In those teal eyes, there was a brightness and vitality that he did not possess.
"I understand." Matsuda Jinpei ultimately chose to yield, even though his hesitation lasted less than three minutes.
Thus, after shrinking, the cat and the dog waited for the right moment to hide their furry bodies inside Kisaragi Chiyo's suitcase.
*
“I know I was wrong, Chiyo-chan, that tickles, stop poking me!” The little ball of fur was poked so much by Kisaragi Chiyo that it tumbled sideways; its round body would roll several times on the blanket with every light poke before falling flat with a thud.
"Do you really realize your mistake?" Kisaragi Chiyo poked the puppy-like fluffball's soft belly with her fingers. With just a little force, the cute creature beneath her fingertips would let out a pleading, coquettish whimper.
“Of course.” The puppy ball worked hard to nudge its fluffy body into Kisaragi Chiyo's hands, its little tail wagging furiously behind it. As it raised its head, its moist purple eyes gazed sparklingly at the young man, who seemed like a giant to it, it rubbed its wet nose against the man's palm in a pleasing manner.
".." Although she really didn't want to admit it, Kisaragi Chiyo was indeed captivated by how adorable he was.
At that moment, it felt as if his heart had suddenly softened; he wanted nothing more than to cup the other's face in both hands and take several deep, greedy breaths of them.
Having been exhausted all day, he was in dire need of a replenishment of furry energy.
But Kisaragi Chiyo did not, because such behavior clearly did not suit his personality.
So, under the puppy-like ball's expectant gaze, Kisaragi Chiyo, with an expressionless face, carefully picked it up and placed it on a soft, thick pillow.
"Now it's your turn, Matsuda," Kisaragi Chiyo grinned, revealing a smile. He turned his head, casting his gaze toward the black ball of fur still lying on the floor, maintaining its state of playing dead.
Upon hearing his words, a pair of teal eyes quietly opened within the black ball of fur, only to shut again in a state of self-abandonment the moment they met the young man's misty gray eyes, which held a faint, ambiguous smile.
Whatever happens, happens, Matsuda Jinpei thought, having given up hope.
Anyway, Kisaragi Chiyo couldn't do anything to him; at most, she would just play with him just like she did with Hara Kenji, or mock him a few more times. In any case, it didn't matter anymore.
Footsteps were approaching. The little cat ball instinctively perked up its ears, its long tail twitching restlessly.
The first thing felt was a familiar scent, followed by warm fingertips gently poking his head. His body felt light, completely enveloped in a beloved fragrance—a treatment quite different from what he had expected.
The little cat-ball opened his eyes in surprise, only to find Kisaragi Chiyo's face magnified before him.
With lowered eyes and misty gray eyes expressing a calm and gentle demeanor, that familiar face seemed to glow with an incredible, hazy light under the lamp.
Matsuda Jinpei, being held in someone's palms for the first time, shifted his body uncomfortably. He had actually prepared many explanations for why he had ended up in the suitcase, but Kisaragi Chiyo asked nothing, causing him to swallow all his explanations.
"What do you think Kisaragi Chiyo is thinking about?" Matsuda Jinpei, placed side by side with Hara Kenji, narrowed his eyes, watching the young man's figure as he searched through the clothes with a suspicious gaze.
His gaze followed the movement until the other person closed the bathroom door.
“Who knows?” Hara Kenji rolled around indifferently, tumbled off the high pillow, rolled into the blankets.
"But it really is surprising." The little puppy dumpling had a thoughtful expression on his face. His tone was serious, even while sitting in a crouch, he remained completely spherical in shape.
“What?” Matsuda Jinpei looked over in confusion. He was in no mood to move and simply slumped against the pillow, stretching out his limbs, his small white-gloved paws subconsciously kneading the pillow.
I thought Chiyo-chan would pet me more.." Chiyo-chan's voice sounded a bit disappointed. "I'm clearly even cuter now than I was before.
"Maybe it's because you're too small right now, I'm afraid I might accidentally squish you?" Matsuda Jinpei replied perfunctorily; he was in no mood to comfort his childhood friend over such trivial little troubles.
