7 The Shrine Maiden
[Player: Kazuki Arata]
[Level: 2]
[Waza: Black Hand, Thread Cutter, Aura Sense, Dark Rider]
[Kegare: 3%]
[Status: Injured | Kegare Unstable]
---
There should be more blood.
The thought struck Kazuki as he stumbled through the forest, one hand pressed to his side where the Inugami's blade had torn through flesh. The wound throbbed with each heartbeat, yet the blood that seeped between his fingers was strangely minimal - dark and viscous in the moonlight.
What was wrong with his blood?
Kazuki's vision swam, the twin moons above blurring into four, then merging back to two. How long had he been walking? An hour? Three? The brass bell at his waist chimed softly with each faltering step, the only constant in a world that seemed to shift and warp around him.
[Kegare: 5%]
The notification pulsed in his vision, its red glow more intense than before. Kazuki tried to ignore it, focusing instead on putting one foot in front of the other. The village couldn't be much farther. Kuro had said….
Kuro. The memory of golden eyes and black cat fur sent a surge of conflicting emotions. Anger at her betrayal, confusion at her sacrifice, and beneath it all, a strange emptiness where their connection had been.
"...supposed to be here," Kazuki muttered, his voice sounding distant to his own ears. "The village..."
The trees thinned suddenly, giving way to a clearing. Ahead, wooden buildings clustered around a central square, warm yellow light spilling from windows. Relief washed over him, only to be replaced by a new concern as he noticed the perimeter of the settlement.
Wooden posts stood every few meters around the village boundary, each bearing small paper talismans - ofuda, his mind supplied from some half-remembered visit to a shrine back home - that fluttered in the night breeze. Between them, nearly invisible in the darkness, thin white ropes - shimenawa - traced a boundary line, marked at intervals with more talismans and small bells.
[Warning: Spiritual boundary]
[Purification required before crossing]
Kazuki ignored the warning. He had no time for purification, whatever that meant. The wound at his side was agonizing, and the edges of his vision were beginning to darken.
Just a few more steps...
He felt a strange resistance, as if walking in a river against moving water. The brass bell at his waist began to chime more insistently, its tone going from musical to discordant. He pushed forward, one hand extended toward the nearest post.
[Kegare: 7%]
Kazuki growled through gritted teeth, fingers closing around the post.
The moment he touched it, blue-white electricity jumped from the talisman to his hand, racing up his arm and spreading throughout his body. Pain exploded behind his eyes, and he felt something inside him - something dark - recoil, thrashing.
---
Voices drifted through the void.
...never seen Kegare like this...
...half-formed bond with a yokai...
...father will know what to do when he returns...
...another Kegare outbreak in Ishimori Village. No wonder Hisao-sama isn't back yet...
Kazuki fought through layers of consciousness, clawing his way back to the surface. Blurry shapes resolved into a wooden ceiling, cross beams supporting a high roof. Light flickered from what seemed to be candles or lanterns, casting shadows across his vision.
He tried to move but found an exhaustion so profound that his body simply stopped listening to his commands.
"He's awake."
The voice came from somewhere to his right - a young woman's voice.
A girl about his age knelt beside him, dressed in the white and red garments of a miko - a Shinto shrine maiden. Her dark hair was tied back tightly and she held a polished wooden gohei wand with shide paper streamers. Her eyes - serious, assessing - studied him with curiosity and suspicion. A small wooden bowl rested beside her, filled with clear water that glowed faintly.
"Can you speak?" she asked.
Kazuki tried, his throat raw and dry. "Where...?"
"Kagura Shrine," she replied. "You collapsed at our boundary. Farmers brought you here." She tilted her head slightly. "You're lucky they found you before the night patrol. The tengu guards aren't known for their gentle handling of kegare-marked strangers. What’s your name?"
“I’m Kazuki Arata.”
