Tokyo bombing incident Nth time

“What you said makes some sense—” Mingmei’s posture relaxed slightly, “but what was the result? Was your judgment correct?”

This is a really complicated issue. It's true in a haunted house, hard to say in a hospital, and basically wrong in a hotel.

"Not quite right." What's the point of emphasizing that haunted houses are right now? Are they afraid a fight won't break out?

"..." Yuri awaited the follow-up attacks and criticisms, but none of that happened. Akemi opened her mouth several times, but didn't actually say anything.

"..." The silence lasted for about twenty seconds. Yuri felt that he could hear the clock on the wall chiming clearly. Then Akemi spoke again, "Okay, what you said does make some sense."

The high school girl relaxed her posture a little, straightened her body, and leaned back on the sofa.

Is this all in the past?

“However, answer me honestly about one question, Yuri.” Akemi said with her eyes closed, “If it’s really as you say, you told me the situation, I took the initiative to participate, and then something happened to me, then whose responsibility is it?”

“Of course it’s mine,” Yuri answered honestly. “I could foresee this happening, so it’s naturally my responsibility.”

"...What if we take another scenario? For example, something that shouldn't be risky at all. You tell me the situation, I take the initiative to participate, and then something happens to me—you can't predict that something will happen, but it does happen. Whose responsibility is that?"

"..." This requires some time to think. After a brief silence, Yuri responded, "Of course, it's mainly my responsibility. I didn't understand the risks involved—"

He was interrupted by Akemi, “That’s what I’m most unhappy about, Yuri.”

There was almost no anger in Mingmei's voice, at least much less than before, but she was definitely expressing her dissatisfaction. "As a friend, I think your way of thinking is just sick. As soon as you get involved in anything, it's as if all the responsibility immediately falls on you. If it succeeds, you're willing to share the credit with others, but if it fails, the problem is on you, and no one else can take responsibility except you—that's mental illness, and it's very serious, you know?"

...Now that you mention it, something doesn't seem quite right.

“As for me personally, I think this is extremely disrespectful to my free choice—you actually think I can’t take responsibility for my own actions? Even if you couldn’t foresee the risks, you think you should predict them for me instead of leaving this to me?” Mingmei’s face showed a half-smile. “Are you playing the role of my elder? Do you think I’m still a child who can’t take responsibility for myself?”

“No, that’s not what I think—” Yuri paused, then corrected himself, “—Well, that might be true to some extent, but I won’t do it again.”

Akemi Kakizaki, like Yuri, is indeed an intellectually arrogant person. Even though she finds it very difficult, she will ultimately choose to take responsibility herself, preferring to do so rather than be told that "you are not capable of taking responsibility for yourself."

...It seems like Yuri often wants to do this when he's being lazy, but why can't he do it when something goes wrong?

"Well then, okay, I also have to apologize for what I said. Was I too aggressive?" Mingmei completely relaxed. "If you think my attitude was bad, you can start your criticism. I will accept it."

The attitude was indeed not good, but since things have come to this point, wouldn't it seem petty to continue criticizing?

Yuri changed the subject, “Anyway, tonight is Christmas Eve—I still don’t know why we celebrate this holiday, but since it’s a holiday, let’s talk about something happy.”

"Okay, how about you learn to play shogi?"

"I'll learn Go, but I'll pass on Shogi."

"That's perfect. I'll buy a Go set too, but I'm a beginner at Go."

"Anyway, we're not trying to become national champions or anything, we're just playing for fun."

They were just criticizing each other, then immediately back to normal. Is this a normal friendship? Yuri had doubts, and asking Akemi was clearly not going to get the right answer...

But who cares? Isn't this good?

198 Actions of others

“Ms. Hojo Reie, we already know about what happened to your father…” the man on the other end of the phone continued rambling on, “…we deeply regret this.”

"Yeah, I've heard that line countless times. Can't you police officers be a little more practical?" Hojo Reie retorted irritably. "What a shame, what a shame, what a shame. Are you going to bow to me now?"

"...We understand your dissatisfaction, but—" There were at least two people breathing on the other end of the phone, and it seemed they were really serious this time, perhaps.

"—That was fourteen years, seven months, and thirteen days ago, Inspector." Lehwa used a polite form that wasn't normally necessary, but he was sure the other wouldn't misunderstand and think he was using it out of great respect. "I was just a child back then. Did you really think I would remember a grudge so clearly?"

Although the person opposite him should be a police inspector... it's just a verbal promotion, how could he be angry?

"..." The person on the other end of the phone paused for a moment, but ultimately did not continue to dwell on the topic. Instead, they simply went along with what they had said, "In any case, you must have friends who are quite knowledgeable about the occult, otherwise you wouldn't have been able to process those shots in this way."

“Oh right, those cameras cost money too, of course. How long are you going to keep them? Even if there really was blood on them that needed to be sampled, shouldn’t you have finished taking samples by now?” Lie Hui was preparing to settle accounts with the police. “When exactly are you planning to return them to me? Or should I just send you the price list?”

