The Fierce Saintess

Episode 35: Joukyou 3 (1686) - Part 6

Your gift will give me the strength to post the next chapter, the next story.

So, Tomo's journey is about connecting with his father, previous arc we also have lots of father figure both bad and good. Kana's father love for her daughter even Kana's mother had father element to it.

I see you author, your love of your father show in your work.

*****

Two days later, at the sixth hour of dawn.

Tomonobu stepped out through the gates of the estate clad in traveler's attire fit for a townsperson—complete with arm guards, gaiters, and a sedge hat (*suge-gasa*)—accompanied by a male servant dressed in similar traveling clothes, where Kohiru was waiting as promised. Today, she wore a dark green sleeve hood (*sode-zukin*) over her head, along with arm guards and gaiters, carrying a small cloth-wrapped bundle (*furoshiki*) on her back.

Tomonobu had explained to the servant in advance that a woman he had met by chance was heading to Kyoto to visit a grave, and that they would be traveling together.

This servant was named Kisuke, a man who always accompanied Tomonobu whenever he traveled nearby. However, because it was dangerous for a young master like Tomonobu to travel while openly being waited on by a servant, they had made it a practice to pretend to be father and son during their journeys.

Tomonobu explained this arrangement to Kohiru as well, securing her consent to treat her as his older sister for the duration of the trip.

「So while we travel, I get to call you 'Little Brother'! In that case, I will call him 'Father' and you 'Tomo'.」

Kohiru spoke with delight, softly repeating "Father, Tomo, Father, Tomo" to herself several times. And then:

「Alright, perfect. I have it down! Now, Tomo, try calling me 'Big Sister' too.」

「Er... ah, B-Big Sister...」

「Yes, Tomo!」

Despite having suggested the sibling pretense himself, Tomonobu felt a wave of bashfulness wash over him and reflexively hid his face behind his sedge hat. Kohiru responded with a cheerful smile before turning to face Kisuke.

「My name is Kohiru. Father, it is a pleasure to be in your care.」

With those words, she bowed her head.

Kisuke returned the bow, saying, 「Likewise,」 before asking about the destination for the grave visit. When Kohiru replied that it was Shōji-ji Temple, Kisuke confirmed, 「Ah, Shōji-ji Temple of the Ōhara-in Monastery on Mount Oshio?」 and nodded, adding that crossing the Yodo River would be the fastest route before stepping forward to lead the way.

Having examined a map yesterday, Tomonobu understood that they would first head toward Kyoto along the Yamato Highway, then veer off to follow the road running alongside the Kizu River. After that, they would take a boat across to Yamazaki and set off for the temple.

The sky was crystal clear, and while it would likely grow hot during the day, the early morning hour and the shade of the trees lining the highway made for a pleasant breeze. By walking a short distance behind Kisuke, Tomonobu and Kohiru were able to speak to their hearts' content.

Tomonobu began speaking of his bad luck ever since his father's sudden death four years ago, as well as his dissatisfaction at being treated as a mere ordinary apprentice candidate despite being the next family head. Kohiru listened to it all with deep sympathy, lamenting Tomonobu's misfortune. She did the exact same when he gave voice to his resentment toward Princess Kana.

「There is a princess in the house who was bestowed divine messengers despite not even being able to become an Onmyouji. What is more, she walks them around the estate as if showing them off...」

「How awful... Divine messengers are not playthings. Is there truly such a princess?」

Encouraged by her agreeing words, his complaints poured forth without restraint.

「Indeed. On top of that, she makes the divine messengers perform tricks and watches them alongside her maidservants. When I think that someone like that can be granted divine messengers simply because she belongs to the Tsuchimikado family, it frustrates me so much...」

「To think things have come to such a state... In the past, only young masters who studied earnestly to become Onmyouji were granted divine messengers. Ah... could it be that this princess is the current head's only child?」

To Kohiru, who surmised that such a background must be why even someone like her was granted them, Tomonobu shook his head.

