Chapter 137. Tamamo no Mae: Please Help Me, Abe-dono!
Ian remained silent.
Tamamo no Mae was truly beautiful.
With her pleading tone, she appeared even more fragile and pitiful than ever before.
If it were any other man, they would probably agree to any request of hers without hesitation.
But Ian was different.
The friendship between Shuten Douji and Ibaraki Douji had made him realize that the world could not be judged by simple prejudices.
Just like demons, who were seen as symbols of evil, yet some still harbored loyalty and kindness within them.
Only by fully understanding the situation could he have the right to make a decision.
If even demons were like that, then how much more so for the Tamamo no Mae standing before him?
But—
Ian looked into her slightly melancholic eyes and did not immediately reject her words.
The ground beneath Tamamo no Mae gradually returned to normal, releasing its restraints.
The Grand Onmyoji looked at her and spoke coldly:
"This is not the place to talk about such things."
"Let's find another place to talk."
[You lead Tamamo no Mae away from this dead-end alley.]
["Mountain and River Veil" has been activated: No one questions why there is suddenly another person beside you; they simply feel that it is completely natural.]
[You take her to the best tavern in the capital.]
[You choose a highly secure private room.]
[Inside the spacious room, it is just you and her.]
[You order a table full of food and request the finest sake.]
Gulp.
Seeing the feast before her, Tamamo no Mae's throat moved slightly.
Ian, of course, understood what that meant—she was starving.
"Do you want to eat?" he asked.
"Yes." Tamamo no Mae nodded.
"Then answer me one question." Ian looked at her and said, "Once you answer, you can eat as much as you want."
"..."
Tamamo no Mae hesitated.
Clearly, although the banquet before her was hard to resist for someone as famished as she was, Ian's question was not something she could answer carelessly.
After thinking for a moment, she responded:
"Can I hear the question first?"
"After all… my abilities are limited. If you want to know something too complicated, I may not be able to answer."
"This question is something you definitely know."
Ian took a sip of sake.
"Are you… the 'Courtesan' that Tenno has been hunting down recently?"
He wasn't asking randomly.
After all, he wasn't the type to refuse interaction with anyone,
but if she had an ordinary identity, there would be no need to secretly observe him.
No need to deliberately seek opportunities to be alone with him.
That left—
Only one possibility.
Tamamo no Mae's identity was far from simple.
Considering his previous deductions, the only thing that fit all the clues was "Courtesan."
"..."
Tamamo no Mae's eyes trembled slightly—this was clearly the reaction of someone whose secret had just been exposed.
Her expression became unpleasant.
But Ian spoke up at that moment:
"Eat first."
"Mikon?"
Tamamo no Mae was slightly surprised but nodded nonetheless.
"Yes."
[Tamamo no Mae is slightly taken aback by your response.]
[But perhaps she is truly starving.]
[This is understandable—because if she really is the 'Courtesan,' with the current intense manhunt in Heian-kyo, getting a full meal is no easy task.]
[Under your watchful gaze, she nervously yet cautiously fills her stomach.]
"Thank you, Abe-dono."
After eating, Tamamo no Mae lowered herself before Ian, performing a deep dogeza.
"So you knew my name?"
"Yes." Tamamo no Mae lifted her head. "Abe-dono is quite famous in Heian-kyo. Even without intentionally investigating, I have already heard of your great name."
"If that's the case—"
Ian looked at Tamamo no Mae before him, her adorable fox ears twitching slightly.
"Then you should already know who I am."
"Isn't that right, courtesan?"
"..."
Her silence was an answer in itself.
At this moment, Ian was nearly 100% certain that the Tamamo no Mae before him was the very "Courtesan" Tenno was searching for.
From a pragmatic standpoint, the best choice for him now would be to turn her in under Minamoto no Raikou's name.
Doing so would be a great achievement for the Genji clan.
Minamoto no Raikou would undoubtedly gain even greater favor.
