Gabriel stopped responding to Rom's questions. She deleted the livestream app with a casual swipe and shoved her phone back into her pocket.
The livestream had been a mere whim, a means to an end for the sake of the master-disciple pair, Mitsue Takeda and Shindou Rom. You could say she had specifically made the dumplings just for the sake of this particular dipping sauce.
Gabriel tossed the masks Miko and the others had returned into a roadside trash can.
She cast a subtle glance inside the bin. Curled up in the trash was an infant evil spirit, its body hunched as it rasped out a broken, hoarse cry: "Mama..."
Spiritual bodies that had fallen into becoming evil spirits for whatever reason could no longer travel to "The Other World" on their own. They were doomed to either wander the physical world in a mindless stupor forever, be devoured by stronger ghosts, or—if they were lucky—be collected by a ghostly deity, this world's equivalent of a Soul Reaper.
However, the number of such deities was far too small, while the number of evil spirits was far too vast. This was why ghosts were a common sight on every street corner.
"What a headache..."
Gabriel let out a silent sigh and extended a finger, tapping the air toward the infant spirit.
As a warm light bathed the tiny ghost, the dense malice clinging to its body began to dissipate. Within moments, the spirit returned to the normal appearance of a human infant, its body becoming increasingly transparent.
Three seconds later, the infant's soul vanished, successfully departing for the other side. Only a faint, childish "Thank you" lingered in the air.
Gabriel stood still for a few seconds before turning toward a nearby dessert shop.
"I came to this world for a vacation, not to deal with troublesome chores like this. It looks like I need to find a permanent solution..."
She began weighing her options. While evil spirits posed zero threat to her, that didn't mean they weren't eyesores. Some were so grotesque they were genuinely stomach-turning.
Thus, for the sake of her future holiday comfort, Gabriel decided to remodel this world's Samsara Mechanism. She couldn't have these ghosts wandering the streets so brazenly anymore.
"There are still many people who can 'see.' Even if they don't have Miko's high-spec Yin-Yang Eyes, they can see ordinary spirits and run the risk of being attacked."
If she remembered correctly, Mitsue Takeda's master had taken in many such children. Shindou Rom was one of them. Because Rom's parents couldn't handle his eccentric behavior, they had simply abandoned him. Not all parents were like Yuria's, who loved their child unconditionally despite her oddities.
"The number of people with spirit vision is clearly increasing, and the ghosts seem to know about this special demographic. Otherwise, they wouldn't keep testing Miko in the original story to see if she can see them."
Were they looking for prey?
Though she hated to admit it, there were indeed many people in this world like Miko Yotsuya who needed the help of an "Angel."
Gabriel felt for her own "conscience," which felt remarkably inert.
"I guess I really am cold-blooded..." Gabriel grumbled internally as she sifted through the Divine Arts of Heaven.
Even without using the First Trumpet of the Apocalypse, she could easily purge the Earth's surface several times over. Unfortunately, she couldn't change the fundamental mechanism of how evil spirits were born. If she could, she wouldn't have spent so much time turning a blind eye.
If you don't pull the weeds by the roots, they just grow back when the spring breeze blows.
"Since I can't change the world itself, I'll give it an immune system. I'll give the ghosts a natural enemy."
A new plan began to take shape in Gabriel's mind. She intended to turn those with Yin-Yang Eyes into the predators of the spirit world. Miko Yotsuya was her chosen first "test subject."
As for someone with weaker vision like Yuria, Gabriel had a different experimental approach in mind.
Inside the dessert shop, Miko, Hana, and Yuria each ordered a "Butt Daifuku."
When Miko saw Gabriel return, she handed over the daifuku she had bought specifically for her and asked nervously, "Gabriel, where are we going next?"
Gabriel took the sweet and had a bite without hesitation. Finding the texture pleasant, she took another, her cheeks puffing out as she uttered two simple words: "Going home."
"Go... going back?"
"Eh? We finally made it out for a trip, it would be a shame to end it so soon! Gabriel, please reconsider!" Hana protested. she grabbed one of Gabriel's small hands in hers, hoping to change her mind.
"I'm planning to invite you all over to the house. I'll cook something special to treat you myself."
"Really?! Okay! When do we leave!"
At the mention of food, Hana's eyes lit up, and her attitude pulled a total 180-degree turn.
Miko looked at her gluttonous friend with a sigh, then turned to Gabriel with surprise. This lazy "Fail-ten" who spent her days idling actually knew how to cook? For real?
"Wipe that rude look off your face. I put some effort into advanced training for a while; my cooking is respectable."
Though it wasn't quite on the level of her flower cultivation skills.
Gabriel added that last part internally. She then pointed a finger at the relatively inconspicuous Yuria and spoke in a tone that brooked no refusal:
"Yuria, you're coming too. Don't you want to become a spiritual medium? I can give you that chance."
The main reason Gabriel wanted to go home was that Miko's "test" was temporarily complete; now it was Yuria's turn. It just so happened that the "Large Dog" at home was high-level and looked quite "fierce," yet posed no real risk—making it the perfect subject for her experiment.
Yuria was startled at first, but upon hearing the second half of the sentence, her face flushed with excitement. She nodded vigorously. "I'll go! I'll definitely go!"
The Yotsuya Residence.
It was no secret that Gabriel lived at Miko's house, so Yuria and Hana weren't too shocked. Miko opened the door and called out naturally, "We're back."
"Welcome home! I didn't expect Miko and Gabriel to be back so soon. Why didn't you stay out longer with your friends?" Uncle Yotsuya's mature voice responded immediately from the living room.
"Don't... AFK!" the Large Dog's disgruntled voice chimed in.
Moments later, the sounds of Uncle Yotsuya and the Large Dog arguing filled the living room. It was quite lively. A small smile tugged at Miko's lips; she was starting to enjoy this kind of life.
"Yuria, no matter what you see in a moment, act as if you see nothing. This is my test for you," Gabriel said, suddenly turning to Yuria.
"Don't underestimate me! I'm very brave!"
Yuria gave a confident smirk.
She wasn't joking—she was super brave, okay? How else did Gabriel think she had survived all these years?