Soul of the Sword (Shadow of the Fox #2) - Julie Kagawa Page 0,100

hope your stay in Hakumei castle has been a pleasant one.”

Okame snorted, which turned into a grunt as Reika kicked him in the ankle. Masao politely refused to notice. “I have taken it upon myself to oversee your final travel preparations,” the courtier went on, and gestured to a servant, who came out of the corner with a handful of papers in one hand and a large, rectangular pack dangling from the other. The pack was made of woven bamboo, with a pair of leather straps that allowed one to carry it on their shoulders. “Here are your travel documents, signed and sealed by Lady Hanshou herself, that will allow you to journey between territories without harassment. And a few supplies to get you to your final destination. Master Naganori has been kind enough to open the Path of Shadows once more, so I fear your time with us has come to a close.” As Master Jiro took the documents and Okame took the pack, his sharp black eyes fixed on me. “Do remember, Yumeko-san, once you leave Kage lands, you will be outside the range of Lady Hanshou’s influence. I would advise caution. Others might attempt to stop your journey, and we will not be able to help should you find yourself surrounded by dishonorable assassins.”

I nodded. “We understand. Thank you, Masao-san.”

The courtier smiled and gave me the barest of nods, then turned to the glowering Kage Naganori in the center of the room. “Naganori-san? Are you prepared?”

The majutsushi gave me a stiff, flinty smile that did not reach his eyes. “Whenever they are ready, Masao-san.”

“Naganori-san will use the Path of Shadows to take you to Jujiro, a merchant town that sits on the border between the Fire and the Water Clan territories,” the courtier went on, turning back to me. “From there, if you travel due north, you will reach the Forest of a Thousand Eyes in two days’ time. We cannot bring you any closer than this.” Masao spread his fan and regarded me over the black silk. “I do wish to warn you, Yumeko-san—when we realized Hakaimono had gone into the forest, we sent a unit of samurai and shinobi to guard the perimeter, in case he emerged again.” He paused, then went on grimly, “Those men were never heard from again.”

I swallowed the dryness in my throat. “What happened?”

“We don’t know.” The noble shrugged an elegant shoulder. “Overnight, it seems the entire unit disappeared. Even the shinobi vanished without a trace. As if something tracked them down and silenced them all.

“We can only assume Hakaimono wearied of being hunted,” Masao went on, “and decided to slaughter his pursuers, both to end the threat they represented and to blind us to whatever he is doing in the forest. Which means there is something in the Forest of a Thousand Eyes that he does not wish us to see. Unfortunately, that could be any number of things—an evil place of power, a cabal of demons left over from the last war.” His voice grew softer, chilling the blood in my veins. “And of course, there are the ruins of Genno’s castle, at the very heart of it all. Were I to hazard a wild guess, I would say that Hakaimono is probably headed there. For what reasons, I can only presume the worst.”

A cold lump settled in the pit of my stomach, and I could feel the weight of the scroll, heavy and terrible, beneath my robes. Masao watched me over the edge of his fan, sharp black eyes assessing. As if he knew I wasn’t telling him something.

Fortunately, at that moment Naganori stepped forward, radiating impatience. “With your leave, Masao-san,” he said with a stiff bow, and gestured us all toward the torii gate. “The night wanes quickly, and it is dangerous to leave the Path of Shadows standing open.”

“Ah, of course. Please excuse me.” Masao smiled and stepped away, fluttering his fan. “I wish you and your companions luck, Yumeko-san,” he said cheerfully, as the majutsushi turned us toward the gate. “Remember, let us know the moment you have completed your mission. If you succeed, you will have done what the most gifted priests and majutsushi failed to accomplish. Lady Hanshou will be most pleased, and you will have earned the favor of a daimyo.”

I didn’t care much about the favor of the Kage daimyo; it seemed to me she wanted Tatsumi as her own personal living weapon. But saying so seemed awfully rude, so