Tokyo Ravens Volume 3 Chapter 2

[] 

The first control room of the Onmyou Agency's Exorcist Bureau was abnormally chaotic that day. Once the afternoon was over, many spiritual disasters had happened in Tokyo.

These spiritual disasters were mostly phase two disasters that began as phase ones, and they were relatively small-scale, but it was rare to see this many spiritual disasters happen before sunset. Most spiritual disasters happened from the evening until late night - especially during Omagatoki[1] and Us.h.i.+mitsudoki [2]. They plummeted when the sun came out. The fact that spiritual disasters were occurring consecutively during the day was the best evidence that the aura inside the city was chaotic.

And, it was soon going to be sunset - time to enter Omagatoki.

"......It seems like we'll be busy tonight." The room supervisor sat on a seat in the room, speaking with a bitter face.

A huge screen was set up in the control room, on which a map was shown with Tokyo as the center. The positions of the spiritual disasters that had happened today were represented on this simple map with some related data.

"Do we need to contact the chief?" The control personnel next to the supervisor asked.

"No, we don't need to bother him. I heard that his blood pressure has been high recently, so let's look out for the chief's health... Actually, we don't have any reason to. Okay, put me on the line."

"Supervisor!"

The worktime joke made the room fill with laughter, and of course the specialized control personnel laughed back, though their attention never left the console. It was true that relieving emotional tension in a timely manner was important, but the sun was about to be in the west, and the tense atmosphere was unabated.

To a normal person who didn't care about magic, the Onmyou Agency was a 'government agency that purified spiritual disasters', and they lumped the Exorcist Bureau and the Onmyou Agency together, equating exorcists and Onmyouji. That was naturally a mistaken way of thinking, and actually only a small portion of excellent Onmyouji could become exorcists, and quite a few other non-Onmyouji workers held positions inside the Onmyou Agency and the Exorcist Bureau.

Of those belonging to the first control room of the Exorcist Intelligence Bureau, only the supervisor and several other workers had pa.s.sed the 'Third-Cla.s.s Onmyou' exam, and not a single one had Second-Cla.s.s qualifications. They weren't permitted to use first-cla.s.s magic - it was a group of workers far distant from the 'Onmyouji' that ordinary people imagined.

However, the Exorcist Bureau workers had to rely on the abilities of this group to operate smoothly. In the eyes of people familiar with magic, exorcism was an admirable industry, but exorcists could only take the stage without worry because they had these workers a.s.sisting from behind.

"......Speak of the devil. As expected of the chief, he has ears everywhere."

The supervisor stuck his tongue out jokingly, looking at his boss - the Exorcist Intelligence Bureau Chief who walked into the control room with his unchangingly serious face. Actually, the chief didn't have anything like ears everywhere, it was the Intelligence Bureau Chief's everyday routine to come to the control room to check the situation at this time.

The chief walked up to the supervisor's work desk, glancing hastily at the screen and then raising his eyebrow lightly.

"......The sun's not down yet, there's a few too many spiritual disasters."

"Quite some spiritual disasters happened, maybe it'll top this year's record."

"It's only been a month since the February exorcism...... Seems like exorcisms are getting less and less effective."

"More accurately, the effects started becoming weaker after work came from the Lingering Spirit Division." The supervisor spoke mockingly, and the chief's expression couldn't help but become grim upon hearing that.

The February exorcism meant the Setsubun ceremony held a day before the beginning of spring. 'Setsubun' was basically around the fourth of February every year, and was most famous for it's 'mamemaki[3]' ritual. In fact, every year there wasn't only a Setsubun the day before the beginning of spring. There were also festivals held the days before the beginning of summer, fall, and winter. The current Onmyou Agency had also added New Year's Eve in order to stabilize the aura in the city, and held five magic ceremonies per year. Spiritual disasters arose because of aura distortions, so it was necessary to regulate the flow of aura and keep the aura from easily fluctuating.

This work didn't originally belong to the Onmyou Agency, but to the Imperial Household Agency instead, and the Lingering Spirit Division had been responsible for carrying it out.

"I really can't see any difference with my meager spirit-seeing ability. What about you, Chief? I remember you had Second-Cla.s.s qualifications."

"Actually, I can't see much difference either...... But the data doesn't lie. Judging by the data on spiritual disaster numbers, spiritual disasters are truly tending to increase year by year. It really gives me a headache."

The Exorcist Bureau had quite a severe problem of insufficient manpower, and the portion of members using paid holiday leave was becoming lower and lower, but the work couldn't be performed properly if there weren't enough members coming to work. The choice between the two was really a headache for the management personnel in the middle.

"Hmm? What's up with that spiritual disaster? It's already been a very long time since it happened, how come it hasn't been dealt with?"

The chief suddenly stared at the screen and asked.

"Huh? Which one are you talking about?" The supervisor followed, looking at the screen.

"That one, the phase one that happened in s.h.i.+buya."

"Oh, you mean that one. Didn't a notice arrive yesterday? It said the Onmyou Academy--"

Upon hearing this, the chief instantly showed a look of comprehension.

"The ones who said they wanted an artificial spiritual disaster for examination purposes, does it really need to be marked?"

"In the end, a spiritual disaster still happened."

No one other than those with spirit-seeing abilities could observe aura. Hence, no system for automatically detecting spiritual disasters had yet been invented, and they relied on Onmyouji with particularly outstanding spirit-sensing abilities - positions known as Spirit Sensors - to monitor the aura inside the city. The Onmyouji who went to the scene following the information they provided would report the actual situation to the Intelligence Bureau. So, the information displayed on the screen had been collected through various means. Even now, the phones of workers around the area were still ringing nonstop inside the control room.

Though Spirit Sensors weren't very prominent, they were important people that the Exorcist Bureau couldn't go without. Actually, there were three National First-Cla.s.s Onmyouji among the current Spirit Sensors.

"But, how worthy of the Onmyou Academy, to think they would want their students to exorcise a phase one artificial spiritual disaster during an exam. That's basically industry training."

"The graduates from that place are indeed quite outstanding. Haven't more than half of the exorcists recently been from the Onmyou Academy?"

"Maybe that's true. The students who pa.s.s the exam this time might enter the Exorcist Bureau in the future."

The supervisor showed a slight smile, looking at the s.h.i.+buya indicator on the screen. The number of people who were gifted and who could become Onmyouji was extremely limited, and hence excellent Onmyouji were even more clearly valuable.

Unfortunately, what happened next made him stop smiling.

A phone ring sounded from the console in the control room, and one of the control personnel manipulated the console, taking the phone call through his headset. Immediately after, one phone after another began ringing, a new one ringing as soon as another was picked up. The control personnel hastily picked up the phones one by one, but were still overwhelmed by the sound of ringing phones.

