No matter how much Jizo tried to shake off the bad feeling he had, instead of decreasing, it was increasing severalfold, giving him the sense that something terrible was going to happen.
He instinctively started moving towards the door before him.
"____"
But his hands were grabbed by a green snake tightly binding them.
"Where do you think you are going, Jizo? Hagoromo-sama has clearly stated that she would be having a private audience with the continental leader."
With a firm tone, Kyokotsu narrowed her eyes at Jizo after stopping him from moving forward towards the door.
"____"
'Fuck you... Kyokotsu, why are you always targeting me.'
In his mind, Jizo cursed Kyokotsu, who always meddled in his business.
"I want to check on Hagoromo-sama... We can't leave her alone at this critical moment with an outsider. Who knows if he is a friend or a foe..."
Jizo's mind raced and came up with a reason to try to persuade Kyokotsu and the other Kyoto yōkai to follow him.
"____"
Hearing Kyokotsu's words, all the yōkai present became silent for a few seconds.
Hahahaha~
"Did you hear that? Jizo, I think most of the area in your head is occupied by your big fat eye, leaving behind only a tiny room for brain development."
Kyokotsu laughed loudly at Jizo, whose face darkened as he gritted his teeth and left the area.
Along with her, the other Kyoto yōkai also laughed at Jizo, who was running away in embarrassment.
After Jizo left, the smile on Kyokotsu's face vanished, and she looked in the direction where Jizo had left with emotionless eyes.
'What are you hiding, Jizo? I have a nagging feeling that something is very wrong with you. Even though, in my memory, you are a reliable comrade, for some reason, I can't accept it.'
Her look lingered on the departing figure of Jizo for a few moments while Kyokotsu's eyes reflected suspicion.
Inside Kyoto Yōkai's base...
Looking at the old yōkai before her, whose emotions were in turmoil from the moment she said she couldn't remember him, Hagoromo's eyes narrowed. She was confused this time, and Leo's mischievous eyes added fuel.
"____"
Hehe~
"You heard me right, Hagoromo Gitsune, he is a former member of the Kyoto faction and none other than your strong right-hand man."
With a giggle, Leo nodded his head and once again repeated his words, which made Hagoromo look at the Great Tengu for a full minute.
No matter how hard she tried to remember the Tengu yōkai before her, she couldn't remember him.
"Do you think this is a joke? I remember every member of my faction. If he is a former member of my yōkai faction, then why don't I remember him? And why did he leave?"
With clear irritation visible on her face, Hagoromo Gitsune felt Leo was playing with her, telling false stories to prank her.
Sigh~
"Great Tengu, you can explain it to her."
With a sigh, Leo turned to the Great Tengu and asked him to explain to Hagoromo what happened.
The truth, which had been buried for hundreds of years, had left a huge scar in his mind.
Huff~
Taking a deep breath to calm himself, the Great Tengu started explaining the truth, which had been buried for a long time.
Flashback...
The Great Tengu was once a prominent and powerful figure among the Kyoto yōkai faction, known for his influence and strength.
After a series of conflicts and power struggles, his presence became a threat to the plans of Minagoroshi Jizo.
So Minagoroshi Jizo came to eliminate the Great Tengu without causing a major stir.
When the Great Tengu was with Hagoromo Gitsune, Jizo felt he couldn't manipulate her; he needed to replace the Great Tengu.
Minagoroshi Jizo, being a manipulative and dark-hearted yōkai, could not only control people but also erase their memories.
To eliminate the influence of the Great Tengu without causing a major revolt among the yōkai, Jizo devised a plan to erase everyone's memory of the Great Tengu.
This would ensure that no one would question his absence or be aware of what had happened to him.
After Jizo erased everyone's memory of the Great Tengu, the yōkai who once served or revered him no longer remembered him.
The Great Tengu's legacy, power, and authority were completely obliterated in the minds of the Kyoto yōkai.
He even sealed the Great Tengu to prevent further problems with his plan.
Flashback ends...
"____"
Hearing the story, black lines covered Hagoromo's face. She couldn't believe what the Great Tengu before her had said.
But feeling the emotions of the Great Tengu, she couldn't help but get upset, and her anger started to rise.
She felt anger, sadness, and pain when the Great Tengu was telling her what had exactly happened.
Her eyes, which were searching for an answer, once again landed on Leo.
"Why would Jizo manipulate us all?"
With a complicated look on her face, Hagoromo Gitsune asked Leo, but this time her murderous intent was skyrocketing.
