How did I, an Onmyoji, become the Lord of Yokai?

"Master, do you really not feel anything?"

Ibuki's eyes narrowed slightly, and a smile appeared on her charming and lovely face, as if she had discovered something.

The boy gently tapped her head and said with a smile, "If I had feelings, would I still say such things? Alright, let's eat breakfast first, and then we can talk about other things."

"Hehehe... That's what the master said."

Seeing that Shimizu Asahi said this, Ibuki did not insist any further. She smiled and returned to her seat, then began to enjoy her breakfast. Qingnvfang and Ari, who were standing nearby, thought for a moment and then looked away.

Soon, everyone finished breakfast, and after finishing, Shimizu Asahi looked at Ōtakemaru in the main seat.

"Ootakemaru, there are some things I'd like to talk to you about. Could I take a little of your time?"

"Hmm? Is there something you want to talk to me about?"

Ootakemaru was taken aback when his name was suddenly called. A hint of doubt appeared in his pale yellow eyes, as if he was wondering what Shimizu Asahi wanted to say to him. However, after realizing what was going on, he nodded to indicate that he could.

The two then left the room under the watchful eyes of the others inside.

After closing the door, Ōtakemaru, with his hands tucked into the sleeves of his kimono, asked, "What is it that you want to tell me?"

"It's nothing, there's just something I really want to say."

The boy smiled gently, his smile carrying a hint of nostalgia and relief, as if he were seeing his own child grow up.

For some reason, Ōtakemaru suddenly felt that Shimizu Asahi's gaze... was similar to 'him'.

Then, in a daze, the boy's voice entered his ears.

"You've grown up, Ōtakemaru." Chapter 399 Ōtakemaru's Resentment

The corridor was quiet in the early morning. The breeze was like a lover's hand, gently caressing his cheek. The sound of clear water and rising sun mingled with the breeze and reached Ōtakemaru's ears. However, this soft voice was like a thunderclap to Ōtakemaru, blasting away all his thoughts.

His resilient body trembled involuntarily. In that instant, he seemed to see a familiar figure from three hundred years ago. That figure overlapped with the figure in front of him, as if... they had become the same person.

"No, impossible... How could this be... It's him... It's him... He's still alive... No, this isn't him... He couldn't possibly still be alive... Impossible..."

Chaos, excitement, shock, numbness—indescribable emotions surged in from all directions like a tidal wave, and the king who ruled the sea murmured like a madman.

Ōtakemaru, who had remained steadfast like a rock since Reiko left in search of him, wavered once again.

However, the master of Suzuka Mountain was not someone who would be defeated by a single piece of news. Amidst this violent upheaval, he managed to control his spreading emotions and calmed down completely in just half a minute.

"..."

"..."

As he slowly slipped his hands into his kimono, Ōtakemaru stared at the boy before him, his gaze deep and urgent.

His mind had calmed down, but he still wanted to know what was going on, why... why two people who seemed so different yesterday had become so alike today.

Perhaps sensing his anxiety, Shimizu Asahi's gentle expression softened with a hint of indulgence.

"This is a long story, and it's a story that will answer your questions."

"Sit down, Ōtakemaru. I will tell you everything I know."

"..."

The familiar and friendly voice seemed so natural, and his inner emotions grew even stronger. Ōtakemaru obeyed his words and sat down under the eaves of the walkway.

"Last night, I used the power of the Yasakani no Magatama to travel back three hundred years..."

The story began without warning. Shimizu Asahi sat cross-legged, gently blowing in the warm breeze, and began to tell the story... the story of three hundred years ago, about him, about Reiko, about Yoko, and about Ōtakemaru and Suzuka Mountain.

As Shimizu Asahi said, his story was long and could not be explained in a few words. However, the listener was not impatient. Ōtakemaru sat quietly in place, his expression changing with the story. No matter how incredible or absurd the story seemed to Ōtakemaru, he never interrupted him once.

And so, one spoke and the other listened, and in this quiet yet restless atmosphere, the long story quietly came to an end.

"I don't know if it's because I've gotten used to the era of three hundred years ago, but even though I've returned to my own time, I have this feeling that this era doesn't belong to me. It's really unbelievable."

The black-haired boy couldn't help but laugh. He looked up at the sky, then at Ōtakemaru beside him.

“I know you are very receptive, but this story has also had a great impact on you. I don’t expect you to accept and believe me immediately, but I will wait. I will wait until the day you accept this fact and vent your grievances over the years to me.”

"This is what I owe you."

"Alright, let's go in. Ibuki and the others are probably getting impatient."

After the boy finished speaking, he braced himself with one hand on the ground, preparing to get up and go back to the house. However, just as he was about to get up, Ōtakemaru's voice suddenly rang out.

"You never owe me anything."

"I'm the one who should be saying I owe them."

"...Otake...maru?"

Shimizu Asahi was stunned. He stared at the sea monster in front of him in astonishment, seemingly not understanding why Ōtakemaru said that. However... his guilty smile turned into relief in the next second.

He sat down again after getting up halfway.

"I see... You've really grown up, Ōtakemaru."

Ōtakemaru lowered his head slightly, his strong hands clasped together... He believed it; he believed the story that Shimizu Asahi had told him.

Although the story was unbelievable and even beyond imagination, he still believed it.

Without any particular reason or thought, he simply felt that he was him, so he believed it.

The man who took her in and single-handedly built Suzuka Mountain was someone who traveled back three hundred years from the present.

He left not because he was going on an adventure, but because the times no longer allowed him to exist. His history ended on that day three hundred years later.

