Kurahashi received a report first thing in the morning when he reached the agency, one that made him rewrite his plans for the day.

"Tsuchimikado Natsume was spotted. The Kadei sisters noticed her."

Kurahashi was a steely man, already over fifty years old. Yashamaru was an extravagant aristocrat, looking no older than twenty. But the two of them had once been the same age and shared ideals for the future of Onmyoudou.

"Really? The two of them saw Tsuchimikado Natsume?"

"They saw traces of a dragon. She was a teenage girl. There shouldn"t be anyone other than Natsume who gives off that kind of feeling."

"And the location?"

"Shinjuku, but she ended up moving to Kichijoji."

"Hmph, Kichijoji, huh."

"That"s right."

Tsuchimikado Natsume had been resurrected with the Taizan f.u.kun Ritual by Harutora awakened as Yakou during the summer two years ago. And for some reason, Natsume had been able to use her dragon shikigami as her own power after that. That was a truth that the Mystical Investigator Yamashiro Hayato had witnessed at Seishuku Temple last winter.

Natsume was currently an important hostage for the Onmyou Agency as they pursued Harutora and Ohtomo Jin, and she was the Onmyou Agency"s target since she was easier to capture than the other two. There had been reports that Natsume had been in hiding, moving with Tsuchimikado Yasuzumi, Takahiro, and Chizuru. Hence, Natsume"s capture was also an opportunity to finish off the Tsuchimikado in one clean sweep.

"We should act immediately."

"This is an incredible opportunity. We"ll be able to capture them if we put forth all the power of the Mystical Investigators."

"That being said, aren"t they just hiding around Kichijoji? Their stealth magic is quite high-level; can we spot them?"

"Of course, we have the help of the metropolitan police. The case of the fire at their main residence still hasn"t been resolved. With their power, we should be able to investigate exactly where they"ve gone.

Takahiro of the three Tsuchimikados was a former Mystical Investigator. Since he was extremely familiar with the Mystical Investigators" tactics, attacking head-on ought to be more effective in this kind of situation than small tricks.

"If Yasuzumi-kun performs divination, he"ll quickly learn about our movements. It"s not a good idea to rely on outside power."

"That"s why we need to resolve it today. The more time we take, the more likely it is that they"ll know."

"It"s the same. They"ve been able to continuously avoid the Mystical Investigators" search for the past year and a half. Why is that? We get noticed when we"re getting close no matter how fast we are. No, that"s not all, they notice as soon as we move ever so slightly. Though it"s certainly good to act earlier, we can"t capture them relying solely on speed."

Yashamaru smiled at his stern-faced ally. What Yashamaru said was certainly reasonable, but it was an indisputable premise that they couldn"t just leave the Tsuchimikado alone. He said:

"They can"t read the stars of shikigami. Let me do this. I finally have free time, so if I go look with k.u.momaru the two of us should be able to do something."

"Then what about Dairenji Suzuka"s monitoring?"

"The Tsuchimikado have a higher priority right now."

Yashamaru stood up from the sofa after speaking, strolling slowly like always. He smiled at Kurahashi.

"Then I"ll leave the rest to you. I look forward to a successful report."

"The three of them didn"t notice. Go get approval from the Mystical Investigators on standby as soon as you can."

Yashamaru contacted Kurahashi in the agency building from a place one block away from the Tsuchimikado hideout. Normally, divination could only read the stars and fates of humans. But reading the stars of shikigami was impossible. So Yasuzumi hadn"t antic.i.p.ated the surprise attack by the shikigami Yashamaru and k.u.momaru. But not everything would go so smoothly.

"Hmm? Tsuchimikado Natsume escaped!?"

"It"s more like she wasn"t there to begin with. It seems like she"s gone out."

"Then let"s wait for her to come back."

"Wait? Unfortunately, the house is a bit destroyed and there are people gathered around. Do you think she"ll just waltz on back?"

Their phones and computers had been destroyed in the magic battle. During the battle, Takahiro had skillfully destroyed their electronics instead of trying to escape. It had been a keen judgment to stop any leaks of information and to destroy any clues about Natsume. But that said, Natsume would have trouble escaping. Yashamaru immediately began a search for her. But...

"How about this, why don"t we report the capture of the three Tsuchimikados and the fact that the underage girl traveling with them is currently a fugitive to the media? Can we make it as big as possible right away?"

"It"s possible, but for what reason?"

"The reason we want Tsuchimikado Natsume is as bait to lure Tsuchimikado Harutora and "Shadow"."

