A sudden thrust from an intruder, enveloped in immense spiritual and youkai power, permeated Kamui's body from behind. It was a complete ambush, even for Kamui. Although Kamui's attention was focused on Tamaki, it seemed that the intruder had been moving stealthily, as Kamui didn't sense his presence. The sudden attack left Kamui shocked and impressed on the inside.
"Tch...!!?"
Nevertheless, Kamui quickly turned his body and launched a counterattack. The dark energy from his arm swung at the intruder, but the intruder skillfully dodged it by spinning around. He then moved away without making any contact with Kamui.
"Attacking without any greetings and not allowing me to retaliate! How tasteless...!!?"
Slightly grimacing from the pain, Kamui glared at the figure in black robe, who held a Dagger (tantō) with a defensive posture. Kamui licked the blood on his lips and spat out mockingly.
In reality, the intruder intended to finish Kamui off with his previous thrust, but unfortunately for him, Kamui was not entirely human. His heart didn't reside in its original place, and moreover, his physical form was irregular. Even if the Dagger (tantō) was a really well-made cursed blade, it wasn't strong enough to kill Kamui, which made the intruder pretty bummed out.
And now, without delay, Kamui launched a counterattack. Just as his body seemed to vanished into darkness, Kamui swiftly approached the person who had attacked him. The guy wearing the Hannya mask dodged Kamui's sword swing and quickly moved with the Teguruma that was released from his side. Kamui was about to be cut in half by a horizontal strike, but he instantly disappeared back into the darkness. He then used the shadows in the tower to sneak up behind the attacker.
"Tomobe-kun, watch out behind you!!"
Feeling a premonition that the person who had protected her was about to be harmed, Tamaki involuntarily screamed in a voice that bordered on a scream. However, there was nothing she could do. Kamui's sword was closing in on the figure in black right before her eyes, aiming for his neck.
However, immediately after that, the wall of the tower was blown away.
"Huh!?"
It could have been Tamaki or Kamui who uttered those doubtful words, or perhaps it was both of them. The only certain thing was that it wasn't the guy wearing the Hannya mask's doing.
Just as confusion settled in, a new intruder arrived at this moment. The intruder came out of a hole in the broken wall of the tower. It was an old lady, looking tired and wearing torn clothes. She had lots of wrinkles on her face. She seemed like a mean giant, with a creepy smile and messed-up, yellow teeth. She looked around as if she was looking for something.
"Ah!?"
In an instant, as her eyes met the new intruder, Tamaki couldn't help but let out a small scream. It instantly reminded her of the incident in the village, the memory of facing that cunning weasel. That cold, merciless gaze that seemed to regard others as insects or something similar... Tamaki could almost intuitively understand. The figure before her was on the same level as that weasel or perhaps even more formidable.
But Tamaki couldn't understand what was happening anymore. She couldn't keep up with the rapidly changing situation that had unfolded since before, and all she could do was cower in fear in that spot.
Meanwhile, the old woman completely ignored Tamaki's condition and finally found what she was searching for. Two people became frozen with surprise when they saw her. Specifically, the guy dressed in black robes, wearing a Hannya mask. He could sense a strong spiritual and youkai energy coming from the old woman. On the other hand, the old woman grinned widely, showing her happiness to everyone.
And just as she did so, in an instant, the monstrous fist swung towards the guy dressed in black robes, wearing a Hannya mask. And in the vicinity, that included Kamui.
"Hey, hey, hey! Seriously..."
Unlike the guy wearing Hannya mask, who probably predicted it, for Kamui, it was an unexpected turn of events, and he couldn't react in time. His words of astonishment were cut off midway by a loud impact, drowned out.
With a thunderous roar-like sound, Kamui's upper body was swept away by the strike. The black shadow scattered like pieces of flesh. On the other hand, the guy wearing Hannya mask, who narrowly evaded it without a word, threw two kunais from this pocket. They pierced the old woman's eyes with precision. The monster recoiled for a moment, letting out a small scream, and covered her eyes with both hands.
"Tomobe-kun, wait...!?"
Despite Tamaki's call, the guy wearing Hannya mask didn't respond. Silently, he slipped past the monster and swiftly exited the tower, his black outfit blending into the outdoors. The figure vanished in an instant, leaving behind a bewildered old woman who shattered the roof and leaped after him, pursuing wherever he had disappeared.
"!!"
Tamaki, dumbfounded, quickly rushed to protect Suzune and Yona from the falling debris of the collapsing roof. She pulled the two of them and hurriedly hid them behind a sheltered spot. Wood fragments scattered along with the dust as the building materials fell to the ground. Tamaki curled up, shielding herself from them. As the chaos subsided and a moment of silence ensued, Tamaki stood alone, motionless.
Staring in astonishment at the direction where the guy wearing Hannya mask and the other figure had departed, she remained rooted in place.
"Tomobe, kun? Why..."
