Fantasy I CAN PUNCH IT! Our Spirit-Slaying Startup《 Not Accepting 》

[Blu]

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OP: raison d'etre ~ Eve​

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ED: Discus ~ flumpool​

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• Chapter 1

• Do One Thing Properly — CHAPTER LINK
  
  Ryota Shikinami wakes up in an abandoned hospital with new arms and is soon recruited by the spirit-slaying company: YoCry. The start of a supernatural, action-packed romp begins now!​

 

[Blu]

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...PROLOGUE

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A stormy night on the Irohazaka slopes. A single white car—an old beater—rounds a corner recklessly; its tires screeching against the slicked asphalt. Inside the vehicle, several crushed cans of beer litter the floor. Meanwhile, an open can sits in the center cupholder. The man driving the car is crying profusely. "Damn it..." He picks up the beer can and takes a hasty gulp as liquid runs down the sides of his mouth. "Why me...? God... am I that detestable?" He recalls a recent memory.

A girl stands over him, watching with apathetic eyes as he kneels, deflated. "You're a loser. You can't hold down a job, and you're so depressing to be around. I can't be with a guy like you."

The beater narrowly avoids another car on the road who honks viciously as they pass one another. The driver recalls another memory—also recent.

"Sorry kid, must've been some faulty wiring. This place's done for. Hate to bring this up but I'm keeping the deposit. Standard practice." An older man delivers the bad news before leaving the driver who stands in front of a charred apartment.

A final memory; the latest: it happened just a mere twelve hours ago.

"Mom?" The driver stands inside a hospital room, carrying a plastic tray of food. An electrocardiogram humming a whining pitch; it's monitor displaying a flatten line. "Mom...?"

As thunder flashes, the driver looks up with tightly gritted teeth and tears and snot streaming down his face; blinding his vision. "I really am the 'unluckiest man alive'." He rounds another corner but, this time, the wheels spin out of control and hits the guardrails, sending the car over the cliff. It crashes into the forest thicket below but, as it does so, a huge tree branch breaks through the driver side window and impales the driver through both of his arms—still gripping the steering wheel. Amazingly, he does not let out any screams of pain.

When the car hits the forest floor, its engine catches on fire with the driver still inside. He tries but fails to wrench his arms from the branch impaling them; all the while the fire spreads. "Need to get out of here! I- No." His eyes widen for a brief second before his gaze falls. "Maybe I should just go ahead and die. Yeah... that'll save me a lot of trouble." His body shakes. But, with renewed vigor, he grits his teeth and defiantly tears his arms clean off, sending blood spattering everywhere. He barrels out of the open door, gets back up to his feet, and stumbles a good ten meters away before collapsing onto his back.

"Fuck... What was all that about? Guess I'm dying anyways..." He looks up at the sky, quietly accepting his fate. After a minute, he opens his mouth to speak. "When I meet God... I'm punching him in the face."

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「 Synopsis 」

Ryota Shikinami wakes up in an abandoned hospital with new arms and is soon recruited by the spirit-slaying company: YoCry. The start of a supernatural, action-packed romp begins now!

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The timbre of a bell, the plink of a water droplet. Ryo walks through an infinite corridor of darkness with both arms attached; his gaze affixed on the nothing in front of him. Time passes as infinitely as the hall itself. But this forever is finally, mercifully ended as Ryo arrives in front of a stony throne. Atop this rock sits a figure hidden in shadows—only some vague outline betrays his masked presence. The figure starts to speak, his voice distorted to a point almost inaudible. "̸̞̒Q̸̞̓u̵̘͆i̴͙̔ẗ̸̡́ ̴͓̀y̵̨̓ŏ̵̮u̴͓͝r̵̯͋ ̶͎̔m̴̰̋ȇ̵̝ẉ̶̍l̴̗̈ḯ̸̬n̵̛̺ǵ̴̘.̴̩̃"̶̧̂

Ryo rubs a finger back and forth beneath his nose. "Nah, I'm done crying. Hey, is this Heaven or Hell? 'Cause if this is Heaven, it really blows."

The outlines of eyes narrow in response to this exceedingly casual conversation. "̴̤̋T̷̪͑h̸̰͒á̷̹ẗ̷̘'̸̦̅š̴͕ ̵͉͑o̷̳̍d̸͙̉d̴̋ͅ.̵͒ͅ ̶̺͐Y̴̩̎o̸̭͠u̷̹̕'̶͙͗r̵̰̔é̵̜ ̷̢̍n̵̤͊o̶͜͝t̵̤͆ ̷̯̏t̷̙̒ŕ̷ͅe̵̡̊m̷͚̿b̴̹͑l̵̤̅i̴̙͝n̴̖̓g̶̦̊ ̷̙̍i̷͉͗n̸̦͂ ̵̮͛m̶͕͊y̵̫̒ ̷͈̾p̸̬̉r̷̛̥ẽ̴̟s̸̪̄e̴̜̓n̸̻̐c̵̡͂ȩ̷̃?̷̱̋"̴̥̀

"I got a reason to? Honestly, you seem like a pretty chill guy."

The figure smiles deviously. "̴̯̒H̴͔͌u̴̱̽m̴͎̄a̶̩͋n̴͎͂s̷͍͝ ̶̪͆t̴̜͒r̸̘̍ú̸̧l̵͚̓y̵͙͐ ̴̙̾a̶̖̕r̴̮͘ẻ̷͓.̶̘̚.̶̭̔.̵̇͜ ̸͓͒d̸̢̂ȋ̸̠s̴̮̿ǧ̷͖ṵ̷͝s̶͔̐ẗ̵͚́i̴͕̾n̷̠̿g̷̗̒.̴̪͛"̸̳̈́

Suddenly, a monstrous sensation of pressure weighs upon Ryo. He feels as if he's being crushed to death. His arms start to crumble like ash, falling apart in front of him. Blood seeps down his head and from his eyes, nose, mouth—essentially every open orifice. His scream is silent as it escapes his lips, droned out by a monotonous whirring. Then, he is squashed into an unrecognizable pool of blood. Everything turns black once again. Now illuminating the darkness is a blue wisp, floating in place. It starts to shake and, gradually, becomes more violent as time passes; to the point that it becomes some incomprehensible blur accompanied by the same monotonous whirring. And next...

