Chapter 4: The White Shield

  "Okay, there’s no time to lose. Several B-Rank gates have appeared, so two exorcists are required per team. I’ll go with Mugen. Yumi, Kumiho, and Haru will go together," Ren declared as he finished his bowl of noodles.

  "Tsk. Master, can’t I go with you?" Yumi asked.

  "No. You must help Haru understand the behavior of nightmares and the planes where they reside. There is no one better than you at that," Ren expressed, a stray noodle still stuck to his cheek.

  Yumi blushed and looked away. "A... alright, Master..."

  After finishing the meal, the group dispersed again, and our protagonists found themselves in front of another door once more.

  "It’s a B-Rank," Yumi commented.

  Kumiho rested his hand on the door, while Yumi gave it two backhanded knocks with his fist with total indifference, activating it and opening the portal.

  "Eh?? Aren't you supposed to knock on the door to open it??" Haru asked, watching Yumi.

  "You just have to touch it, not hold your hand there," he replied, looking at Haru before continuing toward the portal.

  Upon entering the nightmare, they found themselves in a reception area for a theater show.

  "Wow, this place is very different from the last one, Master Kumiho," Haru said, observing the structure.

  "The dream plane is where dreams come true. In this person’s case, they seem to be an actor or someone who loves plays," Yumi replied while surveying the environment. "That way," he pointed with his hand toward one of the five shows and began walking.

  "Are you sure?" Kumiho asked.

  "Yes. The others are just nightmare traps. My eyes see it," Yumi replied as he resumed his pace.

  "Are those eyes one of your tools, Master Yumi?" asked Haru, who followed closely.

  "No. Unlike other exorcists, my sight is simply sharper by comparison," he answered while lifting a curtain that covered the entrance to the theater hall.

  Behind the curtain was a giant stage down in the center. The three began to descend the stairs slowly, until halfway down, a spotlight illuminated the body of a man who looked sorrowful. His play was empty.

  [TARGET ANALYSIS: GRADE B NIGHTMARE – MANIFESTATION OF FAILURE]

  "Why... Why can't we shine..." the nightmare whispered. "It’s their fault... Their fault!!" it let out, lunging into an attack.

  Yumi didn't react; he just watched the nightmare with indifference. Haru tried to draw his sword, but before he could—KRAK-ZHOOM! Kumiho struck the actor’s face with his sanchaku, sending him flying. Kumiho and Haru rushed in his direction.

  (Elsewhere)

  "Ahh~ isn't it nice to get out of the temple once in a while, Mugen?" Ren asked calmly.

  "I guess so, though I’m surprised Yumi agreed to move away from you," replied Mugen, who was walking normally.

  "Ho-ho-ho, don't tell me you wanted to go with them, Mugen," Ren asked again.

  "Not at all. I wouldn't miss this chance to see your power in battle, Master," Mugen replied with a bit of enthusiasm.

  When they reached a door, the moment Ren stood in front of it, the door immediately swung open—no gesture, no movement.

  "Let’s go; the night isn't eternal," replied Ren, who had his arms behind his head and his eyes closed.

  Then, the two entered the portal.

  (Back to the battle)

  The actor launched strikes so fast that Kumiho and Haru struggled to block them.

  "Martial arts are what a great actor must learn," the nightmare said.

  "Hey... aren't you going to help us?" Kumiho growled, glancing back at Yumi.

  Yumi was eating... popcorn? "You guys got this," he replied while continuing to eat.

  "We will kill you..." the nightmare blurted out.

  "'We' again? Is he crazy or is it..." Yumi thought while watching the fight.

  A massive sound resonated as a hole opened in the ceiling. An actress with powerful legs caused the destruction and lunged toward Haru and Kumiho.

  GONG!

  The sound echoed throughout the place, kicking up a cloud of debris.

  "Hee-hee-hee, dead, dead," came from the actress's mouth.

  "Who are you calling dead?" Yumi’s voice replied.

  The cloud dispersed. Between the actress's legs and the backs of Haru and Kumiho stood Yumi, holding a massive shield in his hands.

  With a burst of strength, Yumi hurled the actress away.

  "You two handle that one. I’ll take care of her," Yumi declared before heading toward where the woman had flown.

  "Show-off..." Kumiho whispered, while Haru’s eyes and mouth were wide open in shock.

  "What... what strength for a girl," the actress said.

  Through the new dust cloud, only one thing was visible: those blue eyes, shining even through the grit.

  "I’m a boy," he replied with his usual indifference.

  The actress launched a kick toward Yumi’s feet; he jumped to dodge, but another kick came at his side. Yumi covered himself with the shield and, curling into a ball, was sent flying through the wall.

  On the other side of the stage, Kumiho and Haru were still fighting the actor.

