The Divination

In the afternoon, somewhere in the sprawling metropolis of Tokyo, inside a small café next to a parking lot, Kamishiro Ai sat in her seat. She watched with curiosity as a tiny, purple-haired young girl sat across from her.

"Is this... the person Teacher Keitaro said could communicate with spirits? She looks so small..." Ai leaned in halfway, her voice filled with curiosity, though a hint of worry flickered in her eyes.

'Isn't she just an elementary schooler? She looks like she's in the lower grades... Is this really going to be okay?'

"This is Hozuki Yayoi, my first student. Don't let her size fool you; she's a reliable expert when it comes to the supernatural and yokai," Keitaro introduced, sitting beside little Yayoi. He then turned to introduce Ai to her. "This is Kamishiro Ai... she's also a student I've recently taken on. Lately, a spirit has been haunting her, and I was hoping you could help, Yayoi."

Listening to Keitaro's introduction, Yayoi scrutinized Ai with an expressionless gaze before speaking.

"Welcome... Can you tell me the specifics of your situation?"

"The situation? Um... well..." Questioned by Yayoi in a calm tone that didn't match her age at all, Ai seemed slightly taken aback. After a moment of thought, she answered.

"Actually, I've felt like something has been following me for a long time. It was only after Teacher Keitaro noticed it too that I was sure it was a ghost... I think, I think it might be my brother..."

"Your—your brother?!" Keitaro gasped in shock. Ai continued.

"Yes... my brother passed away not long ago. When he was alive, he adored me... we were very close. He looked after me in every way, and I've been dependent on him since I was little... I'm usually very clumsy and unlucky. I think he must have been worried about me even after death, unable to ascend to heaven in peace, so he stayed behind to follow me... It's all my fault..." Ai lowered her head, her voice heavy with dejection.

"You were close?" Keitaro murmured. Ai nodded, her expression turning firm.

"Yes... so, I believe he didn't go to heaven because he couldn't stop worrying about me. Instead, he stayed by my side. He must be protecting me from the shadows, making sure other evil spirits don't hurt me. I have to pull myself together so he can finally rest easy!"

After hearing Ai's words, both Keitaro and Yayoi fell into silence. To some extent, neither of them expected Ai to have such absolute trust in her deceased brother. Generally speaking, the living feared ghosts, even if they were their closest kin.

"I see... then let me take a look..." Yayoi said slowly. Ai replied in confusion.

"Take a look?"

"Yes... to see exactly what kind of spirit is following you. However, you should be aware that those who experience death often undergo a drastic change in personality. Your brother might not necessarily be the person you remember..."

As Yayoi spoke, she concentrated, heightening her spiritual vision. Immediately, two blurry figures emerged around Ai, quickly becoming clear. One was a young man who looked remarkably like Ai, and the other was a pale, ghastly boy.

'Two spirits?'

Yayoi's heart skipped a beat as she began to carefully examine the two entities.

'The spirit of the young man in the suit looks a lot like Ai; that should be her brother. His appearance seems normal, and I don't sense any malice. Perhaps it really is as Ai said, a guardian spirit protecting his sister... If that's the case, the incidents of chest tightness, shortness of breath, and the string of misfortunes Ai has been suffering shouldn't be his doing...'

Thinking this, Yayoi shifted her attention to the other side, toward the eerie, pale boy.

'In that case... the problem lies with this strange spirit? If so, I'll capture it first.'

Yayoi began preparing to seize the spirit. The pale boy seemed to have noticed her attention earlier; he turned his head and flashed a bizarre smile.

Five minutes later...

"Caught it."

Yayoi said, holding up a small doll with a string tied around its neck. Keitaro, standing nearby, looked surprised.

"You caught it already? That fast?"

"Mhm. It seems it was just an ordinary floating spirit... not very powerful. It was caught quickly; I didn't even need to release any of my other spirits to help." Yayoi shook the doll in her hand, which now imprisoned the spirit of the pale boy.

"You caught it? Did you catch my brother?" Ai asked worriedly. She had only seen Yayoi performing some incomprehensible actions with the doll, but she felt a slight weight lift from her body. She was certain something had happened.

"It wasn't your brother. It was another spirit following you. I don't know if it's the root of your problems, but it's better to have it captured first," Yayoi replied, still shaking the doll. Hearing this, Ai breathed a small sigh of relief and then spoke loudly to Yayoi.

"I see! Thank you so much, Little Girl Senior!"

"Little Girl Senior?"

"Yes! Since you're Teacher Keitaro's first student, you're naturally my senior," Ai said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Her words made Keitaro break into a cold sweat, while Yayoi responded flatly.

"Is that so... then I accept the title." Yayoi placed the doll back into her bag and then asked seriously, "Now, I've taken away the extra spirit. Your brother's spirit is still by your side. Although I don't see any malice, I have to ask to be sure: do you really trust your brother that much?"

Ai paused. After a brief silence, she spoke.

"Yes. I trust him. After all, he raised me. He was my only support, the most important person to me. I can't help but believe in him, even if he's a ghost now..."

"He raised you? What about your parents?" Keitaro asked curiously.

"My parents... I don't have a very strong impression of them. My brother took me away from our hometown when I was very young. We've lived in Tokyo together ever since. I'm not really sure what my parents are like now," Ai responded. Yayoi's brow furrowed slightly as she pressed further.

"Hometown? Where is your hometown? Why did only the two of you come to Tokyo?"

