The Strange Cat from Fuuto

"okay!"

Aaron, who always had dark circles under his eyes, handed two servings of takoyaki to a middle-aged man sitting on a bench nearby.

"Uncle Jingtian, be careful, it's hot!"

"You're as thoughtful as ever!"

Aaron wasn't annoyed at all by the man in front of him ruffling his hair. Having lived in the human world for over half a month, he had experienced all sorts of ups and downs. He was now incredibly adept at speaking to people in a human language and to ghosts in a ghost language.

Compared to the arrogant and aloof version of Aaron in the original work, the current Aaron is undoubtedly more likable.

As for why this is the case?

After being repeatedly beaten down by society, coupled with the kind-hearted old woman's guidance, it would be strange if he didn't turn out like this!

Even though he was being hugged by a female ghost from a TV every night while he slept.

Aaron quickly returned to the stall, picked up a box of takoyaki, and stuffed one into his mouth.

He was squinting, enjoying the taste on his tongue, and his expression was quite grotesque.

After all, this is someone who can see takoyaki mountains even in his dreams; he's inseparable from takoyaki for the rest of his life.

"Aaron?!"

A surprised question came from the side. Aaron opened his eyes and stared at Aria in astonishment, "Sister Queen?!"

Why are you here?

"Putting me aside, what's wrong with you looking like this?" If it weren't for the eye-protecting bracelet showing that the child in front of her was Aaron, Aria probably wouldn't have connected the kid in front of her with Aaron at all.

"Oh, are they your family members?"

Grandma Wen had just finished making a plate of takoyaki when she saw Aria and exclaimed, "What a beauty!"

Granny Wen, who was handing the takoyaki to Aria, said with a smile, "Come, come, Granny Wen is treating you to takoyaki."

"Um... thank you!"

Aria nodded slightly as she accepted the takoyaki, while Granny Wen patted Aaron on the back: "Your sister's here, why aren't you going over? What are you doing standing here all the time?!"

"Go, go, go!"

Aaron was shooed aside by Granny Wen. Aria looked at the grease stains on Aaron's lips and couldn't help but chuckle, "You look like this now, reminding me of you when you were a child!"

"I have many reasons for looking like this." Aaron looked at his small, tender hands and a blush crossed his face.

"Enough about me, Sister Wang, why did you come here?"

"It's all because you and Adair disappeared after arriving in the human world. Father sensed some strange changes coming from the human world, so he sent me to check on you. Now it seems that you really are in trouble!"

"Now that you've become a child, what about Adair?"

"Is he there?"

Upon hearing Aria mention Adair, Aaron's face showed a hint of guilt: "My brother, he was captured by a tall woman!"

"They've taken him!?"

"Ok!"

"Explain yourself clearly!"

Under Aria's persistent questioning, Aaron recounted everything that had happened.

After listening to Aaron's story, Aria frowned even more deeply. "It seems the human world is more complex than we imagined!"

"So what do you plan to do, Sister Wang?"

"Let's find Adair first. I'm afraid something might have happened to him after so much time has passed."

"Ok!"

"Let's go together then!"

Aria, who was about to pull Aaron away, found him frozen in place. "What's wrong, Aaron? Aren't you coming with me?"

"Sister Wang, I'll let it go. How could I possibly go back now?"

Aaron, looking dejected, lowered his head. Although he said this, in reality, it was because of Sadako. He was unsure whether he would bring Sadako back with him if he returned to the Eye Demon World. If he did, it would be a disaster.

What exactly turned you into this?

Aria patted Aaron's little head and glanced at Granny Wen, who was smiling not far away. "Is it also because of that old woman?!"

"That's it!"

Indeed, Wen Po's influence on Aaron was no less than that of his father; a large part of the reason why Sadako was born was because of Wen Po.

"In that case, I'll go find Adair first. You wait here for me to return. As for whether you go back, I'll ask Father!"

"it is good!"

"Then goodbye!"

"Sister Wang!"

"Ok?"

"Takoyaki is delicious, you should try some!"

"I will!"

