The snow had begun to melt after a few days, as a few rays of light from the sun had burst through the endless array of clouds.
And finally, after many days of unrest, they had almost reached the boundary of a new land, Scrozuma Gorge.
A vast river canyon that almost directly bordered Yông Guó, filled to the brim with seaborne serpents and vipers, and even a dastardly "White Serpent", once rumoured to be laying and slumbering down below, but now reduced to nothing but a myth. But Shuku, as he saw it now, could not notice anything in those depths, as the frigid mist-shrouded it all in mystery.
"This is it," Lilac said, trying to perceive beyond the veil of fog and cold mist that lay ahead of the Scrozuma Gorge.
"The Eternal Nation is just beyond this gorge."
"Ha, then finally, we can complete the task that Father has set for us, and we won't be involved in any sort of mess from now on," Kyōji murmured while stroking his eyes out of tiredness frequently.
"But yet…"
"Doesn't something seem…"
"Strange?"
This word was spoken, at the same time, by both Kyōji and, a strolling, mysterious figure behind them.
They all turned around, only to see this mysterious figure sauntering almost relaxingly as if he were a calm executioner. He wore an embroidered black robe, with the symbol of a great red and golden dragon woven into it, with an oddly-designed odachi blade in hand and a sinister grin on his face.
Blood stained his face, and, visibly his teeth also. And yet, he held an aura that only the strong wielded, which only directed them to one possibility:
That this man was a lunatic, and a lunatic who came only to kill them all.
"My name is Azora."
"Leader of the Phoenix Cult," He told them, as he spat out a bit of the blood in his mouth, "The high cultist, of a great legion of devils."
"I had previously sent a few men from the local trafficking gangs to track down and kill you all… but, hah, considering you lot are the offspring of an Oni, I changed my mind soon afterwards. Especially because those fools couldn't even keep themselves hidden from beggars, after all."
"But, well, in the end, I just slaughtered those gangs and their leaders anyway, quite like how I'll slaughter you all too."
Kyōji grumbled, "You're gonna be the last piece of shit that comes after us…"
"Because I am fatigued, exhausted, worn out, and even more tired of everyone trying to KILL US!"
With a distinctive spark of rage flashing in his eyes, Kyōji bellowed such words out of his mouth and his eyes developed into that of a bestial being, just as if he had been possessed once more by his tiger spirit. But, that was not true, as he had only channelled a bit of its power at the moment.
He then charged straight at Azora.
But, Azora quickly demonstrated that he was not any ordinary human being, and was not capable of leading his cult for naught. He showed why he was almost like a…
Soulless devil!
That word rang throughout Shuku's mind, as he saw Azora's blade strike the earth with unprecedented strength and speed that Kyōji, even with his ability of Perception, was barely able to avoid.
And, even during that motion of action, he stayed calm, as if he had barely put any effort into that slash at all.
"Mere cubs like you will never be able to stand up to a real tiger."
"You all have been sheltered in your mountainous domain since you were born, so you couldn't possibly be able to match against my strength!"
Meanwhile, they all thought simultaneously,
How is it possible to be that fast and strong?!
Then, Azora struck again, with that same strength and speed, making blood spew everywhere from Kyōji's arm. Azora then slashed and slashed again through his body mercilessly, tearing through even his regenerating flesh with ease.
"This is… I've never seen anything like it…" Shuku gasped. He could not take his eyes off the scene, as this lunatic was not even putting any effort forth, yet he was dealing with Kyōji with ease. If he could handle such an individual, he would surely step forth, but, in front of such mercilessness, which he had never seen before, he could only remain frozen in place.
But then…
"Don't worry about it, Shuku," A voice whispered in his ear, "And just take this."
It was Seiji, who had appeared next to him suddenly and whispered in his ear. As she spoke, he began to calm down, as her control over sound eased his mind, for now. Yet, her movements seemed unsteady, and her eyes were slightly closed as if she was currently envisioning something.
"Take! And keep a firm grip on it!" She whispered again. In her hands, she held the Luminous Branch, which she passed onto Shuku as her eyes remained closed shut.
And then, unexpectedly, she pushed him as far as she could into Scrozuma Gorge.
"We will be fine here," Seiji told Shuku, "But you, you need to go on a journey of your own."
"This will be the first and last time I do something like this, so…"
"Meet back with us, in the Eternal Nation."
As Seiji spoke to him, Shuku gradually began to fall into a senseless dream, and all the while, he became enveloped by the nearly slushy, freezing-cold water down below.
Meanwhile, Seiji turned back to Azora, who had discarded Kyōji, all his focus now directed at her.
"I was surprised at how your brother withstood all of my attacks. His body is still regenerating, even after such brutality. But, you…"
"You're up to something, aren't you?" Azora asked, standing above Seiji. From her perspective, his Spiritmark was in full view on the side of his neck, "But, that doesn't matter. I'll also just kill the man you tossed into the gorge."
But yet, she didn't move her eyes an inch, and they remained closed. And, well, so did her lips.
"You are a threat to us all, and at the moment, none of us has the combat capabilities to defeat or kill you. But, that doesn't mean anything to me."
In a flash, a short blade emerged from Seiji's robes, and she precisely aimed it at Azora's heart.
"Haha… I knew it," Azora spoke, as he grabbed and broke the shortblade into pieces, "Who knew such a beauty could be such a fool?"
"…Of course. What beauties are most known for is ensnaring a man's heart."
Seiji grinned, and suddenly, a tree root struck through Azora's back. She had distracted him enough for Bōshi to quickly unearth her intentions and pierce him. But yet, Azora was unphased.
"Huh?" Azora muttered as he turned around, but, the only thing he could see was Bōshi, smiling and mouthing the word, "Fool", at him.
Then, Azora turned back around, and there Seiji was, with her Moto that had materialised from thin air, creating a fantastical melody with it.
She then, at the climax of the brilliant melody, opened her eyes, and at that moment that same melody ensnared Azora in a tremendous beam of grey light that turned him to stone, as Bōshi's tree roots pulled him slowly underground.
Yet, as Azora was dragged underneath, the last expression on his face was a grin, as if he was merely…
Amused.
But, this kind of amusement on his face didn't come from the fact that he had been tricked and ensnared, but from something else.
Perhaps… the melodies were "speaking" to him.
"From now on, we must make haste."
"Azora will come after us again, and we can't expect anyone else to help us, as the hidden guards must stay in the Mountain region."
"Shuku will also meet back with us later on, so let us hurry onwards, to the Black Dragon Manor that awaits us, as well as the dawning truth of the current tensions in the air that we will all come to discover eventually."