On the tram.

From an objective perspective, Kato Yusuke briefly told Megumi about Serizawa Yuu's matter.

From how to meet the other person and ask for help, to how to entrust him to Shinjoka's care, to the reason why I ran away from home...

While he was stating this, the girl just listened quietly and did not express any opinions.

In this way, the two arrived at Takadanobaba Station together.

Walking out of the crowded station and standing in the bustling station square.

After getting off the train, Kei asked for the first time: "Well, first of all, do you know where to find that girl? Yusuke."

"——I know." Kato Yusuke nodded and looked in a certain direction.

"Follow me, let's go this way."

He said and stretched out a hand, "There are many people here, hold me. Be careful not to get lost."

"...Well, I'll leave it to you then." The girl put her hand into his without any hesitation.

A slightly cool soft touch came from his hand, but Kato Yusuke no longer had any previous distracting thoughts at this moment.

According to the direction confirmed on the tracker when he left the station, he pulled Hui and walked forward.

Actually.

Since going out, he has been taking advantage of various opportunities to confirm the location on the tracker.

The strange thing is that except for Serizawa Yu who moved for a while at the beginning, she basically stayed in one place.

From the time they took the tram to here, for about fifteen minutes, the girl remained motionless.

Kato Yusuke had no way of knowing the reason, and could only vaguely guess that the other party might be tied down by someone or something.

Fortunately, the sky is not completely dark yet, and the security situation here is relatively safe, so there should not be any great danger.

Having said that, when I think of the scene of the girl sitting alone under the telephone pole...

He was inevitably a little uneasy, and unconsciously sped up his pace a little.

The two hurried on in silence and arrived at a small park ten minutes later.

Then I saw this picture...

The orange sunset dyed the park red and desolate, and the lively children were playing on the horizontal bar inside, making lively laughter from time to time.

A group of elderly people were sitting on the small stairs next to the open space, taking care of the children not far away, and pulling a young girl along to talk about something unknown.

The girl was wearing a camel-colored long-sleeved sweater, a dark brown long skirt, and was holding a beige canvas bag in her hand.

Through the uneven surface of the bag, you can see that there are many things inside, and there is also a green onion sticking out diagonally from the bag.

If one ignores her overly youthful appearance, her outfit is basically the same as that of an ordinary housewife.

Judging from the atmosphere emanating there and the expressions on people's faces, there was no sense of tension.

"..."

Kato Yusuke breathed a subtle sigh of relief, and his expression became less serious and relaxed.

[Target: Serizawa Yui, tracking completed, the remaining number of usable items is 1.]

——A system prompt pops up in my mind.

"Huh...that~"

The companion next to him asked aloud: "Is that girl the one you are looking for? Yusuke."

Maybe it was because he had walked a little hastily just now, Hui's breath was a little faster than usual, and the temperature on his hands also warmed up unconsciously.

At this moment, he was looking at the girl not far away, with a little curiosity in his clear and bright eyes.

"Well, it's her."

Kato Yusuke confirmed her guess, then slightly lowered the brim of the peaked cap on his head, and shouted: "Xiao Xi——"

The voice spread in the park and immediately attracted people's attention, including Yuu Serizawa.

"——Yusuke-san!?"

The girl looked back with surprise on her face, her bright little face suddenly lit up, but she was stunned for a moment when she saw their figures clearly.

Knowing that the other party had such a reaction because of her, Hui nodded gently in greeting.

"Oh, is your friend looking for you? Little girl." An old woman on the other side of the steps asked Serizawa Yu, drawing her attention back.

"——Yeah! He's my friend."

She said, bending slightly and bowing, "I'm sorry, I have to go, grandpa, and grandma. Bye~"

"Oh~ Goodbye, little girl."

After saying goodbye to several elderly people, Serizawa Yu trotted to the entrance of the park.

"Yusuke-san..."

Just as she was about to say something, Kato Yusuke raised his hand to stop her.

"Leave here first, and we'll talk about it later on the road."

"Huh? Ah, okay..."

So the three of them left together.

…

We walked like this for a while until we were some distance away from the park.

"What happened to those people just now?" Kato Yusuke asked bluntly: "Are you in trouble?"

"Well...ah haha, actually it can't be said to be troublesome." Serizawa Yu, who was walking on his left, smiled bitterly.

"Those grandfathers and grandmothers are residents of this neighborhood. I have met them several times when I go out. But today I was arrested and asked about their background."

"Asking about your background?"

"Well, because I only started to be active here recently, and because I was wearing a school uniform before, I seemed to have been recognized, which took a lot of time... But I still made up a story to get over it."

"Ah, come to think of it, I heard Yusuke talk about it."

Hui, who was walking on the right, leaned forward slightly and asked curiously: "You go to school at Yotsuya Futaba Academy, right?"

"That's right...Um, may I ask you..."

"Hmm~ Sorry, I should introduce myself. My name is Kato Megumi, and I am Yusuke's classmate and friend."

"Classmates and friends... Hey, that means Xiaoxiang... I mean Miss Shinjo..."

"Well~ we are all classmates."

"That's it...so that's what it is."

Serizawa murmured and suddenly relaxed for some reason.

"My name is Serizawa Yu, just call me Xiao Xi. Please give me your advice, Ms. Kato."

"You can just call me Kato, okay?"

Megumi responded with a smile, and then said: "Also, Shinjou-san seems to be worried about you. You can call her back."

"Telephone...this...sorry."

Serizawa said apologetically: "Although I do have a mobile phone, the service has been suspended because I did not pay."

Hearing this, Kato Yusuke suddenly asked: "Shinjo said that she had gone to see you, but you didn't go to the supermarket where you usually buy things."

"Well, that's because I went to another supermarket today. Although the distance is a bit far, there is a promotion there today, so..."

When Serizawa Yu said this, she suddenly reacted belatedly and asked timidly: "Ah, uh... well, did I cause trouble for everyone?"

"It's nothing. Remember to tell me before you go out next time..." Yusuke Kato said nothing in the middle of his sentence.

The girl also lowered her eyes in loneliness and forced a smile: "...Ahaha, there will be no next time."

What followed was a moment of silence.

As if to break the deadlock, Serizawa Yu smiled "Hey" again.

"But it's okay. I will keep Yusuke-san's words in mind. Also..."

She gently lifted the pocket full of ingredients in her hand and said in a relaxed tone as much as possible:

"As a token of my gratitude and apology for causing trouble to everyone, can I cook you one last dinner? Of course, Ms. Kato, please come too."

"..."

Kato Yusuke remained silent.

"We have already had dinner." - Just when he was about to reply, someone spoke before him.

"Yeah, sure. If Serizawa-san and Shinjo-san think it's okay, I'm willing to go."

After responding to Serizawa Yu, Megumi asked: "Where are you, Yusuke?"
To be continued...