She moved unsteadily up from the rocky area and toward that Aoandon on the cliff.

Her feet were about to slip and she was on the verge of falling into the abyss below.

“I won’t allow you to spread the violence any further..”

“So? Didn’t I tell you I’m the being found only after bringing together one hundred different fears? You’re just one of my meals, so what can you hope to do?”

There may indeed have been nothing he could do.

She was on a higher level than him as a Youkai, so sitting idly by may have been the right decision.

But..

If he resisted, he would be killed and he would not even provide a distraction that allowed the girl to escape.

He knew that, but he still held a hope deep in his heart. After his friend had made up for everything she had done, he wanted to see her face those boys from Noukotsu Village again. He wanted to see Ranzono Sachi as she was truly surrounded by human smiles.

So..

A great roar rang out.

In that moment, the Oomukade became a dragon. The wind swirled around him and he rose upwards. He leaped over Ranzono Sachi and tried to devour the Aoandon on the cliff.

He did not actually harm her in the slightest.

He was blocked by an invisible wall and his jaws were stopped right in front of her face.

“Ah ha ha!! Yes, that’s it! That ‘but’! That ‘so’! That’s what’s so beautiful! See, you can do it if you try! I was certain you were going to devour your own belly to commit suicide and rob Sachi-chan of her motivation, so..”

A proud look filled her face, but she trailed off.

A purple liquid dripped down from the Oomukade’s mouth.

This was his new trait gained by devouring the Byouki and overwriting himself with the Kodoku ritual.

That single drop fell right on the Aoandon’s beautiful face.

“—————!!!???”

An intense sizzling sound followed like someone was stir frying in a wok.

She held her face and finally took a few wobbling steps back. But then she revealed why.

“Ha ha.”

She was laughing.

She was not overwhelmed with rage. She was overwhelmed with pure delight. She had caught a glimpse of a world outside of the pre-established harmony and that world was created by those who wished to help others via change, so she formed a sublime smile.

“Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!! Amazing! This truly is amazing! Rejoice! I was really only planning to bring Sachi-chan with me, but you’ve piqued my curiosity. I’m so, so interested in you now!! So I’ll take you too and let you join my team!!”

“I never asked for that!!”

“But Sachi-chan will join me.”

She turned around. By the time she tilted her head, the brilliant burn that had to be there had entirely vanished. More importantly, her words had torn into the Oomukade’s heart.

“And once she leaves, you’ll never be able to find us again. So what will you do? Personally, I think you should come with us if you really want to save Sachi-chan.”

He had no choice.

He snapped his jaws opened and closed, but he had to obey.

He thought back to Noukotsu Village and the boys who had stood up to save Ranzono Sachi. He expressed his deep, deep thanks to the one who had it in him to call Sachi pretty after seeing her true face.

And after that, he made up his mind.

Even if it meant straying from the proper path, he would bring Ranzono Sachi back to those boys.

“Understood. I will do as you wish.”

“Heh heh. I would expect nothing less from someone who wants change! I really do like that decisiveness.”

“But are you sure? I am prepared to do anything to save Sachi. I will almost certainly destroy your plan from within.”

“So you’ll be a fly in the ointment? Or maybe a centipede in the ointment!? Just kidding!!”

The Aoandon laughed like a young girl, but not because she did not see the Oomukade as a threat. He had in fact harmed her, but she was still accepting him. After all..

“Didn’t I tell you? I’m the ally of anyone who wants change.”

Part 14 (Illness Magic User)

I had defeated the Byouki user.

Holy Sword – Tenjin was not a deadly blade. It had been given the name of a god that loathed blood, so that was to be expected. It cut through distortions in the world’s laws, so it corrected the fluctuations in people’s hearts. And it did so as forcefully as possible. A normal mind would be left bedridden for two or three days.

“All done?”

The Hishigami woman appeared holding a large binoculars-like unit that was likely the laser guidance support device for the bombing. The small canine Sunekosuri was trembling and looking around at her feet.

“That should be obvious.”

“ ‘I’ll be that special something for you’? C’mon, are you saying Hyakki Yakou did all this just to help an umbrella-making ronin find a wife? I can’t believe this!!”

“Stop twisting my words.”

“Twisting your words? What could you possibly be talking about? Tee hee.”

“Quit acting like a child. It’s creepy for someone as old as you.”

“Shut up, you gloomy wifeless pedo. Don’t you realize it’s things like calling me ‘old’ that causes people to take what you say the wrong way?”

“More importantly..”

“Yeah, how about you go bow down to the young lady? She can’t exactly land here, so it’ll have to be at the nearest airport.”

But as we were speaking, something else suddenly arrived on the scene.

The murderous intent was so overwhelming that both the Hishigami woman and I nearly stopped breathing.

“Wha-..kh..ah!?”

I sent Illness Magic throughout my body to consciously control the movements of my organs and blood, but even then, I had my hands full simply keeping myself from blacking out.

The Hishigami woman was..not going to be any help. She had supposedly modified the structure of her human body itself, but she also had her hands full remaining conscious. We were in no state to fight.

Needless to say, the Sunekosuri had passed out cold.

Meanwhile, “he” arrived.

He rudely trudged right into Hyakki Yakou’s field.

