[Comprehensive] Natsume Reiko's trip

Then, Asakawa took out the letter from Reiko, and searched for it one by one according to the address of the sender.

But still no one has seen Reiko.

An old man pointed to the address above and told Asakawa that this scenic spot had been demolished two years ago and a new high-rise building was built. These addresses are probably not true.

Reiko, she was lying to him.

Why did Reiko do this?Where did Reiko go?

On the night before the farewell, Reiko's bitter smile appeared in front of Asakawa's eyes, and some details that had been neglected in the past became extremely clear.

Why did Reiko's personality change so much in a short period of time? Is it really just because of love?

When Reiko was talking to herself in the air, what exactly did she see in her eyes?

Asakawa found that, in fact, he had never really understood Reiko.

He returned to Yahara again and found out about the junior high school that Minako Tahara attended, and through the identity of a teacher, he got the information about the high school that Minako attended.

Asakawa has never met the Tahara family who adopted Reiko, and Reiko has never told him the specific situation.Asakawa only knew that the relationship between Reiko and the Tahara family was not good.

But at least, they lived together for two years, which was the only clue about Reiko that Asakawa could find.

Asakawa waited for three full days at the gate of the high school where Minako was studying before finding a face similar to the photo on the student file.

"Excuse me, are you Minako Tahara?" Asakawa tried his best to show a gentle expression, but the long-term journey still made him look a bit unkempt, and the beard that was not trimmed in time blocked the non-aggressive face.

Minako took a step back instinctively, and asked vigilantly, "Who are you?"

"My name is Asakawa Nobu, and I belong to Reiko... Teacher, I came here to inquire about Reiko."

After hearing the name "Reiko", Minako suddenly turned into a hedgehog covered with spikes, tightly pursing her lips: "I don't know! I don't know anything!"

After speaking, he immediately ran away.

Asakawa tried to grab Minako's arm, but she hit her hard with her schoolbag.Asakawa had no choice but to run behind Minako like a bad guy: "Wait a minute, I really mean nothing!"

He just wanted to know more about Reiko.

"Don't follow me! Otherwise, I'll call the police!" Minako screamed and ran desperately. This strange behavior attracted the attention of passers-by, and some enthusiastic people even tried to stop Asakawa.

Asakawa waved his arms to break away from passers-by, and yelled at Minako, seeming to be a little out of words: "I'm Reiko's boyfriend! She disappeared two years ago, I was very worried, so..."

To Asakawa's surprise, after hearing "boyfriend", Minako stopped suddenly and walked up to Asakawa, showing a very subtle expression: "Teacher? Boyfriend?"

Asakawa was a little embarrassed: "Yes, boyfriend. Although he used to be a teacher..."

"Scum! Pervert!" Minako scolded unceremoniously.

Asakawa was stunned for a moment, then grabbed something: "You know where Reiko is, right? Tell me, where is Reiko?"

Minako turned her head angrily and stopped looking at him, but she didn't stop Asakawa from continuing to follow.

"I'm back!" Minako opened the door and took off her shoes.

"Welcome back, Minako." Mrs. Tahara walked to the door habitually to greet Minako's return, but soon saw an unexpected guest.

"This man, he said that he is Reiko's boyfriend." Minako casually said something shocking.

Mrs. Tian Yuan looked at the embarrassed man outside the door in disbelief, and instinctively went to close the door.

Asakawa withstood the door with a wry smile: "The relationship between Reiko and I is indeed somewhat criticized, but we really love each other."

Mrs. Tian Yuan's expression was a little complicated. She considered her words: "Although we don't like Reiko, it doesn't mean we don't care about her at all... Go back, I have nothing to say to you."

"Please tell me where Reiko is! I want to see her again! If she really doesn't want to be with me, I'll let her go and never pester me any further. I just want...to make sure she's okay."

Mrs. Tian Yuan fell silent, and the space began to stagnate, but a baby's cry made time fluctuate again.

"Minako, help me to see Lizi, I'll be there right away!" Mrs. Tahara ordered to Minako.

"Reiko?!" Asakawa cried out.

"It's Lizi." Mrs. Tian Yuan calmly explained the origin of the name "Lizi", "In order to remember Reiko, we married our child 'Lizi', which has a similar pronunciation to 'Reiko'."

Asakawa, who knew nothing about Reiko's pregnancy, naturally would not associate Reiko with his own child, but naturally thought that it was Mrs. Tahara's child.

"Remember... what do you mean?"

"It literally means that Reiko is dead." Mrs. Tahara's tone was calm and almost indifferent, "She died under a very tall tree a year ago."

In fact, Reiko was just missing, but Mrs. Tahara couldn't explain the reason for Reiko's sudden disappearance, and she didn't want Asakawa to continue entanglement, so she replied to Asakawa like this.

"Dead...? How could he be dead?" Asakawa said to himself in a daze.

Could it be that Reiko left him because she knew she was terminally ill and didn't want to make herself sad?

"Reiko... did you leave any words or anything?"

Mrs. Tahara lowered her eyes.

In fact, when Reiko left, except for some clothes and the money left to her by her biological parents, she didn't take anything with her.

Reiko's relics were all packed in a cardboard box by Mrs. Tahara, and they were going to be handed over to Reiko for safekeeping when she grew up.Apart from an inexplicable friend book and a notebook that recorded information about monsters, those relics are only some ordinary daily necessities.

Reiko... often claims that she can see monsters, but Reiko has not shown any strange things so far, probably, she has not inherited Reiko's "talent".

