In truth, after Cyr defeated Gojō Haru, the man who represented the strongest jujutsu sorcerer of the era, no one dared speak recklessly in front of him again.
Especially considering… that Abe no Seimei, the one in whom all of Heian-kyō had placed their hopes, died the very same day Cyr and Gojō Haru fought.
It was as if the moment Abe no Seimei died that morning, by nightfall the news of Gojō Haru's defeat at Cyr's hands had already spread far and wide.
At that point, Heian-kyō was left with no one to rely on.
There was talk of a grandson who inherited the strongest bloodline of Abe no Seimei. His talent was decent, but he was far too young, and not nearly strong enough.
Maybe, if given a few more decades, he could become powerful.
But—he would never become another Abe no Seimei.
No one ever could.
Through all the ages, there would only be one Lord Seimei.
For a time, no one dared challenge Cyr again.
Lord Seimei's funeral was held with tremendous ceremony. They even began construction of a shrine in his honor.
Judging by their actions, they fully intended to enshrine Abe no Seimei as a god.
Cyr attended the funeral as the current head of the Gojō clan.
The former head, Gojō Haru, now wore a white silk band over his eyes. With a folding fan in hand, he remained elegant and composed—only, he now stood behind the young man, not at the forefront.
The rest of the Gojō clan followed silently, heads bowed.
When people looked at the white-haired youth with his striking blue eyes, then looked at Gojō Haru with his eyes covered in silk, they couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
It was true after all.
The Six Eyes of the Gojō clan had been forcefully taken out and transplanted into the boy standing before them.
Yet among everyone present, not a single person dared question it.
The head of the Zen'in clan had been beaten to near death. Their strongest shikigami had been instantly destroyed by Cyr in a single move. Zen'in Shō still lay half-dead in bed.
And even worse—he could no longer summon the clan's strongest shikigami.
Shikigami didn't die in a true sense, but once defeated, they couldn't be summoned again for some time.
When those pale blue eyes swept over the crowd, everyone instinctively lowered their heads.
Some had been personally beaten by him.
Others had witnessed someone else being beaten.
And a few… were direct relatives of the ones Cyr had killed.
Cyr glanced at Abe no Masahiro, and the shikigami who had departed alongside him.
Ever since Abe no Seimei's death, the youkai—or rather, shikigami—that once followed him had all gone their separate ways, without a trace of lingering attachment.
"Seimei isn't dead! He's not even human! How could he possibly die of old age—?!"
As Cyr left the Abe residence, he overheard two youkai angrily bickering with one another.
"He is human."
"No! Seimei isn't human! Seimei is just… Seimei!"
Their argument sounded childishly naïve—almost laughable.
But Cyr found himself thinking seriously… about whether the rumors of Abe no Seimei being half-youkai might actually be true.
"Was Lord Seimei… half-youkai?" Cyr asked the one person he knew who was most familiar with Heian-kyō.
That would be Gojō Haru, who had grown up here and likely heard countless tales and whispers over the years.
"Hmm? Oh, you mean that rumor about Abe no Seimei being the child of a white fox?" Haru paused thoughtfully, then smiled as he replied.
The rumor that Abe no Seimei was the child of a white fox only began to spread after he became famous.
When he was still obscure and unknown, no one cared about his origins.
But once his name was known far and wide, people marveled at his unparalleled talent—and envied his strength.
When the rumor of him being the white fox's son started circulating, it felt like people had finally found a reason for Abe no Seimei's extraordinary gifts.
Because he wasn't human. Or more accurately, half-human, half-yōkai. His body contained half the blood of a fox spirit.
So of course, it made sense that he possessed greater spiritual power than ordinary humans.
"Whether it's true or not, I don't know either," Gojō Haru shook his head. "After all, Lord Seimei was already Lord Seimei by the time I was born."
By then, the rumor of him being the white fox's son had already circulated for years.
"Though… Lord Seimei passed away at the age of eighty-five, which doesn't quite match the supposed traits of a half-yōkai," Gojō Haru added.
"...Well, he was only half, right? Maybe he doesn't even count as half," Cyr muttered slowly. "I mean, Lord Seimei didn't show any of the traits of a yōkai."
This so-called "White Fox Prince" had no fox ears, no tail—not a trace of animalistic features. He looked completely human.
If there were no outward signs of yōkai blood, then it would make sense that he didn't have a yōkai's long lifespan either.
"Well, regardless, that part remains a mystery. Someone once asked Lord Seimei whether the rumor was true, and he simply smiled and said nothing. Even the Six Eyes can't see a person's lineage," Gojō Haru sighed.
As a youth, he had once climbed over the Abe estate's wall, hoping to sneak in and catch a glimpse of the man known as the greatest onmyōji of Heian-kyō—Abe no Seimei.
That was the first time he ever experienced failure in his life.
He was trapped in a formation. Though it was the height of summer, the moment he crossed the wall, he was plunged into an icy, snow-covered world, and no matter how he tried, he couldn't find a way out.
In the end, it was one of Abe no Seimei's shikigami who came and led him out.
That was the first time he met Seimei in person. The man was already sixty years old, yet still had a full head of jet-black hair.
His gentle demeanor carried a foxlike cunning. Though he looked like an old man at a glance, there was something about him that felt inexplicably… youthful.
You simply couldn't see him as an ordinary old man.
Back then, Haru had been arrogant and brash—the kind of Six Eyes divine child who didn't even bother bowing to the emperor. He had simply looked at Seimei and asked:
"Old man, are you a fox spirit or a human?"
And Lord Seimei had replied—
"Can't your Six Eyes see the answer, Divine Child?"
He had said it with a playful smile.
And in that moment, Gojō Haru hadn't known how to respond.
Even with the Six Eyes, he couldn't see through the old man before him.
"Then maybe he's not really dead," Cyr shrugged, ignoring the way Haru seemed lost in his memories and continuing to speak.
Eighty-five years old, died of natural causes—a long life by Heian-kyō standards.
But perhaps… he faked his death to avoid exposing his true, non-human identity. Maybe he shed his identity and went off to live as the White Fox Prince.
After all, for those with long lives—time is the least precious thing.
The day after Abe no Seimei's death, the Emperor summoned all his ministers in desperation, seeking counsel.
He even prayed to the gods, hoping for divine protection—wishing he could summon the deities of Takamagahara to descend and smite the terrifying force that now haunted Heian-kyō.
But... the gods gave no response.
"What if… we elevate him instead?" a minister from the Fujiwara clan cautiously suggested.
If they couldn't win, why not surrender? There was no shame in bowing to someone stronger.
Stubborn pride only leads to heads being cut off.
When faced with someone you couldn't beat or offend, the usual response was… to worship them.
Just like small towns and villages offered sacrifices to mountain or river gods, praying for peace and protection.
°°°
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