  "Haru, summon your horse," Kumiho said casually.

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  Haru quickly backed away, emanated spiritual essence, and threw his wooden horse to the ground, bringing it back to life.

  "Horse, help us!" Haru commanded, looking at his companion.

  The horse quickly charged at the actor. Kumiho jumped, and the horse’s impact slammed the actor against the wall.

  While the actor recovered, Kumiho began to imbue his sanchaku with spiritual essence, causing it to glow purple. Haru did the same, but unlike Kumiho’s lack of emotion, Haru was nervous. His sword began to glow leaf-green along with his eyes.

  "Let’s go, kid," Kumiho let out.

  The fight had leveled out. The actor struck, but he also defended himself just like Haru and Kumiho. However, the actor forgot one thing: the horse, which struck him hard from behind, giving the protagonists an advantage as they slashed and struck him without ceasing. Finally, they slammed him against the stage, leaving him badly wounded.

  The actor stood up, his head hanging toward the floor.

  "We... this is not over. The show must go on!" the actor screamed, creating a deafening roar in the hall.

  He dropped into a fighting stance while imbuing his fists with a nightmare aura; a purple and black mist settled over his hands.

  "Is this really a B-Rank?" Haru asked, feeling the nightmare's energy.

  "No, it’s something more disgusting: a man accepting his nightmare," Kumiho remarked, observing the scene.

  "Hee-hee-hee, it seems the boy was more delicate than he looked," the actress said, approaching the hole where she had buried Yumi.

  As she got close enough, a hand grabbed her by the neck, and a blue speck appeared in the darkness of the backstage. Yumi dragged the actress’s body along the wall, shattering the structure before quickly slamming her into the ground. In the next instant, without hesitation, Yumi struck the actress's abdomen with his shield.

  Without a word and with a disinterested gaze, Yumi began to move toward Haru and Kumiho. But a crash broke the floor behind him—it was the actress.

  "NOT YET! YOU'VE HURT ME SO MUCH, IT’S TIME FOR YOUR PUNISHMENT!" she screamed, emanating the same dark purple aura as the actor.

  As if by magic, the actress's legs grew even larger, becoming giant before she leaped at Yumi, who quickly covered himself with his shield.

  Yumi was sent flying through the air like a toy. As if she were teleporting, the actress was already above him, delivering a kick that sent Yumi toward the floor so hard he bounced off it. In that instant, the nightmare was at his side again—a succession of kicks followed until Yumi was sent through the wall once more.

  "Hee-hee-hee, I broke my toy. Time to go to the others," the actress puffed, turning her back on Yumi.

  The shield came flying at the actress's back, wounding her. In the next moment, Yumi grabbed her again, this time by the head. His gaze was now cold, no longer disinterested; his forehead was bleeding and his hair was a mess.

  Yumi slammed the actress's face into the ground. The nightmare tried to escape using the strength of her legs, but Yumi caught her foot with one hand and pulled her back, delivering a massive blow with the shield in his other hand.

  "Die," Yumi let out, crushing the actress's face against his shield.

  In a final effort, the actress ran toward the actor. Kumiho and Haru were barely holding their own, and the horse had been incinerated by the nightmare energy. Then, a sound interrupted the battle.

  "Darling! Help!" it was the actress, crawling toward the actor.

  With a massive punch, the actor sent Haru and Kumiho flying.

  "Darling, what happened to you??" the shadow asked, rushing toward the woman.

  But looking behind her, he saw blue eyes glowing in the dark, approaching slowly.

  "I see... It’s time to end this..." the actor said.

  The two touched hands and began a dance. Haru and Kumiho tried to recover while Yumi walked forward slowly. As they danced, the seats, curtains, and everything else moved frantically until the two nightmares kissed. A dark purple light illuminated them; in place of two, there was now a single creature with giant arms and legs, a rounded mask with a macabre smile, and a blindfold where the eyes should be.

  VROOOOAAAARGH!

  A roar so powerful it made even Kumiho's body tremble—but not Yumi's. Haru and Kumiho stood beside Yumi as he emerged from the darkness.

  "Is... is it normal for my body to not stop shaking??" Haru asked in fear.

  "Yes, it’s normal," said Kumiho, who felt a chill seeing that beast.

  The fight began. The three separated and tried to attack various points on the monster, but it was useless.

  "Tsk, just die," Kumiho whispered as he imbued his revolver with spiritual essence.

  The bullet that left the revolver grew larger as it flew, hitting the nightmare in the face and dunning it.

  "What was that!?" Haru asked, shocked, but it wasn't over yet.

  The monster tried to stand, but Yumi was in front of it, beginning to emanate spiritual essence—the blue color illuminating his shield.

  "The Master taught us this. Be grateful and disappear," Yumi said, taking an immense leap.

