Chapter 323: An Unexpected Person |
UK. London.
In a pitch-black room devoid of a single speck of light, a sliver of cold white light flickered into existence.
It was as if at the end of all things, everything had collapsed into a singular point, leaving the universe with nothing but a void that devoured even the darkness itself. Then, the Big Bang that created all existence occurred, and light was born.
At first, it was a single, watery sphere of light, which then multiplied into hundreds of crystalline orbs.
Within each sphere flickered a myriad of scenes, their faint luminescence illuminating the center of the room.
Queen Vergalia sat on an utterly ordinary chair, her hands folded in her lap. Her gaze swept over every orb of light in the room, her eyes as tender as if she were looking at her own children.
The scenes and the number of these spheres were exactly the same as when they were first shown to Hoshino Gen.
After an unknown amount of time, Vergalia let out a low sigh.
She gently waved her hand. In the many dark corners of the room untouched by the faint glow of the hundreds of light spheres, countless piercing crimson lights suddenly erupted.
But now, the guest had left.
With the black cloth lifted, the hideous things that had always been there were naturally exposed once more.
The number of light spheres rapidly multiplied. It was as if the towering tree known as the future had suddenly sprouted countless twisting, intertwining branches, completely enveloping the originally verdant leaves. The beauty of the past was replaced by decay, vanishing like fleeting smoke.
The cold white light emitted by the nearly one hundred orbs in the center of the room was instantly devoured by the endless crimson.
Every single red sphere displayed the exact same image—
A crimson, hollow eye that occupied the entire space of the frame.
The eyes stared in perfect unison at Vergalia in the center of the room, as well as at the white orbs that stood out from the rest, shining like dim beacons of hope.
"As expected, I still prefer blue," Vergalia sighed, lowering her eyes.
......
Tokyo.
Inside the spacious reception area of the antique shop, it actually felt a bit crowded at this moment.
This was because Asaba Shinichi had not come alone. Aside from the smiling Takasugi Yusuke, there were several other familiar faces by his side.
While Hoshino Gen wasn't particularly surprised to see the sisters Moriya Tsukiko and Moriya Seiko, as well as Amamiya Sashi here, he was genuinely caught off guard when he saw Chiyo Uzuki—sporting long pink hair and a JK mini-skirt—leaning forward with a beaming smile to greet him.
"Hehe," Chiyo Uzuki chuckled slyly, catching the momentary expression on Hoshino Gen's face. "Didn't expect me to come to Tokyo, did you?"
Hoshino Gen truly hadn't expected it. On the eve of his death, the previous Guji of the Chiyo family in Kyoto had divided his power and the millennia-old karma inherited by the Chiyo family into two parts, passing them down to his niece Sasaki Ayane and the collateral branch member, Chiyo Uzuki.
Sasaki Ayane had inherited seventy percent of this massive legacy, while the remaining thirty percent went to Chiyo Uzuki, the girl currently standing before him dressed like a J-Fashion style girl.
It was one thing for Sasaki Ayane, who had taken the majority of the karmic inheritance, to return to Tokyo, but the girl right in front of him was a direct member of the Chiyo family. With Chiyo Uzuki also leaving Kyoto, didn't that mean the Chiyo family, which had guarded the Take-Mikazuchi Shrine for over a millennium, was currently at its weakest? Without an Heir to Legacy keeping watch, wouldn't the seal they guarded be at risk of being broken by the Yamata no Orochi at any moment?
Hoshino Gen raised an eyebrow but remained silent. However, Chiyo Uzuki easily guessed his thoughts. She smiled and said, "Why do all three of you react the exact same way when you see me? Fine, it looks like I'll have to explain it again."
"Forget it, your explanations are always full of nonsense. Let me do it!" Asaba Shinichi suddenly walked over, interrupting as he patted Chiyo Uzuki on the shoulder. He then strolled over to the bay window and sat down.
"Simply put, their underground seal is incredibly sturdy. Even without the karma suppressing it, there won't be any issues for a few years. On top of that, once this girl turns twenty and comes of age, she has to take over the position of this generation's Guji. From then on, she'll never be able to leave Kyoto again. So, she threw a massive tantrum within her clan for several days until the clan elders finally agreed to let her out to play for a few years."
Chiyo Uzuki stuck out her tongue, hiding her hands behind her back. "That is pretty much it, more or less."
Hoshino Gen nodded in understanding. His gaze then shifted toward Moriya Tsukiko, who had been standing by the door ever since entering, looking somewhat overwhelmed as she tightly held her sister's hand to keep her from running around.
Following Hoshino Gen's line of sight, Asaba Shinichi looked over as well. He rubbed his forehead with a sigh and waved Moriya Tsukiko over. "I told you, your identity is different now. Stop acting so timid and constrained wherever you go. This is my buddy's territory, just treat it like your own home."
Hoshino Gen couldn't help but shoot him a sideways glance, though he didn't bother exposing his posturing over such a trivial matter.
Hearing this, Moriya Tsukiko pursed her lips, but still led her sister over by the hand.
Asaba Shinichi stood up from the bay window and threw an arm around Moriya Tsukiko's shoulders, chuckling as he declared, "Let me introduce you. This is my newly hired assistant and secretary."
Moriya Tsukiko's pretty face flushed a bright red from his embrace. Seeing her endure it—clearly wanting to break free but not daring to make Asaba Shinichi lose face in public—made even Hoshino Gen chuckle softly.
Then, Asaba Shinichi turned to Moriya Tsukiko and said, "Let me introduce you as well. This is my buddy, Hoshino Gen. When you got hit back then, this guy was the one who saved your life."
"Ah?" Moriya Tsukiko was instantly startled. Forgetting all her previous reservations, she squirmed out of Asaba Shinichi's grasp and gave Hoshino Gen a deep, ninety-degree bow. "Thank... thank you, thank you so much..."
"I didn't know you were the person we were coming to see. I am so sorry for not preparing a thank-you gift..."
"Alright, alright!" Asaba Shinichi rolled his eyes behind his sunglasses. Reaching out, he grabbed her shoulders and pulled her upright. "This guy only saved you as a favor to Yusuke. It had nothing to do with you."
After saying that, he turned his head and shouted toward Takasugi Yusuke, who had somehow already found a stool and sat down, currently chatting about god-knows-what with Amamiya Sashi. "Ain't that right, Yusuke?"
Takasugi Yusuke couldn't be bothered to entertain him, merely offering a smiling wave to Hoshino Gen as a greeting.
While they were busy talking, the study group gathered around the low table naturally could not stay quiet the entire time just watching the show.
In fact, the moment Asaba Shinichi had brought the group inside, Oguri Aino—whose personality was even more energetic and erratic than Suzuki Sawami's—couldn't help but let out a tiny gasp. "Whoa! They are all super handsome men and beautiful women!"