"...Hmm?"

The supervisor sat upright. The phones were still ringing nonstop, and the tones of the control personnel picking up the phones became more and more frantic.

"......What's going on, did something happen?" Just as the supervisor wondered in incomprehension - "There's a spiritual disaster! The location is Ueno[4], and according to the report of the bureau member who just arrived, the scale of the spiritual disaster is approaching phase two!"

"According to the report of the Meguro[5] branch, a spiritual disaster is also happening in s.h.i.+nagawa[6]! They predict they will arrive at the scene in a few minutes!"

"Report from the sixth team! The spiritual disaster undergoing purification suddenly rose to a phase two and the spiritual pressure is still continuing to rise, please provide a.s.sistance!"

The control personnel frantically reported the situations. The stunned supervisor unhurriedly replied with orders one by one. Just as he was thinking about contacting the Exorcist Command Center of the management exorcists, the phone on his work desk rang preemptively. The phone on his desk was different from the consoles the control personnel supervised, as it was specially used for contacting the Spirit Sensors.

The supervisor picked up the receiver, and after only a few words he raised his voice and shouted: "What did you say!" The face of the Chief who was observing the situation from the side sank upon hearing that.

"...What's happened?"

"The Spirit Sensors reported that the spirit flow is chaotic, and abnormalities have emerged."

"What's the location?"

"That......"

"What? Hurry up and say."

"......The e, entire city...... At least, the Spirit Sensors noticed that there were abnormal phenomena in all of the spirit flow within the range that they can check."

The chief quickly turned his gaze towards the screen once he received the report. The information the control personnel received from the scenes were displayed on it, and spiritual disaster warnings were indeed lighting up in twos and threes.

"Immediately contact the three Special Sensors and ask them to provide detailed reports. I'll contact the Control Center, and also...... Who's on standby among the Independent Officers?" The chief gave orders with a sharp gaze.

Special Sensor was an abbreviation for special Spirit Sensors, and Independent Officers meant independent exorcists. The two of them were special t.i.tles that only National First-Cla.s.s Exorcists could possess.

"Miyachi-san and Yuge are at headquarters, and Kogure's at Meguro...... Kagami's still left." The supervisor replied, hastily checking the time.

Immediately after - "S, Sixth team report! The scope of the spiritual disaster has reached phase three!"

"What!" The chief and supervisor's eyes both inadvertently widened.

"Isn't that a bit too fast, didn't it just reach phase two?"

"Where's the sixth team!"

"Akihabara[7]! They're sending back an image!"

As the control personnel spoke, he widened an image of the scene displayed in the corner of the screen.

The situation in an Akihabara parking lot appeared on the screen. As could be told from the Kanda River[8] in the image, the location of the spiritual disaster was happening on one side of Mansei Bridge[9]. The chief couldn't help but click his tongue, as the Chuo Main Line[10] pa.s.sed through one side and it was currently the after-work rush hour.

Several black-clothed figures were shown in the image - exorcists wearing miasma protection clothing. In front of their gazes, pillars of water spurted forth from the Kanda River.

The pillars of water gushed up towards the sunset, like a tornado that was rapidly turning and gradually expanding. It looked a lot like computer graphics, but on one corner of the screen, the reactions of the surrounding people - since the incident had happened so suddenly, they hadn't had enough time to lead the normal citizens to safety - were quite real.

Aura couldn't be seen through the screen even with spirit-sensing abilities. How chaotic the aura was and how wild the miasma was at the location could only be judged through the reports of the exorcists present.

'...This is the sixth team! We can't maintain the barrier with just our strength! The spiritual disaster is still continuing to expand, reaching phase three!'

The voices of the exorcists at the scene sounded through the entire control room. It was supposedly a report, but it was actually closer to a scream, and even the control personnel responsible for taking his call unconsciously raised his head, staring at the screen.

Under the gazes of the control room personnel, the pillars of water ruptured with a crash.

A strange figure leaped towards the sunset. That thing's four limbs and body were distorted, and a long tail grew out of it. Its entire body was more than five meters long, and its figure soaring in the air was agile and extremely vibrant, like a wild animal broken free of its cage.

Then, a shrill roar emitted from its fanged jaws like a broken whistle.

A phase three. Materialized miasma, a 'demon'.

Onmyoudou defined them as spiritual-based disasters that had the ability to move - named 'mobile spiritual disasters'.

'Seventeen fifteen[11], a mobile spiritual disaster has occurred! The water vapor is intense, strongly suspected to be a five-element mix, judged to be Type-Chimera[12]- a Nue[13]!'

"To think a Nue would come out." The supervisor spoke gravely upon hearing the exorcist's report.

"That belongs to a flying-type spiritual disaster, this will be troublesome."

"...Control personnel! Tell the sixth team that they need to stop the spiritual disaster moving with everything they have! ......Urgently contact the Command Center and ask the team on standby to provide emergency a.s.sistance--"

The chief roared at the control personnel right next to the supervisor's ears, immediately dealing with the situation. The Exorcist Command Center was usually responsible for ordering the Spiritual Disaster Exorcist teams, but since the Intelligence Bureau Chief held a post as a member of the Exorcist Command Center, he could take command in certain emergency situations.

Just then, another report came to the control room like it was mocking his response.

"Supervisor! From Ueno - the spiritual disaster has suddenly risen to phase three!"

"Wha......!"

"It's currently judged to be Type-Chimera! This is a Nue as well, it's already created damage to the surrounding--"

"Wait! A report came from the team arriving in s.h.i.+nagawa confirming that a mobile spiritual disaster is happening in the area! Please send emergency reinforcements!"

Reports flooded the control room one after another, and the chief and supervisor couldn't help but gasp. No, not just them, the control personnel responsible for transmitting the reports were also pale.

Three spiritual disasters had successively entered phase three, and though this situation was extremely rare, it wasn't unprecedented. The Intelligence Bureau personnel weren't so petrified just because of the serious situation, but more because this was already the 'second time' this kind of situation had appeared.

A situation similar to right now had happened once in the past.

"......It couldn't be...... The incident two years ago is happening again......" It was unknown which control personnel couldn't help but murmur, uttering the feelings of everyone in the area. It had been March two years ago that spiritual disasters had successively happened just like right now - no, they were mostly human-incited spiritual disasters.

"Could this be...... a spiritual disaster attack?" The supervisor murmured blankly.

"Don't guess randomly." The chief quickly snapped back.

"In any case, it's an emergency situation, so contact Chief Kurahas.h.i.+ immediately! Also...... the Spirit Sensor's reports mentioned that the spirit flow appeared chaotic, right?"

