Just as the tip of the scissors is about to touch the victim, something unexpected happens. The fear, compressed to its absolute limit, finally explodes. Not as a scream, but as an invisible wave of psychic energy radiating from the boy, making the air around us feel thick and heavy.

  The Slit-Mouthed Woman freezes, seemingly taken aback by this unconscious resistance.

  "Now!" Zhen Shan commands.

  The moment is here. I don't need his prompting. I snap my fingers. A dart of mesmerizing blue Foxfire shoots out, swift and precise as an arrow, and engulfs the Anomaly.

  A piercing, inhuman shriek tears through the air. The Slit-Mouthed Woman bursts into flames. But instead of being completely purified as usual, her burning body suddenly dissolves, turning into a thin wisp of black smoke. The smoke doesn't dissipate; it twists and then shoots away, vanishing into the city's night sky before I can react. The poor teenager, meanwhile, has fainted, sliding down the wall in a heap.

  "Th-thank you..."

  That's the first thing the kid manages to say when he comes to, after I use a little of my power to stabilize his mind. He's sitting on the ground, trembling, but the look in his eyes is no longer fear. It's awe and astonishment. He's still seeing our true forms.

  "Lord Kitsune... Lord Tiger..."

  Damn it, another Sensitive. This job just got more complicated.

  I put on a smile, a practiced, disarmingly friendly smile I've used hundreds of times. "Easy there, kid. Looks like you've had quite a shock. What's your name?"

  "Ishikawa... Kaito Ishikawa," he stammers.

  "Alright, Kaito-kun. It seems you've just awakened your Sensitive abilities. Congratulations, I suppose. Your life definitely won't be boring from now on."

  While I'm trying to handle our new "potential client," Zhen Shan finishes his inspection of the scene. He walks over, his expression more serious than usual.

  "Itsuki," he interrupts me. "This Kuchisake-onna... it's strange."

  "Strange how? It's just another low-level Anomaly, born from the fears of children, right?" I reply, still holding my professional smile.

  "No. A moment ago, as soon as your fire hit it, it deliberately dissolved into smoke to escape. It didn't try to counter-attack. All of its energy was focused on getting away."

  My smile freezes. My self-satisfied air vanishes.

  "What? Did I miscalculate? That Foxfire blast should have one-shotted and purified it completely! It got away?"

  "That's right," Zhen Shan confirms. "It seems that from the moment it sensed our presence, it was already planning its escape. This behavior is highly unusual. Low-level Anomalies act on pure instinct; they don't possess tactical thinking."

  I grit my teeth. Annoyance bubbles up inside me. A simple weeding job has just turned into a mystery case. A thinking Anomaly? A planning Anomaly? I've never seen this in any report.

  "Damn it," I hiss, my expression turning serious.

  "Zhen Shan, do me a favor and use your 'Seal of Order' to lock onto its position. We're not killing it just yet. We might need to bring this one back for Alethea's R&D department to examine."

  Zhen Shan nods, his hands beginning to form a complex sign. Ancient, golden characters start to materialize in the air around him.

  I turn back to look at Kaito. The kid is still sitting there, staring blankly at the glowing symbols, trying to process a brand-new reality that has just crashed down upon him.

  Fantastic. A day off turns into an Anomaly hunt. The Anomaly hunt turns into a mysterious case. And now we have to babysit a brand-new Sensitive. My bonus had better be doubled for this.

  Dealing with a brand-new Sensitive is more exhausting than hunting an Anomaly. We have to take Kaito all the way home, use a bit of glamour so his parents just think he came home late from hanging out, and subtly plant a suggestion in his mind: "Don't talk about this with anyone, unless you want to meet things far worse." It's a half-truth, but it's enough to keep a terrified kid quiet.

  Once that's done, Zhen Shan and I stand on the rooftop of a skyscraper, looking down at the sea of lights that is Tokyo. He has already activated his "Seal of Order," a tracking ability based on an energy signature. A three-dimensional map of the city materializes from his device, with a single red dot moving erratically below.

