"What's wrong, Yu-kun? Is your neck uncomfortable? Do you want Hanawa to give you a massage?"
After finishing her lunch, Hanawa Amakawa took out a handkerchief. Her voluptuous body pressed close to Ho Fei-yu's arm. She raised her hand and gently and meticulously wiped away the food residue around the boy's mouth.
She noticed he kept twisting his neck subtly. Thinking Ho Fei-yu was unwell, she paused her hand movements and looked at him with worried, amethyst-like eyes.
Hearing this, Yūshin Aonoi also put down her chopsticks and turned her head, looking at Ho Fei-yu with equal concern, awaiting his answer.
"No need, it's not a big problem."
Feeling the genuine care from the two girls, Ho Fei-yu shook his head, signaling that he was fine.
"Oh, Yu-kun, your neck is so cold."
Although Ho Fei-yu said he was okay, Hanawa Amakawa still got up and stood behind him, reaching out to give the boy a neck massage. Sometimes during summer vacation, when she was bored at home, she would learn new things online to enrich herself and also to help Ho Fei-yu.
The moment her fingertips touched the boy's neck, a chill rushed to her heart, making Hanawa Amakawa gasp.
"It really is cold! Fei-yu-kun, did you get rained on this morning?"
Yūshin Aonoi reached out and came to the same conclusion as Hanawa Amakawa.
"No."
"Then why?"
Yūshin Aonoi looked at Hanawa Amakawa, who shook her head, utterly confused.
"I probably caught a chill last night. It'll be fine soon."
Ho Fei-yu casually made up an excuse to appease them. He couldn't possibly tell the girls that this classroom was strange, that there was a ghost or something similar present.
What if he scared them? Yūshin Aonoi was already a bit simple-minded; if she were genuinely scared into a permanent daze, wouldn't he be stuck with her for life?
Hearing Ho Fei-yu's explanation, Yūshin Aonoi nodded blankly. Hanawa Amakawa, however, thought of something, her face turning red as she gave Ho Fei-yu a chiding look.
"Yu-kun, you're naughty!"
Last night, the girl had turned into a Water Child, gushing water repeatedly and soaking Ho Fei-yu's face several times. Now, hearing the boy mention it, she subconsciously misunderstood, and felt deeply shy, especially in front of Yūshin Aonoi.
She usually only talked about Ho Fei-yu's performance to Yūshin Aonoi, rarely mentioning her own.
"Hehe."
Ho Fei-yu gave a silly laugh. It was good that the girls' attention was diverted.
Ho Fei-yu wasn't entirely sure if this classroom was truly abnormal, as everything was just a guess. But it didn't matter. Class would start soon, and once he left, he would never come back to this place.
If you can't deal with it, can't you at least hide from it?
"Yu-kun, come here~"
Just as Ho Fei-yu was thinking, Hanawa Amakawa's clear voice softly sounded in his ear. Looking up, the girl was smiling as she patted her plump, fair thigh.
"Ahem... ahem, wouldn't that be improper?"
Ho Fei-yu understood Hanawa Amakawa's intention perfectly. Though his mouth expressed refusal, his body was honest and promptly lay down, resting his head on the thigh, which was softer and more comfortable than a velvet pillow. If Yūshin Aonoi hadn't been there, he would have rolled over and taken big, deep breaths of the girl's leg scent.
"You idiot big radish, you're comfortable now, but what about me!?"
The inexplicable voice sounded again. This time, Ho Fei-yu heard it clearly. It wasn't an auditory hallucution; it was a slightly mischievous female voice.
But Ho Fei-yu didn't react. Instead, he closed his eyes, pretending not to have heard anything. He was now certain that this classroom was indeed abnormal, guessing that a ghost-like entity was present. However, it didn't seem powerful, not as terrifying as Sadako or Kayako from his previous life, or it would have harmed them already.
But it didn't rule out the possibility of a cat playing with a mouse before the kill.
Hanawa Amakawa gently massaged Ho Fei-yu's temples, while subtly giving a look to Yūshin Aonoi, who was staring blankly at Ho Fei-yu.
Yūshin Aonoi recovered, her pretty face flushed. She understood Hanawa Amakawa's intentions, so she slowly scooted her bottom closer to Ho Fei-yu. Feeling close enough, she reached out, pulled up his pant leg, and placed the boy's foot on her thigh. Her rosy, soft hands clenched into fists, and she began awkwardly massaging his calf.
