Veil of the Unseen

The night air in Okutama was thick, polluted with whispers that did not belong to this world. Takami's blade trembled in his grip, its surface cracked and dripping with blackened spirit essence. It wouldn't last much longer.

His hoodie clung to his skin, drenched in sweat, but his stance remained firm.

Across from him, the spirits hesitated.

At first, they had swarmed recklessly, hungry for fresh prey, believing they had another easy kill. But now, after watching their kind vanish into nothingness, they understood.

This wasn't a victim.

This was a beast far more deadly than they were.

DING!

[ New Wave Incoming_

| Detected: 11 Low-Class Spirits

| Detected: 8 High-Class Spirits]

The ground trembled.

Then the air howled.

Like an explosion of shadows, they surged forward.

Takami moved. A step_precise. A blade swing_silent. A kill_instant. Each attack was a whisper in the storm, a surgical cut against the chaos. The Slayer Blade carved through spirit after spirit, severing the unnatural from existence.

But it wasn't enough.

The cracks on his dagger grew wider until it finally broke.

A high-class spirit lunged, a dark blur in the moonlight. Takami dodged, pivoted, and drove his fist into its chest. The force sent it crashing into a nearby building, concrete crumbling on impact.

He exhaled. His fingers flexed. The same dead look settled in his eyes.

He had focused too much on using his dagger… He hadn't realized how much stronger he'd become physically.

Hand combat it was, then.

By the time sun had started rising, the spirit attacks had thinned. The weight in the air, once suffocating, had begun to lift.

Takami wiped the sweat from his forehead, his body aching, but he was still standing.

He needed to rest.

The moment he stepped inside, the innkeeper's door creaked open.

The old man's gaze settled on him, calculating, knowing.

"You weren't in your room last night," he said.

Takami didn't answer. He simply nodded once, silent, before disappearing into his room.

A cold shower later, he collapsed onto the futon, the exhaustion finally crashing down on him.

He checked his progress.

[ Kills Confirmed_

| Low-Class Spirits Defeated: 15 (15 x 20,000 = 300,000 yen)

| High-Class Spirits Defeated: 5 (5 x 35,000 = 175,000 yen)

| High-Class 2 Spirits Defeated: 0

Total: 475,000 yen acquired.]

It wasn't enough.

He had to push further.

Sleep claimed him instantly.

By the time he woke up, the clock read 3:05 PM.

His brows furrowed. Had he really been that exhausted?

Then he saw his phone. 23 missed calls.

His chest tightened. Mom. Yuri. Jimin.

He called his mother first.

Her voice showed immediate relief

"Takami! Where have you been? You said a week, but you didn't even—"

"I'm fine," he cut in, keeping his voice steady. "I told you I'd be back in a week."

"You didn't tell me where you were."

A pause.

"…I can't say."

She sighed, frustration into her concern. "Then promise me. Call me every day. Until you get back."

"I promise."

"Alright honey, bye"

"Bye mom"

The call ended.

He dialed Yuri and Jimin next, putting them on speaker.

"Where the hell have you been idiot?" Yuri snapped immediately. "Your mom's freaking out. Even your siblings have been sick worried about you."

Takami leaned back against the wall, staring at the ceiling. "I'll be back soon."

Jimin scoffed. "Hope you didn't go do some crazy shit again."

Takami didn't answer.

Yuri sighed. "You better be safe."

"Yeah," Jimin muttered. Then his tone sharpened. "If you die, I'll kill you."

The call cut.

Takami blinked. That was… oddly new for Jimin.

He needed a weapon.

Asking around didn't get him much, until the restaurant owner from last night approached him.

"You're looking for something, aren't you?" the man said, closing up his shop.

Takami hesitated. "A weapon."

The man hummed. "I see. You know it was strange seeing someone leave his peaceful town to come here to Okutama, but that wasn't it at all I guess" then he smiled "You're not just passing through, are you?"

Takami said nothing.

A knowing look crossed the man's face. "Come with me."

His house was small but sturdy. The moment they stepped inside, the owner went to the back, returning with an old sword.

"I used to hunt spirits too you know, High grant level" he admitted. "But then I retired, earlier than others usually did after my wife passed away."

He handed Takami the weapon.

"Finish what I couldn't... What we couldn't."

Takami accepted it with a slight nod.

Back at Ome City (Takami's home town)

Nyx had searched everywhere.

No sign of Takami.

Her patience was thinning. "Where the hell is he?, did he know I've been following him and fled, Tch... Don't mess with me Takami Ryusei."

Expanding her search to all of Tokyo was the next step.

In a restaurant, she ran into Jimin by the entrance.

"Um, hey there." She said

"Huh?" Jimin turned "Ohh hey, um... Yona right?"

"Yhup," she replied "getting dinner I guess?"

"Well yeah," Jimin said "let's go inside, the food isn't gonna meet us is it?" He added sarcastically

They both went in, got along a bit. A brief chat and then parted ways.

But she wasn't giving up on finding Takami, that was for sure.

Okutama was changing.

Day by day, the oppressive darkness lifted.

Spirits thinned. The town breathed again.

People noticed. The restaurant owner smiled knowingly.

By the sixth night, Takami's total income had reached:

1.3 million yen.

But he still had zero High-Class 2 Spirit Kills.

It was time for the final battle.

As Takami stepped out, a voice called:

"You really are crazy after all."

He turned.

The innkeeper sat outside, watching him.

"It's not safe out here," Takami said.

"It is now." The old man smiled. "Thanks to a random stranger who happened to stay here for a week I guess."

A beat of silence.

"Have a seat, would ya?" the old man said

Takami hesitated. Then sat.

"You know the only thing still keeping the few of us here are the memories we refuse to let go of, the ones that'll only be forgotten if we leave the land to completely be a spirit play ground" the old man sighed, "Well this how it all started,"

The old man began his story.

Fifteen years ago, Okutama was different. Peaceful. Nature-bound. Then it all changed when a High-Class 2 Spirit attacked.

The innkeeper had been the leader of the team sent to eliminate it, It was meant to be his last mission before retiring.

They almost won. But the spirit ran away.

The next day, it returned with a more deadly look on it's face, stronger, it's body was more than just upgraded, It... Evolved.

They called for backup. The government. Their guild.

Nothing.

They were abandoned there as test rats, all because the spirit wasn't fully understood and other selfish reasons.

His entire team was wiped out.

The spirit formed a charge. The town was torn apart. People hid.

And for fifteen years, Okutama was a graveyard of fear.

"No one ever bothered saving it," the old man said. "Not until you came."

A pause first before he continued, "If I may ask… what's your grant level?"

Takami stood up.

"Low grant level " he said.

The old man smirked. "Keeping it a secret, huh?"

Takami didn't answer. He walked away.

"Seems he hasn't evaluated yet, maybe that's why I've never heard of him. Is he Rank-1 in high grant or... A spirit keeper at most," the old man sighed and stood up "I wonder how he's pulling this off." as he headed for his room

The moment he turned the corner he saw a High-Class 2 Spirit.

[ Enemy threat code: Orange (Hard). ]

[ Current Status: High Grant Level (Yellow). ]

But this time…

The system didn't tell him to retreat.

He sighed. Drew his sword.

This was it.

Meanwhile at the Ryusei Residence

A ring at the doorbell.

Tomoe rushed to open it, hoping it was Takami.

It wasn't.

It was a face from TV.

One of Shurin Guild's Elites.

Second-in-command.

Rei.

To be continued…