Tokyo: Restricted Tutor

And so, Asahi Rinka stayed at Hojo Saki Rei’s house for about half a month. Just when she was starting to feel embarrassed and wanted to go back, she found that Asahi Mafi still wouldn’t answer her calls.

When Asahi Rinka asked her the next day, Asahi Mafi said she hadn’t returned yet and told Asahi Rinka to stay at Hojo Saki Rei’s house for a bit longer.

This made Asahi Rinka feel increasingly awkward.

Originally, Asahi Rinka had only planned to stay at Hojo Saki Rei’s house for a few days before returning, but it had already been half a month, and she was still there. This made Asahi Rinka feel not only embarrassed but also very guilty.

Hoki Taeko was also aware of Asahi Rinka’s changing mood.

So, whenever she had time, Hoki Taeko would take Asahi Rinka and Hojo Saki Rei to the farm or take them out to play.

After another week passed, Asahi Rinka finally got to go home.

At their parting, Hoki Taeko was very reluctant to see Asahi Rinka go and invited her to come visit whenever she had free time.

Asahi Rinka also suggested that they visit Tokyo, promising that Asahi Mafi would host them then.

“How was it? Kawabe, do you think Rinka is suitable?”

Soon after Asahi Rinka left, Hoki Taeko began asking Kawabe Takuya for his impression of Asahi Rinka.

“Of course, she’s excellent. After all, she’s a girl with such a beautiful appearance, and she always does things according to our son’s wishes. I can’t find any fault with her.”

“Besides, this girl is very sensible, and I like her very much.”

Kawabe Takuya answered Hoki Taeko’s question directly.

Of course, this was his most genuine answer.

After receiving Kawabe Takuya’s reply, Hoki Taeko, very satisfied, approached Hojo Saki Rei.

“Since you’ve brought her home, you must treat her well from now on, understand?”

“Although we told our relatives that your relationship with Rinka was just that of classmates these past few days, everyone isn’t foolish. They’ve already considered Rinka your girlfriend.”

“So, boy, if you really let Rinka down, then I won’t have you as a son anymore.”

In Hojo Saki Rei’s astonished gaze, Hoki Taeko spoke the words she most wanted to say.

Looking at Hoki Taeko in front of him, Hojo Saki Rei felt a bit of a headache.

Regarding Hoki Taeko’s words, Hojo Saki Rei just felt that they were too absurd.

Of course, during the time Asahi Rinka stayed at his house, Hojo Saki Rei also noticed that his mother seemed to have transferred her love for him to Asahi Rinka.

It was as if he wasn’t her biological child, but Asahi Rinka was.

“Did you hear? Your mother and I both like this girl very much, and all our relatives like her too. They all hope that you two can end up together.”

“Don’t think that just because you have some ability now, you can look down on others. Rinka is not only attractive to boys in terms of looks and figure, but her academic performance is also excellent. If you don’t cherish her, you’ll regret it.”

Kawabe Takuya, who was standing by, after hearing Hoki Taeko’s admonition, also praised Asahi Rinka without reservation, trying to make Hojo Saki Rei understand how much they both liked Asahi Rinka.

“Alright, alright, I get it, Mom and Dad. Don’t worry, I definitely won’t let that happen. Since you like her, what else can I do? Of course, I’ll listen to you.”

“But Mom and Dad, actually, your son has something else he wants to talk to you about.”

At this point, Hojo Saki Rei looked at his parents with sincere eyes.

Kawabe Takuya and Hoki Taeko saw Hojo Saki Rei’s serious expression and sat down as well.

“What is it? Does this have something to do with Rinka?”

“Or is it true what Rinka said, that you two aren’t actually in a romantic relationship, and you have another girlfriend?”

Kawabe Takuya and Hoki Taeko’s gossip burned like a blazing fire.

Looking at the fire of gossip in his parents’ eyes, Hojo Saki Rei rolled his eyes.

“I don’t have a girlfriend right now, and Rinka and I have an agreement that we’ll truly get together after university.”

“However, what I’m telling you actually has something to do with Rinka. It’s just… besides Rinka, your son, that is, me, has many other girls he likes. So, Mom and Dad, how about I have them all?”

Hojo Saki Rei spoke the most absurd words in the most cowardly tone.

Upon hearing Hojo Saki Rei say that he liked many other girls, Hoki Taeko and Kawabe Takuya were stunned.

When they came to their senses, they heard what Hojo Saki Rei said next.

Immediately, Hoki Taeko and Kawabe Takuya were both shocked by Hojo Saki Rei’s words.

Of course.

After they recovered, they both pounced on Hojo Saki Rei.

“Kawabe, hold him down. If I don’t teach this boy a lesson today, he won’t know I’m still his mother.”

“Don’t worry, wife, I’ve got him held down for you. As his Dad, I naturally can’t just watch our son turn bad.”

Kawabe Takuya and Hoki Taeko seemed to already know what the other wanted to do, perfectly coordinating to give Hojo Saki Rei some “love education.”

Seeing his parents, who were just talking to him seriously a moment ago, instantly change their emotions and attitude towards him, Hojo Saki Rei fled the house without hesitation.

“Where to go?”

“Sigh, it’s been a long time since I came back. I don’t know who to play with.”

“None of my old playmates have returned home. Now that Rinka has gone back, I really don’t know who to play with.”

Having left the house, Hojo Saki Rei realized that since he had returned home, Asahi Rinka had always been accompanying him.

If Asahi Rinka hadn’t been at his house, Hojo Saki Rei really wouldn’t have known how he would spend this boring holiday.

The holiday was short.

After celebrating the New Year at home, Hojo Saki Rei returned to Tokyo again.