The moment Yūshin Aonoi touched his pant leg, Ho Fei-yu sharply opened his eyes. He thought the ghost had made a move, but it turned out to be the girl. Sensing her intention, he quickly wanted to refuse. After all, his feet were the least clean part of him, and he didn't want to dirty the girl. But Yūshin Aonoi was insistent, so he relented.
Ho Fei-yu claimed not to be afraid of ghosts, but he was actually still worried because he had no means of dealing with them. Although the voice sounded harmless, like a playful little girl, who knew if it was genuine?
As for why he didn't just take the two girls and leave, he was afraid of provoking the ghost.
It hadn't shown any hostility at first. If he dragged the two girls away, and the ghost got angry and went wild, it would be troublesome. It was better to play along.
"By the way, Yu-kun, what is this classroom number?"
Hanawa Amakawa asked suddenly while massaging Ho Fei-yu and looking at the graffiti-covered blackboard.
"Classroom number? 1st Year Class 4. Why?"
Ho Fei-yu didn't know why Hanawa Amakawa was asking this, but he answered after thinking for a moment.
"1st Year Class 4... This is... the first floor... Oh no."
Hanawa Amakawa pondered for a moment, her voice suddenly becoming alarmed. She stopped massaging and anxiously rubbed Ho Fei-yu's cheek with her soft hand.
"Is there a problem, Hanawa-oneesan?"
Yūshin Aonoi looked at Hanawa Amakawa in confusion.
"I used to be in the Film Research Club. In the afternoons, we often organized movie viewings. All sorts of genres. Once, after a horror movie, some club members, still excited, started talking about the strange tales circulating in our school."
"R-really?"
Yūshin Aonoi trembled and clung to Ho Fei-yu's leg, squeezing herself closer.
Stories of ghosts and monsters were frightening enough, let alone those happening in their own school environment.
Ho Fei-yu also became interested. Perhaps what Hanawa Amakawa was saying now might be related to the voice he heard, and he might find a way to solve the situation.
"Mhm... the story is roughly this."
"A girl who had just enrolled was looked down upon and ostracized by some people in her class because she was small, looking like a middle schooler. Until one boy treated her like any ordinary person. Over time, the girl realized she had fallen in love with him."
"So the girl wrote a love letter, planning to confess her feelings to the boy she liked in the classroom after school. The girl quietly waited for the boy, watching the colorful sunset."
"When the door was pushed open, the girl, who thought it was the boy, was overjoyed. But she didn't expect it to be one of her class's portly, middle-aged teachers."
"Afraid of being discovered by the teacher, the girl covered up and tightly held the love letter, hiding it. But the teacher, who had been observing her for a long time, told the girl that he liked small, delicate girls like her; they were more fun to play with. The teacher expressed his affection, offering to keep her and make her his secret mistress. Aside from the fact that the girl already had someone she liked, even if she didn't, she wouldn't ruin someone else's family, so she resolutely refused."
"But the teacher, seeing that there was no one around—he had actually sent the boy away—developed malicious intent and tried to force himself upon the girl. However, the girl was strong-willed and kept resisting. The enraged teacher slapped her, and the girl accidentally hit the wall and died."
"Bright red blood flowed down the girl's body, staining the love letter she tightly held crimson, turning it into a blood letter."
"Afraid the matter would be exposed, the teacher dragged the girl into the school's abandoned toilet, brutally dismembered her with a knife, and buried her in the wall. It wasn't until the stench became impossible to conceal that she was finally discovered, and the teacher was arrested by the police."
"However,"
"B-but what?"
Yūshin Aonoi swallowed hard, asking fearfully.
"However, the police found the love letter in the girl's hand. Even after a long time, it hadn't rotted at all, and the bloodstains hadn't disappeared."
"And people often heard terrifying voices coming from that toilet when they passed by, but when they went inside, there was nothing but dirty traces. Some people even claimed to have witnessed the love letter appear in the school. It is said that anyone who sees the letter will have bad luck for several days. The story slowly spread, becoming a strange tale of our school. Some call it Hanako of the Toilet, and others call it the Blood-Colored Love Letter."