The Aftermath

Kyoto, Fushimi Airport. A massive airliner hummed as it slowly made its emergency landing from the horizon. Guided by "masterful and exquisite" piloting skills, the aircraft touched down smoothly on the runway. Without its front landing gear, the plane had been at risk of its fuselage scraping directly against the ground, yet this time, a miraculous "cushion" had appeared between it and the concrete.

Amidst blood-curdling shrieks and wails, the Onmora-gaki, crushed beneath the heavy nose, was pressed against the airport runway and ground forward with brutal friction. Feathers were scraped away, skin was torn open, and flesh was lost continuously in the violent abrasion. Its entire body gradually shrank, like a piece of overused disposable eraser. As the eraser itself diminished, it left behind a trail of debris along the path of erasure. For the Onmora-gaki, this path of debris was a long, bloody smear coated with various bits of minced flesh.

Finally, as the plane continued its slide down the runway, the shrill cries grew weaker and weaker until, at a certain moment, they vanished entirely. By then, the landing was nearing its end. The engine's reverse thrust began to provide increasing resistance. Under the combined force of this resistance and the continuous friction from the ground, the massive airliner finally slowed down, eventually coming to a complete halt on the runway.

The entire aircraft had landed safely. On the runway, there was only a damaged airliner, the gruesome remains of a demonic bird—its body mostly gone, eyes wide in a horrific death—and a long, extending trail of blood.

The moment the aircraft came to a complete stop, a massive cheer erupted within the cabin. Passengers who had believed they had no chance of survival burst into genuine, profound joy at the success of the landing. For them, this flight had been far too terrifying and bizarre. The monster-like hijackers, the ghost-like soldiers, and the spine-chilling, horrific howls during the landing—all of it had tested the passengers' hearts and shattered their worldviews.

Amidst the cheers, the survivors, feeling fortunate to have escaped death, began to unbuckle their seatbelts, preparing to find a way to leave this place of trouble as quickly as possible. However, at that moment, a voice that was light yet hollow, youthful yet ethereal, and almost entirely devoid of emotion reached everyone's ears.

"Please remain in your seats for the time being. Do not move."

Hearing this voice, everyone paused in surprise. They slowly turned their gazes toward the direction of the sound. Standing at the rear of the cabin was a young girl. She wore a white dress, with white hair, white skin, and black eyes. The girl, appearing to be about eleven or twelve years old, had no expression on her face. She looked indifferently at the crowd of passengers ahead, while a circular bright mirror held before her chest emitted a faint glow.

After letting out a long sigh of relief, Hayakawa Rin slumped back into the pilot's seat. Looking at the flat ground outside the front window, her racing heart finally settled into a sense of peace. She felt paralyzed in the chair, not wanting to move a single muscle.

"Well done, Rin. The landing was a success. This is your achievement; you are a hero."

Miketsu's smiling voice came through the phone, which was still on speaker.

"Yeah... safe at last. But this was all thanks to... Wait, Inaba, how did you know what was happening on my end!?" At this point, the relaxed Rin finally realized something was off. Her classmate and friend, Fushimi Inaba, had behaved quite abnormally throughout the entire ordeal. Why was she able to call a plane flying at high altitude? Why did she tell Rin to fly the plane by instinct? And why was her instinct so accurate? Countless questions flooded Rin's mind, and she wanted to ask Inaba for clarity immediately.

"As we agreed, I'll be waiting for you at the airport entrance. Come over once you've finished up there. We'll talk in person. I'm hanging up now."

Clearly, Miketsu had no intention of explaining things over the phone. After a few brief sentences, she hung up, leaving Rin at a loss. Rin couldn't help but shout at the phone as it began to emit a steady busy tone.

"Hey, Inaba! Don't just hang up like that! We've landed, but what should I do next? Tell me something!"

Seeing no response from the phone, Rin shoved it into her pocket and stood up from her seat. She hurried out of the cockpit and into the passenger cabin, wanting to get off the plane and see Miketsu as soon as possible. However, as she opened the door, she was frozen in place by the scene before her.

The cabin was now hauntingly silent. Every passenger sat quietly in their seat, gazes dull and motionless, their eyes swirling with a faint white light. In the center of the aisle, a petite white figure stood with her back to Rin. Startled by the sight, Rin spoke out in shock.

