Legend Management Bureau Chapter 478

[ … words ]

“Yes, indeed!” Yuki-onna hurriedly agreed. “We never expected the Blind Princess to return so suddenly today. If we had known, we would have dried the fish ahead of time!”

“Are we having fish?” Enenra asked.

“Fish…?” Yuki-onna paused, taken aback. “Do… do you want to eat fish?”

“Mhm, I want to eat fish,” Enenra replied.

“Alright… Big Sister Hatoko will prepare some for you…” She took a few steps back and slipped into the crowd.

“What the hell…” Ibaraki Doji muttered in a low voice. “Where are we supposed to find fish in this freezing weather?”

“Otherwise, let’s just kill the Umibozu and eat him,” Yuki-onna suggested coldly.

Ibaraki froze. “Umibozu? Isn’t he our comrade? Are you some kind of psycho, woman?”

“Then what do you suggest we do?”

Outside the house, Jinjiro stopped him.

“You’re missing an arm, swimming is going to be very dangerous. No matter what, you must prioritize your own safety.”

“Stop nagging!” Ibaraki Doji snapped. “Then what are you going to do?”

“I…” Jinjiro really didn’t have a good solution, so he could only reply, “Then you must absolutely be careful.”

“You talk too much. Got it.” Ibaraki Doji stabbed his tachi sword into the ground and slowly headed toward the riverbank.

Jinjiro slowly walked over to Enenra’s side. At that moment, she was busy sharing everything she had seen and heard with the people around her.

He watched as she pulled the short-statured Kappa close and said, “Onomichi, I met some incredibly powerful seniors!”

“R-really?” the Kappa replied shyly. “How powerful?”

Enenra tilted her head to listen, then called out, “Senior Jinjiro, are you there?”

“I am.”

“Let me introduce him to everyone. This is Senior Jinjiro of the Shiranui Family. He is the most prestigious Onmyoji of the younger generation, and very likely the next head of the Shiranui Family!”

The numerous Yokai looked at Jinjiro in Complete Silence.

“W-why aren’t you all surprised?” Enenra asked.

“Wow… s-so amazing…” the Yokai chimed in one after another.

Jinjiro furrowed his brow tightly. He originally wanted to urge Enenra to leave, but he simply couldn’t bring himself to say it.

Enenra’s goal was to return to the village to protect the villagers, so why would she ever leave?

He could only sit quietly beside Enenra and listen to her share her stories.

This Yokai was even kinder than he had imagined. She remembered every single person in the village and cared about all their lives. Her words were overflowing with genuine concern for them.

“Brother Kiya, you need to treat Big Sister Hatoko well.”

“Genta, you need to work hard on learning Kanji.”

“Auntie Yoko, please don’t work when it rains, be careful of the injury on your leg.”

Jinjiro slowly walked out of the house and sat on a tree stump outside.

He gazed at the setting sun, listening to Enenra gently lecturing everyone inside the house.

Soon after, Ibaraki Doji slowly approached. He was shirtless and completely drenched, carrying a fish basket in his hand.

“Damn it, it’s freezing,” Ibaraki cursed through gritted teeth.

“Keep your voice down.” Jinjiro waved a hand and took the fish basket from him.

He looked at the long-haired, soaking wet man before him, unable to help his confusion. “Say, you originally wanted to defeat Shuten, right? Why have things changed now?”

“I…” Ibaraki paused, then said, “I don’t know either. I just feel like the things that person is doing hold more meaning than killing.”

“Is that so?” Jinjiro smiled faintly. Carrying the fish basket into the house, he asked, “Blind Princess, how would you like to eat the fish?”

“I want grilled fish,” Enenra said. “Grilled fish skewered on a stick.”

“Hm?” Jinjiro frowned slightly. “There’s a full set of cooking utensils here, yet you want grilled fish?”

“Mhm!” Enenra nodded vigorously with a bright smile. “Because of grilled fish, I was able to meet you, Senior. But I never got to eat that grilled fish. Now… I want to eat it.”

A few Yokai simply cleaned the fish Ibaraki had brought back, sprinkled them with wasabi powder and chili, and began roasting them over the fire.

As the sky gradually darkened into night, Enenra didn’t notice any flaws in their charade.

The fish were almost done grilling when Jinjiro suddenly sensed a familiar presence at the village entrance.

‘Kashin?’

He slowly stood up and slipped out to the village entrance, where he found Shiranui Kashin standing in place with a strange expression on his face.

“Kashin, why are you back? Didn’t I tell you to go help me stall for time?”

Kashin’s eyes were filled with complex emotions. He opened his mouth but didn’t speak, merely pulling a letter from his chest pocket.

Confused, Jinjiro reached out and took the letter.

On the front of the envelope were six large characters that read “Shiranui Nine-Five Order,” and the bottom was sealed with the family’s wax seal.

“Brother, you need to leave,” Kashin said.

“Leave?”

“Take Enenra and Little Xiang, and get out of this cursed place,” he said slowly, gritting his teeth.

“What…?” Jinjiro furrowed his brow. “What happened?”

“Tsuchimikado Itsuki’s ‘Threads’ are very dirty. His ‘past’ is connected to countless filthy stories. He wants you to kill Enenra to show your resolve, and the Patriarch has also agreed.”

Hearing this, Jinjiro stared blankly for a moment, the letter in his hand nearly slipping to the ground.

His eyes flickered as he picked off the wax seal on the envelope and pulled out the letter. There were only three short lines written on it.

“Shiranui Jinjiro has colluded with the ‘Smoke King of Hell’ today, straying from the right path.”

“He is hereby ordered to kill the ‘Smoke King of Hell’ to become a

Time Master.”

“The previous Assessment Trial is entirely voided. Present her head, and we will Let Bygones Be Bygones. Should you disobey, it will be treated as treason.”

Flames practically leaped from Jinjiro’s eyes. “The damn Tsuchimikado Family! Do they really think the Shiranui Family has no power to fight back against them? If I strike from the ‘Threads’, I can fundamentally erase their existence!”

Kashin’s expression remained filled with despair. He paused, then said, “Brother, do you remember what I told you before? Every senior who goes through the Assessment Trial ends up with a drastically altered temperament.”

Jinjiro turned his head to look at Kashin, not understanding what he meant.

“And I also told you that I became a Time Master without needing to undergo the Assessment Trial. Do you know why that is?”

Kashin’s two consecutive questions left Jinjiro speechless.

“What do you mean?” Jinjiro asked.

“Brother, I have a secret trade with the Patriarch,” Kashin explained. “Whenever it is time for an Assessment Trial, I am the one who seeks out suitable Yokai to disturb the mind and temperament of the Shiranui family member.”

“What?!” Jinjiro’s eyes widened in shock.

“Females at sixteen, males at twenty. Every single member of the Shiranui Family must undergo the Assessment Trial, and I am responsible for making sure they meet the most important ‘person’ in their lives at that time.” Kashin’s voice grew quieter and quieter. “But whenever they finish killing the ninth Yokai, the Patriarch’s Shiranui Nine-Five Order is issued, commanding them to kill that specified Yokai… In the end, it was also me… who personally cut the Threads of Tsukimizake and Hanamizuki… The Patriarch and I are the only ones who know about this…”

“And for your Assessment Trial this time, Brother, Enenra volunteered.” Kashin ignored him and continued speaking. “From the very beginning, she was the Yokai meant to disrupt your mind. She was destined to die. She only happened to make a deal with the Tsuchimikado Family… This Shiranui Nine-Five Order wasn’t written because of the Tsuchimikado Family. I have been carrying it on me this whole time…”