“Come in.”
An answer came from behind the door, her voice soft and firm, reminding me of my first meeting with Himekawa that night. Only, this voice carried an invisible authority that made the atmosphere in the room thicken.
The girl slid the paper door open, revealing a quite spacious interior with tatami mats spread across the floor.
At the end of the room, there was a beautiful adult woman sitting in seiza. She wore a purple kimono with both eyes closed.
“Excuse me, mother.”
Himekawa looked at me, then we both nodded simultaneously and entered.
When I got closer, Himekawa's mother opened her eyes, making me flinch for a moment.
‘So beautiful!’
Her daughter was indeed beautiful, but the charm emitted by the woman in front of me far exceeded anything I had ever seen in the world.
She looked like Himekawa when she was grown up, a beautiful face with clear skin, a sharp nose, and a piercing black gaze that felt like it could look directly into my soul.
And more importantly, the tight Kimono that showed off her body curves, especially the breast and hip areas, made me gulp. They were even bigger than Himekawa's.
The woman stared at me for a moment, that sharp gaze made my body flinch and feel like I was being looked at completely naked.
I immediately sat in the same ‘seiza’ position and faced her with a wry smile.
‘She looks stricter than her daughter.’
She turned away from me, glaring at her daughter who jolted in fear. Then, Himekawa walked to her mother's side and sat with the same posture.
“Rika!”
This time the woman's voice seemed quiet, but it made the whole room freeze as a flash of cold anger appeared in her eyes.
The girl named Himekawa Rika immediately bowed, pressing her forehead to the floor while saying.
“I am truly sorry for what happened.”
Her action made me furrow my brows, I had a bit of trouble processing this incident.
“Pardon me, I haven't introduced myself, my name is Himekawa Rena, pleased to meet you.”
Rena-san placed her hands forward, then bowed her body slightly.
I widened my eyes and immediately copied her gesture.
“My name is Kanzaki Rin, nice to meet you.”
For a moment I was silent, staring into the woman's eyes that looked like a black hole sucking me into it. I swallowed hard, trying to throw away that thought of mine and turned to Himekawa Rika.
“Um, I apologize, but why is Hime-Rika-san like that?”
Rena-san didn't answer and just straightened her posture.
She glanced at her daughter and opened her mouth, her voice felt like a gust of winter wind, making me shiver as a chill crawled down my spine.
The shaman girl lifted her face. Her usually sparkling expression now turned bleak, full of regret. Her open lips seemed to have trouble expressing her feelings, but with a slight glare from her mother, Rika gave up.
“So it's like this...”
She started telling everything about the ‘Kuchisake-onna’ I met yesterday. It was apparently her responsibility, because when she wanted to purify it, Rika made a slight mistake that made the spirit escape from her sight.
And by coincidence, that cornered ghost came and attacked me.
Come to think of it again, there were some differences from the urban legend. Kuchisake-onna usually wears a mask and carries scissors, but I didn't see that from the ghost yesterday.
Was it possible that Himekawa Rika was the culprit?
“I am truly sorry, because of my mistake, I almost caused a civilian to get hurt. But fortunately you are not an ordinary civilian so...”
Without any warning, Rena-san lifted her palm and then smacked her daughter’s back head.
*Smack!
“Ouch!” Rika shouted.
That crisp slap resounded in the room, turning the heavy mood into a lighter one.
“You stupid daughter, whether it's an ordinary citizen or not, you should regret your actions.”
“O-Okay, I already told you, Mama, I am very sorry.”
Rika started to straighten her posture, raising both hands to protect her head which kept getting smacked by her Mother. I even saw tears starting to swell at the corners of the girl's eyes.
Seeing the two of them like that made me silent. That sight in front of me somehow started to reopen my old memories.
Even though my life was filled with medical drugs and locked inside that sterile prison, my parents were people who always supported, and took care of me if they had time.
I don't blame them though, both were busy working, and I was sure they had spent all their savings in order to see me get out of that room.
However, tragically, I died instead and left them.
‘Are they in this world?’ I said in my heart.
If they really were here, I could meet them even from afar. I want to make sure that they live happily and move on.
‘Yeah, sometime I’ll look for them.’
I straightened my gaze and accidentally made eye contact with Rena-san. Seeing the woman narrow her eyes, caused me to hold my breath. She then opened her mouth.
“I heard that Kanzaki-san has supernatural powers too?”
All the muscles in my body tensed up. I peered into the woman and the girl’s eyes; they seemed to have no hostile intention.
I hesitated for a couple of seconds later, until I took a deep breath, then nodded slowly.
“Y-Yes.”
The woman widened her eyes, stunned after hearing my confirmation. She touched her own chin, drowning in her own thoughts.
“Alright, as a user of special powers. I hope we can get along well in the future, and if I may, I will suggest one thing to you...”
“What is it?”
I asked, feeling my two hands, which rested on my thighs, clench tightly in nervousness.
“You better register officially as a shaman so you won't be considered a ‘rogue shaman’ which is usually regarded as a lawbreaker.”
‘So that's how it is.’
