Osaki Hachimangu Shrine was originally the Chinju-fu Hachimangu established in the Heian period by Sakanoue no Tamuramaro in Mizusawa, Iwate Prefecture.
In the twelfth year of Keicho, the Sendai domain lord Date Masamune relocated it to Sendai and named it Osaki Hachimangu. After the Meiji era, it was renamed Osaki Hachiman Shrine.
For generations, the lords of the Sendai domain and the people of Sendai revered this shrine as a place to ward off calamity, dispel misfortune, invite blessings, pray for certain victory, and ensure safe childbirth.
Enshrined within are guardian deities tied to the local custom of worshiping protective spirits, and the shrine is especially revered by those born in the Years of the Dog and the Boar.
At this moment, the night had grown deep, and the worshippers had long since dispersed.
Along with the ancient shrine sinking into darkness, it was no longer just the whispers of the breeze and old trees that accompanied the night, but also the faint mechanical hum drifting in from within and beyond the city, like the labored breathing of a diseased beast.
The innermost chamber of the shrine was a dim Japanese-style room, adjacent to a millennium-old sacred tree wrapped in a massive shimenawa rope, making the atmosphere especially ominous.
Inside the room, a middle-aged man with long black hair, dressed in a dark-patterned kimono, lounged casually while toying with a jade talisman in his hand. With a pair of strange eyes, he examined both the talisman and the others seated before him.
"Honored priest..."
A shrewd-looking obese man, fingers rolling a string of prayer beads, respectfully bowed toward the talisman-holding man seated at the place of honor, then carefully presented a roster filled with names.
"These are the ringleaders from the dye works who refused to behave, incited trouble, and colluded with reporters..."
"We humbly ask the honored priest to deliver divine punishment and let them disappear quietly. That would benefit both of us..."
Hearing this, the man called the priest paused for a moment, then spoke coldly.
"Another list? The last one has not even been settled yet."
He picked up the roster and casually tossed it onto the low table beside him, his tone tinged with displeasure. "Do you take me for your dog, running around your affairs day after day?"
"N-no! Please forgive us, honored priest! It's just that rice prices have been soaring lately. These lowlifes are having a hard time and keep causing me trouble, so I..."
"Hey! Sasaki, what kind of nonsense is that?" the man snapped. "Rice prices go up and you didn't profit from it? And now you complain about it?"
The man who spoke was Nakajima Ichiro, a tycoon of the rice trade. The others beside him, their eyes darting about, were Takahashi from the money exchange, Shingo from the clothing trade, and Morii from the land brokerage.
Gathered in this small room were men who, collectively, represented the capital power capable of controlling more than half of Sendai City.
Among them, Sasaki of the textile company was the most greedy.
Morii nodded. "Nakajima is right. Sasaki, this is already the fourth time this month you've asked the honored priest to act. Do you know no management methods other than killing people?"
"Why not give a little ground?" Takahashi sneered coldly without even looking at him. "Your stinginess is unbearable. Steady profits over time are what really matter."
Listening to their bickering, the priest felt his irritation grow. He simply closed his eyes to rest, waiting for them to argue their way to a conclusion.
Crack...
A faint sensation of shattering came from his hand, making his brow twitch.
He looked down to find that the jade talisman he had been playing with had suddenly shattered without warning, and the aura contained within it had completely dissipated.
Hm? The priest frowned deeply and checked the other three jade talismans in his pocket, finding nothing amiss.
"Someone destroyed my Blood Demon Art?" he murmured in surprise. His half-open eyes shifted uneasily, revealing the patterns and numbers within.
[Lower Two]
That was right. He was no priest at all.
He was one of the Twelve Kizuki, Lower Rank Two, Rokuro.
The jade talismans in Rokuro's hand were the true bodies of his Blood Demon Art, Shadow Puppets.
The Shadow Puppets could act independently of his body, hunting prey in nearby villages according to his will. This had long been a crucial means of survival for the timid and cautious Rokuro.
But he soon realized that instead of relying on Shadow Puppets to capture humans for him to eat, it was far better to cooperate with certain ambitious schemers, do their dirty work, and have them prepare his food directly.
From robbery and murder for hire, to becoming, by chance, the priest of Osaki Hachimangu Shrine... although the course of events exceeded Rokuro's expectations, things had indeed been growing smoother and smoother.
