Hikari looks at Katsuki a bit confused.

  "Who is Sylvia Bloodwood?" she asked, raising an eyebrow, a trace of disbelief in her voice. Everything she thought she knew had just been shattered by the supernatural spectacle she'd just witnessed.

  Katsuki took a lazy drag from his vape, exhaling slowly before he spoke. "She's a Senior Exorcist. No one does it like her. The woman can go head-to-head with some of the deadliest entities without even flinching. Ruthless, smart, total badass." His eyes sparked with something almost like pride. "She runs the church I work at—the one we were talking about earlier. You know, the Church of Sanctum Maledictum."

  Hikari's eyes widened slightly. "Wait, you actually work there? That mega church Penny was going on about?"

  Katsuki smirked. "The very same. Pretty convenient cover for hunting demons, don't you think?"

  Hikari tilted her head, her lips curving into a slight smirk. "You seem pretty prideful about your teacher."

  "Of course I would, she's amazing and super cool!" Katsuki said with genuine enthusiasm.

  "Now you just sound like a kid talking about his favorite superhero," Hikari teased.

  "Damn, harsh. Can't a guy just appreciate his sensei~?" He leaned towards her.

  "I mean I guess, but you seem in love with her," Hikari said, watching his reaction carefully.

  "Pfffft, please. I wouldn't be in love with that old hag."

  A sharp voice sliced through their banter, silencing them both.

  "Unbelievable, Katsuki. I told you not to cause a mess—yet here you are, making sure half the neighborhood remembers us!" The voice seemed to be annoyed and it was a female voice.

  "Great, I thought I outran her earlier…" Katsuki muttered.

  A figure approached, standing with hands on her hips.

  She was petite, almost doll-like, her long, silver hair catching the light in an unnaturally perfect way. Her eyes glowed with a faint pink hue—a trait that felt equal parts enchanting and deadly.

  "What the hell did you say?!" the girl snapped.

  She wore a modified black and pink uniform, accessorized with chains, gloves, and badges that added to her intense, rebellious aura.

  Katsuki raised his hands. "Relax, Nami. You're wound up tighter than usual—miss me that much?"

  The girl narrowed her eyes at him. "How very perverted you are. I swear, one of these days I'm gonna snap your neck!"

  Hikari glanced between them, trying to gauge if the girl was serious. Was this just a part of Katsuki's world, where people threw out threats like it was nothing? "So Katsuki, who's this?"

  Katsuki turned towards her, he sighed, scratching the back of his head. "This is my partner, Nami Kuromiya."

  "Partner, like girlfriend?" Hikari asked.

  "OH GOD NO, I would never date Sutaro. He's so goddamn annoying it makes me want to hang myself," Nami said with visceral disgust.

  Hikari was a bit taken aback by how over the top her reaction was, she just asked a single question. And she couldn't believe how aggressive it sounded.

  "Damn, hanging yourself seems to be pretty extreme…" she said.

  "Well it's the truth! I completely hate this dumbass, but somehow the church assigned me to be his partner." Nami huffed in a childish way, she looked to be seething with anger at being his partner.

  Katsuki put his hand on his chest in mock hurt. "Ouch! You wound me Nami, but come on, at least I keep things interesting~"

  Nami glared at Katsuki as he said that dumb ass shit to her. "Quit it with the god damn act, you don't keep shit interesting. If anything you make my job harder." She said with a sharp tone.

  "Enough about your paycheck, we have something more important to discuss~" Katsuki said.

  "And what's that?" Nami asked.

  "This girl~" he gestured towards Hikari. "I met her when I was on my undercover mission to kill that alleyway demon at Seiryu Institute of Futaba high school~"

  "And what about her?" Nami said impatiently.

  Katsuki sighed. "Can't you feel it? Her aura is extremely potent. I'm sure even a meat bag like you can tell~"

  "You better watch your mouth you damn idiot." Nami took a closer look at Hikari and narrowed her eyes. Hikari tensed up as she stared at her. As Nami stared at her, she could see a vivid glimpse of a huge cyan fire inside Hikari. Her eyes widened and she smirked a bit.

  "Huh, so I guess you're not completely useless. And it seems you're an esper."

  "An esper? As in like a psychic?" Hikari asked.

  "Duh, what else would 'Esper' mean? Let's just use our brains here," Nami said dismissively.

  "What a bitch," Hikari thought to herself, moving on from Nami's passive aggressive insult. Hikari looked down at her palm. She could see a thin outline around her hand, it was a bright cyan color and it looked like it pulsed with life. Her eyes widened as she felt something awaken inside her.

  "So, I'll be able to use psychic powers?"

  "That's right! You'll be able to move things with your mind and shit~" Katsuki wiggled his fingers mockingly, imitating how an esper would use their powers.

