"I'm back from school, grandma."

"Ah! Teru, welcome back home."

"TERU NII-CHAN! GRANDMA! I'M BACK, TOO!" Kou flies into the house right behind me with enthusiastic energy.

"My precious little children!" She rubs our heads violently as I silently wince. "We have things to discuss, so come along."

'Things to discuss'...

Meaning...?

She signals for us to follow her. Kou and I follow her to her room while we leave our little sister with our mother.

If we're going to her room, it's not a good sign.

I close the room behind me as I enter the old room.

"First things first!"

"I know, here's my test score. 502 out of 500."

"Good job, Teru! you always surpass my expectations." The old woman pats my head affectionately and then looks at Kou sternly with a sigh. "Kou, did you pass?"

"I did! I don't have to take extra classes anymore!" He celebrates his own victory.

"Wow, that's certainly, uhm... different! Good job!" Kou smiles proudly as he receives more head pats from the carefree grandma.

After praising us, she glues on a frown. "Now that that's settled, let's move on to the important things. Kou, dear, if it's okay with you, I want you to leave."

She says patronisingly, as if Kou were too young to be involved, in which he is.

But clearly, Kou wants to be involved in conversations like these. "But, grandma-!"

"It's about the evil triplets in your school." She interrupts without hesitation, "We need to exorcise them as quickly as possible - it's been far too long."

"But, grandma! What if they're... Not as bad as we think they are? What if they're... nice? Hanako saved me multiple times, and- and-", Kou pleads with no avail.

I sigh as I know it's no use. He never learns...

Grandma holds up a fan and smacks the wooden bedside table violently. The table breaks in half with a loud bang.

Kou winces slightly and stares at Grandma.

"MINAMOTO KOU! Stop being stubborn, and go to your room. I told you to leave! You will never be a great exorcist if you think those spirits are 'nice'!"

I gesture to the old lady not to go any further. Any more than this and her frail body will get sick.

"Kou, I'll talk to you later, go make dinner for us, will you?"

I give him the expression that says, 'If this goes further, I will hurt you more than Grandma hurt that table.'

Kou gets up and slams the door on his way back to the living room sulkily. As we hear him begin to cook, Grandma and I start up our conversation.

"So, Grandma... Do you want me to exorcise those three supernaturals?"

"To put it simply, yes. I have faith in you, Teru. You're only in high school... But look how strong you are."

"Grandma, why do you hate supernaturals?"

"Teru, supernaturals are simply a threat to the living, and I know from experience. One must not communicate with the dead."

...

"Grandma, I promise you... I will exorcise them no matter what. If you give me a week or so to plan and work out every possibility, I can do it."

"And?"

"...And?"

"Oh, Teru dear, I'm your grandmother! I can see right through you, and I know you have something else to tell me."

... She knows ...

There's no hiding from her.

"If I do end up exorcising them... I want you to help me to turn a certain supernatural I know back into a human."

Her face is full of disappointment. "... And why is that?"

"I... don't know. She's... done nothing wrong.", trying desperately to change the subject I quickly add, "I read everything about soul transfer and that every generation has at least one person capable of using those powers. I have already seen you do it a few times for unfortunate souls."

Grandma gravely stares at me, and then sighs. I still hold my frown.

"So, you read it... I hate to admit it, but I learnt it from a supernatural as it is common knowledge among them. It's simple enough; we need to move their soul back to their body. It comes with a price, though.

The soul that has been transferred can only die when I, or a person who is chosen to be able to transfer souls,, releases the soul back to the far shore-"

...

"...Teru... What did I say? I told you to exorcise the three triplets. They are a threat to the school and humanity itself." She starts to raise her voice. "At least, the two boys are a requirement. The girl is harmless, but who knows what potential she has if she's related to those two!"

"Grandma-" I start to shout, but realise it's no use.

Realising what I have said, I stand up and bow. "I'm sorry, Grandma. I'll exorcise those two as soon as I can."

I walk off before she can say anything, and go to the kitchen.

"Hey, Kou, if you don't mind, can you put all meals down the well in the backyard for a week or two?"

"Again? That's unhealthy for you, and you won't be able to spend time with us for-"

"Thank you Kou, I really appreciate it!", I interrupt, using my trademark grin.