For a century after Suzuka Mountain was built, they searched frantically for his whereabouts, unaware that he never existed in this world...

In fact, just as everyone expected, on the day Shimizu Asahi left, the biggest tremor in Suzuka Mountain’s history occurred. No one could imagine that the young Onmyoji who founded Suzuka Mountain and treated them like family would suddenly leave a note and go on an adventure alone.

However, the facts are right in front of us.

Shimizu Asahi left, abandoning the island, its inhabitants, and Reiko and Yoko.

He still remembers the expressions on Reiko and Yoko's faces. Reiko shouted that Shimizu Asahi would never abandon them, and then planned to go out and look for him alone. The expression on her face was one of trust.

Trust that comes from the heart and without hesitation.

And the same goes for the leaves.

These two women trusted their husbands from the bottom of their hearts.

At first, Ōtakemaru, like the others, trusted this man who had always cared for and protected him, but who suddenly left Suzuka Mountain, and kept trying to find his whereabouts.

However, as time went on, his trust gradually changed.

He began to think that Shimizu Asahi had truly abandoned them. Ten years away from the island, without a single word or trace, it was as if he had completely vanished from the world. What else could such a guy be but someone who wanted to abandon them?

Thus, resentment was born. Ōtakemaru began to hate Shimizu Asahi for abandoning their home, for abandoning his own family, and for abandoning him.

He was the one who gave her warmth and a family, so why did he abandon her when she started to enjoy this kind of life?

It's like giving a hungry and cold child warm food and a fire, filling him with hope for life, only to find the next day that it was all an illusion.

During that time, he lived in darkness, feeling that he was always alone and that no one was truly kind to him. Even Mount Suzuka could not offer him any warmth.

In the end, it was Reiko who stepped forward to comfort him. Even after ten years, she never wavered in her trust in Shimizu Asahi. It was her trust that inspired him, enabling him to pull himself together and continue searching for Shimizu Asahi's whereabouts.

But he never imagined that the answer he had been searching for for three hundred years would be like this... Chapter 400: The Missing Leaf and Lingzi

A gentle breeze blew from afar. Shimizu Asahi and Ōtakemaru sat quietly under the eaves of the walkway. No one knew how long they had been sitting there—a stick of incense, an hour, or a whole morning.

Even they themselves didn't know.

However, the peaceful time they spent together gradually brought peace and tranquility to their hearts. When their hearts were completely at peace, the black-haired boy stood up with a smile.

"Alright, let's go back, Ōtakemaru."

"Ah."

The two returned to their room, but neither mentioned what they had said.

After having someone tidy up the place, Ōtakemaru sent Uminari to handle matters on the island. He had finally waited for Shimizu Asahi to return, and he had many things he wanted to tell him.

The previous confession was when Shimizu Asahi told him the reason for what happened back then, and now it's his turn to tell Shimizu Asahi what happened after he left.

Shimizu Asahi understood what Ōtakemaru was thinking, so after saying "You guys go wander around" he left the house with Ōtakemaru.

Where are we going now?

On the way, Shimizu Asahi, who was following Ōtakemaru, looked at the road that had changed somewhat and couldn't help but ask a question.

Ōtakemaru, without turning his head, said, "Go to that place you built to store scrap metal."

"Scrap metal? You mean the Hall of Memories?"

Asami Shimizu recalled the palace that held their memories, and as those memories resurfaced, the road before her gradually overlapped with the road in her memory.

"Suzuka Mountain... has changed so much. I knew this place like the back of my hand just yesterday, but today I don't even recognize the way around it."

A sigh welled up from my heart.

Upon hearing this, Ōtakemaru fell silent for a moment. He glanced at him and said in a low voice, "...It's normal. No one has walked this road for a hundred years. The people who used to collect these things with Suzuka Gozen have gradually given up on this practice. The new sirens don't have this habit either. So, fewer and fewer people come here. Now, besides me, I guess only the Seven-Person Cape and the Scorpion Woman will come."

“A road that has been abandoned for two hundred years, no matter how good your memory is, you can’t recognize it immediately. Besides, the road in your mind is not like this.”

"Is that so... I never imagined that this road has been abandoned for two hundred years."

The bright gaze dimmed slightly, and Qing Shui Chaoyang seemed to have guessed why this road had been abandoned.

Because of his departure, Reiko and the people gradually lost the idea of ​​collecting memories... No, perhaps Reiko is still persisting, but the people may not be so persistent.

For them, the memory of his departure is probably something they don't want to keep in their minds.

"...Your departure did not halt the development of Suzuka Mountain. Just as you guessed, you had planned everything. As long as we did as you said, Suzuka Mountain could be built. However, you were the pillar at the time. As long as you were still here, we were confident that we could overcome whatever we encountered. Therefore, your departure dealt a great blow to Suzuka Mountain."

"Many people are pessimistic about the future, believing that Suzuka Mountain will be very different without you."

"Although Suzuka Gozen and I stabilized Suzuka Mountain, it is not as good as before without you. The plan to complete the project within two years has been delayed for five years."

"That's something I didn't consider when I left; it was my mistake. But it's really remarkable that you were able to withstand the pressure."

The boy's gaze hardened again, and as it turned out, his initial decision was indeed correct.

“It wasn’t me who withstood the pressure, it was Suzuka Gozen. That idiot believed that you hadn’t abandoned us until she left Suzuka Mountain. It was her trust in you that brought us back to life.”

"She also took your place as the master of Suzuka Mountain, leading us on this journey."