Chapter 66 : Will you come to the back alley at 6 PM tonight? To the place filled with our memories…

Would you come out to the back alley at 6 PM tonight? To the place filled with our memories…

Suhyun risked an astronomical penalty for breaching the contract to perform the ‘revival’ ritual.

A massive number of calls flooded Hanalive from everywhere, so it was deleted within an hour…

But already, the miracle of that hour remains in the minds of the V-Taku.

The aftermath of that irrational act was enormous…

Click.

Click.

Sakura’s hand unconsciously clicked the mouse.

The screen still displayed the tweet she had just checked.

[Higurashi Nanoka @Nanoka_Hanalive]

“It was all because of Miyu.”

A single line.

A single sentence.

The impact it created was enormous.

For an hour, she had been in a daze and refreshed Twitter.

But naturally, the tweet was already gone.

Hanalive must have acted immediately.

However, the problem was…

“It’s already too late.”

She flipped her phone over.

It wasn’t even turned off, but in the dark reflection of the black screen, she saw her own face.

And on that face…

A deep fear was evident.

“Lies… This woman. Is she insane?”

Her voice trembled.

No, her hands were shaking, and her heart was pounding as if it would burst.

This is not a dream.

This is reality.

A reality unfolding before her eyes.

Everything she had held in her hands was shattering right in front of her.

Sakura clenched her fingers tightly.

What should I do?

No, no.

It’s already too late.

Even if Hanalive tries to cover this up now, it’s already out in the open.

There’s no way people will forget about this.

It has reached a point beyond control.

This was the direction she wanted to avoid the most.

She wanted to monopolize Nanoka in the most perfect way.

In a place where no one and nothing could interfere.

But now…

Nanoka remained in the world more vividly than in the moment she had tried to possess her.

Sakura brought her hands to her head.

A strong urge to tear at her hair surged through her.

Then.

Ring.

The phone rang.

She froze for a moment.

Then slowly looked down at the screen.

[My Only One]

It was unmistakably Nanoka’s voice whispering.

[At 6, come out to the alley where we always met. I have something to say.]

Sakura trembled all over as she listened to that voice.

Yeah, there’s no way you can abandon me.

“…6 o’clock. Right. 6 o’clock…”

Click.

Muttering to herself, Sakura grabbed her trusted stun gun.

The one she called ‘Chiriri-kun,’ which she used when Nanoka was being too disobedient.

“…Yeah. Sis. Come out just like that.”

This time, I’ll lock you up and make you mine.

Try something cute like this…

Sakura thought as she made her preparations.

Completely unaware that Suhyun wouldn’t be coming to that place.

Completely unaware of what was about to happen to her.

“Of course… without me…”

She was deeply, utterly mistaken.

Thump thump—Tokyo trip. Day 2!

We’re now heading toward a famous shrine.

The streets were particularly bright today.

The sunlight gently shone between the buildings, and the air was fresh.

Mm. Nice. Nice. Perfect weather for sightseeing.

Holding a skewer of dango in one hand, I slowly blinked.

“Aah. So good.”

Dango. It’s just too delicious.

The combination of teriyaki sauce and chewy mochi is just…

As I was eating absentmindedly, I heard murmuring behind me.

Ahyun and Arin were whispering anxiously.

“This is weird.”

“What is?”

“The fact that you suggested a normal sightseeing trip.”

“Yeah… It’s definitely not normal.”

“Look at her peaceful footsteps! You’d never think she was the woman who did crazy things yesterday…!”

Arin opened her phone and showed the screen to Ahyun.

They were probably checking the buzz about me and Sakura.

Well…

It’d be nice if we could just focus on sightseeing.

Everything’s already taken care of.

I left the rest in the hands of someone reliable.

Now, all that’s left is to truly enjoy the trip.

“Ah. So good.”

It’s just convenience store dango, but how is it this tasty?

As I enjoyed my dango, Arin gave me an incredulous look.

“Unni, you really don’t care?”

I chewed my dango and squinted my eyes.

Then, as if I didn’t care at all, I said:

“If I start caring, the thing on my waist might come out.”

“Wow, scary.”

“I’m totally immersed in sightseeing right now. Drop this topic! The shrine is waiting for us.”

Arin sighed and looked at Ahyun.

Ahyun, without a word, took a bite of the dango I offered her.

Then, while chewing, she murmured.

“…It’s good.”

“Right?”

“Yeah…”

“Alright. Finish your dango and let’s head in. We’re here.”

Step. Step…

As soon as we entered the shrine, I took a deep breath.

The air felt different.

The slightly damp scent of wood mixed with the old aroma of incense.

Above that, the sun filtered through the leaves, scattering light.

It felt strangely fresh.

Like stepping into another world.

I casually spoke.

“Maybe coming here was the right choice?”

“You were the one who suggested it, unni.”

Arin muttered beside me, looking exasperated.

But there was a hint of curiosity in her expression.

Maybe she liked it because it fit her image of a Japanese fox spirit.