Mrs. Tian Yuan only hoped that Li Zi could grow up safely and not touch some strange things again.That book of friends that no one can understand is fine, and Mrs. Tahara has always wanted to get rid of that notebook.

Now, giving that notebook to Reiko's father must be considered a kind of fate.

"Wait a minute." Mrs. Tahara went upstairs to get the notebook, and handed it to Asakawa, "Take it away, and then don't come to us again, we don't know anything about Reiko!"

After speaking, Mrs. Tahara closed the door and locked it with a "click".

Asakawa returned to the small hotel he had rented in a daze, feeling that everything that happened today was a nightmare.

Reiko, dead?Reiko, how could she die!

With red eyes, he opened the "only" relic left by Reiko, thinking of finding the reason for Reiko's death, but to Asakawa's disappointment, it was not the imaginary diary or suicide note, and even this notebook was not written by Reiko at all. It's a ghost-killing essay by a man named "Hakozaki".

Asakawa looked at the notes page by page numbly, but the more he read, the more surprised he felt.

The records there don't seem to be fabricated, because they are too detailed and true.

In this world, do monsters really exist?

Reiko's strange behavior of talking into the air, is she communicating with monsters?

Reiko's threat to her classmates was actually to the monsters, Reiko... is protecting those classmates?

One thing after another that is usually incomprehensible has been re-given new meaning.

Reiko's spirit is not abnormal, what is really abnormal and stupid is their mortals who can't see anything.

How did Reiko manage to protect those people while facing criticism and isolation from her classmates?

He really didn't know Reiko at all.

Asakawa decided to find the owner of the notebook - Hakozaki.On the one hand, to find out the reason of Reiko's death, on the other hand, I also want to know Reiko more deeply.

There is no address in the notebook, so he can only find the location of Hakozaki's house from the demon-eliminating location recorded in the notebook. Not to mention the difficulties in the middle, all he knows is that Asakawa is finally standing in front of the Hakozaki's house.

Asakawa, who has traveled through many places, has lost the initial numbness, but has become more open-minded.His previously fair skin was also tanned, and he became much more energetic.

He loves Lingzi, so he can't let himself sink, but should go to see the world that belongs to Lingzi.

It was a gloomy young man who opened the door for Asakawa. He originally wanted to shut Asakawa out, but after seeing the notebook, he welcomed Asakawa in.

"My name is Hayato Hakozaki. This notebook belongs to my father. He has passed away. If you have any questions, just ask me." Hakozaki's expression was very complicated.

"Excuse me, do you know Natsume Reiko?" Asakawa asked expectantly.

"There are so many people who come to ask me to get rid of demons, I can't remember so many names. But when I was still in high school, there was indeed a person who visited my father with this notebook. That person is probably the Reiko you mentioned .”

"Can you tell me about Reiko?" Asakawa leaned forward slightly.

"Well, let me think about it... Reiko came to find her father, it seems that it is because of a certain shikigami..."

Hakozaki tried his best to sort out his vague memories, and narrated everything about Reiko.

"...In the end, that shikigami took the form of Reiko and returned home temporarily instead of Reiko, and Reiko took the invitation to the exorcist party and went to the party. That's all I know."

Asakawa's eyes widened slightly, as if he had captured the truth of the matter.

"If I wasn't Reiko, would you still like me?"

It was not Reiko who asked him this question, but the monster who had become Reiko.

If Asakawa was asked to answer this question again, he would probably answer: "I don't know."

He fell in love with the real Reiko at first, but in the end he got together with the monster who became Reiko.If he knew the truth at that time, would he still like that monster?

He really doesn't know.

"If that monster keeps playing Reiko, what will happen in the end?" Asakawa asked the most concerned question.

"It's impossible to play it forever. In the end, you will either turn back into a paper doll, or get new blood and become another person."

So, isn't it death?

"I have one last request, can you let me see a real youkai? I want to see... the world through Reiko's eyes."

Hakozaki sighed, he already knew the cause and effect of the matter, so he satisfied Asakawa.

He drew the formation left by his father on the ground with a branch, then turned his head and said something.

A huge white dragon slowly emerged from the formation, staring at Asakawa with icy eyes.

Asakawa couldn't help but took a step back and took a breath, but finally stretched out his hand and gently stroked Bailong's scales: "This is... Reiko's world."

Hakozaki waved his hand, and Hakuryu disappeared again: "Reiko helped father once, so for Reiko's sake, I fulfilled all your requirements. Leave the notebook and leave, I won't see you a second time. Ordinary people should not enter the world of monsters."

"Thank you... Really, thank you very much!" Asakawa touched his forehead to the ground, expressing his gratitude seriously.

The real Reiko is not dead, neither is the ghost pretending to be Reiko.While one is missing and the other may become someone he doesn't know, as long as there is life, there is hope.

Asakawa intends to travel all over the country to find the one he loves.

The Chang Clan he visited, went to Kyoto to find the legendary monsters, and traveled all over the place to find rumors about monsters...

However, the world of monsters is not open to ordinary people.

If you can't see it, you just can't see it.

Asakawa also once thought that maybe an ordinary person who passed by him was the monster he loved.

"Reiko" has always lived in his heart, and also in every corner of the world.

He has no regrets, once loved a person named Natsume Reiko, and a gentle monster who became Reiko.

So, after he dies, please bury him under that tree.

He wants to grow along the branches, and then watch the beautiful sunset with Reiko.