《Kami Hunter》


 The Third Author

    Hey there, dear reader.


    I don''t know the story of how you got here, or what you''re like. But I appreciate that you''re here nevertheless.


    This book wasn''t exactly intended to exist.


    It just started out as a daydream of mine, imagining what it would be like had a few select people existed. I loved to read, and oftentimes reading was a way for me to escape reality.


    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    You could say they were my imaginary friends. They were how I kept away the loneliness, and in a way were a part of me.


    But as I grew, slowly but surely these people grew up alongside me.


    Soon, a world began to take root from these characters.


    And one day, I decided to make my little dream a reality.


    So in a way, you could say this book is my story.


    Yet you could also say that I''m as much of a reader of this story as you are.


    So thank you for being here, and accompanying me as I watch this little corner of reality blossom.


    I''m looking forward to what''ll happen next in this story we call life.

 Chapter 0.5

    In the darkness was a child.


    Amidst the silence, they stood alone.


    The windless night whispered into their ear.


    Only the beating of its heart served as a reminder that they still lived.


    Standing on the edge of a bridge, the small child gazed down at the sea.


    The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.


    The endlessly deep currents churned beneath them like a pitch-black void.


    And then, the child fell.


    The child sank without a sound into the cold waters.


    The darkness suffocated them as voices flooded their mind.


    Memories of a past life bubbled away as the child faded into nothingness.


    But,

 Chapter 2

    I think trains are cool. It''s not that I like the trains themselves, but I love the concept of using them as a narrative device. Many of the manga or web novels or books I''ve read use them to represent the start or end of a journey, as you leave behind the past and embark into the future. Unfortunately, here in Tokyo, the subways are always packed.


    But now that I think about it, that could be representative of how everyone has their own little stories, and how even if it goes unnoticed, each person is traveling along their personal journey of li-


    "Sayuri!"


    Huh?


    "You''re doing this again! This is our stop! Get off the train already!"


    Crap. I quickly grabbed my bag and pushed past the people before me while apologizing. I jumped out of the subway doors, just before they closed. As I hunched over panting next to her, my childhood friend Tanaka Mika spared me no pity. Forming a closed fist, she promptly smacked me on the back of my head.


    "Dumbass. I bet you were daydreaming about random things again."


    "..."


    Mika often treats me like this, both physically and verbally, but I know that this is just her way of teasing me. Still, she hits pretty hard...


    "Anyway, let''s keep going. Akihabara''s a popular place, so we should get there quickly before the crowd comes and they sell out."


    She took my hand and dragged me to the escalator, where we squeezed between the crowd and stepped onto the moving staircase. I looked at the walls as we slowly ascended, and was not surprised to see numerous advertisements plastered everywhere.


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    Being the teenage girl I am, the clothing ad caught my eye. A beautiful woman sporting a rather fashionable pink dress and an expensive handbag smiled at me.


    Hold on. Was it just me, or did she keep on smiling directly at me, even after I passed her?


    My foot hit the top of the escalator, nearly tripping me. Maybe Mika''s right. I followed Mika to the station gates, and together we scanned our Suica cards to be let out to the street. Looking at my card''s balance displayed on the gate''s small screen, I inwardly sighed.


    "Mika-chaan... can you buy it today? I''m running a bit low on money... I promise I''ll buy the next one..."


    Mika rolled her eyes but didn''t say anything, meaning that this was expected.


    Sorry, Mika.


    ________________________________________________________________________________


    The Electric Town of Tokyo was bursting with colors, as well as people. With all of the advertisements and logos everywhere, there wasn''t a single blank spot anywhere. The streets were swarming with people shopping for the latest electronics and everything else you could imagine. Anime and manga stores, arcades, electronic stores, and even maid cafes; all things Otaku were found in this very place. Not letting go of my hand to avoid being separated, Mika pulled me along the moving current of people.


    After much struggle, we finally reached our target. I forced Mika''s hand off of my wrist ("You don''t have to worry about me getting lost here!") and together we joined the long line protruding out of the Ninjatend store.


    "You think they''re going to run out before we can snag a copy?" Mika skeptically asked.


    The thought of it worried me, but I was confident that we had come early enough. I mean, how many people would line up at seven a.m. for a measly copy of the new Battle Bros? But with this crowd, I kind of felt like we should''ve come earlier.


    "U-uh........ It should be fine... maybe..."


    "Well, whatever happens, happens."


    Mika turned to face me, and we made eye contact.


    "Now that I think about it, how did we even start playing video games again?"


    I thought back to when we were younger.


    "Well, I think I used to watch my brother play Jumping Man after school back in elementary, and after a while he finally let me try it. Then I invited you over to play with me, and kick-started our addiction."


    "I bet you just stared at your brother until he caved in."


    "...You''re probably right. I was really shy back then, huh."


    If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    "No kidding. It took you a few weeks of just watching me from far away before you finally gathered the courage to talk to me."


    "Hey. I''m not like that anymore."


    "Yeah, right."


    Mika snickered, which I ignored. The line was incredibly long, and after a while, I started to feel thirsty. My throat felt like sandpaper.


    "Hey, Mika."


    "...Mmmmm?"


    "Should I go get drinks for us?"


    "I thought you ran out of money?"


    Her comment flustered me, and it began to feel hot, despite it still being early spring.


    "I still have enough money to buy something from the vending machine, just not something pricier than a game!"


    "Just messing with you. Grab me a CC Lemon."


    This woman...


    "Alright, hold our spot for us then."


    Breaking away from the line, I walked past the Nintendo store and turned the corner. Being a frequent visitor to Akihabara, I knew where all of the vending machines were.


    Lost in thought, I realized with a jolt that I had long since passed the vending machines. Looking up, I found myself in a rather dark alleyway. I was completely alone.


    There was an immensely creepy atmosphere, almost like it was ripped straight out of a horror manga.


    Well, that''s just because I''m scared of the dark. Thankfully, there seemed to be a vending machine here too.


    Carefully avoiding tripping on scattered cans and cardboard boxes, I made my way to the machine. I browsed the options and spotted CC Lemon.


    Huh. Looks like Mika''s in luck.


    I considered my options for a bit before settling on milk tea.


    I was scanning my Suica card on the machine when I heard a sudden loud crunching sound from behind me, making me jump with a jolt.


    What was that?


    Quickly turning my head around, I looked down the alleyway and scanned my surroundings. Nothing had changed, and there was an eerie silence.


    Was it just me, or was it a LOT darker?! Seriously, I was joking about the horror manga!


    With fear creeping from the back of my thoughts, it became painfully apparent that I was completely alone. I desperately grabbed the drinks from the vending machine and promptly dropped the CC Lemon due to my panic. The drink rolled a bit down the alleyway (ignoring my internal pleading) and came to a halt.


    Dear god.


    Ignoring the screaming in my mind, I ran over to pick up the CC Lemon and put it in my bag with the milk tea. It was when I was standing back up that I spotted something strange deeper within the alleyway.


    It looked like some sort of black blur. And yet, It seemed to have a life of its own. It kept on moving around, bumping into the walls.


    That can''t be right. Was there something in my eyes? I wiped my eyes and looked again. It was still there. I squinted and tried to make out the blur''s form. That was a mistake.


    My vision slowly cleared, revealing an extremely tall man.


    Oh geez, how did he get there? And why is he so tall?


    Craning my neck to look up at him, I quickly noticed his attire.


    He wore a black suit paired with a bright red tie and a gray fedora on his head.


    Oh my god.


    His head.


    With a revelation that chilled my blood, I realized that instead of a face, the man had an endless void.


    Eyes widening with fear, my mind went blank and my body froze for what seemed like an eternity, as I simply stared into where his face was supposed to be.


    The rest of his body was also pitch black, although it somehow didn''t look as dense as his face. The man stood about ten feet tall with long, thin arms and legs that couldn''t belong to a human being.


    Time slowed, and horror rapidly erased all other feelings within every nerve within my body.


    And then everything unfroze.


    RUN.


    Every single one of my instincts screamed at me to get as far away as possible from this entity, and I couldn''t ignore them. Tears formed in the corner of my eyes from the sheer effort it took to hold my scream in. It didn''t matter what the hell this thing was, I had to get away.


    I turned around and ran down the alleyway as fast as my legs could carry me, nearly tripped on my own feet.


    Even though I knew not to look, I couldn''t stop myself from looking over my shoulder. What I saw horrified me. With several pairs of arms sprouting from its back, the massive creature propelled itself along the thin alleyway by pushing against the walls, crawling along like some horrific spider. More arms reached towards me with long, outstretched fingers, and an otherworldly noise rang my ears.


    Please, this can''t be real. Sobbing inside, my heart pounded twice as fast and I somehow ran with a strength I didn''t even know I had. My mind raced with overwhelmed thoughts, and I barely registered what was around me.


    Oh my god.


    Oh my god. I''m going to die. God help me. Anybody, please. I tripped and tumbled along the ground.


    No, no, no no no no no no!


    Lying on my back, I desperately tried to push myself away from the terrifying man.


    Am I going to die?


    As the creature''s blood-curdling scream kept getting louder and louder, I tried to close my eyes. But with a sort of horrified fascination, my eyes stayed open.


    An hour ago I was looking forward to playing video games with Mika. How did things get to this?


    Different thoughts and images flashed through my mind. The seconds slowly crept by. The approaching demon''s face filled more and more of my vision, as it reached out to drag me to the depths of hell.


    And yet all I could comprehend were the words flooding my head.


    What would my family think when I disappeared? Would they ever be able to move on? What about my friends?


    The flooding thoughts overwhelmed me, and I couldn''t close my eyes no matter how much I wanted to. I watched in utter horror as several long, deformed arms rapidly lashed out towards my face.

 Chapter 3 - The Second Narrator

    The first thing I felt was the sun shining on my face.


    ...What?


    I was looking at an empty alleyway. There was no monster anywhere. Looking around, I found myself back on the crowded street. People gave me strange looks as they passed by.


    Embarrassed, I got up from the ground.


    But what had just happened? I couldn''t wrap my head around the situation.


    I looked back at where I thought I had come from but saw no alleyway, only a wall.


    Was it a dream? Did I collapse from the heat? Wait. There''s a way I can check.


    I quickly opened my bag, and sure enough, I found the two drinks from the alleyway. I stood there for several minutes, thinking.


    _________________________________________________________


    When I managed to find my way back to the Ninjatendo Store, she had already gotten the game and was waiting for me outside.


    "What in the world took you so long? Are you okay?"


    Mika looked at me with concerned eyes, which meant that she was extremely worried, as she would usually tease me.


    "Honestly, I don''t even know myself."


    Mika stared at me for a little longer, before asking "Did you get lost? Or did you run into trouble?"


    There''s no way I can tell her about the thing that chased me. She would never believe me, not in a million years. She''d think I hit my head or something. I thought back to how the alleyway disappeared.


    "Uh... I guess I got lost?"


    Mika sighed with relief and hit me on the head again. Ow.


    "Don''t worry me like that. I can''t believe I can''t let you out of my sight, not even to buy drinks!"


    Right. Drinks. That''s what I was doing, to begin with. I handed her the CC Lemon, before downing the entire milk tea in one go.


    "Wow. You must''ve been super thirsty."


    _________________________________________________________


    We made our way back to Mika''s house, and I took a much-needed shower. When I walked into her living room, she had already booted up her Switch. She looked up at me with an impatient face.


    "C''mon, let''s get started already!" She tapped the pile of snacks from her stash. "I''ve already got all of the food."


    Deciding that distracting myself from today''s events would be for the best, I walked over to join her.


    After a couple of hours, there was a loud sound coming from my bag.


    "Ring ring ring!"


    "That''s probably my mom. I think I have to go home for dinner now."


    Mika''s face filled with disappointment. I felt slightly guilty, but after what happened today, I absolutely did not want to go home after nightfall. I helped her clean up and thanked Mika and her mom for letting me over before walking out their apartment door.


    "Don''t forget, we''re going shopping for supplies for school tomorrow!" Mika called out.


    That''s right. I almost forgot. Looking forward to another outing with Mika, I waved back at her.


    "See you soon!"


    When I got home, I was greeted with the strong and welcoming smell of curry, but I didn''t feel like eating.


    "Are you alright Yuri? You''re hardly eating anything."


    My mom knocked me out of my daze, and she looked at me with concern.


    "H-huh? Oh, I''m fine. I just ate a lot of snacks at Mika''s house."


    That wasn''t the case, however, because I didn''t feel hungry at Mika''s either. The thought of the monster''s eerie face made me feel sick.


    "Now that I think about it, aren''t you two starting high school soon?" My brother Kenta asked.


    "Yep! I even got into my dream school, and with Mika too!" I was momentarily filled with pride, and it wiped the dark thoughts away.


    My dad smiled brightly at these words. "That''s amazing, Sayuri! Kenta''s also starting his second year of college! Why don''t we go to a nice restaurant to celebrate?"


    My mom clapped her hands. "That''s a great idea! Where would you like to go, Sayuri?"


    I thought for a bit, before saying "I think Sukiyaki would be good. Also, can I go shopping with Mika at the mall tomorrow to prepare for school?"


    "Of course! Make sure to make the most of your last week before you''re busy with school again."


    After brushing my teeth and changing into my pajamas, I sat on my bed writing in my diary, a nightly ritual that let me write about my day. Random books and journals littered my surrounding room.


    Writing was my hobby, as I have so many thoughts and ideas that writing them down lets me properly process them. But even writing didn''t stop the thoughts from racing in my head today.


    What in the world happened in Akihabara today? I reimagined what I so narrowly escaped, and attempted to describe it in my diary. But words couldn''t do it justice. The shadows in my room seemed to grow, and I was filled with anticipation. Absentmindedly squishing the cheeks of a Komasan plush, I resolved myself. I have to go back and investigate.


    ...Not.


    What am I, one of those stupid characters from horror stories? If I go back there and do end up finding that horror again, I would probably die. That''s a no from me.


    I laughed nervously at the thought, put away my diary, and turned off the lights. But the screaming and sight of the tall man tormented me in my dreams, and I hardly slept a wink.


    I sat at the table the next morning, falling asleep and failing to eat my food. Dammit, I''m making my mom worried again.


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    "Are you alright, Sayuri? Did something happen?"


    "No, don''t worry. I''ll be fine."


    "Mmmm... alright." My Mom looked at me with suspicious eyes. "Sayuri."


    "Hm?"


    "You haven''t seen anything strange recently, have you?"


    Eh? Can she read my mind? Still, there''s no way she''d believe me if I told her about the creature.


    "Nope."


    "Well, if you ever happen to see anything weird, tell your father and I, alright? Make sure to tell the police, too."


    This struck me rather oddly, but I didn''t question it.


    "Alright, got it."


    "Good. Now, have fun shopping with Mika today."


    "Thank you."


    I got up from the table, moved my dishes over to the dishwasher, and grabbed my belongings. Right before leaving, I remembered something important.


    "Wait, can I have some more money? I''m almost out."


    My mom laughed. "I was wondering when you would ask again."


    _________________________________________________________


    Shopping with Mika was pretty fun. But, as expected, we didn''t just shop. We went around all kinds of places, such as arcades (yes, our addiction spread even to those) and cafes.


    "Mika, look at this! They have Pokemon plushes!"


    "Sayuri, I think you have enough of those."


    "One more can''t hurt..."


    "Sayuri, fight me to the death."


    "Don''t word it like that, we''re only playing Mario Kart."


    The outing was so fun that I almost forgot about yesterday. Almost. It was enough to make me forget about the time, however.


    [Yuri, I know you''re having a lot of fun, but it''s getting kind of late. You can hang out with Mika again soon, so you should come home, alright?]


    "AH!"


    "What is it, Sayuri?"


    "It''s already ten!"


    "WHAT?" Mika checked her phone and groaned. "And I thought only you pulled things like this."


    Ignoring her statement, I grabbed her hand and we ran out of the mall. Sure enough, it was nighttime. Oh no. My fears started to come back. What if we ran into another monster? But I reasoned with myself. That must''ve been a dream, Sayuri. You probably bought the drinks and then fainted from the heat.


    Still, I couldn''t calm myself down, and I fidgeted the entire time while we sat on the subway. The train arrived and we walked outside.


    My heart sank. No. I can''t do it. I''ll just sleep in the station.


    "C''mon, Sayuri. You can''t fall asleep now, we''re almost there."


    Because her house was closer to the station, we walked to her house first.


    I almost asked her if I could stay over, but I told myself that I was overreacting. Surely I was just imagining things earlier...


    E-even if that monster was real, it was in Akihabara. Not here.


    "Bye, Sayuri. I''ll message you once I come back!"


    Oh no. Now I was alone.


    I walked along the empty street, and my legs involuntarily shook, no matter how much I resisted. Only a couple of dim street lamps lit my path, and would my luck have it, even the cicadas weren''t making any noise, even though it was the middle of summer. I suddenly heard a noise behind me, and I nearly fell over from fright.


    Large, yellow eyes made eye contact with me, paired with a cute, whiskered face. Thank god, it''s just a cat. Nearly overwhelmed with relief, I walked over to the furry animal to pet it. But as I approached, the cat started to hiss.


    "Oh don''t be scared, I won''t hurt you. If anything, you''ve saved me from dying of fright."


    But as I got closer, I realized that the cat was looking past me. Surely not. This is such a clich¨¦. Don''t let it be there. I turned and was met with a pretty young woman standing underneath a street light, although I could only see her eyes. She was wearing a face mask, but her perfect, pale skin was visible, along with eyes that sparkled like gems. My god. All of you have to stop scaring me like that.


    As I sighed and started to turn back towards the cat, the woman spoke.


    "Am I beautiful?"


    Huh? I was taken aback. Who asked a stranger that sort of question? I decided to answer her politely, and said "Well, I think you are."


    The woman removed her mask and smiled, showing her perfect teeth. The smile somehow didn''t fit her, and something felt wrong. The smile only grew, until the sides of her mouth ripped from ear to ear, revealing a maw filled with teeth like a shark''s. Her voice, sweet like honey but now dripping with venom, asked "Even with this?"


    The sounds of my own heart beating overwhelmed me, as fear paralyzed my body. The only thing that moved was my mouth, in an open scream.


    That was a mistake. Angered, the woman''s arms seemed to stretch, until they split right down the middle, revealing sharp, bloody edges like pairs of scissors. A moment too late, I remembered a certain urban legend that my brother once told me.


    "If you meet a beautiful woman alone on the street, you should be careful. If she asks you if she''s pretty, whatever you do, do not say no, or she''ll kill you. But if you say yes, she''ll reveal her face, and ask again. Don''t ever say no, or scream, because your life will be forfeit. But don''t say yes either, because she''ll make you look just like her."


    I somehow managed to will my legs into moving, and I ran in the opposite direction of the Kuchisake-Onna. The cat ran with me, but it was much faster. The tall man who chased me earlier was real. But there''s no way I''m getting lucky again. Tears filled my eyes. I didn''t even try to look behind me this time. I knew it was coming. Adrenaline filled my body, but I felt like giving up and lying down. I turned a corner and met a dead end.


    This was it. Collapsing against the wall, I watched the Kuchisake-Onna turn the corner and walk towards me. It took its scissored arms and opened them wide, leering at me as it slowly savored my fear.


    I breathed heavily, too scared to even think about my family again. All I thought was that I didn''t want to die.


    Please, I thought. Please let this be a dream. But it was futile. I knew it was.


    I couldn''t even stop hyperventilating.


    I was going to die in this pathetic state.


    Well, it wasn''t like how I died mattered.


    And yet, a single line filled my mind. Was it from a book?


    It is in the face of death that one''s true self is revealed.


    Even though nothing would come of it, I stood up.


    What am I doing? It''s not like I stopped being scared.


    ...The sound of my heart still pounded in my ears.


    What does it matter if I''m standing or sitting when I die?


    And yet, I steeled myself and stared the ghastly slit-faced in the eyes. A small sign of surprise showed, and the Yuuki Onna stopped, but not for long. It soon continued advancing, no longer grinning. It prepared to cut me down.


    And then it happened.


    My heart started to burn like it had been set alight. A bright line cut through the dark of the night, and I instinctively covered my eyes with one arm. Wind blew my hair back, and the Kuchisake-Onna flinched. As the light faded, I saw a glowing, light blue woman wearing robes standing in front of me.


    Wielding a long naginata, the woman looked imposing, yet elegant. Long, flowing hair trailed from the back of her head, and the atmosphere grew strangely calm. She hovered slightly in the air and gave off small waves of sky-blue light.


    The Kuchisake-Onna, threatened by the new presence, quickly sprung towards the woman, arms outstretched. I tried to shout a warning, but the woman moved faster than I could react. Blocking both of the monster''s scissor arms with her naginata, the woman easily overpowered it and pushed it back. The woman raised her naginata in a counterattack and swung.


    Traveling in a beautiful arc, the blade of the light blue naginata seemed to cut through the very air and cut off one of the Kuchisake-Onna''s arms, which disintegrated into dust. Screaming, the Yuuki Onna tried to attack the woman with its other arm, but that too got cut off in the blink of an eye.


    Amazing. Who was this woman? The way she glowed almost made her seem like... a guardian spirit. Or a god. Did my prayers work?


    In a last-ditch effort, the Kuchisake-Onna opened its mouth wide, revealing hundreds upon hundreds of serrated teeth. With a dreadful scream, it thrust its mouth towards the young woman''s face, threatening to rip her head off.


    Thud.


    The slit-faced woman''s head hit the ground, and soon her entire body started to fade away.


    "...men..."


    I stared at the glowing woman in awe and disbelief. She turned towards me and smiled at me sweetly. Her face was extremely pretty, and her eyes were filled with kindness. I had only just met her, yet it somehow felt like I had known her all her life. Still smiling, she slowly faded away, and I was left alone in the night.


    But my fear had melted away, and a strange calm filled me. I was safe.


    I heard a rustling noise and saw the cat from before coming out of a nearby bush.


    Aw. Looks like it was worried about me. It walked up to me and let me scratch its ears, giving off a soft purr. After a minute or two of bliss, I bid it farewell ("goodbye Mr. Kitty") and walked home, no longer afraid.

 Chapter 4

    "Urgh. I think I drank too much."


    A middle-aged man stood hunched over in an alleyway, with one hand on the wall. Dealing with the aftereffects of overdrinking, he was uncontrollably throwing up. He had a pretty rough week. He was single and lived alone, all the while working at a white-collar job that didn''t give much pay. And now that he was in danger of losing his job, he did his best to drink away his problems.


    "What am I even doing with myself...?"


    He thought about the life he was currently living. This definitely wasn''t what he dreamed of. But his youth seemed to be already gone. Not much he can do about that anymore.


    "Well, I should probably get back home. The last train comes in about half an hour."


    Wiping his mouth, the office worker took his hand off the street lamp and turned to leave.


    Hold on. Street lamp? Since when was that there?


    Before he could even react, several long, black arms pierced through his torso. Blood spurted out of the man''s eyes, nose, and mouth in a gurgling scream. Dying instantly, the man''s body was thrust up into the air, dripping blood and innards everywhere.


    A pitch-black face adorned with a fedora rose to examine the dead man''s body. Satisfied, it threw him to the ground like a limp, torn doll, his eyes unblinking. Slowly fading back into the darkness, the tall man would wait for its next victim. A slit on the creature''s once-empty face opened to reveal several pointy teeth, in a ghastly smile.


    _________________________________________________________


    Three days after my encounter with the Kuchisake-Onna, I found myself sitting on the couch watching the news.


    After avoiding getting cut in half, I was never more glad to reach my house. Not long after, I received a text from Mika.


    [Sorry, looks like my parents want to go on a short trip back to our hometown in Hokkaido before I get busy with school. I''ll have to see you once school starts again.]


    The text both relieved and disappointed me. On one hand, Mika had gotten home safely. On the other hand, I now had nothing to do for these last couple of days of break.


    Well, I had more pressing matters at hand, anyway. The next morning I had sat on my bed, wondering if some sort of god-lady did save me.


    I thought about how I could possibly see her again, when she appeared right next to me, which nearly gave me a heart attack. Unfortunately, she couldn''t seem to talk and was restricted to nodding or making expressions whenever I talked to her.


    "Should I tell my parents about what happened? Would they even be able to see you?"


    The woman shrugged. It seemed she was as clueless as I am.


    "Where did you even come from, anyway?"


    Shrug.


    "Do you have a name?"


    She crossed her arms into an x.


    She was like a mime, only without all of the absurd makeup. I giggled at the thought.


    "Well, how about I give you a name?"


    Nod.


    I thought for quite some time. What do I call her? I''m not the best at naming things. Then I got an idea.


    "How about... Since you glow like a star... How about I name you Hoshi?"


    The woman smiled and formed her hands into a circle.


    "Alright, Hoshi it is!"


    Now I was sitting on my couch, with nothing to do. My parents were out running errands, and my brother was still sleeping. Thus, Hoshi and I passed the time by being bored together.


