shortly before 1:00 AM

The first blow, though blocked with his fists, nearly knocked Mr. Harada to his knees. Ōtakemaru followed up with another punch, and then another, which his opponent could barely absorb—yet he endured them all. When the demon leaned in and swung again, Mr. Harada deftly stepped inside his reach and drove a powerful uppercut into the demon’s jaw—or rather, into his maw. Completely taken by surprise, Ōtakemaru staggered back, droplets of sweat flying from his hair like in a boxing match.

“It didn’t even hurt!” he roared.

“Maybe not,” Mr. Harada replied, eyes fixed on his opponent, guard still up, “but you’re missing a few teeth.”

The demon spat several snow-white fragments onto the ground.

“They’ll grow back. Unlike your arms, once I rip them out of their sockets!” He looked genuinely furious now, likely because his face had taken the damage.

“Yes! Finish him!” Tamamo, now back on her feet, cheered enthusiastically, flailing her arms as if throwing punches herself. “Rip him to shreds—ow! You nasty little—”

“Don’t speak!” Aya struck Tamamo’s calf again with the tire iron. Not very hard—she didn’t have much strength—but hard enough to hurt. “And don’t move!”

“That’s right!” Suzuki cheered her on from the opposite side of the car, staying safely out of reach.

“Get off me! You miserable little pest! I used to eat girls like you for breakfast—” Tamamo reached out, grabbing at the folds of Aya’s kimono.

“You’ll leave her alone.”

Asagi’s wooden sword appeared in front of the fox demon’s face.

“Oh, the demon hunter herself, the great exorcist,” Tamamo sneered, even though the situation was clearly not in her favor. “She comes to the big city thinking everyone will be grateful to her—ow!”

“Don’t talk!” Asagi lightly smacked Tamamo’s shoulder with the wooden sword.

Tamamo bared her fangs.

“I am thoroughly sick of all of you!” she snarled.

“So what?”

“So what is that I’m angry now.”

A gust of air shoved a cloud of dust straight into the eyes of Asagi, Aya, and Suzuki, who was now crouching behind the taxi. Nine fox tails burst into existence behind Tamamo.

“You talk too much,” the exorcist taunted her. “Actions speak louder than words.” She raised her wooden sword.

Tamamo said nothing—she simply charged.

Her flurry of blows grew faster and faster, but Asagi parried every single one with her wooden sword, effortlessly at first. She spun and struck Tamamo across the back, sending her stumbling forward. The fox demon regained her balance and attacked again, twice as fast as before.

Now Asagi began to struggle. Her movements lost their smoothness, and several times Tamamo’s claws—her long fingernails transformed into talons—came dangerously close. Aya watched helplessly, desperately trying to think of some way to help the exorcist, but nothing came to mind.

The fox demon’s claws pierced deeper and deeper through Asagi’s defenses until they finally caught her jacket, tearing the front open.

“Asagi!” Aya cried out in shock.

“Relax, I’m not hurt.”

“That’s not the point!”

“Then what is?”

“Your… um… chest… it’s enormous…”

“Yes, that is rather problematic. I bind it with bandages so it won’t interfere during combat, but it doesn’t help as much as I’d like.” Asagi continued parrying blow after blow as she spoke.

“It’s amazing that the harsh climate of Hokkaido could produce something like that…” Aya muttered to herself, trying to rationalize Asagi’s physique.

Meanwhile, Tamamo paid no attention to the conversation and tried to tear the exorcist’s body apart as quickly as possible. Not a single strike reached soft flesh, and the frustration was really starting to get to her. Had she truly grown this weak? She had spent centuries trapped beneath a stone that only recently cracked open, freeing her. Almost immediately, Mr. Murata had contacted her—his power impossible to ignore—and she had treated him like yet another mighty emperor she could wrap around her finger. That was how she understood the world, and she had paid little attention to the changes it had undergone over the centuries, content to wait for the demon lord’s orders while plotting how to seize control over Murata himself.

Now it was becoming painfully clear that this had been a mistake. She couldn’t even injure an average exorcist from the northern lands. Unless… was the gaijin’s power truly supporting them? She had little experience with the power of the kami and couldn’t analyze it properly. Besides, at this moment, murdering the insolent girl in the torn jacket was the priority.

Tamamo was in the middle of these thoughts when she realized Asagi was preparing a thrust with her wooden sword. Instinctively, she jumped back—and instantly understood her mistake. The exorcist had been waiting for that. Asagi swung her weapon in a wide arc, smashing it hard into the back of Tamamo’s knee. Her right leg buckled, and Asagi followed up with a powerful strike to the exposed left side of the fox demon’s neck. Tamamo crashed onto the concrete.

