The entire school was in an uproar after the incident between Ichiro and Homura. Following Ichiro’s departure from the private school, teachers manipulated their supernatural abilities to rush to the odd scene that happened. They were horrified that they couldn’t use their personal abilities while that delivery man was around. It was all because of Ichiro’s aura; it was as if their abilities were suppressed while he was here.

The nurse, who possessed healing hands ability, examined Homura and discovered no visible injuries other than a visible bruise on his head from the flick.

Boys and girls promptly included this incident as the eighth item on the list of ‘mysteries that happened in this school and cannot be explained.’ The previous mystery was ‘the mysterious staircase incident that switched bodies with the person who fell’ that happened a year ago; the reason for its inclusion was because of the strange phenomena happening in recent days.

Finally, the principal, who had a ‘little’ rant call to the International World Transportation, appeared. He was defeated, even if his delinquent student was the victim, and he was furious about the incident.

He possessed the ‘soul reading’ ability, which he ‘looted’ from the fierce deity who had forgotten his name. The principal employed it to examine Homura's soul core. The Association professor, who was lecturing, had also arrived just in time.

He examined it for a while, causing minor discomfort to Homura. Following that, the principal retreated from him, terrified and perplexed. He was a member of an organization that specialized in researching ancient artifacts, and he never expected to encounter something like that.

“What on earth is this seal?”

What he saw was a slow-wriggling seal. It was devouring and then regenerating the soul’s core. It’s as if it were being reformed. But that wasn’t all. It was eating a piece of the soul every time it reformed. He tried to analyze the seal, but it was too fast for him to comprehend. What he was seeing was impossible.

They did not know the seal was a living hive-mind entity with a thousand unique members, each capable of moving on its own. Their assigned task was to extract one piece of specific information from the outside shell, copy it, and pour it into the ‘eaten’ similar information, changing the soul core, while others were assigned to ‘eat.’ It did not target key places, but noticeably the memories and personality section. The soul itself didn’t matter, only the data.

Kagutsuchi’s memories and personality faded away slowly and horribly, and he was replaced by Homura, the one who took control of the Kagutsuchi. The Kagutsuchi was not destroyed but had been reduced to nothingness. The seal absorbed the soul's core of the Kagutsuchi and then reformed it.

The ‘approved’ soul scientists from the Association will check on it later, but they won’t find anything useful because the ‘seal’ formation was too gibberish to them. The entity then vanished exactly a year later, after the job was completed.

***

While the aftermath occurred, Ichiro was driving to a local restaurant. Ichiro felt hungry after flicking Homura’s head, which is understandable given that he hadn’t eaten in more than a few hours. Because the city was miniature compared to Osaka, he selected a family restaurant near the ocean instead. The restaurant was called ‘Marine Paradise,’ and it served seafood dishes along with grilled meat.

Ichiro called his boss while he was driving. The phone was picked up after 20 seconds of waiting.

“Moshimoshi.”

A childlike voice answered the phone, sounding as if she had just been awakened by the call.

“Moshimoshi, it’s Ichiro. I completed the delivery.”

She didn’t respond right away. As if she was processing the information, she finally spoke in her sleepy voice.

“I see. I guess you did. Your task for the day is done, so return home.“

Ichiro was taken aback. Normally, he accepts deliveries back to Osaka, but his boss has instructed him to return home empty-handed? Unacceptable!

“Could you please look for other deliveries, boss? It will be a waste of fuel and time for me to return to Osaka empty-handed. Meantime, I’ll eat.”

“Okay. If you insist, I’ll look for other deliveries in that town. Tottori, correct?”

“Yes.”

“Well then, I’ll contact you again once I get some results.“

The call ended. Ichiro sighed. He didn’t expect the boss to be sleeping in the middle of the day. Well, no matter; he would enjoy his lunch and his break.

***

Kiyona Anai was fighting the ghosts that emerged from a dimensional crack near a main office building. The ghosts that emerged from that crack fed on positive emotions, so they were attaching to the humans that passed by that area. She could feel that the ghosts were weak, but they were still a threat. She needed to take part in sealing the ghosts but not in closing the discovered crack because she was a semi-member of an Association.

