(Mael's POV)
"You...." I saw a man in front of Sumi's house, "You were here after all."
He was tall, with brown hair and black eyes. He wore a brown and red kimono, with straw sandals. He was one of the men from yesterday, those who came to help Sumi out while I fought the yokai.
"Oh, you." I said, "Sato, was it?"
He nodded, "Yes." He said, "I didn't think you'd be here."
"Are you looking for Sumi?" I asked
He nodded, "Is she in there?"
"Yes. I ran into her by the Shrine, she wanted to go and thank me personally." I said
He scowled, "That woman...." He said, "She is quite stubborn...."
"Yea, well, I carried her back." I said, "So it should be fine. She's resting."
"Thanks for that." He said, eyeing me up and down, "Uhm....what else did you do?"
I rubbed my neck, "Not much..."
"How did she thank you?" He raised an eyebrow
"Uhm...." I said
He cleared his throat, "Whatever you did, keep it under wraps." He said, "Hiyoshi is quite the jealous one."
"And who is that?" I asked
"The young man who wants Sumi as his wife." Sato said, "But beside that, I am glad that she is okay."
I nodded, "Yea..." I said, "Her injury seems fine."
"How is Lady Ren?" He asked
"She is well." I said, "She sent me to the Eastern Shrine."
"Oh, you wish to see Lady Tsuki?" He asked
"Yes, Ren mentioned a carriage that would take me there." I said, "Or at least take me close to there."
"Yes." He said, "There's a merchant carriage that is about to head to Nitsune Village, which is just south of the Shrine. You can catch a ride with them, it's the least we can do. Do you need supplies, like a weapon or something? I have an old katana that you can use. The Forest can be dangerous."
"I'm fine." I said, "Thanks, though."
"No problem." He said, "Is Sumi awake, by any chance?"
"Hei's parents want to speak to her."
******************
"We're here." the Carriage rider said as it slowed to a stop
I looked around us, seeing nothing but forest around us. To the left, there was a worn statue of a fox that had a lantern to the side. The rider was an old man that was bald and had a white goatee, with several wrinkles over his thin body.
I got out of the carriage, hearing the horse's grunts as I did this, "Thanks." I said, "You helped me out."
"It's the least we can do. Terrible tragedy that happened." He said, "But at least you avenged Hei and Umi."
I sighed, "I wish I could've done something sooner."
"The less you beat yourself about it, the better, kid." The old man said, "Take that advice. Akatsuki has many dangers, just like the entirety of Kazuha. The Kurama forest is no different, you know. The Okuri pack was one of the many dangers and you got rid of it, so we cannot thank you enough. I do suggest you try to lay off the village for a bit, the parents of the victims are still grieving."
I nodded, "I'll be respectful."
"Head up the path for around 300 meters and you'll reach the Shrine." He said, "Be careful, Lady Tsuki can be quite distrustful. She might have her pets attack you."
"I'll be careful, thanks." I said as I turned around and began to walk past the statue, "Be safe now."
*****************
I stood under the Tori Gate that signaled the Shrine's entrance, seeing that in the distance, the wooden building stood in the middle of the large clearing. I noticed that there were three pagodas in the back, which was different than Ren's shrine.
"Hm..." I said, unsure if I should step through, "This is the Eastern Shrine, huh?"
The Shrines are used to worship the Goddess of Foxes and Rice, Inari. But I know that there is more to it, considering that Shinto Gods have many dominions. But what I wonder was what made Kitsune different from the Okuri when it came to them being Yokai.
If I could subjugate the Okuri, can I do the same to the Kitsune? I mean, they are Yokai after all. Or are they? Ren herself said they were, so it's all confusing.
I sighed and stepped forward, "Here we go." I said, walking into the boundaries of the shrine, "I have to see what's up with-"
I suddenly felt something graze my cheek, causing a stinging feeling to flare up. I stopped and dodged to the side, avoiding another arrow that flew right at me.
"W-What...?" I said as I looked where the arrows came from, "Who....?"
The next thing I knew, there were three large figures surrounding me, growling viciously at me. One of said figures was inches from my face, its brown face staring right at me. The mere sight of them sent a shiver down my spine.
Bears.
"Easy...." I said, raising my hand, feeling a presence in the distance, "Easy..."
One of the bears let out a roar, stomping its paw on the ground. This caused the other two to growl as they stared at me.
"Who are you???" I heard a feminine voice, much softer yet colder than Ren's, "What are you doing here????"
"I'm...." I said as the bear in front of me inched closer, causing me to lean back slightly, "My name is Mael, I come in peace!"
"Oh yea?" I heard the voice say, "I doubt it."
The Bear got closer, and I immediately jumped away, landing several meters away. They turned to face me, one of them getting on its hind legs and roaring.
"I'm not a threat." I said, looking over to where a woman with dark blue hair stood, holding a longbow in her hand, wearing what I assume was archery armor, "I was sent here by the Northern Shrine's Guardian, Ren."
The woman had blue fox ears on her head, signifying that she was a Kitsune, like Ren's. That meant that she was Tsuki, Ren's sister. She was as tall as Ren, with a thinner body. But she was still curvy with medium-sized breasts, which were covered by the armor. Her amber eyes were piercing me like the arrows she shot at me earlier.
"Ren sent you?" She said, drawing an arrow and nocking it, "And why would she send me a man with corrupted eyes, hm? And not just that, I sense an awful amount of Distortion in you. Who are you?"
"I'm Mael...." I said, "I am-"
"A Cosmic Traveler." She said, "I know. I'm not fucking stupid."
"Yea....?" I said, holding my hands up, "I don't want trouble."
"Well, trouble is all that comes here these days." She said, "Someone killed the Okuri Pack, meaning that more dangers will rise."
"I....I did that." I said
She pulled the bowstring back, "Oh, is that so?"
"I did it for a good reason." I said, "I had to save the village, one of them was attacking a woman. It killed two people!"
"You triggered the Curse and killed the pack?" She said, "Hm, you are a fool. That triggers more dangerous Yokai to come out of hiding, the Okuri were naturally deterring them from roaming about."
"Ren mentioned that." I said, "But I didn't know that."
"Tch...." She said, narrowing her eyes, "How can I be so sure you weren't sent by Kota?"
"W-Who?" She said
"A Cosmic Traveler who killed the pack." She said, "Kota must've gotten his hands on you."
"Trust me, lady." I said, "I have no clue who is who in this place. I have just gotten here."
She lowered the bow down, "You do look like you're a clueless moron." She said, "And judging by your spirit, upon further inspection, you have no malice...but what's with that dangerous spirit in you?"
"That'll be the Okuri." I said
"What?" She scowled
"It's....hard to explain." I told her, "Ren sent me to you for a reason."
"She said you'd be able to help me."