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TAGGING: Defined Comedy ERode Tapfic ScatheAriiasqDrayceon BittyBobcat Gaius Danius Griinia ​

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[Blu]

COLLABORATION POST

Ryo × Ginko × Kurono × Chiyo

▎September 17^th, 2022
▎Evening — ︎ ⇒
▎Abandoned Hospital ⇒ YoCry Ramen Shop
▎Featured Yōkai: Chimi ( Grade 47 / Bio )
STARRING: Blu Defined Comedy Tapfic ERode
MENTIONS: ScatheAriiasqDrayceon BittyBobcat Gaius Danius Griinia

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Ryo wakes, gasping as he shoots up from the bed he's in. His breathing is heavy as he tries to regain some sense of composure. He seems to be in some hospital room, lit by a single halogen desk lamp beside his bed. It certainly looks and feels dingy. Is this place abandoned? Peering down, Ryo sees something there that shouldn't be: two arms. "What the-" He looks on in shock. These are definitely not his own. The skin is slightly red but unnaturally so. And these nails are sharpened and black. He touches the very visible scars that separates the old from new, contemplating what could've transpired when he was out cold.

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AN ILL-FORTUNED MEETING

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Chiyo's eyes narrowed down at a stray pebble, taunting him from the floor of the dilapidated hospital. No yōkai of any sort had made itself known as of yet. The slayer kicked the defenseless rock in annoyance. It struck the wall ahead of them hard enough to bounce back and hit its assailant in the face. A yelp of surprise left his throat; becoming one of the only sounds to grace the old building. Seemingly more startled than pained by the impact, Chiyo stepped backwards and smacked a hand over his forehead—taking a moment to understand what exactly had hit him. The exclamation was quickly followed by embarrassed grumbling as the boy rubbed his sore spot.

"If the dick already paid us and the yōkai fuck isn't doing anything but haunting an old-ass useless building; I don't see why we should come out here in the first place." Chiyo glanced back at Ginko as they continued deeper into the hospital. Checking that his boss was close—and possibly hoping she hadn't seen his mistake. Maybe he was the slightest bit more on edge than usual. Maybe a little agitated by the hospital setting. Just a little. "Maybe next time the bitch will stay a bit and explain what's what when he's tryin' to get a fuckin job done."

Ginko's eyes were shut, faint spiritual energy shimmering around the talisman she held in front of her. Floating just above her left shoulder was a strange semi-humanoid shape made of folded paper. This scouting shikigami, along with the four others that had been sent deeper into the facility, would cut down a bit of time in the search, but it was still a large hospital so there was no telling how long it might take. The sudden sound of impact drew her attention, and her eyes opened to look over at Chiyo. As the attacker, or perhaps defender, bounced on the floor before coming to a stop she shook her head slightly. They'd probably been here for about fifteen minutes now, and their searching had been for naught.

"It's strange that this supposedly dangerous yōkai has been so quiet. It should've made itself known by now." Her unflinchingly calm demeanor was maintained as she looked at the scene around them. Each step left behind tracks in the layers of settled dust, and every ray of light that entered through a window showed off additional particles of it falling to fill in the gaps. "Information on our target would've been nice, I agree with that. But given how little we were told our only option is to scour this place until something turns up." Breathing a light sigh she continued.

"Someone would've been employed to take on this yōkai eventually. Especially given the demolition order on the building. So we're minimizing the risk to constru-" Cutting herself off her eyes quickly darted up to the ceiling, towards the pulsating resonance above them. The shikigami to her side immediately flew towards the roof, before it phased through the building. Her eyes darted back down to Chiyo as she spoke, "Resonance above us. Our target has likely found a host."

Chiyo's annoyance shifted quickly to concern as Ginko spoke; his mind flitting through possible worst case scenarios. A host would mean some poor sap had gotten possessed—maybe a contractor here to work early? Some stupid kid deciding they wanted to be an explorer? Another of Ginko's shikigami did a flipping motion further down the hall and she made haste to follow it, glancing back quickly to ensure Chiyo was keeping pace. With steady footsteps, he kept pace, no more than a few feet behind the other slayer at any given moment. Within a few moments, a staircase was before them, and after a small climb, they would be standing before a hospital door. Light trickling out from the slight crack in the center of its form. Traversing the run down hall and stone steps, Chiyo stumbled to a stop behind Ginko.

"Don't let your guard down, we still don't know what's waiting for us in there." At the hushed order he gave a brief nod of understanding.

Ryo is immediately distracted from his thoughts when he hears a feminine voice emanating from just outside the room. Curiously, it sounded like the person intentionally spoke in a low volume to mask their presence but Ryo hears it as if they were in the room with him. He cocks his head slightly like a dog with a piqued interest. "Hey, uhh, I can hear you out there." He says, just loud enough to be heard.

No sooner than Chiyo's head stopped moving, a voice spoke beyond the door. Possibly a yōkai—maybe a host—or some dumb-fuck that got themselves in the middle of shit they didn't understand. Regardless, it knew of them already—no point in hiding. Chiyo glanced back to Ginko—though he didn't pause to read her expression. Deciding, perhaps too quickly, that he should be the one to open the door. A small gloved hand curled around the edge of the already ajar door, opening slowly. He paused when the crack in the door was only wide enough for him to see through: a boy sitting in one of the old hospital beds—similar in age to him and the rest of the company it seemed. Relatively normal save the dark red flesh of his arms and blackened claws.

A talisman quickly found its way into Ginko's hand as she watched Chiyo grasp at the door, numerous hypotheticals filling her mind. The seemingly masculine voice beyond this door hadn't come off as hostile, but it was still too early to drop caution. With a soft sound of fluttering paper, three of the other missing shikigami made their presence known. Without a word they would spread throughout the hallway, stationing themselves to catch any stray movement in the building. The fifth of their rank finished phasing through the floor of the room in question and quickly rose in the air to observe the target.

Ryo climbs off the bed—barefoot in a hospital gown—and stretches his tense muscles. He's rather nonchalant about the whole situation. So he is quick to notice when some strange origami apparition phases into the room and drifts toward the ceiling. "Of course this creepy-ass place is haunted." He thinks to himself with a bit of scowl. He doesn't appear at all shocked by the phantom but his tilted head clearly shows that he's cognizant of its presence. To Ryo, however, this kind of visual was a regular occurrence; ever since he was a child he could see these weird spirits everywhere. He turns his head to the cracked doorway. "Should I tell them about this thing? They'll probably think I'm crazy right?"

