The woman, who appeared to be in her mid-twenties, leaned against her couch with quiet grace, an old-fashioned glass of whiskey in her hand.
"Are you the child with the cursed eye?" the woman asked, her gorgeous blue eyes scanning his entire presence.
"Y-yes, I'm Rei Ashbourne," he uttered.
"You must be Miss Alyssa. I'm from the yakamura family, we're a small local branch here in Osaka," Miyako explained as she stepped closer to the woman. Rei noticed she was finally starting to relax.
Ezio said that name when we encountered Kuchisake-onna, he thought.
Alyssa set her glass down on the table beside her. Rei watched the sunlight pour in through the window, making her golden hair shined as it cascaded down her shoulders. She was as fair as moonlight on untouched snow. With those ice-blue eyes, she was impossible to look away from.
"I see Ezio is late, as usual," she giggled. "You're cute. Handsome… tall… and young. That's a hot combo."
"Umm… thank you," Rei replied, half-confused and blushing.
Miyako stared at him with blank, judgmental eyes. This gloomy penguin is handsome? she thought.
Alyssa, noticing her glance, offered a short smile. She stepped closer, placing a hand on Miyako's shoulder and looking her directly in the eye.
"Don't worry… I don't steal high school boys. That is, unless you ask nicely."
Miyako could smell her scent, dark and elegant, like black rose.
"He's like a brother to me!" Miyako said sharply, brushing the hand off her shoulder.
"Stop flirting with our guests, Alyssa."
Ezio Valenti entered the room, slamming the door behind him. Miyako and Rei turned to him. He looked tired—like he had been up to something.
"I thought you gave me the address of your room?" Rei asked, confused.
Ezio didn't respond immediately. He walked past Rei, paused near the couch, and placed a hand on the satchel hanging from it.
"I can't let you inside that room right now," he finally replied, his voice firm.
Rei tilted his head. "But why?"
Ezio turned to him. "Because that's where the mirror is. The one I sealed her in."
"But why only me?" Rei asked. "I'm afraid I don't fully understand what toll using that eye takes on me."
Ezio sat down on the couch. "Exactly. And I don't either. I can't risk it activating again."
Alyssa noticed Rei slump slightly, his shoulders low and fists gently clenched. Her expression softened.
"It's okay, Rei. It's not your fault, we're just being safe," she said, her voice quieter now. She placed a hand on his shoulder in comfort.
"It's a shame this arrogant knucklehead had all the fun exorcising that A-grade urban legend alone," she added with a sly giggle, lightening the mood.
"Yeah, real fun," Ezio muttered, running a hand through his messy hair. "She was so strong, I spent nearly a whole day just making sure—holy water, seal chants, purification rites… over and over, until I was damn sure she wasn't coming back."
"Alright, everyone—have a seat. No more flirting and no more jokes. Let's get down to the agenda," he said with a clap.
Everyone moved to the nearest available seats. Alyssa sank gracefully into an armchair, legs crossed, a faint smirk still lingering on her lips. Miyako sat beside Rei, her expression settling back to its usual calm focus. Rei exhaled slowly as he sat down, the weight of the room finally settling in. Sunlight filtered through the window, casting long shadows across the floor.
"So, let me formally introduce myself. I'm Ezio Valenti. Alyssa and I aren't associated with any government agency—we work for an international organization."
He reached into his jacket, pulled something from the inner pocket, and handed it to Rei.
"This is my exorcist license," he said.
Rei scanned the card:
---
Name: Ezio Valenti
Age: 26
Grade: A
Organization: Veilwatchers (International)
Nation of Origin: Italy
Note: The paranormal investigator has a contract with an urban legend.
---
"We Veilwatchers aren't limited to one country," Alyssa added as she passed her license to Rei. "We accept requests from people having trouble dealing with urban legends, ghosts, or anything cursed."
---
Name: Alyssa Vetrova
Age: 22
Grade: B
Organization: Veilwatchers (International)
Nation of Origin: Russia
---
Rei turned the card over in his hands. The plastic felt cold, solid—official. But everything about these two felt anything but normal.
