They had waited long. Too long.
They were defeated, overthrown, trampled into the mud.
But still, they remained, blended with the dust, lost among human upheavals, and lulled the vigilance of the victors.
They waited for the right moment and gathered strength. It wasn't as difficult as it might have seemed.
Even though the invasion of this world didn't go as planned, they were still able to plant the seeds of rot, from which, centuries later, new sprouts began to grow vigorously.
Unlike those fools from the plane of wrath or the pleasure-seekers, rot required far fewer emissaries.
The seeds could be various things. A piece of armor from one of the fallen demons, whispering the necessary knowledge, a shimmering green elixir remaining from past ages, or one of the cultists of the past, capable of resisting the relentless flow of time thanks to the gift of rot.
The buboes developed and expanded, but did so slowly and cautiously. They all awaited the long-yearned signal. Something that would give them a new purpose.
And they finally got it.
The seal was broken, and the blessed pus spilled out from the burst abscess, flooding everything around with holy fluid.
Now, they all knew what to do.
For any task, desire is required, and a disease cannot survive without a carrier. An abscess, however, requires a weak spot on the body where it can ripen.
All of them, the most loyal and honorable followers of the glorious teachings, will move north.
Ahead of them lies the war of the adepts of fire and air, but they are not afraid, for when they stand before their future leader, it will all be worth it.
Praise be to chaos! Glory be forever! And let this world fully experience their magnificent gifts!
*****
Meanwhile, in the Sumada clan head's study.
"What do you think about this?" Jishin irritably passed the scroll with the message to Io sitting opposite him.
Besides the two of them, there was no one else in the room. The guards diligently let petitioners in one by one, carefully protecting this room from potential conspirators.
"Hmm, I must admit this is strange," remarked the head of the Shadow Stone after reading the letter from Shiro the Serpent, in which the latter urgently asked to pay attention to the problem of spreading chaos cults. "He talks about these cultists quite... emotionally."
"Strange?" Jishin repeated slowly and then suddenly exploded, slapping his palm on the tatami. Thankfully, he curbed his force just in time, and the tatami remained unmarred by an additional hole. "Strange?!"
Jishin gritted his teeth.
"We're on the brink of war, and that slippery scoundrel has locked himself away with that disgusting master of seals and refuses to come out! In response to all my letters, he reports that his research is far more important than anything he could do here. Bastard, who does he think he is?! He, may Kami take him, has ignored three of my orders to return! Am I the clan head or what?! For this alone, I could declare him a renegade and send half of all the headhunters after his foolish head!"
"Why don't you do it then?" Io asked with mild irony, seeing how Jishin quietly exhaled as if physically deflating.
"Maybe because he's my friend?" Jishin snorted sarcastically, shrugging his shoulder. "And the bastard clearly knows it and is exploiting my divine kindness?"
"You do know that a true ruler should be alien to such notions?" Io noted neutrally, eliciting an intent look from the head.
"What are you trying to tell me? That I should indeed declare him a renegade? I thought you would be trying to dissuade me from it at all costs."
"And you're not mistaken." Io nodded with dignity.
"You've confused me," the former prince's flash of anger passed as quickly as it had begun, so he waited with interest for an answer. "Then why are you advocating so strongly for his execution?"
"You've misunderstood my motives, head," Io narrowed his eyes. "With my questions, I merely wanted to show that your threats, one way or another, are far from being realized. And this means that you should not throw them around so lightly. You are the head of the great Sumada clan, and if you say something, it means it is already a fact. For example, if you said someone should die, it means they are already dead. No other way."
"You do have a way with words that makes me..." Jishin made an indeterminate gesture with his hand.
"Moreover, let's not forget that despite his freethinking and irreverence, Shiro the Serpent remains one of your most effective subordinates, doesn't he?"
"Ah, if only you were wrong," Jishin grimaced as if all of his teeth suddenly ached.
The problem with personnel was something the younger prince had started facing back during the war. You can't just assign a task to a random commander and be confident of success.
Nor can you offer an opportunity and take the first one who agrees to it.
Overall, in terms of usefulness, the current clan head divided people into three categories.