Ginko's attention quickly pulled away from her shikigami and turned back to Chiyo, watching his expression for even the slightest of changes. If she approached the door it would merely overcrowd him, so in trade, she chose to trust his lack of an immediate withdrawal as a sign. "I see," her gaze turned from Chiyo back up to the door itself. Agitation was rather common in the more dangerous yōkai they'd faced, but the lack of it made everything far more unsettling. Her mind began to run through the possible spirits this could be, as she contemplated their approach.

"Then I would ask that you identify yourself, should you be capable of doing such." Her gaze flickered between the crack in the door, and Chiyo in irregular intervals—watching for changes in either of them. Meanwhile, the shikigami which had entered the room began slowly floating near to the ceiling, scanning for any additional sources of resonance.

At the request to identify himself, Ryo folds his arms, annoyed. "Kinda rude to ask someone their name when you won't even face 'em, you know?" He motions his hand in an invitation. "Come on in, I won't bite. Name's Ryota—Ryo, actually. Now can you tell me what's going on? I just woke up in this place with no memory of how I got here." Ginko's hand slowly lowered the talisman as she listened to the responses being given.

Chiyo frowned. At least the guy was... not hostile. Yet. The slayer opened the door further—slowly; watching for any change in demeanor. Gaze darting downwards to the monstrous hands, eyeing them for the slightest twitch of hostility. He stepped into the room keeping himself between Ginko and the possible threat. After watching Chiyo enter the room, Ginko approached the doorway and faced the source of the resonance… or Ryo as he'd announced himself. "Two women?" Ryo thinks as the door opens to reveal the other party.

After looking at the cross-armed individual, Ginko's gaze turned to the shikigami within the room. Raising a hand she seemed to trace a path, and the paper flew from the room to join its peers in monitoring the halls. Turning her attention back to the interior of the room, she glanced around once more to confirm what the shikigami had seen before focusing on the problem at hand. Something about this whole scene felt off, though the request itself was heavily abnormal. "Perhaps… Hmm." Ginko's voice was barely a whisper as she pondered to herself. There was the possibility of getting spirited away, but that wouldn't explain the sudden burst of resonance she felt. The boy in front of her, this hospital, and this request could be described in one word—strange.

"Unfortunately, we're not too sure how you arrived here either. But given your confusion, and the way you're resonating, I have a few theories." Glancing back into the hall, she continued listening for any sort of sound or indication that something had drawn near. But focusing just made the eerie silence that much worse.

Chiyo's attention had been briefly stolen as he glanced around the empty space. It was certainly still a hospital. Once. The simple fact annunciated by the mystery man's hospital gown. Chiyo's frown deepened as his mind supplied the nearest places to get the other a pair of actual pants. "What the fuck do you mean you just 'woke up' here?" Chiyo questioned, voice pitched ever so slightly higher with the confusion and agitation of the whole situation. "And what the fuck is going on with the," the slayer gestured, motioning to the other's arms with both of his own hands, "claws." Ginko's eyes came to focus on the arms of the presumed hospital patient, specifically on the scarring around his forearms. Chiyo's mention of claws piqued her curiosity a little more but dismissed the idea of investigating it herself.

"I mean exactly that. I was in a car accident and then I woke up here. As for these things," Ryo holds up his arms up for the pair to get a better look, "your guess is as good as mine's. I woke up with them attached to me. I mean, look at them! They're freaky as hell! Whose brilliant idea was it to give me some arms that look like they came from a demon?! Whoever these belong to must seriously be into the body modification scene!" He calms down and sighs. "So you don't know how I got here either? I thought you were the police or something. But, looking at your outfits," he glances at the two from head to toe, "you look like business folk."

Chiyo was becoming more confused with every word from either person's mouth. Though, with the body modification comment the slayer was able to expertly deduce that this guy was not all that smart. But hey, Chiyo wasn't exactly in a place to judge intelligence on the best of days, unless someone pissed him off, then they were labeled a fucking idiot. So he let the comment slide without commenting on all the incredible flaws in that line of logic. The off handed mention of a car accident caught up to him a few moments later, concern flashing briefly across his features.

"Are you-" He cut himself off with a tight lipped frown. 'Ryo' as he had introduced himself—seemed fine enough now. He was probably okay. They should definitely get the guy out of here though, considering he was obviously not a slayer and there was an active yōkai lurking around whatever corner. Chiyo's head turned to Ginko, though he said nothing—after years working together, it was obvious enough that he was asking what to do.

Almost immediately half of the things Ginko thought possible were thrown out the window. Her eyes gravitated to the now exposed arms of Ryo, examining them at a distance. It went without saying that they had a bizarre appearance to them—supernatural even. But to claim that they were from a demon was unlikely… no a nigh impossible claim to back up. Though the longer she looked at them, the more she found herself puzzled.

Something that was said earlier finally struck Ryo as odd. "'Resonating'? What're you talking about? More importantly," he recalls the silver-haired woman tracing her fingers and the spirit from earlier leaving the room as a result, "were you controlling that ghost-thing just now?!"

Naturally, the next stretch of questions had been based around topics that the young man would have no knowledge of. After all, he was lacking the fundamental knowledge that even an entry-level slayer would have. Noticing Chiyo's attention being focused on her, and the all too familiar look, she gave a slight nod. "I'll answer your questions at a later time. We need to get you out of here first though, otherwise, you'll needlessly be exposed to risk." Almost as she opened her mouth to continue, she forced it shut once more. Her right eye twitched slightly as a sudden prick of pain jabbed into her head. With that she turned back to the hallway, staring towards the stairwell.

The cause had been the sudden disappearance of a shikigami she'd sent out on patrol, if she had to guess their mystery yōkai was the cause. What sounded almost like the guttural growl or the low rumbling of a large engine began to seep into the silence that filled the building. But quickly this growl began to crescendo; a bone-chilling howl tearing into the foundations of the building and, shaking its very core, exploded from the floor below them before fizzling out into an almost human gurgling noise. Then silence began to eek back in once more.

"What the hell was that?!" The reverberation of the bestial outcry shook the hospital wing as Ryo looks around in panic. Chiyo stilled as the hellish call rang through the dilapidated building. Ryo's glances fall on the two strangers who seem disturbingly calm in response to such a terrifying sound. Like the silver-haired woman said, this wouldn't be the time for questions.

