Meanwhile, at the Kyoto Metropolitan Police Department headquarters building.
"Akoya, sir."
Facing his subordinate's greeting, Seishu Akoya remained completely silent, wordlessly entering his office.
After closing the door, Seishu Akoya looked at the metal nameplate on his desk that read 'Kyoto Metropolitan Police Department Mobile Unit Commander,' and slowly reached out to grasp it. With a teeth-grating sound, he forcibly twisted and deformed it before casually tossing it into the wastebasket.
"Ridiculous..."
Seishu Akoya looked at his palm, pierced and bleeding from the deformed metal nameplate, and clenched his jaw tightly, his eyes revealing anger and distortion.
"Absolutely... ridiculous!"
Seishu Akoya felt everything had become so ridiculous now.
Not just himself, but the so-called Kyoto Metropolitan Police Department, the officers around him, and... the current true master of the Kyoto Metropolitan Police Department, Soichiro Yagami.
As an internal member of the Metropolitan Police Department, Seishu Akoya could clearly sense that after Soichiro Yagami's promotion and the establishment of a so-called special investigation team, the Kyoto Metropolitan Police Department's attitude toward Mask had changed.
When Mask first appeared, most officers believed Mask was a dangerous criminal who needed to be arrested as soon as possible. Even though a minority held different views, they still agreed that Mask should be apprehended, even if he had helped resolve incidents.
But after the violent organisations were eliminated, this consensus began to waver.
The real turning points were the amusement park terror attack, the Sunny Doll Killer's television broadcast incident, and the recent Kyoto Tower incident.
After these three cases, the entire city of Kyoto's attitude toward Mask had changed, including within the Kyoto Metropolitan Police Department.
Opposition, tacit approval, support, endorsement.
In less than a year since Mask first appeared, such a transformation had occurred.
Now, if anyone in the Metropolitan Police Department suddenly suggested arresting the Mask, they would only receive scornful looks from others who thought they were foolish and couldn't distinguish friend from foe.
Only Seishu Akoya remained.
His sense of justice had become completely twisted, though in his eyes, it wasn't himself who was twisted, but everyone else who turned a blind eye to evil criminals.
Seishu Akoya had tried to demand a continued investigation into Mask's whereabouts, treating him as... no, Mask was originally a heinous criminal who blasphemed against justice!
But...
On the surface, the Metropolitan Police Department was still investigating, but in reality, not a single officer was genuinely pursuing the case.
Seishu Akoya had considered not seeking anyone's help and investigating Mask's whereabouts alone, then personally killing him to carry out his own brand of justice.
But, he didn't dare.
Akoya Seishu couldn't believe it himself - he actually... felt fear.
During the Kyoto City Museum intrusion incident, in that narrow alleyway, he had acquired the one and only psychological scar of his life, one he would never forget.
He had lost.
Moreover, he had been utterly defeated, completely helpless against his opponent.
He was no match for Mask.
His justice... had been crushed to dust beneath the other's feet.
Just then, a voice suddenly sounded in Akoya Seishu's ear.
"Have you finally made your resolution?"
Akoya Seishu's expression changed sharply. He abruptly stood up, scanning his surroundings as he tried to locate the source of the voice, but found nothing.
The voice continued to echo in his ear, almost as if it were emerging from deep within his own heart.
Had Miko Yotsuya and the others been present at that moment, they would have clearly seen a being floating beside Akoya Seishu - clad in oversized priestly robes, its face obscured by a layer of swirling mist, emanating an inhuman sense of terror.
The creature pressed close to Akoya Seishu's ear and spoke slowly in a chilling, whisper-like voice.
"Make your resolution... and you shall gain the power to uphold your own justice."
...
Ten minutes later, in a ward at Osaka Municipal Hospital.
"Cough! Cough! Cough!"
Rikka Sakuragawa, who had been sitting upright in her hospital bed, suddenly began coughing violently.
"Cough! Cough! Cough! Cough!"
The coughing continued for nearly twenty seconds without stopping, growing increasingly severe until finally, she vomited a mouthful of dark red blood that stained the pure white hospital sheets. Leaning back against the wall, the light faded from her eyes as she simultaneously stopped breathing.
Yet just seconds later, a layer of swirling black mist manifested across Rikka Sakuragawa's body.
The light returned to her eyes as she sat up straight again, as if nothing had happened.
Rikka Sakuragawa gazed at the large crimson stain on the white bedsheet and murmured to herself.
"Died again, have I... This cursed immortal body still hasn't reached its end..."
After speaking these words, Rikka Sakuragawa turned her gaze to Izanami, who had appeared beside her. With a faint smile curling her lips, she spoke as if conversing with the other, yet also as if talking to herself.
"The Metropolitan Police Department's strongest, chasing after distorted justice... Let me see what use you have as a pawn."
...
That evening, at Ye Xing's home.
"Here, eat this."
Kazusa Touma pulled a piece of chocolate from her pocket and brought it to Ye Xing's lips.
"Still eating?"