"You... you are..."

As Rin asked her question, the petite white figure slowly turned around. Kanna, expressionless, held her mirror and looked toward Rin. The polished mirror once again reflected the fact that she had successfully hypnotized everyone on the plane. Kanna let out an imperceptible sigh of relief. Then, she spoke slowly, murmuring indifferently in her emotionless voice.

"Hypnosis complete. Memory modification beginning. Removing sights that should not be witnessed..."

As she spoke, Kanna raised her mirror to continue her work. However, at that moment, a gurgling sound erupted from her stomach.

"I'm hungry. I want to eat..."

Along with Kanna's words, an emoji appeared in her mirror.

"(o o o ^ o o o)"

Later that afternoon, Fushimi Airport.

Inside the empty terminal, Miketsu stood alone on a pedestrian bridge, holding her phone and taking a call.

"So, has everything over there been handled properly?" Miketsu spoke slowly. On the other end of the line was Tsuruha's voice.

"Yes, we have taken over the scene. We are currently processing the traces related to the electrical signals. We will be able to hand the scene over to the police very soon."

"I see. Thank you for your hard work."

"It is nothing, Lady Uka. This matter should have been entirely resolved by us. I did not expect you would eventually have to step in. It is truly a matter of shame for us," Tsuruha said, apologizing to Miketsu. Miketsu responded with a slight smile.

"It's fine. I believe that even with just your efforts, you would have resolved this incident perfectly in the end. I only stepped in out of boredom. Don't overthink it. Alright, if you have things to do, go ahead. I'm hanging up."

"Yes, Lady Uka."

Ending the call with Tsuruha, Miketsu tucked her phone away. She then found a random spot and sat down with her legs crossed. She casually opened a news app on her phone. A headline immediately caught her eye: "Live Broadcast! The Terrifying Moment of Japan Airlines Flight 387. Safe Landing After Hijacking. High School Student Pilot Performs Miracle Emergency Landing!?"

Looking at the title, Miketsu couldn't help but let out a soft chuckle. She immediately clicked on it. On the screen, the upper half of Rin's body appeared, surrounded by a cluster of microphones. Under the glare of countless camera flashes, Rin's expression looked utterly dazed and bewildered. Reporters off-camera were firing questions at the confused girl.

"Pardon me, Miss Hayakawa! Was it really you who flew and landed the entire plane?"

"I... I think so. Because the captain and the co-pilot had both fainted. When I came to, I was sitting in the pilot's seat. In my memory, it seems I really did fly it down," Rin replied, struggling to respond to the reporters' questions while still in a state of confusion.

"Then, another question: Have you had any experience flying an airplane before? It is truly unbelievable that someone your age could skillfully pilot such a large airliner!"

"Uh... I'm sorry. This was actually my first time ever on a plane... I've only seen planes on television before."

"Your first time on a plane? That's even more incredible! Then, how were you able to perform so many correct operations despite having zero knowledge? It's said the plane suffered significant damage from the terrorists, making the emergency landing much harder than usual." The reporter continued to probe, and Rin's expression became increasingly bewildered and distressed.

"This... I don't know either. In short, I just relied on my intuition. I felt that doing this was right, so I did it. And then, and then the plane just sort of ended up on the ground in a daze."

Hearing Rin's statement, the crowd of reporters was stunned for a moment. Then, even more questions swarmed like a bombardment.

"Intuition? Does that mean you actually have a natural talent for being a pilot, Miss Hayakawa? Do you have plans to become a professional pilot in the future?"

"Relying on intuition to achieve this... do you usually have similar experiences? Is this some kind of superpower? If possible, could you demonstrate it on the spot?"

In an instant, all sorts of questions exploded toward Rin like bombs. Rin was completely panicked by the chaos, her eyes spinning as she began to speak incoherently.

"I don't know... I... I'm not sure. I haven't thought about it. I... haven't decided..."

Watching the overwhelmed Rin surrounded by reporters, Miketsu let out a soft sigh. She wondered if revealing that the plane had been landed by Rin was the right choice. From the look of it, the girl was not prepared for fame at all.

