Hoshiwatashi-hen Chapter 7 (第7話 Dai Nana-wa) is the seventh chapter of Hoshiwatashi-hen.
Summary[]
The Polaris festival ends. Keitarou thinks that the Watanagashi Festival must also be ending right then and plans to have a proper talk with his friends tomorrow. Meanwhile, his friends are talking with a crowd of panicked villagers. Marutake speaks to the Holy Mother and thanks her for letting him come and take photos, hoping they'll be of use.
Keitarou thanks Kururu and Inori for letting him come to the festival. He understands Polaris more and hopes the people of Hinamizawa can understand too. Kururu says the village hates them though and talks about all the harassment and graffiti Polaris's been getting. The villagers seem to want to drive Polaris out and keep saying they'll be killed by Oyashiro-sama. Keitarou is shocked to hear this, and Inori sadly says Polaris has been forced to abandon several other places in the past, and they don't want to run anymore. Keitarou promises to do what he can to get the villagers to understand. Kururu calls him naive and says that someone like him who just moved in recently has no business talking about that. A shadow falls over Kururu's face as Inori gives her a concerned look, and Kururu laments that they have to complain after they properly showed Hinamizawa their way of life.
Keitarou knows that deep down, Kururu invited him to the festival because they want to reconcile with Hinamizawa, and mentions that his father Keiichi is very influential. Keitarou promises to talk to his dad when he moves here about Polaris. Kururu and Inori exchange a glance and voice support for his idea. Keitarou prepares to leave on his bike, and Inori gives him a farewell bow. Keitarou thinks that starting tomorrow, the Polaris kids will go back to not talking to him, but he's content with Inori seeing him as a friend.
Meanwhile, Kihiro tries to call Keitarou on his phone but gets a busy signal. As he, Tamaki, and Sakiko walk home, they talk about how all those villagers were concerned about Keitarou's connection to Polaris. Kihiro thinks to himself that it was actually hostility. Sakiko says they're just on guard since he might've been taken in by Polaris, but then gets fed up and yells that Polaris must be inciting Hinamizawa to make a move. If the villagers actually do something, then all the hard work her grandfather and father did will go to waste. Tamaki calms her down and says to believe in Hinamizawa's people. the Three Families forbade fighting with Polaris, and the villagers wouldn't really do anything to ruin their chances of becoming a World Heritage Site. Kihiro adds that Uncle Keiichi is returning soon and could lead Hinamizawa in the right direction. Sakiko sighs and compliments Tamaki and Kihiro for comforting her despite her being the older sister-type. Sakiko plans to brag to Keitarou tomorrow morning about their festival prizes.
Keitarou calls Rika on his phone and tells her that the people of Polaris are just like them. He mentions that Hinamizawans appear to be harassing Polaris and talks about all the pictures Marutake showed him. Rika ponders this: she wonders if there really are Hinamizawans who hate Polaris that much and would defy the Three Families just to drive them out. Just then, Mayor Kimiyoshi drives up to Keitarou in a car and asks why he didn't come to the Watanagashi. Keitarou claims he had other business to attend to, and a creepy smile arises on the mayor's face when he asks if it had to do with Polaris. Keitarou gets unnerved by the atmosphere and hears other people murmuring in the mayor's car. The mayor yells that Polaris is a dangerous cult and that they're just stringing Keitarou along and harassing Hinamizawa. Keitarou yells back that Polaris doesn't want to do anything to antagonize them and that Hinamizawa is really the ones doing the harassing, but the mayor doesn't accept it and says Oyashiro-sama must be outraged. Keitarou quickly bikes away in a panic.
Keitarou gets home and sees a lot of notifications on his phone. He wonders if his friends talked to anybody else about him attending the Polaris festival and tries to reaffirm his belief that the villagers are the ones causing trouble. Keitarou thinks back to how the mayor was acting and worries if he's being treated as an enemy of the village because he sided with Polaris. He thinks about everything Marutake said and is sure they can fix everything if they just talk it out. Keitarou checks his texts to see his friends bragging about the Watanagashi, and then sees a message from Kihiro asking to talk. Keitarou sends a reply that they'll talk tomorrow.
Keitarou goes to sleep and is woken up late at night by a call from Sakiko. A panicked Sakiko says he might not have heard anything since he went to the Polaris festival, and Keitarou asks her what's going on. Sakiko yells that her dad's gone and that nobody's seen him since the end of the Watanagashi; he was demoned away. Keitarou is about to say it's like the curse of Oyashiro-sama, but Sakiko finishes his sentence. Keitarou notices that it sounds like there's another voice coming from behind Sakiko. Sakiko says someone must be benefiting from her dad's disappearance, and Keitarou thinks she's suspecting Polaris. Keitarou says to calm down since someone is supposed to die in Oyashiro-sama's curse, but Sakiko says someone did die. As an angry mob of villagers behind Sakiko raise weapons, a crying Sakiko says Rika was killed.
Rika is shown in her hospital room with bloodstains everywhere. The third and final bead on her bracelet shatters. A narrator says the curse of Oyashiro-sama will be reborn in the Reiwa Era.
Characters[]
- Keitarou Maebara
- Inori Mikazuki
- Kururu Isshiki
- Marutake
- Holy Mother
- Rika Furude
- Tamaki Sonozaki
- Sakiko Kimiyoshi
- Kihiro Ryuugu
Gallery[]
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