Chapter 76: The Death List
Night fell over Japan.
The moon and stars still appeared on schedule, untouched by the disaster that had torn through the day. Their pale light spread across the dark earth, thin and cold, offering the living the faint comfort that only existed because the world had already sunk into darkness.
But tonight, no one felt comforted.
Countless onmyoji waited for news with their nerves stretched taut.
Earlier, the authorities had announced a complete blockade within a ten-mile radius of Mount Fuji. That meant Yamata no Orochi, the Great Yokai of myth, was still contained somewhere within that range.
Whether it had been intercepted by the National-level onmyoji of the Onmyo Alliance, the Omnyo Agency, and the other major factions—or whether some other force was holding it in place—no one knew.
But no matter the reason, one fact remained.
Yamata no Orochi had not directly invaded the outside world.
That alone was already a blessing amid disaster.
If it had truly broken free and rampaged across Japan, then the eruption of Mount Fuji would have been nothing more than the opening bell of a calamity humanity could not resist.
Buzz, buzz, buzz—
The roar of propellers sliced through the night sky.
Helicopters belonging to the authorities, the Omnyo Agency, and the Onmyo Alliance flew over Tokyo and other major districts one after another. Their fuselages were covered in scars. Some were blackened by fire. Others had patches eaten away by corrosion. Many bore dents from impacts powerful enough to twist reinforced metal.
As the aircraft passed over supernatural investigation offices and the residences of certain onmyoji, strands of ghost-sight rose almost uncontrollably.
They probed toward the helicopters.
Under normal circumstances, using spirit-sight to pry into other onmyoji—especially National-level onmyoji—would be unforgivably rude.
Tonight, no one cared.
The onmyoji who had waited in fear since morning were too anxious to bother with etiquette.
"It's Director Kurahashi Genji's aura..."
"That one belongs to Tsuchimikado Arima from the Onmyo Alliance."
"Miyaji Hanao... I sensed Miyaji Hanao."
"Over there. That should be Kogure Zenjirō..."
One familiar aura after another entered their perception.
But there was no joy in that recognition.
Because those auras were weak.
Terribly weak.
The overwhelming spiritual power that once made people lower their eyes was gone. Now, those legendary figures felt like candles guttering in a storm. Some auras were so faint they seemed moments away from vanishing entirely.
And worse—
Nearly half of the familiar presences were missing.
That absence was louder than any scream.
Many onmyoji felt a coldness spread through their hearts. They understood what it meant, but understanding and accepting were two different things.
When the wounded National-level onmyoji finally returned to their respective organizations, the entire Onmyodo world fell into a suffocating silence.
Onmyoji.
High-ranking government officials.
Supernatural insiders.
Everyone who knew the truth shut their mouths and waited.
They waited for the Omnyo Agency, the Onmyo Alliance, the Onmyo Academy, and the authorities to announce the result.
No matter how late it was, they would wait.
Inside the White Fox Office—
"They're alive."
Gin Tsumugi's shoulders loosened slightly.
He had sensed the weakened auras of Amami Daizen and Miyoshi Jugo among the returning aircraft. The weight pressing on his chest finally eased.
Their spiritual power was badly depleted, but unlike several others, their bodies did not carry traces of erosion from that eerie, defiled force surrounding Yamata no Orochi. Their weakness was probably caused by the use of some exhausting technique rather than direct corruption.
To Gin, that mattered.
Among the people in the Omnyo Agency, Amami Daizen was the one most closely connected to him. Miyoshi Jugo had also shown him considerable goodwill.
From the bottom of his heart, Gin did not want anything to happen to either of them.
At the same time, he noticed something else.
The aura of someone he greatly disliked from the Agency had not appeared among the helicopters passing overhead.
Perhaps that person had returned by another route.
Perhaps the aircraft had simply not flown over Shibuya.
Or perhaps there was another reason entirely.
Gin had no interest in going out of his way to investigate.
"Director."
Iwanaga Kotoko, who had been monitoring several information channels from the computer, suddenly looked up.
"The Omnyo Agency, the Onmyo Alliance, the Onmyo Academy, and the authorities have jointly issued a statement."
Gin immediately turned to his own computer and logged into the official internal website accessible only to professional-level onmyoji and above.
At the very top of the homepage, a joint statement had been pinned.
From this moment onward—
Announced in the joint name of the Onmyo Alliance, the Omnyo Agency, the Onmyo Academy, the Tsuchimikado Clan, the Supernatural Disaster Countermeasure Office, and all related authorities:
The Onmyodo world will enter a state of full alert.
All supernatural investigation offices, exorcism squads, and civilian onmyoji organizations within Japan will be divided into three levels of authority.
Organizations granted authority may mobilize corresponding resources from local government departments, Omnyo Agency branches, and Onmyo Alliance branches within their assigned regions.
