The Crown Prince Who Raises Alt Characters

#Chapter 316 Cat Pago (29) - My Home Perhaps it was because she felt completely drained after speaking for so long. Popuri leaned her back against the alley wall and let out a deep sigh. It seemed like she felt relieved to have confided a long-held secret to someone, but also like she was feeling depressed looking back on the past. Both were probably true. "I... what should I do? Should I make up some excuse to dad like I always do and say I can't go? Or should I finally settle this once and for all?" Popuri's eyes looked at Pago. Pago had an intuition. This is it. This is truly the vanguard sent by the 'Dreaming God' to eliminate the foreign element that is Popuri. Popuri had already become strong enough to ignore the rules and physical force of most anomalies and forcibly beat them down. But if they increased the power or scale of anomalies to the point where Popuri couldn't solve them by beating them up, then the human society that the god had painstakingly created would be destroyed. That would be quite undesirable for the Dreaming God who wanted to torment humans for as long as possible, step by step. So this is what it did. The trauma buried deepest within the girl called Popuri. A vulnerability that would tear apart her mental strength and render her utterly powerless. Conversely, if this could be resolved here, Popuri's narrative as an 'anomaly exterminator' would become even more perfect. Popuri's very existence would create cracks directly in the Dreaming God's laws and worldview, which would lead to the Dreaming God's weakening. Then there would be an opening for the waiting main body and Greater Demon to step in. "Well. If you don't want to, just ignoring it is also an option." Even knowing that, Pago—or perhaps someone beyond—spoke those words. "All the anomalies you've encountered so far were the type that would kill you or other humans the moment you left them alone. But this time it's not like that. So you don't have to force yourself to do something you don't want to do." At Pago's words, Popuri's eyes widened for a moment. "That's unexpected. I thought Pago would just tell me to shut up and charge in to smash everything." "Even I don't carelessly meddle in other people's family relationships." "But it's an anomaly?" "I'm a cat." The exchange was close to a frivolous joke in content. But that was enough to bring life back to Popuri's eyes that had been drooping somewhere. "...Alright! Let's go once. I'm not the same person I used to be." "Are you sure you'll be okay?" "My eyes have gotten stronger than before, right? I couldn't see through it before, but maybe this time I can." After declaring that, Popuri immediately sent a reply to her dad on her phone. Her dad must have been quite happy with Popuri's answer, as the phone's ringtone kept going off endlessly one after another. Popuri checked the contents with a bitter smile, then soon tilted her head in confusion. "...He's asking me to bring friends along while I'm at it?" "An impossible mission." "Wait, what do you mean by that?" "Friends is plural. That's why it's impossible." "I'm asking what you mean by that!!" "Then let's name them one by one. Hinosaka. Now, name the next friend." "......" "......Alright, let's stop here." Popuri silently tried to catch Pago, and Pago silently escaped over the wall onto the building rooftop. The 30-minute chase that even involved parkour was finally concluded with a compromise that included her part-time colleague Mr. Sato in the 'friend' category. *** A few days later. "Welcome, Popuri!" Popuri, who had arrived at her parents' house with Hinosaka and Sato, flinched from the very beginning. It wasn't cold enough for snow yet, but it was still weather that would make you shiver if you walked around outside without a jacket or coat. This was because her dad, whose nose tip had turned red as if he'd been waiting outside for at least ten minutes, maybe even dozens of minutes, greeted her brightly. "Why were you outside? The weather's cold too." "Huh? No, no. I just went to the convenience store to buy a lighter and cigarettes for a moment and happened to run into you at the right timing. Here, look." Dad held out the lighter and cigarettes as if to prove his point, but that thorough preparation and quick response was actually the most suspicious point. Just how much must he have missed seeing his daughter. Thinking of her dad who must have been waiting outside, shivering, just to shorten the less than one minute it would take to arrive at the front door, ring the doorbell, and enter the house, Popuri felt her stomach churn. And she hadn't even seen 'mom' yet. "Ah, you must be Popuri's friends? I've heard a lot about you!" Sato looked slightly flustered by the quite polite attitude and tone for dealing with his daughter's friends, but Hinosaka, whose sociability and friendliness were maxed out, answered immediately