The first category was, so to say, ambitious idiots. Typically, these were people with a burning desire for more, always more. They aspired to high offices and grand undertakings, but fundamentally, they were devoid of any noteworthy talents or accomplishments.
That's why they were idiots, as they couldn't see their own limitations and foolishness. Nor could they understand what would follow their catastrophic incompetence.
The second category was the opposite kind. These were, so to say, the "too intelligent" ones. If a person had even a semblance of brains, they would inevitably begin to notice the multitude of problems completely overlooked by the first category.
As a result, the "intelligent ones" began to constantly doubt themselves and miss the opportunity to climb higher, letting the first category ascend. And although they seemed to want to rise higher, they lacked the necessary resolve to do so.
While the first ones possessed an excess of confidence, the second conversely suffered from a lack of it.
Finally, the third category was those who were comfortable in their place and subconsciously didn't want to change anything. Such people had the lowest ambition and rarely climbed up.
Thus, Jishin constantly had to sift through this "human reserve" to find at least somewhat suitable executives.
And let's not forget a separate subcategory of subordinates who couldn't make half a step without endlessly requesting clarifications and confirmations of their own actions.
In this respect, Shiro really stood out favorably. Yes, sometimes he imparted his own unique perspective to the orders he carried out, resulting in something different.
But generally, it was enough to simply point out a goal and forget about the problem, as it would be solved.
And it didn't matter what the problem was – an enemy, a complex intrigue, or a prince of a great clan...
"But we still haven't decided what we're going to do about the cultists?" Io interrupted Jishin's reflections. "I've only heard about them in passing, but it seems there was a big war involving them a few centuries ago."
"We all have other things to worry about right now," Jishin decisively cut off. "The alliance is already gathering troops at our borders. Everything should be resolved soon. How are things going with the Mizuno?"
"So far, we have managed to portray opposition," Io reported. "But with each day, it becomes increasingly difficult. If the alliance doesn't attack within the next month, I fear we will have to provoke them."
"Then let's do this," Jishin took a clean scroll and, spreading it out, began to carefully inscribe hieroglyphs. "I'll send a message about the danger of the cultists to the daimyo and Katashi. Let the latter spread the information further. After all, the peasants and nobles are the daimyo's concern, so let him take care of his own people."
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
Io simply bowed silently.
However, the head of Shadow Stone sensed a vague anxiety. For some reason, he briefly felt that the decision they had made was far from ideal.
*****
Giant tongues of flame rose into the air. The heat was so fierce that hair within dozens of steps would start to shrivel and coil, slowly smoldering and turning to ash.
The city was ablaze; locals tried to extinguish it, but only out of insane desperation. To anyone who had retained a shred of sanity, it was clear that the city's end had come.
Perhaps, at the very least, since Hizoru and Avasaki had clashed in battle nearby. Two great clans, determined to divide the world as they saw fit.
And what happens if you stoke the fire with a good dose of oxygen? Correct, you get a flame so fierce it would make hell itself feel a tad too warm.
Powerful explosions scarred the already suffering land, scattering soil and ash, which were swept up by slowly moving monstrous whirlwinds.
They rumbled ominously, drawing everything loosely anchored into their deadly embrace, all the way down to the ground itself.
Hapless refugees, unlucky even in flight, were drawn into the merciless element, screaming in horror, and torn to pieces.
Often in the center of such aerial entities flew the mighty Avasaki, looking down with contempt at the fiery hell below.
There, among the blackened corpses, burst stones, and ash stood the fierce Hizoru.
The world war continued its course, grinding the lives of those involved and not.
*****
"Well, colleague, I must admit, you bring our cause true luck," Satoshi eagerly inspected the naked body of Minoru lying before them.
For the purity of the experiment, she had to return to her true size and tail, but even so, she easily attracted male glances.
However, those present here were interested in her exclusively from a scientific point of view.
Right now, she lay unconscious under the influence of Ordyntsev's Healing Palm. The man had to work hard to knock out the powerful yokai with his technique, even though she didn't resist.
Her brain and regeneration fought back even without the conscious participation of the owner.
"Agreed, colleague," Ordyntsev's serpentine eyes had already identified the places for the first incisions, after which, grasping a brush, he began to mark with long, longitudinal lines the future cuts. "Have you ever had to autopsy yokai in your practice?"
