaired like new. Tenma walked into the changing room, immediately walking towards the locker that he had used. 
"...Huh? Natsume-kun?" 
He had thought no one was here and hadn't expected he would meet Natsume in the changing room. Natsume sat on the bench, blankly staring at the locker in front of him. 
"What's up? Didn't you go back with Harutora-kun and the other?" 
Since Tenma was a nice guy, he had a pretty good relationship with the just-transferred Harutora and Touji - as well as Natsume who deliberately avoided the other students. 
"Ah, could you have forgotten something? How rare." He spoke cheerfully, striding over. 
Just then, Natsume suddenly turned around, replying with a stiff attitude: "No." 
"No? ......Oh, I see, you didn't forget to bring something back?" 
"Yes." 
"Then what are you doing here? Could you...... be waiting for someone?" 
"No." 
"Huh, then self-training in the magic practice field--" 
"No." 
"......S, So it's not that, huh." 
Natsume replied coldly and Tenma couldn't help but feel a bit crestfallen. 
Tenma was silent and Natsume listlessly turned his head back towards the locker, blankly staring at it. Those eyes stared at the locker, but they actually seemed like they were looking forward without purpose. 
"............" 
That appearance wasn't very normal. It was very different from the usual atmosphere. 
Tenma worried for a while, not knowing whether to say a bit more or to ignore it. "Ah." Then, he suddenly remembered the reason he had come here. 
"Natsume-kun, it seems like my wallet's missing, so did you see it nearby?" 
He tried asking, and Natsume replied extremely coldly: "No." That face turned over, but there was no change at all on its expression. 
Tenma was helpless because it was too difficult to communicate and could only start looking by himself. Fortunately, Tenma quickly found the wallet. Just like he had expected, the wallet had probably dropped on the floor by accident when he had been searching his pockets. 
"Ah, got it! Great, I found it, Natsume-kun." 
"Good." 
Natsume still replied coldly. 
Since he had found the wallet, he should be able to go back home, but Tenma was concerned about Natsume's demeanor, since after all Tenma had quite a good heart. 
"Hey, you're being strange, Natsume-kun. Did something happen? If you need someone to talk to--" Tenma asked worriedly, and suddenly noticed that there was something on Natsume's knees. 
Athletic clothing. 
And a towel. 
Once he noticed those things, Tenma finally understood Natsume's reason for coming here...... He couldn't help but be interested. The showers were next to the changing room, and Natsume had indeed just moved in to the dorms a few days earlier. Maybe the dorm showers had broken...... 
"What, Natsume-kun, you came here to bathe?" 
Once he said those words, Natsume suddenly stood up. 
Natsume put the towel and the athletic clothing on the bench, unbuttoning the outer buttons of his uniform, pulling down the zipper and taking off the jacket. 
"......Huh? Wait... Natsume-kun?" 
Tenma was flustered, but Natsume still continued taking off his clothes. 
Natsume unbuttoned the buttons on the shirt under his outer layer one by one. After a glance of the white skin underneath the shirt, Tenma unconsciously turned around, shifting his gaze. 
"Wh, What are you doing? Why are you suddenly taking your clothes off? ...Right, this is the changing room, so of course you take your clothes off here, but why so suddenly......?" 
Tenma spoke in a stammer, and the sound of clothing rubbing continued coming from behind him. He didn't get why, but somehow his face was red. 
"I, If you came to bathe, of course you need to take your clothes off...... Wh, What am I saying. That's weird, what am I so panicked about, we're both guys! Aha, ahaha......!" 
He chattered, trying to use it to let himself calm down, but the more he spoke the more intense his heartbeat became. 
He really wanted to turn around. 
His conscience loudly restrained him, not letting him turn around. 
But, wasn't this even stranger? They were both guys, so why did his conscience think he couldn't turn around - no, the deeper question was, why did he want to turn around. After all, it was Natsume...... No matter how good-looking he was, he was still a true male...... 
"N, Natsume-kun! I'm leaving first--" 
Tenma spoke as if he were fleeing. He heard someone open the door to the shower stall behind his back and then close it. 
He turned around carefully. 
On the bench was placed the neatly folded uniform and the athletic clothing. Tenma's body quickly slackened, and at the same time he tasted the flavor of despair. 
"......What's going on with me? Could I be...... no, but, impossible...... but......" 
An intense vexation upset Tenma's consciousness, and for some reason, he even felt like he had sinned gravely. 
