1 Spring Has Passed

~~~PART 1~~~

I could hear the cicadas singing

I could feel the sun's rays hitting my skin with potent heat.

I could see the clear blue sky, absent of any clouds looming above.

Spring has passed.

The season of new opportunities, romance, of graduation is over.

Many of us move on to a new start. A lot of people were having new lives. Those who were in their 3rd year of high school just a few months back were now gone from their usual school life.

A new beginning was happening to me as well. But not because I've graduated, or that I've found the love of my life. No, not quite.

I and my dad had left the city. Dad insisted on going back to his old town somewhere deep in the country up north. It's a village surrounded by tall mountains.

The reason is that my grandmother has been ill, and dad was shocked to hear the news. The illness isn't clear but she was sent to the nearby hospital.

Dad still had trauma over his mother's and grandfather's death, so this time he wants to be close to his few remaining family members as much as he can.

My dad's sister, my aunt, was already there taking care of my grandmother. But he wanted to be present just in case. We would move into the childhood house that my dad and aunt used to live in, and I would transfer schools there.

Fortunately, dad has previous connections with business and store owners over there, so jobs weren't a problem

What was a problem, however, was my assimilating to the cultural lifestyle there.

I traveled there a long time ago as a small kid, but those were just small visits over the course of a few days and I barely remember anything from that time.

But now, we're living there for... Until my father decides to move back. And only gods know how long when he's that overprotective.

June 27th, the beginning of summer.

We arrived at the peak of the afternoon. My school cap was just barely protecting my eyes from sun rays as I took my first step from the truck after hours' worth of driving.

Dad called out to me from the other side in a hurry.

"Izumi! Quickly help me unload the luggage from the truck."

We rented a truck so we could move in faster to waste no precious time. We've arrived in front of the house we would be living in for the next few years, or months.

It was a medium-sized, one-story old-styled Japanese house that seemed to be renovated rather recently. With a small front garden Filled with flower pots and a clean back area from where I can see.

I do say, I had to admire the architecture of old-style houses. They're definitely eye candy for those who took more than 5 seconds to look at them.

"Yo, Hideoshi! Long time no see."

My aunt shortly after went out of the front door to greet her brother she hadn't seen in such a long time.

"You're really hurrying it with unpacking huh? Couldn't you take it a little easier? You just arrived, you know?"

"Sorry, but I can't waste any more time than I already have with the traffic jam on our way here."

She let out a huge sigh as if she expected this kind of behavior and is already used to it. But she smiled and was relieved to see her brother doing well.

"Hey, how do you do Izumi? The last time I saw you, you were barely taller than my knees. Now you're taller than even me!"

She turned around and greeted me. I was still spaced out admiring the house but I turned to her with a smile.

"Ah, good afternoon! I hope I won't be a bother living together..."

"Hey, since you're here, hurry and help us out."

I tried replying back to the greeting when my dad immediately ordered Aunt to assist him with his labor. But surprisingly, she didn't seem annoyed. Aunt only nodded as if saying

"Yes, yes I'll be there, Hideoshi."

Dad, you didn't have to tell her that. And what a way to treat your little sister like that after not meeting her in so long. If I had a sibling I would at least greet them back when they called me.

But alas, we finished the moving process by only placing all the boxes inside, including all of our items and valuables into the new house, and picking the new rooms for us to accommodate in.

Grandma was at the local hospital, just a bit out of town. We all visited her together, and my dad was especially eager to see her, constantly tapping his feet on our ride there and muttering something to himself.

But when we arrived, she didn't look bad from the outside. She sat neatly and smiled back as well as offered us tea for the long journey.

That didn't make dad any less worried though, as he stayed there for longer with which me, and Aunt had to go home ourselves to take care of the house.

When we arrived back, it was already dark out. Despite being summer, the village was surrounded by mountains, so the sun set faster than in areas with flatter terrains.

I spent the rest of the evening cleaning and organizing my new room, helping Aunt make dinner afterward.

The room is a little smaller than my room in the city, but I managed with my humble collection of books and a computer on a tiny desk.

Dad ended up coming home late, bringing with him a bottle of local sake that he hugged tightly, and an expression clearly not favorable to the cheerful atmosphere of summer.

Turns out the first thing he did was go to the local pub nearby to vent his worries, so we let him sober up for a few minutes before having dinner and a warm relaxing bath.

Afterward, I decided to lie down in my new room to digest my new surroundings.

It was a lot colder, as is inevitable when you're on a higher altitude plain, and the sound of insects singing loudly made me really sleepy.

It's peaceful.

It's pleasant.

...

I wonder what my school would be like?