Ginko's attention turned back to the two men in the room, "Change of plans. Chiyo, we're eliminating it—from that roar, I'm estimating it to be a grade forty-seven threat. Ryo—stick next to us and keep your head down. Do that and you'll make it out of here alive." Only a nod of confirmation was given by Chiyo to the order from Ginko. The latter had urged Ryo to stay close for his own safety. She seems confident and there is an air of authority about her, and it's safe to say that Ryo knows the least about their current predicament out of the three here.

"O... kay." He hesitates but complies nonetheless.

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RUMBLE IN THE LOBBY​

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The eerie silence that followed was only broken by careful but hurried footsteps—Chiyo keeping himself at the front of the group as they progressed. As they make their way down to the first floor via the stairs, Ryo walks closely behind as instructed. At this point, he didn't care about these stupid arms or how he ended up in an abandoned hospital of all places. He just wanted to go home and sleep everything off—not that he had anywhere to go home to mind you.

When they entered the lobby, they are greeted by a rather horrifying sight, at least to Ryo: a very human-looking face cradled by thin, scraggly black hair attached to the body of some stripped beast. Its front limbs are elongated and ends in spindly fingers. Drooping from it's mouth is a lengthy tongue, blade-like at the tip; it drags it against a wall, creating a large gash. And perhaps worst of it all is it's size, being that of a large car. "T-Tell me you guys can see this thing?" Despite the fact that Ryo has never been able to interact with one of these spirit creatures before, something in him is sensing very real danger in the moment.

"Yeah, we see the ugly bitch." Chiyo confirmed with a hushed grumble. His eyes darted, making use of the precious seconds they had before the yōkai—a Chimi—caught sight of its next prey. The tongue was dangerous—the slayer would have to gamble on weather he could get close enough to grab hold of the thing before it dealt a blow he couldn't take. Though after he did latch on, the thing looked stupid enough to give itself a beating. The slayer briefly contemplated looking to Ginko for ideas; unfortunately their time was cut short. The oversized yōkai's head snapped towards the group, eyes flitting between each human before a disgusting hungry gurgle bubbled from the back of its throat.

For a faint moment, the ghost of a smirk could be seen on Ginko's face, but upon looking back to her it would seem to have vanished into a serious expression once more. Lifting her talisman once more she elected to make full use of the dwindling time they had to prepare. "I call forth the strength of joined will, Chi. Evoke your stubborn ways, Stone Barrier!" As her voice seemed to multiply and overlap itself, the talisman in her hand ignited, silver flames burning it to nothing in an instant. Three motes of dull copper energy would appear in front of her, each attempting to attach itself to one of the three humans. After connecting with their target, these motes would diffuse into their bodies—outlining them in a similar dull glow.

"You're planning to fight that thing?!" Ryo looks to Ginko as whatever weird light she produced envelopes his body. He didn't wait for an answer—it was a rhetorical question anyhow. He looks back at the disgusting beast and runs the scenarios through his mind.

"Avoid any attacks you can, the best that barrier can do is reduce the damage a bit."

"I-I don't think that thing can hurt me anyway. I've always been able to see them, but they've always left me alone and, likewise, I can't touch them. You don't have to worry about me."

Quickly, Ginko's eyes darted to reaffirm the positions of everyone before falling back on the Chimi. Lifting her hand, two more of the shikigami she commanded flew into the lobby on either side of the yōkai. Their movement had been a failing attempt to draw its attention away, but when choosing between annoying pests or a three-course meal—it was obvious which the Chimi would choose. As the rest of the yōkai's body followed its head, the long arms drug its claws into the dilapidated flooring of the lobby. Further adding to the broken down and scraped up charm that the abandoned building had. As it took the first step forward the corners of its mouth seemed to rise slightly, and its intent was clear: feed.

"Weak... ling... Eat last..." Guttural rumblings oozes from the Chimi's gaping maw.

"It can talk-" The spirit's tongue shoots straight for Ryo, wrapping him in a vice within mere seconds. "Arrgh, let go of me, you ugly bastard!" But before his protectors could react, it flings Ryo with incredible force into the reception desk behind itself. Chiyo's attention snapped to the beast. As Ryo crash lands, he hacks up blood and a thick cloud of dust is kicked up. The heavy crash sent a shock of cold fear through Chiyo's veins—but the sound of hacking blood gave him some ease. If the guy could cough, he wasn't dead. Yet. Though they all would be if the thing didn't get taken care of soon.

The yōkai wastes no time and leaps toward the ceiling, digging into it with its claws. It seems to be avoiding the spirits conjured up by Ginko. Finally, it lunges from its position directly towards the remaining two standing. The force of its impact could very well crush the both of them. Having immediately fallen into another incantation, Ginko's eyes loosely followed what had gone on around her. The image of Ryo flying past her before collapsing somewhere behind a receptionist's desk, along with the scuttling of the yōkai upon the roof. Though direly faint, she could feel Ryo's resonance in the air—his sputtering cough reassured her that he had survived the attack, even if it was by a slim margin. "As a humble servant, I ask for the everchanging gift. My mind is empty, My soul is bare."

"Kuromiya!" Chiyo called, making sure her attention hadn't been lost in chanting as the creature lunged. It seemed this would become a close combat fight—not wonderful for Ginko, but optimal for himself. At Chiyo's warning, Ginko suddenly jumped back and made haste towards one of the surrounding walls. The moment passed quickly—as though a single heartbeat in the body of time itself. The Chimi's claws connected with the ground, tearing rough divots into the concrete—Chiyo had ducked away. Just far enough that the beast's wicked tongue only grazed the back of one calf; cutting the muscle deep but not severing it. Fortunately Chiyo had felt worse, and that was the first strike.

Another heartbeat and he had grabbed onto the fur of the creature's neck, both gloved hands deep enough into the flesh to bruise before flipping himself onto the broad back of the monster. One arm reached across the disgustingly human face, delivering a blow to it's oversized eye; sending it biting and shrieking—a bite that closed firmly around Chiyo's arm, teeth digging in to flesh and splintering bone with a bloodcurdling crunch. Though, much more disturbing must have been the smile that ebbed at the corners of the slayer's mouth. Gotta love that adrenaline rush.

