In Tokyo’s Nerima Ward, near the outskirts of the city, stood an abandoned hospital.
The place had gained a modest amount of notoriety online.
Many people claimed that all sorts of paranormal incidents had occurred there, while others said the hospital had been the site of a major medical accident long ago.
Some even claimed that a “Messenger of Death” haunted the hospital.
It would pronounce the death of every patient who entered, and each one would later die horribly in exactly the manner it had foretold.
Between the medical accident and all the rumors surrounding it, the hospital was eventually abandoned.
Ironically, that only made it a popular destination for paranormal enthusiasts looking for a thrill.
Today, a man and a woman once again arrived outside the hospital.
“We’re finally here.
Weren’t we supposed to have an assistant manager drive us?
Why didn’t anyone come this time?”
Utahime Iori complained as she rolled her ankles.
Beside her, Tōru Azuma, carrying a long cloth bag on his back, gave a helpless smile.
“It might be because of me.
This may be our first mission, but it’s also the final assessment for the training I’ve been doing these past few days.
Jujutsu High probably wants to evaluate that too, so they sent just the two of us to complete the mission on our own.”
Utahime’s expression turned a little strange when she heard that.
“I guess that makes sense.
You couldn’t even figure out the subway platform before.
We’ll have assistant managers picking us up and dropping us off when we go on missions in the future, but we won’t have that kind of convenience in everyday life.”
Tōru Azuma awkwardly rubbed his nose.
It wasn’t that he was some old man who couldn’t understand the subway.
He was familiar with the domestic subway system of the 2020s, but he had no idea how Tokyo’s subway system worked at this point in time.
He had even needed Utahime to guide him on the way here.
As she mentioned it, Utahime Iori suddenly gave him a complicated look.
“Come to think of it…
you seem pretty popular, don’t you?”
“Uh…”
He had no idea how to answer that.
While the two of them had been taking the subway toward Nerima Ward, two or three women had approached him along the way.
Two appeared to be high school girls from somewhere nearby, while the other looked like an adult working professional.
All of them had been quite forward about asking for his contact information and suggesting they meet again sometime, leaving him momentarily unsure how to deal with them.
Fortunately, Utahime had driven them off with a fierce glare, bringing the unexpected incident to an end.
Still, it reminded him that back in high school, quite a few of his female classmates had been unusually friendly toward him.
At the time, he had assumed he was simply well-liked.
Now, though, perhaps there had been another reason?
With that thought, he quickly changed the subject.
“Never mind all that.
Utahime could tell exactly what he was doing, but she merely gave a quiet snort before pulling out the logbook the assistant manager had given them earlier.
“According to the records and observations from the Windows and the assistant managers, this hospital regularly gives rise to low-level Cursed Spirits because of all the urban paranormal legends surrounding it, along with the medical accidents that happened here in the past.
Most are Grade 4, with a small number of Grade 3, so the area gets cleared out regularly.”
She paused midway through her explanation.
“One thing worth noting is that they encountered a Grade 2 Cursed Spirit here once.
They managed to escape in time and notified Jujutsu High, who sent someone to exorcise it.
So this place does carry a certain amount of risk.”
After finishing her explanation, she closed the logbook and looked at Tōru Azuma with mild exasperation.
“For someone like you, a Grade 2 Cursed Spirit isn’t beyond your ability to defeat.
So the main focus of this assessment is probably going to be how you handle the situation and your performance in other areas.”
Two or three days had passed since she returned to school.
During that time, her junior had hardly been sitting around idle.
He had continued his practical combat training in the forest behind the mountain.
The only difference was that the training group had grown from two people to three.
Mei Mei used her Black Bird Manipulation Technique to locate suitable targets, while Utahime watched from the side as Tōru Azuma charged in, fought them for a while, and eventually exorcised them.
So when she learned that a Grade 2 Cursed Spirit might appear during this mission, she had not been particularly surprised or alarmed.
After all, she had already watched this junior defeat far too many Grade 2 Cursed Spirits.
After hearing her summary, Tōru Azuma nodded.
