Tokyo Ravens

Chapter 22

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A building covered the horizon and the sun gradually sank on the other side.

In a corner of Shinjuku Kabukicho[1], a small alley was sealed off with magic so that no normal pedestrian came through it. The orange sun dyed the surrounding scene, making one unable to help but feel a mistaken sense of slowing time.

The brief period when day and night switched, Omagatoki.

"......Begin."

A man silently listened to the brief command that came from his headset. A large van was stopped by the sealed-off alley and the man sat in the innermost seat of the van, stretching his feet down the narrow aisle and lying listlessly across the seat back.

This man could be described with one word, which was "inauspicious".

He was of a young age, about twenty years old. His body was thin and gave off a proud air as if he had been carved out with a knife. He had a head of short hair dyed silver, and his ears were pierced with many earrings.

A fur jacket was complemented by jeans, and sungla.s.ses whose lenses were plated with silver film obscured the expression on his face. His wildly arrogant, mocking smile looked as if it had been carved into his lips like an old scar, and the "X" scar on his forehead made onlookers shudder even further.

He was an independent exorcist - Kagami Reiji of the Twelve Divine Generals.

Kagami crossed his arms, sitting in the seat and focused on listening to the message that came from his headset. A sharp gaze shot from the eyes underneath his sungla.s.ses, pa.s.sing through the tinted car window and staring intently at the office building it faced.

Using his spirit-seeing ability, Kagami "saw" the aura of at least several people enter the third floor, fourth floor, and fifth floor. These people possessed a strange, abnormally strong aura. The people in the building who noticed that there were threats "invading" from the outside - they also possessed strong auras - hastily counterattacked.

Magical energy spilled forth, forming one magic after another, attack and counterattack. Magic constantly connected and traded.

A magical battle.

There was a group of pract.i.tioners battling in the building across him.

Not long afterwards, the sound of shattering gla.s.s, things falling to the ground, screams, angry roars, and the sound of incantations being chanted even reached outside the building. The opponents were resisting stubbornly, and the reports that came to his headset became more and more agitated.

But-- "......We didn"t get anything." Kagami muttered, snorting with his nose.

"Uh...... Reiji? Are we not going? If we don"t go soon, the action will be over." A trepid voice sounded to confirm, politely urging Kagami on.

Other than Kagami, there was also one other person left in the van. That person sat in the seat one row in front of Kagami, looking up at the building unblinkingly, his face almost pasted to the car window.

That person was a thin, slender young man, his long hair tied behind his neck, with a delicate appearance that looked like a beautiful girl"s at first. However, he gave off a childish air from his body, looking like a simple-natured, weak boy.

The young man sat uneasily in the narrow seat, his hands holding a thin package to his chest. It was a sword bag used to hold a katana.

"Hey, Reiji." He turned his head to look at Kagami behind him, continuing to call out. "Are you not going? Then should I go myself?"

His voice was high-pitched, his tone like a child begging his parents to let him go out and play. Though he had requested patiently, Kagami didn"t heed him at all. When he tactlessly urged him again, Kagami silently bended his extended leg, then forcefully kicked at the young man"s seat from behind with a bang.

The young man shrank back in fright, momentarily becoming downhearted and looking across the seat at Kagami with a gaze that seemed bored.

The inside of the van sank into silence again. The noise coming from outside the van - from the building that had become a battlefield - became even clearer. The young man moved his gaze to outside the window again.

The magic battle in the building still continued, but it seemed to be decided. Judging from the reactions, the group of people in the building who had originally been firmly resisting were clearly having a harder and harder time facing the challenge.

Not long afterwards, the driver"s side door of the van opened.

A suit-wearing young man walked into the van. He sat in the driver"s seat, shut the door, and turned his gaze to the mirror that reflected Kagami behind him.

"It"s over. Our side has no casualties, and no one on the other side was killed, but......" The young man reported with a calm tone, a wry smile flitting across his lips. "We specially troubled an Independent Officer with coming here, but it ended up being a waste. The incident this time has nothing to do with the "D" file."

The young man reporting on the current situation to Kagami was named Hirata Atsune. He was affiliated with the Magic Crime Investigation Department of the Onmyou Agency Public Safety Division - the Mystical Investigators.

Last month, a Twin-Horned Syndicate member had brought about spiritual disaster terrorist attacks at various locations in the city. The Mystical Investigators had received information about remnants of that group two days ago, and Hirata, who was responsible for investigating the Twin-Horned Syndicate, had immediately conducted a secret investigation, confirming the authenticity of the intelligence, finding the hiding place of those people, and planning this raid.

During the plan this time, they had been worried the most about a certain Onmyouji who had been proved related to the whole incident of the previous terrorist attacks - and who had ended up appearing at the end of the sequence of events known in the magic community as the "Hinamatsuri Repurification".

A mysterious Onmyouji that the Mystical Investigators called "D" for the moment.

The existence of the Onmyouji "D" had long since been confirmed before, but his true ident.i.ty had always been a mystery. Though they had received information many times that he called himself "Ashiya Doman", unfortunately the truth behind that information could not be verified. All that they knew as true was that "D" was indeed an Onmyouji with quite a strong power and that he was often close to the Twin-Horned Syndicate.

The Mystical Investigators viewed "D" as a high-danger individual, and had been tracing him and investigating for many years. Since "D" had been exceptionally active recently, the Mystical Investigators had specially requested the a.s.sistance of an Independent Exorcist from the Exorcist Bureau as a safeguard against "D" intervening with this raid. The Exorcist Bureau agreed to this request, sending Kagami to join the attack operation.

In the end, "D" hadn"t intervened in the operation this time. The Mystical Investigators had originally judged that the probability wasn"t high, but it hadn"t been out of their expectations.

"Sorry for troubling you with coming here, but thanks to your help, the operation succeeded smoothly. Let me express sincere grat.i.tude on behalf of the Mystical Investigators."

Hirata thanked Kagami, who sat behind him, his voice serious and his gaze not leaving the rearview mirror.

His honest, sincere appearance wasn"t like an Onmyouji, more like a priest or even pastor. However, the eyes reflected in the rearview mirror were sharp, showing a firm will. A red streak of hair was mixed in with his neat, tidy bangs, extremely eye-catching.

However, Kagami seemed not to pay any heed at all to Hirata. He stayed silent, no change in expression visible on his sungla.s.ses-wearing face. The two of them kept quiet, but the young man carrying the sword bag timidly glanced back and forth between the two.

A light, wry smile appeared on Hirata"s face again.

"Chief Amami had something to tell me. He hoped you would also come meet him."

Kagami finally clicked his tongue with a "Tch" upon hearing those words.

When he had first entered the Onmyou Agency, Kagami had belonged to the Mystical Investigators for a while, so the Mystical Investigator Chief Amami Daizen counted as his past boss.

