I'm a teacher in Tokyo!

Upon hearing this, Kotoko was stunned. The memory that surfaced in her mind was—an unnamed evil spirit?

A hint of panic flashed across her face;

As Japan's most powerful psychic medium, she instantly realized that something was wrong.

All ghosts have names; only by knowing their names can one more easily subdue them.

When he subdued the nameless evil spirit, he had absolutely no memory of its name.

Kotoko knew that, given her personality, she would never do something so reckless. Every time she performed an exorcism, she would gather enough information before taking action.

So even though her memories seemed to match up perfectly and there was nothing unusual, Kotoko immediately knew that something big was wrong!

The biggest problem is that my memory isn't the issue!

and so--

"time?"

At that moment, a shiver ran through her heart, and she seemed to feel the fear she had felt during her first exorcism, the fear of being powerless against an unknown evil spirit.

Kotoko remained silent for a moment, reflecting on her demon-slaying journey and the experience, knowledge, and concepts passed down from her predecessors.

Many well-known deities, and even beings existing in Takamagahara.

All my knowledge tells me how absurd this is, to the point that even my values ​​are somewhat unstable.

What is this concept?

If we absolutely have to introduce the concept of time, it's like a bunch of kids pushing each other, with a few adults standing by watching and trying to maintain balance.

Then, at this time;

Suddenly, a dump truck driver named "Ju-on" appeared and shattered his worldview.

Kotoko had to admit that she... had underestimated him!

—Although I had previously invoked the gods and already estimated the strength of the curse to the highest possible level.

But now it seems that its strength is far more terrifying than I imagined!

Even now, she had to admit that an extreme, deep-seated fear was beginning to spread within her.

Even if one is not that afraid of death.

But faced with this situation, where the death was shrouded in mystery and there was even the possibility that the memory would be lost with the death, she still felt a sense of fear.

My strength lies in the present, not in the past.

If one's past were attacked, would one still have a present?

After thinking about all these things, she remained silent for a while, a hint of determination appearing in her eyes;

After a moment, she said, "I understand. This is not a good task. Mr. Yoshizaki, could you please tell me the scene from that night again, in front of this mirror?"

She took out a luxurious-looking wooden box from the side, opened it, and inside was a bronze mirror, which reflected a yellowish glow under the light.

"Mirror with Images of Gods, Humans, Dragons, and Tigers—"

The mirror was inscribed with Chinese characters in Small Seal script. Looking at the characters, Yoshizaki felt his DNA move.

Kotoko held the mirror in her hand.

Dressed in a shrine maiden's outfit, she knelt behind her, holding her hands in a mudra like a goddess, with a mirror placed on her lap and in front of her chest. Then she let Yoshizaki Kawa sit in front of her: "Mr. Yoshizaki Kawa, you may continue."

Although he felt inexplicably awkward recounting what had happened before, he still spoke honestly.

The retelling was completed quickly.

Everything was normal.

Seeing this, Kotoko breathed a sigh of relief: "Mr. Yoshizaki, it seems that the curse will not spread because of your words."

She put the mirror down and then said:

"Mr. Yoshizaki, I now understand the danger involved, but I'm sorry, I have no way of dealing with this matter, nor do I know what to do."

"In fact, I had previously ventured to probe your heart, but when the curse spread, I cut off my own finger and was injured, barely managing to escape."

As Kotoko spoke, her mindset seemed to begin to return to its previous calm.

"Later, I also tried to use Ms. Kayako's tattered notebook to do some deductions, but that deduction left me seriously injured, and even the deity that was doing the deductions disappeared."

"I have already given high regard to the curse behind this, but my perspective is too narrow, so I can only see part of the whole picture."

Yoshizaki had guessed that Kotoko had investigated Kayako, but he never expected that she had also tried to investigate his own heart...

Of course, Yoshizaki believed that he did not harbor any dirty thoughts, so he could not find anything out, but he still found it hard to accept.

