Natsume didn"t show up for the afternoon cla.s.ses.

Harutora was currently still in the cla.s.sroom, about one hour after the afternoon cla.s.ses had ended.

He frowned listlessly, an appearance doomed to repet.i.tion, his fierce eyes like those of an intolerably hungry, fasting tiger. Kon hadn"t materialized, but if she did, she would definitely feel deeply anxious because of the awkwardness.

Almost no other students could be seen in the cla.s.sroom. Other than Harutora, there were only two people staying behind in the cla.s.sroom. One was Touji, and the other was Kyouko, unexpectedly enough.

Touji sat in a seat two seats away from Harutora, his back to the chair with his feet propped on the desk, unmoving so that it was impossible to see whether he was awake or asleep. Kyouko was sitting in a seat farther away from the other two with her cell phone screen flipped open, constantly pressing b.u.t.tons and trying her best to show an unconcerned appearance as if this had nothing to do with her. However, she didn"t leave first, but instead stayed behind in the cla.s.sroom.

They were all waiting for Natsume to return to the cla.s.sroom.

The three of them hadn"t talked much, and a heavy atmosphere hung over the vast cla.s.sroom, permeating out from Harutora as its center.

The sound of a door opening rang out and the door to the cla.s.sroom opened.

The clueless Tenma hastily jumped back in surprise once he walked into the cla.s.sroom. He seemed to have believed that no one was left inside the cla.s.sroom, and the group of people staying inside also surprised him. In particular, the gazes that shot at him as soon as the door opened surprised him so much that he almost withdrew and fled the scene.

"......Wh, What are you doing? And you three...... Why are you all together?"

"Nothing."

Tenma asked nervously, and Harutora coldly replied to him. But it was fortunate for Tenma that there was even someone willing to respond to him, as Touji didn"t react and Kyouko ignored his question. He felt like he had entered a dangerous and sensitive area, straining the kind smile on his face.

"I, I see...... Ah, but it"s perfect that Harutora-kun is in the cla.s.sroom, Ohtomo-sensei actually gave me this just now and told me to give it to you."

"To me?"

Tenma held a long, two-meter long rod in his hand, and one end was set with a metal tip, with a metal hoop on the other end, the hoop pa.s.sing through six other smaller rings like the shakujou[1] a monk or pract.i.tioner would carry while traveling.

Harutora felt shocked, surprise all over his face, and Touji and Kyouko"s gazes clearly showed great interest after taking in the shakujou one after another.

"......What"s that?"

"It"s a shakujou, have you never seen one before?"

"I"ve seen one, but why are you giving this kind of thing......"

"Didn"t that wooden sword from yesterday break? Sensei wanted you to use this instead."

"Hey, could he mean that he wants me to have more shikigami battles?"

"I don"t think so...... Sensei was probably dissatisfied that the wooden sword somehow broke, so he wanted to take revenge."

Tenma said this while tilting his head, looking like he wasn"t very confident.

Indeed, after the fight yesterday had ended, Ohtomo had taken the wooden sword (wreckage) that he had enchanted himself, muttering: "This is way too ridiculous!" It seemed that he hadn"t expected the wooden sword to come to such a tragic end. Even so, Harutora still didn"t get where the significance of revenge came in.

"......So annoying."

Harutora frowned, taking the shakujou from Tenma"s hands.

The shakujou was heavy, but maybe its balance was good, since it was easier to handle than the impression its exterior gave off.

But even if he accepted this kind of thing, not only would it occupy more s.p.a.ce, it would just create more trouble. He didn"t have many things right now so it didn"t matter, but there wasn"t actually much s.p.a.ce in his dorm room.

"Sensei wanted me to give it to you as soon as possible, could it be that he already knew you were still in the cla.s.sroom?"

"He already...... Why would he know? I didn"t run into him."

"I, I don"t know that. But speaking of that, why are you and the others still in the cla.s.sroom, Harutora-kun?"

Tenma asked Harutora, no malice at all discernable in his tone. Harutora puffed out his cheeks upon hearing that like a child losing his temper.

"Natsume didn"t come to cla.s.s in the afternoon, right?" Touji leisurely replied from the side.

"Ah, right, that"s very curious. This should be the first time Natsume-kun has skipped cla.s.s, right?"

"It seems like he had a fight with this idiot. Kurahashi was there at the time."

"R, Really?"

Tenma looked at Kyouko who was sitting farther away. Since the memories of what had happened the past two days were still fresh, the look Tenma gave Kyouko was obviously a bit surprised. Even if she had become the focus of the topic, Kyouko still stubbornly stared at her cell phone screen, refusing to raise her head.

"What do you mean cutting cla.s.s, I thought he was going to those special cla.s.ses. That suit-wearing man came to get him again before I left." Harutora spoke, his anger still not fully disappeared.

"Special cla.s.ses? What are those?"

"You didn"t know? That person always disappears somewhere during breaks and after cla.s.s ends, the teacher even specially comes to receive him."

Tenma still had a wondering face after Harutora"s explanation. But once he said "The person who asked you to notify us about him on the first day!" Tenma made a "huh?" sound and was extremely surprised for some reason.

"H, Hold on, Harutora-kun, that was--"

Tenma was about to hastily open his mouth to explain, but Kyouko who had been standing fast to her silence suddenly interrupted.

"......Let me first explain, that person just now wasn"t a teacher, he was a Mystical Investigator."

