Watching Miko Yotsuya wield Mikazuki Munechika, first slicing the demon in half with one slash, then immediately following up with another thrust through its head, her completely calm and professional demeanour drew admiration from both Mai Sakurajima and Rio Futaba.
"So cool."
This was truly Miko Yotsuya, whose mental fortitude was abnormally strong compared to ordinary people. Even when she had no power, she could remain expressionless when facing terrifying evil spirits.
Her professional level in exorcism already showed traces of Ye Xing's style.
Just as Mai Sakurajima and Rio Futaba were thinking this, they saw Miko Yotsuya, who had been posing moments earlier, suddenly show a panicked expression and urgently beckon them over.
"Come quick, come quick!"
Seeing that Miko Yotsuya - who had remained composed even when facing the Nuribotoke and executed precise strikes - was now displaying such panic, both Mai Sakurajima and Rio Futaba felt their hearts tighten. Without further thought, they quickly leapt down from the rooftop.
"What's wrong? Are there more enemies?"
"No, that's not it."
Miko appeared extremely anxious, as if she might cry at any moment, pointing at the Nuribotoke as it dissipated into black smoke within the bone cage, hurriedly explaining.
"Hurry, hurry! Let Suzuhiko-hime and Bone Woman come out to eat too, otherwise it'll be too late!"
Mai Sakurajima and Rio Futaba: "..."
Watching Miko pull Suzuhiko-hime and Bone Woman closer to share the Nuribotoke with her Hyakume, Mai Sakurajima let out a soft sigh before chuckling wryly.
"Miko, with your thrifty and virtuous nature of never wasting anything, you'll definitely make a wonderful wife someday."
Hearing Mai say she would become a good wife in the future, Miko's face flushed slightly as she shyly replied.
"Not at all, Mai-senpai. You're such a good cook and so beautiful - you're definitely the one who'll make a wonderful wife."
Rio Futaba, holding an umbrella in her right hand, took her glasses from her pocket with her left and put them back on, sighing softly as she teased.
"Has it occurred to you two that you might both end up becoming the same person's wives? If that happens, you'll have plenty of time to compliment each other then - no need to start now!"
Hearing this, both Mai Sakurajima and Miko Yotsuya blushed deeply.
Immediately, Miko retorted somewhat irritably.
"And what about you? Aren't you the same?"
Rio Futaba, who had just been on the offensive, now displayed remarkably weak defences, her fair cheeks instantly turning bright red as she stammered.
"I... I... I haven't thought about marriage or anything like that... D-don't drag me into this, okay..."
Just then.
Ye Xing's amused voice came from behind the three girls.
"What's this? Are you thinking about me?"
Mai Sakurajima turned around and saw that Ye Xing's casual clothes were torn in multiple places from being bitten by those evil spirits earlier. She instinctively stepped forward to dust him off, her voice carrying both complaint and unconcealed concern.
"How did you get so battered? Really, couldn't you be more careful?"
Ye Xing waved his hand and laughed.
"It's nothing serious. Anyway, I had my fill."
"Sigh... I really don't know what to say to you..."
Rio Futaba watched from the side, speaking with a hint of jealousy.
"Hey, hey, there are two other living people here too, you know."
Mai looked somewhat embarrassed as she raised her head to gaze at the sky, half changing the subject and half genuinely surprised.
"The rain... has already stopped..."
Ye Xing nodded noncommittally.
"I called Hina Amano. It can't keep raining forever - wouldn't want Tokyo to end up with another Sunny Doll Killer, that would be bad."
He then gazed at the faint traces of black Qi remaining within the skeletal prison.
"It seems you've already dealt with the evil spirit."
"Yes."
Rio Futaba gave a slight nod, dispelling her Soul Materialisation as she spoke calmly.
"Though it was mostly luck. Just as we suspected, this entity had fused with two Gates. If we hadn't caught it off-guard with a surprise attack before it could retrieve one of them, it wouldn't have been so easily dealt with."
