'Why did I think this was a good idea?' I wondered, keeping an eye on Amanai while traversing the rooftop. I paused for a moment and hung from the ledge as I sensed Sorcerers nearby.
'Right, I didn't have anything else to do and—'
"She needs help."
That.
Whether it was due to age or just something I'd never noticed in my younger days, I had once again forgotten to take my medicine—the one that kept the hallucinations at bay.
"They don't seem particularly nice, Ryou."
Sighing, I stayed still, waiting for the Sorcerers—no doubt watching the same target as me—to move so I could pull myself back up.
'Whether they're nice or not—'
"They're on the move. Play nice."
I confirmed Kaede's words as I felt their Cursed Energy begin to drift away. Once I was certain they were far enough, I hoisted myself back onto the roof, rubbed my shoulder and resumed running to get Amanai back in sight.
—
There wasn't anything noteworthy about the schoolgirl.
'Never thought I'd end up stalking a fourteen-year-old.' I thought idly, leaning against a wall as I peered through a window. The girl in question was inside taking notes. She was if anything, just an ordinary girl with extraordinarily bad luck.
'She knows about the hidden side of the world, can't do anything about it and now she's being targeted.'
One thing I should've asked that Sorcerer earlier was why her maid guard was attacking other Sorcerers. But after watching said woman fight Sorcerers who were doing the same thing I was—stalking Amanai—I'd come to a few conclusions.
'A group that doesn't want the girl to merge with this "Tengen" person. But why? Purity? No, that's stupid. They'd have to know she's probably not the first "Vessel" to merge with Tengen... Is something else going on?'
Groaning as my curiosity spiked—and Kaede's voice grew increasingly grating—I considered abandoning all this and grabbing some ramen.
"If they want to stop the merge, they'll h̵͎̃͝a̵̡͑͝v̴̬̿̕ę̵̮̀ ̵͔̰͒́t̵̪̑ö̴̫́ ̵̙̒̂k̴̘̃̓ì̶̡̳͠ļ̴̉l̸̯̟͂͘ ̸̗̟̚h̵̨̞͂e̵͙̭̋͠r̴̙̐͆. No? You can help her..."
Her voice, once sweet, shifted into a distorted male tone causing me to twitch slightly.
"If what I've overheard from passing Sorcerers is true, two kids from that high school will be sent to protect her, Kaede."
The gentle hum she once used to soothe me now came out like nails on a chalkboard.
"Gojo clan..."
I sighed, thinking of that white haired clan from so long ago.
'God I'm old.'
Groaning, I pushed off the wall, glanced down at the alley below and dropped down. I strolled out into the street, reaching for a cigarette—only to find I had none left.
'Annoying.'
"It'll ķ̸͖͂i̸̧͔͒̀l̵̡͓͆ḽ̷̋͘ ̷̓͜y̵̭̏͝ö̶͍͇́̑u̴͉̚r̸̘͛—s̵͍̗̓ē̶̳͐l̵̳͒f̶̜͝!!"
I winced at the sickly whine that scraped across my ears, then sighed and walked toward a nearby shop to grab more cigarettes.
'I'll confirm with my own eyes that those two kids show up before I leave to get my medicine. Nothing should go wrong.'
~Scene Change~
I turned sharply in the dimly lit alleyway, trying to shake off the sources of Cursed Energy before cursing under my breath as I felt them closing in. 'Fuck my shitty luck.'
Biting down on the lit cigarette, I caught sight of a thrown out pool cue dangling from a bin up ahead. Grabbing it as I passed, I spun on my heel, pouring Cursed Energy into the stick before hurling it like a javelin down the alley. It struck just as a Sorcerer dressed in white stepped into view—piercing him straight through the head.
"Juno!"
My heart twisted in my chest as more Sorcerers poured into the alley. One of them, clad in the same white garb, stepped forward and stared directly at me. Without a word, he yanked the now lifeless, Cursed Energy less cue from Juno's head.
"What group are you with, old man!?"
'He's keeping his anger in check.'
I coughed into my hand and dropped into a lower stance, wincing as I saw the blood smeared across my palm.
"I'm with none." I said simply.
Apparently, that wasn't the answer he wanted.
The cue flew past my head with a sharp whizz as the presumed leader roared in fury.
"Don't bullshit me, old man! You just killed six of our men!"
'Ah... I did do that...'
To be fair, they had started it—pointing fingers, flaring their Cursed Energy like idiots, shouting religious nonsense. I had just responded in kind by sending them off to whatever god they believed in.
"Seems like a simple misunderstanding. Why don't we all go our own way?" I offered.
Whether it was the wrong thing to say or there had just been too much bloodshed tonight, the leader responded by cursing and charging at me with lethal intent.
'Fuck's sake…'
Sighing, I ignored the dull ache in my body. I pushed Cursed Energy into my feet and dropped into a low stance, waiting for the first idiot to reach me.
-
Grunting, I yanked a Cursed dagger from my left side and turned toward the only survivor—who immediately bolted down the alley.
