"However, you also need to pay attention to distinguishing the difference between a real bite and a play bite.." Date Wataru began imparting the knowledge he had learned from the internet to Kisaragi Chiyo.
Amuro Tooru, who had brought cake and pet cream for the person and the dog, looked at Kisaragi Chiyo—who was listening intently to Date Wataru's lesson—with a strange and complex expression from an angle that neither the two nor the dog could see.
When he saw the Bernese Mountain Dog puppy resting its furry front paws on the table and carefully extending its pink tongue to lap up the cream in the cup, the handsome waiter's face wore an expression of being unable to bear the sight.
But there was no denying that this young puppy exuded pure cuteness, no matter what it did.
*
"I see, thank you for the lesson." Kisaragi Chiyo listened intently. Under Date Wataru's generous and friendly instruction, she even pulled a notebook and a pen from her wide haori sleeves and began to record the key points one by one.
By the time Date Wataru finished speaking in one breath, Kisaragi Chiyo's notes had already reached the third page.
"Sorry, I got a bit carried away and just couldn't stop." After he finished speaking, Date Wataru realized that he had actually held Kisaragi Chiyo captive for a full hour and a half, lecturing her on the essentials of raising a puppy for beginners.
"No, I should be the one thanking Officer Date." Kisaragi Chiyo slowly let out a sigh of relief and closed her notebook.
If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have known there were so many things to watch out for.
Kisaragi Chiyo had already made up her mind; when she returned, she would take the opportunity to arrange for things like fish oil, chew sticks, a dog bed for Hara Kenji.
Whatever other dogs have, his puppy should have too.
He will definitely raise the Bernese Mountain Dog to be the healthiest puppy.
But
"Before that," Kisaragi Chiyo reached out and pinched the puppy's snout, preventing him from sticking out his tongue in anticipation of a fourth cup of pet cream.
“Your sugar intake has already exceeded the limit today.” Kisaragi Chiyo looked down with a serious expression at the pitiful Bernese Mountain Dog, whose purple eyes were wide and watery, unmoved, she pressed its head back down onto the table.
"Mr. Amuro." After giving the puppy a light tap on the head as a warning, Kisaragi Chiyo shifted her gaze toward the main culprit responsible for feeding the puppy.
Uh.. I'm sorry.
Under Kisaragi Chiyo's serious gaze, Amuro Tooru gave a slightly awkward smile. Amidst the puppy's reluctant looks, he quickly cleared the pet cream from the table and presented its owner with a new item, an Earl Grey tea cake roll, as an apology.
"I accidentally gave it too much just now." Amuro Tooru pressed a hand to his forehead, his expression one of helplessness and distress.
He had actually only intended to give the puppy a small cupcake at first.
But after the puppy curled its tongue to finish the treat and then looked at him with that adorable, furry face, its moist and expectant gaze made it impossible for him to refuse such anticipation, no matter what.
And so, time and time again, his bottom line was lost.
Only now did Amuro Tooru realize that his state of mind just now had been off.
Amuro Tooru raised his head, his purple-gray eyes narrowing slightly as he cast a suspicious and inquisitive gaze toward the Bernese Mountain Dog puppy. After being tapped on the head by Kisaragi Chiyo, the puppy had become as quiet as a plush toy, sitting obediently by its owner's side.
As if sensing his gaze, the puppy slowly turned its head. With its brownish-yellow eyebrows and perfectly symmetrical markings, its appearance was standard and adorable, its beautiful purple eyes were as bright and clear as two glass beads.
At an age where any expression can be perceived as acting spoiled, the Bernese Mountain Dog puppy flashed a pure and innocent grin at him.
Upon seeing this expression, Amuro Tooru's brow twitched instinctively. For some reason, he felt as if he had sensed a rogue attitude from the other party's face, one that said, 'You fed this to me yourself, so you can't blame me.'
Even if the puppy wouldn't admit it now, Amuro Tooru realized that he had just been blinded by the other's innocent and cute appearance.
This puppy, innocent on the surface but calculating underneath, is no match for his kind and considerate Haro.
*
“Are you asking about the Church of Hope?” Date Wataru frowned subconsciously upon hearing certain keywords. His attitude was not directed at Kisaragi Chiyo, but rather at the matter of the Church of Hope; the intricate mysteries behind it were truly a headache.
