Chapter 19: Haunted Apartment (1)

The Yamakabuki Apartment Complex is an abandoned building standing at the edge of Yamato Koriyama in the Nara Prefecture of Kansai.

Having been abandoned by its landlord in the late sixties, the building was scheduled for demolition, yet budget cuts by the local government delayed the process till this day.

However, not long ago, a group of Yokai started living in the abandoned building, something that in many cases would not be cause for alarm.

Except of course for the noises they've been making...

Local civilians have complained about weird sounds and shadows appearing in the windows of the Building.

The Actions of the Yokai are a bother to the civilians, your job is to get them to leave the premises of the building, and everything after will be handled by Shin-Corp's Kansai branch.

You are permitted to use force when necessary.

Any questions?

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"So, Who's my teammate?"

Motohama Ken was bouncing on the balls of his feet, excitement coursing through his body at the idea of finally doing something supernatural.

Hachiman, the Shinto God of War and Archery, sighed at his pupil's antics.

"You will meet him soon, First, you're tools," Hachiman, sometimes also called Yahata, Stomped his leg onto the floor of the wide empty Dojo the two appropriated from the Prefecture's Shin-Corp building.

As the deity's foot slammed the floor, a small box popped up beside him.

"Inside this box, you will find your Shin-Corp Agent Uniform, A new Sword to replace the one you shattered yesterday, and a single medicinal tablet that I want you to take as soon as you're done changing clothes," Hachiman told the human, who quickly opened the box and took out his new outfit.

A Very slim, form-fitting black T-shirt. A white jacket to wear over the shirt decorated with black bands around the waist and black zippers on the arms, a white strap holding the left and right sides of the jacket together, decorated with the Shin-Corp Logo. A Pair of black gloves, a dark red patch on the back of the hand adding a little bit of color. A Pair of light-grey pants, black lines highlighting where the pockets are, and a pair of black boots.

"Woah!" Ken smiled as he looked at his new outfit, "So stylish, Does it come in other colors?"

"No," Hachiman's swift answer shut down that line of dialogue.

"Aww..." Ken voiced his disappointment before putting on his new outfit.

"Our Female operatives have a more revealing outfit. If you prefer to wear skirts," Hachiman snidely added as he patiently waited for his Human Pupil to wear the outfit.

Ken tested his new outfit, giving a few kicks to test his shoes and pants, a few punches and mimicked sword swings to test the shirt and jacket, before nodding his head in approval, a glint of joy behind his glasses.

"Now let's see..." He whispered to himself as he pulled out a sheathed Katana, slowly unsheathing it to take a closer look.

"Wow..." He whispered out loud as he saw his reflection on the metal blade, "I kinda miss the Jade sword, can I have a different one?" He quickly sheathed the blade and placed it by his hip, hooping it into one of the bands on his jacket.

"That Jade sword was made in less than a second and was to serve as nothing more than a prop for a training dummy, The simple fact it lasted more than a day is more a matter of your skill with the blade than it is to the blade itself." Hachiman said, speaking up from his silent vigil over the boy, "This sword is at the very least made to last more than ten minutes, a weak enchantment keeps it sharp and maintained. It is still a mostly regular Katana, keep that in mind should you try any stunts with it,"

"I'll keep it in mind, sure," Motohama told the Deity before quickly pulling out the sword, holding it in two hands and giving it a few practice swings.

"Now, what else is in here... Is this-"

Hachiman cut off Motohama Ken's question, "These are the Seals you have been working on for the past week, packed into easy-to-access bags for ease of use. They'll serve crucial to the completion of your mission, should you engage the Yokai and Spirits in combat." With a tap of his foot, the three bags the size of card packs flew out of the box and stuck onto Ken's Pants.

Looking back into the box, Ken searched for whatever else was in there, finding it empty.

"Is this everything?"

"It is indeed," Hachiman looked down at the boy and nodded his head at him, "Come now, Let us introduce you to your teammate for the foreseeable future."

And so, The Human and the God exited the Dojo.

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"Do I speak English with him? Does he know Japanese? I know he's from the Celtic Faction and they're Irish or something, but I don't speak-" Motohama Ken was rambling, his left leg tapping the ground as he stressed over meeting his new coworker.

"There's a Translation Enchantment on your shirt," Hachiman pointed out to him, opening his Jacket slightly to tap at a specific spot on the black shirt, "Remind me to teach you The Translation Talisman once this mission of yours is over,"

Ken let out a breath of relief.

"That's good, that's good... So like, will he understand what I'm saying? Will I understand what he says? How does it work?" Ken asked, his leg tapping even more restlessly on the floor as the duo walked in the direction of the lobby.

"It is a two-way street, you'll understand what he's saying and he'll understand what you're saying. That goes for all Human Languages, Not the supernatural ones, So do not expect to be able to speak fluent Fae. There is a translation for Yokai, but that's as far as it'll go for now," Hachiman explained the translation enchantment before the duo reached the Lobby of the building.

In the middle of the Lobby, a red-haired woman in a green dress floated off the floor, a translucent glow on her see-through skin, allowing the Duo to see the wall on the other side of her.

Beside her stood a younger man in his teenage years, perhaps 16 or so, Wearing a black Shin-Corp uniform, his black hair tied into a bun, and a pair of shades covering his eyes.

"Queen Cliodhna, In good health I hope," Hachiman nodded his head in greeting to the see-through woman.

Instead of answering him, A trio of brightly colored birds popped into existence and landed on her shoulders. Red, Blue, and Yellow.

The Yellow Bird opened its beak and the voice of a woman came out, "You know more than anyone what my health is, Yahata, So skip the pleasantries and take the boy already," The Woman glared at Hachiman as the bird spoke.

"Very well," Hachiman said, not moving his head as he kept looking at the woman.

Queen Cliodhna rolled her eyes, The Red Bird opened its beak and released a sound similar to a tongue clicking.

"He's the Spirit Inheritor of Connla, Useless Mutt that he is, His Sacred Gear is Average at best and Useless at worst, Have fun with him," And with nary a sound, The Woman disappeared into thin air, followed by the Red and Yellow birds.

The Blue Bird looked around itself for a moment before flapping its wings and landing on Connla's shoulder, whispering something into his ear, before it too disappeared into thin air.

Whatever the bird spoke, however, was enough to get a small smile onto the moody teenager's face.

As the three people in the lobby stood in silence, Two Humans and a God, one of the Human boys broke the silence with three words.

"What a bitch,"

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Again, Your mission is to get the Yokai and Spirits outside the building, You may use force when necessary, as long as it pushes you towards the objective.

Get the Yokai and Spirits inside the Yamakabuki Apartment Complex, Physically outside of the Apartment Complex, That is the Extent of the mission.

It is not an Extermination, you do not NEED to Kill anyone.

If you manage to find a peaceful way to get them outside, that will be much preferable for the clean-up crew.

Just get the Yokai and Spirits Outside.

Any questions?

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And so, on June 12th, 2005, Motohama Ken Began his first official mission as an Agent of the Shinto Faction.