On Stanislav's face was a real white medical mask, and his hair was neatly tucked beneath a doctor's cap. Moreover, he wore a white lab coat that had been tailored precisely according to the earthling's instructions.
Interestingly, Satoshi also sported a similar outfit. At first, he flatly refused to cover his face, to which Stas noted that in that case, he would not be allowed to approach the open "material."
Swearing in every possible way, the seal master nevertheless made concessions, yet not forgetting to occasionally curse the "rag that made it so hard to breathe."
"Yes, on several occasions," Takehiro nodded, but then dismissively waved his hand. "But those were the lowest of their representatives. Their structure cannot be compared with this specimen in any way."
"Why do you think so?" Ordyntsev asked.
"Experience, colleague. And some old treatises."
"I see. Shall we begin?"
"I've been looking forward to this more than anything in my life."
"I understand you completely."
Healing Palm – an excellent tool, for the mere opportunity to wield which many doctors from Earth would not hesitate to give both eyes.
After all, the technique allowed one to gather information even in the absence of sight.
Thanks to it, Ordyntsev did not need to take a scalpel and make incisions. By saturating the yokai's skin with healing prana, Stas forced the flesh itself to part, sealing blood vessels and preventing any bleeding.
Yes, this technique couldn't be used in battle, but in a peaceful environment, it provided incredible opportunities.
The scientists decided to start with the hands. If the earthling took on the role of autopsy and preparation of the "sample," then Satoshi incessantly operated with seals, bringing various kinds of them close to different tissues and recording the results.
"As expected, chaos is most concentrated in the bone tissue," Takehiro demonstratively tapped a fingernail on the exposed arm bone. The last action became possible only because Stas had moved all the nearest muscle fibers aside.
"I think we've prepared enough to start the active phase."
"Do you think we can move on to the experiments?" Ordyntsev raised an eyebrow. "I want to note that the technique for destroying chaos is still riddled with many gaps. If something happens to Mi... the yokai, we will no longer have such a convenient for our work subject."
"There's no choice," Satoshi grimaced, barely stopping himself from removing the irritating mask, but thinking better of it in time. "If your servant's words hold true, we have very little time left. We must hurry."
Stas shook his head in annoyance – he didn't like haste. In such cases, essential details and discoveries were always overlooked for the sake of elusive and fleeting success.
"I understand, I don't like it either," Satoshi began to reassure Ordyntsev. "But you must realize that the result of this technique will allow us to get even closer to discovering you-know-what."
The closer the researchers got to the secret of immortality, the more paranoia flared up in them. And although every inch of the mansion was packed with protective and signaling seals, they still carefully encrypted everything, just in case someone was listening in.
"Alright, you've convinced me," Stas nodded. "Then prepare the restraining seals. If something goes wrong, you know what to do."
Takehiro just nodded grimly, his eyes narrowing dangerously.
They both, indeed, knew very well.
Chaos is very dangerous not only because it can corrupt everything it can reach, but also because it immediately puts this "everything" into its service.
Thus, any portion of energy that was supposed to destroy it would immediately join its side, transforming, for example, into an attack.
In such cases, Satoshi's excellent barriers were the only protection for experimenters like Stas, who would have serious problems without them.
Another reason why further experiments would be pointless without Takehiro.
On the other hand, the seal master himself did not possess such an amazing control over a variety of different energies, necessary for them to be mixed and tuned.
So, if the technique again did not work as planned, Satoshi's barriers would simply sever the contaminated limb, isolating it from the rest of the body.
A cruel but effective method in the case of working with chaos.
And for the beginning of the work, the little finger on the left hand was chosen.
"Is everything ready?" Ordyntsev inquired, drenched in sweat, holding in his hands a complex mixture of three kinds of energies. There was simultaneously prana, natural energy, and even ether itself.
Or rather, one might think so if they got their hands on the laboratory journals. But only Ordyntsev knew the true secret, that at the end he added a fourth source, namely spiritual energy.
Why did he keep this information secret even from Satoshi? Perhaps because the Serpent was not accustomed to fully trusting absolutely anyone.