"You seriously carry these around like driver's licenses?" he asked quietly.
Ezio smirked. "Would you believe me if I said I've exorcised demons in a three-piece suit? The card helps with customs."
"Mr. Valenti, I've been wondering something..." Miyako said, her eyes drifting to the license.
Ezio glanced in her direction.
"That ritual you performed while sealing that legend—is that what your license means by having a contract with an urban legend?" she asked in a quiet but curious voice.
"Yes. I have a contract with Bloody Mary," Ezio answered, a hint of pride in his tone. "When I call her, she drags any spirit or legend weaker than her into her cursed world. In return, she takes a lot of blood from me."
He let out a long sigh.
Rei's mind flashed back to the hospital—Ezio chugging ORS and stealing apples off his bedside table.
That explains it, Rei thought. He was refueling.
"Right now, he can't even beat a kid in a pillow fight," Alyssa teased with a wicked smile.
"Come on! She was way too strong. I'll be back to normal in no time," Ezio replied, pulling out a bottle of pomegranate juice.
Rei watched as he drained the bottle. "That's why you stole my apple, isn't it?" he finally asked.
"Borrowed," Ezio corrected.
"The mighty Ezio Valenti, running on stolen apples and hydration salts. How legendary," Alyssa said with a smirk.
"Yeah...yeah back to what matters." Ezio exhaled, "we already talked about your eye so let's skip it, not much is known about it besides online 5 people in history are said to posses it."
Everyone in the room stared at Rei as his jaw tightened.
"Your father was one of the early founders of Veilwatchers." Ezio looked at Rei's surprised wide eyes. "He was one of you? Where's he now!?" Rei asked desperately.
"Calm down kid." Said ezio strongly, "he was a special garde paranormal investigator who went missing 6 years ago."
Rei now saddened added "and i thought i could meet him again, that man left me alone in a foreign country. No call, no contact for years...he's never there when i need him the most."
Miyako's eyes filled with sympathy she patted his back.
"I know it feels kid," Ezio stood up walking near Rei.
"Here's the thing, how about you join Veilwatchers?" Said ezio with a smirk as he placed his hand forward offering a handshake. Miyako could see scars through ends of gloves ear his wrist.
"W-what?" Rei asked "me a paranormal investigator?"
Alyssa smiled " yes cutie, its a good path if you want to find the more about your eye and parents."
"Ezio lowered his hands and let out a quiet breath, his voice calm.
"I'm not here to pressure you, Rei. But the truth is... people die every day because of things they don't understand. Ghosts. Curses. Legends that slip through."
He looked at Rei—not with pity, but with quiet seriousness.
"You've got something rare. And yeah, dangerous. But it can help people.
He gave a small shrug, like he'd had this conversation before.
"This job isn't clean. Or safe. You might not make it through your first mission. I barely survived mine."
Then he added with a smile, "But if you're cursed anyway... might as well learn how to use it."
"If you're in, meet me at Osaka Itami Airport tomorrow morning."
He looked at Rei one last time and gave a tired smile.
"If you're not there, I'll take that as your answer."
That night was a long one for Rei. He had long ignored the ghosts he saw, the pain and suffering of these urban legends,
Mothers crying for their starving children.
Screams of people burning alive.
The pain in the voices of those who weren't ready to say goodbye.
If he took this man's offer… maybe he could stop at least one of those things from happening again.
Maybe one less kid would grow up without knowing a parent's love.
Maybe one more mother could keep her child smiling in her arms.
Next day, Osaka airoirt
"Do you think hell come?" Alyssa removing her sunglasses, she wore a black shirt with stapped white pants, her hair tied in a ponytail.
I don't know," Ezio muttered, glancing at the time. "Flight leaves in fifteen minutes anyway."
He pulled a spare ticket from his coat pocket, fingers hovering over the trash can nearby.
Just before he let it go, a shadow crossed his path.
Rei stood there , serious, calm, eyes steady.
Ezio paused, a slow smile tugging at his lips as he slid the ticket back into his pocket.
"Took you long enough," he said, voice low but pleased. "Let's go hunt some ghosts."