Moreover, Shadow Puppets did more than simply kill. They absorbed the victim's life force and fed it back to him. Even if demon slayers discovered the killings, it would not affect him. No matter how you looked at it, the deal was a profit.
Later still, he was chosen by that lord and became one of the Twelve Kizuki, stirring chaos and disaster across the northeastern regions on that lord's behalf, keeping those detestable demon slayers running themselves ragged.
But now, his Blood Demon Art had been broken.
"Either someone saw through the weakness of the Shadow Puppets, or they forcibly tore apart the demonic aura I left inside with sheer strength..." Rokuro judged quickly, no longer paying any attention to the greedy merchants' discussion.
If it was the former, it might be manageable. If it was the latter... then it meant a Pillar had set their sights on him, and that was very bad news.
Should he run? Change locations?
Thinking carefully, he realized he had indeed been a bit too conspicuous lately.
The escalating unrest in Sendai City bore his mark as well. On top of that, he had killed three demon slayers who came to investigate anomalies here. He might have been exposed long ago.
"Tch... I should have hidden myself earlier. I shouldn't have crossed demon slayers just to kill a few worthless workers!"
"Honored priest? Honored priest?"
"What do you want, idiot!"
Rokuro's irritation exploded as he was repeatedly called. He glared viciously at the chattering Sasaki.
Sasaki was, after all, just a greedy human merchant. Being roared at by Rokuro, whose demonic aura surged, he collapsed to the floor in terror on the spot. Even the expressions of the other merchants changed repeatedly.
Seeing fear in their eyes, Rokuro's agitation eased in a sickening way.
Yes... that's it. Fear me... I am no small figure.
He composed himself and returned to his calm, leisurely demeanor.
"My apologies, my apologies. I was thinking of something infuriating... So, have you reached a decision?"
"Y-yes, honored priest," Sasaki said, bowing deeply, his voice trembling. "Putting everything else aside, we ask that you first kill one person..."
"Name?"
"Harada Tadakazu!"
As he spoke the name, Sasaki's teeth practically ground together, his eyes filled with hatred.
"That damned laborer! I don't know what twisted ideas he picked up from those radicals in Lucia, but he dared to preach rebellion in my factory!"
"The sour poem he wrote in those red party publications, 'Our Lives Have Already Seen the Light,' is utterly absurd! Saying that workers can take the world for themselves! It's not just trouble for me, but a massive headache for all of Sendai!"
The other merchant leaders nodded in agreement.
Takahashi added, "Lately, that Harada fellow has gathered quite a few extremists. Even cabinet ministers are starting to lose patience... Sir, as long as you deal with Harada, we will offer you the most generous tribute!"
"...I want two-thirds, now."
Before their bows had even finished, Rokuro spoke first.
His demonic eyes turned as he looked displeasedly at Sasaki and the others.
"The last share, plus this Harada business. I want the payment first, then I'll work."
"...Girls around sixteen years old. No fewer than twenty. You can divide them up yourselves."
The color drained from Sasaki's face instantly. The fingers rolling his prayer beads went rigid. The flesh on Nakajima's face twitched, and Shingo and Takahashi instinctively held their breath, staring at Rokuro in disbelief.
Twenty. That was twenty lives.
Though they treated common folk no differently from cattle, and it wasn't as if they had never paid tribute before, twenty at once still made them shudder.
"This... honored priest... that may be..."
"Thirty," Rokuro said coldly and decisively, his gaze growing ever more dangerous.
"All right! All right! We'll find a way!"
Well-versed in the ways of commerce, they understood that these were the best terms they would get. It would only get worse later, so they hurriedly agreed.
Rokuro was not being willfully overbearing either. He knew cooperation required trust and long-term gains.
But with the possibility of a Pillar outside... he was starting to think about running away. Might as well squeeze them hard before leaving.
Leaning back at the place of honor, Rokuro tossed aside the shattered jade talisman and made another demand that unsettled them.
"Three days. I'll give you only three days."
"If the tribute isn't delivered after three days..."
Rokuro bared a mouthful of grim fangs, sweeping his gaze over the ashen-faced capitalists and enunciating each word.
"...I'll go to your homes and take them one by one."