The office, like most of the yokai territory, had undergone structural changes. Gone was the spartan feel, replaced by a sense of splendor. Mats on the floor. Suits of enchanted armor. Staff in formal uniform. Stone statues. Files and envelopes each had their own specific positions on the desk, and the worktable against one wall. Paperwork anarchy threatened the room, but order had been strongly imposed, guided by an obvious will.

It only doubled his suspicion about the degree of yokai influence in the Empire.

Solana, the de facto ruler of the yokai, sat behind the desk. The dog corpse had been moved to the ceiling, serving doubly as a twisted caricature of a chandelier, its dead eyes emanating an eerie greenish glow. She wore a business suit, not unlike the ones he had seen Zuken wear, albeit one less aristocratic, cut close to the flawless lines of her body, the black color matching her hair and providing a stark contrast to her otherwise pale features.

“Outsider,” she murmured, her voice soothing and musical. “It’s been a while.”

He heard Maude step back and leave the room, the doors closing after her. A single empty chair stood there, with Solana watching him from the other side of the table. The ambience suggested a private one-on-one meet, but the eleven invisible yokai that registered within his Scan radius told him better. Whether they were always present, or if the yokai leader was simply exercising prudence was difficult to tell.

Or perhaps, it wasn’t about him at all.

It was about Blob.

“I see. I’m being intimidated,” said Lukas, “Are you going to tell me why, or do I get three guesses?”

A wicked little smile played over Solana’s lips without getting as far as her eyes. “Intimidated? Why would you think that?”

“Oh, it’s not?” Lukas asked. “Then perhaps the eleven guards are for your own security from big, bad me?”

The smile remained in place. “You can sense them. You weren’t able to do that last time.”

“There’s a saying back in my world. I read, I travel, I become.”

“That you have. Hanging around Asukans in Haviskali, cutting deals with svartalfars, plundering borderlands…”

She trailed off at that.

“Guy’s gotta eat. Those damned Asukans don’t believe in sharing free food. You‌ look pretty comfy. Won a lottery or something?”

“Lottery?”

“Eh… winning a lot of money.”

Her lips curled into a hungry little smile. “That I did, Outsider. And you have my gratitude. I’m not sure what or how, but you killed the anomaly. Without its guardian and its power, its monsters perished, leaving its vast network of tunnels for our use. The leftovers of the Cyffnar battalions in the Desert were just as useful. Everything else was just… requisitioned.”

Lukas arched an eyebrow.

“I have an army to maintain, and we have limited resources. Naturally, it’s up to my forces to employ suitable methods to appropriate funds from outside.”

Translation. They plundered Asukan territories and robbed whatever they got their hands on. Was that why they possessed so many bremetans? The more he thought about it, the more they felt like a disease, infecting the bremetan civilization despite the Eternal Light protecting them.

“Say, can I swap that gratitude for letting me and Tanya out of your face? We really ought to be somewhere else.”

“Oh Outsider,” said Solana in amusement. “You’re going to break some hearts speaking like that. Some might think you’ve allied yourself with the Asukans.”

“Lukas Aguilar. Breaker of Monster’s hearts. I like how it sounds,” He looked at her neutrally. “Enough with your games. Let Tanya out.”

“And if I don’t?”

“Then you accept whatever follows.”

“Is that a threat?”

“No,” he sighed wearily. “Just a fact. Look. I get it. You want me on your side. Because of your legend or omega-tacky or whatever. And you think, just because you’ve got to me first, you get to bully me into joining your side. Take my word for it, bullying me never ends well.”

Solana tilted her head. “I believe we understood each other perfectly where we stood before you left for your mission. You do what I want, and in return, you get your remuneration.”

“I did what you asked. I’ve yet to get my payment.”

Solana looked at him, her face set in a small, grim frown, thoughts indecipherable, before giving a curt nod.

“You say that you completed the task allotted to you. Perhaps you speak truly. But to say that I refused you remuneration. Lukas Aguilar, it was not me who escaped with Asukan adventurers.”

