"May the boundless light of the Supreme Leader of Heaven and Earth shine upon us."
As these words were spoken, a soft yet dignified Buddhist golden light filled the Matou family's living room.
"At that time, the Buddha spoke to the Bodhisattvas and the four assemblies of celestial beings and humans: 'In the countless past, I sought the Lotus Sutra without weariness. In many lifetimes, I was often a king, making vows to seek Supreme Enlightenment without turning back.'"
"At that time, the World-Honored One reiterated this meaning and spoke in verse—"
After a month of repeated recitations, Shinji had memorized the scripture engraved in the relic. Using the power of the relic to resist the curse had become increasingly second nature to him.
Guided by the scripture, the Buddhist light split into two streams: one flowed up his left arm, spreading through most of his body before converging at his right shoulder to counteract the curse. The other stream passed directly through his clasped palms, piercing straight to his right wrist to directly attack the curse.
With an assault from both directions, the vicious curse specifically designed by the White Wing Lord for magi had been firmly confined to Shinji's right arm for an entire month, unable to advance further.
Even more miraculously, whenever a part of his arm was about to rot, the Buddhist light would act on that area, gradually restoring it to its original state. Because of this, his right arm, which had been cursed for a month, had not lost its functionality.
Watching the blackened, foul-smelling flesh slowly return to its normal color, Lorelei finally felt half-relieved. The other half of her worry persisted: "This is just temporary relief. The curse still resides within you. Do you plan to continue like this forever?"
Shinji shook his head after finishing a recitation of the scripture. Before he could speak, a shadow emerged from beneath his cloak, swiftly climbing up his mottled red and black right arm.
Only then did everyone see the true form of the shadow.
It was a cat, just large enough to be held in two hands, with sleek, jet-black fur without a trace of other colors. Its beautiful eyes were more vivid than the finest cinnabar.
The black cat perched on Shinji's arm, its slender tail gently brushing his cheek.
Shinji nodded slightly to it, and the cat promptly bit down on the middle of his right arm, which had been emitting a foul odor just a few minutes earlier.
"Ah—" Sakura gasped, instinctively wanting to shoo away the cat hurting her brother, but she stopped before acting.
She saw a very peculiar scene: although the cat's sharp teeth had pierced Shinji's skin, not a drop of blood came out, and Shinji showed no sign of pain on his face.
This scene lasted for over a minute. The cat then released its bite, wiped its mouth with its front paws like a noblewoman after dining, and, after another swipe of its tail across Shinji's cheek, leaped lightly from his arm, found the most comfortable spot on the sofa, and lay down, closing its eyes as if falling asleep.
"What is this—?" Lorelei asked.
"This is a companion I met during my travels," Shinji said, maintaining his hands in a prayerful gesture, looking somewhat solemn.
"Brother?"
"Shinji?"
The sudden change in his tone confused everyone.
"Being a monk, it is best not to call me by a worldly name."
"Brother, what's gotten into you?" Sakura asked anxiously.
"My Dharma name is—"
"Shinji Matou, have you had enough? I've dealt with Buddhist monks before, and none of them were as pretentious as you," Lorelei interrupted.
With Lorelei's sharp retort, Shinji's feigned solemnity instantly shattered.
"Am I being pretentious? I've always thought that a high monk should act like this. Haven't you seen how the monk Tang Sanzang speaks in Journey to the West? 'This humble monk comes from the Great Tang in the East, traveling to the Western Heaven to retrieve the true scriptures.' Plus, look at me with this big bald head; it'd be a shame if I didn't play the part of a high monk at least once."
Hearing such an offhand remark, Lorelei's face was full of exasperation. "And yet, you managed to receive a Buddhist inheritance looking like this?"
"Maybe it's because I have a karmic connection with Buddhism," Shinji replied, half-serious, half-joking, while giving Sakura a meaningful look—indicating that the matter of the relic should be kept confidential.
Sakura blinked—message received, big brother.
Lorelei didn't notice the subtle exchange between the siblings and pondered aloud, "That does sound somewhat Buddhist, but Buddhism is stricter than the Church in some aspects. Are you willing to follow all those precepts and rules?"
"Japanese Buddhism isn't that restrictive," Shinji shrugged nonchalantly. "You can eat meat, get married, and have children."
"That doesn't seem much different, then."
Sakura stared at her brother's bald head, thinking that it looked quite good. Her brother was handsome with hair, and he looked just as handsome without it.
"There isn't much difference," Shinji chuckled. "And even if there were, it wouldn't matter. At worst, I'd be a rule-breaking monk, a wine and meat monk."
"Shinji, that's blasphemy against the Buddha."
Byakuya began to lecture him. Japan venerates Buddhism, and most people, regardless of whether they believe in it or not, have some understanding of it—even a magus family like the Matous is no exception.
"Father, you don't understand Buddhism," Shinji shook his head.
"And you do?" Byakuya retorted, annoyed.
Shinji extended his left hand, still faintly glowing with a golden hue, and asked, "What is this?"
Byakuya replied, "That's your hand."
Shinji shook his head again. "No, this is the Buddha's hand."
Byakuya was puzzled. "Why do you say that?"
"I'll answer that in a moment. Let me ask you another question: what is this?" Shinji extended his foot.
Byakuya guessed tentatively, "Is that the Buddha's foot?"
Shinji shook his head once more. "No, this is a pig's foot."
Byakuya was increasingly confused. "Why is that?"
"Buddhism is different from Christianity, which exalts God, and Catholicism, which venerates the Lord. Buddhism teaches that all beings are equal and that everyone can become a Buddha. So whether I say I am the Buddha or a pig, it neither elevates nor demeans me, and thus, there is no blasphemy. Moreover, isn't Buddhism about the emptiness of all phenomena, the absence of form, and boundless dharma? If that's the case, why be so rigid about precepts and rules? As the saying goes, 'Wine and meat pass through the intestines; the Buddha sits in the heart.' Being fixated on the rules about wine and meat is falling into attachment, which is inferior."
"Who would have thought you've studied Buddhism so deeply? Are you planning to join it in the future?"
Shinji naturally denied Lorelei's question. "How could that be? With you and El-Melloi covering for me at the Clock Tower, I'm living comfortably; I'm not going anywhere. But in the future, I do plan to travel around the world. In East Asia and Southeast Asia, the identity of a Buddhist monk is more useful than that of a magus."
"That's true," Lorelei agreed. "Alright, let's drop this topic and talk about this black cat. How did you find it? Familiars that can devour curses are rare, even in mythological times."
"Yes, yes, I'd love to know too. It looks so cute," Sakura chimed in, wanting to pet the black cat but afraid of waking it.
"I didn't find it; it found me."
Shinji looked down at the little creature sleeping soundly, his thoughts drifting back to a month ago.
PS: I Like Neko!