The Tracking

Having formed a preliminary hypothesis regarding the incidents, Miketsu immediately summoned Tsuruha to set up a divination session and verify her theories.

Though Miketsu had become quite proficient in relying on the Planchette, she followed her ritualistic habit of incinerating a few restless spirits before the divination to set the mood and steady her focus. Once everything was in place, she began to draft the divination queries.

Following this, Miketsu posed a series of questions: Was the mastermind behind the child abductions in Heian-kyo truly the Ubume? Did the Ubume target female infants with innate spiritual power? Was the information provided by the Minamoto clan earlier that day true? As Miketsu spoke the formulated divination mantras, the red threads of causality began to guide the brush held by her and Tsuruha. One by one, her questions were answered.

The veracity of the Minamoto clan's intelligence and the Ubume’s specific targets were confirmed. However, the query regarding the culprit of the kidnappings yielded an unexpected result; the Planchette’s response was equivocal.

Facing such a development, Miketsu surmised that labeling the Ubume as the sole culprit was likely an imprecise judgment. There were undoubtedly unknown variables at play.

"Hah... how interesting," Miketsu murmured with a faint smile before concluding the session. Despite the slight deviation in the results, the crucial points had been verified.

Since the Ubume's targets were confirmed, she could now formulate a plan. What she needed next was a target that met the specific conditions to draw the creature out.

Feeling a bit stifled by the warmth of the brazier inside the small building, Miketsu stepped out into the shrine grounds, intending to think over her next move while catching the cool breeze.

As the weather turned increasingly cold, visitors to the Inari Shrine had grown sparse. Miketsu assumed the grounds would be empty, yet to her surprise, someone was offering prayers before the haiden at that very moment.

It was a noblewoman dressed in a thick kimono, carrying an infant and accompanied by servants. She handed the child to a servant and tossed a coin into the offertory box to pray. Her words drifted to Miketsu's ears.

'I pray the great Inari Okami protects little Kikyo and keeps her safe...'

Kikyo... of course, the child of the Hata clan's chief priest was already born. Miketsu couldn't help but reflect as she watched the scene.

A little over a month ago, Hata no Michikiyo had come to the shrine specifically to seek a blessing for his newborn. He had been troubled by the choice of a name until he saw a cluster of bellflowers—Kikyo—still in bloom along the side of the mountain path, long after their season should have passed. He took it as a sign from the gods and named his daughter after them.

In truth, this had been Miketsu's doing. Within the Inari Secret Realm, plants in certain areas maintained eternal life under the influence of the Inari Okami's divine power. When Michikiyo was agonizing over the name, Miketsu had sent a fox to pluck a bunch of bellflowers from the realm to see if it would prompt him to use the name from her previous life.

If her memory served her right, today was likely the first time Kikyo had been brought to the shrine. What would this soul, having found a new life after centuries of torment, be like?

Driven by the thought, Miketsu took a few steps closer. She looked down and saw the small, sleeping face of the infant within the swaddling clothes.

As if sensing something, the baby suddenly opened her eyes. She looked straight at Miketsu, who was approaching from the divine realm. A small hand reached out, and her tiny mouth moved as if trying to say something. The gesture startled Miketsu. Could Kikyo see her, even as a mere infant?

...

"Oh, look, Lady Sachiko! Young mistress Kikyo is awake..."

"Yes... looking at her... it's almost as if she sees something."

"They say babies can see things common folk can't. This is a shrine, so there shouldn't be anything unclean... Perhaps she's looking at a divine messenger of the great Inari Okami?"

...

Lady Sachiko and the servants conversed quietly about the baby's awakening. Miketsu remained frozen for a moment before whispering to herself.

"Innate spiritual vision? It seems you didn't return to this world empty-handed after all."

Looking at young Kikyo's face, a smile played across Miketsu's lips. She could sense the spiritual power residing within that tiny body—power that far exceeded any ordinary mortal.

...

Night descended upon Heian-kyo once more. Cold moonlight spilled through thin layers of clouds, and a profound silence draped over the capital.

Wearing a bird-head mask adorned with strange patterns, a lithe and graceful black bird-yokai darted under the moon’s glow. Moving atop the dwellings, her talons clicked softly against the roof tiles, making almost no sound.

With a long umbrella tucked into her waist, the avian demon navigated the rooftops, occasionally pausing on the upturned eaves or pagoda spires to survey the surroundings. Having oriented herself, she set off again. She eventually arrived at a noble’s manor on the edge of the Upper Capital District. Hiding her presence, she carefully observed the estate from above, even lifting a tile now and then to peer directly into the rooms below. She seemed to be waiting for the right moment.

Suddenly, as if her window had opened, the yokai kicked through the tiles beneath her feet and plummeted into the house. When she leaped back out, she was holding a bundle—a swaddled infant—tightly in her arms.

Leaving a wake of screams and panic, the yokai bolted. She distanced herself from the scene at incredible speed, meeting no resistance at all. In just a few breaths, she had covered a significant distance.

Having perfectly bypassed every night patrol from the Onmyoryo and every pre-placed warning array, the demon left Heian-kyo with ease. Once she had secured the bundle, she spread her wings and took to the night sky.

"Those fellows are nowhere to be seen this time..."

Muttering to herself in a feminine voice, the demon flew rapidly away from the capital. After flying for some time, she decelerated and lowered her altitude, finally landing in a dense forest on a remote mountain. She made her way to a cave mouth hidden behind a thick curtain of vines.

Clutching the infant to her chest, the bird-yokai was about to step inside when a low voice suddenly echoed behind her.

"So, this is where you've been hiding, Ubume..."

"Who is there?!"

Startled, the bird-yokai whipped around, drawing her closed umbrella and pointing it toward the sound like a blade. In the forest clearing, a dark figure draped in black robes and wrapped in bandages stood silently. Miketsu’s crimson gaze pierced through the shadows of her hood, staring her down.