But—
Ian couldn't forget the look in her eyes that day on the street.
At the very least, he needed to clarify the situation first.
With that thought, the Onmyoji spoke again:
"It's fine if you don't want to admit it."
"Either way, if I turn you in, everything will come to light."
"But when that happens, I can't guarantee what awaits you."
"Mikon—?!"
Tamamo no Mae panicked immediately.
She shook her head repeatedly before hurriedly speaking:
"I admit it! I am indeed the 'Courtesan' the imperial court is hunting down!"
She had finally confessed her identity, but Ian didn't stop there. He continued questioning:
"That makes this even stranger."
"If that's the case, then why did you come to me?"
"..."
Hearing this question, a trace of nostalgia flickered in Tamamo no Mae's eyes.
"Because—"
"That day, on the street, Abe-dono smiled at me in a very kind way."
"I... had never felt that before."
"So I thought that Abe-dono might be the one who could help me."
Tamamo no Mae spoke with deep emotion, but Ian's expression didn't change much.
He simply turned to glance at the shoji door behind him, ensuring that it was tightly closed before continuing:
"Then tell me."
"What exactly happened to you?"
"I understand."
[Tamamo no Mae begins recounting the reason she came to Heian-kyo.]
[She had no intention of entering the palace to serve Tenno.]
[She merely encountered one of his high-ranking officials in the mountains and was forcibly summoned to the palace.]
[She later seized an opportunity to escape.]
"..."
After hearing Tamamo no Mae's story, Ian remained silent for a long time before speaking:
"Do you… hate Tenno?"
"Of course I do." Tamamo no Mae answered without hesitation.
"They locked me in a prison carriage, transported me to the capital, and then forced me to serve him."
"I may be easygoing, but I refuse to be treated so disrespectfully!"
"Then—"
Ian looked at Tamamo no Mae, who was now puffing her cheeks in anger, but he remained focused on his reasoning.
He continued analyzing and pointed out a contradiction in her words.
"If you already escaped, wouldn't it be better to leave Heian-kyo entirely?"
"Why did you come to me instead?"
"This…"
A single question pulled Tamamo no Mae out of her anger and back to reality.
She murmured, her voice growing softer.
"The reason I sought out Abe-dono was partly because of that smile that day."
"But the other part is… because I can't leave."
"You can't leave?"
Ian immediately sensed something unusual.
"Are you saying all the roads out of the capital are blocked?"
"Yes." Tamamo no Mae nodded. "I've tried investigating every possible way out."
"But no matter which route I take, none of them are suitable for my escape."
Ian knew that Tamamo-no-Mae wasn't lying.
As a Grand Onmyoji, he was directly involved in proposing and implementing the measures to seal off the capital from demons.
In other words—
She had come to him because she truly had no way out.
Ian looked at Tamamo-no-Mae, who seemed utterly dejected.
Her fox ears drooped, completely devoid of energy.
"But can't you conceal your presence?" The Onmyoji continued. "Like before—if you just blend in and hide, wouldn't you be able to escape?"
"Well…"
Tamamo-no-Mae's expression turned slightly awkward.
"My artifact is not with me right now, so I can't be sure I'll pass their inspections."
"Your artifact?"
"Yes." Tamamo-no-Mae looked straight at the man before her.
"It's a mirror that I always carried with me."
"But in the panic of my escape, I accidentally left it behind in the prison carriage."
"So, with no other options left, I came to Abe-dono for help."
[Tamamo-no-Mae spoke with deep frustration, but it didn't sway you.]
[Because even though you understood the sorrow in her eyes, you still didn't see a compelling reason to help her.]
[You decided to speak plainly.]
"Why should I help you?"
Ian voiced his thoughts directly.
"These problems may be serious for you… but for me, they're nothing unacceptable, right?"
"You're a fox spirit."
"And I'm an Onmyoji."
"If I help you… wouldn't I just be inviting trouble upon myself?"
"..."
[Tamamo-no-Mae fell silent.]
