I am a teacher at a girls' school in Tokyo

The raindrops and water vapor in the air blew in from outside the door along with the wind and blew onto my face.

Cold and wet.

Hirakawa Tetsufumi wiped the moisture off his face with the back of his hand and then pointed outside.

“…Amamiya-san, what is this?”

Amamiya Yo, who had transformed into a hidden body, replied in a cold voice: "Rooftop."

"...Of course I know it's the rooftop." Hirakawa Tetsufumi looked at the empty platform outside. "The question is, why are you here on a rainy day?"

"No one will come to disturb me on the rooftop on a rainy day, Mr. Hirakawa."

"…You also said it was raining outside."

"I have an umbrella with me." Yu Gongye took out an umbrella from somewhere.

"..."

I couldn't see where she took it out from - did this girl have a special place to put her umbrella? She always kept it with her.

Complaining in his mind, Hirakawa Tetsufumi said, "The teacher didn't bring it. The umbrella is still in the office—"

Amamiya Ye interrupted him: "Teacher Hirakawa will just bear with me."

Before he could say anything else, the girl had already opened her umbrella, put one foot halfway onto the rooftop, and turned around to look at him.

"..."

This middle school girl always has stubborn ideas that cannot be changed.

"Alright alright."

With a sigh, Tetsuo Hirakawa took the umbrella handed to him by Amamiya Yo, held it up, and walked with her under the umbrella into the rainy rooftop.

-

"So, Amamiya-san, what exactly are we going to do?"

Standing in the middle of the rooftop, looking through the gaps in the guardrail grilles at the hazy corner of Tokyo in the drizzle, Tetsufumi Hirakawa once again asked about the purpose of this trip.

And this time, under the umbrella, beside him, Amamiya Ye finally answered his question.

"This time I came here to perform a ceremony."

"Ceremony?" Tetsufumi Hirakawa was puzzled.

"Well, ceremony." Amamiya Ye said.

"What ceremony?" It was another middle school term that I didn't understand.

The girl raised her face.

The already dim light on a rainy day became even dimmer under the cover of the black umbrella, and the girl's face was hidden in the deep gray.

Only, her eyes seemed to be shining with hope.

Chapter 172: The Ritual of the Secondary School Girl is Completed

Ritual, what exactly is the ritual that the middle school girl is talking about?

As they looked at each other, the light in Amemiya Ye's eyes shone straight into his eyes from the darkness under the umbrella, and Hirakawa Tetsufumi fell into silent silence.

There was a drizzle on the empty rooftop.

The sky is gray, the rain is rustling, and there is a mysterious aura emanating from the middle school girl. Everything adds to the atmosphere here, giving it a touch of fantasy.

The young girl's tender and deep voice entered her ears.

"Teacher Hirakawa, do you still remember the contract you made with this body?"

"..."

Her eyes were extremely serious. Hirakawa Tetsufumi was silent for a moment, and then answered this extremely childish-sounding question in the same serious manner.

"I naturally remember the contract with Amamiya-san."

"Just remember it, Mr. Hirakawa." Amamiya nodded, "We once signed a covenant of mutual support. From now on, we will remain faithful to each other and help each other. This is our oath."

“…Yes, that’s right.”

"If that's the case, no matter what—" Amamiya Ye took a step back, distanced himself, and walked into the drizzle, "You are the one I am watching over."

"..." Hirakawa Tetsufumi moved the umbrella forward a little and covered the girl again. "Yes, no matter what, as a teacher--"

The word "teacher" was emphasized by Tetsufumi Hirakawa.

"I will always help Amamiya-san too."

"Yes." A smile appeared on Amamiya Ye's lips. "The power of the contract has linked this body to you."

"So, I also want to do my best to help Mr. Pingchuan."

"..."

Before Hirakawa Tetsufumi could speak, Amemiya Ye turned around and faced away from him.

On the quiet rooftop where they were the only two people on that rainy day, the girl's gentle chanting voice was as soft as drizzling rain.

"The light shining in the darkness..."

He saw Amamiya stretch out her hand outside the umbrella, with raindrops falling on her palm.