And as Stas suspected, Takehiro knew that something was off about the laboratory journals. But he had not yet raised the topic, lacking the opportunity to verify it himself. At the same time, he proved to Stas his loyalty.
The obtained mixture bubbled and almost sparkled, eager to burst in all directions, tearing apart the creator's own hands. Maintaining its stability was incredibly difficult, but Ordyntsev coped.
"Ready!" Satoshi shouted loudly, bringing the barriers to combat readiness.
"Let's start." No sooner had the words left Stas's lips than the contained energy eagerly rushed down the established probe structure into the shielded area and flowed into the little finger.
Satoshi and the Serpent watched the crystal, which showed the energy processes occurring inside.
There, chaos, dissolved in the yokai's blood, noticed its opponent. Like a hound scenting its enemy, it recoiled for a moment, baring its fangs, only to immediately pounce forward, intending to sink into the throat.
But its opponent was also not made of straw. Created by Ordyntsev and Satoshi, the mixture was the wildest and most uncontrollable solution they could produce.
Absorbing all the strongest traits of its "parents," the resulting Frankestein wanted nothing more than to devour and absorb the "enemy" that matched the image imprinted in it.
"Excellent, it works!" Takehiro exclaimed with elation, but Stas refrained from celebrating prematurely.
He knew that chaos was too cunning to give up so quickly.
And, regrettably, he was not mistaken.
"Barrier!" The Serpent shouted, turning to the master.
"But everything's normal?" Takehiro frowned, not understanding, but without arguing, he activated the seals, cutting off the finger from the body.
The very next second, they could watch as the little finger exploded abruptly, sending bone shards into the barrier, miraculously erected in time.
And judging by the ripples that passed through it, the blow was truly of abnormal strength.
"Chaos still managed to alter the image of the 'enemy,' removing itself from it," Ordyntsev explained, but there was no sense of defeat in his voice.
Yes, the finger was destroyed, and it seemed they had lost, but things were not so clear-cut. In the moments before the explosion, the inhuman eyes and senses of the earthling managed to see exactly how chaos found a loophole. And that meant it was not in vain.
The experiment continued, only now they had to make a number of changes to the established formula.
Next, it was the turn of the ring finger.
"Is everything ready?"
"Yes!"
"Let's start!"
Again, the energy technique, sparkling with darkness and power, rushed along the metal probe and flowed into the exposed sample.
And again, as before, chaos and the energy monster clashed in an uncompromising fight, unwilling to give up an inch of the organic vessel.
Flashes of mystical energies, the trembling of reality, and a smoky effect were impressive. Yes, all this happened on a miniature stage, but the level of collided forces was such that "size" in this "orchestra" played the very last violin.
Had Stas not anticipated this, he would have certainly missed that faintest touch by which chaos had triumphed last time, but now, to its misfortune, there was a much stronger protection in that very spot.
And the anti-chaos was not about to give its adversary a chance for a repeat attack.
The essence of impermanence literally howled when it was struck by a formidable blow.
Ordyntsev clenched his fists so tightly that blood completely receded from his hands, while Satoshi unwittingly opened his eyes so wide it seemed he had forgotten how to blink.
The fragment of chaos, sensing its impending death, thrashed about, trying to retreat, but its slayer did not allow it, delivering the final blow and utterly consuming the unfortunate prey.
The seals, which had been flashing continuously until then, quieted down as they no longer felt the energies of impermanence in their operating area.
"Yes!" Takehiro roared, his wave of emotions making him dance on the spot. What more could be said when the typically expressionless Snake displayed a wide smile, so rare guest on his pale face? "We did it! Who's the genius? I'm the genius! Gnash your toothless gums at my staff, scientists of the past, for I am better than you!"
Stas wanted to say that despite their victory, chaos could still find weaknesses in the technique they created, but he didn't want to spoil their moment of triumph. After all, the old man who had helped with the calculations had indeed provided a great deal of assistance.
Now was their well-deserved moment of glory.
For they had managed to create something against which the invincible chaos had lost.
And it was not done with just some naturally born energy. No, the technique obtained was the result of the genius of man, and no one else.
It was man who managed to create something able to match the monstrous and nightmarish chaos in battle.
And that alone was enough to make the cold heart of Shiro the Serpent start beating faster.