From Earthbound Spirit to Tokyo Evil

"Ishino, you have to be careful." Director Kono's words seemed to still ring in his ears. "Recently, the reformists have been attacking us more and more fiercely, believing that our budget is not transparent and that we have been manipulating the media and politics. We just used corruption to get rid of two district councilors who tried to investigate Kyoto's electricity expenses, which made them behave a little. I believe there are many such self-righteous fools in Tokyo. Your place is the political center of Neon, and it is also the place where the reformists' power is most concentrated. Could the real target of this so-called "Skeleton Society" this time be you, Akasaka? Do they want to make you run around and make mistakes?"

If they want to die, then let them die.

Ishino sneered.

If there is anyone among the reformists who really dares to collude with the dissidents, then he will not mind provoking a long-awaited political earthquake.

Akasaka once defeated several prime ministers and more than a dozen members of parliament, forcing them to step down from the stage in disgrace and fade out of politics. Just because he was unwilling to cause trouble after becoming the acting director, did those people think that Akasaka was no longer capable?

"Bring forward the regular cleanup plan for western Tokyo," he suddenly said. "Pay attention to the new religions that are mainly active in western Tokyo, especially those that are too radical. Find one or two high-profile ones that have suddenly become active recently and deal with them as a warning to the rest. Also, pay attention to the movements of the reformist parliamentarians and check the people around them to see if there are any strange new faces recently. The countermeasures headquarters will formulate a plan to complete these tasks within a month! Then, we will get back on track!"

"Reformist councillor? Deputy Ishino, have you heard any news?"

"No, just in case." Ishino Shinjiro clapped his hands a few times, attracting everyone's attention. "Everyone, passive behavior has never been Akasaka's style! We must not be led by the 'Skeleton Society'! No matter what they do, we just have to act at our own pace! As long as we continue to follow Akasaka's path, no matter what result they want, they will not succeed in front of us Akasaka! Whether in the past, present or future, we will protect the people of this land and keep them from being invaded by aliens! Everyone, keep your faith, keep your original intention, and keep going!"

"Yes!" everyone said loudly.

"Then let's get started!" Ishino said loudly.

The people who had been arguing before quickly took action. Ishino's instructions were very clear, which immediately resolved their differences.

People drawn from various departments immediately began to work according to their usual division of labor.

"Muyuan." Ishino called out to Muyuan Juri.

"Yes."

"During the time when Tachibana is on leave due to injury, I want you to protect and monitor Inaba Rika closely. Is that okay?"

"Yes, no problem." Mu Yuan answered without hesitation.

#####

"The Skeleton Society? Skeleton Spy? It's hard for me to handle this if you give me a few names without any context! At least I need to know the whole story before I can investigate, right?"

"Please keep an eye on them. If you have any news about them, notify me immediately!"

"Hey, I'll keep an eye on it." The man who was mixing drinks at the bar nodded, took the envelope and put it under the bar. "But since you came to me on purpose, these guys are not ordinary people, right? What did they do? Can you tell me what you can say? Otherwise, I really can't find out."

"Do you know what happened in Higurashi?"

"Have heard a little bit."

"Our people were led there by the skeleton. The guy who was killed was probably led there by the same group of people."

"Using Akasaka to eliminate dissidents? That's a good idea. What else?"

"If you knew any more, I would have to kill you right here."

"Haha, you must be joking." The bartender laughed exaggeratedly, but did not ask any more questions. "As a bonus, let me tell you an interesting story."

"what?"

"There are two guys, probably civet cats or something, who have been buying instant lottery tickets like crazy these past two days. It is said that they have won a lot of money."

"how many?"

"I don't know, but if the news can get out, there should be at least tens of millions, right?"

"Ten million?"

"Interesting, isn't it? If he was squandering the money himself, given the common problem of raccoon cats, he should have been satisfied long ago, and it is unlikely that he would work so hard. If he was raising funds for an organization, isn't this method and amount a bit too low-level?"

"Okay, I'll keep an eye on it. Then, notify me immediately if there's any news!"

"Hi." The bartender watched him leave with a smile, then immediately took out a cell phone and made a call.

"Akasaka's people are investigating an organization called the 'Skull Society' and a guy called 'Skull Observer'. Yes, I've never heard of them before. It is said that Yu Tu's death is related to them. Yes, I know. Okay, I'll wait for your news."

Chapter 56 The Beginning of Cohabitation

"Nice to meet you. I'm Kimoto Juri. From today on, I will be your personal protector. Please take care of me."

Facing this woman who seemed only a few years older than herself, Inaba Rika was slightly stunned, then hurriedly welcomed her: "Yes. I am Inaba Rika, please take care of me."

Akasaka had checked Inaba Rika's room before, but this was the first time Kimoto entered. She took a rough look at the structure of the room. The total area was not large. There was an open simple kitchen, toilet and bathroom, living room, and a bedroom at the entrance. It was the most common layout of a single apartment nowadays.