"I swear by the eternal full moon in the endless night..."

The girl's small hand drew a full moon in the air.

She began to pray.

"Gods who exist in this world, please listen to my call and grant me the power of purification and protection, which is enough to remove all impurities, dirt and filth, and protect the people in front of me from all diseases..."

She turned around again, clenched her fists in front of her chest, and looked at him with clear eyes.

"To be well."

"..."

Then, the girl facing him took a step forward, stood in front of him, and stood on tiptoe.

The hand clenched in front of her chest loosened, and her soft hand gently rested on his shoulder, interlacing her fingers at the back of her neck.

Under the umbrella held up by Tetsufumi Hirakawa with one hand, the two bodies were almost pressed tightly together.

"..."

Tetsufumi Hirakawa opened his mouth.

"Shh-"

"..."

It was interrupted, and the sound was gone, leaving only the sound of rain.

The girl's eyes were filled with hope as she stared in the silence with only the sound of rain.

After staring at each other for a long time, a slight smile appeared on her face and her small lips opened again.

"Let all illnesses and pains be removed."

The sound of the spell, accompanied by the sound of rain, was filled with all the girl's emotions.

Then, Amemiya Ye tried hard to tiptoe to bring their faces closer and closer.

but……

It's always close.

"..."

After a silence that was difficult to describe, Tetsufumi Hirakawa suddenly felt a pressure on the back of his neck.

Unexpectedly, the tips of their noses touched.

"rain……"

"Shhh."

The girl exhaled silently again, blowing the breath onto her lips at close range, and into her nose, with a sweet smell.

"..."

Tetsufumi Hirakawa held his breath.

Their eyes met, and they felt an itch on their noses.

A satisfied smile appeared on the girl's face.

She rubbed the tip of her nose gently left and right, her hair fluttering, and then another breath was blown onto Hirakawa Tetsufumi's face.

"From now on, I wish to use my strength to protect Mr. Pingchuan from being troubled by illness again."

"..."

"This is the ceremony I want to perform today."

"..."

"Okay, Mr. Hirakawa, the ceremony is over. As the only link to my present life, please take care of yourself."

"..."

Under the gloomy umbrella on a rainy day, Tetsufumi Hirakawa gazed at the young face of Amamiya Yoru in front of him.

The girl's gaze from a very close distance, in the gloom, is still as crystal clear as raindrops blooming on lotus leaves, shining with the purest light.

The gentle and most sincere care from the girl that reaches your ears is also calming.

Speechless.

-

After the ceremony with Amamiya Yoru ended, Hirakawa Tetsufumi walked down from the rooftop.

Going down all the way, the tranquility that originally came from the rooftop was soon obscured by the noise in the teaching building.

There were also several students on duty who came home late, or their friends, who were cleaning and playing in the classroom.

When I pass by the door, I can always hear the voices of this group of female students.

Tetsufumi Hirakawa is now walking towards the club building, he also has to go to the wind orchestra.

only……

At the moment, his mind kept recalling the scene on the rooftop just now...

The black umbrella, the rain falling beside, the water vapor blown by the wind, and the Yugong Night right in front of me.

It's disconcerting.

He really didn't know how to treat this girl.

keep away?

He was her "only connection", and she didn't seem to mean anything else, just caring.

Although the way a middle school girl cares is a little different from others - but this is Amamiya Yo, she is immersed in her own fantasy world.

I walked and thought, and finally arrived at the door of the wind orchestra, but still to no avail.

Looking at the magnificent door of the wind orchestra and listening to the sound of students practicing coming from inside, Tetsufumi Hirakawa had no choice but to put these thoughts behind him for the time being.

He opened the door.

-

The practice sounds in the wind band were not interrupted by the arrival of Tetsufumi Hirakawa.

Although he still caught a glimpse of many students in the crowd looking over here distractedly - his eyes even met Shinohara Shiori.

But it was only a quick touch and they quickly returned to practice.

Tetsufumi Hirakawa also had no intention of interrupting his practice.

It was already mid-June. In a month and a half, it would be the national competition preliminaries—and there would also be final exams.

It can be said that time is running out.