"...The surfaces of these lenses have undergone severe aging, and they don't blend in with the rest of the structure. We suspect they've experienced serious paranormal effects..." the person on the other end of the phone continued, "...The question is, do you really not know what caused all of this? Don't your friends who are handling the lenses know either?"

Actually, it was just one person; the one handling the camera was Hojo Rei herself. However, Rei was happy to let these police officers think that she was just a middleman.

"I don't know. Actually, wasn't it you who did it?" Hojo Reie turned the tables. "At first, I didn't believe at all that there could be people in the police force involved in supernatural matters... Now that you say there are, I believe you—so this very obvious act of destroying evidence really wasn't done by you?"

"Please watch your words, Ms. Hojo. We Japanese police would never do anything harmful to Japanese citizens!" The voice on the other end of the phone was stern. "Everything we do is to protect—"

"Is the next line 'My love is this country'?" A smile appeared on the reporter's lips. "It seems a man said the same thing, and then, on an ordinary night, he never came back."

"..."

“Regardless, you said you wanted to seize my equipment as evidence, and I agreed. There was nothing recorded on it, I explained. You questioned me like a suspect in concealing evidence, and I endured it. You demanded I keep what happened at the scene confidential, and I did. You implied I should hide what I knew and spout nonsense in the newspapers, and I did that too.” Hojo Reie’s voice grew louder and louder. “You investigated my past—fine, you’re the police, investigate all you want. Now you want to control my life? What did I do to make you think you can do anything to me? Which law are you abiding by?”

“Ms. Hojo, please calm down! This matter will not harm you or your friends in any way! His or their files will not be made public, it's just a registration!” The young male voice on the other end of the phone hurriedly explained, “You know, supernatural events can cause panic if they are revealed rashly, so it is best to handle them secretly—for this reason, our police need as many partners as possible, in order to prevent the situation from escalating further and causing greater losses.”

"Hmm." In any case, these few words make some sense.

“However, as you know, those who can solve problems can also create them. I’m not saying your friend will create problems, but without registration, unnecessary misunderstandings might arise when you encounter them.” The young man’s voice seemed to indicate that things were back on track. “It’s just registration; nothing will be forced upon you. Cooperation is entirely voluntary, and there will be fair compensation. It’s beneficial for both parties. Don’t you want to see this city, this country, become more peaceful?”

“…What you said makes some sense, but I can’t make that decision myself. I still have to ask the helper.”

"Okay, please make sure to pass this on—if there's any news, just call this number."

Liehui hung up the phone.

She would tell Mingmei and the others about this option, but she would never persuade them to accept it.

After all... Japanese police are basically useless, and if I expose my information, it might get leaked, and then I might be retaliated against.

But this choice still has to be made by Mingmei and her team.

Based on my understanding of them... they most likely wouldn't accept it—after all, they always act quite self-disciplined until the situation actually hits them.

After this period of communication and cooperation, Hojo Reie has figured out many of their characteristics and believes she knows them quite well.

For example... Yuri, at first Lehwa did think he was a superhuman who could become a spirit (what a convenient ability), but she quickly realized that he was more likely to be a spirit directly.

He once said that he couldn't carry coins because it was difficult to carry physical items in his spirit form. What the reporter didn't actually ask was, if you can't carry coins, then what's with the clothes you're wearing?

Thinking about it from another perspective, this means that the clothes Yuri is wearing are not physical objects.

Furthermore, no matter how many times she saw him, he always wore the same clothes. Hojo Rei had never seen Yuri change his clothes—not even his hat or mask, and his clothes were never wrinkled.

It's almost a certainty that Yuri is a spirit capable of materializing, rather than a superhuman capable of materializing.

However, this does not affect the relationship between the two parties, so there is no need to point it out; it is enough to know.

I never expected that being a paranormal reporter would yield so much more information than being a regular reporter. It's truly a case of finding a new path after a dead end—now even though the editors are planning to transfer me back, I'm not going to do it anymore.

...Besides, that vampire might not necessarily think he's exceptionally talented; he's more likely to feel that wherever he goes, explosions will occur, and he might want to be transferred from his current position.

And...aren't the recent events happening a bit too frequently?

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"...How did things get to this point?" Afterwards, Yuka Yamanaka stayed at Reie Hojo's house, lying that she was a relative's child... In fact, no one asked her anything.

"What exactly happened? Why?" Hojo Reie went out to deal with work, and Akemi had her own place to live, so she was alone at home, which made it easier for her to sort out her thoughts.

Minagawa Dojin was once a sin-devourer, but after his repeated resurrections and witnessing his family die before his eyes time and time again, he went mad. He fought against the bound spirits and won through his insane willpower—the bound spirits and the bound bodies cannot directly harm each other, so it must be a matter of willpower—and then he dominated the bound spirits instead of cooperating with them.

Then he became the Reaper—through the mask that has now been given to Yuri.

