Chapter 54: Chapter 13

Rewinding the time a little—back when Seijirou was still trading blows with Nou Badi under the dim fluorescent lights of the empty corridor.

Outside, at the front gates of Shunji High, Suzune stood quietly beside the gate, the cool breeze tugging at her uniform skirt.

She checked the time on her phone, her reflection faintly mirrored on the screen.

Seijirou should’ve been out by now. He always left right after school hours, unless something came up.

She sighed softly. Touka had already waved goodbye earlier, saying she’d catch the next train.

Shou had gone ahead too, mumbling something about his mom needing groceries.

That left Suzune alone.

She decided to wait. She wanted to tell Seijirou in person that she’d be heading home with her mother tonight.

Minutes passed. The steady flow of students heading out through the gate gradually thinned, until there was no one.

The courtyard, once alive with chatter, grew eerily silent.

Suzune frowned, glancing around.

"Weird... it’s not even that late." The sun had only just dipped below the horizon, the sky still painted in streaks of orange and gold.

She tucked a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear and returned her gaze to her phone, scrolling through messages to kill time.

The soft glow of the screen illuminated her calm face, until a sudden voice broke through the quiet.

"Suzune-chan!"

She looked up.

Running toward her was Tachibana Rei, her pink hair bouncing with each hurried step, short and bright against the dim light.

Her golden eyes shone with warmth as she waved, smiling as if relieved to see a familiar face.

"Ah, Rei!" Suzune smiled back, waving in return.

Rei slowed down when she reached her, panting lightly, hands on her knees.

"Are you... going home already?" Rei asked, her tone casual but her expression faintly nervous, like she was testing the waters.

Suzune shook her head. "Not yet. I’m waiting for my mom. She said she’ll pick me up today."

Rei straightened, brushing her hair back with a sheepish laugh.

"Oh, that’s perfect then." She hesitated, her eyes darting aside for a moment before she added, "Um, would it be okay if I... came along with you two?"

Suzune blinked. "With me?"

Rei nodded quickly. "Yeah, it’s just... after what happened recently, I’d feel safer if I wasn’t walking home alone."

Suzune’s face softened instantly. Of course, the stalker. That creepy incident just last night where Rei had been chased and probably be harmed if she didn’t almost got run over by Suzune.

"Of course," she said firmly. "You can come with us. I’m sure Mom won’t mind. It’s safer this way."

Rei’s expression melted into relief.

She clasped her hands together and bowed slightly. "Thank you, Suzune-chan. Really."

Suzune smiled faintly. "Don’t worry about it. It’s what friends are for, right?"

Rei giggled, though her voice trembled almost imperceptibly. "Yeah... friends."

They stood together in the quiet, waiting for Suzune’s mom to arrive. The sound of crickets filled the air, mingling with the faint hum of the streetlights.

The school behind them loomed in silence, tall and still, as if watching.

Just then, the air shifted.

Suzune’s expression stiffened as she caught sight of something strange near the school gate, a faint, undulating haze that hadn’t been there moments ago.

It was black mist, thick and unnatural, spreading across the gate like oil in water.

Her crimson eyes narrowed. "...That’s not right."

Rei followed her gaze, her bright demeanor faltering.

"Suzune-chan... what is that?" she asked, her voice trembling.

Suzune took a cautious step forward. The mist pulsated faintly, as if alive.

Reaching out, she placed her palm against it, and instantly felt resistance. Her fingers didn’t pass through, it was like touching glass, cold and solid.

Her heart sank. "A barrier."

The word alone made Rei’s blood run cold. "B-Barrier? You mean like—"

Suzune didn’t answer. Her mind was already piecing things together.

A supernatural mist.

A locked-in area.

No witnesses.

Someone had surely set this up.

Great, just great. She just discovered that supernatural exists a few days ago, and now she was experiencing her first supernatural experience!

Just then, the silence broke.

Footsteps echoed from behind them. The kind that belonged to people who knew they were hunting something.

From the shadows near the courtyard, six men emerged.

All wore identical fox masks, their bodies wrapped in dark uniforms that seemed too formal for delinquents, too light for professionals.

They moved in a half-circle, blocking any chance of escape.

Rei instinctively took a step back, clutching Suzune’s sleeve. "Who are they?"

Suzune didn’t need to ask. Her instincts screamed danger.

"Doesn’t matter," she muttered, already shifting her stance slightly to cover Rei. "They’re not here for anything good."

Her mind raced. The mist at the gate meant containment, whoever these people were, they didn’t want them leaving or calling for help.

A trap, plain and simple.

She clenched her jaw. Her wounds from the fight with the Hunters two days ago still throbbed under her uniform.

Her ribs ached when she breathed too sharply and she wasn’t in any shape for combat, not against a group this large.

"Okay," she muttered under her breath, eyes darting around for openings. "Think. You can’t fight. You are injured. That means—"

She grabbed Rei’s wrist. "Run."

Rei blinked. "W-What?"

"Run!"

Without hesitation, Suzune pulled her and sprinted down the side path leading back into the campus.

She is not a horror movie protagonist who has a survival instinct of a sunfish.

The masked men froze in disbelief.

This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.

According to the usual routine, the targets were supposed to freeze up in fear. Maybe stutter a few words, maybe ask who they were or what they wanted.

