— — — — — — — —
The next day - Afternoon
Supernatural Research Club
A knock echoed at the clubroom door.
"…Sis?"
Yukino, who had been preparing tea for Lynn, looked up in surprise.
Haruno's face stiffened.
The moment she opened the door, she was met with the sight of her little sister making tea for a man, looking like a loyal wife.
Haruno forced a smile, barely holding back her emotions.
Taking a deep breath, she deliberately avoided looking at Yukino and instead turned her gaze to Lynn.
"You must be the club president, right?"
This man likely held supernatural powers.
If he could tame Yukino to this extent…
She clenched her teeth.
She wasn't jealous.
Not at all.
…She was pissed!
How dare he make her sister serve him!
Deep breaths. Deep breaths.
Yukino, on the other hand, felt a little awkward.
Getting caught like this by her sister…
"I heard that your club takes on exorcism requests outside of school," Haruno said, cutting straight to the point.
Lynn responded in a flat tone, "Exorcism services start at five million yen."
To be honest, his Familia didn't really need money anymore.
But he also didn't go out of his way to look for outside jobs.
His Familia members needed something to keep them busy, after all.
To know Saeko had already become a High-Class Devil.
So if they ran into a weaker world next time, she and the others could handle an invasion on their own.
As their master, he deserved to live a life of leisure.
"No problem!"
While Lynn was daydreaming about a slacker lifestyle, Haruno immediately agreed without hesitation.
A mere five million yen? That was nothing.
Lynn, unimpressed, turned to Miko.
"Miko, you handle it."
After a moment of thought, he added, "Yukino, you go too."
Since it was her sister's request, it was only right that Yukino handled it.
"Yes," Yukino sighed, glancing at her sister helplessly.
Haruno, however, raised an eyebrow.
"You're not coming, Mr. President?"
Lynn gave her an amused look.
"You want me to step in personally?"
"You probably can't afford it."
Haruno puffed out her chest confidently.
"Relax! There's nothing the Yukinoshita family can't afford!"
She was the eldest daughter of a political powerhouse in Chiba.
Was hiring an exorcist supposed to bankrupt her?
Lynn paused, then asked, "How much is your family worth?"
Haruno shot him a puzzled look, unsure why he was asking.
But she still answered, "About five billion yen."
"Great. That'll be the price."
"…Huh?"
Haruno's eyes widened.
Was this guy messing with her?
"What, don't need my help anymore?"
Lynn's calm gaze landed on her.
It was like a thunderclap in her mind.
Haruno's breath hitched.
Her thighs instinctively pressed together.
S-Scary!
Just one look.
Gulp.
She swallowed hard, then forced an awkward smile.
"N-No need to trouble you, sir!"
Her sharp intuition screamed at her.
This man… was on a completely different level.
He was dangerous.
Extremely dangerous!
Haruno screamed internally like a terrified dog.
---
After leaving the academy…A tense silence filled the air.
"…Yukino, are you sure this is okay?"
Haruno hesitated.
Being around that man… felt incredibly dangerous.
Just one glance, and she knew.
All human schemes and tricks were meaningless before him.
If he wanted, he could flip the entire table.
Haruno prided herself on her ability to read people.
So she backed off immediately.
"What do you mean?"
Yukino frowned, confused by her sister's question.
What problem?
She was having the time of her life!
Every day, she could feel herself getting stronger.
For the first time, she felt like she had a real purpose.
How could there be a problem?
Haruno opened her mouth, glanced at Miko, then sighed in silence.
After a while…
The three of them arrived at an abandoned building.
Miko and Yukino circled the place, scanning carefully.
Their conclusion?
"No spirits here."
"…None?"
Haruno blinked, then glanced around as well.
Even though she couldn't actually see anything.
But… wasn't this place supposed to be haunted?
Haruno pouted.
"Oh well, onto the next one!"
---
Half an hour later
Another abandoned site.
"Still nothing."
Yukino and Miko spoke in unison.
Haruno's expression twitched.
"…Next one!"
They went through fivelocations.
Finally, they stood in front of an old apartment complex.
Miko looked up.
A bloated, grotesque spirit loomed overhead, staring down at them.
"…You can see me?" it whispered.
Yukino sighed.
"Looks like you finally stumbled onto one this time, sis."
After visiting so many places, she had figured out her sister's true intention.
She didn't tell her anything yesterday, so today she took matters into her own hands and came to investigate.
She even picked all the locations rumored to be haunted. Probably spent last night buying up all the information she could find.
She clearly wasn't familiar with the places while they were making their way here.