Kagami bent his body, standing up from the seat.

"I"m leaving if you have nothing else."

"Please let me send you there."

"I don"t need it."

He spoke brusquely, moving to the door and pulling open the sliding door. Hirata finally said the words: "Thanks for your work", but Kagami didn"t even look at him, exiting the van.

The young man carrying the sword bag hastily followed him off the van, glancing back at Hirata, but left the area with Kagami without saying anything at all in the end.

The opened sliding door slowly slid and closed by itself.

Hirata quietly reached his hand out to the rearview mirror, adjusting the angle and watching Kagami"s back in the mirror as he left.

He stayed silent, thinking, his gaze staying intently on the mirror.

★

Kagami walked through the evening Kabukicho.

The pedestrians who pa.s.sed by him didn"t dare come close, keeping as far from him as possible. Even if they didn"t know he was a pract.i.tioner, they could still feel the inauspicious air he carried. Even if they were interested, they felt scared just by looking at him.

The young man who had been in the same van as Kagami followed behind him. There were about five or six strides of distance between the two.

When the two of them stood like this, it could be seen that the young man was even taller than Kagami. Because his body type was slender, he looked like a stalk of bamboo, and actually he was one hundred and ninety centimeters tall with quite a slim frame.

But his shoulders drooped and his back was hunched, so his presence was far less strong than Kagami who walked in front of him. Moreover, compared to Kagami who was dressed eye-catchingly, he just wore jeans and a shirt that could be seen anywhere. He carefully held the sword bag the whole way.

He stared at Kagami"s back as if he were doing so to show his irritation, complaining: "......Hey, Reiji. How did things become different from what was said at first?" His tone sounded unhappy. "I haven"t had an opportunity to do anything in a long time...... You don"t need me at all for that kind of situation......"

"Really, I was happy for no point. Reiji, you"ve changed a lot since you got that "X" carved on."

"Ahh, it"s so stupid, I"m so disappointed."

The young man chattered, complaining continuously. Though he lowered his voice, it wasn"t so low that it didn"t reach Kagami"s ears, but Kagami didn"t have any intention of turning around at all.

Hence, the young man complained more and more vigorously, bluntly criticizing Kagami"s behavior, like "Reiji"s so cold", "Reiji"s so mean", getting carried away with venting the dissatisfaction that was normally pushed inside him. The expression on his face became more and more confident.

"Also, you"re too arrogant--"

"...Shaver."

Upon suddenly hearing his own name, the young man - Shaver - hastily stopped. Glancing forward, he saw that Kagami, who walked ahead of him, had also stopped and turned around, looking back.

Kagami stuck his right hand in his pocket, curling his forefinger to call Shaver up. Shaver"s face lit up, like a puppy being called to its owner"s side, and hurried over--

And was. .h.i.t.

Kagami casually swung his fist. Shaver held his beaten head, trembling on the ground in a kneel and unable to even cry out. Kagami drew back his right hand, putting it in his pocket, then raised his right foot, kicking at Shaver"s head with the sole of his engineer boots and sending him flying out.

The pedestrians pa.s.sing by were all shocked, looking at the two. Shaver - still tightly holding to the sword bag - let out pitiful, sad cries, tumbling on the cement.

"Th, That"s too much! What are you doing, Reiji!"

"......"Sama"."

"What? What are you saying-- Ah! N, No more! P, Please don"t kick me! Let me go, Reiji. P, Please don"t kick me, I"m begging you, Reiji-"sama"!"

Shaver pleaded bitterly and tearfully, and Kagami finally stopped, silently turning around and striding away. Shaver moaned quietly, but finally stood up while feeling his nose, chasing after Kagami.

The pedestrians watched the pair leave, stunned. Not a single one of them had noticed that when Shaver had been hit, his body - his contour - had immediately distorted and interference had shot through his body. Of course, no one there probably knew that it was a phenomenon called "lag".

Shaver hastily caught up to Kagami, walking forward behind him again.

The distance between the two was even closer than just before. Shaver stared tearfully at Kagami, grumbling resentfully.

"......Hey, Reiji......sama? Could you have forgotten that you wear a lot of rings as hard as rocks on your hands? Honestly, those rings are weapons, they"re like bra.s.s knuckles. If you hit someone else with that, he might have already died from it."

"You can"t die anyway."

"No no no! That"s not the problem! I"m warning you, don"t randomly make deadly attacks!"

"There would be no problem if you obediently shut up and didn"t say anything stupid."

Reiji spoke extremely coldly. Shaver frowned, glaring indignantly at his back.

Then, as if having a flash of epiphany, Shaver asked: "Could it be that you"re actually very annoyed because that "D" person didn"t appear?" He had obviously not learned a lesson at all from being beaten just now.

Like always, Kagami didn"t respond immediately, but he didn"t ignore it.

"Hmph." He laughed coldly. "I already knew that person wouldn"t appear. Though I"m not sure what drives him, at least the place just now didn"t have that kind of "atmosphere"."

"Atmosphere?"

"......My intuition tells me. For example, last time...... After dealing with the Nue, several people who should be interesting bait gathered in "that place"." Kagami spoke coldly, as if he were talking to himself rather than explaining to Shaver. "Anyway...... Even if that person appears, it"ll just be a fight...... But it"s better for me if he hides behind the scenes for now."

"Why?"

"The hounds are eaten after the hares are killed[2] - that"s plausible. Moreover, the opponent is a wild beast, not a hare, so there was no choice but to loosen the collar on this mad dog."

"......I don"t understand at all, what exactly are you saying?"

"I"m talking about you."

"Me?"

Shaver asked back, his eyes widening blankly. Kagami looked over his shoulder, staring at Shaver - the shikigami he used - and showed a grin.

By the fact that Kagami had received permission to summon Shaver, it was evident how seriously the Mystical Investigators - along with the Onmyou Agency higher-ups who had accepted the Mystical Investigators" requests - viewed the existence of "D". Hence, they had especially lifted the ban - though they had added limitations - and permitted him to use the shikigami as a method of opposing "D".

The most important factor for such a change was that during the ending of the spiritual disaster attack last month, Kagami and Independent Exorcist Kogure Zenjirou had crossed paths with "D". The two Divine Generals had verified "D"s existence first-hand, and they had expressed that the opponent"s strength wasn"t something to look down upon. This forced the Onmyou Agency to take urgent and definite countermeasures, and though they understood the risks, they could only allow Kagami to use Shaver as a last resort.

"......So, we don"t need to put all our effort into hunting these wild beasts. Rather, we should take this opportunity to increase our "bargaining power"."

"Bargaining power?"