However, it was cut short when her new subordinate called. Kiyona could feel the spiritual form of a phone vibrate, so she hurried up to go back to her private office. Her direct participation was approved, and she could leave it to others. She hurried back to her office, and she could see her second little body asleep on the desk. Her original body was destroyed years ago, and this was the suitable replacement provided by the Association. She was fortunate to not be sucked by the world into the cycle at that time. She then retired from the Association and is now one of the higher managers at their partner company, International World Transportation. Kiyona lamented for a split second before entering her body. It was effortless because it corresponded to the spiritual form she had right now.

To the average person, she appeared to have simply awoken. In some ways, that was correct. She moved her limbs a little and felt fine, so she grabbed her premium phone from her suit and answered the phone. The conversation described above happened, and she was the one who put the phone down first. Ichiro was a terrifying man sometimes. She felt subtle pressure from him on the phone when she told him to return home empty-handed.

What caused her to agree to recruit him to their branch? Kiyona wanted to ask her past self, but it was pointless now.

She picked up the phone once more and called a number from her previous job.

***

Ichiro arrived at the ‘Marine Paradise' a few minutes later. He parked his truck and went inside. The interior design was modern-looking, with hints of traditional Japanese aesthetics here and there.

Most of the spots were occupied by people who came to enjoy their meal by the sea.

“Welcome. Is this your first time?”

Ichiro looked around and saw a waitress standing by the entrance, smiling as if greeting an old friend. He responded in a calm and collected manner.

“Yeah. This is my first time here.”

“Please follow me.”

The waitress led him to a table and left him there alone. He sat on a chair and waited until the waiter came. She gave him a menu, which he looked through and decided on what he should order.

Grilled fish with miso sauce was his choice today. He ordered two portions of that. For drinks, he asked for lemon water and tea.

A few minutes later, he received his food, which he started eating while watching the ocean outside. It was appetizing and had a homemade feeling. At the very least, better than in Magnum’Donalds, that was three blocks away from there. The waiter came to refill his glass twice while he was busy eating his grilled fish with miso sauce.

While he was eating, his phone rang, and his ringtone played. It was an unknown number. He took out his phone and answered it.

“Moshimoshi, Yamashita Ichiro is speaking.”

“Good afternoon, Ichiro-san. My name is Doremi Yoda. My former coworker and dear friend informed me you were currently free and in Tottori Prefecture. Is this correct? I’m seeking someone to take the place of my agent, ahem, subordinate. He was supposed to meet with some baddies, but he was abruptly summoned back to the underground base—err, office.”

The voice sounded like that of a young woman. It didn’t sound like a businesswoman or a manager. It was like an energetic girl’s voice. It looks like it was his new delivery order.

“Yes, I understand. Is your dear friend my boss?”

“That’s right! Kiyona-chan has been quiet recently, and she hasn’t even called me! I was taken aback when she called! I was concerned about her ability to work with her small hands~. Oops, I got sidetracked. Sorry for that~.”

Yep, she sounds like a teenage girl. Ichiro hit her with an unexpected question.

“Is she really close to 30 years old?”

Silence. The silence lasted for a few seconds before Ichiro talked again.

“OK, you will not answer that specific question. So, what exactly do I need to deliver?“

“... Ichiro-san, you’re a meanie~. So your job is to go to the meeting location, ‘convince’ the people you’re meeting to give you the item, and transport it to Osaka, to the hideout—I mean, my home. I’ve already sent you the coordinates via the CURVE. I already have your account number~.”

“Okay. Let me finish my food, and then I’ll leave. What item do I need to ‘acquire’?”

“I’ll send you a photo in the Curve, and you’ll see~”

“Yeah, yeah. Just tell me when.”

The line cut off after that. Ichiro sighed. It was his second delivery, and it was already strange. He finished his lunch and was ready to leave. He paid the waitress in cash and walked to the restroom to relieve himself and wash his hands while she was looking for change.