“Yay!” Aya jumped with joy. “You did it!”

“It would be great,” Asagi replied bitterly, “but an ancient demon isn’t defeated so easily. Her physical form is damaged, but her spirit is still perfectly intact.”

“Our joint exorcism—”

“We don’t have time. Besides, look—she’s already getting up.”

Tamamo rose unnaturally lightly and snapped her twisted head back into place with a sickening crunch.

“You’re good, mortal. But nowhere near good enough to even dream of getting rid of me. Look over there—maybe then you’ll understand.”

She pointed toward Mr. Harada’s duel with Ōtakemaru. His suit was torn as well, and the man himself was clearly exhausted, gasping for breath, while the massive oni—bruised but still very much alive—had plenty of energy left.

In what was probably his final burst of strength, Mr. Harada tensed his muscles, parried the demon’s strike, spun, and drove a full-force punch into Ōtakemaru’s stomach, leaving a dent in the wall of muscle. Then a second blow, a third, and more— the shocked demon stood motionless for a moment, absorbing a rain of punches. Mr. Harada gave everything he had in that attack. When it ended, he could only stand there, barely upright, wheezing heavily. The demon staggered and dropped to one knee.

Robert and Kaguya turned their eyes to Murata, who still stood in the same place, watching both battles with stoic calm.

“I don’t even need to do anything,” he explained calmly. “Though it’s a bit dull, waiting for demons to defeat you through their sheer endurance—especially since they’re clearly weaker than I expected.” Murata pondered for a moment. “Well… perhaps we’ll speed things up.”

The man in the kimono raised his hands, a demonic aura forming around him. A green glow lit up the nearby hangars and enveloped Ōtakemaru, who stood closer to Murata. The oni immediately felt refreshed, brimming with energy. He sprang back to his feet, and the dents and bruises from Mr. Harada’s blows vanished.

“I feel reborn! Though it’s been a very long time… Thank you, Mr. Murata! I would have managed without the help, but this certainly makes things easier!”

“And that’s why I like you. Tamamo would surely complain or be sarcastic about it… But never mind. Do what you must to bring me the package.”

The demon gently shoved Mr. Harada aside. The man could no longer move and seemed to remain standing only by sheer force of will; he didn’t even react as he was pushed away. With heavy steps on the concrete, Ōtakemaru advanced inexorably toward Robert and Kaguya.

“Got any tricks left?” he asked. “Some magic powder or something?”

“My magic powder won’t work on someone like Ōtakemaru—certainly not when he’s backed by Murata’s magic!”

“So we’re doomed, is that it?”

“Unfortunately, only you can help us now.”

“Why ‘unfortunately’?”

“Because the last time you used the power of the kami, you shattered the Moon!”

“But you were the one who wanted me to use the magic powder—”

“Never mind! You have to do something, and fast!”

“Me? I’d really rather not do anything else—especially since I have no idea how to control it…”

Ōtakemaru was less than five meters away.

“But I guess I’ll have to try. Though I’d really like to fix the Moon first…”

Just to be safe, Robert touched the package containing the kami’s hand, though he had no idea whether that was the right thing to do. He extended his open palm forward. That alone stopped the lumbering oni—and finally snapped Murata out of his smug detachment.

“Wait—what do you think you’re doing? You’ve caused enough damage already. I didn’t think you were this stupid…!”

“Desperate times call for desperate measures,” Robert said simply, and slowly began moving his open hand to the left.

Everything blurred before their eyes. The Moon suddenly fused back into one whole. Lights flickered around the group. Ōtakemaru vanished—the towering oni gone in an instant. Murata vanished as well. All the lights went out. Skyscrapers ceased to exist. The concrete ground was replaced by wooden piers.

Robert stopped his hand, and the distortion faded.

“What… what even happened?” Kaguya asked, looking around.

“I have no idea,” Robert admitted. “But at least the Moon is whole again!” he said proudly, pointing upward.

“Be careful with those gestures, or you’ll break something again!”

“That was very kind of you. I believe you just saved us from certain death at the hands of demons—thank you,” Asagi said, sheathing her wooden sword in her backpack. “Let’s use this moment to think about what to do next.”

“I’ll try to help that man…” Aya ran toward Mr. Harada, who lay motionless, apparently unconscious.

“By the way—where are we?” Suzuki asked, slowly standing up from behind the taxi, which now looked utterly out of place among the wooden piers and buildings surrounding them. “Is this still Tokyo Bay?”

“It isn’t, you fool,” said a quiet voice, dripping with bitterness. “They call it Edo Bay now. That gaijin sent us back into the past—no telling exactly how far.”

“Oh? Why is this little talking fox here?” Aya said in surprise.