Chapter 048. The Proper Handling of Dangerous Items

"I'm heading out," Qiao Qiao called into the empty house, then stepped outside. Instinctively, he locked the door behind him—only to unlock it again a moment later. He'd forgotten there was someone else inside.

He glanced up at the tightly shut window on the second floor. Suzuka was still asleep.

It had been a week since she moved in. Although Suzuka was only three years old, she didn’t have to attend school. Every day, her main activity was livestreaming. Especially after having gone missing for a month, she now streamed with renewed diligence—broadcasting late into the night.

At first, Qiao Qiao felt this couldn’t go on. Suzuka was at the age when she ought to be learning. Without proper education, how would she work hard in the future or earn a living?

So he insisted Suzuka study for at least four hours every day.

Of course, that was before Suzuka showed him her streaming income. Qiao Qiao fell silent. He realized he had no right to lecture someone who could earn in one night what took him a month of work.

Yet later, perhaps moved by Qiao Qiao’s concern, Suzuka began to study human culture and knowledge as well—while livestreaming, no less. To their surprise, this drew in even more donations.

“Qiao-san, your advice is incredible!” Suzuka declared.

Qiao Qiao felt a tangle of emotions.

All in all, it wasn’t so bad having someone else at home. At least now, when he left or returned, there was someone to greet him.

Well, except in the mornings, apparently.

A few days ago, Suzuka had even tried cooking. Qiao Qiao spent two hours cleaning the kitchen afterward and sternly forbade her from casual culinary experiments.

Nevertheless, this little monster, born by unnatural means, was indeed learning step by step how to be a person—or a youkai.

Seeing Suzuka studying intently with “Das Kapital,” “The State and Revolution,” and various books on history, philosophy, and politics, Qiao Qiao felt genuinely gratified.

The little scooter sputtered along, soon arriving at the gates of Fengcheng University Affiliated High School. At the entrance stood the teacher on duty and members of the discipline committee. Qiao Qiao dismounted, pushing his scooter into the campus.

He locked it in the bike shed and walked toward the main teaching building. Though Qiao Qiao was a model student, it didn’t mean he arrived especially early or intentionally cut it close to challenge authority. He always showed up at nearly the same time.

At that moment, the shoe lockers in the entrance hall were crowded with students—chatting, laughing, gossiping about celebrities and games. Just an ordinary school day.

“Hey, it’s too bad you missed out yesterday. The girls from Ochanomizu were really something,” Sakamoto Kazuya said, clapping Qiao Qiao on the shoulder, a trace of regret in his voice. He’d been at a mixer the night before and still seemed lost in the memory. For the sake of inter-school friendship, he was willing to devote his free time—a dedication Qiao Qiao could never match. In the past week, he’d received only one spirit-banishing commission.

For some reason, the number of vengeful spirits near the Shinjuku branch seemed to have dropped significantly. But to Qiao Qiao, the absence of spirits was a blessing.

As he mused on this, he reached for his shoe locker.

Somewhere, unseen, a man was watching.

He saw Qiao Qiao’s hand pause on the locker. The man’s heart skipped a beat—he nearly acted. He noticed Qiao Qiao frown slightly.

“Strange,” Qiao Qiao murmured.

“What’s wrong?” Sakamoto Kazuya had already changed into his indoor shoes.

“I have a habit. Every time I leave, I wedge a hair in the locker door. If anyone opens it, the hair falls to the ground—a precaution I learned from anime. Never thought it would actually be useful.” Qiao Qiao explained as he crouched down, picking a strand of hair from the wooden floor.

The man watching was baffled. Wait—do ordinary high school students really do this? Something was odd about this person.

“Maybe it was just the wind,” Sakamoto shrugged it off.

Qiao Qiao stared at the hair for three seconds.

Suddenly—“Everyone, listen up!” he called. The man hiding in the shadows shivered. Had he been discovered? Impossible, wasn’t it?

Qiao Qiao’s sudden shout drew everyone’s attention, and the students fell silent, watching him curiously.

“There may be dangerous objects here. Please move away from the shoe lockers immediately,” Qiao Qiao announced calmly.

“Dangerous objects… what is he talking about?” Sakamoto was utterly confused, as were the other students.

“There’s no time to explain. It could be extremely hazardous—mismanagement could cause serious casualties.” Qiao Qiao herded the students away, then pulled a roll of yellow caution tape from his bag, sealing off the entire row of lockers.

Though his words sounded alarming, Qiao Qiao’s reputation as the school’s top student lent him credibility. So everyone did as he said, stepping back to wait outside.

This drew the attention of the discipline committee.

“What’s going on?” asked today’s officer, Shiika Natsume, apprentice shrine maiden from Ueno Tōshōgū. Wearing her “Discipline Committee” armband, she was puzzled to see a crowd gathered at the entrance.

“It’s Qiao Qiao. He says there might be dangerous items in the lockers,” someone explained.

“Dangerous items?” Shiika Natsume pushed her way to the center of the group. She saw the lockers sealed with caution tape, Qiao Qiao standing alone inside.

“Qiao-san, what are you doing?” She knew Qiao Qiao, and, given her family background, was somewhat aware of his part-time work at the Exorcists’ Association. As for his reputation, she hadn’t looked into it.

“I’m handling a hazardous item,” Qiao Qiao replied, pulling a lunchbox from his backpack. But inside wasn’t food—it was a pale, clay-like substance.

He tore off a small piece and stuck it to his locker door, then inserted a thin rod into the lump.

“What are you doing?” Shiika’s curiosity only deepened.

“Properly, I should use a probe or imaging device first, but there’s no time,” Qiao Qiao explained, ducking behind a pillar and pulling out a remote control.

“No time for what…?” Shiika asked, utterly confused.

“The first class is about to start,” Qiao Qiao replied. Then, “Everyone, step back, cover your ears, and keep your mouths open.”

“I’m about to blast open the locker.”

Shiika Natsume and the man lurking in the shadows both stared, wide-eyed.

Blast? Wasn’t this a bit much?

“Wait—” Shiika began, but before she could finish, Qiao Qiao pressed the switch.

A thunderous explosion echoed through the school.

And then, a second blast erupted. Countless steel pellets, propelled by the force, punched through the opposite row of lockers, shattering shoes both expensive and cheap, new and old, as the metal tore through the wooden panels.

Every student was left speechless.

Shiika Natsume’s ears rang from the shock. She watched, stunned, as Qiao Qiao, amid the lingering smoke, calmly muttered, “Just as I thought.”

From his hidden vantage, the man could only gape, a cloud of question marks swirling above his head.