[Part 4/10]
"Isn't it late already? Are you going to eat with us?
In the garden, the young members of the orphanage's had surrounded the Sixth Seat of Taima Nana-shi, causing her to look bewildered. The older children were trying to separate them, but the curious little ones bombarded the young exorcist with questions, pulling at her clothes and tugging her in different directions.
The six seats couldn't simply push them away, nor could she leave her post. So, she was at a loss for what to do now.
"Hey! You lot!! Show some manners to our guest!"
"""Kyaa!"""
As Azuma scolded the disrespectful behavior of the children, they scattered in all directions as if they were spiders running away. It seemed as if their persistence from earlier was nothing but a lie. Witnessing this scene, The sixth seats was left dumbfounded, unable to keep up with the changing situation.
"Um, um...?"
"Sixth Seat, I'm giving you another order. We're done here. Prepare to return and head to the stables."
"Y-yes, sir!"
In a state of confusion, the Sixth Seat looked around, but upon understanding her superior's instructions, she hastily responded and headed towards the stables. The two horses they had ridden on the way to the orphanage had been left there.
"...I can't help but worry."
"I'm sorry to hear that."
Azuma sighed, and the Head of the Omnyouji Bureau apologized. His apology was filled with deep remorse...
...
...
...
"Well, I guess this is it. Once again, take care on your journey."
Having finished their preparations, the Head of the Omnyouji Bureau mounted his horse at the orphanage's gate and bid his final farewell to Azuma.
"Yes, please take care on your way."
Azuma bowed in return, and as the Head of the Omnyouji Bureau and the accompanying exorcists from the Tsukimi family rode off, Azuma watched their retreating figures for a moment.
"Now then, time to prepare dinner. The harvest in the fields... will have to wait, I suppose. Being a mother is a busy task, indeed."
With a smile that couldn't quite be described, Azuma chuckled to herself and passed through the gate, heading back into the orphanage. As she did, she recalled the visit and conversation with her younger comrade, and her thoughts drifted back to her days in the imperial service.
"Speaking of which..."
As Azuma's thoughts wandered, he remembered his former subordinate, whom he had considered a younger brother. Yes, Azuma remembered him well. He had lost many of his family members, including his parents, at a young age and was taken in directly by the Omnyouji Bureau. Azuma had cared for him as a surrogate parent and sibling, and had teach him exorcism technique as his mentor. She trusted him as her right-hand man and had even recommended him for the positions of assistant and head of the research group (Rikyushu). But it was because of him that Azuma had been betrayed and fell from grace.
"I don't hold a grudge against the fall itself, but..."
It was Azuma's own fault as a superior for allowing her subordinates to deviate from the right path. She couldn't even protect the emperor. Her fall from grace was inevitable.
However, Azuma's remorse was not for her own downfall but for depriving that man, whom she had seen as her successor, of her future. She also regretted his treatment of the other members of that family. She felt powerless in that regard.
"That fool. Where is he now and what is he doing?"
Azuma looked up at the sky as dusk approached and quietly cursed her foolish subordinate, Matsushige Dogen, the elder of the Matsushige family.
"Achoo!... Hmm, I wonder if someone was talking behind my back?"
'Kuun?'
Matsushige Dōgen sneezed and, while sniffing his nose, he muttered to the Genbu standing behind him. The bear-like creature responded with an indescribable expression, simply tilting its head.
'Grrrooowwwl!?'
Suddenly, a loud roar echoed, and the old man, as if realizing something, turned to face the source of the roar.
"Hmm? Oh, my apologies. I got distracted."
In a carefree tone, the old man offered a half-hearted apology to the creature that emitted the roar.
'Grrrooowwwl!? Why?! Why like this?! Didn't you perform the summoning ritual to borrow my power?'
The creature, a demon, shouted in broken language on the floor adorned with a Nanban-style magic circle. Its entire body was bound and restrained by countless talismans and chains.
To be precise, its appearance resembled a combination of a bull, a sheep, and a human. Its legs were twisted like those of a goose, and it thrashed about with its snake-like tail, smashing nearby bookshelves and furniture.