"Increasing the cards in our hand...... Right, I still should properly retaliate against that tricky b.a.s.t.a.r.d of a teacher." He spoke quietly, killing intent as sharp as a blade spilling from the eyes under the sungla.s.ses.

When Kagami and Kogure had happened across "D", there actually had also been another Divine General present. That person was a former Mystical Investigator - so a past work senior to Kagami - an Onmyouji named Ohtomo Jin. At the time, Ohtomo had placed a "curse" on him to limit Kagami"s actions.

After that, Kagami had done a complete investigation, checking that the "curse" Ohtomo placed was just second-cla.s.s magic - also known as a "lie".

Kagami had noticed from the start that Ohtomo"s curse was probably nonsense, but Kagami knew extremely well what kind of person Ohtomo was, so he couldn"t a.s.sert that the curse was one hundred percent lie. Hence, even if he believed there ninety-nine percent of it was harmless, he could only back off.

Simply put, Kagami had been played. They had bet their lives and carried out a trick involving life and death. Since Ohtomo had gotten the best of him, Kagami naturally refused to let it rest and obediently admit defeat. Moreover - "......It shouldn"t be only "D" who wants to taste that bait......" He thought of the people from back then - the Onmyou Academy students Ohtomo had tried to protect.

Tsuchimikado Natsume.

Tsuchimikado Harutora.

Ato Touji.

Not only had the first two been born in the famous Tsuchimikado family, the main family successor Tsuchimikado Natsume was rumored to be the reincarnation of the great Onmyouji Tsuchimikado Yakou, the ancestor of modern magic and the culprit who caused a calamity of spiritual disasters. Actually, Yakou fanatics were suspected of having tried to find and directly contact him two or three times.

The other person, Ato Touji, was a living spirit with a demon housed in his body, and that demon was very possibly the descended "something" that the prime suspect Dairenji Shidou had used himself as a vessel for during the spiritual disaster terrorist attack - the "Great Hinamatsuri Purification". The demon was sealed now, and the person who had done the seal was another Tsuchimikado, the father of Tsuchimikado Harutora.

Most interesting of all, he heard that even the "Child Prodigy" of the Twelve Divine Generals had entered the Onmyou Academy to study this spring. Her name was Dairenji Suzuka, the daughter of Dairenji Shidou who had made Ato Touji become a living spirit. The more he thought, the more he felt that fate was quite fickle.

After inquiring, he had learned that the "Child Prodigy" entering the Onmyou Academy was the will of the Onmyou Agency higher-ups as punishment for the incident she led to last year.

With that, a new question emerged. The "Child Prodigy" Dairenji Suzuka had originally specialized in researching "Imperial Onmyoudou", and the Imperial-style was founded by Tsuchimikado Yakou, the foundational magic system of modern Onmyoudou. Even the incident she had led to was based on that research - in other words, it was an incident "related to Yakou".

Since there was such a connection, why had the higher-ups decided to have her enter the Onmyou Academy where Natsume, rumored to be "Yakou"s reincarnation", was? It was said to be a simple punishment, but it was actually to bring about the next incident - preparing the stage to let her research further.

"......But to be honest, Dairenji Shidou also belonged to the Twin-Horned Syndicate - fanatics who worshipped Yakou."

Dairenji Shidou was the one who had brought about the first spiritual disaster terrorist attack, causing the Yakou fanatics to be notorious culprits in the magic community. Why had the Onmyou Agency let the daughter of such a man research Imperial Onmyoudou? Even if she wasn"t allowed to stand on the frontline and had to do research work behind the scenes because she was a minor, it was still hard to understand why she was permitted to carry out research related to Tsuchimikado Yakou.

"......It"s too suspicious."

Now, these people bore a burden that even they didn"t know about. It was as if people expected that they would produce some kind of change by b.u.mping into each other.

Most importantly, Ohtomo - a previous Divine General - had taken up teaching on this stage and become a teacher after resigning from Onmyou Agency work.

The Onmyou Academy.

Right now, that place had become the place most interesting to Kagami. He believed that that was true for "D" and the Onmyou Agency as well. Anyone in the "industry" who was well-informed and who had keen senses would definitely treat the Onmyou Academy as an object of high interest.

Kagami continued to ponder. The cunning brain behind his proud expression was making various a.s.sumptions and continuing to scrutinize.

Shaver, who had long since been ignored, looked at his master from the side, and quietly said: "......Reiji looks really happy."

After saying that, he smiled. The fear, anxiety, weakness, and gloominess from before were no longer visible in the smile. It was as if one could glimpse a deep, bottomless darkness underneath his pretty appearance. That was what kind of smile he revealed.

Shaver was Kagami"s shikigami, and Kagami used this shikigami like a slave. However, no one forced Shaver. He had made this decision himself, agreeing himself to become Kagami"s shikigami.

He had seen what kind of a man Kagami was and decided that only he was suitable to be his master.

As they walked, Shaver"s eyes suddenly widened and he hastily turned around, looking at a building in the distance across the street like a dog hearing an extraordinarily high sound that humans couldn"t hear.

Kagami"s body also shuddered a step slower than Shaver, reacting. He looked in the same direction as his shikigami, narrowing his keen eyes from underneath the sungla.s.ses.

"......A spiritual disaster...... It looks like its phase is pretty high."

He couldn"t see the complete picture because the building blocked it, but he could still see the distorted aura low to the ground in the distance, signs that it was about to transform into miasma.

There was a spiritual disaster happening in the distance. It looked like it had already developed into a phase two. Its location was also quite tricky, right on top of an aura flow. After ninety more minutes - or maybe it wouldn"t even need that much time - the spiritual disaster would soon enter phase three.

"It"s here again...... this chaotic world."

Since the spiritual disaster terrorist attack last month, the aura flow inside Tokyo had been disturbed, and the rate of spiritual disaster occurrences had accelerated. Presently, a phase two spiritual disaster was no longer unusual, and even phase threes - mobile spiritual disasters - emerged one after another.

While Kagami coldly looked at the spiritual disaster in the distance, Shaver"s reaction was completely different from his.

"Reiji."

His thin shoulders rose excitedly, and the eyes that stared at his master showed expectation and eagerness. However, Kagami just hmphed, not caring about him.

"Who cares about a spiritual disaster, the agency hasn"t given orders yet either."

Work time had long since ended, and today he had even gone to a.s.sist by request of the Mystical Investigators. He had already reported before leaving, and had directly left work after the incident was resolved. Even if the spiritual disaster had happened closer, he had no obligation to go purify it.

"Let"s go." Kagami spoke coldly and was about to stride away, when-- "......Reiji." Shaver called out to him again, something about his voice seeming to sound a bit wrong. Kagami"s legs stiffened and he quickly checked his shikigami"s appearance, noticing that Shaver was standing still with his head lowered, his shoulders constantly shaking. The arms that held the sword bag were constantly shuddering, the atmosphere clearly different from before.