Technically, he did not escape. One couldn’t do that if one was dead.

“I was wounded in the fight with the Guardian. Zuken and his crew took me to Haviskali. I was comatose for over a month before I regained my senses.”

Solana kept watching him, her face so stoic that he had no idea what she was thinking.

“So it isn’t a case of betrayal, but an issue of unforeseen circumstances is it?” she murmured, “Fine. I’ll open a borderland for you. Tell me, what form of kami do you seek?”

Another kami? Just some months ago, he’d have been exhilarated at the idea. A kami represented a new potential skill. But now, after everything he had been through, after all that he had gained, getting yet another kami felt like an afterthought.

Especially after he had been in the presence of a King.

She paused for a moment. “On second thought, you probably find it less valuable, now that you've already traveled to a borderland. Tell me, Outsider, just how did you open a rift from the other side?”

Lukas tried his best to move as little as possible. If Solana thought he had found a well and broke it open through raw power, it was best to let her believe that. The less she knew about his powers, the better.

When he said nothing, the yokai leader let out an exaggerated sigh. “The path of silence then. I suppose I cannot fault you for trying to hide your abilities. Tell me. Which kami do you have your eyes on?”

“No.”

“No?”

“No,” Lukas repeated. “I don’t want a kami anymore..”

“Oh?” Solana tilted her head slightly. “I know you’re capable of both pyromancy and metamancy. I’m reliably informed that you absorbed a certain marid, with the power to manipulate water.” She frowned, “Though… I have not received any reports of you using it. I’d thought you’d want to complete the set with air and earth.”

He knew what she was doing. This wasn’t about the elements or gaining a new kami. She knew what he had been up to, and this was her way of letting him know that.

A power play.

“You thought wrong.”

“Oh? Then what is it that you want?”

“To leave.”

“Leave?”

Lukas grimaced. “I didn’t come here to be your whatever savior, Solana. I’ve got my own problems. Problems that have nothing to do with you.”

“And you’re absolutely certain about that?” She asked lightly. “You may find that working with us fits your agenda a lot more than you think.

That made him hesitate. As Maude had put it, Solana was at least six hundred years old. Someone like that had a lot more information at her fingertips than Zuken Banksi ever would. And Solana had proven that she knew about his deeds in Haviskali. Maude also knew about the treatise, so they might have a faint idea of what he was looking for.

Lukas exhaled. He had enough of her cryptic statements and obscure hints. He ignored his latest statement and cut straight to the bone of the conversation.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

“Yes.”

“I see,” said Solana thoughtfully. “In that case, you can go.”

“...”

Lukas stared at her for a long second.

“You… uh… what?”

“Must I repeat myself?” Solana asked, sounding strangely weary. “You are a wildcard, Lukas Aguilar. One too unstable to our long-term plans. And I have told you earlier, I have no use for an unwilling candidate. If I do not have your loyalty, then there is no point in having you. So yes, you may go.”

“No strings attached?”

“No strings attached,” she confirmed. “Free as a wind spirit. But beware, should you not keep your word and join forces with the Asukans…”

“You’ll be my worst nightmare, or some other cliché. Gotcha.”

He stood up, and turned around, ready to leave.

Though I wonder…” Solana suddenly mused out loud, “will your decision to remain unattached stay the same when your friend gets in the middle of the upcoming conflict?”

“What do you mean?” Lukas asked, still looking away from her, his body tensing. He should have known this. There was always a catch. Always.

She laughed. It was a cruel thing. “Tell me, Aguilar. Do you know who your friend is?”

“Tanya—”

“I mean, who she really is?”

Lukas resisted every urge to turn and sit back down.

“Tanya Shimizu,” said Solana. “Heiress of the Shimizu Clan. Great-granddaughter of the Wind King, and current custodian of his King-class kami, the Spirit of the Storm, Ezzeron.”

Lukas stayed quiet.

