The servant led Himari down a narrow corridor, his lantern casting shaky shadows on the stone walls.
"Report."
Himari's gentle mask is completely gone. She wiped her mouth with a silk handkerchief, scrubbing away traces of her father's pus with a look of pure disgust.
The servant trembled.
"Th-the Crimson Teahouse sent word. The prisoner… she escaped."
Himari stopped walking.
"Escaped," she repeated.
She did not say anything, nor made any sudden move, yet the coldness in her voice felt like a sword around the servant's neck.
The servant gulped.
"Y-yes, my lady. There was an earthquake, strange lights—they say she had help from… from someone."
Himari's laugh cut through the gloom.
"Help? How convenient."
The servant flinched. "Th-the Teahouse mistress claims the girl used magic. Melted chains, summoned storms. Their men were crushed by trees that… moved."
Himari's eyes narrowed.
She strode forward, forcing the servant to scramble after her. "Where is Saeko?"
"Waiting in the crypt, my lady."
The crypt lay deep beneath the estate, its walls lined with the ashes of Minamoto ancestors. A single torch lit the room, revealing a woman kneeling on the cold floor.
Saeko, the clan's shadow sorceress, looked up as Himari entered, whose silk robes swished against the dusty floor as she stopped in front.
"Explain."
Saeko didn't look up. Her hands, stained with faded ink and dried blood, rested on her knees.
"The Teahouse failed. The girl slipped their grasp."
"I paid you good silver to have her broken," Himari hissed. "You assured me that it would be done."
"And it should have been."
Saeko finally lifted her head, revealing two empty sockets where her eyes should have been.
"The curse I placed on her was flawless. She should be as weak as a kitten, incapable of even lifting a spoon. Let alone escaping."
Himari's nails dug into her palms.
"Then how? How does a half-dead slave outwit an entire brothel's guards?"
"The Teahouse owner claims supernatural interference." Saeko's voice was flat, as if discussing the weather. "Earthquakes. Trees attacking her men. She believes Aiko has… help."
"Help?" Himari scoffed. "From whom? "
Saeko tilted her head. "Perhaps a rival house? The Fujimaris have long coveted your northern mines. Or the Oda, with their grudge over the border skirmishes—"
"No." Himari cut her off. "If the Fujimaris had Aiko, they'd parade her through the capital as a puppet heir. They wouldn't skulk in forests playing tricks."
The torchlight danced across Saeko's hollow cheeks.
"Then it must be a rogue onmyōji. Someone powerful enough to break my curses."
Himari paced, her shadow stretching grotesquely on the crypt walls.
"Doesn't matter who. Aiko must vanish. Permanently. Send your best hunter."
Saeko hesitated. "My lady, if there's truly a onmyōji aiding her—"
"You think I care about some hedge witch?" Himari whirled on her. "Aiko is a liability. If she returns—"
"She won't," Saeko said calmly.
"She COULD." Himari's voice dropped to a venomous whisper. "And that's going to be the end of you should it happen. "
The crypt's torchlight flickered across Saeko's eyeless face as she tilted her head.
"Shall I investigate which onmyōji aids your sister? It may take weeks, but—"
"No." Himari's silk robes rustled as she paced. "Stay here. My father needs to die quietly. His coughing fits grow tedious."
Saeko's lips twitched. "Then I'll steep his tea with dreamroot. He'll pass peacefully in his sleep."
Himari wrinkled her nose. "Make it slow. If he dies too suddenly, the council will suspect me." She paused. "Send someone else to handle Aiko. Someone who can kill her and this mysterious helper."
Saeko reached into her sleeve, pulling out a small wooden doll. Its face was painted with chipped red ink. "Tatsuya. The best blade in our shadows. "
"You're certain he can handle this?"
Saeko crushed the doll in her fist. Black smoke erupted, twisting into the shape of a tall, scarred man. His eyes glowed amber in the haze.
"What is this…?"
Saeko flicked her wrist. The smoke dissolved into a bronze bowl filled with murky water. She pricked her finger, letting three drops of blood fall into it.
"Watch."
The bronze bowl's murky water rippled, the image sharpening into a moonlit bamboo grove. A figure stood among the towering stalks.
Tatsuya.
He wore a black shinobi shozoku with two short swords hung at his hips, their blades dull in the shadows. His face is hidden behind a mask carved into a demon's snarl.
Saeko dipped a finger into the bowl, stirring the vision. "Watch closely, my lady."
The scene shifted to two years ago.
Rain fell in sheets, turning the mountain pass to mud. A caravan of merchants huddled under oilcloth tarps, their oxen bellowing as lightning split the sky.
Ahead, the narrow path was blocked by a creature out of nightmares.
It stood nine feet tall—a humanoid boar with rusted samurai armor fused to its flesh. Tusks curved from its snout like scimitars, dripping black sludge.
This was a Jinmenju, a demon boar bred from the hatred of slaughtered warriors.
"Protect the cargo!" the lead merchant screamed, drawing a wakizashi. His men unsheathed their blades yet couldn't stop their hands from shaking.
The Jinmenju charged.
To Himari, the it felt like a blur—it moved faster than anything so massive should.
A merchant swung his katana—the blade shattered against the demon's armor. The boar's tusk ripped upward, gutting the man like a fish. Blood sprayed the mud as bodies scattered.
The demon snatched a fleeing porter by the leg and slammed him against a boulder. Bones crunched.
Then Hamari noticed that someone appeared.
He dropped from the cliffs above, silent as a shadow. Then he landed in a crouch, swords still sheathed. Rain slid off his mask.
The Jinmenju turned, sniffing the air. It snorted, recognizing prey.
Tatsuya didn't move.
With a roar, the demon lunged, tusks aimed at his chest.
Tatsuya sidestepped, drawing both blades in a single fluid motion. The swords gleamed with faint purple runes.
Shing!
The Jinmenju stumbled, a deep gash splitting its armored shoulder. Black blood oozed, sizzling where it hit the ground.
The demon spun, swinging a clawed fist. Tatsuya ducked, slashing upward. A blade bit into the creature's wrist, severing tendons.
The Jinmenju howled, swinging its other arm wildly.
Tatsuya danced back, avoiding each blow with effortless grace. For a moment, Himari felt like this guy wasn't fighting—he was toying with a monster that'd scare the bravest warrior in her clan.
Enraged, the Jinmenju reared up and slammed its fists into the earth. The ground cracked, sending a shockwave rippling outward.
Tatsuya leaped, flipping midair to land behind the demon.
One sword stabbed into the Jinmenju's lower back. The creature arched, screeching. Tatsuya yanked the blade free and sliced the back of its knees.
The demon collapsed onto all fours, its breath ragged.
Tatsuya sheathed his swords.
Before anyone could thank him, he melted into the rain.
Back in the crypt, the vision faded.
Himari leaned closer to the bowl.
"Impressive."
Saeko nodded. "Tatsuya is a Kagekiri—a shadowcutter. Trained in forbidden arts since childhood. "
"Can he handle a onmyōji?" Himari asked. "If Aiko truly has outside help…"
Saeko smirked. "It wouldn't be very difficult for him."
A beat passed.
Himari straightened. "Send him. "
Saeko bowed, then withdrew a small bone flute from her robes and blew a silent note.
Shadows pooled at her feet, forming into a four-legged creature the size of a wolf. Its body was smoke and glowing amber eyes—a Nekomata, a twin-tailed spirit cat.
"Find Tatsuya," Saeko ordered. "Deliver my mark."
The Nekomata yowled and vanished.