My daily life of exorcising demons and falling in love with a witch.

"Yes. I know."

The young lady lowered her head and remained silent for a long time before speaking softly again with a dejected expression.

"I just felt that she was a girl who was about to enter high school, the same age as me... and she died before the start of the school year."

"……Um."

Yixing wanted to say something, but in the end he couldn't bring himself to say it.

He felt bad about it.

Fortunately, the heavy atmosphere dissipated quickly.

Erina quickly regained her composure and continued eating while excitedly discussing their next plans with Yoshiyuki.

"Yoshiki! There's only a little over a week left before school starts! We need to catch the culprit quickly so we can explore all of Tokyo!"

"Uh, Miss, I think it's more like you're saying you've explored all of high school in those three years. With only a few days, you can probably only rush through the famous tourist attractions, and the experience won't be very good."

"Alright, let's settle for second best then! Let's explore all of Akihabara!" Erina excitedly pulled out her phone, opened the Akihabara map, and pointed out dozens of marked locations to Yoshiyuki: "Today, we'll visit these places! I marked them last night!"

"You really did make a detailed travel plan," Yoshiyuki remarked, glancing at the locations she had marked. "If we were to visit everything, a whole day would be gone. We'd be lucky to see half... Hmm? Why is there a different colored marker outside Akihabara?"

"Ah, that's the headquarters of the Kuroba School, the Kuroba Shrine. I found it on Google and marked it here so I wouldn't forget. It's too far, I don't plan to go there for now. I'm thinking of visiting sometime to say hello and express my gratitude for their care."

"It's rare to see such thoughtfulness from Miss." Yixing nodded in approval.

The Kuroba ninjas have historically assisted the Yoda family on numerous occasions, protecting the Yomi Shrine Maiden. They have made many sacrifices in this endeavor.

The first Yomi Shrine Maiden was able to successfully sacrifice herself to seal the Gate of Yomi and reseal the Hades King Izanami back to the Underworld, thanks not only to the protection of the first Maekawa, but also to the help of Kuroba Ninja and others.

Otherwise, she certainly wouldn't have survived that long journey across the entire Japanese archipelago.

Later, the Kuroba ninjas worked together with the Yoda family to quell many crises.

Until a hundred years ago, the Yoda family found a way to maintain the seal of the Gate of the Underworld within the village, eliminating the need for the Kuroba ninjas to escort the Underworld priestess to various parts of Japan for ceremonies. As a result, the cooperative relationship between the two families became less close, but they still maintained a good relationship.

Because of this history, Erina actually has a very good impression of the Kuroba school.

However, this didn't stop her from muttering in dissatisfaction, "Hmph, I already know what Grandpa told them! He must have said I was too restless and wanted them to keep a close eye on me! Even with Yixing around, why aren't they at ease?!"

As the young lady spoke, Yixing couldn't help but let his mind wander.

Maybe they're spying on me to prevent me from having anything happen with the young lady.

That doesn't seem right either. Judging from the decoration of the young lady's bedroom, it's almost as if it's hinting that something is going to happen... Even the bathtub is big enough for two people to soak in together.

Uh, could it be that your uncle and aunt specifically instructed you to do this?

No, no, it can't be that bad... Yoshiyuki immediately banished this absurd thought from his mind: Erina's parents were only satisfied with him as a servant and playmate, how could they have any other thoughts?

It must be just a coincidence!

Only by repeatedly emphasizing this point to himself could Yi Xing calm down.

"Speaking of which, it seems the Kuroba-ryu originally relied on running dojos to teach martial arts and collecting rent to sustain the organization, right?" Yoshiyuki poured the young lady another glass of chilled banana milk and said, "Is it because they're not satisfied with that now that they've started expanding their business as a yakuza group?"

"Oh, probably. Not many people go to their dojo to learn ninjutsu. Not just anyone can learn it. Besides, they only teach the melee combat part; they don't want to pass on any knowledge related to magic."

Erina finished the last sip of banana milk, excitedly wiped her mouth, and made this suggestion.

"Anyway, let's get going! First, let's go downstairs to the shop and ask the Black Feather Group! See if they can give us any clues about the case!"

Yixing was deeply gratified to see that the young lady was so energetic.

So he quickly stuffed his breakfast into his stomach and accompanied the young lady downstairs.

There are several shops on the first floor of this apartment building.

Erina originally wanted to go into a drugstore, but Yoshiyuki suggested that if they wanted to ask for information, it would be better to go to a place like a coffee shop.

"Hmm! That makes sense." Erina rested her chin on her hand and said in a deliberately profound tone, "The receptionists at these kinds of shops usually know a lot. Just slip them a generous tip, and they'll tell you everything you want to know."

"Since it's run by the Black Feather Group, I think we can skip this step entirely."

As Yixing spoke, he looked up at the sign that read "Black Forest Cafe" and then glanced at the small wooden sign hanging on the door.

It says "Open for Business" on it.

So he walked ahead of the young lady and pushed open the door to enter.

The café is decorated in a very cozy style, with an overall dark brown color scheme, warm lighting, and upbeat Western music playing.

It gives people a very comfortable first impression.

There are already a few guests here.

Some sat at the single seats at the front desk, while others took their seats at the wooden square tables, chatting quietly and enjoying their coffee and desserts.

Two of the guests stood out.

They were two white-haired girls dressed as maids.

One person was eating the last few pieces of cake while laughing and talking, while the other listened casually while playing on their phone, occasionally giving a perfunctory "hmm."

Yixing's attention quickly shifted to the two men's weapons.

A man carrying a black, exquisitely ornate sword-spear on his back.

The other had two revolvers tucked into his waistband. They were also covered in beautiful patterns.

Is this cosplay? Or is it a real weapon?

Yi Xing had some doubts in his heart.

If he encountered it elsewhere in Akihabara, he would most likely think it was fake. After all, the weapon was too flashy and looked like something a cosplayer who frequents the area would carry.

But this is ninja territory, so it wouldn't be surprising if it were true.

At that moment, Yixing suddenly felt a soft and smooth touch—it was the young lady's petite body.

She stayed close to Yixing and took his arm.

He didn't realize it at first, wondering why the young lady would suddenly do this.

Then he realized that it was probably because he had glanced at other women a couple of times.

Erina was reminding him who he should focus his attention on.