Wakana knits her brows. "There's authority higher than the president of the country?"
Nishimura Soichiro looks at her. "When it comes to the hidden world, the Council is the law."
"You should have told that before you asked us whether we wanted to be part of it or not." Minami Sei frowns at him. "I don't even know whether this hidden world is real or not. Now, you are saying that our country can't protect us if something goes wrong. Then, how is it a collaboration?"
It is the main reason why only a few countries are taking part in this experiment and why it's only three of them right now. Nishimura Soichiro understands their hesitations. "The government will protect you to some extent. You will get the extra privileges too. The laws of the Council are quite simple. The first law is the law of secrecy. You must never ever speak about this agency or the hidden world to the regular people. Since you are a part of this agency from now on, you are no longer a regular person."
Is she joining a cult? Wakana shrugs her shoulders. "My family already knows about ghosts and demons. They are regular people."
"That's okay." Nishimura Soichiro waves his hand. Even his family knows about it to some extent. There are many people in the world who are aware of common supernatural entities like ghosts or demons. "You can't tell them what you learned today. You can't speak about the hidden world or the Council. It's best for them to not know. Once someone walks into the hidden world and the veil on their eyes are taken off, their lives change forever."
He narrows his eyes on her. "Nakashima, even if you have been aware of the supernatural world for a long time, you are not completely familiar with this world. Your family isn't the same. They only know what you told them. They are not a part of this world and they shouldn't become either."
Wakana stares at her hands. Her family can't sense the things that she can sense. They can't understand her either. They have normal lives.
She gives him a heavy nod. "I understand."
Minami Sei also nods to Nishimura Soichiro. Even if there wasn't a requirement to maintain secrecy, he wouldn't have spoken about this to anyone else. He's likely to be thrown in the mental asylum if he ever speaks about a secret agency like this one or the hidden world with the Council.
"It's a little late, but…" Nishimura Soichiro opens the drawer and picks up two papers. "Sign this with your blood."
Did he hear it wrong? Minami Sei "Nishimura Sama, why must we use blood?"
Nishimura Soichiro places the paper on the table along with a small blade. "Ink doesn't hold much meaning in the hidden world."
He feels like he's joining a cult. Minami Sei reads the paper quickly. It's an agreement between him and the Council that he will never break the laws of the hidden world and maintain secrecy.
Wakana gives it a quick glance before her gaze stops on the salary digits. That's enough reason for her. She picks up the blade and makes a tiny cut on her finger. She drops the blood on the Council's seal. She isn't surprised to see the paper turns white-hot before it disappears into the thin air.
Sei blinks his eyes. What was that?
"I like quick people like you, Nakashima." Nishimura Soichiro points at her and winks. "Minami, learn from her and sign it quickly. Otherwise, get out of here. I need to discuss our next case."
Sei grimaces and picks up the blade. He makes the cut on his thumb. A few drops of blood fall on the seal. He widens his eyes when the paper becomes wine red and floats up in the air. It changes to black and emits a pungent smell. The paper burns on its own in the air until nothing is left.
Nishimura Soichiro has never seen this happen before. "Are you a dark magician who is planning world annihilation, Minami?"
"Do you think that I will be sitting here if I was one?" Sei is beginning to believe in the so-called hidden world. "What happened there?"
"You barely made it." Nishimura Soichiro releases his breath. "Now, the Council knows that we have people. I can ask for funds. Tell me what you want."
"Extra chair?" Wakana suggests.
"A better boss," Sei mutters under his breath.
"A coffee-making machine, it is then." Nishimura Soichiro claps his hands. He ignores their looks and asks, "Nakashima, tell me about your abilities."
Wakana exhales. "My abilities aren't constant. I can't always use it. Sometimes, it's high. Sometimes, it's low. I can sense the other world in some way. I can see the strong memories of places, objects, and living beings with active consciousnesses. Sometimes, I can live past memories. So far, that's the only things that I can do."
"I see." Nishimura Soichiro scratches his chin. "Your abilities are inconsistent because your abilities are not fully awake. Someone from the Council will come to test you."
Wakana doesn't reply. She has heard this a lot. All she knows it the fact that she's not a witch. Otherwise, Morita Aiko wouldn't have stopped the demon from violating her.
Nishimura Soichiro walks to the pile of papers. He runs his fingers on the edges until he stops on a file. He pulls it out. He drops it on the table. "This is our next case."
Sei looks at the date. The case is only a month old? "This isn't a cold case."
"You are right." Nishimura Soichiro crosses his arms. "It's fresh. Our first job is to check whether the cause is supernatural or not. Go back home and pack. We are heading to Y City tomorrow."