Ye Xing looked helplessly at the mountain of snack wrappers piled on the coffee table and shook his head.
"Since you arrived at my place, your hand hasn't stopped feeding me. I really can't eat anymore, I've reached my limit."
"Impossible, you can definitely eat more."
Kazusa Touma wrapped one arm around Ye Xing's, her brow slightly furrowed as she displayed her displeasure.
"You just don't want to eat anymore!"
Seeing the situation turning unfavourable, Ye Xing decided to turn the tables. He pulled Kazusa Touma closer into his embrace and smiled.
"I'd rather eat you instead."
"You... you... you..."
A blush spread across Kazusa Touma's fair cheeks as she lay in Ye Xing's arms, suddenly speaking in a soft voice.
"After calming down, I suddenly realised... I seem to know nothing about so-called romance... I never even imagined I could become your lover... As a girlfriend... what exactly should I do... What are a girlfriend's responsibilities?"
At this point, Kazusa Touma paused and let out a soft sigh.
"I originally thought about asking people around me with romantic experience, but I suddenly realised that among those I can talk to, either they've never been in a relationship, or they're currently with you... How could I possibly ask them?"
"Could I just say, 'Hello, could you please tell me how to fulfil my duties as a girlfriend? Oh? You're asking who my boyfriend is? What a coincidence, it's the same person as your boyfriend'?"
Kazusa Touma sighed, as if venting her frustration, and gently pinched Ye Xing's arm. But then she seemed to regret it, pursed her lips to blow on the spot she'd pinched, and rubbed it with her hand before saying helplessly.
"So I can only ask you."
Hearing this, Ye Xing thought for a moment before replying with a smile.
"A girlfriend's responsibilities... I'm not entirely sure about the specifics either, but I'm willing to cooperate with anything that makes you happy."
Without hesitation, Kazusa Touma immediately said.
"Then guide Setsuna to become a psychic."
"Eh?"
Seeing Ye Xing's surprised expression, Kazusa Touma showed displeasure.
"What, you're unwilling?"
"Not that."
Ye Xing shook his head and smiled.
"I just didn't expect your first request of me to be this. Making Setsuna become a psychic..."
Ye Xing pretended to seriously consider it, showing a somewhat troubled expression.
"To be honest, compared to currently viable candidates, Setsuna doesn't possess particularly outstanding advantages. If she wants to awaken Soul Materialisation ability... it might be quite troublesome."
"Troublesome or not, you still have to do it."
Kazusa Touma shifted to a face-to-face position, sitting entirely on Ye Xing's lap, wrapping her arms around his neck, looking directly into his eyes as she said very seriously.
"Never being separated from Setsuna - this is the promise we made together. She's a precious friend to me, and you know I'm not good at lying. Keeping things from Setsuna makes me feel uncomfortable, too. The best solution is to have her join the Supernatural Society. At the very least, she's trustworthy, right?"
Hearing Kazusa Touma's words, Ye Xing looked at her with an amused expression.
"How long have you been working on that speech?"
Kazusa Touma's face flushed red upon hearing this, as if somewhat flustered.
"N... not long. I may have poor grades, but I'm not actually stupid. Of course I considered all aspects."
"Well, alright then."
Seeing that Ye Xing actually agreed, Kazusa Touma was overjoyed, couldn't help but kiss his cheek, and cheered excitedly.
"That's wonderful!"
The next moment, Kazusa Touma's face flushed red again as she said in a voice as soft as a mosquito's hum.
"Besides this request, there's one more thing that would make me happy."
"What is it?"
"This..."
Kazusa Touma took the initiative, pressing her lips against his as she unfastened the buttons of her blouse. Though her movements were somewhat inexperienced, she actively grasped Ye Xing's hand and guided it beneath her clothing.
"This is it... Before Mother left today, she told me... exactly what to do... and... and encouraged me to do my best."
Ye Xing wasn't surprised by this.
Despite Youko Touma's outwardly strong and capable appearance, she was actually quite an abstract master.
She could even say things like wanting to night-assault either him or her daughter would be completely fine, so it was expected that she would teach Kazusa Touma some relevant experience before they parted today.
"Stay sitting still."
After several minutes of kissing, when even their breathing had become heavy, a flushed Kazusa Touma knelt directly on the floor, parted her lips slightly, and lowered her head.
...
Four hours later, deep into the night, on the large bed in the master bedroom.
Watching Kazusa Touma gasping for air, her fair skin flushed with a captivating pink glow and her voice grown somewhat hoarse, Ye Xing tentatively asked.
"Should we stop for today? Rest for the night and continue another time?"
"N... no."
Though extremely exhausted, Kazusa Touma resolutely insisted.
"I... I can still continue."
"But... It's almost full, surely we can't continue?"
"No... we can."
Kazusa Touma actively turned over, burying her face in the pillow. Her pale skin, combined with those perfect body curves, made her look like a work of art, impossible to look away from.
"There's... there's still one more place we can..."
"Ah? There... wouldn't that be very painful for you?"
"Haven't you tried it with Mai-senpai and the others?"