As he tilts his head, I lean in closer to him. "Make sure to drop it down at 6:00AM, 1:30PM and 7PM."

-------------------------------------------

Stairs form in the well as I walk deeper inside of it. There are doors surrounding us and I have to find the door to the library.

This place is similar to Mystery No. 2's boundary. The doors connect to many different places either around the school or my home.

But there's one place that belongs to neither of those.

It has to be around here somewhere...

At last, I spot a familiar-looking door.

I grunt out as I try to pull the door open. It's heavy.

Oh...

It's the Vice-President, Akane, and the pretty-looking girl, Aoi, in a desert.

I think I just came in at the wrong time. And place.

Well, isn't this interesting...

"Am I... interrupting something?" I ask, smiling, well knowing that I am.

"LEAVE!" my Kouhai yells, pushing me back from where I came from.

Must have been the wrong door...

That didn't go as planned... And now, I want to know what happened.

"Ah, I found it. I'm sure it's this one.", I say as I find a white door with a golden handle and a butterfly symbol. "My library."

It's a special place for me since all the information I have and need is right here.

It took me a few years to get everything I needed, but it was all worth it. It's not as great as No. 4's library since I can't predict the future, but there are still books about all kinds of supernaturals and ways to exorcise them.

In the millions of notebooks lining the shelves, I wrote about their weaknesses and strengths while also making some attack patterns.

"Welcome back, Teru." A high pitched voice squeaks.

"Hi, Puff."

Puff is a mokke who lives and works here so that I don't need to come down everyday to clean things up. I give it candy and she tidies my things. It's a great deal.

"So, how many days are you given this time?", Puff squeaks in the usual I-just-inhaled-a-tonne-of-helium voice.

"A week or two."

"That's new. Why so long? Is it dangerous?"

"It sure is dangerous. And hey, Puff, can you get me all the information files relating to Tsukasa Yugi, Hanako-san or Amane Yugi, and (Y/N) Yugi or Jisatsu-san? Oh, and I also need you to get me all the books about soul transfer."

"And the meals?"

"Ah, you can get them at 6:00AM, 1:30PM and 7PM. The usual spot."

"Yes, sir!"

"GRANDMA!"

"Yes, my princess?"

"Look! I think I put a random dog's soul in my teddy bear!"

The five year old Tiara Minamoto flings her teddy bear in front of her grandma.

"Oh my, what power at such a young age! Let me release the soul and then you and I can have some fun... Say, what about some practice?"

By 'practice,' Tiara knows what that means, from personal experience. She pouts and angrily gives the bear to the senior.

"Aw... I don't like combat training. It's no fun..."

"No, sweetheart, we're doing special training this time. I think it's about time you learnt it. It's called 'soul transfer.'" Her grandma pats her head. "It's technically what you did just now, but if you train with me you can take full control of the power and expand your abilities."

There are many words in those sentences the little girl doesn't understand, but she pretends to fully understand anyway.

But there's one question she wants to ask.

"Grandma, why is it called 'soul transfer'?"

"It's because you can get the soul and move the soul to a new body."

"Wow! That sounds cool!"

She pats the girl's head and stands up.

"First, we need to practice on how to make a human body. We need clay and a special type of exorcism to bring it to life with a soul inside. It's like they have never died!

"Tiara-chan, this is a secret between you and me. Since you've been chosen, you have two ways to convert a spirit back to a human.

"The first method is what I mentioned before and the second one is a bit more complicated.

"There is a second method that is harder, because you need to find the source of the power of a spirit, which is called a Yorishiro. Although, many spirits do not have them, only the strongest ones do.

"It will also only be like a shell of the original supernatural, so it may not have all the previous memories or be fully complete in terms of personality."

The old lady looks at the confused infant.

"Ah, perhaps it's a little too hard for now?"

"N-NO!" Tiara yells embarrassed, "LET'S START, GRANDMA!"

-------------------

"Wow, Tiara-chan! You've improved a lot since last week."

"This is quite easy...!"

"Just a bit more practice and you can officially do it!"

"Yay!"

"Nii-chan? Why are you here already? School didn't end yet."

Teru just walks away, completely ignoring his sister.

"Nii-chan? Are you okay?"

"Sorry, Tiara. Can you please go to your room? I'm really tired."

He has tear stains visible on his face.

And Minamoto Teru never cries.