    "Wanna play cards?"


    Nod.


    As I walked back into the room with a pack of cards, the news reporter''s voice caught my attention.


    [...last spotted at a bar in the Akihabara district, the 46-year-old had gone missing without a trace. Neighbors have reported that he has not returned to his apartment in days. If anyone knows of his whereabouts, please call the police.]


    The reporter''s words hit me like a hammer. "Hoshi, I couldn''t see you yet, but were you there when I was at Akihabara?"


    Hoshi shuddered and nodded.


    I thought about the incident there, and how I narrowly escaped death. But wait.


    "Hold on, why didn''t you come out there then? I almost died!"


    Hoshi looked apologetic, but based on the time I''ve spent with her, she seemed to be trying to communicate that she wasn''t able to.


    "Ah, well, glad you appeared when you did. More importantly, do you think that maybe... the missing person has to do with what we saw in Akihabara...?"


    Hoshi made a shocked expression. She wasn''t exactly the fastest, huh? Regardless, she nodded while carrying a look of worry.


    Damn it. If that person ran into the monster from that alleyway... my heart sunk and my mind felt like ice. ...he''s probably dead.


    "Hoshi."


    She looked up from the ground with a gloomy expression.


    "We have to go back. More people could die if we don''t take care of that thing."


    Hoshi nodded with a determined look.


    I didn''t want to go back and relive that terrifying experience. But now that I had Hoshi, I had to do something. Still, thinking about that monster made me shudder. Even though the Yuuki Onna was scary, it didn''t have nearly as much of a presence as that tall man...


    Lost in thought, I realized with a jolt that Hoshi was trying to get my attention. Except, her way of doing that was sticking her face directly in front of mine.


    "Ow! Don''t do that, you''re too bright!"


    Hoshi floated back and had a determined look on her face. She kept repeatedly pointing at the dinner table, mouthing something.


    "Huh? Table? You want us to bring that?"


    She shook her head, then started to move her hand in a flipping motion. It looked like she was flipping a pan.


    "...cooking? Are you hungry? Do you even get hungry?"


    She slapped her forehead with her hand and pointed at the table while flipping her hand.


    "Oh... a meal? You mean like breakfast?"


    Hoshi nodded vigorously, then looked as if she was thinking hard. She suddenly made an expression of triumph, pointing her finger to the air, with a light shining above it like a lightbulb. What is she, an anime character?


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    Her naginata materialized in her hand, and she raised it. I put up both my hands to stop her.


    "Woah woah woah, you''re going to break the house."


    Hoshi stared at me blankly, before facepalming again. This idiot. She put away the weapon and settled on using her finger instead. She took her finger and started to wave it through the air. Is she writing something?


    Squinting my eyes, I looked at her carefully. I think she''s writing the kanji for Mom: ĸ. Thinking carefully, I finally realized what she meant.


    "Do you mean that conversation I had with my mom the morning after Akihabara?"


    Hoshi''s expression brightened and she nodded, then pointed to herself.


    "She did say to tell her and Dad if anything weird happened, but didn''t we agree that they probably wouldn''t believe me?"


    Hoshi shook her head with a determined expression. Somehow, I understood her. Even if they didn''t believe me, it was worth a try. After all, I had no reason to hide this from my parents, no matter how bizarre it would seem. Not just that, but I wanted them to be aware of those monsters, in case... in case... I shook the thought away from my head.


    "Alright. I''ll tell them tonight."


    I never really understood why characters in fiction would awaken powers, only to never tell their parents. Friends I understood, but your parents deserved to know.


    At the same time, I understood how the characters felt. How would I even begin to tell them about this? Hoshi and I spent the whole day brainstorming ways to break the news to my parents.


    "Maybe if I have you lift something in front of them or something... even if they can''t see you, surely they''d have to believe me when they see you doing stuff."


    I made up my mind. After dinner I would first tell them everything, starting with Akihabara, up to Hoshi.


    During dinner, my anxiety only grew. Of course, being my parents, they noticed quickly.


    "You okay Yuri? You seem a bit out of it."


    "Yeah, but... Mom, Dad, can I talk to you about something after this?"


    "Of course. We''re always here to talk."


    My brother started to sprinkle furikake on his rice, and asked "A boy?"


    The question almost made me choke on my food.


    "No!"


    After everyone finished eating and cleaned up, Kenta went upstairs to read in his room. My mom and dad sat at the table and motioned for me to sit with them. Swallowing, I walked over and sat on a chair. Underneath the table, my hands were fidgeting.


    "I know you probably won''t believe this, but..."


    I told them the whole story, all the while stumbling over my words. By the end of it all, I just wanted to evaporate like the Yuuki Onna. My parents looked at me with dumbfounded faces. I internally crumpled. I knew that it was hard to believe a word of what I said, but I had secretly hoped that they somehow wo-


    "Not her too," my dad groaned. His palm hit his forehead, and started to slip down his face.. "and I was letting myself start to think that maybe she wouldn''t have to deal with all of this too."


    Hold on a minute here. My brain struggled to keep up.


    "Not her too... you''ve seen these... monsters before?"


    My parents glanced at each other, before looking back at me with grave expressions. "Yes," my mom replied. "not just us, but your brother too."


    "Honestly, we knew you probably would be able to see them sooner or later. But... to think that you''d run into such dangerous ones..." My dad''s face was pale.


    I was so dumbfounded and had so many questions that I didn''t know what to say first. "I... you..."


    My mom smiled a little. "You must be confused. I''ll do my best to explain."


    "It''s going to take a while. I''ll get something to drink." My dad went over to open the fridge.


    "Where do I begin? Well, first of all, those monsters that you ran into are what we call Youkai. As their name suggests, they''re essentially spirits."


    Coming back with the milk, my dad added "Well, we don''t exactly know what they are, but we do know that most people can''t see them. Not only that, but a few of them take the form of urban legends and myths, just like the Kuchisake-Onna that you met. In fact, they''re probably the cause of these stories being passed down to begin with."


    Now that I thought more carefully about the form of the Kuchisake-Onna... something seemed off.


    "But the one I met, she didn''t carry any scissors. Instead, her arms split right down the middle to form scissors instead."


    "Well, they''re not always exactly like the urban legends. Things get changed here and there as they get passed down from generation to generation."


    "Most Youkai are simply troublemakers, but some of the stronger ones can cause serious harm to people." My mom shuddered. "Never did I think you''d meet two of them like this."


    "Well, given how you''ve awoken your Kami, that explains it." My dad smiled slightly. He added to my mom, "I told you she was talented."


    "Kami? You mean Hoshi?"


    My mom laughed. "I should''ve figured you already gave her a name. Yes, she is what we call a Kami. As their name suggests, they''re like guardian spirits, but in reality, they''re a piece of your own soul come to life. Very few people can see Youkai and even fewer have strong enough spiritual energy to awaken a Kami. The Youkai must''ve been drawn to your strong soul."


    So Hoshi was a part of my soul... That seemed to explain why I felt a sense of familiarity with her. Without a warning, Hoshi appeared next to me.


    "Gah! Who said you could come out?!"


    My parents looked at Hoshi with looks of wonder.


    "Amazing. She really does look like a guardian spirit... I never got to see one in person." My dad''s mouth hung open.


    Puffing her chest out, Hoshi did a couple of spins in the air, to the applause of my parents. Showoff.


    My mom laughed. "Looks like we have another family member. Although now that Yuri has awakened, we''re going to have to inform the Agency."


    "Agency?"


    "Oh, that''s right, I forgot to tell you. The Paranormal Agency is an international organization that handles Youkai-related matters. In fact, they''re only really called Youkai locally here in Japan. The official name given to them is Anomalies, probably because of their seemingly impossible existence. Given the secretive nature of the Anomalies, they''re essentially invisible to the public. They provide support to anyone affected by them, and their agents hunt down any Anomalies that might be a danger to people. Now that you''ve awakened, we''re going to have to inform their local Tokyo branch.."


    To think that even the government was involved... There was a whole world like this hidden from the public? At least it seems that they also protect the public from these Anomalies... Ah!


    The face of the man reported missing on the news flashed through my head.


    "This morning... I saw on the news that someone had gone missing in Akihabara... I was wondering if it had to do with the Youkai I saw."


    My parents stopped smiling, and the mood abruptly darkened again. My mom sighed deeply.


    "Oh dear. I pray that they''re not related, but we should inform the Agency regardless. We''ll make sure to tell them about the Youkai you found in Akihabara, and they''ll send someone to hunt it."


    "That''s a relief."


    Now I was glad that I didn''t try and fight the Youkai myself. It definitely seemed stronger than the Kuchisake-Onna and might''ve ended in disaster. But there was something I was still concerned about.


    "Mom, Dad, what''s it like being able to see Youkai?"


    My mom rested her hands on the table.


    "Well, Yuri, it''s a very strange life. But thankfully not as dangerous as you''d think. Whenever we do see a Youkai, it''s the small, harmless ones. In fact, we can''t even see the large ones. Only people with stronger spiritual energy can. On top of that, they''re more drawn to people with stronger spiritual energy, which explains why you had two dangerous encounters so close to each other."


    Does this mean that it''ll be a regular occurrence? The thought terrified me.


    "Honestly, we don''t know too much about the Youkai or their origins. We''re just given whatever information the Agency deems necessary, and they give us both resources and protection from them. Of course, we have to sign a contract swearing not to talk about the Youkai to those who can''t see them, but that''s just an extra precaution."


    My dad chuckled a bit.


    "Can you imagine if we went around insisting that we saw ghosts? Times are changing. We''d probably be laughed at. To be honest, that''s probably for the best. If the public knew about Youkai, there''d be mass panic."


    That... does make sense. I was also curious about another thing, however.


    "How long have you two been able to see Youkai?"


    "Mmmm... I think I started seeing them right after college. Your father, on the other hand, started seeing them a little later."


    "Yeah, your mom''s more impressive than I am. But you and Kenta are even more impressive!"


    My dad smiled.


    "The agency told us that on average people start to see Youkai when they''re middle-aged, but the especially gifted ones can as early as college. But to awaken a Kami in high school!"


    I couldn''t help but feel a little bit of pride in my dad''s praise. But a yawn managed to escape my lips. All this new information was overloading my brain.


    My dad checked the clock on the wall.


    "It''s getting late. How about you go to bed? I''m sure you''ve had a stressful week. We''ll inform the Agency tomorrow."


    That sounded like a good idea. After all that happened recently, I needed some rest to adjust.


    "Goodnight."


    I got up and stretched, but just before I turned and left, my dad stopped me.


    "Just one more thing, Yuri. You''ve already gone through a lot, and I can''t imagine how scary those experiences must have been for you. But just remember that your mother and I are always here if you need anything. After you go to the agency, you''ll be given protection. Everything''ll be alright."


    I smiled at my parents with their anxious faces, before heading up the stairs, where I saw my brother. I thought he went to his room to read, but it seems he was listening to the conversation the whole time. Not that that''s a surprise. I''d be curious too. He patted my head.


    "Glad that you''re okay, Yuri."


    "Mmph."


    He waved at Hoshi (It''s just like Joejoe!) before going back into his room.


    I collapsed on my bed. This wasn''t how I thought things would go, to say the least. Hoshi sat on my bed next to me and started playing with my Poke Mons plushies. As a pillow flew through the air and hit me in the face, I thought about how I was not going to get used to this anytime soon.

 Chapter 5

    I looked up incredulously.


    "Why are we at the police station?"


    The next morning, we were standing in front of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department''s main building. Standing 18 floors tall, the building was pretty intimidating. I''d never gone to a police station before, let alone Tokyo''s biggest headquarters. But why the police?


    My mom chuckled. "Well, I did tell you to tell the police too. This is where the office for the Agency is located."


    "I thought it was an international organization?"


    Kenta replied, "This is just the headquarters of the Japan branch. It''s located within the police department because most Youkai cases start off as normal crime cases, until the police discover evidence of supernatural activity."


    Since when did Kenta know all of this too? I was starting to feel pretty left out.


    "Anyway, let''s head on in."


    My parents both led the way, with Kenta and I following.


    We walked up to the attendance desk, where an older man wearing glasses sat. He looked rather sophisticated, with a golden police badge shining on his chest. As we approached, he looked up.


    "Reason for visit?"


    My dad cleared his throat and looked at me.


    "An awakening."


    The man''s eyebrows raised.


    "A teen?"


    Was my age really all that surprising? The man seemed to be slightly agitated as he took out a walkie-talkie.


    "Can someone bring an escort over? We have an awakening."


    A man wearing a black suit quickly came over. Motioning us to follow him, he led us into an elevator. He took out a card and scanned it on a nearby panel. The elevator''s screen then displayed "Floor 0" and the doors shut.


    The man said nothing, which kind of intimidated me. I knew that the government was involved, but never in a million years did I expect something like this. It was almost like this was a scene straight out of a movie.


    When the doors opened back up, I almost gasped in astonishment. We had stepped into what looked exactly like the lobby of a fancy building. The room was well-lit with what looked like natural light. But weren''t we underground? If I didn''t know better, I would''ve thought we''d gone to a skyscraper.


    "There''s another elevator that we have to take."


    With that explanation, we were once again brought to an elevator. But this time, there were far more buttons on the panel than the other one we took. One... hundred??? How far down underground did this building go?


    Pressing the button displaying B50, the escort began to explain.


    "Many people have offices, and some even live here. Of course, there are extra vacant floors, in preparation for more people such as yourself."


    A hundred floors... How many people were involved with the Association in Tokyo alone? My mind automatically drifted to envision a hundred Hoshis, and a smile crept up the corners of my lips.


    It took about a minute of awkward silence, but we finally reached our destination. The doors opened to reveal a rather spacious office, covered in red carpet. The walls were of a warm white, and the furniture and ceiling were made of maple-colored wood. A soft light shone throughout the room, and the result was that it seemed to radiate warmth. In the middle of the office was a large desk filled with piles of paperwork and several monitors.


    Sitting at the desk was a younger man wearing square glasses who was seemingly asleep with his head down on the table. The man had clearly been working long hours.


    When we approached him, he suddenly jolted awake. The man frantically adjusted his glasses, before looking up at us with a nervous laugh.


    "Ahah, sorry you had to see me like this! My name is Hasegawa Fuyuki, and I''m going to help you register your daughter today." He gestured towards the chairs in front of his desk. "Please, take a seat."


    The escort bowed and left the room as I sat down with the rest of my family. This felt like a parent-teacher meeting. The man smiled at us, and I noticed that he had a small amount of stubble growing on his chin. Poor guy.


    "I''m usually just a part of the research team, but since the current head is out on a mission, she''s asked me to fill in for her. Anyhow, I received your call last night. Honestly, I was really surprised to hear that the one who had awakened was your daughter. You see, it''s very rare for younger individuals to do so. In fact, I think she''s the youngest person to awaken in recent times, aside from a particular case..."


    What he said piqued my interest, and the shocked expression of the earlier attendant surfaced in my mind.


    "Hasegawa-san, why is it rare for young people to awaken a Kami?"


    "You see, Ms. Miyake, we don''t actually know. Unfortunately, I think you''ll find that''s often the case with the Youkai and Kami. Thankfully, given the extensive amount of research we carry out regarding the two, we can make accurate guesses. The current leading theory is that it has to do with emotional maturity levels, as well as how well-attuned you are with your inner self. These things are more likely to strengthen with age. But of course, we have cases such as yourself."


    While this guy was dumping a lot of information at once, I think I was able to keep up.


    A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    Hasegawa-san rummaged around his piles of paperwork, before placing a couple of forms in front of my parents.


    "Miyake-san''s parents, I''m going to need you to fill these out. Meanwhile, I''m going to need to ask Miyake-san herself some questions."


    Hasegawa-san spent a few minutes asking me questions about my experiences with supernatural activity, from the moving poster to the Kuchisake-Onna, to which he asked a question that confused me.


    "Miyake-san, do you know your Kami''s ability?"


    "Ability?"


    "All Kami have a unique ability, for example, telekinesis, or an element. Since you''re asking that question, I take it that you don''t?"


    I nodded.


    "That''s to be expected. Most people think it''d be like in those stories where people just know, but it''s not that simple. Even if a Kami is a part of your soul, that doesn''t mean you can read each other''s minds. But, as you sync up more and more, you''ll be able to connect on a much deeper level than thoughts. You''ll probably figure it out as you try different things."


    Ah. Wait. There is something I do know.


    "She does use a naginata though."


    "Ah, thank you! Many kami have their own weapons, but a few don''t. It really depends on your fighting style, which is quite convenient. Here we go... naginata. Anyhow, I think we''re done with the registration. Although I need to ask your parents for consent."


    Consent? For what?


    Hasegawa-san noticed my confused look and quickly added, "Those who have awakened Kami can choose to join the Agency to help deal with Youkai cases as an exorcist, for pay of course. Exorcists will be given various missions regarding Youkai based on their capabilities. Obviously, since you''re still a minor, it will be up to your guardians."


    My parents looked up from their forms, and then at each other. Finally, they turned to me, which made me a bit self-conscious.


    My dad cleared his throat.


    "Last night your mother and I were discussing, and obviously at first, we thought it was too dangerous. But, since you''ve awoken, you''re going to attract Youkai anyway. And, well, we know the kind of person you are, and that you''ll follow the path you want, regardless of what we choose. Your mother and I have a daughter who is an extremely kind person, and we''re very grateful for that. Our only request is that you make sure you''re able to come back home to us."


    I sat there in shock for a few moments.


    I was taken aback, as I was pretty sure that my parents would refuse, given how protective they can be.


    What should I do? I never thought I''d have to decide this. The closest thing in normal life I could think of like this would be joining the military or police, both of which I never considered.


    "For clarification Miyake-san, even if you do join, we will take extra precautions given how you''re a minor. It''s a lot to explain right now, but we have measures to ensure that someone won''t be taking a mission out of their capabilities. Despite that, it will be dangerous. However, we fully understand if you choose not to join, and will make sure you get protection. Of course, you do not have to make the decision now. Ah, if it''s a factor in your decision, we''ll be paying you a starting wage of- "


    "I''ll do it."


    I looked Hasegawa-san directly in the eyes. I''d decided ever since that night that I would stand up to these Youkai, and that''s why Hoshi awakened, to begin with. I''ve been one of the few people blessed with an unusual power. People who aren''t as lucky must be dying from Youkai every day. Regardless of my age, shouldn''t I do something?


    Hasegawa-san seemed to be a little surprised, which in all honesty kind of made me even more determined.


    My mom smiled with sadness and pride, as if she had already known what I would pick.


    "I wish I could be as brave as you, Yuri. But make sure to stay safe. If you ever find things too dangerous, you don''t have to keep doing it, alright?"


    My dad looked at Hasegawa-san with stern eyes.


    "You better make sure she doesn''t get hurt."


    Unlike my expectations, Hasegawa-san didn''t look nervous under my father''s gaze. On the contrary, he looked determined.


    "Of course. Here''s the contract. Make sure to read everything thoroughly. We''re also going to need your daughter''s measurements."


    Hasegawa-san slipped yet another form in front of my dad, who sighed. He then looked back at me and smiled.


    "I''ll make sure you get a tour around the place soon, as well as some training. But right now, I would actually like to ask you about your first mission tomorrow. It has to do with the Youkai you saw in Akihabara. We were already tracking it down, but your testimony will definitely speed things up."


    Oh god. I know I said all that about helping people, but am I really going to have to fight that thing this early?


    Hasegawa-san must''ve seen how panicked I felt, because he hurriedly added, "Oh no, I don''t mean for you to deal with it. We just need you to guide us to its location. After all, you''re the only one who''s seen it. We''ll have a team of more experienced exorcists accompany you, and ensure your protection. Of course, your safety will be the highest priority. Does that sound adequate, Mom and Dad?"


    My parents nodded.


    Experienced exorcists... I wonder what other Kami are like. I half looked forward to the mission, but the memories of the Youkai still made me a bit nervous.


    "Good. In that case, here is my contact information for all of you. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I will confirm more details about the mission to you when they are determined, Miyake-san."


    He then asked for our phones, then tinkered with and returned them. There was an app that I''d never seen before.


    "What''s this?"


    "It''s an app called Youbidase. The Agency branch I''m a part of, the research team, developed it. Messaging and calls related to Youkai matters are done here to avoid data leaks, and there are other features that I''ll go over later. Ms. Miyake''s family, you all should download this too."


    The messaging system was a lot like a certain app I''ve used before, which wasn''t exactly the most professional, but I wasn''t complaining. It was convenient andfamiliar to me, and it had cute stickers.


    [Testing, testing.] - Hasegawa Fuyuki


    Kenta was the quickest to respond by placing a thumbs-up on Hasegawa-san''s message.


    [Received.] - Miyake Takehiko


    [Nice to meet you!] - Miyake Keiko


    I scrolled through the available stickers before deciding to send a bunny accompanied by the words "Hello!" I had a feeling that I''d be using these a lot.


    _________________________________________________________


    Dear reader,


    I think my life''s going to change quite a bit, and not just from high school. Honestly, there''s so much I could write about, but none of it can really convey how I''m feeling.


    These past few days have felt like a page out of someone else''s life. Even though I love reading and writing, the supernatural realm is way stranger than I could ever imagine. I can''t believe this world existed my whole life.


    Anyhow, today I met someone named Fuyuki Hasegawa. He seems pretty young, which was surprising. I was expecting an old man or something. Hasegawa-san mentioned that he''s part of the research team, and he made this interesting app. He also explained some more about Kami, but I still feel like I know nothing. I hope he teaches me more later. I''m very confused. Send help.


    I put down my diary. Hopefully, high school won''t be nearly as confusing. I wonder what Mika''s doing?


    Almost on cue, my phone buzzed on my bed. Was it Mika? I hurriedly reached over and picked up my phone.


    [Miyake-san, can you come over tomorrow afternoon? I''ll show you around and give you the details of the mission. You''ll also get to meet the team you''ll be going with. Thank you very much!] -Fuyuki Hasegawa


    [Alright! Please take care of me.]


    While it wasn''t Mika, this was rather welcome too. Maybe they''ll teach me more about Hoshi. I plopped down on my bed next to Hoshi, lost in thought. School''s starting soon. I wonder if I''ll have to do missions during school. Would I be excused? Would it get in the way of my studies? I''m pretty studious, so I think I''m going to have to tell Hasegawa-san.


    My phone vibrated again, but this time it was a notification from LINE.


    [I found someone that reminded me of you at the cemetery.] -Abusive Gremlin


    Attached was a photo of Mika posing next to a large stone statue that looked like the ones from Easter Island. I guess she''s doing okay.

 Chapter 6

    "Welcome to the training room. This is where exorcists can practice their skills."


    When Hasegawa-san opened the door, a gust of wind blew into my face and startled me.


    I was standing in a spacious room with bright overhead lights. It looked like a dojo. However, on the side of the dojo was a section of the room that contrasted the traditional feel of the dojo. This more modernized part of the room contained all kinds of equipment that you''d find at the gym. The result was what seemed to be two separate rooms, with the center wall removed.


    What caught my eye were two people sparring on the dojo. But it wasn''t just any judo match. Two Kami, one green and another yellow were clashing fiercely, one with fists and the other with a spear.


    It didn''t seem to be a fair match, as one had a weapon. But the burly Kami used nothing but his fists to deflect the rapidly thrusting spear. When I focused on his fists, I noticed that the spear was actually flowing around his fists, almost like it was being picked up by a current. That seemed to be the source of the gust earlier.


    Is this what Hasegawa-san meant by powers?


    Almost as if to answer my question, the spear-wielding Kami suddenly stopped thrusting, and I saw his spear glow with a yellow intensity. Crackling noises filled the air, and the hairs on my head felt like they were prickling up.


    Electricity?


    The Kami threw the spear at the wind Kami, who once again tried to manipulate it, but as the spear missed, electricity jumped from it and struck its intended target. The wind Kami froze, seemingly paralyzed and unable to move, and its opponent charged electricity in a closed fist to finish the fight.


    But right before the fist reached the Kami''s face, the wind spirit''s fist also began to fly in an uppercut. Even though the yellow Kami had begun its punch first, it wasn''t enough. A gust of wind blew throughout the entire room, and my clothes flapped around.


    The green Kami''s arm suddenly accelerated as if pushed upwards by an invisible force, and the head of its assailant violently flew down.


    The fist and head collided with a massive impact and the sound of the yellow Kami''s head being blown off created a powerful shockwave.


    I winced, but there wasn''t any blood, or guts. Much like the Kuchisake-Onna, the electric spirit''s body simply disintegrated, leaving no trace.


    "Phew! You almost had me there! Too bad this old man keeps quite a few tricks up his sleeve!"


    Because of the intensity of the fight, I hadn''t noticed that at each end of the dojo stood two men who quite resembled the Kami. The green Kami floated over to a tall, muscular older man wearing a hakama. Upon closer inspection, I realized that his eyes were glowing the same shade of green as the Kami. Did my eyes glow when Hoshi was out?


