Neurolink System in the Modern World

"I'm just joking," I chuckled, realizing how silly my previous statement was.

"By the way, your weapon? It's special, right?" I smoothly shifted the conversation to a topic that piqued my curiosity.

Yuki glanced at the katana by her side and nodded. "Yes, it's a family heirloom. Passed down through generations. It has a unique ability to control fire, and I've been training with it since I was a child because I'm a shaman."

"Interesting," I replied, intrigued. "So, you're part of a family of Shamans, huh? Must be quite a legacy."

To be honest, I did not know anything about this shaman business, so I just assumed that they were people who like swinging their swords . Simple as that.

She nodded again, her eyes reflecting a mix of pride and burden. "Yes, we're known for our abilities in controlling the elements. But my family has been pressuring me to marry someone I don't even love. That's why I was running away."

A fake sympathetic expression crossed my face. "Forced into marriage? That's rough. But hey, you don't have to worry about that now. I took care of those guys, and you're safe."

She looked at me with gratitude in her eyes. "Thank you again for saving me. I don't know how to repay you."

***

I waved it off with a dismissive smile.

"No need for repayment. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. Besides, I'm on a bit of a vacation, so helping out someone was a good experience."

Yuki giggled, her eyes sparkling. "Well, I'm grateful for your vacation plans then."

I smiled at her response; she looked really cute when she was speaking. The tone of her voice was also different, with a higher pitch when she wanted to tell something funny.

"You said your in vacation, right? So, it means you're not a local Yokai?" She asked.

"A Yokai?" I raised my eyebrows in confusion . I heard them calling me that, so I just assumed they meant my appearance. I did copy an anime character known to be Yokai Supreme Commander.

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"Wait, you're not a Yokai?" She exclaimed in shock. "How are you so powerful?"

'Powerful? I didn't even use 10% of my power back then,' I shook my head inwardly. This girl was too easily impressed. I wonder what her reaction would be if she knew I could destroy Tokyo if I wanted to.

Alas, I'm a humble guy, so no need to brag.

"No," I replied.

She paused for a moment before explaining. "Yokai are humans or animals that awakened powers. Our clan are experts on hunting Yokai that disrupt the peace of society," she explained.

"Do you mean Gifteds?" I asked, thinking that her description was familiar aside from the animal part. I did not know that animals could also use Mind Power. But thinking about it, my pets are also able to use my skills through Mind Link and Mind Power sharing, so it was indeed possible.

"Right, I heard that other countries use a different term like that," she replied.

'Different countries? I think your country is the only one being different. You people really like to have your own version of everything,' I sighed, realizing that they just called Gifted, Yokai for the sake of being different.

I wouldn't even be shocked if the power ranking here was also different.

She seemed to sense the confusion on my face, so she spoke again.

"But in our country, most Yokai, I mean Gifteds, could turn into different kinds of creatures, close to monsters. While some animals can turn into half-human. That's why we have been calling them Yokai," she clarified.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

The description she provided caught my attention; I had never encountered a gifted individual who could transform into a monster before, making this a intriguing revelation. Maybe this transformation was a limited version of my shape-shifting .

"But you also have powers, right? So it means that you're also a Yokai?" I asked.

I remembered her stats, and even though there was no Mind Power, her other attributes were off the chart, beyond normal human capability.

For example, her strength was 12 points, which was very strong for a human, and her speed was 11. At that speed, Usain Volt would eat dust against her.

"Our powers come from our swords," she held the hilt of her katana and explained. There was a sense of seriousness in her voice; it was like her katana was a part of herself.

"Our swords were forged during ancient time. They said that it was a weapon created for humans to fight powerful Yokai before. It has different elements, and depending on how talented the individual is, they could grow more powerful along with their weapon," she added.

"Grow how?"

"I don't know how to explain it exactly, but our sword could increase our strength, speed, and reaction time. Some powerful swords can even make the wielder immune to bullets," she explained further.

So, those weapons were special, as I suspected. It was a good thing that I carefully placed each one into my black hole storage. I wanted to study them in the future.

"So without the sword you lost your power ?" I asked again wanting to learn more about it.

"That's not the case. I'll still retain my power, but without it, I can only utilize 20% of my abilities. Unlike Yokai, we rely on our swords to manifest elements," she clarified.

"I see," I nodded in understanding.

We continued our conversation, and I learned more about the power system in this place and her clan.

She told me they don't work with Cerebrum because they believe the organization has ulterior motives. Normally, Cerebrum would purge such clans, but the ones in Japan, if united, could not be defeated so easily.

So, Cerebrum acknowledged their existence to avoid war.

I was even shocked to learn that there are almost 250+ clans of shamans here in Japan. That number was big; no wonder Cerebrum was hesitant to touch them.

Normally, they would not work with each other, but if an external threat emerged, they would unify to chase it away.

"How about we visit your clan?" I suggested to her. The night was still young, so I still had time to spare.