---

After a bit of time, a reply arrived.

“Are you referring to the magic you mentioned to seek whenever there’s an opportunity?”

“That is correct.”

Before Jinseong escaped from Japan, he had already warned Rise to widen the influence of the shrine and skillfully manage the politicians while using their connections and money to gather things related to magic.

Of course, he didn’t instruct her to conduct a large-scale search.

Just looking at how Onmyōdō plastered everything from the airport to tourist sites shows how sensitive Japan is to magic. If Rise were to openly attempt to gather magic, there would surely be inquiries about ‘why she’s searching for it,’ and they’d meticulously scour the shrine for even a speck of dust or a single coin to find anything suspicious.

If that were to happen, the Saigo Clan, the Kishimoto Clan, and Jinseong’s own existence intertwined with them would inevitably rise to the surface.

Would they cover it up with power?

It could be possible.

Having firmly tied a few politicians, it would be entirely feasible to use their power, and even tasks they couldn’t handle would become doable by borrowing from their connections. Plus, with ample money to grease the wheels of those connections, problem-solving would likely be a breeze.

But why would one go to such lengths?

It’s best to avoid causing trouble in the first place.

Secretly sourcing magic with connections meant for problem-solving.

It’s far better to gather magic and divine objects with money that could oil the throats of politicians and journalists.

Thus, Jinseong repeated his warning to Rise.

“The most important thing is your safety. Make sure your identity is never revealed while you gather. If using the powerful seems harmful, stop immediately. Collect magic and divine objects discreetly, ensuring others don’t catch on. And once obtained, do not touch them; instead, store them well in the Divine Storehouse. Just categorize them roughly, but never use or act with them.”

And now, it was time to check the results.

“I’ve gathered this much.”

Rise sent a photo.

In it, various items were haphazardly piled inside the Divine Storehouse. Normally, the Divine Storehouse should contain ceremonial items for the shrine, yet it was packed with things whose uses were unidentifiable. From what appeared to be farming tools to rags that had decayed beyond recognition, and rusted cold weapons.

To anyone looking at it, it resembled not a Divine Storehouse, but an abandoned barn in the countryside.

These items, which at first glance seemed like junk or trash, filled the not-so-large Divine Storehouse to the brim. And in between, there was enough space left for a person to move around without touching them.

“Hmm.”

Jinseong quietly examined the photo.

The weathered wooden walls were covered in mold.

Not just any mold, but strangely, it seemed to resemble human faces.

Like they had rooted themselves to the items attached to the wall, the mold grew in such a way that it had real form, sprouting elongated shapes that appeared to be arms reaching out in various directions.

Capturing that sight in his mind and closing his eyes, the image lingered as an afterimage, its flowing movements reminiscent of a sinner struggling to escape from hell.

And upon reviewing another photo, things became even stranger.

One image appeared unfocused, making the objects look blurred, while curiously, everything else except the objects stood out sharply. It was as if something was distorting only the space the items occupied, thick fog hovering in that very area.

And some photos looked warped as if viewed through a convex lens, while others made one feel a pungent odor just from peering at them.

“What excellent divine objects.”

These items didn’t just serve a purpose; they could even influence photos.

Each one surely possessed a terror-inducing level of power.

“How did you transport them?”

“I bought delivery robots with the money the Deity provided. The first robot broke down too frequently, so I purchased three to rotate between them.”

“Did you thoroughly cleanse them after use?”

“I placed the robot in the center of a sunlit room and piled salt charged with the Energy of the Sun at each corner. I also used its tail to purify any energy that wasn’t completely cleansed.”

“Well done.”

After that, a few moments passed, and more photos arrived.

“These are the divine objects related to Yokai from what I’ve gathered. I didn’t sort them separately, so I’ll send them one by one.”

The photos Rise sent were as bizarre as the previous ones.

Some looked like they were taken through a lens filled with mold, others appeared distorted in a spiral shape, while some resembled faded film photographs.

As Jinseong examined the photos one by one, he noticed four items that caught his eye.