"Now now, that's not quite right, Futaba."
Ye Xing patted Rio Futaba's shoulder with a laugh.
"As exorcists, we shouldn't have any bottom line when dealing with evil spirits. The more underhanded we are, the better - we need to employ truly shameless tactics."
Rio Futaba pursed her lips.
"Well, you're certainly more experienced in that area."
Then she turned her face away, preventing Ye Xing from making direct eye contact, adjusted her glasses with one hand, and relief and joy flickered in her eyes, which she tried to conceal, as if it were nothing special.
"Since you're fine, why don't you tell us what happened at the hotel?"
Nearby, Miko Yotsuya noticed Rio Futaba's expression, and even her typically impassive face couldn't help but show a hint of an affectionate, knowing smile.
Futaba really is such a tsundere.
"Ho! You should've seen it, what a pity you missed it - an epic battle took place in that hotel!"
"Epic battle?"
Hearing Ye Xing use such grandiose terms to describe events at the hotel, Mai Sakurajima, Rio Futaba, and Miko Yotsuya all grew intensely curious.
"Absolutely."
Ye Xing nodded, his expression turning serious as he slowly began his account.
"At that moment, one of Japan's Five Great Swords, the legendary blade Onimaru Kunitsuna, encountered its most formidable opponent in its entire existence!"
"Not a moment to mourn the passing of the Immovable Calamity!"
"Next to enter the stage, hailing from Tokyo's Shibuya's most bustling commercial district, born in a luxury hotel bathroom, flexible and stretchable, the crystallisation of human technology, representing the dignity of modern manufacturing - the brand-name showerhead!"
"And so it was, when Onimaru Kunitsuna and the showerhead met as sworn enemies, their eyes burned with mutual hatred. Neither side yielded, neither conceding an inch in terms of presence. A great battle was about to unfold..."
Hearing this, Rio Futaba hurriedly interrupted.
"Hold on right there, don't unfold anything."
Mai Sakurajima also commented with exasperation.
"What in the world are you talking about... Onimaru Kunitsuna versus a showerhead? You perverted junior, are you telling some kind of suggestive dirty joke again?"
Miko Yotsuya gazed deeply into Ye Xing's eyes without responding.
She vaguely understood why he hadn't directly answered Rio Futaba's question, instead offering this response - whether it described what actually happened or was some abstract story he made up on the spot.
Indeed...
With an incident of this scale involving the supernatural, it was impossible that no one died.
Ye Xing wasn't saying it outright, probably worried that hearing the truth would make them feel guilty and burdened.
"Anyway, let's head back first."
Just as Rio Futaba finished speaking, they suddenly heard an out-of-breath shout coming from not far away.
"That... that exorcist... stop right there!"
The three girls looked up in confusion as a tall figure ran from the far end of the street. Its skin showed a decayed greyish-white colour, clearly an evil spirit - a monster with only one eyeball remaining.
Seeing the other empty eye socket, Miko Yotsuya suddenly seemed to realise something. She turned to look at Ye Xing beside her, her expression complicated.
"That eyeball you gave me before... could it be..."
"Exactly."
Ye Xing revealed a slight smile, walking up to the Slaughter Demon that had already reached the group. He affectionately patted its shoulder.
"Let me introduce - this is Slaughter Demon, Mr Kill, the anonymous sponsor of our Supernatural Society."
"He gave away his own eyeball without asking for anything in return. What remarkable integrity!"
"Come on, let's give Mr Slaughter Demon a round of applause."
Miko Yotsuya raised her hands and cautiously clapped a few times.
Clap clap clap clap...
Only after finishing did she notice Mai Sakurajima and Rio Futaba both looking at her with complicated expressions.
Mai Sakurajima patted Miko's shoulder and heaved a heavy sigh, speaking meaningfully.
"Miko, you can learn Ye Xing's exorcism techniques, but in other aspects, don't get assimilated by him."