  In mid-air, the shield began to grow until it became giant, tearing through the monster. The creature began to fade, leaving the bodies of two civilians lying on the floor in its place.

  Yumi and Kumiho staggered, but they began to walk toward the people.

  "Are you guys okay, Masters?" Haru asked nervously.

  "Yes, but enlarging our objects consumes a lot of spiritual essence," Yumi replied, panting.

  Then, Kumiho took the man’s chest and separated the nightmare essence he held, beginning to absorb it through his mouth. Yumi, for his part, placed his hand on the woman’s head, and the essence was absorbed directly through his arm, both of them recovering energy.

  "Uh... what are you doing??" Haru asked, frightened.

  "We exorcists have the nature to absorb nightmare essence and convert it into our spiritual essence. This restores our wounds and keeps us from being immobilized," Yumi replied in his indifferent voice.

  Haru watched with a mixture of fascination and horror as the blackness of the nightmare flowed into his companions' bodies. The air in the theater began to crack like broken glass, a sign that the dream plane was collapsing after the defeat of its core.

  "It’s... it’s as if you’re part of them," Haru whispered, seeing Yumi’s wounds stop bleeding.

  "In part, we are," Kumiho stated, standing up and wiping the corner of his mouth. "If we didn't consume the darkness, it would end up consuming us. Let’s go, before this place becomes our grave."

  The three returned the way they came, exiting through the door, which began to vanish once everyone was out.

  As they walked, people stared at them in fear; Kumiho and Yumi had bloodstains on their faces, everyone’s clothes were filthy, and Kumiho and Haru had parts of their outfits torn to shreds.

  "My horse..." Haru whispered sadly, staring at his hand as if the horse were still there.

  "Don't worry, tools don't disappear; they are part of your soul," Yumi commented, noticing Haru’s sadness.

  Once they reached the temple, the sight was unbelievable: Mugen was completely covered in bloodstains with his clothes torn apart, while Ren was perfectly intact. Mugen was busy trying to catch Ren, until they spotted the others.

  "Oh, well, well. It seems Mugen wasn't the only one who had a rough time," Ren said, observing the protagonists and their condition.

  "What happened to you?" Kumiho asked Mugen upon seeing his state.

  "This damn midget didn't do a thing; he left me fighting all by myself," Mugen replied with a growl, turning to glare at Ren.

  "Wah-hah-hah-hah! It wasn't that big of a deal; you did just fine on your own," Ren interrupted, patting Mugen on the back.

  Mugen slapped Ren's hand away, huffing with an indignation that seemed to make the very air around him vibrate. Since Mugen is so short-tempered, the sight of Yumi—whom he considers a show-off—returning with a shared victory while he served as Ren’s entertainment drove him over the edge.

  "Stop touching me, you crazy old man!" Mugen barked, adjusting the rags of his shirt. "Next time, I'll enter your portal and leave you alone against a B-Rank horde!"

  "Wah-hah-hah-hah! You’re so dramatic," Ren replied.

  "Master, we have something to report," Yumi interrupted.

  "Eh? Sure, tell me what happened, Yumi," Ren asked.

  "On our mission, there were two B-Rank nightmares. Not only that, but they both merged and created a giant monster," Yumi reported in detail.

  "My, that is quite rare, but it's not the first time," Ren replied, rubbing his chin with a serious expression. "The explanation for there being two nightmares is that both members of the couple living in that house were having them. As for the fusion, that happens when two people share the same nightmare. It's rare to see, but based on what you told me, they were an actor and an actress; they shared the stage and, therefore, the same traumas," Ren explained.

  "I see... so love and trauma can blend together in such a twisted way," Haru murmured, looking down.

  "That's right, kid. The dream plane is a mirror; sometimes it shows us what we love, and other times, how that love rots due to fear," Ren added, regaining his light tone, though a spark of hidden concern remained in his eyes. "But enough gloomy talk! You’re all alive, and that’s what counts."

  Mugen, whose face was still red with fury, let out a final huff as he stomped toward the interior of the temple, muttering insults about Ren's "incompetence." Being so hot-headed, he couldn't accept that a logical explanation would calm his urge to have hit something bigger.

  "I'm going to shower! Yumi, don't you dare use the hot water first or I swear I'll smash your shield to pieces!" Mugen shouted without looking back.

  Yumi simply sighed, ignoring his teammate's threats as if they were nothing more than the sound of the wind. He looked at his hands, which still held a faint trace of the blue aura from his technique.

  "Go and rest," Ren ordered, turning his back to them to look at the moon. "Tomorrow, the training will be twice as hard. Haru, get ready; I'm going to teach you how to absorb essence."

  "Yes, Master!" Haru replied with renewed determination.