"Mystical Investigator? You mean the Onmyou Agency Mystical Investigator?"

"Are there any other Mystical Investigators?"

Kyouko replied coldly. Harutora"s face sank, and Touji took his feet off the table as if he smelled a dangerous air, sitting up in his chair.

"Why would a Mystical Investigator come over and over to look for Natsume?" Harutora asked, his face still serious.

"The Mystical Investigator came to investigate the incident that happened before."

"The incident that happened before? What do you mean what happened before?"

Could it be that the Mystical Investigator had come about Dairenji Suzuka? But that incident shouldn"t have been made public. Harutora asked, not understanding, and Kyouko and Tenma unwittingly both showed the same surprise upon hearing that.

"Harutora-kun, could it be that you didn"t hear about it?"

"Hear about what?"

"......What"s going on, aren"t you his shikigami? What"s up with you two?"

"Hurry up and tell me what exactly happened!"

The two of them both knew about what had happened to Natsume, and he was the only one in the dark. That fact annoyed Harutora, and he thundered, agitatedly standing up from his seat.

At the same time--

"Harutora-sama!"

Kon suddenly materialized on the desk in front of Harutora.

Why was that? ...The moment Harutora"s drive was weakened, a crashing sound like an explosion rang out and the window between the cla.s.sroom and the corridor shattered, scattering everywhere.

The four of them didn"t get what had happened for a while and just gasped, frozen and unable to move from where they were. Only Kon showed wariness on her face, drawing the wakizashi from her waist.

Kon"s wide eyes looked - upwards.

There was some giant, writhing creature above the frozen four people and Kon who had taken a stance.

It was a hazy, dark cloud. A big cloud of fog that wasn"t mist or smoke constantly writhed, spreading out as if planning on covering the ceiling of the cla.s.sroom, like the thundercloud of a storm - no, it was moving its body gruesomely like a living creature. This cloud of fog was what had broken the window and rushed into the room.

Harutora and the others were scared into a panic upon seeing this.

"Wh, What is that? Hey, Tenma, do you know?"

"I, I don"t know! I"ve never seen that thing!"

"Tenma, does the Onmyou Academy raise even these kinds of things too?"

"I don"t know! Why do you always ask me!?"

The cloud of fog moved quite intensely. On the outside it looked grayish white, but a gas black as ink writhed inside it, with dark-red tendrils flowing around covering its entire body. In addition, it would often burst in a spasm, scattering sparks and flashing with light.

That appearance was like an erupting volcano belching out smoke, but also like a never-before-seen deep-sea creature, or even like a hideous chimera doing a crazy dance. The strangest part was its texture, as that thing"s outer form was like fog floating in midair yet it gave off a weight as if mud or dirt, this ma.s.s being what had broken the window.

"......A kodoku[2]."

Kyouko spoke as she stared upwards, and the other three boys simultaneously turned to face her.

"This thing is a kodoku?"

Touji quickly spoke up to confirm, and Kyouko nodded while staring intently at the gas, her face pale.

The kodoku was quite a mainstream curse in many different Onmyoudou styles. It used bugs like spiders or centipedes as a vessel. By placing a large amount of them in a pot-like tool, they were made to kill each other until the last one remaining was the strongest individual. This bug was used to perform the kodoku, namely as the sacrifice to serve as the vessel. By infusing it with the magical energy of the curse, it would become a type of shikigami.

"I, In other words, this thing counts as a shikigami?"

"Right...... And it"s even a clearly banned magic."

The kodoku had been designated as a "curse-type" shikigami in "General-style", and without the Onmyou Agency"s consent, Onmyou law strictly prohibited its creation and use.

"B, But this is too strange! There"s a barrier around the entire academy building, so even a shikigami shouldn"t be able to force its way in!"

Harutora remembered Alpha and Omega from Tenma"s panicked voice. Could it be that this shikigami had destroyed those komainu guards?

Just then--

The center of the fog expanded, splitting into two halves, a giant eyeball emerging from within. The eyeball moved around fluidly, finally settling down on the bottom, right above Harutora.

Horror ran through Harutora"s entire body, and Touji"s eyes flashed with a sharp light, with Kyouko and Tenma letting out screams.

"Harutora-sama, please stay back!"

Kon shouted and leaped upwards, and the floating fog sticking towards the ceiling moved accordingly.

The fog began descending bit by bit, pieces of it dripping off like rain. The dropping fog drew out irregular paths in midair, successively attacking Harutora and the others.

"Uwah! It"s coming!"

"Tch - H, Hakuou! Kokfuu!"

Kyouko"s defensive shikigami materialized a step behind Kon who had reacted first, leaping off the desk and neatly slashing their katana and spear, slicing up the fog that came continuously. Kon also used her big tail for balance as she moved through the air as if dancing, scattering the constantly attacking fog with her wakizashi.

The fog that had been attacked showed the "lag" phenomenon, its contour distorting and fragments flickering in midair. But after it was cut apart, the fog quickly merged back with the big cloud of fog on the ceiling, and the most important main body showed no signs of weakening.

"Kon! Be careful!"

"Please do not worry - Iyaaaah, it touched my t-t-t-tail!"

"U, Uwah! Aah! Save me!"

"Shut up, Tenma! Hurry up and help!"

"......No good, my phone won"t connect, how thoughtful of them......"