However, the room did not have much of the atmosphere of an unmarried woman. It felt like it was the same as when it was rented, with almost no items or decorations belonging to Rika Inaba herself.

Outside the living room is a small balcony where you can dry clothes. There is a pot of green plants in the corner, but it looks like it has been dead for a long time.

"I'm sorry, I was too busy before and just used this place as a place to sleep." Inaba Rika keenly noticed the surprise in Kimoto's eyes, so she explained.

"In fact, the house I live in is similar to yours." Mu Yuan waved his hand hastily. "I spend most of my time working, and I'm already very tired when I get home. I don't have time to think about anything else."

"Yeah, even on my days off I just want to lie in bed and don't want to go shopping at all..." Inaba Rika couldn't help but say.

The two women, who were of similar age and had different job descriptions but had great similarities, suddenly found common ground and laughed at the same time.

"Put your bag on the small sofa. No one's sitting there anyway." Inaba shook his head. "I bought some beer yesterday. Do you want some?"

Mu Yuan hesitated for a moment and said, "Just drink one can."

Two hours later, the two were surrounded by crushed beer cans, and the coffee table in the living room was also filled with various takeouts. After the beer in the refrigerator was finished, Mu Yuan even called a store that delivered goods to the door and bought two dozen.

Although the TV was on, no one was watching it. The two of them were enthusiastically complaining about their colleagues, the invisible discrimination they encountered at work as women, and even their parents and relatives who were urging them to get married.

"I'm already so busy with my own things, how can I have the time to consider another person's thoughts? If I have that time, can't I just sleep a few more hours?" Mu Yuan said indignantly.

"Yes, yes! The guy I was dating said that he hoped I would be more focused on the date. Please, if my mom hadn't called me and threatened to sever the mother-daughter relationship with me, I wouldn't have wanted to go at all. He's just a full-time employee of a small company, but he's already picking on me and giving me orders. I don't know where he got the confidence from!"

The two clinked their glasses again, but for some reason, they suddenly lost the desire to talk.

The room suddenly became very quiet, with only the voice of the comedian on TV.

"Is the salary in Akasaka high?" Inaba asked. "Ah... I don't mean anything else, it's just... Mr. Ishino asked me if I wanted to work in Akasaka. And I noticed that your clothes, shoes and bags are all branded. At least they are things I can't afford."

"Very high." Mu Yuan nodded. "The training subsidy is about 400,000 per month, which lasts from six months to a year. If you can pass the assessment and become a front-line staff, your annual salary in the first year is about 8 million. I am now in my third year, and including bonuses and various subsidies, my total income is about 12 million. Of course, if you fail the assessment and become a civilian, your annual salary will probably be less than 3 million."

"Twelve million?" Inaba was really a little surprised, because her annual income from the magazine was only 2.6 million, and that was with the on-site subsidy.

The sales of the magazine have been hit hard by the Internet in recent years and have declined severely. Several seniors have not been able to get salary increases on schedule, and of course there are no year-end bonuses. Even if it is Editor-in-Chief Wada, his income should be far from that of Kimoto.

"If you don't know how long you can live, then money is just a number to you. It has no meaning at all. The vast majority of people in Akasaka are single, and most of them don't plan to get married in the future. There is no need to invest in real estate or plan for the future. Even if there is a pension, there is no need to save money for family members. There is no opportunity to splurge. Apart from going to the shopping mall once in a while, what else can you do?"

Her words stunned Inaba Rika for a moment: "Have you ever regretted it?"

Mu Yuan hesitated for a moment and took a big sip of beer: "No, at least not yet. Besides, once you enter this door, there will be no chance to get out again."

"So, should I refuse?" Inaba asked.

"I can't answer this question for you. But now you have already stepped half a foot into this door. Whether you can get out or not is not up to you. Maybe at some point, you will know the answer yourself without anyone telling you."

The room fell silent again, and after a long moment Inaba said, "Thank you for telling me this."

"I'm just telling the truth."

"Is it... scary inside that door?" This was the first time Inaba asked about this the entire evening.

"It's only been three years since I walked through this door, so I probably haven't seen much. I can only say that this world is definitely much more terrifying than the one you knew before, but it's not unbearable. Ignorance has its own happiness, but people like us also have our own meaning of existence. As long as Akasaka exists, hope will always exist."

"Thank you." Inaba said again.

"No need." Mu Yuan drank all the beer in the can in one breath and staggered onto the sofa. "It's getting late, let's go to bed."

Neither of them thought about the Skeleton Society, nor did they think about what to do if the Skeleton Seeker suddenly sent a message at this time.

But at this time, Xia Chuan really didn't have the time to set a trap for them.

After a series of intentional and unintentional actions by him, Akasaka no longer sent people to continue to monitor Yui. Although his methods were a bit unsatisfactory, the money problem was barely solved temporarily. However, Natsukawa didn't know how to face Yui.