Once, the emperor of the Western Empire had undertaken a large-scale expedition. The target was the major seventy-two spiritual veins in the west. Each had a deity as its stronghold. The emperor, with the help of his army and wise advisors, cunningly trapped them all and reduced their divine status, sealing them within special forbidden books. Since then, the Western Empire had occasionally summoned these demons and used them. However, most of the time, they remained imprisoned within the books. After the collapse of the empire, one pillar was unsealed and reigned as the Demon Lord, while another pillar remained trapped within the books, scattered throughout the empire and beyond.
"I see... That form... It must be one of the 72 demon pillars of the Western Empire's third floor."
'If you understand, then release my restraintssss!!'
The old man calmly held one of the scattered forbidden books in his hand and casually addressed the demon. In response, the fallen deity, with a wail, shouted at the old man. It demanded to be released. It had been summoned to lend its power, but instead, it received this treatment. Even the most wicked demon would want to protest.
"Hohohoho!"
'Gyaaaaaaah!!? Why?! You old b*starddddd'
Ignoring the demon's angry voice, the old man sprinkled salt and sake, purifying substances, on the demon bound by restraints. Steam rose as if flesh were being seared, and the wail grew louder. In fact, the Genbu behind him diligently carried a bucket filled with salt and sake back and forth, as if responding to the old man's gestures. Relentlessly, the old man poured different substances on the demon, causing the room to fill with agonized screams.
'Gaaaah! Stoppp! Stop ittt!'
From the demon's point of view, it was unreasonable. Countless humans had attempted to summon it before, sometimes seeking to borrow its power, other times aiming to annihilate it completely. There were those who wanted to worship it as an evil god or accidentally summoned it. In each case, the demon would either kill or degrade the summoner, bestow wisdom upon them, or tempt them to break free from the seal. However, never before had it encountered such an unjust situation by being summoned out of the blue!
'Y-you insolent monkey-like creature! You shall suffer punishment for mocking me... Gyaah?!'
As the demon spewed scorching flames from its mouth to incinerate the rude intruder, it was immediately struck by a perfectly timed jaw punch from the bear youkai. The fireball it had attempted to release exploded within its own mouth.
"Well done, well done. Can't have any sparks flying in this library. I'll reward you with some dried meat later."
'Grrrr!'
The bear's eyes gleamed, saliva dripping from its mouth. Its thoughts were those of a simple-minded beast. Where had the pride of this great youkai, once ruling over mountains and spirital vein, gone?
"Now then... cease your attempts at illusionary magic. This is my stronghold, and tricks won't work so easily, you know?"
'Gyaa?!'
The demon, having somehow transformed and escaped from the talismans and chains, was swiftly ensnared from all directions by the carnivorous vines that sprouted from seeds scattered throughout the library. These were the specially-bred flesh-eating vines created by the old man, which extracted the spiritual and youkai energy from their prey, ultimately dissolving them into a corrosive liquid.
The demon was intentionally weakened, summoned only in 'part,' through careful modifications to the ritual. It couldn't escape the talismans, chains, sake, salt, the jaw punch from Genbu, and now this.
'Gah... I-I'm losing my power?!'
"Hmm, that seems about right."
Observing the demon's convulsing body and wide-eyed expression, the old man assessed the situation, ready to proceed. He double-checked his senses to ensure he hadn't been subjected to any illusions or brainwashing. Then, he commanded his modified youkai subordinates to proceed with their task.
They were to collect the demon's bodily fluids.
"Good, that will do. Well then, illustrious Demon Lord who governs one of the fearsome Seven Deadly Sins, you have completed your task. It's time for you to depart, so you may return home!"
With a firm snap of the forbidden book, as if setting off an explosive, the lime on the floor where the summoning circle had been drawn dispersed in a gust of wind from all directions. Simultaneously, the demon, now in a half-dead, half-alive state after losing its connection to the contract that embodied it in the mortal world, vanished like a mist.
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