Chapter 77: Bronze Mirror
The next day, dawn came quietly.
As the first pale light spread across Tokyo, many people stepped outside and looked toward the horizon in the direction of Mount Fuji.
The sky was calm.
The mountain was quiet.
Only then did countless people let out the breath they had been holding.
What happened yesterday was something no one who saw it would ever forget. That apocalyptic eruption, the burning sky, the roar that seemed to split the world open—it had been branded into the hearts of ordinary citizens. Many had spent the entire night tossing and turning, unable to sleep. Whenever they closed their eyes, the scene returned uncontrollably, as vivid as if Mount Fuji were still erupting before them.
For ordinary people, the disaster had passed.
What remained was fear.
A terrifying memory.
But for onmyoji, last night had not passed at all.
They had not slept.
Because they knew that Mount Fuji's eruption was not the end.
It was only the omen before the true disaster arrived.
In three months, Yamata no Orochi would fully descend upon the world. By then, the war would no longer belong only to onmyoji. It would be a calamity involving all humanity.
The peace they had left amounted to only three months.
Ordinary people could still cling to temporary calm, but onmyoji could not afford that luxury. They had to prepare for war.
And the first preparation was simple.
Resolve every supernatural incident in their assigned territories as quickly as possible.
As soon as morning arrived, many supernatural investigation offices began moving. Their onmyoji headed straight for local government departments, Omnyo Agency branches, and Onmyo Alliance branches, preparing to take over regional Onmyodo authority.
Of course, only offices granted Level One authority had the right to do that.
Offices like the White Fox Office.
Inside the White Fox Office—
"Director, Sora, I'm heading out."
Iwanaga Kotoko stood near the door, dressed as usual in a white dress and beret. Her cane rested in one hand, her posture elegant enough to make her look like a young lady from a wealthy family rather than someone about to seize administrative authority over Shibuya's supernatural affairs.
"Stay safe, Sister Kotoko," Kasugano Sora said.
"I will."
Kotoko waved lightly and stepped out.
This trip was not only for the investigation into Kuda Mai. She also needed to visit the Shibuya Ward branch of the Omnyo Agency and the local government office to complete the handover of Onmyodo authority.
The moment the door closed behind her, the office quieted.
Gin Tsumugi sat behind his desk and mentally reviewed the current situation.
The commissions in hand.
The open cases.
The supernatural incidents in Shibuya Ward.
Thanks to Kotoko and Sora's efforts while he had been away, the other incidents in Shibuya had already been handled. That left only two major cases.
The grotesque tree spirit incident.
And the man-eating monster incident.
"So," Gin murmured, "as long as I resolve these two, the White Fox Office will meet the requirements set by the Agency."
Two incidents.
Both dangerous.
Both abnormal.
After a moment, he made his decision.
"I'll start with the grotesque tree spirit case."
That did not mean he intended to abandon the man-eating monster case. As he had said before, Sora would continue tracking it, especially at night, to search for any unnoticed commonalities among the victims.
"Sora," Gin said, standing, "stay at the office for now. I'm going to survey the places where the grotesque tree spirits appeared."
Sora blinked.
"Survey?"
Her surprise was understandable.
The Director had said before that there was no need to examine the interior crime scenes again. Even the two locations Kotoko had specifically sealed and preserved had already been destroyed by personnel from the Agency branch.
So why now?
Gin saw the confusion on her face and explained, "I'm not surveying the interiors of the incident sites."
He picked up several documents from the desk.
"I'm going to personally examine their geographical locations and coordinates. Everything has a pattern. Whoever deployed the grotesque tree spirit branches would not have scattered them randomly. There must be a requirement or rule behind their placement."
He tapped the map spread on the desk.
"It may be population density. It may be some special location. It may be something else entirely. I won't know until I see it for myself."
Sora listened carefully.
"Data and intelligence can help," Gin continued, "but reality seen with your own eyes is still more accurate. It's also easier to notice differences that reports overlook."
Sora nodded.
"I understand."
Gin took the newly prepared talismans Kotoko had drawn for him and placed them inside his coat. Just as he was about to leave—
Knock, knock, knock.
A series of crisp knocks sounded from the door.
Gin paused.
A guest at this hour?
Had another supernatural incident broken out somewhere in Shibuya?
He did not notice Sora's expression change slightly behind him.
"Please come in."
The office door opened.
A young girl stepped inside.
She had long, straight black hair and blood-red eyes. Her features were delicate and lovely, her skin fair, her bearing noble and cool. She looked like the kind of graceful young lady many men imagined but almost never met in reality.
The moment Sora saw her, she sighed inwardly.
What Sister Kotoko had feared had finally happened.
The newcomer was Shinomiya Kaguya.
The girl marked by Shuten-dōji.
"Nice to meet you," Kaguya said with refined composure. "Hello, Director of the White Fox Office. I am Shinomiya Kaguya."
Shinomiya Kaguya.
Gin had heard the name before.
The eldest daughter of Shinomiya Ganan, head of the Japanese Shinomiya Conglomerate. A true young lady of high standing.
