[Part 1/6]
"There will be no return or compensation?"
"Mm"
"...Damn. What's going on here? This is ridiculous!?"
Even as an exorcist, there was a certain softness in the action. Despite that, there was an indescribable sense of guilt, pushing away the feeling of being pulled back by the hair, and turning on my heel. I ran through the corridor of the mansion like a reception hall. In any case, I wanted to escape from here quickly and join the delegation.
It shouldn't be too late to confirm the situation later...
"...Phew. That's enough. Wake up."
"...Mother, was it okay? Returning it so easily like that?"
Mother Tengu called out to her daughter Tengu, and Kaede sat up with a start. Calm and composed, she gently touched the bump on her head with tears in her eyes.
"Sigh... You girls are so clueless about the world. Even if he is just low-ranking officials, causing trouble by imprisoning the court's retainers and keeping him in the village is going to complicate things. We managed to avoid a conflict, and now you're going to ruin everything?"
"Mmm..."
With a sigh, sharp words, and a stern look, Kaede fell silent under the reprimand. It was a valid point. A completely valid point.
In a sense, the recent kidnapping was sowhat arranged. Especially when the representative of the envoys turned out to be that Middle Counselor... Mother Tengu reminisced about the past. The incident where she led exorcists to woo the princess. About a young man who charged into a mountain and was lost the sa day.
Although it was a nuisance at the ti when one of her daughters reluctantly provided aid and nursed the noble and his disciple, leading to a fierce confrontation with the Tanuki who ca to rescue them... Who would have thought that the boy would beco the envoy's representative (noble and the others) and, through her daughter who secretly maintained contact, advise this Kaede, her superior, on how to resolve the village crisis. The world is truly unpredictable.
"...By the way, what about Tsutsuji (the tengu who fight Hina on the ambush) on? I hope he didn't go as far as to kill the Middle Counselor?"
If that were to happen, everything would indeed be ruined.
"Oh, I think that should be fine. According to him, their relationship isn't like that."
It seems they have more of a mother-son or sibling-like relationship... that's what Kaede said. Tsutsuji apparently called it "platonic." It's frustrating not understanding foreign words.
"Alright. Middle Counselor will return as soon as possible. If he stays too long, it will look suspicious. Without any lingering regrets, handle him politely and respectfully... I had hoped you would act in a similar manner as Tsutsuji."
Those above them who have been devoured by the serpent would have done the sa. ...At least for this ti.
"Still, things got really ssy... That boy have the Earth Mother Goddess blood, right? It's impossible, isn't it? Once you're hooked, you can never escape. It's addictive like a drug. It's like having opium directly injected into your head... I've been enduring it for a long ti too, you know? That boy, without a care for others, spreading a thick, lewd scent everywhere!"
"Sigh... Yeah. I understand, Mother. You couldn't resist, right? I knew that. That's why I took advantage of it. I hope he'll be deceived smoothly."
Once again, she sighed at the exposed desires of her daughter towards the end. Anyway, when he returns, he will be explained the details from various sources. And he will co to know the aning of the curse. He will also co to misunderstand the aning of the curse.
"...Wouldn't it be great if he thought that the divine punishnt of that damn snake had an effect on his mind?"
"I've prepared an escape route. Because he seems to be in a complicated situation. There might be no choice but to escape from the court. There are sweet spots, so there's a high possibility that he'll co here out of concern."
"If that happens, what about this side? It literally ans to take advantage... As expected. It's a cunning move befitting of you, mother."
"Are you praising for that?"
The daughter's final words also had a hidden aning. Since the whereabouts of the divine punishnt are unknown, it is necessary to separate to determine who or what it is targeting. If he keep his distance, the punishnt won't reach the village. If so, he should be able to overco the divine punishnt. It was their trust and calculation after the punishnt had been fully carried out.
"...Hey, what are you girls all up to?"
"""Eek!!"""
Feeling a presence, Mother Tengu bluntly opened the sliding door rcilessly, causing an avalanche. Several figures tumbled like dominoes.
"Mother..."
"Ugh... Kaede-neesan is so sneaky. Why were we on standby?"
"Yeah! Yeah! Can't we at least have a little snack on his way out?! His sweat or his seed or sothing!"
Yotachi (The mother, so it's not Isuzu, or the half-youkai exorcist whose hand was chopped by the young man representative) and Kaede, along with the Tengu, complained in a lump on the floor. The Tengu, including the young daughters (compared to Kaede), removed their masks, cloaks, and spoke in their natural voices. There were about a dozen young Tengu daughters.
The daughters of the Anma Yotachi and the crow boy...
"Sigh..."
Mother Tengu let out the deepest sigh she had ever sighed at the sight of her daughters' plight.
Tengu, a cunning youkai similar to humans, live in groups, tribes, families, and societies. Their nature is more akin to bees than birds. The offspring born from the queen are mainly females to maintain the group, with very few males who are sent to other groups as breeding studs.
Yotachi, who are only half Tengu, only partially inherit these traits. Pureblood Tengu do not send male birds to mixed bird groups. On the other hand, Yotachi herself cannot produce males for so reason, and her offspring have a stronger human bloodline, with more autonomous consciousness and individual reproduction compared to pureblood Tengu.
Of course, not just anyone will do. They are very selective. For example, soone cursed by divine blood, loved by divine blood, or soone who has accomplished divine killings like this ti.
Even for a proud Tengu, he (Tomobe) is a satisfying breeding stud.
"When I see you all girls, I understand. Unlike Kaede, you have no self-control."
Yotachi evaluated the girls' airheadedness coldly and objectively. Like father, like son. Whether from experience, personality, or lineage, girls as thoughtful as Kaede were not common. That's why this ti, she banned these girls. They might have been seducing that young man by now. Even if they tried to escape with all their might and failed, they wouldn't co back. It would have turned into a battle with the court. That would be aningless.
Ultimately, she want that young man to co to her on his own. So, she can Hide him, conceal him, confine him, and squeeze him dry... that's the best way to do it.
"But its too poor, though, right?"
She has a sympathy, and a pity. That's one way to put it. If she had to choose between the two, a parent's heart would lean towards supporting the daughters.
She wasn't cruel to her daughters to the extent of making them experience the sa feelings as herself. She was much stronger than so wandering spirit had thought.
"Is it seniority, huh? Ouch!"
"For now, all of you go take a bath. You sll terrible."
Kaede punched back at the ntion of her parent's age and ordered them to take a bath. It's not good for a household of won to have little interaction with others. Moreover, due to that snake, the generation that had interacted with people had been significantly reduced. Yotachi needed to teach them various things before that young man arrived again. At least until he was brought back to the village, they shouldn't arouse suspicion.
Well, that aside...
"...It's been a while since I laid eggs."
The mother crow, feeling nostalgic, decided to lay infertile eggs both as a release and out of a sense of nostalgia...
* * *
Legends change over ti.
For example, evil thieves and powerful families that were destroyed in the center are compared to demons and monsters. The gods of different religions change into angels and demons. Many legends co together or branch out into similar stories that spread across wide regions.
These gods were wise. They knew that knowledge is power and ignorance is a sin. They understood the importance of information, so they made strategic moves. The lack of stories about their existence was not just due to the laziness of the court; they deliberately tried to erase any traces of their power.
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