Forget it, he had just been thinking too much - a mistaken moment. 
He tried hard to convince himself, his shoulders slumping deeply, and left the changing room. 

Kurahashi Kyouko, an Onmyou Academy first-year, Harutora's classmate. 
Her brown hair was tied up high and drooped down naturally, with bright eyes and soft lips. Her cute appearance, beautiful body, and internal self-confidence illuminated each other. Her refined expression looked a bit arrogant, and she was actually the eldest daughter of a wealthy family, the famous Kurahashi family in the center of Onmyoudou. 
"......Grandma is so carefree." Kyouko left the principal's office, sighing deeply in the corridor. 
Unlike the declined Tsuchimikado family, the Kurahashi family could currently be called the family with the most prominent force in the magic community. Kyouko's father was the current head of the Onmyou Agency, and her grandmother Kurahashi Miyo was the Onmyou Academy Principal. 
After school let out today, Kyouko had been called to the principal's office. She originally thought that something had happened, but in the end Principal Kurahashi had found her just because she wanted to chat about her travels. Kyouko showed an exhausted gaze, looking at the box of hot spring manjuu [9] the principal had given her. 
"......Guess I'll go back home." 
She walked to the elevator, pressing the button. Soon after, the elevator's bell sounded and it stopped, the elevator doors opening. 
When the doors opened, "Ah, Natsume-kun!" Natsume was in the elevator. "Yes." He expressionlessly replied to Kyouko's exclamation. 
Kyouko's mood instantly turned around and she stepped into the elevator, almost jumping for joy. 
"You haven't left yet? Did you stay in the academy to study by yourself?" 
"No." 
"Did you stay behind for something else? Like talking with the teachers or doing secret training." 
"No--" 
"Ah, but it's already pretty late, right? You should be free now, right?" 
"N--" 
"You're free, right? Do you have some time later? If you do, why don't we go have some tea? Just a bit. Okay? Is that alright?" 
"--" 
Kyouko spoke continuously and vigorously, paying no heed at all to his responses - actually, she just purely didn't hear them. Her face was bashful and her eyes flashed, her expression like a maiden in love. 
"Ah, right, Natsume-kun, do you like hot springs manjuu?" 
"Yes." 
"Really? Then I'll split this box with you. Grandma just gave these to me, she said that she ran off to some hot springs. She spoke for so long, I really couldn't stand it. Ah, but, if she didn't speak for so long, I wouldn't bump into Natsume-kun in the elevator, so I guess it wasn't bad in the end~" 
Kyouko's face reddened, a smile on her mouth, and she opened the wrapping paper outside of the box. "Here." Just as she was splitting the hot springs manjuu with Natsume, she noticed that Natsume was holding something in his hands. 
Athletic clothing. 
And a towel. 
"......A towel?" She spoke unconsciously. 
"Yes." Natsume replied. 
Even the chatterbox Kyouko went speechless for a while, and a strange silent atmosphere pervaded the elevator. 
Then, "......Ah, not good." She remembered, pressing the button for the floor. 
The elevator silently descended. 
"............" 
Why was Natsume carrying athletic clothing and a towel? Could he be planning on bathing in the showers underground? Come to think of it, Natsume had moved into the male dorm. Unlike the female dorm, that place was an old dorm built long ago. The showers were definitely not that new, so he wanted to use the showers in the academy instead. 
After thinking about that, a splendid proposal suddenly flashed through Kyouko's mind. 
"N, Natsume-kun, do you want to go to a hot spring?" 
"No." 
"N, No, huh...... But sometimes you want to soak in a hot spring, right?" 
"Yes." 
"I, I think so too, th, then if you're willing......" 
Her emotions were agitated and her heartbeat accelerated. She couldn't retreat at this time. Say it, gather the courage to give voice to the words, Kyouko - Kyouko encouraged herself. 
"Sh-Sh-Should we go to a hot spring together some day? We can soak in an outdoor hot spring together......!" She didn't dare look directly at Natsume and closed her eyes, inviting Natsume to a hot spring with a reddened face. 
Someone serious like Natsume definitely wouldn't say yes, he would definitely refuse the invite...... But if it weren’t just the two of them going, if she also invited Harutora, Touji, and even Tenma, then maybe Natsume would agree to come together. 
