the spider did not curse Watanuki, who was caught up in it, but Doumeki-kun.
This was because Doumeki was the closer, more direct one.
Yes, that is why the spider placed a web on Doumeki-kun’s eye.
It was the spider’s revenge.
Watanuki, who knew of Doumeki-kun’s sealed eye, offered up his own eye in exchange for Doumeki-kun’s.
He asked by himself and decided to offer it.
The one who wished for it was Watanuki.
The one who granted it was me. {But what about Fai in HOLiC with the whole Kurogane asking and Fai not wanting!}
Then, what about Doumeki?
All that’s left are the books in the chest. {Yes that one is right :長持 [ながもち] [n] [2] nagamochi; large oblong chest [for clothing, personal effects, etc.];}
Who is it?
It’s Watanuki-sama!
What time do you think it is?
That’s my line.
How long is a storage clean-up supposed to take?
You slow dunce.
What about your part-time job?
It’s done.
You haven’t cleaned up at all.
This is why you’re…
Then hurry up and—
Unto your pitiful self,
this gracious Watanuki-sama will bestow you with a bentou.
Worship and offer up a dance of gratitude.
Idiot.
What’s that, you b*stard?
If you have that much energy, I guess you’re fine.
In this storehouse, there are mountains of books that my grandfather gathered
on stuff like techniques and tools used in charms.
It should mean nothing to you, right?
I’m getting pissed off at you!
It seems that my grandfather, too, was making sure he would not bring dangerous things in here.
There are protective wards. {Ofuda}
That’s true. Normally, in stuffy places like this where the air stagnates, there would be some. {DS: Of course he’s talking about spirits and stuff here.}
But I can’t sense any.
However,
there is something…
Is there no tea?
You’re eating already?
Geez, I can’t let my guard down for one minute.
Here!
There’s no tea, but I made some miso soup.
Bow your head three times in thanks, and then drink it.
Okay.
That’s not giving thanks!
These are just leftovers from Yuuko-san’s.
Leftovers are more than good enough for the likes of you.
Next time, make croquettes.
Listen when someone speaks to you, you b*stard! I’m telling you they’re leftovers!
Gochisousama.
Geez, he really acts like he’s something special!
Are you looking it up?
What?
A way to bring back my eye.
I’m fine, even if I have to stay like this.
I’m not.
Head back soon. It’s easier for spirits to come out at night, right?{Ayakashi.. I think we used spirits in s1 right? Do we stick with that even if it was or leave it as ayakashi. There are many different types of "spirits" in HOLiC so yeah :/}
You’re doing research of your own volition, so I will as well.
Do you have a complaint or something?
I’ve already looked through that.
Search through those ones.
Get off your high horse!
Geez, you’ve been the same since you were a child.
In here?
I broke it.
Wait.
Ah! I broke another person’s storehouse!
Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear!
What, what, what should I do? I’ll have to compensate you!
This is grandfather’s writing.
Oh, so this is something your grandfather wrote, then?
Wow, what skillful writing.
In fact, it’s so skillful I can’t even read it.
That’s the greatest thing you could find.
You can read that?
Yeah.
Oi!
How many times do you have to make me say it? My name isn’t “Oi!”
It’s here.
What?
A spell for returning an eye from a spider.
For something that pin-point…
Wait, so is it a common occurrence, then?
On the night of the new moon, gather water from a well and wash the lost eye.
And with that water…
It’s eating the letters.
Don’t get close to it!
At this rate, all the words will be eaten.
This way, it can’t jump out at us! {I’m suprised doumeki can see it}
Idiot.
What’s the point of trapping it with the book?
Don’t touch it!
It’ll come out again!
If it doesn’t come out again, how am I supposed to take the book?
I’m telling you to quit it.
What will you do if it’s something you can’t handle? {handle as in oppose}
Then you should get out.
I’m fine!
Then I’m fine too.
No, you’re not!
Oh yeah!
I should go ask Yuuko-san what to—
Did you call?
