Chương 40: The Blue Devil's Past Hauntings & Future Ambitions

They waded through the water, finding a quiet corner away from the main revelry. Galan leaned back against the smooth, warm granite edge, letting out a satisfied sigh. He placed the wooden bowl of snacks on the rim and picked up the gourd Shuten Dooji had given him.

"Before I start," he said, turning to Ootake Maru, "lemme enjoy this for a second."

"Of course, Lord Oda." Galan closed his eyes, inhaling the complex aroma of rice and cedar from the gourd. He took a sip. His eyes snapped open. The texture was smooth as silk, the flavor a perfect balance of pear, melon, and deep, savory rice. It vanished from his tongue, leaving only a fragrant ghost.

"The oni wasn't lying," he muttered.

"This could rival the best wines in Rome." Ootake Maru stared at him.

"Do you... do this for a living, Lord Oda?"

"More of a hobby the nobles paid me to do when I was younger," Galan shrugged, taking a gulp.

"The appreciation stuck." He picked up a piece of shrimp.

"Come on, Ootake Maru. You should enjoy life a bit more. That's what those fallen oni would have wanted, right?" Ootake Maru remained silent, his gaze fixed on a distant tragedy. Galan's mindcast brushed against a deep, cold well of ancient grief.

"Care to talk about them?" Galan asked softly. Ootake Maru stared into the steaming water. Finally, he spoke, his voice a low rumble.

"They are oni from the 'Great Eradication.' A time before the Council. Before peace." He told Galan of a fractured Japan, where humans demonized the yookai to justify their expansion.

"It began with words," he said, picking up a piece of tuna.

"Propaganda. They called us impure. Devils. They turned our existence into a problem that needed a solution."

"The first volley in any war," Galan noted.

"Precisely. Once the people were afraid, the lords had their justification. The 'Oni Hunt.'" Ootake Maru described the systematic slaughter, the desperate alliance of survivors, and the tragic figure of Gozumaru, the chieftain who sought peace. This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

"He went to negotiate with the human general, Tamuramaro," Ootake Maru said, his voice tightening.

"He proved his honesty by allowing himself to be imprisoned."

"And let me guess... Tamuramaro deceived him." Ootake Maru smiled humorlessly.

"It was a ruse. He let Gozumaru speak, listened to his pleas... and then had his archers fill him with a hundred ritually purified arrows. His heads along with those of his guards were paraded through the capital." He clenched his fist.

"That was the day I learned that human 'honor' is a tool. I took leadership after that. And I fought back. Not with reason, but with wrath."

"The cycle of vengeance," Galan realized.

"You became a part of it."

"Yes. It was brutal. And it was a war we were destined to lose. Not because of strength, but because of numbers and unity. The humans united against us. We... remained divided." He looked at Galan, his gaze heavy.

"The stories the humans tell are not lies, Lord Oda. They are simply truths told from only one side of the battlefield. We were wrathful. We were destructive. But they have forgotten to tell the part of the story that explains why." As he spoke, the lanterns around the hot spring flickered to life, casting their orange glow over the water.

"That is what I am trying to change," Ootake Maru said, looking at the lights.

"I want us to learn from the mistakes of the past. To stop the bloodshed. But for that, I need funds, reputation, and loyalty. Things I could gain by joining the tournament."

"Doesn't that jackass already have all that?" Galan asked, pointing a piece of shrimp at Shuten Dooji. The red champion was pouring two massive gourds into his mouth simultaneously, while the crowd chanted, "Drink! Drink!" Ootake Maru chuckled.

"I tried to reason with him. Care to guess what happened?"

"He challenged you to a drinking contest, and you lost."

"That was one of them," Ootake Maru admitted.

"I also lost the fighting, boulder pushing, and swimming contests. In the end... I decided to take matters into my own hands. I started building alliances to create a society like the humans."

"Don't tell me the human-wannabes from the harbor were your doing." Ootake Maru smiled proudly.

"I merely taught them how business works. The rest is up to them."

"Wow. You actually sound a lot like me. But for the other side." Ootake Maru paused, a look of validation in his eyes.

"Thank you, Lord Oda. I'm glad to hear someone else validate my ideology. Especially a god like yourself."

"Yeah, well," Galan swallowed a piece of tuna.

"I think I can help with the funds. But the legal framework will have to reach Suzuka."

"I doubt that will happen soon. But I'm happy to know that what we have here is close to what I wanted for Japan as a whole."

"I was planning on spreading it to the mainland once I reach Nagasaki," Galan said casually.

"You don't have to worry. I'm an expert in these things." That is one less problem for me to be wary of, Ootake Maru thought.

"I shall trust your words, Lord Oda." They relaxed into the warm water, the cheers of the party washing over them, two leaders finding a moment of quiet understanding in the chaos.