The golden mist curled, twisting in the air like it recognized him, but Watari barely had time to take it in before Koharu was already striding forward.

  “Walk with me.”

  It wasn’t a request.

  Watari sighed, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he followed. The corridor stretched ahead, long and endless, flickering with the soft glow of nterns. Footsteps echoed against the floor, but it was strangely… silent. No whispers, no passing figures. Just the three of them.

  Even the Chūkan felt different now. Had it always been this quiet?

  “You’re spacing out,” Koharu said, gncing at him.

  “Just thinking,” he muttered, his eyes trailing over the architecture, still in awe at how mystical this realm always seemed.

  Koharu let out a sharp breath. “Well, think faster. You’ve got a lot to catch up on.”

  Watari arched a brow. “Is this the part where you tell me everything’s changed?”

  Koharu didn’t even hesitate. “Yes.”

  A beat.

  She continued, voice steady. “Kuroda might be gone, but his ideas? His influence? That didn’t die with him.”

  Watari’s expression darkened. He didn’t like where this was going.

  “The Chūkan has had… complications,” she admitted. “But as much as I’d like to fill you in on all that, the elders think something else takes priority.”

  Watari frowned. “And what would that be?”

  Koharu’s lips quirked up just slightly before she turned her gaze forward again. “Let’s just say… We’ve never had a recruit ghost us for two years.”

  Watari felt the jab immediately. “I didn’t ghost anyone—”

  “We’re akin to ghosts ourselves, Watari.” Koharu shot him a sharp look. “How do you ghost a ghost?”

  Watari exhaled through his nose. “Yeah, okay. That’s fair.”

  Ayase chuckled under his breath.

  Watari turned toward him, realization hitting. “Wait… Me and Yumi were supposed to come back together, weren’t we?”

  Koharu stopped in her tracks. Slowly, she turned to him with a look that was equal parts disbelief and exasperation.

  “Wow,” she muttered. “It really is always that girl with you.”

  “What? No—”

  “Two years off the grid,” she continued, “Did you two disappear to go make babies or something? How primal of you.”

  Watari nearly choked. “Excuse me?”

  Ayase smirked.

  Koharu just kept walking. “We’ve already made arrangements for her. She’ll be here too.”

  Watari rexed at that, but something about the way Koharu said it made him a little uneasy. He didn’t have time to dwell on it, though. Because suddenly—They were there.

  The Judgment Hall.

  Two towering doors loomed before them, carved with intricate patterns. Watari hadn’t been here before—but stepping inside he felt… heavier.

  The doors creaked open.

  And the second Watari stepped through, he knew.

  He fucked up.