One Step Changes Many Things

"Is she my neighbor?" Hisagi would find out at this moment, though it was obvious that she could very well live in the house next door or on an upper floor. His suspicions that she seemed abnormal vanished after a closer examination revealed nothing out of the ordinary.

Some people tend to have more abundant spiritual energy. This energy was different from cursed energy, and since Hisagi was unaware of it, he wasn't on alert.

Unless it was a cursed spirit, Hisagi would never show hostility.

Besides, the short, pink-haired girl in front of him appeared to be a normal student.

Should he greet her? And if he did, how should he do it? Should he be friendly or serious to avoid making a bad impression? This was the first time Hisagi found himself in a dilemma over a simple conversation with someone else, so he simply introduced himself as anyone else would. He first extended his hand and then greeted her with a slight smile.

Hisagi, of course, didn't have great social skills. This might have been due to the way his grandfather had chosen to protect him, taking him to a place where he barely spoke to people his age.

Naturally, this wouldn't have been a problem if he were just an ordinary guy in the city.

"Hi..." Hisagi's hand moved faster than his words, and an unnatural smile formed on his face.

"You're messing with the wrong person, you perverted jerk!" Aira clenched her fist tightly and aimed a punch at Hisagi's face. Although Hisagi hadn't expected such an intense reaction from her, much less one so aggressive, he saw the fist approaching his face, and his instincts kicked in. But at the last moment, he held back and simply dodged the punch aimed at his head.

Thud!

With a muffled sound, Aira's fist hit the wall, and the wall cracked in a small area around the impact. Before she could strike again, Hisagi, who didn't want any misunderstandings right now, immediately shouted.

"I'm just the new neighbor who moved in here! I thought it would be nice to say hello since this place is kind of gloomy, as you can imagine. I'm not some kind of stalker!" His hands covered his face as Hisagi was shocked by the girl's strength and realized Aira was definitely not a normal person.

"You're not a stalker?" Aira realized that might be the case and smiled a little embarrassed as she withdrew her fist. She had acted impulsively due to everything that had happened in the past few days, so she didn't strike again.

Besides, Hisagi's face didn't exactly show the kind of expression she would normally see on those types who harassed her, and most importantly, he now seemed to be just greeting her.

"Of course not! How could I be a stalker? Do stalkers these days greet you?" Hisagi, after processing the situation, regretted having taken the initiative to greet her. After all, this was partly his fault. But what was more important was whether this girl could be a Jujutsu sorcerer like Aoki had described when they defeated that cursed spirit.

It didn't seem to be the case. She didn't possess cursed energy, and if anything was striking, it was the power of her soul. Hisagi understood more about soul energy because his power was based on his soul, or rather, the soul of his sword, which had connected with his own.

He didn't know much about Jujutsu sorcerers, and since he was, so to speak, new in the city, he hadn't had time to investigate.

"Sorry, someone's been following me lately. These days, there are a lot of creeps following me because of my stunning beauty, but since that's not the case, I'm really embarrassed about my behavior." Aira had acted impulsively, but not to the extent of frightening the guy in front of her, right?

The mark of Aira's fist on the wall was clearly visible and hard to ignore, demonstrating either the brutality of her attack or the deterioration of the building.

Hisagi then noticed that Aira's appearance was peculiar. Although she had short, pink hair, what stood out the most was her clear beauty, matching the standards that appeal to the average guy today.

Her confusion might have been due to Hisagi's fixed gaze, but he wasn't looking at her physically; he was focused on her soul, which shone brighter than others.

"Well, I guess it's not that bad after all... I'm not hurt anyway. By the way, my name is Hisagi, and I just moved into this building." Hisagi extended his hand awkwardly, feeling a bit uncomfortable with the situation.

"I'm Aira Shiratori, a high school student." Aira extended her hand and briefly shook Hisagi's. Only now did she realize that the guy in front of her was very tall.

"Since I don't have any commitments, maybe I'm the building's guardian."

After the initial awkwardness, they both smiled, Hisagi not wanting to linger a second longer in that increasingly uncomfortable silence at the stairwell. This simple conversation could be considered their first connection.

"I didn't think my neighbor would be so aggressive..." Hisagi muttered quietly, but Aira heard him.

"That was embarrassing..." Aira sighed in relief after she got home, dropped her bag, and washed her face with cold water to calm down.

It wasn't until this moment that Aira realized something was off. Although she had held back her strength in that punch, it wasn't easy for a teenager to dodge it.

But in fact, Hisagi had easily avoided the blow. Additionally, what reassured her was that she hadn't seen any more spirits after Hisagi arrived in the building. Was it because of him or because she had once again lost her ability to see the spirits of the dead?

"If it's his fault, I'll have to investigate him." Aira murmured, somewhat dissatisfied with losing the ability she had only recently regained.

Due to her beauty, Aira normally acted arrogantly in her mind and presented herself as sweet and innocent to the boys at her school. She enjoyed watching the boys fall for her charms every time she walked through the hallways and believed her mere presence was enough to brighten their day. But if they stepped out of line like Hisagi had, she was ready to defend herself.

Of course, Hisagi knew nothing of this, or their encounter would have been very different.

…

Hisagi walked down the stairs to avoid suspicion at the park, having initially left his apartment. Otherwise, he might really be considered a stalker. In fact, hadn't he just harassed his neighbor?

After walking for a few minutes, he reached the place where the paranormal events were supposedly happening.

Holding his cane in his right hand, he stayed there for a few minutes before disappearing and reappearing on his apartment balcony.

He sensed cursed energy in the area but no cursed spirit presence, leading him to think that these spirits only appeared in special circumstances.

Before he could delve deeper into all the types of energy present in people, the doorbell rang, and when Hisagi checked who it was, he found Aoki had arrived.

"Ready to exterminate all the Yokai, cursed spirits, and evil spiritualists?"

Hisagi looked at Aoki, who had appeared at his door with huge suitcases that seemed to carry electronic equipment, and muttered, "Looks like you know more than you told me."

"Of course! I'll be the logistics manager of our new company." Aoki puffed out his chest, fully convinced that with Hisagi, he might finally get the revenge he had been craving for years.

"Let me help you..." Hisagi helped Aoki bring up all the suitcases, which, in fact, were more than he had thought.

In just half an hour, the living room of the apartment was filled with large suitcases containing things Hisagi didn't even know what they were for.

Aoki looked around the room and confidently said, "This will be our temporary base. Later, we'll see if we can use the underground area of this building, as I doubt anyone is using it."