Volume 4 Chapter 17-2 Demon World Outer Realm： Mount Ontake Annihilation Result： Truly, Something Terrifying
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
The breath was drawn in sharply.
It was a gesture that resembled a girl finally capturing the attention of her beloved, a smile.
”That’s why I hate you, humans.”
──Because it’s scary.
Saying this, Tsuine pierced her own chest and crushed something.
”Well then, it’s not dat I’m underestimatin’ ya, but ya’re scared an’ dat’s why ya’re losin’.”
”Yeah, that must be it──”
With a bitter smile at the winner’s cruel words, she crumbled like a doll.
The millennium-old Tsuchigumo lay dead, as if sleeping.
Yuzura rushed over, gripping his shoulder to distance him from the ayakashi.
”──Nao! Are you okay?! Did nothing happen?!”
”Ahh, nothin’ happened, ya’re bein’ dramatic. She just didn’t wanna get executed, right? She hate humans.”
”But it can’t be said that there are fewer ayakashi that love people… in a broad sense.”
”Speak clearly, it’s not precise enuf. So, is it support for ya eldest son’s side?”
”Yes, if possible. Are you okay?”
”Who ya askin’? Ah, but please jus’ take care of Kurikoma. She’s still breathin’.”
”Ah, right. Make sure to compliment her too, okay?”
”I got it, as expected.”
Looking up at the Azure Sky while admiring his friends who was fighting hard, he entrusted the care of the fallen Shiki oni to his companion.
Victory does not solve everything.
A sigh considering the many remaining mysteries and future tasks dissolved into the air.
──Report on the damage from the Mount Ontake Tsuchigumo Incident.
Five deaths, including Captain Eji of the Kanbe clan’s first unit, and numerous serious injuries.
Three dead and 6 missing from the Touin family.
Of the 18 members of the Bureau of Onmyō’s rapid response team, 6 perished and 5 went missing.
Among the 13 who stormed Mount Ontake, only 2 survived.
Those 2 were also hopeless for a comeback as exorcists.
Thus, with great sacrifice, the incident came to a close, and the Bureau of Onmyō’s rapid response team, having lost the majority of its personnel, entered an indefinite planning freeze.
* * *
The head of the Hyogo Touin family, Touin Soji, informed of the situation’s resolution at Mount Ontake, instructed his family not to intervene and stood by the pond in his small garden meant only for himself.
His expression was stern.
The garden, where no one should enter, sensed a presence and grew even more severe.
”──What on earth were you doing? I believe I conveyed the situation.”
He asked the figure in black, wearing a Hannya mask, who was crouched atop a stone lantern.
A voice that desperately suppressed emotion.
”Well, what do you mean by ‘what were you doing’?”
The response, which seemed to indicate a complete lack of understanding, easily pushed me past my limit.
”What happened to the support for the troops? Did you forget what you said, ‘I will do everything I can’! What could possibly be bad for Hyogo?”
Without a hint of concern for incurring the wrath of the 8 family heads, the figure in black exaggeratedly nodded and said, “Ah.”
”Why do you say that our help was needed this time?”
”──What?”
”If only we had the cooperation of Kanbe Yuzura-dono, we could have dealt with the spiders before suppressing the mountain’s Spiritual Vein. Thus, following last autumn’s Great Youkai repulsion, as long as your house and Kanbe are present, Hyogo will be unshakeable, and that reputation will not waver.”
”That is──”
The content delivered without remorse was indeed true.
It made sense; a first-class exorcist should be assigned to the Great Youkai.
It was a natural response that required no thought──only it was different from what Soji had sought.
”The results of the rapid response unit were quite good. You should continue to build on that. If only the acting head of the Kazuramichi family were relied upon in the Kinai, that situation could have been avoided. Like a dog seeking the flesh reflected on the water──no, that is rude.”
”……”
It was a deliberately affected way of speaking, yet he couldn’t even reproach it.
All the causes lay in his own decisions, and he was trapped in the snare of his thoughts.
”In any case, it is deeply regrettable that this resulted in raising the reputation of the acting head of Kazuramichi──especially concerning your daughter.”
”…Indeed, she was a trump card for our house. No, it was the same for the other members. She is not something easily replaceable. What do you think about that?”
”Hmm, I do have some hesitation──yet, after all, they are the outcast people, so isn’t it okay to leave them behind?”
”──Wait. What did you just say?”
”I referred to them as the outcast people, Touin-dono. Furthermore, being in a position to risk my life, it matters not if innocent commoners perish.”
”Do you dare call those of us who share the Touin blood, that!?”
It is not just Ashina Itoko; many of the Ready Anti-Ayakashi Team are also relatives of the Touin clan.
”Of course. With all due respect, how many generations has it been since your family left the capital? Surely you do not still believe that the blood flowing through you is of the same noble kind as those living in that land?”
The bluntly bureaucratic words, devoid of provocation, delivered a greater shock to Soji than a blow.
──Is this the language of those who serve humanity?
A certain elitist mindset──I cannot believe that Soji lacks it, nor can the Kyoto exorcists.
Yet even so, is there truly someone who could retain such obstinate, intense, and fanatical beliefs in that place, shifted to the east?
A sudden suspicion crept up, sending a chill down his spine.
Is he, perhaps, misunderstanding everything from the beginning?
He cannot believe this notion is solely directed at the Touin family.
No, it surely cannot be; it must apply equally to everyone.
If so, then the present prosperity of the Kazuramichi family must also matter little.
If that is the case, then perhaps this movement itself does not even serve the master…
”It would be better if you do not think unnecessary thoughts, Touin Soji-dono.”
The hoarse voice sounded extraordinarily inhuman.
Not male, not female, neither an elder nor a child, but a voice devoid of humanity.
”It is already clear that this is an irretrievable blunder. Therefore, what you should consider is how to preserve your family’s strength from here on, no?”
”──…”
He thought of how to respond, but this opponent would not care a whit if I voiced those thoughts.
Just as Soji did not stop to seek any special meaning from the chirping of insects.
Like many humans who have made an unexpected, irreparable mistake, all Soji could think now was the meaningless question, “Why did this happen?”
──He didn’t even know when the black-clad figure had left; what awaited him was the summons of the Acting Head of the Kazuramichi family for the 8 families the next day.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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