Soul of the Sword (Shadow of the Fox #2) - Julie Kagawa Page 0,78

that is what I must do,” I said. I did not relish the thought of fighting Hakaimono, but Reika was right; he wouldn’t just leave if I asked him politely. “Whatever it takes, if I have to, I’ll drive Hakaimono out myself.”

“And what do you think that will do to the demonslayer’s soul?”

“I…” I faltered, pricking my ears. “What do you mean?”

She shook her head, but there was a sadness in the gesture, not exasperation. “Kage Tatsumi has been wholly possessed by Hakaimono,” she told me. “A soul, be it human or oni, cannot be destroyed, only suppressed or driven out. If your kitsune-tsuki is successful, there will be three presences inside him, three separate wills competing for control of his mind and body. If you fight Hakaimono inside Kage Tatsumi, the demonslayer might not come out of this ordeal unscathed.”

“What will happen?”

The shrine maiden raised both hands. “I have no idea,” she said. “A fox possessing a mortal to drive an oni spirit back into a sword has never happened before.” She grimaced, and I tried not to dwell on the absurdity of that last statement. “However,” she went on, “I do remember a case of tanuki-tsuki that Master Jiro was called on to exorcise. The tanuki had taken possession of a young woman, and by the time they brought her to the shrine, she was very sick, having gorged herself on sake and rice cakes for three days straight. And yet, she still continued to cry with hunger, demanding we bring her food and alcohol. The tanuki spirit was driven out, but sadly, the young woman never recovered, and died a few days later in her home.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

I felt a cold lump settle in my gut, the chill spreading to all parts of my body. Reika continued to watch me, her sympathetic expression still in place. “All I’m saying is that the human soul can be very fragile, Yumeko-chan,” she said softly. “I know you think your demonslayer is strong, but we don’t know what Hakaimono is doing to him, mentally and physically. I want you to be prepared. Even if we do save him, Kage Tatsumi might be…different than he was before.”

“Oh, stop with the doom and gloom already.” Okame sat up, giving the shrine maiden a disgusted look. “We’ll deal with that problem when we come to it. First, we have to find the oni bastard, and then things will get really interesting. So where was he spotted again? The Forest of Evil Eyes or something like that?”

“The Forest of a Thousand Eyes,” Daisuke corrected. “Also called the Wood of One Million Curses. The stories say that any human who enters the forest is never seen again.”

“Sounds cheerful.” Okame shook his head. “So, I guess we’ll be leaving soon.”

“Tomorrow,” I said. “Lady Hanshou wishes us to do this quickly. Naganori-san will take us through the Path of Shadows to the edge of Fire Clan territory.”

No one seemed pleased by that statement. Master Jiro thinned his lips and Reika wrinkled her nose, but Okame went slightly pale, one fist clenching on his leg.

“Right. So, I’m going to need to be really, really drunk,” he muttered. “That way, if Yasuo drags me off the Path into Meido, at least it’ll be tolerable.”

“That will not happen, Okame-san,” Daisuke said. “As I said before, I will be right behind you. And should your brother wish to claim you again, I will convince him otherwise. I swear this on my life.”

The noble’s voice was quietly intense. Okame glanced up, and for a moment, something passed between the two, some flutter of emotion or understanding I couldn’t place. But before I could wonder too long on it, Master Jiro cleared his throat.

“We should try to rest,” the priest announced. “The night is nearly gone, and I fear we will not get much of a chance afterward. Certainly there will be no sleeping on the Path. But, may I suggest staying together? After tonight’s events, I feel that no one should be alone in Hakumei castle.”

“Of course, Master Jiro.” Reika stood up, waving a hand at me. “Come, Yumeko-chan. We’ll stay in my room. Chu,” she added, looking at the dog, “you and Ko stay here. Protect Master Jiro, all right?”

The small orange dog wagged his tail in a very solemn manner, then turned to pad over to the priest, joining Ko at his side.

Okame glanced at Daisuke, his lip curled up in a faint smirk. “Guess that leaves