"L̴̗̋ë̸͙t̷̜̍t̵͓̔ȉ̶̦n̴̰͌ĝ̵̜ ̵̻̐ḧ̵͓́i̸̥̕ṁ̵̗ ̴̱̒ǵ̵̘o̶̢̎?̵̬̾"
I groaned as the headache inducing voice rang in my mind and Kaede materialized beside me from nothing.
"Do I really seem like I have the energy to chase?" I muttered, shaking my head as I pulled another dagger from my shoulder and rolled it, letting the wound start healing on its own.
"Not like it's all bad, Kaede. They'll spread word that someone other than those two kids and the maid are after the girl."
A sound—like a sigh mixed with static—echoed in my head. I snapped my eyes toward the hallucination.
"Before you complain about me killing them, mind if I remind you how this happened?"
{Flashback to two days ago}
'Did their hair get whiter?'
I watched from a decent distance as Gojo Satoru and some black haired kid made their way to where Amanai was currently holed up.
'If these two were around in the Heian Period, they'd do significantly well.'
Their Cursed Energy reserves were massive—easily some of the largest I'd felt since waking up. The Gojo kid's head suddenly whipped in my direction and though he wore sunglasses, I felt his gaze. It was eerily familiar, like the day the Gojo baby I had been hired to make sure was brought into the world back in the Heian era.
'He looks like he wants to fight.'
I internally shook my head and gave the kid one last glance as he stopped mid stride and turned toward me. Then without a word, I turned around and headed toward the girl—for what I told myself would be the last time.
'Soon, I won't have you hounding my skull, Kaede.'
Through the grating distortion of what used to be her sweet voice, I caught a faint snort. I responded with silence.
I moved fast—fast enough that I reached Amanai's location in under five minutes. Unfortunately, just as I closed in, a coughing fit slammed into my chest. I stumbled, missed a step across the rooftop and crashed down into an alley with a heavy thud.
And, of course, I alerted the very person I had been trying to avoid.
"U-uhm…"
I ignored the voice, focusing on settling the fit. Blood met my palm and I winced.
'Fuck's sake…'
A small hand—soft, far smaller than my own—gently patted my back. Unfortunately, it helped. The fit stopped shortly after.
"Are you okay?"
I sighed, spat out a glob of blood and slowly stood up without a word. I turned and walked away from her.
"W-Wait!"
Still ignoring her, I fixed my gaze on a familiar route toward the train station.
'Need meds.'
But the girl didn't get the hint. She grabbed onto the sleeve of my coat.
"Sir!"
I sighed and looked down at her. She froze. I towered over her—she must've realized it only then. Her hands dropped from my coat and she hesitated for just a moment before squaring her shoulders.
"Shouldn't you thank the person who helped you?"
"She has you there, Ryou."
I twitched. Kaede's voice had come in clear that time.
"Are you even listening to me?!"
My attention drifted back down to—
"Amanai-chan is-"
"Thanks, kid." I said, gruffly.
She blinked, whatever she had been about to say dying on her lips. Then she puffed her cheeks.
"That's better!"
"Our children would've loved her."
My face soured. She noticed. Before she could say anything, I turned to leave.
"Wait!"
With a heavy sigh and against my better judgment, I stopped.
"What, kid?"
That word seemed to sting. She crossed her arms.
"I'm not 'kid.' I'm Amanai Riko and… I'm lost…"
I twitched but said nothing. Instead, I let my senses expand as best they could despite the strain. Her maid's Cursed Energy was erratic—rushing about in all directions.
'She's probably looking for the girl.'
Looking down at Amanai, I twitched again as Kaede's voice echoed gently.
"This won't take much to help her, Ryou."
I glanced toward Kaede's form before exhaling.
"Kid—" I ignored the indignant sound she made. "I saw a maid looking around in a panic just up ahead. She with you?"
She nodded.
"Let's go."
Without waiting for an answer, I turned and began walking toward the source of the maid's Energy.
"You'll feel better for helping her."
'I need a drink…'
{Present Time}
"And that was only the start, Kaede!"
I cracked my neck in annoyance as I walked away from the pile of bodies, continuing my rant to a hallucination that refused to leave me be.
"After that Gojo and the black haired kid showed up there's been an increase in Sorcerers lurking around—and just because I forgot to lower my Cursed Energy a little, they assumed I was with a group!"
I spun sharply toward the hallucination.
"Well?!"
"Are you mad that she reminds you of me?"
I froze.
The words hit harder than I wanted to admit. I shook my head and opened my mouth to argue—but my own mind cut me off.
"Are you upset that you're not turning away from the young girl every time she crosses your path?"
I clenched my jaw shut and exhaled slowly through my nose.
"…Whatever."
Knowing I'd lost the argument—to myself—I gave one last glance to the flickering figment of Kaede before lighting a cigarette.
"Not like it matters. Looks like those two Sorcerer kids are going to be officially interacting with the girl anyway."
Kaede's response drifted in softly, laced with a knowing tone I hated.
"We both know you're going to help her."