Chapter 109 - Sworn Brotherhood.

Looking at Toga before her, Miketsu stood dumbfounded. At this moment, she found her mind unable to keep up with his pace.

"What the hell? Why are we suddenly becoming sworn brothers? I've only known you for a few days, and it's come to this?"

Miketsu was momentarily bewildered by Toga's sudden proposal, but fortunately, her cloak and bandages effectively concealed her changing expression.

After a long pause, Miketsu finally spoke again. To Toga, this pause seemed like Miketsu was deeply contemplating his suggestion.

"You don't even know my background, why do you think so highly of me?"

"Heh, forming a close friendship requires shared paths and spiritual connection, not knowing every detail. There's nothing wrong with your own secrets." Toga's attitude was very candid in response to Miketsu's question.

"Even so... we've only known each other for a few days, haven't we...?" Miketsu continued, feeling that this sudden talk of becoming sworn brothers was truly strange.

"The Three Heroes of the Peach Garden also knew each other for a short time, but that didn't stop them from sharing common aspirations, becoming brothers, and accomplishing great deeds together." Toga continued with a smile, bringing up an example from the Three Kingdoms period, which made Miketsu inwardly complain.

But that's a fictional fabrication! The Records of the Three Kingdoms didn't say they actually became sworn brothers! Don't be fooled by Luo Guanzhong!

Just as Miketsu was about to say this, she had a second thought and realized something was off. She suddenly remembered that Romance of the Three Kingdoms seemed to be a Ming Dynasty novel. After transmigrating here, Miketsu had specifically gathered some information about the mainland and found that Huaxia was currently in a period of turmoil after the Prosperous Tang Dynasty. The Old Zhao family hadn't even staged a coup to establish the Song Dynasty yet, so the Ming Dynasty was still far off. Compared to Toga believing the story of the Peach Garden Oath, the fact that he even knew about it seemed even more illogical.

Although this world was very similar to her original one, it was ultimately an alternate dimension, with gods and yokai, and the historical timeline might not be entirely the same. So, the story of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms might actually be true in this world.

Thinking of this, Miketsu fell silent. Toga, seeing Miketsu's current state, seemed to believe he had successfully persuaded her and that she was now seriously considering his suggestion.

Seeing Miketsu in this state, Toga decided to press on with his persuasion. This time, he took out his blade and placed it before himself.

"There are only two such swords in the world, and they are both in our hands. You must see it too; this sword possesses immense potential. Holding it, one day we are bound to become rulers of a domain. Therefore, our friendship at this moment might have a profound impact on the future of this world." Toga continued, a hint of profoundness in his gaze.

Miketsu immediately understood Toga's words. He wanted to express that their sworn brotherhood was not just a matter between the two of them, but also represented the possibility of their combined powers uniting in the future.

Toga was trying to forge an early alliance through sworn brotherhood!

Clearly, Toga saw the strength of the yokai Owl and her potential for future growth. He likely believed that Owl would eventually have her own forces, and he wanted to maintain a cooperative or even allied relationship with this future yokai power in Heian-kyo. He was making a long-term investment!

After Toga revealed his intentions, Miketsu was clearly moved. One must know that he was currently the Lord of the Dog Clan, a core leader of the resistance in Harima. Although he was a bit down on his luck in Heian-kyo, he still held significant power in Harima. If he could one day defeat Oyakata, then Toga would undoubtedly become a new Yokai Lord, shaking the Western Provinces. At that point, she would also have a Yokai Lord as an ally.

Looking at it this way, if he considered her a potential asset, she could certainly consider him one too.

After understanding Toga's intentions, Miketsu's perception of him changed further. He wasn't the lone wolf yokai she had previously imagined; he was a yokai leader with his own forces, and his vision and insight were far superior to ordinary yokai.

At the same time, Miketsu recalled what Konkiku had told her that day: Heian-kyo was becoming increasingly turbulent. Perhaps one day Inari Mountain would be drawn into some crisis, and at that time, she might need to borrow strength from various parties, including that of yokai.

As for whether befriending Toga would offend or enrage Oyakata? Miketsu figured Owl was probably already on Oyakata's top blacklist, so there was no question of not offending him anymore. Moreover, due to her divine virtue, she greatly disliked Oyakata, so it would be excellent if Toga could overthrow him sooner.

After Toga finished speaking, he picked up a bowl of sake from the table and silently watched Miketsu, quietly awaiting her reply. After a long silence, Miketsu finally spoke slowly.

"Alright..."

As she spoke, Miketsu also raised the sake bowl before her, meeting Toga's gaze. Seeing Miketsu's answer, the Lord of the Dog Clan smiled and said heartily.

"Good! Then let's drink this bowl of sworn brotherhood sake now..." With that, Toga drained the sake in his hand.

Watching Toga heartily finish his drink, Miketsu also brought the sake to her lips and swallowed all of it in one gulp.

Then, she regretted it. Not only was the sake incredibly strong, but it was clearly not meant for humans.

The intensely spicy liquid flowed directly down Miketsu's throat, causing a burning numbness from her mouth to her stomach. The strong alcoholic fumes rushed to her nose, and a wave of heat surged from her stomach, making her directly spit out a small flame.

This was not a metaphor; Miketsu actually breathed fire! This was the flame produced by the burning reaction of the sake in her mouth and stomach. The sake Toga had prepared contained substances from the Demon Realm, which were ignited by Miketsu's Demon-Slaying Power, causing this effect. Read at Novels Haven (novelshaven.com)

At this moment, Miketsu's expression was extremely distorted, and she felt utterly uncomfortable all over. Fortunately, she managed to control her extreme reaction, showing no other abnormalities apart from spitting a small flame. If it weren't for the bandages and hood concealing her, her current expression appearing before Toga would surely have completely shattered Owl's image.

A miscalculation! A terrible miscalculation! Miketsu had originally thought Toga's sake would be like the mild, low-alcohol drinks she had in human izakayas, where she could drink a whole flask without issue. But she never expected him to prepare such strong liquor, especially one infused with substances from the Demon Realm!

If the flames produced by her Demon-Slaying Power hadn't been harmless to her, she would be lying on the ground right now.

"Hahaha!! You truly are extraordinary, sir. Not many can drink this Demon Sake in one gulp." Toga said with a laugh, observing Miketsu's reaction, while also wondering in his mind what kind of yokai Owl was. To breathe fire while drinking... could he be a demon?

"Demon... Sake?" Miketsu said hoarsely, enduring the irritation in her digestive tract. However, since Owl's voice was naturally like that, Toga didn't notice anything amiss.

"Oh, you didn't know, sir? It's the sake brewed by the oni of Mount Oe. They are frank and fierce, fond of duels and challenges, and all of them love sake. Several of the Oni Kings are especially fond of it, which has made their brewing techniques unparalleled in the Demon Realm. The fine liquor they brew is called Demon Sake.

"This Demon Sake flows from Mount Oe and is a treasure coveted by all yokai in the Demon Realm. I went to great lengths to find this flask in Choyo-machi, and to show my sincerity in becoming sworn brothers with you, I paid a hefty price for it." Hearing the question in Miketsu's tone, Toga explained with a smile, clearly showing his sincerity.

"Then I truly appreciate your thoughtfulness."

"It's nothing. Totosai kept advising me to just buy some sake, but I thought, how could I entertain you with ordinary human sake? So, in the end, I insisted on buying Demon Sake." Toga continued, recalling Totosai's reaction when he first mentioned serving Owl Demon Sake.