The crisp sheets, covered with fine brushstrokes and inked sigils, looked almost fragile against the damp alley floor. Rising to her feet, she stepped back, gaze never leaving Renji's body.
"Do you see it?" she asked.
Itsuki glanced at her, then at his teacher.
"See what? All I see is an unconscious and perverted bloke on the pavement.' He shook his head. "If you mean the demon, no. I haven't seen it since."
Amane picked up her bag and walked a few paces farther from the talisman she had set. Itsuki followed her lead, even though he wasn't sure what she was doing.
"You're overthinking it," she said flatly.
"Of course I am,' he thought to himself. "A million things have been happening to me at once.' He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "What do you mean?"
"Think of something that calms you," she told him, her voice steady. "Anchor yourself to it. Don't force it, just let your mind settle. When you do, you'll see the demon again."
It was when she told him this that it hit him. He was in a dark alley somewhere in Tokyo, standing next to a mysterious girl he'd only met that day, with his unconscious, possibly broken-boned teacher who he had assaulted lying on the ground—possessed by an actual demon. And somehow, through all of it, he had not panicked. A little confusion, sure, but no full on panick except for when he saw the demons.
"Guess I really must be going insane.'
"Something that relaxes me, huh? Does music count?" he asked tilting his head towards Amane.
"Anything. Whatever keeps you calm."
He thought back. The train ride. The classroom. Lunch. Every time he'd seen them—those writhing demons—he had his headphones on. That was the common thread.
Itsuki dug into his bag, slipped the headphones over his ears, and tapped play on his phone. The smooth, mellow pulse of Frenciah music filled him instantly, a soft rhythm wrapping around his nerves like silk. He closed his eyes, breathed deeply, then opened them again.
And there it was.
The demon clung to Renji like a sickened lover, claws hooked round him, its body pressed tight, its grin obscene in the dim light.
"Shit, that's still a disgusting thing to look at.'
The demon's head turned toward him. Itsuki's stomach lurched. He stumbled to the side, ran over to the nearest dumpster, and threw up. Gasping, he wiped his mouth and muttered, "Fuck…"
He straightened, stepping from the dumpster, steadying his breath, and turned toward Amane. She hadn't moved. Calm as ever, as she stood watching. He lowered the volume of the headphones and nodded.
"It worked. I see it."
Her lips curved into a smirk, sharper and more genuine than the guarded ones she'd worn all day. "Perfect. Now we can begin."
"We?" he asked, sliding down against the alley wall to sit. "I thought you'd handle this on your own. Not to mention, what if someone tries to walk through here right now?"
"No worries," she replied smoothly. "I already took care of that."
He didn't bother to object. His head was already stretched thin with everything happening. Not to mention, he was putting more effort than he had put in anything for as long as he could remember. "If we get caught, then so be it'.
Amane stepped forward again, hand raised horizontally over the unconscious teacher. Itsuki braced himself, headphones still on, eyes fixed. The demon clung tighter, but its face was disturbingly calm—like it didn't even register them as threats, or maybe it didn't care.
Amane closed her eyes. Her lips moved in a whisper, too low for Itsuki to catch.
"Is that Japanese?'
he thought himself as he tried to listen in through the music from his headphones.
One by one, the talismans flared to life, glowing with faint golden light. Lines of script shimmered as if drawn fresh, the air buzzing with quiet static.
Itsuki rose to his feet without realizing it. The glow thickened, painting the alley walls with trembling shadow from loose objects lying around.
Then, the pull began.
Renji's body arched slightly as the demon jerked upward, torn from him with an invisible force. Its claws screeched as they ripped free, leaving mild, bleeding furrows across the man's arms and chest. The demon writhed, suspended in midair, its limbs snapping and curling as it fought to stay anchored.
The talismans lifted from the ground, floating around the creature in slow, orbiting arcs. Their ink shone like firebrands, burning brighter with each second.
Itsuki's pulse hammered. He couldn't look away.
