Chapter 18

At the platform of Sapporo Station, there stood an intimidating, dapper middle-aged man and a glamorous woman with a slightly haggard expression.

"Kigitani, I'm sorry for this time..."

"Really, you are."

The reason for the Kigitani family head's haggard appearance was the collapse of the dome roof. The existence of Onmyoji must not be known to the world, so all the Onmyoji present at the venue worked together to repair the dome roof. Among them, the most active was the 'Knot' technique used by the Kigitani family head. She connected all the roof components rearranged by the Onmyoji, restoring it to its pre-collapse state.

Incidentally, a barrier to keep people away was set up outside the dome, so no one witnessed the roof collapse.

"That technique won't last long. I'm going back now, so you guys try your best."

"Ah, we'll manage from here. And Kigitani, your accent is coming through a bit?"

"What! Just, just! That's how it is. I'm going back now!"

The glamorous woman hurriedly boarded the train to Hakodate.

"Still, to think there's such an Onmyoji in our territory, it's quite a problem, Mizukami."

The Kigitani family head tossed the words as if teasing the Mizukami family head, Ryuukai. The Onmyoji in question, of course, was Kousuke.

"It's not a big deal. He doesn't seem like a bad person."

"But the roof of the venue did collapse."

"..."

Ryuukai, looking somewhat guilty, was laughed at by the Kigitani family head.

"Hehe... Well, I was surprised by that Shikigami too. But more than that, the Cat God, you know..."

"That... I agree."

Watching Ryuukai's troubled expression, the Kigitani family head laughed again. Then, she set off on her return journey to Tohoku.

---

A shrine was built in the garden.

"I'll just make an offering. A can of cat food."

"The one being enshrined is right here. Give it to me."

Opening the lid and offering it, the cat started munching on the can of cat food.

The reason a shrine was built is that Kuro became my familiar and moved in. When a yokai likes someone and the name given to them, they will serve as a familiar. In Kuro's case, she tried to pretend she didn't care about the name given to her, but she ended up liking it more than she thought and couldn't resist becoming a familiar.

She said, "I'm sorry for staying at your place," but I don't mind at all. She apparently can't settle without a shrine, so she brought it from the shrine grounds where she used to live.

"What? What's wrong?"

"..."

A little girl tugged at my sleeve. Ah, she wants to eat quickly.

"Kuro, eat over here. The party is about to start."

"Sorry, I couldn't hold back and started eating first."

Back in the living room, the crow had arranged the ready-made dishes I bought from the supermarket and poured barley tea into everyone's cups and plates. How thoughtful.

"Sorry for leaving the preparations to you. Well, let's toast to the successful end of the match, the little girl coming to live here, and Kuro becoming a familiar!"

"Cheers!"

"Caw!"

"..."

Huh? Crows can caw. Oh well.

Watching the crow being played with by the little girl, I enjoyed a light conversation with Kuro, and the night passed quickly.

---

It was a distant memory.

"What's this, are you injured?"

"...Meow."

An old man passing by found a cat lying injured on the ground.

"Let me heal you... This should do it."

"Meow."

The cat, lying on the ground, rubbed against the old man, showing gratitude.

"You've become quite attached."

"Meow meow."

"What? You want to travel with me?"

"Meow."

The old man, showing a slightly troubled expression, then turned to the cat.

"Alright, for a while, it's fine."

"Meow."

"Name? Well, how about... 'Kuro'?"

"Meow!..."

---

"...Hm? Was it a dream?"

Kuro rubbed her eyes and sat up. She couldn't recall the content of the dream, but a mix of nostalgia and loneliness filled her chest.

"Ugh... It's uncomfortable..."

Turning around, she saw her master, groaning, sleeping with a white-haired little girl and a white crow as his pillow. As soon as she saw this, the emotions in her chest gradually cleared.

"I'll sleep a bit more."

Using her groaning master as a pillow, Kuro fell asleep again.

---

Chapter 1, end!

Thank you very much for reading this far!

I'll introduce the characters so far and move on to Chapter 2.

Also, as mentioned in the activity report, daily posts will end today. In the future, I'll aim for weekly posts... In February, the posting frequency will be drastically reduced. I apologize for this.

However, the story will continue, so please look forward to "Reincarnated... Not!" in the future!