In the world of Type-Moon, it all begins with becoming Morgan's husband!

A demon named Shuten-dōji engulfed Ian in flames!

"Do not--!"

The warrior cried out in alarm and then tried to smother the flames burning in front of him with his kneecap.

However, unlike the other Five Elements traps that Shuten-dōji had previously set up at Mt. Ōe, this one...

The flames before us were not something “borrowed” from somewhere.

It was "heat" released by Shuten-dōji himself.

Because this "heat" was so intense, it gave rise to flames, creating this sea of ​​fire.

This is something only a ghost of her caliber could do.

Minamoto no Yorimitsu's eyes gradually lost their color.

But she and the famous sword Hizamaru were still desperately trying to extinguish the flames.

but--

What Minamoto no Yorimitsu was unaware of was...

Inside the flames, something she could never have imagined was happening.

In the midst of a sea of ​​fire.

Shuten-dōji was looking at Ian with a surprised expression.

The man was not consumed by the flames he released; instead, he remained calm and composed.

It seemed that what was burning around him was not a flame, but some insignificant junk.

Shuten-dōji couldn't believe it.

She asked:

"Uncle! What have you done now?!"

"I did not do anything."

Ian looked directly at the petite, childlike demon before him and answered truthfully.

"impossible!"

"Absolutely impossible!"

Shuten-dōji vehemently denied what the person in front of him was saying.

"We've specially prepared an 'extremely hot sea of ​​fire' just for your arrival!"

"I was originally planning to roast you into slices of meat!"

"How could I not hurt you!"

"..."

You realize that your and Minamoto no Yorimitsu's guesses were correct.

From the moment you stepped into Mount Ōe, you two have been targeted by Shuten-dōji.

She was watching your every move.

She intends to use you as food at a banquet to prove the power of the "ghost."

But all of this seems impossible.

Listening to Shuten-dōji's words, Ian suddenly realized a problem.

"so--"

"Did you call Kintoki over here to eat him up?"

"Kintoki?"

Hearing this unfamiliar name, Shuten-dōji was not puzzled.

Because the character "金" (gold) in the name is simply too eye-catching.

"Is that the blond brat?"

"No," Shuten-dōji waved his hand and said, "I don't intend to kill this guy."

"After all, this guy seems pretty interesting."

"Right now, I just find you interesting, so I decided to play around with you."

"How about it?"

Shuten-dōji spread his hands, appearing quite arrogant.

"Isn't our imitation of the Five Elements Trap pretty amazing?!"

Seeing how eager the other person was to get his evaluation, Ian sneered.

"Ah."

"My assessment is that it's a poor imitation."

"The so-called Five Elements are not used in the way you break them down."

"There are many connections between them that you may not have noticed."

The voice just fell.

Shuten-dōji then felt the ground beneath his feet begin to tremble violently.

It was the same kind of ground tremor as last time.

As an Onmyoji, Ian possesses this magical power to manipulate the five elements.

This time, what he controlled also included the flames that Shuten-dōji had just created.

To be fair.

Shuten-dōji was somewhat surprised.

Having enjoyed her success in Mount Ooe for so long, this was the first time she had encountered someone with such abilities.

but--

This is my territory!

To let just any Onmyoji set up the scene would be utterly ridiculous!

[Shuten-dōji wasn't hit by you so easily this time—this means that this time, she is her true form.]

She begins to vie with you for control of the ground beneath your feet and the flames.

You realize that her power is roughly equal to your own.

This is the first time you've encountered such an opponent since becoming an Onmyoji.

For some reason, you felt a strange, unsettling feeling.

"Looks like you've done a lot of bad things in your life."

Ian looked at Shuten-dōji, who was his equal, and a sharp glint appeared in his eyes.

The other party responded just as defiantly.

"So, in that case—"

"Is it because you do a lot of good deeds that you've become like this?"

"We don't believe such a thing could happen."

"But at least I'm standing in front of you now, aren't I?"

Ian made no attempt to hide his thoughts.

"Shuten-dōji, weren't all those demons in Heian-kyo sent here by you?"

"Ah."

Shuten-dōji readily admitted to the matter.

For her, sending her ghosts and monsters to wreak havoc on the area was a great achievement.

“If some ghosts get bored staying in the Great Jiang Mountain, we can’t just not let them stretch their muscles.”

"We're very reasonable ghosts, you know."

really.

Only a powerful demon like Shuten-dōji is qualified to reorganize the "grand spectacle" of a hundred demons roaming the land.

This was destined long ago.

So Ian wasn't surprised at all.

"So that's how it is—"

The great Onmyoji stared at Shuten-dōji before him.

"Did you also kill the Watanabe family?"

"Watanabe no Tsuna?"

Shuten-dōji adopted a serious, thoughtful expression.

Then she grinned.

"I do not know."

"do not know?"

“That’s right!” Shuten-dōji revealed a playful smile. “Our demons kill so many people every day, how could we possibly remember them all?”

"Besides -"

She crossed her arms, appearing completely unconcerned.

"So what if he's dead?"

"What's the big deal?"

Shuten-dōji was very good at provoking the person he was chatting with with a single sentence.