The cla.s.sroom became a battlefield in moments, and it was a tangled battle. The four of them hurriedly came together and held their ground, using the three shikigami as a shield to combat the kodoku. However, they were pushed back step by step by the gradually increasing fog that pressed forth, and finally retreated to the wall on the other side of the corridor.

"Really, it"s practically endless."

Touji frowned. Harutora angrily went "d.a.m.n", trying to open the window behind his back. He unlocked it, but the window wouldn"t budge no matter what, as if it were stuck.

"The window won"t open! Why is it like that?"

"That"s bad! There"s a barrier, when was it set......!"

Kyouko turned around to size up the window and called out lightly. As she spoke, magical energy that covered not only the window, but also the entire surrounding cla.s.sroom, visibly flowed. It seemed like they had been closed off inside the cla.s.sroom.

Touji grabbed a chair, smashing it into the window without saying anything. Kyouko and Tenma flinched in surprise, but the chair smashed into the window was easily bounced back. It seemed that it couldn"t be damaged physically.

"Can"t smash it open, huh...... Kurahashi, do you have any way of destroying this barrier?"

"H, Hold on! Can"t you see that I"m incredibly busy!"

The kodoku"s a.s.sault didn"t seem to be slowing, and the amount of fog was tremendous, and it couldn"t be handled just relying on Kon and the two Yaksha.

"d.a.m.n, is no one still inside the academy building? Why doesn"t anyone notice this commotion!"

"Th, The problem is the barrier, sound won"t get outside no matter how noisy we are inside the barrier!"

"Tenma! If you have spare time to explain, come over here and help! Those two new students are useless amateurs."

Kyouko"s expression was hurried, but the situation was quite dangerous. Her face paled as she focused on controlling the shikigami, and large drops of sweat seeped from her forehead.

Tenma hurriedly took charms out from a charm box, but his hand slipped because his movements were too choppy and the charms scattered to the floor. He floundered in panic for a moment, then hurriedly picked up the charms from the floor.

As he was picking up the charms, the fog dodged around the shikigami"s blades.

A cloud of fog deftly avoided Kokfuu"s spear, rushing towards Harutora. Harutora readily raised the shakujou in his hands, but Kyouko "tch"ed and took out a charm from her charm box a step earlier.

She used a protection charm. The charm gave off a weak light and the attacking fog made a noise. In that moment, the smell of burning wafted out, and the fog dissipated as the protective charm burned it up.

"Th, Thanks."

"Shut up, don"t talk to me!"

Tenma had finally picked up his charms and now stammered incantations, throwing the charms at the fog. However, the fog had now spread everywhere in the cla.s.sroom, and though in the end a single cloud didn"t pose much threat, their chance of victory wasn"t great since there was a mob of them.

"......This thing"s goal should be Harutora." At that time, Touji, who had been engrossed in watching the battle from the window, spoke up.

"M, Me?"

"It looks like it, from its movements."

Kyouko and Tenma who were standing in the front quickly exchanged glances upon hearing those words.

"Could it be Yakou fanatics again......?"

"It"s very possible...... Ugh! What a joke!"

The pair"s conversation also reached Harutora"s and Touji"s ears.

The first day he had entered the princ.i.p.al had spoken about Yakou fanatics, but what was the relationship between Yakou worshippers and this kodoku?

"What"s going on!? Do you two know something?"

Harutora asked urgently from behind. Kyouko"s face sank, and she glanced at Tenma next to her like she was giving him the responsibility of explaining.

Tenma helplessly opened his mouth:

"Harutora-kun, well, you know...... Natsume-kun is Yakou"s......"

"Oh, you"re talking about that rumor, of course I know. So you guys are clear about it too, huh."

The princ.i.p.al had given an explanation that touched lightly upon that subject. "So then what?" Tenma showed an ashamed expression as Harutora urged him on, continuing to explain:

"......Actually, two days before you guys entered, a fanatic who had heard Natsume-kun"s rumor ambushed him on his way to school, trying to come in contact with him. He seemed like a very tough person, and in the end he even planned on a forced kidnapping, resulting in both sides using magic."

"What did you say? Two days before we came here?"

Though there had long since been rumors about Yakou fanatics looking for Natsume, he hadn"t expected an incident to have happened so recently.

"Yeah." Tenma nodded at the shocked Harutora. "Didn"t I just say a Mystical Investigator came here to do an investigation? It was to investigate that incident. I heard that there was a big group of accomplices backing that fanatic at the time."

Harutora was stunned. Such a big thing had happened, but he hadn"t even heard a whisper of it.

"B, But, don"t Yakou fanatics worship Yakou? Why would they do that? Especially if they truly believe Natsume is Yakou, they wouldn"t use a kodoku!"

"Hmph! How can we make sense of those crazy fanatics" thoughts! Also, though the fanatic from before was subdued by teachers who rushed over, he was shouting some words like "I came to help Yakou awaken" without giving up."

"No way......!"

In that case, the companions of the fanatic from that time had released the kodoku to make Natsume awaken as Yakou? That really couldn"t be called worship, it was simply a twisted and one-sided crazy faith.

"d.a.m.n, what "special cla.s.ses"! Why did that person lie to us?"

"I think...... He probably didn"t want you who had just entered to worry too much."

Tenma replied conclusively. Maybe things were truly as he said, but even if they weren"t, Harutora was already so busy with dealing with his own situation that his mind was spinning, so no wonder Natsume would be so apprehensive and deliberately conceal it.

..."Harutora, Touji, let"s do our best."