Yuka had never seen that mask before, but her sister, Imatake, who was murdered, had mentioned that she had seen a strange mask, which Minagawa Doto explained as a trophy he had won against an evil spirit.

This may not be a lie; Minagawa-do may indeed have obtained this item from a harvester and then used it to turn himself into a harvester.

The organizer of the Sin Eater Society, a reaper, would have laughed heartily if he had heard this before all of this was exposed... How incredibly stupid.

He had this idea from the beginning, and that's why he collaborated with the hunter.

His collaboration with the hunter was also driven by ulterior motives, ultimately leading to the present.

It's understandable that Yuri didn't see the problem earlier, given that she had been in contact with Minagawa-do for far less time than he had. But Yuri still reacted faster, more quickly, and identified the problem and acted upon it sooner than he had.

If it weren't for Yuri, I would already be dead.

So why?

Why wasn't I the one who noticed the problem?

—I do indeed possess the strongest spirit-binding ability within the society.

In other words, as long as you are truly prepared, none of this will happen.

The deaths of Sister Jinzhu and Uncle Hirota were because... no, it can't all be blamed on myself; it's the murderer's fault.

—But I could have stopped these murderers earlier.

As long as one isn't so stupid as to be on guard the moment before being ambushed, it'll be fine—Yuri has already proven that without complete trust, those cuckoos cannot usurp one's power, at least not all of it.

If I had all my strength back then, I could have wiped out all those cuckoos and freed the trapped spirits...

—No, Yuri mentioned during the debriefing that she could have conjured a dagger and rushed out to fight, but she hesitated and didn't. She even apologized to herself for it.

Who should apologize? Who unknowingly fell into the other party's trap? Even if they only retained the ability to speak, they could have told Yuri the truth in time, without having to wait until after their escape, and without missing the last opportunity.

"why?"

Why didn't I do it?

"Aren't you going to school?" Yuri's voice echoed in my ears.

What was my answer back then? "I plan to make my career out of mystical affairs, so going to school isn't my top priority." Was that something like that?

"Making mystical affairs your profession"? ...That's incredibly presumptuous.

Without Yuri, the Mysterious Affairs would have already killed Yuka Yamanaka, and possibly many more innocent people as well.

Hojo Reie said there were no obvious reports of deaths, but Yamanaka Yuka could sense... the lingering feeling of death after that spirit world storm that had been reduced and reduced again.

There are still losses that have not been avoided, and there are still people who have been harmed—and even with this outcome, it is not they who have fought for it.

At that time, I didn't think that much about it, and I tried to postpone all these thoughts. But eventually, it will still catch up with me; there's no escaping it, so...

"why?"

Yuka Yamanaka was deep in thought.

In the past, she would not have hesitated to seek the help of the spirit binder.

However, it is ultimately not one's own—seeking help from spirit binding can solve the problem temporarily, but if one cannot learn it on their own, this is the result.

Just a few days ago, I felt like I was omnipotent, but now I feel like I can't do anything at all.

No, neither is correct, but one thing is very clear.

"I must become a stronger person than I am now, not only in terms of strength, but also in terms of intellect."

Yuka Yamanaka concluded that the specific implementation method needs to be explored, but it is clear that she is not good enough now and must make further progress.

You must surpass yourself from yesterday in order to move forward.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Lie said the Tokyo police are looking for the occult practitioners behind her, and asked if we'd be willing to fill this hole." Akemi Kakizaki twirled her pen.

Christmas is over, and the New Year's Day holiday is just around the corner. People's morale has dropped—but Mingmei still needs to address the issue of declining grades.

"What's your opinion? I don't even have a household registration, so there's no way I can fill this hole." Yuri flipped through the encyclopedia he had borrowed from Lehweh's house.

This time, it showed that I lacked knowledge of many common things, such as guns, guns, guns, and so on.

It is said that encyclopedias are classic works that include everything, regardless of size. If possible, Yuri would like to get a copy of the legendary Encyclopedia Britannica... Unfortunately, the reporter suppressed a laugh and said that he didn't have one at home, and that this ordinary encyclopedia was take it or leave it.

Did I say something wrong? Anyway, just use whatever you have.

“Of course I’m not participating. I plan to ask Liehui to help me inquire whether we can maintain this contact but not register… It seems the police are a bit anxious, maybe they will agree.” Mingmei turned another page of her textbook. “My cultivation level is also far from sufficient, not at all at the level where I can compete with others.”

“Those other people didn’t even show up.” As if in a contest, Yuri turned a page. “You think the strength is insufficient?”

“Yes, yes,” the high school mystic wrote furiously, “but I have a feeling I’m not far from a breakthrough.”

"I see." Yuri thought she was planning to become a werewolf... Becoming a werewolf is a breakthrough, right? "What kind of breakthrough?"

“I don’t know,” Mingmei shook her head. “I’ve already said that my cultivation is a mixed and unorthodox approach, so how can there be clear boundaries? It’s just a feeling.”

"May your premonition come true." Yuri turned another page.

"I accept your good words."

Another day of studying hard.

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