Archie couldn’t remember the last time he’d ever been this anxious in his life. What was so serious that his entire family would check in on him? Even though it wouldn’t have calmed his nerves much, Archie hoped that it had something to do with the business. If sales had been low and his family was about to lose the shop then of course they’d be feeling down. That had to be it!
But even that isn’t enough to make Dad cry…
Another far more terrifying thought occurred to him. What if this had to do with the Mamoru Clan? He hadn’t directly fought against them yet, save for his brushes with Zelos during the Wild Man mission, but they must’ve known he was associated with Yugo by now. Would they be willing to harm his family for the sake of sending a message? By the way Yugo described them: Yes, they would be. The fact that his family could potentially be in danger at this very moment while he was walking around safe and sound in the middle of Oni Village bothered Archie as few other things could.
Unsure what to do, he decided to go to the first person that popped into his mind: Shuten Douji. The Oni hardly slept, something he’d learned after catching up with the man following their battle with him a few weeks back. When he’d regained consciousness, and control over his body, he’d specifically asked for the Seekers to be the ones to tend to him since they were the ones to put him in that state. He’d been furious at Zelos, but found solace in the fact that he was able to get into a good fight against the Seekers – something he’d apparently been wanting to do for a while. On the days when Archie would tend to him, Shuten Douji would talk all about himself, the many battles he’d fought in the past, and various lesser-known facts about Oni Village. Most important to Archie at the moment, though, was the knowledge of where Shuten Douji commonly lounged.
Archie made his way to the castle on the outskirts of Oni Village where they’d planned the attack against the Wild Man Generals. The hollow, open-air ground floor had been empty at the time, but now it’d been occupied by Shuten Douji, his brother Ibaraki, and two Silent Hand members Archie knew to be higher-ups all eating and drinking. While the Silent Hand members were dressed in black robes, Shuten Douji and his brother were dressed in their more regal attire; black and gold robes for Shuten Douji and white and gold robes for Ibaraki. As Archie approached, Shuten Douji raised a glass.
”Archie! A bit late for you to be up, no? No matter. Come, join us!”
“I’d rather stand.”
The Silent Hand members seated across from Shuten Douji and Ibaraki gave Archie a disapproving, somewhat hostile glare at that. Adjusting to the atmosphere, Shuten Douji placed his cup down and turned to face Archie fully.
“Seems you aren’t here to relax.” He chinned at Archie. “What’s the problem.”
“I need to know what’s happening in Harrowstead right now. My family called me and spoke to me like they were on their deathbeds saying their final goodbyes or something. Can you help me with that?”
Shuten Douji made a pained look, lowering his eyes as he gathered his words. “Something is happening in Harrowstead, that I can confirm. I can only say that so definitively because our network has had blind spots in the area for the past few weeks.”
“Few weeks?!” Archie shouted. “What do you mean–”
The Silent Hand members who’d been seated were suddenly both at either side of Archie, swords drawn and resting just below his neck.
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“You will watch your tone when speaking with Lord Douji,” The Oni warned in unison.
“Hey!” Ibaraki called, looking over at Archie with shock.
“Settle down, you two,” Shuten Douji said, calling his men down. They stepped back from Archie, but they didn’t take their eyes off of him.
Archie took a deep breath, attempting to correct his tone. He found it difficult given the situation. “I’ve been hearing directly from you and every affiliated Oni I interact with that the Silent Hand are the most well-informed network in all of Minashire. For you to tell me my home is a blind spot and that it hasn’t been fixed in weeks is hard to believe! Was it not a priority to fix that?!”
“Of course, it was a priority. Ensuring our home isn’t overrun by Wild Men and Horsemen of the Apocalypse took precedence, though. We’ve sent some agents to observe the area, and those agents haven’t come home.”
“Then why haven’t you sent a better team?! That’s my home! My family has been in danger for weeks! I thought you all were supposed to–”
“What he means to say is,” A new, familiar voice interrupted. Yugo strode into the room, a smile plastered on his face as he walked beside Archie. “We’ll take that job. We can head out as soon as we're all ready.” He placed a hand on Archie’s shoulder. “And we’ll take it for free. Think of it as our apology for our friend’s outburst. Deal?”
“You’ve got a deal. We’ll have a truck ready in three hours.” Shuten Douji looked Archie up and down. “And I’ve been around too many hotheads to take anything Archie says to heart. The kid’s just got a little fire.” He laughed. “Spend enough time around an Oni and that’ll happen to ya.”
“Perfect!” Yugo clapped. He turned to Archie. “Now, what do we say?”
“I’m sorry for being rude. I’m just stressed.”
Shuten Douji waved a hand. “Oh, please. You should’ve seen me when Futakuchi-Onna decided to kidnap Ibaraki!” He laughed while Ibaraki blushed. “Shame she isn’t around, though. You should ask her how that turned out for her! Ah, that reminds me!”
He went on a very long tangent about his many scuffles with Futakuchi-Onna. This wasn’t the first time he’d done that. Archie recalled him going on many similar tangents during his time tending to his wounds. What made this time different, though, was that Yugo joined in, choosing not to go back and forth with the Oni and instead encouraging him to talk about his past. The once tense atmosphere slowly softened, and as time passed the drinks flowed and the plates were always full. Archie understood that they were trying to distract him, and while it didn’t totally work he sincerely did appreciate the effort.
When it was time to go back to our training halls to rest, Yugo continued his attempts at calming Archie down. As they walked through the wide gray tunnels underneath Oni Village, Yugo posited his own theory as to what was happening.
“Burnchester is a quiet area, Archie. It’s the safest region in Minashire. Trust me, I would know that. It isn’t like Azuma Saikyou where there’s Myth swarms every other week or Bukimiburgh where you’re dealing with Myth and Curse swarms… and disgustingly overpowered Rogues. Burnchester is chill!” He laughed. “Azuma Saikyou has Futakuchi-Onna and the Jikininki. Bukimiburgh has Fallen Star and Hellhounds. What does Burnchester have? Fairies? Elves?”
“Typhon,” Archie answered. “The strongest Myth in Minashirajin history.”
Yugo flinched. “W-Well, think positive. What are the odds that Typhon has reincarnated and is currently terrorizing Harrowstead? My family might be assholes, but even they wouldn’t leave Typhon alone. Unless they can control her…” He paused. “But they can’t! According to The Historian, Typhon is strong-willed and independent! She isn’t a threat. I promise!”
“You can’t promise that.”
“Then take my word. You have nothing to worry about. We’re gonna go there, get rid of the horrifying Level 6 Water Sprites terrorizing the city by overwatering all the plants and then we’ll grab a bite to eat at your family’s bakery. Deal?”
Archie let a laugh slip out. “Deal.”