Back then, Natsume had said that with a smile and left her seat. She hadn"t left to go to some special cla.s.ses, but to guard against fanatics who were eyeing her and to talk about future countermeasures with the Mystical Investigator pursuing the case. Harutora couldn"t help but get angry, half at Natsume who had burdened herself with everything, and the other half at himself for not noticing the abnormal situation.

Then, Harutora came back to his senses.

"......Hold on, what about Natsume? Could something be happening to Natsume right now?"

Tenma let out an "ah" as Harutora said this, his face paling.

Since the opponents had used the kodoku to deal with the shikigami Harutora, Natsume couldn"t be untouched.

Moreover, Natsume hadn"t come to cla.s.s in the afternoon. Even if she was talking about countermeasures with the Mystical Investigator, and even if it was right after she had fought fiercely with Harutora, she had showed up in cla.s.s the previous two days. Could she have skipped cla.s.s today because something had happened to make her unable to come?

Kyouko hurriedly glanced at the pale Harutora.

"......Harutora-kun, didn"t you just reproach Natsume-kun for not having the courage to talk to the people around him?"

"That......"

"Don"t you think that you can"t fault him for that? Everyone believes he"s Yakou"s reincarnation, and when you add the crazy fanatics circling around him, not only would people be unwilling to take the initiative to approach him, he"d obviously hesitate for fear of bringing trouble to others."

Harutora bit his lower lip, not even noticing that he bit so hard that it bled.

..."I don"t need Harutora-kun to tell me about those things."

No wonder she would respond like that. He was a shikigami and a childhood friend who knew her secret better than anybody, but had come out to attack her biggest irresolvable weak point. She would definitely feel even more pained and uncomfortable upon hearing those words come out of his mouth.

He understood - it was a fact that he had borne in his heart before entering the Academy, but he had neglected it. Since he couldn"t keep up with the coursework, he had tossed the things important enough that the princ.i.p.al had told him three times out of his mind, mustering his strength in order to let himself have a place in the cla.s.s.

Actually, Harutora was the one whose mind was full of only himself, not Natsume.

"......Natsume."

*Jangle* - the small loops on the top of the shakujou made noise.

Kyouko, Tenma, and even Kon turned around in surprise - towards Harutora"s position.

Harutora was too busy to care about what kind of expression appeared on their faces.

"...Kon, move aside."

"H-Harutora-sama? But......"

"Hurry up and move aside."

Harutora barked again, and Kon threw off her hesitation, dodging to the side. Harutora grasped the shakujou, immediately advancing towards the gap ahead.

The fog rapidly attacked, but was fended off by Harutora nimbly swinging the shakujou forward. A "lag" reaction appeared for a moment, and it split apart.

"H, Hold on, why are you doing this again--!"

This was different from the fight, it wasn"t a game. Kyouko couldn"t say those words to stop him because that natural counsel couldn"t keep up with Harutora"s advancing back.

Harutora brandished the shakujou, raining blows on the fog with an imposing figure that even rivaled Hakuou and Kokfuu - his momentum was even greater than the two of them.

Kyouko and Tenma couldn"t help but gasp.

"......Kurahashi, Tenma, sorry for getting you involved." Harutora spoke without even turning around.

"D, Don"t be......"

"But please, help me out just this once, and I"ll apologize seriously to you later. Please help me beat back this thing and find Natsume."

Harutora pleaded.

Tenma shivered and clearly nodded his head to reply.

Kyouko chewed on her lip.

"......Since we"ll die if we don"t fight back, that"s all we can do." She replied impatiently, a proud smile emerging on her face. "Sorry." Harutora apologized to the two of them again.

"Things should be easier this way. Actually, I have an idea, but I don"t know if it"ll work, so I"d like to ask the seniors to offer their opinion." Touji calmly spoke with a low voice as he watched.

When Natsume regained consciousness, she was lying on the ground with both her hands tied behind her back and the ankles of her feet also tied with rope.

She couldn"t make sense of the situation for some time, widening her eyes and raising her body.

"......The magic practice field?"

Natsume happened to be lying on the arena where the shikigami battle had been held yesterday.

Why - once she thought this, the memories from before she lost consciousness instantly awoke.

"Ah, you"re finally awake."

The suit-wearing Mystical Investigator stood to the side, speaking while gazing at Natsume who lay on the ground.

"You......!"

"Oh, shout and yell as much as you please, it doesn"t matter since the sound won"t reach above. But I implore you to not act rashly for your reputation"s sake."

The Mystical Investigator showed a cold smile, respectfully bowing towards Natsume on the ground.

"First, I should apologize for the incident a few days ago. My comrade became impatient and did something undignified. Though, I"m not too willing to call that person a "comrade", even if he holds the same respectful att.i.tude as I, as our ambitions are inconsistent, in particular since the difference in our abilities is too great."

Natsume couldn"t help but doubt her own ears upon hearing the Mystical Investigator"s words. When "the incident a few days ago" was mentioned, she could only think of one person, the Yakou fanatic who had appeared before her before Harutora and Touji entered the academy.

"It would be fine if that person had just done his duty properly, but unfortunately he grew restless upon hearing of your outstanding performance. Not that I don"t understand his feelings, as in the end, my heart is also jumping for joy."

The Mystical Investigator snickered, his appearance simply seeming like a different person"s compared to the young man she had become familiar with, who had come to investigate after she had been attacked by the Yakou fanatic. The displeasure and anger from being tricked made Natsume"s white face swiftly flush red.