He mumbled with an empty expression: "......Why are things different from what you said at the start? Weren"t you the one who called for me to come? But why, why do I have to suffer? I don"t get it. I stay with you because you need me. If you don"t need me...... Why do you call for me?" His spasm extended to his entire body as if he were desperately suppressing muscles that were trying to move by themselves. His empty and stiff expression seemed like that of a drug addict.

He slowly raised his head.

"......That can"t be, right, Reiji? I"m your shikigami...... You"re my master......"

The shikigami"s eyes stared directly at Kagami, his gaze filled with a strange sense of "hunger". Kagami faced his shikigami"s gaze head-on, just like when he had faced Ohtomo, letting out a cold laugh from the bottom of his heart as if he were playing with death.

"......That"s true." He looked back at Shaver, replying readily, a savage, b.e.s.t.i.a.l smile emerging on his lips.

"Alright, let"s go. It"s been a long time since I"ve tried your "sharpness"."

Towards the evening, the stately tip of Mount Fuji appeared between the dim sky and the earth. The glow of the sunset was reflected in the lake, which unwittingly became tinted deep blue.

The first day of the practical skills training camp curriculum ended and the students returned to the auditorium where they were staying.

Dinner was Yamanashi local cuisine, houtou. It was a kind of thick soup where udon noodles, squash, and other vegetables were boiled with miso. It had a unique sticky feeling and tasted simple and delicious. But what moved them the most was the fact that they could eat without having to work themselves. The day of training had long since exhausted them, and if they had to control shikigami again at this time to prepare dinner for themselves, there might not be very many people who would be able to have a meal.

The camping atmosphere of the Onmyou Academy practical skills training camp had kicked off ever since they had made curry in the beginning, and the contents of the curriculum were as difficult as rumored. The subject of the coursework wasn"t to use magic of a high difficulty, but rather to perform complete basic training.

For example, correctly reciting an incantation one hundred times, or releasing their strongest magical energy at first and then controlling it, gradually releasing all of the magical energy in a controlled state. They went through iterated, boring, and difficult trainings one after another.

The curriculum paid particular importance to magical energy transformation. The amount, the distribution, and the time were finely regulated to the point where even the effects of one"s breathing and movements were controlled. Though the process of transforming magical energy was just a moment, any subtle condition could affect the outcome. The imagination was especially important for this, and hence the teacher in charge emphasized the importance of understanding what kind of structure the magic being used had.

There was also traditional training like letting a waterfall pour onto their bodies, exercising their spirit, and chanting incantations on an altar. These contents were more like special training than cla.s.s - like "exercise". After the whole day of cla.s.s, never mind cooking dinner, there were quite a few people who couldn"t even swallow their food.

"......I really underestimated the camp. I didn"t think it would be this tiring......"

"Yeah...... I"m already out of energy."

Harutora lay spread-eagled on the tatami in his room after eating dinner in the dining area.

There was a time set for bathing after eating. The students could essentially do whatever they wanted before sleeping, but even in this rare trip outside, not only was he not in the mood to have fun, the other students were just as quiet and deathly tired.

Natsume sat next to Harutora. She exhaled.

Natsume had the highest power in the grade, but even she also believed that the training camp curriculum was more difficult than she had imagined. But compared to the other students, she looked comparatively at ease, and since she had taken magic-related training since she was small, she seemed adept at the contents of this curriculum.

There was actually also another reason why she could be this "at ease".

"......But how should I put it, it"s fortunate that girl Suzuka didn"t have the energy in the afternoon to come over and make trouble. That"s the only reason we were able to have a peaceful afternoon......" Harutora smiled wryly, speaking quietly. Natsume also inadvertently smiled upon hearing those words, saying: "Yeah."

The practical skills training camp wasn"t originally planned for the first-years, but she had specifically come from Tokyo to partic.i.p.ate in the camp. They had long since prepared themselves, thinking she would misbehave, but in the end she hadn"t done anything at all, so they were also happily relaxed.

"Even though she"s amazing, it"s still tough for her to follow the curriculum."

"Yeah...... Even though she"s a National First-Cla.s.s Onmyouji, she"s still younger than us, and today"s curriculum was a test of stamina as well as mentally stressful."

Suzuka hadn"t come to bother the two of them during training or dinner. Judging from that, maybe the situation was as Natsume said and she was deathly tired as well. She would probably sleep in the girl"s rooms tonight, so she probably wouldn"t bother Harutora and Natsume again tonight.

"All that"s left is to bathe and sleep...... Ah! Natsume, how are you going to bathe......" Harutora suddenly thought of that matter, bending his body and casting an inquisitive gaze at Natsume.

Natsume and Harutora were both living in the male dorm, and normally she always showered by sneakily using single shower stalls. Though this auditorium was completely furnished in the accommodations aspect, the bathing furnishings were unfortunately only large bathhouses separated by gender.

Natsume laughed embarra.s.sedly upon hearing Harutora"s question, carefully keeping the other students from hearing what she said.

"......I brought the simple shikigami from before."

"The one from before...... You mean the body double shikigami?[3]"

"Yeah, but there"s actually no reason to risk using the shikigami. I"ll just not bathe today."

"I, I guess, that"s much safer."

Natsume actually very much wanted to wash the sweat off her body, but she was a girl posing as a guy, so she couldn"t risk that kind of danger.

"Anyway, it"s just a day, it"ll be over if I just endure a little."

Natsume held her knees with her hands, smiling slightly at Harutora who lay on the floor. Harutora stammered a reply: "Yeah......"

Since he had long since gotten used to it in his daily life, when he happened across this kind of moment outside the dorms, it reminded him of the various inconveniences of Natsume"s life and made him sympathize for her misfortune. He believed that Natsume had definitely encountered quite a bit of "trouble" in places he hadn"t noticed as well.

Just as Harutora thought of these things, Touji walked into the room.

"Harutora, Natsume, come here for a bit--" He called out to Harutora and Natsume once he saw the two, disappearing into the corridor ahead of them. Harutora and Natsume looked at each other cluelessly. Anyway, there was still a bit of time until bathtime, so the two of them stood up in unison, leaving the room and chasing after Touji.

"What is it, Touji?"

"I have something to talk to you about."

"Something to talk about? Ah, could it be your new seal?"

"That"s included, of course...... Come with me first."

Touji casually replied to Harutora and Natsume, quickly advancing along the corridor. The fatigue and exhaustion of the day"s camp couldn"t be felt from his walking speed at all.

Touji walked straight out of the auditorium, bringing Harutora and Natsume through the courtyard and walking behind the auditorium.