Glancing back to where the beast had landed, Ginko saw as Chiyo had begun his vengeful assault. The thick smell of iron permeated throughout the room, skidding to a halt she continued chanting. With the all-too-familiar taste of fresh blood in the air, her eyes rapidly scanned the room for any sign of change. "Fu. Son of the winds, I call your aid. Draw forth your violent gales." Her body was wrapped in violent winds, dust sucked into its shape as the miniature cyclone seemed to pulsate. "Son of storms, I call your aid. Grant me your passionate tempest, so that I may rend my foe. Ka." Within the raging cyclone, sparks began to form—lashing out at the surrounding floor and walls.

No sooner did the creature bite through the sorry limb did it begin screaming once more; rearing up on its hind legs and flinging Chiyo away from itself with one clawed arm. His back hit the dilapidated stone wall with a heavy thud. Arm untouched—though he was missing a glove and wouldn't be able to feel it for a good hour or two. Though he really couldn't mind it considering the impact had slammed his head against the wall hard enough that the slayer was no longer in any form of conscious. The creature however, had nothing more than a bloody stub where its clawed hand once was; one eye closed and limping as a deep cut opened in the back of one leg. It gurgled—whipping its head around and searching for the nearest creature to lash out against.

A heavy thud drew her eyes away, Chiyo's form had fallen to the ground as well. In its enraged state, the wounded Chimi's bloodshot eye found a target in the lone slayer. Its blood-stained maw twisted in vindictive joy, its own ichor spewing from the fleshy lump that had once been its arm. In an instant, its sharpened tongue whipped towards her, rapidly closing the distance between Yōkai and Slayer. Even with her reaction time, the best she could do was ensure the hit wouldn't be fatal. "I humble myself before you, Brother of the Sky. Testimony I."

As the chant finished, the swirling storm seemed to focus into the talisman—almost as though it were being forcefully sucked into it. A quick flash of silver flame and an electrically charged spear of wind fired towards the Chimi. However, the yōkai would land the first strike as the tip of its dagger-like tongue embedded itself into the sidestepping slayer's shoulder. Given the sheer body mass differential, the force was enough to send her tripping backward in a desperate attempt to keep her footing.

Following her unflattering grunt of pain, the gurgling monster let out a pained wail of its own as its body crashed against the wall behind it. Its tongue had been severed about halfway through, it wriggled like a worm on a hook as the yōkai cried out. In its 'good shoulder', a scorched mark was present from where Ginko's attack had connected; the wounds wept no blood as it would seem the attack had cauterized the areas it hit.

Stepping back towards her injured subordinate, Ginko reached a hand up and tore the writhing tongue from her shoulder. A fresh spray of her own blood coating the severed appendage on the ground, while another surge of pain raced through her body. Despite this, she managed to stifle the scream of pain—muffling the shrill sound to the best of her ability. The wound wasn't enough to immobilize that arm, but it was more than deep enough to bathe it in pain. Kneeling next to Chiyo, she quickly checked for a pulse before relinquishing her concerned breath. Though she wouldn’t have time to begin another incantation of that strength, let alone one more powerful.

Recovering from its stunned state, the Chimi lurched forwards. Using its lengthy arm as additional support for its pain-wracked body. "It… hurts... Hun… gry…" Its eyes flared like that of a wild animal. Its gurgling intensified now, as blood bubbled up in its mouth and spilled forward in a foamy mess.

All the while, Ryo lies there barely conscious; his left cheek resting in a pool of his own blood. "Why am I so damn useless here...? This is the one thing I'm supposed to be able to do..." He thinks to himself as he watches the action unfold through heavy eyelids. Within some dark, murky space: a solitary blue wisp begins to pulsate. Harder and quicker it goes until it blurs and incandesces the void with white hot light. Ryo feels a sudden surge of energy enveloping his very being: every muscle fiber, every blood vessel, every fragment of bone, every atom of every cell—power!

"Me eat... you... now...!" The Chimi widens its jaw and extends its neck as far as possible in the direction of Ginko and Chiyo, then begins a final charge. Turning back to look towards the yōkai, Ginko couldn't help but find its actions desperate. Granted, there wasn't much she could do to capitalize on that desperation unless she was willing to risk bringing the building down on itself. Quickly, another sensation drew her attention: the sudden spiking of a nearby resonance.

Ryo picks up a piece of debris and a powerful, visible aura flares around it. Throwing it, it makes direct impact with the yōkai's skull, grinding its windup to a halt. It slowly turns its entire head toward Ryo. "What... this...? You... strong... now...? Taste... good...?" It tilts its head as blood and saliva continues to foam in its mouth; it seems confused as to this burning resonance it's abruptly sensing. As the cracking sound of the Chimi's skull rang out, accompanied by its sudden stop, Ginko felt a slight relief.

"You two get out of here! If someone's gonna die tonight, it might as well be the 'unluckiest man alive'!" Ryo shouts at Ginko and Chiyo with a cocky grin. Chiyo woke quickly, to the sound of shouting across the room. More specifically: loud, self-sacrificial dumbass shouting from the stupid fuck in a hospital gown.

Once again, the Chimi lunges; this time: it headbutts Ryo directly in his chest and sends him flying into a nearby support pillar, nearly destroying the thing on impact. Ryo slumps down to one knee as blood spurts from his mouth to the ground. "Idiot-" Chiyo yelped the word as Ryo was flung backwards. Ginko's previous relief immediately vanishes as the new kid was thrashed into a pillar; the claim of being 'unlucky' seeming to come true promptly.

"Hungry... Dinner time... now..." The yōkai's limp gradually transitions to a full-on sprint with mouth agape, looking to devour Ryo.

Ryo can't help but grin at the situation—his eyes covered by his disheveled bangs. "I'm royally fucked, aren't I? Heh... Damn I hate bullies, always have... Are those two gone? They better be. This isn't about protecting anyone. Right now, all I want to do is... PUNCH THE BASTARD!" Ryo stands up as quickly as he can and positions himself for a haymaker. Strange markings appear on Ryo's arms. Reaching a hand into her Ofuda box, Ginko lifted another talisman in preparation to begin an incantation only to find that she was stopping herself. Her eyes slowly began to widen as she found herself staring at Ryo's arms. Or more specifically, at the markings that had appeared on them.

Chiyo felt dizzy. The feeling turning every movement into a sluggish lurch as blood trickled down the back of his neck and the fog of sleep cleared all too slowly. He needed to get up and help already, but the creature was already sprinting towards the helpless fuck before he was near lucid enough to jump to his feet. And then came a pause.