with a bright smile. "I'm Hinosaka Ai! I'm Popuri's friend! I've heard a lot about you two as well. I heard you really love fishing?" Huh? Popuri was stunned for a moment. She had never said such a thing. But at those words, Popuri's dad's complexion noticeably brightened. As if he was happy that his daughter remembered his hobby and told her friend about it. (E/N: I knew it! Hinosaka is an anomaly!) Pago on her shoulder whispered quietly. "She figured it out by looking at his wrists. When you fish often, things like arm guards and gloves leave tan marks on your wrists and ankles that look like knife cuts. Plus there are the calluses unique to fishermen." She's not even a detective, yet she immediately figured that out and applied it? While Popuri was dumbfounded, Sato, who had awakened from his stun, also politely bowed his head and held out the gift he had prepared, acting like the normal and sincere young man he was—except for his ghost moe hobby (Popuri being the culprit). "This is something my uncle asked me to give you. It's a convenience store gift set." "Oh my, you didn't have to do this. Thank you." After the warm greetings ended, a brief silence followed. Popuri didn't miss the faint tension and anxiety that lingered in her dad's expression. "Well then, shall we go in?" Popuri swallowed her breath for a moment. Then she carefully nodded her head. The door to the house opened, and Popuri's gaze met with the woman standing in the hallway in front of the door. The door to the house opened, and Popuri's gaze met with the woman standing in the hallway in front of the door. "......" "......" Silence flowed. Popuri stared at the woman while trying to suppress the chilling sensation climbing up her spine. The face of mom in her memories. Eyes without double eyelids, a slightly plump figure, and a high-pitched, cheerful voice. But the woman standing before her now completely missed all those characteristics. Deep double eyelids and narrow eyes, a thin and stern figure, and a heavy, sinking, low and calm voice. "You came... Popuri." Nevertheless, the woman's eyes alone were eerily identical to those of the 'mom' that Popuri remembered. The tenderness toward a daughter who had come home after a long time. The fear that if she approached, her daughter might get scared and run away again. The frustration of not knowing why her daughter was avoiding her. Those complex and affectionate emotions were fully evident in the woman's cautious attitude as she fidgeted with her hands anxiously. Popuri strained her eyes with all her might. She drew her spiritual power to its limit, trying to see through to the muddy essence of an anomaly hidden beneath that kind stranger's shell. If it was finally revealed to be an anomaly this time. If in the past she just couldn't see through it because her ability was insufficient, but it really was an anomaly after all. But. '......There's nothing.' There was nothing. There was no rippling evil aura, no unpleasant sense of something alien wearing human skin. If only her head had split open with tentacles bursting out, she could have at least swung her baseball bat refreshingly. "......Yes. I'm back." Popuri had no choice but to offer an awkward greeting with a stiffly hardened voice. Even that short and blunt greeting was enough to bring a relieved flush to the woman's—no, 'mom's'—face. "Y-yes. You came well. Isn't it very cold outside? Please come in quickly, friends. It's a humble place, but please make yourselves comfortable." "Excuse me! Thank you for inviting us, mother!" "Excuse me." Hinosaka took off her shoes and entered first with her characteristic cheerfulness, and Sato also followed behind her nervously. As they entered the living room, the house was already filled with smells no different from a feast. On the dining table, all kinds of dishes that Popuri had loved since childhood were carefully prepared, and delivery food like chicken and pizza was also added. It was clearly food prepared with great effort, but honestly speaking, Popuri only felt burdened. Fortunately, Hinosaka played the role of mood maker, and Sato also, as a fellow man, had various conversations with Popuri's dad, so awkward silence didn't flow. '...Ah. That's not it—he asked friends to come along because of that from the beginning.' At her dad's wisdom, Popuri almost unconsciously clapped her hands. If it had been just her and her parents at the dining table, she might have suffocated to death by now. Her parents seemed to have a lot they wanted to say about the cat casually tearing apart boneless chicken on Popuri's shoulder, but they just hesitated and couldn't say anything. 