    The other, younger man sighed as his opponent clasped hands with his Kami. He adjusted his glasses, but the eyes behind them weren''t glowing.


    "You never cease to amaze me sensei. Thank you for the match."


    "Yusuke, you''ve gotten a lot stronger. Pretty soon you''ll be the one beating my ass! Bahaha!"


    Hasegawa-san cleared his throat, and both men looked over at us.


    "Nakamura-san, Abe-san, this is the girl I mentioned to you earlier. Please teach her as much as possible before your mission tonight."


    I suddenly realized that the attention was now directed towards me, and I hastily introduced myself.


    "A-ah, my name is Sayuri Miyake. Please take care of me."


    The older man once again started to laugh with his hearty guffaw.


    "Bahaha! You don''t have to look so nervous! We''re all family here! I''m Nakamura Kaitaro, and my student over here is Abe Yusuke! He''s one of the youngest exorcists here, but it seems you''ve taken that title from him!"


    Abe-san was pretty tall, but compared to his sensei, he looked considerably short. He looks like he''s about Kenta''s age...


    "Sensei, you''ve said my introduction for me again..."


    Hasegawa-san chuckled, and asked "Well, in the meantime, can you two teach Ms. Miyake the basics? Make sure to report to me or Ueda-san on her capabilities too."


    Nakamura-san gave an exaggerated thumbs-up.


    "O-K!"


    He''s a bit of a weird one, huh?


    As Hasegawa-san left the room, Nakamura-san grinned.


    "Young one, let''s have a look at your Kami!"


    I raised my hand.


    "Hold on. Question."


    "Hmm?"


    "Am I supposed to change into an outfit like yours...?"


    Abe-san laughed gently. "No. Sensei''s just wearing that because he feels like it. Don''t mind him. He happens to own a dojo, you see."


    "Ah..."


    Nakamura-san cracked his knuckles. "More importantly, let''s teach you the basics of Kami. I heard you don''t know its ability yet. No worries, we''ll just train other things! How about you bring your Kami out?"


    Come on out, Ho-


    The light blue spirit appeared out of thin air before I could even finish my thought.


    "Ooh, have you given her a name yet?"


    "Hoshi."


    "Nice, nice, have you discovered what her ability is? And does she have a weapon?"


    As a response to his question, Hoshi''s naginata appeared in her hands.


    "Unfortunately, we still don''t know what her ability is." I had no clue what it could be. If she''s a part of my soul, would it have to do with my personality?


    "Oh, don''t worry about that. That''ll come soon enough. Hoshi uses a naginata, huh... Since it''s a bit like a spear, why don''t you spar with Yusuke here?" Nakamura-san gestured over towards his pupil, but something was off...


    "Ah! What happened to Abe-san''s Kami? He exploded!"


    Abe-ssan laughed again. "Oh no, don''t worry. Once a Kami is defeated, it only goes out of commission for some time. Now if you were in a fight, that would be pretty problematic... but as for our match, we''re not going to physically fight. Maybe another time, but for now, training your Kami is most important."


    "I see..."


    I still felt bad watching Abe-san''s Kami explode. I felt like watching Hoshi do the same would be traumatizing.


    "Sensei, by that logic, I can''t use my Kami right now, remember?"


    "Ah. My bad! Bahaha! You can spar with me instead!" Nakamura-san grinned mischievously. His eyes were twinkling.


    Uh oh, this old man scares me. I mean, he just beat the crap out of Abe-san''s Kami...


    "Since it would help in our fight, let us explain what our Kami''s abilities are. Mine''s named Fujin, and as his name suggests, he uses wind. I suppose you could call me a free spirit, bahaha!"


    Abe-san coughed awkwardly. "I apologize, he makes jokes like that a lot. My Kami''s name is Raijin-"


    "Yusuke named him that after Fujin. Heh."


    "a-and his ability is using electricity. Unfortunately, outside of his own body, he can only use electricity if it''s channeled through a medium..." Abe-san made no acknowledgment of his sensei''s remark, but I couldn''t help but giggle since he looked flustered.


    Nakamura-san crossed to the other end of the dojo and summoned his Kami.


    "Alright. Now come!"


    Already? What do I even do???


    Hoshi noticed my nervousness and smacked me playfully in the back of the head before charging in by herself. She swung her blade towards Fujin, but he effortlessly grabbed the end of the naginata''s handle, just under the blade. He then pushed Hoshi back.


    "Young one, it looks like you''re having her make the decisions. While that in itself can be a good thing, let''s try having you tell her what to do."


    "Er... Hoshi... what do I have her do?"


    Even though we were sparring, I was so confused that I couldn''t stop myself from asking him for help.


    "My bad, should''ve explained better. Since your Kami can sense your feelings, with enough practice, she should be able to know what you want her to do. Think of it like controlling a fighting game character, except with your mind!"


    Well, I''m definitely familiar with fighting games. Almost as if following my thoughts, Hoshi jumped back, putting some space between herself and Fujin. Because of her naginata, Hoshi had a more effective range than Fujin, which meant we should keep our distance.


    Despite our unease, Fujin only stood there and watched. Nakamura-san and Fujin must be waiting for me to make a move. I resigned myself to taking the offense again. It''s not like I''m expecting to win, anyway, so I might as well try this.


    Hoshi suddenly dashed in and stopped just out of Fujin''s range. Thanks to the range of the naginata, we were able to force him to defend instead of immediately counterattacking. Hoshi raised her weapon high up above her head, gleaming from the light, and then began to bring it down on Fujin''s head. Fujin raised his arms to catch the blade, but I wanted that to happen.


    Pouring every bit of our concentration into the strike, Hoshi suddenly changed the trajectory of the naginata''s path. Almost as if she were writing in the air, the naginata curved to the side and slashed toward Fujin''s stomach.


    Caught off guard, Fujin couldn''t react in time to Hoshi''s feint, and could only watch as-


    BOOM!


    Fujin used his fist to punch the side of the naginata with deadly precision and slammed the weapon to the ground. Hoshi was effectively disarmed, and we went from seemingly winning to losing in the blink of an eye.


    ...Nevermind. It looked like he could react in time after all.


    Fujin raised his fist, and Hoshi and I instinctively flinched. But no attack came. Hold on, is he...?


    Nakamura-san laughed.


    "He wants a fist bump. You shouldn''t leave him hanging!"


    Ah. They truly are similar. Hoshi awkwardly bumped Fujin''s fist, and Fujin lifted his other hand from her naginata.


    Nakamura-san laughed again. "I''m impressed! You learn very fast! That feint was so good, I almost fell for it!"


    I somehow doubted that, but his words brightened me up anyway.


    "Anyhow, I think you''re ready for the mission. You won''t be in any actual danger anyway. Yusuke and I will be there to make sure you never get hurt."


    Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    After seeing their strength firsthand, that statement was a lot more relieving than I''d like to admit...


    Abe-san cleared his throat, and I jumped. The fight made me forget he was there. "Miyake-san, are you sure you don''t know Hoshi''s ability?"


    "Y-yes, why?"


    "Well, when I was observing your fight, I noticed something when you used that feint. Normally when you swing the naginata, it just looks like an ordinary attack, but... Actually, Hoshi, can you do something for me?"


    Hoshi nodded brightly.


    "Thank you. Alright, try swinging your naginata, except not just in a straight line. You can go slower, but try making curves with the trajectory."


    Hoshi took her naginata and started to swing it in random directions. She looked like a toddler playing with a toy sword, which made me laugh. But soon something caught my eye.


    "Woah..."


    As her naginata traveled through the air, it left behind a streak of dark blue, giving the impression of a paintbrush. But what amazed me was how pretty it was. Little light blue spots sparkled in the dark ink, and it looked like a night sky full of stars.


    "I noticed that when you made the naginata travel in an unorthodox path, it left a similar trail. I don''t know what it does, but I''m sure it has to do with Hoshi''s ability."


    Hoshi had an expression of pure joy, and soon she began drawing all sorts of shapes all over the air. She was acting like it was her birthday. It was really funny.


    Looking closer, I noticed that as she kept drawing, the streaks that had been there longest faded. It seems like there could only be so much ink in the air at a time.


    A sudden thought came to my mind.


    "Hold on... Hoshi, try writing a word."


    She stopped and thought for a second, and then once again began drawing in the air. Except, this time, she was writing. Soon, the word hoshi ÐÇ, or star, was glowing brightly in the air. It seemed to somehow be glowing even brighter. We all looked at the word apprehensively, but nothing happened. I sighed. With how my hobby was writing, I was so sure that something would have happened...


    Nakamura-san patted my shoulder. Don''t look so disappointed, young ones. "You''ll figure out your ability sooner or later. I''d say the biggest chance of you discovering it would be during the mission. After all, you experience the most growth in the heat of battle!"


    Maybe there''s some truth to that statement, as Hoshi awakened when I decided to stand up to the slit-mouthed woman.


    _________________________________________________________


    Not long after our sparring match, Nakamura-san and Abe-senpai brought me to floor B25.


    "We''re going to get you some equipment. Even if your Kami can defend you, that doesn''t mean you shouldn''t pitch in!" Nakamura-san fist-bumped Fujin, and a small gust of wind burst from their meeting point.


    I was met with a lobby with a reception desk in front. Behind it was a hallway leading to the left and right, and from the corners of my vision I could see that they had several doors. The walls and floor were completely white, and it gave off the atmosphere of a hospital. The reception desk was empty.


    Nakamura-san confidently walked up to the desk and pressed on a small bell lying on its surface. The bell made a surprisingly loud chime, which brought Hasegawa-san running from the hallway on the right.


    "Ah, there you are, Miyake-san! I have your equipment ready. Can you come with me?"


    The word "equipment" excited me a bit. I mean, you can''t blame me for that. Who knows what Youkai-related things they''ve made? Maybe there would be weapons with blessings or something.


    "Miyake-san, sensei and I will wait for you here. I think it''d be easier for you to concentrate without having sensei around, anyway."


    "I can''t even deny that, Yusuke! Very well. Take your time, young one."


    Nakamura-san and Abe-san stayed behind while Hasegawa-san led me through one of the doors in the hallway, to where we found a massive storeroom. Weapons of all shapes and sizes hung on the walls, and there were several different gadgets that I didn''t recognize.


    I could''ve spent hours looking at every single thing in there, but Hasegawa-san started to say something and snapped me back into reality.


    "Here you go, Miyake-san. Usually, you can bring more equipment, but I figured since you''ll be accompanied by chaperones, you won''t need as much. Especially since you''ve never been on a mission before. Too many things might overwhelm you."


    He gestured towards a counter with a small assortment of things. He picked up what looked to be a gray canister.


    "This is a smoke bomb. It pretty much does what you''d expect, but there''s a catch. But you''re going to have to learn a new concept to use it. It''s called ''imbuement''."


    "Imbuement?"


    "Yes. I think we''re going to have to explain a lot here, so do your best to keep up. Let''s see... ah, yes. Essentially, Youkai and Kami are spirits. While Kami are your own spirit, Youkai are malevolent spirits, as suggested in the legends about them. Now both of them have the properties of being incorporeal, yet they can interact with objects when they choose to."


    Like most things in my life as of late, that made no sense.


    "So how do they do that?"


    "Well, Miyake-san, research into the Youkai and Kami has resulted in a theory. While there''s no real way to confirm it, I''d say it''s a pretty good guess. The theory revolves around a spirit realm."


    A spirit realm... This really does sound like something out of a folk tale.


    "Think of the world as a cake. While one layer would be the realm of the living, which I''m sure you''re accustomed to, a different layer would be the spirit realm. But they''re both the same cake, and they overlap."


    "So like... Different camera filters over the same photo?"


    "Yes, exactly like that. But usually, the two realms can''t interact. So how do Youkai and Kami do it? Well, the answer can be found in what we call soul energy. Everyone has it, although we barely know anything about it. Nevertheless, it''s essentially the power of your soul and is especially prominent in spirits such as Youkai or Kami. This soul power allows entities to affect the other realm. In other words, a Youkai can attack someone in the living realm, or a Kami can exorcize a Youkai in the spirit realm."


    This was starting to get a bit complicated. But wait. He said imbuement...


    "Hold on, does that mean that there''s a way for me to fight the Youkai myself too?"


    Hasegawa-san smiled brightly.


    "You''re smart. In fact, it does! Imbuement is charging an object with your soul energy. Honestly, it''s not easy to do at first, and will take you some time to practice. But eventually, you''ll be able to fight the Youkai with gadgets and weapons alongside your Kami!"


    This sounds straight out of a shonen manga. Well, I felt bad making Hoshi do all the fighting anyway...


    "And that brings us back to the topic of this smoke bomb. Usually, normal smoke bombs wouldn''t do anything, as Youkai can sense soul energy and just attack you without using sight. That''s why people with Kami, who have stronger soul energy, attract more Youkai. Well, we don''t know why they''re attracted to soul energy, we just noticed that from different tests... A-anyhow, imbuing this smoke bomb with soul energy will activate it, and the resulting smoke will also have soul energy imbued into it. Meaning, the Youkai can''t see or sense you properly."


    Wow, that sounds useful. I''m definitely going to use those a lot. But that brings up another concern...


    "Hasegawa-san, do we have to pay for the equipment ourselves?"


    Hasegawa-san quickly shook his head.


    "The equipment is paid for by the Agency, which is funded by the government. Convenient, huh? Just don''t abuse the equipment too much, or there might be consequences."


    The word abuse brought a thought that had never come across my mind.


    "Hasegawa-san, are there people that use Kami to their advantage?"


    Hasegawa-san''s face suddenly darkened. I didn''t even know he could make such a grim expression, and it scared me a bit.


    "A-ah, I''m sorry if I offended you..."


    Hasegawa-san suddenly smiled, but it looked a bit forced.


    "Ah, don''t worry, Miyake-san. I just remembered something unpleasant. Anyhow, yes, as with humans, you''ll always find some that don''t... Use their talents for others. Some get work as mercenaries or assassins. The government has a lot of trouble dealing with those sorts of people. Anyway, there''s still the rest of the equipment I have to explain to you!"


    I could tell that he was changing the topic, but I understood that I had brought up an uncomfortable conversation, so I welcomed it.


    Hasegawa-san taught me how to use the rest of the equipment, which took some time. There was a type of bomb that let out a shockwave of soul energy, which would only damage spiritual entities in its radius. There were also shoes (they even had them made to look like my current shoes) that could be imbued with soul energy to run faster or even jump higher, which was the most exciting thing to me. I swear, as soon as I figure out how to control my soul energy...


    "...And that''s about it for now. Well, except for one thing. Let''s get your weapon picked out."


    Woah, a weapon?


    Despite all of the crazy things that have happened to me as of late, a weapon still surprised me. I guess I''m still not used to things...


    Hasegawa-san brought me over to a section full of different types of weapons. Katanas, shurikens, nunchucks, and even several types of guns were on display. I instinctively tensed up. I knew that the weapons were meant to hunt Youkai, but these could just as easily be used to kill humans too.


    Hasegawa-san noticed my apprehension and tried to calm me down.


    "Don''t worry, these are too dull to actually harm humans, at least by accident. They only become dangerous when you imbue them. Unfortunately, while we''re going to be picking out your weapon today, a weapon is one of the hardest things to imbue, so it might be a while before you can properly use it... Anyway, what type of weapon do you think you''d prefer?"


    "Mmmmm..."


    I don''t know how to use any sort of weapon. The closest I''ve ever gotten was sword fighting in Wii Sports. Well, I might as well choose based on what I found cool then. I walked around the weapons aisle for a while, debating on what to pick.


    Actually, wait. I think I already know, even if it''s a bit anticlimactic.


    "Hasegawa-san, do you have any naginatas, by chance?"


    My reasoning was simple. I just wanted to match Hoshi.


    "Ah, I think we do. Follow me."


    Hasegawa-san led me to the end of the weapons aisle next to a couple of spears, where we found a row of different naginatas.


    "You can pick whichever one feels right to you."


    But before I could even pick up the naginata in front of me, Hoshi suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and I almost jumped. I really need to get used to this, because I don''t think she''s stopping anytime soon.


    Hasegawa-san smiled at her.


    "Ah, so this is what she looks like. I was going to ask you to show me her later, but this works too! But why''d she come out?"


    Hoshi grinned at Hasegawa-san, before immediately speeding over to a naginata in the corner of my eye like a kid in a candy store. She then picked up the naginata and handed it to me. Hasegawa-san watched with amusement.


    "Does she already know which one would suit you best?"


    I looked at the naginata, which, surprisingly enough, felt the right size, without being too heavy or light. The shape of the blade itself was pretty, and the light reflected off of the tip like a glowing sun. Still, I had the feeling that this was just a coincidence.


    "No, I think she just picked one she thought looked the coolest..."


    _________________________________________________________


    "Alright, let''s break down the goal of this mission."


    Hasegawa-san, Nakamura-san, Abe-san, and I were standing back in the office on floor B50. After reuniting with Nakamura-san and Abe-san, we spent a few more hours training, but not before eating lunch.


    [Yuri, make sure to take care of yourself. Make sure to take breaks for lunch and dinner. Good luck, and do your best!] -Mom


    Anyway, now it was pretty late into the night, and the mission was starting. I hadn''t eaten dinner yet, but that can wait until after.


    I''d asked why we had to wait till night, to which Nakamura-san responded "Well, it''s because the Youkai are more active at night. Especially at 4 am, which some people across seas call the witching hour. Not exactly sure why, but it fits right in with our beliefs..."


    Right after he said this, he started to laugh. He seems to find a lot of things funny.


    Hasegawa-san continued his explanation, bringing me back to the present.


    "This mission will be rank B, as the main target is rank B. But in reality, the rest of the mission should be fairly easy."


    "Sorry, can you explain what that means to me?"


    "Ah, my apologies, I''d forgotten. Youkai and missions have a ranking system for the level of danger they pose. It assigns a letter grade based on the difficulty. It goes from E, D, C, B, A, and S, with E being the lowest and S being the highest."


    "Coming up with a unique system would be too much of a pain in the ass, so they chose to use one that a lot of the video games use," Abe-san added.


    Hasegawa-san coughed awkwardly.


    "Well, I can''t say you''re wrong about that... Anyway, given how the target has likely killed someone, we have to assign it a ranking of at least B. But since Nakamura-san and Abe-senpai are here, it should be a breeze."


    Nakamura-san gave an over-exaggerated thumbs up ("O-K!"), which Hasegawa-san ignored.


    "The goal of this mission will be to exorcize the target Youkai and any other Youkai you find in Akihabara, as well as recover the body. Here''s what we know about the target Youkai based on Miyake-san''s testimony. We will be calling it Kumo for convenience since Miyake-san says it crawls like one. The police have attributed at least one disappearance in Akihabara to potentially supernatural causes, most likely this Youkai. Unfortunately, we''ve already scanned the entire area for large readings, and there were no traces of it anywhere. It likely hides in the spirit world when it isn''t hunting."


    Well, the name definitely suits it, but I feel like there were so many other names that could fit it too. Like Hellspawn, or Devil, or God-Help-Us-All, or-


    "Wow, this thing''s big." Nakamura-san and Abe-san were looking down at the papers." I can''t wait to see what it looks like! Well, all those arms could prove deadly. But it shouldn''t be too much of a problem for Fujin. He''s a master at hand-to-hand combat, even if it''s hand-to-hand-hand-hand-hand-"


    "Alright, alright, we get it sensei."


    "Bahahaha! Anyways, let''s try and find some other Youkai too, so Miyake-san and Hoshi- can practice."


    "That would be very much appreciated. Ah! I almost forgot. Miyake-san, can you open the Youbidase app?"


    I brought my phone out and opened the special app.


    "Here, let me teach you the rest of its features."


    After downloading the app a while ago, I had played around with the different features on it. There was a map on top of the messaging system, but a lot of the buttons only created a popup that said "Feature locked." when I pressed on them.


    Hasegawa-san turned around and started to mess with my phone for a bit, and it took a lot of my self-control to not look over his shoulder.


    Turning back, Hasegawa-san opened up the map and pointed at a small button with a bell icon next to it. He pressed it, and a popup covered the screen, with the words "Call for help?" In the center of the screen was a big, circular button with a red SOS on it.


    "This is the SOS call. If you ever find yourself in trouble, you can open this menu and hold on the button, and it''ll alert anyone nearby who also has the app. It''ll also give them your location on the map."


    "Wow, that''s quite impressive." I have the feeling I''ll be needing that one a lot.


    Nakamura-san guffawed. "Sure is! This app is a life saver!"


    Hasegawa-san gave a satisfied look that seemed to say "Yes, praise me more," before looking back at my phone.


    "Alright, so this next one''s a work in progress, so don''t rely too heavily on it."


    He exited the SOS call screen and pressed yet another button, this time with an icon that looked like a wifi symbol. The map usually had my profile icon in the center signifying where I was, but the press of the button made it start to emit white rings that extended for a bit before disappearing. It looked like it was scanning the area.


    "This is a Youkai tracker. Simply put, all living things give off some sort of soul energy in waves. But each organism gives off a specific wavelength, kind of like a fingerprint. The Youkai tracker utilizes this to mark these wavelengths and track specific targets. Why don''t you have Hoshi come out?"


    I didn''t even do anything, since I knew that she''d come out the moment these words left his lips.


    "Oh!"


    As the white circles came out again, the spot on the map where we were started to glow red.


    "It''s now measuring the soul energy that Hosh''s emitting. The brighter the glow, the stronger the energy reading, which means it can also measure a Youkai''s power. Given that it''s a prototype, there are some problems you''ll have to deal with. You have to get close for long enough for your device to measure the waves, and at the moment the app can only track one wavelength at a time."


    "Even so, that''s amazing..."


    "Just be careful, since it can''t tell the difference between Kami and Youkai. Some Youkai are also able to repress the amount of waves they give off, so watch out for that too. But you don''t have to worry too much about other factors. Normal humans give off weaker signals."


    Oh boy. There''s a lot to remember with all of these explanations. Hopefully, I won''t forget anything later on. It''s not helping that I''m starting to get hungry too.


    Nakamura-san cracked his knuckles and smiled.


    "O-K! Let''s go make your first mission memorable!"


    Hasegawa-san looked at him sternly. "Make sure to prioritize Miyake-san''s safety. Good luck, you three!"

 Chapter 7

    "Akihabara... Akihabara..."


    We were back at Akihabara again, but this time I was too nervous to daydream. With his big frame, Nakamura-san easily cleared a path through the crowded train for Abe-san and me.


    After stepping outside of the station, I was hit with a chilly wind, and pulled my jacket tighter around myself, internally wishing that Hoshi had fire powers. Well, even if she did, I''d cause mass panic if I started a sudden fire in the crowded station.


    Speaking of which, that troublemaker was messing with the nearby passerby. Hoshi kept floating through people, and drawing circles around them with the mysterious ink. Well, at least she''s having fun...?


    Returning my focus to the mission, I followed Nakamura-san up the escalator, with Abe-san behind me, and watched the posters slowly drift by. Posters... Wait, that one time...


    While I was sure at the time that I was seeing things, nothing''s out of the realm of possibilities now.


    "Nakamura-san."


    "Yes?"


    "Don''t laugh, but... the last time I came here, I felt like I saw one of the posters move."


    Nakamura-san suddenly turned back to look at me. "Do you mean that the image in the poster moved?"


    After watching me nod in response, he stroked his short beard with one hand.


    "Hmmm... It''s most likely that you saw two Youkai that day. Some Youkai can possess inanimate objects, which results in that strange phenomenon you witnessed. I don''t think the one that moved the poster is particularly dangerous, but it''d be good if we can exorcize that one too."


    Well, if I remember correctly, part of our mission was to hunt any other Youkai that we ran into anyway.


    We reached the top of the elevator, and my stomach rumbled.


    Gah! I should''ve eaten dinner before the mission. Hopefully, no one heard that.


    ...Well, the cold isn''t much of a problem anymore...


    We walked down the familiar street full of advertisements and bright lights. Unlike the daytime, Akihabara had considerably fewer people going about, and some of the stores were closed. But it was still reasonably lively, and the restaurants only tempted me more.


    "Hmmm... Let''s go to that restaurant over there." Nakamura-san spoke my thoughts out loud.


    "Sensei now''s not the time for gyudon. We need to find the two Youkai."


    "We can ask if anyone''s seen anything strange in there. Maybe we''ll get some leads."


    Abe-san sighed. "You just want to eat."


    "Bahahaha! That too!"


    Nakamura-san grinned at me, and I silently worshiped him. He strode into the nearby gyudon chain, and after consulting the rest of us, he ordered our food from a machine. We took the three tickets that popped out of the vending machine and sat down at a booth.


    Once the food came, I had to do everything in my power to control myself.


    Sorry, the food just smelled too good.


