“Oh, crap!” Hana whispered from behind me. “They’re here…! Do you think they’re gonna try to kill me?”

“Why would they try to kill you, Hana?”

“I committed a healthy amount of crimes under Grandmother’s watch. I’ve heard some of the stories about the Galeroses!”

“...I’ll ask Somnia.”

When Hana and I took her teleporter to the Tiger Lily, we’d noticed a crowd of brown-skinned men and women all wearing familiar black and gold armor inside the hotel speaking with the workers. There were many more in the city streets, speaking with locals and conversing with the few Honor Guard patrolling the streets. Once she’d seen them, though, Hana freaked out.

She was afraid that the Galeroses — the family most known for punishing crime and exterminating powerful Rogues — would punish her for all she did while Contracted to Futakuchi-Onna. She’d been open about coming to like her role as Shogun, though if the Galeroses fought her over it she’d almost certainly lose. Despite knowing they were on the way, the sight of the Galeroses must’ve been more than she’d been ready for. She’d even attempted to shapeshift and fly off, though that’d been one of the few Skills of Futakuchi-Onna that Hana hadn’t retained.

“Somnia can’t speak on behalf of her entire family, can she?” Hana said, still cowering behind me like a child.

“No, she can’t,” I allowed. “But I don’t think it matters either way. The Galeroses I’ve encountered in my life have all been very strong. If they truly wanted you dead, they’d have stormed Onna Castle and killed you by now.”

Hana squeezed my arm. “Thanks.”

“No problem. Now do you mind letting go of my arm for a second? I need to text Somnia.”

Rui: Hey are you in the hotel

Somnia: yeah, my family’s here.

Somnia: averyl is here too. she’s looking for you

Rui: Tell her I will see her soon

“What are you smiling for?” Hana badgered. “Did you ask her about me yet?”

“I’m getting there, hold on!”

Rui: Are your siblings going to kill Hana

Somnia: no??? why would they???

Rui: Hana thinks they want to kill her because of the Futakuchi Onna stuff

Somnia: don’t worry, i told them to story. she’s fine

“What did she say?”

Somnia: actually, averyl really wants to train her

Somnia: i think she just wants an excuse to be active though

“She said you’re cool and that they want to train you.”

“Oh, really? That’s pretty–...” She paused. “What if that’s a lie to get me comfortable, though? They could easily–”

I didn’t let her finish. I tucked my phone into my kimono and walked into the Tiger Lily with Hana clutching the back of my robes like a lost child.

***

”Rui!” Averyl shouted the moment I entered the building.

They were all in the dining room, which had once again been reorganized to look like a banquet hall. The far wall where the booths had been now had tables set with trays of local dinner foods while the center of the brightly-lit wooden room had a sparse set of tables made for groups of four. Archie and Somnia had been fighting over the remaining bits of fish at one of the trays while Yugo had been speaking with some Galerose men. Averyl had been in conversation with Shuten Douji, though she’d dropped it to come sprinting to me.

“Averyl,” I responded, smiling wider than I thought I could.

The closer she was, the more she looked like an older version of Somnia with slightly more foreign features; her eyes were larger, her skin a bit lighter, and her hair was a lighter shade of brown than her sister’s. More than that, she and every other Galerose in the room – barring Somnia – were the tallest people in the room. Shuten Douji was the only exception, standing a head taller than Averyl.

When she approached, she pulled me into that same embrace she had the moment we’d separated back in Miyafokuu. She grabbed the back of my head and pressed her forehead to mine, closing her eyes and not saying a word. I didn’t close my eyes, but I did notice Somnia giving me a somewhat surprised look.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Averyl pulled back slightly from our embrace and looked me up and down. She looked just like my mother, and seeing the pride in her eyes made me feel proud. Of all I’d accomplished since joining the Seekers. Of even being here. It occurred to me, then, that this moment, right here in front of Averyl, was the first time in months that I’d been able to relax. There were Horsemen, there were Rogues, there were hundreds of Levels for me to achieve. But right now, none of that mattered.

She pressed her forehead to mine once again, speaking in a soft tone. “You’re gonna be just fine, Rui. You’re one step closer to the victory you desire for yourself. Be proud.”

“I am,” Was all I could manage to say.

Averyl smiled, finally pulling away from our embrace. She stared at me once again for a long while before her face twisted into the mischievous one I’d come to know so well as a Bounty Hunter.

“I’d love to know how your first week as a Seeker went,” Averyl began. “But it seems you’ve been doing more than training and fighting!” She turned to Hana who’d been hiding behind me this entire time, smiled at her, then pinched my cheek. “Look at you go!”