"Yes...... Ah, right! Akihabara, Ueno, s.h.i.+nagawa..." The Chief's words suddenly made the supervisor realize.

Among the Onmyoudou concepts of orientation[14], there was a direction called the 'Demon Gate[15]' known as 'us.h.i.+tora'[16], which was northeast and the 'direction through which demons enter the world', requiring strict vigilance and prevention. Also, the direction opposite from the Demon Gate - the southwest 'hitsujisaru' - was the 'Rear Demon Gate[17]' and was also a direction that required caution.

General Onmyoudou inherited such directional concepts, but didn't just consider directions, it merged them with 'spiritual flows' that were paths aura flowed through and also considered social factors such as transportation networks. The reason for this change was because people more or less essentially carried aura, and the movement of large amounts of people would create new spiritual flows over a long time.

According to General-style, Tokyo's current Demon Gate was located in Ueno and Akihabara, and the Rear Demon Gate was in s.h.i.+nagawa and s.h.i.+buya. Three of the mobile spiritual disaster locations had been at the Demon Gate and Rear Demon Gate.

As if confirming the chief's speculation - "A new spiritual disaster is happening! The scale is rapidly expanding!" One of the control personnel yelled loudly. The chief and supervisor clenched their teeth, having the same premonitions, and asked the same question at almost the same time.

"Where is it?"

The answer was just as the two had predicted.

The control personnel turned around, replying with a shaking voice:

"s.h.i.+buya."

☆

The man took the Yamanote Line outbound train.

He sat in his seat with his head raised high and his legs spread wide. Since it was the after-work rush hour, the train compartment was full to bursting, but the seats in either direction of the man were empty without any pa.s.sengers. Even though there were often people in the distance who glanced furtively in the man's direction, no one dared to approach him, each and every one of them keeping away from him, scared of the violent air emanating from his body.

The man was about twenty years old. His body was skinny, with an almost sharply angled chin and a head of short hair dyed silver. He had sungla.s.ses with silvered lenses on his face, with several piercings in his ears. He wore a fur-collared jacket, with a sparkling necklace draped over his chest and a belt decorated with silver rivets tied around his waist. Silver chains were hung on his jeans, and his feet were in a pair of bright, polished engineer boots.

A cold smile was on the man's lips like he was ridiculing the entire world. An intense beat came from the headphones in his ears. Even if he didn't say a word, his unruly arrogance could be felt in abundance.

One of the most frightening parts was the scar on his forehead. On the man's forehead was carved an 'X' that seemed like a blade wound.

Suddenly, a ringtone sounded from inside the man's jacket. He creased his eyebrows, taking out the phone. His fingers were unexpectedly thin and long, and every finger wore a flas.h.i.+ng ring.

He looked at the screen of his phone, clicking his tongue forcefully in displeasure.

"......Unexpected overtime."

Not long after, the train reached the JR s.h.i.+njuku[18] stop. The man briskly stood up from his seat, pus.h.i.+ng through the pa.s.sengers orderly leaving the train and forcefully and leisurely left the compartment and walked onto the platform. The criticizing gazes never met the man, dissipating powerlessly into the air.

The evening twilight shone on the sungla.s.ses, momentarily lighting the man's face vividly.

The tragedy happened by surprise.

☆

"Very good, alright, put more effort into it!"

"Okay!" The people replied energetically to Kyouko's shout, and of course Harutora was among them. Kon breathed shallowly by Harutora's feet, Kachiwari grasped in her hand and taking up a ready stance.

The students in Harutora's cla.s.s were gathered on a tile-covered s.p.a.ce like a small plaza between the sidewalk and the lobby of an office building in a corner of s.h.i.+buya. The exam was in progress.

The spiritual disaster had happened in the center of the plaza, and the ying energy in the aura was particularly heavy, pressing heavily on the tiles like a gas heavier than air - though it couldn't spread.

Looking at the current situation, the aura had already turned into miasma, like a violent invisible campfire whose heat could be felt even from far away. Even though it didn't create any physical harm, the psychological effect and the spiritual trauma that the body endured weren't to be underestimated.

The methods for purifying spiritual disasters were different for each situation, but the basic order of things was mostly the same. First, a barrier would be set to isolate the spiritual disaster, lowering the damage done to the surroundings. At the same time, the aura's deviation would be a.n.a.lyzed, and the next step would be to add a correction or cast a stronger magical pressure to 'scatter' it completely.

Harutora and the other students were separated into two groups. One group immediately set down a barrier to isolate the spiritual disaster, and the other group was responsible for casting magic, trying to correct the aura. Kyouko and Touji were in the former and Harutora and Tenma were in the latter, but Natsume was standing by herself next to the proctoring teacher, anxiously watching the examination progress from afar.

"Uuu... I'm going to throw up......"

"Get a grip, Tenma! Breathe deeply - no wait, it'll be bad if you breathe in the miasma. Anyway, just hold on, just hold on for a while!"

"H-H, Harutora-sama! Please order this servant to attack--!"

"No! The goal of the exam isn't to beat down the miasma, but to restore the aura's balance. Everyone in the cla.s.s is working as one, don't think of going wild on your own!"

"Calm down, everyone! Separate the barrier properly! It's no problem even if we spend some time, we'll definitely correct this aura. The purification is going very smoothly, don't worry!"

One got more sensitive as he came in contact with aura, and it would be easier to be affected by spiritual disasters. It was especially difficult to maintain calm when being a.s.saulted by miasma. Kyouko, whose strength was inferior only to Natsume, was in charge of maintaining the barrier, because unless the person had power to spare, it was not possible to hold up the barrier against a spiritual disaster for a long time.

"Are you alright, Touji? I remember that you were hurt in a spiritual disaster, right?" Kyouko maintained the barrier while leading the students, and didn't forget to heed the condition of Touji next to her.

Touji's face was looking abnormally bad, but his eyes stared straight at the spiritual disaster, never once looking away, his expression also unmoving. "......I'm fine." He replied, his mouth showing a self-confident smile.

"You don't need to worry, I'm controlling it very appropriately. It won't be a problem even if I have to hold on for a while."

Kyouko thought Touji was talking about 'controlling the barrier appropriately', hence she laughed and said: "I'm the one controlling it."

The barrier group had surrounded the spiritual disaster to form a circle. Each person set down a barrier in their surroundings, and then Kyouko connected these barriers together to form a complete barrier.

But, the students who were responsible for correcting the aura and who actually carried out the purification had to enter the barrier, directly applying their magical energy towards the spiritual disaster. Among them, there were people who used specialized charms, people who formed kuji seals[19], and various people who pulled out all the stops. On the other hand, as originally expected, the shakujou that Ohtomo had made for Harutora was not allowed to be brought into the exam, so Harutora could only desperately and rapidly slash one haya-kuji[20] after another.

