The sunlight shone through the windows waking up (Y/N). She turned to the other side and pulled the bedsheets over her head to block it out, but on them lingered a scent that didn't belong to her. Satoru's cologne filled her nostrils and brought back the memories of last night. Her stomach made a flip only thinking about it and she began to smile to herself like a fool.

Not able to fall back asleep she decided to get up. Today she would do something different. She packed some clothes in her backpack and prepared herself to leave. At the train station, she purchased a ticket for the next train. The station was full of people, some waiting like her, others hasting through to catch their connection. (Y/N) would sometimes look at the people around her and imagine what kind of life those people would have. 'Is that man with the bouquet going to visit someone at the hospital, or maybe it is for his wife...' She didn't want to admit it, but sometimes she envied the normal people. She imagines what it would be like to have a normal life, a steady job, an own apartment where she could have some nice futile things like a vase.

She was ripped out of her daydream by the sound of the train arriving. She waited a bit longer and just before the doors were about to close she ran inside. She watched through the window as two young people in black uniform sprinted to the door, but it was too late. The train left with them outside.

'Now I know who's been following me.'

(Y/N) has felt watched since last week. She could swear she had once seen a Panda lurking behind some trees. And then the sorceress with the tired eyes that kept showing up at the bar... The two that were following her today were a young boy with light hair, his uniform with a high collar that covered up his mouth, the other was a girl wearing some glasses, with black hair tight in a ponytail. They didn't seem pleased that she had escaped them. Feeling a lot lighter, (Y/N) sat down and enjoyed the ride. She had hidden her cursed energy for so long that it was like a relief to let it free.

She kept watching out the window to decide when to get out. On this trip, she pretends to find some curses to absorb their cursed energy to recharge hers. The quantity of curse energy she could produce wasn't much, and since she had been releasing a bit of energy continuously like a normal human would, her reserves had dropped. If for some reason she would be attacked or needed to flee, she wanted to be fully charged to increase her chances, but with Satoru and his students keeping track of her, it was difficult. That's why she used Satoru's absence to get away from his students.

After a while, she decided she was far enough and made her way to the doors to get off at the next station. She didn't know exactly where she was, but it didn't matter anyway. It was still a city with lots of places where she could find some curses. On her phone, she searched for a hospital, graveyard, or school that was nearby. But then she received a video call. It was Satoru. She smiled. 'His students must have already told him that they lost me...'

She picked up and saw Satoru smiling with his blindfold on, his hair all up.

"Hello, Yuna-san, already up?"

Her smile got bigger hearing his happy voice. When he had left the night before he seemed strange and she feared that he had regretted something that happened, but now he was back to his usual self.

"Hi, sure I am. Wasn't expecting to hear so soon from you. Already missing me?"

His smile changed into a wicked one.

"What can I say, the last hours I got bored during the flight and somehow my mind wandered to last night..."

"Oh, is that so. Glad I could provide some distraction then."

Before she could say anything further, the image on the phone shifted, and now the white-haired man stood next to a black-haired boy. The poor boy was looking creeped out. 'Oh god, hope he didn't get what we were talking about.'

"Look who's with me! This is Yuta, my student."

She tried to maintain a neutral facial expression while waving into her phone to greet the teen.

"Nice to meet you Yuta. Are you on a school trip or something like that?"

"No, not exactly."

Satoru cut in on his student, filling once again all the scree on (Y/N)'s phone.

"Yuta is going to study here and I wanted to make sure he will be well-taken care of. Doesn't that make me the best teacher ever?"

She laughed aloud.

"Sure, but your student doesn't look that happy."

"Oh, don't mind him. That's his normal expression. But enough of me, what are you up to?"

(Y/N) suspected that's exactly why he called her, to see where she was. Well, she would indulge him.

"I decided to do some sightseeing today."

"Oh, really? And where are you then?"

"I don't really know. I just jumped on the first train and left after some stations. That's what I do when I have no clue where to go."

She switched the camera to show him where she was.

"Do you know any of this?"

He knew that station, but he didn't say so. Maki had called him while he was still on the plain. When he called back, she and Toge were already on the next train after Yuna. All he had to do now was tell them in which station to get off.

