Chapter 121: The Core of Tomie
Time passed like a white horse slipping through a narrow gap.
Three days went by quietly.
The uproar surrounding White Fox Gin Tsumugi within the world of Onmyōdō gradually cooled. Perhaps it was because most of the rumors sounded too exaggerated, too false, too divorced from reality. Perhaps it was also because Gin himself never stepped forward to refute or confirm anything.
Without the person at the center of the storm saying a word, the heat slowly faded on its own.
This was exactly what the Omnyo Agency, the Onmyo Alliance, and the Onmyō Academy wanted to see.
Naturally, none of them would add more fuel to the fire.
The rumors had only ever been a precaution, a way to soften the impact among Onmyoji. If the topic truly became a social phenomenon, information that should have remained hidden would inevitably leak out.
That would be troublesome.
Still, the wave of half-true, half-false rumors had brought one unexpected benefit.
The [Myriad Laws Supernatural Department] recruited a large number of Onmyoji.
It was, in a sense, free advertising.
Gin's publicly acknowledged feat of single-handedly subjugating and eliminating a Great Yokai had already been enough to shake the industry. In addition, many promising young descendants from Onmyoji families had begun applying to the department. There were even descendants of National Level Onmyoji among them.
Official figures like Furukawa Oishi also chose to join.
Some experienced Onmyoji were directly appointed as deputy section chiefs in the Information Intelligence Section and the Crime Investigation Section. If their abilities proved sufficient, they could be promoted further, freeing Kohara Daisuke and Ibe Tomoya from the day-to-day operational burden so they could properly handle the work expected of Deputy Directors.
As for why such a situation had occurred, the higher levels of Onmyōdō and everyone who had witnessed the supernatural incident at Shinomiya Manor understood perfectly.
It was easier to enjoy the shade beneath a great tree.
And right now, in the entire world of Onmyōdō, no tree was taller than White Fox Gin Tsumugi.
Yamata no Orochi's complete revival was close at hand.
In this era of Supernatural Recovery, the future was uncertain and filled with desperate unknowns. No one dared say what changes would come.
Whether the [Myriad Laws Supernatural Department] under Gin Tsumugi was the safest place in Japan was still hard to say.
But if Onmyōdō collapsed, if Japan itself fell into ruin, then the territory controlled by Gin Tsumugi would likely be the last pure land to fall.
At that moment, on the top floor of the Shibuya Building, inside the Director's office of the [Myriad Laws Supernatural Department], Gin quietly reviewed a personnel transfer report.
"The manpower shortage has finally been relieved."
His gaze swept over the document in his hand, and he nodded in satisfaction.
"The Information Intelligence Section and Magic Investigation Section now have enough personnel. More than half of the captain positions in the Supernatural Countermeasures Section also have candidates."
The only division still lacking staff was the Administrative Internal Affairs Division under Iwanaga Kotoko's direct command.
That could not be helped.
The Administrative Internal Affairs Division was special. Its members could not be chosen simply because their résumé matched a position. Their character, background, loyalty, and discretion all required examination.
"However, recruitment at Onmyō Academy still needs to continue."
Gin placed the report down.
"Supernatural incidents will only become more frequent from here on. Sooner or later, we will be short on manpower again. We need to take advantage of this period and accumulate new strength."
He looked toward the beautiful woman standing nearby in a black business suit.
"Kazusa, ordinary personnel transfers can be handled by Kotoko and the others. There is no need to report every minor adjustment to me."
"Yes, Director."
The woman in the black suit was Touma Kazusa.
Dressed in professional attire, she looked far more mature than before. The suit outlined her slender, graceful figure, giving her a cool charm that was difficult to ignore.
Speaking of which, it had been rather coincidental.
Gin had not expected Touma Kazusa and Ogiso Setsuna to pass the interviews and join the [Myriad Laws Supernatural Department]. When he first saw the two of them, even he had been genuinely surprised.
Kazusa and Setsuna had been no less shocked.