~~~PART 2~~~

My back hurts.

It's been a long time since I've felt like my spine has dislocated into 9 different places. The culprit for this inconvenience was the shady mattress I was sleeping on.

I didn't want to bad mouth my hosts but man I gotta get a better one soon.

As a result of my posture being in the worst shape it has been, I got up early even if I wanted to or not. As I squinted my eyes to a new day, yawning and stumbling all the way to the kitchen, I was greeted by the delicious smell of fish for breakfast.

"Good morning... it smells lovely in here"

Aunt was cooking for today, busy managing the stove and pots meanwhile dad was nowhere to be seen.

"Ah, good morning Izumi. I didn't think you would be up this early on weekends. Do you usually get up at this hour in the city?"

"Oh no, it was just that the birds were really loud so I had no choice but to open my eyes and start the day."

"Ha ha ha! Well, just a few things you have to get used to!"

She laughed happily at the excuse I made up on the spot. I didn't want to make her feel bad with the less than the delightful sleeping mattress so I pretend it was water under the bridge.

"Anyway, where's dad?"

"Oh, he drank too much last night so I couldn't wake him up no matter what I tried. And to think he was supposed to have an interview in a few hours as well..."

Today was Sunday, so usually, everyone would be on break and relaxed. But dad himself insisted on getting this interview underway as quickly as possible. Is he really gonna make his client wait and waste their time because of his own selfishness I wonder?

"I didn't get a chance to explore much of town yesterday, so I'm gonna head out once I finish breakfast."

"Alright then, here you go."

She placed down the plate for my meal as I took my seat.

For a town so enclosed in the mountains, I didn't expect the fish to be really fresh. Not to mention Aunt was a good cook as well which makes things a bonus.

I offered my thanks after finishing the well-prepared meal and got changed to head out for the day.

I didn't really have a plan, mostly just wanted to go around looking at the cool places as well as the locations for the convenience store, vending machines, etc

As I opened the door I stepped outside for the first time. I was immediately reminded of my current location. Unlike the city where it's mostly just houses and buildings on flat terrain. However, the mountains tend to be very windy.

Because of that, despite being the beginning of summer, it was rather chilly outside. It wasn't enough to warrant wearing a jacket, but wearing thick clothes sure would be nice. That is if I packed some from home. For now, I have to bear the consequences of my laziness.

Nevertheless, I could see the sun just looming above the nearby mountains, its rays gazing down upon this land as if blessing it with heat. These sights aren't seen in a lot of places, making this place somewhat unique and really cool.

I walked through the quiet streets. I could hear other families getting ready in the morning, and shoes hitting the asphalt below doing morning chores. Lots of the buildings were wooden and moderate, but that just gives the perfect atmosphere of an old-style village.

I greeted more and more locals as I walked on, I soon made it to the town center where the markets were opening and people were busy preparing to sell their goods.

So far I haven't seen a convenience store, but I have spotted a general market store that sells day-to-day necessities. And like other buildings here, they're old-fashioned. To be honest I'm happier with it as it fits more to this town.

Feeling like I'm running out of options, I decided to head there to buy a drink instead. My thirst could no longer be ignored after walking this much.

"..."

...? I could've sworn I saw the gaze of someone looking intently, directly towards my way.

There's no way that's true, I'm just imagining it.

I ended up turning my head left and right to find the source of this sensation just to relieve my slightest bit of suspicion, but it only made me look like an idiot.

"... ho..."

... Am I hearing something?

I hadn't even entered the store when I heard something new. And this time I couldn't tell where it was from.

My head stood motionless, Trying to hold back the urge to look around and look like an idiot again. That was until...

"Hey,"

I jumped.

The sound of a girl around my age patting my back with her entire palm was heard. I didn't hear any footsteps whatsoever, yet she was so close I could feel her breath.

"h-huh, wha-what?"

I recoiled and turned around.

"Here, come with me for a sec."

"W-who, me?"

"Who else would I be talking to? Now hurry up before you block the entrance for other customers."

I was being forcefully dragged by the arm of this girl. She was slightly shorter than me, had short black hair, wore sunglasses with thin arms and rims you see from 1960s America for some reason, and had a brown flat cap complimented with a brown coat without wearing the sleeves. Which makes it just dangle from her shoulders lifelessly like a cape.

