The Visible Boy

Three months later.

Qian Xiaoyi slumped onto the sofa in his office, an unlit cigarette dangling from his lips, his eyes blankly staring at the reddening clouds outside the window.

Three months. A full three months, and he hadn't received a single legitimate commission. The only reason he was still alive was thanks to some Chinese clients introduced by Big Brother Zhang, who needed help with things like feng shui. Otherwise, he would have starved to death long ago. Of course, he hadn't made much money either. After all, he'd boasted that he'd give a 50% discount to people Big Brother Zhang introduced, and he hadn't encountered any truly malevolent spirits. He was just barely scraping by.

It wasn't that Japan didn't have as many ghosts as the Taoist priests thought. Japan's ghosts were far more numerous compared to the mainland. Qian Xiaoyi could see one or two spirits mixed in with the crowds just walking down the street, but no one could notice them. At first, Qian Xiaoyi would act out of kindness, performing rituals at crossroads in the middle of the night to help these harmless spirits pass on. But unfortunately, after two or three such attempts, passersby called the police, and he was arrested as a suspicious individual. It was Big Brother Zhang who eventually came to bail him out.

Then he understood. The social atmosphere here dictated that these harmless spirits couldn't be cleanly exorcised. Besides, even if he ignored them, they would eventually dissipate on their own, only to be replaced by new lonely spirits. So, he decided to let it be.

During these three months, Qian Xiaoyi tried all sorts of advertising methods, like posting ads online and printing his own flyers. But no one took him seriously. It had to be said that Japanese people were indeed very insular, especially those in Tokyo. Although they appeared polite on the surface, they maintained an extreme coldness at their core. Most people just went along with the crowd. If one person did something that everyone else wasn't doing, they would stand out and might be subjected to bullying. This bullying usually manifested through words and actions, essentially a cold shoulder approach like "nobody wants to play with you," occasionally mixed with sarcastic remarks. For the average Japanese person, this was highly effective.

As a foreigner, most Japanese people kept their distance from Qian Xiaoyi, let alone hiring him for exorcisms. However, Qian Xiaoyi wasn't Japanese and didn't care what they thought. He lived his life as usual. Now, he had given up.

After lying there for a few more hours, he checked the time. It was past eight in the evening. Qian Xiaoyi stretched, got up with the cigarette still in his mouth, and went out. He was heading to the nearby supermarket to grab discounted bento boxes; these were his meals these days. If he went too late, he might only be left with plum bento boxes – those "Hinomaru" bentos with just a single pickled plum in the center of the rice. He didn't know how Japanese people could eat them.

Humming a tune, he went downstairs. Next to a utility pole downstairs, a plump figure stood. Seeing Qian Xiaoyi, it greeted him respectfully, "Good evening, Brother Yi!"

"A Jian, you're still here? Why don't you go become a Buddha?" Qian Xiaoyi asked.

"No!" the fat man replied. "I have to wait for that game to be released!"

"Oh, suit yourself," Qian Xiaoyi said, waving his hand and strolling towards the supermarket, completely ignoring the strange glances from an old lady passing by.

The fat man just now, as you might have guessed, was a ghost. Normal people couldn't see him. Unlike lonely spirits, this guy was an earth-bound spirit. The first floor below Qian Xiaoyi's office was an audio-visual store, specializing in things that otaku liked, such as anime and manga, and also selling electronic games. The fat man, A Jian, was a local. A few years ago, while queuing up late at night to buy a game, he suddenly had a heart attack and died next to the utility pole. His last wish before he died was to play a sequel to a game called "Heartbeat Bishoujo Adventure." His strong resentment transformed him into an earth-bound spirit, guarding the store's entrance.

—Honestly, Qian Xiaoyi had only encountered ghosts born from such obsessions in Japan.

But the game never released a sequel, and the store even removed the main game from its shelves. Fat otaku A Jian's resentment grew stronger and stronger, almost turning him into a malevolent spirit, attacking store employees and players who had forgotten the game. Coincidentally, Qian Xiaoyi, who had rented the second floor, passed by. He hadn't even begun any rituals; just speaking a few words to A Jian had scared him so much that he reverted back to being an earth-bound spirit.

"I'm sorry! I caused you trouble! I'm truly sorry!" A Jian prostrated himself before Qian Xiaoyi at the time, bowing with his head to the ground. Discovering that he could be seen, he was so terrified that all his resentment vanished, and he dared not do anything bad anymore.

Qian Xiaoyi discussed with him about helping him pass on, but the fat otaku's obsession was too strong. He insisted on waiting for the game to be released. Qian Xiaoyi let him be. If he didn't want to leave, forcibly helping him pass on would be harmful to both of them. Since he wasn't causing any trouble, Qian Xiaoyi decided to leave him be.

"A moment of despair leads to resentment, a moment of downpour leads to fear..." Humming a tune, Qian Xiaoyi arrived at the supermarket, ready to buy a few more discounted bento boxes to store in the refrigerator for a couple of days. As expected, a few people were already gathered near the bento section, preparing to snatch up discounted bentos. There were some dejected-looking office workers, several middle-aged and elderly aunties, and some poor-looking high school students in their teens. As soon as the time came, the store clerk replaced the bentos with half-price stickers, and those gathered began to grab them.

Qian Xiaoyi timed it perfectly, arriving at an advantageous position. His hands were quick, and he successfully grabbed two half-price pork cutlet bento boxes and some discounted fruit. As he was about to head to the checkout counter, he saw an interesting scene.

The high school student grabbing bentos was pushed to the back and only managed to get a box of dried small fish bento. Then, as he was about to join the checkout line, he stopped in front of the shelves because the path ahead of him was blocked. He tried to go around, but the person there kept blocking him, preventing him from passing.

"Um... could you please move?" the poor-looking high school student said somewhat timidly.

"As expected..." The figure heard the high school student's request and actually laughed. He looked up, his face covered in blood, and said with a smile, "You can see me after all!"

"?!" The high school student was greatly startled. He hurriedly dropped his bento and, under the strange gazes of everyone around, rushed straight through the ghost's body and fled the supermarket.

"...You can't escape! I will find you! You can't escape!" The ghost muttered to himself with a smile, a smile that looked particularly ferocious against the backdrop of blood on his face. Then, he passed through the wall and followed the high school student.

Qian Xiaoyi had intended to stop him, but he glanced at the discounted bentos in his hand. After some thought, he decided it was better to pay first. Otherwise, it would be too much of a waste to throw away the hard-won bentos like that little brat of a high school student.

By the time he finished queuing, paid for his items, and left the supermarket, the person and the ghost had long since disappeared without a trace.

However, Qian Xiaoyi had anticipated this. He pulled out a small Bagua Compass from his pocket and fiddled with it for a while. The needle in the center then pointed in a direction and vibrated slightly.