Six Years Since Reincarnation
* * *
By age three, I’ve graduated from baby tier.
Since I’m already getting recognized as a thoughtful and clever kid, it doesn’t take long before I’m grouped with the older siblings—five and up.
So what’s different about getting treated like the older kids?
You’re locked into a seriously structured routine.
First, they establish fixed wake-up and bedti hours. Then prayer ti and daily hymn practice get added to the schedule.
These activities go down in the chapel.
During singing ti, the Director plays that pipe organ.
Getting enveloped by that magnificent sound, feeling those deep bass vibrations resonate through your entire body and into your organs—it’s a truly special experience.
In my previous life, I might have heard that sound sowhere, but I’d never experienced it live, so it’s pretty refreshing at first.
Also, starting at age six, the orphanage begins sothing resembling actual school studies, but I get permission to attend these classes starting at five.
The subjects include math, language arts, science, social studies, and English.
What’s interesting is that the curriculum includes Biblical studies as a subject. It’s like a Christian school.
This is unmistakably the sa material taught in a typical elentary school.
Naturally, it’s so boring I can barely stay awake. Besides the material being way too easy, the lingering fatigue from training probably contributes to my drowsiness too.
“Is my class really that boring, Ikaku?”
I often find myself getting gently woken up by one of the Sisters.
“I wasn’t sleeping, Sister.”
“Lying is wrong, you know. Especially with that blissful expression on your face.”
“Sorry, Sister. I was definitely sleeping there.”
After my reflexive apology, I look around.
The other kids taking math class with —ages six to eight or so—are giggling as they watch . They’re all acquaintances, friends really—family who’ve been living together for years.
“Sister, what are we working on today?”
“Two-digit subtraction.”
“I see. Then I’ll probably be fine. Let sleep.”
“Ikaku! Answer this one! What’s 50 minus 27!”
“Twenty-three,” I mumble.
Having graduated from a reasonably well-known university in my previous life, this level of work is a breeze.
Well, it’s not even a matter of being college-educated at this point—it’s that basic.
“So fast! Ikaku is amazing!”
“Huh? Is it really twenty-three?”
“Do you know how to do it?”
“I don’t know...”
“Um, zero minus seven, so you have to borrow... hmm...”
“It’s hard!”
My brothers and sisters make troubled faces as they tackle the century’s greatest challenge: 50 - 27.
anwhile, Sister sighs softly and gently pats my head.
“Good grief. Ikaku is such a little genius. It can’t be helped. You must be tired, so you can sleep.”
“Thanks. Then I’ll take you up on that offer. Good night.”
“Yes, good night. Sweet dreams.”
“Ikaku gets special treatnt!”
“It’s not fair—only Ikaku gets spoiled by Sister!”
“It can’t be helped. Unlike us, Ikaku is super smart and super strong.”
My siblings look disgruntled.
“Ahem. If you want to take naps during class, working as hard at training as Ikaku is a prerequisite.”
“Ugh, absolutely not!”
“I’d die if I tried doing that!”
“Sister’s an! She’s a demon!”
“Now, now. Back to your studies.”
While I’m living this orderly life of prayer, hymns, and studying, I continue my dedicated and grueling strength training regin.
Last year, when I turned five, I negotiated with the Director to have dumbbells and barbells placed behind the chapel, so I’m able to start weight training with actual equipnt.
As you can gather from the above, Akai Orphanage provides religious education. Devout faith in God and maintaining pure hearts and bodies probably helps ward off Demons.
—Or so I think, so I ask one of the Akai family agents who cos to the orphanage.
“Faith as an anti-Demon asure is aningless.”
That’s his blunt response.
“However, the heart is humanity’s strongest weapon. The cross has been a symbol since ancient tis. I don’t intend to deny that.
That said, you don’t need to beco a Christian.
What matters in Demon Exorcism isn’t morizing scripture—it’s the iron resolve to send Demons straight to hell, the determination to exterminate every single one of them, and the killer instinct to crush them on sight.”
The agent who teaches this is an old man with sharp eyes. A Russian with silver hair and distinguished features.
He’s visited Akai Orphanage countless tis before. This old man possesses an intensity as if he knows everything there is to know about combat, and his words carry conviction.
The weight of the Soul Brand on my body, and the demonic threat I can never escape for the rest of my life…
The only way to resist is to beco stronger myself.
Having soone from the field teach that only increases my motivation for training.
To hell with dying—I’m done with unreasonable endings.
“We et again this year, kid.”
I’ve turned six in the cool autumn following sumr’s end. That agent cos to the orphanage once more—to give the children bearing Soul Brands the power to fight.
This year, it’s my turn.
Incidentally, challenging the Boot Camp program aid at becoming an Exorcist at age six is highly unusual.
Typically, kids go between ages ten and fifteen. The main reasons are that personal resolve often takes ti to solidify, and there’s the requirent of completing the Academic Curriculum.
The Boot Camp program and Academic Curriculum are mandatory paths that all of us from the orphanage must take to enter society.
The reason I started attending classes at five was because I wanted to finish the Academic Curriculum fast.
The Academic Curriculum consists of Elentary Education and Secondary Education, and it normally takes my orphanage siblings eight to ten years to complete both.
Needless to say, it’s education at elentary and middle school levels. The fact that we orphans who can’t attend regular school can receive education comparable to the outside world is probably thanks to the Akai family’s generosity.
Well, having experienced real elentary school, the orphanage classes are quite informal. Rather than rigid classroom instruction, it’s more like hoschooling.
It feels like playing school in a small community.
I get recognized as having completed the Academic Curriculum in just one year total.
The Director and Sisters aren’t particularly surprised—they give looks like “of course you did.”
The fact that I’m a genius—or appear to be one—is common knowledge among my caretakers.
Thus, I’m set to graduate from Akai Orphanage in record ti. Starting today, I’ll advance to Boot Camp—the phase aid at becoming an Exorcist.
“Ikaku, co visit us sotis!”
“Do your best! Though I’m sure you’ll be fine!”
“Sister and we made you a card! Please take it!”
I hug each of my brothers and sisters who’ve grown up with and say goodbye.
Even though I’m not going far away, I feel strangely lonely.
“Ikaku, don’t forget your prayers.”
“You’re surely destined for great things.”
“Co ho on your days off.”
“To think your departure day would co so soon...”
The Sisters see off with tears in their eyes. They’re all like mothers and older sisters to . At parting, each of them hugs tightly.
The last person to say goodbye is the Director. The old woman who picked up on that rainy day seems to have hardly aged.
This great grandmother who showered —a child without parents—with endless love pats my head with the sa wrinkled but strong hands as always, even on my departure day.
Then she shakes up a protein shaker and presses a vanilla protein shake into my hands.
I chug it down in one go and return the empty container.
“Take care, Ikaku.”
“I will. I’m off then, Director.”
The farewells are over.
I leave the orphanage with my trunk in hand, walking to the black luxury car parked outside. Ahead of looms the profile of an enormous mansion.
I climb into the car alongside the agent.
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