There was a mixed forest behind the auditorium. It was dark everywhere, and they could only see the ground underneath their feet by the faint illumination of the moonlight and the light spilling from the auditorium. The sun was behind the mountains, the air had also become cold, and only the gra.s.s exuded the heat that it had absorbed during the day. The noise from the auditorium gradually became distant, and what sounded like the hoots of owls came from the mountain behind the shrine.

After they walked towards the forest a little more, there was a warehouse surrounded by white walls on all sides. Harutora and Natsume were brought next to the warehouse.

They had originally thought that the three of them were secretly talking, but......

"That"s weird? Kyouko, Tenma...... A-and Suzuka are here too?"

Kyouko, Tenma, and Suzuka had already gathered by the warehouse. Kyouko and Tenma seemed to be the same as Harutora, having been called here inexplicably. They looked at Touji in confusion as if requesting an explanation from him. On the other hand, Suzuka sat together with Kyouko and the others but didn"t take the same att.i.tude as always or pretend that she was a female idol. She leaned on the white warehouse wall, staring at Touji with a cold gaze.

"......Why is everyone gathered here?" Harutora couldn"t help but question Touji, who seemed to have called everyone here.

"These are the people we"re with the most normally. I want to take this opportunity to organize the information that everyone here knows." Touji shrugged his shoulders, then looked at Kyouko and Tenma. "Let me check again. Kyouko, Tenma, there"s nothing good about getting involved with this matter. Even so, are you sure you want to join?"

Touji asked calmly, his tone like always. Kyouko and Tenma didn"t panic upon hearing him speak up to confirm, but Harutora and Natsume were fl.u.s.tered.

"T, Touji?" Natsume quietly warned him, but Touji lightly waved his hand as a reply, seemingly wanting Natsume to relax and let him deal with things.

Kyouko and Tenma glanced at each other, nodding towards Touji.

"......This is related to Natsume-kun too, right? Also, it"s a bit insensitive to ask that kind of question now, you should hurry up and get to the main topic instead."

"What Kurahashi-san says is right. Though I don"t know what kind of matter it is...... I"ll agree to it, whatever request it is."

The two of them were clearly a bit tense, but they didn"t show a sliver of hesitation. "You guys are really a big help." Touji grinned, sincerely thanking them from the bottom of his heart.

Finally, he confirmed with Suzuka: "......Dairenji, what about you? Alright?"

"Come on, isn"t it annoying to keep asking over and over." Suzuka dropped those words coldly and coa.r.s.ely.

Kyouko and Tenma were taken aback, turning to look at Suzuka, but she didn"t care at all. Even Harutora and Natsume were dumbfounded at Suzuka"s sudden change.

"......Touji? What exactly is going on?"

Harutora couldn"t resist from asking. "......Hmm." But Touji still seemed to be hesitant over where to start.

"Okay, I"ll get straight to the point and make everything clear. First off - since we managed to gather everyone here, I"ll first let you see my gorgeous transformation."

"Transformation?" Harutora, Natsume, Kyouko, and Tenma said curiously in unison.

In front of everyone"s astonished gazes, Touji calmly - and seemingly happily - took the bandanna off his forehead.

★

They had quite a few matters to get in order. Even among the things that everyone "ought to" know, they still needed to confirm each other"s acknowledgement and understanding.

One example was the rumor that Natsume was Yakou"s reincarnation. Kyouko and Tenma had always avoided touching upon that topic, but now that became unnecessary concern.

Each person supplemented their own descriptions and clarified the sequence of events for other things like the fact that Natsume was being eyed by Yakou fanatics and the spiritual disaster terrorist attack that had happened two months ago. They looked over the incidents that had happened.

Once the name Ashiya Doman was mentioned, even Kyouko and Tenma couldn"t help but laugh, not taking it as real. Suzuka then explained the case that the Mystical Investigators had designated "D", and their faces changed after listening, their expressions becoming even graver than before.

Kyouko and Tenma who weren"t clear on Suzuka"s true nature were extremely surprised at the contents of the conversation. Suzuka"s demeanor shocked them greatly. They would jump every time Suzuka said something a bit coa.r.s.ely, as if they had touched a hot potato, unable to decide what kind of att.i.tude they should use to deal with her.

Suzuka didn"t take note of the pair"s reactions, continuing to speak with a cold att.i.tude.

"Everyone takes the Yakou fanatics to be the same group of people, but actually not all of them are so extreme. Also, there are quite a few pract.i.tioners who revere and worship Yakou. Actually, before the spiritual disaster terrorist attack two years ago happened, there were quite a few pract.i.tioners who publicly affirmed Yakou"s achievements."

Most people generally considered Yakou to be the root cause leading to Tokyo"s plague of spiritual disasters - "most people" here meaning people who had more or less some magic-related knowledge - and hence they all made Yakou out to be a scourge.

But, at the same time, Yakou was a genius Onmyouji, and he had laid the foundations for the General Onmyoudou which represented modern magic. In the eyes of those who aspired to learn Onmyoudou, he was undoubtedly a great man who had left behind a legacy.

"Two years ago, since a section of Yakou fanatics set up a spiritual disaster terrorist attack, people who blindly worshipped and revered Yakou were labeled dangerous. The "Yakou fanatics" that you talk about refer to those people. The prime suspect of the terrorist attack that happened back then - called the "Great Hinamatsuri Purification" in the industry - was a National First-Cla.s.s Onmyouji at the time, a man named Dairenji Shidou."

"He was also my father." Suzuka said casually. Other than Touji, the other four people stared unmovingly at Suzuka, unable to speak for a long while.

Touji continued Suzuka"s words, explaining about the demon living in his body that everyone had seen just now and how it was derived from the mobile spiritual disaster Dairenji Shidou had used himself as a core for. The four of them had originally known Touji had been involved in a spiritual disaster and had become a living spirit, but it was their first time hearing the details.

"The extremist portion of the Yakou fanatics are suspected to have formed an underground organization. They are also the ones who carried out the terrorist attack. I heard that Suzuka"s father was also a member of the organization, and the ones who have come out to hara.s.s Natsume two or three times are probably also from the same group."

"An underground organization?" Harutora scratched his head in incomprehension upon hearing Touji"s explanation.

"Does that kind of thing that seems like it would appear in a manga really exist?"

"Yes, it"s called the Twin-Horned Syndicate."

"Also--" Suzuka opened her mouth again. ""D", who we talked about just now, is believed to be colluding with the Twin-Horned Syndicate. Maybe that"s related to why he appeared before you all."

"......That means Ashiya Doman is also in the Twin-Horned Syndicate?"

"I"m not sure, there"s no evidence that he joined the Twin-Horned Syndicate...... Actually, the Mystical Investigators probably haven"t gotten ahold of definite evidence about whether he"s even the real Ashiya Doman."

