Chapter 10: The Apprentice Priestess

Miss Ariko Asano possessed a delicate and refined face. There remained a trace of childishness in her features, yet it was subtly overlaid with a hint of maturity. These contradictory impressions combined within her, lending her an air of otherworldly grace. To use Qiao Qiao’s words, one look was enough to tell she was someone formidable.

Ariko Asano was nothing like Qiao Qiao had imagined. There was no white robe, no traditional undergarment, no crimson hakama, nor the image of a shrine maiden wielding a Japanese longbow. Instead, she wore what any girl her age might: a pink sweatshirt, long trousers, athletic shoes, and a cloth tote slung casually over her shoulder. Her hair fell to her shoulders, adorned with a dainty hair ornament crafted from white sandalwood paper—a touch of girlish whimsy. In short, she was utterly adorable. Sitting beside her, Qiao Qiao felt as if he were committing a crime.

“Hm?” Ariko Asano was similarly surprised the moment she saw Qiao Qiao. The spiritual energy emanating from him was so dense.

Ariko Asano had been trained as a shrine maiden since childhood. She herself possessed considerable talent. She awakened her spiritual abilities at birth and began interacting with spirits and gods at five years old. Now, at fifteen, her spiritual power was impressive even among the apprentice shrine maidens at Atsuta Shrine.

Yet, in her estimation, her own spiritual power compared to Qiao Qiao’s was like a glass of water beside a lake. In fact, Ariko believed Qiao Qiao was a lake not because he possessed only that much spiritual power, but because her own perception could only register so much.

Why would the Exorcist Association send someone this powerful? She was puzzled, but soon understood—it must have been arranged by her father. When would he ever trust her to handle things on her own?

Still, why had she never heard of such a powerful individual before? Was he perhaps an exorcist from another prefecture? No matter. She must do her best and not let her father and his colleagues underestimate her.

“Hello, I am Ariko Asano from Atsuta Shrine,” she said.

“I am Qiao Qiao from the Shinjuku branch,” he replied, “spelled...” He patiently handed over his business card from the Exorcist Association. As a foreign student, people often mispronounced his name, so he always had to explain. Most Japanese instinctively read his name as Takahashi, but it was actually pronounced JOJO. Of course, Qiao Qiao had confirmed—he did not possess a Stand.

This time, his official role was that of assistant, accompanying Ariko Asano on her exorcism, as he had done twice before. Therefore, he made no effort to conceal his spiritual power, releasing just a fraction—perhaps a tenth—to gain her trust.

“Oh, a student from Huaxia? That’s quite rare,” Ariko remarked without any prejudice. Shrine maidens could exorcise spirits, so could Buddhist monks and onmyoji—why couldn’t a foreign student do the same?

She had even heard that at the Nerima branch, there was a nun who was a powerful exorcist. Now, meeting Qiao Qiao and sensing his formidable energy, Ariko had no objections. Perhaps she could even learn something from his methods.

“Let’s work well together, then.” This wasn’t Ariko’s first exorcism. It was her second. The first had been a ground-bound spirit near her school, which she had dispatched with ease. If not for her talkative senior that time, she thought the whole matter could have been settled in ten minutes.

This time, she was paired with a different senior and had chosen a vengeful spirit as her target. Both exorcists were experienced, so they proceeded smoothly. After a brief exchange, they arrived at the client’s location—a bakery called “Happiness Bread.” Perhaps the owner wished for every customer to find happiness in his bread.

Ariko, as the lead exorcist, naturally took the lead. As soon as the two stepped inside, they were greeted with a cheerful call. “Welcome!”

The only one in the shop was the owner, a slightly balding man whose wrinkled face wore a constant smile. There were no other customers. Apparently, the longing for happiness wasn’t so fervent after all.

“Hello, we’re from the Exorcist Association. I’m Ariko Asano from Atsuta Shrine, and this is my colleague, Qiao Qiao.” Ariko introduced herself with the polished courtesy of a young lady of noble upbringing, and made sure to introduce Qiao Qiao as well. She harbored no thoughts of entitlement—her companion’s spiritual power was far greater than hers, and he was a senior, deserving of respect.

“Oh? You’re finally here,” the owner said, surprised perhaps to see two students. After a moment’s hesitation, he stepped out from behind the register. “I am Toru Suzumura, the owner of this bakery.” With a bow, he greeted them.

“Although the file gives some background, I’d appreciate it if you could explain the situation in detail once more,” Ariko said with a practiced smile, sounding every bit the seasoned professional.

Toru Suzumura recounted his experience. Originally, Happiness Bread had been quite popular, attracting many customers. Then, he started having nightmares—always of an unknown man who simply stared at him in silence. That was just the beginning.

The next day, customers who had eaten his bread began suffering from vomiting, diarrhea, fevers, and headaches—without exception. At first, Suzumura thought he’d failed in food safety, but tests showed nothing wrong with the bread, and no toxins were found in any of the afflicted customers.

This continued for three days. Although the reports cleared him of any fault, people stopped coming. At a friend’s suggestion, he suddenly realized he might be haunted by a vengeful spirit and contacted the Exorcist Association for help.

After listening to the story, Ariko glanced at the loaves in the display case. They looked delicious, yet eating them brought illness—truly bizarre. She wanted to ask Qiao Qiao’s opinion but, recalling his background, held her tongue.

Ariko closed her eyes, focused her mind, and opened them again. The world changed in an instant. Everything took on ghostly overlays—some things shone, others dimmed. Around Toru Suzumura, shadowy wisps clung to him, eroding his spirit. Other than that, nothing seemed amiss—perhaps because it was daytime, the vengeful spirit could not act.

This was spirit vision. Ariko channeled her energy into her eyes, allowing her to see into another world—a technique from Shinto. Naturally gifted, she could always see oddities, much like those born with second sight. Yet in daily life, such talents were more a hindrance than a help.

Imagine biting into a pork cutlet, only to see the pig’s spirit staring back at you; eating a rolled omelet, and the chicken’s soul gazing reproachfully; or having sukiyaki, only to discover the pork isn’t what it seems. In short, for amateurs this was best avoided. Shrine maidens, as professionals, could seal or enhance their spirit vision with spells—normally keeping their sensitivity low, and unleashing it fully only during exorcisms. That was Ariko’s approach.

Qiao Qiao, however, made no such adjustments; he was always at full capacity.

At this moment, Qiao Qiao’s vision was entirely different. The bakery was shrouded in darkness, streaked with filthy, pitch-black blood and unidentifiable masses of flesh. The seemingly appetizing bread was filled with squirming, slick, warm tentacles. Clinging to Toru Suzumura was a grotesque entity that, from the moment Ariko and Qiao Qiao entered, had fixed its gaze on the pair.

As Qiao Qiao’s eyes met its own, it twisted into a hideous grin.