"Hey, where are you taking me!"

We already walked a few meters from the store into a small street with no one present. I forcefully let go of my arm, sliding it away as further away as I can from her.

"Ah come on, we've only walked this far, maybe I should have grabbed your collar instead..."

"Whoa, hey knock it off!"

She approached again when I parried her futile attempts

"Sigh... No helping it then, I wasn't being serious anyway. So, who are you? I haven't seen you around town before."

In the era of common sense, it is assumed that someone who approached you first or wanted to greet you first shall give their name before the listener.

"I should be asking you that, and anyway, I don't have time to play with you. I'll be walking elsewhere."

"Hold on a moment"

I was too careless to leave my back open as she immediately grabbed my collar as soon as I turned my back on her. Nearly choking from my own saliva

"I thought you were joking?!"

"I need your help"

I coughed a little

"huh? You've dragged me to this deserted place and asked for my name before giving yours, why should I help you? If you were to greet me like a normal person, I would have considered it."

"Oh but you didn't have time, you said. And don't worry about it, if you don't want to do it now I can just follow you for the rest of your day and ask you later."

"... I'm calling the police"

"And I have your cell phone right here."

What?

"H-how did you-"

"So help me."

She said as a huge innocent smile was drawn on her face.

"I thought I had to get your fingerprint for this but turns out you didn't even have a lock on it. tsk, tsk, tsk, how careless. I wonder what's in your gallery..."

"Give me that!"

I lunged toward her, nearly tackling her in the process and even falling into the dirty asphalt, but she simply dodges out of the way elegantly.

"Hey now, you don't have to flop to the floor for that, just accept my call for help and you won't have dirt on your face again."

"SOMEONE HE-"

Trying to yell for help doesn't work either, it seems. My panic made me forget that you can simply cover someone's mouth to block noise. She lets go shortly after to state her case.

"Don't be so loud now, I just need your assistance for a bit. You don't want to cause a scene on your first day in this town do you?"

The demon in human clothing swayed my phone left and right as if taunting my prized possession with a smug on her face.

"Let's see here... ah! your name's Izumi Satori, you live in..."

I lunged again.

And I flopped again.

"Hey, hey, that last part was just a joke, take it easy. I just needed your name, that's all."

Then why didn't you just ask me for it?!

I didn't have the energy in me and was simply too exhausted to keep up with her randomness, so I simply gave up and went along with her games.

"Fine, I just need to help you with your little errand right? Make it quick. I don't want to worry my parents if I get home too late."

"Atta boy, now don't forget I have your personal information as well as close contacts with your family and friends, and not to mention your address and all the weird things you keep in your gallery, all in the palm of my hands. Nice to meet you."

"..."

Another innocent smile was drawn yet again on her face. Her smile was reflecting the bright, cheery sun looming just above us. Her face and personality don't match at all I tell you.

