Instantaneously, Momo, Miwa, and Mai dashed forward, moving in various directions.
The park had grown unnaturally quiet. No wind through the trees. No distant echo of cursed spirits heard or in sight
Just stillness—thick and waiting.
Momo soared into the air first
Wind curled beneath her cursed tool in a tight spiral, lifting her smoothly into the air.
From above, she saw the abandoned building and its surrounding alleyways unfold beneath her view like fractured blueprints. Every broken wall, every shadowed corner, she could view it all.
Miwa, on the east side, while Miwa on the west side, and Momo taking the North side, hovering above, moving toward scanning the entire area.
Until —
She saw it.
In the narrow alley tucked between two crumbling walls, the concrete was soaked with a pale purple color
Thick, pale purple streaked across brick and pooled in the cracks of the pavement, glistening faintly under a dying streetlight.
And at the center of it
Shinji stood there
In front of him, the remains of a cursed spirit dissolved into drifting black mist.
Behind him —
Something hovered behind him. A translucent-blue creature
Massive enough to engulf him whole.
It loomed like a second silhouette, its form wavering like deep water seen through glass. Two dark, depthless eyes floated within its shifting mass.
Momo's pupils narrowed.
So that must be the source of what's causing the overwhelming surge of cursed energy they felt earlier —the pressure they had deduced to be a Grade One Cursed Spirit
She assessed the situation further. and sent the signal
Miwa and Mai reacted instantly, converging on her location. Within moments, they stood beneath her vantage point, eyes lifting.
Their attention quickly caught up the pale purple color of a cursed spirit, that laid down on the floor motionless, which they assumed was the blood oozing from the cursed spirt ahead of then.
Then the black mist that dissipated. with fragments of the cursed spirits crumbling and vanishing into nothingness.
"So, the cursed spirit already got exorcised." Miwa said
Miwa adds. "But, the question now is by who?"
Momo descended, landing quietly between them.
"There's another creature nearby, identical to a cursed spirit," she said in a low voice. "Large. Unknown classification. It's sticking close to Shinji
Mai's gaze sharpened. "So, You're saying that thing did this?"
"Most likely." Momo responds
Mai asks, "Is Shinji hurt?"
"Hmm, I don't know... I've not been able to confirm." Momo responds to Mai
"If this thing you saw, Momo, is in fact identical to a cursed spirit, it's either attached to him in some sort of way or feeding off him. Either way, Shinji is in a dangerous state, and we have to hurry and save him...Time is of the essence"
Then, Momo shares her plan
To Miwa, "I'll need you to close in the distance, and quietly, approach closer towards the entrance of the alley, and be on alert to deploy your Simple Domain at the slightest chance I give you the signal."
To Mai, "Mai, you'll be on precision support, supporting Miwa by her side, peradventure this creature moves unpredictably, neutralize immediately on sight, with no hesitation."
Mai checked her rifle. The metallic click echoed softly.
She paused, then gave a faint, crooked smirk.
"One round of magazine left."
"Understood." Both Mai and Miwa responded in unison
They moved.
Momo rose again, hovering above the mouth of the alley. Miwa advanced from the side, silent and controlled. Mai followed in Miwa's footsteps and took a position with a clean line of sight.
*****
None of them noticed —
Shinji stirring.
A faint groan escaped his mouth.
The haze he felt in his mind slowly thinned.
His eyelids fluttered open slowly.
The first thing that came into his sight was the cursed spirit collapsing completely, its body evaporating into nothing.
Then, the pale purple blood everywhere, which somehow made him feel nauseous.
"What… happened?…"
His voice came out small.
Fragments flashed behind his eyes—glowing purple light, something vast at his back, something responding to him.
Just… answering.
Above Shinji, Momo lifted her hand.
Signal poised.
Her gaze locked onto the translucent being behind Shinji. It hadn't attacked. It hadn't shifted.
It simply hovered.
Her hand began to lower.
Miwa stepped forward, breath steady, cursed energy gathering along her blade.
Then —
The strange creature hovering behind Shinji moved.
Slowly, not in aggression or in retreat
Like mist sinking into water. The massive creature form unraveled, dissolving downward — Into the residual cursed energy pooling beneath Shinji's feet.
Beneath him spread a vast, shimmering surface of dark blue cursed energy, stretching outward like a silent ocean. Its surface rippled faintly, endless and deep.
The strange creature melted into it completely.
Gone.
The alley fell into suffocating stillness.
Momo's hand froze mid-signal.
Her thoughts collided. Was that creature summoned by Shinji?
No, that's impossible.
Shinji was untrained. Unregistered. He shouldn't even be capable of controlling or summoning such a creature
Miwa still waiting for Momo's signal, Her eyes fixed on Momo's hand.
Just give the signal.
Momo blinked and forced herself back into the moment.
On reflex, her hand dropped downwards.
Without hesitation, Miwa reacted instantly, and prepares to activate her Simple Domain.
She stepped forward, cursed energy flaring outward as an invisible boundary of her domain began to form around her