Natsume and hot springs. Maybe the yukata-wearing Natsume would be moved upon seeing her red-tinged, moist, smooth skin right after soaking in the host spring. Even if there wasn't any opportunity, she would take the initiative and make one, shortening the distance between them in a flash, moving half a step forward from the relationship of friends. Depending on the situation and the developments, there was even a possibility of a k, kiss...... a kiss! 
"......!" 
Kyouko shut her eyes, silently waiting for Natsume's response. However, no matter how long she waited, Natsume didn't speak up. 
He was definitely unable to immediately refuse her and was hesitating over what to say. Natsume really was gentle - what should she do now? Should she pass it over as a joke, or casually invite him again, or get a bit more serious and press harder...... 
Kyouko opened her eyes. 
Natsume was taking off his clothes. 
"......Huh?" 
Natsume silently and deftly took off his uniform. Kyouko couldn't understand the scene in front of her for a while, only managing to come to her senses when she saw Natsume unbuttoning the buttons of his shirt one by one. 
"N, Natsume-kun! What are you doing!" 
White skin was revealed under the opened shirt. Kyouko inadvertently covered her face with her hands - peeking through the gaps of her fingers - and cried out shrilly. 
"Wait, Natsume-kun! What are you doing! Why are you suddenly taking off your clothes! Uwah...... Uwaaaaah......!" 
The situation wasn't as simple as a kiss, but instead it was nudity in the elevator. Kyouko remembered the shoujo manga that she had read before. The current kind of scene had indeed appeared in the passionate scenes described in them. She had originally thought they were just fiction used to satisfy the fantasies girls had towards forbidden love. 
But thinking carefully, Natsume was the descendent of Abe no Seimei, and in some sense he counted as a person from fantasy. Hence, it was inevitable that this kind of situation would emerge, and anything could happen. 
"N, No, Natsume-kun, we can't do this - at least let's change the location - ah, but, I'm really scared--!" 
She leaned against the elevator wall, her eyes tightly closed and her body rigid. She hugged herself tightly with her hands - she didn't try to escape - and prepared herself, waiting for the moment to come. 
A long, uneventful time passed. 
"............N, Natsume......kun?" 
She opened her eyes gingerly. 
Natsume wasn't there. 
At some time, the elevator had reached the first floor, and the elevator door had opened and just closed again. Kyouko still hugged herself, blinking her eyes in incomprehension. 
"......That's weird?" 

"A body double? You made that kind of shikigami?" Harutora asked, stunned, and Natsume frowned awkwardly. 
"I, I had no other choice! I'm so limited in the dorm, and...... and I'm a girl, so of course I'm obviously out of place in the male dorm! I know that myself! Also, that kind of thing happened yesterday...... That's why I was so anxious to find a way to resolve it!" 
Natsume searched for excuses in a roundabout manner. She suddenly showed her original demeanor when she was halfway through speaking. 
"......So you made a male-version Natsume simple shikigami? Yeah, if you let those people see you nude in the showers, maybe it indeed could eliminate unnecessary suspicion." Touji smiled wryly, running towards the academy building with Natsume and Harutora. 
Harutora and Touji were currently heading towards the academy building with Natsume. Judging by the explanation they heard on the way there, Natsume had probably meant this shikigami body double when she said 'I'm already prepared' in the morning. But, this simple shikigami had moved by itself and had gone somewhere now. 
"But, how could the shikigami suddenly move around?" 
"I want to know the answer too! Ordinarily, a shikigami can't move by itself without an infusion of magical energy!" After hearing Harutora ask this, Natsume howled crazily in anger. The pedestrians jumped back in surprise, turning around one by one. Natsume came to her senses, hastily recovering her male tone. "Anyways...... We have to recover the shikigami now! It was originally set for me to control it from a distance, and it can perform some basic movements and reply with 'Yes' or 'No' if someone talks to it, but...... It's a simple shikigami after all, so it's very possible that it might do something uncontrolled!" 
Natsume was the one who would be shamed in case the shikigami with the same appearance as her got into some trouble outside, even if it wasn't a female. "The Tsuchimikado family's fame will all be ruined by my hands!" She was extremely anxious and had trouble concealing her grief. 
"But since it's a shikigami you made, you should be able to find it very quickly, right?" 
"Could it be a body double if you could instantly recognize it as a shikigami? I put a lot of work into disguising it, so you can only locate it visually!" 