What did I get myself into?

~~~PART 3~~~

A, B, C, or D.

Any student would know what those letters represent. Those were the letters that determined our results for an exam. And rumor has it that some school has the choices up to E

The one and only way to be sure of your answer are to study. But that's not available with the situation I'm in right now!

My opponent wasn't a worksheet, nor does it have anything to do with school itself! The multiple choices in front of me decide way more important stuff than test scores!

I have to get it right, I need to get it right

4 choices, 1 answer, 1 chance.

... Damnit!

The more I observe the more I realize how these choices don't look all too different from each other. They all look inconspicuous, I can't tell them apart!

... There's no turning back. It's now or never.

I'm already this deep in. Can't back out.

I inhaled slowly, closing my eyes to let my mind focus

... It's that one.

Exhale.

Extending my arm and body towards my answer, I cried out internally.

You're in this one aren't you, cat??!!

"What are you doing?"

One of the so-called humans turned the corner and interrupted my dramatic monologue. She was the one who dragged me all out of town, begging for my help.

Her little errand was to look for a cat that was missing recently and she even went as far as to blackmail me to convince me.

The cat we were looking for wasn't her cat, but someone had requested a missing cat for her to find specifically.

"I was looking at these garbage bins for the cat."

"Then hurry up, the sun's about to set soon."

She came over and opened all 4 bins to search for the missing feline.

"They're not here, let's go."

-Then casually walked away.

"... Party pooper."

"Huh? Did you say something?"

"Nothing!"

We've been walking around for so long that I became bored and started imagining some dramatic scene of me finding the cat to spice up this mission. And could you really blame me?

We continued advancing to another area, to the back of an alleyway in the market district, it seems. I could only confirm we're still somewhere in the village because of all the wooden planks surrounding us.

"So, remind me what the cat looks like again."

"my goodness, how many times have you asked that question already? They're covered in orange fur from head to toe with white socks and white tips at the end of their tail. And they were last seen near the post office at the entrance to the village. Remember the lives of who you're trying to look for once."

We've been walking around in circles for hours now but I still haven't seen anything that matches the description that she described.

I suggested leaving cat food outside of the owner's house because I heard somewhere that's what you would do when your cat goes missing, but she insisted that we can't wait for the cat to come to us.

We need to come to the cat.

Thus, for the past few hours or so I've been following her around town and looking for this poor feline.

I became extremely bored and unmotivated somewhere along the way as I started narrating that trash bin, and man I wish we could've just used my strategy instead.

"Hey Izumi, do you know where cats like to hang out?"

"Hm... Probably in an enclosed area, somewhere warm and preferably empty to keep as their own territory. Somewhere just like that trash bin."

"Uwa... stop insisting on that trash bin already. I don't think they can climb in when the lid is closed."

"Then where do you suggest they would hang out?"

"If I knew the answer I wouldn't be asking you."

"Man, you're so desperate aren't you? Having to rely on a stranger you just met on the side of the street just to search for a cat. May god bless thou poor soul."

"I'm not desperate!"

She decided to call me by my first name, weirdly, it felt a bit awkward as that's the first time a girl around my age called me by that. But even if she knew my surname she kept calling me that.

The more and more we tried to desperately search for this cat, the more and more time passed, and the less we noticed, until now.

"Whoa, the sun is already about to set? Just how long have we been searching for?"

"Hm... 4 hours it seems, We started at 12, or at least somewhere close since the sun was directly above us then. Because of the season the sun now sets at a mountain over there which makes it become dark faster, and that takes about 4 hours around this time of the year."

Wow

That kind of calculation would only be possible if you were to live here for your entire life. Yet a simple watch on your wrist could do the same job with 100% more efficiency.

Nevertheless, we pressed on and kept turning this whole area upside down. Desperate to finish our search. We went on to several more stores, buildings, and restaurants but we still couldn't find our objective.

After a while, I began to worry about our time spent here.

"Maybe it's time to call it a day, no?

"Easy to give up eh? tsk, tsk, tsk, don't underestimate me. I chose this particular street last for a reason, my dear Izumi. Even at night, they would still have a bright street light, so visibility won't be an issue."

Visibility wasn't the issue.

"Oh and don't worry about your phone, I'll give it back to you once we've finished this request. So hurry up and find that cat!"

"Yes, ma'am..."

At this point I had no choice but to say yes to everything this girl –who I don't even know the name of– says and follow in her shenanigans.

As I said, visibility wasn't why I was so persistent about going home for today.

That would be because tomorrow is my first-day transferring schools here. After going out and exploring the town I was supposed to go home to prepare myself. But that precious time is instead spent on a cat hunt

... I suddenly became self-conscious and was hit by a wave of melancholy when I realized I have to wing it tomorrow.

"... Why do you look so down all of a sudden? I'm also concerned for the cat but come on cheer up, Izumi! You'll only scare the cat away with that scary look."

It wasn't about the cat but thanks for the encouragement anyway.

When I think about it, I suppose I really do have to go back now.

Oh yeah, I haven't told dad I'd be going out for long...

Wait, I haven't told dad yet!

Last night, he was already desperate enough to buy alcohol on his first day living in town to wash away his sorrow. Now imagine what would happen if his only son came home late.

Oh dear.

I quickly and panicked turned towards her who was for some reason squinting her eyes looking at the distance while her palm was shielding her from the light of the light post.

"Hey I really need to go back now, I don't care about my phon-!"

My collar was suddenly pulled out of nowhere

"There's the cat! I finally found you! Come here you good for nothing glutton!"

"cough, cough Wait I-"

My legs were forced to move out of their will.

The wind started picking up on my face and I could feel my hair getting messier.

Her pull strength was unbelievably stronger than I would ever imagine a girl of her height to have.

The cat himself was in front of us in a straight line. And naturally, seeing 2 humans charging toward such a small creature with a scary speed would make it panic and run away.

"You idiot! You should've approached it calmly!"

