Chapter 5
CHAPTER FIVE
As Ryuichi drew closer to the tengu lord’s residence, he braced himself for the worst. While he hadn’t seen any strange curiosities for the last few miles, he was on high alert.
He looked over his shoulder each time the wind rustled a tree branch and twitched in his saddle whenever his horse kicked a stone on the road.
Nothing was going to get by him. Not if he was prepared.
Masaru sauntered up next to him, so they rode side by side. “Relax, kid. Not all the spirit world is like the Ryukage’s personal lair of terror. Like your world, there are different environments here too. Did you think blood, gloom, and shadow were all of it?”
Ryuichi shrugged. “Sort of.”
He figured that Masaru was tapping into his thoughts again. It was a skill Masaru had mastered, along with taking possession of Ryuichi’s body and fighting as him whenever he was attacked.
Still, he didn’t quite appreciate the yōkai kitsune being able to see through him so completely.
Ryuichi was braver than he was when he first came to know Masaru, but being in his father’s realm was still scarier than he wanted to admit.
He didn’t want anyone to know how deep that fear went, especially not Masaru, who enjoyed poking fun at people for their weaknesses.
“Remember, botchan: The spirit world is yours to command. Even when it’s dangerous. You’re always in charge.”
“Is that something that your kami taught you?”
Masaru’s white eyes held that irritated gleam that signaled to Ryuichi he was treading on the yōkai’s temper. But as soon as that warning came, it evaporated. “Nice try.”
As usual, Masaru had no intention of answering a question about his past. Being a mystery was how he kept an upper hand.
Ryuichi changed the subject. “Do you have a favorite place to visit in this realm?”
That cocky grin returned to his lips. “I’m partial to the Valley of Lost Souls.”
Masaru’s tone sent a chill down Ryuichi’s spine.
Valley of Lost Souls? As in souls were sucked out of bodies? Given what he’d just witnessed with the hungry, bird-eating trees, he could only imagine how horrible it would be to have your soul stolen from you.
Especially for someone like him, who had already lost control of his shadow.
That’s precisely why that cursed urn was something Ryuichi didn’t want to go near, despite Koichi’s encouragement.
Haruki cackled from her horse. She was leaning back, her legs outstretched instead of in the stirrups. “The valley is beautiful this time of year. You’d have a great time there, child. Just not a very long one.”
That didn’t sound promising at all.
“Masaru, there’s no Valley of Lost Souls nearby, right?”
Please let him be lying.
Masaru turned back in his red-lacquered saddle to wink at Ryuichi. “The foundation of the spirit world isn’t as concrete as the mortal one. The terrain can change rapidly here. You never know what you might stumble upon.”
Ryuichi tried not to let on that his heart was pounding in his chest.
As they cleared the forest, he saw an average-looking castle on a small hill made of raised dirt. One surrounded by a hastily constructed wood wall with spiked stakes that seemed to glisten in the dim light.
The tengu slowed his horse as they neared the wooden gate. “Welcome to Castle Monmi-jō. Aptly named for watching over the spirit realm side of the portal. My master had it hastily built after your little incident with your father.”
Heat flooded Ryuichi’s cheeks. He’d opened the gate without the ability to reseal it.
Under duress, or not, it made no difference.
He tried reminding himself that he had no choice.
Ryukage would have killed everyone he loved otherwise. But Ryuichi still couldn’t stop wishing he’d been smart enough to come up with another solution, one that hadn’t left the world in such dire straits after he helped save it.
As Ryuichi and the others stopped before the castle’s entrance, they were suddenly surrounded by a large flock of tengu who dropped from the skies or appeared from wisps of purple-and-gray smoke that shot up from the ground, forming a perimeter around the castle.
Haruki sat up and laughed. She was so giddy about this turn of events that Ryuichi was surprised she wasn’t applauding.
Koichi drew his sword, the metal making a whooshing noise as it was pulled from its sheath. Keiko drew her horse closer to Ryuichi. She positioned herself in front of him as soon as these new tengu unleashed their swords and angled them in his direction.
Masaru didn’t flinch, and Ryuichi’s shadow merely stared at the birdlike yōkai, waiting to see what they wanted.
Their guide held his hand up. “Halt! I’ve returned with the Ryukage’s very own flesh and blood.”
