“Have you gotten a chance to ask your grandmother who you are?” asked Hideaki to Mirai.

“Even if I knew,” growled Mirai, “I wouldn’t tell you.”

“Fine by me. But my mission today is to relay a message: expect the worst to happen if you are not returned.”

“Returned? What do you mean?”

“Ask the standing you called grandmother, and you’ll get an answer.” He whisked a hand in the air, and another bush nearby burned in flames, opening another portal, and his kin entered the portal first with him last.

Mirai felt light-headed and realized that she had lost a lot of blood. She struggled to stand up, and when she took a few steps, her exhausted body forced her to drop down. To her surprise, her body didn’t touch the ground as arms wrapped around her waist. She faintly looked to the side to see her savior—Yuto.

“Hang in there,” said Yuto.

She removed his hands away from her. “We’ve rested enough.” She dragged herself away from the group, determined to reach home before another incident occurred.

“Your wound.” It was Ryosuke.

“Let’s go,” she said, dismissing him, and no one mentioned taking a break again.

*

“Tsubasa,” said Hideaki, “the longer you stall, the less patient he’ll become.”

Tsubasa smiled to please his brother. “He likes you best and is always pleased with you, so would you—” He was hurled to the side by Hideaki. He coughed and gasped for air. “Why did you—”

Hideaki looked away with disgust. “If you hadn’t been too lazy to keep tabs on what you were tasked to do, you wouldn’t have to beg for your life. You’re on your own this time.” He walked away. “We can’t afford to have you, or anyone, ruin our chance to become the only existence walking this land.”

“But we haven’t found her yet. She’s been lost for years. She’s definitely dead.”

“Tsubasa!” It was a loud cry from across them, and Hideaki, Tsubasa, Yani, and Tan immediately knew whose voice boomed in their ears, so they ceased all talk and bowed down. They heard light footsteps at first, but they became heavy when near. “Stand,” said the booming voice.

They listened and obeyed. As they stood up, a quick claw scraped across Tsubasa’s cheek, peeling off his entire face and making a bloody and gasping Tsubasa fall onto the ground and shiver to his brutal demise as blood gushed out with some skin remnants dangling on his facial bone.

No one said anything.

Or did anything.

Because it was Jun Matsumoto.

*

Night arrived, and the group had made their camp. Mirai was off at a nearby riverbank, washing and tending her wound while the Royal Demon Slayers, sitting around the campfire, minded their business as to how Mirai wanted.

“I want to check up on her,” said a fidgeting Yuto, “but I can’t. Umika, you go. You’re both girls.”

“Leave her alone,” said Ryosuke. “It’s her own actions that got her hurt.”

Umika put up her knees to her chest. “Honestly, I should check up on her since she saved me. I thought she hated us, but I guess not.”

“Don’t be so quick to judge that about her just yet. She probably wanted to kill you then, but that monster got in the way.”

Yuri grabbed a stick and poked the fire with it. “Then why would she tell Umika to move?”

Ryosuke shrugged. “Who knows? Maybe it was to hide her evil intentions.”

Yuto spread his legs on the grass. “I don’t think so. She doesn’t seem like the type who’d attack without reason. Think about it. She helped save the palace guards from being killed and being completely possessed. The same with the palace maids. As for Umika, she barged in when Umika went crazy that night.”

“Yuto-san!” shrieked an embarrassed Umika.

Yuto apologized. “Well, it’s true though. You weren’t yourself, and you were pretty strong.” He stopped and mentally reprimanded himself. “Sorry.”

Umika looked down. “No, it’s okay.” Under her breath, she said, quietly, “If only I didn’t have a frail body.”

*

Mirai had finished tending her wound, changed her clothes, and made her campground. Since Kazuya wasn’t with her, she couldn’t create a barrier, so for minimal protection, she spread the white repellent powder around her area so that if any demon were to invade, they’d burn to ashes before they could get to her. Once she had finished, she sat down and lied on her side as she secretly watched over the slayers from afar.