"...Can't simple shikigami only move by relying on their practitioner's magical energy? Can't you investigate its location by relying on your senses?" 
"That shikigami is moving by itself for some reason! I can't track down the magical energy!" 
Harutora and Touji made various proposals one after another, and Natsume replied to their questions with a face that seemed like she was about to cry. 
Just then, a student staggered over, walking from the direction of the academy building. 
He was their classmate, Tenma. For some reason, his face was languished, his head was lowered, and he stumbled forward with powerless steps. 
Harutora ran while raising his hand. 
"Yo, Tenma! Are you going back?" 
"Ah, Harutora-kun...... and, Natsume-kun!?" 
Tenma raised his head after hearing Harutora's voice, but his expression immediately clearly wavered once he saw Natsume. He suddenly glanced away, turning his body. 
"S, Sorry for just now! But don't misunderstand, I'm not like that! I really don't mean that!" He cried out forcefully, rushing away to escape from Harutora and the others. Harutora - and Natsume - could only blankly watch his back disappear in the crowd. 

"Wh, What's up with him......?" 
"Who knows...... The priority is to quickly recover the shikigami!" Natsume spoke and the three continued heading towards the academy building. 
Though the Onmyou Academy name was old, the building was a modern-style building with everything set up completely new. When they finally ran over, the automatic doors by the entrance just happened to open and a student walked out from inside. 
It was their classmate, Kyouko. For some reason, her face was melancholy and she looked very distressed. 
Harutora rushed forward. 
"Kurahashi! You haven't left?" 
"......Huh? Oh, Harutora...... and, Natsume-kun!?" 
Kyouko raised her head after hearing Harutora's voice, but her expression immediately clearly wavered once she saw Natsume. Her face suddenly reddened and she hastily explained in a panic. 
"S, Sorry, things really happened too suddenly. Uh...... I, I'll talk about that matter later! Bye......!" She spoke in a stammer and rushed away to escape from Harutora and the others after finishing. Harutora - and Natsume - could only blankly watch her back disappear in the crowd. 
"Wh, Why is even that person weird?" Harutora furrowed his brow. 
"......Could they have seen Natsume's simple shikigami?" Touji muttered quietly. 
Maybe believing that the probability was very high, Natsume's face instantly paled and she rushed in the opposite direction of Kyouko, towards the academy building. Harutora and Touji also hurriedly pursued. 
"Split up and search, everyone! I'll look underground, Harutora start from the first floor and go up, and Touji start from the roof and go down. Capture him once you find him, and don't let it run around! Understood?" 
"Yes!" 
Then, Natsume charged ahead towards the stairs and Touji took the elevator as per orders. 
"Kon! You help too." 
"A-A-As you command!" 
After receiving Harutora's summons, Kon suddenly appeared next to him in the form of a suikan-wearing little girl. Animalistic ears stuck out from the girl's short hair and a leaf-shaped fluffy talk grew out from behind her. 
She was Harutora's defensive shikigami, Kon. 
After Harutora called Kon out, the two of them split up to search the first floor classrooms. 
The students had mostly left the academy building already, and hence there were few opportunities for the shikigami to come in contact with others. At the same time, they couldn't get any relevant information and could only rely on their own efforts. 
"...Damn, he's not here either. Kon, did you find him?" 
"N-N-No one is here." 
"Okay, let's go to the second floor." 
He turned around, running towards the stairs, and incidentally bumped into Natsume who was about to go up the stairs. He was greatly taken aback. 
"Huh, Natsume? You're so fast, did you finish searching underground?" 
"No." 
"What? What are you doing, then why are you here--" 
Natsume's cold reply made Harutora frown. Suddenly, he had a flash of insight, asking: "Right, could you be the simple shikigami?" 
"No." 
"......That's weird? So you're really Natsume? Weren't you underground looking for the shikigami?" 
Harutora was extremely confused. Natsume stood in the stairwell, her abnormally cold expression staring blankly at Harutora. 
Just then, Kon floated in midair, leaning her face towards Natsume. She squinted her bright blue eyes, focusing on observing Natsume from a close distance...... 
"H-H-Harutora-sama, this is a sh-shikigami, not Natsume-dono!" 
"What? But she just said she wasn't a shikigami." 
"I, I fear he was ordered to reply that way, as it is a fake." 
"Ah, right." 
