The Missing Candidate

The director’s eyes scanned the dossiers, brow furrowed.

“What…? Enshin still hasn’t chosen the tenth candidate for the Magic Tournament?” He shouted.

“Call him, now!”

A moment later, the door creaked open. A middle-aged man walked in, beige trench coat wrinkled, burgundy messy hair, dragging one boot lazily.

“Aaah… more work?” he muttered.

The secretary snapped upright, glasses catching the light. He pointed at the exorcist like accusing a crime.

“Again… without your uniform? And, ugh, that smoking smell!”

He tapped his glasses nervously.

Enshin smirked, yawning.

“You didn’t call me to lecture about my dress code, did you?”

The director leaned forward, elbows on the desk, hand resting against his jaw, eyes calm but piercing.

“No, you’re right… Why haven’t you chosen the tenth candidate yet?”

The exorcist waved a hand, half-joking.

“Sorry… I’ve been too busy doing important stuff… like… you know… saving people from yokai.”

The director’s gaze sharpened.

“Enough with the jokes. This is important.”

Enshin exhaled, a short, tired sigh. He met the director’s eyes, serious now.

“I… I can’t shake this feeling. Something bad is coming…” He paused. “I think the missing candidate might be the key to stopping it.”

The secretary chuckled, a sharp, self-satisfied sound.

“Please. Even if demons attacked, the island is defended by our strongest exorcists and security. Nothing catastrophic could happen.”

The director leaned back, fingers steepled, expression thoughtful, a hint of concern in his eyes.

“I understand your worries. Your intuition is often correct… almost divinatory. But there’s no time to waste. The tournament is in two days. You must choose a candidate before midnight.”

Enshin froze for a moment, eyes widening in disbelief.

“What? Midnight… That’s impossible! I’d have to go through every exorcist file in Tokyo, read them all, sort them… Give me just one more day!”

The director smiled. He picked up a sheet from his desk and handed it to the exorcist.

“I anticipated that,” he said. “I’ve prepared a list with our best exorcists, sixteen to nineteen, as required by the tournament. You just need to pick a name.”

The secretary adjusted his glasses with a sharp flick, a small smirk on his face.

“If it’s too much work for you, I can do it instead.”

Enshin let out a tired sigh, glancing at the sheet.

“Alright… I get it. I’ll give you a name tonight.”

He snatched the paper and walked out of the office.

He walked down the bustling street, barely noticing the people or the neon signs flashing around him. Eyes glued to the list.

I hope the one I’m looking for is on this list… he thought, flipping through each candidate file.

Enshin blinked.

“…They’re good. … Very good, even.”

Every name felt better than the last. Each profile showed young talent, all strong and skilful.

“The director really picked the best,” he admitted. “They all deserved the tournament. No doubt. But…”

He sighed.

My gut tells me none of them are what we really need.

As an exorcist, he faced danger every single day. Real danger. In moments like this, facts mattered less than instinct. It was how he had survived so far , and why he couldn’t just pick anyone.”

But time was running out.

If something really goes wrong… he stopped himself.

The secretary’s words echoed in his head.

He’s right. The island will be full of top exorcists. One more young exorcist won’t change much… probably.

Enshin looked at the list again.

Alright. I’ll choose the best one from this list when I get back home

Glancing down again, still unconvinced, he kept walking. Lost in thought. And that’s when he heard it.

BOOM.

A sharp explosion echoed above the street, loud enough to make him stop in his tracks.

He lifted his head.

Smoke bloomed in the air. A blurry shape took form inside.

The crowd reacted instantly, voices overlapping, fingers pointing upward.

“Oh, look!”
“Is that… a flying rabbit?!”

As the smoke faded, a white rabbit with long wings hovered in the air, blue eyes shining, a glowing blue symbol on its forehead and faint lights running through its fur.

Enshin’s expression hardened.

A yokai… in broad daylight? Impossible.

His hand slipped into his coat pocket as he ran, fingers closing around the lighter. The source of his power.

One spark was all it took to cast a spell.

Smoke curled higher. And then… a voice.

“Step closer, step closer, dear humans,” it called, playful but strange, echoing as if the air itself hummed.

“Are you ready to see something impossible?”

Enshin continue to run as fast as he can.

Shit. I need to get close. Fast. Before this thing makes a mess.

He pushed forward, weaving through the crowd, every step measured. Heart hammering.

Finally, he reached the edge of the smoke, lighter clenched, ready to strike.

Boom.

The air split again, this time to his right.

Another explosion, another cloud of smoke.

The exorcist’s breath caught.

