Seeing a Yamato Nadeshiko-like girl in front of him, it was only natural that Fang Li was stunned.
This young girl was the same one who had been harassed by a group of delinquents in the school building before. Back then, Fang Li had caught a glimpse of her profile.
However, he hadn’t expected her to be so beautiful.
Yes, beautiful.
Despite seemingly just an ordinary high school student like Fang Li, this young girl exuded an exceptional sense of maturity that made her appear incredibly beautiful.
Perhaps Tohyama Kinji had a similar thought, as his face turned slightly red, and he involuntarily took a step back, looking more timid than the girl herself.
It was understandable, though.
The trigger for Hysteria Mode was sexual arousal.
If he were to get aroused by a girl he had just seen for less than a minute and enter Hysteria Mode, Tohyama Kinji would surely be better off dead.
However, the young girl had explicitly come looking for Tohyama Kinji.
With that in mind, Tohyama Kinji cautiously asked, “Um, I am Tohyama Kinji. Excuse me, what do you need from me?”
He looked at the girl with wary eyes, trying to avoid triggering his Hysteria Mode.
Seeing his cautious gaze, the girl seemed a bit flustered and started bowing repeatedly.
“I-I’m sorry. I know it’s impolite to approach you so suddenly. I should have prepared a gift before visiting. I’m really sorry!”
Watching the girl’s sincere and humble demeanor, Tohyama Kinji couldn’t help feeling embarrassed.
“You… You don’t have to be so formal. We’re still at the school gate. If others see this, they might misunderstand something,” he said carefully before asking, “So, excuse me, what do you want from me?”
“Yes…” The girl folded her hands in front of her and bowed again, introducing herself, “Nice to meet you. My name is Hotogi Shirayuki, and I come from the outskirts of Aomori, from the Hotogi Shrine.”
“Hotogi Shirayuki?” Tohyama Kinji was momentarily surprised when he heard the girl’s name.
Fang Li, who had been silently observing the situation, couldn’t help but ask, “What’s wrong? Do you know her?”
Fang Li’s memories of the original story were scarce. It was already quite impressive that he could remember anything about Tohyama Kinji, the main character of the original series.
For this reason, Fang Li was familiar with this world but not entirely.
Therefore, he needed to gather as much information as possible to gain a better understanding of this world.
Upon Fang Li’s inquiry, Tohyama Kinji finally reacted.
However, before Tohyama Kinji could say anything, Hotogi Shirayuki noticed Fang Li and exclaimed in surprise, “Are you the student who saved me before?”
“Saved?” Fang Li blinked. “I don’t think it can be called saving.”
But his words only confirmed Hotogi Shirayuki’s suspicions about his identity.
Immediately, she bowed deeply to Fang Li and said, “Thank you very much for helping me. Thank you, thank you.”
Seeing Hotogi Shirayuki bowing to him, Fang Li felt a little awkward.
Was this young girl being overly polite? Her excessive display of courtesy seemed a bit too much for Fang Li.
He scratched his cheek, unsure of how to respond to the situation. At that moment, Hotogi Shirayuki, who had been bowing to Fang Li, suddenly froze. Her eyes widened as she noticed the faint white tattoo on the back of Fang Li’s hand as he scratched his cheek.
It was Fang Li’s Stigma.
Of course, the real Stigma was an imprint engraved on his soul, but the tattoo on his hand represented the power within his soul.
Seeing this mark, Hotogi Shirayuki’s eyes trembled slightly, and she turned her gaze toward Fang Li’s face.
At this moment, the timid and anxious look in Hotogi Shirayuki’s eyes disappeared, replaced only by seriousness and solemnity.
Then, in a low voice, Hotogi Shirayuki spoke, “So, it’s him?”
Her voice was so low that even Fang Li had trouble hearing it clearly. Therefore, he was somewhat uncertain as he asked Hotogi Shirayuki, “Uh, did you say something just now?”
“No, it’s nothing,” Hotogi Shirayuki quickly regained her composure, but there was an added seriousness in her demeanor. Her gaze kept flickering toward the white mark on Fang Li’s hand, as if she was confirming something repeatedly.
The atmosphere around them suddenly became uncomfortable.
Fang Li didn’t know what to say and could only turn to Tohyama Kinji, saying, “You know Hotogi, right?”
“No,” Tohyama Kinji replied anxiously, “Today was our first meeting.”
“First meeting?” Fang Li asked, “But she specifically asked for you earlier.”
However, it was Hotogi Shirayuki, not Tohyama Kinji, who answered that question.
“I apologize. I should have explained earlier,” Hotogi Shirayuki said apologetically, “Actually, the elders of the Hotogi Shrine instructed me to greet the second son of the Tohyama family once I entered Butei High. They heard that Tohyama Kinji and I entered Butei High in the same year.”
Upon hearing this, Tohyama Kinji clapped his hand in realization and said, “That’s right. Big Brother told me that this year, the Miko of Hotogi Shrine would also be applying to Butei High. He asked me to take care of her to the extent allowed. So, it’s you?”
“Yes,” Hotogi Shirayuki replied politely, “Because the Hotogi Shrine is secluded in the deep mountains and has very little interaction with the outside world, we have maintained a connection with various members of the Tohyama family for a long time. The elders asked me to greet everyone.”
“Big Brother also told me that the Tohyama family had a long-standing relationship with Hotogi Shrine, and it seemed quite intimate,” Tohyama Kinji furrowed his brows and continued, “But when I was very young, Hotogi Shrine suddenly prohibited anyone from passing through the area near the shrine, including our family. Why was that?”
Upon hearing this, Hotogi Shirayuki fell silent, but her eyes glanced subtly in Fang Li’s direction.
……
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