"Ah, so we use this news to draw out Harutora."

"Right, one clean sweep."

"Okay, I"ll prepare immediately."

Yashamaru decided his strategy with Kurahashi and began a search for Natsume along with k.u.momaru.

He wasn"t confused.

After seeing that breaking news, Tenma returned to his room right away and opened the backpack in his closet.

It was a backpack he had prepared over a year ago. Inside was a change of clothes, cash, charms, and other necessities. He added the charms he had gotten from the "workshop" today to it, completing his preparations for leaving home.

His attention turned to an apartment room farther away as he "looked". The Mystical Investigator shikigami staying there was still monitoring Tenma"s actions, but nothing in particular had changed. Even with the news that had been broadcasted, his own surveillance system hadn"t been modified.

But it was just temporary. As long as Natsume was still on the run, the surveillance on Tenma, her friend, would soon be strengthened. If he were to leave, he should take advantage of the present.

He didn"t know how much use he could be.

But in the current situation, he needed to start moving first and think later. His other friends would think the same.

But there was still another line he had to draw.

Tenma paused for a while, changing back into the Onmyou Academy uniform he had taken off after coming back home.

He breathed deeply and walked out of his own room, entering the living room. His grandfather wasn"t here. He peered into the kitchen and didn"t see his grandmother"s figure either. Strange......

"Grandpa? Grandma?" Still, no response.

He tried the bedrooms, the bathroom, and the lavatory, but didn"t spot his grandparents. Could they have secretly left? Feeling it suspicious, he pushed open the door to the guest room.

Surprise stopped his hands in midair.

His grandparents were sitting with their backs to the door in the center of the guest room. Also, his grandfather was wearing a sokutai[1] and his grandmother had changed into miko garb. They seemed to have been waiting for Tenma - no, they had undoubtedly been waiting for Tenma.

They had realized. Tenma stood still in a daze upon noticing the situation. Then,

"Come sit down." His grandfather ordered without turning around.

Tenma could only comply. He listlessly sat down in seiza[2] before his grandfather.

The expressions of his grandparents were more serious than ever before. They had even changed their clothes for this, just like what Tenma had been thinking.

His grandparents were still silent after he sat down. The two parties didn"t even look straight at each other.

But even without words or gazes, the "conversation" between grandparents and grandson continued. The conversation between the grandson who was going to put himself in danger, and the grandparents who were unwilling to lose their grandson after losing their daughter.

The silence still held out. They were exchanging feelings right now rather than words. Their life together for these years allowed them to have this exchange between individuals who cared for each other.

"......You won"t change your mind?" His grandfather finally opened his mouth after the long silence.

Tenma"s hands tightened as they gripped his knees. He couldn"t accept the emotion-laden voice.

Even so, Tenma"s decision didn"t budge.

"Sorry."

A slightly shaking, weak voice. He inadvertently wanted to laugh at himself.

He regulated his breathing again, raised his head, and said:

"Sorry. But please let me go."

He met his grandparents" gazes. His grandparents, who had raised their heads at some point, stared at him with penetrating and gentle gazes.

"Really." The same voice sounded again, and Tenma"s heart constricted. "You can"t win against that blood flowing through you."

"......Truly so." His grandmother murmured as well.

Then, his grandfather adjusted his seiza again, speaking as the Momoe family head:

"Tenma. From today, you"re expelled from the household."

Tenma shuddered at the incomparably stern tone. But it wasn"t fear. He wasn"t afraid. That would be rude to his grandparents and to his own determination.

"Yes."

He replied, facing his grandfather.

A bit of pride was mixed with his grandfather"s severe expression as he looked at his grandson. Then,

"So...... don"t worry about us. Go follow what you believe in."

Tenma stared.

His grandfather motioned for his grandmother to take out a small box, then opened it. Inside was a key.

"Take this with you. It"s something your father left for you."

"My father?"

Tenma took the key, trying to "look" at it. It didn"t seem like a magical tool.

"Ask Tsuruta of the Witchcraft Corporation for details. He knows everything."

"Tsuruta!? W-Why?"

"He was the one who sent the key after your parents died. He contacted us by phone just now. He"s waiting for you in the center of Waseda."

"How...... But!"

"Act according to your own will, and we will act according to our own wills." His grandfather smiled fearlessly. "No matter how much trouble those actions bring."

Tenma could say nothing back. He left the house, tightly holding the key.

"I"m off."

"Yeah, take care."

A brief goodbye. Kyouko and her grandmother Miyo both expected this goodbye.