“Averyl, not you too–”

“Hello, there,” Averyl interrupted, scooting past me to stand before Hana. “What’s your name? Has Rui been treating you well?”

“Hello!” Hana began, standing straight and speaking with a forced authoritative voice. “I am Okita Hana, Shogun of the Saikou Prefecture! In the past, I was under the control of the founding Shogun of Saikou and made to commit terrible acts.” She bowed. “I would ask that you forgive my previous transgressions and that you consider sparing my life for what I have done!”

“You’re better off saying that to Somnia, not me. Besides,” Averyl began. When she spoke again, she did so with an uncharacteristically bitterness to her voice. “You could’ve slaughtered everyone in Saikou and we wouldn’t have been able to do a thing about it without the Mamoru Clan's approval. Don’t take that as a license to start killing people, though.”

“I won’t! I promise!”

When Hana looked up, Averyl placed a hand on her shoulder, her expression lifting slightly. “I do have a lot I want to talk about with you, Shogun Hana. Rui, do you mind if I borrow her for a moment?”

“She isn’t my property. Do what you want.”

Averyl touched her forehead to mine. “You’re the best! Be right back!”

With that, Averyl ushered Hana into the garden, leaving me alone in the Tiger Lily dining hall. Not that my loneliness lasted any longer than a few seconds. Archie and Somnia came walking up with plates of food I couldn’t recognize in either hand. Archie handed me one with some fish and vegetables and a pair of chopsticks. I accepted as Somnia tilted her head at me.

“You never told me you were that close with Averyl,” Somnia mused.

“What does that mean?”

“The Infernal Embrace. That forehead tap stuff. That’s a Galerose thing.” She narrowed her eyes at me. “We aren’t distant relatives, are we?”

“No?” I said over a mouthful of fish.

“I figured. She considers you family, though.”

“Is that significant?”

“Averyl is pretty cold, so yes. No clue how you got to her, but congrats.”

Archie leaned close. “If only Shuten Douji had your charm.”

Somnia laughed, leaning even closer. “Look at him! He’s been mugging you from the moment you walked in! H-hey! Don’t make it noticeable!”

Funnily enough, Yugo was in the distance near Shuten Douji, looking straight at me. He smiled, waved, then pointed a thumb at the well-dressed Oni. Indeed, he was staring a hole into my skull, and Yugo’d been loving every second of it. As had the Galeroses he’d been chatting with.

“Am I allowed to talk to women?” I found myself saying.

Somnia shrugged. “If it makes you feel better, every Galerose in the room knows about the Infernal Embrace. Yugo probably does too, through The Historian.”

“Yeah, and Yugo and I are just messing with you about Hana. All banter.” He raised an eyebrow. “Unless you really are inter–”

“I’m not,” I said. Unwilling to continue this specific conversation, I decided to change the topic. “What were you guys talking about before I got here? Did anyone say anything about our next mission?”

“Expect a call within a week,” A new voice said. Shuten Douji stood between Archie and Somnia, towering over all of us like the Oni he was. He still gave me a dirty look, but I did my best to ignore it. “My men have a handle on the situation at the moment, but if things take a turn for the worse we’ll be calling on the Seekers to help us out.”

“And we won’t be answering that call,” Another new voice sounded. Yugo, was there, popping into existence beside Shuten Douji with an arm around the gray-skinned man’s neck. “Did you forget that we're mercenaries? We aren’t superheroes. We still haven’t been paid for this job.”

Shuten Douji turned to Yugo, stared slackjawed at him for a full minute, then burst into hearty laughter. “I house you, feed you, and fund your shopping spree, and you’re asking about payment?! You’ve always known how to lighten my days with laughter, Yugo. I’ll give you that.”

“I try my best,” Yugo allowed, lowering his head and raising his hands. “But I’d like my money. The Tiger Lily Hotel is a Shogunate-funded tourist trap that you just so happened to infiltrate with the Silent Hand, and the money you gave us was merely a microcosm of what you would’ve spent annexing Saikou had we not accepted your mission.” He tilted his head, looking up at Shuten Douji and patting him on the chest before speaking with a poor imitation of a Burnish accent. “Ya got me bloody good on that bloody Kappa infestation mission, innit mate. You ain’t bloody gettin’ me twice, bastard.”

Archie winced. “Please don’t ever say those words in that order with that accent ever again.”

Shuten Douji sucked his teeth. “...I’ll see what I can do.”