Aria, carrying the takoyaki box, turned and left. Seeing this, Granny Wen came to Aaron's side and asked, "Aren't you going back with me?"

"I must await orders, orders from my father!"

"That sounds really bad. Is your family a one-man show run by your father?"

"My father's position is sacred and inviolable; I cannot return without his command!"

"I understand, I understand!" Granny Wen nodded. "The patriarch of a traditional family!"

"You've had it tough too!"

"That's it!"

Aaron gazed at Aria's retreating figure, his expression a complex mix of emotions.

"I'm sorry, Sister Wang, I can't go back!"

"Now I..." Looking at the black line on his wrist, Aaron looked up at the sky with immense sorrow: "I'm no longer clean!"

Tears seemed to be sliding down his cheeks.

Chapter Fifteen: Deep Sea Kanon? No, I am Tomie Kanon, Princess Aria!

"What exactly happened to Aaron? Why did he become like that?"

Aria left the park with an extremely solemn expression. Not only had her two younger brothers been turned into children by an unknown being, but they didn't even know how the other party had done it!

Moreover, judging from his expression during the conversation with Aaron just now, it seemed that he had something he couldn't say.

What exactly happened to them?

With her doubts growing stronger, Aria activated her eye-protecting bracelet and used the information on it to locate Adair.

Adair is located near the outskirts of Rikudo City, where abandoned houses are everywhere. After all, beneath the surface of Rikudo City's prosperity, which is dependent on Tokyo, lies an extremely heavy shadow and darkness.

Aria, all alone, was a stunning sight on the street, attracting a lot of attention. Some shady street thugs even lurked around the alleys, and if it weren't for her extremely cold and noble demeanor, someone would have already approached her to chat.

Don't underestimate these guys. To survive on the streets, besides courage, you also need a sharp eye.

Aria clearly comes from a prestigious family. If you provoke her rashly, you might end up being buried in cement and thrown into the sea.

This kind of behavior is very common in class-based Japan.

Despite her seemingly delicate appearance, Aria is actually quite fast on her feet. In just an hour and a half, she crossed the city of Itaza and arrived at an abandoned residential area on the city's edge.

The area is filled with abandoned houses, few people live here, stray cats and dogs roam the streets, and flocks of noisy crows fly overhead from time to time.

"Is it nearby?"

Following the route shown on the eye-care bracelet, Aria arrived directly in front of an old house. The surnames of the people who used to live there could still be vaguely seen on the tattered house number.

"Ito?!"

Aria gently wiped the dust off the nameplate, read the two characters on it, and glanced into the courtyard.

The courtyard was covered with decaying leaves, and the once carefully planted flowers and plants had withered and died in large numbers, while the ones that had not died were growing wildly.

The bare branches of the tree were covered with a dense swarm of crows. As soon as Aria approached, she was stared at by dozens of eerie eyes.

"Cuck!"

A crow cawed hoarsely, and then all the crows took flight, as if Aria's arrival had disturbed something.

Even though she was somewhat puzzled by the crow's behavior, Aria still instinctively sensed that something was wrong with the house in front of her.

Birds have the most acute senses and often escape quickly before danger arrives, let alone crows, which are birds with considerable intelligence.

"It really gives me a bad feeling!"

With a frown, Aria pushed open the wooden door in front of her, the hinges of which made a rough creaking sound.

Following the moss-covered stone path, Aria quickly arrived at the door. Pushing it open, she saw a dimly lit entryway with a pair of children's shoes placed there.

"Adair?!"

"Adair, are you here?!"

As Aria called out, she walked toward the living room. Unlike outside, the floor was spotless and even a little slippery underfoot.

However, a faint fishy smell and a slight putrid odor permeated the air.

"This taste?"

Aria covered her mouth and nose. "This is unbearable! How can Adair stand being here?!"

After turning on the light, the dim yellow light illuminated the room, and Aria's expression froze as she walked into the living room.

A little boy dressed in white children's clothes was tied to a chair, his eyes were vacant and drool was dripping from the corner of his mouth.

Upon seeing the little one's face clearly, Aria called out, "Adair?!"