I'm just a little curious about the aftermath of the incident at the Shimizu residence.." Kisaragi Chiyo noticed Date Wataru's conflicted expression and spoke thoughtfully, "If it is confidential information, then please, Officer Date, just pretend I never asked about this topic.
"I understand your curiosity.. although what happened afterward isn't exactly confidential." Date Wataru glanced at Kisaragi Chiyo and gave an knowing smile.
You're worried about Shimizu Kagami, aren't you? Don't worry, we'll visit the Shimizu family later; the elderly Mrs. Shimizu and the others seem to be doing quite well.
Shimizu Kagami has also resumed attending school normally.
But.." Date Wataru suddenly changed the subject, "I still ran into several passing mice when I went to their new home.
"Even though those mice seemed very polite and would greet me and things like that, as if they were a part of that household," Date Wataru said, scratching his head and laughing, seemingly not finding it strange at all that the mice would greet him.
"As for what you primarily want to ask.. it's about that cultist who handed the book over to Shimizu, isn't it?" Date Wataru's gaze was piercing, possessing the sharp insight unique to a professional detective.
That is indeed the case." Kisaragi Chiyo made no attempt to hide his purpose. He gave a soft laugh and continued, "I am just wondering.. if that Church uses the ability to resurrect the dead as bait to lead believers into sacrifice, then what is their true objective?
And if they are only using the presence of deceased family members as a criterion to select candidates, then.. there are actually many choices, aren't there?
"But.." Kisaragi Chiyo lowered her eyes, staring at the Earl Grey roll in front of her that emitted a sweet cake aroma, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips.
"Every single victim who was chosen has something special about them." Date Wataru picked up where Kisaragi Chiyo had left off.
“Is that what you mean?” Date Wataru crossed his arms over his chest, his thick, dark eyebrows knitting together. He stared at Kisaragi Chiyo with a scrutinizing gaze, only after several seconds of silence did he speak slowly and with certainty, “You’ve already checked the victims' information based on the media reports, haven't you?”
“Yes.” Kisaragi Chiyo did not hide it, giving a slight nod. She lifted her eyelids, her misty gray eyes remaining calm, her silver earrings swayed slightly with her movement.
"The first victim, Minase Rie, was a descendant of shrine maidens." Kisaragi Chiyo raised his hand and extended a single finger.
The second victim is Sora Ikeda, a fortune teller.
As for the third victim.." Kisaragi Chiyo's voice was slow and clear, "Although she is a student, it is said that her constitution is somewhat unusual.
"Haven't you investigated it quite thoroughly?" Date Wataru raised an eyebrow. This information had not been released to the public; even the police had only uncovered these clues after a great deal of investigation, yet the other party had just stated them so easily.
"Hmm.. it was just a coincidence." Kisaragi Chiyo's attitude was very humble, his expression did not change in the slightest even under Date Wataru's X-ray-like scrutiny.
Of course, he also had no intention of sharing the details of how he had obtained the news with the other party.
Although the process was indeed just a coincidence, exactly as he had said.
Kisaragi Chiyo originally didn't care about the matters regarding the Church of Hope, nor did she have any intention to interfere or pry into the follow-up, but this attitude only changed slightly after she saw a message sent by her friend a short while ago.
That day, he sent photos of his cute puppy to his friend and editor to show them off as usual, but the friend whose name was saved as [Nozono Shizuka] did not offer any praise like before; instead, the friend turned to ask him a question.
[Kisaragi Chiyo, have you ever heard of the Church of Hope?]
Kisaragi Chiyo stared at those few lines of text several times, frowning, answered her friend's question truthfully.
[I've heard of it, but I don't know much about it.]
[I understand.]
[I want to ask a favor of you.]
..
Kisaragi Chiyo also hadn't expected that Mr. Mitsui's student would actually have some connection to the Nozono family.
Although the connection couldn't be described as very close, his good friend Nozono Shizuka indeed intended to have a hand in the affairs of the Church of Hope.
As for the specific reasons, he didn't ask, the other party didn't explain clearly. They only requested Kisaragi Chiyo's help in collecting information about the Church of Hope during her spare time, while he himself was tied up with other matters and couldn't make time for now.
