Tokyo Soft Rice King.

“The beautiful young woman you brought is indeed very pretty. In my more than ten years in this industry, I have only seen one or two people who can compare to her. However, she has no ambition to become famous. You could say that her ambition is not in this area.”

"So, Ms. Saotome, your ability is also to see things that others can't see, right? Looking at it that way, it doesn't feel like the abilities we have are very powerful... I mean, they're not the kind of amazing abilities."

It's a bit like the abilities in the movie 'We Are All Superpowered,' which are all funny and comical abilities.

"Most of the abilities I've seen so far are like this: having them is good, but not having them won't have any impact, and they are all 'human-related abilities'."

Being related to people is perhaps a very important characteristic, since gods are also born from people's beliefs, so the abilities they give back to people are also related to people, which makes sense.

"Anyway, I haven't seen any superpowers that can summon wind and rain yet. I think either even gods don't have such abilities, or the conditions for using such abilities are extremely demanding. From the perspective of making them more usable, it would be better to give humans some 'abilities with little cost'."

Saotome Fuyumi shrugged and continued.

"Furthermore, the reason I can confirm that you are the key person is because my abilities have no effect on you; I cannot see your obsession."

"Huh? But you can see the words on my hand, right?"

“I can only see the words in your hand, but I can’t see the words in other people’s hands. It must be because your ability is working on yourself, just like my golden eyes, which are just a ‘mark’… Conversely, you can’t see the words in my hand either.”

Saotome Fuyumi raised her hands, palms facing Kuroba Akira.

Her hands were fair and smooth, with fingers as long and slender as her legs; they seemed perfect for playing the piano.

"Wow, it really is..."

Kuroba Akira could not see the words in Saotome Fuyumi's hand.

Generally speaking, even if there are no words on the right hand, there must be words on the left hand. After all, at this age, it's impossible for someone not to have any related skills.

This also proves that one's own abilities have no effect on those with special abilities.

From this perspective, identifying people with special abilities is actually quite simple.

Just check if there are any words on the other person's hand.

Chapter 258 I'll help you get your men

Of course, this method of judgment still has flaws.

That is truly an incompetent person who has no talent whatsoever, and who hasn't even reached the beginner level of proficiency since birth.

But such people are probably even rarer than 3S-level geniuses, right?

At least until now, Kuroba Akira has never seen anyone with empty hands.

Perhaps only newborn babies have such a blank state, since even elementary school students have their own strengths.

However, the level of proficiency that each person acquires at each stage of life is different. For skills that have been learned but not used for a long time, the proficiency will indeed gradually decrease until they become so unfamiliar that they are no longer recorded by the left hand.

Just like Kuroba Akira, who got his driver's license and learned to drive before going to university, but because he hadn't driven for more than ten years, his driving skills had deteriorated to the point that they weren't recorded on his left hand.

However, because they had learned it before, they could learn it much faster when they were "back in the game".

It can only be said that Kuroba Akira's abilities are not as obvious as Saotome Fuyumi's.

After exchanging information about what abilities could see and the rules between ability users, Saotome Fuyumi finished her coffee in one gulp and moved on to the next stage of the conversation.

"Well... I don't want to keep you in suspense or beat around the bush, let's just get straight to the point."

"Do we need to discuss this openly?"

"Yes, abilities aren't just about 'observation,' so I think you're probably hiding a part of your abilities, right?"

As expected, they both held back.

Kuroba Akira had already anticipated this, and raised an eyebrow as he spoke.

"Ms. Saotome, you're the same way, aren't you? If you can only see the obsession, you can't possibly give detailed advice to help Aunt Akiko walk the 'right path'."

"Ah, the 'right' path..."

Saotome Fuyumi tried to force a smile, but her lips couldn't quite manage it, revealing a bitter taste.

Akira Kuroba realized that Fuyumi Saotome might not think that guiding Aunt Akiko was a good positive example, and even had a slightly sarcastic tone.

However, not knowing the reason behind it, Kuroba Akira still spoke according to his original plan.

“Yes, that goes far beyond the opinions of professionals. Focusing on only one type of role is too crazy... So I guess Ms. Saotome, your decision must be related to your abilities.”

"You're definitely not a simple high school student..."

Saotome Fuyumi slowly raised her hand and rubbed her temples wearily. She had originally planned to negotiate first, but now it seemed she would have to confess first.

“Your judgment is basically correct. In fact, in addition to being able to see the gaseous obsession, I can also see the ‘content of the obsession’. Everyone has some obsessions to some extent. Even ‘I want to eat beef today’ can form a weak obsession, and I can see specific ‘words’ floating in the obsession.”

"Amazing!"

I can actually see the content of my obsession!

This is practically mind reading!

"Moreover, in addition to the 'observation' aspect, the ability itself also includes the 'carving' aspect."

"carve?"

“That’s right, inscription. All the abilities that gods bestow upon their agents are related to ‘writing’.”

“Writing… perhaps it’s because writing originated from rituals, and its main function was to facilitate communication between humans and gods.”