Then they’d deliver their ominous line, step forward, and let the dread sink in.

Then the chase would begin.

But Suzune had skipped to the end of the script entirely.

"Wait, they’re— they’re running already!?" one of them hissed in confusion.

"Shit! Go after them!"

"Don’t let them reach the main building!"

The group broke formation, their shoes pounding against the pavement as they gave chase.

Suzune didn’t look back. Her lungs burned, her legs screamed, but her mind stayed cold and focused.

The mist had sealed the main gate. That meant their best chance was to loop through the old gym’s back exit, if it wasn’t blocked too.

"Rei, keep running!" she shouted.

Rei, pale and breathless, nodded and followed.

Behind them, the men in fox masks were closing the distance, their silhouettes flickering under the dying streetlights like shadows coming to life.

*

*

*

In the hidden depths beneath the school, a chamber stretched out like a secret catacomb, dimly lit by pale fluorescent lights that buzzed faintly.

The air was thick with incense and the metallic tang of something older, something divine yet rotten.

At the center sat Vice Principal Aguri Basuta, lounging upon what could only be described as a throne, an ornate seat carved from black stone, veined with crimson light that pulsed like veins beneath flesh.

His suit was slightly disheveled, his face twisted in irritation as he stared at the flickering candle flames before him.

"Why didn’t it work?" he muttered, voice low and venomous.

His hands tightened around the armrests, his knuckles whitening.

His "Suggestion," the sacred gift bestowed upon him by the false god he served, was supposed to bend the weak-minded to his will.

It was simple: speak the command, plant the thought, and the victim would obey. A subtle mental overwrite, undetectable by most, and perfect for manipulating the fools around him.

Teachers. Students. Even the janitor.

They all danced when he said the word.

But it wasn’t perfect, and Aguri knew that better than anyone.

The ability only worked on those whose wills were fragile. Those with conviction, purpose, or strong emotion could resist. And if he ordered someone to do something they truly hated to do, then it won’t work.

Still, for ordinary humans, it was nearly absolute.

That’s why what happened earlier left him enraged.

He replayed the scene in his head: bumping into that delinquent Kageyama Seijirou in the hallway, where he had used his powers to try and hypnotize him.

Yet the boy didn’t even blink. His eyes stayed cold, defiant, as if Aguri’s powers never reached his mind at all.

The vice principal slammed a hand on his armrest, the sound echoing across the chamber. "It should have worked. It always works."

His reflection stared back at him from the polished marble floor, a man in his forties, balding slightly, bloated body, his features twisted into something cruel and desperate.

He exhaled slowly. Losing control was unbecoming of one who carried divine favor.

Fortunately, he had prepared contingencies.

That brute, Nou Badi, had been more than eager to earn a fat envelope for breaking a few bones.

Aguri had seen to it that he was sent after Seijirou if by small chance he failed, the boy’s ego and strength would keep him distracted long enough for Aguri’s true operation to begin.

A knock echoed through the chamber.

"Enter," Aguri said flatly.

A student wearing a fox mask rushed in, the heavy door creaking behind him. He immediately fell to one knee, his voice trembling.

"Vice Principal Basuta! We have... news."

Aguri’s gaze sharpened. "Speak."

The student bowed lower. "Nou Badi was already defeated, and the Miko candidate, Tachibana Rei, and Korukawa Suzune have escaped."

The veins on Aguri’s forehead bulged.

"What!?" He rose abruptly, his voice reverberating through the underground chamber like thunder. "You imbeciles! How could you let them slip past you!? The barrier should have been absolute!"

The masked student flinched. "We... we don’t know, sir. The red-haired girl reacted too quickly. She didn’t follow the script—she didn’t even hesitate! They ran the moment we appeared!"

Aguri’s jaw tightened. Suzune again. That girl was always a problem, stubborn, sharp, too perceptive for her own good.

He took a step forward, the crimson veins on his throne pulsing brighter in response to his agitation. "And what of Kageyama?"

The student hesitated. "He’s... still unaware, sir. We found Suzune’s phone when she dropped it while fleeing. We used it to send a message and we told him she went shopping with friends. That should keep him from interfering."

Aguri’s anger stilled, his expression relaxing into a thin smile. "Good. Very good."

He sat back down slowly, rubbing his temples as he exhaled. If that delinquent finds out what they’re doing, this entire operation collapses.

Kageyama Seijirou’s parents are influential enough to bury this entire school in lawsuits and fire. If he dies or vanishes, they’ll have the government crawling all over us.

And although Aguri believed in his power, he still wasn’t powerful enough to ignore bullets.

He leaned forward, his shadow stretching long across the floor.

"Capture the girls immediately," he said coldly. "The ritual cannot proceed without the Miko candidate. But if Seijirou catches wind of this before we finish and decide to interfere..."

His lips curled into a sneer. "Then we’ll feed him to the god, regardless of consequences."

The masked student swallowed hard and bowed. "Y-Yes, sir!"

As the student hurried out, Aguri turned his eyes toward the black altar standing behind his throne.

Upon it lay a small idol, a misshapen, many-eyed figure carved from obsidian, oozing faint trails of shadow.

Aguri whispered, his tone reverent and twisted.

"Forgive my impatience, Lord En-Nyarl. The offering will come soon."