He raised his forefinger and middle finger high to create the 'blade seal'[21], yelling: "Rin! Kyo! Toh! Sha! Kai! Jin! Retsu! Zai! Zen!" Every time he chanted a word, he drew out five horizontal lines going to the left and right and then four vertical lines going up and down. As his 'blade seal'-forming fingers slashed through the air, the magical energy gathered in his fingers left a grid of light in midair, forming the 'doman'[22], a magical pattern on par with the pentagram.

There were a variety of 'kuji' magic methods used for exorcism, and the simplest among them was haya-kuji, with which someone skilled could rapidly exert his power. Of course, Harutora could only used this move because it was easy to remember.

The actions of the exorcism group were clearly chaotic compared to the barrier group,

"Harutora, your magical energy is too strong! Weaken it a little."

"What are you doing - Harutora-kun, it's too weak this time! Can you not control your magical energy!"

"Where are you casting your magic, Tsucchi, you're not facing the target! Can you not see the spiritual disaster in front of you!"

"My fault? Everything's my fault? You people can't be blaming me for your and everyone else's mistakes, right?"

Harutora's spiritual power was the greatest, but he wasn't good at turning his spiritual power into magical energy. Not only did he make mistakes frequently, his magical energy wasn't stable either, and it was depleted violently but didn't return any significant effects. Fortunately, his spiritual power was particularly robust, so he wasn't exhausted.

Natsume who was watching everything from afar couldn't restrain herself, verbally correcting him.

"Your hand seals are simply bad! Your blade seal should be like this! You have to cut with your fingers like this!"

"How can you see me making seals when you're standing that far away! And also, I understand the basics like the blade seal!"

"H, H-H-Harutora-sama, i-it must be formed like this--!"

"Kon, you know how to make the seals too? But don't float in front of me! You're blocking my view! I can't see in front of me!"

"......It's so nauseating, my head hurts, I'm going to die......"

As Harutora shouted angrily at Natsume and Kon, Tenma finally collapsed unsupported. It wouldn't be a problem to keep the barrier up for some time, but it seemed like they would still need to spend a very long time purifying the spiritual disaster itself.

"Tch...... Sensei, I won't summon Hokuto, so please let me join the exam!"

Natsume made a request of a proctoring teacher, seeming like she could no longer bear stand still. Several teachers looked at each other, repressing their wry smiles.

The homeroom teacher Ohtomo wasn't at the exam site because he had business, but in consideration of the dangerous content of the exam, the practical examination this time had three teachers proctoring together. One of them was of advanced age, but he was a seasoned former exorcist.

"The important thing about purifying spiritual disasters is teamwork. Once you get used to borrowing the strength of others, it's certainly difficult to grow as an individual. The important meaning of this exam right now is for them to understand their own power in a situation without your partic.i.p.ation, regardless of whether they successfully purify the spiritual disaster or not." The elderly former exorcist warned Natsume, speaking clearly and logically. Natsume looked utterly unconvinced, but she couldn't rebut at all since the teacher spoke reason.

However, the old instructor showed a smile again very quickly.

"......But the goal of the exam isn't truly to have you all purify a spiritual disaster. Actually, it's about time to deal with it." He checked the time on his watch as he said this.

The sun was gradually tilting to the west, and the streetlights around them lit up one by one. Onmyoudou called dusk 'Omagatoki', and also named it the 'time of disaster', the moment when calamity would arrive. Spiritual disasters mostly began becoming active from this time onwards, and hence it was very possible that continuing the exam would bring disaster.

When the old instructor had just decided to allow Natsume to partic.i.p.ate in the exam, a phone ringtone suddenly sounded. The old instructor started in surprise when he saw caller's name, hastily picking up the phone.

"Princ.i.p.al? What is it? ...Yes, we're still holding the exam here... Yes."

As could be heard from the old instructor's words, the person who called was Princ.i.p.al Kurahas.h.i.+. The other two proctoring teachers were also perplexed, perking up their ears to listen to the conversation of the two.

Just then--

"......Huh? Hey, it looks like something's not right."

"S, Strange, this is...... Is the aura getting stronger?"

The students suddenly became restless. Natsume's heart leaped and she turned her attention back to the spiritual disaster.

Surrounded by several students, the spiritual pressure of the phase one artificial spiritual disaster was violently increasing. The originally gas-like impression that it gave off gradually became thicker. Then, with a crash, the tiles underneath cracked apart.

"Strengthen the barrier! Exorcist group, more magical energy! Keep the spiritual disaster from expanding!"

Kyouko quickly spoke orders once she noticed the abnormal situation. Her voice was more urgent than before, and the students' expressions changed, then - as expected of Onmyou Academy students - they used their full power to purify the spiritual disaster, following Kyouko's orders.

The magical energy released by the students increased, but it seemed ineffective, and the spiritual disaster's spiritual pressure rose sharply.

"Sensei!"

Natsume frantically turned her head to look at the teacher, but the three proctoring teachers had long since rushed besides the students with dark faces, raising their magical energy in a snap.

"Barrier group, continue as before! Exorcist group, quickly retreat outside the barrier - Kurahas.h.i.+! Can you hold on for one more minute?"

"Yes, no problem!"

"Okay, one teacher a.s.sist the barrier! All students, be sure to stay calm and act quickly!"

The old instructor's voice was full of vigor. He sounded extremely pressing, but he allowed the listeners to calm their minds and momentarily relax.

One teacher stood next to Kyouko a.s.sisting the barrier, and the barrier's strength multiplied. The old instructor and the other teacher replaced Harutora, Tenma, and the others who had left the barrier, rus.h.i.+ng inside.

"...With the mortal world under my control, I subdue this evil spirit in the name of Acala's oath! On bis.h.i.+bis.h.i.+ karakara s.h.i.+bari sowaka![23]"

The instructor cast a spellbinding seal added on to a Dharmacakra seal,[24] namely the Unmoving Golden Chains[25] magic, fiercely unleas.h.i.+ng a strong magic incomparable to the students' at the spiritual disaster.

The gradually expanding spiritual disaster distorted and changed shape under the blow, and the magical energy formed a net to tightly bind it.

The spiritual disaster struggled intensely inside the magic bindings, giving off an even more intense miasma. However, the magic bindings set down by the old instructor never broke, succeeding in stopping the spiritual disaster from expanding.

The old instructor cast a sharp gaze at the students who had retreated outside the barrier.