Then, a thought ran in her mind as she eyed the laughing teens.

I’m their priority? They had their chance to kill Umika-sama, but why put that off…just for me? Mirai closed her eyes and opened them seconds later. Is there something Grandma hasn’t told me?

*

The birds’ morning song woke Mirai up from her slumber. Squinting her eyes, she saw a small part of the sun’s rays peeking through the nearby trees. She looked around and saw that no monster had dropped by, so she stood up and stretched with a yawn and decided she would go to the Royal Demon Slayers after breakfast. When she regrouped with them, she found that they had more people with them—Kazuya and the Honomuras.

Yuto was the first to spot her. “Mirai-san. Where did you—”

“I heard what happened,” interrupted a worried Kazuya to Mirai. “Gomen ne. I wasn’t there to—”

“It’s not your fault,” interrupted Mirai. “You needed to stay behind.” She saw the Honomuras behind Kazuya. To them, she said, “Thank you for making this decision.” She gave them a slight bow to show her appreciation.

“Actually,” said Kazuya and the Honomuras.

“What is it?”

Ryosuke stepped forward to explain. “Everyone who was involved has disappeared. They can’t be traced at all.”

Mirai inhaled. “Let’s go back to Heisan.”

“We need to get everyone.”

“You just said it—they can’t be traced, and you’re right. You can search for them for years, and you won’t find them.”

“What do you mean?”

“Mi-chan’s right,” added Kazuya, trying to lessen the tension between Ryosuke and Mirai. “It’s best if we head to Heisan for now.”

Ryosuke ignored Kazuya and continued to question Mirai. “At least tell us. I’m not going back without fully understanding the situation.”

“Even if I do,” answered Mirai, “you ‘standings’ wouldn’t understand.” And she walked away.

*

“Kazuya! Mirai!” shouted an ecstatic Maki as she ran to them, who spotted them from afar. She hugged Kazuya and squeezed him. Her next target was Mirai, but Kazuya stopped her, so she whined, “Lemme hug her!”

“She’s hurt,” said Kazuya, “We need to—”

Maki attempted to strangle him. “I knew you’d be useless! Just because you have that doesn’t mean—”

Mirai interrupted her friends. “It’s okay, Maki. It was just a scratch. It’s nothing to be worried about.”

“Let us check-in with Jin-sama first,” said Kazuya, catching his breath. “The sooner we do that, the faster we can bandage it.”

Maki was quick on her feet and walked with them to Jin-sama.

The gang found Jin-sama reading a book in his room. With him was also Ueda-sama. Jin-sama invited the gang to join him in his chamber, and they sat down in front of him as Ueda-sama stood at Jin-sama’s left.

“Jin-sama,” began Mirai, “as selfish as this may seem, please do not punish the Honomuras.”

Ryosuke couldn’t believe what he had heard, so he intervened. “I cannot agree with that reckless request, Jin-sama. They had planned to commit treason had it not been for our intervention. You need to bring forth judgment as an example of your authority.”

Jin-sama nodded. But it wasn’t a nod of agreement. It was a nod of acknowledgment of Ryosuke’s commentary. “And your reasoning, Mirai-san?”

“They had, indeed, planned to get your head,” said Mirai, “but since they have chosen not to do so, the punishment should be void. A Shogun should rather be righteous and merciful than judgmental and fearful. If you were to give them the punishment of death, who would take responsibility for their children waiting for their parents’ return? If this was also made public, the children’s lives would be miserable. They’d be stigmatized as children of criminals. Thus, you should lessen the heaviness of the punishment.”

Jin-sama’s response was a small smile, making his audience know he had chosen his answer. “Well said, well said.”

Ueda-san grimaced. “But, Shogun-sama!”

Jin-sama laughed. “The kids made it back in pieces and got the Honomura to plead guilty. All’s fine. Not only do I want to be a righteous king, I also want to be thoughtful.”

Ueda-san sighed. “Then I have no choice but to follow.” He looked at the teens. “What about everyone who was in the secret organization?”