"SCREW IT!" Ryo shouts with eyes closed as he throws a blind punch. His fist collides with the Chimi's face and, in that instant, he feels suspended in time. Waveforms of spiritual energy scatter across the surface of the yōkai as well as through its body. Its skin begins to boil violently and—within a fraction of a second—Splat! An explosion of blood and viscera paints the room, completely covering Ryo in the process.

Chiyo could hear shouting, though the blood pounding in his ears made the words jumbled and unrecognizable—just before the Chimi's skin began to bubble and stretch. Meanwhile, Ginko finds herself uncharacteristically distracted. The slayer only realized her stunned state as her sight was suddenly robbed from her. The sound of fleshy residue splattering against everything around her pulled her back to her senses, quickly she regained control of her expression. Chiyo tore the stiff—a bit oversized, as was his preference in uniform—suit jacket upwards in the same motion his numb arm wrapped around Ginko's shoulders and pulled her behind the makeshift barrier. He could hear the chunks of meat thump against the cloth like falling hail, and feel the blood spatter against his uncovered ankles.

Once the squishy sounds of falling guts ceased, a palpable silence fills the room. Chiyo lets Ginko go—yanking his arm away as though she had burned him, and dropped the ruined cloth to the floor before the blood could soak through and stain his undershirt anymore than it had.

On the other side of the room, Ryo stood—covered in blood and viscera. The markings on his arms recede and as he opens his eyes, he sees not even a corpse left in the aftermath. All he can do is continue to stand there, blinking. "...Did you?" Chiyo started, still sitting back against the stone wall, but he couldn't finish; his cloudy—possibly concussed—brain supplied no further words.

The corners of Ginko's lips curled upwards—a slight smile finding its way to her face as the bloodied barrier was pulled away from her. A simple "Thank you" would leave her mouth as she stood back to her feet. The decrepit slightly browned hospital walls now sported a new layer of bright red 'paint'. Intermingling with the scent of iron was a rotten stench, almost bile-like in nature—a parting gift from the departed spirit. But after a moment her gaze turned to Ryo, taking the questioning tone of her coworker in stride.

"With that, I would say that you passed! Though this is quite a bit messier than our typical performance." Lifting a hand to her chin she looked towards the doorway, from the looks of it none of the Chimi's remnants had made it outside… though she'd have to double-check to be certain. "Ryota… no, Ryo-san, earlier you asked what I was referring to when I mentioned resonating. I could give you a lecture on the subject, but put simply it's the strength at which your soul responds to the supernatural." She spoke while taking a step forward, and consequently moving closer towards the epicenter of the reddened sea upon the floor.

"From now on you’ll likely be plagued by creatures such as that. Hungering for the strength that they can gain from your soul." After a few more steps she would come to a stop, staying well out of arm's reach from the viscera-covered boy.

"Which is why I'd like to welcome you into our company. Yōkai May Cry, or YoCry for short. Should you accept this offer. I assure you that you'll be trained to defend yourself, and hunt down the Yōkai which aim to harm defenseless people. Of course, you'll be paid for your contributions as well." Lifting a hand and drawing a line in the air, one of the shikigami from the upper floor returned to her. Slipping a business card upon its back, she guided it over to Ryo where it would float at chest level in front of him.

"The choice is yours, though I'm certain my offer is the best you'll find among the spirit-slaying community." Despite the aching pain of her shoulder, she simply stood there in confidence while watching for any changes in his expression.

With a shaking hand, Ryo takes the card from the floating spirit. He briefly studies the front, although his mental state was still recovering from what had just transpired not moments ago so it's hard to say if he'll retain any of it. But, nonetheless, he looks back up at Ginko—his expression seems as if he wants to apologize for something oddly enough.

"Y- You want to hire me for a job...?" He asks with the boisterous timbre of his voice replaced with quiet self-doubt. Someone sees something worthwhile in him, and that only reminds him of the painful tragedy he suffered earlier in the morning. "Okay. I'm in." His affirmation is accompanied by what is possibly the first genuine smile he has today.

His expression changes once more to realization. "Wait, it's raining tonight. I can wash all of this gross crap off of me. Come on, we can talk outside!" Ryo immediately bolts toward the exit. "Maybe my luck is changing after all-" But, as soon as he steps outside, the rain ceases. "Oh screw you, God!" He hisses at the sky. Resigning to his misfortunes, Ryo glances back at Ginko and Chiyo. "You two don't happen to know a place where I can shower, do you?"

.

KURONO​

.

Some knew Kurono as an early riser, up by the crack of dawn, her hair done and her outfit on by the time the sun rose. Others knew Kurono as a night owl, leaning by the bar as it closes, nursing a drink as she swayed her head to the jukebox's melodies. But those who really knew her would understand that Kurono simply didn't need all that much sleep to be at peak performance. And so, when it came to work like this, she was always the one that ran the night shifts of YoCry.

As such, the burners of the kitchen still flared up, heating pots of broth and vats of water. The green-haired woman cared little for ramen and less for her customers, but noodles, bouncy and hard, long and chewy, were quite nice. And the preparation of butchering? Even more enjoyable. There was a belief amongst other spirit slayers that yōkai defied human comprehension, that they were jumbled masses of supernatural chaos that could only be defined by the booklets that the ASC published, but those spirit slayers lacked curiosity, inspiration. After all, yōkai took the form that humans feared, and so long as they had to fit within the perception of a human, their forms must also be understandable as such.

Flay the skin off a gyuki, and you'll see where the flesh of the ox ends and where the carapace of the spider begins. Split the belly of a kappa, and you'll find a fusion of organs in the shapes of frogs and turtles. Monsters were inspired not by human imagination, but by human relations to nature.

And thus, while Ginko's recipes drew customers, Kurono's additions drew attention.

In the walk-in fridge of the ramen restaurant, the woman examined the set of knives she had prepared for tonight's little anatomy study. It had been surprisingly difficult to secure herself a black bear, but a friend spoke to an acquaintance spoke to a friend spoke to a cousin, and in just three degrees of separation, a Matagi hunter was willing to "perform a sacred ritual" for her benefit. The skinning had been done ahead of time and the beast had already been bled, but hanging by its hind legs from the ceiling, the corpse was beautifully perfect, sinew overlapping flesh, bones protruding stiffly. They even left the penis attached, in case she wanted to get medicinal with it. Fun times, honestly. With a light smile, she drew the first blade and…

The door to the restaurant rasped open.