Now I understand why that night Rika, who was initially wary of me, instantly softened when I didn't understand what she meant by that ‘rogue shaman’. And this also confirmed my thoughts from earlier.
I glanced towards the mother and daughter, then nodded.
“What are the benefits when I register?”
These two people in front of me blinked several times, it took a while for them to process my question.
‘Sorry, but that's important to me.’
***
The registration process itself was quite complicated because it involved several people at once. Then, I registered as a shaman of the Himekawa family, one of the ancient families that still maintained its spiritual bloodline in Tokyo.
Then, I was escorted to the bureau that handles this matter. They registered me officially until my name was recorded in the Japanese government as one of their shamans.
Although I was still an apprentice.
Initially, I felt a bit regretful of my own action, but that worry burst like a bubble when I found out that an official shaman will get a salary every month, not to mention additional bonuses if I diligently carry out my duties to eradicate evil spirits.
As an official member, I was given the task to guard my own territory which happened — or not — to be quite close to where I live.
It's quite vast too, but this was a necessity because the number of existing shamans was very few in today's modern world.
“How does it feel?”
Sitting in the passenger seat of Rika's car, I stared at the black identification card in my hand. The card was made of a special material with a white diagram symbol on its back.
“Not bad, with this we become partners, right?”
The girl who gripped the wheel chuckled, then answered.
“Not really, for we have our own responsibility to bear. But with your presence, I can finally lift a part of the burden I carried around at night. And I thank you for that.”
“I see.”
‘Well, considering the area she was guarding, I could only say, thanks for your hard work!’ I added that internally.
The car slowed down, and then it stopped on the side of the road, right in front of the ramen shop where I work part-time.
I glanced towards Rika who was leaning her back.
“Listen, I'm not telling you to quit, it's just that our jobs tend to demand a lot more physical, and mental energy than you think, so...”
I was silent for a moment, staring towards the restaurant with a long line formed, then turned to her.
“Well, I’ll do what I can.”
Rika didn't say anything, she just shrugged her shoulders.
“Don't forget, tomorrow, I’ll teach you how to use talismans.”
“Alright, call me when the time comes.”
I bid my farewell to her and watched the car roar fiercely around the streets in Tokyo.
I stopped for a moment before turning around, going around to the narrow alley to enter the restaurant through the back door.
After entering the place, I changed my clothes, greeting Shiori-san and Gen-san who were busy handling their respective work.
Then, it was my turn to serve bowls, take orders and so on to fulfil my responsibility as an employee.
That night's work ended quickly; maybe it was because my mind was miles away, thinking about something.
My stomach was already filled, and usually I would go straight home, but for some reason my feet walked me through the crowded district instead.
There was no reason behind it, it's just that, I wanted to feel what the night atmosphere in the city was like.
Even though several days had passed, I filled my time only with campus and part-time work. This was a good opportunity to unwind from the busy world and try to have some fun.
‘Damn, it's full of people even at this hour.’
The deeper I went in, the crowd was getting denser, most of them were office workers walking wobbly after chugging a lot of beer.
There were also some youngsters, like guys my age, who were bothering a call girl standing on the side of the road. Not just one, I saw several girls standing on the roadside, their eyes fixed on the glowing phone screens in their hands.
However, none of them attracted my interest to do it.
‘Huff, what’s wrong with me?’
After seeing the looks of Rena and Rika, somehow my taste became a bit higher than usual, considering that I can manipulate the opponent's mind and make them a doll to satisfy my lust.
I exhaled in disappointment, planning to go back home while unable to help but curse.
‘Tch, I've been walking by since earlier, why hasn't anyone tried to bother me.’
Not because I want to be bothered by other men, but at least, I could use that excuse to suck their life essence and harvest a lot of BP.
‘Oh yeah, I haven't looked at my points these past few days.’
Right when I was about to call up my status, my gaze was distracted by an adult woman walking across the street. My eyes instantly widened, seeing someone I knew walking alone.
‘Kanazawa-sensei?’
My body tensed when the woman was stopped by a middle-aged man with a bulging stomach, making me scream in my heart.
‘Crap, that fat old man is going to NTR me!’
I glanced at the main road, seeing that the street was quite empty. And without further ado, I crossed that street, attracting the attention of many people.
When that fat man was about to reach out his hand, I shouted.
“Kanazawa-sensei, what are you doing here?”
The perverted man and Sensei turned to me, both widened their eyes before the man stepped back with cold sweat on his forehead.
“Are~re~, Kanzaki?”
Her slurred voice called my name. Kanazawa-sensei's usually calm face, now turned into mush, with a pink blush covering her cheeks to her ears.
As I got closer, I furrowed my brows after catching the scent of alcohol from her heavy breath.
“Sensei, can you go home alone?”
The woman looked at me with narrowed eyes and said while giggling.
“Go home? Why should I go home, the night has just begun, hehe.”
‘Ah, this is bad.’
I stood beside her, putting her arm around my neck to make it easier for me to escort her.
“First of all we have to get out of here, and-!”
Before I could finish, my view was suddenly blocked by the appearance of a purple panel that popped up with a mission after such a long time.
[Quest Mission]
Detail: Comfort Kanazawa Iroha!
...