"Are you okay?"

"..."

"Hey, Tiara, let me talk to your brother, hm? Teru, let's go inside your room."

-------------------

"Grandma, I'm too tired, can we please talk later?"

"Did you exorcise them?"

"...No, grandma I-" I hesitate. "(Y/N)..."

My heart drops into my stomach.

What did I just do...?

What did I just do-?!

What did I just do?!

I don't want to process it all in. Instead, I push it all away, but it won't help.

"Our deal was you to clear the brothers, and spare (Y/N) if you had to."

"But, Grandma-"

"No, she's gone isn't she?"

I look at her with eyes that give her a 'yes'.

I'm not sure why, but I feel tears begin to touch my face again.

I'm Minamoto Teru, the eldest son of the ancient Minamoto clan...

And I'm here, crying about the death of an apparition? In front of my old woman too?

How pathetic can I get?

I don't dare to show my Grandmother my crying face.

Putting my wrist over my eyes, I lay on my back on the bed.

That warugaki...

She really left.

And it's all because of me.

Who am I, to grieve over a death caused by me?

I'm a murderer.

Yeah, murderer. That's what I am.

Say... How many lives have I taken away, with my job as an exorcist?

Aren't exorcists just murderers?

"Teru-nii?"

"Huh?"

My little sister peeks through the open doorway, breaking my train of thought.

Ah, right. Tiara is here too.

I put on a smile for her.

"Come here, let me give you a hug, Tiara. Sorry Nii-chan ignored you."

"Teru-nii, I have a big secret that I'm not supposed to say, but..."

"Hmm?"

Her cute face puts on a frown, as if trying to act serious. Then she suddenly bursts out.

"Grandma is not the only one who can do soul transfer. It's not perfect, but I'm close!"

"You can do soul transfer?"

"Mhm! It means I'm special! And! Not just soul transfer, but I can also harness the Yorishiro's power and transfer it into the clay body!"

She hands me a dirty and deformed piece of clay.

Huh...

From the looks of it... She... She has a lot of potential...

If she can do all this, maybe...

Maybe...

"Tiara... Can you do me a big favor?"

It's selfish of me.

It's selfish of me to go against the ways of nature.

But for (Y/N)? I'm willing to go against it anyday.

"Of course, anything for you, Nii-chan!"

"I... I need to go find the Yorishiro... Wait here, I'll be back!"

I burst out of the house, sprinting towards the school.

If she still has her Yorishiro...

Anything...

I can bring her back.

I play the piano in a rush and the door to her boundary opened.

If I remember clearly, her Yorishiro was...

A photograph.

I let out a quick sigh of relief, watching as my sweat and tears fall to the ground.

A photo of her and her siblings lie on top of a table.

The power isn't as strong as it should, but it's enough.

This is my last chance to bring (Y/N) back.

-------------------

"TIARA, WHERE ARE YOU!?"

"NII-CHAN! I'M HERE! I already made the body you just need to put the Yorishiro here." she gestures at the clay figurine she got ready for (Y/N).

"Tiara, I trust you."

I hand her the photograph.

"You can count on me, Nii-chan!"

Carefully placing it inside the body, the clay glows, surrounded by a ball of light.

Soon, in a blink of an eye, it became a perfect replica of (Y/N).

Did it work? Did it fail?

A dark, brown orb opens.

...

"Ngh... What the fuck...? Was that a dream or what...? And where am I...?" The girl observes her body like a child.

(Y/N)...

"(Y/N)-!"

I hug her and she immediately grins as she hugs me back with warmth of her body, as if suddenly realising everything.

"I'm back, Teru."

I flood with relief.

She's back.

We both release each other at last as I say, "I have your ribbons. Let me tie them on for you."

"Sure...! MURA-JOUDAI!"

Silence.

"...Mura-joudai?"

"You're not a supernatural anymore, and look in the mirror."

Right then, Tiara comes bouncing in with a small mirror and reflects (Y/N)'s appearance in the glass.

"From the looks of it, you're the same age as me now," I say, perking up a little.

"What do you mean, Teru-?" Her face begins to panic as she hits me on the head. "I- You- You idiot! How am I going to get a job? How am I going to survive? I haven't studied in ages, literally!"

"(Y/N), calm down, look at me." I grab her hands and give her a reassuring smile.