At Night Evil crow's

Three days had passed, and under Hiraku's guidance, Lisa had already learned how to trail demons. Hiraku was shocked and bewildered. How had she managed to learn the spell in such a short amount of time? He had hoped it would take longer—the longer it took, the more likely she would be to give up. But now, she had perfected the art of tracking evil spirits.

They returned to the old farm, and Hiraku withdrew the spellbook.

"Your final training is the spell of exorcism," he said. "There are two kinds of exorcism. The first is performed by spiritualists. These are people who also have spiritual gifts but are not as powerful as we are. They have the knowledge and strength to cast out demons from a host, but they can't send the demons to the underworld. The disadvantage of this type of exorcism is that the demons, after being temporarily banished, can still reenter through another dimensional plane and possess a new victim.

"The second kind of exorcism is what I will teach you. Thankfully, after studying and practicing the knowledge in Zack's diary, I can now expel any kind of demon."

Lisa stood close to him, listening intently. Hiraku began chanting a spell, his voice steady and deliberate. Then he reached out and touched Lisa's forehead. A reddish glow appeared where his fingers made contact, and her eyes began to glisten with a radiant red light.

"Incredible," she said in amazement. "I feel like my spirit is one with nature. I've never felt this much power."

"This is the awakening stage. Because you have successfully mastered the art of trailing demons, it was easy for me to unlock the full potential of your third eye," Hiraku replied while fiddling with the spellbook.

"Now, concentrate. The spell is already in your memory. You must understand that everything in the physical plane has an aura, and every aura has varying levels of strength. See that axe over there? Try levitating it with your mind," Hiraku said, pointing to an axe a few feet away.

Lisa focused on the axe. Her eyes began to glow with a reddish brilliance. The axe levitated with a mighty force and flew toward her. With a firm grip, she caught it effortlessly. She turned to Hiraku with a smile.

"Well, how did I do, teacher?" she asked, stepping closer to him and staring into his eyes.

"Um, excellent," he said, quickly averting his gaze and turning back to the spellbook. He knew she was teasing him—and perhaps even flirting. He hadn't known Lisa had this other side to her. Maybe, when she was with him, she felt freer to express herself.

Deep down, Hiraku found himself wanting her to continue revealing this side of her. But instead, he cleared his throat and said, "Continue practicing," as he walked a short distance away to compose himself

**

"Hiraku!" Lisa shouted.

"What is it?" He ran towards her and held her hands.

"I can sense it," she said with a feeling of fervor.

"Are you sure?" Hiraku asked, a hint of worry in his voice.

"Yes, there's a demon manifesting its powers. We need to go now."

"Alright," Hiraku responded, and they both started running toward the trail of energy the demon had left. They arrived at a local hospital. The foul stench of demonic aura was clearly oozing from the third floor; even without Hiraku's third eye, he could sense it. They both hurried up the stairs. The closer they got to the aura, the stronger the evil stench grew.

They reached the door and opened it. A woman lay on the sickbed, wearing a white gown, covered in sweat as if she had a severe burning fever. Beside her sat a man in his thirties, holding her hand tightly with an anxious expression on his face. The man saw Hiraku and Lisa walk in and stood up in alarm.

"Who the hell are you?" he shouted angrily, his hands gripping the woman's right hand.

"They sent you, didn't they? Why don't you get it? My wife is not insane; she just needs help. I won't let you take her to the psych ward, not in this condition!" he said, panting.

"We're here to help, sir," Lisa said in a warm tone.

"We're exorcists, and we are here to expel the demon from your wife before it's too late," Hiraku said with a firm tone. Lisa gave him a slight nudge on the arm, but Hiraku didn't hesitate to speak. He knew that time was an important factor that could determine victory.

"You have to trust us. We'll save your wife if you listen to us," Hiraku said firmly.

"At this point, I don't have much of a choice, but you two are so young. How do I know you're not kidding around?" he retorted angrily.

Lisa, fed up with his antics, focused on the glass vase on the table and hurled it against the wall. The man looked shocked, his expression softening slightly.

"Alright, I believe you. I'll be at the door. Please, help me save my wife," he said, his gaze pleading with both of them. He opened the door and shut it behind him.

Hiraku wasted no time. He chanted a barrier spell, which prevented sound from escaping the room and barred anyone from entering.

"Lisa, perform the protection spell," Hiraku instructed, folding his arms and sitting on a chair.

Lisa's eyes turned reddish as she chanted the protection spell. A faint white glow surrounded the unconscious woman, gradually dimming after a few seconds.

Hiraku closed his eyes. When he opened them, he was in the spiritual realm, but something was different—he couldn't see anything because everything was pitch black. Suddenly, a beam of light shone down on him from above. He squinted his eyes in shock. Another beam of white light appeared in the distance.

Hiraku looked carefully and realized that a demon was in view. From what he could tell, it was a Alpha demon. Hiraku transformed into a Guardian and slowly moved toward the light. With each step, he got closer to his target, his hands tightly gripping his fiery sword, ready to attack. But his instincts told him something was wrong.

The demon, which was gray and skinny with hyena - like skin, a five-foot tail, and two giant bronze horns shaped like a calf's, was kneeling with its head bowed to the ground. Typically, demons became ferocious and alert when sensing a threat, but this one was different. It remained calm, almost as if it had no fear of the incoming danger.

Hiraku was now just a few centimeters away from it. He drew his arm back and stabbed at the demon, but it disappeared into the darkness.