"Akira Kanzaki," the intercom crackled again. "Please report to the principal's office immediately."

Several students nearby turned to look at him, and then, whispers started immediately.

"Why's the principal calling him?"

"Maybe it's about the drug test?"

Akira took a deep breath. "Okay. Maybe I can't handle it."

"Stay calm," Ai advised. "Remember your Silver Tongue skill. And whatever you do, don't let them rattle you."

He walked toward the administrative building, his heart pounding with each step. Other students gave him curious looks as he passed, but he ignored them, focusing on keeping his breathing steady.

He can't afford to look nervous or spooked.

The principal's office door was open when he arrived.

Inside, Principal Yamamoto sat behind his desk, looking deeply uncomfortable. And sitting casually on the edge of that desk, like he owned the place, was the tall man Akira had seen the day before and earlier, directing the field investigation.

Agent Sato.

Close up, he was even more intimidating. He looked to be in his late thirties or early forties, with sharp cheekbones and eyes that seemed to notice everything. He wore a grey suit that was similar to his team's tactical uniforms, but he made it look like a regular business suit. Everything about him suggested a military past and a dangerous level of skill.

"Ah, Kanzaki-san," the principal said nervously. "This is Agent Sato from the... um..."

"Special Phenomena Investigation Unit," Sato supplied smoothly. "SPIU for short." His voice was cultured, educated, but with an edge of steel. "Please, sit down, Kanzaki-san."

Akira sat in the chair across from the desk, keeping his posture relaxed despite his racing pulse. "Is this about the enquiries announced earlier?"

"In a manner of speaking." Sato pulled out a tablet, tapping it a few times. "I'll be direct with you, Kanzaki-san. We detected something unusual here last night. An energy signature unlike anything in our database. The damage to your athletics field suggests an extremely high-temperature event, approximately 2000 degrees Celsius at the epicentre."

"That's... concerning," Akira said carefully.

"Indeed it is. What's more concerning is that this event occurred between 2 and 3 AM, yet no fire alarms went off, no automatic emergency systems activated, nothing. It's almost as if someone intentionally contained the damage to that specific area." Sato's eyes bored into him. "Almost like they were protecting the school."

Akira said nothing, keeping his expression neutral.

Sato continued, "The interesting thing is, we pulled security footage from nearby buildings. Traffic cameras, convenience stores, that sort of thing. Guess whose face appeared on camera, running toward the school at 2:47 AM?"

He turned the tablet to show Akira grainy but unmistakable footage of himself sprinting down the street, his face partially visible under a streetlight.

"I was having trouble sleeping," Akira said, his Silver Tongue skill activating automatically. "Went for a walk to clear my head."

Sato hit play on the video. The footage showed Akira running at a pace that would make Olympic sprinters jealous. "At this speed? At this time of night? Directly toward the school? Come on, you can do better."

"I thought I saw something… smoke, maybe. So I ran. I wasn't really thinking about the direction, just reacting."

"And when you arrived?"

"There was nothing there. No fire, no smoke. So I went home."

"I see." Sato studied him with those calculating eyes. "Your drug test is scheduled for this morning, correct? For the basketball team?"

The subject change threw Akira off balance. "Yes, sir."

"Interesting timing. Kenji Takahara has been very vocal about his... suspicions regarding you. Claims you must be using performance-enhancing drugs or steroids to explain your sudden athletic improvement."

"I'm not on drugs," Akira said firmly.

"No, I don't think you are." Sato leaned forward, his voice dropping. "But I think you're on something else entirely. Something that doesn't show up on standard drug tests. Something that might explain both your physical transformation and your presence near a supernatural event."

The word hung in the air between them. Supernatural. Not unusual. Not strange. Supernatural.

"I don't know what you mean," Akira said.

"Don't you?" Sato smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Kanzaki-san, I've seen a lot in my years of active service." He stood up, straightening his suit. "I'm going to figure out exactly what this is. It's only a matter of time."

He walked toward the door, then paused. "Oh, one more thing. Your drug test will be delayed by a few hours. I need to arrange some additional... screenings. I'll be observing the test personally. Purely routine, you understand."