Yuuko-san!
Yahoo!
Hi!
Excuse the intrusion!
Are you taking it home?
I’m not!
Well then, I think we would be better off having it disappear.
Please!
Doumeki-kun, can I have those wards?
I’ll draw you up new ones afterwards.
By all means.
Mokona.
See? There are some tasty words written here.
Here too.
And this is the last.
Just as you would expect of wards written by Doumeki-kun’s grandfather.
They are incredibly effective.
J—Just what is going on?
This is a bookworm. {It’s actually a Book insect in japanese but it’s basically the same thing}
It lives inside books, and its favorite snack is words that are important or of value.
That’s why it latched onto the wards that Doumeki-kun’s grandfather wrote.
It ate all the words on the four-corner wards, so now it can’t move anymore.
It’s kind of like it took the protective barrier within its own body.
They’ve disappeared.
It’s because I covered it with the bentou box.
Are you apologizing?
No way in hell!
God, because you’re always so ridiculously full of yourself, I’m always, always, always—
Hey, who does this book belong to?
It’s Himawari-chan’s—
The inside! What happened to the inside?
What the heck is this?
What should I do? Himawari-chan’s book has…
Oh, it was Himawari-chan’s.
Oh, by the way, why are you here at this time of night, Yuuko-san?
I wanted to see Doumeki-kun’s storehouse.
I thought maybe there was treasure.
For your own selfish desires, was it?
And also…
’cause Watanuki specifically made a bentou, so I thought we might have dinner! {TC}
Dinner!
It seems it was just leftovers.
Oh?
We only had a ceremonious English afternoon tea.
Anyway, it’s late, so we should get going. Right, Yuuko-san?
The night is still young. It’s the time for merrymaking. {Lit. It’s still early evening.}
Then let’s do it at the shop, right? Right?
Eh? When we came especially?
Especially!
What?
Afternoon tea, huh?
You, zip it!
Watanuki!
Come on, let’s get started straight away!
Straight away!
Your preparation, as always, is impeccable.
Then Watanuki, you can prepare the food.
No way! You want me to go buy ingredients at this time of night?
But I didn’t get the chance to eat your handmade bentou.
You can use what we have in our fridge.
Even if you say that, what should I make?
Then make croquettes.
Do you really want to eat croquettes that much?
Yeah.
Then Watanuki, make it croquettes!
But croquettes and sake don’t mix!
We ended up in Doumeki’s storehouse, drinking until dawn.
Are those two fish or something? {He actually says do they have a snake attached to them or something but this is the implied meaning}
Good morning, Watanuki-kun.
Himawari-chan!
I’m sorry!
It’s really true. The letters are scattered everywhere.
I’m sorry, I couldn’t stop it.
It’s not your fault, Watanuki-kun.
Don’t worry about it.
Ah, you’re just too cute, Himawari-chan!
But a bookworm, was it?
I would have liked to see that.
Nah, it was actually quite creepy.
It gave me goose bumps.
Oh, and Doumeki said he’d buy a new book.
He doesn’t have to.
It seems he wants to read it as well.
That cheeky b*stard.
Hey, who does this book belong to?
Why was Yuuko-san concerned with the owner of the book?
Now that I think about it, she did say it before, too.
That Himawari-chan wasn’t exactly my lady luck.
What did she mean by that?
What’s wrong?
It’s nothing, and Himawari-chan, you’re as great as ever today!
Well then, I suppose I’ll make a Buta Kakunidon tonight. {A pork topped rice dish}
The side dish{complimentary food} will be a Cobb salad filled with lots of vegetables!
After all, keeping a nutritional balance in food is important!
What was that just now?
I caught you.
Delicious!
S—She ate it!
She ate the goldfish!
Crap, I met her gaze.
Ah, so it’s you.
The one who’s all the talk in our world.
Our?
You know, there’s a big scramble over your eye right now.
What?
I want it too, but that girl will get mad.
That girl?
There’s another one!