“How interesting…” said Solana, “I didn’t think she’d trust anyone to reveal her darkest secrets.”

“People can surprise you.”

“Indeed they can,” said Solana, standing up from her chair. “Shimizu Heiress. Wind King’s descendant. Ezzeron’s bearer— all of those titles are significant by themselves. But for us, she only has one name.”

She smiled at him. “Yuki-onna, she who devours lifeforce.”

And like a bucket of water. The truth washed over him. Solana knew. She knew of Tanya’s Everfrost. No doubt from Mizo and Malon spying on her. On them. She knew of his deals with the svartalfars and his ventures into the borderland. It all fitted. Solana had more eyes and ears into the Empire than she gave the impression of having. But it was really the last description that made things fall into place.

Yuki-Onna.

A term belonging to Japanese myth, that meant ‘snow-woman’. A spirit of ice and snow, haunting unsuspecting people, devouring them of their life.

Or rather, their lifeforce.

Wasn’t that exactly what her Frost did? Ice that devoured life? It explained so much. Her ability with Frost without a kami, much like Solana employed terramancy by herself. Her predatory self, brought under control only through Inanna’s intervention. Hell, even the Screen had originally listed her as an unknown species rather than just bremetan, which Lukas had mistakenly thought to mean a hybrid, like Elena.

“There’s something about the Fog… It beckons me. Makes me feel… less taut. Unrestrained.”

The Fog. A diluted form of the Haze seeping into the real world. The medium that yokai used to travel from one point to another.

His thoughts went back to their first fight. When he had pierced through her heart with a suicidal strike, only for the Frost to grow all over her form, healing her, knitting her wounds, regaining her strength. And then there was one other thing.

“Give up. Become Mine. I will devour your soul and digest that potential brimming within you.

All your pain will end. Just. Give. In. To Me.”

Yuki-Onna. Snow-woman. Frost incarnate. Devourer of lives..

“Ah.” said Solana, “Dawn.”

His eyes snapped at her. “Are you telling me she’s a yokai?”

“You tell me,” she retorted. “Is she?”

Lukas shook his head. “No. She lives under the Eternal Light. What is she? An Oni? Like Maude?”

“That,” Solana said, her lips twisting to form a smile, “is something I wish to find out.”

He took a slow, deep breath, and narrowed his eyes on her. “What are you playing at, Solana?”

“Absolutely nothing,” she said, amusement shining on her features. “You asked for a way out. I gave you one. So long as we understand each other, and you do not join the opposite side in the conflict, you are free to leave. Right now, if you want.”

“Fine. And I will. Just let Tanya go.”

“Ah-ah-ah!” she wagged a finger. “That I can’t do.”

“Why? If she’s really an Oni, then—”

“How did she become one? Who did she merge with? Why does she stay under the Eternal Light? What is the source of her power? How is she, Oni or not, able to bond with a King-Class kami in a fashion that would make even the purest of Asukan blood green with envy? All of those questions I want answered, Aguilar, and your friend, will give me them.”

Well, Lukas thought. Can’t argue with that.

At the same time, he knew that Solana was hiding something substantial. It was… it was just too easy. Sure she had Tanya captured, but she’d have to know that he’d fight for her. Solana also knew enough about Tanya to know her current thoughts about the Asukan regime, and knew enough to use her for her own ends. But still, did that justify her letting him leave? He wasn’t stupid enough to buy her talk about unwilling participants. If Solana couldn’t use him, then she was more likely to end him rather than hand him over or allow him to go free. She wouldn’t have given him the hospitality, or let Maude lead the initial meet-and-greet. No. He was the Outsider, the candidate most likely to fit the prophecy that’d ensure….

Lukas nearly choked as it hit him.

That won a brief but genuine smile from her.

“You…” His voice trembled, “You think Tanya is an alternate candidate for the Prophecy?”

Her dark eyes glittered. “You figured that out already? Impressive.”

Lukas gritted his teeth. “Answer the question.”