On the one hand, it was because of the amulet that was very important to Yui, and on the other hand, he didn't know how to tell Yui that he was now trapped in the shrine.

Judging from the results, he can no longer call himself the guardian spirit of Yui Aoki.

Of course he could forge an amulet and use a clone to deceive her, and she might not be able to find out, but he was unwilling to use such means on her.

The back door of Hezhuang finally opened, and the familiar figure came out dragging a garbage bag, looking for him expectantly but cautiously.

Xia Chuan took a deep breath, floated over and tapped her lightly on the head.

"Mr. Guardian Spirit!"

The beautiful smile melted Xia Chuan's heart.

【sorry】

He wrote on Yui's phone, making the decision.

No matter what happened, he would never cheat on her.

Chapter 57: Unique Amulet

"Mr. Guardian Spirit?" Yui Aoki was very surprised, and her smile suddenly disappeared, which made Natsukawa's heart tighten.

But he still followed his decision and told everything that happened.

After he finished telling her everything, Aoki Yui breathed a sigh of relief and shook her head gently: "It doesn't matter, Mr. Guardian Spirit. If you hadn't saved me, I would have left this world long ago. It's a pity that I don't have the amulet anymore, but as long as you can continue to stay by my side, it doesn't matter. Didn't you say that you would always protect me?"

[Yes, I will always protect you! ]

"That's okay!" Aoki Yui laughed again. "I've already thought about it. Mr. Guardian Spirit, you must have more important things to do, and you must help more people. You can't always be with me alone. But... it doesn't matter. As long as you say this, I'm satisfied."

is this real?

Xia Chuan observed her expression carefully. There was certainly some disappointment in her expression, but it was very subtle. She seemed more relaxed than disappointed.

This guy, did she think I would leave her at the beginning?

【Do you want to see my new home? 】

"Hey? Can I?"

[Of course! This is my shrine now]

Xia Chuan said confidently.

"But if someone sees us..." Aoki Yui felt uneasy. "Besides, Mr. Matsushige..."

[Sneak in from the side]

Xia Chuan, however, encouraged her enthusiastically.

At the end of the alley is the outer wall of the original shrine, which is just a simple fence made of wide wooden boards. It has also been in disrepair for a long time and has decayed in some places. However, because no one comes here, it is completely hidden by the plants in the shrine.

Xiachuan quickly found a passage that Yui Aoki could enter. He pushed aside the loose wooden board, separated the branches of the cypress that blocked the view and the way out, and made the bushes make way for a path. He said to Yui Aoki: [Welcome! ]

She had never done such an extraordinary thing since she was a child, but perhaps everyone has the genes for adventure and suicidal tendencies in their hearts. After hesitating for a moment, Yui Aoki finally plucked up the courage, and at Natsukawa's urging, she carefully crawled through the gap.

Everything immediately returned to normal behind her, just like a scene from a fairy tale. Curiously, under Xia Chuan's guidance, she quietly avoided the community office and ran to the main hall. After worshipping devoutly, she finally walked into the main hall as Xia Chuan requested.

Most Japanese people may never have seen what the main hall looks like or what kind of items are enshrined in it in their entire lives.

Xia Chuan introduced the items in the main hall one by one like a show-off, while quietly observing Aoki Yui's expression. She was surprised and excited, full of curiosity and happiness that she had gotten into trouble without being discovered, and he finally felt relieved.

【Do you want to make a special amulet for yourself? 】

"Hey? Can I?"

【certainly! 】

All the things needed were placed aside. After solving the debt problem, Sato had been conducting more detailed experiments under Natsukawa's supervision over the past two days.

The final conclusion is that the material of paper, ink and ink has little effect on the quality of the amulet. It is not important what pen is used, what words are written, how good or small the words are, or how they are folded. The most important step is the mind and concentration that the maker puts into the whole process, and whether he prays to the god he believes in wholeheartedly during the process of making the amulet. The last factor is whether the red seal has spiritual power.

Sato was probably quite pious, and the red seal passed down from his grandfather had now become a real magical tool. Therefore, the best amulet he made now could withstand sixty strands of spiritual power.

Natsukawa was very curious about what kind of results Yui could produce.

No matter good or bad, as long as she can withstand ten strands of spiritual energy, he can satisfy his purpose of separating a strand of spirit to accompany and protect her, but he has a hope in his heart that she can surpass Sato.

She is Yui Aoki!

Because of her family background, Yui Aoki has never been a good student, and she rarely practices writing with a brush, which makes her handwriting crooked and not very pretty. But because Xiachuan had encouraged her desperately before, she was not discouraged, but held her breath, concentrated, and continued to write carefully.

Come on, Mr. Guardian Spirit!

Xia Chuan couldn't help but laugh.

This is probably the only amulet in the world that encourages gods rather than blesses believers, but it is precisely because of this that it is more precious, isn't it?