“What a pain. I thought I understood what she was like when I joined forces with her, but I didn’t expect her to play quite this fast and loose with her own plans. It leaves me with so much work to do.”

He was an expressionless young man in a dark suit.

I silently glared at him and he responded without even moving his lips, like he was a ventriloquist.

“My name is Saiki Kazu, former assassin, former fortuneteller, formerly suicidal, formerly unemployed, and now..what even am I? Not even I know.”

Even as he gave his offhand introduction, he was not looking at us.

He was looking at the Byouki user lying on the humus.

“What are you..planning to do?”

“Retrieve her. The Aoandon wants her. I don’t want the Aoandon in a bad mood, so I’m granting as many of her selfish whims as I can.”

“..”

“Stop that. I don’t want to do this either. Ranzono Sachi, the Oomukade, and the manager of the Ubasute Apartments..was she called Yamame Kyouka? Anyway, she chased after those prisoner transport vehicles to recruit them. And now it’s the Byouki user at the center of Shinshou Hitsubatsu. Mix such a motley group together and it’s almost laughable. Does she believe in world peace or something?”

When I connected the names I head together in my head, something felt intensely wrong.

“Bringing them together would never make a cohesive fighting force.”

“No. They’ll most likely end up killing each other. But that’s fine as long as the battle provides the winner with enough experience points. In the end, it will still give us a powerful addition to our team.”

I was reminded of the Kodoku ritual.

Countless poisonous insects and deadly beasts were stuffed in a jar where they would fight to the death to increase the power of a toxin or curse.

What if the strange aura I felt from this man named Saiki Kazu was the same?

What if their “team” was the exact opposite of a group that licked each other’s wounds?

“The Aoandon will make her move before long.”

That evil monster carried the limp Byouki user over his shoulder and spoke without moving his lips.

“Once the time comes, you will understand all too well.”

Finally, he seemed to notice a change in the formation of flying wings in the sky. The escort fighters had swiftly changed positions.

But it was too late. If he had noticed the change, he needed to leave us and escape at full speed.

Saiki Kazu looked up in the blue sky and formed a gun with his hand.

He said “bang” and pretended to fire.

That was all he did.

The flying wing carrying Hyakki Yakou’s highest leader was destroyed.

I was caught completely off guard.

I briefly forget all else due to the burning tension and impatience.

Meanwhile, countless fragments rained down on the rural city. The great height of ten thousand meters seemed to demonstrate that the bigger they are, the harder they fall.

“This is our power. So you cannot stop anything we are doing. Not one thing.”

That voice seemed to be coming from hopelessly far away.

“So tremble in fear and wait for the world to change.”

After whispering those words, the shadow in a dark suit left with the girl over his shoulder.

He left nothing at all behind.

Part 15 (Illness Magic User)

I ran.

I ran and ran and ran and ran.

All around the rural city, windows had shattered and obstacles fallen from the sky had caused traffic accidents. The city was wrapped in dark smoke and soot. I even spotted some houses with entirely collapsed roofs.

As I moved further and further in, the rubble grew larger and the flickering orange flames grew more common.

At one point, the wreckage of a flying wing stuck up from the ground like a gravestone and a group with the same scent as me was gathered around it. They surrounded something..no, someone.

Hyakki Yakou cared about bloodline more than all else. When met with troubles like this, they would naturally gather around and cling to “blood”.

So who would they obey first and foremost? Who had the noblest blood?

“Hafuri-sama..”

The name escaped my mouth.

The last time I had seen her, she had been ten years old. What would have happened had that small girl been caught in the explosion and thrown into the air at ten thousand meters up?

“Hafuri-sama!!”

I forced my shaking consciousness to cooperate and ran to the center. The group turned toward me. The wave of people split to either side as if creating a path and revealing the truth.

And there in front of me, I found..

“There is no need to worry. I am here, Illness Magic.”

I found a dignified voice.

Hyakki Yakou was not dead. It may not have been much, but that “blood” had been preserved.

The Mamedanuki that acted as her body double stood next to her and Hafuri-sama’s small hand soothed a crying Sunekosuri child.

The other four of the Top Five had been aboard that flying wing. Plenty of Youkai had as well. One or all of them must have used their powers to protect Hafuri-sama. They were so very loyal when compared to someone like me who could only kill.

“Illness Magic.”

Hafuri-sama spoke to me.

I immediately bent my knees, placed my hands on the ground, and pressed my forehead into the dirt.

“You took part in a coup d’etat and remained on the run after it was quashed, so I would normally be forced to pass judgment on you. But given the situation, you know this is no time to get held up over those matters, don’t you?”

“Of course.”

“I cannot allow this scene of flames and smoke I see. The Aoandon’s group intends to spread this scene throughout the entire nation, so we must stop them. We are the descendants of those who failed to become crabs at Dan-no-Ura. We are those who accepted our fall and began working behind the scenes rather than on the main stage of history. But we still live and have decided to create a world in which we can smile alongside those who live here with us.”

“Of course.”

“Illness Magic.”

At that moment, Hyakki Yakou’s highest leader was kind enough to speak to an outlaw.

“We will defeat the Aoandon and her group and we will save this country. If they have stolen anything, we will retrieve it all, whether it is a person or an object. Join me in that effort.”

No other words could possibly have surpassed those.