ISEKAI EXORCIST

Some from Bellany’s group had returned with some of the materials I had asked for, such as paper, ink, and brushes of so many varieties that it seemed like they’d emptied out an entire store.

I took a seat on the ground and used one of the flagstones as my table, while drawing out two identical wards that were similar to the ones I’d used in the Mossbloom Redoubt, but with a few tweaks based on Armen’s comments. The strangest thing was that I was starting to sort of understand how the sigils functioned and why his suggestions made sense. Functionally, the wards weren’t much different than my Soul Barrier, but the benefit was that they worked without needing to be intentionally activated, and drew upon the energy fed into them when they were created, rather than requiring a constant supply. Basically, ‘battery-powered’ Soul Barriers.

When I’d finished with both, I felt a sensation I hadn’t experienced in a while: energy exhaustion. Not to the point of collapse, but enough to make me carefully consider how I spent my energy going forward. It seemed that the distance between Saoirse and I meant that I could not draw on her vast supply.

I got to my feet and then handed Bellany one of the paper slips, before attaching the other to the front of my clothes.

“This should inoculate you from experiencing madness and hallucinations,” I told her.

“Should?” she replied sceptically.

“Are you ready?” I asked.

She nodded slowly. She’d brought a pouch of salt, a lantern, and two of the many relics they’d carted here. One was a sun-shaped pendant, which was potentially associated with the Church, while the other was a bronze censer already letting out a bit of smoke from within.

I sniffed the air, trying to figure out what was inside it.

“What is that?”

“Fall Weed,” Armen answered before she had a chance.

“The Church uses it for ritualistic cleansing.”

The Crusader made a noise of displeasure. I could already imagine him complaining about how ‘in his time’ it was considered to be superstition or something along those lines. However, for the sake of cooperation, he was staying silent.

“Get rid of it,” I told her.

“Why?”

“Because it is worthless against Haunters.”

She frowned.

“If you want to use something effective, switch it out for Gravebloom Incense. It will ward off most spirits like Shades and Wraiths, although it will beckon Revenants to it.” I wasn’t going to hand her any of mine though, since it was useless for the Haunter we were up against here.

“What about Demons?” she asked.

“No effect. For those kinds of entities, you want to use Blessed or Holy relics or magic.”

“We do have a Blessed Bell,” she told me.

I nodded. “Good, swap your censer for that.”

She went over to the crate full of assorted relics and began to sift through it.

“Fall Weed is a useless superstition,” Armen complained. “It has no proven effect on the Soul.”

I smirked at his words, then said, “I’m surprised they have a Blessed Bell.”

“Those are often sold by the Church in Evergreen,” he replied.

“For what purpose?”

“They are meant to be rung twice before going to sleep.”

I thought about it. “That’s actually not a bad idea. Would probably work to keep something like the Mare away, as well as most spirits.”

“Sadly, many believe that to be a superstition.”

“Well, if they used it when any Bloodfiends were around they’d basically be beckoning them, so it’s not a perfect catch-all to avoid supernatural trouble, but certainly better than anything else I’ve seen these Explorers use.”

“Your tome said that Mares were akin to Shades, did it not? Then why do they believe it is a Demon?”

“It does,” I replied. “But it’s a mix of Shade and Phantasm, and seems to mimic many traits of Demons, such as their weakness to Blessed and Holy stuff, as well as behavioural patterns, hence why it must’ve fooled them. To be honest, I feel like the types are just very loose categorisations. I think it’s considered to be part Shade because it’s incorporeal, i.e. invisible to the human eye, and Phantasm because it’s born of negative emotions and dreams. That’s what makes it truly dangerous, because once it appears, it can create a fertile soil for more of its kind.”

“It sounds like this Haunter has been here a while.”

“I don’t know exactly how long it would take for it to happen, but it probably helped that the other residents moved out.”

Bellany came back with a small golden bell that was similar to my own in many ways, but looked cheaper, such as in the way that the gold was flaking off in places, showing that below it was gold-plated copper, instead of pure gold like mine.

I frowned.

“Ring it for me, if you would.”

She rang the bell and it was a normal sound that emerged.

I sighed. “It’s useless.”

Armen took it out of her hands and studied it.

“It has not been blessed.”

“It has!” Bellany insisted.

The Crusader’s black gauntlets glowed and suffused the small bell, making it produce an eerie echoing diiiing through the air, turning the heads of the few Explorers who was still lingering around nearby.

“Now it is blessed.”

“Ring it again,” I told her.

She rang it and this time the sound was closer to that of my own Blessed Golden Bell, as it echoed strangely in the air, with the sound lingering for longer than a normal bell’s would have.

I nodded. “That’s better. If you think you are about to be attacked, ring this bell. It will momentarily repel or even stun most Haunters. But don’t ever use it on Revenants, especially Bloodfiends!”

She swallowed hard, but took it all in. “Understood.”

“Alright then, I think we’re ready to head in.”

