I'm in Teresin, dedicated to playing badly

After all, it would be a bit difficult for someone to join the team if he went alone, but if he brought Eclipse along, it would be easy to squeeze someone in in no time.

Then, as he walked, in order to avoid being noticed, Shinji Kitahara walked into a shady area where there were hardly any people.

This is a place where Alice used to frequent. Although she is currently staying in his dormitory, not everyone knows that.

And even if they know she's in his dorm and not planning to come out anytime soon, other people probably won't want to come this way either.

After all, a wise man avoids dangerous situations. Since you can avoid her, why deliberately risk your life?

This gave Shinji Kitahara a private space where he could enjoy his activities without being disturbed by others.

What a rare moment of peace...

As he strolled slowly through the shade of the trees, Shinji Kitahara recalled the chaotic events that had occurred in the past, feeling rather helpless.

Fortunately, although the situations were critical on several occasions, he eventually overcame those difficulties through his own efforts. Although they had more contact, their relationship remained normal.

Sometimes I still feel a lot of pressure.

Especially because of the recent training camp, his house is now filled with the scent of horse girls, and with all sorts of people running around in their pajamas from time to time, the pressure on him is increasing day by day.

If he hadn't been relieving stress through exercise, along with some techniques he had previously developed for reducing the buildup of desire through acupressure, the situation probably wouldn't have been so awkward.

He had considered ways to vent his desires, but the problem was that Ma Niang's nose was right there in front of him.

He'd barely finished venting his anger when all the women in the house could smell it. At that point, it wouldn't just be embarrassing to explain it away.

But after walking in the shade for a while and feeling the long-lost tranquility, Shinji Kitahara was surprised to find that the distracting thoughts in his mind were slowly fading away, and his mental fatigue was also relieved.

This place is really nice.

He rubbed his chin and began to think seriously.

Anyway, he's not afraid of Alice, so if he has time in the future, he can come here alone for a walk and calm his mind...

As he thought this, he walked through the shade of the trees.

After walking for a while, he reached the depths of the greenery and spotted a slightly strange-looking figure from behind.

Black ears, long black hair, black trench coat, black stockings—she was dressed entirely in black from head to toe.

Hmm? The Eclipse came looking for him?

Shinji Kitahara paused for a moment, then quickly realized that this person was probably not Eclipse.

Although both are dressed in black and their backs are somewhat similar, there are many differences between them in terms of clothing style and details, as well as posture, height, temperament, and other aspects.

Others might not be able to tell the difference, but for someone who has been with solar eclipses since childhood, it's quite easy for him to distinguish them.

If the possibility of a solar eclipse is ruled out, Shinji Kitahara quickly confirmed the identity of the person in front of him.

Manchester City Tea House.

Eliseko's few friends and guinea pigs used for drug testing.

Like Alice, this person is also a well-known eccentric at Treson Academy, and the reason for her eccentricity is even more mysterious than Alice's.

Simply put, she can see things that others cannot, and she has a 'friend' that others cannot see.

Ghosts? Spirits? Or something else entirely?

Shinji Kitahara was unaware of this, only knowing that such a thing was too lethal to young girls, which resulted in him having few friends at the Manchester Tea House, and in the end, he could only end up befriending Frankenstein's monster.

Thinking of this, Shinji Kitahara suddenly realized something.

Wait a minute, if she doesn't have any friends at the Manchester tea house, then it seems like Alice has no one to talk to after she moved in with him...

Although it's not a person's 'friend', there is one.

So is she here looking for Alice?

Shinji Kitahara stroked his chin and thought for a while, deciding that this was the most likely option.

To be honest, although Chaza isn't exactly a dangerous stallion girl, Shinji Kitahara doesn't really want to get involved with stallion girls who have a mysterious side.

But looking at her lonely and forlorn figure, and thinking that she might have lost her only decent friend because of me, and that she could only wait and pray here alone for her friend to appear, my conscience began to ache.

Moreover, according to Alice's description, because of the existence of 'friends', no trainer is willing or dares to take over the Manchester City Tea House, since most people are still afraid of ghosts.

Therefore, the Manchester City tea house has only ever been affiliated with a team; it has no actual trainers, teammates, or friends.

As for the trainers' work, it was also handled by that 'friend,' who was said to be quite skilled.

The problem is, no matter how responsible a 'friend' is, she is not a real, material entity; she can only ever be a 'friend,' not a true friend.

So, looking at that lonely figure in front of him, Shinji Kitahara hesitated for a long time before finally giving in and taking a step.

He didn't intend to develop a relationship with the tea house owner or become her new friend.

He was just thinking that if she was really lonely, he would tell her where Eliseko was now, and she could go there to visit her when she had free time.

He would only be responsible for making the connection this time, and would not have any further contact with her to ensure that their relationship remained within a safe range.

As for 'friends'?

Shinji Kitahara wasn't too worried about this.

After all, while the term "friend" might be a bit strange, I've never heard of a "friend" ever harming anyone.

Moreover, he now has two powerful figures in his room, Necha and Ali Digital, who are far more terrifying than 'friends' in some ways.

So he moved closer to the black-clad figure and took the initiative to greet him.

"Manchester Tea House classmate, are you looking for Alice?"

The black-clad figure twitched its ears, but did not turn around or reply.

Huh? Didn't you hear me? Could you have mistaken me for someone else?

Kitahara Shinji was a little confused, so he moved a little closer.

