Chapter 19: Taizan Fukun Ritual
Night had fallen.
Stars shimmered faintly above the city, and a bright moon hung high in the sky. The streets of Shibuya were still lined with working streetlamps, but the number of people outside had grown pitifully small. Anyone who could still be seen walking at this hour moved quickly, almost nervously, as though the darkness itself had become something unsafe.
And in a way, it had.
With supernatural incidents breaking out more and more often, fear had already sunk deep into the hearts of ordinary people. The authorities could still try to calm the public through television, newspapers, and the internet, but that could only do so much. The unease had already spread too far.
Few dared linger outside after dark unless they had no other choice.
Even the lights inside many homes were turned off earlier than before, as if that alone might keep unclean things from noticing them.
But on one quiet street in Shibuya Ward, the White Fox Office remained brightly lit.
Inside, Gin Tsumugi sat at his desk in total concentration.
"...Praying to Taizan Fukun and the gods of the underworld, and through that, reversing life and death. Strictly speaking, it is not resurrection granted for free, but a transaction carried out on a higher order of law."
"The Taizan Fukun Ritual is closer to exploiting a loophole in the rules. The goal is to use the smallest possible price..."
"But the gods of the underworld are not likely to be so easy to deceive..."
Since returning from the Onmyo Agency, Gin had thrown himself completely into studying the Taizan Fukun Ritual and the years of research Dairenji Suzuka had accumulated around it. White paper already covered much of the desk. Some sheets were filled with spiritual formulas, some with deductions, some with hastily written possibilities and corrections. He kept picking up his pen, writing, pausing, crossing things out, then starting again.
Onmyodo itself was a path that sought to pry into the mysteries of life, death, and reincarnation, chasing truths hidden behind the movements of stars and the structure of the unseen world.
Tonight, Gin was standing before one of its deepest taboos.
"Director, aren't you going to rest? It's already really late."
Kasugano Sora floated out from the soul hosting wood and drifted quietly to his side. She looked at Gin with a mixture of concern and curiosity. At the moment, he seemed so focused that he almost looked possessed.
What exactly was so important that it could draw him in this deeply?
"I'm not sleepy yet." Gin did not look away from the screen. "Right, Sora, get me some more blank paper."
Sora nodded at once.
In the past two days, she had become more and more skilled at handling her original body. With a soft movement, she drew it out from its sealed talisman state and slipped back into it as naturally as someone putting on clothes. Even now, the body still looked too pale, far too bloodless, especially in the face, but at least it could be used for simple tasks.
Soon, she returned with a stack of white paper.
And not just that.
She had also made him a cup of instant coffee.
"Here, Director."
Gin accepted both.
"Thanks, Sora."
He took a sip of the coffee, though he had never really liked the stuff. If Kotoko did not enjoy drinking it, he probably would not have kept any in the office at all. Still, he drank it without complaint, then pulled a fresh sheet toward him and resumed his calculations.
Sora stood nearby for a moment before her eyes drifted to the words on the screen.
"Taizan Fukun Ritual..." she murmured. "Director, is this some new Onmyodo technique you're researching?"
Gin gave a faint shake of his head.
"It goes far beyond the level of an ordinary Onmyodo technique. Even a Great Onmyodo Art would be beneath it."
That answer immediately caught her attention.
Gin set down his pen for a moment and explained while his eyes remained on the screen.
"Taizan Fukun is the legendary deity who governs the underworld and oversees ghosts. By day, he judges the living. By night, he judges the dead. He is the one who stands in judgment over both the worlds of yin and yang."
Sora listened in silence.
"The Taizan Fukun Ritual is a ritual of exchange. It offers prayer to that great deity and seeks to trade one life for the return of another." Gin paused briefly, then added, "Of course, it is not truly an equal exchange."
He continued in a measured voice.
"To put it simply, the Taizan Fukun Ritual is a forbidden spell capable of overturning life and death, and perhaps even reaching beyond the cycle of reincarnation itself."
By the time he finished, the blank page before him was already covered in fresh writing.
The Taizan Fukun Ritual had only been in his hands for less than a day, yet his research into it was moving with astonishing speed.
Whether it was because the Ritual itself originally belonged to Abe no Seimei's domain, or because of some deeper link between the role playing system and the spell, Gin constantly felt inspiration rising one after another as he studied it. Ideas appeared almost faster than he could write them down.
The result was obvious.
He had already found several flaws and omissions in Dairenji Suzuka's research.
That alone was enough to show just how terrifying his unilateral comprehension of the Taizan Fukun Ritual had become.
"Reverse life and death... go beyond the cycle of reincarnation..."
Kasugano Sora could not stop herself from covering her mouth.
Her eyes widened in shock.
She did not know much about Onmyodo, but even she understood one thing. Life and death were supposed to be irreversible. For humans, that boundary was sacred and untouchable.
She had never imagined that a forbidden spell like this could actually exist.
No wonder the Director said it went far beyond the limits of ordinary Onmyodo.
And then, almost against her will, another thought rose in her heart.
If the dead could truly be returned to life...
Then could she also...
Just as that thought surfaced, Gin suddenly stopped writing.
He turned and looked at her.
"Sora," he said quietly, "if it works, would you be willing to become my first case?"
The words struck her straight in the heart.
For a second, she forgot to breathe.
Her hand tightened over her chest as her pulse raced wildly. She understood immediately what he meant. She understood too well.
"Director..." Her voice trembled. "Is that true? Can you really bring me back to life?"
Gin nodded.
"Yes. Your body and soul were preserved very completely. Compared to most cases, the probability of bringing you back is much higher, and the price required should also be smaller." Then, more gently, he added, "Of course, that will be a long time from now."
But that was already enough.
Far more than enough.
The excitement swelling in Kasugano Sora's chest could no longer be held back. She threw herself forward and buried herself against Gin, wrapping her arms tightly around him.
Her slender body trembled.
She wanted to cry, but tears no longer came easily to her now.
So all she could do was cling to him and repeat one phrase over and over, like a child who had finally been shown a sliver of dawn after a long night of terror.
"Thank you... thank you... thank you..."
Gin let out a soft sigh.
Then he set down the pen, raised a hand, and gently stroked her back.
The girl in his arms had lost nearly everything.
Her parents.
Her relatives.
Her home.
Even her place in the world as a normal human being.
Now she had to face the future in a form that was no longer truly alive, in a world that had already become cruel enough to swallow ordinary people whole.
Anyone looking at her like this would feel pity.
Would feel tenderness.
Would feel the urge to protect something so fragile.
And so, giving her that promise now was not simply about the Taizan Fukun Ritual.
It was about giving her a reason to keep going.
A hope to hold onto.
The courage to continue facing this world.
.....
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