「She has an elder brother and a younger brother. What is more, I hear their family will gain yet another sibling next year.」

At those words, Kohiru's eyes widened in surprise.

「Then, even though there were already three children, that princess alone was granted divine messengers?」

「No, her elder brother—the next head—was also granted one last year, though his is only a Color-Bearer. From the looks of it, the princess is simply a favorite of Lady Kuzunoha...」

「Ah, I see...」

That explanation seemed to convince her. From there, as if to shift the topic, Kohiru began sharing her own experiences as a divine messenger—her training in the Hermit Realm, the Naming Ceremony, and her former master, Akitaka.

Particularly when the topic turned to Akitaka, Kohiru's voice grew passionate and eloquent.

She explained that she and her companion had received their names when Akitaka was ten years old.

「Lord Akitaka was still called Lord Fukuju-maru back then, but even at such a young age, he was a splendid master.」

She was likely reminiscing about those days. Seeing her expression turn dreamy, Tomonobu felt a sharp, stinging pain deep within his chest. Even so, he had no desire to interrupt her enjoyable tale, so he prompted her to continue.

「After he was adopted into the Kadenokōji family at age thirteen, he spent his time traveling back and forth between Kyoto and Yamato while pursuing his studies. In those days, war was raging everywhere you looked, so traveling was quite an ordeal. To make it clear that we were a noble procession, we traveled in large numbers, even going so far as to use ox carts.」

Kohiru laughed, saying it was much more relaxed nowadays. Hearing that, however, Tomonobu felt somewhat self-conscious about their modest journey disguised as commoners.

「That... must have been incomparably more grand than our journey now.」

「All of that was just for appearance. Did you know, Tomo? Ox carts make your bottom sore right away! Besides, by the time Master turned fifteen, Hayate became able to carry him and race across the land, so traveling back and forth became effortless after that.」

She spoke with amusement about a time when they sprinted right past the main encampment of a famous warlord in the middle of the night, causing a grand uproar as the soldiers mistook them for a monster.

「We served him while occasionally training in the Hermit Realm as well. I focused mainly on transformation magic, while Hayate trained in levitation magic. We used to say that eventually we would be able to carry Master and soar through the sky, and Master said he was looking forward to it too... But one summer, he suddenly fell ill... After being stricken with a high fever and unbearable itching from blisters all over his body, it was over in the blink of an eye...」

Kohiru's face, which had been animated just moments before, twisted in sorrow.

「There was nothing we could do. Even though we were divine messengers, we were completely useless.」

She smiled forlornly, recalling how she had desperately prayed to Yakushi Nyorai hoping to somehow save him, while Hayate had rushed off to draw water from the Waterfall of Medicinal Power.

「Was it not possible to request Lady Komachi to grant you medicine from the Hermit Realm?」

「For a divine messenger, the Hermit Realm is strictly a place for training. Therefore, while we may receive the teachings of Yakushi Nyorai and learn how to make medicine ourselves, we are never permitted to bring items out from the Hermit Realm.」

Of course, the members of the Kadenokōji family had also tried everything within their power. In the end, however, they were unable to save him.

Within Onmyoudou, there were several incantations meant to heal wounds or purify poisons. In fact, for minor scrapes, even the current Tomonobu could manage a cure. However, those capable of utilizing incantations effective against disease were exceedingly few.

(An incantation is not something you can just chant. Unless you properly understand the gods and Buddhas, resonate and align your divine power with their presence, and draw out the sacred power embedded within the words, it will have no effect. Among the Onmyouji today, the only one capable of such a feat is the current head, Lord Yasutomi.)

「After that, as I mentioned, I wandered aimlessly through the places filled with memories of Master. That is, until I met you, Tomo.」

At those words, Tomonobu remembered their very first encounter. Kohiru had mistaken him for Akitaka. She had said it was because their spiritual energy felt so similar. And even now...