  "Right." She turned towards Nami. "So, would you be able to help me master these powers?"

  "Hell no, I'm not an esper. But I d-" Katsuki cut her off.

  "But I know a girl that can help you~!" Nami kicked Katsuki in the side.

  "Don't ever cut me off again! Or I'll slit your throat…" she said as she narrowed her eyes at him. Hikari couldn't help but chuckle to herself. She thought the two gave off sibling energy.

  Katsuki grabbed his side. "Oh you're so cruel to me Nami~" he said in a sarcastic tone.

  "Alright that's enough," Hikari interjected. "So Katsuki. Who were you talking about that can help me master my powers?"

  Katsuki pushed Nami away. "Oh, well that would be my childhood friend at the church." Nami pounced on Katsuki and placed him in a headlock.

  "HOW GOD DAMN DARE YOU PUSH ME!!!"

  Katsuki pushed Nami off him. "Look at you, all over me. You must want me." He said this in a tone he knew pissed her off.

  "Sutaro I will kill you…" Nami growled.

  "Enough about me, I think we should be moving on about Hikari~" Katsuki said.

  "Yea yea I know, I can sense her immense aura. And if we don't report this, I'll never hear the end of it," Nami said.

  "Exactly, look at you using your brain, I'm proud of you~" Katsuki teased.

  Hikari interrupted their bickering. "Ok enough of this pissing contest. So I have powerful aura. What does that mean? And also—" she gestured around at the destruction, "—how the hell are we gonna explain what just happened here? There's gotta be witnesses, cameras, something."

  Nami placed one hand on her hip. "It means you have immense supernatural powers. You're an esper, so you'll have extremely powerful psychic abilities."

  "As for the mess," Katsuki added with a casual shrug, "the church will handle it. We're talking ￥400 trillion in assets, remember? Money like that buys a lot of silence. Witnesses get their memories adjusted, footage gets scrubbed, structural damage gets blamed on gas leaks or construction accidents. The church has been doing this for centuries."

  "Wait, you can just… erase people's memories?" Hikari asked, disturbed.

  "Not erase. Adjust. There's a difference," Nami said matter-of-factly. "People still remember something happened, they just remember the cover story instead of the real thing. It's cleaner that way."

  "That's…" Hikari trailed off, unsure how to feel about that.

  "Necessary," Katsuki finished for her. "The world isn't ready to know about the supernatural. Trust me, mass panic would cause way more damage than a few adjusted memories."

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Hikari tensed up a bit as she processed that information. She knew well by now that the reality she knew was all an illusion. "Right…"

  "ANYWAYS! We're gonna take you to the church so you can meet our supervisor," Katsuki announced.

  "Alright," Hikari agreed.

  As they began walking down the street of Shinjuku towards the church, Hikari pulled out her phone. Nami walked ahead, absorbed in her own device, while Katsuki stayed close to Hikari, occasionally glancing at her screen.

  Hikari's fingers hovered over her messages. She had dozens of unread texts from Penny and Rina, increasingly worried messages asking where she'd been. She felt a pang of guilt.

  She opened the group chat.

  **Hikari:** hey guys sorry been MIA

  **Hikari:** remember that church we were talking about? decided to check it out

  **Hikari:** its pretty interesting actually

  She hit send before she could second-guess herself. The lies came easier than she expected.

  Almost immediately, three dots appeared.

  **Rarity ??:** GIRL WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN

  **Rarity ??:** We've been worried sick about you!! 45 minutes of radio silence??

  **Ri:** Hikari!! Are you okay? You just disappeared!

  **Ri:** Wait, you're at that mega church? The Sanctum Maledictum one?

  **Hikari:** yeah that one

  **Hikari:** its not as sketchy as it sounds lol

  **Hikari:** just been learning some stuff, meeting people

  **Rarity ??:** Learning WHAT exactly? And what people?

  **Rarity ??:** This doesn't sound like you at all. You've been acting weird even before you disappeared.

  **Ri:** Are you in trouble? Do you need us to come get you?

  **Ri:** Those explosions we've been hearing… you're not involved in anything dangerous, right?

  Hikari's chest tightened. She could feel their concern through the screen, and it made the lies taste even more bitter.

  **Hikari:** im fine i promise

  **Hikari:** just needed some time to figure stuff out

  **Hikari:** ill explain everything when i see you guys ok?

  **Rarity ??:** You BETTER.

  **Rarity ??:** And when you get back, we're dragging you to the mall for a mandatory intervention. New outfit, spicy food, the works.

  **Ri:** We miss you, dummy. Come back soon.

  **Ri:** You can run but you can't hide from us forever.

  **Hikari:** i know

  **Hikari:** miss you guys too

  She pocketed her phone, a hollow feeling settling in her stomach. Another lie. Another wall between her and the normal life she used to have.