"I know what you mean, but only an inexperienced cat catcher would catch them like that. The best way is to corner them and then we lock them out of any escape routes."

I had a bad feeling about this.

Every cell in my body can't bring itself to trust her. Not one. But what choice do I have? I can't even move my own body freely right now.

"Don't worry Izumi, I know this area like the back of my hand."

I can already imagine her confident grin.

My worn-out body was forced to move quickly. We made it through the central district and had to weave through the crowds a little.

Avoiding crates, carriages, and people. All while she has my collar.

"Whoa!"

"Hya-!"

"There she goes again..."

onlookers were beginning to notice the pair running in the crowd.

"Haha! he blundered! Now's our chance."

What she called a blunder was simply the cat moving to a back alley. For her, she must've known some secret or a trick somewhere inside that specific alleyway.

"There you are!"

We've arrived at the front of the alley.

My body is covered in sweat in every place and slowly but surely running out of breath, meanwhile, she seems to be doing fine.

The cat himself seems to have nowhere to go, behind him was the back of a store, its roof tilts downwards making it impossible to climb from their angle.

"Great job keeping it up with me so far Izumi. Now let's finish this."

She patted me on the back before moving forward.

"You stay here in case the cat gets past me. Don't be scared to lunge towards it as you did with me, but actually hit your target this time."

I couldn't muster up a simple "roger" to her instructions due to my fatigue, so I simply took my stance to brace myself.

Our target, the cat, seemed too scared to run away. He made himself smaller by bending its knees like it was sitting on all fours.

She, meanwhile, was making herself as large as possible, stretching her arms wide open, looking like she was about to hug the world's fattest man. But something stuck out from the rest of her body.

The reflective glint in her right arm.

This alleyway is narrow and has no inner light source, the only light coming in by this time was from the street lights behind us.

And though the light was minimal, I could see the small light reflection near her right hand.

She was carrying a medium-sized metallic object.

What is she doing with that...

It was a bucket.

The same right hand was occupied a few seconds ago with my collar. She either picked it up somewhere in this alley or did another magic trick.

She keeps advancing towards the frightened cat, and slowly but surely her right-hand pull back bit by bit.

And without warning, a second later...

"Meooow!"

She threw the bucket to the right side of the cat. With it, a loud bang roared.

It was a way to guarantee where the cat's direction would go.

With the way it was before, the cat could've gone to either the right side or the left side. But by throwing the bucket towards the right side, it becomes too scared by the noise and goes in the opposite direction.

Thus, with the escape route of the cat secured, she quickly twisted her body to the left. Arms open to catch our prize...

And missed.

"Izumi! get him!"

The cat was moving too fast for me to process what was going on. The initial scare that made it escape by the left side was only temporary. Its effects only lasted the distance she was in.

but by now the cat could go both ways. And because of that I completely misread my opponent's movement and missed completely.

I tried to direct my body in the position the cat would move in, but as I took my stance I instead nearly toppled over as my fatigued body could barely stand on its own.

The cat ended up going to the right.

It climbed near some boxes and crates and jumped on my shoulder to use it as leverage to leap onto the side of the second-floor building right next to us.

When he jumped onto my shoulder the cat ended up tipping me over completely, knocking me down on all fours. My knees and elbow were now on the ground.

"Izumi, stand still."

No time was given for me to react.

Before I even got the chance to mumble the word "huh?" She's already approaching me.

"ow-!"

My back felt an intense pressure out of nowhere. She used my crouching position to her advantage by stepping on my back like a stool.

"I won't let you get away."

Using my back, she managed to make it to the side of the building as well. Her 2 hands had successfully grabbed the thin sides of the building as a ledge.

The cat had already been spooked as it clearly did not expect a human to be able to make it to where it was and not to mention she vaulted up the skinny sides of the building in mere seconds.

In a few seconds, her 2 feet had made it and she's now standing on a few thin wooden beam supports as her footing.

She was practically hugging the wall, and trying to crouch down to keep her center of balance as low as possible as she reached out her hand toward the cat.

But the cat escaped yet again, this time onto the very roof of the building.

By this point, I could already hear some chattering from the nearby passerbyers that a commotion of some sort was starting up.

People right behind me were whispering left and right, seeing a girl climbing on the side of a building wasn't something people would ignore.

And shortly after she did the same as the cat and climbed onto the roofs.

Her reflexes were quick and swift, reaching the roof in a matter of milliseconds before her feet were on more stable ground, but now it's slightly slanted.

From this angle, I couldn't tell what was going on, I was only judging the situation from the sounds they were making.

"Now there's nowhere to escape for you..."

She said something before the sound of a few running steps followed by a loud thunk, assuming it was her slamming her entire body weight down accompanied by the audible friction from the ceramic tiles.

Is she sliding down to catch the cat?

"Gotcha!"

Not a moment later I saw her fall from the roof of the building in front of me on the streets filled with people.

She landed butt first to some nearby crates breaking her fall. The crates also broke along.

"Finally got you!"

She sounded fine with her voice being in her normal tone even though she had just fallen from a pretty short building.

"Are you okay?!"

I came over and frantically asked her

"Yup! I'm fine! But more importantly, look at this!"

She held up with both of her hands an orange feline creature. It was frantically shaking and freaking out all over the place but she kept him in place leisurely as if the cat wasn't scratching all over her.

But what amazes me more is how her coat is still hanging on her shoulders in place.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow. No matter how much I try to ignore it, my back hurts. And this cat doesn't help either."

The passerbyers only looked confused and didn't approach us, who did approach us was the shopkeeper who was keeping his goods in the crates she destroyed.

"You darn kids ruined my business again! What's the big idea of making all that noise disturbing my customers and now wrecking my goods?! Scram!"

"Yikes, Izumi it looks like we have to keep on moving."

"Wait, did he just say 'again'?"

Both of her arms are full of concealing the cat and his fury, so I left running with her out of my own will. Out of that shopping district and into wherever she goes.

