— — — — — —
[Commission from Miko Yotsuya completed.]
[100 Mission Points earned.]
[Ding! Guild establishment initiated. First member recruited.]
[Building guild website… website complete.]
[Sending official invitation to the member.]
[Current world achievement system unlocked. Explore freely.]
...
A chorus of metallic chimes rang inside Kazuma's head. It went on and on until the system finally quieted down—
Only for another crisp ding to follow a moment later.
"...Another one?"
He waited, but nothing else came. Just as he was wondering what that last alert meant, Miko suddenly piped up.
"Huh? Kazuma-san, this website—it's yours, right? Wow, this invitation looks so... official!"
Her phone had just chimed too. When she looked, the same website she'd seen before popped open on its own. Now, though, there was something new on the screen—an elegant digital invitation to join a guild.
She stared at it wide-eyed. Until now she'd half-suspected she'd gotten herself mixed up in something shady, but this? This looked legit.
"Let me see that," Kazuma said, taking the phone.
Sure enough, it displayed an employment-style invitation form. The site had just two functions: post missions, and accept missions. Nothing more.
"Looks fine. Go ahead and accept it," he said, handing the phone back. "And from now on, stop calling me 'Kazuma-san.' Call me Guild Master."
"Ah—yes, Guild Master, sir!" Miko said with a mock salute, quickly filling out the form and submitting it.
A ping sounded in Kazuma's mind almost instantly. He tapped Approve.
There. First official member acquired.
But...
"System, where can I see the app or track things there?" Kazuma asked, bewildered. Did the Guild Master really have no way to view his own guild's missions?
Then he felt something.
The next moment, from the Gate of Babylon, Kazuma retrieved a communication device—sleek, military-grade. In many worlds, phones counted as tactical gear. He powered it on, waited a few seconds, and sure enough, a new app appeared on the home screen: [Guild Missions].
Right now, the task list was completely empty.
"So, uh, Guild Master sir," Miko asked cautiously, "how many people are in the guild right now?"
Kazuma looked solemnly at her. "Including you and me? Two."
Then his tone turned grand. "But that won't last long. We'll grow. One day, this guild will become the top exorcist organization in the world!"
He rested a hand on her shoulder. "And you, Miko—you've got an important mission. While you're exorcising spirits, recruit as many capable people as you can. Do that well, and I'll make you officially Vice Guild Master. Second in command, right under me."
"For now, you hold the position temporarily."
Miko blinked. "R-right… sure, I'll try my best!"
Inside, though, she couldn't help thinking: "Was I scammed?"
What kind of vice guild master had to go out recruiting like a door-to-door salesman? This position was about as glamorous as a coupon clerk.
Then her phone chimed again.
"Eh?"
She looked—and froze. The empty mission board now displayed a new listing:
{Mission: Help a client with a haunting problem}
{Reward: ¥500,000}
Her eyes went wide. "Whoa, that was fast! And half a million yen for one job?!"
"Perfect," Kazuma said, smiling. "I'll walk you through your first mission while I'm still here. Once I'm gone, you'll have to handle them yourself."
He could only remain in this world for one day after completing a mission. After that, he'd automatically return to Fairy Tail—unless he used a guild transmission, which cost ten Mission Points per trip and allowed him to stay for three days.
Miko began to panic. "Wait—no training? No orientation? You're just throwing me straight into fieldwork?!"
"Experience is the best teacher," Kazuma replied calmly, opening the mission tracker and setting the location. "Now watch and learn."
Inside a dim, cluttered apartment, a man with bloodshot eyes stared at his phone.
"'Exorcism Guild' website... Yeah, right. Probably some scam," he muttered.
But the page wouldn't close—no matter how many times he tried. The glowing logo pulsed faintly, and the banner text scrolled by: {'When the unseen haunts your home, call those who see beyond.'}
He swallowed. "Still... what if it's real?"
"Better safe than sorry," he told himself. Trembling, he filled out the request form and typed in the reward amount—¥500,000.
When he was done, he crawled under his blanket and curled into a ball, shaking uncontrollably. "Please... hurry... please just come..."
Then—
Ding-dong. Ding-dong.
"Exorcism Guild here. Anyone home?" a calm male voice called from outside.
The man shot out of bed and sprinted for the door.
Standing outside were two figures: a man in strange attire and a pale, dark-eyed girl who looked like she hadn't slept in days.
"Client?" Kazuma asked. "Good. I'm Kazuma, and this is Miko. Put these on."
Before the man could react, Kazuma slipped a pair of glasses onto his face.
"I don't need glasses, my vision's fine—"
He stopped mid-sentence.
Because right in front of him, a tangle of black hair was floating in the air.
"AHHH! A ghost! Kill it! Hurry!" he screamed, stumbling backward.
A sharp bang rang out—so fast he couldn't even see what happened.
"Huh? The ghost vanished."
"You're wearing one of our guild's special tools," Kazuma said evenly. "It lets people who normally can't see spirits perceive them. Now that the spirit's gone, your commission is complete. Please transfer the payment."
Miko stood frozen beside him. "That's it?" she thought. No chanting, no purification ritual, no incense. Just... bang, done.
The client's fear suddenly shifted to greed. His eyes darted. He tore off the glasses, breathing hard, and forced a fake look of confusion.
"I don't know what you're talking about," he said quickly. "What commission? What ghost or spirit? You two just barged into my house!"
He'd seen the spirit destroyed with his own eyes, but now that it was gone, so was his gratitude. Five hundred thousand yen wasn't pocket change, after all.
"Don't know what I'm talking about?" Kazuma repeated flatly. Then his tone dropped to a chill. "Alright. Two options."
He drew his gun and pressed it lightly against the man's forehead.
"Option one: pay what you owe. Option two: pay with your life."
.
.
.