Chapter 40:

Pray For a Great Winter Semester (and a Successful Love Life!)

DragonBorn


Summer break quickly came to an end. School was just around the corner and Tatsuya had one last thing to do before the next semester began. Dressed in a warm jacket with a scarf wrapped around his neck and a hat on his head, Tatsuya was ready to go out for the day. The weather had cooled down a bunch in the past few days, so he needed to do everything he can to prepare for it. After all, he couldn’t afford to catch a cold on the first day back.

He waited at the front door for the girls. He could already feel the cold seeping inside through the cracks of the front door and he hated it. “Hey, you guys, are you all ready yet?” he called out to them in an irritated voice.

“We’re ready!” announced Aika from down the hallway. The girls arrived dressed in sweaters and slacks. They weren’t as heavily covered up as Tatsuya, and it wasn’t because they were dragons either (though in Aika’s case, her being a fire dragon could very much play a part in her cold tolerance). In actuality, the day wasn’t that cold, and was more of a cool and breezy day filled with sparse sunshine and light winds. But to Tatsuya, today was a very dangerous day for him. Just one hit with a cool breeze and he will spend the next day sick and begging to die.

“Alright, are we all ready?” he asked them, his knees starting to shake a little.

“Yep!” said the girls in unison.

Ingrid, Sylphie, and Rocco also appeared dressed in light layers. They were prepared to aid the princesses in their outing as per their duties as the princesses’ servants. “We are ready too,” Ingrid told Tatsuya.

Tatsuya nodded and opened the front door. A cool chill brushed against his face and Tatsuya couldn’t help but shiver. He was definitely not built for this kind of weather. He would’ve preferred to stay at home and spend the day in a warm and well heated environment. But today’s duty calls for him to brave the cold and persevere.

Today, Tatsuya and the girls were going to visit the dragon god shrine in Tokyo. It was a tradition for Tatsuya and his family to go visit and pray at the dragon god shrine twice a year (not counting New Year's): once before the winter season and once before the summer season. Tatsuya had kept the tradition going on even while his parents were away. Having done it repeatedly since childhood, it has become a part of his life that he can’t abandon.

They’ve finally made it to the shrine. The shrine was situated on top of a hill near the coastal border of the city. A long stone stairway led to the top and a large torii gate stood imposingly at the entrance. The area was rather large with a very spacious courtyard with stone dragon statues, as well as other sea creatures, to give it the impression that it was the dragon god’s Earthly palace counterpart. In the center of the courtyard was a large statue of a beautiful Japanese dragon with a jewel in each of its outstretched hands, no doubt the representation of the king himself. The shrine itself was a relatively large building with elaborately decorated walls of etched dragons of various colors, beautiful red columns with immaculate golden dragon statues wrapping around them from top to bottom, and awe-inspiring murals of various gods and goddesses with dragons and other mythological figures.

Tatsuya had always visited this shrine for as long as he can remember; and every single time, he still finds himself captivated by its heavenly beauty. It was truly like stepping into a brand new dimension filled with magic and wonder. Tatsuya can never forget how many times he had gazed upon the mighty dragon statue in the center of the courtyard and felt a very powerful and majestic presence. It was breathtaking and humbling to step foot into the sanctuary of such a god.

There were many people at the shrine: adults, children, students, elders, and businessmen. Miko (shrine maidens) attended to the people and helped with prayer; some manned the booths that sold charms and the like near the entrance.

“Here we are,” Tatsuya told the girls. He turned and saw the dragons all bowed their heads before the golden statue in the center. Many of the other people did the same thing too as if it was natural to pay their respects that way to the shrine’s god. Tatsuya approached the girls and asked, “What are you guys doing?”

“We’re paying reverence to him,” answered Aika.

“To the statue?” he asked.

“No, to the god,” she told him. “This is Lord Ryujin’s shrine, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, this is Ryujin’s shrine,” confirmed Tatsuya. Suddenly, that’s when it hit him. “Ryujin…this is Ryujin’s shrine,” he repeated to himself. The realization made him facepalm and groan. “Does this mean that I’ve been praying to my old man the whole time for a great year while he’s just off having fun in the world? Are you kidding me?!” he exclaimed.