"No, don't think so. Ok, have fun then. Bye."

Satoru hung up before she could say anything more. 'He was in a hurry. Well, now I can't stay here any longer.'

Good thing that she was still in the station. She purchased another ticket for the next train that would leave asap. She barely made it on it before the door closed. Maybe it would be best to turn off her phone so Satoru couldn't call her once more.

Some stations later, she got off the train again. She was getting hungry so first, she searched for a restaurant. She found a small nice looking restaurant that seemed to be owned by a young couple. She asked them if they knew a place to stay for the night and they gave her an address of an inn. Without her phone, it was difficult to find the place, but asking around she eventually found it. She checked in and left her bag in the room before going out again.

She made her way up a hill where she could oversee the small city. Sitting down, she let her cursed energy run freely while focusing on her surroundings. She could expand her awareness on a large radius and soon she felt some cursed spirit nearby. It seemed like a second-grade curse was near, not bad for the beginning. Getting up she started to walk in the directions she had felt the curse. It led her deep into the woods where she found an abandoned hut. It was old, the windows were broken, and the door stood crooked, while nature tried to claim that space back as ivy branches began to invade it and moss grew on the walls and roof. The curse wasn't inside but behind the building.

'Thank god I don't have to go inside.'

She was used to facing curses but that irrational fear of the unknown was impossible to shake off, especially since a few months ago she had been only a third-grade sorceress. At least it helped that it was still day, although the big trees filtered the sunlight, making it look darker than outside the forest.

The curse was getting closer, it was right around that last corner of the building. Then she saw it. It was big and slender, looking like a man in a black suit. His arms and legs were disproportional long for its height, his fingers long as claws. Slowly it turned to her and his face was white with no eyes or mouth.

"Great, looks like I found Slenderman."

The faceless curse seemed to look at her and realized she could see it.

"Ok, bring it on."

She formed her curse energy into a pair of sai. A second-grade curse was now no match for her, but she could train for a while. That's why she took a fighting stance and waited for it to make a move. The long fingers of the curse cut through the air as it attacked her. With her weapons, she defended herself, deflecting the claws of the creature. When she saw an opening she stung the curse with one sai. The creature roared in pain and furry launching itself once more against the sorceress.

"Yes, that's it. Come on, I want to have some fun with you."

She decided to make this a bit more challenging and released the curse energy that formed her weapons, making them disappear. Now unarmed she needed to be more careful. Its claws were sharp and would cut straight through her flesh if they would make contact with her. But the woman was just too fast for the curse and she evaded its attacks easily. A while into the fight she had enough of it. Stepping aside one of the attacks, (Y/N) came behind the curse kicking the back of one knee forcing the creature to the ground. Then, putting a hand on its back, she absorbed its cursed energy.

She felt how the energy run through her body making her burning marks glow red as if they were incandescent. The rush of power felt like a high of a drug and it was just as addicting. (Y/N) wanted more... She had never absorbed so much cursed energy at once and this was only a second-grade curse, she could only imagine what it would be like with a first or even a special grade curse. Only thinking about it made a shiver run down her spine. As soon as the high came, as soon did it passed. She had to shake her head though so her thoughts felt normal again.

'That was a trip.' Her reserves weren't completely charged yet, so she looked for the other smaller curses she had felt before to absorb them too.

It was already night when she got back to her room by the inn. Only then she turned her phone back on and saw a missed video call from Satoru.

Sorry, my phone died on me 😵

Boy, am I tired. I was traveling all day, only now I'm resting at this lovely inn

Picture

She sent him a picture of her room and hoped he would reply to her.

'I hope I didn't push him too much by turning off my phone.'

She was freaking out because of the lack of an answer from him. But after her shower, he had replied.

I was beginning to worry about you. Glad you're okay

What have you seen?

She made a quick search from the city she currently was, so she could tell Satoru what she had 'seen'. They talked a while longer before (Y/N) said she would go to sleep.

The next day she changed town and continued her search for more cursed spirits before going back home to rest for her shift on Wednesday.