"____"
Not answering her question, Leo just pointed at her belly.
Even though she didn't get an answer, the simple action of pointing at her belly made her eyes widen.
"Impossible... He did all this for my son. He wants to kill my son."
Not fully understanding what Leo wanted to say, Hagoromo rose in anger and stood from the bed, ready to deal with Jizo.
"____"
Sigh~
'You've got it all wrong...'
Shaking his head, Leo caught Hagoromo's hand firmly. No matter how much she tried to free herself, she couldn't.
"Listen fully, will you... You got it half correct. Yes, he did all this for your son. But not as an enemy, but as a follower. He was following the order of his lord."
No matter how much force she used, she couldn't free herself. She turned to look at Leo with narrowed eyes, wanting to know if Leo was going to protect Jizo.
"____"
"What do you mean? Why would my son want to manipulate me?"
Hearing Leo's answer, if it wasn't for her ability to detect the emotions of a person, she would have thought that the person before her was spouting nonsense.
"Well, he is not your biological son, right..."
Nodding his head, Leo's playful demeanour changed to a serious one, and he asked her a question that made her eyes widen.
Seimei was a human who envied his stepmother, who loved him dearly, for her immortality and power.
During his pursuit, he managed to make many yōkai follow him as he bolstered his ambition of becoming a perfect existence and making yōkai a superior force in this world.
Jizo is one of Seimei's trusted allies, who gave his loyalty to him to achieve a world where only yōkai exist.
After Hago Gitsune died, Seimei couldn't fully believe in his mother's promise to him.
So he assigned his trusted ally, Minagoroshi Jizo, the long-term task of manipulating Hagoromo Gitsune, who would be reborn again.
'Who knows what if Mother decides not to do as she promised me.'
These were the only thoughts before Seimei died as a human, with many questions weighing him down to his death.
"Why would Seimei want to manipulate me? Doesn't he believe me?"
Hearing her son doesn't believe her and wants to manipulate her behind her back made Hagoromo feel hurt.
Her dead eyes became sad, reminiscing about the past when she loved and cared for him when he was a child.
"You know the truth deep inside you, Hagoromo. He never loved you; he only wanted to use you. So he could get his hands on yōkai blood and a perfect body. If he achieved his goal, he wouldn't even think twice before he struck at you so he could kill you."
After a few moments of silence, Leo broke down the truth fully to Hagoromo Kitsune.
"____"
Hearing the full truth, Hagoromo didn't reply. Only her body shivered when Leo mentioned Seimei's name.
"I know you won't believe me. So here's the bet: I give you my word that my forces won't stop you from destroying the four pillars and won't interfere with your plan of resurrecting your son. But if your son betrays you, I win the bet, and then you belong to me."
Leaving behind his words, Leo left with a big electric spark and was later followed by the Great Tengu, who looked at his former leader for a few moments before leaving the way he had come.
Ding~
Vibrate~
The investigation team, who were waiting outside along with the Kyoto yōkai for the meeting with their leader to end, received a message on their membership cards, notifying them that the meeting had ended, their task was complete, and they could return.
"Guys, we can leave now. The meeting is over."
The captain of the team gave his order, and the team started to leave the Kyoto yōkai's base.
Seeing the yōkai from the continental hotel start to leave, the Kyoto yōkai looked at them confusedly.
Creak~
Then the door of the base creaked open, and Hagoromo Gitsune stepped out, looking around angrily while her dark aura leaked from her body.
"Where is Minagoroshi Jizo?"
With clear anger visible on her face, she asked others, unable to find him anywhere near the base.
"He left half an hour ago after I caught him trying to break into the base without your permission."
Hearing Jizo's name, Kyokotsu narrowed her eyes and complained to Hagoromo, who was angrily looking for him.
"____"
Hearing Kyokotsu's complaint, Hagoromo Gitsune's eyes narrowed and calmed down the next second.
She looked at the bracelet on her hand, which Leo had put on her without her even knowing when he had done so.
"No need... We are going to destroy all the pillars tonight. And begin the ritual tonight."
Shaking her head, Hagoromo declared and walked inside, leaving everyone present stunned.
They were confused as to why their leader, who had been previously considering delaying the execution of her plan, now wanted to proceed immediately.
They wondered what had happened in the meeting room to make her change her plan and want to execute it ahead of schedule.
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(Author's POV)
Thanks for reading the chapter!
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