    I momentarily stopped thinking about Youkai, and just focused on eating. Abe-san gave in and started eating too, and Nakamura-san ate like a sumo wrestler. He quickly finished all of his food and went up to a young staff member at the counter.


    "Excuse me, may I ask you a question?"


    "Of course. What can I help you with?"


    "Have you seen anything strange in Akihabara lately?"


    The restaurant chain was empty, but I still felt extreme secondhand embarrassment from this odd question. Nakamura-san on the other hand was unfazed by the confused look the staff member gave him.


    "I''m sorry, what do you mean?"


    "Mmmm... How do I put this? Have you seen anything that doesn''t seem possible?"


    The staff member stared at Nakamura-san for a good couple of seconds, and even Abe-san started fidgeting with his hands.


    "Well, when I was taking out the trash in the nearby alleyway the other day, I swear I saw a cardboard cutout move on its own."


    Huh? He answered just like that? And doesn''t that sound like the poster I saw?


    "A-ahem, I''m kidding. It was dark, and I was pretty tired that night. Don''t take it too seriously."


    Nakamura-san looked him dead in the eyes and said "No, I believe you. It must''ve been a spirit."


    "Eh? No, really, I swear I was just seeing things-"


    "Bahaha! Just messing with you. It was probably the wind."


    Nakamura-san laughed and started to drag Abe-san and me out of the restaurant.


    "Thank you very much!"


    "Er... No problem...?"


    The young staff member was left with a face just as confused as before. Poor guy. I feel like even Abe-san isn''t used to this living whirlwind either.


    Nakamura-san led us out of the building around the corner, and next to the building. There was nothing of note, except a large dumpster surrounded by numerous trash bags.


    I guess the man from the restaurant chain really was seeing things.


    "Nakamura-san, I don''t think there''s anything here."


    He looked deep in thought. "No, there is."


    "Eh? How do you know?"


    He looked over at me with a wide grin.


    "Intuition."


    He walked over to the dumpster, and Fujin materialized next to him.


    Whoosh!


    With a strong gale, he flipped open the dumpster''s lid, revealing... more bags.


    "Nakamura-san... There really isn''t anything there-"


    Bang!


    With stupidly comedic timing, the dumpster tipped over and a large red object toppled out of it. What even is that?


    I squinted my eyes to look closer at the strange object and realized that it was a giant costume of a red cat mascot with two tails. Eh? It''s kinda cute.


    "Gah!"


    I couldn''t stop a yelp from coming out of my mouth when the costume suddenly stood up on its own


    Nakamura-san bent over from laughter.


    "Bahaha! It''s possessed by a Youkai! It looks hilarious!"


    Abe-san wasted no time summoning Raijin, who raised his spear, charging it with crackling electricity. Abe-senpai''s eyes glowed an orangish yellow, and his eyebrows furrowed as he concentrated.


    Just as he was about to bring it down, Nakamura-san called out, "Hold on, Yusuke. We should let Miyake-san and Hoshi get some practice."


    Raijin lowered his spear and looked at Abe-sai, who nodded. Suddenly...


    "Hey! Nakamura-san, it just got away!"


    How did such a round mascot with legs that short run so darn fast?


    Despite my sudden panic, Nakamura-san didn''t seem too concerned.


    "Don''t worry, I scanned it with the app, so we''ll be able to track it. We also don''t have to worry about it. It seems pretty weak."


    "You''re way too laid back about this mission, sensei."


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    "Lies. Anyway, let''s follow the Youkai!"


    We quickly broke into a run, following the dot on Nakamura-san''s map. We ended up on a rather crowded street, given how late it was.


    "Won''t... people... see... the Youkai?"


    Running sucks. I was already almost out of breath and was barely able to talk. Yet Abe-san was able to laugh, which honestly made me feel a bit pathetic.


    "Miyake-san, you know we''re in Akihabara right? Mascots running all over the place is far from the weirdest thing you''ll see here."


    True...


    Nakamura-san''s tracker led us to a dark alleyway. Thankfully, this one was different from the one in my traumatic experience. Regardless, I still felt a bit of dread.


    At the end of the alleyway was the mascot. It was blocked by a wall, and it couldn''t escape.


    Abe-san took out his phone, and after glancing at it for a bit, looked up with a bit of a smile.


    "It''s D rank, so this is perfect. Miyake-san, why don''t you try fighting it without Hoshi? Use your naginata."


    What. No. I can''t do that. I''d die.


    "What''s wrong, Miyake-san?"


    "B-but... it''s so cute..."


    "Miyake-san, would you rather it get away again?"


    Never mind. Looks like you''ll have to die, cute Youkai. I don''t want to have to run some more.


    I drew my naginata out of a long bag provided by Hasegawa-san ("It''s best that you don''t attract unwanted attention, carrying a weapon in public."), and pointed it at the Youkai, taking a battle stance.


    "Okay, so usually I wouldn''t be able to hit this thing, but since it''s possessing an object I''m assuming I can now?" I really hoped this was the case, at least.


    "Correct, Miyake-san. But it can''t hurt to try and figure out how to imbue your weapon anyway."


    The Youkai hissed at me, before lunging through the air. I quickly thrust my naginata forward with all my strength and pierced the face of the mascot. I''m so sorry...


    The mascot fell apart into pieces and rolled across the ground. Legs, torso, arms... only the head remained speared on my naginata. That was... surprisingly easy.


    Almost as if waiting for me to think I won, the pieces of the costume started to shake, and floated through the air to connect back together. Except the head had a massive hole with glowing red eyes, and this time the mascot had freakishly long limbs.


    The arms and legs were strung together by black threads, resulting in what looked like a puppet from a horror movie. I definitely didn''t think this thing was cute anymore.


    Actually, this thing terrifies me now.


    "Uhhhhhhhhhh-"


    "Miyake-san, don''t forget that we''re both here to help you if you''re ever actually in danger. Don''t worry." Raijin didn''t put away his spear, which reassured me a little.


    Looks like I have no choice. I swallowed my reluctance and charged the Youkai, this time taking the offensive. While I was aiming at its red eyes (video games have made me assume that''s always a weak spot), the Youkai blocked my naginata with its arm.


    That''s fine, maybe it won''t be able to use that arm anymore. Wait, what? Why is it so much harder now?


    I shouted at Nakamura-san and Abe-san. "Why is it getting stronger?"


    Nakamura-san laughed. Can''t he see I''m struggling here?


    "That''s what imbuement looks like. Youkai are naturals at it. Hoshi will be able to do it too, but right now you should be the one learning it right now. This is good practice for you. Good luck!"


    Noticing an opening, the Youkai used its arm as a whip and swiped at my side, which didn''t break anything, but it really really hurt.


    Ow.


    My eyes started tearing up, and I got a bit annoyed. When the Youkai whipped its arm at me again, I cut in between the pieces of its arm and slashed through the part that looked like a black thread.


    Looks like that did the trick. This time my naginata easily sliced through the Youkai''s arm, and-


    Ow, ow ow ow! What? How''d it still hit me?


    This time it was Abe-san that explained.


    "Miyake-san, it looks like your blade will just pass through that part. It''s a bit much to explain at the moment, but just keep in mind that you''ll have to imbue your weapon to hit its weak spots."


    "How in the world do I do that?!"


    "Try and remember how you felt when your Kami awoke. Concentrate your will into your blade, and put your entire being into your attack."


    That''s much easier said than done.


    I struck the Youkai''s side, but my blade just passed through its thin waist.


    Oh god, how do I even start on such an abstract concept? Uhhhhh...


    The Youkai wasn''t making things easier either. While I was trying to think about how to imbue my weapon, the stupid thing kept attacking without slowing down. It felt like I was playing a really tiring game of jump rope.


    Can Youkai even feel tired? Where do they even get their energy from? Eating humans? Wait, I''m getting distracted.


    If only Nakamura-san and Abe-san would let Hoshi help. This thing would be dead in a few seconds. Then my thoughts started to drift even more, and I struggled to keep them in line. But then, a specific memory popped into my mind, almost like Hoshi herself reminded me.


    When Hoshi tried that feint during the fight with Fujin, she left that weird trail. The strange ink didn''t do anything. A bit disappointing, but how did she accomplish that in the first place? What if...?


    The Youkai swung at my head, and I barely reacted in time to duck underneath the attack. But that didn''t matter to me right now.


    If Hoshi truly managed to leave that trail with imbuement, then I just have to remember how we felt when that happened. I couldn''t tell if it was from the adrenaline or if Hoshi was trying to help, but my heart kept beating faster and faster.


    I took a deep breath and calmly waited for the Youkai''s next attack. I honestly had no clue whether or not I''d be able to succeed, but I could tell that this is where the fight ends. It almost felt like the air was charged with electricity.


    It seems that the Youkai sensed this too. In a last-ditch effort, it stretched out its leg and swept the ground with a low kick. But I was in a trance and wasn''t even fazed by the dirty move.


    I jumped above the attack, much much higher than what would have been humanly possible.


    It felt like energy was surging through my legs and pouring down to my feet, where I wore the shoes that Hasegawa-san had given me. Usually, I would''ve panicked, given how high up I was.


    And yet only one thing remained in my mind.


    Strike it down.


    With a loud shout, I put the entire force of my fall into the naginata, and the Youkai raised both arms to protect its face. But it didn''t matter. I shattered both of its arms and sliced right through terrified Youkai''s exposed face. This time, the weapon didn''t simply pass through. I could feel the slightest bit of resistance against the blade, but it easily cut into the Youkai''s weak point.


    With a loud clang, the blade of my naginata hit the ground behind the Youkai, but even the ground couldn''t damage it.


    In a silent scream, the Youkai began to dissolve, and the pieces of the torn costume once again fell apart. Nothing was left except for scattered remains. I almost felt sorry for it.


    It was only after the fact that I realized how much I was panting. Hold on, didn''t I just do some crazy things?


    A loud noise rang into my ears, and I jumped.


    Oh wait, it''s just Nakamura-san applauding.


    "Good job, Miyake-san! You learned how to imbue much faster than I did. I think it took me a good couple of months, bahahaha!"


    Ow!


    Hoshi appeared next to me and slapped my back. I was so sore and exhausted that she nearly knocked me over. Is she trying to fill in for Mika?


    Abe-san was smiling.


    "You did very well, Miyake-san. But let''s celebrate more later. The mission''s still going. You can leave it to Sensei and I."


    He''s right. I can think more about things after we finish. But I really did grow a lot today, didn''t I?


    I think I did a good job. It looks like Hoshi wants in on the action though.


    Sorry, maybe next time.


    Nakamura-san led the way again and started to walk back the way we came from. I took one last look at the sad costume and turned to follow him, with Abe-san behind me.


    Except... we were met with a wall. A wall that wasn''t there before.


    After a couple seconds of stunned silence, Nakamura-san asked "Miyake-san, "You encountered Kumo in an abandoned alleyway, right?"


    Dread started to creep up through the back of my mind.


    "...Yes."


    "Mmmm... I think we''ve fallen into its trap."


    Oh god. This is really bad. What do we do?


    "It''s like a spider''s web!" Nakamura-san chuckled. Not that I''m surprised anymore.


    "Don''t worry, Miyake-san. You have Yusuke and I here, remember? Just stick close to us. Let''s go find this Youkai."


    We turned back away from the wall and walked deeper into the dark alleyway. The wall on this end was no longer there.


    The darkness felt like it was penetrating through me. It was utterly terrifying.


    Hoshi smiled at me and began to glow with an even brighter intensity. Nakamura-san and Abe-san smiled too, and in unison Fujin and Raijin both appeared, illuminating our path.


    That''s right. I''m not fighting the Youkai alone anymore. It really is nice to have people you can depend on.


    When we reached what used to be the end of the alleyway, I gasped.


    The alleyway led into a much larger road, but it somehow carried the same eerie aura. Abandoned buildings littered the sides of the road. The area was dimly lit by scarce street lamps, which were battered and some were even bent in half. No human could have done that.


    "What... is this place?"


    Abe-san looked around. "I think... this is the den of Kumo."


    "What?"


    "You know how Hasegawa-san said that the world had two layers? Well, the Youkai you''ve seen so far have actually been in the world of the living. You haven''t seen the world of the Youkai... until now. It seems that we''ve wandered into the land of spirits."


    Nakamura-san patted my back. "We''ll protect you. You''re our priority. Everything else comes second."


    We slowly walked down the empty road, doing our best not to make too much sound. It became apparent to me just how loud my breathing sounded. Every single shadow stretched across the ground, forming monsters.


    Every time I thought I saw movement in the corners of my eyes, I was met with the sight of total darkness. The only consolation was Hoshi next to me, whose glow beat back the shadows.


    I don''t know how much time passed. It felt like the road stretched on forever. But we reached a part of the road that branched out into another alleyway. Nakamura-san, Abe-san, and I turned our heads around the corner in case something was there. I couldn''t see what was deeper within the alleyway, as it was completely shrouded in darkness. Oh god. What if it''s hiding somewhere in there?


    Nakamura-san and Fujin silently went out from the corner and prepared to go into the alleyway.


    "Stay here. I''ll go check what''s down there. Yusuke, guard her in case something happens."


    I watched Fujin''s glow slowly disappear into the distance and silently prayed for Nakamura-san''s safety. After a few tense minutes, I could hear his voice calling from deep within the alleyway.


    "Miyake-san?"


    "Yes, Nakamura-san?"


    "Don''t come here. I''ll be back soon."


    What? Is there something there? After waiting for several more minutes, Nakamura-san and Fujin returned from the alleyway.


    "Did you find something?"


    "..."


    I haven''t known him for long, but I''ve never seen Nakamura-san with such a serious face.


    "...Nakamura-san...?"


    But he quickly broke into a smile.


    "Nah, I didn''t find anything. Was just pulling your leg. Bahaha!"


    ...Was it just me, or were his eyes still dead serious? Hoshi made eye contact with me, and I knew that she could tell too.


    "Anyways, it looks like that alleyway is sealed off too, like the one that trapped us here. I have a theory, but first, what do you remember about the alleyway where you first met Kumo, Miyake-san?"


    Oh boy. Looks like I''m going to have to dig up those memories again, although I''m pretty sure the atmosphere has already made me do that several times already.


    "Well... it was pretty empty, except maybe a vending machine? Oh, and it was super dark at the end of the alleyway. So much so that I was too scared to stay there for long. When I escaped Kumo, the alleyway looked different."


    Nakamura-san looked deep in thought. "Mmmm... I think the alleyway you were in that day was actually connected to here. What I believe is that this realm connects to different alleyways in Akihabara. Kumo waits until people wander into its den, and then pounces on them. In fact, I saw a vending machine down there. I think it could possibly be the same alleyway that you were at."


    "Then... had I wandered deeper into the alleyway... I could be..."


    "Hey, hey, don''t think like that. Maybe you would have awoken Hoshi even earlier, and we wouldn''t have to go on this mission, bahaha! Anyway, Let''s keep going. Make sure to stick close."


    "Sensei."


    "Hm? What is it, Yusuke?"


    Abe-san''s eyes were narrowed as he stared behind me.


    "It''s here."

 Chapter 8

    "Get ready for a fight!"


    Oh god. Isn''t this happening a little too soon?


    It was hard to see in the distance due to the low light. I squinted my eyes in an attempt to see through the inky blackness. I don''t see anything...


    And then I saw something. I couldn''t really see it, but something was moving in the darkness. Something huge.


    The massive creature passed by a street lamp, and my mind froze.


    Now that it was illuminated by the street lamps, and wasn''t constrained by the small size of an alleyway, it somehow looked even bigger than before. The arms on its back were nowhere to be seen, so it stood on two legs. The result was that it was as tall as the street lamps themselves. Its empty face turned from side to side, as if it were scanning its surroundings. A chill ran down my spine.


    Nakamura-san put an arm in front of me."Miyake-san, go a little bit behind us and brace yourself. Yusuke, you know what to do."


    "Understood."


    Nakamura-san and Abe-san were amazing. How were they not fazed? I could barely calm myself down.


    Abe-san senpai summoned Raijin, who took a position at the vanguard with Fujin. Kumo definitely saw us now.


    But something was off. It wasn''t moving. It just stood there silently.


    Abe-san pulled out his phone. He opened the Youbidase app, and clicked on the giant glowing light on the map. A small popup appeared.


    [Scan complete. The signal is predicted to be B rank.]


    "Now we can track it. Alright, let''s do this."


    Kumo began shuddering, its limbs convulsing and jerking about. Arms painfully sprouted from its back, and it hunched over in order to crawl on them.


    Raijin''s spear materialized in his hands, and Abe-san matched him.


    "I''m not letting it take the initiative."


    They both raised their spears, and thunderbolts struck the metallic tips, charging them with electricity. Both of them charged, and Fujin stretched out his hands, boosting them forward with wind.


    But Kumo didn''t just stand and watch. Even more arms sprouted out of its back and lashed out at the approaching assailants. With a shout, the pair cut arm after arm, which wriggled on the ground like tentacles before dissolving. Whatever they couldn''t cut, they simply dodged, and Nakamura-san and Fujin deflected any arms that came close. But as arms were cut, more sprouted from the Youkai''s back to replace them, resulting in a swarm of blank hands.


    Abe-san was slowly getting overwhelmed, and could no longer cut through the arms fast enough to proceed. On the contrary, he was being pushed back.


    How do I help?


    "Heads up, Yusuke!"


    Nakamura-san pulled out a couple of shuriken and threw them towards Abe-an. Fujin once again utilized his wind to rapidly increase the speed of the projectiles. With a mind of their own, they sped through the storm of arms, and quickly sliced through them. Raijin raised its hand, and lightning struck the shuriken, charging them with electricity.


    Bolts of lightning jumped from the flying knives, stunning the arms and stopping them in their tracks. The flawless teamwork allowed Abe-san and Raijin to cut through the forest of limbs, as the massive Youkai screamed in desperation. It was amazing.


    Hoshi and I just stood and watched in pure shock. There was no way we could even jump in to help. What would we do except get in the way?


    Abe-san slowly advanced forward, swinging his spear so fast that my arms felt sore just watching. He reached where Kumo was standing, but there were so many arms concentrated there that even the shuriken couldn''t help. I couldn''t see through the chaos very well, but I could tell that the young man was exhausted.


    Wait. What if...?


    I cupped my hands and shouted as loudly as possible to be heard over the screeching filling the air.


    "ABE-SAN! THE STREET LIGHT!"


    Abe-san couldn''t afford to look back at me, but I saw him nod with understanding. Raijin momentarily stopped slicing Kumo''s arms to stretch its hand into the air, and a giant thunderbolt struck the street lamp next to Kumo.


    The sound of thunder drowned out the Youkai''s unworldly screams, and Kumo collapsed, quivering from electricity. Not wasting a single moment, Abe-san pierced the defenseless Youkai in the face. He left the spear impaled inside the monster, which continued to shudder violently. He then raised his hand, and thunderbolt after thunderbolt continued to strike Kumo through the spear. Abe-san can be absolutely terrifying.


    After some time, the Youkai stopped shaking and lay still. Abe-san pulled his spear out of its face with a disgusting squelch and put it back into the black bag strapped onto his back.


    "Thanks for the help, Miyake-san. You really saved me there."


    "I-it was nothing."


    Nakamura-san patted my back, which almost made me fall over.


    "You did good, young one! Great thinking!"


    He looked over at the defeated Kumo.


    "Hmmm... That''s weird. It''s taking a while to dissolve."


    A nervous tension started to fill the air. Was it really dead?


    Then, Kumo began to shudder again.


    Abe-san quickly pulled out his spear and raised it over the Youkai. He slammed it upon its chest, but something was off. The chest broke and caved in way too easily.


    With horror, I realized that the thing was somehow molting. Arms sprouted out of its back and ripped apart the outer layer of Kumo''s body. It pulled itself free from its old skin, and the head with the top hat still on it turned to look at us. I watched in frozen horror as its face split in two from the middle to reveal a ghastly smile full of teeth. A singular, glowing red eye with rings filled what was once its empty face.


    You''re telling me this thing''s still alive?


    Nakamura-san rushed forward and shouted "Yusuke! Take Miyake-san and run! It''s too dangerous for her now! It''s gotten stronger!"


    "But what about you, Master?"


    "This guy''s nothing! Just go!"


    At these words, Abe-san grabbed me by the wrist and led me down the street without hesitation. A strong gust of wind boosted us forward as I heard the high-pitched screams of Kumo in the background.


    "Senpai, we have to go back and-"


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    "Don''t look back. Have faith in sensei."


    I looked up at Abe-senpai''s face and saw nothing but determination in his eyes. With that, I decided to trust Nakamura-sensei.


    _________________________________________________________


    I don''t know how long we ran, but by the time we finally stopped, my heart was pounding in my ears. My chest felt like it had burst and I was sorely reminded of how much I hated PE.


    "Miyake-san, there''s another alleyway right there. Let''s try and see if it''s possible to get back to the real world."


    How was this guy not tired? I''m literally dying over here.


    I gathered up all my strength to stop bending over and followed Abe-senpai into the gap between the walls. Hoshi and Raijin appeared to light our path. Torn posters covered the walls, and garbage littered the floor. Despite knowing that Kumo was preoccupied with Nakamura-san far away, I still couldn''t help but tiptoe...


    My body gradually cooled down, but the remaining sweat and the chilly temperature made me feel cold and sticky. I hadn''t realized earlier, but it was eerie how there wasn''t any breeze.


    How did this den form? Did Kumo create this place, or did it already exist before Kumo inhabited it? This must not be unique to Kumo, though, since Senpai and Nakamura-sensai seem to be used to this type of situation. Still, when I imagine a spiritual world, I wouldn''t think of something so... modern.


    My thoughts hit a wall as we came across an actual brick wall in front of us.


    "Damn it. Looks like we''re trapped here."


    Abe-senpai walked up to the wall and placed his hand on it.


    "Think you can break it, Senpai?"


    He shook his head. "No. While it looks like a normal wall, it''s a part of this place."


    Hoshi floated up to the wall, and tried to pass through it. Instead, she bounced off and started to fall through the floor instead.


    "It''s formed with a lot of spiritual energy. In a way, you could say it maintains a physical form like how Youkai and Kami do it. I doubt I''m anywhere near strong enough to even scratch it."


    Despite these words, Abe-senpai continued to stare at the wall with determination. "Well... Doesn''t hurt to try. Hoshi, can you help Raijin?"


    Hoshi lifted her head up from the floor, nodded, and both Kami summoned their weapons. Electricity crackled and lit up the surrounding area.


    "One... two... three... now!"


    With his signature attack, Raijin put all of his strength into thrusting the charged spear into the gap between two bricks. Hoshi twisted her body. Then, she untwisted her body to swing her naginata and hit the back of Raijin''s spear with the flat side of the blade.


    The air filled with crackling electricity, which made my hair stand on end. The surface of the brick wall began rippling violently like a large stone being dropped in a puddle.


    Hoshi and Raijin struggled for a good couple of seconds, and for a bit, it felt like the brick wall would be blasted apart. But the ripples converged back into the impact point and forcefully launched the two kami backward.


    Abe-senpai sighed as he watched the two Kami tumble on the ground. "Well, it was worth a try. Thanks, you two."


    He looked back at me and gave me a small apologetic smile, but I could tell he was probably nervous too.


    "I think we''re going to have to defeat Kumo to get out of here, Miyake-san. So we''ll just have to stay here until Sensei defeats it."


    He pulled out his smartphone and opened the Youbidase app. A large glowing dot appeared on the small screen, with a smaller dot next to it.


    "Kumo''s dot... it''s grown larger. Did it really grow stronger? The app says it''s around A rank now..."


    I looked at the dot again and felt a sense of dread. The smaller dot kept zipping around the larger one, but I couldn''t tell what was happening.


    "Will sensei be alright?"


    Abe-senpai smiled again, but this time it was much more reassuring.


    "Don''t worry, sensei is a lot stronger than he shows. He wasn''t even trying in the sparring match with m-"


    The large dot on Abe-senpai''s phone disappeared. Only the smaller one remained.


    All of the tension from my body and mind relaxed at once.


    "Ah! Does that mean sensei beat it?"


    Abe-senpai stared at his phone with furrowed eyebrows. "I think so. But, Kumo''s signal disappeared all at once, instead of shrinking like it usually wo-"


    He was suddenly interrupted by a strange noise coming from above us. It sounded like a loud crackling sound. Abe-senpai and I both looked up and realized with horror that the shadows at the top of one of the walls were gathering. The shadows swirled and combined to form a twisted arm.


    Abe-senpai immediately grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the alleyway. Adrenaline coursed through my legs and I stumbled several times.


    But Abe-senpai was surprisingly strong despite his slim build, and he managed to keep me from falling. The pounding of my heart rang through my ears and my vision blurred as we ran from the loud scuttling and screeching.