The demon eventually screeched—a sound that was skull rattling—but piece by piece, its form began to flake away, dissolving into dust that streamed into the glowing talismans. First its arms, then its torso, its face last of all.
The four talismans drew closer, snapping together in a burst of light. And in a heartbeat, they fused into one single sheet. Its glow faded, and it drifted down, weightless, to land gently on Renji's chest.
Itsuki exhaled, dazed. "That has to be the coolest exorcism ever.'
Amane bent, removed the talisman, and turned. A smirk tugged her lips again. "The next part might be horrific. So try not to pass out."
"Horrific? What's sh—"
The ground behind her split.
A jagged oval of black opened, like the fabric of the world had been peeled apart. From it, two enormous claws pushed through, thick and hooked, gouging into the ground behind her.
Amane tossed the talisman upward. The slip of paper spun unnaturally high.
And then the beast emerged.
The same monstrous figure Itsuki had glimpsed when Amane first appeared at school—only now larger, more defined, its body a silhouette of nightmare, its mouth lined with gleaming fangs. It rose in a rush, jaws yawning wide, and swallowed the talisman whole.
In the next breath, it sank back into the void. The portal closed with a heavy silence, leaving only cracked pavement behind.
Itsuki's stomach twisted. His whole body shook—but his eyes stayed locked on Amane.
She hadn't even flinched.
"Wow, you actually didn't pass out. That's impressive."
Itsuki stayed perfectly still. He had been disgusted by whatever had latched onto their teacher—and here she was, casually pulling something out that looked even worse, something straight out of the pits of hell. It was far more terrifying than the other two he had seen and she just casually had it laying around.
And then he heard it again.
The sound.
The same faint noise he'd been hearing since he got off the train—always behind him. He stood frozen, the sound pressing in closer, but fear kept him from turning around.
"Relax," Amane said, swinging her bag on. "It's just a demon attached to you."
"What?!" Itsuki blurted, panic flashing across his face.
"Nothing to worry about. The good news is you can see demons pretty easily—whatever you're listening to seems to let you sense them. The bad news? You're not exactly a saint. That's why one latched onto you too."
"A demon?' he thought, stunned, watching Amane approach him as she walked past their teacher who was now looking lifeless. "I'm definitely not a pervert. Why would a demon be latched on me?'
He yanked his headphones off. A couple seconds later, the sound vanished.
"How do I have a demon on me? I'm not a pervert"
"I bet you're not," she said calmly, moving to stand beside him. "Stand still."
He obeyed without thinking. She pulled a talisman from her book and pressed it to his back. Just like before, she stretched out her hand and whispering something under her breath.
"That's definitely not Japanese'
The paper glowed faintly, then dimmed, and she tucked it away again.
"You've exorcised it?" Itsuki asked, still shaken by the thought of the demon clinging to him.
"Exorcised?" she echoed, already walking back to their teacher.
"This is real life and I'm not a priest." She crouched beside the teacher again, examining the scars etched across his body.
"Why was it on me?" Itsuki asked, stuffing the headphones into his bag.
"Because you're not perfect. No one is."
"I know I'm not perfect', he thought, irritation flickering across his face, "but I'm definitely not a pervert or a pedophile.'
"So what now?" he asked aloud.
"We leave—before someone sees us and thinks the worst."
"What about the marks on his body?." Itsuki asked. Even though he was irritated at the kind of person he came to know his teacher to be, leaving a grown man with scars in the middle of an alleyway was still cruel.
" Don't worry about it." She replied, as she kept on walking ahead.
" Right'.
They eventually stepped out of the alley. As they reached the end, one of Amane's talismans placed on the wall dissolved into thin air. Itsuki able to catch just a glimpse of it.
"So that's what she meant when she said she'd taken care of it. Perhaps putting it there served as some sort of barrier that hid us. I'd ask but she'll probably just say something vague again'.
He glanced at Amane's back as she walked ahead of him.
"Maybe she's a witch? Though, she hasn't turned me into anything yet… so maybe not.'