“This is the account of the deeds of a certain samurai warrior—” Tomohito started.
“The DemonSlayer Kansuke Mishima!” Akari interjected.
“Oh…you know of him? Of course, he is the subject of many a Kabuki play and joruri dramatic recitation, but I thought you hated storytelling?”
Ah, darn it, Akari thought as Tomohito’s eyes widened.
Heart pounding, Akari pasted on a nonchalant expression.
“I’ve been educated, you know. I learned about culture and history at school, and I’m actually rather well acquainted with the tale of Kansuke Mishima.”
“I see. I didn’t realize that. Well, a Kotogami’s strength and abilities are basically defined by the records written down in their Kotogatari. Historical accuracy doesn’t really have a great deal to do with it, you see.”
Akari was relieved that Tomohito had accepted her explanation, but she wasn’t sure she understood what he was saying.
“Stories, folklore told by many tongues, they have a special kind of power; I can appreciate that. I figured that most Kotogatari are written based on urban folktales. And Kotogatari are used as a way of sealing away the dangerous yokai and other beasts, right?”
“Yes. And sometimes even humans turn into vengeful yokai or other spirits when they hold strong grudges. Some may even become…demons.”
“Yikes, that sounds terrible.”
As Akari leaned back in distaste, Tomohito tilted his head to one side.
“Really? Well, Kotogatari were created to seal away Aratama—violent spirits—for safety. And to seal away humans who became twisted and turned into vengeful ghosts. Before Kotogatari existed, people even thought the emperor was a kind of god and worshipped him as if he were one, you know.”
“Ah yes. But even so…”
“Also, by making copies of Kotogatari that house powerful Kotogami, it’s possible to divide the spirit among multiple volumes. Although these copies tend to vary in their interpretation and as such tend to be much weaker…”
Akari nodded. In Kansuke Mishima’s case, that made sense. Even if his achievements and crimes had happened hundreds of years ago, who wouldn’t want a piece of that power?
“But what would be the point of copying an enshrined entity?”
“Mainly, to oppose demonic yokai. Thus, we can use the power of a Kotogatari in the form of a split spirit.”
“So in other words, to use as a weapon.”
Tomohito fell silent, his expression impossible to read.
Akari was going to take that as a yes. She sighed, stroking the gray-blue cover. It felt so nice and smooth beneath her fingertips.
“To call forth the spirit, you just need to read the name out loud, as you did with Mayoi’s Kotogatari.”
Akari nodded and took a deep breath before flipping the book open.
“The DemonSlayer Kansuke Mishima.”
A gray-blue ribbon of energy began to rise from the open pages.
This was different from how it had been with Tomohito or Mayoi. As she watched, the ribbon slowly twined around itself to form the shape of a human.
Akari blinked in surprise at the size of the figure before her. At last, the gray-blue ribbon faded away, leaving behind a virile-looking man in his midthirties standing there.
He was about Tomohito’s height, wearing an unstylish gray-green casual kimono. His hair was slicked back in a high ponytail, the tail part wild and bushy. At his belt, he wore a samurai sword, the handle obviously well-worn with use.
The atmosphere in the room suddenly felt heavy—perhaps due to the man’s stern expression and rugged exterior.
Kansuke Mishima slowly opened his large, sharp-looking eyes and…yawned.
“Ahhh! I slept so well.”
Akari blinked at him, her previous anxiety turning into confusion. Unbothered, Kansuke began to scratch his belly in an uncouth manner. In that moment, he went from being an impressive and somewhat oppressive figure to looking like a lazy slob.
Akari was shocked by this sudden transformation. Also…gross.
“You’re Kansuke Mishima?”
“That’s me. Hello there, girly.”
He leered at Akari, eyebrow rising suggestively. But before she could react, Tomohito intervened.
“Good morning, Kansuke.”
“Ah, Tomohito. It’s a rare thing for you to call on me, is it not? I hope it’s not going to rain blood tomorrow.”
“I have a job for you. This coming weekend, I want you to act as a bodyguard for Mistress Akari here. You’re the best spirit for the job.”
Tomohito explained the situation in a calm voice despite Kansuke’s boorish manner.
He had personally recommended Kansuke for the job, so she’d been expecting someone more…put together. He seemed friendly enough, but there was also something intense about him…
Kansuke didn’t seem to notice her staring, however. He removed his hand from inside his kimono where he’d been scratching himself and began to rub his jaw thoughtfully.
“All right. I understand the situation.”
“It’s wonderful to be working with you. I’m Akari Mitsukuri.”
“…I haven’t been out in the real world for a while. So I’m not opposed to helping you. Just one condition. No more getting changed in front of me, agreed?”
Akari paused mid-bow. She’d felt the need to introduce herself the same way she would if she met anyone new, spirit or human alike. But Kansuke had responded by saying something her brain couldn’t process at first. What?
“In front of…you?”
“We Kotogami can still process what’s going on around us to some extent, even while sealed inside our Kotogatari. We all got a pretty good view. You don’t have much meat on your bones, do you?”
Kansuke grinned, and Akari felt the blood rush to her cheeks as understanding dawned.
Shocked, she looked around at the shelves. Apart from a few empty spaces, they were crammed with Kotogatari tomes housing sleeping Kotogami. The first night in the Bookhouse, Akari had slept there. Changed clothes there. More than once.
She’d chased Tomohito out for privacy, but if the Kotogami had been watching her from those books…
A lot of things were starting to make sense now. Mayoi seemed to know Akari’s name even before she’d summoned her, and she’d also seemed to be more or less aware of what Akari had been doing there…
And all those times when Tomohito suddenly materialized to jump in and help her with something…she’d been carrying the bookbag with his Kotogatari inside at the time.
If Kotogami were aware of the environment outside of their Kotogatari, then that would explain so much.
Akari felt as if her cheeks were going to burst into flames. She was on the verge of apoplexy.
But this was her fault for not bothering to find out more about Kotogatari, she figured. She could have kicked herself. And how embarrassing to have Kansuke tease her that way! It was easier to turn her anger outward.
“Mistress Akari? Is something wrong?”
Akari looked up at Tomohito, her eyes flashing with anger.
“Is something wrong? What do you think, MISTER Yagyou?”
“Ack! Mistress Akari?!”
“Stay away from me for a while. I’ll ask Mayoi to tend to my room and meals.”
“But that’s horribly cruel! I—”
“Is it? Is it really? Why don’t you take a good look back over what you’ve done?”
As Akari fixed a trembling Tomohito with a look that could curdle milk and strip paint, Kansuke laughed throatily and walked past her.
“Girly, take me and use me as you will.”
He ambled out of the room, chuckling to himself. Akari thought about following him, but first she needed to deal with Tomohito. Harshly.