***
Five Years Later.
Kyoto, Japan.
"What would happen if we killed all the Yakuma?"
"Maybe we could retire early."
"Tch! I wouldn't make any money if I retired."
"But I'm tired of seeing Yakuma news every week."
Two people sat in a small izakaya near downtown Kyoto. They were dressed in white shirts and black slacks, with matching black blazers.
Office workers? No office workers carry katanas.
Yes, they were really carrying katanas—these weren't cosplay props. These were magical weapons.
City residents noticed them, but chose to look away—not out of disdain, but out of respect.
People like them gave up their lives and dreams to protect others.
If anything, they were considered heroes.
They were members of NOX.
"I haven't seen Yagami. Where is he?" asked a middle-aged woman, the izakaya owner's wife.
The one who always came by after patrol with a man named Yagami. They did it every day, inseparable. But today was different.
"Yagami... is dead."
"What?"
Silence fell. In the small izakaya, everyone stopped what they were doing. They felt the grief shared by the NOX members.
The middle-aged woman looked shocked, then slowly nodded, her head lowered in sorrow.
She knew the risks of working with NOX. Even so, she hadn't expected Yagami to die so fast.
"I see... I'm very sorry to hear that."
"No need to apologize. He died because of his own stupidity," said the tall, well-built man with short hair.
"Damn it! If he hadn't been so reckless, I could've challenged him to a drinking match tonight!" he muttered angrily.
The woman across from him smiled faintly. She raised her beer glass and showed it to her friend.
"Then let's have a match instead."
"You're not a strong drinker."
"I was just holding back. I don't need to hide it from you anymore."
"Fine then."
They drank beer competitively until one of them couldn't go on. One glass down, three, five, ten, fifteen—
The woman collapsed drunk at glass number twelve, while the man was still going at fifteen. Just as he suspected—she couldn't beat him.
Realizing it was getting late, they couldn't stay at the izakaya forever. After paying, the man carried his drunk teammate back to her apartment.
When they arrived, he tossed her onto the bed. Unlike her, the man was still sober and went out to the balcony for a cigarette.
What a peaceful city, he thought.
But even in that peace, there was always a hint of lurking evil—no one knew when or where it might appear.
His thoughts were interrupted by a ringtone, accompanied by a system panel that appeared in front of him.
[EMERGENCY ORDER]
[Code: X1]
[All personnel are required to report for an emergency mission]
The panel displayed an emergency order with code X1. Every NOX member knew what that meant: extreme-level danger.
"Code X1? A Yakuma of demon rank has appeared?!" he exclaimed.
But when he tapped the panel to view the mission details, he froze. It wasn't about a high-rank Yakuma.
Instead, it was a search mission—for a 17-year-old boy in a NOX uniform with long black hair in a man bun.
[Mission: Locate a youth named Kaine, wearing a NOX uniform with long black manbun hair. Last seen in downtown Kyoto. Any personnel who find him must escort him to the nearest NOX office.]
"An X1 emergency just to find a teenage boy?! What the hell is this?"
He glanced back. His friend was still fast asleep, passed out from alcohol.
She wouldn't be able to join the mission. That left him with no choice but to go alone.
"Ah, damn it. I just wanted a quiet night."
The man left the apartment and drove to downtown Kyoto. He would search for the boy himself.
Even more surprising—he wasn't the only one. The Kyoto police were also searching for the boy.
Yet strangely, there was no over-preparation: no lockdowns, no police barricades. That only confused him more.
"What's really going on?" he wondered.
He arrived in downtown Kyoto, now crowded with people, making the search even harder. Still, he and the police didn't give up.
Officers searched through malls, stores, bookstores—even the entertainment district.
The man decided to search the outer edge of downtown, thinking the boy might've already left the area.
He checked restaurant after restaurant, inspecting everyone inside. But still—no leads. His confusion grew.
"Where is that kid? Where else should I look?"
"Think! What would a 17-year-old boy do in downtown Kyoto?"
"Ugh, I don't know!"
While standing in the street like a lost man, he heard a voice from one of the restaurants he hadn't checked yet.
He turned—and spotted a young man sitting by the window, fitting the description: long black manbun hair.
He rushed inside to confirm. Yes—that was him.
White NOX shirt and black pants. Long black manbun. A youthful face, around 17. Sitting alone, eating dango.
"You!" the man called out.
The boy looked up at him. He wasn't surprised. He wasn't scared. His face was calm and cold.
"What?"
As he approached, a maroon-haired girl appeared behind the boy. She walked up casually, expression cold but not as ignorant as his.
"Ms. Reika has been looking for you. Why'd you leave without saying anything?" she asked, arms crossed.
"So noisy. What are you? My mom?"
The girl, about the same age as the boy, sighed and turned to the NOX agent who found him.
She immediately asked his name and team, to which he responded:
"Fujiwara Eiji, Team 17."
"Mr. Eiji, thank you for helping us. I'll inform you to Ms. Reika."
Reika—or Yomiya Reika—was the leader of NOX Japan. She oversaw all operations involving Yakuma and Kanjin extermination.
According to rumors, Reika possessed terrifying demonic powers and could create her own domain. No one had ever seen her fight a Yakuma directly.
"Once you finish your dango, we're leaving. Got it, Kaine?"
"Yeah, yeah… naggy."
"Wait!" Eiji called out, making the girl glance back.
"What?"
"Who is he really? Why issue an emergency just to find him?"
The girl looked sideways at Kaine, who was smiling while eating his dango. Then she looked forward again, staring at Eiji.
"You don't have the right to know who he is."
"All that matters is that you do your job."
"What? Who even are you two?" Eiji asked, increasingly curious.
Kaine finished his dango. As agreed with Shizuka, he left the shop to return to the NOX headquarters in Kyoto—where Yomiya Reika was waiting for him.
Eiji watched them leave. They seemed unusually close. But one thing stood out—Neither of them carried a katana like regular NOX members.
Yet the NOX rulebook clearly stated that all personnel must carry a katana as a weapon at all times—for safety.
"Who exactly are those two? And why are they so close to Ms. Yomiya?"