Tokyo bombing incident Nth time

After repeating this a few times, they simply stopped caring about Yuri, which is normal. If it were Yuri, he wouldn't care about a standby person who was sure nothing would happen to him.

Yuri felt a sense of relief when only three of the ghosts from the last incident remained. Nothing should go wrong here—the three remaining ghosts weren't the three troublesome characters that were specifically chosen, and the intelligent ghosts had been taken away. What trouble could these three ghosts possibly cause?

There's no point in staying here, so I might as well go and watch the requiem ceremony... Although given the current situation, I'll probably only be able to catch the tail end, it's better to have something to see than nothing at all.

Yuri had only witnessed Akemi's requiem ritual before, which took half a day just to appease one repeater (albeit a special one), making it far less efficient than the Sin Eater's method. Although he hadn't witnessed it firsthand, this version, which dealt with nearly ten ghosts in just a few tens of minutes, was practically an assembly line operation in the requiem ritual, incredibly efficient.

That's right. I didn't decide to leave to watch the ceremony because I was bored. I left because I wanted to learn more about it and improve myself!

After encouraging himself, Yuri convinced himself to leave the morgue and go out into the corridor.

It was very quiet, with no one walking around, and Yuri felt a cool breeze blowing against him.

This is not normal, after all, I am in a spirit form, what wind could blow on me under these circumstances?

By sensing the movement of the wind, it was indeed found that it was not the movement of air, but the movement of a faint energy, which was flowing around the internal structure of the funeral home and heading somewhere.

Although he couldn't sense it at all, Yuri immediately guessed the target. Of course, it was somewhere else but the funeral hall.

Following the corridor to the previous window, Yuri touched the glass to confirm that it was not easy to pass through.

It was different from what I felt when I arrived. Back then, I didn't feel any obstruction on the glass. It must be the effect of the ritual, like the sudden energy vortex that appeared. Or perhaps, it was a barrier specially designed to prevent energy from being transmitted in a different way.

Yuri could still break through the glass barrier, but doing so while he could access the glass would be tantamount to drilling a hole in the window, potentially negatively impacting the ritual.

"Let me think..." Yuri recalled the structural diagram of the funeral home in his mind, preparing for both possibilities.

First of all, there is no doubt that there is a road that allows people to transport bodies to pass through, and all that is needed is to find that road—Yuri was reluctant to do so, as it might lead to an awkward encounter with the two of them.

In addition, one should follow the flow of energy. Since this energy is directed towards the mourning hall, one can definitely make it through.

Yuri closed his eyes and began to fly close to the ground along with the energy wind... Should this situation be called a ghostly wind?

After drifting for more than a minute, he realized the problem with this method—what if he found a louvered structure at the end that only allowed the cold wind to pass through but not him?

It will transform into a ball of tentacles and crawl through?

Yuri thought for a moment, then he would just obediently return to his original position and simply walk backwards from where he came from.

—This did not happen.

There were indeed smaller passages along the way, but the smallest ones only made Yuri feel slightly cramped at the widest part of his body, not to the point of completely stopping his movement.

...Perhaps we should thank Akemi?

In any case, just as he expected, the final point where these faint energies converged was in the funeral hall.

However, his timing wasn't particularly good; in fact, it was rather awkward.

As he squeezed in from the corner of the main entrance, he happened to encounter the Sin Eater girl and the non-Sin Eater manager bringing yet another corpse to the funeral being conducted by the Sin Eater master of ceremonies.

The angle wasn't ideal to see the face, but judging from the body shape, it should be one of the three remains left behind before I left.

Moreover, they had clearly discovered them as well; at least Hirozaki, who was facing them, had noticed them.

His eyes widened instantly, and then he quickly lowered his head to hide his embarrassment.

The girl who had noticed Hirozaki's expression was the one who discovered Yuri next. After confirming that the body was placed securely, she looked around in Hirozaki's direction without making a sound, and then she almost lost her composure.

We must hide immediately. If this continues, even Mr. Minagawa, who is currently the emcee, might find us. There aren't many people here, but everyone's attention is focused on the emcee. If he suddenly loses his composure, it will be a huge problem.

On the left and right sides, there were some people dressed very inconsistently, while on the right there were a few neatly dressed and serious-looking guys. There were slightly more on the left, but not many.

Yuri decided to hide behind the crowd on the right and immediately put it into action.

138 An Unexpected Incident During the Requiem Ritual

To be honest, if Yuri hadn't known beforehand and wasn't a supernatural being, he wouldn't have sensed any supernatural power during the funeral ceremony; it should have been just like any other funeral (he hadn't attended one, but had seen it on TV).

As with any ordinary funeral, a male master of ceremonies in his thirties (Minagawa Dojin) presided over the funeral, speaking words of remembrance for the deceased and controlling the process, while the attendees remained solemn and followed the master of ceremonies' instructions.

At first, Yuri thought the disheveled people on the left were the deceased's family members, while the neatly dressed people on the right were government officials. Family members would normally attend the funeral, but the arrival of government officials was unusual… so perhaps these government officials also possessed some kind of supernatural observational ability and were there to observe the outcome of the requiem ceremony—

So Yuri chose to stand behind them rather than diagonally opposite them, so that he would be less likely to be noticed, theoretically.