“Do you come here every year?” Aika asked him curiously.

“I always come twice a year, not counting New Year's,” he told her. “Once before the winter and once before the summer. But now that I know who I’m really praying to, I’m starting to reconsider how often I should come here.”

“Aw, don’t be like that, Darling,” Aika told him.

“I never realized that there were so many dragons in the human realm,” commented Sylphie.

That comment piqued Tatsuya’s ears and he asked back, “What do you mean?”

“Almost everyone here is a dragon,” answered Ingrid. “There are also many magical creatures among the mix too. I only see a sparse number of humans here, and that’s not counting the shrine maidens either.”

“Seriously?!” exclaimed Tatsuya in surprise. He looked around him and blinked his eyes. The dragons were harder for him to see, given their abilities to blend in well with the human population, but the magical creatures easily popped out from the rest. He could see various creatures: tengu, fairies, goblins, tanuki, lizard-people, kappa, oni—they were all here to pay their respect to the great Ryujin, king of the Celestial Dragons.

“Can you see them?” Aika asked him excitedly.

“You’re right,” replied Tatsuya in awe. “Wait, but how can I see them and not the dragons?” he asked.

“Unlike dragons, who are able to alter their outwards appearance, magical creatures can only mask their appearance with simple magic to fool the human senses,” explained Rocco. “It’s like wearing a costume of magic,” illustrated the butler.

“So only other magical creatures can see through the illusion?” asked Tatsuya.

“That’s correct,” said the butler.

‘So that’s what they meant last time when I wasn’t able to see the real them at first,’ recalled Tatsuya. ‘I guess I’m in the same boat as them since I’m not fully human either.’

“There’s so many people here,” commented Aika with a big smile. “Of course, Lord Ryujin is the universal ruler after all.”

“Please don’t say that,” Tatsuya told her with a groan. The group headed towards the shrine building and entered it. The area inside was about the size of a large bedroom. The floor was clean and smooth, and a large statue of a man with long hair and bold eyes, clad in a flowing robe with dragon designs and a crown on his head. Before, just one look at the statue would give Tatsuya’s chills for days—he had never seen a more awesome statue in his life with his own two eyes. But now, after realizing the truth behind the shrine and its god, Tatsuya could only look at the statue with contempt. ‘Is this how they see my old man?’ he thought annoyedly to himself, ‘Or is this how he presents himself to the people?’

Tatsuya took out a coin and placed it in the donation box right near the entrance. He then walked up to the statue and kneeled down. The others followed his move and did the same thing. Despite the fact that he was praying to his very own father, Tatsuya still did it anyway out of habit and tradition. It has become a part of him and he couldn’t go against no matter how hard he tried. It seems that all those times he had come here with his father during his childhood had turned him into a creature of habit not of his own volition. ‘Just do what you got to do and forget that you’re just praying to that no-good bastard of a father of yours,’ he told himself.

He clasped his hands together in prayer and began to pray for he always pray for every year. ‘Please let this semester begin and end without a hitch! Please let this semester be a normal one! Please, please, please, let this semester be a great one without any problems! I’m begging you, dad! Now that I know who I’m praying to, I hope you hear my prayers and grant them. Show me that you’re more than a good-for-nothing father who only selfishly indulges in his own desires without a care for his son!’

Once he was sure that his prayers were heard, Tatsuya stood back up. He glanced over at the girls and found that they were deep in their own little prayers. He couldn’t possibly wonder what they were praying about, but the sight of them taking this very seriously somewhat amused him. ‘They look just like children praying for toys,’ he thought to himself with a smile.

Standing watch over Tatsuya and the girls near the entrance were two miko. The first one was a beautiful girl with heterochromatic eyes: the left one was an alluring sea green that sparkled like the ocean during a calm, summer day; the right one was a soft light blue that reflected a clear sky devoid of misfortune. She had long black hair with two red-ribboned braids in front and a hime cut. Her skin tone was a precious white with slight rosy tint to it. Around her neck was a rope necklace with a jade magatama pendant. As per her attire, she was dressed in a white robe with a scarlet hakama. She exuded innocence and purity, but also power that could only be felt by those of equal ability, and a potential unlike any normal human being.