Hearing footsteps behind her, 'Manchester Tea House' finally realized that the person behind her seemed to be talking to her, and turned around with some confusion and surprise.

"You were talking to me just now?"

Black hair, golden eyes, and a white ahoge (cowlick) on his head—exactly the same as the Manchester tea house in Kitahara Shinji's memory.

It's definitely the Manchester Tea House.

After confirming the other person's identity, Shinji Kitahara thought for a moment and figured that the other person might have this doubt because they had never seen him before, so he took the initiative to introduce himself.

"Sorry, I haven't introduced myself yet. I'm Hayate's trainer, my name is Kitahara Shinji..."

But before he could finish speaking, the person at the 'Manchester Tea House' across from him interrupted him again, pointing at himself with a very strange expression.

"Let me confirm one more time, are you... talking to me?"

"Is there someone else here?"

Shinji Kitahara looked puzzled.

This guy at the teahouse seems a bit off; could he have been drugged and driven mad by Alice...?

Ok?

As the breeze blew and the green foliage began to sway, Shinji Kitahara suddenly noticed something strange.

That is, this 'Manchester Tea House', she...

It seems there is no shadow.

The breeze blows.

Even though it's already summer, for some reason, a cool breeze seems to emanate from the lush greenery.

Shinji Kitahara realized what was happening.

The person in front of her wasn't the Manchester Tea House at all, but rather the invisible 'friend' from the Manchester Tea House who looked exactly like her!

Moreover, the very next second, the horse girl who ran out from the other side of the green shade and looked exactly like the shadowless 'Manchester Tea House' in front of him proved his guess to be correct.

"Did they mistake me for a tea shop customer? Well, they certainly do, after all, we look exactly alike..."

The 'friend' rested his chin on his hand, his golden eyes scrutinizing the man before him with interest, a smile with a hint of something inexplicable appearing on his face.

Besides the teahouse, is there anyone else who can see me...?

However, she couldn't maintain this state for more than a few seconds before she noticed that Shinji Kitahara's expression had suddenly changed.

Serious, earnest, curious...

"Can I touch you?"

Shinji Kitahara's eyes were serious, and his thirst for knowledge was burning like a raging fire.

This is a ghost! A living ghost!

It's still the ghost of the horse girl!

Although Shinji Kitahara's trainer abilities are already ridiculously strong, he has never stopped learning and researching because it is his passion.

But it is precisely because of this that he has increasingly realized that although he can still make continuous research and progress, the rate of progress is far less than before.

Moreover, the research usually only involves making connections between similar things, rather than making progress on the original basis.

Or, to put it more simply, he has hit a bottleneck.

The problem is that his ability in this area has reached an unprecedented level, and there is no trainer in the world who can provide him with guidance in this regard.

He wasn't the type to stubbornly persist, and after trying for a while without being able to break through the bottleneck, he gave up and started to make up for his shortcomings in other areas.

But now, looking at the living ghost in front of him, Shinji Kitahara felt that he might have encountered another opportunity to break through.

He had struggled with the limits of his physical and material life, but the appearance of this 'friend' showed him a new path.

That's transcendence, spiritual ascension... I mean, training of the soul.

Shinji Kitahara is a materialist, but since 'friends' exist, it proves that there are indeed some objectively existing things in this world that are just invisible to the naked eye.

Although I don't know why I can see such things, it is undoubtedly an opportunity.

And opportunities should be seized.

So he asked his 'friend' for permission to get in touch, and his gaze toward her grew increasingly intense.

The 'friend's' smile froze slightly.

From the time she became conscious until now, she has always been the one scaring others; this is the first time she has been frightened.

Could this person be some kind of weirdo with a strange sex drive...?

The 'friend' couldn't help but mutter to himself, but he didn't refuse Shinji Kitahara's request.

After shrugging, he indicated that he was free to do as he pleased, and his face still showed a relaxed expression.

After all, so far, let alone encountering her, the only person who has even seen her is Manchester Tea House. It's already quite remarkable that this person has been able to see her.

As for running into her, that's impossible. She's never been seen even once since she was born. Even at the teahouse, she's the only one who ever saw her. So it's even more impossible for her to run into someone like that...?

Warmth, a real feeling.

As the finger pressed down, the 'friend's' shoulder sank slightly.

Her expression froze.

The Manchester tea shop staff who had just arrived behind her also froze.

Only Shinji Kitahara's expression continued to change, from fervent to surprised, then thoughtful, and finally to puzzled.

Strange, is this the touch of the soul...?

The texture is indeed very different from that of the horse girl, but why does it feel so familiar? It's like I've encountered it somewhere before...

Shinji Kitahara fell into deep thought, and a pure white figure slowly appeared in his mind.

He didn't know her name or her identity, and they had never communicated. But when he was a homeless man, he always encountered her in various places and under various circumstances.

He didn't remember this horse girl being in the game either.

If I had to say, she looks a bit like Kiryuin's little white horse; both are dressed in white, but her hair is longer and her eyes are pinkish-purple.

Out of curiosity, he also spoke with her a few times, trying to figure out whether she was just running into him by chance, or if she was paying attention to his movements like her senior, Ma Niang, and whether she wanted his help with something.

But she didn't answer anything. She just reached out and touched his face, her pale purple eyes shimmering with an inexplicable light.

The sensation back then was extremely similar to how he touches his 'friend' now.

There was no temperature, no physical sensation, but I did feel that I had 'touched' something.