Kazuki's gaze drifted around the room - polished wooden floors, sliding paper doors, small alcoves with offerings of rice and sake. Tiny shrines dotted the corners, some with strange fruits and objects he couldn't make sense of. Near the entrance, a small stone basin contained purified water, and above it hung a huge mirror that seemed to catch light that wasn't there.
"I'm Suzume Imai," the shrine maiden continued, setting down the gohei wand. "Daughter of Hisao, the priest of this shrine. He's away performing purification rites in the northern villages. If the wards fail at Ishimori Shrine, the corrupted yokai will flood the entire region." Her lips pressed into a thin line. "He'll return in three days - if all goes well. Though I'm not sure you have three days."
"What do you mean?"
Suzume gently pulled back the thin blanket covering him. Kazuki looked down at his body, now dressed in a simple white yukata. Where the Inugami's blade had struck, a bandage covered his side. Dark purple-black stains spread outward from the center, forming patterns like twisted vines or reaching fingers.
"That's...not good," Kazuki managed, his voice barely above a whisper.
"No," Suzume agreed, her expression grave. "The corruption in your wound is fighting the purification herbs and the Amaterasu Seal I placed on the bandage." She reached for his wrist, turning it gently to reveal similar dark patterns tracing along his veins. "It's spreading."
[Kegare: 9%]
"It's the transformation," Kazuki said, pieces clicking into place. "When Kuro and I... when we became the Dark Rider."
Suzume's eyes widened.
Kazuki grimaced, a wave of vertigo washing over him. "It was...complicated. We were attacked by Inugami. There was no choice."
Her expression shifted from surprise to something harder to read. "I don't know what this is. It's not just corruption - it's like a living thing itself, trying to stabilize."
Kazuki tried to sit up, managing only to prop himself on one elbow. His arm trembled with the effort, and he felt weak and vulnerable. "Can you help me?"
"I can try," Suzume said, uncertainty coloring her voice. She glanced toward the door, as if hoping her father might appear. "My father would be better, but..." She straightened her shoulders. "I've been training for this my whole life. I can at least buy you time until he returns."
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
She stood, moving to a small altar in the corner of the room. As she knelt before it, Kazuki noticed for the first time the array of items laid out precisely on a red cloth - small vials of liquid, bundles of herbs, strips of paper with inked symbols, and a knife with a pearl handle inlaid with kanji.
"Is that knife...special?" Kazuki asked, trying to distract himself from the creeping sensation in his veins.
Suzume glanced at the blade. "The Shirayuki Blade. It was blessed by Tsukuyomi himself, according to legend. It can cut through spiritual bindings - the pearl handle protects the wielder from the sharpness of the blade. If it didn’t you could separate your own soul from your body." She selected it reverently. "It's been in our shrine for seven generations."
"What exactly are you going to do?" Kazuki asked, apprehension building.
"A purification ritual," Suzume replied, selecting several items. "Not to remove the yokai bond completely - that might kill you - but to bring your Kegare under control." She paused, looking back at him with those serious eyes. "It will be... unpleasant."
"Worse than this?" Kazuki gestured at his darkening veins, trying to sound braver than he felt. The helplessness stung - back home, he'd never needed anyone this badly.
A ghost of a smile crossed her face. "I hope not."
She returned to his side, kneeling gracefully. From a pouch at her waist, she withdrew a small brush and a vial of what looked like silver ink.
"I'll need to draw purification characters on your body," she explained. "Then apply a poultice to the wound itself. The final step is using my own Reishin to guide the corrupted energy into balance." She hesitated. "Do I have your permission?"
Kazuki nodded. What choice did he have?
"I'll use the Fox-Tail character for protection," Suzume murmured as she began painting cool, silver lines across his forehead. "The Kotoamatsukami characters for purification... The Binding Cord characters to anchor your spirit..."
