The fading light of dusk filtered through the school building's windows, casting long shadows down the deserted hallway.
The dismissal bell had rung long ago. Miko Yotsuya and Hana Yurikawa walked side by side.
Miko gripped her schoolbag straps tightly. After psyching herself up for a long time, she finally turned her head to look at her best friend, who was taking small bites of a taiyaki.
"Um... Hana."
"Hmm? What's up, Miko?" Hana stopped chewing and tilted her head, a bit of sauce still smeared on her cheek.
"It's about... that guy I met yesterday, my cousin's friend." Miko struggled to find the right words, trying to explain the bizarre concept of taking on a master in a way a normal person could understand.
"He, um, he wants to take me on as an apprentice and teach me some... well... very special skills."
"Eh? An apprentice? Is it like a part-time job that pays? Does it include room and board? Will they hand out snacks?" Hana's eyes lit up.
Miko was momentarily at a loss for words.
Just then, a voice rang out from the shadows of the lockers behind them.
"Halt!!"
"Wah!"
Miko jumped in fright, and the half-eaten taiyaki in Hana's hand nearly went flying.
With a loud clatter, a petite figure tumbled clumsily out from the gap between the lockers. She then dropped to one knee in an uncoordinated but self-proclaimed cool pose, one hand on her hip and the other pointing right at them.
Miko took one look and immediately recognized the chunibyo girl, Yuria.
"Miko! I knew you weren't an ordinary person!" Yuria's face displayed a mix of three parts excitement, three parts realization, and four parts nervousness.
"I knew you were hiding something! What special skills? You can definitely see those monsters, can't you! That mysterious person must be your master!"
Miko covered her face in despair.
The worst-case scenario had happened. This annoying girl was clinging to her again.
"Yuria, you've really misunderstood..."
"I haven't misunderstood!" Yuria suddenly lunged forward and grabbed Miko's hands. "I can see them too!!"
She stared intently at Miko, her eyes practically screaming, *'We are both the chosen ones.'*
"Even though I haven't learned how to seal them yet, I will definitely be your companion in the future! I am the destined 'Witch of Darkness'! You can't leave me behind!"
"I'm begging you! Take me with you!"
The next second, Yuria clung to Miko's leg like a limpet, hugging her thigh tightly as she threw a tantrum and rolled around.
"Take me with you! Take me with you! Otherwise, I'll hang myself at your front door!!"
"..."
Miko looked down at Yuria, who was hugging her thigh and crying a river, then glanced at Hana beside her. Hana looked completely bewildered as she silently picked up her dropped half-taiyaki, blew the dust off it, and prepared to stuff it back into her mouth.
She let out a long sigh.
Things seemed to be spiraling in a completely uncontrollable direction.
...
Half an hour later, next door to Miko's house.
Yang Yi had bought this house at a premium. While the exterior remained the same, the interior had undergone an earth-shattering transformation.
Tomie sat with her legs crossed, continuously wiping down her six-barrel Gatling gun with a silk scarf. She had just equipped it with a zombie-style skin, and the weapon's body gleamed with an eerie green luster under the lights.
The door opened. When she saw Miko walk in leading two others, she immediately hoisted her Gatling gun.
"Miko, check out the new skin on my gun. Isn't it super trendy?"
"Uh..." Miko was momentarily at a loss for how to describe Tomie's aesthetic tastes.
"Master." Ignoring Tomie, who went back to swapping skins, Miko bowed respectfully to Yang Yi standing by the window. "This is my good friend, Hana Yurikawa, the one you mentioned yesterday. And this is... Yuria. She insisted on tagging along."
Hana bowed politely. "Hello! I'm Hana Yurikawa! It's a pleasure to meet you!"
Yuria nervously gulped. She could sense that the man before her was far from ordinary, but her chunibyo instincts forced her to strike a pose with one hand over her chest.
"A pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am the 'Witch of the Dark Moon,' Yuria! I am... I am the companion of the Witch Miko!"
Yang Yi turned around, completely unfazed by the scene.
His gaze swept over the three girls, lingering on Yuria for two extra seconds.
"Oh?"
He let out a soft chuckle and slowly walked over to Yuria.
Yuria felt a chill run down her spine under his stare, barely able to maintain her chunibyo pose.
"You possess a special ability too, but it seems rather lackluster, doesn't it?"
Yang Yi's very first sentence caused Yuria's face to fall.
"However..." He suddenly changed his tune, lightly tapping her forehead with his finger. "Your chunibyo imagination is quite strong."
"With a talent like that, you can be considered a moldable talent."
"Eh?" Yuria froze.
*He... he saw my potential?!*
"R-really?" Yuria asked, thoroughly thrilled.
"Fake! I just made that up," Yang Yi replied, withdrawing his finger.
Yuria instantly lost all her color, petrifying in the corner.
Yang Yi paid her no further mind. Instead, he faced the three girls and began his lesson. "How do you think cultivation should begin?"
"By reading books? Reciting scriptures? Or enduring bitter meditation?"
Without waiting for their answers, Yang Yi extended his right hand.
"Of course not! Those methods of cultivation are far too old-fashioned and slow!"
He pulled out a few secret manuals radiating particle effects and handed them over.
Miko and the others accepted the incredibly intimidating-looking secret manuals.
Then, prompted by Yang Yi's gaze, they curiously opened the manuals in their hands.
*Boom!*
In an instant, a complex, vast, and indescribable surge of knowledge rushed into their minds!
For a moment, it felt as if countless voices were whispering in their ears.
Miko felt as though her brain had been shoved into a washing machine. In a flash, a massive sea of knowledge and cultivation methods—regarding the birth of "Cursed Energy," the application of negative emotions, the cultivation of spiritual power, and how to perceive and refine it—was forcibly branded into her soul, allowing her body to learn it all in an instant!
*Grumble...* Hana's stomach let out a thunderous roar. She clutched her belly, her face turning pale. All at once, her body's craving for energy reached its absolute peak.
Yuria's eyes rolled back into her head as she muttered to herself, "Is this... the legendary spiritual empowerment of the East?"
Yang Yi pulled out a massive chunk of enchanted Sea King roast meat and handed it to Hana.
"This is the 'Supreme Roast Meat.' It's a piece of roast meat that you can never finish eating no matter how much you take!"
"Wow! Does something like this really exist in the world?" The savory aroma wafting from the roast meat instantly captivated Hana.
Without hesitation, she took the roast meat and took a huge bite.
Instantly, an indescribable sense of happiness enveloped her.
This wasn't just because of the deliciousness of the Sea King roast meat, but also because her body was finally receiving a supplement of high-tier energy.