Her grandmother couldn"t endure a fugitive life with her physical strength weakened from living under house arrest. Though Kyouko wanted to bring her grandmother, Miyo had firmly forbade her from doing so. Miyo was only able to send her off so resolutely because she realized that her current self couldn"t do anything for her granddaughter. Kyouko wasn"t willing to sully her grandmother"s n.o.ble feelings either.

"Bye, Grandma."

"Bye."

After a light-hearted exchange, Kyouko left the residence behind her carrying a leather suitcase.

...Though they had hidden themselves in the bamboo patch deep within the residence, once she left - or more accurately, before she left - she noticed the auras hidden inside the courtyard.

They were the doormen working at the Kurahashi household. After all, that news had just been broadcasted, and she had gone out with a suitcase late at night, so anyone would feel alarmed. She had been too lax.

Kyouko didn"t shrink back, heading to the main entrance with dignity. A doorman jumped out and stopped her.

"Kyouko-sama, please return to your room! Please!"

He was a servant who had taken care of her in her youth. The other two people with him also blocked Kyouko"s path.

"Let me through."

"I cannot!"

"Really? Then...... Sorry."

Kyouko apologized as she took out a charm.

But the other two had already prepared spells before coming here, and were a step faster than Kyouko.

"Bind! Order!"

The two of them both threw out wood-element charms. They didn"t want to harm Kyouko, so they tried to bind her while ensuring her safety. Kyouko let out a small wail and fell on the ground, with the suitcase dropping next to her.

The servant who had talked first hastily approached her, but.

"Wh-wh-what is this!?"

Snowflakes rose up from the Kyouko"s vine-bound body and then it disappeared, only leaving behind a humanoid shikigami charm.

It was a simple shikigami.

"d.a.m.n. That"s why she came out from the main entrance!"

"The back door! This was bait, Kyouko-sama"s trying to leave through the back door!" The servant shouted and the group ran into the residence.

Then, seeing that no one was left on the grounds, Kyouko emerged from the shadow of a bush where she had been stealthed and picked up the suitcase fallen on the ground.

She had made this simple shikigami hold the suitcase and draw their attention before leaving through the main entrance and waited to escape through the front door while they ran to the back door to pursue her.

Then, when she stepped out of the front entrance, the shikigami that had been positioned by the entrance monitoring Kyouko for the past year and a half appeared.

"......Honestly, did you think that would work?"

A beautiful, dangerous smile. Kyouko rapidly formed a hand seal. A seal worlds apart from the one the simple shikigami had used earlier.

"On bishibishi karakara shibari sowaka!"

Unmoving Golden Chains. Kyouko made a different hand seal right afterwards and hurled out a charm. "Order!"

The blue flame of the fire-element charm rapidly engulfed the shikigami. It was just an instantaneous action, but it might have drawn the attention of the doormen from before. Kyouko left another simple shikigami there as bait and left the entrance using stealth magic.

She was outside without being watched. Just that was enough to make Kyouko feel freedom like never before. But the real game was starting now. She searched for a pay phone first. Though there weren"t many around here, Kyouko had made sure to check the locations of various pay phones. She hastily dashed to the closest to the residence, picked up the receiver, put in coins, and dialed the number she had memorized beforehand.

There was only one person among her friends who hadn"t changed his number. She had learned that he would be the first to move from her divination before.

The phone connected after two rings.

"Tenma!"

"Kyouko! Is it Kyouko? Where are you--"

Kyouko"s heart warmed up upon hearing the familiar voice she hadn"t heard since the year before last. "A phone outside my house. I know you"re already out, Tenma. I"m the same. Can we meet up?"

"Kyouko, do you know where Natsume is?"

"Sorry, the divination wasn"t successful...... But I do now the approximate area."

"Got it. Let"s meet. Kyouko, you"re near your house, right?"

"Yeah. Tenma, where are you? If possible, let"s meet near Shinjuku--"

"It"s alright, I"ll go to you."

"Eh? But--"

"It"s faster this way."

...Hmm?

Something was odd about the way Tenma spoke. But it was a race against time and she didn"t know when the doormen would find her. She thought about the local terrain and told Tenma the location to meet.

Tenma arrived faster than Kyouko antic.i.p.ated.

Suzuka only learned of the capture of Tsuchimikado Takahiro and the others thirty minutes after the report came out. Suzuka made her decision right there, hating the wasted half-hour.

