Rolling Human Souls
The only place at school where I could let my guard down and lie flat was the rooftop. In my previous life, most schools locked the door to the rooftop, but just like in anime, manga, or eroge, this one didn't even have a padlock. There was a chain-link fence to prevent falls, stretching higher than my height, but that was it. And that fence often got used in school-setting stories—mostly as a device to humiliate a stripped heroine by shoving her against it. Why do I know that so well? Don't ask. I wanted to live without knowing.
Anyway, even though it was wide open, the rooftop was suspiciously deserted. As I lay on the concrete staring at the sky, I heard a creak followed by two sets of footsteps.
"Tsukino. What are you doing up here?"
"Sendo, and Hanasaki too."
"We came looking for you since you vanished alone during lunch."
"I was the one who suggested we find him first."
Hanasaki had brought it up first, huh. Wondering what was going on, I rolled halfway over to face her. In her school uniform instead of miko garb, she looked like any high school girl—aside from the faintly expressionless vibe. It was a far cry from the image she gave when training or running errands at the shrine.
"I thought we should discuss the recent murder case."
"Murder case?"
"Sendo doesn't know about it."
Hanasaki began explaining from her seat on the bench that had no business being up here on the rooftop. I wondered if something new had cropped up after I left, so I listened closely, but there was no special or crucial info.
"No traces left behind is pretty troublesome."
"Yes. With no minimal evidence and no witnesses coming forward, the police are struggling too."
"I'd gladly fight the culprit once we find them, but I'm no good at searching.... Tsukino, do you know anything?"
"Not really."
I could have ratted out Nogawa here, but she seemed to carry her own heavy burden—and was more victim than anything—so I decided to keep quiet about her for now. Instead, I dropped a hint about something I wasn't fully sure of myself.
"Hanasaki. If it was done by some other species, would spiritual energy traces remain?"
"It depends on the species' traits."
"Assuming it's beast-based since the lower body was eaten, maybe something artificial created by someone."
Hanasaki fell silent, deep in thought, then answered after a brief pause.
"Theoretically possible. Of course, even if it is, we don't have a good way to track it."
"I've heard they have things like chimeras in the West."
"Sendo. I don't know much about Western yokai myself, but a composite beast big enough to devour a full-grown adult would have sightings, right?"
"Then maybe a beast that can hide and use spiritual energy."
Hanasaki showed a rare flicker of expression—a slightly darkened look. Probably because her specialty, spiritual abilities, couldn't track something like that, and it was starting to feel all too real.
"Hanasaki."
"Yes."
"You've got a grasp on all the spiritual users and non-humans in the school, right?"
"That's the plan, at least. Though there could be ones so human-like no one knows their true nature."
"Then is there anyone else besides us who could help investigate?"
"...That's not an easy ask."
She blatantly dodged mentioning Ichinose. I didn't know the exact beef between them, but there was clearly tension between Hanasaki, who handled the neighborhood's spiritual incidents, and Ichinose, the vampire heiress of her corporate empire. With the Ichinose Group's money and tech, things would progress for sure. If what Nogawa said was true, those Gloomy Beasts were artificial lifeforms from some organization. Well, if Ichinose were super cooperative, most of Aodaru's incidents would've been solved with cash and manpower. Plus, there was infighting inside Ichinose, with kidnappings and all.
"If it can't be detected with spiritual energy, I might not even resist if I'm attacked."
"Whoa, don't say something scary out of nowhere."
"Just stating facts. And if that happens, I'd like to ask Tsukino's eyes and Sendo's strength to clean up."
"Sigh. Hope it doesn't come to that, but if me and Tsukino can handle it, sure."
Why are you deciding for me without checking? Of course, if Hanasaki were really in danger, I'd force Nogawa's cooperation by shoving a flying dodgeball down her throat or whatever. For now, I just let out a sigh in response.
"Tsukino. On that note, how's your spiritual ability development going?"
"Got a lot better. The grudge spirit at that intersection we sent to the afterlife last time—I could even release what bound it to the ground."
"Pardon?"
Today must be Observe Hanasaki's Expressions Day. Her eyes twitched faintly. Was it that weird? I glanced at Sendo, and his eyes were a bit wide too.
"Is it that strange?"
"Very. Normal souls don't change traits unless they become evil spirits, yokai, or deities."
"Exactly. Earth-bound, wandering, guardian, possession.... Unless some bizarre bond forms after death, they don't change much until they pass on."
"Huh."
Then what the hell are my eyes? It went beyond just "seeing better" or "more sensitive"—it was some freak ability. If it were from a near-death experience, it'd be semi-common, so this must be like dipping my eyeballs in the three realms of punishment. What the actual fuck. I wasn't the type to know the worldview settings inside out, and I hadn't learned from any spiritual expert in this life, so now I was just full of questions.
"...This weekend. Could you come to the shrine?"
"Yeah, no plans, so I can."
"Please visit, even if briefly."
I nodded agreeably for now. The murder talk had shifted to my spiritual sight, but with neither of us knowing more, there wasn't much else to say.
"Alright, I'll keep it in mind. Whether it's a beast that's tasted human or some weird spiritual user, staying alert should let me cope okay."
"Yes. Sendo, take care too."
"Yep. I'll head back first."
Sendo looked at me, then—out of Hanasaki's sight—flashed a thumbs-up before heading inside. Ah, I see. He took the shrine invite as a date signal. Sneakily cheering on another's romance like a good guy—straight out of a pure-love eroge heroine magnet. Except I, a guy, was the one who'd seen it, and Hanasaki had zero romantic flags. Plus, with my double-dipping flirts already, she was way too heavy a load. Whatever, types like him wouldn't listen if I said it wasn't like that, so let him misunderstand.
"Tsukino."
"Feels like you're calling my name a lot today."
"Think of it as you playing a key role in this incident."
"Got it. So, to what do I owe the visit?"
"When you come to the shrine, alone. No Inuyama, no middle schooler you've been exercising with lately, no family."
"Is the reason...?"
"This is purely my business, tied to my curse. I'd prefer no one else gets involved."
"Understood. I'll make sure no one follows."
With that, Hanasaki turned to leave, her face a bit downcast, but she stopped and leaned in close.
"My face right now. How does it look to you?"
"A mix of worry, concern, and a hint of anxiety."
"I see."
She said no more. Yeah. Hers was a fate without emotions—or if any slipped through, they'd be faint. Ten years living without knowing what expressions she made when.
"Hanasaki."
"Yes."
"Your expressions are prettiest when you're eating something sweet. Like at the cake shop last time, right?"
"...."
She didn't reply, just walked back inside. The Menrei-ki sealed inside Hanasaki was strong. How strong? Strong enough to toy with Sendo one-handed. Saving her meant fighting that. Not a simple decision.
Manatsu had her spiritual genetic disease, Hanasaki the Menrei-ki, Inuyama her power control and tribal trials, Ichinose armed humans and powerful vampires gunning for her, Nogawa those Gloomy Beasts and their shadowy org—maybe even immune to spiritual powers—Fujiwara a body hunt and revival. Just listing them made my head throb.
Every time, I felt it. I'm just an ordinary citizen at heart. Happy as long as friends and family are healthy and safe. But I couldn't live like that anymore. I hugged my knees and lay on my side until the bell for class rang.