Daisuke took the elevator up from the lobby. He was headed to the command room on the 40th floor of the Mabaroshi HQ. The elevator stopped at the 28th floor however, and a man with green hair entered.

“Heya Daisuke-sensei!” he called, waving a hand.

“I told you to stop calling me sensei, Yuuta,” Daisuke replied, slightly annoyed. “You are your own mentor now.”

“Eh, I guess,” Yuuta scratched the back of his head. “I’m still too used to it, sorry.”

The elevator reached the 40th floor, and both men walked out. “What’s the status on Ms Sugimura?” Yuuta asked.

“She’s regained consciousness,” Daisuke said. “Sekai is with her right now.”

“Ah, give the girl some female company to settle in, huh?”

“Sekai seemed eager to show her around. I just left her to it.”

“Fair enough,” Yuuta said. “What about the whole Hanabei Mina situation?”

“I’ve sent Hitoshi to search for some leads in the mortal realm.”

The two entered the command room and were greeted by Riri. “Daisuke-chan, Yuuta-kun, good evening. It appears that another problem has risen, though it is unrelated to Sugimura Nikko.”

“What is it?” Daisuke asked as the three of them gathered around the command desk.

“Vento Fausto, the rookie member you sent home the other week was reported to have caused a bit of trouble in the Mabaroshi outskirts.”

“That waxy-haired kid with an attitude?” Yuuta crossed his arms.

“Yes,” Riri answered. “Witnesses have reported that he robbed a blacksmith and a general store.”

Daisuke tapped on the desk and a holographic screen lit up. “Vento Fausto,” he spoke. Profiles, accounts and articles related to Fausto appeared on the screen. Daisuke tapped on the first article titled ‘Mabaroshi SCS Reject Under Allegations for Theft’. A portrait of a brown, waxy-haired male displayed on the article.

“Oh man,” Yuuta sighed. “Was it really the best decision to remove him from the rookie squad? I mean, we could have disciplined him, right?”

“He’s been a pain to the whole team,” Daisuke said. “He’s been causing problems since his Academy days. He joined Mabaroshi with an ego, ignored orders, disrespected his higher-ups, and the last straw was when he attempted to break into our restricted zone. We tried disciplining him, Yuuta. It never worked.”

“We had no choice but to get rid of him,” Riri nodded. “We can’t keep looking after him and there’s no guarantee we can fix his attitude.”

“I guess,” Yuuta said. “But why did he rob a blacksmith and a general store? What did he steal?”

“A couple of smithing tools, glue, tape…” Daisuke read off the article. “Just what is he up to? Riri-nee, can you assign a scout on him?”

“Of course,” Riri said as she moved to the monitors and began scrolling through a list of Mabaroshi spirit chasers.

“Better keep an eye on him, who knows what he’s got planned,” Daisuke muttered.

****

Sekai brought Nikko around the shopping district in the heart of Mabaroshi, the Mabaroshi Central. “For starters, you’d want to get a new outfit for your life as a spirit chaser,” Sekai said.

“Ooh do I get to have cool armour and all that?” Nikko gleamed.

“Something like that,” Sekai chuckled. “We don’t exactly wear armour, it’s too heavy. However, some of us use padded clothing, kinda like a really light version of light armour. It gives us a bit of durability while still allowing us to move swiftly and comfortably.”

Sekai and Nikko entered a store that displayed what seemed to be battle gear in its display windows. The shopkeeper, an old woman with white frizzly hair greeted them. “Why hello there, Ms Hanamori. Brought a new friend over, I see.”

“Evening, Tokei-san!” Sekai greeted back. “This is Sugimura Nikko, she’s just come over from the mortal realm.”

“H-Hi,” Nikko said.

“We need to get her an Academy uniform and something to wear for her spirit chaser duties,” Sekai explained.

“Hm,” Tokei circled around Nikko for a few seconds, analysing her body and measurements. “Alrighty, you can come back tomorrow evening to get your gear.”

“Cool, thanks Tokei-san,” Sekai said. “Come on Nikko-san, let’s get going.”

“T-That’s it?” Nikko asked. “She knows exactly what clothes to get me?”

“She’s been doing this for years,” Sekai spoke as they left the store. “She knows your measurements just by looking at you. Anyway, let’s return to the HQ. We’ve gotta introduce you to the rest of the team.”

The girls returned to the HQ and went to the command room. “We’re back,” Sekai announced as they walked into the room.

“Welcome back,” Daisuke said. “Enjoyed your little adventure around the city, Sugimura?”

“Uh I’ve on been to a ramen bar and some battle gear store but yeah, it was pretty fun,” Nikko answered.

Riri, who was stationed at the monitors, moved towards Nikko and held onto both of her hands. “Sugimura-san! I’m glad you’re up and feeling ok!”

“Thanks,” Nikko said as she looked curiously at Riri’s maid outfit.

“My name is Haruna Riri. I’m the caretaker of this place. Please let me know if you require any assistance!”

“Oh ok, Haruna-san, thanks!”

Yuuta approached Nikko and introduced himself as well. “Hey there,” he waved. “The name’s Yuuta, pleased to meet you.”

“Hey… Y-Yuuta-san!” Nikko said hesitantly, noting that Yuuta had only introduced himself by his first name.

“Apart from Sekai and I, Riri and Yuuta are our two other significant members of our SCS,” Daisuke spoke. “Yuuta is our 3rd in command, and is also in charge of the research and technology facilities. Riri has been my guardian ever since I was little. She organises all the accounts and reports for the Mabaroshi. Hitoshi is another one of our important members, but he’s not here right now.”

“W-Wow,” Nikko looked around the room of higher SCS members. “Is this how all new members are introduced to the SCS?”

“Nope,” Yuuta said. “You’re an exception.”

“We have different plans for you,” Sekai added.

“D-Different plans?” Nikko asked.

“You have a very strong spirit capacity,” Daisuke said. “You’re gonna be exclusively trained by us.”

“I hope we’ll get along well, Sugimura-san!” Riri smiled.

“I-I hope so too,” Nikko responded.