But there was no other way. At the time, both the pilot and co-pilot were unconscious, and there were no other passengers who could fly. It would have been difficult to fabricate a new set of false memories and find a substitute in such a short time. It was faster to simply modify the existing memories. More importantly, this credit truly belonged to Rin, and Miketsu didn't want it to be taken by someone else.

"Good luck, Rin! These reporters are easier to handle than the plane~" While silently cheering for Rin, Miketsu switched to a different news channel. Unlike the other channels competing to interview Rin, this one seemed more focused on the incident itself.

"According to official reports, this incident was caused by a hijacking. During the struggle, both the captain and co-pilot were knocked unconscious. Due to an accidental discharge of a firearm, a cabin window was shattered, and the hijacker was sucked out of the plane due to cabin decompression. The aircraft was then piloted by a high school girl to a miraculous emergency landing. All 156 people on board, including crew members but excluding the hijacker, survived. Aside from some minor injuries among the crew, there were no other casualties. Currently, Fushimi Airport remains closed, and the plane is not currently open for filming."

Sunset at Fushimi Airport. After enduring the relentless bombardment of countless reporters, Rin finally managed to escape. She pushed her suitcase through the empty terminal, looking at the vast, vacant space with a dazed expression, as if she were in another world. As a key figure in the hijacking and the hero girl who successfully landed the plane, it should have been impossible for Rin to leave so early. Whether it was Inari, the Onmyo Agency, or even the police, they would all want such an important person to cooperate with an investigation and provide a statement.

In cases involving terrorist attacks, she might have even needed to be placed under secret protection for a long time for fear of retaliation from other terrorists. On the other hand, Rin's talk of "divine intuition" had also caused concern among the Onmyo Agency and Inari. They both wanted to conduct comprehensive surveillance and examinations to determine if she was experiencing something like a ghostly possession.

However, under the influence of an irresistible will from the upper echelons, all actions by Inari, the Onmyo Agency, and the police that would interfere with Rin's personal freedom were forcibly cancelled. Reporters were sent away, and anyone wanting a statement or a full examination was dismissed by stern orders. Even background checks or sending someone back to Tokyo to consult Rin's parents were forbidden. This caused the heads of various departments in Kyoto to feel utterly perplexed. They speculated about what kind of background this girl could possibly have to be able to mobilize such immense power from above to interfere with the decisions of so many departments simultaneously, and with such a forceful attitude. Even when the head of the Kyoto Onmyo Agency wanted to step forward and investigate her, he was rebuffed by the headquarters.

Combined with the miracle of Rin landing the airliner, rumors began to circulate within the supernatural departments of Kyoto. Countless people were guessing just who this high school girl—who looked completely ordinary on the outside—really was. No matter what kind of big shot stepped forward, they couldn't even keep her for a brief check-up. The girl named Hayakawa Rin could go wherever she pleased, and no one dared stop her. This was influence that reached the heavens; how could an ordinary person achieve this? For a time, many speculated whether Rin was the reincarnation of some great being or the direct heir of a Great Onmyo Clan.

Inside the terminal, Rin pushed her luggage forward aimlessly. While all the other passengers and personnel were still undergoing investigation, she, the most important one, didn't even have to pass a basic check. She was simply released after being cornered by reporters. She rubbed her slightly aching head as she walked toward the airport exit.

"Ouch... my head hurts a bit. It feels like I've forgotten something important. What was it? It seems like there was some kind of sound on the plane..."

Rin murmured as she walked. Just then, a familiar call came from ahead.

"Hey! Rin! Over here!"

Hearing the familiar voice, Rin's face lit up with joy. She turned her head and saw her classmate, who usually sat in the seat ahead of her, waving at her from outside the airport entrance.

"Inaba!"

Seeing that figure, all the confusion and fatigue in Rin's heart were swept away. She pushed her luggage and rushed out of the airport doors, arriving beside her friend.

"What took you so long? I thought we agreed on an hour."

"Something... something suddenly happened on the plane. Inaba, you have no idea what I just went through!"

"Oh? What was it? Tell me about it."

And so, Miketsu engaged in light conversation with the smiling Rin as they walked together toward the Kyoto streets, which were already brimming with a festive atmosphere.