Reconnaissance

As the sun set and the moon rose, night once again enveloped Heian-kyo. The time for humans ended, and countless yokai began to stir.

Solitary Fox Mountain is located southwest of Heian-kyo. Unlike the continuous mountain ranges that undulate around Heian-kyo's east and north, Solitary Fox Mountain is a solitary hill rising from a plain. It is surrounded by forests, but due to a lack of soil on its slopes, only low shrubs grow there.

This was originally just an ordinary hill. Decades ago, after the Ishikawa family was expelled from Heian-kyo, they artificially excavated and transformed it to conveniently continue hunting Fushimi foxes, turning it into Ishikawa's temporary base in Heian-kyo during hunting season.

They built wooden fences and lookout towers according to the terrain. The natural caves inside the mountain were converted into cages for holding foxes, and there were also houses specifically for the master and his subordinates to rest. Everything was fully equipped, making it a small mountain stronghold.

And now, this place had been jointly arranged by Ishikawa and the Minamoto Clan as a trap, a trap specifically designed for Owl!

"So... do you think that Owl will come?" Minamoto no Yorimasa, clad in black night attire, looked at Ishikawa beside him on the mountainside of Solitary Fox Mountain, speaking with a faint smile.

"Of course she'll come, I know Tsuruha. When she learns that a large number of her kin are trapped in one place, she won't be able to ignore it. That's also why I specifically chose a wild fox that knew about the Fushimi foxes to be the tracker for the Fox Hunting Team." Facing Minamoto no Yorimasa's question, Ishikawa spoke with confidence. The guide fox of the Fox Hunting Team that died deep in the mountains was specially selected by him to convey the news of many Inari foxes being trapped here to Tsuruha, so she would lead her yokai to rescue them, and then fall straight into the trap prepared specifically for her.

"Heh, everything here is already set. No matter when she comes, no matter how many yokai she brings, we can handle it and ensure she never returns..." Ishikawa said, scanning the surroundings and looking at the fox hunter subordinates patrolling the mountain stronghold.

"Indeed... if she comes, she'll get to see the Minamoto Clan's methods. When it comes to weakening and controlling yokai, no one is better than us..." Minamoto no Yorimasa said, spreading his hands and looking into the distance.

"A Demon Binding Array spanning three ri. Once the array core is activated, all yokai within it will be severely weakened! Even a yokai general will be somewhat affected... Besides that, there are numerous shikigami. However many subordinates Owl brings, they will all die..."

Minamoto no Yorimasa's words were filled with anticipation. He seemed eager to confront Owl. At Fangshan Castle, Owl had seized the Itsumaden, a prey he had failed to capture, and this matter had greatly bothered him.

To deal with Owl, Minamoto no Yorimasa had drawn ten Onmyoji from his clan, using them to construct a massive Demon Binding Array, along with a host of summonable shikigami. In his opinion, such a formation was more than enough to deal with Owl's newly formed yokai faction. If all else failed, he could personally intervene.

"Lord Yorimasa speaks truly... At that time, Tsuruha's yokai minions will all depend on you." Ishikawa said to Minamoto no Yorimasa with a flattering expression.

"Those yokai are naturally no match, but Owl herself is exceptionally powerful. If not handled properly..."

"Rest assured, Lord Yorimasa, I've said it before, Tsuruha herself is my responsibility." Ishikawa said to Minamoto no Yorimasa with a hint of an unusual smile. At the same time, subtle movements began to appear around him.

Various foxes emerged from the bushes, slowly gathering around Ishikawa. They varied in size and color, possessing a radiance and smoothness not found in ordinary wild fox yokai. Faint spiritual power emanated from their bodies, and without exception, their eyes flickered with a eerie, unusual light.

They were all Spirit Foxes, Inari's Spirit Foxes, Inari's Spirit Foxes forcibly made into shikigami! They were Ishikawa's secret weapon against Tsuruha.

"I wonder... Tsuruha surely can't bring herself to harm her own kind, can she? How will she react when faced with an encirclement by her former brethren? I'm quite eager to see... These little ones can all use Foxfire, they can't be frozen..."

With that strange smile, Ishikawa slowly spoke. Minamoto no Yorimasa looked at everything before him, paused, and then couldn't help but let out a cold snort.

"How shameless..."

"Thank you for the compliment... Lord Yorimasa..."

...

On the fully fortified Solitary Fox Mountain, fox hunters patrolled everywhere. From the caves holding yokai wild foxes to the various vantage points, everyone on the long-established defensive structures was on high alert for any sudden developments.

Among these fox hunters were several Onmyoji dressed in Minamoto Clan kariginu. Should anything happen, they would summon numerous shikigami. Four Onmyoji were also positioned at the mountain's summit, which was the core of the pre-arranged Demon Binding Array. Should any situation arise, they would immediately activate the Demon Binding Array, incapacitating all yokai on Solitary Fox Mountain except for their own clan's shikigami.

In an atmosphere of tension, everyone present who had received orders was diligently on guard. On a lookout tower, a fox hunter observed the distance by torchlight and moonlight. Suddenly, he noticed something tiny flitting past his eyes—a small, white flying insect.

Waving his hand, the fox hunter on guard shooed away the white flying insect as if it were a common bug. The white flying insect flew away from the lookout tower, heading towards other parts of the encampment. Tiny flying insects just like it were currently spread throughout various parts of the encampment, either flying or perching, observing every situation and movement within the camp with their own eyes.

Upon closer inspection, these white flying insects were all extremely tiny, simply folded pieces of paper. They were Paper Shikigami, the smallest Paper Shikigami Miketsu could create. Their size was so small that Exploding Talismans could not be inscribed upon them, but precisely because of this size, the spiritual power fluctuations they emitted during flight were almost imperceptible.

Far from Solitary Fox Mountain, Miketsu, wrapped in bandages and cloaked in a black robe, sat cross-legged on a thick tree branch, closing her eyes and concentrating, receiving various pieces of information sent back by the Paper Shikigami.

"Forty-four hunters... lightly armed... scattered everywhere..."

"Nine Onmyoji... five distributed among the hunters... four concentrated at the mountain peak..."

"Yokai foxes are confined together in the caves..."

...

"Heh... this really is a trap."

Opening her eyes, Miketsu began to ponder countermeasures based on the intelligence she had gathered. Beneath her, countless pairs of eyes glowed in the darkness.