69novels Chapter 198 Fallen Heaven Cult
Chapter 198 Fallen Heaven Cult
Chapter 198 Fallen Heaven Sect (two in one)
"..." Zenji Akira looked at Su Wu first.
Is it alright for this person to be here? Gojo Haru said he's a junior member of the Gojo family, but…
Zenin Akira had met almost all the members of the Gojo family in Kyoto, and there wasn't a single one named Gojo Kiri.
So they must be from outside Kyoto. Is such a junior... believable?
"Don't worry, Kiri-kun is trustworthy." Gojo Haru said with a smile, though it was unclear where his trust came from.
Or perhaps... it's his own confidence in his abilities.
"...Regarding the curse masters, they joined forces with the curse spirits to establish a church..." Zenin Akira explained.
"The Fallen Angels Cult?" Gojo Haru immediately recalled the name of that cult.
Fallen from heaven? That's quite an arrogant statement.
Su Wu became interested and sat up straighter.
"One of the sorcerers from the Zenin family discovered their hideout while on a mission, but..." Zenin Akira frowned as he said this.
"When they were discovered, everyone inside had already been killed."
"It was like being cut into several pieces at the same time," Zenin Akira said in a low voice, recalling the scene he had witnessed. "There were even traces of it being gnawed on."
Some of the corpses at the scene looked as if they had been gnawed by wild animals, with their bones even being chewed up by something unknown.
The conclusion drawn from the teeth marks, however, was... a person.
"Sigh..." Su Wu sat up straighter. "And then?" he asked curiously.
"The Fallen Cult was wiped out, and that was the end of it." Zenin Akira said coldly. "The only thing the Zenin family is hesitating about is whether to investigate who was responsible for this tragedy."
The first crime scene was discovered by the Zen-in family. Since the dead were all curse masters and there were no ordinary people, the Emperor was not notified.
The matter between sorcerers and curse masters is left to them to resolve themselves.
As long as it doesn't involve ordinary people in Kyoto, they don't need to report it; that's their privilege.
"What exactly is the Fallen Angels Cult?" Su Wu asked, voicing her curiosity.
Su Wu listened to them talking about the Fallen Gods, but he didn't feel anything because he had never heard of this religion before.
It sounds familiar, like I've heard it somewhere before.
But the term "fallen god" isn't exactly a niche term; it's very popular in chuunibyou (adolescent delusions of grandeur) novels, so it's not surprising that you've heard of it.
"It was a cult with strong beliefs. They worshipped Susanoo and had a large number of members. For a time, they were very active," Gojo Haru explained.
"Susanoo..." Su Wu nodded in sudden realization.
He knew this: Amaterasu Tsukuyomi Susanoo, also known as the Three Noble Sons, was a Japanese god, born of Izanami and Izanagi.
However, the fact that a sorcerer would believe in a god is quite surprising...
It's also possible that those sorcerers were too weak.
Su Wu had no faith; after all, who would have faith in something they could kill?
"So, you've come here to discuss what to do with the Gojo family?" Su Wu then looked at Zenji Akira.
The other party definitely didn't come just to chat; they probably felt this matter was a bit tricky and wanted to find someone to share the burden.
So the Gojo family, where Gojo Haru was located, was chosen.
"...Spare me." Gojo Haru leaned back. "I don't want to get involved in these matters."
Unlike Gojo Satoru, who has a strong sense of responsibility for the future and works 007, Gojo Haru is only willing to be a hands-off manager, bearing the title of head of the family and acting as the pillar of the family, without caring about anything else.
"...We are worried that a terrible monster has been born from the Fallen Cult," Zenin Akira said, expressing his concerns.
Those who died were all individuals with cursed powers, and their strength was not weak; moreover, they died at the same time and in the same place.
Can't I be worried that something might happen?
"Worrying now is useless, we can't find it anyway..." Su Wu yawned. "If a monster really were born, there would be no need to look for it, right?"
"Just like how famous monsters do great things to become even more famous."
Just wait for them to show themselves; why bother chasing after them?
"Kiri-kun is right," Gojo Haru nodded in agreement.
"..." Zen-in Akira frowned.
Since that's the case, he didn't say anything more.
The Zen-in family members themselves were unwilling to take action, fearing they would be given additional tasks, so they pushed him to Gojo Haru, trying to pass the matter on to the Gojo family.
Rather than wasting time searching for people, most sorcerers prefer to go directly to kill the cursed spirits after receiving the mission location.
"Oh, right, why don't you go and have a chat with the Kamo family?" Su Wu looked at Zenji Akira.
Why do they always turn to the Gojo family when something happens? Isn't the Kamo family one of the three great families?
