Chapter 10: The Immovable King and Childhood Friend Reborn

Leo knew that "Kurikara" refers to an incarnation of the Buddhist deity Acala, also known as Fudo Myoo.

Furthermore, there is a concept of syncretism between Shinto and Buddhism on Sakura Island, where local beliefs and Buddhist teachings are merged into a unified faith system, leaving traces of divine presence in the locality.

For instance, Iizuna Gongen, regarded as a god of victory often depicted with snakes, riding a white fox, holding a sword and rope, is also considered an incarnation of Fudo Myoo.

The Kurikara demon-subduing mantra he acquired, unlike his previous abilities, resembles deep knowledge that requires long-term study and practice to wield its power.

However, there are skills that can be used immediately.

He slightly opened his left hand, standing it upright, and touched his right index finger to the base of his left middle finger.

This is the Flame Mudra, one of the fourteen fundamental mudras in Buddhism.

For the first time, Leo vividly felt a certain power existing and flowing within him, like a river finding its outlet, releasing from his left hand and shaping into reality according to his will.

A red flame appeared above his left hand, turning into the shape of a short sword as per Leo's thoughts.

He reached out to grasp the flame-formed short sword, feeling only warmth in his hand.

The air around the blade slightly distorted, proving the flame's considerable physical heat.

Not to mention, it likely possesses extraordinary suppressive power against demons and ghosts.

Leo was satisfied and dispersed the flame.

His conversation with Aoi Hoshikawa also had an impact on him.

If joining their group at the café was partly due to the atmosphere and hearing about defeating monsters like Hidden Witches under the protection of magical girls, the battle with the Nure-onna solidified his resolve even more.

Not to mention, although his father was not in this city, they could also potentially be involved in the incidents Hoshikawa mentioned.

"I can't really end up asking Hoshikawa for help."

The bus home was late, missing the astonishing scene that had just unfolded at the station.

"Sakuramachi Station—"

He walked along the street from the nearby station towards his home.

As he was about to reach his house, he saw a familiar figure sitting on a bench by the street.

Wearing Inaba High School's uniform, her short hair neatly falling down as she looked up, though a few strands stubbornly stood out.

"Hikaru? Your leg is healed?"

Leo was quite surprised.

She had still been in bed when he visited her in the morning; her recovery was too quick.

It wasn't some hero's power awakening, was it?

The label "Childhood Friend (Hero)" above her head reminded him that this childhood playmate might one day declare herself the protagonist of "The Hero Returns from Another World and Is Unrivaled in the Real World ~ The Reincarnation Chronicle of the Strongest Hero"—

Well, he'd probably still think she was just being a chuunibyo.

It's just easier on the heart that way.

Hori Rinko stood up from the bench, hopped in place, and raised her hands high: "Me, reborn!"

Leo politely clapped.

She seemed pleased with the response, lowering her hands to signal the celebration could stop.

"In the afternoon, the priest removed the Dark Holy Shroud that was causing my sluggish state, so now I can move freely."

"So, the bandages were removed in the afternoon. But why are you sitting here?"

"I was looking for you, Leo. Since you weren't at our base, I decided to wait here."

"I'm not going to run into a utility pole on the street, you know?"

Walking side by side, Rinko suddenly tugged at Leo's sleeve: "Leo, there's someone wearing a hood, looks suspicious, maybe a member of a society."

"That's probably someone cosplaying. Don't point at them... Huh?"

Leo looked in the direction she was pointing.

What came into view was a figure dressed in a military-style outfit with a black base and silver trim, draped in a black cloak.

This attire alone could certainly be considered suspicious, but paired with the black helmet adorned with two red glass eyepieces, most people would think this person was cosplaying a dark lord from a famous space opera movie series.

Thus, the people around didn't react much.

However, Leo saw it differently.

This Darth Vader-like individual had a label of "non-ordinary species" names above his head.

**[Apprentice Necromancer]**

He had somewhat realized that beings beyond the ordinary have always lived around ordinary people, but as Hoshikawa said, normal people are bound by the worldview of [Ordinary], and even if they witness something extraordinary, the remaining memory gets twisted into something plausible.

So, even though he came across someone labeled as a necromancer, he didn't immediately think of bringing him to justice.

There's even a vampire in his class who seems pretty harmless. Last time, he saw her hesitating for a long time before joining a conversation with a group of girls from his class, as if she was socially anxious.

He pulled Hikaru aside and walked past this black-clad individual.

He seemed to hear the person muttering something.

As they were about to reach his home, Hikaru extended an invitation: "Mother insisted that you come over for dinner."

"I won't be shy then, but, you actually stopped calling her 'manager'? Why swap it for something equally strange?"

"There lies a painful memory behind it, comparable to the memories of the war between the Earth Federation and the Zeon Colony. Do you really want to know?"

"Let's not…"

Rin Horiyuki opened the door from inside: "Welcome back, Leo, and thank you, Hikaru, for your company."

"It wasn't company; I waited a long time to collect Leo."

"Am I some kind of detachable unit? But sorry to have kept you waiting."

Though they hadn't actually arranged to meet.

Dinner was cream of mushroom and vegetable soup, fried chicken pieces, beef with mixed vegetables, served with white rice and wakame tofu soup.

"Aunt Yukiko's cooking is as excellent as always."

"Thank you for your compliment, Leo."

The label above Rin Yukiko's head was **[Childhood Friend's Mother]**

This was actually quite interesting to Leo, who still hadn't figured out the mechanism behind these text displays. For some, it seems to reveal an essential aspect of their identity, while for others, it appears to express from his subjective viewpoint.

For instance, logically, **[Editor]** would be more fitting for Rin Yukiko, but that wasn't the case.

After dinner, they squeezed together on the living room sofa to watch old robot animations.

"Leo, let's go to around1 tomorrow."

As the scene where a giant robot thrusts its lightsaber into the cockpit of another played, Hikaru made the suggestion.

around1 is a newly opened comprehensive entertainment facility nearby, offering bowling, karaoke, arcade games, and other sports and amusement facilities. Hikaru had been wanting to go there before the accident.

"Tomorrow should be fine."

Leo glanced at his phone. Aoi Hoshikawa had added him and Yuki to a group chat, mentioning she would be doing some investigation prep work on her own tomorrow and told him to rest well.

He originally wanted to mention the necromancer but found no good reason to explain how he recognized the person's identity, so he let it be for now.

They decided to spend the next day out together with Hikaru.