Of course, this report itself might be a trap set by her father and Kurahashi to lure Harutora out. ...The more likely it was a trap, the more people they would send to help capture Harutora. In other words, the fighting power stationed at the Onmyou Agency would be mostly sent over there. She should take advantage of that and escape now!

Her destination was Kichijoji. After seeing the news from before, both friends and enemies would gather in Kichijoji. She had to go there now too.

A barrier had cut off the aura of the research lab from the outside, and she couldn"t see whether k.u.momaru was outside guarding. She definitely couldn"t beat k.u.momaru in a head-on fight, but the only advantage she had right now was that neither k.u.momaru nor Yashamaru were willing to expose their true ident.i.ties in front of normal employees. As long as she attracted enough attention, she wouldn"t need to fight all-out with k.u.momaru, and then she could take the opportunity to run away. The other problematic Mystical Investigators should have all gone to the scene of the incident, so there shouldn"t be anyone to block her path...

...That"s what she would do. In any case, thinking about it wouldn"t do any good.

She took out charms, focusing her mind on presences outside, and opened the door to the research lab.

In the end,

"What!?"

...He wasn"t there!?

k.u.momaru"s aura wasn"t there. She "looked" at the surrounding aura again, but as she thought, k.u.momaru wasn"t there.

"W-Why......" Was it coincidence...... No, impossible. It was definitely some kind of trap. But was there any need to set a trap for Suzuka, who was already confined?

...Ah, right, that"s it!

It was because of Natsume. Suzuka was released from her surveillance because k.u.momaru had probably been sent to Kichijoji. A few half-baked Mystical Investigators couldn"t do anything to the Tsuchimikado family, but capturing Harutora would be much easier with the aid of a powerful shikigami like k.u.momaru. How fortunate.

...This was her chance!

Suzuka activated stealth and ran to the exit. Stay calm, stay calm. Though she wanted to run with all her might, the key right now was to maintain her stealth and stay hidden. She went down to the first floor. She ran to the entrance that workers used for deliveries instead of the main entrance. She pa.s.sed by several employees on the way, but the abilities of a normal employee couldn"t see through the stealth of the Child Prodigy Dairenji Suzuka.

Escaping out of the back door, Suzuka stood on the nighttime road lit by streetlights. She ran past a few roads and unconsciously stopped when she could no longer see the Onmyou Agency.

She took a deep breath.

I"ve escaped the Onmyou Agency.

...Have I escaped?

She wondered whether it was a trap again. It still didn"t feel real to her. Suzuka was startled by freedom she hadn"t had in a long time.

...No, no, it"s not the time to s.p.a.ce out. I have to hurry over to Natsume!

The fact that Yashamaru and k.u.momaru were able to ignore Suzuka and head over there meant that the situation was extremely critical.

Could she still use her credit card? She had some cash on her, but she didn"t know whether it was enough for a taxi to Kichijoji. Would it be faster to take the train? Right, since it was already dark, she might as well just fly there with a shikigami!

Suzuka took out her tome-shaped magical tool and was about to summon one of her proud paper shikigami, when--

"Don"t move."

She had been careless.

Barriers blocked her off in front, behind, to her left and right, and above.

"......It"s been a while, Dairenji."

"Y-Yuge Mari!?"

An Independent Exorcist wearing miasma protection clothing came up from behind. The "Barrier Princess" Yuge Mari of the Twelve Divine Generals. Though Suzuka knew her face, they had almost never spoken.

"d.a.m.n......"

She had gotten careless since k.u.momaru hadn"t been there. She should have known that no matter how critical the Kichijoji situation was, they wouldn"t just let her go when she had information about the third spiritual disaster terrorist attack coming up on Hinamatsuri. She was too naive. She was so remorseful she wanted to cry.

"......Dairenji, I know you"re friends with Tsuchimikado Natsume, and I can understand your feelings." A businesslike tone. "Don"t resist and obediently return to the Onmyou Agency."

"Shut up! You don"t understand anything, so don"t look like you know it all!"

Yuge was surprised by her sudden malice. They had never been well acquainted, and Yuge still held on to Suzuka"s image as the Onmyou Agency"s poster girl.

"Okay, okay. I don"t really understand your situation. It"s just business."

"Have you never thought about whether the person giving your orders was right or not!?"

"As a member of an organization, my duty is to follow orders. If everyone did whatever they wanted, it wouldn"t be an organization."

"That"s what the people above you want you to think! They"re all doing whatever they want!"

"Even so, those are the rules. I"ll say it again, don"t resist and cooperate with me--"

"Hmph! Who"d listen to you, you old hag!"