Harutora couldn"t help but clench his teeth upon hearing Suzuka"s remark. Kyouko, Tenma, and even Natsume kept silent, their faces serious.

They talked like this for a long time, the mystery still not solved. Rather, it became even more apparent how difficult and how complex the problem before them was. But even so, it was better than not knowing anything. None of them were willing to flee from reality and regret after the fact.

"That"s all the information we hold right now. Yakou fanatics - the Twin-Horned Syndicate - are eyeing Natsume, and including the "D" whose ident.i.ty is unclear, they will most likely continue to think of ways to come in contact with Natsume from now on. Moreover, it seems like there are members of the Twin-Horned Syndicate mixed into the Onmyou Agency. We don"t know where the enemies are hiding themselves, so we absolutely cannot be negligent. Though I say that, there"s nothing we can do for now...... First, everyone has to recognize the situation." Touji looked at the five of them in turn, making his conclusion.

Suzuka, Harutora, and Natsume"s reactions weren"t as shocked as Kyouko"s and Tenma"s. The stiffening of their expressions could be felt even in the darkness. But, it was hard to blame them for having that kind of reaction.

Touji opened his mouth to speak to them as if he noticed the pair"s change of heart: "Is there anything else you want to know? This is a rare opportunity."

But, it wasn"t one of the two of them who raised a question.

"......Uh...... Dairenji-san."

It was Natsume who asked. Suzuka was leaning against the wall, and upon hearing Natsume call out to her, her body shivered visibly.

"......Please tell me the truth, am I...... am I truly Tsuchimikado Yakou"s reincarnation?" Natsume asked, her expression quite solemn.

"Natsume--!" Harutora couldn"t help but call out, and Kyouko, Tenma - even Touji"s expression changed, and they looked at Natsume--

And then gazed at Suzuka.

Suzuka"s face sank. She cast a knife-sharp gaze towards Natsume.

Time that made them unable to help but hold their breath slowly flowed.

Not long afterwards, Suzuka coldly relaxed herself, narrowing her eyes and admitting: "......I can"t say."

Obviously, Natsume refused to accept such an answer.

"But last year, you......"

"Back then, I believed you were Yakou"s reincarnation, but...... Honestly, I had no choice back then. At the time, I believed that the only way I could achieve my goal was if "you were Yakou"." Suzuka shrugged her shoulders as she spoke.

Suzuka was very proud, and she definitely didn"t want to honestly admit that she had taken action based on optimistic speculation, but she didn"t show her arrogant demeanor at all, not hesitating to admit her past wrongs. That kind of rational att.i.tude made one remember that she originally had the ident.i.ty of a researcher.

"But, right now I still believe you"re Yakou"s reincarnation. Even if I have no way to prove it objectively, I believe that the probability is extremely high - actually, to be honest, since current magic can"t explain the existence of human souls, it"s almost completely impossible to prove something like reincarnation. No matter how hard I work, it can"t escape from being a "hypothesis"."

Then, Suzuka met Natsume"s gaze, her unconcerned expression carrying an ice-cold smile.

"......Honestly, I can"t wait to use various forbidden magic to prove my hypothesis. Unfortunately, my magical energy"s sealed, so I can only look at you helplessly without being able to do anything."

Natsume paled and grit her teeth upon facing Suzuka"s expression like a cat staring at a mouse. However, she didn"t look away, gazing unwaveringly at Suzuka.

"H, Hold on, Natsume-kun, y-you met Dairenji-san before? And what do you mean, your magical energy is sealed?" Natsume didn"t know how to respond for a while upon being asked this by Kyouko.

Just then, maybe believing that the incident last summer was irrelevant to the issue they were currently discussing, Touji agilely took a step forward. "As for that--" He planned on casually finding some excuse to gloss this over.

"It"s alright." Suzuka brusquely interrupted his words, sounding a bit self-deprecating. "I don"t want to have people misunderstanding that you and I have some kind of peculiar relationship. Also, if that incident spreads, it"s the Onmyou Agency higher-ups that"ll get hurt, it doesn"t matter to me."

Then, Suzuka herself explained the truth behind the news-making incident last year to Kyouko and Tenma. Believing that Natsume was Yakou"s reincarnation, she had tried to repeat Yakou"s forbidden magic, and hence she had been punished, a part of her magical energy had been sealed, and she had been forced to enter the Onmyou Academy. Kyouko and Tenma stared blankly upon hearing it, stunned and speechless.

"......So Harutora-kun and Touji-kun transferred in at such a strange time because......"

"Right, it was related to that incident."

Touji confirmed Tenma"s speculation with a pointed tone. If Suzuka hadn"t taken action first, Harutora and Touji might not have been in this kind of place discussing these things with everyone.

Then, Suzuka lifted her bangs again, showing the small "X" on her forehead.

"And this. Who do you think placed this seal?"

"Huh?"

"It was your father, the leader of the Twelve Divine Generals, Kurahashi Genji."

"......!" Kyouko shrank back for a moment, speechless.

Kyouko was from the Kurahashi family, which had been a branch family of the Tsuchimikados in ancient times. In contrast to the Tsuchimikado family, which had rapidly declined after Yakou"s death, the Kurahashi family was now the family with the strongest influence in the magical world. Kyouko"s grandmother held the post of Onmyou Academy Princ.i.p.al, and her father held the posts of the Onmyou Agency Chief and the chief of the Exorcist Bureau.

As for the latter, Kurahashi Genji, who was the current head of the Kurahashi family, he was ent.i.tled the reputation for being the current "most outstanding Onmyouji" in terms of power and character. As Suzuka was a National First-Cla.s.s Onmyouji, he had judged that it was necessary for him to seal her himself, or else Suzuka might remove the seal on her own.

Suzuka put her bangs back down.

"Anyway, the Imperial-style is currently seen as an old system of magic, and magic related to the realm of souls is designated as forbidden magic. It"s very possible that we"ll never know whether Tsuchimikado Natsume is Tsuchimikado Yakou"s reincarnation after all, unless someone breaks the taboo and steps into that territory like me."

Suzuka shrugged her shoulders maliciously and a bit grandiosely. Natsume"s lips stayed pressed together, carefully considering Suzuka"s conclusion.

"......Ah, but, well...... Right, maybe that thing could be useful." Suzuka realized that she had misspoken, hastily correcting herself. "That thing?" Touji keenly pursued the question.

She silently thought for a while. Though it wasn"t clear what kind of ideas were floating through her head, a lonely, self-deprecating smile showed on her face.

"......I really shouldn"t have said that much, but whatever. I specialized in researching Imperial Onmyoudou. People believed that I was the authority on modern Yakou research, but I actually wasn"t the pioneer in that field. Before me, there was another person who researched the Tsuchimikado Yakou who was widely regarded as taboo. That person carried out deep and thorough research in this field, establishing a complete system step by step by himself. When it comes down to it, my research was only completed using that person"s results as a foundation."

