Hitori Gotou's Change

"There really is a band! It's not an excuse, nor is it a fantasy!"

After dinner, Shin showed Hitori Gotou's family a photo of him with the band on his phone, finally convincing them that the band was real.

Compared to their own daughter, Hitori's family actually trusted Shin's words more, which made him feel a bit embarrassed—what kind of impression did Hitori usually leave at home?

"It's great that Hitori has joined a band... So, were all those strange behaviors before because she joined a band?"

Hitori's father, Naoki Gotou, who had also been a band member in his youth, couldn't help but feel sentimental, as if reminiscing about his own past experiences.

However, the strange behaviors he mentioned about Hitori at home... Shin didn't think they had much to do with the band. He hadn't seen any of the other band members acting oddly just because they joined the band.

It was probably just Hitori's overactive imagination, leading to her strange outward behavior.

"Brother Shin, what's my sister usually like at school?"

Futari Gotou sat in Shin's lap, clearly quite close to him—even more so than her own sister, Hitori.

Perhaps because Hitori usually acted so strangely at home, often saying odd things due to her social anxiety, no one really knew how she behaved at school. So, Shin's visit today finally gave the family a chance to learn about Hitori's school life.

Hearing Futari's question, Hitori's parents also turned their attention to Shin, clearly curious as well.

Even the family dog, lying on the floor, seemed to understand human speech and looked over.

"Hitori's behavior at school..."

Shin rubbed his chin. Honestly, he and Hitori usually only met during lunch at school, and since they weren't in the same class, he wasn't entirely sure how she acted in class.

But based on Hitori's usual demeanor, he could probably guess how she behaved at school, especially with the reference of the works he had seen before transmigrating.

...

"Haah... it's finally over."

After chatting with Hitori's family in the living room for a while, Shin and Hitori finally stepped out of the house.

Shin had initially said he could leave on his own, but Hitori's parents insisted that she see him off, probably thinking the two had something to discuss privately.

"What's wrong? You look like you're being tortured."

Shin couldn't help but laugh as he looked at Hitori, whose expression had been incredibly vivid, as if she had aged from one to a hundred in an instant.

"Because someone was talking about how I usually act at school... It's even more embarrassing from an outsider's perspective."

Hitori's face showed a pained expression, likely recalling how Shin had just described her school behavior in front of her family.

It felt like a public execution, and for someone with social anxiety like Hitori, the damage was immense—especially since her family seemed to find it all quite entertaining, making her feel even more ashamed.

"Your family cares about you, so you should occasionally let them know how you're really doing."

Shin felt a bit sentimental. Having done so many cold-hearted things in the mission world, seeing Hitori's family in this everyday setting made him reflect.

Unfortunately, Shin didn't have a family like Hitori's in this world. While it meant he could act without worry, he still felt a bit lonely at times.

Of course, now that more people were around him, that loneliness was gradually fading.

"Well, Shin is right..."

Hitori nodded, genuinely agreeing with Shin for once—previously, she had just nodded along out of fear of him.

As Shin opened the car door to get in, Hitori took a step forward, as if she wanted to say something, but then stopped and remained silent.

"...Sis, you should really be more proactive at times like this."

Unbeknownst to Hitori, her family was peeking through a crack in the door, watching her and Shin.

Seeing Hitori take a step forward only to retreat again, Futari couldn't help but feel frustrated, expressing her dissatisfaction with her sister.

Hitori's parents nodded in agreement, and even the dog at the bottom barked, as if echoing Futari's sentiment.

Of course, Hitori was oblivious to her family's reactions, but Shin, with his ability to sense "Ki" noticed everything.

Hitori clearly had something to say but ultimately held back due to her social anxiety.

Perhaps one day, when Hitori could finally say what she wanted to say today, it would mean her personality had truly changed.

At that point, Shin might even consider awakening her Stand.

...

Shin didn't drive straight home. Instead, after leaving Hitori's house, he parked the car on a nearby street.

It was already dark, and there was no one around, so Shin decided to stop pretending. He got out of the car, placed his hand on the door, and activated his teleportation ability.

Hitori's house was not only far from the school but also in the opposite direction of Shin's home. Driving back would have wasted a lot of time.

To save time, Shin chose to teleport home, taking the car with him.

"...Huh?"

Although no one on the street saw this, someone in a nearby apartment building noticed the strange phenomenon through their window.

Utaha Kasumigaoka , who had just finished writing a few pages of her manuscript, happened to glance out the window and suddenly saw a person and a car disappear from the street.

She blinked, rubbed her eyes, and looked again—confirming that there had been a person and a car on the street, but now they were gone.

"Must be my eyes playing tricks on me..."

Utaha's mouth twitched, and she shuddered as some unsettling thoughts crossed her mind.

There had been rumors of ghosts at school lately. Surely, she couldn't have been so unlucky as to actually encounter something supernatural, right?

To be continued…

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