The second miko was a pretty girl with black hair tied in a short ponytail and mischievous brown eyes that glinted with dancing lights. She wore two small hanging stone magatama earrings and a wooden wand with white streamers in her right hand. She had a fair skin tone like the glistening sands of the beach. Unlike her friend, she emitted a more mischievous and cunning aura like that of a wolf.

“Say, that guy’s back again,” said the second miko.

“He’s always here before the winter to say his prayers,” said the first miko.

“Why don’t you go and talk to him?” urged the second miko.

“W-W-What do you mean?” stuttered the first miko, flabbergasted by her friend’s sudden suggestion.

“You’ve been staring at him for a while now,” noted the second miko. “Actually, you’ve been at it for eight years now.”

“W-W-What does that have to do with anything?” came the first miko with reddened cheeks.

“What are you guys talking about?” came another voice. The two miko turned to see another one of their friends approaching them. She was a cute girl with short dark blonde hair and hazel-blue eyes—a sign of her mixed heritage. Her skin tone was white like snow and she wore a rope bracelet with a magatama on her right wrist. She spoke with a slight English accent.

“Look, Amelia, that guy over there is the one that Chihiro had her eyes on for some time now,” said the second miko, pointing at Tatsuya for her friend to see.

“Wow, what a hottie!” commented Amelia. “So you like red-heads, Chihiro?” she asked her friend, referring to Tatsuya’s orange hair peeking out of his hat.

“I-I-I don’t particularly hate it,” replied Chihiro bashfully.

“Let’s go meet him,” urged her other friend.

“We shouldn’t bother them,” protested Chihiro. But by the time she said, her friend was already walking over to Tatsuya and his group. “Kana-chan!” called Chihiro unsuccessfully. She quickly ran after her friend and successfully grabbed her by the collar of her robe. She then retreated back behind a column with her friend in tow.

Tatsuya and the girls had already finished their prayers. “What did you guys pray for?” he asked the girls.

“Mine’s a secret,” replied Aika playfully.

“I just prayed for everyone’s continued happiness and good health,” answered Sunaji genuinely. “And also for success in lo—,” she quickly caught herself and shut her mouth close, her cheeks slowly turning a bright red.

“Lo?” inquired Tatsuya curiously.

“Laughter!” blurted out Sunaji. “I prayed for a better sense of humor,” she lied. “I realize that I’m a bit thick-skinned and I take things too seriously. So in order to improve myself, I prayed for a better sense of humor. I prayed for success in laughter.”

“Really?” asked Tatsuya amusedly.

“What? Do you think that I am incapable of that? I am mature enough to realize my faults and fix them!” she snapped back at him.

“Sure, sure,” agreed Tatsuya. “I was actually thinking that you’re a pretty nice and friendly person yourself. I mean, you can be stubborn and petty at times, but you got a really good personality…most of the time. To be honest, I’m not exactly sure why I’m the only one getting most of your negative treatment, but I can vouch for your great personality based on what I’ve seen. You are always there to help others in need and you’re not afraid to get yourself dirty to do it. And on your first day at school, you put yourself out there and made a lot of friends with almost everyone from every class. I don’t really think that you need to force yourself to improve, much less wish for it.”

Sunaji blushed redder than a beet. She looked down at the ground and said, “T-Thank you.” Aika, Arashi, Takara, Mika, and Shurai stared daggers at Sunaji, jealous of Tatsuya’s treatment of her. Their eyes made the atmosphere around her heavy and dreaded. Sunaji felt like she was on trial for something she didn’t do but couldn’t win because all of the evidence was against her.

“I prayed for the continued happiness of our relationship together,” Kanjomizu told Tatsuya with a small smile. “And for our love to be even more happy and intimate than before.”

“S-Sure,” answered Tatsuya, at a loss for a more concrete and genuine reply.

“I prayed for our relationship too,” Shurai told him. “And to set a world record for eating eighty bowls of curry udon in less than an hour.”

“W-Well that’s, er, a nice goal, I guess,” said Tatsuya with an small laugh.