  "Everything okay?" Katsuki asked, noticing her expression.

  "Yeah," Hikari said quietly. "Just… checking in with some friends."

  "The normal ones?" Katsuki's tone was knowing, not judgmental.

  "Yeah."

  "It gets harder, you know. Keeping both worlds separate," he said, his usual playful demeanor dropping for a moment. "Eventually you have to choose which one is real."

  Hikari didn't respond. She wasn't ready to think about that yet.

  Nami was still on her phone as they continued walking, and Katsuki returned to his casual commentary. "So, how far is this church?" Hikari asked, trying to distract herself.

  "It isn't too far, just a few blocks down here," Katsuki replied.

  "So… what is this 'church'? Is that where you two work?"

  "Yea, the church protects humanity from supernatural entities. Although… it isn't always sunshine and rainbows in this line of work… It's survival of the fittest in the supernatural world…" he said in a slightly serious tone.

  "Well duh, I'm not dumb. Of course being in a supernatural world would be extremely dangerous," Hikari said.

  "I'm just making sure you know what you're gonna get into."

  "Yea yea yea, I know what I'm getting into." Cars passed by as they continued walking down the street, Nami trailing behind them on her phone. "But enough about the world, what about these psychic powers you said I have. Does that mean I'll be able to fight creatures like in anime!"

  "Uhhh, no… Your aura is immense yes, but since you just discovered them, your control will be very sloppy~"

  "Great, so I'm weak…"

  "Not exactly weak, just untrained. Once you meet the girl I'm talking about, you'll be able to control those powers~"

  "Huh, so what kind of psychic powers will I have?"

  "Think Tatsumaki from One Punch Man but… less angry. Probably."

  "I feel like I should be offended."

  "No, it tracks," Nami added without even looking up from her phone.

  "Anyways, I'm really surprised that you'd be into anime or manga. You seem like the type, Katsuki."

  Nami suddenly spoke up, still focused on her screen. "By the way, I get paid ￥2.8 million per month for this shit. Plus hazard bonuses for S-rank entities. The church might be secretive, but they pay well enough to make dealing with Sutaro almost worth it."

  "Almost?" Katsuki said with mock offense.

  "Almost," Nami confirmed flatly.

  "Wait, you make that much?" Hikari asked, genuinely surprised.

  "The church doesn't mess around when it comes to compensation," Nami said, finally looking up from her phone. "Exorcists die young. The pay reflects that."

  The casual way she said it sent a chill down Hikari's spine.

  As they walked down the streets of Shinjuku, there was a figure in the distance watching them. The man looked to be in a suit, like he worked for some organization. But none of the three spotted the figure and just continued walking.

  After what felt like two hours of walking, the three finally made it to the church. The exorcist church building in Shinjuku was a striking yet foreboding architectural marvel. It rose above the bustling urban chaos, blending traditional and modern influences. The structure was primarily constructed of dark, polished stone with intricate carvings of protective symbols and ancient Japanese talismans etched into its facade. The building's angular, almost fortress-like design contrasted sharply with the neon lights of Shinjuku's surroundings, making it an imposing presence.

  At the front, a massive, arched doorway, flanked by towering stone statues of mythical guardians, led into the main hall. Above the entrance, an intricate stained-glass window depicted a scene of exorcists battling shadowy, demonic figures. The building's central spire, reminiscent of a Shinto pagoda, was crowned with a metallic cross surrounded by shimmering, ward-like inscriptions.

  Hikari stared wide-eyed at the building.

  "Woah, how come I've never seen this building until now? I thought it was just a coffee shop here." She asked, looking around for the familiar coffee shop that was usually here.

  "People without supernatural affinity see the building as a normal coffee shop, it's a way to keep our building from standing out~" Katsuki explained.

  "Supernatural abilities can do that much?"

  Nami was a bit calmer now and she spoke up. "You'd be surprised by what is actually possible." Hikari nodded her head and pulled herself back towards the ground. "So, life for people with supernatural affinity is like… a manga," Hikari thought to herself. Hikari wanted to learn more about the supernatural world. Little did she know things won't be all sunshine and rainbows forever…

  The three walked into the church. Inside, the atmosphere was somber and otherworldly. High vaulted ceilings were supported by ornate wooden beams, and the walls were lined with shelves holding ancient tomes and relics. Dim, golden lighting cast long shadows, emphasizing the gravity of the church's purpose. A ceremonial altar stood at the center, adorned with candles, incense, and an array of spiritual tools, including charms and prayer beads. Hidden chambers beneath the main hall served as armories and archives, housing sacred weapons and records of supernatural occurrences.

  Hikari couldn't help but look around inside, the inside of this building looked so otherworldly it was almost impossible to believe it was real. Her eyes were darting towards everything she could. Nami separated from Katsuki and Hikari.