Wait a sec!
What do you mean by “scramble?”
You should ask that girl.
I don’t know who you mean by “that girl,” either!
That was the cat-girl.
Huh? That was?
She was chasing goldfish, right?
Cats love them, don’t they?
So cat-girls these days wear boots and miniskirts?
So the cat-girl said, didn’t she,
that there is a scramble for your right eye?
Yes.
Things have become a bit troublesome, then.
What?
If we don’t hurry, your right eye will never come back.
It won’t return, huh?
What was that?
Don’t creep up behind people out of the blue!
I’ve been behind you for a while.
Before you got lost in your own little world. {I have no idea how to put Hyakumensou in literally in this sentence}
So, what did you say?
Oi.
Watanuki-kun, Doumeki-kun!
Himawari-chan!
Are you done with your cleaning?
Yeah, I just have to throw the trash away now.
I’m finished too.
I thought maybe we could go home together.
Sure!
What about you, Doumeki-kun?
Club activities.
I see. That’s a shame, but let’s go back together next time.
Then, shall we head home, Watanuki-kun?
Sure!
I’ll be right back, so wait a sec!
I’m off!
Watanuki-kun is in high spirits.
More like high idiocy.
But I wonder if his right eye is okay.
I hope it heals soon.
Really?
Yeah, really.
But I actually like scary and mysterious things quite a bit.
Oh yeah, that’s right.
But that’s one of the things that makes you wonderful!
Just a little while ago, there was a program about this young spiritual seer girl.
It was interesting.
Oh? A little girl?
Her name is Kohane-chan. She’s incredibly cute!
Himawari-chan is much more cute!
Well, I’m heading this way.
So we’ve already come to this point.
Yeah. Time sure flies when you’re having fun, doesn’t it?
It flies!
Well then, Watanuki-kun, see you tomorrow.
See you tomorrow!
When she said she was having fun, she meant it was fun being with me, right?
Being with Himawari-chan brings me so much happiness.
So why did Yuuko-san say that?
Are you okay?
Yes.
What, an accident?
What is it this time?
Karasu-Tengu?
It’s your fault!
It’s your fault!
What is?
Take us.
Wait, there was just an accident.
This isn’t the place you should be.
You shouldn’t be here!
So take us.
Just where to?
To your mistress!
Yuuko-san’s?
We have a favour to ask.
Compensation will be required.
We know. But still, please…
What’s your wish?
The Zashiki-Warashi was caught.
We want to save her, but we can’t get close enough.
Even though we want to save her, we can’t.
Because of a barrier that even a Karasu-Tengu can’t break, huh?
To the Zashiki-Warashi, malicious miasma is like poison. {DS: 邪気？ evil aura?}
If she stays captured like that…
What’s the compensation?
Mokona.
The Tengu’s fan.
It’s your treasure, isn’t it?
Can’t we exchange it for her?
That’s fine, I shall grant your wish.
But, to just break a barrier, this is too large of a compensation.
Everything has to be without disparity, so neither too much nor too little can be taken.
That’s why it will be barrier breaking as well as our part-timer added on.
But it’s his fault that she was…
However, you will not be able to save the Zashiki-Warashi by yourselves.
What will you do, Watanuki?
I will go. {This mirrors Syaoran and Yuuko in Tsubasa
}It will be dangerous.
I will go.
The pipe fox.
Take him with you.
That’s the Tengu’s fan for you.
It took them to the place where the Zashiki-Warashi is being held in one swoop.
Was it okay for Mokona not to go as well?
This is something that Watanuki must come to understand himself.
Only the concerned party can say whether it’s no large matter.
What do you mean by that, Yuuko-san?
Doumeki-kun has no need to enter this shop. That is why he has no need to see it.
Will Watanuki’s eye never return?
I shall grant that wish, but this is too large a compensation.
Everything must be without disparity.
Yuuko-san sent me along, so there must be something I can do.
Next time, on HOLiC Kei:
Half.