    When we reached a fork in the road, Abe-senpai quickly reached into his bag and pulled out a canister, which I recognized as one of the smoke bombs that Hasegawa-san gave me. He clenched his hand for a bit and a glowing bar on the object filled up. When the line was completely lit, he tossed the grenade behind us and I looked over to see a giant cloud of smoke.


    We took the path on the left, in a direction we had never gone before. I was exhausted from running all night, and it felt like I would collapse any second. My chest burned and my muscles ached. Eventually, we reached another lamp post with a shattered light bulb.


    A strange object hung from the top of the street light. It was rather long, but I couldn''t really make out what it was in the distance. As we got closer to the mysterious object, I froze.


    I was looking at a face with a gaping mouth and lifeless eyes staring into my very soul.


    Abe-senpai quickly tried to cover my eyes with his hand but it was too late.


    I fell backward in shock and my mind went blank. The smell of decay filled my nose and my heart pumped even faster. I felt like vomiting. Blood dripped from the body and onto the ground with a wet splatter.


    I couldn''t think.


    I was overwhelmed with fear disgust and despair.


    ...


    ...


    ...


    I don''t know how much time passed by like this.


    All I knew was that the next thing I noticed was Abe-senpai tumbling on the ground.


    What was happening?


    Was Kumo here?


    I couldn''t move. The sight of the dead body wouldn''t leave my mind.


    In the back of my mind, I knew that Youkai were dangerous. I knew that Kumo had already killed someone. But now I was faced with what that truly meant.


    No.


    Stop.


    Stop thinking about these things.


    Abe-senpai''s in danger. You have to do something.


    But no matter how much I willed myself to move, nothing happened. It felt like my eyes had drifted to the back of my mind, and everything felt blurry. All I heard was the sound of my own heart beating and my panicked breathing. I barely processed as Abe-senpai, Raijin and Hoshi struggled against the enraged Youkai.


    Why didn''t Abe-senpai run?


    If he stayed here he would die too.


    Kumo didn''t look like it was growing extra arms anymore. Instead, the arms gathered and twisted around each other to form eight stronger limbs, much like an actual spider. It raised one of its arms and aimed at me, but I could only stare blankly.


    Raijin and Abe-senpai both rushed in front of me, and the leg pierced through Raijin, who evaporated. The blow launched Abe-senpai, despite his attempt to block the attack with his charged spear. He flew through the air, and I heard the sound of a sickening crunch when he landed on his arm.


    Kumo diverted its attention from me and instead turned towards Abe-senpai. It slowly walked towards him, almost as if it wanted to savor its victory.


    Abe-senpai looked over at me, panting. He called out weakly. "-san... run..."


    Kumo''s glowing red grin spread even wider, contorting its face. Kumo raised its leg high into the air to prepare for a fatal blow.


    No, no no!


    I can''t let things end like this!


    Sayuri, you idiot!


    Do something!


    Using every bit of my willpower, I bit my lip, drawing blood, and the pain allowed me to finally move. The pounding of my heart doubled, and I jumped up from my feet. I didn''t think about how I would save Abe-senpai.


    In fact, I didn''t really think at all.


    I moved purely by instinct, and it felt like my fiery determination to save Abe-senpai was consuming my very soul. I raised two of my fingers up into the air, and the end of it gleamed with a sparkling blue light.


    I''m not going to let things end in this way.


    My fingers moved through the air, leaving the starry blue ink shining in the air.


    If I have to...


    Soon, a singular kanji character illuminated the night sky in front of me.


    »ð. The word for fire.


    ...I''ll rewrite his fate myself.


    The character glowed in the air, shimmering. Hoshi appeared next to me, with a determined look. With one hand she held her naginata and stretched the other out towards the startled Kumo. And then it happened.


    A bright beam of fire burst from Hoshi''s fingertips and engulfed Kumo. Its screams rang out in the air, accompanied by the crackling of my burning determination. The flames lit up the night, and Abe-senpai''s eyes were open in awe.


    But... It wasn''t enough. Kumo slowly got over the pain, and the spiraling stream of fire ended. Both Hoshi and I were exhausted, and Kumo advanced, its haunting grin nowhere to be seen.


    Why wouldn''t this thing die? Why did it want to kill so badly? I raised my finger in the air again, ready to use whatever remaining energy I had, but...


    I felt a warm hand on my shoulder.


    Nakamura-sensei walked a few steps in front of me and faced Kumo. He looked back at me and smiled.


    "You did well, Miyake-san. I''ve got it from here."


    I looked back at him with relief. The weight of my exhaustion was unbearable. I doubt I would have been able to use that fire again.


    When Nakamura-sensei looked away from it to smile at me, Kumo took the opportunity to lunge forward. Its mouth opened and its arms stretched out to swallow Nakamura-sensei up.


    But before I could even open my mouth to shout a warning, a powerful gale blew back at me, and it took everything I had to avoid being knocked over. An invisible force smashed Kumo into the ground, but it didn''t stop there. The condensed gust of wind continued to press the giant Youkai into the ground until it was nothing but a massive splatter left on the ground.


    Nakamura-sensei turned his head towards Kumo''s disintegrating remains.


    "Don''t touch my students, pest."

 Chapter 9

    Dear reader,


    I''m writing this at 4 A.M. I just went on my first mission today and ended up getting home super late.


    After Nakamura-san defeated Kumo, the creepy spirit world disappeared, and we found ourselves in the alleyway where I fought the other unnamed Youkai.


    It turns out that there was another body in the spirit world. The police found it in a different alleyway after being informed by Nakamura-sensei.


    Since it was super late, we couldn''t take the subway back home, so we took a taxi. I was dropped off at home first, while Abe-senpai and Nakamura-sensei went back to the Agency to report on the mission. My parents were still up despite it being very late, and I could tell they were super relieved when they saw me.


    Everyone ended up okay, although Abe-senpai did have a broken arm. Hasegawa-san said that it should heal in about a week, though, due to the special bandages we have. They''re called "Yao-Kuai Healing", and were apparently invented in China. Hasegawa-san explained that you could charge them with excess soul energy, and when needed they''ll use that energy to heal you. Hearing this amazed me, but unfortunately, the bandages only really speed up your healing, so it can''t heal illnesses, or wounds that you wouldn''t be able to heal by yourself. Nonetheless, they''re still pretty useful to have.


    Hasegawa-san talked to my parents about the mission, and while I do think they were very concerned, they were mostly glad that I was okay. I think they know that I have to learn to protect myself.


    School''s going to start the day after tomorrow. Even though it seems like nothing compared to what I''ve been through lately, I still can''t help but feel nervous since it''ll be my first time in high school. Thankfully, Mika''s going to be there too. Hopefully, I''ll be able to make friends. Anyway, since it''s super late, I''m going to be going to bed.


    ____________________________________


    Due to my exhaustion, I slept like the dead. I would''ve slept longer, if I hadn''t been shaken awake.


    I groggily opened my eyes, and when my blurry vision cleared I was staring up at a familiar person with a bun and brown eyes.


    "Good morning, sleepyhead."


    Ah. It''s just Mika being Mika again.


    "What time is it?"


    "3 p.m. Madam, why did you not reply to any of my texts yesterday? I''d understand if you were busy, but you were gone the entire day!"


    Oops. I did have my notifications off because of the mission...


    "Uh... about that..."


    Dammit, I don''t even know what to say! What do I tell her? I mean, obviously not the truth, but-


    "I bet you were too immersed in reading a book or something. Airhead."


    Mika walked back out my room door and said "I''ll wait for you to get changed. Let''s go somewhere and enjoy our last day of summer."


    "Ah. Okay."


    I''m lucky she didn''t ask any more questions.


    I quickly changed into some comfortable clothes and walked down the narrow stairs. When I got downstairs, I saw Mika on my couch playing video games with Kenta.


    They did not exchange a singular word, but they had perfect coordination and teamwork. I walked over and grabbed a controller.


    Mika looked over at me, and hastily said "Wait, I just wanted to go out for a bit."


    She turned her attention back to the screen, and to her dismay, she realized that she had died. I tried my best to stifle my giggling.


    Kenta laughed too, and got up to turn off the console.


    "I should get going to my part-time job anyway. You two have fun."


    We stepped out of the house and into the neighborhood. A light breeze and warm sunlight served as a reminder of springtime.


    "Where should we go?"


    I stretched and yawned. It was quite comfortable outside."Mmmm.... Let''s go get ice cream at a convenience store."


    When we entered the local Family Mart, I felt a weird sensation, almost like a small chill. That''s strange. I don''t think the AC''s on here...


    I quickly scanned the area while Mika walked over to the freezers. Nothing. Was it just my imagination?


    Ignoring the weird sensation, I followed Mika through an aisle of bright candy and snacks, to the ice cream section. Hmmm... they have a lot of types. It''s hard to pick one.


    I looked over at my right to look at more brands before deciding, where I noticed an expressionless boy also buying ice cream. I don''t usually stare at strangers, but... why the hell is he buying so much?


    The boy had a small shopping basket, but it was filled to the brim with ice creams of all sorts of shapes and sizes. On top of that, he even had a clear umbrella, even though it was sunny this week.


    Wait... GAH!


    After looking closer, I realized that the umbrella in question had a giant eye. A long tongue snaked out of its front, and human arms sprouted from its sides. It kept hopping in place, with a singular leg wearing a geta sandal.


    Without thinking, I jumped backward at the sight of the umbrella Youkai. Both Mika and the boy stared over at me in bewilderment.


    I kind of wished the air conditioning was on now.


    "A-ah... There was a big spider..."


    Mika sighed and turned back to take out a bar of ice cream, but the boy with the basket full looked at me for a little longer, to the point of me feeling pretty uncomfortable. I made eye contact with him, and he quickly turned away. But what I really cared about was the Youkai.


    I looked back at the Youkai. It looked just like the famous Kasa-Obake Youkai, except instead of a traditional umbrella it was... a plastic one from a convenience store.


    It seemed to be doing nothing but sitting (or hopping?) next to the ice cream boy. Hasegawa-san''s voice floated from the back of my mind: "Most Youkai are simply troublemakers..."


    If this Kasa-Obake was one of the common and harmless Youkai, I don''t think I have much to worry about. Do I even have to exorcize it? It just seems to be minding its own business.


    The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    As I debated what to do about the Kasa-Obake, the dark-haired boy counted his ice cream, and left to go to the register. The Kasa-Obake seemed to take interest in me and hopped over to me to stare.


    Ahaha...


    I quickly opened the freezer door and grabbed the closest ice cream, which happened to be a watermelon popsicle with chocolate seeds.


    "Mika, let''s go pay for these! I''m really craving this ice cream!"


    Mika stared at me blankly. "Uh... sure."


    Dammit, I just wanna get away from this thing. Quit looking at me like that!


    As we started to walk towards the register, Hoshi appeared next to me. Does she need something?


    She pointed at the ice cream with a pouting look. Ah.


    "I''ll get you something at home, alright?" I whispered so Mika couldn''t hear.


    Hold on, can she even eat? I guess we''ll have to find out later...


    Hoshi''s expression brightened, and she playfully tapped the Kasa-Obake before floating after me. The Youkai unfortunately also hopped after me.


    Ugh. Am I gonna have to have Hoshi beat it up?


    We finished paying and walked out of the store, and the Kasa-Obake finally stopped at the doors. It didn''t seem to want to leave. Hoshi waved goodbye at it and watched in envy as Mika and I opened our ice creams at a nearby park.


    Okay, okay, I get it. I''ll get you something later, I promise.


    Mika glanced over at me and opened her mouth.


    Oh no. What''s she gonna say?


    "So. What was that all about earlier?"


    So she did notice... I was hoping she momentarily went blind... and deaf... and maybe just oblivious... But this is Mika I''m talking about. Of course she noticed.


    "Ah... Uh... There was a bug..."


    She didn''t seem convinced. "Yeah, you said that earlier, but why''d you keep staring anyway?"


    "Uh..."


    She looked at me for a bit, before asking, "Was it the boy?"


    I stared at her in blank shock. And then I regained my wits. "No!"


    She started to giggle. "You don''t need to be embarrassed about it."


    Please. At this point I was considering telling her the truth.


    "It''s not what you''re thinking..."


    That sounds like something that someone in denial would say.


    Mika looked at me for a bit more, and her smile grew even larger. "That sounds like something that someone in denial would say."


    Are you kidding me? Can she read my freaking mind?


    After I made more pitiful excuses, we started the walk back to my house and discussed high school.


    "You nervous?"


    I almost laughed. Five minutes ago I just saw something that would shock anyone. And yet, now that I was thinking about it, high school did cause me a bit of anxiety.


    "Yeah... I wonder if we''ll be able to make any friends?"


    "Eh. I doubt you''ll have much of a problem."


    Mika''s statement puzzled me. "What do you mean?"


    This time Mika was the one who did laugh. "I''m sure you haven''t noticed yourself, but you''re just... a very likable person. Kinda like one of those people who never get into fights with others."


    "Oh... Thank you?"


    Her words made me feel like smiling, but...


    "What about you?"


    Mika grinned as we started walking up a ramp. "Oh, me? You don''t have to worry about that. I''m pretty confident in my social skills when I put some effort into it. And besides, I''m best friends with little Miss Sunshine over here-"


    Her smiling face suddenly dropped,  her ponytail flowing through the air. I stared in shock as she lay on the ground, having barely caught herself in time.


    "Mika! You okay?"


    She started to push herself up from the floor and back onto her feet. "Yeah, just tripped-"


    With comedic timing, Mika tripped once again. This time she was in a very bad mood. Her face was pressed into the ground and she grumbled loudly.


    "What the hell? What''s up with me today?"


    Strange, usually Mika''s pretty athletic... I scanned the floor around her to check for anything that might''ve made her slip, when I saw it. There was a flat creature the color of a light gray, matching the concrete floor. Two tiny arms sprouted from it, and they were wrapped firmly around Mika''s ankle. It had an ugly grin across its face.


    "Ugh. Sayuri, would you mind helping me up?"


    I stared at the Youkai, feeling pretty annoyed. It was making a weird noise that I could only assume was giggling. Why couldn''t it mind its own business? What did it gain from doing this? Hoshi appeared next to me and summoned her naginata with a matching annoyed expression.


    "Hold on."


    I pulled out my phone and opened the Youbidase app. I opened up the map and saw a small glowing green dot in front of me, next to a slightly larger one. I clicked the small dot, and pressed "scan".


    [Scan complete. The signal is predicted to be E rank.]


    Ah. Isn''t this thing super weak?


    I sent a message to Hasegawa-san.


    [Hey... Just found a Youkai causing trouble. Should I exorcize it? It''s E rank.]


    Hoshi could probably easily get rid of this pest, but I wasn''t sure if I was allowed to deal with Youkai without permission.


    "Hold on for what? Don''t tell me you''re taking a picture."


    Oh. Sorry Mika.


    Actually, that gives me a good idea.


    I opened the camera app and snapped a photo of Mika on the ground.


    "Goddamn it, Sayuri. Give me a hand already."


    But I curiously looked at the photo. Sure enough, I could see the Youkai in the photo. I decided to send it to Hasegawa-san to provide more information.


    Within a few seconds, I received a reply, which was a bit surprising given how busy he seemed.


    [Go for it, Miyake-san! Sorry that I forgot to tell you, but you don''t need any permission to exorcize any weaker Youkai. If you do encounter a stronger one, try and make sure no bystanders are in danger, and retreat while informing us. Hope your friend''s okay!]


    Great.


    Now beat its ass, Hoshi.


    Hoshi seemed to sense my intentions and gave me a nod. She pried the Youkai free from Mika''s leg, to its attempted resistance. She then threw it into the air and sliced it in half, ceasing its squealing.


    Good riddance.


    Although it did let me see Mika in a funny situation.


    Mika and I ended up walking back to my house and playing more video games with Kenta. The two of us have had a heated rivalry in Battle Bros for years, yet Kenta still somehow managed to destroy us. Despite the thorough ass-kicking, I still enjoyed my last day of summer, forgetting the dangers that I had just experienced, even if it was just for a little while.


    _________________________________________________________


    A lone car was driving down a mountain road. A young man wearily gripped the wheel, feeling quite tired after a long journey. He had been away visiting his parents, who lived in the country far away. But now that the school year was starting again soon, he had to make the long drive back to Tokyo, where he attended Waseda University.


    Although his parents dearly missed him, they were incredibly supportive when he was accepted into the prestigious school.


    But if he was being completely honest, he missed his hometown too.


    The young man sighed deeply. "Almost back in Tokyo... It''s alright. I''ll get to go back again during my next break."


    His car headlights illuminated the dark path in front of him, and eventually hit a pitch-black tunnel. He wasn''t too far from the city now. He drove into the tunnel and sighed again. The tunnel was definitely a lot creepier late at night. It felt like it was stretching forever...


    With a sudden bang, the car spluttered to a halt. What in the world?


    The man cautiously stepped out of the car, praying that no one else was out driving this late. He walked to the front of the car, and couldn''t help but gasp. One of the lights was broken, and the entire front was smashed. It was a miracle that the car didn''t blow up.


    "What the... did I hit something?"


    All of a sudden, he heard a growl right behind him. He turned around and froze in a silent scream.


    In the middle of a dark tunnel sat a monstrous creature. Its bright red skin gleamed in the moonlight, covered in a sinister, darker-red liquid. Blood also dripped from the iron club across its back, and splattered on the ground. Laying a few feet in front of it was its victim: a corpse whose head remained nothing but a gorey mass on the ground. Pieces of the person''s flesh stuck to the ends of the Youkai''s two horns, which sprouted from its grinning head. Smashed innards stuck to the floor and walls.


    The Oni had just hunted another one of its prey, but it wasn''t satisfied. It thirsted for more. It uncrossed its legs, and stood up, nearly twice the height of the average man. It turned to leave the tunnel. It could sense much more presence in the nearby city. There would be tons of prey there. It walked forward a couple of steps and stopped.


    A shadowy figure was walking towards it. The Oni tilted its head. It couldn''t sense anything from this creature. It would pose no threat. The Youkai lifted its club from its shoulder and snarled viciously at the intruder. It could barely contain its excitement.


    Then something odd happened. The temperature turned extremely cold. The Oni stood frozen momentarily, shocked at the sudden change in mood.


    What was this feeling? It was like the rush of battle, yet... where had it felt this before? It was so long ago...


    But there wasn''t enough time for the Oni to identify what it was feeling. The figure stretched out a hand, and shadows stretched from out of the floor. Endless hands formed from the darkness grabbed the terrified Youkai, and effortlessly lifted its several-ton body from the ground. The shadows engulfed and wrapped around the predator-turned-prey.


    With horror, the brute realized what the figure was doing. But it was too late.


    Shadows constricted around the Oni''s arm, and slowly tore it off. The ogre began to scream with an inhuman sound, yet anyone listening would somehow understand its pain and terror. The blob of darkness flooded into the Oni''s open mouth, and its screams were stifled. It looked as though black oil was dripping from every orifice.


    After the deed was done, not even dust was left of the poor Youkai.


    The figure silently continued walking down the tunnel.

 Chapter 10

    This time, I didn''t wake up because of Mika.


    Instead, my beauty sleep was rudely interrupted by the sound of my alarm. It''s been a while since I last heard it, but my instincts kicked in and I immediately moved to turn off the bone-chilling sound. It was only a few seconds of silence that I snapped out of my daze and remembered why I set an alarm to begin with.


    Man. Is it already the first day of school?


    I groaned, got out of bed, and started pulling on my school uniform. It consisted of a mid-length skirt, a gray shirt, and a navy blue blazer. After ensuring that my hair wasn''t a mess, I took my bag with all my school supplies and walked down the stairs.


    Only my mom was still downstairs in the kitchen. My dad had left for work, and Kenta was presumably sleeping in. She looked up at me walking down the stairs and smiled. She walked up to me and handed me a plate of tamagoyaki and rice.


    "There''s a bowl of miso soup for you on the table. Get a good night of sleep?"


    "Yep. By the way, Mika''s going to be coming soon. We''re walking to school today."


    Sure enough, as the two of us were peacefully eating breakfast, the bell rang, signaling the start of today''s chaos.


    It took some time by train to get to school, but thankfully the commute there wasn''t too stressful. As Mika and I walked out of the station and down the block, we found ourselves looking at a large building with many windows glimmering in the light. A sign at the front displayed the words "Kiyomizu Academy".


    This was my dream school. It''s a pretty prestigious preparatory school, and took quite a lot of effort for me to be accepted. It felt like a miracle that I was. I could feel Hoshi quivering with excitement. Or was it nervousness? Maybe both.


    Mika looked overwhelmed too, which was quite a rare sight. But she quickly snapped out of it and said "C''mon, Hoshi. Let''s look for the gym. I think they''re holding the orientation there."


    The two of us nervously walked like a pair of ducklings through the campus, following the slowly moving crowd of unfamiliar students, who discussed their breaks and lamenting that the school year had started once again. Even though I knew it wasn''t true, it felt like there was a spotlight shining on Mika and I.


    "Need some help?"


    I almost jumped from the shock, and quickly turned around to see a friendly, yet distinctly mature girl looking at me. She had stylish brown hair and was what I assumed to be an upperclassman. She pointed at a giant building with large glass windows at the top. The sun gleamed on its surface, and it didn''t even look like it belonged to a high school.


    "That''s the gym you''re probably looking for. The orientation is there."


    Somehow, this girl made all of my tension melt away. I could breathe normally again.


    I smiled back at her. It wasn''t hard. "Thank you for your help!"


    Her pleasant smile grew even bigger. "Of course. My name is Amagiri Yume. I''m a second-year student here. Nice to meet you!"


    Mika didn''t smile, but her hand wasn''t shaking anymore. "Thank you very much. My name is Mika Tanaka, and my friend here is Sayuri Miyake. We''re first years. Nice to meet you."


    We ended up following Amagiri-senpai inside the gym, which was somehow even more impressive than the outside. The main gym was massive with rows of chairs lined up for the orientation, many already filled with students chatting. Decorations were laid all over for the occasion. Balloons and streamers created a festive atmosphere, and banners with bright words cheered "Let''s have a great school year!" When I looked up, I saw a second floor with even more seats.


    Wow... This place is massive. It was much larger than my middle school''s gym, which already seemed big enough...


    Amagiri-senpai walked over to the chairs with an unwavering confidence and motioned us to follow. As we sat down, she explained to us what we should expect.


    "Honestly, the orientation won''t be that interesting. It''s just your typical speech by the principal, welcome to the school, we hope to have a great year, and stuff like that. Although if the rumors are right, I''m pretty sure they''re introducing a new teacher for the first years... I wonder if they''ll be transferring from another school, or if they''ll be young... hopefully the latter."


    As she finished talking, a door opened on the second floor, and a tall, elderly man wearing a professional-looking suit walked out. He looked down at us from behind the glass barrier and smiled brightly.


    "Welcome, everyone. I''m Kajiyama Haruto, the principal of Kiyomizu Academy. It''s very nice to meet you. Now, given that this is your first day in high school for those of you that are first years, my job, as is your upperclassmen''s duty, is to ensure that you feel at home..."


    Kajiyama-sensei gave a rather spirited orientation speech, explaining things such as student resources, the schedule, and other things to help us during the school year.


    Y''know, I wonder if high school life is like in manga. I have the sneaking suspicion that I won''t have nearly as much free time as the characters...


    "...And with that said, it is my pleasure to introduce our new teacher, Ueda Natsumi!"


    Mika nudged me in the ribs a little too hard and brought me back to reality. "That''s our teacher!"


    I squinted to look closer at the bowing woman, who looked... really young. She didn''t look any older than thirty. She wore a standard female uniform consisting of a blazer and a skirt but somehow looked fashionable regardless.


    "Hello, everyone. As the kind principal already said, my name is Natsumi Ueda. This will be my first year as a teacher, but I assure you all that I will work hard to serve you well. Please take care of me."


    Ueda-sensei bowed one more time, and the whole gym applauded. I suspect that her looks are going to help with her popularity.


    Once the opening ceremony ended, we had a lunch period, after which we would go to our classrooms for the first time. Mika and I ended up eating lunch with Amagiri-san and her friends.


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    "Wow... the cafeteria''s quite nice.


    I couldn''t help but speak out in wonder when I saw the vast cafeteria. It wasn''t quite as fancy, but it looked like those modern cafeterias in the nicer office buildings. There were only about a handful of choices for lunch such as tempura udon or sandwiches, which apparently don''t change, but if I ate one for every day of the week I think I''d be fine.


    As I scanned the cafeteria, I noticed a strange glow zooming around the area.


    "Hoshi, get back over here..."


    While I gorged myself on the steamed fish and rice, Amagiri-san explained the rest of the day''s schedule.


    After lunchtime, we would go to our homerooms to meet our classmates and teacher for the first time, and then we would have an early release.


    When she heard this, Hoshi excitedly began gesturing, to which I stared at her blankly for several seconds before finally understanding.


