Chapter 34

The current head of the Abe family, the 57th head Abe no Haruaki.

There he is, the man at the top of the Onmyoji world.

I feel the same thing from him as I felt from the president of a large company I had seen once in a previous life. It is like a powerful aura that leads numerous people.

“Good evening, everyone. I have arranged this occasion to give you, the next generation of Onmyoji, an opportunity to meet new people. My children are the same age as you. I hope you will become friends with them. ……I know you will be uncomfortable in my presence, so I will leave you now. I hope you all have a good time.”

With these words, the head of the Abe family leaves the room.

He patted the shoulders of the children who were waiting next to him, as if to encourage them.

“Abe, Haruku! I’m 6 years old. Nice to meet you!”

“I am Abe Akari! Nice to meet you!”

The one who greeted us cheerfully was the eldest son of the Abe family, a rising star who is expected to lead the next generation of Onmyoji. He is my main target this time. If I get along with him, it will definitely give me an advantage in the future. I must definitely get along with him.

So I thought. ……

I changed my mind when I saw Akari, the Abe family’s daughter, greeting us in a reserved voice after him.

Her pretty …… glossy black hair flows smoothly. She has a doll-like face and two large eyes that sway uneasily as she catches the gaze of the crowd. I know I wasn’t a pedophile, but I couldn’t help but feel the desire to hug her and reassure her.

My main target changed.

Akari-chan might be the heroine of my life. The first love I had experienced in my previous life was a shock to me.

The two were pushed into the circle of children by their mother, who was standing further back.

The children seemed to feel uncomfortable talking to the two, whose atmosphere was somewhat different from their own environment, and kept them at a distance.

Then, one of the children approaches Haruku, after being whispered to by his mother.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Shoshi Kagura. Please treat me well!”

“Oh, nice to meet you!”

Sheesh, I couldn’t carry out my strategy of talking to them first and leaving an impression.

There is a child who is already talking with Akari’s side.

From their surnames, they are the children of a prominent family in the world of Onmyoji.

I guess that at a get-together like this, people of high status are the first to speak to each other.

However, this is a story for adults at a social gathering. Children don’t care about such things.

The children gradually realized that the two children were not scary people, and they crowded around them.

They are interested in them because they have something they don’t have, and they are interested in those that others are interested in. With a very childlike principle of behavior, the two were quickly surrounded, and two groups of boys and girls were formed.

Hmm, I’m not sure I want to go through this circle of people …….

No, no, no, I thought I had decided to live proactively.

But I’d feel sorry for the kids if I pushed them away.

Just when I decided to wait and see, the central figure in the circle spoke up.

“Hey, let’s play together! Let’s play tag!”

The boys gathered around him all raised their hands and announced their participation.

He is indeed the son of the top Onmyoji leader, as he naturally leads others even though he is still a child.

However, his proposal was childish. Playing tag?

But then again, I’m also one of those people who raised his hand, so why worry about it?

“Hey, get some paper!”

Haruku-kun gives orders to his servants.

Wow, he has no hesitation in using people. Is he copying what his parents do?

Compared to him, Akari-chan has a restrained personality.

I wonder if it is just her personality. Unlike Haruku-kun, who soon got tired of greeting people, Akari-chan politely talks to each and every girl around her, which is cute.

In the meantime, a servant woman was handing out paper talismans cut out in human shapes to the children.

On the paper, a flying formation was drawn in black ink.

I see, we are Onmyoji children, and instead of moving our own bodies, we manipulate our spiritual power to play tag,…… interesting.

“I’m the first demon! Get ready to …… start ……!”

Everyone is putting their spiritual power into the dolls’ bodies.

Children who cannot yet put spiritual power into the dolls or who are not good at it are struggling. Most of the children around the age of 4 seem to be physically unable to fly the dolls, while those around the age of 5 concentrate on their spiritual power and fly them, and those around the age of 6 fly them smoothly as if it were a matter of course.

In other words, the few children around 4 years old who were able to fly their doll talismans right away are probably the talented ones. Let’s keep them in mind.

Don’t tell me that Haruku-kun proposed the game of tag with such an aim in mind?

The game of tag begins without regard to the children who cannot put their spiritual power into it.

The childlike inability to wait, and the developing ability to take on the challenge of being the first one play the role of a demon, I have come to understand his character somewhat.

“Wait, wait~!”

“Whoa, it’s coming this way!”

“You’re moving too fast!”

Wow, that’s quite a lot of spiritual power.

The fact that he doesn’t run out of gas at that speed means that his spiritual power must be about the same amount as after I absorbed Irregulars.

He is flying around like a maniac, taunting the fleeing dolls.

“Hehehe, try to catch me!”

Haha. This is that one.

I’ve played this game so many times, I knew I had strong spiritual powers. And I saw that he was in pretty good shape.

In fact, the adults in his peer group would praise him, and he had plenty of servants to obey him at all times. On top of that, with all this spiritual power and talent, his parents must be very proud of him.

I would be in a good mood in such an environment.

But that is not good.

There are extremely rare people who, If they get to carried away as children, they will end up living with the same frame of mind even as an adult.

Such people are generally troublesome. They are uncomfortable to work with because they can’t act like adults while still maintaining their childish attitude. Furthermore, they have no malicious intent, so they are very annoying to deal with.

Becoming an adult does not necessarily mean being an adult. Only the will to be an adult is a qualification for becoming an adult.

So here’s one thing I’ d like you to understand about the feelings of ordinary people.

If he falls into a setback as an adult, he will be seriously harmed, but as a child, he can learn safely by playing.

He should be taught that he should not get carried away just because he is a little stronger than others.

Huh? Am I in better shape than you?

I have to be careful.

But it’s true that I’m currently one step ahead of him.

And while we’re at it, let’s make them aware of my existence.

The opposite of like is dislike. It doesn’t matter if it’s a rival position or anything else. The first thing is to make them remember me.

Okay, I’ve become a demon. Naturally, my target is…

“Hehehe, this way, this way…Uh come on, come on.”

Haruku-kun cracked a smile with plenty of energy to spare.

His previous tag games must have been a field he was definitely a winner in.

When my doll talisman was closing in on him, he hurriedly increased his speed. He was pretty good at manipulating his spiritual power, moving around curves and sharp angles to try to pull away from me.

He was so cute. From my point of view, it was a child’s play. Don’t think you can run away from me like that.

My mischievous side comes out, and I intentionally try to get around Haruka-kun before he does, or close behind him just in time for him to touch me.

Ah, I remember the cruel mischievousness of a child like this. It brings back memories.

“Ughhhhhh …… this oh my! …… ugh, I’m caught.”

He persisted quite well, but there was no way he could match my well-trained spiritual power.

Haruku-kun is breathing hard and bitterly thinking about his defeat.

Behind every victory lies many defeats. If you understand the feelings of those below you, you will never think of being arrogant.

Hey, my current attitude seems pretty arrogant too. …… I’ll be careful.

There is a possibility that one day Haruku-kun will overtake me in the skill of flying talismans, and I must work hard and keep practicing.

The other children who were watching the battle between me and Haruku-kun were stunned with their mouths hanging open. I guess they had lost control of their spiritual power, because their doll talismans were falling down in a fluttering motion.

You guys will be able to do this in a few years. Not many kids will be able to do it at this time of their lives, though.

“My brother lost.”

The voice echoed in the large, silent room.