Written on a scroll.

In a book made from woven bamboo.

Inscribed on a handmade paper book.

Engraved in relief on the surface of a box.

Selecting these, Jinseong sent them back to Rise with specific instructions.

“Open these, take photos, and send them. But you must not go anywhere near them or even look at them directly. Use the robot to open and flip through them, and let the robot take the photos as well.”

“I must not look at them… understood.”

After sending the message, Jinseong clenched his fists and picked the grass around him. He wove the grasses into a plush-looking form and sat down on the ground. He spent time gazing blankly at the descending darkness over the mountain until his smartphone vibrated softly, prompting him to check it.

“I’ve taken all the photos. Fortunately, the robot didn’t break down!”

With a simple text from Rise came an enormous amount of photos.

Jinseong plastered the top of the photos with basic emojis to ensure Rise wouldn’t discover them and having to scroll quite a bit to check, he sent another message.

“I have uploaded the photos above. However, since you might inadvertently check, please delete all photos from the messenger, and also erase every single one stored in your data. Divine objects can harm people just by being looked at depending on their type, and they might even cause you nightmares. So, this deletion task should not be done directly by you.”

“I’ll follow the Deity’s orders and leave it to someone else.”

“Make sure you do that.”

Only after sending that message did Jinseong begin to examine the photos one by one.

“Let’s see. I asked you to find one based on intuition, so where…”

The first thing Jinseong checked was what was inscribed on the box.

But as he examined it closely, his face scrunched up in frustration.

“Oh no. I can’t make heads or tails of this.”

Primitive forms of writing and drawings were scrawled all over.

It seemed he would have to leave the interpretation to a folklorist to understand this.

Jinseong couldn’t hide his disappointment as he looked over the next item.

The next one he examined was what was written on the scroll.

The rolled parchment displayed elegant script in standard Chinese characters, each character seemingly alive. Mixed within the phrases were monstrous figures drawn, strikingly similar to incredibly ugly children.

“In the mountains of Kagoshima, there exists a custom that must be adhered to, and that is leaving some fruit behind…”

Jinseong read the text slowly.

“It matters not for small trees, but for large trees, all fruits must not be taken. This was due to some existence that resides in the mountains, and the villagers called this existence Yamamabo. It resembles a newborn baby and an actual child. Its height is around 2 to 3 shaku, with dark skin, making it difficult to spot in the dim mountains…”

The first part of the scroll described the Yokai known as Yamamabo.

“It makes the sound ‘U-i.’ It enchants those who gather too much fruit, preventing them from escaping the mountain. It possesses the ability to muddle human senses, causing one to wander in the mountains. While it rests on trees, it hides as soon as it spots a person.”

As the text progressed, it began to mention magic.

“In a certain village in Kagoshima, they sought to worship this Yamamabo as a deity, hoping to gain its power. In the village formed by vagrants, they desired not only for nobles and warriors to come, but also wished for those figures to remain unaware of their existence. They thus longed for the power of the Yokai Yamamabo that would help them remain hidden, eventually gaining the strength to conceal the village…”

The name of the magic was “Yamamabo’s Shade.”

Its effect was to conceal things from the eyes of people within the magic’s reach.

“Not bad. As long as we ignore the need for abundant fruit…”

To maintain and utilize the magic, one had to offer the fruit of the Japanese horse chestnut tree as a sacrifice, the amount of which was substantial. To conceal a single person could work with merely a handful, but if it were buildings or an entire village, a considerable amount would likely be required.

However, there was ample money, and if necessary, it could be obtained from anywhere at all.

“Alright, this isn’t too bad.”

Jinseong smiled contentedly as he read the latter part that detailed the cost of the magic.

The cost of the magic was the land becoming barren.

To be precise, it required the organic nutrients from the land within the magic’s range as payment.

For farmers, this would be an absolute nightmare, and the villagers who created this magic would have likely viewed it as a calamity, but…

To Jinseong, this cost felt as sweet as honey.

 

---