She carried the aura of a Yokai mark.
And, coincidentally, Gin knew exactly which yokai had marked her.
Her purpose for coming was not difficult to guess.
"Hello, Miss Kaguya. Please, have a seat."
Gin guided her to the sofa, and Sora quickly brewed coffee and placed it in front of her.
It was the usual cheap instant coffee.
Kaguya showed no trace of disdain. She picked up the cup with graceful movements, took a small sip, then went straight to the point.
"Director, I am here to follow up on the commission I was unable to formally submit last time."
"A commission you were unable to submit?"
Gin glanced at Sora.
Sora quickly explained, "Director, it was when you had gone to the Tsuchimikado family to borrow the Senji Ryakketsu. Miss Kaguya came to submit a commission to the White Fox Office, but because you weren't here, Sister Kotoko and I didn't dare decide on our own."
Gin understood.
Kotoko had almost certainly recognized the source of the mark.
As for why she had not reported it to him immediately, the reason was obvious. She had not wanted him to accept Kaguya's commission.
And honestly, that was reasonable.
The grotesque tree spirit incident involved a Great Yokai, but the possibility of clashing with one was still only a possibility.
Kaguya's situation was different.
Intervening in her supernatural incident meant confronting a Great Yokai for certain.
And not an ordinary one.
"Is Kotoko not here today?" Kaguya asked, glancing around the office.
"Kotoko is out investigating another supernatural incident," Gin said. "Do you know her, Miss Kaguya?"
"Our Shinomiya family has quite a few business dealings with Kotoko's family. We've known each other since childhood."
Kaguya set down the steaming cup.
"I came today hoping the Director of the White Fox Office would accept my commission and help me resolve the supernatural incident afflicting me."
With that, she slipped off her coat without hesitation.
Her fair, jade-like arm was exposed.
On that snow-white skin, like a lotus root carved from porcelain, there was a red oni-head mark.
It looked like a birthmark at first glance.
But no birthmark should look so alive.
The mark was ghastly and terrifying, its red color vivid enough to seem freshly branded into her flesh.
Sora covered her mouth lightly.
This was the first time she had seen such a physical mark.
Most yokai marks were hidden. Unless one was an onmyoji or had the right spiritual perception, they were invisible to the naked eye.
But the oni-head mark on Kaguya's arm was different.
It was blatant.
Arrogant.
It was not hiding. It was declaring ownership.
This prey belongs to me.
Any yokai or onmyoji who touches my meal had best be ready to die.
Gin's eyes lowered.
"As domineering as ever," he thought.
He carefully examined the mark.
It was spreading.
Slowly, at a pace impossible for ordinary eyes to detect, the red oni-head pattern was extending across Kaguya's arm.
Based on its current speed, it would take only seven days to cover her entire arm.
When that happened, the thing would come to feed.
"Shuten-dōji," Gin said calmly. "I didn't expect you to encounter it, Miss Kaguya."
A sharp light flashed in Kaguya's eyes.
She put her coat back on.
"As expected, I did not come to the wrong place. The Director of the White Fox Office identified it at a glance."
If the man Haruka Shizumiya had placed hope in could not even recognize the source of her mark, then Haruka had been wrong.
And if Haruka had been wrong, their remaining hope would be painfully thin.
"It's nothing," Gin said, waving lightly. "I'm simply familiar with it. Especially its aura."
That familiarity did not come from Gin Tsumugi himself.
It came from "his" memories.
A thousand years ago, in the Heian period, Shuten-dōji had often slipped into Kyoto to lure young girls away and devour them as food. At that time, "he" had led onmyoji of the Onmyoryo against the demon more than once.
But Shuten-dōji's power was immense.
Even with Zenki and Goki protecting him, and with many onmyoji assisting, "he" had survived several encounters only by walking along the edge of death.
During his youth, Shuten-dōji had been one of the few existences capable of posing a fatal threat to "him."
Kaguya's hands tightened slightly in her lap.
"May I ask whether the Director of the White Fox Office can help me deal with Shuten-dōji?"
Despite her composure, a trace of tension leaked through her voice.
Gin looked at her.
"Miss Kaguya, do you truly believe that, with my current strength, I can match the Demon King of Mount Ōe?"
Self-awareness was a virtue.
Gin was not the sort of fool who failed to understand the height of the sky and depth of the earth.
Shuten-dōji, the infamous Demon King of Mount Ōe, stood alongside Great Tengu and Tamamo-no-Mae among Japan's most legendary Yokai.
The gap between an ordinary yokai and a Great Yokai was enormous.
Three National-level onmyoji could contend with an ordinary Great Yokai. But Yamata no Orochi was also a Great Yokai, and dealing with it had required the mobilization of the entire Onmyodo world—yet even then, the outcome had been disastrous.
Shuten-dōji might not be as absurdly catastrophic as Yamata no Orochi, but it was absolutely far beyond an ordinary Great Yokai.
The "him" of a thousand years ago had not been Shuten-dōji's match during his youth.
And neither was Gin now.