However, he now felt his guess was wrong. The side he had chosen might indeed be government personnel, but those diagonally opposite didn't act like the deceased's family members at all.

If so, their relationship with the deceased couldn't be very good either. Yuri couldn't sense much of their grief... but he could sense a large amount of complex and ambiguous emotions. Outwardly, they acted as if they were just there to "be a backdrop, when will the funeral end?", standing there waiting for the ceremony to end.

It's fortunate that the emcee could continue speaking under these circumstances; if it were Yuri, he would have started to doubt himself.

They don't seem like paid actors either; at least actors would put on an act...

Oh...wait.

Yuri realized he recognized these faces.

He had only seen them once, and hadn't thought about it often afterward, so he didn't have a deep impression of them and didn't remember them immediately. But Yuri now realized that he had seen them somewhere before.

In the same villa where she and Hojo Reie first met.

To put it bluntly, these people are probably cult members... or former cult members. According to the television portrayal, they should be "accomplices who were simply tricked into joining without being involved in the core secrets."

In that case, it's normal not to feel obvious grief; they may not yet be sure whether they should hate their companions or feel sad for them.

...The ceremony continued, and Yuri could feel the spirit field swirling around him. Although there was only one body on site, it seemed that the ghosts of all the previous bodies remained there—they circled the spot in the mortuary where the bodies were placed, flying and spinning in mid-air with the eerie wind.

The ghosts that Yuri called "repeaters" did not show any signs of gaining consciousness, but they also did not leave with their bodies.

The funeral for this deceased man ended, and the staff took his body backstage... probably to the stove area, while his ghost remained, joining the procession of people flying around in the eerie wind.

It wasn't exactly creepy, but Yuri didn't think the seemingly oblivious participants below wouldn't be horrified if they saw this scene.

Even government personnel sent specifically for this purpose couldn't see these ghosts? Or had they seen them so many times that they were oblivious to them?

Then the next one, and then the last one.

As the last body was brought in, Yuri sensed a tense atmosphere.

The reason is obvious: Sonoko Iwata... the leader of a cult, she was deliberately placed last.

In Yuri's view, this cult leader who led her followers to their deaths cannot be called evil. She did believe in her prophecy, and the prophecy did indeed guide her to the root of the problem.

But her misunderstanding of the prophecy ruined everything. The Rat King was indeed the key to solving the problem, and the Shadow Gate was indeed the key to survival, but the Rat King was not a friend but an enemy, and the Shadow Gate was not a way to escape but a source of chaos... Trusting her own judgment, she went against her own goals and ultimately met this consequence.

It can't be said that Yuri sympathizes with her; if everything were made public, Yuri might even make some sarcastic remarks.

But now, her goal has been revealed as "intending to destroy Tokyo society through terrorist attacks," and her cause of death has been described as a "self-made poison gas accident"... which is rather tragic.

Cult members and government officials... these people may or may not know the truth.

Perhaps that's why they came to the funeral? To say goodbye to the deceased, or to put it more solemnly, to bring things to a close?

The final ceremony is about to begin.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The master of ceremonies paused, observed the ghost above, and then began the ceremony. To others, he probably just lay there meditating, trying to clear his mind.

After transporting the last body, the staff left through the side door with the second-to-last body. Only... yes, only those two remained, standing in the corner.

Although the cult leader was deliberately placed last, the actual procedure remained largely unchanged, still consisting of the usual commemoration of the deceased, a description of the vision of the afterlife, and then—

What has changed is the situation.

Ordinary people might not have noticed, but Yuri could sense a subtle change in the flow of the yin wind.

Physically, the speed of the yin wind is getting faster and faster... although the flow of this spiritual field cannot be simply measured by speed... that is to say, its intensity is getting stronger and stronger.

Mr. Minagawa, who was acting as the master of ceremonies, was sweating a little. No one suspected anything, after all, he had been chanting for more than an hour and had been standing for a while, so it was normal for him to be a little tired. However, he looked up at the ghost more often than usual.

Is this part of the planned ceremony? It doesn't seem like it.

Yuri also looked up at the ghost.

The eerie wind swirled around the ghosts like a vortex, already having a real effect on them. They bumped into each other, unable to hold on to themselves—Yuri saw one of the more intelligent ghosts, a pained expression on its face, shouting something at Mr. Minagawa…

His voice could not travel through the eerie wind.

The most obvious evidence was in the corner, where the girl who ate sins showed clear signs of worry.

...It seems something went wrong.

Minagawa spoke slightly faster, clearly wanting to finish the funeral as quickly as possible, but as Yuri knew, the more rushed things were, the more likely they were to make mistakes.

Yuri floated up, keeping himself from being swept away by the eerie wind, and followed the wind to circle around the corner of the mourning hall and approach Yuka's location in the mountains.

It's time to prepare for the unexpected events to come; the possibility of risks is rising sharply.

There were no problems until he met up with the sin-eating girl.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

“The situation isn’t normal right now, is it?” Yuri lowered his voice to a minimum.