He next returned to his seat, took the change from the waitress, thanked her, and walked to the exit. Just before leaving, he looked at the cooking area where the chef was removing her hat. There were fox ears on her head. Ichiro was impressed. The ears were so realistic, you would never guess they were fake. It made him wonder if he was being fooled by his own senses. But no matter how he thought, he could not think of anything suspicious. So he muttered the first thing that came to his mind.

“Wow, that’s a great cosplay.”

And Ichiro left the restaurant, heading towards the parking lot. He was thinking about the udon he will eat today when he reaches home.

***

Half an hour later, he was approaching the clearing where he had been two hours before. Ichiro checked his Curve app before driving away, and there were the coordinates and a photo of a strangely engraved katana with a description of whom he needed to meet. He sent the smiley thumbs-up sticker, and Doremi, dubbed “Dori-chan” in the app with the cute anime girl avatar, sent a different type of animated sticker with a similar pose.

Ichiro drove to the clearing and stopped. He didn’t turn off the truck; instead, he got out and stood there, staring at the cars he’d seen before. They were still standing there. He pointed at one of the cars and shouted.

“I know you’re in one of these cars, Nakamura Oda; come here right now!”

Thugs who have grown exhausted from waiting in those cars are terrified of him. After all, he was the one for whom they waited so long. The man who had been knocked out before was so terrified that he moved his legs to sit in a fetus pose and began crying because of Ichiro’s yelling. Who knows what happened to him, right?

The driver’s door of the nearest car opened. He was Oda Nakamura. Aizen family’s interim chairman. He was a distant relative of the First Chairman and was easily appointed. He walked slowly under Ichiro’s icy gaze, which intimidated him a little. Oda opened his mouth.

“Who are you? I didn’t notice you around here. Who sent your ass here?”

Oda was trying to be the ‘badass yakuza’ stereotype but failed miserably. Ichiro just stared at him without responding. He didn’t want to say anything until he knew who this man was. He looked around the area and saw that there was nobody else there. The other thugs were still frozen like statues.

“My name and occupation are unimportant. I’ve come here as a substitute. I must ‘peacefully’...” Ichiro flexed his fists through the padded black gloves he wore before exiting the truck, pointing at Oda, and Oda flinched. "... take something precious from you.”

“Something p-precious?”

Ichiro smiled at the terror that appeared on his face. Oda was drenched in sweat. His subordinates as well. Oda knew, he was fucked. He tried to scam the Association, but it would not work. Oda had given up. He yelled as he bowed down at a perfect 90° angle.

"I'M SORRY, I'LL BRING IT TO YOU RIGHT AWAY. I WON’T SAY ANYTHING ABOUT THIS TO MY FAMILY!”

Oda sprinted to the back of a car in the middle of a sentence. Ichiro stood there and watched until Oda disappeared into the vehicle. Oda ran up to him a few seconds later and kneeled, his frightened face looking down at the ground forlornly, holding the engraved katana in both hands, as if pleading to take it away. He was out of breath, and his hands were trembling uncontrollably.

Ichiro was giggling internally as he ‘peacefully persuaded’ the desperate Oda to hand over this precious sword. He was also surprised by how strong his urge to laugh became after seeing Oda’s pathetic behavior. He took it with one hand and turned to walk away.

“Well, adios, and have a good day. Until we meet again!”

Ichiro got into the truck and drove away from the clearing. He wanted to get to Osaka quickly.

Oda was still on his knees. His eyes were narrowed, and tears streamed down his cheeks. They were genuine tears of relief. He felt like he was going to faint as he held onto the hilt of the sword he received from Ichiro. It was not only an engraved katana; it was also an expensive item. The item was worth millions.

Except for one, the subordinates exited their vehicles, surrounded their boss, and genuinely tried to console him. It was a rare sight. Their boss looked like a broken doll.

After that, they all went to a local bar and drank until the early morning. They would never want to do business with the Association again.