Since it couldn't let others notice it was a shikigami, it couldn't honestly reply 'yes' to that question. Also, that cold attitude wasn't like the original. Now that he thought calmly, this definitely was the simple shikigami that Natsume had made. 
But...... 
"How incredible, it's basically from the same mold as the original." 
"A-After all, it is a disguised shikigami." 
"She said this was a male version shikigami. I thought it would be more like a boy." 
"I, If I may be so direct, the body double would lose its original purpose if its external appearance was different from normal." 
Kon's words were reasonable. Harutora admired it more and more, walking up next to the simple shikigami whose appearance was the same as Natsume's. Facing Harutora who continued to size it up with his eyes, the simple shikigami just coldly looked back at him. 
"......Yeah, I can't see anywhere it's different from the original even from this close." 
Since it was a simple shikigami, it shouldn't have its own will. Even if he knew that only its outer appearance was similar, he still couldn't help but have the mistaken feeling that he was staring at Natsume. 
"Right, I have to quickly contact Natsume and bring him somewhere no one will pass through...... Ah, but will this thing listen to me?" 
After all, he had worked quite hard just to move the simple shikigami that he had made, so Harutora could only feel anxious. 
"Yes." 
Unexpectedly, Natsume's shikigami answered honestly. "Huh?" Kon's eyes lit up as she heard this and she leaned her face in next to the simple shikigami again, her little nose sniffing around everywhere. 
Then, her expression turned to surprise. 
"H-H, Harutora-sama! This servant carries Harutora-sama's aura! It is H-Harutora-sama's shikigami!" 
"What? What are you talking about?" 
"What I mean is, Harutora-sama's magical energy is allowing this shikigami to move independently." 
"But isn't it a simple shikigami that Natsume made?" 
"N, Natsume-dono indeed created the vessel, but the shikigami has Harutora-sama's magical energy! This is definitely true!" 
Kon's expression was serious and she didn't seem to be lying. Harutora became less and less sure what exactly was going on. 
"But...... Why? I don't remember doing such a thing?" 
"I, If I may speculate, maybe it was the morning......" 
"The morning?" 
"I, In order to complete your assignment of making the simple shikigami move, you released especially strong magical energy." 
"......Ah." 
Harutora had indeed released magical energy without restraint after waking up this morning. He wasn't good at controlling his magical energy, and it was only his horsepower that was strong. In today's practical coursework, the simple shikigami of the student next to him had moved by itself because of his magical energy. Maybe a similar accident had occurred to the room next door today morning in the dorm. Perhaps after Natsume left her room and a certain period of time, the simple shikigami had started moving independently. 
That kind of situation wasn't impossible. 
"So that's why he listens to me?" 
"This servant must recognize H-Harutora-sama as its master......" 
Kon's tone was a bit sullen, like she was unhappy at seeing Harutora have a shikigami other than her. Harutora's face went ashen and he gasped. 
"......That means, it's my fault! Uh oh~" 
If Natsume noticed that he was the culprit, she would definitely leave him no mercy. Harutora fretted, thankful that he had noticed the shikigami before it had stirred up any trouble. 
He took out his phone, sending a text message to inform Natsume and Touji that he had found the shikigami. 
"We have to hide him before anyone sees...... Okay, come with me." 
"Yes." 
"............" 
"H, Harutora-sama! Is anything wrong?" 
"......It's nothing, I just feel like this thing is really compliant." 
The simple shikigami with Natsume's external appearance stared at Harutora like a child looking at its parent. 
It had clear, round eyes and smooth, white skin, staring at him with a defenseless expression. Since the true Natsume had a 'twisted personality', the disparity between the two dazzled him. Even if he knew that the shikigami wasn't Natsume, he still couldn't control his agitated heart. 
"......He's...... male." 
Harutora murmured, looking at the shikigami's chest. Though the design of the uniform was also related...... Extremely unfortunately, he couldn't see any difference with the original. 
"......Do I have to bathe with this thing? That would really make me nervous." 
"H-Harutora-sama!" 
"I'm joking." 
Natsume had said that this shikigami was meant for her to control from a long distance. Then, its words and actions during actual use should be no different from the normal Natsume. Harutora laughed lightly a couple times and walked down the stairs. 
Just as he was heading down the stairs, "Huh! H-H-H-Harutora-sama!" A strange cry came from Kon behind his back. He looked back and almost couldn't stop himself from yelling in shock. 
Natsume was taking off her clothes. 
