Charlotte paced back and forth in the middle of the deserted street, her heart racing and her thoughts swallowing her like a whirlwind. 'It wasn't supposed to be like this! It wasn't supposed to be like this!' She had no idea what Joseph had done, only knew she couldn't go back to the warehouse, stopped by an… invisible wall? A barrier?
"DAMN IT! I wouldn't be this lost if my dad had taught me anything!" she shouted at the sky, yanking her hair in frustration. Hot tears threatened to fall, but she swallowed them down with fury. 'I don't even know if Joseph is alive! I mean, he looks strong, but that thing looked strong too… ARGH!'
THUP!
The sound made her turn her eyes toward the warehouse. The barrier was dissolving into tiny fragments of light. Her heart stopped for a moment. 'He won… or lost?'
"What are you looking at?"
"Ah!" Charlotte screamed and spun around, assuming a fighting stance. But it was just Joseph, looking exactly the same as before the fight—except for his ulster coat, now buttoned up. "You… won? And how did you show up behind me like that?!"
"First, yes, it was kinda tiring, but fine," Joseph shrugged, taking a step forward and stopping right in front of her. "Second, it's a secret. Now, how about we talk about you not thinking it was important to tell me you have zero control over your spiritual energy, huh?"
"I-I—" Charlotte stammered, her face burning with shame. Her eyes dropped to the ground, unable to meet his.
"No 'I-I'," Joseph cut her off, leaning forward until their faces were almost touching. "No excuses, sweetheart."
The words hit her like a punch. "I… I was embarrassed," she whispered. "I don't know anything. Absolutely nothing! And I didn't think my dad would throw me into such a dangerous mission with you."
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. That's a rookie's first mistake. Every profane spirit, from the weakest to the strongest, can kill you. Just takes one mistake, one slip. This isn't a movie where the hero gets a bunch of chances against the villain. It's kill or be killed, got it?"
Charlotte swallowed hard and nodded timidly.
"Great!" Joseph stepped back, clapping his hands with a cheerfulness that didn't match the moment. "So, second mission cancelled. You're way too green to tag along on class 3 exorcisms."
"Alright…" Charlotte whispered, still looking at the ground. 'My beginning… was a disaster.' The shame burned in her chest, but before she could sink any deeper, she felt Joseph's hand on her shoulder.
The world around them rippled, and the warehouse vanished.
***
Appearing in the courtyard of the Exorcist Center, Joseph let go of her shoulder and pointed the directorate building. "Your dad's in there. Go and tell him I said he's a fucking lunatic, top tier, for sending you on a class 3 exorcism."
"I… I can't say that," Charlotte replied, hesitant.
Joseph shrugged and snapped his fingers, leaving her behind.
***
Appearing in his room, Joseph dropped all pretense and collapsed face-first onto the floor, breathing hard. 'Calm down… can't pass out yet'
With trembling fingers, he pulled his phone from his pocket. At the same time, the front of his coat began to turn red and stain the floor with blood.
'Where is…' Searching through his contacts, he finally found who he was looking for and tapped to call. One, two, three, four rings. Nothing.
Joseph's world was starting to darken when the call was answered.
[Hey, did you survive the meeting with the director?]
"Ellie… spiritual collapse… in my room… hurry…"
[JOSEPH!] Her voice came through full of panic. [I'm coming! Stay awake! JOSEPH, YOU HAVE TO STAY AWAKE!]
He wanted to answer, but the darkness took him first.
***
'I'm going to speak some truths now, and no one is going to stop me!'
Standing in front of her father's office door, Charlotte mentally rehearsed a speech, her heart pounding with a mix of anger and determination. She raised her hand to knock, but the door suddenly opened, revealing a woman with a serene gaze and a smile that seemed to know too much.
"How long are you going to stand there, girl?"
"Uh..." Charlotte froze, the carefully prepared speech evaporating like smoke. "S-sorry, I think this is the wrong room-"
"Charlotte, right?" The woman tilted her head, her smile widening with a hint of amusement.
"Yes?" Charlotte frowned, suspicious. "Do you... know me?"
"Of course I do. Come in, please." The woman, elegant and with a presence that seemed to fill the entire room, stepped aside, inviting her in with a gesture.
Hesitant, Charlotte crossed the doorway. Her eyes fell on the desk in the center of the room, where a plaque gleamed with her father's name. She stopped, confused. "Do you know where my father is? I need to speak with him."
"Before that, how about telling me how the two missions with exorcist Joseph Harrington went?" The woman, still calm, pointed to the chair in front of the desk and sat... in the director's chair. "Did it make things clearer for you about what it means to be an exorcist?"
Charlotte blinked, her brain trying to keep up. 'Isn't that my father's chair?' She narrowed her eyes but sat down, crossing her arms. "It was just one mission, and yeah, it made it pretty clear my dad wants me dead. He sent me on a super dangerous exorcism! Now, where is he?!"
The woman raised an eyebrow, unbothered. "Hmm. Let me introduce myself. I'm Selene, class 1 exorcist, and I'm in charge of the East Coast Exorcist Center until your father returns."
"WHAT?!" Charlotte jumped to her feet, slamming her hands on the desk. "You're saying he dragged me here, threw me into a suicide mission and just disappeared?"
"Please, Charlotte, sit down." Selene's voice was soft, but there was an undeniable authority in it. Before Charlotte could protest, a breeze pushed her softly back into the chair, as if the very air obeyed the woman.
"Your father was called away on a mission that required an exorcist of his caliber. As for the exorcisms you were supposed to accompany, they were planned to be safe, considering Joseph Harrington's abilities."
"Safe?!" Charlotte let out a bitter laugh. "It didn't feel safe! Joseph looked pretty nervous and focused when he fought that profane spirit!"
Selene watched her for a long moment, the smile vanishing. "Curious, Joseph is the strongest class 3 exorcist in the country. No class 3 or lower spirit should pose a problem for him."
'Joseph is the strongest class 3?... that must mean something' Charlotte thought, a little impressed.
"Can you describe the profane spirit?" Selene asked, drawing Charlotte's attention back to the conversation.
"He was... humanoid, really pale, had these sunken yellow eyes, and black lines all over his torso."
The woman widened her eyes and picked up a paper from the desk. "I see. Could you tell me everything that happened?"
"I don't know much. Joseph threw me out of the warehouse and I... I think he was the one who created some kind of barrier that kept me from going back."
"We call it the spiritual veil. It's used to isolate the inner area from the outside world while repelling all normal humans nearby." Selene explained. "But back to the point, how was Joseph when he finished the exorcism?"
"Normal? He seemed fine," Charlotte said, not understanding why that was important. "Why does that matter? What's going on?"
"Unfortunately, I don't have time to explain right now," Selene said, getting up. "I need to find exorcist Joseph, excuse me."
With those words, the woman vanished from the room in a burst of wind, so fast Charlotte couldn't follow with her eyes.
...
...
...
'Why does no one explain anything to me?! she thought, holding her head in her hands.