Neither of them had expected the mysterious Director of the [Myriad Laws Supernatural Department], an organization rebuilt by the government and the Omnyo Agency's local branch, to be Gin Tsumugi, the same person who had once headed the [White Fox Agency].
It had taken them an entire day to adjust to his change in identity.
Because they were already familiar with him, both Touma Kazusa and Ogiso Setsuna had now become Gin's secretaries.
Touma Kazusa assisted him with documents and reports.
Ogiso Setsuna managed his daily schedule and appointment arrangements.
This decision had caused Iwanaga Kotoko to sulk a little two days ago. But it was only sulking. She now had to command the entire Administrative Internal Affairs Division and no longer had the time to serve as Gin's assistant the way she had before.
Secretaries were unavoidable.
"Kazusa," Gin asked, "how is the Tomie incident progressing?"
Tomie had still not been fully dealt with.
This time, Gin had no intention of letting her escape again.
At that question, Kazusa hesitated.
"Director... there has been a new development."
"A new development?"
Gin's expression grew serious.
"Did she spread again?"
Tomie's ability to split and spread made her a cancer in human society. If she was not contained and was allowed to multiply freely, the consequences would become extremely troublesome. Even with Tomie's tendency toward self-aggregation, the supernatural disasters caused during the process would be no less serious than an incident led by a Great Yokai.
"No, it is not that."
Kazusa hurriedly shook her head.
"According to surveillance and observation from the Information Intelligence Section, the Tomies within our field of vision have shown signs of weakening. Their charm, self-repair, and other abilities are all declining."
Gin's eyes narrowed slightly.
Kazusa continued, "After secretly capturing one Tomie and cutting it, it did not split. It died directly. Afterward, the team discovered something even stranger. Its body began decaying like an ordinary human corpse."
"Aging... Tomie?"
Gin frowned and fell into thought.
It was almost absurd.
Tomie was a Monster that could not be simply summarized as a ghost, yokai, or ordinary spiritual entity. She possessed seemingly infinite division and regeneration. For a word like aging to appear in relation to her was almost impossible.
That was a biological characteristic of ordinary life.
It should have had nothing to do with Tomie.
"What conclusion did the Information Intelligence Section reach?"
"They proposed three hypotheses based on the current situation."
Kazusa opened the report in her hand.
"First, Tomie may have been affected by some unknown power. That power is suppressing or weakening her inherent characteristics step by step."
Gin pinched his chin.
"That possibility exists, but the probability is not high."
"Second," Kazusa continued, "Tomie's own characteristics may have reached their limit. The Information Intelligence Section believes that no living being, whether from a conceptual or rule-based perspective, can be truly infinite. It is possible this decline occurred because Tomie has split too many times."
Gin shook his head.
Tomie's self-division might have a limit.
But if that limit existed, it definitely should not have appeared so soon.
"And the third?"
"The third is more speculative."
Kazusa's tone became slightly uncertain.
"The Information Intelligence Section believes it is possible that Tomie's core has escaped."
"Core?"
This was the first time Gin had heard that Tomie might possess such a thing.
"Director, this is only conjecture," Kazusa said. "The idea is that the real Tomie may have gathered her power and abandoned the useless clones. Without the foundation that maintained them, those clones are slowly showing traits only ordinary humans should possess."
Of the three hypotheses, the last one sounded the least reliable.
It had almost no hard evidence supporting it.
And yet, Gin's intuition told him that it might be closest to the truth.
"If that is the case, Tomie has disappeared from our sight again."
Gin tapped the desk lightly with one finger.
"The Tomies we currently have under surveillance are no longer useful. Have the Supernatural Countermeasures Section eliminate them."
"Yes."
"At the same time, notify the Information Intelligence Section. They are to locate the possible 'core' of Tomie within the shortest time possible."
"Yes, Director."
Kazusa nodded and recorded the order.
At that moment, the phone on the desk rang.
Gin picked it up.
Ogiso Setsuna's voice came through the receiver.
"Director, Dairenji Suzuka from the Omnyo Agency and Tsuchimiya Kagura of the Tsuchimiya family have arrived."
"Send them up."
"Yes, Director."
.....
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