Secretly Glancing Back (Finder no Hyouteki)

1

The room stunk of stale blood and other indistinguishable smells. Almost choke inducing to the point where the occupants of the room covered their mouths with face masks and an under layer of scented fabric. The smell dulled enough for them to maneuver the sacrifices in their proper spaces, giving them no pushback from going through their duties.

In their line of work, varying bodily fluids were a staple in rougher nights of the week. A bit of gore didn't make them flinch or gag. Too much. If they were bothered, they hid it well underneath a cool and neutral face.

Showing reactions in front of their leader was an embarrassment and a shame.

Their boss, Asami Ryuichi, stood in the middle of the room. He held a weathered out book in his left hand with a dripping paintbrush in the other hand. Droplets of the paint landed on his loafers, but he ignored them in favor of the contents of the book. Lacking his signature black suit, he wore a sleeveless black turtleneck, black slacks, and old beaten down loafers.

As he compared the lines he drew on the floor to the summoning circle in the book, Asami mentally listed the sacrifices needed for this spell to work.

Everything was in perfect order.

He used the blood and bodies of old enemies and imported animals to complete a majority of the payment. Everything was set in their proper places, but he needed to paint the lines with precision . One wrong flick of his paintbrush and it failed.

All the hard work in maneuvering the sacrifices would be for nothing.

It was a hassle having to dispose of so many bodies.

Asami crouched down, careful in not smudging the paint on the floor. He started adding on a sequence of lines that matched the page.

In between unpainted lines stood Kirishima and Suoh. Asami's trusted men watched their leader for years, followed his word without question, but were concerned in this new venture.

Kirishima voiced his concern. "Are you certain of continuing this, Asami-sama?" He watched his boss concentrate on painting the symbols on the floor with a steady hand. "We may not have the supernatural on our side, but we have willing men to do your bidding. There is no need to do this."

Asami lifted his head from his book and peered back. His golden eyes glowed in the candlelight. "I know what I am doing. It is best to keep a safe measure just in case someone intends to betray me again."

The finality in Asami's tone caused Kirishima to refrain from convincing him. There was no use arguing against his boss once he set his mind on his plans. He was there to assist not to contradict his boss's orders.

Kirishima found the whole concept of demon summoning a ridiculous endeavor. None of the stories told of a demon who didn't turn against their summoner. Most of them feasted on the soul and returned after causing immense chaos. The few cases of success were well hidden or brushed aside as folklore.

As far as the public knew, demon summoning was impossible. Fabricated through organized religions and horror movies to scare the weak willed. A concept the superstitious fell for to excuse certain bad episodes in their lives.

Seeing his leader, Asami Ryuichi fall into this pitfall was flabbergasting. This powerful man dove into the research, bartered for the book, and went through the trouble of attaining the material needed for the ritual.

Yet, the thought of the ritual failing was a positive note in this whole situation.

There was no way this demon summoning would work.