You should know that Kisaragi Chiyo hadn't even touched him just now.
*
The sound of water was still trickling in the bathroom, Matsuda Jinpei was starting to feel a bit drowsy. But just before closing his eyes, he suddenly thought through a daze whether Kisaragi Chiyo had been bathing for an unusually long time this time.
At the very least, he had gone nearly ten minutes without hearing any other change in sound from the bathroom.
"Little Jinpei, something is wrong." The little puppy poked its head out from under the covers, its round purple eyes staring intensely at the tightly closed bathroom door.
"Calm down, maybe Kisaragi Chiyo is just taking a bath." Matsuda Jinpei jumped down from the pillow; he first stopped the action of the little ball of fur scratching the quilt out of anxiety, then nimbly jumped off the bed, his small but agile body arriving at the bathroom door.
"Kisaragi?" A cat paw lightly tapped on the door.
Kisaragi, are you okay?" Matsuda Jinpei called out again. "If you don't answer me again, I'm coming straight in.
After saying this, there was a brief silence for five seconds.
A long, slender hand with well-defined knuckles gripped the bathroom doorknob. It wasn't locked, so one could enter simply by giving it a light twist.
With a click, Matsuda Jinpei turned the bathroom door open.
Moist, warm steam drifted out along with the thick white mist, Matsuda Jinpei's gaze quickly swept across every corner of the bathroom.
There were no signs that the window had been opened, the showerhead was still running, a towel was draped to the side, there were no other unusual signs. The bathtub was empty, there was no one in it; in the not-so-large bathroom, there was nowhere for an adult to hide.
So where could Kisaragi Chiyo be?
Matsuda Jinpei felt it was somewhat absurd. He released the bathroom door handle, slowly turned his body, cast his gaze toward the wooden cabinet beneath the sink.
That area is generally used for storage and to conceal the plumbing pipes.
"Chiyo-chan's scent is still here." Hara Kenji appeared silently behind her, his expression as heavy as water, his dark purple eyes staring at the tightly closed cabinet doors, without a trace of a smile on his face.
"Is she in here?" Hara Kenji blinked slowly, appearing puzzled as to why Kisaragi Chiyo's scent was coming from inside there.
"Are you playing hide-and-seek?" Hara Kenji curled his lips, ignoring Matsuda Jinpei's attempt to stop him, he took a few steps forward and pulled the cabinet door open with a swish.
Eh?" Hara Kenji frowned, his voice trailing off as he wore an expression of distress, "What's going on? It's not in here?
The items inside the cabinet were simple, consisting only of some unopened tissues and disposable toiletries.
Matsuda Jinpei said nothing; he merely lowered his eyes, resting his chin on one hand, a pensive expression appearing in his teal eyes.
"It seems they've searched in the wrong place." Hara Kenji regretfully closed the cabinet door.
The sounds outside gradually faded away, the person hiding deep within the side of the cabinet also quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
Because this storage cabinet featured special sliding doors, only one side could be opened, while the other side was fixed in place. Combined with his small build, he managed to curl himself up tightly, allowing him to hide completely behind the fixed cabinet door.
Holding his breath and listening intently for about five minutes, he finally breathed a sigh of relief when he no longer heard any other sounds. Although he found himself in a completely unfamiliar place the moment he opened his eyes, a dangerous, ominous aura drifted from outside the door, he instinctively hid himself amidst his fear.
Before he could figure out the situation, he didn't dare make any sudden moves, only hoping that the dangerous fellow outside would leave quickly.
Clad in nothing but her soaking wet clothes, she crawled forward on her knees with extreme caution. Just as her hands touched the cabinet door and she attempted to pull it open, it was yanked open from the outside a step ahead of her.
"Found—you." The being with terrifying dark purple eyes said with a smile.
*
"Wait.. believe us, we really aren't bad people." Matsuda Jinpei looked at the child cowering in the cabinet with a look of headache and panic.
His lips were nearly bitten raw with blood, though his body trembled slightly from fear, he continued to glare at them with a stubborn gaze, appearing as if he were prepared to fight to the bitter end.
"It's all your fault." Matsuda Jinpei gave Hara Kenji a hard knock on the head.
