"Congratulations on your victory, Jishin-sama."

"We are glad that you won."

"You will make an excellent clan leader."

These and many other words relentlessly followed Jishin everywhere he went. The elders and warmasters, loyal to his brother previously, now hastened to pledge their allegiance to the new and sole leader.

Yes, the official ceremony to confer his status remained to be held, but everyone understood it was merely a formality.

There were no other candidates besides Jishin.

The only thing the younger, now the only, prince wanted was to forget everything, if only for a second, to stop the farce that was unfolding around him.

Ironically, throughout his life, he had thought about how he would avenge his brother for all those years of humiliation, but when the desire was fulfilled, it didn't bring relief.

What was worse, he couldn't show weakness or sorrow.

Right now, the entire clan was watching him and waiting for just one thing - resolve and grandeur.

A clan leader couldn't be weak, especially in the conditions of the World War.

So Jishin clenched his teeth and politely nodded to all those who rushed to change their allegiance before it was too late.

These people disgusted him, but he understood their motives. Izuna's death was not the end of life, and behind these people were their relatives and entire families.

The prince found his "understanding" ironic. When had he crossed that line when, even in his own thoughts, he could justify vileness and the absence of honor?

His brother's body had been collected, stitched, and treated, then placed in a temple. The warmasters had a very tense relationship with the monks, but some, reaching old age, dedicated themselves to serving the Kami. Others, however, became monks due to certain congenital or acquired health problems.

Although unrecognized by the broader world, it was these monks from warmaster origins who performed various rites of passage.

Warmasters were not particularly religious, so there were only a few temples in the Citadel.

At the moment, Jishin, utterly depleted, stood next to two richly inscribed coffins. The master who had been commissioned for this work had clearly put in many days of hard labor.

Involuntarily, the prince wondered whether the second coffin had been prepared even before the start of their battle with Izuna? And regardless of who would have won, the coffin would still have been needed.

In the small prayer room where the deceased were placed, it was kept deliberately cool to slow the decay of the bodies. Rune structures embedded in the stone walls exuded streams of whitish mist that crept along the floor.

Before the coffins and Jishin, the entire front of the wall was occupied by frescoes with various Kami.

Besides one person, there were no living beings in this place. Or rather, there were none before.

"What was unclear about my order to leave me alone?" Jishin hissed through his teeth, not even turning to the newcomer.

"I would be glad not to disturb you, but some information cannot wait," replied the indifferent voice of the Serpent, almost causing the prince to curse, but he managed to suppress the urge.

"And no other place would do for this? I am currently somewhat busy! Let me at least say goodbye to my father and... Brother."

"I came precisely for that reason," Shiro's words made Jishin freeze, then turn around sharply.

"Speak. But if it's not important, then..." Jishin didn't finish, letting his interlocutor fill in the blanks. It didn't seem to bother Shiro, though.

Stas approached Jishin leisurely and looked at the deceased. The healers had clearly done a good job, removing damage in one case and forming a new face in the other.

An incredibly complex task for the locals, which had been done to the highest standard.

"Jishin, I want to ask you to promise me that you'll keep yourself together, whatever you hear now."

"Damn it!" The prince laughed nervously, throwing his hands up and pacing back and forth. "Every time you say something like that, I hear something even more terrible and forbidden. And the fact that it concerned my father and brother doesn't reassure me at all."

Jishin pinched the bridge of his nose and stopped Stas with a hand gesture.

"Let me guess. It wasn't Katashi's father who killed my father, but, I don't know, one of the rebellious Sumada? No? A plot brews among the elders, with Deathbringers in their midst? Or perhaps the end of the world is coming, and my father knew about it but didn't have time to tell?"

Stas patiently waited for Jishin to finally run out of steam and calm down.

"A promise," Ordyntsev insisted, causing the prince's eye to twitch noticeably.

"Fine, damn you, I promise! What's happened this time?"

Ordyntsev looked at Goro Sumada's face, momentarily ignoring Jishin.

"Your father is not dead. He is alive right now."

Stas didn't see the prince, but a strange sound behind him indicated that he had heard the message.

For a dozen seconds, they stood in complete silence while Jishin tried to come to terms with the news.

"What do you mean he's alive? Then who is this?" The heir kicked the base of the coffin containing the "father" irritably.

"It's a fake," Stas shrugged, still not looking at Sumada. "No, the corpse is real, but only the face matches your father's. A well-crafted imitation."

"Then why all this?" the prince whispered breathlessly. "If he's alive, then none of this made sense..."

