Indefinite Note Episode 46

<Summary of previous episodes>

Ando, for some reason, ended up making a pinky promise with Misa Amami due to the flow of the conversation. It was a game that was popular when they were children, but he never thought he would do it as an adult. By the time Mayumi returned from the
restroom, a man in suspicious attire was caught on the security camera outside the store. Ando decided to stop dwelling on his memories and listen to what Mayumi had to say. He never expected it to be about
Misa Amami, but...



Episode 1 is <pages 1-5> here
Episode 45 is <pages 221-225> here

46th Episode <pages 226-230>

"We're going to karaoke for the after-party later, so you need to sober up a bit, or the trip there will be dangerous."
Ando took a glass of water directly from the pompadoured male clerk and urged Mayumi to drink it. Mayumi opened her mouth after downing half of the glass of cold water.

"Why aren't you joining us?"
"I have urgent business today, so I can't."
"You say that, but your attendance rate for after-parties when they're karaoke is 0%. Even an elementary schooler knows that."

"If you've figured it out, then it can't be helped. I've never been good at singing in front of people. I participate in everything except karaoke, don't I?"
"Bowling, billiards, and mini-golf. Everyone in our department knows you're good at ball games. You sometimes hold back, don't you?"

"So you've figured that out too. Oh boy."
Ando broke into a cold sweat for the first time in a while, as Mayumi was the only person who would verbally tease him in his private life, even if he was relied upon at work.

226

Ten minutes later, Mayumi, who had stood up and returned from the restroom, sat in the seat next to him and began to speak.
"I've sobered up, so I'll stop teasing the section chief here."
"Ah, I'd appreciate that."

Ando spoke his true feelings while noticing that Mayumi's movements were steady.
"When I talked to the new girl, it came up that she has an interest in the occult. One of the guys in particular was really excited to know more about it."

"The occult, huh? I know about Kokkuri-san and Hanako-san of the Toilet, but..."
"Section Chief, don't people sometimes tell you that you're lying about your age?"
"I get told that sometimes. It's just that my older brother's influence is strong, but I was barely born in the Showa era."
"I see, so you weren't born in the Heisei era. Could it be reincarnation!?"

227

"Well, I suppose so. Personally, though, I believe aliens exist on Earth."
"Are we suddenly talking about aliens? You're trying to cover up my story and crush it, aren't you?"
"That's not really the case."
"Then please be quiet for now, as I'll ask you another time."

"Understood."
Neither of them seemed particularly angry, so Mayumi continued her story.
"It seems there are four things needed for the ritual to open the gates of the demon world."

"Hmm. The gates of the demon world, you say. That's a story that would make a middle schooler cry with joy."
Ando never thought the conversation would go from the occult to aliens and then to the gates of the demon world.
"Wouldn't you cry with joy, Section Chief?"
"I'm not at an age where I would be happy about that. I've left my boyish heart somewhere along the way. Though, if the gates actually opened, I do feel like I'd want to see it."

228

"Well, I don't have a pure enough heart to easily believe in things I've never seen, but isn't it strangely realistic that you have to prepare four things?"
Mayumi was getting enthusiastic.
"It makes for good conversation, so there was no option but to listen."

Ando's interjections were also exquisite, keeping the situation easy to talk in.
"Exactly. The necessary items are a fragment of a fingernail, tears of despair, holy water, and the blood of a sacrifice. She said that if even one is missing, it won't work, and that a woman is preferable."
Feeling relieved that she was able to say what she had been wanting to say, Mayumi drank the rest of the water in one go.

"Without stating it definitively, 'preferable' is an exquisite line. But if we're thinking of a woman, is there a nuance that holy water equals urine?"
"Of course, she didn't explicitly state the answer you're looking for, Section Chief, but she was blushing, so I'm sure of it."

229

The atmosphere became awkward for a moment, so Ando changed the question.
"Right. Was there any mention of the gates of the demon world?"
"That's the thing, nobody seemed interested, so there were no questions, and nothing was said about it."

Mayumi involuntarily scratches his head.
"I see, so you've lost interest in what will happen once the gate to the demon world opens."
"I apologize."

Mayumi looks away, feeling awkward.
"No, no, it's not something you need to apologize for, Kagawa-kun. Besides, this was just a company social gathering, unrelated to entertaining clients."
"That may be, but I feel like I should have at least asked what exactly would happen..."

"Well, I understand how you feel, but you shouldn't blame yourself too much."
Ando realized that his conscientious nature made him someone he could trust as a colleague once again.

230

Episode 46 <Pages 226-230>

Episode 47 <Pages 231-235> is here
Episode 1 <Pages 1-5> is here