  "It's panicking," Zhen Shan observes. "Moving without any pattern. At this rate, catching it is only a matter of time."

  "Leave it to me," I say, stretching my claws. "I'm better at this game of cat and mouse than you are."

  I dive down, my body as light as a leaf, gliding past glowing billboards. The red dot on my internal comms system gets closer. It's in a shopping complex that's about to close for the night. Easy.

  But just as I land in a nearby alley, the single red dot suddenly splits into two. Then four. Eight. Sixteen. Soon, my map is littered with red dots, scattering everywhere like a disturbed anthill.

  "Damn it," I curse over the comms link. "Zhen Shan, it can create clones now, too? Since when does a low-level urban legend have ninja skills?"

  "Focus on the nearest target," Zhen Shan's voice comes through, still annoyingly calm.

  "Their energy signatures are identical. They're probably just illusions."

  I pick a red dot that's hiding in an underground parking garage. I accelerate, my form a silent blur in the shadows. And there it is. A dark figure, cowering behind a car. I give it no chance; a chain of Foxfire lashes out and binds it tight.

  But when I get closer, I realize it's not an illusion. It's a complete, solid entity. I place my hand on it, preparing to extract and purify all of its energy. The familiar, negative black smoke begins to seep into my palm. Cold, chaotic, reeking of fear.

  But then, I feel something else.

  A minuscule thread of energy, but one that is pure and orderly, hidden deep within the chaos. It's like a drop of ink in a glass of muddy water. Something I never, ever expected to find in an Anomaly.

  Divine power.

  "No way..." I whisper. "Zhen Shan, get over here now. Someone's pulling the strings. There's divine power in this thing!"

  I clench my fist, crushing the clone into nothingness. A thought flashes through my mind. Who would do something this insane? Pumping divine power into an Anomaly to control it?

  "Is it one of the Shadow Syndicates?" I say as Zhen Shan lands beside me.

  "Only they would stoop to such dirty tricks."

  Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

  In the Nexus, "Shadow Syndicates" is an unofficial name. They are shell corporations in the truest sense. They have official titles, proper business registrations, with grand names like "The Eternal Truth Organization" or "The Red Dawn Trust," but their leaders are completely anonymous. Their FP comes from unsanctioned cults in the Mundane Realm, a "dirty" and unstable type of energy. They should have been shut down long ago, but because they often do the dirty work that the major conglomerates don't want to touch, management tends to turn a blind eye.

  Zhen Shan looks at the map in his hand, which now shows 101 red dots. His face turns to ice.

  "If it's them, then we can't let the main target escape."

  He raises his hand. The seal at his feet, which had only covered a small area, suddenly flares and expands at a terrifying speed. On the 3D map, a grid of golden light envelops the entirety of Tokyo. All 101 red dots freeze in place simultaneously, locked down.

  "Got them all," Zhen Shan says. Then he pauses.

  "The divine signature is gone. From all of them, at the same time. It seems whoever was behind this realized their puppet was exposed and cut the strings. This thing has outlived its usefulness to them."

  He turns to me. "Terminate them all here and now?"

  I think for a moment. Killing them all now is easy, but the mystery would remain unsolved. The mastermind would just create another puppet.

  "Wait," I say. "Just terminate the clones. They're just regular Anomalies now, anyway. But keep the original. Let's take it back to Alethea. I bet she can still get something out of the 'corpse'."

  Zhen Shan nods at my decision. He completes the final sigil, and the 100 copies of the Kuchisake-onna simultaneously dissolve into dust across Tokyo. Only the original remains, now contained in a blue energy vial in his hand.

  "Let's head back together," Zhen Shan says, preparing to activate the Bifrost portal.

  "Hold on," I stop him. "You go on ahead. I need to go back and have a little chat with our 'potential client'." I wink, referring to the kid, Kaito.

  "He's awakened as a Sensitive, and might even have the potential to become a useful Vessel. It's a crime to pass up such a lucrative business opportunity."

