"Your Father Is an Evil Spirit."

"Hey, hey, can you hear me?"

Before using the Imperial Spirit Technique, Uesugi Tetsu first condensed a bit of Spiritual Power directly in his palm, then questioned the rag doll.

As expected, nothing happened.

The rag doll continued staring silently at Uesugi Tetsu with those black, pearl-like eyes.

But that was fine. This was the control group.

Now for the experimental group.

Uesugi Tetsu chanted under his breath while carefully circulating the same amount of Spiritual Power. With his fingertip, he drew a simple pentagram on the rag doll's forehead—the "Kikyo Seal" of Onmyōjutsu.

According to the Imperial Spirit Technique, he should now be able to communicate with the rag doll on a basic level.

However, it hadn't specified exactly how that communication was supposed to work.

After reviewing the process in his mind once more and confirming that he hadn't made a single mistake, Uesugi Tetsu, ready to transform into Laughing Brahma at any moment, asked again:

"Can you hear me? Can you hear me?"

The rag doll remained completely motionless. It couldn't even be bothered to turn over and point its backside at him.

"That's strange."

Uesugi Tetsu scratched his head and prepared to ask Nanjō Emi.

[Moon Sand-chan]: Sister Nanjō, I accidentally learned a technique that lets me communicate with spirit-descended objects, but it doesn't seem to work on the rag doll you gave me.

After putting down his phone, Uesugi Tetsu began questioning the rag doll in various languages and in every way he could think of. Unfortunately, he got nothing out of it.

"—Did you find the lower half of Hasegawa? Mm-hmm, then put it together."

When dealing with the colleagues who had come to handle the cleanup, Nanjō Emi had reverted to her usual cold and capable self.

There was no trace of the slovenly figure from a few minutes ago, smoking while complaining furiously.

Beside the gradually dying sea of flames, a short-haired intern wearing an ID card on her chest got out of a vehicle and timidly approached Nanjō Emi.

"Younger Division Excellency, my name is Shizuma Mafuyu. From now on, I'll be replacing Mr. Hasegawa as your [apprentice]."

"Oh."

Nanjō Emi nodded indifferently. "Be careful. Don't die."

Her unapproachable manner left Shizuma Mafuyu at a loss for words.

She could only swallow the rest of her introduction and stand to one side, watching Nanjō Emi take out her phone—then suddenly change color.

Shizuma Mafuyu hurriedly asked while pulling out her special phone, "What's wrong?"

Nanjō Emi shook her head. "No, it's nothing."

It would be a miracle if nothing was wrong!

She clearly remembered typing out a message to Uesugi Tetsu on LINE with her alternate account just two or three minutes ago. So why was he asking about the Imperial Spirit Technique now?!

Could it be that Uesugi Tetsu had learned the written version of the Imperial Spirit Technique within those few minutes and already used it on the rag doll?!

Nanjō Emi silently swallowed. "How is that possible..."

No. Maybe it really was possible.

After asking about several details, Nanjō Emi had no choice but to admit that Uesugi Tetsu had indeed learned the Imperial Spirit Technique.

Even if he had only mastered its most basic principles and superficial aspects.

"Little Hiyori Bō wasn't wrong. He really is a genius."

Nanjō Emi said this to herself.

She exhaled and looked at the message sent from her alternate account four minutes ago. "The kind of peerless genius who appears only once in a thousand years."

[Sister Nanjō]: To communicate with the rag doll, you need to say my name twice in a row. Then it will speak. As for the mental influence, it does exist, but it's slight and benevolent. Its purpose is to help you avoid a certain danger.

[Moon Sand-chan]: Got it. Thanks for taking the time to answer, Sister Nanjō.

"Younger Division Excellency." Seeing the vehicles around them steadily thinning out, Shizuma Mafuyu said softly, "Aren't we leaving too?"

Her words pulled the stunned Nanjō Emi back to reality. She turned to Shizuma Mafuyu and gave her a faint smile, patting the top of her head. "Thanks for reminding me. Let's go."

"N-No need to thank me!"

Shizuma Mafuyu immediately stood at attention, then lowered her head and walked toward the driver's seat with her ears flushed red.

Nanjō Emi failed to notice her little movements. She was merely marveling at how geniuses seemed to keep appearing one after another in this world.

At that moment, the "once-in-a-thousand-years genius" bared his claws at the rag doll and shouted:

"—Nanjō Emi, Nanjō Emi! Can you hear me?"

As though it had finally received the correct command, the rag doll slowly turned its head. At last, it looked at Uesugi Tetsu and said stiffly, "Please ask your question."

Uesugi Tetsu happily leaned closer to the rag doll. After examining it carefully for a while, he heard the rag doll speak again.

"Please ask your question."

It seemed that was the only thing it knew how to say.

But perhaps his current level of the Imperial Spirit Technique was too low, or his Spiritual Power too weak, preventing the rag doll from speaking freely.

What should he ask the rag doll, then?

Uesugi Tetsu thought of Nanjō Emi's answer just now.

She had said that the rag doll's mental influence existed to help him avoid danger.

So Uesugi Tetsu asked, "I want to know what dangers are around me."

The rag doll blinked.

Then, in an extremely soft voice, it slowly said, "Father."

Father?

Uesugi Tetsu was somewhat baffled. How were those two words connected?

He grasped the rag doll's hand and asked, "Could you be more specific?"

Amid the silence, the rag doll first turned its head. Only after confirming something did it continue, "Your father..."

My father?

Uesugi Tetsu grew even more confused. His dad did nothing but watch sports every day. Could watching sports on an otherworldly schedule lead to the destruction of the world?

The rag doll fell silent, as though considering something.

Uesugi Tetsu shook the rag doll, his face full of curiosity. "Come on, what do you mean by stopping halfway through?"

The rag doll stared at him silently. Only after quite some time did it speak:

"—Your father is an evil spirit."

It was like being reminded by someone else that the phone you had been searching for was in your hand all along, or discovering the keys in the pocket you were wearing only after turning the entire house upside down.

As the rag doll's words fell, the "barrier of knowledge" in Uesugi Tetsu's mind shattered with ease.

First, he suddenly understood and immediately realized everything that had been unreasonable about that "father." Then he harshly criticized his former idiot self in his heart for a while.

Ghosts these days sure played dirty. Was his household register down to a single page? Why did they always like pretending to be people's parents?!

After finishing his mental rant, Uesugi Tetsu silently repeated the rag doll's words to himself.

Then he immediately broke out in a cold sweat.

An evil spirit?

What level was an evil spirit? How many stars was it?!

A chill ran down Uesugi Tetsu's back. He realized that since the father ghost had been able to deceive him in an instant and construct so many false memories, it was naturally far beyond anything he could resist.

He couldn't stay in this house! At least not tonight!

Uesugi Tetsu hurriedly got out of bed. Without bothering with anything else, he reached for the rag doll, intending to leap out through the window.

But at some point, the rag doll had already jumped off the bed. With its back to him, it silently turned toward the door.

Uesugi Tetsu's scalp went numb at the sight. He looked toward the door as well.

Knock.

Knock, knock.

A knocking sound came from outside the door.