Chapter 115: There Is No Turning Back Now

Kotone Hashimoto could no longer recall exactly how she had managed to eliminate that vengeful spirit. She stared at her trembling hands. At her fingertips, the faint scent of gunpowder still lingered.

Kotone had never imagined she would personally vanquish a vengeful spirit. And with a handgun, no less.

The sensation was... exhilarating.

“...It’s almost like when the protagonist in ‘Wandering O’ shoots the villain’s head in one shot,” she murmured.

“No, Hashimoto-san, please don’t compare it to some obscure B-movie; no one would understand,” Ariko Asano retorted.

“Ah, sorry. Then it’s more like the heroic moment in ‘Leaping O Summit’ when Steelbuster rips open his chest armor and inserts the retreat furnace into the Jupiter bomb’s core,” Kotone apologized, lowering her head.

“Even if we switch to anime, kids nowadays probably haven’t seen shows from thirty years ago,” Ariko muttered with a twitch of her lips.

“No, I’ve actually seen them. Now that you mention it, the feeling when I first fired a gun was quite similar,” Kyo Hashi pondered, stroking his chin.

“Sensei actually watched those?” Ariko found herself surprised. Despite his serious demeanor and his mind consumed by exorcism and weaponry, the teacher seemed unexpectedly well-versed in certain areas.

“Yes, as study material.”

His spiritual power had increased by a standard unit, though he didn’t elaborate.

Kyo looked toward Kotone and took the handgun from her hand.

“Hashimoto-san, as you’ve seen, whether it’s a vengeful spirit or an evil spirit, once it’s killed, it’s dead.”

“With such power, as long as you invest the time to learn how to use firearms and develop shooting skills, exorcism becomes a simple matter.”

Kotone listened, half understanding.

Could she really exorcise spirits? Using a gun to do so—wasn’t that a bit odd?

“Look,” Kyo explained, “miko usually use a yumi bow to shoot spiritual arrows to exorcise spirits, but bows are ancient weapons. Later, crossbows evolved, followed by firearms and cannons. These are essentially evolutions of the bow.”

“It’s reasonable for a miko to use weapons for exorcism.”

...That actually made some sense.

Kotone felt a bit dazed but understanding.

Indeed, in miko training, kyudo—the way of the bow—is compulsory. Besides using gohei and kagura bells for exorcism, the yumi bow is the most commonly wielded weapon.

A bow is a weapon, and so is a handgun.

If bows can exorcise spirits, why can’t handguns?

Moreover, compared to bows, which require years of practice to master, handguns can be handled after just a few minutes, making them seemingly more convenient.

While pondering this, Kotone’s mind drifted elsewhere.

Using a handgun to exorcise spirits—that’s just like in ‘Hellsing,’ isn’t it?

Come to think of it, in ‘Saint O Nun,’ the nuns used handguns for exorcism as well, right?

Imagining herself wielding two massive handguns, battling monstrous creatures under the moonlight, Kotone suddenly felt it wasn’t so hard to accept.

“But I’m still scared of those vengeful spirits. If I’m armed, I might accidentally hurt others in a panic...” She hesitated.

Though guns made exorcism easier, Kotone was timid and found it hard to stay calm in such terrifying environments.

She was self-aware enough not to let her recent success with the handgun go to her head.

“It’s simple,” Kyo said without hesitation.

“Just keep your distance from the vengeful spirits.”

“If three meters isn’t enough, then ten. If ten isn’t enough, then a hundred.”

“Hashimoto-san, have you ever felt fear toward a vengeful spirit more than a thousand meters away?”

“?”

Kotone was puzzled.

“I see,” Ariko understood.

It was terrifying when the vengeful spirit stood right before you.

But if it was far away, and you could only see it through a screen or lens, then it was no different from a movie.

It could even be considered a highly realistic shooting game.

The teacher’s idea was probably to teach Hashimoto-san long-distance shooting techniques.

“Look,” Kyo pulled up an image on his phone.

“This is the CS/LR4 sniper rifle, produced in China. It uses 7.62 caliber rounds, features a free-floating barrel, a rotating bolt action, and besides the standard optical scope, it can be fitted with a low-light image intensifier, allowing you to see targets even in pitch darkness.”

“Though this sniper rifle is heavy and only holds five rounds per magazine, making it less ideal for actual combat, it’s more than sufficient for exorcism work.”

“More importantly, this sniper rifle is highly accurate. At one hundred meters, three shots will disperse no more than two centimeters. With diligent practice, at eight hundred meters, it can deliver a devastating blow to a vengeful spirit.”

“This is equipment recently recommended by my boss. I’m not very skilled with sniper rifles, so I haven’t paid much attention, but I believe Hashimoto-san could easily handle it.”

Kyo glanced at the bullet holes from Kotone’s previous shots.

They happened to outline the shape of a vengeful spirit.

To miss every shot on the first try with a handgun, in a way, was also a kind of talent.

“?”

Kotone’s mind exploded with question marks looking at the sniper rifle picture.

A sniper rifle?

Handguns were one thing, but what was the deal with sniper rifles?

Was it really okay for a miko to use sniper rifles?

“A bow was once a long-range weapon to snipe enemies, and a sniper rifle is also a long-range weapon to snipe enemies,” Kyo explained.

“Isn’t that basically the same thing?”

Kotone seemed convinced.

If miko could exorcise spirits with bows, then using sniper rifles was reasonable.

One could say sniper rifles were the modern bows.

None of that was the main point, though.

The key was that the process of eliminating the vengeful spirit just now was swift and efficient.

Kotone felt as if it had only just begun and was already over.

What she had once found terrifying, horrifying, and dangerous—the vengeful spirits—were surprisingly fragile beneath the bullets.

Even Kotone, who had failed repeatedly before, now had the vengeful spirit’s blood staining her hands.

There was no turning back.

She thought so to herself.

Her hands were already stained.

From here on, there was only moving forward.

Looking into Kyo’s sincere eyes, Kotone nodded.

“Please teach me the art of exorcism,” she said earnestly.

“No problem,” Kyo replied.

And just like that, it began.

...

That afternoon, Kyo and the others returned to the shrine.

The other three miko had spent the morning on their regular training and completed the assignments Kyo had given them.

Sasaki Haruka scored the highest but only just above eighty.

Hayami Nanase missed passing by one point.

Kitagawa Ryoko fared the worst, with less than thirty points.

Incidentally, the supervisor, Araki Maki, had also taken the test herself.

As for her score, it was best left unspoken.

Upon seeing Kotone return, the others felt puzzled.

There was something different about Kotone.

Though they hadn’t spoken much, it was clear that the Kotone before them now was not the same as the one from yesterday.

What had Kyo done to Kotone?

Hayami Nanase glanced at Kyo, only to find him staring back at her.

She couldn’t help but sneeze.