Chapter 127: School Days!
The week of periodic exams finally ended, bringing the students' beloved break.
A fine, hazy rain fell outside, bathing the entire city in a light drizzle.
Just as they had agreed the previous week, Yotsuya Miko visited Luke's house.
Meanwhile, Niguredo Yuria remained enthusiastically outside, searching the city for supernatural locations despite the drizzle.
"Pass me the sewing kit."
Luke was making substitute dolls at home and spoke to Miko, who had just arrived.
"Okay."
Miko watched her teacher doing needlework with some confusion, but obediently handed him the sewing kit. She then looked down and began removing her damp stockings.
She had not checked the weather forecast before leaving and had not brought an umbrella.
Fortunately, the rain only began falling shortly before she reached his house, so her clothes were merely a little damp.
Miko had originally chosen her outfit with the hope of appearing especially attractive, so the unexpected rain left her somewhat disappointed.
She leaned back, unfastened the damp stockings, and carefully removed them before laying them beside her.
"Sensei, where should I put these?"
Luke only reacted after hearing her question. He gazed at her bare legs—slender and straight, yet with a surprising, perfect fullness. Without the stockings, they were no less captivating than before, lacking only the slight indentations the elastic fabric had left in her flesh. Still, they were absolutely stunning.
It just went to show that if a pair of legs is truly beautiful, they'll draw the eye even without stockings to enhance them.
"S-Sensei?" Miko stammered, noticing him lost in thought again. She nervously rubbed her toes against the floor.
"Oh, if you want, you can just throw them in the trash," Luke said without a hint of embarrassment. After all, they'd already crossed almost every boundary in their dream world.
He withdrew his gaze and stuffed cotton and talismans into the rabbit plush. Then he began sewing the white fabric across its back.
"Sensei, couldn't you simply buy dolls like this from a store?"
After disposing of the stockings, Miko watched him work curiously.
"Other than the talismans inside, they don't seem any different from ordinary plush toys."
"That's true. An ordinary substitute doll can usually be replaced with something bought from a store."
"However, if it encounters a powerful evil spirit, an ordinary doll can only delay it for a short time."
Luke continued sewing an eye onto the Ram Rabbit plush.
"Normal toys can't hold much of a person's energy or presence."
"If you want a substitute convincing enough to deceive a powerful evil spirit, you need to place small objects inside that can gather and preserve energy."
It had been a long time since Luke personally made such durable substitute dolls.
After years of exorcising spirits, he rarely needed tools designed to fool evil spirits into mistaking them for real people.
However, his new disciple, Niguredo Yuria, possessed far too much initiative.
Between last weekend and every afternoon after school this week, she had genuinely discovered several locations around the city filled with evil spirits.
Had she not become friends with Miko and Hana, who occasionally dragged her out for desserts, shopping, and entertainment, she might have searched every corner of Chiba Prefecture within a few weeks.
Considering Yuria's initiative and Miko's strange spirit-attracting constitution, Luke decided to make two high-quality substitute dolls for them.
That way, they would have protection if they ever encountered something they should not have seen.
"Oh."
Miko nodded with only partial understanding.
She looked toward the long-legged maid moving busily around the kitchen.
The girl's sky-blue hair made it obvious she was neither of the two maids Miko had previously met.
Miko felt no particular emotional disturbance. She had already expected something like this, and it seemed her teacher had thoroughly trapped her long ago.
"Finished."
Luke cut the thread, tossed the sewing kit aside, and raised two palm-sized Ram Rabbit plush dolls before his eyes.
His craftsmanship was inferior to a professional product, but they looked acceptable.
All that truly mattered was giving them a recognizable living form.
For some unknown reason, human-shaped and animal-shaped dolls absorbed life energy more easily than fabric bags of other designs.
"Sensei, where are your other two maids?"
Miko asked curiously.
"Hmm… You mean Mikasa and Annie?"
Luke lowered the dolls and turned toward her.
"Yes. The girl with flowing black hair and the one who looks European."
Miko described her impressions of them.
"They went to the cursed building."
"Eh?"
Miko looked confused.
"Isn't the cursed building preparing to open soon? I was busy with exams this week, so I asked them to help Kasumizuki in my place."
"They're there today too."
Luke tossed both Ram Rabbit plush dolls to Miko.
"Keep one with you at all times. Remember to give the other to Niguredo."
Miko secretly glanced at the maid still working in the kitchen, then moved closer and whispered into Luke's ear.
"Sensei… are the two of us going on a date later?"
Luke rubbed his itchy ear against his shoulder.
"Probably not today."
"Eh? Do you have something to do?"
"No. It's raining, so I don't feel like going outside."
Luke gave a simple explanation.
"How about tomorrow?"
He did not dislike rain. In fact, he rather enjoyed it.
However, that only applied when he had nothing to do and could lie comfortably in bed, listening to the noisy yet strangely peaceful rainfall.
"Tomorrow is fine too…"
Miko continued, "But Hana invited me to watch a movie with her. Sensei can come with us."
Seeing Miko's slightly pouting lips, Luke lowered his voice again.
"After I send Kawasaki home, how about we watch something here together?"
Miko rubbed the ear he had whispered into and quietly asked, "Something like Norwegian Wood?"
Luke considered it.
"Let's watch School Days. The leader of the Chiba branch recommended it to me."
Since the cult leader had suggested that "horror anime," Luke had neither watched it nor searched for information about it online.
This was the perfect opportunity to watch it with Miko.
(PS: Lol >.<)
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