After getting a clear picture of Suguru Geto's situation, Akira Zenin headed to the wooded area beside Jujutsu High's athletic field. He set up a hammock with practiced ease, lay back, then pulled out his phone and dialed a number he hadn't contacted in a long time.
It belonged to Kobayashi Chie, his assistant supervisor back at Jujutsu High.
"Hello, Chie-san."
"Well, if it isn't the Zenin Clan's Special Grade young master. What made you think of calling me all of a sudden?"
"Aren't you the assistant supervisor assigned to me? Of course I'd contact you if something came up."
"Don't give me that. I see Naoya Zenin more often than I see you. In almost two years, you've only done, what, three missions?"
"Cough, cough. Special circumstances. Special circumstances."
He could clearly hear her let out a sigh on the other end.
"Honestly… alright, what do you need?"
"I want you to help me check the details of a mission. It goes like this…"
"Great, more work for me… fine."
...
The efficiency of Jujutsu High's assistant supervisors really spoke for itself. By that afternoon, Akira Zenin had already received a letter from Kobayashi Chie.
Even though computers were far more convenient these days, sorcerers oddly still relied heavily on pen-and-paper work…
[Mission: Mountain Village Kamikakushi Incident]
[Client: Kiyotaka Inokiya (43, affiliated with the fire brigade)]
[Confidentiality Level: None required (already widely known within the village)]
[March 19, 1998: A 26-year-old woman went missing.]
[May 7, 2001: A 67-year-old man died of unnatural causes.]
[July 24, 2002: A 4-year-old girl went missing.]
[August 4, 2005: The bodies of a 57-year-old man and a 46-year-old woman were discovered, both deaths unnatural.]
...
[The village has long circulated legends of "Kamikakushi." However, based on information provided by the client and investigations by Jujutsu High, it has been confirmed that unnatural deaths occur intermittently within the village.]
[According to findings by window staff member Ichitsubo Haruko: All disappearances and unnatural deaths occurred within a 50-meter radius of a stalactite cave. The cave entrance has long been regarded by villagers as a "sacred domain."]
[According to findings by window staff member Miyama Yumeno: Young women and children disappear, while middle-aged individuals and men die unnaturally.
All victims of unnatural death were found without heads.]
...
[Based on existing information, this incident is believed to be caused by a Cursed Spirit inhabiting the area near the stalactite cave.]
[Due to its long period of activity, high level of danger, and strong folkloric presence, this mission has been assigned to Special Grade Sorcerer Suguru Geto.]
[Operation Period: September 18–20, 2007]
Akira Zenin glanced at the client's photo. It showed a middle-aged man with a completely unremarkable, forgettable face.
He folded the letter back up and slid it into the envelope.
At this point, there was no longer any doubt. This was the mission that would push Suguru Geto into total darkness, the turning point that sealed his fate.
Here, Suguru Geto would meet the young sorcerer girls Mimiko and Nanako, who had been imprisoned by ignorant villagers who saw them as monsters. Under relentless provocation, he would come to understand his own "true feelings" and begin to fully regard non-sorcerers as nothing more than monkeys.
For now, however, Suguru Geto's mental state was still relatively stable. He likely wouldn't plunge straight into that level of corruption yet, but the psychological blow was inevitable.
Akira Zenin picked up his phone and dialed another number.
"Hello, Little Uncle…"
"Akira? I've told you how many times now, we're the same age. Just call me Naoya."
Naoya Zenin didn't put on airs with anyone he acknowledged as strong.
But Akira Zenin ignored that entirely and went straight to the point.
"Want to team up for a mission?"
"I—"
"Great. I knew you'd be interested."
"You—"
"I'll get to the site tomorrow. Go find Supervisor Kobayashi and meet up with me there."
He rattled it all off in one breath, hung up, stuffed his phone into his pocket, and awkwardly rolled over in the hammock.
"Mmm… I can still sleep a few more hours…"
...
The next day at noon, Akira Zenin met up with Naoya Zenin and the two of them headed for a remote village.
There was no public transportation in or out, and the only way in was a narrow path that cars couldn't use. About a kilometer from the village, at a crossroads, they said goodbye to their assistant supervisor and had her head back to Jujutsu High on her own.
The whole way, Naoya Zenin walked a step behind Akira Zenin, holding a simple tachi-style Cursed Tool in silence.
Over the past few years, Naoya had been out handling the missions Akira Zenin assigned him. The experiences had piled up, and it showed. His personality had settled, steadier than it used to be.
As they walked, Akira Zenin spoke casually.
"You've gotten a lot stronger."
Naoya Zenin's eyes brightened at the praise from someone he admired, but he quickly dropped his gaze to the crisscrossed scars running along both arms.
"Still not on your level. Or Toji's."
"When did you get hurt?"
"Last year. A newly born Special Grade Cursed Spirit… that was supposed to be your mission, wasn't it?"
Akira Zenin muttered to himself,
"Actually, it wasn't just that one. Every mission I handed you was mine."
"Ahem. I could heal those scars with Round Deer."
"Forget it. If they don't affect how I move, it's not bad to leave them."
"Is that so…"
They fell quiet again, and before long they reached the mountain village. It was painfully underdeveloped.
Farm tools were scattered everywhere in no particular order. Every so often the wind carried the stink of livestock. The only thing that hinted at the modern era was the sparse web of power lines strung through the place.
The moment they arrived, Akira Zenin spotted Suguru Geto talking with a villager. The man looked to be around forty, an average-looking middle-aged guy. From the way he carried himself, he was probably the client, Kiyotaka Inokiya.
When Suguru Geto saw Akira Zenin running over with a blond young man in tow, he looked genuinely surprised.
"Akira? What are you doing here?"
Akira Zenin immediately shoved the excuse forward like a shield.
"This is a sorcerer from the Zenin Clan. Turns out we also have a mission here. Funny coincidence, right?"
Suguru Geto liked to think things through, but he didn't doubt his friend. He simply nodded.
"I see."
Kiyotaka Inokiya cut in before they could say anything else.
"Hey. I don't remember hiring any other exorcists."
Akira Zenin smiled at him.
"Maybe someone else in the village did?"
The village might have been cut off from the outside world, but news traveled fast on the inside.
Just like how Kiyotaka Inokiya's request for an exorcist had become common knowledge almost immediately, if someone else had hired one too, he should have heard about it.
"Even if someone did, they should've talked to us first—"
At that, Naoya Zenin, already looking impatient, drew his blade and carefully wiped it down with his hand. The reflected light slid across the metal and, by sheer coincidence, flashed right over Kiyotaka Inokiya's face.
"Ahem… then it must've been someone else who hired them."
Kiyotaka Inokiya thought to himself, Either way, they're here to exorcise things. And the guy with a sword and calluses all over his hands looks way more reliable than the squinty-eyed one. No matter how you look at it, I'm the one coming out ahead.