Inducement

In the daylight of Heian-kyo, within the Onmyoryo.

At this moment, countless onmyo-sei were bustling about. Inside a Grand Hall that had been specially cleared, many samurai guards and onmyoji had gathered, standing watch outside.

Within this empty Grand Hall, more than ten wooden planks were neatly arranged. Upon each plank lay a corpse covered with a white cloth. Miketsu, clad in a kariginu and an eboshi, stood before the rows of bodies with a heavy expression.

"What... exactly happened here?" Miketsu asked Yura beside her in a serious tone. Yura immediately replied with a solemn face.

"I mentioned to you yesterday that a series of mass suicides among young girls had occurred in Heian-kyo. Last night, it happened again. This time, twelve people took their own lives at once, and all of them were women. We can no longer sit idly by in the face of such a malicious incident, Hao."

"Twelve... and all of them were abnormal suicides?"

"Yes... some by hanging, some by jumping into wells, and some by seppuku. Before this, their families stated they showed no inclination toward suicide whatsoever. In short... this is very suspicious. It is definitely no coincidence," Yura said slowly, explaining more of the situation to Miketsu.

"Is it the work of some yokai? Did the night patrol discover anything unusual last night?" Miketsu continued to question; she needed more information.

"We don't know if it's a yokai yet. The locations where the victims died last night were all different, scattered across Heian-kyo with a massive span between them. If it truly is the work of a single yokai, it would have to be incredibly fast and extremely stealthy. After all, the night patrol didn't report any abnormalities last night..." Yura pondered as she spoke. After a brief thought, she continued, "I have never heard of a yokai that can induce suicide, move with such swiftness and secrecy, and specifically target women..."

"Hmm. Generally speaking, those who enjoy inducing suicide aren't usually yokai, but vengeful spirits..." Miketsu nodded, offering her own insight. Having been an onmyoji for over ten years, she had some expertise in such matters.

"True, it is usually vengeful spirits that induce suicide. However, for an ordinary vengeful spirit, that is a relatively long process. Unless they are in a place with dense Yin energy where the boundary is easily crossed, a vengeful spirit needs to constantly wear down a person's will, making them depressed and listless until they gradually lose all hope for life and commit suicide. That isn't something that can be accomplished in a single night," Yura said in a deep voice, stroking her chin as she thought.

"Without considering a boundary crossing... the only things capable of making someone commit suicide in an instant, aside from those legendary Great Vengeful Spirits, are collective vengeful spirits..."

"Collective vengeful spirits... those twisted existences," Miketsu thought of the information regarding such entities upon hearing Yura's words.

Vengeful spirits gather due to similar grudges, and those who die in similar accidents often form a twisted collective of vengeful spirits at the site of the incident.

Because vengeful spirits exist because of their grudges, they harbor a twisted, indiscriminate hatred for the living. A collective of vengeful spirits will continuously induce innocent passersby to fall to their deaths; the newly deceased then join the collective, increasing its grudge and power, which in turn exerts a deeper influence on the next innocent victims. Many river sections prone to drowning and mountain paths prone to falls are the result of such phenomena. Over a long period, a collective of vengeful spirits can even fuse into a single entity, giving birth to a rare Great Vengeful Spirit.

"However, collective vengeful spirits usually stay in one place and don't wander far. That doesn't quite match the circumstances this time," Miketsu continued. Yura nodded in agreement.

"You're right... Sigh... I really can't figure out what kind of thing is playing tricks this time... But it's fine. I've already arranged for mediums to perform spirit communication. We should be able to ask something from the souls of the deceased."

Just as Yura finished speaking, an onmyo-sei came running from a distance, panting heavily. He reached Miketsu and Yura and reported in a panic.

"Lord Hao, Lord Doman... the spirit communication over there has ended. We... we couldn't channel the souls of any of the deceased!"

"What..."

In the daylight of Heian-kyo, dark clouds pressed down upon the city. The sky was dim, and a gloomy atmosphere filled every corner.

Having just left the Onmyoryo, a grim-faced Miketsu walked along Suzaku Avenue, her mind racing through the information she had just gathered.

"Induced deaths... all young women... a massive range covering almost all of Heian-kyo... and the souls of the deceased might have been absorbed... Just what kind of existence is this?"

Counting the characteristics of this incident, Miketsu tried to guess the true identity of the culprit. Initially, she thought it might be another vengeful spirit like Prince Nagaya or Prince Sawara, perhaps manipulated by Orochi. But on second thought, there seemed to be no point for Orochi to target a group of commoner women.

As she pondered, Miketsu looked up at the sky. The day seemed exceptionally dark today, as if the heavens might collapse at any moment. The entirety of Heian-kyo was currently shrouded in an ominous aura.

At that moment, Miketsu decided to broaden her thinking, incorporating some of the intelligence she had recently acquired.

"Similar grudges creating collective vengeful spirits... indiscriminate hatred for the living... dreams..."

Suddenly, as if she had realized something, Miketsu's eyes widened.

On Mount Inari beneath the dark clouds, Kikyo, dressed in her red and white miko robes, was practicing her archery in a grove as usual.

Practicing her bow in the undisturbed silence was a daily cultivation she had to perform. It was also a time for her to release the pressure in her heart. The strange dreams she had been having lately had made her inexplicably irritable even when she was awake.

Adjusting her breathing, Kikyo continuously drew her azusa bow, striking targets that were further and further away. With her increasingly proficient technique, she could shoot with great accuracy even without imbuing the arrows with spiritual power.

Just as she emptied a quiver of arrows and was about to go retrieve them, a ghostly female voice rang out behind her.

"The first... sacrifice..."

Kikyo froze slightly and slowly turned around. What she saw standing in the shadows of the grove was a translucent girl, dressed in the same red and white miko robes as herself. The girl stood there, looking at Kikyo with a vacant gaze.

"You are... the one from the dream..."

Seeing the translucent miko, Kikyo was stunned for a moment before tightening her grip on her bow.