“Then let’s get started.
The sooner we finish, the sooner we can head back.”
“Okay.
Give me a second, I’ll turn on the recorder.”
Utahime Iori nodded, then attached the recorder Jujutsu High had provided to document the operation to the front of her collar.
When she noticed someone’s gaze drifting toward her almost unconsciously, she turned her body aside a little awkwardly.
Realizing that his stare might have been somewhat rude, Tōru Azuma cleared his throat and looked away.
Only after she confirmed that everything was ready did he refocus on the mission.
Before they could begin, the first thing they needed to do was lower a Curtain.
As the incantation was recited, a black veil rapidly spread outward from his position, gradually enveloping the entire abandoned hospital.
Its coverage and stability were both flawless, sealing the area without the slightest gap.
Utahime nodded approvingly at the sight.
As expected of the Curtain she had painstakingly taught him over the past three days.
Not only did he no longer need to have it spread outward with himself at the center, he could even cover the entire hospital simply by observing its boundaries.
On this aspect alone, she would have no hesitation giving him an excellent score.
Once the Curtain was in place, Tōru Azuma opened the cloth bag on his back and took out Fudōmaru.
After fastening it to his belt, he pushed open the main doors with a little force.
The instant he stepped inside, a penetrating chill washed over him. Read this novel at g.com for the best experience.
Since this was only a small private hospital, the grounds were not particularly large.
The front courtyard consisted of a small plaza scattered with dilapidated benches, with a pond and flower bed at its center.
Directly ahead stood the four- or five-story outpatient wing.
The inpatient wing and general facilities wing stood to the left and right respectively.
Although the hospital had only been abandoned for a little over a decade, it was already in terrible condition.
The walls were peeling and cracked, while weeds grew wildly throughout the front courtyard.
Some showed signs of having been trampled underfoot, but they continued growing with stubborn resilience.
Perhaps time alone was not responsible for the hospital’s decay.
The accumulation of Cursed Energy might have played a part as well.
He let out a long breath, closed his eyes, and released his Cursed Energy to sense the condition of the abandoned hospital.
Soon, his brow furrowed slightly.
The concentration of Cursed Energy here was higher than expected.
He could sense the traces and locations of numerous Cursed Spirits, and could even tell that several were gathered together at that very moment.
However, the density of Cursed Energy made it difficult to judge their strength from the fluctuations they emitted.
He could increase his Cursed Energy output and strengthen his perception, but that would defeat the purpose of this final assessment.
What he needed to do during the assessment was demonstrate that he had mastered the fundamentals using only the most basic applications of his abilities, not simply overpower everything through sheer force.
After considering it for a moment, he drew Fudōmaru and headed toward the inpatient wing on the left.
One of the clusters of Cursed Spirits he had detected was located there.
When Utahime Iori saw him move, she quickly followed after him.
Her previously relaxed expression had grown slightly tense, and her eyes kept sweeping from side to side.
Seeing how nervous she looked, Tōru Azuma knew they were in the middle of his assessment, but he still could not help speaking quietly.
“Don’t worry, Senpai.
The Cursed Spirits here aren’t very high-grade.
You could deal with them easily.”
He had only meant to help her relax and reassure her that even she could handle anything here without trouble.
Instead, she answered with an awkward hint of defiance.
“W-Who asked you to worry about me?!
Focus on your assessment and stop chatting with the examiner!”
Tōru Azuma sighed helplessly, then pushed open the doors to the inpatient wing and stepped inside.
The instant he entered the corridor, a dense wave of Cursed Energy rolled toward him from up ahead.
Several grotesquely shaped Cursed Spirits were gathered together in the inpatient wing’s lobby.
As one, they turned their eyes toward him.
“Slow movement, sluggish reactions, only partially formed.
Judged to be a small cluster of Grade 4 Cursed Spirits.”
As he spoke, he poured Cursed Energy into Fudōmaru.
Deep blue Cursed Energy rose from the blade as he advanced toward the group of Cursed Spirits one step at a time…