"Old--"

Yuge was speechless for a while, then pouted in anger. "Hey, why can"t you speak a bit more politely--"

"Honestly. Suzuka, you shouldn"t have said that just now."

A voice suddenly came from behind her. Yuge spun around to look.

A st.u.r.dy-looking boy - no, a young man - was behind her, looking at Yuge with a challenging gaze.

"But what"s up with an exorcist making a surprise attack like a Mystical Investigator? Be more like an exorcist. Why don"t you fight this "oni" instead of bullying that brat over there?"

As he proclaimed this, Touji took off the bandanna from his forehead.

Natsume was running away on her own. Touji had prepared to move to where Natsume was after learning that.

As the one who had it the easiest among his friends, he undoubtedly had the duty to meet Natsume first. He didn"t know where Harutora was, so he was the only one who could help Natsume.

"Wait." Amami stopped him. "This is a trap. It wouldn"t have gotten on the news so fast unless they deliberately released the information."

"Is it fake information?"

"No. The contents are real, but Kichijoji is definitely full of Onmyou Agency men right now."

"That"s no concern. I just need to find Natsume before those guys do."

"I told you to wait, I didn"t tell you not to go. They"re trying to lure us out, but they don"t know where we are or when we"ll appear."

"......In other words?"

"It"s an ambush."

"Then I need to go win quickly. Now"s the time for blitzkrieg."

"That would be if we were alone."

Touji suddenly reacted. "......What do you mean?"

"Go to the Akihabara Onmyou Agency building and meet up with Suzuka. Get her out if possible."

An unexpected instruction. All kind of surprising tactics would always show up at Amami Daizen"s hands.

"......Can I hear the reasons?"

"None of your friends, including Suzuka, will just sit still after seeing this news. Suzuka will have the most trouble moving around in this situation."

"So you mean I should go give her a helping hand?"

Amami nodded. "Takahiro of the branch family has the power of divination, so he wouldn"t be caught by the Mystical Investigators that easily. In other words, they were caught by something other than the Mystical Investigators, something that could avoid divination.

Something that could avoid divination......!

"Yase Doji."

"Right. Divination is ineffective on shikigami. In other words, Yashamaru and k.u.momaru aren"t at the agency building, they"re capturing Takahiro and the others. We should gratefully take advantage of such a good opportunity."

Then, when Touji came to the Onmyou Agency as per Amami"s instructions, he happened to see a barrier on the road--

"Speaking of which, I didn"t hear anything about a Divine General being here while the Yase Doji were away."

Suzuka and the Independent Exorcist, "Binding Princess" Yuge Mari. Their conversation didn"t look very friendly.

...Well, it was good that he hadn"t pa.s.sed them by.

"Touji!?" Suzuka cried out in surprise from inside the barriers.

"Touji...... You"re Ato Touji!?"

Yuge took a fighting stance. It looked like information on Touji had reached the Exorcist Bureau.

"I"m quite honored that a Divine General remembers the name of a mere former student." Teasingly, Touji started gathering his body"s magical energy.

"Suzuka, how much time to get through?"

Suzuka and Yuge instantly understood what Touji meant.

"Five - No, four minutes!"

"Do it in two." Touji said and charged at Yuge in a flash.

But Yuge coldly said "......Are you serious?", using Unmoving Golden Chains without any warning. Touji also tossed out a protective charm to counter it and dodged to the side.

The Golden Chains bound the magical wall from the protective charm he threw out along with the entire s.p.a.ce behind him. If he hadn"t avoided that just now, it would have been over right away.

...I have to buy time against this opponent......!?

"Did you say you wanted to fight me?"

"Yes, please."

"Stop. You"ll just hurt yourself."

"If I"m just gonna get hurt a bit, that"s a great deal!"

He ran forward again, and:

"First seal, release!"

Armor of demonic aura formed all over Touji"s body. It had been a long time since he released the seal outside of training. A sense of release fueled Touji"s fighting spirit.

But Yuge"s expression didn"t change. She just formed a hand seal and created countless restricting barriers in front of her. It looked like she already knew Touji"s name and understood that he was a living spirit.

Touji dodged as best he could with his living spirit reflexes. It would be over if he ran into a single barrier.

Suzuka cried "Touji!" with a wail, but Touji roared without looking at her:

"Still one minute thirty seconds left!"

He desperately dodged. He wasn"t just relying on his reactions, it was more of predicting them beforehand by "seeing" the flow of aura. He told himself that he couldn"t possibly lose to this kind of opponent if he wanted to be capable of fighting Kagami. In any case, he dodged with all his might.