  "Where is she going?" Hikari asked.

  "She tends to avoid me whenever we're not on a mission~" Katsuki said.

  "I see…"

  Hikari continued to look around subconsciously, until her eyes met the eyes of a girl with bright azure eyes that sparkled with mischief. Hikari squeaked as she fell onto her butt.

  "Awww, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you~ So, are you a new recruit for the church~?" The girl said. Hikari looked up and saw a petite girl with bubblegum-pink hair that bounced in curls. She had a bright, cheerful smile on her face. Hikari blushed a bit as she looked at her.

  "Oh hi, and no worries I'm fine~" Hikari managed.

  "Well well, looks like you've met my childhood friend~" Katsuki said.

  Hikari looked up at Katsuki. "Your childhood friend? Like the girl you said can help me train my psychic powers?"

  "Yup, Hikari, meet Lila~"

  Lila gave Hikari a cutesy smile. Hikari swore she felt her heart flutter in her chest as she stared at Lila. Lila was wearing a white and bubblegum pink short-sleeved summer camp shirt, cool blue shorts with pink and yellow balloons on both sides, a warm brown belt with a heart-shaped belt buckle, white knee-high socks with violet-pink stripes, and ramjet blue hiking boots with myoga purple soles.

  "Nice to meet you Hikari~" Lila helped Hikari up. Hikari could feel how soft and delicate Lila's hands were.

  "Uhh yea, I'm Hikari… but I'm sure you already knew that because of Katsuki~" Hikari was stumbling over her words as she spoke to Lila. She had a light blush dusted on her cheeks. Katsuki was able to pick up on Hikari's crush on Lila instantly. He grabbed Hikari's arm and pulled her away.

  "Sorry Lila, but I have to take her to Sylvia, you know I always have to introduce new recruits to her~"

  "Ah, I know. Lady Sylvia is so strict. But anyways I'll be in the backyard if you need me~" she began bouncing away before turning around and waving at Hikari. "I'll see you later, Hikari-Chan~" Hikari blushed as Lila waved goodbye to her. She waved back with an awkward smile.

  "Ooooo, someone has a crush~" Katsuki said in a teasing way.

  "HUH WHAT?! NO I DON'T!!!!" Hikari protested.

  "Oh but you do, it's written all over your face. I can read body language and it's telling me a lot~"

  "Ahhhh… Please don't say anything to her about this!" She pleaded.

  "Don't worry I won't, your secret is safe with me~"

  Katsuki made his way past the reception desk, where the lady behind the counter—Betty or Bonnie (he really couldn't care less)—gave him that look. The kind that said she knew exactly why he was here. She offered a tiny, amused wave, as though she were watching some reality show that hadn't yet been canceled.

  Finally, he reached Sylvia Bloodwood's office—the legendary Senior Exorcist herself. The terror of every sprite, demon, and mildly obnoxious entity in existence. The "holy terror" who'd taken down more ghosts than a bad horror movie.

  Katsuki knocked once but didn't wait for a response.

  "Old hag, you in here~?" he sang, pushing the door open.

  Sylvia, the legendary Senior Exorcist, glanced up from her desk with a cool look. Her sharp eyes swept over him and Hikari, her gaze lingering on the latter for a brief moment before she offered a small, wry smile.

  "Katsuki, as ever, a pest. Always popping up unannounced."

  Her voice was calm, but there was a hint of irritation that barely masked her annoyance. There was something else too—a subtle resemblance between her and Nami that Hikari couldn't quite place. The same sharp features, the same intensity in their eyes, though Sylvia's carried the weight of years and experience.

  Hikari, who had been walking just behind him, found herself standing frozen in place, still reeling from the encounter with Lila. Her heart was still fluttering from that strange, inexplicable feeling that had washed over her when Lila smiled at her—when she touched her hand. She glanced over at Katsuki, still too flustered to speak.

  But her mind wasn't on Sylvia. It was on Lila. On that radiant smile, the twinkle in her eyes. The soft touch of her hand as she helped Hikari up.

  It wasn't just a crush, was it?

  Before Hikari could sort out her tangled thoughts, Sylvia raised an eyebrow.

  "You're staring off into space, girl. Something on your mind?"

  Hikari snapped back to reality, her face turning crimson. She wasn't sure how to respond, but it was pretty obvious what she was thinking about. It didn't help that Katsuki had an irritatingly smug grin plastered across his face.

  "You okay, Hikari?" he asked, voice laced with teasing.

  Hikari shot him a glare, not ready to confront what was happening with her emotions. But deep down, she knew one thing for sure: she wasn't going to forget Lila anytime soon.

  And judging by how she'd nearly tripped over her own feet earlier, neither was anyone else.

  To be continued…