…aw fuck, that went too far.

Organs splattered messily into the tub beneath, the stench of offal and iron spilling out alongside it. Not irredeemable, not with the meat still in place, but it was a shame she wasn't able to see how they laid within the beast's body. Kurono sighed, then sauntered out of the kitchen, spinning the long knife in her hands before standing it upon one of the cutting boards with a decisive stab.

Just outside, Ryo stares intently at the lit sign of the building Ginko and Chiyo had brought him to. This is their place of operations but, admittedly, Ryo never expected this. "A ramen shop? I feel like I'm being scammed or something." From how well-dressed they seem to be, he would've thought they had a proper office. But Ryo was now in it for the long haul so he trustingly follows the two into the eatery.

Inside, the three are immediately greeted by a tall woman with green hair.

"Yo Ginko, Chiyo," she said, not minding the bloodied apron hanging off her neck. It took all of half a second to tell that the one she didn't recognize was going to be fun, and she settled into a smile that bared all her perfectly white teeth. "Fresh meat this late? Should’ve called ahead of time. Would've had more time to prep for processing, y'know?"

The bloodied boy in a hospital gown and, now, plastic bags for shoes holds up a hand in greeting. Ginko had insisted that Ryo not drag blood onto the floor and so the trio took a quick stop to a local convenience store to purchase some temporary clothes; receiving the bags along with them. On the way here, Chiyo also showed off his healing abilities much to Ryo's amazement who quickly showered him with praise.

"Heya, I'm Ryo." He tells the woman in a friendly tone. "Sorry, I gotta go wash this crap off of me but it looks like I'm gonna be working here from now on. Please take care of me and all that." He makes a half-hearted bow before rushing upstairs, leaving the three of them to their own devices.

.

ATTACK ON HATAGAYA​

.

Some time passes before Ryo finally finishes washing up. In his new clothes—a simple tee, some sweat pants, and a pair of cheap sandals—Ryo walks back downstairs and interrupts whatever discussion was taking place with his presence. "Thanks again for letting me use the shower, boss." He directs at Ginko.

He takes a seat on one of the counter stools and glances about the place, taking in every little inch. "So is it just the three of you ladies working here?" He asks, including Chiyo in the question.

In the aftermath of Chiyo's reaction to the question, the company phone began to sound. Whoever picks it up would be receiving a call from the Agency of Supernatural Containment: Japan's official governmental division that deals in these sorts of paranormal threats.

"YoCry? This is Agent Hanjo of the ASC." A masculine voice introduces on the other end.

"I'll get down to brass tacks seeing as we have an emergency on our hands. A gathering of twenty yōkai have been spotted in the Hatagaya area—right on your home turf. They're graded high twenties to low thirties. Now you know that yōkai hunt alone so seeing as how they're traveling in a pack, this is definitely an anomaly. A few have splintered from the main group so it's best to take them out as fast as possible, although I'm getting word of other potential slayers in the area so stragglers are a low priority. In any case, we're paying 400,000¥ for the job. Interested?"

 

[ERode]

"Yup," Kurono drawled, by now having removed her bloodied apron and settled down beside a lemon sour. "Just three lovely, frail individuals running this very, very taxing business. Chiyo's got it particularly rough, wouldn't you say?" She leaned forward on the counter slightly, her smile settling in a way that wasn't quite malicious. "Such a small, dainty creature." Just little games, just little teasings. And then, before any others turned to it, she flicked out her hand, answering the phone in the first millisecond of the first ring. A wink passed from herself to Ginko, before the green-haired lady turned her attention to the caller, taking a sip of alcohol in the meanwhile.

Twenty in number and an emergency mission. Curious timing, what with the weird kid and the weird john from the last job. Wide-scale extermination was the priority though, and overall, the chaos of a big fight sounded enjoyable. Ever since becoming a spirit slayer, Kurono had been denied her opportunities for a good ol' fashioned beat-em-up, after all, and the dynamics of being on the side of the many was growing a bit old. But on the other hand...she knew YoCry's value, and for this particular situation? Especially with their darling president having just acquired a new hire?

"Make it 600,000¥, Hanjo. We've been working the whole day on separate jobs, y'see, and just came back. Paying extra sounds just about right for what you're demanding us to handle, no?" She leaned back against her chair, baring her teeth with a grin. She had watched Ginko talk enough in the past to know that a conversation was also a fight. "I'd ask for more seeing how this is an anomaly, but that does happen to be our specialty. If it's a deal, buddy, send us the location."

Was that too much? Naw. She didn't want her own cut to be affected due to the new kid. It was simply...fair.

 

[Tapfic]

Chiyo's nose wrinkled at Kurono's bloddied apron. Now everyone was covered in blood- and Kurono didn't even have a valid reason for it!
The slayer didn't know what she had been butchering while they were out, and frankly- he wasn't sure he wanted to know either.

" ...I need a shower too, this shit is nasty."
He muttered the thought under his breath, not really talking to either of the others that stood near him- but also not moving from his spot, arms crossed as the previously bitten one began to regain feeling.
Considering how close his apartment was to the little shop, he probably could have left to shower and been back in less than 20. But he didnt.
Regardless of how..."puppy dog" Ryo seemed- he was still a strange man with weird monster arms that no one actually knew the origin of. And so Chiyo stayed standing right where he was.

Ryo came downstairs soon after anyways, and proceded to ask an incredibly dumbass question.

Chiyo had to take a moment to process the fact he had been reffered to as a "lady". A moment of slow realization, wherin his eyes narrowed up at the taller man, his mouth pulled into a frown, and his brows knit together in both annoyance and confusion.

And then Kurono opened her mouth and made everything worse.

" Lady? Do I look like a lady to you, ya' hollow brained bastard? Huh?" The words were spoken loudly, not quite a shout- but nowhere near an appropriate inside voice.
" And Fuck you ya goddamn pine tree! I'm NOT dainty!" Despite the fact Kurono had been the one to purposely offend him, Chiyo turned to Ryo. Dramatically pointing at him with his non-numbed hand.
" Fight me ya' clawed bastard! I won't use magic or shit; so fight me outside!"
Chiyo made the demand just as the phone rang, and Kurono swiped it up (a bit dissapointing, Chiyo liked answering the phone- though he was probably not the best to do so considering his rude nature) and like an easily distracted rodent his temper calmed. Attention now turned on listening into the call he couldn't hear. Damn.