We didn't get much information," Date Wataru said in a low voice. "We didn't even see the cultist in person..
The identification information he used was all fake, even that face wasn't his own. By the time we arrived at his hideout, it was already empty.
I don't want to describe him like this.. but that man truly hides in the city like a ghost," Date Wataru said with a cold laugh. "However, this ghost is no righteous vigilante.
As for the rest, I don't have any extra information to tell you." Date Wataru's furrowed brow relaxed, he let out a long sigh. "The police don't know much about the Church of Hope either; if it weren't for those three so-called suicide cases, they might not have even noticed its existence.
After all, there are quite a few churches like this one all across Japan.
As far as I know, this church is just widely active; there seem to be traces of their activities in places like Gunma, Nagano, Tokyo, but I am still tracing the roots of its development.
Kisaragi Chiyo understood instantly after hearing Date Wataru's answer.
He could no longer get any more information from Date Wataru, the other party had already stated that there was no extra information that could be told to him. That was a way of indicating that the police indeed did not know much, but perhaps they did hold some important clues, though that part was not something that could be disclosed to an outsider like him.
"Thank you for your answer." Kisaragi Chiyo did not insist; he nodded and tactfully refrained from bringing up the subject again.
*
By the time Kisaragi Chiyo and Date Wataru had both left, it was almost time for the cafe to close.
Amuro Tooru locked the shop door and flipped the wooden sign at the entrance to its "Closed" side. After confirming everything was in order, he took the keys from his pocket and walked toward the white Mazda parked by the roadside across the street.
After locking the car doors and carefully checking to ensure no extra trinkets had been left inside, Amuro Tooru took out his phone and began replying to the messages he had received earlier.
[I saw that little puppy you mentioned today.]
Amuro Tooru lowered his eyes and sent the message.
[I didn't expect it to be a Bernese Mountain Dog; based on his personality, I thought he would be more like a Samoyed.]
But it can't be denied that the Bernese Mountain Dog is also very cute; I actually think it suits him quite well.
The other party also seemed to have some free time, as a reply was received shortly after the message was sent.
[I wonder when we'll finally get to see his cat.]
Furuya Rei saw the message and subconsciously let out a smile. He was just about to raise his hand to reply when he saw another message come through.
[I hope it's a cute kitty that doesn't like catching mice]
Otherwise, I'm afraid he and my hamster won't be able to coexist peacefully.
-----------------------
Author's Note: *Regarding the anti-theft issue, I want to mention something to all my little angels. Currently, it hasn't been enabled, but starting from this chapter, I will gradually increase the ratio based on the word count. Thank you all for your support, mwah! 033330
Chapter 39
A puppy's wonderful day begins with waking up in the early morning.
Hara Kenji had now mastered the skills of being a dog. Even though Kisaragi Chiyo had bought him a soft, puppy-exclusive cushion to place in the room, it still couldn't stop him from leaping and climbing onto the bed with fluid movements after she had fallen asleep, before carefully crawling into the covers and squeezing himself into the young man's embrace.
He woke up from a warm embrace just as he did every other day, the moment he opened his eyes, he saw Kisaragi Chiyo's quiet face, eyes tightly closed in deep sleep.
Hara Kenji first spent a few minutes happily admiring the other's sleeping face, after a second of inner struggle, he honestly buried his furry head into Kisaragi Chiyo's neck and took a sniff.
Then, he crawled out from under the covers with great satisfaction, using his paws to work hard at pulling the slightly slipping duvet back up. After confirming that the human on the bed was still fast asleep, Denro was about to begin his morning as an evil spirit chef.
Mm.. human form is definitely more convenient than puppy form.
Having returned to his physical form, Hara Kenji stood by the bedside watching the sleeping Kisaragi Chiyo. After first counting the number of her eyelashes, he stared at her face and slowly extended a finger.
The cool fingertips tentatively and gently poked the side of the human's face, which was tightly closed, with a slight application of pressure, it left a small indentation in the cheek.
Still unconscious, the raven-haired young man slept peacefully, his chest rising and falling gently with his breath. His skin, which rarely saw sunlight, appeared even fairer against the dark-colored bedsheets.
This appearance was just like Sleeping Beauty, imprisoned in a high tower by an evil dragon.