All organizations are ordered to resolve as many supernatural incidents as possible within three months, with particular priority given to incidents currently listed as "sealed" or "on hold."
Three months from now, the entire Onmyodo world will be mobilized to resist the general offensive launched by Yamata no Orochi.
The statement was not long.
But every line carried weight.
Across Japan, supernatural investigation offices and civilian onmyoji organizations felt their hearts sink after reading it. Some of the contents had been expected, yet when the words appeared officially, the sense of unreality only grew stronger.
Even Gin frowned.
The statement revealed a great deal.
First, it confirmed that Yamata no Orochi had been temporarily locked within Mount Fuji by the surviving National-level onmyoji—most likely at an enormous price.
Second, the seal had a time limit.
Three months.
In three months, the Onmyodo world would face Yamata no Orochi's invasion.
That was information sharp enough to carve despair into the bones.
So many National-level onmyoji had failed to stop Yamata no Orochi completely. What could possibly change in three months?
Many who read the statement felt the answer rise in their hearts.
Nothing.
Nothing at all.
But the statement contained another crucial point.
The three levels of authority.
For ambitious supernatural investigation offices and civilian onmyoji organizations, those words made their eyes light up despite the disaster hanging overhead.
Authority meant power.
Power meant influence.
And influence meant a voice in the future order of Onmyodo.
If handled well, some organizations might rise high enough to rival local branches of the Omnyo Agency or the Onmyo Alliance. For the people who had long been suppressed beneath the major institutions, that temptation was almost fatal.
"It seems the losses suffered by the Agency, the Alliance, and the other organizations were more than heavy," Kotoko said quietly.
She and Kasugano Sora stood near Gin's desk, reading the announcement with solemn faces.
"Disastrous," Gin corrected. "If the losses weren't disastrous, they would never give up this much authority."
His gaze remained on the screen.
"Three levels of authority. Different degrees of access to local government resources, Agency branches, and Alliance branches... This greatly raises the status of supernatural investigation offices and civilian onmyoji organizations."
He paused.
"They are no longer merely auxiliary groups dependent on the Agency or the Alliance. They've become independent forces within the Onmyodo world."
After checking the details, Gin became even more certain.
The division of authority was simple and blunt.
Strength decided everything.
A supernatural investigation office with one professional-level onmyoji would receive Level Three authority. That allowed them to mobilize part of the local official forces in their region, but not the Omnyo Agency branch.
An office with three professional-level onmyoji would automatically be upgraded to Level Two authority. That level allowed them to mobilize part of both the local official forces and the local Agency branch.
Level One authority was different.
It required a National-level onmyoji in command.
An organization with Level One authority could mobilize all official resources and all local Agency branch forces within the region.
In other words, any supernatural investigation office or civilian organization that received Level One authority could integrate almost all Onmyodo-related forces in its area.
It would become, in effect, a small regional Agency.
The governing authority of that region's Onmyodo affairs.
That kind of power was enough to make countless people lose sleep.
The White Fox Office had been granted Level One authority directly.
In the eyes of outsiders, Gin Tsumugi had not yet officially broken through to National level. But he had already formed his Onmyodo Framework, and everyone knew it was only a matter of time before he became a true National-level onmyoji.
Making an exception for the White Fox Office in advance was not difficult to justify.
Which meant—
From this moment on, in Shibuya Ward, the White Fox Office could mobilize all official Onmyodo forces.
Civilian organizations and other supernatural offices were technically outside that chain of command, but in practice, the White Fox Office had already become the uncrowned king of Shibuya's Onmyodo world.
And all of it had happened in a single day.
"Director," Kotoko said, frowning, "aren't the Agency and the others afraid this will backfire?"
She crossed her arms.
"Power is easy to hand out and very hard to take back. Once these offices and civilian organizations gain a taste of authority, they may not willingly return to their old positions. Doesn't this threaten the Agency's dominance over the Onmyodo world?"
"That's a problem for the future."
Gin looked toward the direction of Mount Fuji.
Even from so far away, he could still sense that twisted power brewing like a bomb beneath the horizon. The longer it was suppressed, the more dangerous it became.
"In three months, everyone will have to face Yamata no Orochi. Right now, the priority is mobilizing every scattered onmyoji force without destroying morale."
His voice was calm.
"For that, they need strong medicine."
Kotoko's eyes sharpened with understanding.
"So that's how it is. This probably wasn't decided on the spot. It's likely an emergency plan the Agency prepared long ago in case Mount Fuji failed."
With the three levels of authority announced, the position of supernatural investigation offices had fundamentally changed.
Before, these offices and civilian organizations resolved supernatural incidents for many reasons—protecting people, maintaining order, and, practically speaking, earning commission rewards.
Now, it was different.
Their assigned regions had become their territory.