"What do you mean, 'finally stumbled onto one'? I told you this place was haunted!" Haruno huffed, unfazed by being exposed.
But then something clicked in her mind, and her expression stiffened. A sense of unease crept over her.
"Wait a minute!"
Haruno's eyes widened in disbelief. "Are you saying... this place is actually haunted?"
Yukino ignored her sister's reaction and turned to her senior Familia member, Miko, seeking confirmation with a glance.
Miko nodded and said, "Just a Grade 2 Curse. You should handle it yourself—I'll support you."
With that, she pulled out her mirror, a tool that could influence reality itself. Perfect for assisting in battle.
Yukino shot her a grateful look before taking a deep breath, steadying her focus on the Curse.
It was her first time facing a Grade 2 Curse.
"Wait!" Haruno suddenly panicked. "You guys have been saying weird things this whole time—what's actually happening here?!"
Yukino frowned and snapped, "Sister, step back!"
"...Huh?"
Haruno was momentarily stunned.
This was the first time she had ever seen Yukino like this.
But after getting yelled at, she instinctively quieted down and backed away to a safer distance.
Still...
Yukino yelled at her?
She was definitely getting back at her for this later!
While she was grumbling to herself, the Grade 2 Curse finally took notice of them.
It grinned, revealing its grotesque, foul-smelling mouth. "You can see me! You can see me!"
With a deep whoosh, it leaped from the top of the building, diving straight at them!
Miko raised her mirror.
The Curse, which had been charging toward them, suddenly twisted mid-air and crashed into the ground instead.
Boom!
A loud, dull impact shook the area.
The sheer force of the crash cracked the cement floor.
Haruno's eyes widened in shock as she stood frozen in place.
She couldn't see anything, but the ground had just collapsed out of nowhere.
"T-There really issomething?!"
Her voice trembled.
She had experienced a lot in life, but this was her first time encountering something so eerie. She couldn't help but feel a chill down her spine.
Was Yukino really about to fight some invisible creature?
She turned to look at her sister, worry written all over her face.
Then she saw it.
A cold mist began to swirl around Yukino, and delicate snowflakes started drifting down from the air.
"Huh?"
Haruno was completely dumbfounded.
But Yukino wasn't stopping.
She gracefully swept her hand forward, and the surrounding snowfall transformed into ice spears, launching toward the target.
The Grade 2 Curse tried to dodge, but Miko's mirror made it froze in place.
Crack—crack—
As soon as the ice touched the Curse, it spread like poison, engulfing its entire form in an instant.
A beautifully sculpted ice statue now stood at the base of the old apartment building.
Haruno stared blankly at the scene before her, feeling like she was trapped in a dream.
This couldn't be real.
Yukino... had actually become Yukino, the "Ice Queen"!
Would she change her name to Elsa now?
Haruno turned her gaze to the ice sculpture.
Although she could barely make out its deformed shape, she knew there was some kind of grotesque monster frozen inside.
But...
She couldn't see it!
Yukino didn't pay her sister any attention. She calmly walked up to the frozen Curse and lightly tapped it with her fingertips.
Boom!
The ice statue shattered into powder.
The Curse inside it vanished into nothingness.
Miko watched with admiration, a hint of envy in her eyes.
She wished she had such a cool ability...
With the Curse dealt with, Yukino turned to Haruno and said flatly, "Sister, your request has been completed."
Haruno, still in shock, remained silent, unable to process what had just happened.
Yukino sighed.
She could understand this reaction.
After all, she had gone through the same thing herself.
Her sister would probably need some time to adjust.
She stepped past Haruno, ready to follow Miko to hunt more Curses and gain more experience.
Slap!
Suddenly, her arm was grabbed.
Yukino turned back in surprise and saw Haruno forcing a smile, her grip trembling slightly.
"Yukino... this time, you've really stepped ahead of me."
Yukino pressed her lips together but said nothing.
Haruno had always been the one who stood ahead.
Yet now, Yukino had surpassed her.
And far more quickly than she had ever expected.
Yukino gave her sister a concerned look but ultimately left without saying another word.
She couldn't do anything to help her sister.
She never could.
After Yukino left, Haruno's face twisted into a mix of emotions.
She turned back to look at the old apartment building, an uneasy feeling creeping up her spine.
Goosebumps covered her skin.
Shivering, she quickly left the area as well.
On the way back, her expression gradually returned to its usual warm and charming demeanor.
"This... is my chance."
"A chance for me—and for the Yukinoshita family!"
.
.
.