Before you know it, another day has rolled around.
This time, Raizen High School was taking a tour to Arubi Island, a tourist island with beautiful beaches and a tropical atmosphere that would tempt anyone to forget their routine.
The plane's engines rumbled softly, accompanied by the lively chatter of students filling the cabin. Excitement and curiosity mingled in a warm atmosphere. Some were already discussing plans for when they arrived—some wanted to swim, some wanted to explore, and of course, others just wanted to relax and enjoy the island's local cuisine.
In the front row, Tohka was in a heated argument with Origami over something that—to anyone else—seemed trivial: the window seat.
"This seat is mine! I wanted to sit here first!" Tohka exclaimed, her expression filled with a battle-like fervor.
Origami, as usual, responded in a flat but firm voice. "I want to be here too. The view from above will be very useful for observation."
In their midst, Shido sat stiffly, like a victim trapped on a battlefield. She glanced left and right, trying to calm them both down, but her voice was drowned out by the increasingly heated argument.
"U-um… we can take turns—"
"No!"
The unanimous answer left her speechless, staring blankly ahead, as if resigned to fate.
Kaito, sitting a few rows behind them, merely glanced at them before returning to their conversation. As usual, he exuded an unwavering aura of ease, even amidst the clamorous atmosphere.
In his seat, he was surrounded by several female students who seemed comfortable conversing with him.
"So, Kaito-kun, have you been to Arubi Island before?" one of them asked, her voice filled with enthusiasm.
"No," Kaito replied with a faint smile, "but… I'm pretty sure it'll be interesting. Besides, it depends on who we go with, right?"
That answer made the girls around him chuckle. The conversation continued lightheartedly, ranging from the topic of planned activities on the island to playful banter about who would fall into the sea first.
Outside the window, white clouds stretched like a sea of cotton, and sunlight filtered through them, casting a warm glow into the cabin. For Kaito, this trip was no ordinary school trip. He knew the story behind Arubi Island… and although he chose to remain relaxed, his mind remained alert.
The plane cruised steadily through the blue sky, parting the white clouds that stretched as far as the eye could see. Sunlight streamed in through the windows, casting a warm glow on the cabin walls. The atmosphere inside was lively: the students of Raizen High School chattered boisterously, some laughing, others joking, and some already closing their eyes, enjoying the journey.
Kaito sat relaxed in his seat, his hands folded in his lap, occasionally glancing out the window. Around him, light conversation flowed from the girls sitting nearby. His smile was faint and calm, like someone truly enjoying this journey without any burdens.
However, among the crowd, there was one figure who didn't share in the relaxed atmosphere.
A few rows ahead, Ellen Mathers, DEM's most powerful agent, the Witch, sat casually yet calculatingly. She wore a thin cream-colored shirt and a neat black skirt, her appearance perfectly complemented by the professional camera hanging around her neck. To anyone watching, she was simply a tourist photographer joining this school trip, perhaps to take promotional or documentary photos.
In reality, the camera was merely a disguise. The lens she repeatedly aimed wasn't just capturing the scenery. Her sharp, calculating eyes repeatedly shifted toward a girl with long, purple hair sitting not far from the window—Tohka Yatogami, or in DEM data, Princess. A priority target.
Ellen adjusted the lens' focus, pressed the shutter, and a soft click was heard. She pretended to capture the moment, but each photo was part of a close-up observation, studying the spirit's expression, movements, and surroundings.
However, without her realizing it, her movements were also being observed.
Kaito had noticed this from the moment they boarded. From the woman's gait, her posture, which was too balanced for an ordinary person, to her sharp yet controlled gaze, all the signs spoke volumes to someone accustomed to reading the landscape.
And now, sitting still, he decided to send a message.
Without a word, without any flashy movements, Kaito let a very subtle killing intent, almost undetectable to ordinary people, flow from him. He didn't use it to his fullest, just a drop, enough to alert his target's body that something was watching them.
Ellen felt the sensation instantly. A pressure that came from nowhere.
A chill ran down her spine, making the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. Her breath hitched slightly, and her muscles tensed reflexively.
"What is this…?" she thought.
Her eyes darted rapidly, darting from one side of the cabin to the other, searching for the source of the threat. A normal person might have dismissed it as a strange feeling, but Ellen was a seasoned fighter. Her instincts screamed that someone on this plane was directing murderous intent at her.
Then, their gazes met.
A few rows back, Kaito leaned back in his seat, one hand resting on his chin, his lips curled into a thin smile. To some, that smile might have seemed friendly, even charming. But to Ellen, accustomed to dealing with mortal threats, it was a warning sign, a silent message that she had been noticed, that her disguise wasn't as secure as she thought.
In that moment, the world seemed to fall silent between them. Ellen stared, trying to read the meaning behind that calm expression. There was no intention to move or attack, but the threat she felt was so real, so pure, that her breathing became labored.
She decided to look away first, pretending to re-adjust the camera. Her hand remained steady, but cold sweat was already beginning to bead on her temples.
"It can't be… he's just an ordinary student… right?" she thought as she pressed the camera button once more, this time pointing out the window.
However, for some reason, the feeling of unease persisted. Ellen tried to ignore it, but Kaito's gaze and the faint aura she had just sensed kept ringing in her mind. One thing was clear, this wasn't a feeling that came from an ordinary person.
And in his seat, Kaito simply returned to staring out the window, as if nothing had happened.
The killing intent Kaito was emitting was indeed very subtle, almost impossible for an ordinary human to detect. However, to a being from beyond the bounds of the human world, it was like a spark in the darkness, clearly visible and impossible to ignore.
Reine Murasame, who was sitting a few rows to Kaito's left, stopped her finger from swiping through the tablet screen. For a moment, her eyes narrowed. As the Spirit of Origin, her sensitivity to emotions, energy, and killing intent was on a level far beyond anyone else on this plane.
She sensed it, a highly focused wave of killing intent. Not explosive like most angry auras, but cold, controlled, and… deadly.
Her pupils darted rapidly, trying to track its source. The aura appeared only for a split second before disappearing, like a flash of light too fast to capture. For most people, that would have been enough to make searching impossible. But Reine wasn't like ordinary people.
She slowly lifted her gaze, sweeping the seats row by row. However, nothing looked suspicious. All the passengers seemed absorbed in their own activities, some chatting, some listening to music, and some sleeping.
Then, her eyes landed on a… strange sight.
A few rows ahead, Kaito sat in a relaxed posture, a faint smile on his lips, directed at a woman who looked like a photographer. The smile looked friendly, even a little alluring on the surface. But Reine was perceptive enough to realize there was something behind it.
The woman who received the smile, Ellen Mathers, though she hadn't revealed her true identity yet, looked a little stiff. Her shoulders were tense, and her eyes moved restlessly before looking away.
"So it's him?" Reine thought. But strangely, she didn't sense anything from Kaito this time. It was as if the aura she'd detected earlier was an illusion, something that had simply evaporated.
Reine tilted her head slightly, trying to read Kaito's expression. The student was known around school as easygoing, popular with the girls, but never seemed to truly excel in any field. His popularity wasn't due to academic or athletic achievements, but rather to his own inexplicable charm.
But now, after the incident, Reine was even more convinced that Kaito was no ordinary student.
She looked down again, pretending to focus on her tablet. But her mind was already starting to piece together strange pieces about Kaito, mysteries she'd previously ignored now beginning to form a vague pattern. This student had something… something he was keeping tightly under wraps.
Meanwhile, Kaito was obviously aware that Reine was watching him, but he ignored her. His smile slowly faded, and he turned his gaze back out the window, as if nothing had happened.