If supernatural incidents spread unchecked within that territory, their own status and authority would be damaged. Even without the statement explicitly saying so, the various offices would now go all out to handle incidents in their areas, including those that had previously been listed as "on hold."
"They move fast," Gin said suddenly.
The White Fox Office's internal clearance had just been upgraded to Level One on the official site. His account had also been granted administrator privileges.
And it was not only this official internal website.
The same had happened on the exclusive Omnyo Agency network.
Then—
Ring, ring, ring.
The landline in the White Fox Office rang.
This number was the office's only direct inquiry hotline.
Kotoko answered it.
"Yes, this is the White Fox Office."
She listened for a moment.
"Understood."
Another pause.
"We will complete the handover as soon as possible."
Her tone was professional, calm, and flawless.
"You're too kind. These are responsibilities the White Fox Office should bear."
A while later, she hung up.
"It was the Onmyo Division Headquarters," Kotoko said. "They want us to finish taking over authority from the Shibuya Ward government and the local Agency branch as soon as possible."
Gin nodded.
"Then I'll trouble you to make a trip tomorrow."
Taking over Shibuya's Onmyodo forces would not make the White Fox Office invincible, but it would provide significant assistance in most supernatural incidents.
For example, the two cases currently in their hands.
The grotesque tree spirit incident.
And the man-eating monster incident.
Kotoko nodded, indicating she would handle it personally.
Gin remained seated, quietly watching the official website.
He seemed to be waiting for something.
The next moment, just as expected, a new file appeared in the mailbox of every supernatural investigation office and civilian onmyoji organization with Level One or Level Two clearance.
"It's here," Gin said.
"The truth can't be hidden forever."
He opened the file.
At the very top were the words:
Mount Fuji Casualty List.
How many National-level onmyoji had fallen?
How much strength had Onmyodo lost?
Since Mount Fuji erupted during the day, those two questions had pressed down on countless hearts.
Everyone wanted to know.
Everyone feared knowing.
The Omnyo Agency clearly understood that hiding too much would only breed suspicion. Besides, these losses could not truly be hidden. Every onmyoji originally gathered at Mount Fuji was famous in the Onmyodo world. If someone disappeared, people would notice quickly.
Even so, the Agency still had concerns.
Making the list fully public might cause panic across the entire Onmyodo world.
So they had chosen a compromise.
Only organizations with Level One and Level Two authority were informed.
When the major offices and civilian organizations opened the Mount Fuji Casualty List, nearly everyone drew in a sharp breath.
The dense lines of blood-red text marked "Deceased" were enough to turn the body cold.
Among the Twelve Divine Generals of the Omnyo Agency—
Itsutsuki Shunsuke had fallen.
Yamashiro Hayato had fallen.
Kagami Reiji had fallen.
Only four National-level onmyoji had returned safely from Mount Fuji:
Divine Sword, Kogure Zenjirō.
Barrier Princess, Yuge Mari.
Fire Demon, Miyaji Hanao.
Heavenly General, Kurahashi Genji.
Counting those who had remained at headquarters—Divine Fan Amami Daizen, Heavenly Eye Miyoshi Jugo, and Child Prodigy Dairenji Suzuka—the Twelve Divine Generals now had only seven members left.
The Omnyo Agency had lost nearly half of its National-level onmyoji.
And among the large number of elite professional-level onmyoji mobilized by the Agency, only one-third had survived.
The total casualties exceeded a thousand.
With that alone, the Agency's foundation had been shaken to the core.
But the Agency was only one organization.
The Keikain Clan's current head, Keikain Hidemoto, had fallen. A large number of Keikain onmyoji had also died in battle.
Among the Tsuchimikado Clan, aside from the family head, Tsuchimikado Yasuzumi, only five members had survived.
All teachers sent by the Onmyo Academy had died in battle.
A large number of professional-level onmyoji from the Onmyo Alliance had fallen.
Names.
Numbers.
Organizations.
Each line struck the hearts of those reading like a hammer.
Two-fifths.
After a preliminary estimate, many people felt terror settle deep into their bones.
The Mount Fuji incident had cost the entire Onmyodo world two-fifths of its combat strength.
And the result of such tragic sacrifice was only this:
Yamata no Orochi had been temporarily sealed within Mount Fuji for three months.
Was it worth it?
No one dared answer.
Because without that sacrifice, Yamata no Orochi might already be rampaging across Japan.
Meanwhile, in the Supernatural Exchange Group—
[Bad Girl: Everyone... look at this.]
A file was attached beneath her message.
[Mount Fuji Casualty List]
With heavy hearts and fearful curiosity, the members of the group opened it.
Then they saw the names.
The blood-red marks.
The dead.
And all at once, the entire Supernatural Exchange Group fell silent.
No one spoke.
No one wanted to speak.
Every heart felt unbearably heavy.
.....
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