    "Ah, I noticed a cafe on the way here. Do you two want to come with me after school?"


    Even though I just met Amagiri-senpai, she already seems really nice. I''d like to get to know her more. Plus, maybe I can treat her to something as thanks for showing us around.


    Amagiri-senpai smiled at me, but her eyes looked a little sad. She fidgeted with her hands.


    "Sorry, Miyake-san. I have to work at my part-time job after school today. Maybe next time though. Thank you for the offer though."


    Wow, she really is like an adult. To be able to juggle a job and school... Wait a minute, aren''t I going to have to do that too?!


    "Oh no, it''s alright! If you don''t mind me asking, what job is it?"


    "Oh, it''s nothing much. I just work part-time at a convenience store."


    "Really? You should tell us where it is so we can visit!"


    Amagiri-senpai laughed gently. "Aha. Very funny."


    The familiar ringing of the school bell reverberated through the cafeteria, signaling the end of lunch, and unfortunately, our time with Amagiri-senpai for the day. She led us to our classroom, A3. The first year''s classrooms were on the first floor, the second year''s on the second, and so on.


    Mika and I waved goodbye to Amagiri-san, and as she walked away to her own class, she greeted several people that seemed to recognize her.


    "She''s quite popular, isn''t she?" With her arms crossed, Mika''s eyes fixated on her until she turned to walk up the stairs.


    "Yeah, she really is. I feel a little bad that she ate lunch with us instead of her friends."


    "Well, we can always ask her about it next time. Just be grateful for now."


    I realized I was simply staring off into nothing and turned around to head back into the classroom.


    The room was full of students, most talking to one another, with some awkwardly standing around. There was a wide assortment, from a boy with glasses to a rowdy girl with heavy-laden makeup.


    Honestly, I was slightly expecting our decently prestigious school to be rather conservative, but it was a nice surprise to see all sorts of different people. It made me want to learn more about them, almost like I was in an entire library of books to read.


    While I was busy looking around at the other people, Mika checked our seating arrangements at the front of the classroom.


    "Wow, that''s lucky. We''re sitting together."


    "Eh? Really?!"


    It was a bit hard to mask my relief and joy as we sat down together at the back of the classroom. I know I''m supposed to make new friends, but at least this way I won''t be too nervous...


    Ueda-sensei walked into the room, and the entire class went silent. She smiled a calm, reassuring smile.


    "Looks like I have quite the obedient class. Thank you for quieting down. Why don''t you all take your seats? I will make sure to give you time to make new friends later. Anyhow, if you don''t know where your assigned seat is, feel free to check the paper or ask me."


    Everyone moved to their desks and sat down. The way everyone was so obedient was surprising, but what was even more surprising was that Ueda-sensei was a new teacher. Despite being young, I could tell she had a strong sense of command.


    "Thank you, everyone. Now, I''m sure you guys were paying attention during the opening ceremony, as high schoolers do... Well. On a more serious note, let me properly introduce myself as your teacher. My name is Ueda Natsumi, and I will be your homeroom teacher for the year. As it is my first year being a teacher, I hope you will all be patient with me."


    I didn''t want things to get awkward, so I decided to start clapping for her. But it looks like I didn''t have to take the first step anyway.


    Once the applause died down, Ueda-sensei cleared her throat again.


    "Now then, why don''t we have someone introduce themselves? Any volunteers?"


    No one raised their hands at first, but it almost felt like Ueda-sensei kept looking over at me...


    Giving in to the pressure, I raised my hand.


    "Ah! Miyake-san! Thank you for volunteering." She looked quite pleased, so I guess this works out.


    Talking to strangers is never easy, but I''d like to think I''m getting better at it. I stood up and took a deep breath.


    "Hello everyone. My name is Miyake Sayuri. My favorite subject is science, and my hobbies are reading and writing. I hope to become friends with you all and have fun this school year. Please take care of me."


    I sat down and the classroom applauded. I reviewed what I''d just said, paranoid that I may have misspoken.


    Now that I think about it, it''s a bit weird that my favorite subject isn''t literature, no? Although I guess I don''t like to write without genuine motivation. It''s unfortunate that I''ve been so busy lately, with school starting and the whole Youkai situation. I would really love to get back to writing, now that I have so many new experiences for inspiration...


    "-ake care of me."


    Ah. Looks like my mind drifted again. I think the boy''s name was Inaba Seiichi?


    I should probably try and memorize some of these people in case I become friends with them. I think I already missed a couple of introductions though. Oops.


    Ueda-sensei looked over at the clock and clasped her hands together. "Alright everyone, good job. I''ll give you some time before the day ends to talk to each other, so do your best to make new friends!"


    As people started to rise from their seats, I scanned the classroom. Even though there were a lot of interesting people, something bugged me. There was one seat throughout the classroom that remained empty... Was it an extra?


    I walked up to the front of the classroom and looked at the seating chart. Mika followed me.


    "You okay?"


    "Yeah, just checking something."


    There. In the back with Mika and I, but on the left side of the classroom.


    "Suzuki Akiko..."


    Mika looked at the paper. "Huh. Looks like she''s-"


    "Hello there!"


    Startled, I couldn''t help but jump a little, and turned to see Ueda-sensei smiling at Mika and me.


    I gathered my thoughts and smiled back. "H-hello. Nice to meet you, sensei. My name is-"


    "Miyake Sayuri, right?" She turned her eyes to Mika. "And you are Tanaka Mika?"


    Mika looked rather taken aback, but we both nodded.


    "How did you know?" Mika asked cautiously.


    "We''re not... trouble students, are we?"


    I couldn''t help but worry about this, despite knowing that I probably didn''t cause any trouble.


    Ueda-sensei smiled wider and said "Of course not. No, I was just so worried that I would not be able to remember all of my student''s names that I seem to have overprepared."


    That''s.... a bit funny, actually. But obviously I didn''t say this to her.


    Instead, I said "Eh? You''re very hard-working, sensei," which wasn''t very far from the truth.


    "Thank you, Miyake-san."


    Now that I''m looking at Ueda-sensei up close, she''s a bit on the taller side.


    She looked over at the seating chart. "Sorry for eavesdropping a little, but I think you did notice that, yes, it seems that Suzuki-san is absent today. It''s quite unfortunate since now Suzuki-san can''t meet the other students. Making friends at this age is very important." She seemed quite thoughtful.


    "Ueda-sensei, I don''t want to be rude, but Suzuki-san sick?" If it was bad enough to skip orientation day, it must be pretty serious.


    "Oh no, don''t worry. Suzuki-san is just a little busy with some personal matters, that''s all. It''ll likely be dealt with by the end of the week." Ueda-sensei looked down and brought up her arm.


    On it was a silver watch. Its dial had four phases of the moon on it, the full, new, and two half moons. Each one was positioned at 12, 3, 6, and 9 ''o''clock. Its design captivated me.


    "Ah, it looks like class should be ending soon. It was very nice meeting you all. I''ll be seeing you all tomorrow." Ueda-sensei brought me back to reality. "Although... Miyake-san, is it alright if I ask to talk to you after class?"


    Uh oh.


    "Did... I do something after all?" No matter how I thought about it, I couldn''t really see any other possibilities.


    "No no, I just wanted to talk to you about something more personal," Ueda-sensei glanced at Mika. "Sorry about that, Tanaka-san."


    "Oh, don''t worry about it." Mika smiled. "If she wants to, she''ll tell me anyway."

 Chapter 11

    "Sorry for taking up your time on such a short notice."


    I was sitting at one of the desks in the classroom. Ueda-sensei had moved one of the desks to face towards me. The rest of the class had already left, as school was over for the day. Mika was waiting for me outside the classroom.


    "Oh no, don''t worry about it. What did you want to talk to me about?" I was wondering why she wanted to talk to me in particular. As far as I knew, there wasn''t anything special about me, except for one thing...


    Ueda-sensei looked outside the window, watching the students chatting and leaving the school grounds, then looked back at me. There was something different about her eyes, but I couldn''t quite figure out what it was. "Mm... It''s nothing much, to be honest. I just wanted to check in on you."


    Check in on me? Was there something worrying her?


    "Has anything been bothering you lately?" Ueda-sensei asked. Her expression was much more serious this time.


    Her question threw me off. Was I giving that kind of impression?


    "What do you mean?"


    Ueda-sensei was closely monitoring my expression, and it stressed me out a little.


    "Oh, just anything that might disturb you, or some changes that are hard for you to adjust to, family problems, things like that. I know we just met, but I just want you to know that as your teacher I am here for you, and that you can talk to me about anything."


    I couldn''t help but trust Ueda-sensei. Something about her gave me a comforting feeling, and I genuinely thought about it. Well, aside from the general shock from recent events...


    The image of the hanging person flashed through my mind. Their eyes stared at me, yet saw nothing. They wouldn''t see anything ever again.


    Why did they have to die like that? To die alone, in the dark, by a monster worse than a nightmare... A monster that would mercilessly tear people into pieces-


    "Miyake-san, are you okay?"


    Ueda-sensei managed to pull me back to reality. I could hear my own breathing, almost like I was detached from my body.


    I had been trying to forget about the sight of the body, the smell of it. But despite me burying its memory deep within my mind, it would resurface if I wasn''t careful. Ueda-sensei looked concerned.


    "Y-yeah... I''m alright..."


    Her eyes once again looked right into mine, as if they were scouring through my mind. She sighed. "Miyake-san, I can''t say I know for sure what you''re struggling with. But, promise me you''ll talk to a trusted adult about it, alright? I''m always available, but if not me, make sure you at least try and talk to someone."


    A trusted adult... I could always talk to my parents about it, but I don''t want to worry them more. If I was going to be honest, I was also worried that they would change their minds. Maybe I could talk to Hasegawa-san?


    I nodded, and Ueda-san''s worried face broke into a smile again. "Thank you." She looked at her watch. "That should be all. You shouldn''t keep Tanaka-san waiting."


    I got up from my desk and thanked her, and started to walk out the door.


    "Oh, by the way..."


    I looked back at Ueda-san. She looked thoughtful.


    "When Suzuki-san comes back, can you keep an eye out for me? I''m worried the poor child won''t be able to make friends...."


    The funny thing is, that was already my intention.


    "Of course."


    _________________________________________________________


    "She''s quite perceptive, isn''t she?"


    I was sitting at a booth with Mika, in the cafe we saw earlier. I had just recounted my meeting with Ueda-san.


    "I mean, I was meaning to ask you too. You''ve been acting kinda off lately. You alright?"


    I prodded my cake with a fork. What do I tell her? To be honest, I felt like she wouldn''t believe me if I just said no.


    "Well, I think it''s the stress about starting high school. I mean, I''m really glad that we got into Kiyomizu, but now that we''re actually here, I hope I can meet expectations..."


    Mika tried a piece of my cake. "Well, you shouldn''t have much of a problem. You''ve always been pretty hardworking. I mean, you got into the school for a reason, didn''t you?"


    That is true, but I can''t say for sure now that I have a pretty busy part-time job.


    "Oh yeah, did you hear about that rumor?" Though she didn''t show it, I could tell that Mika was pretty excited about what she was about to tell me.


    "No, why don''t you tell me?" It was pretty unusual for there to be a rumor the first day of school.


    Almost like she read my mind, Mika said, "Well, this rumor seems to be several years old, which is whyI already heard about it on the first day." She smiled mischievously. "It''s a horror story."


    Ah, that explains it. Mika loves this kind of stuff. She''s always getting me to watch horror movies. It''s kind of a problem. But now that I''m thinking about it, there might be a chance that it leads me to a Youkai. "Go on."


    "Well, while I was outside waiting for you, I overheard some of the students talking about this one story. According to the upperclassmen, there is an apartment nearby the school. If you go all the way to the top floor, no one actually lives there. People say that those who move in move out only a week or two later, looking like the dead..."


    "Why is that?"


    "Well, it''s all because of this specific room at the very end of the hallway. If you listen closely outside of it, you can hear footsteps. But, according to the rumor, these footsteps actually move through to the other rooms. Even to the rooms of those living up there..."


    The thought of footsteps in my room while trying to sleep unsettled me. Even if it didn''t happen every night, just the paranoia would be too much...


    "That''s freaky. If it were me, I wouldn''t even last three days." As I said this, I dryly thought that the instant I heard footsteps, I''d have Hoshi beat up whatever was causing them.


    Mika''s smile got even bigger. "Good thing it''s not real, huh? Kind of a shame though. Ghost hunting sounds fun."


    If only she knew. It gets even scarier when you realize it''s not just your own life on the line. Which reminds me, shouldn''t I tell Hasegawa-san? Even if it might possibly be just a rumor, I should find out what he thinks.


    Almost right on cue, my phone buzzed. I picked it up. "Ah. Sorry, Mika, just give me a second."


    [The school year is starting! Make sure not to miss these sales!]


    Never mind. It wasn''t Hasegawa-san after all.


    Slightly annoyed, I was about to put my phone down, but decided to message Hasegawa-san anyway, since Mika needed to go to the bathroom. I opened the Youbidase app.


    [Hasegawa-san, can I ask you something?]


    He answered immediately. I felt a little bad, since he seemed like the busy type. I have no doubt that he was prioritizing me over his work, probably since he wanted to help me as much as possible.


    [Of course! Also, how was your first day of school?]


    If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    [It was pretty fun. I made a new friend, and I like my homeroom teacher too. Anyhow, I heard about a rumor here at the school, and it seems to be a ghost story. I was wondering if I should investigate in case it''s a Youkai.]


    Hasegawa-san sent a sticker of a kappa with a puzzled look.


    [Is it the one about the apartment?]


    He already knew about it?


    [Yes, exactly that one. I was wondering if you think I''m capable enough to investigate it myself.]


    [Oh ho, you''re quite brave. Well... I do think you''re ready, depending on the strength of this Youkai in particular. Thankfully, I think this kind of Youkai is perfect to find out.]


    There''s different kinds of Youkai?


    [What do you mean?]


    [Well, put simply, over time we''ve found some patterns of behavior that Youkai often follow. The rumor you''re talking about sounds like it would be a haunted space. Kumo was like that too. These kinds of Youkai are attached to a specific location, either in the real world like an apartment, or its own created world. The latter are usually more common with stronger Youkai.]


    I should ask him how that works later. Well, maybe when I have more time.


    [So how do I check how strong this Youkai is?]


    [Good question. Usually, Youkai are more active and aggressive at night. If you go to the location during the day, you can use your phone''s scanner to check. It should have an option for daytime, and it can predict how strong the Youkai is at night. But once you scan it, regardless of the rank, make sure to come back to the office and talk to me.]


    [Got it. I''ll message you once I get more information.]


    [Good luck! Make sure to prioritize your safety.]


    After the last mission, I knew just how dangerous Youkai can be. I promised my parents I would be careful, so Hasegawa-san didn''t have to tell me twice. But something was still bugging me...


    [By the way, how did you know about the rumor?]


    [I have my sources. (>??) You''ll find out soon enough anyway!]


    Strange... I guess I shouldn''t underestimate the government. But what did he mean by "I''ll find out soon anyway"? Whatever. I''ll think about that later.


    As I was finishing the rest of my cake, Mika returned and sat at the table.


    "You ready to head back home?"


    "Yep!"


    _________________________________________________________


    I didn''t really think this through, huh.


    I bid farewell to Mika at my stop, and then immedietaly walked to the line going back once her train was out of sight. Kind of a waste of time, but I don''t want her to follow me, since that would cause several problems that I would rather not deal with.


    Once I arrived back at the Kiyomizu station, I felt like slapping myself. I didn''t bring any of my gear, and I was going off to investigate a Youkai alone? Even if they''re not as hostile during the day, I don''t want to risk anything... Well, I''ll just have to rely on Hoshi and run the moment I see danger.


    I decided to use the radar on the Youbidase app while walking down the nearby street. The tall, uniform apartments looked rather high end. My family used to live in an apartment, but once Kenta and I grew up my parents decided to find a bigger house. But these apartments looked much fancier than our old apartment complex.


    I passed by a handful of students while walking on the street, who all appeared on my radar. Although, I could tell that my signal was much stronger than theirs, probably because I had awoken a Kami. Speaking of which...


    Without even letting me finish my thought, a small bright light spiraled around me and materialized into Hoshi. The cheerful spirit flicked me on the nose, and flew around the area to help me look for the Youkai. It was amusing to watch her signal zoom across my phone.


    Right as I passed a group of students chatting about their plans for the weekend, I noticed a signal that was slightly larger than usual. It wasn''t too far away, and I decided to track it down.


    I could feel my body heating up as each step increased my excitement and, admittedly, dread. I ran past a grocery store, and with Hoshi flying beside me, turned the corner.


    "Oof!"


    I ran into something, and fell to the ground.


    I lay on the ground, and tried to ignore the pain in my lower back and... well, you get the idea.


    I''m kind of feeling some deja vu.


    "You alright?"


    I was looking up at a boy wearing glasses. His eyes were wide open. I stood up and dusted myself off.


    "Oh yeah, don''t worry about it. Are you okay? I''m really sorry about that, I was in a hurry." I looked closer at him, and realized something.


    "Oh! Are you in class A3 with Ms. Ueda?"


    Looking rather relieved, the boy grinned.


    "Yep! I''m a first-year too. My name''s Itsuki Sato. What''s yours?"


    "Sayuri Miyake. Nice to meet you."


    "Nice to meet you, Miyake-san." He looked over his shoulder ."Shouldn''t you get going? You were in a hurry, right?"


    "Ah! You''re right!" I bowed and hurriedly thanked Sato, and hurried on.


    I pulled out my phone, and saw that I had just left the large signal. I whipped around, and saw Sato in the distance walking into a bookstore. Was he the source of the large signal? That would mean that he has higher soul energy than average... although the signal wasn''t quite as large as me or Hoshi. Still, I should keep an eye on him just in case he attracts any Youkai.


    Ah. Yeah. Now I have no clue where to go. Where in the world is this Youkai??


    Hold on, assuming the rumor is true and there is a Youkai at an apartment, it''s likely that the people living there would notice that something was off. That means that, for the highest chance of success, I should start looking at the- ouch!


    Hoshi had interrupted my thoughts by flicking me right in the middle of my forehead.


    "What is it? I''m trying to thi-"


    She was pointing at an apartment building in the distance, and for some reason, something about it felt off. I ran down the street towards it, and it was quite apparent why I had felt that way. The apartment was largely run down and abandoned, like a discarded toy on the side of the road.


    ...Yeah.. I guess we came to the same conclusion. It''s a bit embarrassing that I even had to think it through. Most media portray haunted spots as abandoned and broken... Maybe they hold some truth to them after all. Well, consider this a test.


    I cautiously stepped over a shattered concrete brick laying on the ground. The ground was overgrown with grass everywhere, and the building''s name plate was chipped beyond recognition. Now that I was within a closer range, I pulled out my phone.


    The screen was completely devoid of signals, aside from mine and Hoshi''s. Looks like it''s a dud.


    I sighed, and was about to put my phone away when I noticed a light flicker, right next to mine!


    "GAH!"


    I jumped backwards, tripped over the concrete block I''d just walked over, and fell to the ground.


    Nothing happened.


    Hoshi initially looked down at me with concern, but after realizing I was alright she started to giggle.


    "Yeah yeah, very funny..."


    After Hoshi helped me up, I checked my phone again. Was it just my imagination?


    The dot reappeared. I looked up apprehensively, but nothing appeared. The shadows of the empty building remained silent. Was it just hiding?


    I stared down at the phone. The light continued to blink in and out of existence. It seemed completely random.


    Morse code? No, that doesn''t make sense. Don''t go overboard with those stories, Sayuri. Hold on, what if it''s because of the way the map is designed...?


    I looked up. The apartment complex stretched several stories above me.


    The map''s in 2D, so there''s no real way to show if something were to appear above or below me, right? Well, only one way to find out.


    I swallowed my anxiety, and walked into the building. The glass doors were shattered, and I made sure not to step on the broken glads strewn across the ground. Sunlight managed to seep through some parts of the abandoned lobby, but it was hard to see. Thankfully, I had Hoshi with me.


    Hoshi flew around the room, illuminating the area with her soft, blue glow. The light revealed crumbling walls and dusty furniture.


    I hope the infrastructure is secure...


    I slowly walked down the lobby, and located the stairs. I didn''t trust the elevators, if they even worked to begin with.


    My heart pounded with apprehension, but I took a deep breath and started up the stairs, making sure to watch out for any broken steps.


    To be honest, the creepy atmosphere was getting to me.


    Ever since the mission, I''ve done my best not to think too much about what I saw, but the memories seeped back in with the shadows.


    What if there really is a Youkai, and what if it''s stronger than I thought? It''ll be hard to get away. I don''t have Nakamura-san or Abe-senpai to rely on. Or worse, what if I turn around this corner and find a bod-


    No. Snap out of it, Sayuri. You''re here to prevent exactly that from happening. You need to learn to be strong yourself so you can be the one others depend on. It can''t be the other way forever.


    Well, if I do have to fight, I do think I have a trump card. It''s not very reliable due to just being a theory, so I''d rather it not come to that.


    I stopped at the door labeled "Second Floor", and took a deep breath.


    I wish this were one of those buildings where the hallways were outside. This is terrifying.


    I made a silent prayer, and opened the door. It creaked much louder than I''d wanted it to.


    An empty abyss of darkness lay before me. Hoshi''s light wasn''t strong enough to penetrate it, so I scrambled to take out a flashlight that had been part of the tools Hasegawa-san gave me. Ugh, should''ve done that earlier.


    I turned the flashlight on, revealing a long hallway with doors on each end. 201, 202, 203... Some of the doors had their labels scratched off, but I could guess what number they were.


    I reluctantly tried opening one of the doors, but it was locked. The rest of the doors were the same. The signal on my phone continued to blink, but I couldn''t sense anything nearby.


    "Should we try the next floor?"


    Hoshi nodded, and gripped her naginata firmly.


    "I really hope there aren''t too many floors."


    _________________________________________________________


    Of course, life had to be hard.


    I panted after reaching the ninth and final floor, having run out of breath from all of the stairs.


    "At this rate, I hope there is a Youkai, or else I''m going to go crazy."


    But pretty soon, I shut up. I wasn''t sure if it was all in my head, but I felt like there was something on this floor. Something sinister.


    I shone my flashlight down the hallway. This floor was in the worst condition by far.


    As I walked down the hall towards the signal, my sense of dread grew. Finally, I stopped at the final room: room 910. The energy emanating from the door both repulsed and drew me in, almost like a stranger offering me candy. Hoshi gripped her naginata like it was trying to fly away.


    I looked down at my phone. The signal was blinking around ten feet in front of me. This was it.


    Thud.


    Every inch of my body froze. There was definitely something inside.


    ...do I have to go in? Hasegawa-san said all I had to do at the moment was measure the Youkai''s strength level.


    Thud.


    It sounded like footsteps. Was this the source of that urban legend?


    I took a deep breath. I''ll try to open it, just to check.


    "Hoshi, I''ll count to ten, and then open the door."


    Hoshi raised her weapon in a battle stance.


    "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten!"


    Despite every one of my nerves warning me of the danger, I twisted the cool doorknob, and pushed on the door.


    Locked.


    Slightly relieved, I pulled my phone out again.


    I clicked on the blinking dot, and a popup appeared on my glowing screen.


    [Scan?]


    I clicked yes.


    [Scanning...]


    A bar slowly filled up underneath the words.


    [Scan complete. This signal is predicted to be C rank.]

 Chapter 12

    "C rank, huh? I have no doubt that you''ll be able to handle it."


    Hasegawa-san looked relieved when I told him what had happened.


    He seemed really busy when I first came to his office, but quickly dropped whatever he was doing once he spotted me.


    The bespectacled man quickly filled out a form on the desk as he spoke. "Let me explain the ranks more clearly to you. The lower ones, such as E or D, are usually just pests, or just mind their own business."


    I thought about the Kasa-obake at the convenience store. It did seem rather docile. The annoying Youkai that tripped me was rather weak too. Kinda wish I measured their strength.


    "Around C rank is when they start to become strong enough to cause injuries. B rank is rather capable of killing a person, and A rank Youkai are terrifyingly powerful. It''s best to subdue one with a team just to be safe."


    There was still something that was bugging me...


    "Hasegawa-san, what about Kumo? You said it was around B-rank, but how did you know how strong it was?"


    "Good question. We''d been investigating it for a while at the time, but the fact that you were an eyewitness really helped us finally track it down. By the time of the mission, we could make a rough estimate on its capabilities, despite not using the app. Unfortunately, it seems it had a hidden trick up its sleeve..."


    The image of the glowing red eye appearing on Kumo made me shudder. "What happened there? It was like a second phase in a boss fight."