“Well, it does have an atmosphere.”

“Of course, it’s a shrine.”

Ahyun looked around silently and spoke.

In her hand, there was one last skewer of dango.

I slowly looked up at the shrine stairs.

Beyond them, an old torii stood.

The red and black mixed pillars created a mysterious atmosphere.

Passing through there, it felt like we would truly enter a space where gods existed.

“Then, are we really going to perform the ritual?”

Ahyun asked jokingly.

I nodded as if it were obvious.

“Yeah.”

“What wish are you going to make?”

“Hmm.”

I answered without much thought.

“To crush Sakura.”

At that moment, Arin chuckled.

“Seriously, unnie.”

“What.”

“You’re making a revenge wish even in this kind of atmosphere?”

“No, but this is realistic.”

I said while climbing the stairs.

“Think about what people usually ask gods for. It’s mostly revenge, money, or health.”

“Health is already hopeless for me, judging by my stamina… Money? I have more than enough, so I don’t need that. What’s left?”

“Revenge?”

“Exactly.”

I slowly passed through the torii.

At that moment, the unique silence of the shrine enveloped us.

As if even the smallest lie wouldn’t be tolerated in this place.

We had entered a place where gods existed.

“But unnie.”

Arin continued.

“Do you really need to crush Sakura?”

I glanced at her.

“Then what?”

“Maybe… if you just leave her alone, won’t she destroy herself?”

I smirked.

“You’re still too kind.”

“If you let things be like that, she might end up messing with you again later.”

Arin fell silent.

I looked straight at her and spoke.

“People only regret things when they realize they almost died.”

“Maybe just forgetting and moving on is the best choice, but…”

I waved my hand lightly.

“That’s not my style.”

Arin and Ahyun didn’t say anything else.

Instead, they looked at me with a strange expression.

“That girl is really going to change now.”

Yeah.

Because I sent someone who would make sure of it.

An empty alleyway.

In the thick darkness, the faint glow of a streetlamp dimly illuminated Sakura’s face.

Cold air, a quiet street, and the occasional distant sound of a car.

Everything was a familiar sight.

A place she had always been with her sister.

A space where they had spent countless days together.

A world that belonged only to them.

There, Sakura stood still.

The phone she was clutching in her hand had run out of battery long ago.

How much time had passed?

Click… Click…

Finally, a sound was heard.

Gripping ‘Chiriri-kun’ tightly behind her back, Sakura swallowed dryly.

“You’re here…? Mama?”

“No. The world isn’t so easy that everything you wish for will come true.”

Sakura’s body tensed up instantly.

The voice from the darkness was low and calm, yet it carried an eerie pressure.

She slowly turned her gaze.

And there, she saw the woman standing.

Black hair.

Dark as the night itself, smoothly cut into a bob.

Cold golden eyes.

Those eyes pierced straight through Sakura.

A luxurious black suit.

Perfectly refined attire, yet carrying a strangely decadent aura.

And, a cigarette loosely hanging from her fingertips.

Still burning, flickering in her hand.

The woman lightly rolled her wrist and slowly opened her mouth.

“Hmm.”

A small sigh.

She flicked her cigarette effortlessly with her fingers.

Then, she looked back at Sakura.

“What should I say? You’re Sakura, right?”

She smiled lightly as she spoke.

But that smile wasn’t warm at all.

It was chilling.

“I heard you’ve been bothering someone I care about quite a bit.”

“What?”

Sakura instinctively took a step back.

Her heart dropped with a thud.

“Why… Who even are you to interfere in what happens between me and my sister…!?”

“What do you mean, why? I just feel bad for our member. And, I owe Suhyun quite a bit… Consider this repayment.”

She took a slow step forward.

The distance between her and Sakura narrowed.

Sakura unconsciously reached behind her.

In her pocket, her fingers grasped the taser, ‘Chiriri-kun’.

But.

“You probably shouldn’t use that.”

The woman murmured quietly the moment Sakura moved her hand.

Her voice was calm.

But within it, there was a clear ‘warning.’

Sakura froze.

The woman’s golden eyes gleamed.

“I’m not the patient type, you see.”

She twirled her cigarette between her fingers and smiled slowly.

“And honestly, people like you. I absolutely despise them.”

Her footsteps drew closer.

Sakura instinctively stepped back.

But there was nowhere left to retreat.

Her back brushed against the cold wall.

There was no escape.

With trembling hands, she clenched the taser in her pocket.

But…

As if knowing exactly what she was thinking, the woman tilted her head slightly.

“So, what should we do now?”

She said as she flicked her cigarette away.

Then, slowly.

She lifted the corners of her lips and added.

“Shall we settle this between two lunatics? We were planning to upload a Japan travel vlog for Lumilive. You can’t mess that up.”

Snap.

She pulled on a pair of gloves.

The kind used for handling trash.

Her face returned to its usual, unreadable expression.

“Now, open your mouth. It’ll make it easier to hit you.”

That night, Sakura was sentenced to eight weeks of medical leave.