[MHCISQD] Chapter 251: Urban Legend

Once Renault and Hado had settled on the investigation, Ryukyu handed them the address and the keys to the house.

Uraraka and Tsuyu had their own daily missions to attend to, so Renault and Hado were responsible for this particular mission.

Before they set off, Ryukyu addressed Renault and Hado, saying, "This case is a bit like an urban legend. Honestly, these kinds of things are usually troublesome and time-consuming, and the results of most investigations turn out to be quite extraordinary. So, don't worry too much about whether you'll find any clues or not. It would be great if you do, but even if you don't, it's not a big concern, understand?"

"I understand," Renault nodded in response. He was curious and decided to take on the mission because it was his first encounter with this kind of thing.

On the other hand, Hado was very enthusiastic, wearing a bright smile as she exclaimed, "I'll definitely find the ghost!"

Well, as long as you're happy.

Leaving the office, Renault and Hado didn't pay much attention to their surroundings. They went directly to the destination of the mission, a residential area on the outskirts of Tokyo, where an uninhabited house stood before them.

"It doesn't seem particularly special," Renault observed as he looked at the house. It was far from the eerie haunted houses one would see in movies or on television. At least, this house didn't have a spooky atmosphere; it appeared quite ordinary.

"Shall we go, Senpai? Let's go inside and take a look." Renault said.

"Let's embark on this adventure!" Hado said excitedly.

Renault took out the key, unlocked the front door, and both of them entered the house.

Although this place had seen several alleged paranormal events, the owner of the house was reluctant to give up on it. Even when abroad, they would regularly hire cleaning staff to maintain the property. Furthermore, since the cleaning was done during the day, there was no concern about hearing any creepy or strange sounds.

Inside the house, there was nothing peculiar such as white snakes or unusual phenomena. After exploring around and finding nothing unsettling, they came back downstairs and sat in the living room. Hado, with a bored expression, commented, "No ghosts here!"

"Regardless of whether ghosts or anything like that actually exists, they wouldn't appear during the daytime," Renault chuckled as he sat down and took out his laptop from his bag. He connected it to the power source and turned it on.

Upon seeing this, Hado approached out of curiosity and asked, "What are you going to do, Renault?"

"I didn't find anything during our initial exploration, so I thought I'd kill some time by searching for information," Renault explained. He began searching on a search engine, typing in the keywords 'Japan Urban Legend'.

Numerous results appeared with a single search.

"Urban legend?" Hado asked, nodding as Renault confirmed.

"Ryukyu mentioned it, didn't she? This mission is similar to an urban legend. Unlike those baseless rumors, the tenants who have lived here have actually had discussions with specialized Pro Heroes in the field of psychic and spiritual phenomena. What they say is genuine. In other words, there must be some issues with this house."

"But are there any similar stories online?"

"I don't think so," Renault shook his head and clicked on a webpage. He explained, "To be honest, I'm not looking for useful clues online. I'm just pondering a question."

"What question?"

Renault pointed to the horrifying legend of 'Kuchisake-onna' on the webpage and asked, "Senpai, do you think this story is true?"

Hado listened with a curious gaze and read the story from beginning to end.

As Renault had anticipated, Hado didn't show any signs of fear. Instead, after finishing the story, she pondered seriously and said, "It's possible that it's true, you know?"

"Oh? Why do you think so?" Renault was curious about her thoughts.

"Because you see..." Hado thought for a moment and gave him an example. "Let's take Amajiki, for instance. His Quirk manifests the characteristics of the food he consumes. If he were to eat an entire small octopus, wouldn't he be able to mimic features similar to Kuchisake-onna? Although I don't know the specific timeline of this story, it's very likely just a manifestation of a Quirk!"

After hearing her viewpoint, Renault couldn't help but regard this sometimes naive senpai in a higher regard.

Her thoughts were similar to his, believing that urban legends like 'Kuchisake-onna' were likely true. And those stories like 'Sukima-onna' or 'Running Ghost' could very well be explained by Quirks.

The origins of many stories are now impossible to trace, but Renault believed that the era when some urban legends had actual counterparts probably existed before the widespread emergence of Quirks. Their strange transformations altered their psychology, some turning into pranks, while others even began harming innocent bystanders.

As Renault was contemplating, he suddenly noticed Hado leaning close to him, pressing against him and staring intently at the computer screen. She asked, "Renault! Renault! After we finish investigating the incidents here, let's go find Kuchisake-onna!"

"..." Renault gently moved her body back into place and replied, "Senpai, the story of Kuchisake-onna has been spreading for at least several decades. It's highly unlikely we can trace its origins."

"Oh, is that so? I still wanted to find her and see if she would ask me any questions!" Hado's thought process seemed quite different from that of an ordinary person.

Leaving Hado downstairs to browse the internet for those stories, Renault proceeded to the master bedroom upstairs.

Since the homeowner was not lacking in funds, the house's interior decoration was excellent, especially the master bedroom, which was incredibly comfortable to stay in.

Opening each wardrobe and examining every corner of the room, Renault still didn't come across anything strange. After a moment of contemplation, he took out a light blue Fullbottle from his pocket, the Unicorn Fullbottle.

"Mythical beast Unicorn said to possess the radiant attribute that counters darkness. I wonder if it can help me find something," Renault said as he shook the Unicorn Fullbottle and scattered the faint white energy it emitted throughout the entire room.

He waited a few seconds, but nothing happened.

"Is there no issue? Perhaps it's better to explore the surroundings first and save the interior investigation for later in the evening."

With no progress made, Renault decided to investigate the surroundings first and left the room.

Shortly after he left the room and closed the door, the light inside the room instantly dimmed.