As the brush moved over his skin, Kazuki flinched. The ink seemed to sink into his skin, to some deeper level of his body, leaving behind faint tingling traces. Suzume's breath hitched slightly as she leaned closer. He could smell the faint scent of cherry wood and sandalwood incense that clung to her robes.
"Sorry," he whispered when she paused after he jerked away from the touch of the brush on his chest.
"It's alright," she replied, smiling. "I've only done this on willing patients. My father says the unwilling ones scream much louder."
A weak laugh escaped him. "That's... not reassuring."
Next came the wound itself. Suzume carefully removed the darkened bandage, revealing what lay beneath. Kazuki's breath caught in his throat. The gash was shallow - already partially healed - but the skin around it had turned the color of squid ink, with what looked like small scales forming at the edges.
Kazuki felt his stomach lurch and suddenly everything felt far away.
Ara, ara… As she reached for a mortar containing a paste of crushed herbs and what smelled like sake, her hands trembled slightly. Suzume squared her shoulders.
The moment the paste touched his wound, Kazuki felt as if molten lead had been poured into his blood. His back arched involuntarily, a cry escaping his lips. Through watering eyes, he saw Suzume place one hand firmly on his chest, the other hovering over the wound. She winced as his body twisted under her palm.
"Focus," she commanded, though her voice was high pitched and strained. “ Breathe through the pain."
Kazuki couldn't tell if she was talking to him or herself but he tried, drawing ragged breaths. The burning sensation spread outward from the wound, racing along the darkened veins to his fingertips, toes, the crown of his head. Every nerve ending screamed.
Kiyomeru chikara, waga te ni... Ama no Iwato no hikari yo... Suzume began to chant, ancient words flowing from her lips like water. Kegare harau, ima koko ni...
"Almost there," she murmured, though her voice was tense. Beads of sweat formed on her brow. "The kegare is...resisting more than expected."
Through the haze of pain, Kazuki saw her palm begin to glow with soft blue light - reishin, channeled and focused. As she lowered it toward his wound, the dark patterns across his skin seemed to writhe, as if nests of baby snakes were trying to escape her touch.
A dark mist began to seep from Kazuki's pores, and his eyeballs began to burn. Suzume gasped but didn't pull away.
[Kegare: 12%]
[Foreign reishin detected]
The moment Suzume's glowing palm touched his side, the world exploded into chaos.
Silver light from the characters scripted on his skin clashed violently with the black as ink corruption, sending arcs of energy crackling across Kazuki's body. The room itself seemed to distort, shadows bending like reeds in a storm. Suzume gasped, her eyes widening, but she maintained her position, fingers splayed over the wound.
"Something's wrong," she hissed. "Your kegare…"
A sudden rustling sound from outside the room drew her attention. A small shadow darted beneath the door - a tiny orange fox yokai with glowing amber eyes, attracted by the power surge. Suzume cursed under her breath.
"Stay back!" she commanded, one hand still on Kazuki's wound while the other reached for an ofuda. She flung the talisman at the intruder. It struck with a flash of light, and the small yokai yelped before retreating.
The momentary distraction cost her. The energies swirling around Kazuki's wound surged...
The room around him flickered, overlaid with disjointed images—a forest clearing lit by moonlight, the flash of steel blades, golden eyes watching from shadows. Dark silhouettes swirled around him - cat-shaped, sleek and flowing like liquid, darting between larger forms. Dog faces with empty eye sockets snapped at the cat shadows, jaws wet and wide.
...vessel unmarked...
The voice of the Inugami leader echoed through Kazuki's mind, distorted.
...the Eye sees all crossings...
Through the kaleidoscope of images, Kazuki saw Suzume - her face contorted, sweat beading on her brow as she fought against the chaos. Bright blood trickled from her nose, but still she didn't release her hold.
"Fight it!" she commanded, her voice suddenly shockingly loud. "Focus on my voice, Kazuki! Find your center!"