"No."
Upon hearing this response, a glimmer of delight surfaced in Kazusa Touma's eyes, and her attitude grew even more resolute.
"Then... I can endure it. Go ahead."
Hearing this, Ye Xing couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
'Kazusa Touma truly lives up to her reputation as a succubus. Even for a first time, she's developed such... unconventional preferences that ordinary girls would struggle to accept.'
...
Friday after school, in the Supernatural Society activity room.
"Chief Yagami, Natsumi Suga, and Gan'an Shinomiya have all sent back their intelligence reports."
Among those present, only Marin Kitagawa and Hana Yurikawa were absent.
The former was currently the only member of the Supernatural Society who remained completely unaware of the truth.
As for Hana Yurikawa, she couldn't control her life aura, which would inadvertently harm the spectres among them - Menma, Hachishaku-sama, and Kuchisake-onna. The maximum safe distance was equivalent to the span between the far left and far right of the front row during the school festival performance.
Clearly, while the Supernatural Society's activity room was as large as a teacher's office, it wasn't nearly spacious enough. They had no choice but to let Hana Yurikawa remain in the classroom a while longer.
Ye Xing looked around at the assembled members and spoke slowly.
"Chief Yagami conducted thorough investigations, even visiting all of Tasuke Tamura's teachers since childhood. The consistent evaluation was that Tasuke Tamura was completely ordinary - utterly unremarkable in every way."
"As for Natsumi Suga, her intelligence network didn't turn up any surprising information either."
"However, Gan'an Shinomiya did uncover some things through his unique connections."
After fulfilling the so-called transaction conditions, Ye Xing's first request to Gan'an Shinomiya had been to investigate information related to Tasuke Tamura. This served to evaluate whether the head of the Shinomiya conglomerate's intelligence network could provide additional assistance beyond what he already received from Soichiro Yagami and Natsumi Suga.
Gan'an Shinomiya, or rather the Shinomiya Group, hadn't disappointed him.
"This is a psychological counselling report for Tasuke Tamura. The content isn't particularly noteworthy - mainly concerns about his own presence and self-worth issues, dating back approximately one year."
While the other members showed little reaction to Ye Xing's words, Rio Futaba noticed something peculiar. Frowning deeply, she adjusted her glasses thoughtfully.
"A psychological counselling report from one year ago... How could someone so ordinary that they needed counselling about their own existence and value possibly meet the necessary condition for Soul Materialisation awakening - facing one's true inner self - without some sudden catalyst? Moreover, he likely never fulfilled the prerequisite of observing evil spirits either. So this Soul Materialisation ability was indeed artificially created through unconventional means..."
This counselling report proved crucial, allowing Rio Futaba to confirm with absolute certainty that Tasuke Tamura's Soul Materialisation ability differed fundamentally from their own. The awakening method... no, there had been no awakening at all. Otherwise, he wouldn't have displayed such poor mental fortitude and performance - he'd been nothing but a laughingstock.
So, where did Tasuke Tamura's Soul Materialisation ability actually come from?
The only explanation is that someone, through some means, created someone like him. This would explain why Tasuke Tamura, despite having awakened his abilities for some time, had not engaged in large-scale actions before. Only his creator could have suppressed him when his mind was clearly out of control.
Although Tasuke Tamura ultimately lost control, who knows whether the mastermind behind the scenes genuinely couldn't suppress him or was using him as a test?
After confirming this, Rio Futaba immediately drew further conclusions.
"The enemy's ability has limitations. Otherwise, psychics would be everywhere by now. The enemy cannot create psychics at will; certain conditions must be met."
"Secondly, since they are artificially created, who becomes the target of the mastermind? There must be commonalities, but we'll need a second sample to appear before we can analyse further."
At this point, Rio Futaba paused, glanced at Kazusa Touma sitting closely beside Ye Xing, and shook her head helplessly.
"Of course, the good news is we have a new psychic. Given Touma's personality... her combat ability should be quite formidable."
What image did Kazusa Touma project in the eyes of the Supernatural Society members?
A veteran warrior.
Lying in a morgue freezer, fully aware of evil spirits outside, she remained unfazed—even nearly confronting them. During the Kyoto Municipal Hospital incident, as an ordinary person, Kazusa Touma dared to kick an evil spirit.
Miko Yotsuya was terrified but could endure it.
Kazusa Touma simply felt no fear at all. To put it nicely, she was audacious; to be blunt, it seemed like she was missing a screw.
You want to challenge Ye Xing?
Just see if Warrior Touma will let you get away with it.
With her disposition, Kazusa Touma ought to become a professional exorcist.
Just then, Ye Xing suddenly sensed something unusual.
As his exclusive weapon, Onimaru Kunitsuna shared a contract-like connection with him, no matter the distance.
And now...
Ye Xing stood up and addressed the members before him calmly.
"Prepare for action."
"A spiritual power reaction, similar to evil spirits but not identical, has appeared inside the Kyoto Metropolitan Police Department headquarters."
"It's the enemy."