[But she didn't cry. Instead, she seemed strangely calm.]
[You realized that perhaps from the moment she sought you out, she had already prepared herself for this outcome.]
"Um… I suppose that's true."
Tamamo-no-Mae lowered her head, her voice sinking with sorrow.
"I really have no right to ask Abe-dono for help."
"I misunderstood the meaning of that smile that day… I'm sorry."
"In that case—"
Tamamo-no-Mae extended both hands toward Ian.
"Please tie me up and claim the reward before someone else does."
"Consider it my way of repaying you for this meal."
Looking at the hands reaching toward him, Ian's mind remained clear.
He spoke: "Are you trying to make me pity you? This tactic won't work on me."
"No."
Tamamo-no-Mae shook her head slightly, smiling bitterly.
"I've just realized that… there's no one in this world who truly wants to help me."
"So, I'll simply resign myself to fate."
"..."
[You are not heartless.]
[Seeing Tamamo-no-Mae surrender to despair, you wavered.]
[You remembered Ushi Gozen on Onigashima.]
[You realized that if you simply accepted reality, Minamoto no Raikou would one day become another Ushi Gozen.]
[You didn't want that to happen.]
[You understood that Tamamo-no-Mae's situation was somewhat similar.]
[But that didn't mean you would easily decide to help her.]
[You needed a reason—a reason strong enough to make you accept the risk of helping her.]
"Courtesan."
Ian looked directly at the forlorn fox spirit.
"If you truly want my help, at the very least, give me a reason that makes it worth my while."
"Otherwise—"
"Aren't you afraid I might just be pretending to be kind, only to betray you at any moment?"
"M-Mikon?!"
Tamamo-no-Mae lifted her head, her once-drooping fox ears perking up with renewed energy.
She wasn't a fool.
She quickly grasped the implication behind Ian's words—he wasn't outright rejecting her. He just needed a convincing reason.
Tamamo-no-Mae thought hard.
This was her one and only chance to save herself. She had to seize it.
It's often said that desperation breeds inspiration.
And Tamamo-no-Mae had found her answer.
She looked at the Onmyoji before her and carefully spoke:
"Then, Abe-dono—"
"If my mirror could grant you the ability to do something impossible in this world, would that be reason enough?"
"…Perhaps."
Ian didn't agree immediately.
"Courtesan, tell me first."
Tamamo-no-Mae cleared her throat.
"Kuhum."
"It's a mirror I've had since birth, carrying immense power."
"If that's the case, then why were you captured?"
"Because that power cannot be easily unleashed." Tamamo-no-Mae explained.
"Under my control, it can activate souls and life force, allowing things that should be impossible in this world to become reality."
"That is—"
She looked Ian straight in the eye, her expression dead serious.
"Communicating with the dead."
"..."
Ian's pupils widened slightly.
Because this was exactly what he needed!
With it, he could contact Minamoto no Mitsunaka, Minamoto no Raikou's late father.
At that point—
He could uncover the truth about the mysterious "Abe."
The fate that Minamoto no Raikou bore… could surely be changed.
"You're not lying to me, are you?"
Ian fixed his gaze on Tamamo-no-Mae, his voice cold.
"I am the only one who can help you—you should know what happens if you deceive me."
Ian's reaction made Tamamo-no-Mae exhale in relief.
She knew she had convinced him.
"Of course not, I understand very well."
"From the very first moment I met you, every word I have spoken has been the truth."
"..."
Ian remained silent for a moment before nodding.
"I see."
"Very well, I will help you escape this predicament and retrieve your mirror—but I will use it once afterward. No objections?"
Tamamo-no-Mae nodded.
"Isn't that only natural?"
"Good. For now, I'll arrange a place for you to stay. We'll discuss the next steps later."
Hearing this, Tamamo-no-Mae wiped the corner of her eyes.
At this moment, he was the only lifeline she had in Heian-kyo.
"Truly… thank you, Abe-dono."