"......T, To think that was the case." Natsume spoke, dumbfounded.

Natsume - after all, she was the person who suffered the most from the reincarnation rumors - had read as many books related to Yakou research as she could collect, but this seemed to be her first time hearing that a researcher existed who could shame even Suzuka.

"That"s right." Suzuka admitted readily as if giving up. "That person belonged to the Imperial Household Agency"s Lingering Spirit Division, which has already been dissolved...... He once worked with my father, and his name was practically never made public. I heard he was an extremely able researcher. I"m an insignificant small fry in front of that person."

"Wh, Who is that person?"

"I said, that person"s name wasn"t made public, so how could you know him."

"Even if I don"t know him, maybe there are other people who know him."

"Saotome Ryou."

Harutora observed the others, noticing that, including Natsume, no one had any reaction towards this name. Suzuka showed an expression that said this was within her expectations, casting him a scornful gaze.

Natsume swallowed.

"......That person once belonged to the Imperial Household Agency Lingering Spirit Division, so he was a member of the Twin-Horned Syndicate we just mentioned, right? Where is he now?"

"I don"t know that. I investigated once because I was interested. The Mystical Investigators hold a lot of information on the Lingering Spirit Division, but not even a year after my father was appointed head of the Lingering Spirit Division, that person published several papers and reports and then completely vanished without a trace. I guessed that he might have resigned from the Lingering Spirit Division and taken up different work in another department...... But honestly, that person"s main topic of research was Yakou himself, while I research Imperial Onmyoudou. There really was no reason for me to make a fuss finding his whereabouts."

"......So you mean he wasn"t related with the spiritual disaster terrorist attack two years ago?"

"I can"t say."

Suzuka frowned upon hearing this question out of Touji. She spoke bluntly and without reservation, and since she now had no reason to conceal anything, she probably truly wasn"t clear on the details.

"More relevantly, Saotome Ryou"s theory was quite unique, and in his thesis - actually, more like in the notes that he transcribed - he claimed that one could use the "Raven"s Wing" to judge whether someone was Yakou"s reincarnation."

Natsume gasped upon hearing that remark, the first to react. Kyouko, Tenma, and Touji were also surprised.

"The "Raven"s Wing"...... is it?"

"Right, I"ve heard that that thing chooses its owner by itself. All we know is that it indeed carries aura. General Onmyoudou believes that thing is essentially a black box[4], but the whole thing was just Saotome Ryou"s hypothesis."

Natsume and the others were speechless, quietly listening to Suzuka"s explanation. But, not everyone was like that.

"What? Hey, what kind of thing is that Raven"s Wing?" The other people almost fainted upon hearing Harutora ask that. Suzuka even glared at the ignorant Harutora, showing a violent gaze as if she was prepared to hit him at any time.

Touji sighed, slumping his shoulders and beginning to explain helplessly.

"The "Raven"s Wing" - also named the "Raven"s Coat" - is the coat that Yakou often wore. Its exterior isn"t quite the same as a normal coat, it"s actually a haori[5], right? The miasma protection clothing that exorcists wear imitates the design of the Raven"s Wing, haven"t you seen it in pictures of Yakou?"

"Oh, so that"s what it was!" Only then did Harutora finally understand what they were talking about.

Tsuchimikado Yakou had been an Onmyoudou field officer in the old j.a.panese army, and hence there were many pictures left behind of him wearing his army uniform.

But there were one or two where he could be seen wearing a strange outer coat over his army uniform. It was a pitch-black coat that looked as if it had been woven out of raven feathers. The word "raven" alluded to Onmyouji, but this actually came from the image of Yakou wearing the "Raven"s Wing".

"That thing is being kept by the Onmyou Agency right now...... We should just have Kurahashi go over and get it for us to try, and we"ll know."

Suzuka"s proposal was just sarcasm; she didn"t believe it was an actual possibility. Yakou"s "Raven"s Wing" was in "safekeeping" to put it pleasantly, but actually it was designated as a tool of forbidden magic and was sealed. No matter how sincerely Kyouko begged, the Onmyou Agency wouldn"t agree to lend it to a mere Onmyou Academy student like her.

Natsume"s right hand tightly held her left forearm, her gaze lowered with a serious expression. Harutora looked at his childhood friend out of worry, but he didn"t know what to say.

The area was pervaded by a serious atmosphere. Touji sighed and said: "......Let"s not bother with that right now. Anyway, we"ve attained our goal of spreading information for now, so let"s switch to the next topic."

"Th, The next topic...... Touji-kun, are there other things to discuss?" Tenma couldn"t help but speak up. He had a hard time concealing his physical and mental exhaustion, as the first day of the camp"s curriculum had just ended and he was being kept here. His face sank.

Touji guiltily showed a wry smile to his cla.s.smate"s natural response.

"Actually, I mostly just want to ask Dairenji - please help us out if you can, even if it"s only in emergencies. I said during the day, we don"t have much to repay you with, but... Natsume, would you be willing to help Suzuka with her research, supposing it was a condition to gain Dairenji"s a.s.sistance?"

"Hey, what are you saying, Touji!"

"Don"t b.u.t.t in, Harutora, I"m asking Natsume."

Touji coldly rebuked the discomfited Harutora.

Actually, it was a suitable condition to obtain the help of the "Child Prodigy". Even if her magical energy was limited, there was value in asking for her help just based on the information she had mentioned before.

"Don"t expect it." However, the proposal was mercilessly rejected by Suzuka before Natsume could even speak.

"I said just now, don"t lump me in with you guys. "D" and the Twin-Horned Syndicate have nothing to do with me."

Suzuka glared at Touji who had brought up this proposal - as well as Natsume - and spat abuse, showing a self-deprecating, malicious irony that they had often seen during the discussion on her face.

"Suzuka......" Harutora called out quietly, and Suzuka lightly bit her lip upon noticing his gaze. But, that att.i.tude disappeared in the blink of an eye. She never turned her head, not changing her stubborn att.i.tude.

Touji thoughtfully watched this att.i.tude of Suzuka"s, as if thinking that this matter really was tricky. And it wasn"t just Touji. For some reason, Kyouko revealed a probing gaze, staring at Suzuka"s face with an expression as if she noticed something.

"......H-Harutora-sama..." Just then, a young girl"s voice sounded from nowhere. It was the voice of Harutora"s defensive shikigami, Kon.

The shikigami quietly warned them. Harutora as well as the five other people flinched out of surprise.

Then-- "Ah, found you. What are you guys doing in this kind of place?", "Hi, is this a test of courage?" Cla.s.smates walked out from the auditorium. It seemed like they had come to look for Harutora and the others.