Miko tilted her head, her golden eyes showing confusion.
"Eh? What do you mean?"
"Nothing."
Mai Sakurajima and Rio Futaba exchanged glances, both girls picturing an extremely terrifying scene.
After some more time passes...
Could it be that all the members of the Supernatural Society have turned into abstract holy beings?
How terrifying.
"What's with the applause?"
The Slaughter Demon was quite straightforward, wearing an expression of speechless exasperation as it spoke.
"I didn't voluntarily give you my eyeballs."
Ye Xing waved his hand and laughed.
"Look at you saying that - being 'voluntarily compelled' still counts as voluntary!"
At this moment, Rio Futaba suddenly examined the Slaughter Demon closely, frowning slightly as she said.
"Speaking of which... this Mr Slaughter Demon is supposed to be an entity from the Reverse World, right? How did you end up here?"
Facing this question, the Slaughter Demon scratched its head and replied honestly without any concealment.
"It was either this morning... or noon, anyway, I was wandering around in the Reverse World when I encountered a particularly troublesome evil spirit. Then I ate it, and felt like I gained the ability to come here."
Hearing this, Rio Futaba was momentarily stunned before suddenly having an epiphany.
"So that's how it is. Now everything makes sense."
There had been a puzzling aspect to this incident.
The original plan was for Ye Xing to conceal his Qi, search for the Gate within the hotel or the evil spirit that had fused with the Gate, and then directly eliminate it.
But what actually happened was that right after he entered the hotel, the entire area merged with the Reverse World, becoming a haunted domain where evil spirits could move freely.
Rio Futaba, Mai Sakurajima, Miko Yotsuya, and even Ye Xing himself had all assumed that the evil spirit hidden in the hotel had particularly sharp perception, detected his arrival, and therefore taken such measures.
Now it appeared this wasn't the case at all.
This supernatural incident wasn't of the danger level of three Gates.
But four.
It's just that before the Supernatural Society members took action, there had been an evil spirit that had fused with a Gate, which, while moving through the Reverse World, encountered the Slaughter Demon and got eaten.
The sudden actions of the evil spirit in the hotel were completely self-preservation measures taken out of urgency to enhance its power after sensing the danger of being hunted.
"However..."
Rio Futaba looked thoughtfully at the Slaughter Demon standing there.
"Mr Slaughter Demon, despite not having fused with a Gate yourself, actually managed to defeat an evil spirit that had fused with one. You're truly an extraordinary existence."
At this point, Rio Futaba seemed to hesitate about saying more, glancing at Ye Xing beside her.
The latter immediately understood what she wanted to say, but was holding back out of consideration.
"Little Slaughter..."
Ye Xing patted the Slaughter Demon's shoulder, speaking seriously.
"Actually, you're not really the Slaughter Demon, but rather a Reverse World spirit formed from people's impressions of the Slaughter Demon legend."
When he said this, Mai Sakurajima, Rio Futaba, and Miko Yotsuya all held their breath, waiting for the Slaughter Demon's reaction.
After all, when Hachishaku-sama heard that she wasn't the real Hachishaku but rather an existence formed from people's impressions, she nearly developed psychological issues.
What would the Slaughter Demon's reaction be now?
"Oh, I see."
The Slaughter Demon nodded indifferently, seeming completely uninterested in the matter.
"Doesn't matter. How I came to be isn't important. What matters is that I only want to kill more evil spirits, and I won't stop for a single moment."
"As long as I continue these actions, I am the true Slaughter Demon."
Hearing these words, Ye Xing exclaimed in admiration.
"Oh, so you're a philosopher too, Little Slaughter? That's quite profound."
The Slaughter Demon's long hair fell loosely on either side of its face as it gazed at the dimly lit streets. Its single remaining eye reflected complex emotions, as if contemplating life... or rather, contemplating spiritual existence, as it murmured to itself.
"Perhaps after eliminating all the evil spirits in this world, I can finally touch true freedom."