~~~PART 4~~~

"Ha... Ha... Ha... Phew, we got out of that one swiftly."

She wiped off the sweat that was forming around her forehead. I, on the other hand, couldn't believe I'd managed to walk for more than 5 seconds after running around everywhere. Maybe I have more stamina than I thought.

"Ha... Ok so... I get that you were running away from all that commotion and the police were definitely going to get involved, but do you really have to escape here?!"

We were now in the middle of the forest. Barely any visibility.

"Ah, sadly -ow!- this is where our client's house is. Don't blame me, they had such an inconvenient -ow!- spot to build their homes."

I took a huge sigh hearing her answer.

More walking, how fun.

We marched slowly into the darkness of the night. Walking side by side, I couldn't help but notice a very annoying aspect.

"Do you want me to hold the cat? You're already holding the flashlight, and the cat doesn't really look all that comfortable."

To my right, I was constantly hearing the "meows" and the "ow!"s as it disturbed this otherwise peaceful walk.

"-ow!- Alright, here -ow!-"

"meoow!"

I held back the pain for just a moment as I adjusted the cat into a new position in my arms.

"There, you go..."

Now the noisy cat was noticeably quieter as it rested leisurely. Lay its head on my chest.

"Whoa... Do you have a cat, Izumi? Every cat I caught would always scratch all over my arms."

That's because you keep scaring them, idiot.

"Oh, I don't. But I love cats, so I would always watch cat videos online and learn from them."

"heeh... Learning from online videos huh..."

She seemed to ponder about my last remark, something about her idle expression made me question things a little.

Questions...

"Oh, that's right! I still don't know your nam-"

My mouth was yet again blocked by her hands.

And she once again dragged me out of the dirt path and to the back of a tree this time.

"shhh... There's someone here."

"!!!"

"Whoever it is, isn't friendly. The request for the cat specifically for me was a lie. In truth, it was open for anyone with a bounty with a huge prize pool. I didn't want to tell you because you might turn your back on me if money was involved."

I still didn't know if she was being serious or was playing with me.

But the cat also started growling at nothing, seemingly towards a ghost in the direction she was facing.

"Tsk, can't hide for long. And we can't get rid of the cat either. We need to move, quickly.

I could feel her sense of urgency. It was real.

I started feeling like my heart was racing as I faced off against an unknown enemy. My gaze quickly turned in every direction looking for an answer.

"Hey... What's that?"

"Hm?"

Normally, for any human. The usual way of searching for something would be within your eye level. In shooter games, you would always check your left and right corners.

But never do people look upwards

As I spotted something above me, she saw it too.

"Oh, you cheeky little rascals..."

Sorry, dad looks like you'll have to nag Aunt for more alcohol tonight.