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

"wrong."

"None of it is right."

Shuten-dōji, who was holding the bottle of sake, kept shaking his head.

"okay!"

"You don't need to take me to any other places anymore!"

“This definitely wasn’t done by Ibaraki—she wouldn’t use such methods.”

"..."

Ian did not doubt Shuten-dōji's words.

After all, there was no point in lying about such a thing for her.

But this presented Ian with a new problem.

If it weren't for Ibaraki-dōji, a subordinate of Shuten-dōji—

Who would that be?

Seemingly sensing Ian's concerns, Shuten-dōji continued:

"Hey, uncle!"

"Don't be so quick to be disappointed!"

"Although we know it's not Ibaraki-dōji, we're not completely clueless~"

"..."

Don't look at us like that!

"I'm not joking."

Shuten-dōji looked at the place before him, which had been repaired after being destroyed by demons.

"I think..."

"Behind these ghosts and monsters, there seems to be something quite similar to your busty wife~"

"What did you say?"

129. Is the other demon Minamoto no Yorimitsu himself? (4,000-word chapter)

"what do you mean?"

Ian was instantly taken aback by Shuten-dōji's words.

"What does it mean to be an existence like Raikou?"

"Isn't this something that's easy to understand?"

Shuten-dōji looked up at the man beside him, his tone carrying a hint of pride.

"You see, if it were us, why would we send a ghost over in such a formal and scholarly manner?"

"This kind of regular disturbance seems more like human military strategy than ghostly military strategy, doesn't it?"

"You might not realize it, but we experienced the exact same thing back in Oeyama."

"..."

Shuten-dōji was right.

Compared to the "grand spectacle" of the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons caused by this Oni King of Mount Oe last time...

The current disturbances caused by ghosts and monsters do indeed share many similarities with the strategies employed by Minamoto no Yorimitsu when he led his troops into battle.

and--

Ian looked back on the places he had visited with Shuten-dōji along the way.

He could sense that these ghosts, sent from who-knows-where, were very familiar with Heian-kyo.

This is definitely not a concept that ghosts and monsters could possess—after all, neither he nor Minamoto no Yorimitsu would allow them to appear in Heian-kyo.

of course.

At this moment, Shuten-dōji is an exception.

Ian must keep her promise—an Onmyoji cannot lie.

Aside from that, the current situation implies one thing.

That is, there is a ghost who knows Heian-kyo very well, secretly plotting all of this.

If we can find it and get rid of it, perhaps we can truly end the era of the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons.

but--

How can I find it?

The reason why they were able to find Shuten-dōji was due to a chance encounter with Sakata Kintoki.

But this time, there can't possibly be another Sakata Kintoki, right?

Realizing this, Ian frowned.

"..."

Shuten-dōji looked at him, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke:

Hey! Don't do that!

"It's just a ghost! Is it necessary to make that face?! Show some of the spirit you had when you came to our Mount Ooe!"

"..."

Are you trying to encourage me?

Ian looked at the petite ghost woman beside him.

"Stop being so self-righteous."

Shuten-dōji placed his hands on his hips and looked at the great Onmyoji in front of him with a disdainful gaze.

"We were just returning the favor by sending you wine."

"I am the Demon King of Mount Ooe, how could I possibly encourage a great Onmyoji like you?"

"..."

Upon hearing this, Ian glanced at the sake bottle in Shuten-dōji's hand and quickly realized her true thoughts.

So you want to drink?

Knowing he couldn't hide it from Ian, Shuten-dōji readily admitted it.

"Yes!"

“I love fine wine, and since you’ve said this is one of the best wines in Kyoto.”

"We have to try it, right?"

To be fair.

Shuten-dōji knew that Ian would most likely reject his idea on the spot.

But things did not continue as she had imagined.

Ian quickly responded:

"Okay, let's have a drink then."

"Eh?"

Shuten-dōji could hardly believe what he was hearing—this man had actually agreed to his request?

"Hey! We said we were going to drink, didn't we?!"

The petite ghost woman held the wine bottle to her lips and made a sucking motion.

"You must have misheard me!"

“I heard you right.” Ian’s expression remained perfectly calm. “I know you want to drink.”

"Don't forget it."

“I told you before that as long as you do what I say obediently, I will not treat you unfairly.”

"..."

Shuten-dōji's face flushed slightly.

She murmured quietly:

"You're actually a pretty nice person..."

You have agreed to Shuten-dōji's request to drink.

You took her to the best tavern in Heian-kyo.

[The "Innate Talent of Mountain and Water Flow" has been activated: Although Shuten-dōji is a genuine demon, no one has sensed anything unusual under your influence.]

She is considered your servant.

The tavern owner was initially surprised by your arrival, but quickly accepted it—a businessman never misses an opportunity to do business.

You led Shuten-dōji into the largest room in the tavern.

You deliberately avoided dishes that are considered taboo by ghosts and monsters, and then ordered a table full of dishes for her.

"you……"

Shuten-dōji stared at the table laden with dishes, his lips slightly parted in surprise.

What's going on?

"We just wanted to have a drink, why did you bring all this stuff out?"

"..."

Ian looked puzzled.