Even if he used every trump card he had—Zenki, Goki, and Hokuto—he could at most hold Shuten-dōji back for a short time.
Killing it was fantasy.
Kaguya's face went pale.
The fragile hope she had carried here was denied just like that.
From a rational perspective, Gin was right.
White Fox Gin Tsumugi had only just formed his Onmyodo Framework. No matter how talented he was, how could he already match Shuten-dōji?
Perhaps she and Haruka had expected too much.
Perhaps the being "she" feared was not the present Gin Tsumugi at all.
Perhaps Haruka's guess had been wrong from the beginning.
Sora, on the other hand, felt a quiet surge of relief when she heard what sounded like a refusal.
"I understand."
Kaguya took several slow breaths, forcing herself back into composure.
"Then I shall no longer disturb the Director. I will take my leave."
She stood.
What she needed to do now was find help elsewhere as quickly as possible.
But who could she find?
Most of the National-level onmyoji who returned from Mount Fuji were severely injured. They certainly did not have the strength to handle Shuten-dōji now.
As for the remaining supernatural investigation offices with spare capacity, most would react exactly as Gin had. The moment they learned the commission involved Shuten-dōji, they would refuse outright.
A few onmyoji might be willing to try for the sake of the Shinomiya Conglomerate.
But that would be all.
The more Kaguya thought about it, the heavier the despair became.
Then Gin spoke.
"Miss Kaguya, there's no need to leave in such a hurry."
Kaguya froze.
A spark reignited in her eyes, and she turned back at once.
"Does the Director have a way to resolve Shuten-dōji?"
Gin shook his head with a bitter smile.
"Miss Kaguya, let alone me—even if the Twelve Divine Generals were all gathered in their prime, at full strength, they would only be able to fight Shuten-dōji evenly."
Kaguya's expression dimmed again.
All Twelve Divine Generals?
Five of the Omnyo Agency's Twelve Divine Generals had already fallen in the Mount Fuji battle.
And even if they had not, inviting all of them would not have been realistic.
The Shinomiya Conglomerate had influence, but not that much.
"However," Gin said, "you have fallen into a misconception."
Kaguya looked up.
"The supernatural incident on your body is indeed related to Shuten-dōji. But that does not mean you must eliminate Shuten-dōji to resolve it."
Kaguya's eyes sharpened.
"I would like to hear the details."
"In the Heian period, Shuten-dōji often broke into Kyoto and abducted young, unmarried girls as food," Gin said. "But after it became the Demon King of Mount Ōe, its methods changed."
He glanced at her covered arm.
"It began periodically scattering marks like seeds. Those marks would seek out targets on their own. The unlucky ones, like you, were selected as sacrifices."
Kaguya listened without blinking.
"However," Gin continued, "unless a sacrifice pleased it greatly, Shuten-dōji rarely came personally. Most abductions were handled by its subordinates."
Kaguya slowly understood.
"Director, you mean the yokai that comes for me may not be Shuten-dōji itself?"
"There is that possibility."
Gin's tone was calm.
"But even then, the one sent will be at least Great Yokai-level."
Kaguya's breathing stopped for a moment.
"Of course," Gin added, "if Miss Kaguya's luck is exceptionally good, Shuten-dōji may still decide to come in person."
Kaguya gave him a bitter look.
"Director, that joke is not funny at all."
She did not dare hope for such "luck."
"So," she said slowly, "according to your meaning, as long as we intercept Shuten-dōji's subordinate, the mark on me will dissipate, and I will escape the fate of becoming a sacrifice?"
Gin nodded.
"If it is a Great Yokai that comes this time, I can intercept it for you and resolve the supernatural incident on your body."
His eyes met hers.
"But if Shuten-dōji comes personally, I will be powerless. Whether you still wish to proceed with the commission is for you to decide."
"Of course I do."
A smile finally bloomed on Kaguya's face.
"What I feared most was that the Director would refuse to accept the commission at all."
She paused, then added, "As for the payment, I have already prepared it."
Even Sora could not help feeling curious.
What kind of reward could pay for a commission like this?
Money alone was meaningless.
The attacker was at least a Great Yokai.
And there was still a chance that Shuten-dōji would come in person.
"Rest assured," Kaguya said. "It should satisfy the Director."
She took out her phone and dialed a number.
"Ai. Bring up the item in the trunk."
A short while later, the office door opened again.
Shinomiya Kaguya's personal maid, Hayasaka Ai, entered first.
Behind her were two black-suited bodyguards carrying a heavy square safe.
They placed it carefully in front of Gin.
The moment the safe touched the floor, his expression changed.
"This is... divine power?"
Gin stared at the safe.
A remarkably strong divine aura emanated from within. Even through the layers of protection, it was dense enough to make the spiritual energy in the room stir.
Kaguya knelt and unlocked the safe with a specific key.
The lid opened.
Inside lay a bronze mirror.
It was badly corroded, its surface mottled by age and decay. Yet the divine power within it was even richer than Gin had expected.
His eyes sharpened.
"It's this."
.....
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