  Zhen Shan looks at me, showing no surprise.

  "Alright. I'll fill out a usage request form for the Cloud-Hopper for you later. Reason: 'Assisting and orienting a newly awakened citizen with spiritual abilities.' With a clear reason, there will be no fee."

  I let out a weary sigh.

  "Paperwork again. Even if it's online, it's all the same. Request Form A, Appendix Report B, Confidentiality Agreement C..."

  I grumble, but deep down, a strange warmth spreads through me. At times like these, I find this stoic tiger genuinely endearing. He takes care of all the annoying procedures for me.

  "Alright, alright, thanks, boss," I say, waving my hand. "Get back safe, and try not to land in the wrong realm this time."

  Zhen Shan nods, about to activate the portal. But just then, from the dark alleys around us, dozens of black figures charge out. They have bizarre shapes, like tattered puppets stitched together, and they rush straight towards us with insane speed.

  "Low-level Anomalies?" I frown. "Where did these things come from?"

  They have no intention of fighting. When the first one is just a few meters away, it suddenly swells up and... BOOM! It self-detonates, creating a weak but noticeable wave of negative energy.

  The explosion does nothing to us. A god's passive defense easily nullifies it. The problem is, we are standing in the middle of a crowded street. The blast has already knocked over a few pedestrians, who are now screaming in panic. And the other Anomalies are still charging, their targets not us, but the crowd!

  "Dammit!" Zhen Shan growls. He raises his hand, intending to use the Seal of Order to freeze them.

  "It's no use! They have an internal self-destruct mechanism; the Seal can't stop it in time!"

  The situation turns critical in an instant. These explosions might not kill a deity, but they will certainly kill mortals. A tragedy in the heart of Tokyo would cause an irreversible crisis of faith.

  "Save the people first!" I yell, adrenaline pumping. "We can pad our KPIs while we're at it!"

  "But..."

  "Materialize, Zhen Shan! I'll wipe their memories later! Hurry up!"

  "Oh gods... the paperwork..."

  He groans, his obsession with procedure even greater than the immediate danger.

  "To hell with it!" I snap. "As long as our department meets its KPI target this month, Old Man Ao Guang from Administration will let it slide! It's not like he's fond of the top brass anyway!"

  A spark of determination flashes in Zhen Shan's eyes. He nods.

  And then, for a brief moment, the Divine Veil is torn.

  For the screaming mortals, the world seems to freeze. Two ethereal figures suddenly become solid, taking on flesh and blood. Our true forms look just like the beastmen from their cartoons, which will definitely cause mass panic.

  Without a word, Zhen Shan acts. He vanishes. More accurately, his speed surpasses human perception. In a blink, he moves through the entire block, carrying every single person, from the elderly to children—nearly 200 people—and places them safely at a distance. It all happens in less than three seconds.

  Once the area is clear, I smile.

  "My turn."

  Having a physical body is indeed more convenient. I take a deep breath, feeling the FP course through my veins. I raise my hand, and a sea of ethereal blue Foxfire erupts from thin air, engulfing the entire block in a brilliant vortex. The kamikaze Anomalies are incinerated instantly, not even a squeak escapes them.

  The flames rise and then vanish, leaving not a single scorch mark on the buildings. Everything is back to normal, leaving only silence.

  Zhen Shan returns, the vial still in his hand. We look at each other, then at the stunned, speechless crowd.

  "Your part," he says.

  I sigh and walk towards them. I close my eyes, focusing energy on my forehead. A gentle psychic wave ripples out, washing over everyone.

  It was just a dream... A strange dream of blue fire and saviors... When you wake, you will forget everything...

  One by one, their eyes glaze over. Then they shake their heads, looking around as if waking from a trance.

  "Job's done,"

  I say, feeling a bit drained. A mass memory wipe consumes more energy than I thought.

  "Let's go, before someone posts something online."