"Wh, What is it? Did something happen?"

"What else could it be, it"s bathtime, of course. The third-years are done bathing...... Our time to bathe is over soon."

"Better thank us. We had to take this trip to tell you to hurry up and go bathe because you weren"t in your room."

Judging from their words, it had become their time to bathe while they had been discussing. Harutora as well as the others seemed to have the same thoughts - believing that this really wasn"t the time to care about bathing, but since his cla.s.smates had come over especially to remind him, they couldn"t just continue discussing.

"Sorry to trouble you guys~ It"s my first time on a camp, I accidentally forgot the time while we were chatting."

Suzuka immediately switched to her friendly facade, beaming at the students who had come to remind them, and then bounded back to the auditorium. Harutora and the others didn"t even have time to stop her.

She didn"t look back, as if believing there was nothing left to talk about, leaving Harutora and the others behind and - though she herself probably would have denied that - fleeing.

Harutora, Touji, Natsume, and Tenma glanced at each other, all helpless.

"......Hmm." Among them, only Kyouko crossed her arms, staring at Suzuka"s back without looking away. She nodded, seeming to have seen some sort of clue.

"......Mount Fuji under the moonlight has quite the otherworldly style."

In the courtyard of the auditorium, Ohtomo moved his chair to a corner with an excellent view, holding a plastic bowl and disposable chopsticks in his hand and eating his late dinner.

He relished in slurping the hot houtou, looking at the moonlit Mount Fuji and Lake Yamanaka in the distance. The tranquil breeze was comfortable and pleasant, his senses which had become increasingly slow in the city being refreshed by the presence of the vast forest behind him. The air was crisp, and Mount Fuji"s tremendous aura refreshed his spirit.

As a teacher, he hadn"t been able to relax for the whole day, but the beautiful scene before him right now was enough to repay his day"s labors. He would have nothing more to ask for if he could have a cup of sake or shochu......

"Ohtomo-sensei." Just then, someone called out from behind him. He turned around with a "Hmm?", still slurping houtou.

Natsume jogged through the courtyard, stopping respectfully next to Ohtomo.

"Sorry to bother you, I"m not feeling too well today, so could I ask whether I could skip the bath today?"

Ohtomo almost couldn"t help but spit the food out from his mouth upon hearing Natsume"s words. He thought that Natsume had been a serious student, but this was almost overly stiff.

He swallowed the noodles in his mouth.

"......Haha, Natsume-kun, don"t be that serious. You don"t need to come to report even this kind of thing to your teachers. Since you"re not feeling well, don"t force yourself and rest properly."

After saying this, Natsume replied back, her att.i.tude a bit overly respectful, but Ohtomo could indeed see that she was being introspective. This student really was incredibly serious. Ohtomo smiled secretly.

But this was a rare opportunity, and it would be uninteresting to just let him go back. "So, Natsume-kun, do you believe you can get along with Suzuka-kun?" Ohtomo turned his body, resting his arm on the back of the chair and asking Natsume a question. He already knew the answer, and as he expected, Natsume"s expression became quite difficult upon hearing this sudden question.

"......Yes...... After all, she"s a National First-Cla.s.s Onmyouji...... I have many things to learn from her."

She stiffly gave a respectful reply. Ohtomo nodded knowingly.

"I said this to Harutora-kun."

"Huh?"

"Suzuka-kun is actually very similar to you."

Natsume inadvertently frowned. It seemed that she had already heard a similar opinion from someone else. Her change in expression made Ohtomo unable to help but chuckle. This reaction was a bit too easy to see through for the dignified heir of a traditional family. Of course, Ohtomo didn"t give away what he thought.

"As for Harutora-kun, I asked him to take care of Suzuka-kun. I can relax, seeing him try so hard. I think you also know that girls of Suzuka-kun"s age are very sensitive. It"s a great help to me to have a tolerant senpai like Harutora-kun looking after her."

Ohtomo spoke casually, scooping up houtou with his chopsticks again. "......Yes." He listened carefully to Natsume"s vague reply, sending the noodles to his mouth and chewing.

"You... Is there anything you"re unhappy about?"

"Huh? N, No, how could I be...... unhappy......" Natsume denied it, but her face clearly showed unhappy emotions.

Ohtomo chewed his houtou noodles.

"Hey, Natsume-kun."

"Yes."

"It would be troublesome if you misunderstood, so I"ll say it clearly now...... You actually don"t need to worry about Suzuka-kun."

"......What?"

Natsume couldn"t conceal her surprise at this sudden matter. Ohtomo deliberately ignored it, smiling slightly.

"Honestly, you"re the only one in the Onmyou Academy right now who can be compared to Suzuka-kun in terms of magical knowledge, power, and position. One of you is a Divine General, and the other is the next heir of the Tsuchimikado family. Suzuka-kun - no, actually, you"re the same. The two of you can only learn from each other, right?"

"S, So that"s what you meant by "worry"......"

"Hmm? What, could it be that you have something else to worry about?"

"N, No, I, that"s not what I meant......!"

Natsume hastily shook her head after Ohtomo casually asked that question. He still pretended to not notice anything, taking up an easygoing appearance.

"Actually, I"m in no position to say this kind of thing. My head was just filled with thinking about skipping cla.s.s when I was your age, so I can"t give students like you and Suzuka-kun any constructive opinions, sorry."

"Don"t say that...... Ah, but......" Natsume didn"t know what to say, hesitating for a moment, thinking of a rare mischievous idea.

"I heard that Sensei was called the "Three Ravens of the Thirty-Sixth" before."

"Pfah."

Ohtomo hadn"t expected that kind of counterattack, spitting out all the soup from his mouth. Natsume saw that her surprise attack had worked, proudly laughing to herself.

Ohtomo wiped his mouth, his face disheveled.

"......That Zenjirou was definitely speaking nonsense everywhere......"

"You get along really well, Kogure-san also called Sensei directly by your name."

"It was terrible fate. Natsume-kun, please choose your friends well, or you"ll regret for a long time."

"So you really are "friends"."

Ohtomo made a face, closing his mouth because it was a rare moment when he had nothing to say. Natsume truly laughed out loud this time.

"So Sensei, can you give me some tips on how to deal with a Divine General?"

"I can"t do that, that person was an idiot when he was studying in the Onmyou Academy...... Uh, I"m actually unqualified to talk about others. The several of us were always gathering together to make trouble. We were really lax, now that I think about it."

Ohtomo shrugged his shoulders as if giving up continuing to act dumb, talking leisurely about his past school days. His att.i.tude wasn"t like a teacher, but intimate enough to make one unable to help but want to call him a senpai.

"Right, since you were the "Three Ravens", that means that t

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