Akira understood perfectly. Sato wasn't going to test for drugs. He was going to test for something else entirely… something that might reveal his supernatural nature.

"Of course," Akira said. "Whatever you need."

Sato smiled again, with that same cold expression. "I'm glad you're so cooperative. You're dismissed, Kanzaki-san. For now."

Akira stood and walked out of the office, forcing himself not to hurry. Only when he was safely in the hallway did he allow himself to breathe.

"That was close, darling," Ai said quietly. "He knows. Maybe not exactly what you are, but he suspects something is off about you."

"How long do we have before he figures it out?"

"Hard to say. But those 'additional screenings' he mentioned? Those could be a problem. We need to figure out exactly what tests he's planning before you walk into that room."

Akira nodded grimly. The SPIU was closing in, and he had only a few hours to prepare for whatever Agent Sato had planned.

This was going to be a very long day.

—

Akira found Ayaka in the library, tucked away in a corner desk where she'd clearly been waiting for him. She looked up as he approached with a grim expression.

"I heard the intercom," she said quietly. "How bad was it?"

"Bad." Akira slumped into the chair across from her, keeping his voice low. "Agent Sato basically told me he knows I'm not normal. He's delaying my drug test so he can add 'additional screenings.'"

"What kind of screenings?"

"He didn't specify. But the way he said 'supernatural event' while staring directly at me..." Akira shook his head. "He knows, Ayaka. Maybe not the details, but he knows something's off about me."

Ayaka's jaw tightened. "The drug test. He's not testing for steroids anymore, is he?"

"What do you mean?"

"Think about it, Akira. The SPIU deals with supernatural threats. They have technology we can't even imagine: scanners, analysers, things designed specifically to detect non-human entities." She leaned forward, her crimson eyes intense. "He doesn't want to see if you're on steroids. He wants to see if you have Gate-contamination markers."

The words hit Akira like a physical blow. "Gate-contamination?"

"When someone goes through a Gate, especially when they fight inside one like we did last night, their body absorbs trace amounts of essence from that realm. It's like radiation, but supernatural. Normally it fades after a few days, but you..." She gestured at him. "You didn't just go through a Gate. You absorbed two guardian cores in less than twelve hours. Your body is probably saturated with fire essence right now."

"But I have the Essence Cloak active," Akira protested. "It's supposed to mask my signature."

"Your cloak works against supernatural detection… other demons, supernatural entities, things that sense essence naturally. But the SPIU's equipment is technological. It measures physical contamination markers in your blood, your tissue samples, and your cellular structure. The cloak can't hide what's literally part of your biology right now."

"So if I take that test..."

"If you take that test with your current contamination levels, their scanners will light up like a Christmas tree. You won't just get kicked off the basketball team, Akira. You'll be flagged as a supernatural entity. They'll take you to one of their facilities for 'study.'" The way she said the word made it sound like a death sentence. "And by study, I mean dissection. Vivisection, actually, since they prefer to keep specimens alive during the process."

Akira felt his blood run cold. "There has to be a way to flush it out. Some kind of cleansing ritual or…"

"There is," Ayaka interrupted. "But we need to do it now, and we can't do it here. The process is... intense. It'll create an energy signature that every supernatural within a kilometre will sense. If we do it on school grounds with SPIU agents crawling all over the place..."

"They'll detect it immediately."

"Exactly. We need to leave. Now."

Akira pulled out his phone and quickly typed a message to Rina: Need to leave school urgently. If there's an announcement calling for me or if anyone asks where I am, call me immediately. Cover for me if you can.

Her response came within seconds: What's going on? Are you okay?

I'll explain later. Please, Rina. This is important.

...Fine. But you owe me answers. Be safe.

He pocketed his phone and looked at Ayaka. "Where do we go?"

"I know a place. An old warehouse about two kilometres from here. It's been abandoned for years, but the spiritual resonance there will help mask what we're doing." She stood up, gathering her things. "Follow me. And try to look casual… if anyone stops us, we're just going to study somewhere quiet."

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