"You called that man a comrade, so could you also be......"

"Correct."

The Mystical Investigator became polite again, bowing proudly like a child.

"I am truly honored to be able to pay tribute to your true self like this. Heir to the Tsuchimikado family, Tsuchimikado Natsume-sama, my great King of the North Star."

Natsume moaned in despair.

The North Star King was the moniker that fanatics worshipped him by. The North Star referred to Polaris[3], which occupied an important position in Onmyoudou. Those people compared Polaris to "the night"s radiance", and hence Yakou[4], and they deemed their master a king in imitation of his retainers Hishamaru and Kakugyouki, thereby sp.a.w.ning a nickname. Of course, Yakou himself never referred to himself as such, and because of this there were very few people who called him the "North Star King".

"Why!?"

Natsume still felt it hard to believe, unable to hold back her shout.

"You"re a true Mystical Investigator belonging to the Onmyou Agency! Why would you be together with that kind of person like a Yakou fanatic--?"

"It"s not to proper to address your own believer as "that kind of person", so could you please retract that manner of speaking? In particular, you don"t need to be surprised, there are quite a few worshippers of the North Star King in the Onmyou Agency."

"Liar!"

"You think I"m lying? Actually, isn"t such a situation natural? How do normal people who don"t understand magic criticize the King of the North Star? Only people who are versed in Onmyoudou can understand his greatness, and there is no place in the world with deeper relations to magic than the Onmyou Agency, isn"t that right?"

The Mystical Investigator spoke regally. Natsume felt a great shock, since his explanation sounded extremely convincing.

The Onmyou Agency could be said to be the modern j.a.pan"s Onmyou Bureau - the headquarters of Onmyouji. But at the same time, the Onmyou Agency was also the lair of Yakou fanatics, which was no small matter. Even if there weren"t many, they might bring huge effects to the magic community someday if their true ident.i.ties weren"t exposed.

"However, the vast majority of people currently related to magic enjoy the grace of the North Star King"s undertakings, yet they bury the North Star King, seeing his existence as taboo. Far too foolish! How could those actions be anything but ungrateful? I wait to correct that mistake as soon as possible and revert the king"s improperly disparaged reputation."

The Mystical Investigator spoke and suddenly stared unblinkingly at Natsume. His gaze was hot and eager. He walked in front of her, slowly kneeling to the ground.

"I wait to atone before the great king, for forcing you to descend to this world again to clear his own stigma...... That is truly a great insult, and thus I am disgraced. But now, I only wish to kneel before you as soon as possible and ask that you forgive my indolence and permit that I offer my entire services to my king"s future greatness...... You came for this, right, Yakou-sama?"

The Mystical Investigator peered into Natsume"s eyes, apologizing reverently.

The young man used exaggerated speech and motions, pure faith showing in his eyes. That faith was completely distorted - insane.

A chill ran through her body and the illusion of her body temperature dropping straight down a.s.saulted Natsume. She was glad that she was lying on the ground, as if she had been standing, she might have collapsed to the ground from her trembling legs.

Because of the rumors about Yakou"s reincarnation, she had suffered quite a bit of scorn and had been feared ever since she had been born. She had often even been forced to bear impossibly high expectations.

But among all of those emotions of the people who had seen her as Yakou, never once had this kind of "affection" showed up that made her so terrified and physically sick. She felt like her teeth were chattering and desperately clenched her jaws.

"I...... I"m not Yakou......"

Natsume muttered, opening her mouth to letting out the fear and filth from her heart.

With those words, the young man"s face momentarily changed. He no longer showed the proper, upright appearance like before, but instead he gave off an appalling air, his dark face giving off an extremely narrow, distorted belief filled with prejudice.

But, he quickly regained his calm and even forced a good-intentioned smile, slowly standing up.

"Natsume-kun, I can reach confidential information that is not revealed to the public due to my ident.i.ty. I"m very clear on what happened. The "Child Prodigy" Dairenji Suzuka and the "Armored Juggernaut" both showed up, right?"

"Wha......"

Natsume"s eyes widened in surprise as the summer incident was suddenly mentioned again. The Mystical Investigator couldn"t help but grin at that reaction.

"Do you understand my feelings when I heard that report? Not just me, my comrades were all ecstatic. Many years before, there were rumors indicating that you were the North Star King"s reincarnation, but after receiving that report, we finally had proof of the rumor"s truth! If you remember, I said that one comrade among us couldn"t help but take early action because he heard of your outstanding performance, right? Now, we have already distanced ourselves from our lengthy hiding and have made various preparations to welcome your awakening. We have waited for the moment the North Star King awakens for a long time, the days creeping by like years!"

The Mystical Investigator spoke glowingly with zeal.

Natsume was shocked again. The incident with Dairenji Suzuka was an important "turning point" in her life and she couldn"t forget about it even if she wanted to, but now it was a "past event" that had "already ended". She had never dreamed that this incident would lead to a great uproar in a place that she didn"t know of.

But--

"That wasn"t done by my strength alone."

Natsume murmured quietly. As if he hadn"t heard clearly, the Mystical Investigator asked: "What did you say?"

"That incident wasn"t resolved by just my strength alone. It wasn"t me who defeated the Armored Juggernaut and stopped Dairenji Suzuka by myself, it was Harutora and I - we were only able to successfully resolve it by combining our two strengths. We were only able to achieve such surprising results because we combined our two individual strengths. You say you were "very clear"? How laughable, you don"t know anything at all! Don"t think that you can make a conclusion about Harutora and I by just relying on your own selfish conjectures."