"Momoe! Quickly contact the Exorcist Bureau Emergency Response Center! Also - Harutora, you're responsible for contacting the Onmyou Academy. Explain the situation to them clearly and ask for a.s.sistance!"

"Okay, got it!"

"Onmyou Academy...... Who do I contact?" Since things were so sudden, Harutora asked back in a panic next to Tenma who was hurriedly taking out his phone.

Hesitation momentarily flashed over the old instructor's face. "...Ohtomo-kun might have already returned to the academy building, so if he's there......" Before he had finished speaking, a student suddenly screamed. What was surprising was that the shrilly-screaming student was Kyouko. She managed to maintain the barrier while crying out: "Touji! Get a hold of yourself!"

Touji, in the barrier group, was kneeling on the ground next to Kyouko. His face was pale, his shoulders shook intensely, and his right hand was pressed to his temple while his left hand was clutching the ground, as if he were using all his strength to contain something. A b.e.s.t.i.a.l growl leaked from his clenched jaw.

"Touji!"

Harutora's eyes widened in surprise and he rushed towards Touji. Tenma frantically shouted out: "Harutora-kun, the phone!" but it didn't reach his ears. On the other hand, the teacher inside the barrier barked a warning: "Kurahas.h.i.+, focus!" The normally calm Kyouko had now become fl.u.s.tered, and she affected the other students one after another, so the barrier gradually lost its balance.

Just then, Harutora hastily reached the kneeling Touji's side.

"Touji! You couldn't be--!"

"......Don't touch me." Touji spoke in a low voice towards the shocked Harutora. "......I'm still holding on...... but I don't have much strength left...... Don't touch me......"

Touji's voice was heavy with pain, but he didn't seem panicked. Even in an emergency situation, he was calm as always.

But even so, he couldn't relax. Harutora couldn't do anything to support Touji, so he could only anxiously bit his lip by the side.

Just then - "H-Harutora-sama!" Kon cried out, guarding Harutora's front.

Not long after, the spiritual disaster spewed out a strong miasma and the students screamed one after another. "Ugh!" Touji's body also spasmed intensely.

At the same time, the barrier finally could no longer be supported, and the miasma poured into the entire plaza.

"Kuh!"

The old instructor and the other teacher were still mustering their entire strength to bind the spiritual disaster, and the teacher responsible for maintaining the barrier gave up on setting the barrier back up, hastily moving forward to a.s.sist the two. The spiritual disaster was still inside the bindings, but its spiritual pressure increased again.

Cracks continuously appeared on the tiles, and then with a crackling sound, pressure shattered the tiles from below, exposing a blackish-green ground with soil bubbling forth like lava. Strictly speaking, the spiritual disaster had already risen to phase two.

"d.a.m.n it!" Harutora cursed with an ashen face.

Just then--

"Come out, Hokuto!"

A stern voice sounded, and then an expanding aura burst forth in the sunset-dyed sky.

The aura shot through the sky, momentarily taking shape and forming a ten-meter long body. Two horns stood proudly on its head, its mane swaying with the wind, and the golden scales covering its body gave off a dazzling radiance under the light of the sunset. Not just the students, even the teachers looked up with bated breath.

A dragon.

Natsume's s.h.i.+kigami, Hokuto. Its figure was incredibly majestic, grand, and imposing, even stately, making the original threat of the spiritual disaster seem momentarily minor.

"Hokuto! I order you to purify the foul, evil influence!"

Natsume issued an order, and Hokuto quickly showed an unwilling appearance, seeming like it still wanted to enjoy its return to the vast horizon. But, when it noticed the spiritual disaster raging on the ground, it first looked surprised, and then turned its nose up in annoyance as if feeling quite displeased that the quiet evening had been polluted.

It twisted its body, turning in the air, targeting the spiritual disaster on the ground. Though it was her own order, Natsume couldn't help but go pale in fright when she saw this.

"Everyone, move back!" Natsume cried out, and Hokuto charged straight at the spiritual disaster like a hawk swooping towards its prey - or like an arrow shooting from the sky.

"Th, That's not good!"

The old instructor hurriedly released the Unmoving Golden Chains, modifying it to expand a simple barrier - though it was more like he'd thrown it out expeditiously - to the surroundings to protect the students.

Right after, the fierce and imposing Hokuto collided head-on with the spiritual disaster.

The aura and miasma clashed and the impact spread in all directions like a bomb blast. The students were knocked over or fell to the ground. Kon, whose attention was entirely placed on Hokuto, cried out, her entire body tumbling backwards after being hit by the impact and knocking into Harutora.

The aura and miasma swirled into an eddy inside the plaza. Not long after, the dust became thinner and thinner, gradually dissipating. Looking carefully, a big hole had been carved out in the original location of the spiritual disaster, revealing a state similar to after a bombing.

Hokuto once again flew into the air several meters above the ground, overlooking the situation on the ground like it was searching for whether there were any unpleasant remnants of miasma. Each and every student's face was dazed, and they raised their heads to look up at Hokuto. As they had maintained the barrier as much as they could until the last moment and hence faced the impact of the aura storm head-on, Kyouko and the others showed a soulless appearance.

"......As expected of the Tsuchimikado family guardian beast...... It's astounding." The old instructor spoke blankly, uttering the feelings of everyone present. The simple barrier he had hastily spread out had long since been blown away.

"S, Sorry! Is everyone unharmed?"

Natsume who had summoned Hokuto ran towards the students with a red face. "Natsume......" Harutora's face was full of helplessness, clutching the dizzy Kon in his chest.

"We were saved because of you...... But could you be a little more cautious?"

"I, I had no choice, it was an emergency!"

"The moment just now was the real emergency."

"Aren't you just nitpicking! I was also very nervous."

"......Natsume-kun...... you were pretty cool up to the moment you said that 'come out, Hokuto'......"

"Even Tenma's criticizing me! L, Let me tell you, if I just stood around and did nothing, the situation would definitely have gotten out of hand! Right, sensei?"

"Hmm? Oh, uh...... probably......"

"Sensei, why are you stammering? S, Strange, was my judgment so mistaken?"

Natsume desperately defended herself, and the satisfied Hokuto turned its body above her head in elation. Not knowing how to respond, each and every student stood still - or sat on the ground.

Though all of them had heard rumors, this was their first time actually seeing the Tsuchimikado servant s.h.i.+kigami and the power of the s.h.i.+kigami that the genius Tsuchimikado Natsume controlled. This moment, they finally understood why the teachers had decided not to let Natsume partic.i.p.ate in the exam.

But-- "......Hey." Touji moaned, and Harutora hurriedly s.h.i.+fted his attention.

After the spiritual disaster was purified, his good friend had still stayed kneeling on the ground like before. He had even widened his eyes and clenched his teeth, so the situation looked even more urgent than before.