  Kids these days don't easily believe what they see. A gas explosion? A marketing stunt? They will come up with a hundred logical explanations. But that's fine. A seed of doubt, a hazy memory of gods... has been planted. And in our line of business, sometimes, that's all it takes.

  After the spectacular "clean-up," Zhen and I return to our invisible state, strolling through the bustling crowds of Shibuya. To them, we are nothing but air. To us, they are a noisy river we have to wade through without getting wet. Maintaining a physical body in this realm feels like wearing a thousand-pound suit of armor; it's exhausting and burns through FP like crazy.

  However, we currently have a small problem. Or rather, a big mess.

  "It's cracked."

  Zhen announces. His voice is flat, but I can hear the frustration simmering beneath. He holds up the blue energy flask. A corner of it is shattered, and the black smoke that was inside is gone without a trace.

  "Self-destructed?" I ask, my ears twitching in suspicion. "Talk about a single-use item."

  "No," he shakes his head.

  "A minuscule energy surge from an external source detonated it. Like a remote control. It's clear that whoever is behind this doesn't want us studying their puppet."

  I let out a sigh, my tail drooping.

  "So the lead is gone. All for nothing."

  "It's worse than that," Zhen adds, his amber eyes staring into the distance.

  "He dared to detonate it in the middle of a crowded street. If we hadn't acted in time, the consequences would have been unimaginable. This deity... he's not simple-minded. He's ruthless and doesn't care about collateral damage."

  I see the disappointment and anger cloud his usually stoic face. This guy, for all his dryness, has a very clear-cut sense of "justice." Seeing him so down gives me an idea.

  "Come on, Chief Tiger," I say, giving him a nudge.

  "We lose a lead, we find another. We're free for the rest of the day, anyway. How about... we pay a little visit to our 'potential client'?"

  He turns to look at me. "The boy, Kaito?"

  "Who else?" I shrug.

  "He's the only Sensitive who was at the scene. We might be able to dig up something interesting. Besides, building a good relationship now will make him more cooperative later. He's a potential Vessel, don't underestimate that."

  Zhen considers this for a moment.

  "Fine. But... the boy can see our spiritual forms. We don't need to keep these physical bodies. It's draining."

  A brilliant idea strikes me. Of course! Why didn't I think of it sooner?

  "You're right!" I snap my fingers.

  "Then let me just use 'Crimson Foxfire' to disintegrate these two bodies at an atomic level. Quick and clean. Problem solved."

  "Wait!" Zhen suddenly throws a hand out to stop me, his expression dead serious.

  "Do you have a permit to use that technique here? 'Crimson Foxfire' is classified as a high-impact ability with devastating effects on the material structure of Realm 1031. Unauthorized use comes with a mandatory 1000 FP fine!"

  I freeze, the crimson flame that had just begun to lick at my fingertips instantly vanishes.

  "A-ah! Seriously? Why didn't you say so sooner! I almost blew a fortune!"

  Zhen sighs.

  "Still, 1000 FP is just one-fifth of today's mission bonus. Is it really that big of a deal?"

  "It absolutely is!" I shout telepathically.

  "My blood, sweat, and tears went into those points! Do you know how many hours I spent sucking up to management and falsifying reports?! I will not flush it down the drain!"

  I pace back and forth, my tail swishing agitatedly behind me. My normal blue flame cannot destroy physical matters. If we abandon our physical forms now, these two "bodies" will just drop to the ground. Tomorrow's headlines would be screaming about "unidentified creature corpses found in Tokyo," and then we'd have to waste even more energy wiping the minds of an entire news agency. Such a hassle.

  "Ah! I've got it!" I exclaim.

  Zhen looks at me with an expression that's a mixture of curiosity and dread.

  "What if...," I say with a sly grin, "...we find a nearby Sensitive, borrow their body for a bit, and use them to dispose of these two corpses? It's neat, efficient, and most importantly... free!"

  Zhen stares at me, completely still for a few seconds. He brings a hand up to rub his temple.

  "...I give up on you, Itsuki. Do we really need to make things this complicated? All for just 1000 FP."