    Hasegawa-san sighed. "That''s essentially what happened. Some Youkai, usually the more powerful ones, can hide their strength. That''s why stronger Youkai aren''t necessarily easier to locate. Although I suspect that the Youkai wasn''t aware of this strength, and only awakened to it when it was close to death. I''m quite sorry that you had to deal with that on your first mission..."


    "Oh, no worries. Nakamura-sensei and Abe-senpai made sure I was never in any real danger. By the way, is Abe-senpai''s arm alright?"


    Hasegawa-san grinned. He suddenly looked like his age again. "Yep! It healed faster thanks to the You-Kuai bandages. I really should find a way to further develop those. Maybe if I ask Kochan for a little bit of field testing, and then modify the bandages so that-"


    "Um, Hasegawa-san?" I didn''t really want to interrupt him, especially with how excited he was getting, buuuut...


    "Ah! Sorry about that. Just me geeking out. Anyhow, since we don''t know much about the Youkai, we can''t exactly give it a fitting name. Anyways, just be careful since you''ll be in its territory. On top of that, you don''t really know Hoshi''s ability yet, huh."


    I smiled assuredly. "I should be fine. I have Hoshi, after all."


    "Good! Just make sure to prioritize your safety. I''ll be calling you in order to give you support, so you don''t have to worry too much. If you manage to complete the mission, you''ll be a C-rank exorcist!"


    "C rank exorcist?" It does make sense that there''d be a ranking system for exorcists too, but I wanted to know the details.


    "Yep! It''s quite simple. A C-rank exorcist should be able to take on a C-rank Youkai by themselves. The other ranks are the same. Anyhow, I''ll get this paperwork done. You should prepare for the mission and go tomorrow, if possible."


    "Yes sir."


    _________________________________________________________


    I should make sure to bring some bandages, and my shoes, and my naginata, and-


    "Miyake-san."


    Eh?


    "Did you hear the question?"


    Crap, did Ueda-sensei call on me? Quick, look at the board!


    "U-uh..."


    Ueda-sensei looked into my eyes. I couldn''t tell what she was thinking. My thoughts disappeared down a drain with her gaze. My face felt hot with embarrassment.


    "Watanabe-san, do you know the answer?"


    What? Why didn''t she chew me out for not paying attention?


    Because of that incident, I ended up paying attention for the rest of the day, despite also stressing over the mission.


    After the bell rang and class ended, I started walking down the hallway with Mika. For some strange reason, I seemed to be acutely aware of my surroundings.


    I heard someone say "Good luck!" behind me, and the students gossiping to my side. But I hardly registered what these words meant, wholly thinking about tonight.


    "Sayuri, you okay?" Mika looked over at me with a strange expression.


    "Oh! Yeah, I didn''t sleep much last night. I''m still a bit nervous about school."


    "Mhm..."


    Mika didn''t say another word until we parted ways at my train stop. I felt a bit bad that we couldn''t hang out more, but it was just for today. I wanted to ensure that I would be completely ready for my mission.


    I double-checked and even triple-checked that I had all of my supplies ready. My mom helped and also made dinner for me before I went out.


    "Make sure to eat properly! Here, I made some tonkatsu!" She came bustling out of the kitchen and placed a ton of food in front of me at the table.


    "This isn''t an exam, though??"


    Hoshi sat on a chair beside me and excitedly banged on the table.


    "You can''t even eat!"


    But the absurdity of her actions did help me relax a bit. I was glad that I had her. My mom, too. Too bad Kenta and my dad are busy-


    "We''re home!" My older brother and father rushed into the room and sat in front of me at the table.


    My dad looked at me with serious eyes. "Sorry, we rushed back home to be able to send you off. Have you eaten proper-"


    "Yes, father."


    What in the world is going on? Now they''re making me all nervous again!


    Kenta smiled with amusement. "Mom, Dad, I think you''re making Yuri''s anxiety worse."


    Thank you, Kenta.


    But I did notice that he was rhythmically tapping the table rather quickly...


    My phone started to buzz, and I pulled it out to check who was calling me.


    Ah, it''s Hasegawa-san.


    I picked up the call.


    "Hello, Miyake-san. I meant to call your parents, but they both didn''t pick up."


    I coughed a bit. "Yeah, they seem a bit occupied to check their phones."


    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    "Ah, that''s okay. I''m glad I managed to reach you. Do you think you can get them right now?"


    I coughed again, this time a little louder. It was hard not to laugh. "They''re in the room with me right now."


    Kenta was also suppressing a laugh. "We can hear you, Hasegawa-san."


    There was a bit of silence. "Oh! Good! Sorry about the interruption, I just called to fill you all in on more details, just in case."


    My dad coughed and cleared his throat. "Thank you very much, Hasegawa-san."


    "Of course. Anyhow, I''ll make this as convenient as possible. I believe I have given your daughter an earpiece to take with her during the mission."


    I pulled out a small, black device that Hasegawa-san had given me the other day. It felt smooth, and cool to the touch. It was made of metal but was rather light.


    Hasegawa-san continued. "Because your daughter has her ears pierced, I gave her a version that she can wear as an earring. It''ll make it easier to keep track of during the mission. What it does is allow her to call me directly. Why don''t we test it out?"


    I pulled out my current pearl earrings and inserted the small devices into my earlobes. "Okay, ready. How do I use it?"


    "So, what you''re going to want to do is hold on the right side surface of the device for about five seconds. It''ll ask you for a confirmation."


    I did as instructed, and sure enough, I heard a small voice in my ear. It was a woman''s voice.


    "Would you like to call headquarters? Tap twice for ''yes''." The voice sounded strangely familiar, like those sensations you get when you feel like you''ve been somewhere before.


    I tapped the earpiece.


    "Calling headquarters..."


    "Testing, testing." It was Hasegawa-san.


    "Hello, Hasegawa-san!"


    "Oh! It looks like it works! Alright then, let me end the call here so you don''t get too confused with both calls."


    The earpieces once again spoke, almost as if it were directly to my brain. "Ending call."


    "Alright! Looks like they work! These will let me give you support during the mission. I can use my computer to keep track of your Youbidase app too."


    That''s quite relieving. Even though I wanted to be able to complete a mission by myself, going there with no one to talk to was really scary...


    "There''s also a built-in SOS feature, like the app. Just say the words, "It''ll be okay" and it will ask you for a confirmation.


    It''ll be okay? That''s a strange word choice. Well, at least it''ll be easy to remember.


    "Anyways, here are the details for your parents. Miyake-san is going to be going to an abandoned apartment complex near Kiyomizu Academy. The infrastructure is safe, and your daughter already knows the general layout of the area. The Youkai that she measured is C rank, meaning that it is on the weaker end. The goal of this mission is to eradicate the Youkai, as well as train Miyake-san and Hoshi. I will personally be on call with her and have an agent on standby in case she ever needs aid. Of course, she will be paid for the job, and I''ll make sure the amount is deposited into your bank account. Are there any questions?"


    "Not that I can think of."


    "Good, let me know if you ever think of any. Just for the record, are you okay with Miyake-san taking this mission?"


    My dad took a deep breath. "You did a good job in ensuring my daughter''s safety in the last mission. So as long as Yuri''s okay with it, I will trust in your judgment."


    My mom glanced over at me. It was hard to read her expression. "Sorry, Yuri. I doubt we''ll ever not be nervous for you. Kind of annoying having us fuss over you, isn''t it?"


    Oh, Mom.


    I smiled to reassure her. "Of course not.  If I''m ever in too much danger, Hoshi will drag me out of there anyway. I''ll make sure to be back in a few hours."


    Kenta patted me on the head. "Stay safe out there, Yuri. As your older brother, I wish I could go with you, but..."


    "It''s okay, Onii-chan. I''ve grown up now, but I''ll always be your little sister."


    But he still looked rather frustrated at himself..."How is Yuri going to get there and back? The trains might be closed by the time she finishes the mission."


    Hasegawa-san''s voice piped up from my phone speaker. I''d almost forgotten about him and nearly dropped my phone. "Oh, I already arranged for that. She''ll be driven by one of our agents. She''s already familiar with them."


    Just as he said this, the doorbell rang.


    "Ah! That must be them. I''ll call you once you get there, okay?"


    "Okay."


    Hasegawa-san hung up.


    My Mom left the room to open the door quickly and was met with Nakamura-sensei and Abe-senpai. I could hear their voices drifting from the hallway.


    "Hello. I''m Nakamura Kaitaro, and my pupil here is Abe Yusuke. We were the exorcists who supervised your daughter at Akihabara, and we''re here to escort her to the next mission. We''ll ensure her safety."


    "Thank you so much for protecting my daughter. Why don''t you two come inside?"


    "Oh, I''m very sorry, but we should save it for another time. Don''t want your daughter coming home too late, after all."


    Thankfully, it''s Friday so I can sleep in tomorrow.


    My Dad seemed to sense my relief and chuckled. "Feel free to sleep in all you want tomorrow. Why don''t you go with them now?"


    Well, looks like this is it. Hoshi helped me gather up my belongings, and I walked to the front door. Nakamura-sensei, Abe-senpai, and my mom were waiting in the doorway. Abe-senpai had his arm in a sling.


    "Hello sensei, senpai."


    "Awww, she''s calling us sensei and senpai now, Yusuke! Anyway, you probably already heard from Hasegawa, but we''re here to escort you, young one. Should you ever need help, we''ll step right in and blast the place apart. Bahaha!"


    Abe-senpai looked at my parents nervously and added "What sensei means to say is we''ll be there to make sure you''re safe, even if it is a solo mission."


    I glanced at senpai''s arm, which was still wrapped up in a cast. I felt bad since it was largely my fault that he broke it. "But, you''re arm''s broken... Why did you still come?"


    Abe-senpai raised his bound arm, and said "Oh, this? I''ve suffered worse. Don''t worry, you won''t be hurt like this if that''s what you''re worried about. I decided to come anyway because I can still summon Raijin, can''t I? I have to make sure my kouhai''s safe too."


    At his words, a yellow glowing ball of yellow flew out of Abe-senpai''s heart and the Raijin materialized next to him.


    My parents were rather amazed. My dad asked "Ah! Is this another Kami?"


    "Yep. His name''s Raijin. He uses electricity."


    My mom looked at Raijin in wonder. "They do look rather similar to their users. I can see the resemblance."


    Nakamura-sensei guffawed. "Bahaha! They have similar personalities, too!"


    Fujin materialized next to him and spun his hand around my Dad''s, creating a miniature cyclone in his palm.


    "His name''s Fujin. Anyhow, we should get going. Thank you for putting your trust in us. We''ll ensure your daughter is safe and gets home in time too!"


    My parents both hugged me, squeezing the life out of my lungs.


    "Take care of yourself, Yuri."


    "We love you."


    Just as I turned around to follow Nakamura-sensei and Abe-senpai into a nearby parked car, I heard Kenta call after me.


    Yuri.


    "Hm?"


    I turned around, and Kenta pulled me into a hug.


    "I know you''ll do great."


    I smiled. "Thank you, Onii-chan."


    _________________________________________________________


    "So. About that fire you used the other day."


    I was sitting in the back of the car next to Abe-senpai. Nakamura-sensei was driving. As expected, he was pretty talkative even when driving.


    "Is that Hoshi''s ability?"


    Hoshi, please don''t come out, there is no space in here and I won''t be able to see if you do.


    A-anyway. "I think it was. And I don''t think it was."


    "I don''t get it. Bahaha! Do explain. I''m getting old and my brain isn''t as fast as it used to be."


    I thought for a little bit about what I''d say before responding. "Well, I do think it was a part of Hoshi''s ability. But at the same time, I don''t think her ability is exactly fire. I have a theory as to what the ability might actually be, so I''ll have to try it during the mission. But what I think is that when Hoshi uses her naginata to-"


    "Nah, I wanna see what it is in real-time. Plot twists are best unspoiled, you know." Nakamura-sensei drove past the grocery store near my school. We were getting close.


    I did have to agree with what he said, though. The amount of times I would spoil my own stories to Mika was comedic. But was that really applicable to real life?


    Abe-senpai spoke for the first time in a while. "Oh yeah, Miyake-san. Have you met the Director yet?"


    "Who?"


    "Oh, I suppose you haven''t. The Director was out on a mission until recently. The funny thing is, Hasegawa-san''s filling in for her. Usually, the missions would be handled by her, while Hasegawa-san works on the equipment we use. But since she was out, he took over."


    Nakamura-sensei piped up from the front of the car. "Oh yeah, the Director recently got back from her mission. I swear she overworks herself. They say she works a day job, too. How she manages it is beyond me. Bahaha!"


    This Director figure was making me curious. "How strong is she?"


    I could see Nakamura-sensei smirk from the front mirror. "Oh, she''s the strongest Exorcist in the Tokyo branch.  She''s always going on S-rank missions alone. She''s not the Director for nothing, you know."


    Abe-senpai sighed. "S-rank exorcists are out of my understanding. How can you feasibly be so strong? Even this old man here is several times stronger than I can hope to be."


    "Nah, you''re stronger than you think, Yusuke. Pretty soon you''ll have to be the one taking care of me. With Miyake-san joining, this next generation is shaping up to be the most powerful we''ve seen. It makes me excited to see what happens next, bahaha!"


    We finally drove to the apartment complex from earlier. It looked much more ominous now that it was dark. My heart kept pounding from anticipation. I could feel Hoshi restlessly wanting to come out.


    Nakamura-sensei parked the car and stepped out. "Well, here we are One C-rank mission, coming up! All right, Miyake-san, remember what we taught you about imbuement."


    "Do you have your shoes, smoke bombs, shock bombs, ban-"


    "Yes, senpai, I already checked when I left the house."


    Senpai smiled, albeit a little nervously. "You''ll be fine. We''ll be on call with you the whole time, waiting right outside the building."


    I smiled back at him and Nakamura-sensei reassuringly, almost as if trying to calm myself down too.


    I walked over to the entrance of the apartment complex and looked up. Some of the windows were shattered, and the ones that weren''t almost looked as if there was movement behind them. I could tell that something about it felt different, now that it was nighttime.


    "Sensei, are people able to just... feel a Youkai''s presence?"


    "Correct, young one! It''s how I knew the mascot Youkai was there, even though I couldn''t see it! You''ll train that sixth sense as you get stronger. Soon enough, you won''t even need Hasegawa''s fancy app! Bahaha!"


    I pulled out my naginata, and Hoshi did too. We looked at each other and nodded.


    "I''ll count down for you if it helps," Abe-senpai started. "One... two... three!"


    We stepped forward into the pitch-black lobby and...


    ...disappeared.

 Chapter 13

    "H-hello?!"


    I turned around and saw... nothing. Abe-senpai and Nakamura-sensei were gone.


    Oh god, really?


    Feeling a chill creep up my back, I desperately pressed on my right earbud.


    "Would you like to call headquarters? Tap twice for ''yes''."


    "Calling headquarters..."


    "Miyake-san?"


    THANK the heavens.


    "I-I''m here."


    "Oh, good. This is Hasegawa. Looks like the call is working just fine. Are you doing okay?"


    "Yes, I just got separated from Abe-senpai and Nakamura-sensei when I stepped into the building."


    "Hmm... Let me add them to the call."


    I waited anxiously for a couple of seconds, while Hoshi kept guard.


    It was so, so quiet.


    "Are you okay, Miyake-san?" It was Nakamura-sensei''s voice.


    "Yes, thankfully. What happened? I can''t see you or Senpai anymore."


    Abe-senpai was the one who responded. "I think you''re in a spirit world, like with Kumo. It''ll be hard to get out unless you exorcise the Youkai, but it''s easy for sensei and me to get in if necessary."


    "I think I''ll be okay. Do I keep going now?"


    Hasegawa-san replied, "Yes, if you feel up to the task. I''m checking your app right now, and it looks like the Youkai is at the top of the building, in the same place as before."


    "Alright then, I''ll be heading in."


    Nakamura-sensei''s iconic laugh was easy to recognize, even over call. "Bahaha! Attagirl! Now go get ''em!"


    I decided to play along with him to lighten the mood. "Yes, sir!"


    Even though I had Hasegawa-san and the others on call with me, the creepy atmosphere of the area was still overwhelmingly suffocating. Shadows seemed to stretch towards me, and shapes and stains all over the walls looked as if they were moving.


    I slowly made my way through the lobby, being careful as to not make any noise. Hoshi covered my blind spots, and we walked towards the stairs. I stepped onto the ruined steps when suddenly, the stairs started to move!


    "Woah!"


    The step below my foot began to flatten, and I jumped backwards in shock. A rush of adrenaline flooded from my heart, and my body heated up. Hoshi imbued her naginata, and raised it to swing.


    ...But nothing else happened. The stairs simply transformed into some sort of slide.


    "Miyake-san, are you okay?" I jumped, having forgotten that I was on a call.


    "Yeah, the stairs just... smoothed out."


    Hasegawa-san sounded intrigued. "Hmm... it almost sounds like possession, but if nothing more is happening..."


    Nakamura-sensei sounded excited. "Oh ho! Maybe it''s just a property of the Youkai''s domain? Do you remember Kumo, Miyake-san?"


    I thought back to how the Kumo teleported to Senpai and me when we tried to escape.


    "Did it manage to find us because we tried to escape?"


    Abe-senpai sighed. "Well, when Sensei and I gave Hasegawa-san the details of the mission afterwards, he theorized about what happened. I''ll let him tell you."


    Now Hasegawa-san sounded excited too. "Thank you, Abe-san. Well, I noticed that most of the attacks by Kumo occurred rather close to the alleyways. It''s almost as if it''s unusually sensitive to when something steps into its domain. Like a spiderweb, struggling to get out only makes it locate you faster, which is likely what happened to you and Abe-san."


    "Yeah, sorry about that, Miyake-san. I put us in danger." Senpai sounded rather disappointed in himself.


    "Oh, don''t worry about that. Hoshi was able to use her ability for the first time because of that. Anyhow, I guess it''s safe to proceed? I''m not getting attacked."


    "Should be fine. Still only one signal, and it''s at the very top. Stay vigilant."


    Since I couldn''t take the stairs any longer, I was at a loss at how to proceed. But because this was the spirit world, maybe the layout of the building changed, which could prove both a blessing and a curse.


    I decided to scout around the area, while being very cautious of any potential attacks. The building was... no longer broken down. In fact, it looked really clean and new.


    The only way I could describe it was... cozy?


    I wasn''t sure why that word popped up in my head.


    And then I saw it.


    Deeper into the building lobby was a black trash bag lying on the ground.


    I slowly walked up to the lone sack of garbage, my anticipation rising with each step. Intrusive thoughts flooded my head.


    What if I like, found a severed head in there?


    I stopped in front of the bag, and stared. Hoshi looked over my shoulder with a worried face.


    Well, here goes.


    I sheathed my naginata, and reached out for the bag''s knot. My hands shook uncontrollably.


    I slowly untied the knot, and after counting to three, took a look inside.


    Inside was...


    Some discarded cup noodles.


    Hoshi and I simply stared blankly at the bag for several seconds.


    Ah. It looks like some random dude''s trash.


    After exchanging an incredulous look with Hoshi, I sifted through the rest of the garbage bag. The rest of the bag was also just garbage. Empty tissue boxes, used cans, there was nothing of note inside. Except...


    "Ew..."


    ...there were also some magazines with adult content in them. I hastily put the magazine back into the bag, and tossed it away. This really did seem like some middle-aged man''s old garbage.


    I pressed on my earring. "Looks like I found a garbage bag. Not sure why its here."


    Hasegawa-san responded. "Sometimes the Youkai''s environment will have random things, like the street lamps in Kumo''s world. We''re not exactly sure why, but they usually have a theme."


    "Bahaha! Maybe this Youkai''s a shut-in!"


    I managed to find another set of stairs, and this time they did not transform into a slide. But after a short amount of time walking, the stairs stopped.


    That''s strange. This should only be far enough to be the second floor.


    There was a door at the top of the staircase. I counted to three, and with Hoshi covering me I slowly creaked open the door.


    Woah...


    There were a lot more garbage bags on this floor. They covered the area, and this time random trash also littered the ground.


    Looks like I''m gonna have to cross all of this to get to the stairs on the other side.


    Actually, hold on. Let me try something.


    I concentrated on how I had felt back when Hoshi summoned the fire against Kumo. It felt like my consciousness condensed into the very tips of my fingers.


    The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    I imagined all of my energy traveling down my arm and pooling into my pointer finger, and moved it through the air. Sparkling blue ink shimmering with the light of the stars trailed behind it.


    A line here, then some lines inside here...


    When I stopped, the word for "wind" ïL was shining in the air in front of me.


    ...well?


    I stared hopefully at the glowing words, as did Hoshi.


    Nothing.


    I sighed.


    Well, I did expect this. I was hoping that maybe "wind" was a less abstract concept to summon than "star", but it seems like I was missing something. I might have an idea, but I have no clue whether or not it''s true...


    After crossing the sea of garbage with a disgusted face, I finally reached the other end of the hallway.


    This was just one floor?


    _________________________________________________________


    Fortunately, the rest of the floors only had trash. Unfortunately, the amount of trash only ever increased. There were ludicrous amounts of litter all over the place, and it made it really hard to proceed.


    After a while, I had made it to the eighth floor. Only one more floor to go.


    But something seemed a little off about the place now.


    It felt warm. Or rather... it felt like outside would be cold. It was a sensation that was hard to put into words. Whatever it was, it felt like this was the coziest place in the world, despite being covered in trash.


    "Weird... Hoshi, are you feeling it too?"


    She nodded, and kicked a trash bag. It burst as it slammed on the wall.


    All of a sudden, as if we had woken up a group of rats, the garbage bags started to move!


    The bags started to swirl together in the air, and they formed a fist.


    Ohhhhhhhhhhh boy.


    I quickly drew out my naginata, and Hoshi flew forward. In the blink of an eye, she slashed across the wrist of the garbage fist.


    But despite her imbuing her weapon, the garbage simply... reformed. Or not really, it just stayed intact.


    Was there a Youkai in the center of the fist? Was it too small to hit? What was going on?


    I moved my naginata to my left hand and jumped as the fist swept across the floor. My shoes allowed me to move much more nimbly than usual.


    I pressed my earring with my right hand.


    "Hasegawa-san, I''m fighting something right now! I need your help!"


    Hasegawa-san replied urgently, "What''s the situation?"


    "There''s a ton of garbage bags being manipulated by something, but I can''t figure out what. Can you check to see if there''s a Youkai nearby?"


    "That''s strange. I don''t see anything, except for that one signal on the top."


    Nakamura-sensei cleared his throat. "Well, you are in its domain. Maybe it''s like the stairs, and the bags are being controlled from afar?"


    Abe-senpai said "Miyake-san, I don''t think you''ll be able to defeat the arm. You''re going to have to find a way past it. If you need to make an SOS call, just say "


    "Gotcha. Give me a bit, I''ll be right back."


    But I didn''t get it. How the heck do I immobilize this thing? It''s way too fast for me to get to the door without stopping the garbage bags from moving.


    The hand thrusted forward, and Hoshi just barely swatted all of the garbage back. The hand started to hurl bags at us, and I dodged them while thinking hard.


    Even if I could manage to summon fire again, if I burnt all that garbage right now... I''d rather not think about it.


    The hand swept from my right, and Hoshi pulled me back, narrowly avoiding the strike. The hand slammed into the wall, and left behind a massive hole in the material.


    I definitely shouldn''t get hit. I don''t know if I want to risk trying to run past the hand...


    All right then. I''ll have to test out that theory now. But I have to find a way to buy time.


    Oh yeah. I can just use this.


    I pulled out one of the smoke bombs that Hasegawa-san gave me, and focused my energy into it. I threw it on the ground, and it exploded in a cloud of smoke.


    The hand simply sat there, as if whatever was controlling it was trying to sense where I had gone.


    Looks like it finally came in handy. Wish I could just slip past it, but I don''t have enough bombs to go any farther. I wanted to try this anyway.


    I took a deep breath, and focused my energy into my pointer finger. Using the trail of starry ink, I formed the word for "ice" šê in the air. And yet...


    Nothing happened.


    Come on! Hurry up! Why won''t it work?


    Calm down, Sayuri. Just think. Think about the essence of ice.


    Cold, chilly, sharp...


    I really had thought that the secret to it was understanding what ice was like. It seemed that was the reason I was able to summon fire before, with my burning determination. So why couldn''t I do it now?


    The smoke started to dissipate, and the hand started to sense me again.


    This was my only chance. I don''t think it''ll be fooled by the smoke bomb again.


    So why can''t I do it?


    If I don''t get it right now it''s going to be too late, so hurry up!


    The hand thrusted toward me, and I fought back my instincts. Every nerve screamed at me to run, and terror flooded my mind.


    Run. Run away. You''re going to die.


    I was back to being the helpless girl from earlier. Nothing had changed.


    And yet, somehow I felt like everything suddenly made sense.


    Why?


    Ah. I see.


    It seems so simple now.


    How am I supposed to understand something if I don''t know what it feels like?


