Although Kawashima Toya had long thought about taking Kasugano Sora in, he still had to respect her wishes.
After all, this place was her home.
"I'll go with Big Brother Kawashima!"
Sora was instantly happy.
The sadness she felt from thinking they were about to part ways vanished completely, replaced by the joy of being able to stay with Toya forever.
When Toya left with Sora, they visited the shrine in Okukozome town.
"This is a true shrine." Toya observed the shrine and was surprised to find no evil spirits there.
A faint atmosphere of tranquility permeated the shrine, keeping all evil aura at bay.
Toya didn't enter the shrine; he just observed it from a distance before walking towards Sora, who was playing with a little shrine maiden.
"Sora, it's time to go."
"Are we leaving?" Sora nodded obediently and waved to the little shrine maiden named Amatsume Akira. "Akira, goodbye!"
"Let's play together again sometime!" Akira waved back, looking a bit disappointed.
"Big Brother, why has the world become like this?" On the mountain road, Sora looked fearfully at the evil spirits wandering by the roadside with her clear, large eyes.
"Are they the same kind of monsters as Mom, Dad, and Big Brother?"
"Sora, can you see them?" Toya comforted her, "They aren't as vicious as your parents and brother were, although it's true they still kill people."
"Sora, remember this: if you encounter this kind of ghost alone in the future, you must pretend not to see them."
"As long as you pretend you can't see them, they won't hurt you."
"Pretend I can't see them?" Sora's large eyes welled up with tears, looking like she was about to cry.
"I'll try." Unexpectedly, Sora ran out from Toya's protection and plucked up the courage to walk towards an evil spirit.
Although scared to death, Sora pretended not to see it and walked past the evil spirit's range.
Realizing Sora couldn't see it, the evil spirit muttered something unintelligible and left.
After it left, Sora skipped back to Toya. "Big Brother, how did I do?"
"Great job!" Toya didn't hold back his praise.
Sora could ignore evil spirits at such a young age. Thinking of Kasumigaoka Utaha at the Trash Fox Detective Agency, he couldn't help but feel frustrated at her lack of progress.
They walked for a full half hour before finally reaching a place where they could catch a ride.
During this time, Sora continuously tried walking past evil spirits without attracting their attention.
Every attempt was a perfect success.
Toya had to marvel; having endured far more terrifying evil spirits, Sora faced these ordinary ones with relative ease.
By the time Toya and Sora arrived at the Trash Fox Detective Agency by taxi, it was already dusk.
As Toya led Sora out of the taxi, he found a crowd gathered around his agency.
Passersby were discussing something; it seemed like a burglary had occurred.
A police car was parked in front of the agency.
"Was my base raided?" This thought popped into Toya's head as he found an open spot to observe.
Utaha was giving a statement to the police officers, hoping to find the intruder.
Toya frowned slightly. "Who would rob my agency?"
"Did they steal the Demon Sword Murasame? Or the Angel Halo?"
The Angel Halo would be easy to steal; just breaking the display case would do it.
Judging by how the evil spirits around the agency were keeping their distance, the Angel Halo clearly hadn't been stolen.
As for Murasame, needless to say, only a few people could wield it.
If a thief stole it, they would only harm themselves; it would be useless to them.
Merely touching it would cause them to faint.
"Could it be..." Toya's gaze narrowed.
If the exquisite gift box and the white tailcoat stored on the second floor were taken, that would be trouble.
"Big Brother, did something happen?" Sensing Toya's heavy mood, Sora asked with concern.
Toya smiled faintly. "I'm sure the bad guys will be caught."
Not long after, the police car left.
The onlookers gradually dispersed as well.
Utaha stood outside the main door, wanting to cry but having no tears.
"I just went home to get something; how could this happen?!"
Just then, Toya's gentle and calm voice drifted over. "Utaha, what happened?"
"I'm sure the police will help Big Brother catch the bad guys."
"Kawashima, the place was robbed!"
Utaha didn't have time to wonder why Toya was addressing her so intimately. She said anxiously, "The room on the second floor was broken into."
"The walls and door on the second floor, which looked very sturdy, were all destroyed."
"It's fine, don't worry." Toya comforted her gently. "There was nothing in there, just a room I renovated with some materials this morning."