On the other hand, Yuge"s expression changed slightly. Suddenly, she lifted a hand above her head and unleashed magical energy in a flash, forming a huge barrier that covered the entire road.

"What!?"

He was in range. Touji felt the burden of magical energy from the barrier and his movements slowed down.

"Ugh!?"

The barrier shrank to the approximate size of a person, tightly confining Touji.

...As expected......

The name "Binding Princess" was no exaggeration. She wasn"t the same type as Kagami, but her strength was undoubtedly deserving of the Divine General t.i.tle. There was still one minute. He had originally wanted to hold out for another thirty seconds, but as expected, this was an enemy he couldn"t hold back against.

"Third seal, release!"

The malicious demonic aura that poured forth blew away the Divine General"s barrier from the inside.

"What--"

Yuge and Suzuka were both stunned.

With horns on his forehead, crimson flames of demonic aura, and protruding fangs, Touji shot towards Yuge like an arrow.

When Yuge reflexively put up a barrier, it twisted from the sheer brute force. Stunned, Yuge retreated a step. Touji advanced to pursue, giving her no room to relax.

The pale Yuge put up one magical wall after another, but Touji completely shattered them all. Though it reduced Touji"s speed, it also meant she had no time to retreat and put distance between them, so he closed in on her step by step. Offensive power was the biggest weapon that Touji possessed when he controlled the oni.

"You - what is this!?"

"Who knows!? Go ask your friend the Chief for details!"

With a crash, Yuge deflected Touji but was sent flying herself, colliding with the building behind her.

Touji didn"t pursue when she saw Yuge pull away, and retreated instead.

Yuge suddenly became conscious about what was going on.

"...Two minutes!"

Suzuka undid Yuge"s barrier. Touji picked Suzuka up and escaped the area with all his power.

"d.a.m.n!"

Yuge hastily pursued, but the physical abilities of the unsealed Touji were more like a shikigami"s than a human"s, and he leaped onto a streetlight and jumped onto the roof of a building. Yuge formed a seal to stop him with a barrier, but:

"Order!"

Suzuka"s shikigami nullified the barrier. Yuge clicked her tongue as she watched the figures of Touji and Suzuka vanish on the other side of the building.

One minute later, Touji shook Yuge off his tail completely and sealed his demonic aura again.

Natsume continued to flee.

Mystical Investigators were constantly watching the station. She moved some distance away with Akino"s help.

"What should I do?"

Natsume"s head was blank and she couldn"t think of what to do. She had difficulty looking straight and her feet didn"t seem to feel the ground as she walked. Her attention slipped for a moment and she fell to the ground, her feet losing their strength. In the past, Harutora, Touji, and her friends had been with her and the adults of the Onmyou Academy would have protected her, but now Natsume was alone without anyone to rely on.

"What should I do?"

Yasuzumi, Takahiro and Chizuru had all been captured by the Onmyou Agency"s men, and although she had to go help them, she couldn"t think of a way to do that. Also, the Onmyou Agency"s men ought to be searching for Natsume with all their power. It would be too dangerous to act recklessly, so all she could do now was run away. But how wide was the enemy"s reach? She ought to hide herself immediately. The farther she could run away, the better. But what should she do after that?

"What should I do? What should I do?"

Natsume"s gaze became blurry and her ears rumbled. Her breathing became difficult and her body became heavy.

"What should I do after this?"

Suddenly, someone grabbed her hand and shouted.

"Natsume!!!"

Natsume came to her senses and saw Akino"s worried look.

"Natsume, are you alright?"

"...I"m alright."

"You"re lying."

"No, I"m actually alright. I"m running away now, so don"t worry, Akino."

"No. I"m worried about whether you"re alright or not! You"ve been walking around in a daze. Where are you going to go? Anyway, you should calm down a bit!"

Akino was right. Natsume looked at Akino and nodded. Natsume closed her eyes, controlled her breathing, and calmed down.

"Sorry for making you worry."

"It"s alright. Um, the adults got caught. We"re probably being tracked down too."

"Yeah, that"s right."

"Oh, right. Can"t we go to the person you gave the letter to, that Momoe Tenma? Or if not, what about Kyouko? That girl should be okay with it. It"s an emergency, after all. The letter she gave you before seemed really friendly. That letter from before seemed really friendly, right? She"d be worried about you if she saw the news, so we can rely on her, right?"

"No. We"d trouble their families. People from the Onmyou Agency would monitor them; it"s too dangerous."