Hara Kenji, who had been hit on the head, lowered his head in silence; he never would have imagined that after opening the cabinet door, he would see Kisaragi Chiyo, who had been shrunk in age.
He had previously thought that Kisaragi Chiyo also had some way to shrink her body just like them, was intentionally teasing them.
"I really didn't mean to scare Chiyo-chan into tears," Hara Kenji spoke up, looking pitifully at Little Kisaragi Chiyo, attempting to use the same trick he used to deal with the adult version of Kisaragi Chiyo to get out of it.
But all Hara Kenji's acting got in return was a look of terror from Little Kisaragi Chiyo, her instinctive movement of shrinking back into the cabinet.
“I don't know you.” The child, who looked to be only about six years old on the outside, scanned them with suspicious and wary eyes, clutching her knees tightly in a completely defensive posture.
“I'm not even called Kisaragi, you've got the wrong person.”
"??" Hara Kenji's expression stiffened slightly. He tried to force a gentle smile and wanted to step closer, but he was afraid of scaring the other person again.
After hearing the response, Matsuda Jinpei wore a thoughtful expression, his gaze falling upon the other's youthful face and the damp, ill-fitting clothes they were wearing.
He couldn't help but feel a sense of annoyance.
"Oboshima?" After Matsuda called out that name, the child, who had been staring at Hara Kenji warily, subconsciously raised their head to look in Matsuda Jinpei's direction.
"You're calling for Oboshima right now, aren't you?" Matsuda Jinpei crouched down, pushing Hara Kenji aside to reach out his hand toward the other person.
"I am Matsuda Jinpei." Matsuda Jinpei pointed his finger at the other person's right hand.
Do you see the red thread on it?
“You should be able to feel that it is the contract between us.. in other words, what is known as a bond.”
So, can you rest easy for now?
After Matsuda Jinpei spoke those words, Kisaragi Chiyo raised her hand and, as expected, saw a red thread quietly coiled around the ring finger of her right hand.
You.." Kisaragi Chiyo lifted her face, her gaze falling upon the cat ears twitching amidst Matsuda Jinpei's curly hair. Her tone was hesitant, yet carried a sense of sudden realization: "Could it be Lord Cat God?
-----------------------
Author's note: I rushed this chapter out just in time, I'm exhausted (wriggles)
Thanks to all the little angels for your support, mwah
Chapter 75
Lord Cat God, Lord Cat God, I offer you fried tofu, fish, a lizard's tail.
Lord Cat God, Lord Cat God, I present to you the hearts of gray mice, flowers, sparrows.
..
Lord Cat God, Lord Cat God, please grant my wish.
Driven by a certain mood, having overheard conversations among children of the same age in the village, I imitated what those children did and laid out offerings.
Lord Cat God, Lord Cat God..
The young child pressed their hands together, closed their eyes, silently prayed in their heart: I want friends, I want to know what the outside world is like.
Lord Cat God, Lord Cat God, please respond to my wish.
..
"So, are you Lord Cat God?" Little Kisaragi Chiyo propped herself up on both hands, tilting her small face upward, her misty gray eyes wide and round, looking at Matsuda Jinpei with an expression that was both expectant and cautious.
Facing those sparkling eyes, Matsuda Jinpei truly found it impossible to say anything in denial.
“For now.. I suppose I could be considered a cat?” Matsuda Jinpei averted his gaze somewhat guiltily, unwilling to look directly into the child's innocent eyes.
"It really is Lord Cat God!" Little Kisaragi Chiyo let out a small gasp, instinctively trying to push herself up, but forgetting that she was still curled up in a cramped cabinet. The moment she straightened her body, her head hit the top of the cabinet with a loud thud.
Kisaragi!
The calls of Hara Kenji and Matsuda Jinpei overlapped as the two of them squeezed through the crowd at the same time, wanting to check on Kisaragi Chiyo.
"I.. I'm fine." Little Kisaragi Chiyo held her head, her forehead turning bright red from the impact, her eyes welled with tears from the pain, but after swirling around in her eye sockets, the tears ultimately did not fall.