"Everyone leave this place, right now......!" Touji raised his voice to yell, his voice sounding like he was fighting back intense pain. Then, a shadow flitted across his feet.

Above his head--

Hokuto's entire body went taut and its lackadaisical demeanor changed in a flash. Kon's eyes widened from within Harutora's arms.

The teachers, Natsume, Harutora, Kyouko, and of course all of the students as well were unable to instantly recognize exactly what the 'thing' in front of them was.

That giant thing descended from the sky like a flying elephant. Even with all four limbs on the ground, it was more than three meters high, and it had a head, body, four limbs, and a tail. The first impression it gave off was that the balance of its entire body was 'out of tune', with its head 'like' a monkey's, its limbs 'feeling somewhat like' a tiger's, and its tail 'looking like' a snake. The impression each part of it gave off changed as time pa.s.sed. No, it wasn't just an impression. The thing itself was actually constantly changing its appearance.

"......Huh?" An unknown one of the students called out stupidly, but the old instructor's face was dumbfounded.

"A, A phase three...... How is this possible......"

'For such an absurd thing to happen' - Just as he wanted to finish saying this, that 'thing' slowly raised its body, standing up on its two hind legs.

The thing extended its body, seeming to grow several times taller in a breath, and then crashed back down like it wanted to flatten something. Then, its mouth seemed to split wide open and it let out a shrill roar.

"EIIEEEE!"

The sound was ear-piercing, and miasma spewed out from it in all directions at a far greater concentration than before.

Miasma flowed like sweat across every cell of the body, across every single nerve, freezing the soul in bursts, terror and despair taking hold of the emotions. Half of the students who took this direct attack fainted where they were, and Harutora also almost lost consciousness because the force of the impact was too violent.

"......Ugh......Uh......"

He moaned painfully, his entire body rigid, but his gaze never left that 'thing'.

It looked like an animal, but it didn't look like any animal in particular, with its body covered everywhere with hair and scales. The lengths of its limbs were also different, and its stripes meandered across its body like living creatures, its horns and wings drooping down as soon as they grew out. It simply looked like various creatures had just been mixed together - no, they were still in the process of merging.

As a result of the existence of the five elements - wood, fire, earth, metal, and water - the five yin energies that had become miasma were still clas.h.i.+ng with each other on the inside after materializing, not giving in to one another.

A phase three spiritual disaster, Type-Chimera, referred to as a 'Nue' by Onmyouji.

"Tch! ...Order!"

The old instructor flung out a charm.

He threw a fire-element charm, and the charm hit the Nue directly in the face, igniting into a red flame. The Nue shrieked shrilly, but it wasn't wounded, just purely angry. Of course, the old instructor hadn't expected this little charm to be able to defeat the Nue. He had done this to buy time.

"I'll be the decoy! You help the students evacuate!" The old instructor commanded the other two teachers with a fiery tone.

"But--!"

"Don't be stupid! None of us will escape if we drag on like this!"

The old instructor spoke as he threw charms, guiding the Nue's attention to himself. The Nue seemed to stamp its feet while twisting its body, continuously treading on the ground. With every movement, it scattered miasma into the surroundings.

The two teachers followed orders and guided the students to shelter with pale faces. The students who were still able to hold on to their consciousness carried the unconscious students, desperately escaping from the Nue.

Harutora also came to his senses, shouting out: "N, Natsume!"

"I know! ...Hokuto!"

Natsume ordered Hokuto to attack the Nue, and Harutora took advantage of this time to confirm the conditions of the other students.

Tenma had already moved rather far from the Nue, and though he breathed in gasps, he still managed to evacuate himself. Even though Kyouko was staggering, her expression was still perseverant. She summoned her two defensive s.h.i.+kigami, ordering Hakuou and Kokfuu to carry those students who couldn't walk on their own.

He couldn't find a student who had lost consciousness and who wasn't being cared for by others, so all that was left was...

"Touji, sorry for touching your body. Kon, help me lift that arm!"

"......Haru......tora......"

Touji seemed to have difficulty even speaking, and his limbs spasmed more and more severely as if there were short bursts of electricity pa.s.sing through his body. Moreover, his entire body was hot like a scorched rock. Even Harutora who had prepared himself before touching him inadvertently withdrew his hand. Even the breath he exhaled from his mouth was hot enough to be mistaken for steam.

One of the strangest things was that aura was flowing from Touji's body, an aura that was clearly different from the aura that could normally be felt from him.

This was all the effect from the spiritual disaster - the Nue.

But of course, this had nothing to do with the effects of the yin energy. Instead, it was resonance. He was resonating with the Nue in front of him.

"Let me go...... I'm already...... no longer normal......"

"Don't say such stupid things! ...Kon! Hurry up!"

Harutora knelt next to Touji's body, roughly making his hand wrap around his own shoulder, which felt like he was wrapping a container filled with hot water around his neck. Though it was hot, Harutora felt chills upon contact, and the aura from his body - his spiritual body - couldn't help but tremble like it had taken a fierce blow.

"......Kuh!" Harutora grunted, stubbornly pulling Touji up.

But-- "......Harutora-sama." Kon called out lightly. Even if she had received Harutora's order, not only did she not listen to her master's instruction, she didn't even stop staring intently at the Nue, her ears sticking straight up.

"It...... It's retreating, it seems to fear something."

"Wha, What did you say?"

Kon's sudden words made Harutora forget the situation around him for a moment in confusion.

But, Kon wasn't the only person who noticed this situation. The old instructor who was fighting with the Nue and who had resolved to die, along with Natsume who was trying to fight with Hokuto, successively noticed its strange state.

The Nue's reaction was slow, and it didn't try to counterattack no matter how the old instructor attacked it. In addition, Hokuto was attracted by something other than the Nue, sluggish to pay attention to Natsume's orders.

The Nue was alert, taking a cautious stance, and at the same time screeching "EIEE", its roar mixed with anger and cowardice. However, Hokuto wasn't the opponent who made the Nue fear deeply or who made its wariness surge, and of course it wasn't the old instructor or Natsume.

"......What's this!"

Engineer boots stepped heavily on the tile-paved road.

The man's tone was casual and he didn't raise his voice, but for some reason, everyone present heard the words he spoke clearly even amidst all the noise.

"What's this group of brats doing around my prey? And there's even a true dragon coming out to mix things up, what's going on with this?" The man's tone was mocking and clearly arrogant.

A young man showed up in front of everyone with a head of cropped short silver hair, an 'X' scarred onto his forehead, and wearing silvered sungla.s.ses on his face. Both his hands were stuck into the pockets of his fur-collared jacket, showing a lazy appearance - but he looked disdainfully and self-confidently around the spiritual disaster area. Because of the man's appearance, the area that had originally been chaotic to the limits rapidly froze instead, calming down momentarily.