"What did they say?" He asked in a voice quite a few decibles quieter, inturrupting before the conversation was over.

 

[Defined Comedy]

Kuromiya Ginko​

Giving a simple nod to the new-hires thanks, Ginko took a moment to look herself over. Thanks to Chiyo's efforts she had likely been the least bloodied of the three of them, though the dampened patch near the new gash in the shoulder of her jacket derived from her otherwise tolerable appearance. The mention of a brawl turned her attention back to the trio, Ryo had touched the rather expected nerve earlier than she would've imagined. "As usual if you break anything it's coming out of your pay" A word of warning was passed to the youngest pair as she made her way behind the counter and into a backroom. With a slight creak, one of the drawers pulled open, revealing itself to be full of small booklets. Jutting from the pages of this book was a chromatic array of index tabs. Given the regular occurrence of her employees losing their ASC mandated guides, she had a surplus in reserve back when they were being trained for the profession. Even with the fact that she had painstakingly gone through and color-coded by threat levels the excuse of "I think I lost it in the fight.." or "Are you sure you gave me one?" had come up so many times that this unnatural amount of them was a necessity.

After restocking on the talismans she had used in the earlier fight and changing into a spare suit jacket, things that were quite handy to keep in the dry storage room, she went returned to the others. "If I'm hazarding a guess, we're looking at an express job. If Hanjo's involved with that sort of payout, we've got a nice fight ahead of us." Plucking the carving knife from the cutting board, she dropped the booklet off in front of Ryo before making her way to the sink. Given the fact that the title was well-presented on the cover, she figured it was unnecessary to name it. "Study this every chance you get and don't lose it." The sink squeaked on as she quickly washed the red from the blade, followed by rinsing off the cutting board as well.

Intermittently glancing over to Kurono, she waited for an update as the sound of water was silenced once more. She had barely been given time to think through the events of today thus far, but it seemed that the endless line of orders was taking precedence again. "Here's hoping they're not just trying to shift the responsibility in biting off more than they could chew." Her voice steeply declined in volume, mostly to ensure the phone wouldn't pick it up, but continued waiting for details all the same.

 

[Blu]

(UN)OFFICIAL SLAYER

Ryota Shikinami

▎September 17^th, 2022
▎Evening —
▎YoCry Ramen Shop ⇒ Hatagaya
▎Featured Yōkai: Onmoraki ( Grade 25 / Bio )
INTERACTIONS: Tapfic ERode Defined Comedy

.

"F-Fight you? What for? I don't even know what you're mad at me about." Ryo rubs the back of his head, perplexed at the situation unfolding with Chiyo. But before things could escalate, the phone rings and is quickly picked up by Kurono behind the counter. It takes a while before Kurono could answer—the caller on the other end must've been explaining something important. When Kurono finally speaks, she demands an increase in monetary compensation and explains that the team had been busy the entire day with independent casework.

Although he's never the smartest in the room at any given time, even Ryo could piece together what the conversation is about. "600,000¥? Getting greedy over there, aren't you? Isn't there only three of you at that company? The standard rate seems fair..." Kurono was smart for not having mentioned the recent addition of Ryo to their roster. An unlicensed slayer would only complicate matters right now—especially one as peculiar as him. "Fine, our hands are tied at the moment so you got a deal."

"Another yōkai attack already? Up until now, I've never seen one of these things act violently before. Then again, tonight was the first time I've seen one that big. Usually they're like the size of a housecat." Ryo fidgets anxiously on the stool, waiting for Kurono to finish the call. Ginko then places a booklet onto the countertop for Ryo and tells him to dutifully study its contents. Picking it up, he reads the title quietly to himself and begins to briskly flip through its pages. "This is a really comprehensive guide. Thanks Ginko-san. I'll take good care of it." He smiles.

"It's like I said, they're right on your home turf. Problem is: they're moving too fast to track. We have no idea where they're headed so I suggest you comb the district as best you can. We have police headed your way now to cordon off high-risk places from private citizens and a curfew order has been put in place. They shouldn't be a problem for you." Right as Hanjo finishes his explanation, a large shadow whips by the front door of YoCry. The presence of multiple yōkai can be immediately felt by the group minus Ryo. He, on the other hand, is facing the door from where he's sitting and saw the shadow as it passed.

To Ryo, what he felt was less spiritual and more instinctual—like a cold shiver down one's spine; like prey in the presence of a predator. He hops off of his seat and rushes to the door with guidebook in hand. "I just saw something. I'm gonna go take a look." Impatient as he is, Ryo does not wait for a response.

"Hey is everything alright over there? Tell me you spotted those yōkai?" Hanjo asks.

Just outside, Ryo sees the hind end of some spiritual creature climbing over the roof of the building next door. Meanwhile, the group that one broke off from continued heading down the street. Ryo eyes a nearby ladder leading up to the roof and decides to waste no time in climbing it. There, he sees the threat: a tall bird-like creature; plucked, rotted skin, and with the head of a human corpse. "Keh-keh-keh-keh-keh!" A sinister 'laugh' leaves its beaked mouth. "Damn, you're even uglier than the last one."

 

[ERode]

“Standard pay for non-standard work?” Kurono laughed, but she wasn’t smiling. “Trust a government agency to be black. But yeah, deal’s a deal. We’ll get it done.” She didn’t bother to answer Hanjo’s question, clicking the phone back in place before flashing an ok sign at the others. “Our ol’ friend at the ASC’s paying 600,000¥ for the job. Buncha garbage youkai’ve decided to give the numbers thing a try.”

Too fast to track by conventional means was a problem, but that was why the Madame President was here, wasn’t she?

“Anyhow, y’know how they are. Run around town and grind their bones to dust to scatter across the fields. So, Chiyo, darling.” Since when did Kurono have a whip in her hands? “Want me to give you a lash or two before we head out?”

Her blue eyes traced little Ryota’s swift exit, but going by the little explanation about his own oddity, any subpar monster wouldn’t pose a threat at all to the kid. May as well let him get a taste for blood now. She leaned her back against the counter again, taking another sip from her mug, the mixture of citrus and bitterness causing her throat to tighten.

“But yes, Ginko. Orders?”