    And how can I write about something I don''t understand?


    I channeled all of my emotions of terror and ice-cold fear from my soul into my finger, and once more wrote šê in the air.


    And this time, I felt a surge of energy from the word. Hoshi shined as brightly as a star, and I pointed the tip of my index finger at the lunging enemy.


    With a loud whoosh, a chilly torrent of ice flowed from my finger and blasted the garbage hand. Icy crystals grew on every surface, and soon the entire hallway was enveloped. The hand no longer moved, and the temperature of the room had dropped. There was silence.


    Still panting, I looked down the hallway, mind racing.


    Did we really just do that? I still can''t really believe that Hoshi and I were capable of doing something like this.


    Hoshi''s naginata evaporated, and she flew around the air in celebration. She stuck a tongue out at the garbage hand.


    "Y''know, it''s just a puppet. The actual Youkai''s still up ahead..."


    I proceeded to the final floor, and unfortunately, the amount of garbage did not go down. Once again, as I stepped into the hallway, the garbage began to quiver and float.


    "Gah!"


    Thankfully, before the trash could even fly in my direction, I quickly wrote šê and froze all of them. The bags fell to the floor where they lay motionless.


    It looks like I figured out the missing piece to using our ability. I pressed on my earpiece.


    Hasegawa-san responded "Miyake-san, are you alright? What happened?"


    "Well, I think I figured out what our ability is."


    Nakamura-sensei spoke excitedly. "That''s my student! You can tell us all the details when you finish the mission. It''s too dangerous to be talking too long right now. You''ve got this!"


    I couldn''t help but smile at sensei''s words, but I didn''t tell them that. "I''ll be right back again."


    Abe-senpai said "Good luck, Miyake-san!" and I hung up the call.


    I started walking to the end of the hallway, where room 910 was. This time I could definitely feel something emanating from the door. There was the faint yet unmistakable sound of footsteps coming from inside.


    Well, here we go.


    I counted to ten, and Hoshi pushed on the door.


    It didn''t open.


    I expected this. At least we''re in a spirit world. Now I can do this.


    Hoshi and I once again counted to ten, and concentrating our will into our blades, we both swung at the door.


    It caved in with a crash, and flying splinters of wood dissolved into nothingness, like a Youkai or Kami.


    I tensed up in anticipation and pointed my naginata towards the darkness.


    But... nothing happened.


    No flying garbage hand?


    That''s strange. I''d expected there to be the most resistance in here...


    Without lowering my guard, I slowly walked into the apartment. There were piles of garbage everywhere, but it remained docile. Hoshi kicked a couple of bags and glared at them. But they didn''t react.


    I felt.. something from a room down the hallway. The footsteps steadily continued.


    I decided to cautiously follow the sensation. If it weren''t for the trash bags, I would say that it looked rather ordinary.


    As I got closer, the presence of a Youkai intensified, and the footsteps getting louder. My heartbeat began to beat faster and faster until it matched the sound of the footsteps. I could hear my own breathing.


    I anxiously walked down the hallway, and finally reached a door.


    It was definitely in here.


    The sound of the footstpes and my own heartbeat had merged, and the deafening sound pumped in my ears.


    I took a deep breath, and Hoshi turned the doorknob and...


    The door wasn''t locked.


    Before I even walked into the room, I saw it.


    The room was covered in red tentacles, which glowed and spread across the place, almost like tree roots. Hanging from the ceiling was a giant, pulsating mass.


    "Ew!"


    I jumped back in shock, but nothing happened. The Youkai just kept pulsing. It looked like a giant heart.


    The sound wasn''t footsteps, but a heartbeat, like my own.


    I walked into the room, slightly cringing due to the gross nature of the fleshy tentacles. Hoshi flew up to the ceiling to get a closer look at the Youkai.


    The Youkai hardly moved. Aside from its heartbeat, it just sat there, motionless. Its red flesh was covered in what looked like black veins. Every time it pulsed, it looked like it glowed a bit.


    Despite the lack of danger, my heartbeat matched the Youkai''s, and didn''t slow down.


    I... couldn''t really tell what I was feeling.


    I couldn''t describe these emotions.


    Instead, I had to use my words and hope that they could convey these emotions of mine.


    A bit paradoxical, isn''t it?


    As I stabbed the Youkai, I couldn''t help but whisper my thoughts out loud.


    "I''m sorry."


    _________________________________________________________


    "Bahaha! Looks like you didn''t need our help at all!"


    To be honest, I kinda missed Nakamura-sensei''s boisterous laugh.


    After I exorcised the Youkai, its spirit world faded like Kumo''s street, and I found myself standing in front of the apartment complex, right next to sensei and senpai. It startled me a little too much.


    Nakamura-sensei was driving us to the Agency Headquarters for an after-mission check-in ("It''s kind of a special case, given your circumstances. It shouldn''t take too long.").


    Abe-senpai looked into the rear mirror. "By the way, Miyake-san, you said that you found out what your ability was?"


    "Ah! That''s right!"


    How do I even begin to explain this?


    "Well... I have a small hobby in writing, and I think it has to do with my ability. Although you already knew that. But basically, the reason why it wouldn''t work was probably because I didn''t put my soul into it..."


    "What do you mean by that?" Abe-senpai sounded rightfully confused. It''s not like my explanation was very good...


    "Well, I kinda did put my soul into it to make the words appear, so uh... L-let me reword that. Basically I didn''t really put my heart into my writing. I guess you could say that when you write, you put a little bit of yourself and your understanding of the words into the writing. So what I was missing was my own understanding of the word... Does that make sense?"


    It felt like I was stuttering and rambling on for no reason. My cheeks were feeling rather hot.


    Hasegawa-san was deep in thought. "Hmmm... I do think I understand what you mean. Then could you explain what happened when you used the fire against Kumo?"


    I cleared my throat and struggled to find words. How ironic.


    "I guess, uh... I was really determined to help? Kind of a like a burning motivation to do something, which translated into fire..."


    "Ohhh, that makes a lot more sense." Thankfully Abe-senpai seemed to quickly understand. Nakamura-sensei on the other hand...


    "Bahaha! Still don''t get it!"


    Nakamura-sensei and Abe-senpai were asking me about my first three days of high school when we arrived at the Tokyo Police Station. The attendant seemed to be close to Nakamura-sensei and Abe-senpai, but surprisingly enough, he recognized me too.


    "Oh, it''s the high schooler! Ah, sorry, I didn''t mean it like that."


    After informing the attendant of our reason for visiting, Nakamura-sensei led us to the elevator and scanned a card inside. But this time, he clicked the 100th underground floor.


    Eh? Not Hasegawa-san''s office?


    My curiosity and anticipation only rose as we descended, and when the doors finally opened, I gasped out loud.


    "It''s nice to see you again, Miyake-san."


    Hasegawa-san was standing next to a desk, but it wasn''t him who had said that.


    Ueda-sensei was the one sitting at the desk, and she was smiling at me brightly.


    "Why don''t you take a seat?"

 Chapter 14

    "U-Ueda-sensei?!"


    Hasegawa-san grinned mischievously. "Yep. Sorry I didn''t tell you, Miyake-san."


    "Eh? You know the Director, Miyake-san?" Nakamura-san looked shocked- an expression I''ve never seen before. But I didn''t have the brain space to find it funny.


    Ueda-sensei smiled brightly. "I told you that you can just call me Ueda-san, Nakamura-san. But yes, Miyake-san is my student at school. Sorry to tell you that you''re not her only teacher here. Anyways, you must be tired, Miyake-san. Do take a seat." She motioned towards a black leather chair in front of her desk.


    The desk was significantly cleaner than Hasegawa-san''s, although it felt like it was that way due to lack of use. However, large stacks of paper lay on the desk. My head felt dizzy just thinking about how much work it would take to even flip through them all.


    The front of the desk had a rectangular golden plate, with "Ueda Natsumi" engraved upon it. Below Ueda-sensei''s name was a gleaming "Director" title.


    Feeling both relieved and nervous that the Director was my high school teacher, I sat down on the leather chair.


    Nakamura-sensei and Abe-senpai bowed themselves out of the room ("You should tell us more about the Director later, Miyake-san!") and left me with Hasegawa-san and Ueda-sensei.


    Ueda-sensei turned around, and before I could look to see what she was doing, she pulled out a small, colorful piece of mochi.


    "Want a daifuku? I got some as a souvenir the other day."


    I felt like it''d be rude to refuse, so I meekly thanked her and took the sweet.


    Really. I already thought Ueda-sensei felt sophisticated for her age, but to think that she''s the Director of the Tokyo branch... Ah! Weren''t Nakamura-sensei and Abe-senpai talking about her like some sort of super-woman?!


    Ueda-sensei studied my eyes and laughed softly. "I can only imagine how surprised you must be. Sorry I didn''t tell you earlier, Miyake-san. I wanted you to focus on fitting in to school without worrying too much about this part of your life, but it seems like it didn''t help too much..."


    Hasegawa-san piped in and added "she kept texting me during breaks today. ''Miyake-san looked really worried about the mission. Should I talk to her again? Do you think you could-''"


    "Ahem." Ueda-san was glaring at Hasegawa-san.


    "A-ah. Sorry about that. Anyway, as I was saying, usually you would have met Ueda-sensei, but I had to fill in for her. She was pretty busy getting ready to become a teacher."


    Ueda-sensei sighed and moved a stack of papers away from herself. "Being a teacher is surprisingly difficult." She looked back up at me and smiled kindly. "Although I am finding it really enjoyable. Well, Miyake-san, I''m sure you have a lot of questions. I think it''d be best if you just ask me them."


    She wasn''t wrong. The question was just which one I should ask first.


    "A-ah, well... How long have you been the director here?"


    "Mmm... for almost five years now, I''d say." She turned slightly and motioned towards a portrait behind her that I had not noticed before. It was of a smiling old man wearing a suit. "The previous director here was actually my father, Ueda Haruya."


    Now that she mentioned that, they did share some features.


    "Although she''s not the director just because she''s his daughter. She''s one of the strongest exorcists in the country." Hasegawa-san sounded rather proud.


    "Thank you, Fuyuki. Well, I suppose you''re also wondering why I took up the job to be a teacher. Funnily enough, the reason is because of you, Miyake-san."


    I was taken aback. "Eh? You were able to be a teacher at the school at such short notice?"


    Ueda-sensei laughed and turned back towards me. "You''re quite sharp. Yes, because of my connections with the government, we were able to make things work. Although it was a lot of work... Hence why I wasn''t able to be around this week."


    Wow... the government is a bit scary with how efficient it can be. But... "Why become a teacher at my school?"


    "Good question. Well, as I''m sure you know already, someone as young as yourself awakening to a Kami is quite rare. So to make sure you''re safe and adjusting to your life well, I decided that it''d be best for me to be close to you. That way you''d also have someone you can easily rely on at school, if you''re okay with that."


    I couldn''t help but feel really happy, but I tried not to be too giddy. "Oh, of course. I actually really appreciate it. It felt like I couldn''t talk about what was going on to anyone..."


    Ah!


    Just as I was finishing my sentence, Hoshi appeared next to me with her arms in the air, almost like she was saying "Ba-bammm!"


    "Oh! This must be the Hoshi I''ve heard so much about. Nice to meet you!"


    Hoshi looked at Ueda-sensei with a proud look. Am I really that prideful?


    Ah, that reminds me.


    "Hold on, I should probably tell you about her ability, Hasegawa-san... You too, Ueda-sensei."


    As I explained to them (this time more coherently), Ueda-sensei quickly wrote down what I said on a piece of paper.


    After I finished, Ueda-sensei looked rather thoughtful. "Hmm... you''re interested in writing, huh..."


    "Yep! Is something the matter?"


    She snapped out of her thoughts, and smiled at me. "Oh no, sorry about that. I just find it quite interesting. I''m happy to learn more about my students."


    When Hasegawa-san looked up from his papers, I saw that his face was really excited. "Eh? That''s such an interesting ability! You should do some experiments with me lat-"


    "Fuyuki, let the poor girl have a break first."


    "Ah. Sorry about that, Miyake-san. Oh, I almost forgot!" Hasegawa-san took out a noticeably larger paper from Ueda-sensei''s desk.


    "Actually, I think you''re supposed to give this to her, Natsumi." He handed the paper to Ueda-sensei.


    "Thank you. Well, Miyake-san, thank you very much for you hard work. Because of your achievements and contributions, I am pleased to inform you that you are now C rank." Ueda-sensei handed me the large paper and bowed slightly.


    Oh, I completely forgot about that! I took the paper and felt the corners of my mouth moving up on their own. "Thank you very much!"


    The large paper turned out to be a certificate, with fancy lettering and golden ink. Hoshi craned over my shoulder to look.


    [National Japan Anomaly Agency]


    [Miyake Sayuri]


    [Has reached the qualifications and requirements for C rank]


    [Authorized by Ueda Natsumi, director of the Tokyo Headquarters]


    Ueda-sensei and Hasegawa-san spoke in unison. "Congratulations, Miyake-san!"


    "Ehe..." I was glad I decided to join the Agency. It felt like I''d found a path that I was meant to pursue. Hoshi flew in the air with glee.


    Ueda-sensei clasped her hands together. "Sorry to cut things a bit short, Miyake-san, but it''d probably be best if Nakamura-san drives you home now. We don''t want your parents worrying too much, after all. I''ll see you again on Monday!"


    To be honest, even though I was still processing everything, I really just wanted to go to bed. In fact, I was pretty grateful. "Oh, no worries. I''m looking forward to it!"


    Just as I got up from my seat and was about to say goodbye, Ueda-sensei suddenly stopped me. "Ah. Just one more thing. Here''s my contact info on Youbidase."


    Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!


    After sharing contact info, my phone got a notification.


    [Testing.] - Ueda Natsumi


    Attached was a sticker of a black cat with the words "How are you?"


    I sent back a sticker of my own. It was a bunny with sunglasses, accompanied with "Shining like the sun."


    Ueda-sensei said out loud "Eh? That bunny is quite cute. I''ll have to use it sometime."


    _________________________________________________________


    Dear reader,


    So uh... turns out a lot happened today. Well, first, I ended up completing the mission without too many issues.


    I got transported to a spirit world with a lot of floors and a lot of garbage everywhere. It was really exhausting, and some parts of the apartment was manipulated by the Youkai, but everything turned out okay.


    It turns out that Hoshi can summon things with writing, after all. Although there''s a lot of annoying prerequisites to be able to summon stuff. As of now, I can only use fire and ice. I''m looking forward to seeing what we can do in the future.


    And, well, it turns out that Ueda-sensei is the director at the Agency! I was super surprised, but at the same time, it seems fitting for her. I heard she''s very strong... I wonder what her Kami is like. It would be quite funny if her Kami wasn''t as reserved as Ueda-sensei.


    Anyways, tomorrow (or I guess today, it''s technically already the next day) is when we''re having our celebratory dinner. My parents (as well as Mika''s) wanted to reward us for finally starting high school at Kiyomizu. I should probably go to bed. It''s been a long week.


    _________________________________________________________


    "Woah! You didn''t sleep until 4 this time!"


    "Shaddup."


    As I walked down the stairs, I saw Mika playing video games with Kenta again. Mika patted next to herself. "Let''s play some Battle Bros. I''ve been practicing since our last session."


    As usual, Mika picked a ranged character, Kenta picked a tryhard top tier, and I picked... a girl I thought looked cute.


    Hey, I wanna win with my favorites.


    "You know, a free for all isn''t really the best way to measure skill..."


    Kenta laughed. "You two are always playing to settle the score, huh?"


    Mika grinned and sat up. "Of course. Gotta put Ms. Sunshine in her place."


    "You''ll be eating your words pretty soon."


    Despite our confidence, Kenta kept winning... as usual.


    Mika and I gradually favored each other over Kenta until we were just blatantly targeting my brother.


    "Oi. You guys can''t just team up on me like that."


    "You''re too strong, Onii-chan. I wanna win at least onc- HEY! Mika, you''re hitting me with your projectiles too! Stop being a coward!"


    "Why would I get close if I don''t have to? No point in risking it."


    After a long and heated session of Battle Bros, Kenta had somehow protected his seat as the best player.


    Man... it''s going to be awhile until we get as strong as him.


    Kenta started to pack up the controllers, and asked "We''re having dinner together tonight, aren''t we?"


    "Mhm."


    "Why don''t you two go and hang out then? You shouldn''t stay indoors all day, after all."


    "Ah. Good idea." I was thinking of going somewhere to hang out anyway.


    Mika and I put on our shoes, and decided to go to a nearby park.


    "See you later, Onii-chan!"


    "Thank you for having me, Kenta."


    The park we were headed towards was where Mika and I would often play as children. It held a lot of memories... When Kenta was young, he would also go there to catch bugs with his friends. I always wanted to join in, but I was much too small for that. Mika was always grossed out by bugs ("Get those things away from me."), so she wasn''t as disappointed.


    When we arrived at the park, I felt a surge of happiness flood my mind. In the past, whenever I was sad, I would come here to cheer up.


    The park itself was quite nice, having been renovated recently. There was a swing set, as well as plenty of benches. But what was really exciting was the large and intricate slide system. It even had an upper floor with a bridge, and Mika and I often played tag or hide and seek with our friends here. It was spacious and had lots of trees in a small, grassy field surrounding it.


    There were a couple of kids playing here already, and some families having picnics under the trees.


    "Aw, look at those kids. They''re like us when we were young." Mika was smiling. She was probably reminiscing too.


    I looked up at the bridge, and saw a girl chasing two boys.


    "AH! RUN! ICHIKAWA-CHAN''S IT!"


    Hehe. They look really cute. I wonder what they''ll be like when they grow up. I was once one of those kids, after all. Now I''m fighting monsters at night... ahaha... I shouldn''t think about that too much.


    Hoshi materialized next to me and flew out towards the bridge. She grabbed the bottom of it and just hung there.


    What the heck? Why are you doing that? Oi, stop it! You''re going to rock the bridge and the kids on it!


    Hoshi let go and tumbled on the ground. I have no clue why she didn''t just float, but she looked like she was having fun. I''ll just leave her to it then.


    Mika and I decided to use the swings, and talked quite a bit. We talked about school, about Amagiri-senpai, and about Ueda-sensei. After some time, I finally asked the usual question.


    "So, read any good books, lately?"


    "Of course you''d ask that, Sayuri. Unfortunately, I''ve been too busy to read anything. I''d like to find the time eventually though. How about you? Get any inspiration for your book?"


    ...ah. I sighed.


    "Well... Unfortunately not..." As amazing as Youkai and Kami were, I didn''t actually want to write about anything supernatural... What I had in mind was, uh... actually, nevermind.


    "A-anyway, what do you wanna do after this?"


    Mika was swinging so high that I was scared she was going to fall. She didn''t seem to be scared, though.


    "Hmm... We kinda did go shopping recently, already, so probably not the mall."


    "Ah! How about we go to a cat cafe? I''ve been getting the urge to pet an animal recently." After dealing with a ton of scary creatures, what I really needed was some fluff.


    "Sounds good."


    As I swung higher in the air, I looked at my right, to where there were quite a few trees. Eh?


    There was a boy sitting underneath one of the bigger trees. It was at the top of a small hill, and he was reading a book. He somehow looked familiar...


    Was he in our class? I thought hard about why I suddenly felt deja vu just looking at the boy.


    "Ah!"


    "What is it, Sayuri?"


    I knew who it was now.


    "Isn''t that the boy who was at the convenience store the other day? The one with a crazy amount of ice cream."


    Mika snorted. "Pffft. I didn''t even realize he had ice cream. You were causing too much of a commotion. I think you''re right, though. Planning to ask for his number?"


    "N-no! What kind of person do you take me for?"


    But for some reason, I couldn''t seem to stop looking at him. H-hey, it''s not like that. I swear there was something off about him, but I couldn''t tell what.


    "Sayuri, if you''re really that interested just go talk to him..."


    "..."


    Aghhhhh. I really did want to talk to the boy, but then Mika''s just going to take that the wrong way... Well, here goes nothing.


    I stopped by lightly pressing my feet against the ground, and got off the swing. Ignoring Mika''s snickering, I started walking up to the boy.


    He definitely was the one from the convenience store. Now that I was getting a good look at him, he was quite short.


    Sayuri, that''s rude!


    I pushed away that thought, and noticed something else about him.


    He''s got quite the big eyes, doesn''t he?


    Before I could study him a bit more, he suddenly looked up at me.


    "Ah."


    We stared at each other for what felt like an eternity. His gray eyes felt like they were peering into my soul.


    Okay. Seems like he''s not the most talkative. I''ll have to start the conversation. I was the one who approached him, anyway.


    "Hello! Is it okay if I talk to you for a bit?"


    He kept staring at me, expressionless.


    Hey, if you keep looking at me like that I''m going to start second-guessing myself. I''m not that extroverted.


    "...feel free to." His voice was quiet.


    I walked over and sat next to him, making sure not to sit too close, as to not make him uncomfortable.


    "My name''s Miyake Sayuri. What''s yours?"


    "..."


    "..."


    "Suzuki Akiko."


    I couldn''t help but make a sound.


    "Eh?!"


    The boy stared at me for a bit before asking "are you surprised at my name?"


    "N-no..." He wasn''t wrong. I mean, usually Akiko was a girl''s name, but more importantly...


    "It''s just, you''re actually in my class at Kiyomizu Academy."


    "Ah. Is that so? It is nice to meet you then."


    This guy talks really formally too. It''s kinda funny. I couldn''t help but laugh out loud.


    "Hehe. Likewise, Suzuki-san. Sorry if I''m being rude, but why were you gone this week?"


    Suzuki-san looked at one of the kids running on the playground before answering. "I had a family emergency."


    Aghhhhhhh, why did I have to ask that? "O-oh. I''m so sorry to hear that."


    "Oh, no worries. Things are fine now. I''ll start coming to school on Monday."


    Oh, thank god. I was worried I stepped on a landmine. "I think you''ll enjoy it. Our teacher, Ueda-sensei, is really nice."


    Suzuki-san looked back at me. It was hard to read his expression. "...is that so?"


    With the way this guy was speaking, it was hard to believe we were the same age.


    Oh yeah. I wanted to ask that.


    "What are you reading?"


    Suzuki-san stared at me, then stared at the book in his hands. Hold on, isn''t that-


    "Ah. It''s..." He blankly stared at the book for a bit longer.


    "Your Starlight?"


    Oops. I got a bit too excited. It was my favorite manga, after all. It even inspired Hoshi''s name. But it''s a shoujo romcom... Was he into that kind of stuff?


    "...someone recommended it to me."


    Ah, that makes sense. I wonder who...


    "It''s my favorite manga. Are you liking it?"


    He blinked a bit, and looked back at the manga book in his hands. He was still on volume one.


    "I just started today, but it is quite interesting."


    "Isn''t it? I really like how it doesn''t just focus on the two main characters. A lot of the side characters get the spotlight, too!"


    I really wanted to gush more about how well written Your Starlight was, as Mika had already grown tired of my fangirling. But I didn''t want to spoil Suzuki-san, so I''ll just have to hope he continues reading the series...


    You know, now that I''m really thinking about it, I could be making him super uncomfortable right now. Maybe I should give him some space.


    I pulled out my phone and pretended that I''d gotten a notification.


    "Ah! I think my mom wants me to return home. I wasn''t bothering you, was I?"


    Suzuki-san tilted his head slightly to his right. "No, you weren''t."


    I smiled at him and stood up. His eyes were quite pretty, now that I''m looking at them.


    "Thanks for talking to me. I''ll be seeing you at school!"


    "...see you."


    I waved at him and started walking towards Mika. Suzuki-san had turned his eyes back to his manga, but I still felt an unsettling sensation on my back, even if I knew he wasn''t watching me.


    Mika was standing back at the playground, wearing her smug look again. "Look who''s back. How''d it go?"


    I tried to ignore her teasing tone. "Well... He was surprisingly willing to talk to me. I can tell he''s on the shy side."


    "Really? That''s not the word I would use. To me he looked rather indifferent."


    Did he really look like that? I tried to imagine his face. It didn''t look annoyed or apathetic. Although I couldn''t quite describe the vibe I got...


    "I think he''ll be interesting to talk to. If he wants to, that is." I really do hope I didn''t overstep his boundaries.


    "You''re going to talk to him more here?" Mika seemed confused about something.


    "Ah, that''s right! He''s Suzuki Akiko, the one that was absent in our class!"


    Mika stared at me blankly. "Akiko''s a boy?"


    "Yeah, I was a bit surprised too."


    She looked back at Suzuki-san, who was absorbed in his book. "Wow. That''s quite the coincidence. You have quite the sense for these things."


    "Hehe."


    I pulled out my phone and opened the Youbidase app, wanting to check one last thing.


    Eh?


    He didn''t seem to have a signal on the map. Strange.


    Well, I''m looking forward to learning more about this Suzuki-san.