The students who were still conscious all gasped. It was needless to say about those students who knew the man, but even the students who didn't recognize him gaped in surprise after witnessing his strong, savage aura.

"O, Ogre Eater......"

The man frowned as if he had heard the old instructor's sudden murmur, taking his right hand out from his jacket and raising his ring-wearing finger to point towards the old instructor.

"Hey, old man, don't call me by that name. My name is Kagami Reiji. Careful that I don't murder you if you dare mess around in front of one of the Twelve Divine Generals."

☆

"......d.a.m.n! How could this happen......!"

Mutobe Chihiro, who had chased after the Nue and the Independent Exorcist Kagami Reiji, noticed the figure of Tsuchimikado Natsume among the stunned, unmoving Onmyou Academy students and inadvertently gritted his teeth.

He had prepared four Nue in total, placing them separately in Ueno, Akihabara, s.h.i.+nagawa, and s.h.i.+buya, which were Tokyo's Demon Gates and Rear Demon Gates, where the spiritual flow would let these four Nue awaken simultaneously. These spiritual disasters would grow simultaneously and at a rapid, astounding speed by consuming the aura in the spiritual flow. Then, he would enter the next stage of the plan.

He didn't have wild wishes that these Nue would all live on. In general, the Exorcist Bureau's abilities were outstanding, and sacrificing one or two Nue for someone even more incredible like an Independent Exorcist of the Twelve Divine Generals was within his expectations.

However, Kagami Reiji's actions were far faster than his predictions. He had originally been wary of the Meguro branch taking action, and hadn't expected Kagami to arrive first from s.h.i.+njuku in the opposite direction. It seemed that this wasn't a formal action, and he could only feel unfortunate about this kind of sudden situation.

No one could match Kagami in tracking mobile spiritual disasters, and even among the Twelve Divine Generals, there wasn't a single one who could match his unique intuition and senses. But he was often troublesome, with a lack of responsibility for his work. Mutobe had originally believed that if he was lucky Kagami would be excluded from the fighting force, and it seemed that his thinking had become too naive as a result.

Moreover, Tsuchimikado Natsume - the youngster rumored to be the North Star King - was also here.

No, not just that, he had just now finally thought of who that slender, bandanna-wearing youngster he had seen yesterday had been. He was indeed a victim who had been pulled into the spiritual disaster two years ago, and he was clearly resonating with the Nue before him. There was only one explanation for a Nue to be resonating with a spiritual disaster victim, and such a situation hadn't been within his expectations at all. No, it was impossible to expect that there would be such a situation. 'Fate' was truly such a mischievous thing.

"What should be done......"

Enchanted heavily with stealth, Mutobe asked himself while getting as close as he could while making sure to keep a safe distance.

Should he risk intervening or watch quietly for changes? He definitely couldn't beat Kagami Reiji if he fought face-to-face.

Mutobe pinched his lips together, slowly raising his magical energy.

...O, Ogre Eater?

This man who had suddenly come out - Kagami - stole away all of Harutora's attention.

He didn't need to look at his aura. He pretty much knew what kind of person this man was just from the presence he gave off from his entire body. Other than the feeling that he definitely wouldn't want to approach him, he also had some kind of inexplicably fascinating traits, like a brightly colored venomous snake or the beautiful, wild, and dangerous charm of a carnivorous animal.

...And this person was also...... a Divine General?

Harutora stood stock-still, his hair standing on end. The Nue backed away with a growl, and its spiritual pressure continued to increase, a sharp light casting from its eyes.

It was entering a battle state.

"I, Independent Officer! We're from the Onmyou Academy and were attacked by a phase three spiritual disaster during a practical exam! Please provide emergency a.s.sistance!"

The old instructor shouted, his face urgent. Kagami casually made a "Ah?" upon hearing.

"What 'a.s.sistance' are you talking about, old man. Didn't I just say that this thing was my prey? You group of obstacles better get out of the way." Upon saying this, Kagami stuck his hands back in his pockets, fearlessly heading towards the scene of the spiritual disaster and directly walking over to the Nue that was taking a threatening fighting stance.

"Idi--[26]! Don't provoke it!"

The old lecturer paled in surprise. The situation was just as he expected. The Nue hadn't showed any intention of counterattacking even after being hit by the fire-element charm attack, but it showed quite an agitated reaction when Kagami approached.

The Nue made a strange sound, twisting its giant body. That cry was different from the roar from before, and it clearly carried an 'offensive' flavor. Some of the students who had still been able to resist the miasma's a.s.sault up to now fainted and some of them took mental blows, with some vomiting where they were, and some collapsing while foaming at the mouth.

Harutora glimpsed Tenma faint to the ground out of the corner of his eyes, and of course he himself also suffered effects. "Ugh!" He grunted, his entire body dripping with sweat, but Touji was the one who showed the most obvious reaction. The arm he hung on Harutora's shoulder spasmed, and the other hand grabbed on to the bandanna on his forehead. Seeing that Harutora and Touji were almost both collapsing, Kon hurriedly supported them from below.

However, Kagami still walked forward without stopping, even among the screams that were let out one after another. He faced the strangely shrieking Nue head-on, his steps proper and orderly.

"You're noisy, shut up." He cursed.

But even though it was muttered, it pierced through the hearts of the spectators. The Nue stopped shrieking. No, it had been forced to stop shrieking. Kagami's words carried a strong and elaborate magic energy.

"Huh?" Harutora's eyes widened in surprise, and he heard Natsume utter breathlessly: "That's first-cla.s.s spirit language[27]."

"S, Spirit language?"

"It's a magic belonging to Imperial Onmyoudou - his words have coercive power that can be used to affect the opponent's mind. But never mind a human opponent, to think even a spiritual disaster--?"

Natsume helplessly raised her head to look at Hokuto to try to give orders, but she wasn't able to decide what order to give for a while. The dragon still loitered in the sky, watching the situation unfold in befuddlement.

The Nue whose voice had been sealed charged forward in a breath, twisting its giant body like the free movement of a wild beast. It showed fierce fangs, attacking Kagami with a churning anger and hatred. Harutora couldn't move a muscle, awed by its astonis.h.i.+ng boldness, but Kagami just opened his mouth, showing a derisive smile.

Seed syllable.[28] That was a mantra representing the Kundali Vidyaraja[29] who eliminated foreign enemies. Kagami's will and magical energy used this seed syllable mantra, which was just a short word, to attack the giant figure. The Nue's entire body spasmed as if it had accidentally touched a high-voltage power line, its body showing intense 'lag' reactions, and it writhed on the ground, unable to bear the pain. The impact had released the spirit language bindings, but what came from its mouth were no longer angry roars, but rather tormented wails.

