Tokyo, My Childhood Friend is a Ghost Story

Chapter 19: Exorcising demons with peace of mind and maintaining order with all our might—this is good for everyone.
At the foot of Baishi Mountain, a tight and secure barbed wire fence completely blocked the entrance to the mountain.

Standing outside the barbed wire fence, the cold cement wall seemed like a coffin lid, completely sealing off the open space beside it—the place where Mamiko and the others died.

On the ground, various offerings and broken ritual implements left from exorcism rituals remain.

"This is the place where evil energy is most concentrated. In order to suppress the interface between this place and the mortal world, we exorcists in the Kinki region have paid a considerable price."

During the abbot's explanation, a woman dressed in a suit, with a cold face and a Hime-style hairstyle, casually glanced at the cement pipes in front of her.

"Have someone tear this place down; that thing is already gone."

The abbot of Chongming was taken aback upon hearing this. After a moment of thought, he looked at the man who was known as the strongest exorcist of the modern era.

Born into a family of Okinawan mediums, with extraordinary spiritual abilities granted by her family bloodline, and the strongest spiritualist in the family's history, Haruko Higa.

"He's gone?"

Haruko Higa glanced indifferently at the abbot of Chongming Temple, then turned around and scanned the bustling city not far away.

“If He were still here, you and I wouldn’t have the chance to stand here and talk so calmly right now. You’re lucky; He doesn’t seem to have much interest in humans.”

"I don't know what those idiots did to attract such a thing."

Upon hearing this, the abbot of Chongming recalled that in order to suppress the exit of this place, exorcists from Osaka had gathered here, which he thought was another victory for humans in exorcising demons.

Unexpectedly, according to Haruko Higa, all the exorcists were injured, and they happily believed that they had joined forces to suppress the place and cut off the connection between the other side and the real world.

Unexpectedly, the other party had no interest in them and let them go.

Thinking of this, the abbot of Chongming couldn't help but feel annoyed, but after a moment, he could only sigh helplessly and smile bitterly to compose himself.

"Does Miss Haruko know the other party's background?"

Haruko Higa turned around and faced the abbot of Chongming Temple sideways.

“I am an exorcist, not a god. There are so many paranormal events in Japan every year, but not all of them have a basis in fact.”

After saying that, Haruko Higa walked towards the car parked on the side of the road not far away. Compared to an existence that appeared and disappeared for unknown reasons, Haruko Higa had more important things to deal with now.

As for the idea of ​​completely suppressing this existence, Haruko Higa never even considered it.

As her spiritual energy grew, Haruko gained a deeper understanding of the saying "When a person's strength is exhausted."

Most beings can be expelled or even suppressed, but some beings are so powerful that even Kaharu doesn't dare to provoke them.

As long as the other party does not interfere in the real world and cause adverse effects, and each does not disturb the other, this is the best state for both humans and such beings.

Those who rush at any evil spirit they see and howl to fight it are just greenhorns. Experienced people, like the abbot of Chongming and herself, are different.

There is no concept of suppression; more often than not, exorcists use suppression rather than exorcism.

Suppression represents repression, while suppression represents eradication.

Suppressing someone or killing someone—anyone with a brain knows which is easier.

But evil spirits are different. To completely kill them, you must thoroughly trace their origins to eliminate all hidden dangers. If you leave even the slightest chance, they may come back with a vengeance. Moreover, you might even dig up something incredible in the process.

Not to mention the potential consequences of pushing such beings to the brink, in many situations, when Haruko Hideko and these kinds of beings sparred, she always knew when to stop.

If things really got heated and they fought to the death, Hika Haruko wasn't sure if she would die, but if she really pushed the other side too far, many people would definitely die. Abbot Chongming was also well aware of this, so after a helpless smile, he followed Hika Haruko and drove away from Baishi Mountain.

On the way back to the city, the abbot of Chongming looked at Haruko Higa, who was sitting on the other side of the back seat of the car, staring blankly out the window.

"So, Ms. Haruko, what do you think is the intrinsic connection between what's happening here at Shiraishi Mountain and what's happening in the city?"

Haruko Higa seemed quite indifferent to this.

"I don't know, and I don't want to know. With the economic boom in recent years, the islanders have become restless and eager for excitement. Heaven knows what they did to attract such a situation."

"Since they're courting death, let them go. Besides, the Blue Stone Group is notorious in the Osaka area."

The abbot of Chongming frowned slightly upon hearing this.

"However, there are a few students and their parents who have no contact with the Blue Stone Group on a regular basis."

Haruko Higa gave a cold laugh.

"Solving cases is the job of the police, not exorcists. I don't care if they're in contact or not. We exorcists only appear when there are evil spirits manifesting in the world. If there are no evil spirits, what right or perspective do we exorcists have to intervene in public security issues?"

"What does that have to do with us?"

After saying this, Haruko Higa lost the desire to continue the conversation and chose to close her eyes and lean back in her chair.

Seeing this, the abbot of Chongming sighed silently, twirled the prayer beads in his hand, and closed his eyes to rest.

After all, during the exorcism rituals of the previous two days, not only were other exorcists injured, but the abbot of Chongming himself also suffered.

Upon arriving in the city, Higa Haruko bid farewell to the abbot of Chongming, whose expression was complicated. Standing on the street, watching the black car drive away, Higa Haruko took out a cigarette case from her pocket, lit one, and put it on.

"Whoo~"

While there aren't many exorcists like the abbot of Chongming Temple who can't bear to see evil spirits disturbing the human world and bringing death and suffering, there are still quite a few.

It is precisely because of their existence that the exorcist groups of the island nation have not become the kind of groups that everyone across the ocean fears and talks about with dread.

But precisely because of this, the exorcists of the island nation have always been listless. It's not because they lack ability, but often because their sense of responsibility as exorcists leads them into an irredeemable situation.

Haruko Higa remembers clearly that three years ago, a case occurred that shocked the entire exorcist community in the island nation.

A young and promising exorcist, while carrying out a mission, peeled back the layers and, after exorcising the female evil spirit, discovered that the woman's transformation into an evil spirit was entirely caused by her husband.

Domestic violence, abuse, burning his body with cigarette butts, forced intercourse despite his wife's pregnancy, causing her to have multiple miscarriages.

In the end, he even complained that the docile woman was preventing him from bringing other women home for the night.

After being tricked into taking drugs by a woman he had a casual sex relationship with, he conspired with that woman to murder his wife, and then, upon regaining consciousness, indifferently dismembered her body.

In the end, the man received his due punishment, but the exorcist was also stabbed to death by the man's mother in the rainy night, driven by irrational resentment.

Such cases were not isolated incidents. Since then, exorcists in the island nation have begun to distance themselves from the security of ordinary people and no longer interfere in secular ethical matters.

Exorcising demons with peace of mind and maintaining public order are both beneficial for everyone.

(End of this chapter)