Center. His center? Memories of Kuro—not as the betrayer, but as his companion. The weight of her as a cat on his lap as he played his game. The soft chime of her brass bell. The sensation of their minds merging, becoming something new, something powerful.
Trust me or die.
With a supreme effort, Kazuki reached inward, past the pain, past the chaos, to that quiet place where his consciousness had joined with Kuro's. It wasn't empty as he'd feared - a faint echo remained, a whisper of connection.
He seized it, focusing all his will on that single point of contact.
Kuro. Help me.
For a moment, nothing happened. Then, like a distant star blinking into existence, he felt a response - faint but unmistakable. The cat silhouettes in his vision coalesced, forming a single dark shape that reared up against the dog-faced spectres, driving them back. He heard the distant ring again of that small brass bell.
In the physical world, Suzume gasped as blue-white light suddenly erupted from beneath her palm, racing along the dark veins in Kazuki's skin. The light and darkness spiraled together, neither overwhelming the other but achieving a strange harmony.
"That's it," she whispered, her voice filled with wonder. "Balance."
[Kegare: 10% - Stabilized - ]
The chaotic visions faded, reality correcting itself like a boat coming to the surface after a wave. Kazuki found himself once more in the shrine, staring up at the wooden ceiling. The pain receded to a dull ache, and he could breathe again without feeling like his lungs were filled with fire.
He could feel a new strength flowing through his limbs - not overwhelming, but noticeable and welcome. His muscles tingled as if awakening from a deep sleep, and his senses seemed sharper.
Suzume slumped back, exhaustion evident in every line of her body. She wiped the blood from her nose with the back of her hand, regarding Kazuki with a mixture of amazement and wariness.
"What was that?" she asked, her voice hoarse.
Kazuki looked down at his body. The dark veins remained, but now they were faded, sometimes even a delicate gray, creating an intricate pattern across his skin like a living tattoo.
"I don't know," he admitted.
"This is beyond my expertise." She began gathering her supplies with trembling hands. "When my father returns…"
"I may not have that long," Kazuki interrupted, pushing himself to a sitting position. To his surprise, his body responded more readily than before. "The Inugami leader mentioned something - the Eye of Izanami. He said it 'sees all crossings.' Do you know what that means?"
Suzume clenched her jaw and looked away.. "The Eye of Izanami is... not something I should discuss but the legends say it allows its wielder to track those who cross between worlds - and to control the boundaries themselves."
Kazuki thought of the brass bell and Kuro's hastily scratched message: The Inugami master has the Eye.
"If they can track me with it," he said slowly, "then nowhere is safe."
Suzume's gaze sharpened. "You're not of this realm, are you? You're a crosser - from the Other Side."
Kazuki nodded. "I don't even know how I got here. One minute I was at the shrine on Tashirojima, the next..."
"That explains a lot," Suzume murmured. She seemed to come to a decision, straightening her shoulders. "Old Matsuda-san mentioned something similar when she arrived fifty years ago. She adapted better than the merchant who came before her - he succumbed to kegare within weeks. But Kai-san from two centuries back supposedly found a way home."
She rose, gathering the remaining supplies. "Rest tonight. Tomorrow, we'll talk more. Perhaps... perhaps there is a way to shield you from the Eye's gaze."
At the doorway, she paused, looking back at him with those serious dark eyes that now held a glimmer of something new - resolve, perhaps. Or hope.
"You're not the first crosser to find yourself in our village, Kazuki Arata. But you may be the most important."
Then she slid the door closed, leaving Kazuki alone with his thoughts and the strange new patterns flowing beneath his skin. He stared at the ceiling, feeling both more whole and more alien than before. Whatever connection remained with Kuro, it had changed him in ways he was only beginning to understand.
And in this strange borderland village, Suzume might be his only true ally.
---
[New Achievement: Come Here Often?]
[Next Chapter: The Thief and the Fox]
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Is there really a way for Kazuki to get home?
Drop your theories in the comments—I read every one.