Speaking of which, this family's presence seems to have never been very high.
"Kamo...the only person in their generation who has awakened the Crimson Blood Technique is two years old," Zenin Akira said with a suspicious tone.
The others aren't very strong...
Overall, the Gojo family, thanks to the presence of Gojo Haru, is far superior in strength and is the best partner.
"...Ah..." Su Wu hesitated, wanting to say something but stopping herself.
Two years old... what can he do? Even if he's the head of the family, he can't talk to people about serious matters.
The successors of the three main families in this generation have actually fallen behind the Kamo family.
That's fine.
"What were you talking about before?" Zenin Akira changed the subject.
He remembered that when he arrived, the two seemed to be talking about something related to the Ten Shadows.
"We're talking about the latest excitement in Kyoto—the Painted Skin Demon." Gojo Haru said with a smile, his tone natural.
"Painted Skin... Oh, that female ghost!" Zenji Akira thought for a moment and remembered.
He had paid attention to it before, but later found out that it was under the jurisdiction of Onmyoji, so he stopped paying attention.
"So, you're saying the Onmyoji haven't been dealt with yet?" Zenin Akira's tone was cold and full of mockery.
"They say they're still looking for traces of her." Gojo Haru smiled, her eyes crinkling.
"What a piece of trash." Zenji Akira scoffed.
Onmyoji and sorcerers seem to be inherently incompatible.
"Master, Lord Akimoto has come to pay his respects." A maidservant moved over and announced respectfully.
"Akimoto? Bring him over." Gojo Haru sat up.
"This isn't..." Zenin Akira seemed to have thought of something, his face darkening.
The maid received Gojo Haru's order and left to lead the way.
Five minutes later, a figure dressed in a white hunting robe and wearing a black hat followed behind a maid.
This outfit is typical and common attire for Japanese aristocratic men in anime.
Average appearance, ordinary middle-aged man.
It seems that Gojo Haru and Zenin Akira are from two different worlds, with Gojo Haru and Zenin Akira having their own built-in beauty filters.
Of course, Su Wu is on the same level as these two who used beauty filters.
"Lord Haru, you have to help us." An ordinary middle-aged man came up to Gojo Haru and said this on the spot.
"...I knew it." Zenin Akira sneered.
Because Haruo Gojo has six eyes, there's practically nothing that can be hidden from his eyes, so... from childhood to adulthood, this guy has often been borrowed and passed around by various parties.
"So you've realized you're useless and come here to call for reinforcements, huh?" Zenin Akira said sarcastically.
"This is an order from the Emperor, requesting Lord Haru to assist us in resolving the Painted Skin Demon incident as soon as possible," Akimoto said without a hint of guilt, his head held high.
"It's the Emperor's order, there's nothing we can do about it..." Gojo Haru stood up with a smile.
"Mist-kun, would you like to come with me?" he asked the boy, turning to him.
"Of course," Su Wu replied without hesitation as she stood up.
This was... a plan he had written for himself long ago.
Zenji Akira thought for a moment, then simply got up as well.
Akimoto glanced at Su Wu, who was sitting opposite him, but seeing her white hair, white eyebrows, and white eyelashes, he didn't say anything.
That attitude made it seem as if Su Wu was being treated as Gojo Haru's illegitimate child.
Wait a minute... their ages... seem quite right.
If Gojo Haru had married earlier, she certainly would have had a son as old as Su Wu.
"This is the place where the ghost's aura finally disappeared. Once you get here, you can't sense it anymore." Akimoto led them to a place.
Simply put, it is located at the border between the commoners' area and the nobles' area.
All those who died were young and beautiful noblewomen.
"...I suspect..." Akimoto hesitated, then stopped.
"What are you going to do?" Gojo Haru didn't ask him what he suspected, she just asked this question.
To be honest, those present basically knew what the other party was suspicious of.
The suspicion is that the painted-skin demon is hiding in the noble mansion.
It's perfectly normal that noble residences are protected by barriers, so it's not surprising that they can't sense the presence of demons or ghosts.
However, when it involves nobles, especially when it is unclear which noble they are, one must be very careful in gauging the appropriate boundaries.
"Well...should we ask him privately first?" Akimoto said cautiously.
He was a commoner Onmyoji with no special background, but decent skills. So the matter of the Painted Skin Demon was passed around among the Onmyoji with powerful backgrounds, and eventually it fell on him.
Having finally risen from a commoner to become an Onmyoji, even though his status in the Onmyodo was still not high, he never thought he would lose his Onmyoji status.
"What do you think, Kiri-kun?" Gojo Haru didn't answer, but looked at the boy beside him.