No, more accurately, the simple shikigami with Natsume's external appearance was taking off its clothes. Moreover, this was in the stairwell. 
"What the hell!" 
Harutora hastily rushed forward, tightly grabbing the shikigami's hands. But the shikigami ignored its master Harutora, still forcefully continuing to unclothe. 
"What is this thing doing!" 
"I, It is moving to perform its purpose!" 
"What do I have to do to make it stop?" 
"R, Regretfully, that is impossible during the process......" 
"You mean it'll only stop after taking off its clothes! Why exactly is it suddenly stripping!" 
Natsume - No, the simple shikigami with Natsume's appearance - ignored Harutora's impedance, taking off its clothing one by one in broad daylight. Harutora desperately grabbed the shikigami. 
Natsume would suffer here if it were seen nude in this kind of place even if it was only a body double that was unclothed. In addition, Natsume would definitely kill him out of embarrassment and anger if he were the one who had caused this disaster. Harutora grabbed the uncontrollable shikigami, planning on escaping to an empty classroom. 
"Really~? Fujino, that's such an exaggeration." 
"Of course it's real. A real fantasy is happening in our dorm. There are new developments every day, so I can't even look away for a moment--" 
The first floor. Two women were passing through the corridor in front of the stairs. Once they noticed Harutora, they immediately stopped moving. One of them recognized Harutora. She was the dorm manager Fujino. 
Four gazes crossed. Fujino and her female companion looked up at Harutora and the others with shocked faces. 
The half-nude and intensely resisting Natsume. Harutora who was forcefully holding Natsume and trying to escape from the area. 
"This is a misunderstanding!" Harutora sputtered to defend himself. 
The two of them suddenly gasped. 
"IT'S REAL FANTASYYY!" 
"AND DREEEAM!" 
"What are you taking pictures of!" 
Harutora let out an angry roar. Only then did Fujino come to her senses - or at least, she should have come to her senses. 
"Ah! I accidentally started taking pictures. But, this won't do, Harutora-kun! Both sides have to agree for this kind of thing-- B, But it's also important to be a little forceful occasionally! After all, you're both young!" 
"What are you talking about!? Stop taking all those pictures with your phone! And I don't share your opinion!" 
"Hello, Tsuchimikado Harutora-kun, I'm the female dorm manager, Kifu Ako! I've heard a lot about you, we practically talk about you every day." 
"Hello, Kifu-san! Please stop constantly taking pictures before you greet, and delete the data!" 
The two managers ignored Harutora's red-faced, angry roars, still breathing heavily and looking excited despite their age. They constantly took pictures of Harutora and the simple shikigami with their phones. Kon was frightened pale because of their amazing momentum and didn’t know how to save Harutora from this crisis, only able to stand in place. 
"What's going on~? It's so noisy......" 
"Did something happen? What's......" 
Female students noticed this crisis, walking towards the staircase to take a look...... Their movements suddenly stilled. Some blushed fiercely, and others exclaimed out loud, with some shouting: "It's a story from a cell phone novel!" and hastily running off to inform their friends. Perhaps these people were students who had stayed behind in the academy building, and for some reason they were all girls. Harutora wept, actually letting out a few manly tears. 
The rumor instantly spread through the entire academy, and of course the dorm wasn't excluded from it. 

"......G, Good morning......" 
The next day, a tense atmosphere immediately spread through the dorm cafeteria once Harutora and Natsume appeared. 
The students eating quietly said 'I, I'm full......', or 'M, Me too......' one by one, hastily leaving without finishing their breakfast. Of course, no one spoke to the two of them. Never mind anyone relieving the awkwardness with a joke, no one even dared look at them. Harutora frowned and Natsume's shoulders trembled in anger. 
After everyone left, Fujino mouthed 'don't mind it', glancing at them, and then walked out of the cafeteria. She didn't speak up, maybe out of consideration of their feelings, but who could blame them for angrily cursing her to themselves. 
The only person left in the cafeteria was Touji who had arrived in the cafeteria earlier. He looked at the two of them, helplessly shrugging his shoulders. 
Harutora's mood sank and he sighed heavily. Natsume's eyes brimmed with tears, cursing: "Dis is fumiliading......" 
In the end, the students in the dorm had almost no chance of noticing Natsume's true identity. 
But, only after seventy-five arduous days were the two Tsuchimikados able to wash off the suspicion that had arisen in everyone.