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Classmate wa Isekai de Yuusha ni Natta kedo, Ore dake Gendai Nihon ni Okizari ni Narimashita - Chapter 72

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Chapter 72: Invited to the Mansion – Part 5


“The ‘Rite of Selection’… So what exactly does that entail?”

“Strictly speaking, it’s not really a ritual—it’s more like a final test. You have to perform actual exorcism techniques in front of the clan, or exterminate a real youma (Demon or Evil Spirit) to prove you're a full-fledged taimashi (Exorcist).”

From a personal perspective—even as someone with no training—I’d say that sounds like a fair enough final trial for someone inheriting a prestigious exorcist family.
Though maybe that’s just the influence of reading way too many shounen manga with similar themes.

“Okay, but how does that lead to me getting dragged into trouble?”
“To put it simply, the Kuon family is currently embroiled in a succession dispute.”
“So that means there are people on both sides of the conflict?”
“Exactly. One side supports a successor from the main family, while the other supports someone from a branch family with proven skill and accomplishments. It’s a heated standoff.”

Whoa... this just got a lot more political and messy all of a sudden.

Still, I think I’m starting to understand what Alicia meant earlier.

“So the Kuon family’s all on edge because of the infighting. If I show up treating it like some vacation, I’m gonna get caught in the crossfire—is that what you meant?”
“That’s part of it. But the biggest reason is something else.”

The biggest reason? What does she mean by that—?

“Like I said earlier, the Kuon family is split in two: the main family and the branch family. And the one the branch family is rallying behind... is Kuon Kyouri.”
“So that means... Kuon might actually become the next head of the Kuon family?”

No way. She’s one of the candidates at the center of the succession conflict?

Honestly, trying to imagine Kuon as the head of a prestigious exorcist family... I just can’t quite see it.

“Yes, you can assume that. And the ones who aren’t thrilled about it are Kuon Genji of the main family and his supporters. From their perspective, she’s just some upstart girl from a side branch who suddenly got powerful and crashed the successor race.”

Being born into a family with no legacy or power struggles, I have no way of grasping what it means to fight over the position of family head.
So I’m not gonna comment on that.

But what does concern me is—

“Wait... What does any of that have to do with me?”
“Both factions see you as Kuon Kyouri’s right-hand man.”
“...Huhhh?”

…Me? Kuon’s right-hand man?

No, hold on—what? How the hell did they get that impression?

“You’ve worked with Kuon-san multiple times to resolve youma-related incidents, right? That’s been twisted in the retelling, and now the other exorcists think ‘Kuon Kyouri commands an overwhelmingly powerful esper.’”

Well this just keeps getting more and more complicated.

Sure, I have helped Kuon deal with several supernatural cases, but how does that turn into being labeled her enforcer?

For now, I decided to just ask what’s on my mind.

“This ‘esper’ they’re talking about… That’s probably me, right? Do they not know my name?”
“They do. But in the world of taimashi—or rather, in the world of the gifted—someone like you is seen as an extremely rare existence.”

Someone like me is special...?

Given my abilities, and the strange circumstances in which I gained them, maybe that’s not so surprising.
But judging by Alicia’s tone, this isn’t quite what I thought she meant.

“Just to check—have you ever seen Kuon-san using her techniques?”
“A few times, yeah.”
“Wasn’t she always holding something like a paper charm when she did?”

A paper charm... Oh yeah, now that she mentions it.

“Yeah, she was. Why?”
“Taimashi—and even Western magicians and exorcists—require catalysts to activate their powers. And their techniques are basically re-creations of ancient supernatural abilities.”
“Okay… I guess that makes sense.”
“But you don’t need any catalyst, and you’re constantly creating new powers on the fly. People like that are called ‘Espers’ in our world—rare individuals who can wield powers from another dimension. You’re an outlier.”

To be honest, I still wasn’t fully convinced.
But apparently, I’m something of a big deal even in the supernatural community.

And on top of that, they’re treating me like I’m Kuon’s loyal weapon.

...This whole thing’s giving me a headache.

“So basically, what you’re saying is: if I show up to this ritual, I might get dragged into the political feud by the branch faction, and the main family might start seeing me as a threat too, right?”
“That’s the gist of it. Which is probably why she didn’t bring up the ritual with you in the first place. Also, the ‘right-hand’ thing was something the clan started saying on their own.”

I’ve only known Kuon for about six months, but I doubt she’s the type to hide behind someone else’s strength.
Most likely, either she gave an honest account of what happened in those cases… or there’s someone secretly observing us that even we don’t know about.

“So yeah, if you don’t want to get involved in a huge mess, just stay home over the holiday.”

Given the situation, Alicia’s advice was completely reasonable. But still…

“Let me ask one last thing. Is there a chance someone might die during this ritual?”
“I’ve heard there haven’t been any accidents like that in the past 25 years. Why?”
“Oh, no reason. Just curious. Don’t worry—I’ll be staying home during the holiday. You’ve got nothing to worry about.”
“…Sigh. Alright, I’ll take your word for it.”

Even through the phone, I could feel Alicia’s frosty glare pierce straight through me, making me break into a cold sweat.
All I could do was respond with a weak “Y-yeah!” and shift my gaze to the digital clock on my desk.

It was already 11:30 PM.
Two hours since we started the call.
With school tomorrow, I should really get some sleep.

“It’s getting late, so I’m thinking of calling it here. Anything else you wanted to ask me?”
“Umm… nothing from my side. And I’m really sorry for calling so late.”
“Don’t worry about it. I actually learned a lot thanks to you.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Well then—see you tomorrow.”
“Yeah, see you.”

After ending the call and placing my phone back on the desk, I made my way to the bathroom.

Alright then—
Time to master the techniques I’ll need for the setup.

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