Yuri knew the answer without even needing the other person to reply; the sin-eater girl had already clenched her teeth.

“Normally this isn’t how it should be. As the funeral progresses, the spirit field should become more stable rather than more intense. This… is not right.” Yuka Yamanaka’s voice was squeezed out through clenched teeth.

"What will happen if this continues?" Yuri looked at the whirlwind above, its speed seemingly still increasing.

"I don't know, but the outcome... is probably unimaginable." The two ghosts collided in mid-air, locked in a fierce struggle, and Yuka Yamanaka shuddered upon witnessing this scene.

It seems she didn't know how it would end either.

"Shouldn't we evacuate the crowd as soon as possible?" Hirosaki whispered, interrupting the conversation. "If the situation continues to worsen..."

“I’m afraid that won’t work. The funeral isn’t completely over yet, and having the participants leave now might disrupt the ceremony.” The sin-eater girl shook her head slightly. “It seems we have to trust Minagawa. However, preparations can begin beforehand…”

Raising her left hand, Yuka Yamanaka pressed down on her collarbone. Then, a shadow emerged from her body, and soon, the spirit she called "the strategist" appeared beside them.

The sin-eating girl gestured, instructing the bound spirits to remain crouched so as not to disturb the ghosts hovering in the air.

Among the funeral guests, people on both sides shifted uncomfortably, but no one stood up and screamed.

"How are you so sure they won't see this?" Yuri asked in a low voice, suppressing his surprise.

“…I forgot to confirm that.” Yuka Yamanaka’s voice trembled slightly.

So you were panicking too!

In any case, the remedy is to first let the bound spirit pass through the side door and out of the guests' sight, hoping that if any of them see the spirit, they will mistake it for an illusion.

Time continued to flow steadily, and Minagawa's hosting was nearing its end. If any problems were to arise, there wouldn't be much time left.

Yuri tensed up. He had prepared two shields and a shadow—the battle between the Spirit Binder and the Reaper was a bit higher level than him, so it was more appropriate to prioritize preserving his own life and providing support.

The change came slower than expected, but it still caught everyone off guard.

After the eulogy was delivered, Minagawa Dojin asked the staff to carry the body away. The unexpected happened when three people hiding in the corner watched the body leave with bated breath, and the ghost of the cult leader joined in the spinning. Just as Minagawa Dojin asked the guests to leave in an orderly manner, the situation changed.

Before the guests could even take a step, the eerie winds emanating from the spirit field accelerated again, and the area of ​​rotation suddenly shrank—pushing all the ghosts together.

Yuri stared intently at what was about to happen, with Yuka Yamanaka by his side, while Katsuya Hirosaki was hurriedly guiding the guests away from the funeral hall with Toru Minagawa.

Minagawa Dojin did not release the binding spirit. Instead, a layer of spiritual matter covered his body. Akemi had described something similar to Yuka in the mountains, but at that time it was obviously not as thick as armor... If it were, he should have been able to see it.

In the whirlwind, ghosts were brutally merging together—bundling a dozen people together, then letting them melt and stick together slightly…this is roughly what they got.

It looked furious, but it was still unable to break free from the shackles of the cold wind. Unfortunately, it wouldn't be long before it was freed; the wind was becoming erratic and would soon be unable to completely control it.

Moreover, its haphazard waving of seven or eight hands in the sacred space seemed to be further disrupting the stability of the sacred space—considering that people were no longer making efforts to disperse the crowd during the ceremony, its sudden burst of speed was inevitable.

So, what exactly is this thing?

Yuri floated slightly, reaching the edge of the whirlwind, and used his willpower to steady himself before being subjected to a series of attacks.

Punches, kicks, bites—all attacks had no chance of hitting Yuri. The closest attack to Yuri was more than half a meter away, but the monster formed from the aggregation of ghosts continued to try to reach him.

He didn't think it was just to shake hands or anything... He quickly searched and found his target.

Yuri was right; the head of an intelligent ghost was still sticking out. If he could find out the ghost's condition, it might help solve the problem.

But upon closer inspection, Yuri determined that this was impossible; the face was distorted beyond recognition, filled with hatred, rage, and overwhelming pain.

It looked like if Yuri got any closer, the aggregate would devour him without hesitation.

Another characteristic observed up close is that the aggregate's body shows a subtle tendency to materialize... It's still far from true materialization, but the trend is already evident.

After it escapes, it may not only harm the three members of the Sin Eater Society and Yuri, but also the other unfortunate souls who haven't left yet.

Further away, the guests were still slowly leaving—very slowly, they even started chatting on the road, completely unaware of the danger they were in. Hirosaki and Minagawa's attempts to shoo them away had only slightly sped them up, still not fast enough… But how could they be made to run faster?

If they are not careful, they may die just like these cultists, torn apart and devoured by near-materialized spirits.

Is this the source of its motivation? Is it because of resentment that it wants to drag others down with it?

Yuri raised his shield, deflecting the arm that had successfully approached him. The binding force of the spirit field on the opponent was rapidly decreasing, and Yuri's plan to draw fire and reduce the opponent's damage to the spirit field... was not entirely unsuccessful, but it could be said to have had very little effect.