"You, that......!"

The pleasure on the Mystical Investigator"s face shattered.

The dark face that had flitted across him just now showed from underneath his pleased expression. A callous face appeared along with violent spasms in his shoulders and hands like he was shivering from cold.

"Ignorant...... Far too ignorant and clueless...... This is the king? Unbelievable......Unreasonable...... This is......!"

The Mystical Investigator"s proper appearance twisted into something inhuman, like a severe lunatic.

But, regardless of what kind of grave shocks his faith received, he was still a Mystical Investigator. He forcefully suppressed his agitated feelings, muttering fiercely.

"Hah! The King hasn"t awakened, I cannot act with undue haste and improperly attempt to speak directly with the king. But Natsume-kun, let me tell you something to help you awaken. That brat you seem to call Harutora should be currently breathing his last due to the kodoku that I released!"

The Mystical Investigator hurled those words with a vicious tone, and only then did Natsume truly feel like her body temperature had actually dropped rapidly.

She reflexively searched for Harutora"s aura. A "link" of spiritual power had been created between them ever since she had gifted him with the spirit-seeing ability and allowed him to become her shikigami. Natsume could feel Harutora"s presence however far the two were from each other.

But, she finally noticed that her strength had been sealed when she tried to search for aura.

Four charms had been stuck on to her chest, shoulders, and back, and their use was to restrain her spiritual power. With that, she was powerless, unable to even summon her servant shikigami Hokuto since she couldn"t use magic.

"Did you only notice that now? How truly careless. What"s more, what do you think this place is? This is the magical practice field, and the center of the arena, right?"

There was a first-cla.s.s barrier around the arena in order to keep magic that was cast inside the magic practice field from affecting the outside. Natsume couldn"t establish a link with magic even if she tried to trace Harutora"s aura. She couldn"t help but be stunned.

The Mystical Investigator laughed coldly.

"Do you feel very sad that your fancied shikigami will die? But, you don"t need to be upset, as I will take the burden of being your next shikigami - your retainer to guide and protect you. I am the one fit for the awakened King. I am the new Hishamaru!"

The Mystical Investigator spoke nonsense wildly and arrogantly, and Natsume didn"t pay them any heed, her mind occupied with thoughts of Harutora.

She remembered that she had fought with Harutora during the noon break. She didn"t believe that Harutora would die like that, but Harutora was helpless facing the kodoku unleashed by a specialist Mystical Investigator.

A dark despair shrouded Natsume and her wide eyes could only see darkness.

"Is this real......"

A quiet voice slowly dripped like blood from Natsume"s lips.

But... "......What"s going on?" The Mystical Investigator suddenly raised his head, moving his gaze above and away from Natsume"s body.

A clump of fog entered through the entrance to the spectator seats.

A clump of slowly moving, pulsating, living fog.

It was a kodoku. The Kodoku rushed straight towards the arena from above the spectator seats and was blocked off by the invisible barrier"s wall. Even though it was blocked, the kodoku still continued to charge forward, trying to force itself through. Moreover, the Mystical Investigator standing in the center of the arena gave off an intense anger and hatred.

"How is this possible! The kodoku I released was somehow returned?"

He shouted with a dumbfounded look. At a loss, Natsume looked up towards the spectator seats with her tearful face.

Not long after--

A definitely unmistakable voice pa.s.sed through the barrier from the other side of the entrance that the kodoku had rushed in from, reaching Natsume"s ears.

"--Natsume! You"re alright!"

Natsume breathed deeply.

"Harutora!"

Upon hearing that cry, Harutora quickly rushed into the spectator seats of the magic practice field with all his power.

This was the first time he had looked from the spectator seats at the magic practice field where the shikigami battle had been held yesterday, and at the time he hadn"t noticed how vast this arena really was due to the tense situation.

The spectator seats were devoid of people, and there were only two figures inside the light-illuminated arena. There was that suit-wearing man in the center of the area, his head turned to look at Harutora - the Mystical Investigator. The other person who was tied and bound while lying at his feet was the uniform-wearing Natsume.

"Natsume!"

He couldn"t see Natsume clearly because of the distance between them, but the voice that had called out to him didn"t sound like she had been hurt. Harutora had made it in time, Natsume was safe.

The kodoku continuously rushed from the front row of the spectator seats towards the two people in the center of the arena before it. Harutora rushed down the descending spectator seats, stopping in front of the squirming kodoku.

First Kon, then Touji and Tenma, and finally Kyouko bringing Hakuou and Kokfuu appeared in the spectator seats in succession after Harutora. "D, Did we make it?" Tenma asked. After Touji quickly inspected the condition of the area, he briefly nodded his head to respond.

Then, he turned to Kyouko who followed behind him, saying with a smile:

"......It seems like it went pretty successfully."

Kyouko was short of breath, maybe because she been affected by continuously using magic, but she still desperately regulated her breathing, nodding her head at Touji.

Touji"s proposed battle plan in the cla.s.sroom had been a "counter-curse".

A counter-curse, namely eliminating the magic cast by the other party, returned the magic to the pract.i.tioner. Curses originally referred to turning the spiritual power of negative emotions like anger or hatred into the power required for magic, and because of this, eliminating the control imposed over the magical power could liberate the magical power and turn the attack towards the pract.i.tioner who had used it. This counter-curse was the most effective magic against the kodoku, which used resentment as magical power.