"It did," Ordyntsev finally raised his eyes and looked at the pale-faced Jishin. The young man's eyes darted back and forth, jumping from the corpses to Stas. "I managed to save your father's life, but his prana channels were destroyed. He's no longer a warmaster. A cripple cannot be a clan leader."

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

"Oh, Kami, how could this happen," Jishin quickly licked his lips. "But then where is he? What's with him? Why didn't you tell me anything? Although, wait..."

Stas didn't flinch when realization dawned on the prince's face, quickly turning into anger. It wasn't hard to follow Jishin's train of thought and understand the conclusion he had reached.

"If you healed him, why do you keep his recovery a secret? Although, why 'you'? Rather, 'the two of you.' It's now clear why Io-san decided to help us. You bought him with his brother's life, didn't you?"

"That's right."

"And it's clear why my father is hidden," Jishin continued irritably. "Because he might have chosen not the candidate you needed?"

"First of all, not 'you,' but 'we'," Stas interjected. "If Goro had still chosen Izuna instead of you, need we speculate how long you would have survived? Your crippled father could not have stopped him from executing you."

"To hell with it all," the prince swore. "How I didn't want to get into all this. Alright, now it's clear why you kept this secret. But why didn't you tell me? Then, after the conversation with Shin and Uramasa. Why did you keep silent?" The prince's voice easily conveyed hurt.

And he could be understood, as back at that moment, he was literally baring his soul to Ordyntsev, thinking that his father was dead.

"Because you couldn't afford to think about it too much," Stas began to explain conciliatorily. "Besides, at the most critical moment, you could have doubted."

"To kill my own brother or not?" Jishin finished bitterly.

"Sorry, but it was for your own good," agreed Ordyntsev. "Even in the last battle, it was evident that you were hesitant."

Both men silently looked at the dead bodies.

"And what will happen to my father now?" Jishin finally asked.

"He's under Io's care," Stas mentally exhaled. The conversation had gone much smoother than he expected. The past years had clearly had a positive effect on Jishin. He had become much more judicious and calm. "And here comes the good news."

"Really?" The prince snorted sarcastically. "I almost thought it had become customary for us to tell me only crappy news."

"Your father's channels can theoretically be restored," Stas dropped the news on Jishin. "For now, I don't know how, but I'm working in the right direction."

"Does that mean?" Jishin stretched slowly, almost incredulously.

"Yes, sooner or later, but your father will be able to use techniques and be a warmaster again. His prana core wasn't damaged, so we 'just' need to create the channels."

"Impossible." Jishin suddenly turned deathly pale.

"What's wrong?" Ordyntsev frowned, not expecting such a reaction.

"Sometimes you're so smart, Shiro, but sometimes so stupid!" Jishin looked at the Serpent with wide eyes. "Tell me, how will father react to the fact that I killed Izuna?! And took over as clan leader?! What will I say to him?"

Stas inwardly grimaced. Amidst all these troubles and problems, he hadn't even considered Goro's reaction. After all, right now and for the next few years, the former clan leader couldn't do anything to them, so Ordyntsev didn't perceive him as a threat.

But later, when Goro at least partially regains his strength, he could become a problem.

Even if his powers are weak, his experience will not go away.

"About that, you don't have to worry," Stas explained to the astonished Jishin. "Developing the technique to restore the prana channels might take a couple of years, after which your father will have to spend a long time mastering and developing the acquired channels. At best, he may regain at least part of his strength in about five years."

Ordyntsev squinted.

"Or do you think he could become a problem?"

"No!" Jishin immediately cut off that train of thought from the Serpent. "I don't want you to harm him. Let him recover, and then... Then I'll honestly meet with him and let what happens happen."

"As you say," agreed Ordyntsev. "But since you're about to become the clan leader, what are your plans next?"

"Next," Jishin drew out slowly. "Next, we must secretly meet with Katashi and discuss the Plan with him. Do you have any news about that?"

"There is news, of course," Ordyntsev nodded contentedly. "Io has plenty of people from the vassal clans of Mizuno ready to share one piece of information or another."

"Don't drag it out."

"The latest reports say that the Kindhearted quashed a small conspiracy and executed all those who stood against him. A couple of notable elders met their end, their status was diminished, and part of their assets went to the clan. Right now, he's probably already trying on the role of leader."

"Life is a strange thing. We both became clan leaders almost simultaneously," Jishin mused thoughtfully.

"Indeed, an interesting coincidence, but I'd like to point out that if before, a meeting of two princes was nothing special, now it will be a meeting of two warring clan leaders. If people find out about this, we could have serious problems."