"Those words sound quite similar to what an old acquaintance of mine used to say."
"Just a casual remark."
At this point, Ye Xing suddenly grew serious and spoke slowly to the Slaughter Demon.
"However, there is one matter where I need your assistance."
"Speak."
"From now on, stay in Tokyo to hunt evil spirits."
"Do you even need to tell me that?"
The Slaughter Demon seemed to have been struck in a sore spot, its already terrifying face turning even more unpleasant.
"In Kyoto's Reverse World, I can hardly find any powerful evil spirits anymore!"
"Do you have any idea how long it took me to walk from Kyoto to Tokyo!?"
"I'm begging you, leave some for me, stop killing them all."
By the end, the Slaughter Demon seemed on the verge of tears.
As the grim reaper among yokai, its desire to slaughter evil spirits would never fade. Only by personally tearing apart and devouring powerful evil spirits could this urge be slightly alleviated.
Yet because of Ye Xing's activities in Kyoto's Reverse World, those powerful evil spirits had either been consumed by Ye Xing or gone into hiding.
The remaining ones had partly crossed through the Gate to the real world.
The Slaughter Demon simply couldn't take it anymore.
Tormented by its inner killing desire, it had no choice but to travel on foot through the thick, viscous black mist all the way from Kyoto to Tokyo.
Little did it expect that just days after arriving in Tokyo, after finally enjoying a good slaughter, it would encounter this guy again.
The Slaughter Demon felt utterly aggrieved.
"Don't worry, don't worry."
Ye Xing comforted with a laugh.
"We won't be staying in Tokyo for long. They're all yours, all yours."
The Slaughter Demon wiped tears from its single remaining eye, appearing deeply wronged.
"Really?"
"Really, rest assured."
"That's wonderful."
Seeing the childlike, innocent smile appear on the Slaughter Demon's face, Rio Futaba and the others wore complicated expressions, unsure how to respond.
Abstract...
When did this phenomenon of humans influencing spirits begin?
...
Meanwhile, in the operations conference room at the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department.
"L, we've received reports from the scene."
L, who was crouching on his chair, turned his head and said calmly.
"Kira escaped?"
The high-ranking official from the Metropolitan Police Department looked embarrassed at this question and sighed.
"Yes, and Mikazuki Munechika also..."
"Just a meaningless old antique, no need to mention it."
L cared nothing about the so-called Five Great Swords of Japan or Japan's legendary blades.
In his view, Mikazuki Munechika was just an ordinary iron sword with no particular value.
"How many officers died?"
Upon hearing this question, the police official's expression grew complicated as he slowly replied.
"Although some officers were injured, none seriously... not a single person died."
"Oh?"
L raised an eyebrow, his eyes flickering. After a few seconds, he spoke meaningfully.
"No one died? This isn't good news."
"If no one died, how could it not be good news?"
L tapped his fingers on the desk as he spoke calmly.
"While surrounded by your Metropolitan Police Department, he managed to escape completely unscathed. This proves he possesses extraordinary abilities beyond ordinary imagination. He could have killed some officers, or even all of them, if he wanted to."
"But if he had actually done so, it would mean that regardless of Kira's true identity, he would just be a criminal acting on whims."
"Yet in this incident, Kira didn't kill a single officer. This means he's no ordinary criminal."
"Considering his recent activities and the cases he's committed, this proves the guy has his own set of operating principles."
"The principle of only punishing evil people."
Here, L paused, deep in thought.
"But why... when he could have left the scene much earlier, did he choose to engage with the Metropolitan Police Department... Absolute confidence in his abilities? Enjoying the thrill? Probably more than that..."
A glint flashed in L's eyes as he swivelled his chair to face the high-ranking Director.
"I want your Metropolitan Police Department to prepare a report by tomorrow morning."
"Compile all abnormal incidents that occurred in Tokyo from the time Tokyo National Museum was breached until Kira escaped the scene."
"I want to see every detail in that report."