"Well... since I was so small when he brought me here, I'm not entirely sure. I remember my hometown was a village deep in the mountains... very rural. Transportation was very inconvenient. I remember my brother carrying me on his back for a long time along mountain paths..." Ai pressed a finger to her chin, lost in thought. Keitaro couldn't help but be startled.

"Carrying his young sister on his back out of a mountain village to the big city? Why?"

"Well... I was too young to know the specific reason. I just know that in the days before we left, my brother seemed very frantic. He had a huge argument with our parents—the whole family, actually. He was even forced to kneel in front of the shrine and was beaten by our father. They said he had desecrated the god. Then, the day after he finished his punishment, he took me and left."

As Ai recounted the memory, both Yayoi and Keitaro were stunned.

"A god..."

"So... you two escaped from your home?" Keitaro asked, bewildered. Ai nodded directly.

"Yes! He took me and we escaped. I don't know why, but I'm sure it was for my own good."

Ai nodded with conviction. Keitaro and Yayoi exchanged a look and fell into a long silence.

'How bold...'

After Yayoi finished the spirit removal, Keitaro continued tutoring Ai. Dozens of minutes later, they finally reached the end of the session.

"Alright, let's stop here for today. You should go home and get some rest, Ai."

"Thanks! See you later, Teacher Keitaro, and Little Girl Senior!"

Ai packed her things and left the café with a wave. Just as Keitaro was packing up to leave, he saw Yayoi searching around Ai's seat.

"Are you looking for something, Yayoi?"

Without answering him directly, Yayoi picked something up from the chair. She held it up—a single strand of yellow hair.

"Found it. Just in case, I'll keep this as insurance."

Yayoi placed the hair into a small bag.

After leaving the coffee shop, Ai headed toward home. Feeling quite cheerful, she hummed a little tune and skipped along the way.

Knowing that her brother was still with her as a ghost made her incredibly happy.

Ai continued walking until she reached a fork in the road. Further ahead was the train station that would take her home.

But at that moment, behind Ai, in a vision she could not see, the spirit of the young man with black hair and a suit—who looked so much like her—suddenly manifested. He moved forward and possessed Ai directly.

Suddenly, Ai stopped in her tracks. With a dazed expression, she turned around and began walking in a direction away from her home.

The sun dipped toward the horizon, painting the sky in hues of red and gold.

Crows of the twilight cawed in the sky. On the lush Mount Kagami-oboro, Miko, dressed in gym clothes, sat on the top steps of the sando. She was drenched in sweat, gasping for breath.

"Huff... huff... huff... Finally... I finally finished the run..."

Having just completed her first day of miko training, the exhausted Miko finally got a break at dusk. Sitting on the steps and looking at the brilliant sunset, she realized she had never been this tired even during physical education class.

"You've worked hard. Here... for you."

At that moment, Miketsu walked up to Miko and handed her a can of cola. Just as Miko instinctively reached out to take it, she suddenly realized something and pulled her hand back.

"Ah! Lord Inaba, there's no need... This is an offering for you. I—I can't drink it." Seeing Miketsu appear so suddenly, Miko shrank back nervously, waving her hands.

She recognized the cola; it was part of the large bag of offerings she had specifically brought up this afternoon.

"One avoids eating divine offerings for fear of divine wrath, but right now, this is a gift of divine grace. Take it. Eating offerings will make you a good girl," Miketsu said with a smile and a shrug. Hearing this, Miko had no choice but to accept the cola, though she couldn't help but complain in her heart.

'Eating offerings makes you a good girl... What kind of local folklore is that?'

Taking the cola Miketsu handed her, Miko opened it and took a large gulp. After quenching her thirst, she let out a long sigh of relief and looked at the can in her hand.

Suddenly, she remembered the classmate she had encountered that morning, Kamishiro Ai...

"By the way, Lord Inaba... when a person dies and becomes a spirit, if they encounter their original family... they should protect them, not attack them, right?" Thinking of the male spirit who had almost pushed Ai off the building, Miko asked Miketsu in a low voice.

"There are no absolutes. Even among the closest kin, the deepest hatred can grow. After experiencing death, the minds of most spirits become twisted, which makes things even more complicated. While a love deep enough in life can indeed allow one to become a guardian spirit for a loved one after death, there are no small number of malicious ghosts in this world who devour their own kin," Miketsu said calmly. After a slight hesitation, Miko spoke again.

"Actually, there's a girl in my class named Kamishiro Ai..."

Miko proceeded to tell Miketsu about what she had seen regarding Kamishiro Ai and her guardian spirit. Miketsu listened, lightly stroking her chin.

"So, you think your classmate's brother might attack his sister, and you're worried?" Miketsu said directly. Miko nodded seriously.

"Since you're so worried, I'll do a calculation for you," Miketsu continued. Miko's expression turned slightly confused.

"A calculation?"

"Divination. Anyway, do you have any of her belongings? It would save me some trouble."

"Belongings? Please wait!!" Miko began rummaging through her bag and finally pulled out a candy wrapped in paper. Ai had given it to her earlier that day.

"Here, Lord Inaba."

Miko respectfully handed the candy to Miketsu. Miketsu took it and immediately activated her causality vision. She reached out and grasped a red thread of causality extending from the candy.

Holding the thread between two fingers, Miketsu sensed it carefully. After just a moment, her expression froze, and she spoke.

"That classmate of yours is currently in mortal danger."