“They have been taken care of,” answered Mirai.

“Taken care of?” questioned Jin-sama.

“They’ve been killed to avoid leaving any clues leading to the real puppeteers.”

Jin-sama closed his eyes in regret and guilt. “I couldn’t save them.”

Mirai looked down and joined him in his pain.

Ryosuke caught her downcast expression and realized she didn’t answer his question when he had asked her because she didn’t want to tell him that she couldn’t save everyone.

*

“I believe there is still something you want to say?” asked Jin-sama to Ryosuke.

Mirai and her friends had already left the room after Jin-sama made his official decision, but the Royal Demon Slayers had stayed behind.

“I thought this outdoor journey would help establish a bond between you and Mirai-san,” added Jin-sama.

“Jin-sama,” said Ryosuke, “I’ve gathered information that she might be a threat to you.”

Yuri and Umika nodded, but Yuto was surprised. He had no clue what his younger friend was spouting.

“I believe she’s working alongside the demons.”

“You have met Grandma Meisa, her grandmother, haven’t you?”

The teens nodded.

“Then what you have said about her is not true.”

The teens were quick to retort, but Jin-sama ceased them.

“I’ve been friends with Grandma Meisa for a long time, and even though she was exiled and stripped of her noteworthy status, she’s not the type who’d pick a side and stick with them.”

“What do you mean?” asked Yuto.

Jin-sama looked outside his bedroom door to look at the sky. “Mirai is like her grandmother, and that’s why I trust her. Grandma Meisa will always side with people and demons who she sees is ‘right.’”

“Then why won’t she come back to help us?” asked Umika. “I’m sure she knows that humans are under terrorization from monsters around us.”

“She can’t. She’s on a different mission. A self-given mission.”

“What is it, can we know?” asked Yuri.

A broken smile escaped from Jin-sama. “To protect all that’s close. And to do that, she’s in search of something… Something that will change ours and the Demons’ existences.”

The teens looked at each other and shared one thought.

Ryosuke dared to ask it. “Is it related to something that needs to be returned?”

*

“Hai. All done,” said Grandma Meisa as she pulled Mirai’s yukata over her back. They were sitting on Meisa’s bed. “Don’t let water reach your back for a few days. Wait until the skin has healed first.”

“Thanks, Grandma.” Mirai turned around and faced her grandmother. Other than her wound, one thing had been on her mind—her katana. “When I was at—”

“Mi-chan!” The kids’ screams from downstairs and their loud and rushed footsteps were heard cracking the wooden stairs. “Mi-chan! You’re back?”

Grandma Meisa stood up, walked to the door, and waited until the kids appeared. Then she gave them a good whack on their heads. “How many times have I told you to not run up the stairs like that? We still have customers, so be quiet.”

The kids ignored their grandma and ran to Mirai, but when they saw the bloody tissues on the ground, they knew she was wounded. It wasn’t their first time witnessing blood.

Seishiro puckered his lips. “Mi-chan, are you okay?”

Mirai put out her hands to tell the kids that they could hug her. “I’m fine. This is little. No need to worry.”

The kids ran to her and hugged her.

“We heard from Maki-nee,” said Kanon, “that Kazu-nii was lazy to watch over you, so when the monsters attacked, he wasn’t there.”

Mirai pursed her lips at her. “Kanon, we shouldn’t call them monsters. We have to call them demons.”

“But monsters that hurt people don’t deserve to be called demons. Only nice demons can be called demons.”

“All right, everyone,” said Grandma Meisa. “You kids can talk with Mi-chan later. Let her get some rest.”

The kids reluctantly listened and left the room.

“Until you get better,” said Grandma Meisa to Mirai, “you’ll be here. Your room is still the same as you have left it.”

Mirai stood up. “I’ll take a quick rest then.” She exited her grandmother’s room and headed to hers. As she opened the door, she heard her grandmother shout something, but what her grandmother said didn’t register. Instead, she was busy grasping the situation in front of her.

Seconds later, her grandmother, panicking and gasping, ran to her.