Dressed in a green yukata, the tengu leader stepped forward and raked their guide with a withering stare. “How do we know you aren’t a squawking traitor who brought some hapless human here to try and trick us and our lord? What tengu allies himself with humans, after all?”
Masaru spat on the ground. “Careful who you insult, birdling. You need to take a more respectful tone around your nonhuman superiors.”
The tengu loosened their grip on their weapons as they realized Keiko and Masaru were not human, but inari.
To prove her prowess, Haruki raised her hand up and summoned a lightning bolt from the cloudy sky with just a snap of her fingers. A ripple of shimmering energy danced around her body, highlighting the embroidery on her kimono. “Bow before your betters, scum.”
The tengu immediately fell to their knees.
“I still don’t trust any of them,” one of the tengu mumbled.
Haruki immediately plucked another lightning bolt from above and turned the offending tengu into deep-fried karaage.
“How dare you come out here and confront us in such a manner.” She leveled all of them with a haughty glare.
“The spirit world has really let itself go in the Ryukage’s absence.
When he was in charge, things like this never happened. Underlings knew their place!”
Masaru snorted at her words. “Please. They happened all the time. You just never bothered to interact with regular tengu.”
She gestured at the group. “After looking at this pathetic display of disrespect, is it any wonder why? Unlike you, I never tolerated such behavior.”
Faster than Ryuichi could blink, Keiko sidled up to Masaru, grabbing his left sleeve to keep him from striking out in anger. “Let’s not retaliate against Haruki. She’s technically an ally.”
“She’s officially on my nerves.”
Ryuichi guided his horse a little closer to his sensei. “Should we do something?”
Koichi shook his head. “It’s yōkai business. They’ll sort it out themselves.”
Ryuichi wasn’t so sure about that. But thankfully, he didn’t have time to listen to their bickering.
A blinding flash lit the ground beside their guide, causing the tengu’s horse to rear back on its legs. The sudden motion almost sent the tengu tumbling out of his seat, but he caught himself and settled his mount.
Smoke and dust filled the air, but then they dissipated to reveal an additional member of their species.
Only this one was much more auspicious. Dressed in blue samurai armor, this yōkai commanded respect.
His red skin was brighter than some of the others and contrasted his white hair and eyes.
Instead of a long narrow beak, his had a hook to it that was definitely more bird-shaped and patrician.
His black-feathered wings fluttered as he surveyed the situation. The humbled reaction of the others reminded Ryuichi of how Hattori Hanzō’s men behaved whenever he made an appearance. There was reverence and admiration, but also a palpable sense of dread.
The tengu who’d originally challenged their guide rose to his feet and quickly bowed to the newcomer. “Katsu-san, what may I do for you?”
“What is the meaning of this delay?”
The tengu appeared confused.
Katsu’s feathers flared out in anger, framing his body like a halo. “Let our guests inside.” He spoke in short, staccato words that expressed his displeasure like bursts of thunder.
Retreating in fear, the tengu around them leaped up and flew in circles until they evaporated. The heavy doors to the castle slowly creaked open, as if they were being operated by magic.
Katsu gave Ryuichi and his company a deep respectful bow. “Thank you for being here, Young Master Ryuichi.”
Young master?
Ryuichi felt a little embarrassed by the honorable title he’d just been given. Sometimes he still felt like a foundling who should be mucking out stables.
“You don’t need to be so formal. I’m no one of importance.”
“You are the son of the Ryukage, are you not?”
This was a simple question, but for Ryuichi, the answer wasn’t simple.
As an orphan in the human world, he had spent so much of his life wanting to be the son of respected parents. Notable parents. And now that he was . . .
He felt a bit ashamed. The glory belonged to his parents, who’d earned respect and fear. He’d done nothing to earn it other than be born.
But maybe his chance to evolve and elevate himself was right in front of him.
Maybe taking responsibility for fixing the gate and getting his father to help him set things right would give him more than just redemption.
He might become an honorable lord. One who protected his people and those who depended on him.
And in the end, he might truly believe in himself.
“Yes, I am. And Haruki is my mother,” Ryuichi answered.
“Then it is only appropriate that I call you master.”
Katsu stood as the picture-perfect image of what a samurai should be—provided said samurai had feathers, a beak, and wings.
He waited for Ryuichi and his crew to dismount their horses, then led them toward the tenshukaku. The fortress was exceptionally impressive, even though it had been hastily built.