Solana shrugged. “Do you not? Do you remember what I said about the legend? About the three portents that would identify the Key?”

He nodded. “Neither Asukan nor Yokai, but hold power over both. Tanya is not yokai, because she has a physical form. Not Asukan, because she’s a Yuki-Onna. Her Frost devours lifeforce, making her a predator of Asukans. Her ability to walk amidst the Eternal Light and entrap a kami as strong as… Ezzeron shows her dominance over yokai.”

“Couldn’t have phrased it better myself,” said Solana. “The Key would unleash the power that would cause Oumagatoki. The Night of a Hundred Demons.” She inched closer towards the table. “Who better than someone that hunts in the Fog itself? And finally, the third—”

“The power to End the world.” Lukas said. “What does that have anything to do with—”

He froze, as Inanna’s words came to mind.

‘A power that belongs to the ancient world. A fundamental force of this universe. If left alone, the things it could unleash would be… unsettling.”

Was she talking about Omega-tacky? Or was she…

His mind was going into overdrive. Memories of his many talks with Tanya rose to the front of his mind. Things she had said casually, but having a deeper meaning than he had fathomed back then.

‘My frost… it’s useful against an anomaly core.”

And what was an anomaly core but raw potential? And if it could destroy an Anomaly core, or more specifically, an Omphalos, could it also… destroy a world? A creature that was by all rights, a predator with him being the prey. Was that why Inanna wanted her so bad? Because she wanted a world-destroying power under her thumb? Because she wanted to remove the one serious threat to her Host shackled to her side?

Just how much did you know back then, Inanna? Lukas asked. And if you know all that, what else did you know?

He grasped the edges of the table and stared down at her.

“Let us say, that even by some weird chance, you’re… right—”

“I am.”

“Not the point,” Lukas gritted his teeth. “Say you are right. But so what? Those three portents, you said they fit me. And now you say they fit Tanya. Maybe two weeks later, you’ll find a third candidate for this legend. What does it even prove?”

“For you, nothing. For us, everything. I will not be arrogant enough to claim that I’m completely sure of her being the Key, but she ranks higher on the list of possibilities. And she is important to you. Can you really leave her alone?”

This time she smiled again, and it was a dark thing.

Solana might not have known it, but she had him. She probably thought he was attracted to her, a thought not without its merits, but that wasn’t the full picture. Inanna had invested way too much into Tanya for him to just leave her be. And her Frost avatar was a genuine threat to his nature as an Anomaly. And if Solana thought she was the Key, then she’d do her utmost to keep Tanya under her thumb, a fact only made too easy by Tanya’s experiences in the Empire.

Especially if she was an Oni.

Hiding in plain sight.

One would think that after all the shocks he had suffered through over the last several minutes, Lukas would be somewhat used to Solana’s curveballs by now or if not, then at the very least, numb to it all. But no, this latest revelation hit him just as hard as the rest of them had and he felt his thoughts screeching to halt as his mind tried to cope with what he had just heard.

He regarded her seriously for a moment, frowning, thinking. “Just… What is this Yuki-Onna business anyway?”

Dark, dark eyes turned to him as Solana relaxed into her chair. “Nothing you need to be concerned about. I will say this once, Aguilar. If you want to leave, then walk away. Right now. Forget you knew anyone called Tanya. Walk away from us, from the Asukans, and from the upcoming conflict. I assure you, no yokai under my command shall come for you.”

Lukas waited for the bomb to fall.

“Or,” she said, flicking a few fingers. “You can help me help Tanya. All the answers she’s sought all her life, I can give her. All those doubts in her mind, I can solve them. I can help her achieve her destiny. All I ask is if she chooses to side with us, you will not interfere with that decision.”

Of course. Trust Solana to put him between a rock and a hard place. Walk away, and he’d be failing himself. Stay back, and he’d be binding himself to her side and thus, agreeing to do her bidding.

A fire shone in her dark eyes. “Do we understand each other?”

His fists clenched.