AURA

MAKOTO'S POV

I opened my eyes, staring at the ceiling. Morning. My first morning as an awakened Resident—at least, that's how Kowai put it last night.

Strangely, I did feel... different. More aware.

Like yesterday, when I was sprinting home from the park, I noticed a woman standing by the roadside. She wore a surgical mask, her hand holding a pair of scissors, and her presence felt oddly translucent, as though she was a flickering lamp in the dark. Almost without essence.

Of course, I didn't stop to say hi—despite her signaling me. She looked way too much like Kuchisake-Onna for my liking, and she very well might have been.

YAWN!

Alright. Time for my second day at school.

Hopefully, I won't get chased down the hallway, hunted by a female butler, or experience another spiritual awakening.

I swung my legs over the bed and walked toward the full-length mirror standing beside the window.

Staring at my reflection, I smirked. "Oh, God… I'm so handsome, it should be a crime worthy of a life sentence."

But then something else caught my attention.

"…Spiritual energy…" I muttered.

A dark, purplish essence slithered around me, curling and twisting like living smoke. Most of it remained stored within, but some leaked out, swirling faintly in the air.

But when I looked closer, I noticed something else—Aura.

I didn't see this yesterday... but this feeling... It was familiar.

Before dealing with that, I had to get my spiritual energy under control. If I let it spill out like this, I'd be attracting the wrong kind of attention.

Closing my eyes, I focused.

I pictured my energy as water in a pot, then imagined placing a lid over it.

Slowly, the escaping tendrils of energy subsided.

Not completely—I wasn't going to risk suppressing it too much. If I concealed it entirely, that might be just as suspicious. But now, I should come across as a regular human… probably. 

Though, it felt like a heavy stone had appeared inside my stomach—it was quite uncomfortable, actually.

But then there was the Aura.

Unlike my spiritual energy, it hadn't disappeared.

I knew it.

Aura wasn't energy. Not exactly.

If spiritual energy came from existence itself—our soul, maybe—then Aura was...

Hmmm.

Yeah. It was like the steam rising from a boiling pot.

...Why am I only using pot analogies here?

Ugh. Now I'm in the mood for hotpot.

Whatever.

Aura probably represents the level someone has attained, or something like that. I'll ask Kowai for more details at school.

Still, while I managed to suppress my spiritual energy, my Aura remained untouched. That confirmed it—Aura wasn't just another form of spiritual energy. It was an indication of existence itself.

A pointer.

A warning.

But… wow. I didn't think Auras could actually be seen—like in anime. Was it because of the Awakening?

I didn't notice anything like this yesterday. Maybe my senses are still developing? If that's the case, then over time, I might become even more aware.

My gaze shifted back to the mirror.

...You know, maybe I should die a virgin.

Because it would be so unfair to gift this magnificent existence—that is me—to anyone, "till death do them part."

But then, something else caught my eye.

The color of my Aura...

Uhhh. If I had to put it into words: it was the color of continuity? Elevation?

I know: those aren't colors.

But that's what it felt like instinctively. 

Visually, though, I could say it was a shade of green, uh, tinged with hues of black... sort of…

Wait—why are Aura colors so hard to describe?!

I need more samples.

Let's hurry downstairs and check out Mother's and Cherry's Auras!

Step, step, step—

"What the hell, Baka! Don't just come down here in your boxers!!" Cherry's voice cracked through the air like a rebuking whip.

"C'mon, Ma-chan, get dressed for school already," Mother added, frowning at me.

Cherry's glare was on the level of an insect-killer, but I had already gathered the data I needed.

Mission complete. Retreat!

I sprinted back upstairs.

That was dangerous. I have to stop showing Cherry my body carelessly, to prevent what happened between Mother and Father (siblings falling in love).

(P.S. This is untrue)

But I did get a good look at their Auras.

Cherry's felt like "Turbulent." Or maybe it was "Gentle."

Or was it both?

That didn't make sense. That girl was a wild tiger. Her Aura was playing tricks on me.

Mother's, on the other hand, was "Flowing" or perhaps "Comfort"—like a steady river.

I need to figure out how to properly interpret Auras. For now, I'll just file this information away.

I bathed as quickly as possible and got dressed, then ran downstairs for breakfast.

We had pancakes. They were most wonderful.

I only ate about half, though.

"C'mon, Ma-chan! Finish it!" Mother whined.

I ignored her, more focused on watching her carefully.

"Wh-What?" she stammered, blushing under my gaze.

…Eh?

I noticed something:

My spiritual energy was subtly curving inward, like it was containing itself.

But Mother's?

Hers was flaring—uncontrolled.

Chaotic.