But, this was a kodoku cast by a Mystical Investigator - a specialist in casting magic on humans - and it wasn"t simple to destroy its firm control, especially since this was Kyouko"s first time trying to cast a counter-curse.

"Luckily, Touji-kun started the sprinkler system and weakened the kodoku"s power, or else we couldn"t have succeeded no matter how powerful Kurahashi-san was."

Tenma, who had successfully cracked the cla.s.sroom"s barrier, spoke excitedly. In order to lessen Kyouko"s burden, Harutora, Kon, Touji, and Tenma had fought with their full strength. It would have been hard to escape the crisis without the hard work of any one of them.

"......So with this, it"s obvious who the culprit is, but it"s truly unexpected."

Kyouko spoke with disdain, gazing at the arena from the spectator seats and staring at the Mystical Investigator who looked back at them.

The out-of-control fog was obviously trying to attack the Mystical Investigator in the arena, proving that the pract.i.tioner who had used the kodoku was none other than him. This was the clearest evidence.

They had wondered when someone had set a barrier in the cla.s.sroom. Since the Mystical Investigator had carried out investigations of Natsume"s surroundings, there had been numerous opportunities for him to set down magic beforehand. The kodoku was the same. Since it had been magic used inside the academy building, the barrier sealing off the building naturally wouldn"t respond. Moreover, as long as he stayed inside the magic practice field"s arena, he wouldn"t have to worry about magical espionage for even a moment. What seemed like an unplanned attack had actually been deliberate and profound.

On the other hand, the Mystical Investigator"s body shook from anger and mortification as he stood in the arena, raising his head to look at the kodoku he had released along with the academy students who had done away with the kodoku.

But, he suppressed his roused emotions again, a cold smile appearing on his face, and spat.

"......Well, if it isn"t the Kurahashi family tomboy who"s usually quarreling bitterly with the king...... Truly a miscalculation."

He took out a bloodstained charm from the pocket of his suit, deliberately raising it high in front of them and slowly tearing it in two. With that tear, the fog stuck to the barrier thrashed painfully, splitting left and right and dissipating into mist. He had long since prepared countermeasures to guard against a counter-curse situation.

Harutora broke into a run again upon seeing that action, sprinting towards the arena.

"So you were the culprit! You haven"t done anything to Natsume, have you!?"

The Mystical Investigator snorted and replied to Harutora"s angry roar.

"......I just made him listen to some of my words here. How could I hurt him, especially since I have no intention of harming Natsume-kun. Isn"t that natural? Even if he"s immature, he"s still the king."

The Mystical Investigator replied with a smile.

His narrowed eyes were dark, and it could be seen that this unexpected development annoyed him. But he even showed self-control in his expression, and his tone regained its calm, his lips always presenting a mocking smile.

Kyouko blew a raspberry at him fiercely.

"Before we came here, we used a simple shikigami to inform the teachers, and they will hurry here very quickly after they learn what"s happened. You have nowhere to run, especially since this is inside the Onmyou Academy."

"R, Right! Y, You should surrender peacefully and release Natsume-kun!"

Tenma continued Kyouko"s cold words, also raising his voice to clamor at the Mystical Investigator. Touji was silent, showing a look as sharp as a knife"s edge as he watched the Mystical Investigator"s reaction.

"Okay, I"ll let him go. It"s my loss this time, I"ll leave this place quickly."

The Mystical Investigator shrugged his shoulders readily. "Huh?" Tenma exclaimed in surprise, and Kyouko was also stunned.

"My goal this time was just to let Natsume-san know about my existence, and though I hoped that he would understand more of the truth...... I"ll leave it to be said "next time"."

He spoke leisurely. Harutora heard it and couldn"t help but growl with gritted teeth: "You b.a.s.t.a.r.d......"

Just then--

"Do you understand the consequences of this?" Natsume, who was lying on the ground, spoke.

The Mystical Investigator turned around towards her with a "nn?".

"......Not only will you be unable to return to the Onmyou Agency, you"ll even be hunted down instead. Do you truly think you can escape from the Onmyou Agency"s pursuit?"

"Oh my, did you forget what I said just now? That there are still many of my comrades in the Onmyou Agency?"

The Mystical Investigator replied, showing an insidious smile. Natsume was momentarily speechless.

"Indeed, I won"t be able to continue moving in the spotlight with this, but it"s not important. I"ll hide in the background and wait for the day of your true awakening to come. There are many who look forward to the North Star King descending upon this world again, definitely far more than you imagine."

Then, the Mystical Investigator respectfully opened his arms and pressed his hand to his chest, bowing deeply.

"I shall take my leave. I look forward to meeting you again soon......"

After saying this dramatically, he turned around without waiting for a reply, sticking both hands in his pants pockets and slowly striding away. Needless to say, he didn"t even glance at the students in the spectator seats.

But-- "Hold on, man." Harutora called out to the Mystical Investigator with one leg on the railing separating the spectator seats and the arena. The Mystical Investigator momentarily stopped walking towards the arena exit upon hearing this.

"Do you think you can escape? Do you think we"ll let you go?"

He was obviously deliberately provoking him.

Natsume, Kyouko, and the others" eyes widened. The stopped Mystical Investigator leisurely raised his head, replying to Harutora with a callous voice.

"Oh? "Let me go"? I don"t think I have any need to ask you to "let me go", hmm? Could it be that eliminating that little kodoku gave you some misunderstanding?"

