Chapter 27 – Talisman Flying and Ink Processing
“What? Seibo can already put spiritual power into a talisman?!”
“Yeah, it was done right away. But I can’t fly it at all.”
I’m currently visiting the Tonobe family.
They have a child the same age as mine, so we play at each other’s house once every two months.
Today, the head of the family, Momi-san, happens to be on his day off, so he is taking care of their only daughter, Kana-chan.
He is playing with blocks and I am chatting with him.
“Huh, maybe Seibo has a talent for Onmyoji. I do envy you. Should we start teaching our princess?
“No, he is indeed too quick. If we start now, she won’t be able to concentrate for long.”
Mr. Momi’s wife, Hiroko, chides him for saying so.
From our past relationship, I know that the Kyobe and Tonobe families have a fairly close relationship. I can’t talk about the secrets of the Kyobe family, but I have no problem with the basic principles of onmyoujutsu, such as flying a talisman.
“But Seibo has already started.”
“Kana’s going to do onmyou too!”
“Look, Kana’s on board too!”
Kana-chan comes forward to compete with me, the one who is being treated so nicely.
We have become good friends through playing together, but she often competes with me at times like this.
My presence seems to be a good stimulus for Kana-chan, and for that reason I am welcomed in the Tonobe household.
“I’ll ask your father to let you watch the Onmyoji Channel through to the end.”
“I see.”
In a normal house, it is hard to get children to watch the Onmyoji Channel.
The first part of the channel is exciting for children with its ceremonial deities and battle scenes, but after that, the content becomes more and more uninteresting, such as the humble practices of the Onmyoji and the introduction of rotating jobs.
The information that can be disclosed to anyone is limited because the fancy techniques are kept secret in each family.
As for me, it was more enjoyable than reading contracts and paperwork, so I was able to keep on watching.
There is no way an ordinary child could continue to watch all the episodes with such content, and they would get bored and fall asleep halfway through.
Kana-chan also seems to have stopped at the early stages of the Onmyoji Channel.
“I’m looking forward to teaching Kana. We’re going to have our first son in three months, and I’m so happy to have so much to look forward to.”
“Kana will be a big sister.”
“I see, that’s great.”
Kana told me proudly.
This topic comes up every time we meet these days.
The Tonobe family is expecting a long-awaited baby boy, and they are all very excited about it. Kana seems delighted to see her parents happy.
“I’m Yuya-chan’s big sister, and he’s Ototo’s big brother.”
“Nee nee, you may have it!”
“Thanks!”
Momi, Kana, and my little brother Yuya are playing together.
Kana knows what it is like to have a younger brother through Yuya.
She is a girl, and she grows up fast. She has already developed a desire to protect those who are smaller than her.
She is growing up to be a really good girl. It is a shame that I don’t like her face.
“Saint-chan is setting a good example of being a good big brother, so Kana can be a good big sister too. Thank you.
“Yeah, I guess I should do something to repay Seibo.”
I haven’t done much, but if you’re going to thank me, feel free to give it to me.
Any tips on how to make the talismans fly?
“Tips for talisman flying, huh?… I can’t think of any. It’s important to be able to take it for granted that you can do onmyojutsu.”
“It’s natural to be able to do it?
“Yes, the spiritual power is a part of the body. It is natural to be able to dispatch the spiritual power that is the basis of onmyojutsu. In fact, the spells are drawn on the talismans to give them this ability, but in the end, it is your own spiritual power. It would be strange to question the ability to move one’s own body. At that point, you will never be able to make the talismans fly.”
What does that mean?
You’re saying that because I don’t believe I can make talismans fly, they’ll never fly?
What are you saying? It’s not about ability, it’s about mentality. What about all the efforts I have made so far?
“Onmyoujutsu, like science, is not a phenomenon that can be explained logically. It is often based on interfering in other worlds, the Divine Realm, and other Realms that we don’t understand. Seibo is still a little boy but he is very smart. You shouldn’t think too hard.
“Anyway, you mean I should simply put it into practice?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
It is a very sports-oriented spirit.
I was a member of an athletic club in a previous life, but I couldn’t keep up with that kind of groove.
You could say I am a bit stone cold.
But I think I can……in order to become a Onmyoji, do my best.
“But it’s probably only recently that you started practicing. If you practice more and gain confidence, you will be able to do it on your own. If you’re able to infuse spiritual power, only time can tell.”
Thanks to Momi’s helpful advice, I was able to fly the talismans the next day.
Then, at night, my shitty dad came home at the right time.
