The God of Marriage

On Mount Nanakaku, inside an ancient shrine, the young girl known as Wakahirume-no-Mikoto sat facing the master of the shrine, the god Ichimokuren. In response to how Ichimokuren addressed her, the girl—now in her Wakahirume-no-Mikoto form—spoke with a bright smile.

"Don't use that 'no-Mikoto' name of mine; it sounds terrible. I'm currently traveling the human world, and to make it easier to gather faith, I've created a new divine name for myself: Enmusubi. Doesn't it sound approachable, Little Moku?" As Enmusubi spoke, she reached into the large wicker basket behind her and pulled out a set of triple lanterns with the words 'Marriage Fulfilled' written on them, giving them a little shake.

"Enmusubi... for mortals, that is indeed a much more intimate name..." Ichimokuren nodded thoughtfully after hearing her explanation.

"Exactly! Besides, this name lets mortals know exactly what I do at a glance. There are so many men and women in this world seeking their fated partners; I'm definitely going to become a god with countless followers!" Enmusubi declared with brimming confidence. Looking at the energetic girl before him, Ichimokuren smiled.

"In Takamagahara, gods who care so much about mortal faith are rare. Since you've descended to the lower realm in person to gather faith, I assume you must already have many believers and have established a shrine?"

"Uh... well, about that..." Upon hearing Ichimokuren's words, Enmusubi's expression froze. Her face stiffened, and she scratched her head with a look of sheer embarrassment, leaving Ichimokuren confused.

"Is there a problem? With your power as an orthodox god, recruiting mortal followers should be an easy task," Ichimokuren pressed. However, the awkwardness on Enmusubi's face only deepened.

"You're right in theory... recruiting followers isn't hard for an orthodox god, but I ran into a tiny problem during my descent. As a result, the situation isn't exactly how you'd imagine..."

"A tiny problem?" Ichimokuren's brow furrowed. Based on his understanding of the goddess before him, a 'tiny problem' was usually anything but.

"Well... it really was just a small mistake... This was my first time descending, after all. I had a bit of a lapse in coordination during the process. I accidentally failed to reach the human realm and ended up in the Underworld instead." Enmusubi pressed her index fingers together, looking quite sheepish. Her words left Ichimokuren stunned.

"The... the Underworld?"

"Yeah. And in my panic, I ended up falling into a rather unpleasant place..."

"An unpleasant place... You didn't fall into the Sanzu River, did you?" Ichimokuren asked, a bad premonition taking hold. Enmusubi let out a forced laugh.

"Hahaha... how could I fall into a river? It was nothing, really. I just happened to land in the Sixteenth Level of Hell..."

"The Sixteenth... Level of Hell..." Ichimokuren's mouth twitched, his eyelids fluttered, and he felt utterly speechless. He couldn't help but scream internally: Isn't falling into the Sixteenth Level of Hell way worse than the Sanzu River?! Just how badly did you mess up to fall all the way from the Celestial Realm to the Sixteenth Level of Hell in one go? You nearly fell right through all Three Realms!

"Yeah... Hell... that was certainly a rare experience. I was scared out of my wits when I got there. Afterward, I tried everything I could to climb back up. I climbed layer by layer, and only recently did I successfully make it back to the human realm..." Enmusubi shuddered as she spoke, clearly traumatized by the ordeal.

"Then... you didn't encounter any danger in Hell, did you?" Ichimokuren asked with a hint of concern.

"Well... even though I was panicking, there wasn't any major danger... After all, I am an orthodox god. I can handle most things even in Hell. Besides, I'm a bit of a coward, so I stayed far away from the dangerous guys down there. Though, halfway through my climb, my spiritual power was severely depleted, and I accidentally ran into a very dangerous fellow..." Enmusubi's expression turned strange, as if a very unpleasant memory had been triggered. Ichimokuren's brow furrowed deeper.

"A dangerous fellow... who was it?"

"Ahahaha... you don't need to worry about that, Little Moku... Anyway, I eventually escaped his clutches and returned to the human realm. Everything turned out fine in the end." Enmusubi spoke with relief, but Ichimokuren remained solemn.

"I wouldn't say everything is fine. Your experience in Hell has clearly had a severe impact on you. As an orthodox god, if you are not deep within Takamagahara or inside your own Divine Domain, your spiritual power will constantly drain. The further you are from the Celestial Realm, the more severe the loss, especially in the Underworld. Although you successfully reached the human realm, your spiritual power must be nearly exhausted. Furthermore, you have no shrine or Divine Domain in this world to recover... If I'm not mistaken, you have very little spiritual power left, don't you?"

Ichimokuren stared at her intensely. Enmusubi swallowed hard under his gaze and spoke timidly.

"Ugh... you're right. My spiritual power drained a lot after reaching the surface. I didn't have a shrine or a domain, and I didn't know where to go. Then I remembered that you were also in the human realm, Little Moku, so I asked around among the Yokai and found my way here..." She scratched her head, looking embarrassed. Ichimokuren was speechless once again.

"So... you came here to..."

"Ahahaha... I haven't had a decent meal since I descended. I mainly came to your place to mooch a meal. I'm truly grateful!" Enmusubi patted her slightly bloated stomach. On the table before her was a pile of empty bowls and food boxes, licked clean.

"Sigh... there's no need for thanks. I'm happy to help. For now, stay here for a while to rest and recover. Afterward, I'll have some trustworthy Yokai escort you to Izumo. You can return to Takamagahara from there..." Ichimokuren exhaled softly, but her response caught him off guard.

"No! I'm not going back yet! I came down here to bind fates and gather faith. If I go back dejectedly like this without even establishing a single shrine, those guys up there will laugh at me forever... Es-especially Sister Amaterasu. If she sees me looking so unsuccessful..." Enmusubi's expression grew complex. Ichimokuren was moved by her resolve, but he continued to speak.

"But your current state isn't good... You won't be able to recover your spiritual power without returning to Takamagahara..."

"That doesn't matter! As long as I successfully gather faith, establish a shrine, and open a Secret Realm, I can recover my power within that domain. So... for now, I just need to gather faith!" Enmusubi pumped her fist with newfound determination.

"I see... I suppose that's possible. The remaining spiritual power you have should be enough to start gathering faith. However, I have one suggestion... do not gather faith nearby, and do not head northwest toward Heian-kyo. You need to find a place further away."

"Why?" Enmusubi asked, confused.

"Because Uka-no-Mitama-no-Mikoto's Inari faith is extremely dominant. It is spreading from Heian-kyo in the northwest toward this area. If you want to spread your own faith, you must avoid her influence," Ichimokuren said gravely. Enmusubi blinked in surprise.

"Uka-no-Mitama-no-Mikoto? You mean Susanoo's daughter? Isn't she asleep?" Enmusubi asked. She suddenly remembered passing many Inari shrines on her way here—she had even stolen some of the offering fruits to eat.

"Yes... it's her. She was indeed asleep before, but she woke up over ten years ago. I thought Takamagahara already knew this news," Ichimokuren said slowly, his expression turning odd.

"No one in Takamagahara knows she's awake yet. I wonder why... Hmph, whatever! Since she's that Susanoo fellow's daughter, I won't back down. I've decided to develop my faith right here!"

"What?! You mean..."

"Heh heh... Little Moku, do you think I'd be afraid of a junior like her? Since she's Susanoo's daughter, I definitely can't show any weakness. I'm going to steal the faith right out of her hands!" Enmusubi stood up, clenched her fists, and made a loud declaration. Ichimokuren stood there with his mouth half-open, completely stunned.