"Just ask which family has recently acquired a beautiful woman, and you'll know," the white-haired young man said with a light laugh.
"Since all those who died were beautiful noblewomen, that painted-skin ghost must be quite beautiful by now," he said.
The demons and monsters born from him, yet he has never seen them with his own eyes.
Akimoto took a handful of white paper from the sleeve of his hunting robe, cut it into the shape of a butterfly, placed it in front of him, blew on it, and the paper butterfly turned into a real butterfly, flying towards the various mansions.
It's similar to scattering beans to create soldiers, except here they're playing with paper figures.
"You're asking the butterflies to ask you questions? They... can't talk, can they?" Su Wu couldn't help but ask, recalling the anime's plot.
I remember once that paper doll shikigami couldn't speak, even Abe no Seimei's. Could it be that this guy's shikigami is even more powerful than Abe no Seimei's?
"...I forgot." Akimoto paused for a moment before saying.
"..." Su Wu was speechless for a moment.
"You're as unreliable as ever," Zenin Akira retorted, his expression a mix of mockery and...disappointment.
Akimoto is often bullied by other Onmyoji. All sorts of troublesome tasks, tasks that others are too lazy to bother with, are dumped on him.
Because the probability of going on missions is higher, the probability of encountering sorcerers while out and about is also higher.
Zenji Akira had encountered the other party several times, and almost every time, Akimoto would run into some trouble.
Over time, Zenji Akira's impression that Onmyoji were unreliable became ingrained in his very being.
"I'll just go door-to-door and ask..." Akimoto said after thinking for a moment.
It's really admirable that he finally decided to do it.
In fact, before Akimoto could even go door to door asking if anyone had an extra beautiful woman, someone came to his door on their own initiative.
A middle-aged man dressed in court robes dragged a young man who was bound by ropes to them.
"Tell me, how did you meet that monster, and how did you bring it home?" The middle-aged man kicked the young man in the knee, causing him to stagger and almost fall, while cursing.
"Xiao Wei is not a monster," the young man retorted, his face flushed.
"Shut up." The middle-aged man slapped him across the face and scolded him.
That slap was hard enough; the man's two hands immediately swelled up, and even the red veins were clearly visible.
"Lord Ping, you..." Zenji Akira frowned.
The whole thing was just a show put on in front of them to distance the son from the female ghost.
When asked, they said they were blinded by demons and ghosts, and that's why they did these things.
This is the way things are done these days. Zenin Akira is used to it. All he can say is—stop pretending. He's tired of seeing it. You're the xxth person to act like this.
"I only heard about this from the maid today. Two weeks ago, this boy brought a woman of suspicious identity home and hid her in his room, and he wouldn't even let the maid know," the middle-aged man sighed, seemingly extremely angry.
"Demons and ghosts are always good at deceiving people. My youngest son has been simple-minded since he was a child and is easily deceived..." As he spoke, he gave his son, who was about to refute him, a fierce warning look.
"Where is Xiaowei now? Take me there directly," Qiuyuan asked urgently.
Working people just want to finish their tasks quickly so they can go home.
"Please follow me." The middle-aged man gestured.
Akimoto completely forgot about Gojo Haru and the others standing nearby, and left with the man.
"This means... they just abandoned us without even using Six Eyes?" Su Wu blinked and asked.
"You'll get used to it." Gojo Haru didn't mind.
Most of the time, people notice him because of his six eyes.
Identify him by those unique eyes.
He wasn't called Gojo Haru by other people's names either.
That's what people have always called him, "the six-eyed one from the Gojo family."
He = Six Eyes = A useful tool.
Even after he became very strong, the aura of the six-eyed man always remained above him.
It's normal for Gojo's family to have six eyes.
After all, he was hailed from birth as the person who maintained the balance of time since Abe no Seimei.
During the Heian period, demons and spirits roamed freely, and cursed spirits abounded, their power surpassing that of humans.
Later, with the arrival of Abe no Seimei, a pillar of balance was established between humans and demons.
But Lord Seimei was old and would one day leave this world.
Thus... the birth of Gojo Haru signifies the continuation of balance.
"I was born to maintain the balance of the world," Gojo Haru said.
Therefore, he was given high expectations from birth, and the emperor bestowed honors upon him.
Because of those eyes, she was considered to be of Amaterasu's bloodline and was thus given the title of Divine Child.
In short, the symbolic significance of Gojo Haru is greater than the significance of his existence as a person.
"Sigh..." Su Wu blinked.
This is completely contrary to the claim by Gojo Satoru that he broke the balance of the world at birth.
I feel that the idea of breaking the balance is cooler.
(End of this chapter)