“PHEW,” sighed Xu Fu, sinking into a single-seat sofa. “That nearly gave me a heart attack.”
Court ladies in ruqun materialized from thin air. One massaged his shoulders, another cooled him with a folding fan, and yet another began to prepare tea. Xu Fu took off his glasses, surrendering to the lavish treatment. He closed his eyes, pinched the bridge of his nose, and exhaled deeply.
“I hate getting wrapped up in this sort of trouble,” he said. “Hopefully, they give up before too long. I wouldn’t have anything to worry about if it were just the girl, but that samurai is bad news.”
Still, no use fretting about it.
As he began to doze off, something heavy fell into his lap.
“Who’s that?”
“Why don’t you open your eyes, Lord Fangshi?”
When he did, he found a young vixen sitting on his stomach. Long hair cascaded down her back, and her cheeks puffed sullenly. Despite her cute appearance, her nine tails radiated less-than-adorable spiritual energy. She wasn’t a creature to be trifled with, he thought, considering how easily she’d broken into his inn.
The kitsune’s golden eyes glared up at him. “Didn’t you promise not to lay a hand on Kaede?” she asked.
“Did I? If anything, I would prefer you didn’t drag me into this Tenjin-forsaken mess.”
Silence fell over the room as they stared each other down. Neither of them lashed out physically. Powerful spiritual beings adhered to an unspoken policy of conflict avoidance. A battle between a thousand-year-old kitsune and a two-thousand-year-old fangshi would be a fight to the death. Thus far, the two had maintained an inoffensive relationship, vowing never to intrude upon each other’s territories.
But a certain young woman, a novice with strange, overflowing spiritual energy, threatened that truce.
“To begin with…” he said, “if Kaede Kikui decides to work here of her own free will, could you deny her that right?”
“Kaede would never do such a thing,” the vixen replied.
“She very well might. You have no choice but to hope she doesn’t.”
The vixen fell silent, her ears trembling slightly.
“Why didn’t you nullify your contract with her?” Xu Fu’s eyes twinkled with mirth. “You forced your little brother to admit that Kaede is a different person from her past life, no? In that case, why do you still treasure your bond with the present Kaede?”
“I have a duty to watch over her because of her spiritual energy. I have to prevent the likes of you from taking advantage of her, seeing as she’s a complete amateur.”
“Won’t even admit you love her, eh?”
As soon as the words left his mouth, the nine-tailed vixen’s eyes flashed. Lightning struck the room, followed by a clap of thunder.
Xu Fu’s attendants turned to smoke and vanished. He, meanwhile, simply brushed aside the bolt with a flick of his sleeve. “My, my, how terrifying,” he said, his smile unfaltering. “But when it comes to women and foxes, I’ve decided to always run the other way.”
Clucking her tongue, the kitsune lowered her raised hand. “In any case, I’ll never relinquish Kaede. Never for any reason whatsoever.”
“I hate to repeat myself,” Xu Fu replied, “but a mere vixen has no right to make that decision.”
She fell silent again.
“Well now,” he said, “quite some time has passed since I trapped Kaede in my labyrinth. The samurai is accustomed to tests of endurance, of course, but an ordinary girl? She’ll be begging to leave before too—”
Heavy footfalls thundered toward the room.
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✦ ✦ ✦
“LISTEN closely, Lady Kaede.” Mr. Takahashi looked at the two oni kneeling before him, the creatures’ hands still burning. “Different people have different strengths and weaknesses with regard to sorcery. As a devoted practitioner of sadhana who’s been accustomed to oni since birth, I’ve overcome my weaknesses to a certain degree. Unfortunately, however, you’re a complete novice. You don’t have any foundational knowledge or experience.”
I blinked in surprise. At some point, he had donned a full-length, gauze coat over his suit. The sheer fabric of the garment—the coat a bizarre blend of monk’s vestment and Western jacket—flapped in a nonexistent breeze.
“Thanks to my family’s background, I practiced sadhana before my death,” he was saying. “As a result, I’ve never struggled to use sorcery since becoming an ayakashi.”
“Oh,” I said. “So being born in a temple does matter.”
“Yet your instincts are surprisingly sharp for a beginner.”
“My instincts?”
“You channel spiritual energy almost entirely through intuition,” he clarified. “In all likelihood, the sealing of your other supernatural abilities honed that intuition.” He pointed at me. “Lady Kaede. We’ll use that perhaps-too-sensitive instinct of yours to escape this labyrinth.”
“Is that even possible?”
“Won’t know until we try, will we?” He plucked the Hayakaken card from my tote bag. “Pardon me,” he said, then stuck it to my forehead. “Close your eyes, Lady Kaede, and imagine Chikamaru’s smiling face with every ounce of concentration you can muster.”
The prairie dog mascot? “Ch-Chikamaru…” I murmured. At the same time, I could sense Mr. Takahashi stepping away.
“Lady Kaede,” he said from a distance. “Keep your eyes closed and focus on your forehead. Try to see my spiritual energy.”
“‘See’ it?”
“Precisely. Take your time. Eventually, you’ll be able to locate my spiritual energy within the darkness.”
I concentrated, only half-convinced I could pull off such a feat. A little while later though, a small flash to my right prickled my awareness. It reminded me of a sudden glimpse of a minuscule star in the night sky.
“There!” I cried. “I saw something to my right! Oh, it just moved!”
“Yes, keep going!” Mr. Takahashi could barely contain his enthusiasm. “Lady Kaede. Try to see Lord Jofuku in the same manner. Follow his spiritual energy without opening your eyes.”
“Y-You think I can do it?”
“Of course. Chikamaru and I are cheering you on. Give it one final push!”
“Yes, sir!”
He really knows how to fire someone up. Well, what else did I expect? He’s a legendary warlord who held a castle under siege by 35,000 soldiers with only 763 men of his own. So I can do this!
I trailed Xu Fu’s spiritual energy, focusing on my forehead as motivation burned within me. “Mr. Takahashi!” I exclaimed. “I can see something like a thin string!”
“Well done!” he cheered. “Now then, run forward with your eyes closed!”
“Do you want me to face-plant on the floor?!”
“Don’t worry. You noticed how the inn distorted to accommodate my two oni, didn’t you? That’s true of everything around us. At any rate, it’s time to run, not think! I’ll be right behind you!”
“G-Got it!”
“Full speed ahead!”
I broke into a sprint. Behind came the footfalls of Mr. Takahashi’s leather boots and the thunderous stomping of the two oni. Strangely, I didn’t bump into anything, just as he’d assured me. I tracked the string with intense concentration, and before long, I spotted our goal—Xu Fu’s dazzling spiritual energy.
“There he is!” I shouted, leaping into the light with all my strength.
🍁🍁🍁