"That explanation makes sense... In short, the obsessions I see are actually divided into 'stages,' just like the talents and proficiency you see, except I don't see a clearer division of levels."

Kuroba Akira glanced at the words in his hand again. At first, he had complained that the system was too rudimentary, but now it seemed that it was quite detailed.

Saotome Fuyumi held up her first finger and said.

"I usually divide obsessions into two types: one is ordinary obsession, wanting to do something, wanting to get something... This kind of obsession either dissipates when it is achieved, or it fades away over time."

Then she continued, extending a second one.

“But some people develop an obsession with completing or obtaining something no matter what, but are unable to do or obtain it. And as time goes by, this obsession increases rather than decreases. I call this an ‘evil thought’.”

"Demonic thoughts... does that mean being possessed?"

"You could also say that you've become possessed by a demon. This kind of demonic thought almost never disappears naturally, and it will severely deplete a person's mind, affect their intellect, drive them crazy, and eventually cause them to collapse... The final outcome is often 'self-destruction'."

"A life of obsession, a death filled with regret..."

Isn't this just a 'madman'?

"Generally speaking, such obsessions are difficult to dispel by external forces unless the person has a complete and profound understanding... and this is where the ability of 'carving' comes in."

Saotome Fuyumi took the initiative to bring up the ability she truly possessed.

“I can instill a ‘word’ into them as a thought, giving these demonic thoughts a ‘direction’ to vent, which is what you call the segmentation suggestion.”

"...!"

That's it!

Thinking about it carefully, it's quite incredible that Aunt Akiko could completely and unconditionally trust Ms. Saotome, whom she had just met.

It's as if Saotome Fuyumi possesses a certain magic... a kind of convincing magic.

But now we know it's not magic, it's ability!

"This is what I meant by 'carving' earlier. I carve 'words' into the obsessions of those who have become possessed, and they will vent their obsessions in this direction until they achieve 'results' or the demonic thoughts are 'digested' in the process, and eventually they will return to normal."

After explaining her true abilities, Saotome Fuyumi concluded.

"Actually, I think my ability is more like performing 'exorcism' on the living."

"It does look somewhat like..."

Exorcists work to dispel the resentment of vengeful spirits and help the deceased find peace, while Saotome Fuyumi works to eliminate the demonic thoughts of the living and help them be reborn.

"Of course, there are no vengeful spirits in this world... uh, I guess they don't exist, right?"

Since even gods exist, it seems reasonable that ghosts also exist.

Could there really be Sadako or Kayako in this neon world?

No way! I hate unreasonable, calamity-inducing female ghosts the most!

Fortunately, Fuyumi Saotome seemed to have noticed what Akira Kuroba was worried about and kindly explained.

"You're overthinking it. If it's a white-clad female ghost like in the movies, or a so-called 'ghost,' then it certainly doesn't exist... To be precise, I've never seen one in my life."

"Phew...that's good."

Kuroba Akira patted his chest and breathed a sigh of relief. After all, Japan was a place known for its urban legends and supernatural events. If those were true, he would have to consider leaving this awful place.

"Of course, I did this not because I am kind-hearted, but because of the reason I just mentioned: those who have been granted abilities will be cursed by the gods if they do not use them."

Do you know the contents of the curse?

"Yes, when I gained this ability, I was told about the punishment and conditions. That is, if I misguide someone with demonic thoughts, the gods will take away my ability... and take away my eyes as well."

"This is way too serious! And even misleading people will be punished!"

"This is my personal situation. The god who gave me this ability is the kind of god with a strong sense of justice. Even if I don't use it, I can't use it recklessly. If I use this ability not to help the other party exorcise their thoughts, I will be punished."

Hearing this, Kuroba Akira suddenly became a little worried about what the punishment for his abilities would be.

Am I really using my abilities normally right now?

What will the punishment be?

"Actually, because of the mistakes I made in the past, I've already lost one of my eyes..."

Saotome Fuyumi pointed to her right eye and said.

"My right eye only looks like a normal eyeball, but in reality, I can't see anything."

"...!"

So that's why only the left eye had golden light; it's because it had already been punished once.

It's just that those without superpowers can't see the condition of her eyes, which is why they didn't notice this.

“If the gods take away my sight from both eyes, I will have to spend the rest of my life in darkness. I don’t want to be blind, so while running my firm, I also do ‘exorcism’ work. In fact, the latter is more important to me.”

From this perspective, Saotome Fuyumi's ability is simply a troublesome task for her. She has to help remove the demonic thoughts she sees, and if she deliberately misleads someone, she will be punished severely, even to the point of blindness.

“I’ve taken in a lot of people who are trapped in demonic thoughts at the firm and given them a direction to strive for. However, this has also led to a serious internal competition within the firm. Ordinary people who can’t keep up with the pace are likely to resign.”

No wonder Ms. Arisugawa looks so tired and keeps forcing a smile, as if she's working in a shady company. It's because the agency is full of hard-working, irrational, and obsessed people.

If an ordinary person like her wants to keep up with those fanatics, or even manage them, she will definitely have to expend more energy.