The Mystical Investigator calmly turned around to face Harutora, scornfully staring back at Harutora"s sharp gaze.

He spread his arms wide.

"Come if you want, since you won"t let me escape, why don"t you come forth! I"ll let you witness what the power of a true Onmyouji actually is!"

Harutora wordlessly raised his shakujou, and Kon"s killing intent simmered by the side as she prepared for battle.

"D, Don"t do it, Harutora-kun!"

Tenma hurriedly spoke to stop him from behind.

Kyouko also grimaced regretfully, but had to plead Harutora to stop.

"Quick, stop. The enemy is a specialized Onmyouji, however crazy he is. I"m already almost at my limit too, so it might be very hard to block the next attack."

The curbing voices of his cla.s.smates sounded from behind him, but Harutora still stared viciously at the Mystical Investigator.

"......The teachers should have noticed the disturbance, and if things go smoothly, maybe they will be able to subdue him before he leaves the academy. If you act rashly right now, Natsume will be in danger." Touji who had always been maintaining his silence finally opened his mouth.

"Tch......!"

Touji spoke correctly, the Mystical Investigator indeed planned on releasing Natsume. If something happened right now, it could lead to him taking Natsume as a hostage, and the situation was bound to become even more dangerous.

Harutora gritted his teeth, loosening his arms that tightly gripped the shakujou. The Mystical Investigator didn"t pa.s.s up that good opportunity to mock Harutora either. "Alright, then, I take my leave."

After he leisurely dropped those words, he walked towards the exit again. Harutora and the others could only silently watch his back depart.

Just as Harutora and the others were watching him leave--

"......You said you were my Hishamaru." The bound Natsume tossed her head, shouting loudly. Harutora and the others shook in fright, and the Mystical Investigator also turned around in surprise.

But, the surrounding reactions didn"t arouse Natsume"s notice. She insisted out loud as she lay weakly on the floor:

"I don"t care what kind of nonsense you and your comrades love to believe or what you think, since it"s all just wishful thinking. If I had a Hishamaru by my side, that person would be Harutora, because Harutora is my only shikigami in the real world."

If the princ.i.p.al or Ohtomo were here, they definitely would have clapped their hands and cheered.

It was wonderful and easy to understand, simply the best demonstration of second-cla.s.s magic.

Actually, the effects were quite surprising.

"My King! That is truly saddening."

"This is simply disappointing!"

The Mystical Investigator ripped apart his feigned mask of calmness, angrily scolding Natsume. The moment that this young man broke free of his shackles of keeping a calm mind had finally come.

Moreover--

"Even if you"re immature, you shouldn"t have been led astray by this brat!"

"No matter how ignorant you are, the king shouldn"t say such crazy words to those who will eventually become your aides! Be careful with your language!"

The Mystical Investigator"s way of speaking changed, and other than the original voice, a deep voice with a completely different tone also chimed in. The two indeed both came from his mouth, but it was as if he had two personalities, with both saying different things.

His eyes were bloodshot. Saliva overflowed from his mouth. His agitated face was dyed with a dark red. He roared angrily at Natsume, but his eyes were dull, not looking at Natsume at all.

Harutora and the others gaped, and Natsume also couldn"t conceal her surprise at the reaction she had caused which surpa.s.sed her expectations.

"This is bad." Touji "tch"ed, but he could do nothing about the situation before him.

The Mystical Investigator leaned his entire body backwards.

"It can"t be helped, since things have come to this--"

"--I"ll let you brats witness the proof that we are suited to become confidants of the North Star King!"

Immediately after, aura coalesced into a giant eddy behind the Mystical Investigator"s back.

The aura inside the arena was always kept in a steady state in order to raise the stability of magic. Because of this, the sudden spike in magical power made the originally calm aura writhe intensely like a stormy sea.

A t.i.tanic shikigami appeared behind the back of the Mystical Investigator who was looking at the sky and laughing madly.

"That"s an...... Oni[5]?"

Harutora exclaimed in surprise and Kon gaped. Natsume, Touji, Kyouko, and Tenma all stared breathlessly.

The shikigami that appeared before them was an exemplification of an oni.

The shikigami was three times taller than the Mystical Investigator who stood in front of it. Two sharp, curved horns grew out of a mane of tough fur, pointing into the sky. Its upper body was naked, and its lower body was encircled by shabby leather trousers. Its rope-like muscles bulged from underneath its dark, exposed skin as if it were raising a big snake inside its body.

That appearance was completely identical to the oni spoken of in ancient legends. Upon seeing that mighty appearance, the body had already felt its oppressive, confrontational feeling like a giant beast"s long before the mind had reacted, the pressure that a ferocious and cunning unknown creature gave off.

This oni had two notable features.

One was the bronze mask covering its face.

The other was--

"One arm? A one-armed oni...... Impossible! No way!?"

Kyouko shrieked in shock. The oni was missing the lower half of its left arm like it had been cut off. Kyouko, Natsume, and Tenma were all extremely familiar with which famous pract.i.tioner had used a one-armed oni.

The Mystical Investigator showed an overjoyed look upon hearing Kyouko"s scream.

"King! My great king! Could you have already forgotten the name you bestowed?"

"The King of the North Star, Tsuchimikado Yakou, was served by two retainers--"

The Mystical Investigator declared loudly.

"I am Hishamaru!"

"And I am - Kakugyouki."