“Another one? Why can’t I feel them? Something is wrong.”

But this time the shape inside was bigger. Taller. Almost… humanoid.

“What the hell…?” he muttered.

His grip tightened around the lighter, ready to burn whatever stepped out of that smoke.

Then the cloud began to thin. Slowly, a silhouette emerged.

A young man stepped forward, dressed in black, with a red bow tie, a top hat, and white gloves.

Enshin blinked.

“…A magician?”

The crowd erupted into cheers and laughter. Phones shot up. Applause echoed down the street.

The exorcist froze, arm still half-raised, lighter aimed at nothing.

“Ah. Shit”.

Play it cool.

He pulled the lighter out properly, and instead of a spell, leaned the flame to light a cigarette. Smoke slipped from his lips as his shoulders loosened.

“…Tch. Almost roasted a street performer.”

The magician bowed deeply, then straightened, tipped his hat, and flashed a wide smile at the crowd.

“Ladies and gentlemen, allow us to add a little magic to your day!”

The rabbit hovered at his side, obedient, almost affectionate, like a pet.

There was no real threat. Enshin should have left.

But the crowd pressed in around him, cutting off his path. The exorcist stayed, watching, eyes sharp.

The young magician lifted his left arm. One second it was empty; the next, a wand appeared in his hand.

He raised his right hand next, a red ball resting in his palm. One wave of the wand and the ball floated, slow and steady.

The crowd gasped.

Then the wand vanished. The ball burst into flame and disappeared with a soft breath.

Applause exploded.

Enshin leaned forward, eyes narrowing.

Is this boy an exorcist… or just an absurdly skilled magician?

The tricks kept coming.

Objects appeared and vanished.

Fire moved as if it had a mind of its own.

Cards danced through the air , one was chosen, lost, then reappeared inside a stranger’s pocket.

Each trick looked like a spell.

Is this really only tricks? How is he doing this…?

The exorcist couldn’t believe his eyes.

Fire. Movement. Displacement.

An exorcist could only master one element. This boy flowed through them as if rules didn’t apply.

But that wasn’t the most disturbing part.

There was no mana, no energy emanating from him. Nothing.

Yet the illusion was flawless.

Enshin’s eyes were glued to the magician, unblinking. The candidate list slipped from his mind, he forgot everything else.

The young boy continue his show .

Time slipped.

The sky darkened. Streetlights flickered on.

The magician wiped his brow theatrically. “Ah… looks like evening is coming.”

He reached into his pockets and tossed small glowing beads into the air. They hovered for a heartbeat .

Snap.

They burst into soft, colorful sparks, painting the street in gentle light.

The crowd sighed in awe.

The magician bowed. “That concludes tonight’s show. Thank you, everyone!”

He held up his top hat.

“Time to go home.”

The rabbit hopped inside, a small wisp of smoke trailing after it.

The magician turned the hat upside down. Empty.

A small voice sniffled.

“Bunny… where did you go?”

A little girl tugged at her mother’s sleeve, eyes glistening with tears.

The magician froze for a moment, then spoke softly, “He’s gone back home.”

The girl’s lower lip trembled.

“No… sniff… I want Bunny back!”

The magician knelt, producing a single red rose from thin air. He offered it gently. 

“I think he got tired. Here, a little gift instead.”

But the girl kept crying. He couldn’t let her stay upset.

“Alright… I’ll call him back, just so you can say goodbye, okay?”

The girl’s eyes lit up. “Really? You’ll bring him back? Thank you big brother !”

The magician held the hat out toward her.

“Since you’re the one who wants to see him, you should call him.”

She took a deep breath and shouted into the hat.

“Bunny, Bunny, where are you? Please come out!”

Smoke burst from the hat. The rabbit popped out .

“Don’t cry, princess… Bunny’s here!”

The crowd erupted in cheers.

The little girl squealed and hugged him tightly.

The young magician smiled, relief clear on his face.

Everyone seemed happy… except the exorcist. 

“It’s impossible,” he muttered. “Yokai can only be summoned by their master. There’s so much mystery around this boy… I need to talk to him.”

After a moment, the rabbit closed his eyes and stopped moving, settling in the kid’s arms.

“What happened to Bunny?” the little girl asked worried.

The magician chuckled. “Ahaha… he used too much energy. Guess he got tired.”

He carefully placed the rabbit back in his hat. It disappeared once more.

Then the young boy tipped his hat and let it pass through the crowd. Coins clinked.

People slowly drifted away while the exorcist remained, eyes fixed on the boy.

“Finally! I’ve found the tenth candidate!”