_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
There's a song lyric that goes, "Just because I glanced at you one more time in the crowd."
The song is about love.
But that line is so versatile, it could fit plenty of real-life situations.
Like just now—when the evil spirit stepping off the bus locked eyes with Rosen in the middle of the crowd.
Its crimson pupils immediately zeroed in on the only living human who could actually see it.
The rest of the people? They couldn't see a thing. Even if it started doing a striptease in the street, not a single head would turn.
Earlier, it had suspected a girl on the bus might be able to see it, so—despite its not-so-impressive IQ—it had instinctively followed her off.
Some primal ghost instinct drove it to hope she could see it.
Because then, it could devour her and fill its belly.
Not that a ghost even has the concept of hunger anymore.
Maybe, when it was alive, this spirit had once heard the saying: "Worn out iron shoes, but the thing you seek comes effortlessly." Whether it remembered that after death, Rosen couldn't say.
But one thing was certain—the spirit wanted to eat him. Badly.
What's the point of a ghost—lacking all five senses, no physical body—hunting for humans to eat?
Rosen had once heard a theory: a tormented spirit could pass its suffering to another by killing them, making the victim's soul bear its pain instead.
While he was thinking that, the spirit lunged.
Funny thing—back when he couldn't see them, there was no smell. But once he could see ghosts, that awful, rotting stench became crystal clear.
When it was less than a meter away, Rosen finally moved.
Holy power surged from within him, blasting into the ghost with clean, brutal precision. The result was like tossing a cheap sponge into a furnace—gone in an instant.
All that remained was a faint smear of black ash, drifting away.
The people who had gotten off the bus kept walking in different directions, completely unaware there'd just been a battle between man and spirit.
Or rather… a one-sided curb-stomp.
An invisible wind swept out in all directions.
Miko Yotsuya felt the change in the air immediately.
But fear had her too tightly in its grip—she didn't dare look back. She just forced herself to keep walking, pretending to be the picture of a calm, quiet schoolgirl.
There were plenty of JKs like her in Japan. No reason for the ghost—who'd been sitting beside her since the bus ride—to pay her any special attention.
So she did what she always did. Pretend nothing happened. Pretend everything was normal. Play on her phone while heading home.
Only, thinking about the few ghosts "living" in her house made her want to break down.
"Hey, you up ahead—stop for a second."
It was a voice from behind.
The tone alone could make you picture a polite, refined young man.
In the past, the romantic Miko might've turned her head for a look, then messaged her best friend Hana Yurakawa about it.
But after a brush with death, she knew better. Ghosts could disguise themselves as normal humans.
Sure, those disguises were easy enough to spot—but even the best let their guard down sometimes.
Which was why Miko never responded to strangers on the street.
This time was no different.
Rosen's call didn't get a reply, which made a few nearby pedestrians smile.
The setting sun lit the street in gold: a stone-faced schoolgirl in front, phone in hand; a handsome boy behind, calling out with a friendly smile.
Like a scene straight out of a school romance drama.
Rosen felt awkward for a moment.
But he already had a good guess why she was ignoring him.
If she really was Miko Yotsuya, it made sense she'd be wary. Otherwise, she wouldn't have survived this long.
The only reason he'd called out was because the "Tree of Life" had reacted.
It was still just a sapling, but it was telling him the girl ahead was a worthy contract candidate.
And when a target shows up, you don't just let them walk away.
He quickened his pace. Miko, sensing something, shivered and sped up too—like she could shake off the "ghost" chasing her.
But cautious (and terrified) as she was, she had experience in these situations.
When a ghost was tailing you, any behavior out of the ordinary would only draw more attention.
If you wanted to escape, you needed a reason.
"Oh! The supermarket has half-price chips today—my favorite flavor! No way I'm missing that!"
She stared at her phone, putting on an ah-ha! expression, then said it loud enough for the "ghost" behind her to hear.
That gave her a perfectly reasonable excuse to run.
From start to finish, less than ten seconds had passed.
Rosen couldn't help but admire her acting skills.
This JK was clearly terrified but held herself together impressively.
Still, he wasn't a fan of cat-and-mouse games. Once they'd reached a quieter area, he closed the distance in a single step, appearing right in front of her.
With a smile and a hint of amusement in his voice, he said:"Girl, how about signing a contract with me?"
She'd been to Buddhist temples before, prayed at Shinto shrines for peace, bought all kinds of charms, amulets, and "blessed" prayer bead bracelets. She'd even tried stuff from overseas—peachwood swords, cursed dolls, crosses—you name it.All of it was junk. Useless decorations now collecting dust in some corner.
Even if there was a real way to deal with spirits, it would be rare beyond belief—and definitely not something people would casually hand over to an outsider like her.
Still, one word caught her attention: "temporarily."
"Does that mean there's a condition? Like… I'd have to join a temple, sign up for some religion or something?"
Rosen smiled at that.Smart kid. She'd always been quick on the uptake.
"That's right. There is."
"..."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________