「When I am with you, Tomo, I feel a strange sense of peace. Besides, even when I called for him using the Soul-Calling Technique, he has not answered for over ten years... Surely that means...」

Though her sentence trailed off slightly, Kohiru's wistful expression seemed to hold hope and expectation—as if she believed, or desperately wished, that Tomonobu was Akitaka's reincarnation.

The reincarnation of someone past. Given his family's duties, Tomonobu had heard a few such tales himself. Yet never before had he found himself wishing so earnestly that it were true.

If he truly were the reincarnation of Akitaka, it would dramatically increase the chances of Lady Komachi recognizing him as Kohiru's new master.

(If that happens, I will be the master of a Mark-Bearer divine messenger. I will be able to show up every single person who has treated me with cold indifference until now!)

＊＊＊

The journey progressed smoothly, and that evening they decided to take up lodging at Hashimoto.

Hashimoto Post was an intermediate post town (*ai-no-shuku*) situated between Hirakata Post and Yodo Post. However, due to its proximity to a ferry landing and the large number of pilgrims visiting Iwashimizu Hachimangū Shrine, it was a bustling, lively town.

It also featured a red-light district, where numerous soliciting women radiated glamorous charm amidst the gathering dusk.

Kohiru insisted on staying at a cheap wood-burning inn (*kichin-yado*), but Tomonobu refused to yield, pointing out their agreement to pose as a family. In the end, they settled on renting a room with an adjoining suite at a standard inn (*hira-hatago*).

After dinner, Tomonobu handed Kisuke some money for drinks and snacks to send him out of the room, then decided to ask Kohiru the question that had been weighing on his mind.

「Could you tell me what kind of technique this Soul-Calling Technique (*Konko-no-jutsu*) you mentioned is? It isn't a forbidden art like the Soul-Returning Technique (*Hangon-no-jutsu*), is it...?」

The Soul-Returning Technique was a forbidden art meant to bring the dead back to life.

「No, it is nothing so grand. It is merely a technique to summon the soul of a departed person from the netherworld into a medium so that one may converse with them. You can think of it as something closer to the spiritual channeling (kuchiyose) performed by shrine maidens...」

Those words gave Tomonobu the final push he needed. He gave voice to the wish he had harbored for so long.

「Would it be possible for you to use that technique on me? I wish to speak with my father.」

However, Kohiru slowly and sorrowfully shook her head.

「It is not a technique that may be used on just anyone. Furthermore, performing it drains a considerable amount of divine power from both parties. If you were my master, Lord Tomonobu, it would be no problem...」

She explained that when a master-servant bond was forged, the divine powers of both individuals gained affinity with one another, reducing the consumed divine power by more than half.

「...Is there no way for me to become your master? For instance, by inheriting the position of master...?」

「I cannot say for certain... I have never heard of a divine messenger serving two masters. However, if I could return the name granted to me by my previous master, then perhaps...」

Receiving a name was a form of contract, but also a binding curse. Perhaps for that reason, more than half of the divine messengers who lost their masters departed for the netherworld alongside them. The ones who remained would return to the Inari deity, living out quiet lives while caring for and guiding newly born divine messengers.

「Is it possible to return a name?」

「If I were granted an audience with Lady Komachi, I could ask her. But because I have been acting selfishly on my own for so long, I do not even know if she would agree to meet me...」

「Still, there is a chance it can be returned, is there not? In that case, we must go to the mountain of Fushimi after all. I hear that many divine attendants frequent that mountain. Who is to say there isn't someone among them who might lend you a hand!」

Swallowed up by Tomonobu's momentum—insisting that above all else, they ought to try everything within their power—Kohiru lowered her gaze in deep thought. At last, she raised her head.

「You are right. If I do not move forward, nothing will advance. Thank you, Tomo. Once we have finished visiting the grave, I shall go to the mountain.」

Her face, filled with newfound resolve, flushed red, and her eyes sparkled with a golden radiance.