After all, not everyone can tolerate being spied on.

But looking at the woman's calm and sincere demeanor, he didn't know what to say for a moment.

Moreover, she was punished by having her fingers cut off for exploring her own heart, so she had even less reason to say anything.

"This is a curse that neither you, I, nor our ancestors understood or faced, but since it has befallen you—"

“Even if it costs me my life, I will help you. As for that page of notes, I will take it back and enshrine it in the shrine.”

This doesn't just help Yoshizaki Kawa personally, but also countless other people whose curse might be affected.

This is the responsibility of an exorcist.

Looking at Kotoko's sincere expression, Yoshizaki thought of the exorcists in the movies who died tragically one by one.

And there was the medium whose arm had been torn off, yet he still insisted on waving it;

In this movie, exorcists are basically living saints.

Yoshizaki was slightly moved. His previous resentment towards Kotoko had dissipated somewhat. This person in front of him didn't even care about her own life in order to exorcise demons. Why bother arguing with her?

"Tonight, we'll deal with the Soul Demon first, then we'll handle your matter, Mr. Yoshizaki..."

At this moment, Kotoko suddenly realized that it seemed that both incidents were caused by Yoshizaki Kawa... and she fell silent for a moment;

"Miss Kotoko, weren't you seriously injured twice in a row?"

At this moment, Yoshizaki Kawa raised this question: "Why don't we wait until you recover before starting? Because of the many curses, that Po-Xu Demon doesn't seem to dare to come after me..."

At least when he was with Kayako, that demon didn't even dare to show its shadow.

However, upon hearing this, Kotoko shook her head: "Normally, I could have dealt with it by myself. It's only because I was injured that I had to rely on the power of other exorcists."

"Moreover—if we don't deal with it today, we won't be able to deal with it for the next few years. The Soul Demon is a cunning ghost. When it discovers a powerful enemy, it will run away. At this moment, I happen to be weak, and there is something here that it has no choice but to come, so I set up the formation."

"Moreover, the Po-Xiong Demon is not targeting you alone; it will curse everyone who calls upon it equally. Over the years, countless children and couples will lose their lives because of this, so this matter cannot be delayed."

Kotoko stood up and then glanced at the sky;

Let's begin at dusk!

"it is good."

Yoshizaki did not object to Kotoko's words; exorcisms were never just for his own sake.

He just hoped that nothing else would happen in the afternoon.

At that moment, he seemed to realize something and hurriedly shouted in his heart;

"Pooh!"

"Something unexpected is definitely going to happen this afternoon!"

Lately, for some reason, I keep planting flags here;

Kotoko examined the letter for a moment, and finding nothing amiss, she folded it up and placed it in the box containing the image of the god, dragon, and tiger. She then made a phone call, instructing someone to carefully deliver it back to the shrine.

"Mr. Yoshizaki, let's wait for evening to arrive—what kind of coffee would you like?"

"A latte, please."

Yoshizaki Kawa held a hot coffee, but his mind was on Saito Asuka.

"By the way, a colleague of mine who had contact with me before was also attacked by the Po-Xu Demon. Fortunately, she had the Yi Xiaojiao Necklace that you gave her before, which saved her from disaster. I have to go and see her."

however--

Kotoko stopped Yoshizaki Kawa;

"Now all the curses of the Soul Demon are gathered here. If you go to her, you will inevitably bring the curses with you."

"And Mr. Yoshizaki, do you know that I never said in the text message that you must come for an exorcism tomorrow?"

"I will not repeat myself to something so certain, but you have been marked with a curse again, starting with yesterday's text message."

"So please stay here."

Faced with the latter's words, Yoshizaki Kawakami finally realized the true terror of the Po-Xiong Demon.

Because, until now, he hasn't discovered this!

He nodded.

……

In a taxi,

The exorcist holding the box is an older medium at the shrine where Kotoko serves, and he was also the medium who personally participated in the "baptism" ceremony for Kotoko.