It suddenly leaped upwards, its giant body suspended in midair. Then, it ascended in midair, continuing to leap up high.

The Nue descended, sitting down on the wall of the high-rise office building towering behind them. The gla.s.s windows shattered, shards of gla.s.s falling to the ground one after another. The spiritual disaster had only been able to do such a gravity-defying action because its material had 'ambiguous' properties.

Hesitation flashed over the face of Hokuto who was staying in the same sky, not knowing whether to chase it. In the end, it decided to turn around and keep a distance. That response wasn't to defend against the Nue, but instead because Hokuto had judged that it had to be cautious of Kagami.

"Hey, I didn't get to prepare today, so don't waste too much of my time." Kagami spoke lazily, raising his head to look at the Nue, his hands still stuck in his pockets.

"...Namah sarva tatha gatebhyah sarva..."[30]

In a single breath, Kagami chanted a long incantation with a unique cadence. Vajrapani's[31] most fundamental original dharani[32] - the Fire Realm magic, one of the Acala[33] system of wors.h.i.+p's main suppression methods.

An incredible strong magical energy swirled into a spiral centered at Kagami, like a true tornado. An aura of fire immediately formed suppression magic, rising upwards like a gas. The Nue kicked off the wall to try to dodge, but the Fire Realm magic still chased after it, capturing it effortlessly.

Once the Fire Realm magic captured the Nue, the spiritual disaster immediately ignited into a malicious flame. The Nue became a ball of fire, wailing shrilly, and falling straight down to the ground.

Right underneath... was Kyouko, helping to evacuate the other students.

"Kyouko!"

Harutora shouted. Kyouko's face paled in surprise, quickly ordering to her two defensive s.h.i.+kigami. Hakuou gave the student in its hands to Kokfuu, tumbling away from underneath the Nue with its master in its arms.

Then, the Nue fell, causing the ground to shake. 'Lag' appeared in the Nue's giant body, and the Fire Realm magic's fire aura spread everywhere.

"Kurahas.h.i.+! ...I, Independent Officer! Please consider the safety of the others!" The old instructor roared angrily, his face pale.

"Kurahas.h.i.+~?" Kagami didn't heed the old instructor's protest, instead showing interest towards Kyouko's family name.

"Kurahas.h.i.+'s that - Ah, right! Onmyou Academy. In that case, that little girl's the Chief's daughter, huh? ......Hold on, that also means that the dragon's - it's the Tsuchimikado dragon, right?"

The tone Kagami spoke with was like he had noticed a new toy. The Nue that had fallen to the ground and was dying in front of him wasn't in his sights at all.

As if he had only just now seen the students - "So there's a Tsuchimikado successor here, a brat who's rumored to be and may or may not be Yakou's reincarnation, huh?" He sized up the students present as he said this.

...Tch.

Not good. Almost by instinct, Harutora felt from the bottom of his heart that things weren't good.

There weren't many people present who could stand straight, and more importantly it was impossible for a Divine General to not see who had a link of spiritual power with the servant s.h.i.+kigami Hokuto.

The gaze from underneath the sungla.s.ses focused on Natsume. Natsume took half a step back, and Harutora felt like a chunk of ice had slipped into the bottom of his stomach.

"......So you're the brat."

Kagami licked his lips like a cannibal, murmuring as he stared at Natsume. Then, he walked towards Natsume.

"Kagami! Don't touch the students!"

The old instructor's face paled, and the other two teachers hastily ran forward, planning on putting themselves between Natsume and Kagami.

"Don't move." Kagami used spirit language without even turning his head, and they immediately froze petrified to the ground, unmoving as if they had been bound. Natsume had nowhere to run and could only gaze wide-eyed at the Divine General approaching step by step.

"D, d.a.m.n--!"

Due to Touji on his back, Harutora couldn't rush to Natsume's side. It was best not to act rashly, especially since the Nue hadn't been completely purified.

"......Ha, it looks like you really are a well-raised brat. It's you, right? Tsuchimikado?" Kagami stood in front of Natsume, happily smiling while looking down at her.

The flickering Fire Realm magic showed almost no signs of extinguis.h.i.+ng, and the Nue still burned in the flame. The flame burning with magical energy illuminated Kagami's sungla.s.ses from the side, reflecting the fire's sparkling light.

Natsume managed to face Kagami's gaze head-on.

"......Th, That's me."

"What's your name?"

"T, Tsuchimikado Natsume."

"Tch...... What are you scared of, I won't eat you - I heard that you made that goth loli Dairenji cry? At any rate, that little girl's one of the Twelve Divine Generals. Since you won against her, you can stand tall and proud. That way's more suited to my preferences."

Kagami smiled even more savagely as he said this.

"After all - only a self-confident brat makes others feel 'drive', you understand? Like how an idiot who thinks of himself as smart is more interesting and how it's more meaningful to trample on a small fry who thinks himself powerful. Plus, you're the descendant of a famous family, which really makes people eager to test you."

Natsume stared at Kagami, pressing her lips together wordlessly. Kagami noticed Natsume's reaction, letting out a low snicker.

Just then, the Nue shrieked with a sharp "EE--!", leaping up.

An attack. The Nue had taken advantage of Kagami's defenseless moment, attacking Kagami by surprise from the shroud of flames. As a spiritual disaster, the miasma on the Nue's body was still quite powerful. "Natsume!" Harutora's body inadvertently went rigid.

However, Kagami was unmoved. He hmphed in annoyance, taking one hand out of his jacket.

He slashed his fingers horizontally from left to right like he was trying to tear apart the air, and then used the four fingers from his forefinger to his pinky finger to draw four vertical lines from up to down. An intense, dazzling light burst forth from the grid Kagami drew in midair as the wall's magical energy rose in a flash, not only stopping the Nue's continued advance, but even repulsing it back.

He hadn't chanted an incantation or formed a hand seal. His magic was extremely simple, but his power was frighteningly strong. In comparison, the haya-kuji that Harutora had drawn was simply worthless.

...T, Too strong......

Harutora couldn't help but look stupidly. Even if a phase three spiritual disaster was an enemy that an entire team of exorcists would have trouble confronting, Kagami was playing with it in the palm of his hand.

After witnessing Dairenji Suzuka's strength, he had been quite clear on how powerful the Twelve Divine Generals were, but Kagami's strength was a level higher. No, just like he himself had said, Suzuka was just a child, and she was just a simple researcher compared to Kagami who had been appointed an In