The words Tamaki murmured held a lot of meaning and emotion. She felt happy and thankful for being rescued, but she also questioned why he was in this situation. She was disappointed and sad because she didn't receive any response, and she worried about where Iruka, who was supposed to be with him, had gone. It made her feel completely lost.
"Ouch... D*mn, that old hag is ruthless. Seriously, she blew me away without any mercy, even though people were around."
However, there was little time to linger on such matters. In response to the reproachful voice, Tamaki instantly recalled the tense situation and turned her head, braces herself.
And she held her breath.
In front of her gaze, darkness gathered, a substance like a mixture of liquid and gas. The darkness came together and transformed into a human shape. It rebuilt Kamui's body, which looked super weird and creepy.
"Well, what should I do? I should prioritize him, but I can't ignore the target right in front of me."
"T-target... What...!?"
With a smirk on his face, Kamui locked eyes with Tamaki and moved closer, step by step. Tamaki was taken aback by Kamui's words, but she quickly snapped out of it and got ready to fight, assuming a hand-to-hand combat position. She braced herself for what was coming.
Without any weapon nearby, but with someone to protect behind her. She couldn't run away. She suppressed her fear, gritted her teeth, and made up her mind. That servant is dealing with the calamity youkai. In turn, she is an exorcist and can't afford to complain about not having a weapon. There's no excuse to be made.
...Considering the resistance of that servant to whom she owes so much, it was absolutely unacceptable for Tamaki to give up in a situation like this.
And just as Tamaki summoned her resolve with a sense of desperation, the moment to test her courage and determination never came. Kamui, who was slowly approaching, suddenly halted and looked up at the sky, his expression turning serious.
"...Change of plans, huh? Looks like there are some troublesome individuals coming."
"Eh...?"
Before Tamaki could grasp the meaning behind Kamui's words, an incantation resounded.
"Purifying Fire, Requiem of Ashes."
Right after the man's cold, indifferent voice echoed, flames engulfed everything in the vicinity. Tamaki instinctively protected her head from the torrent of crimson light that surged like a turbid stream from the destroyed tower's ceiling, even though she knew it would be futile.
The soldiers who were fighting at the castle walls faced a similar situation. They either huddled up, feeling confused and amazed, or stood frozen as they were unexpectedly engulfed by the cleansing fire pouring down from above. And... they glanced at each other, their heads tilted in confusion.
"What... is this?"
"It's not hot? Is this some kind of illusion?"
Surrounded by flames that could reduce everything to ashes in an instant, yet none of the individuals within it suffered even a single burn. In a situation where there was no sensation of heat despite being engulfed in a sea of fire, they were once again confused and bewildered. They were faced with an unreal spectacle.
And then, they realized it immediately. The insect's youkais, which had resounded so loudly just moments ago, had fallen into complete silence. Every single creepy demon and monster they were fighting had turned into ashes, every single one... even their screams as they died were devoured by the flames.
Gradually, their minds settled down, and they suddenly realized the existence of a powerful being. They calmly sensed its presence. Without thinking, they glanced at the sky. And there it was... In the bright afternoon sun, they saw the unmistakable shape of a massive dragon.
Its golden scales shimmered, making it look majestic and awe-inspiring.
"...As expected, Touya. To annihilate that many youkai without involving anyone else, that's remarkable work."
Standing on Kouyo, the name of the dragon borrowed as a means of transportation from the second princess of onitsuki family, a man named Onitsuki Shusui commended the young member of his clan who had accompanied him. It was a heartfelt praise.
"It's not like it deserves that much praise. I just expanded the scale, but the effectiveness itself relies on my supernatural ability."
On the other hand, by Shusui's side, Onitsuki Touya, who had unleashed a powerful technique toward the ground, muttered dismissively, perhaps with a sense of discontent or caution.
Indeed, the purifying fire that had scorched the ground earlier had only increased its range by buying time, merely unleashing the ability of "Purifying Fire."
After all, the siege taking place at the castle walls of Hieda Town, the county capital, had been troublesome for many exorcists. The enemy forces were too close, so they couldn't use any big and dangerous techniques that might hurt the soldiers or the town itself.
However, descending to the ground and exterminating each individual one by one would have resulted in many casualties. Therefore, the role of delivering the initial blow fell to Touya. And Touya fulfilled that role.
The "Purifying Fire" that spared anything other than youkai instantaneously eradicated thousands of them, yet it did not burn even a single human or a scrap of fabric.
"But, was it a good decision? We let a big catch slip away..."
Changing the subject, Touya asked. He was referring to the powerful calamity youkai who had retreated from the battlefield just before his major technique was unleashed. Touya had suggested using his technique before the entity could escape, but Shisui had rejected the idea.
"It doesn't matter. That one is a bit troublesome. It's not wise to strike without preparation. We mustn't misunderstand our objectives, especially with Namahage lurking out there," Shusui replied.
"Understood..."
Shisui, perhaps having guessed the true nature of the being, orders it to be left alone. And Touya accepts the order.