'This cat really doesn't even pretend to be ordinary anymore.' Thinking that, yet somehow feeling relaxed, Popuri said lightly. "He has unusual eating habits. I had him examined at the hospital and they said there was no problem." Of course it was a lie. But even just that was enough to make her parents look relieved. Perhaps they were relieved by the very fact that Popuri had attempted conversation with them. Popuri put food in her mouth while trying to act as natural as possible. It was delicious. It was the taste of memories. The perfect seasoning and cooking method that Popuri's real mom used to make when she was little matched without a single error. Even though it was food made by a woman with a strange face and strange voice. She felt like her stomach might feel sour, but each time Pago's front paws would press firmly on her temples or the back of her head, allowing her to stop thinking. Considering that Pago usually didn't bother to climb on her shoulder even during meals, it might have been Pago's way of encouragement. 'Pressing with front paws as encouragement. Ah, since he's a cat, this might be the most effective way.' Thinking that made it funny again, and Popuri snickered. Honestly, it's still awkward. It's still difficult to make eye contact with that 'mom.' But if she chatted with friends like this. If silence didn't come to the house. Maybe she could adapt someday. Thinking that, Popuri finished her meal, chatted, and after sending the two people back. She fell asleep in her parents' house, in her old room. And when she opened her eyes. "Popuri, come quickly! I'll make you food soon!" "Popuri, you mustn't trust her!! Don't go to the kitchen!!" [Popuri. I'll be home soon. I bought sushi so let's eat together.] —Popuri had fallen into hell. *** When she opened her eyes, she was standing in the house entrance, not on the bed. It was the same space where she had opened the door and entered just yesterday. Originally, Popuri had moved several times even after that incident, so both the location and form of the house were quite different from back then. But. Even so. Thak, thak, thak, thak. The bizarre sound of knife cuts at regular intervals coming from the first-floor kitchen. Clank, rattle. The sound of metal chains struggling, as if something was bound, coming from upstairs on the second floor. Bzzzz, bzzzz. The vibrating sound from the old phone clutched in her hand. Three choices. At least that basic structure was eerily identical. "Popuri, what are you doing? Aren't you coming in?" A sweet and sticky voice crawled up from the kitchen. "Popuri! You mustn't go there!! Come upstairs!!" A desperate and blood-boiling voice poured down from the second floor. [Popuri, there was an accident on the way, so I think I need to take a detour. Wait for me.] The text on the screen emitted a bluish light. She almost habitually gripped the baseball bat in her hand and felt around for the exorcism diary in her backpack. Fortunately it was there. But the most important thing was nowhere to be seen. "Pago? Pago, where are you? Pago!" Pago was nowhere to be seen. The one with white fur and blue and yellow eyes. That anomaly cat who always acts annoying but definitely helps when needed was nowhere to be seen. The moment she recognized that fact, Popuri's legs trembled. Her breath was choked, and her heart beat as if it would burst in her ears. Cold sweat flowed down her spine. Popuri bit her lip hard. Blood flowed out, and her mind cleared slightly with the pain. 'Don't get weak.' She repeated to herself. Pago will come. He's just separated for now. No, even if he's not here, she shouldn't rely only on Pago. She's not a child who can't do anything without Pago. Hadn't she experienced it during the monkey dream too? If there are anomalies, she just needs to beat them up. Popuri gripped the bat so hard that her fingers turned white. And she walked boldly toward the kitchen. Thunk, thunk, thunk, thunk. Rhythmic knife sounds were heard. Popuri looked at the cutting board. A kitchen knife was thudding down on the cutting board where a human arm was placed. 'It' turned around to look back. A monster with its mouth torn to its ears spoke. "Popuri! I just need to finish this. Come, sit over there." Popuri swung the bat. The solid duralumin bat that had already beaten countless anomalies struck the monster's head directly, spattering blood. The monster fell to the ground. Just as she was about to finish it off for sure, a scream came from behind her. "Honey!!" Popuri reflexively turned around. Dad was screaming with an expression she had never seen before. He was reaching out his hand and rushing forward desperately toward the anomaly that had just been beaten by Popuri. 'Honey?' Popuri frowned at that term of address. It felt like she had heard something she absolutely shouldn't have heard. Why this monster. With such an expression. "Huh?" Popuri looked at the monster again. She looked at the place where the monster had been. She saw something that had been beaten by Popuri just now, bleeding profusely, with tears flowing from unfocused eyes. She saw 'mom.' Ahahahahahahahahahahaha From somewhere in that sky. Malice laughed mockingly.