Tokyo Exorcism Diary

After spending the whole ride prying information about Asaba Shinichi out of Kiryu Rakuye, Hoshino Gen felt like he’d more or less figured out what label to slap on that guy.

Friendly on the surface, but unhinged underneath; past shrouded in mystery, powerful and well-connected, great in combat, personality bordering on insane…
In short — a big-shot lunatic.

Hoshino Gen found that pretty amusing, but that was about it. Now that he knew enough, he simply pushed it to the back of his mind. After all, in a week they’d be heading to Hokkaido together—no amount of background digging could compare to actually spending time face-to-face.

It wasn’t every day you bumped into someone that interesting. Hoshino Gen had to admit, he was intrigued.

By this point, they were almost at school. Segawa Private’s junior high and high school divisions had separate campuses. They were pretty close together, but the gates weren’t in the same spot, so when they reached the last fork in the road, Hoshino Gen hopped off the bike and waved Kiryu Rakuye goodbye, heading in the opposite direction.

The last stretch of road was crowded with students in matching uniforms, most moving in small groups, chatting and laughing as they strolled toward campus.

Someone like Hoshino Gen, walking alone, looked a little out of place in the crowd—but he didn’t care. Being on his own? He’d long since gotten used to it.

He was mid-yawn, bored out of his mind, when suddenly someone tapped his shoulder. He didn’t even need to look—just from the faint, familiar scent at the tip of his nose, he knew exactly who it was.

Sure enough, a clear, cheerful “Morning!” sounded from beside him.

Hoshino Gen glanced over at Shimizu Yuu, who had appeared at his side, and asked flatly, “What is it?”

“Eh?” Shimizu Yuu blinked her bright, almond-shaped eyes, looking slightly confused. “Nothing! Just saw you in the crowd, thought I’d come say hi.”

“Oh.” Hoshino Gen remained indifferent.

Shimizu Yuu didn’t mind. She’d long since gotten used to this guy’s personality—it didn’t dampen her spirits at all. “The weather’s warming up. I heard we’ve got swimming class starting next week. Hey, your arm tattoo—”

She abruptly cut herself off, staring in surprise at Hoshino Gen’s arm. “Huh? Your tattoo’s gone? You didn’t bring your sword today?”

“It’s just hidden. Your golden markings can be concealed, why can’t mine?” Hoshino Gen glanced lazily at the airhead beside him.

“Ohh~” Shimizu Yuu nodded, as if that explanation made perfect sense.

While they exchanged a few more words, the grand gates of the school loomed into view. And just then, the sound of a car horn rang out behind them. A sleek, black Rolls-Royce cruised past and came to a stop at the school entrance.

A man in a black suit and sunglasses stepped out from the driver’s seat. He immediately moved to open the back door—and a figure emerged, dressed in the same uniform as all the students here, yet effortlessly drawing every pair of eyes in the vicinity.

Long black hair cascading down her back, porcelain skin, delicate features, and a flawless figure… And on top of it all, she exuded a cool, untouchable aura, keeping everyone at arm’s length.

She was the kind of ultra-rich, picture-perfect beauty that made people question why life was so unfair.

“Hey, I was wondering,” Shimizu Yuu stared at the graceful figure walking toward the campus and couldn’t help but nudge Hoshino Gen. “Sasaki-san’s family is in the same social circle as yours, right? Do you two know each other outside of school? Are you friends? If you are, could you ask her if she’s got any tips on how to study better?”

Hoshino Gen shot her a deadpan look. “Don’t know her.”

“Ohhhhh…” Shimizu Yuu sounded genuinely disappointed. Her exam results had once again landed her in the bottom ten, and last night, her mom had chewed her out something fierce. If she hadn’t managed to rope her dad into pleading on her behalf, she’d probably be sentenced to cram school prison after class… Not even her dad’s intervention would save her next time if she flunked again.

As she mulled over these troublesome thoughts, a faint “click” of a camera shutter sounded nearby. Since phones in Japan can’t mute the shutter sound to prevent voyeurism, the noise felt especially out of place in public.

At first, Shimizu Yuu thought it was someone taking a selfie, or maybe sneaking a shot of that impossibly beautiful girl who had just walked off into the distance. But when she instinctively glanced over…

She froze.

Because the phone camera, still visible before it was hastily tucked away, was pointed right at Hoshino Gen. That alone wasn’t shocking—he was absurdly good-looking, so it wasn’t unusual for people to try snapping pictures of him. Heck, she herself occasionally got secretly photographed while out shopping.

But the real surprise?

The person taking the photo was a boy.

Specifically, one of their classmates, a quiet, practically invisible guy named Ikuta.

The moment Ikuta realized Shimizu Yuu had seen him, he scrambled to put away his phone and rushed into the school building like nothing had happened.

Shimizu Yuu stood there, mouth half-open, brain still trying to process what she’d just witnessed. Her first reaction was—Is Ikuta… into guys?!

She was so stunned that she didn’t even immediately tell Hoshino Gen about the photo.

By the time she snapped out of it, Ikuta had long disappeared. But no worries—they were in the same class. She’d definitely catch him later.

Pulling at Hoshino Gen’s sleeve, she blurted, “Hey, you just got secretly photographed by one of our classmates!”

“Oh.” Hoshino Gen yawned again, utterly unfazed.

“You’re not bothered?” Shimizu Yuu asked, surprised by how little he seemed to care.

“What’s there to bother about? I’m used to it. Of course, if it’s bothering you, feel free to go tell him to delete it when we get to class,” Hoshino Gen replied casually.

Honestly, with his face, being secretly photographed was as routine as eating or breathing. If he took offense every time, he might as well never leave the house.

Shimizu Yuu had nothing to say to that.

Once they arrived in the classroom, she instinctively scanned the room and quickly spotted Ikuta already seated in his usual back corner, hunched over his phone.

Coming from a family of cops, she really couldn’t turn a blind eye to something like illegal photography. Dropping her bag at her seat, she made a beeline for Ikuta’s desk.

He was so focused on his phone, typing furiously, that he didn’t even notice her standing there.

Shimizu Yuu was about to call him out when her eyes caught a glimpse of his phone screen—and she froze.

It was a chat window.

From top to bottom, the conversation read like this:

Ikuta: [Photo]

Ikuta: Finally I can start wearing summer uniforms.

Other person: Ooh~ Ikuta-senpai, you look so handsome! But… who’s that pretty girl next to you?

Ikuta: Just an ordinary friend, nothing special.

Other person: Really? I bet Ikuta-senpai is super popular in real life too, being so cool~ ( >///< )

That was as far as the chat went.

But Shimizu Yuu was already wide-eyed, because the photo in the conversation was clearly a shot of her and Hoshino Gen at the school gate!

Ikuta… was using Hoshino Gen’s photo to catfish someone online?!