"Then we must make sure they don't find out," Jishin tossed indifferently. "The war is in full swing, but the losses are still within acceptable limits. We still have time to intervene, to correct the situation, and prevent even more hatred on both sides."

"Speaking of that," Stas smiled slyly, alerting the prince. "I really would like to be more actively involved, but my research takes up too much time."

"Again, you want to bail at the most crucial moment?!" Jishin protested. "How much longer? Right now, I need you here, not who knows where!"

"The research on the artificial growth of prana channels needs to start as soon as possible. You understand," Stas shrugged, mentally smirking.

"I knew you'd say that," Jishin grimaced. "Fine, but," he quickly regained his composure. "Only after you help organize this very meeting. The appointment to the headship is in a few days. You have a month to arrange the future meeting."

Suddenly, Jishin smirked.

"And also, for this task, Shin and everyone under his command are at your disposal. It will teach him not to plot where it's damn unnecessary."

"Speaking of Shin and Kensei," the smile on Stas's lips was suspicious. "Can you officially declare that they are under my command for the preparation of the ceremony? I'm sure this humiliation will be a good punishment for their stupidity. Also, I would be grateful if you would casually mention why you did that. I'd like to avoid further... mishaps."

"Ha, why not," Jishin chuckled softly in agreement. "Then you'll forgive them?"

"Let's say I'll forgive part of the debt," Stas snorted.

Both interlocutors fell silent again, but this time, instead of deep melancholy, there was only a quiet sadness on Jishin's face.

Stas quietly left the prince alone with his thoughts.

*****

"Hello, mentor," Kaede bowed politely to the illusion of her sensei. The lamia also nodded. "You haven't tried to contact me for a long time. Did something happen?"

"Nothing particularly important," the lamia smiled relaxedly, greatly surprising her student. The ancient spirit rarely behaved so at ease as she was now. Usually, this was preceded by something very good. "I just wanted to invite you to visit me."

"Ah?" the Kuchisake-onna blinked uncomprehendingly. "Why?"

"I want to introduce you to someone important," Minoru laughed warmly. "If you remember, before you left with your Serpent, I took all the nearest sentient spirits under my protection."

"Yes, sensei," Kaede nodded. She remembered well that her mentor had acquired several sentient servants from among the embodied spirits.

Those gained the ability to move away from their places of birth and develop, albeit losing a significant part of their power.

But this allowed them to act as the eyes and ears of the ancient lamia, which was what she needed.

"Let's just say, my efforts have borne unexpected fruits. Believe me, you won't be disappointed with such an acquaintance!"

"As you say, mentor," Kaede agreed confusedly. "But Shiro-kun is very busy right now..."

"No need to drag him back and forth," Minoru dismissed. "Just pop over to me briefly, and then you can return. It won't take much of your time."

"Alright, mentor," Kaede nodded. "But I can only do so in a month. Shiro-kun has a very important task right now, and I am much needed there as well."

A fleeting spasm crossed the lamia's face.

"F-fine, in a month then. We'll be waiting for you," the illusion disappeared.

"I wonder who visited the mentor that she's acting so strangely," Kaede shook her head. "Well, no matter, I'll quickly run over there in a month and find out for myself."

*****

Coming to was excruciatingly difficult. His head was splitting with unpleasant sensations.

The man trying to get up fell back onto the bed, drained of strength.

After a couple of dozen seconds, the pain subsided slightly, and he was finally able to open his eyes.

The wooden ceiling he first saw meant nothing to him, but when he turned his head and noticed the man kneeling next to the bed, something pricked at his mind.

For a few seconds, the men silently observed each other. Neither was in a hurry to start a conversation.

Finally, a small smile touched the kneeling man's lips.

"Brother, I'm glad you finally woke up. And to anticipate your next question, you haven't come to for more than four weeks. A lot has happened during that time, but the main thing is that you're still alive."

'Haven't come to? Four weeks?! How is that possible?' the man frowned, pondering intensely. The kneeling Io didn't rush his brother, giving him time to think.

The head of the Shadow Stone suspected that Goro had already felt that something was "off" with his prana channels.

And he really didn't want to tell him the terrible truth. But Io would rather kill himself than entrust such an important matter to someone else.

"Brother, do you have any questions?" Io finally asked when the silence dragged on.

"Yes," Goro nodded slowly, looking Io in the eye. "Who are you, and who am I?"

The left hand of the Shadow Stone's head clenched spasmodically, crushing the floorboards with convulsively curled fingers.

'Shiro the Serpent!'