Tokyo: I can enlighten all obsessions

In the true vision of [Spirit Vision], the iron gate that should have been the eye of the storm was completely unremarkable.

There was no filth as expected, no black grime representing a curse, and no ever-flowing alluring aura.

On the contrary, the mountains of "gifts" piled up at his feet were now emitting a dazzling pink light.

Like living slime mold, they flowed freely in the corridor, completely enveloping the garbage, yet they could never penetrate the tightly closed door.

"That's strange..."

Shinki Tetsu stared at the door panel that showed no signs of spiritual energy, then thoughtfully looked away.

The desires of the people outside are overflowing, but the room, which serves as the "receiver," is as clean as a blank sheet of paper.

He blinked, and the dark light in his eyes instantly went out, restoring the world to its original colors.

"It seems this house isn't the source."

Since the source isn't inside the house, there's no point in staying here and smelling this sour stench.

Kamiki Tetsu didn't linger and turned to walk towards the stairwell.

"Enlightenment".

The voice just fell.

The pink atmosphere at the entrance vanished into thin air.

Immediately afterwards, a line of dark blue text silently appeared before his eyes:

【Name: Extract of "Outstanding"】

Quality: White (Standard)

[Type: Permanent Enhancement Item]

[Note: This is the essence of "involution" extracted from the pile of moldy garbage at the entrance.]

Look at that expensive box of Godiva chocolates; it's trying to squeeze that bag of cheap handmade cookies into the corner with its fancy packaging.

Look at that perfume-scented letter, pressing it desperately against another illegible letter, as if mocking its opponent's messy layout.

In this narrow corridor of just a few square meters, hundreds and thousands of gifts were engaged in a silent yet bloody battle.

They were all screaming at the top of their lungs: "Choose me! I offer the best value for money!" "Look at me! I have the sweetest sugar content!" After all, if they didn't desperately crush their competitors, they would only become trash swept away by the cleaning lady.

[Special Effect: Superior Evolution] After consumption, this intense survival instinct originating from the "competitor" will gently transform your body. (Effect: Physical attributes receive a slight but permanent boost.)

(Note: Be grateful. In this suffocating Tokyo, you survived because your body was just a tiny bit stronger than the trash around you.)

Kamiki Tetsu looked at the words "[Permanent Enhancement]" and a hint of surprise flashed in his originally calm eyes.

"It's a type that enhances the body?"

It's important to understand that most of what's extracted from these "negative emotions" or "obsessions" are either one-time curse tools or useless junk.

Such permanent buffs that can directly affect oneself, even if only in minute quantities, are definitely rare drops.

"I never imagined that these guys' obsession with vying for favor would be so pure..."

Not only was the trip worthwhile, but I also stumbled upon a bargain.

Kamiki Tetsu couldn't help but smile, and he sincerely exclaimed:

"Hoshino-chan, you're such a lucky star!"

The initial frustration of missing out vanished instantly.

Kamiki Toru walked briskly down the dimly lit staircase, humming an unknown tune as he went:

"Hmph hmph hmph~"

"Now that we've got it, there's no reason to keep it overnight."

As he hummed a cheerful tune, a thought struck him.

The drop of golden-red liquid instantly transformed into a cool, warm current, sliding down the throat and rapidly spreading throughout the body.

He didn't stop walking, but with each step he took down a step, he could feel a subtle change.

My legs, which had felt somewhat heavy, felt a little lighter. My breathing became more rhythmic and steady. Even my hearing seemed to have become more acute, allowing me to more clearly hear the rustling of leaves in the wind outside the stairwell.

Although the improvement is not significant.

It's roughly the same as going from being an "ordinary high school student" to an "ordinary high school student who exercises regularly."

But the advantage is that it has no side effects and is free.

"Whoa..."

Kamiki Tetsu clenched his fist, feeling the slightly firmer muscles in his palm, and a satisfied smile crept onto his lips again:

"As expected of the body enhancement, even walking feels much lighter."

Upon arriving on the first floor, the bald landlord, wearing a t-shirt, was still standing there.

Kamiki Tetsu was in a good mood and had no intention of wasting time on a passerby. He was about to walk right past him without even glancing at him.

However, just as he was about to walk out the door, the old man suddenly came up and blocked his way with a strange look on his face.

"Um... Investigator..."

The landlord rubbed his sweaty hands together, his cloudy eyes darting around, and lowered his voice, his tone filled with fear:

"About Hoshino-chan... oh no, I mean, about that guy Hoshino... I actually know some things."

Kamiki Tetsu stopped and glanced at him, gesturing for him to continue.

"Actually, not long ago, Hoshino was just an ordinary person who could be easily lost in a crowd, and nobody paid any attention to her."

The landlord lowered his voice, as if he were talking about some unspeakable secret:

"Every day when she gets home, she keeps saying things like, 'I want to be more attractive,' 'Why doesn't anyone like me?' 'I want attention too...'"