Bellany shared a couple words with people from her group, some of which seemed like the sort of “In case I don’t survive…” talk, and it was hard not to take it as a jab against my capabilities.

Armen and I were standing near the entrance to the apartment building, which had a total of four floors and seemed divided into eight ‘houses’ that were fairly-big, compared to modern-day Earth. I wasn’t sure exactly which one I’d be getting the deed for once I completed the exorcism, but part of me hoped I might get the whole thing. It was definitely possible that none of the former residents would want to return.

“Jules, you’re coming with us as well. Just focus on protecting me in case this is one of those monsters that throws a lot of objects.”

“Yes, my Liege!” he said excitedly, as I pulled him out of my front-facing pocket and placed him on the ground.

The wooden puppet grew to the height of a person rapidly, drawing startled cries from the Explorers nearby, several of whom drew their weapons.

“Lower your weapons,” Armen demanded, and though they kept their eyes on my wooden familiar, they acquiesced.

“What’s this??” Bellany asked, coming over to where we stood.

“My familiar, he will be protecting us alongside Armen.”

“Fret not, my shield will guard you well!” he said eagerly.

“…It talks.”

“His name is Jules,” I told her.

She looked worried.

I guess I shouldn’t blame her, but he’s at least not the creepiest kind of entity I could’ve revealed to them. I’m sure if I brought out Nami the Drowned, they’d all immediately attack it…

After rummaging through a belt pouch, I took out my Barrier Ring Focus and walked up to the steps that led to the main entrance into the apartment complex. Jules was next to me the whole way, while Armen and Bellany followed a few steps behind. She wore the ward I’d made on the front of her light-brown tunic.

Hopefully it works against a Mare.

Walking across the threshold, it was like a heavy pressure fell on my shoulders. The light from outside seemed to dim and sounds were muffled, almost like the entire building was submerged underwater.

I sent some energy into my Focus, as I channelled Soul Barrier, and it began spinning, making the burden ease up slightly.

Moments later, the ward on the front of my robe-coat began to glow violet. As it took over the work of my Focus, I stopped feeding my limited energy into it.

“I suppose now would be a good time to ask if your shield can actually defend against incorporeal spirits,” I told Jules.

“It cannot my Liege. At least, I do not believe so.”

I sighed. I should’ve perhaps expected that.

Meigetsu, come closer.

The ever-orbiting moonlight fabric zipped through the wall and reduced the diameter of its orbit to just two metres.

“Jules, you’ll be my assistant instead. Put away your weapons.”

“Yes, my Liege!”

I handed him the Energy Stone, which was already glowing faintly.

It’s best not to work on preconceived notions, so we’ll do this methodically. If the wards burn out, we’ll go back outside and make new ones. There’s no need to rush this.

“How are you feeling?” I asked Armen, while Bellany was studying the glowing ward on her clothes. He had been absolutely fine during our attempt to deal with the Lich that Kumi had turned into, but he wasn’t invulnerable to illusions.

“I am sensing a distinct pressure, but my mind and my soul are inviolable. It does not compare to the Redoubt.”

“I feel okay,” Bellany said.

“Good, we’ll sweep through the bottom floors first, trying to locate anything that might elicit a response from my Energy Stone. I suspect we may encounter activity in the bedrooms, if my theory about the Haunter is correct.”

While Jules worked as the sweeper, holding the Energy Stone and noting every time it glowed brighter than normal, I was looking through the rooms using one of Karasumany’s clones that sat on my shoulder.

There were two apartments per floor, with a hallway and stairwell between them. Although there were signs of minor activity from the Energy Stone, as well as faded Spirit Handprints, the bottom floor offered no substantial clues.

And what’s more, the bedrooms were hardly any different from the rest, which was starting to poke holes in my pet theory, though I didn’t want to openly admit it. I’d immediately assumed we were dealing with a Mare due to its proclivity for terrifying those within its territory, as well as inflicting insanity. However, Mares did most of their haunting in people’s imaginations and dreams, with the prey’s pillows often noted as covered in Spirit Prints.

The Prints I’d found so far were seemingly random. Two faint claw-marks on a door, several on the windows, the inside of cupboards, and the floors under beds. But nothing on the pillows or things directly associated with sleep, like duvets and blankets.

“We should check out the first floor,” I told them, and Jules led the way up the stairs.

The gloom and dimming light intensified on the floor above, and Bellany quickly sparked a light inside her lantern, casting a golden glow across the hallway that led to the entrances of the apartments.

No sooner had the flame come to life than a humming filled the air. It was the product of a deep male voice and it sounded gleeful in a way, as though it was having fun. More disconcertingly, it sounded like it was right behind us, so I quickly whirled around, my Singing Branch in my hand, but the hum had already repositioned itself to down the end of the hallway.

For a single instant, I saw what looked like a translucent brown arm trailing six claws along the floor and sprouting from the ceiling above, but then it vanished after I blinked.

I was starting to wonder if I was wrong about my theory.

“We keep going,” I told them.