"But didn"t the letter say that they would help you if you fell in trouble? They"d be very sad if you got caught."

Though Natsume reflexively rejected Akino"s serious proposal, her heart was extremely mixed. But right now both Natsume and Akino clearly had no options.

"......I can"t do that."

Akino looked tensely at Natsume. Natsume"s figure was reflected in her eyes. Suddenly, inadvertently, it seemed as if she heard someone else"s voice.

"Be brave, rely on us!" Right! Harutora! There was still Harutora!

But just then......

"So here"s where you were."

Natsume jumped in surprise and looked over. Behind Akino stood a young aristocratic man. But neither Natsume nor Akino had released their stealth, and normally, she would have noticed if someone approached.

"We hit the jackpot today. Nice to meet you. After all, you were already dead when you saw me before. I"m Yashamaru. Sorry to bother, Tsuchimikado Natsume."

Natsume"s eyes widened in shock. "Yase Doji!? How???"

Akino looked at Yashamaru, her body trembling. But Natsume mustered her courage when she saw the timid Akino.

"My stepfather......"

"Hmm?"

"Is Tsuchimikado Yasuzumi alright?"

"Oh, he"s alright, he"s still alive."

"You......"

Natsume became angry, but Yashamaru smiled.

"Surrender."

Just then, a young man appeared behind Yashamaru. A diligent man, contrasting with Yashamaru"s laid-back appearance. She had met him before - he was one of Takiko"s Yase Doji.

"Didn"t you say before that you weren"t going to hurt them?"

"What, k.u.momaru, don"t just show yourself like that."

"There are more important things right now."

Natsume drew their attention as she asked;

"Is Takiko here?"

"No, she"s training. Also, this time was my own decision."

"As I thought, you still hate her, huh. Don"t force yourself."

Natsume didn"t reply to Yashamaru. She held extremely strong, complex emotions towards Takiko.

"Alright then."

Though Natsume was nervous, she let go of everything. All she could do was take the plunge with this crisis before her.

"First seal, release!"

Natsume called out and released the seal on her own. Immediately, her body filled with yin aura. This was the borrowed aura of the spiritual beast Hokuto - draconic aura. Yashamaru"s and k.u.momaru"s expressions abruptly changed upon seeing this.

"Noumaku sanmanda botanan indoraya sowaka!"[3]

Natsume chanted the mantra of Indra, the G.o.d of lightning. By the law of Five Elements Mutual Generation, it instantly turned into lightning aura. Lightning split the night sky and gave off a blinding light. Lightning magic. Yashamaru blocked most of the attack with a magical wall, and k.u.momaru dodged.

"Now!"

Natsume suddenly picked up Akino and leaped, jumping into the sky. The draconic aura under her feet danced, flying into the air. This was a flying ability using the power of the dragon Hokuto.

"Oh, not bad. As expected of the Tsuchimikado"s guardian beast."

Yashamaru and k.u.momaru kept pursuing, jumping and rolling along rooftops.

"A dragon living spirit, how interesting. But don"t get too excited."

Yashamaru and k.u.momaru calmly chased after Natsume as she flew through the sky. But when she was using draconic aura, she couldn"t use stealth.

Just then, a dozen swallows blocked Natsume"s path. Also, they circled in midair and attacked Natsume continuously without letting up.

"In that case..."

Natsume stopped releasing her draconic aura, losing her ability to fly in midair and falling to the ground. The group of swallows chased after them, and when the swallows gathered together, chanted "Order!" and unleashed a charm. The wood-element charm she used drew in the electricity like a lightning rod, shocking the swallows and shooting off sparks in the night sky. That single strike defeated the group of swallows.

"On bishibishi karakara shibari sowaka!"

But k.u.momaru used Unmoving Golden Chains, and Natsume and Akino were both bound up. Natsume used draconic aura again, releasing lightning from all over her body and breaking apart the magical net. It had completely transitioned into a midair battle, and Natsume"s Hokuto power was almost used up. Seeing Natsume almost at her limits, k.u.momaru moved in front of Natsume and shouted:

"Give up, you won"t last!"

And following that: "Right, Rabbit?"

Shocked, Natsume looked at Akino in her arms. The ears and tail that she normally concealed were materialized.

"How surprising." Yashamaru, who suddenly came down from the night sky above, looked at Akino and said:

"Could it be... No... How could she be here... This girl...... is a Souma? It"s getting more and more interesting."

"Chief?"

"k.u.momaru, wrap it up."