“……You can do it already?”
“Yeah, once it clicked in my head, the rest was easy.”
Momi’s advice was spot on.
I tried again, assuming that it was natural that I could move the spiritual power that I had put outside, just as I had done with the tentacles I had handled so many times, and I succeeded easily.
It was so easy that I wondered what all the hard work I had done so far had been about.
Well, I cleared it in a month, so I guess it was fast enough.
As a proof of this, you can see my father’s eyes are wide open.
“You can now really start letting it fly…….The speed is still slow, but that’s going to catch up soon.”
That’s because what I’m flying right now is a spiritual element.
They’re much heavier and harder to handle than spiritual power.
In light of what Onmyoji Channel, my father, and Momi-san have told me, it seems that the existence of such things as spiritual elements and heavy spiritual elements is not common knowledge.
However, since they were originally spiritual power, they could be put into talismans like this, and they could also fly.
I feel that when I put a spiritual element in a talisman, it increases the power of the talisman. The light became stronger, the speed of flying in a straight line increased, and other changes were observed.
It seems that if I use heavy spiritual elements, the effect will be even greater.
“……I’ll give you the next challenge. Put your spiritual power into this water.”
“Is this tap water?”
It was just tap water.
It is in a smaller jar.
I wonder if this is some kind of training.
“As the basis of the onmyojutsu, it is necessary to draw spells on the tags. To do this, you must prepare a special ink that is filled with spiritual power. It is common for people to prepare these supplies themselves. This assignment is meant to familiarize you with infusing spiritual power into liquids, which is more difficult than doing it with solids. First, we will start with water, which is less difficult than ink.”
“I did it.”
Sure, it was harder to do than a talisman or an egg, but it was a lot easier than putting out a tentacle.
The fucking father was again interrupted in the middle of his explanation and was stunned.
The asshole father took a brush and a blank talisman out of his pocket.
He dipped the brush into the water I had put the spiritual power into and seemed to be drawing a spell.
“…… You sure you got it done? No, it doesn’t matter if you put in a little bit of it. If you don’t put enough water into it to saturate it, you won’t be able to perform your onmyou…….”
The talisman was glowing by a mysterious principle, which must have been the result of the spiritual power flowing through it.
The task is now complete.
The next …… can be understood without being told.
“Ink next?”
“…… yeah. Wait a little.
As expected, he didn’t have any ink ready.
I waited in the bedroom for a while, and then the asshole father came back with a similar jar.
“…… try the same procedure.”
Do I have the same instructions again?
Or maybe he thinks it is going to be clear soon enough.
“Done.”
You were correct in that prediction, Mr. Damn Father.
I did feel a little bit of the resistance, but I guess it didn’t make much of a difference.
Now, what’s the next challenge?
“You were able to ……, you’re able to …….”
The talisman is glowing again.
But it’s as light as water.
“Why couldn’t it be water, which is easier than ink?”
“Water loses its potency when it dries. Good old ink retains its spiritual power the best, and can be used to draw delicate patterns.”
Is this true?
It seems like a mechanical pencil or an ultra-fine ballpoint pen would be better for drawing delicate patterns than sumi ink.
I’ll give it a try next time.
“I see you’ve done this too. Wait a minute.”
This time, he took out the “Kyobe Family Onmyoujutsu Instructional Manual” from his pocket, turned his back to me, and began to read it.
Now, what would he teach me next?
It is interesting and mysterious to see flying and glowing talismans, but I want him to teach me something more spectacular, like summoning a Shikigami.
Unfortunately, my wish was not granted.
“Start practicing your hiragana.”
I can do that. You’re making fun of me! I was about to say out loud, “I can do that”!
I was two years old now. Rounding up, I was somehow a three-year-old.
It was normal for me not to be able to write hiragana. I was an ignorant being who couldn’t even do addition.
And I fully understand why the damn father wants me to practice hiragana. I am sure it is a preliminary step to teach me the spells to draw on the talismans. I can’t reject it just because I can understand it.
What should I do? If I don’t do anything, he will prepare a hiragana practice book for me.
I didn’t imagine that I would be taught general education in Onmyoji’s education.
I lived to be an old man and now I’m learning hiragana, what a humiliation.
If it’s hiragana, can I say I learned it by watching?
But what comes after that is definitely katakana and kanji. As you would expect, a two-year-old would feel uncomfortable when he starts writing katakana and kanji.
“Ya, I’ll do it. ……”
“Mm.”
I couldn’t come up with a good excuse, so I quietly started studying hiragana.