Stop thinking so much about it. Just let it be.Shinji huffed at himself, adding unnecessary vigor to the egg beating.
“Oi, that’s enough,” Teruo said, snatching the bowl from his hands. “Did the eggs make you angry?”
“Sorry.” Shinji flushed. “I was lost in thought.” His lips curled up into his usual, pleasant smile.
“Don’t give me that.”
Shinji blinked. “What?”
“The fake smile. If you’re not well, just say so. There’s no need to pretend.”
“I don’t have fake smiles.”
“Yeah, you do. This—” Teruo waved a finger at Shinji. “—is a fake smile.”
“How can you even tell?” Shinji folded his arms.
“Been doing this job for a while. I’m good at reading facial expressions. It’s not that difficult to tell when you lie or fake something.”
Shinji arched a brow. “Huh. Can’t trick a detective, can I?” He grinned.
Teruo placed the pan aside then turned to Shinji. “Can’t speak for all detectives, but you certainly can’t trick me.”
~ * ~
Shinji left at one p.m. with a full belly, but overall in a very strange mood. Teruo’s words had an underlying message in them, a way of warning Shinji that he might’ve suspected something. What, exactly, Shinji couldn’t tell. Maybe about thereiryokuor maybe something else. The problem was that he couldn’t ask Teruo about it without inadvertently giving himself away. He was the only one to blame in all of this as he had done an absolute shit job of keeping to himself and not attracting Teruo’s attention while he spoke with ghosts.
With a heavy sigh, Shinji peeked out the taxi’s window as the car arrived in Higashikurume. It took over half an hour to reach it and the expense at the end on the ride threw Shinji in a worse mood. He planned on having the Onmyoryo defray all his expenditures and kept the receipt. He had delayed buying a car since he was up to his neck in a murder investigation, but now that he was going to get his jurisdiction, it had to be a priority.
Shinji walked a wide road in a quiet neighborhood. Single and double story houses with gray walls were lined to his left and right. Tall trees rose above the fences, some still green, others withered as the November air turned colder every day. This neighborhood housed a few supernaturals working for the Onmyoryo, especially those in the administrative department who needed to show up at the headquarters on schedule. Other buildings were empty as they were actually doors leading to the dimension where the Onmyoryo was hidden from prying eyes.
There were no barriers of energy around as no one came to this neighborhood besides supernaturals themselves. Barriers were good and protected them, but too many were a risk as non-supernaturals could run face-on into the invisible walls and wonder what the hell is going on.
Shinji found the inconspicuous building that held the HQ. It was a storage dwelling with white walls and plain double doors locked with a heavy padlock. A bodyguard sat on a chair next to the doors, dressed in jeans, a navy blue shirt with a thick jacket of the same color and a black cap on his head, shadowing his face. He looked like a run-of-the-mill guard keeping an eye on a building.
The bodyguard put aside the book he was reading as Shinji approached and stood towering a head over him. Based on the bulky physique and height Shinji figured he must’ve been a strong shape-shifter, though he couldn’t tell which type. Shinji pulled out his wallet and showed the bodyguard his other ID. The man nodded, placed his palms together and redreiryokuenergy surrounded the area, hiding them completely. The storage building’s doors transformed into akaramon—a large, traditional wooden gate, with an undulating black bargeboard and adorned with golden motifs depicting chrysanthemums and cranes in flight.
The doors of the wooden gate opened with a screech and Shinji stepped inside the yard of the Onmyoryo.
Beyond thekaramongate, the large courtyard of the Onmyoryo was crowded as usual. Some of the shape-shifters were in their spiritual form and Shinji glanced at twokitsunewalking leisurely through a maple trees garden—one of them blue, a water fox, the other green, an earth fox. Bothkitsunehad three tails which put them at over three hundred years old. A group of shamans dressed in casual clothing passed by Shinji in a hurry, purplereiryokutrailing behind them as they left the premises through thekaramongate. More ghosts and supernaturals rushed left and right, looking busy.
The Bureau of Divination was founded over a thousand years ago and was responsible for teaching astronomy, creating calendars and offering protection against malevolent spirits. The Onmyoryo’s job evolved to supervising supernatural creatures and keeping a good balance between the world of non-supernaturals, the one of the supernaturals, as well as the afterlife. Officially, the Onmyoryo had been abolished at the end of the nineteenth century, but unbeknownst to everyone else, the organization was up and running, growing larger every year and housing all sorts of supernaturals.
Shinji had been recruited to work with them when he was twenty and had kept it as a part-time job ever since. He had fewer responsibilities part-time and could focus on his primary career choice of becoming a homicide detective. If he’d chosen to work full-time he’d have spent a lot more time at the castle, perhaps even live here. But he preferred the outside world more—always had.
He followed the cobblestone path, lined by tall gray stone lanterns and short trees, pruned into perfectly round shapes. Above him was a dark sky imitating deep space, with clouds of brown and golden dust like nebulae, and celestial spheres imitating planets. Shinji loved the view. The Hiroshima headquarters opted for a simple blue sky, but the deep space one was a lot better.
The main building of the Onmyoryo was a castle, five stories high and stretched over a square kilometer with beige walls and black curled roofs decorated with golden symbols serving as protective wards. Shinji ascended the stone stairs and walked through a thin barrier of energy at the double sliding doors, then stopped at a counter and showed his ID again.
“How may I help?” the woman asked, a white tail flapping lazily behind her.
“I’m here for the unsealing of myreiryokuand to inquire about three lost ghosts. I have an appointment.”
She pushed a piece of paper toward him. “Complete this form with as many details as you can. Names of ghosts, last location, cause of death and any other notes. Take it to the Northern wing, second floor, room 223.”
“But the appointment?” Shinji insisted.
She pierced him with her green eyes. “Finish the form first.” Then she picked a round wooden sign, as big as her palm, with the number 223 on it and gave it to Shinji.