CHAPTER 1: ROUTINE

  In a long hallway, screams for urgent help resonate.

  "Help! Someone, please!" The plea echoed, losing itself in a void that found no walls to bounce off.

  It was an infinite stretch made of cracked and dirty black and white marble—a chessboard pattern extending toward absolute nothingness. There was no ceiling, no walls; only darkness devouring the light. At the end of this impossible path, a single room remained like a beacon of agony.

  In the corner of that room, a girl huddled against the cold air, her eyes wide with terror. Before her, the nightmare took shape. It wasn't a monster of claws or scales. It had the face of a man, a mask of distorted humanity with a smile that showed every one of his teeth, yellowish and perfect. His eyes were too wide, fixed, and his arms swung with terrifying normalcy as he crawled toward her.

  [TARGET ANALYSIS: GRADE C NIGHTMARE - PATERNAL MANIFESTATION] —A flat, lifeless voice cut through the air.

  A few meters from the monster, the Protagonist stood tall. His black suit seemed to absorb what little light remained in the room, and his dark tie was perfectly knotted. There was no fear on his face, no disgust, no pity. Only technical observation.

  "How annoying," he whispered before darting toward the screams.

  ("Hey, you don't have to be so rude; remember you're on a mission,") a warm voice rang through our protagonist's head.

  The monster was closing in until a metallic sound echoed again in the room. It was a brutal KRAK-ZHOOM! The sound of steel resonated throughout the place, a vibration that traveled down the entire marble hallway.

  The shadow was sent flying back by the massive impact.

  "Wh-who are you??" the girl asked, confused and terrified, with tears in her eyes and a broken voice.

  "Me?" he asked himself in a whisper. As he stood up, his purple eyes flashed with supernatural intensity, cutting through the room's gloom. "Stay behind me," he declared.

  His elegant, slender figure was reassuring. In his hands, he held the metal that had resonated: a sanchaku resting against his back.

  The girl ran away while the shadow stood up and tried to approach the protagonist with an awkward gait, like a cockroach. It attempted to attack with its hands and even its mouth, but the man with violet eyes dodged every move without effort.

  The monster finally landed a blow, but the protagonist caught its arm and took it down with a kick, leaving it on the floor once again.

  "I wasted too much energy unnecessarily," the protagonist commented, staring at the monster as his sanchaku began to glow with purple energy.

  In the next instant, he pierced the monster's head with his sanchaku. With his other hand, he reached for the monster's chest, pulling out a kind of energy that he began to absorb through his mouth until nothing was left.

  "Assignment completed," he remarked as he headed back the way he came.

  ("Good job. It's time to return to the temple,") the voice in his head spoke again.

  Upon reaching the end, a great door pulled him out of that space. He was now standing on the streets among houses. Behind him, a massive door began to fade, revealing a house in its place.

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  "You took too long, turtle," a deep voice interrupted as the protagonist observed the house.

  "What are you looking at? We have to go; they're waiting for us," the voice said as it began to move away. The protagonist followed but turned to look at him.

  It was a sturdy, muscular man wearing a leather jacket and black spiked jeans with tears in them. He wore leather boots, an extravagant short blue hairstyle, and black shades.

  "And how did your mission go, Mugen?" the protagonist asked, walking alongside the other man.

  "You're really asking? Obviously, I crushed them, haha!" he replied, laughing and slapping the protagonist on the back.

  Mugen walked with a confidence that made passersby step aside without him saying a word. The slap on the back would have knocked down an ordinary man, but the protagonist didn't even flinch; his body was as accustomed to Mugen's roughness as it was to the serene voice that had spoken to him before.

  As they walked, the moon shone beautifully with a bluish light.

  After walking for a while, they stood before a giant temple that seemed unreal. A boy with androgynous features stood at the entrance—eyes blue like that moon, blonde hair reaching his shoulders, and wearing an oversized jacket that made him look smaller than he actually was.

  "You’re 12 minutes late," he let slip from his lips, though he refused to look at them and simply headed up the stairs.

  The three of them climbed the stone steps in silence. As they ascended, the air grew purer, losing the city's scent of smog and asphalt. Upon reaching the top, the massive doors of the main hall cast five shadows with their light.

  "Wah-hah-hah-hah!" a laugh echoed from one of those shadows—one that stood with hands on hips.

  "Sir, you are the Master of the temple; you must behave formally," a nervous voice belonging to someone seated said, trying to approach the joyful shadow.

  Then, a man in classic temple attire opened the door for the three who hadn't dared to enter.

  "Oh! You're finally here. They were easy missions, weren't they?" the cheerful person said.

  He was a boy—or so it seemed—with fine, delicate features. He wore no shirt, only a long duster coat. His brown hair fell between his shoulders and waist, his eyes were brown, and a single fang peeked out even with his mouth closed. Most strikingly, he wore prayer beads as bracelets on his wrists and ankles, and a long one as a necklace.

  With a raised eyebrow, the blonde boy struck the knees of Mugen and the protagonist, forcing them to kneel. The brown-haired boy approached until he was right in front of them.

  "This is for you," he said in his usual warm voice.

  Without warning, he began to pat them on the head, which caught them both off guard.

  "You earned it! Wah-hah-hah-hah!" he remarked with closed eyes, laughing.

  "Master Ren, please leave Master Mugen and Master Kumiho alone," said the other boy, who had black hair and green eyes and wore temple vestments.

  Once inside the room, the black-haired boy served tea to everyone.

  "Well done, Yumi, you caught my request without me saying a word!" Ren commented, looking at him with pride.

  Yumi, the blonde boy, blushed and looked away. "Th... Thank you~" he said with embarrassment.

  "Tsk, he caught me off guard, that's cheating!" Mugen tried to justify himself with wounded pride.

  The protagonist simply watched the black-haired boy, sipped his tea, and then asked, "Who is he?" with a cold gaze.

  "Ah! This is Haru. He’ll be our newest member. Treat him with respect; he’s very shy," Ren replied, stroking Haru’s head.

  "N-n-nice...!" Haru tried to introduce himself but ended up biting his tongue. "Sorry, nice to meet you, I'm Haru. I hope to work well with you!" He introduced himself and bowed.

  "Yes, Haru was left without a family and was starving when I found him," Ren commented, stroking Haru's head. "I found him asleep, so I brought him here! Wah-hah-hah-hah!" He laughed, and without realizing it, the gentle pats turned into heavy thumps on Haru's head.

  Hours passed until the city lights dimmed. The protagonist stood looking out at the city alongside Ren, Mugen, the blonde boy, and the black-haired one.

  "You know, in mythology it's believed that the night is what's most feared, but that doesn't apply to us. The night is our greatest ally," Ren remarked, staring fixedly at the surroundings.

  Ren's eyes revealed something: various lights emerged from the different houses—yellow lights with butterflies and dark purple ones with vampires.

  "We exorcists are those who can see the lights of the deepest night: dreams and nightmares. The eyes that were long considered curses are now gifts," Ren continued before stepping forward, turning to face the four members who immediately knelt.

  "That is what we are. That is what this temple is: a place of peace. And just as people ask us for peace, it is our duty to give it to them. We are dream-eaters, we are those who see nightmares, we are the light in the darkness." He looked at the landscape again.

  "There are no more assignments for now. Rest; it looks like there will be many clients tomorrow." In his eyes, many crows and vampires could be seen within the purple lights.