Upon hearing this, Kamiki Tetsu frowned slightly and coldly interrupted him:

"How did you know what she was muttering about in her own home?"

Faced with Kamiki Tetsu's cold questioning, the old landlord did not panic.

Instead, a lisp squeezed out of his age-spotted face:

"Heh heh... What does such trivial matter matter, Investigator?"

As the old man spoke, he rubbed his hands, which resembled withered tree bark, leaned forward, and lowered his voice:

"More important than that... is that night."

"Although I am old, my eyes are not completely blind. That night, I saw with my own eyes... an extra shadow in the child's room."

"Strangely, no matter how you look at it, the shadow is blurry."

The old man's cloudy eyes darted around, and he shuddered slightly.

"It's not that I couldn't see it clearly, but... I don't know how to explain it, anyway, that thing was handed to Hoshino like something."

"After that... hey."

The old landlord stuck out his tongue and licked his dry, chapped lips, the fear in his voice gradually fading.

"The next morning, he looked exactly the same, but the smell on the child... was completely different."

"She used to be just an ordinary country girl, but now... just one look at her and a man's soul is stolen."

At this point, an unnatural flush appeared on the old man's usually relaxed face.

He seemed to be lost in reverie, recalling some scene, and chuckled absentmindedly, revealing the few yellow teeth remaining in his mouth:

"Let alone those young people... even this old man with one foot in the grave, lately every time I see Hoshino-chan... my lower body gets restless for the first time in a long time..."

"Hehe... If I could just get her to look at me like that... I'd do anything for this old man... hehehe..."

"Okay, I understand."

Ignoring the landlord who was still chuckling lewdly, Kamiki Tetsu strode out of the apartment.

Walking down the street, Kamiki Tetsu quickly sorted through the clues he had just obtained in his mind.

"A blurry figure," "given something," followed by "an unusually inflated charm overnight."

Moreover, this kind of charm is obviously abnormal. It not only seduce the opposite sex, but also carries a strong mental pollution, causing even someone like the landlord, who is about to enter his coffin, to develop aggressive obsessions similar to those of being in heat.

Kamiki Tetsu narrowed his eyes, his fingertips unconsciously rubbing his chin.

"No matter how you look at it, this is all caused by the [cursed artifact]."

Since it involves cursed tools, it's no longer an ordinary matter of obsession.

Without hesitation, he took out his phone and dialed the number saved as "Bald Section Chief".

"Beep...beep..."

The phone rang for a long time before it was answered.

A series of static noises came through the receiver, and there seemed to be the sound of a toilet being flushed in the background.

Immediately following was a weak, middle-aged man's voice:

"Hey... this is the Shinjuku branch room..."

"If it's about paying internet bills, could you give me two more days? I've already applied for special funding from headquarters. If you keep pressuring me, I'll have no choice but to pawn my kidney..."

"It's me, Section Chief."

Kamiki Toru moved the phone a little further away to prevent the dejection from traveling through the radio waves and interrupting the other person's lament about being poor:

"Stop talking about your kidneys. I've found the source of the anomaly at our school."

The complaints on the other end of the phone vanished instantly.

Kamiki Toru glanced back at the apartment building enveloped in pink, and calmly dropped a bombshell:

"It's not a naturally formed spiritual obstacle, but a man-made one."

"Someone of unknown origin gave a girl something that looked like a [cursed tool]."

There was a brief silence on the other end of the phone.

Immediately afterwards, a series of chaotic "cracking" sounds came from the receiver.

"ha?!"

Tenkai's voice suddenly rose, and that half-dead, dejected feeling vanished instantly.

"Hey, hey... Kamiki-kun, you can't joke like that."

"You mean, someone deliberately put that dangerous thing into the hands of an ordinary citizen?"

The sound of papers being frantically flipped through came from the background; clearly, the bald section chief was looking for emergency response guidelines.

"This is no minor spiritual disaster... Distributing cursed tools to civilians is an extremely heinous act, classified as a top-level serious crime by headquarters!"

"If the wielder loses control, or the side effects of the cursed artifact fully manifest... the resulting casualties and the ensuing mess are unimaginable!"

Listening to the wailing coming from the receiver, Toru Kamiki's head was throbbing from the noise.

He frowned, held the phone further away, and, rubbing his temples, impatiently interrupted the other person's breakdown:

"Alright, alright, stop howling, it's so noisy."

"I'll handle it."

After saying that, to prevent his eardrums from suffering any further, he decisively pressed the hang-up button, completely cutting off the noisy crying.

"It seems I still have to take the initiative to approach that popular young lady."

Since there was no reaction inside the house, it means it's a portable [equipment type].

That cursed artifact should be hanging on Hoshino Ruri's body right now.

Without hesitation, Kamiki Toru turned and walked straight toward the school.