Yashamaru formed a Rakshasa seal and a black fog was generated in the night sky. Natsume immediately unleashed lightning, but it was completely ineffective. After Yashamaru"s instruction, k.u.momaru began attacking without mercy. The two of them cooperated and generated a huge magical energy, crushing Natsume. As Natsume took the impact all over her body, Akino dropped from her arms.

"Ah, Akino!"

Natsume did her best to grab Akino with her hand. Akino shouted again and the two of them fell from the sky. Just then, Yashamaru released the second wave. Natsume was. .h.i.t again.

"It would be bad if you died." The moment Natsume was about to hit the ground, Yashamaru bound her up with Unmoving Golden Chains.

Natsume"s vision went black. A raven seemed to cut across her blurred vision.

"Natsume!"

As the yell was drowned out in the rushing air, her outstretched hands suddenly lost contact, and Natsume"s eyes gradually lost their light.

...No!

She was more afraid of how Natsume"s condition would worsen than of the Yase Doji they were falling down towards. Because of the flying back and forth from before, Akino was no longer able to tell up from down, but she desperately reached out towards Natsume.

"...Natsume!"

Just then, as she shouted with all her might.

The two Yase Doji were approaching them to catch Natsume and Akino, but they suddenly stopped, almost at the same time.

Then, a raven flew by, splitting the air between the falling Natsume and Akino.

......Huh?

The moment she saw that raven, Akino felt as if something violently jumped inside of her.

It was a huge, magnificent raven, wings spread wide, black feathers filled with l.u.s.ter. Particles of light scattered from the surface of its feathers, with golden flakes raining down every time it flapped its wings.

The raven had golden eyes.

The raven had three legs.

The raven fiercely beat the air, gracefully swooping down beneath the falling Natsume. Though the raven was moving incredibly fast, its movements were elegant. Then, as light spilled out, the Raven spread its huge wings, wrapping around Natsume as if to hold her......

Suddenly, Akino"s body was pulled upwards by a powerful force. Her vision spun and she started losing her sense of direction again. A scream that had probably come from herself pa.s.sed by her ears.

Then......

She felt an impact that wasn"t from hitting the ground, but she stopped falling downwards.

She had stopped in the center of a road, surrounded on all sides by quiet residential area. On one side was a small bridge and the same scenery from where she had been before. She hadn"t moved too far off.

But Akino"s feet hadn"t touched the ground. She seemed to be levitating in midair, as if something was carrying her. No, she was actually being carried. Akino reflexively flailed her limbs. Though her limbs just swung through the air, Akino managed to sense that she was being held by the collar like a kitten.

She turned her head, looking behind her.

A huge, unfamiliar man was lifting her up with a single arm.

He wore a suit but no tie and had a head of golden hair. Akino moaned quietly, convinced that the person was a villain.

But...... the ears on her head kept jumping around happily for some reason. Of course, the one making her rabbit ears jump was not Akino herself. No, maybe it was Akino - but it was her first time encountering these feelings from inside her that even she didn"t understand.

Stunned, the man said: "No wonder there was no reaction... How did you turn out like this?" His voice was coa.r.s.e and low, but his tone was quite familiar, as if he was chatting with an old friend.

Upon hearing his voice and seeing his expression, Akino"s fear of him vanished. The original feeling of pressure turned straight into trust so quickly that it even left her mystified. She knew that she was shyer than anyone.

Then, she finally noticed that he was missing an arm.

...This man......

Who was he? Just as she wondered, a gust of wind brushed by Akino"s nose.

Surprised, she turned her head towards the small bridge in front of the road. On top of it descended the giant raven......

...No.

It wasn"t a raven, it was a person. It was a person wearing black - a black coat that seemed woven from raven feathers. His coat flapped as he descended on the bridge, his back to her.

He seemed to be an adolescent boy.

His fluttering black coat collected itself back around him as if it were pulling back its wings. At the same time, silky black hair slid down from the boy"s arms. That was Natsume. Natsume, unconscious, was in the boy"s arms.

Akino held her breath, staring at him. The boy looked down at Natsume"s face. An eyepatch covered the boy"s left eye, so from this angle it was hard to see the expression on his face.

But......

"......Sorry for making you wait again, Natsume."

Upon hearing that, Akino instantly realized the boy"s ident.i.ty.

The reincarnation of the legendary Onmyouji, the one the Onmyou Agency had designated as a terrorist, the culprit who had destroyed Seihuku Temple, and the childhood friend that Natsume had never stopped searching for.

Tsuchimikado Harutora had finally returned to Natsume"s side.