During this period, Asahi Rinka called him many times. Of course, she didn’t just call Hojo Saki Rei; Asahi Rinka also called Hoki Taeko and Kawabe Takuya.

Every time Hoki Taeko and Kawabe Takuya received a call from Asahi Rinka, they were very happy.

During this time, Hoki Taeko even got in touch with Asahi Mafi, and their relationship improved greatly after some time chatting.

So much so that on the day Hojo Saki Rei returned to Tokyo, Kawabe Takuya and Hoki Taeko both warned Hojo Saki Rei that once he was back in Tokyo, he should spend more time with Asahi Rinka and make sure to treat her well.

Hojo Saki Rei didn’t take his parents’ warnings to heart at all.

What?

Would they know whether he treated Asahi Rinka well or not?

As long as he didn’t tell them, how would they know what was happening in Tokyo?

He thought this way, but even without their warnings, Hojo Saki Rei’s attitude towards Asahi Rinka would remain the same as before.

The new semester began, and Hojo Saki Rei had already completed the tasks given to him by the system during this time.

And on this day, Hojo Saki Rei had just arrived at school when he heard many rumors about things happening within the school.

However, Hojo Saki Rei paid no mind to what the students were saying.

However.

At noon, Tomoda Minako approached Hojo Saki Rei and told him about the rumors circulating in the school.

“What? Rumors circulating in the school? Minako-neechan, you believe in such things too?”

Hojo Saki Rei didn’t believe in the school ghost stories Tomoda Minako was talking about at all.

However, after he said that, he clearly saw Tomoda Minako’s brows furrowing very unhappily at that moment.

Evidently, this matter was not as simple as Hojo Saki Rei thought.

“Do you know? This matter isn’t fake; it’s real.”

“When I first heard about these, I didn’t believe them either. But last night, even more students went to the art classroom, many more than before.”

“Most importantly, a classmate disappeared last night after playing this game.”

“So I’m a bit worried that this spirit medium game might be real.”

Then, Tomoda Minako told Hojo Saki Rei about the incident.

The situation was that recently, students at the school had become popular with playing spirit medium games, and this game seemed to only succeed when played in the art classroom.

So, recently, many classmates started trying to go to the art classroom at midnight to play spirit medium games, and everyone who played it said it was very effective.

Tomoda Minako also clearly told Hojo Saki Rei about what happened last night.

When Hojo Saki Rei heard what Tomoda Minako said, he was directly shocked.

Someone actually disappeared after playing a spirit medium game?

Hojo Saki Rei wouldn’t believe that a spirit medium game could make people disappear. He thought that the classmate must have gone somewhere or encountered some danger after going back.

After all, Hojo Saki Rei never believed in such spirit medium games.

He was an atheist.

Of course, regarding the appearance of the system, Hojo Saki Rei also knew that it was actually similar to this spirit medium game. If it hadn’t happened to him, he wouldn’t have believed in the existence of such a system.

“And then? That classmate disappeared. Did anything else happen afterward?”

“Also, was that classmate found?”

Although he somewhat didn’t believe in such things, Hojo Saki Rei still asked Tomoda Minako again at this moment, wanting to know the truth about what happened last night.

Of course, especially regarding the whereabouts of the missing student and his current situation.

“After that incident happened last night, the school, upon learning of it, naturally intended to find this student themselves. However, the parents reported it to the Police Department. The school, of course, could only agree to the parents’ actions, as it was their child.”

“It’s just a pity that the Police Department dispatched many people to search, but they still haven’t found the missing classmate. In fact, after investigating for a long time, they found nothing.”

Facing Hojo Saki Rei’s inquiry, Tomoda Minako spoke again, informing Hojo Saki Rei about the situation regarding this matter.

“So, Saki Rei-kun, I want to ask, what do you think about this? Do you also think this spirit medium game is real?”

Tomoda Minako asked again.

Actually, Tomoda Minako also didn’t want to believe in such things as spirit medium games, as these things were only rumors, and no one had ever truly witnessed them happening.

Moreover, she had received so many years of education and was currently openly a Teacher, so how could she believe in such things?

“This… I don’t know either. So, Minako-neechan, are you asking me now? Do you want to get an answer from me?”

Hojo Saki Rei retorted.

Hojo Saki Rei had only heard about this spirit medium game at school these past few days. He hadn’t even played it himself, so how could he know what was going on?

Not to mention, after school yesterday, Hojo Saki Rei went straight home. He only learned about what happened last night from Tomoda Minako.

Tomoda Minako, who had originally placed hope in Hojo Saki Rei, furrowed her brows even more tightly after hearing Hojo Saki Rei say that.

She also knew that Hojo Saki Rei probably didn’t know about such things, but she didn’t know why.

When she heard Hojo Saki Rei ask her that, she suddenly felt that this matter would be difficult to handle.

Or rather, in her opinion, if Hojo Saki Rei couldn’t solve this matter, she felt that others wouldn’t have the ability to handle it at all.

“This matter might just be a coincidence. After all, spirit medium games definitely aren’t real.”

“Of course, rather than believing it’s real, I’d rather believe that someone is pulling strings behind the scenes, using this so-called spirit medium game to achieve certain things they want to do!”

Hojo Saki Rei said.

However, these were just his guesses.

If such incidents happened more often, then it could be understood that way.

The key was that, until now, only one student had gone missing, which made it very difficult to solve the case.

“Mm-hmm, I think so too.”

“You don’t need to feel too much pressure. I just wanted to ask if you believe in the reality of spirit medium games. Since neither of us believes it, then for this matter, we’ll just wait and see the Police Department solve the case.”

Tomoda Minako shook her head and did not continue talking about the matter. (End of chapter)