“I’m already practicing,” informed Shurai, giving him a thumbs up to show her earnestness.

“I prayed to become the queen of the human realm’s wealth!” shamelessly announced Takara. “Soon, all of the human treasures of manga and anime shall be mine! Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!”

‘Are those even considered human treasures?’ thought Tatsuya pityingly.

“Would you like to know mine?” asked Arashi. “I’ll give you a hint,” she told him. She leaned forward near his ear and looked like she was about to whisper something to him. However, unexpectedly for Tatsuya, Arashi lightly nipped his ear, causing a rather pleasurable feeling to flow down his body and his cheeks to turn bright red. He yelped like a fox in response to her seductive foreplay.

“My prayer was easy!” announced Mika happily. “I prayed to be Oniichan’s bride! Just wait, Oniichan, my prayer will be answered for sure! That, I can guarantee!”

“Sure, sure,” said Tatsuya in a slightly dismissive manner.

“What did you pray for, Darling?” asked Aika innocently.

“The same thing I always pray for,” Tatsuya told her, “A good school semester. How about you? I'm actually curious!”

“Of course I wished for our love to be even greater than before,” answered Aika. “But there is another thing.”

“What is it?” asked Tatsuya curiously.

“Like I said before, that’s a secret,” she told him with a wink.

The group collected themselves and was ready to head back home. They made it outside and walked past the box of fortunes. Suddenly, a voice from behind called out to them. “Hello there!” greeted Kana. The group turned around to see three miko approaching them.

“Hi,” greeted back Tatsuya politely.

“Say, would you like a fortune?” offered Kana.

“Fortune? Sorry, but I don’t believe in them,” Tatsuya told her honestly.

“Come one, just try one,” urged Kana.

Tatsuya, who is a big unbeliever in fortune and fate and destiny, found it hard to deny the request of someone else. He could’ve said no, which he does say sometimes, but he always succumbs to his self-righteous tendency to accept the requests of others. Basically, he couldn’t help but become a pushover, a fact that the girls have now gotten used to. If it was from any one of the girls or someone else that was closer to him, it would’ve been easier for him to say no (that is until they quickly wear him down with some sort of psychological torment or he succumbs to his own guilt of denying someone of their wish). In general, though, Tatsuya can be perhaps too quick to sacrifice his own beliefs for someone else—such as in this case. “Sure!” accepted Tatsuya.

He walked up to the box and was about to reach in when the box suddenly tipped over, causing him to fall down. The top of the box came off and the fortunes all poured out onto the ground. Unbeknownst to Tatsuya, Chihiro had also fallen down next to him when she tried to catch the box from falling over. They both rubbed sat up and rubbed their heads. Once the daze disappeared from their eyes, they both started to clean up the fortunes on the floor by picking them up.

“I’m sorry,” apologized Tatsuya.

“No, it wasn’t your fault,” reassured Chihiro bashfully.

“Chihiro!” exclaimed Kana. She rushed to her friend’s side and bent down to help her. As she did, she stealthily slipped a few pieces of white paper into the pile while making sure that no one was looking. She then glanced over at Amelia and they both exchanged winks.

Once all of the fortunes were picked up, Tatsuya picked up the fallen box and set it upright again. The fortunes were then placed back inside of it, with the ones that Kana had slipped in on top of the pile (just as she had planned). Once everything was alright again, Kana urged Tatsuya to try again.

Tatsuya reached inside the box and picked up a fortune. He opened the slip and read it. As he did, he became quite confused by what it meant. “This is a little weird,” he told them.

“What do you mean?” asked Kana with a sly smile. She believed that Tatsuya had picked one of hers and couldn’t contain her excitement.

“What does this mean by ‘Undetermined’?” he asked them.

“Oh, that just means—Wait a minute, what?” came Kana, confused.

Tatsuya handed the slip over to Chihiro, who read it with a very uneasy frown. “I have never seen a fortune like this before,” she told him. “We have had a few ‘Undetermined’ fortunes before, but nothing like this one. ‘Undetermined—Many trials and tribulations await you. You will lose your heart but will find love, you will lose your life but will find your soul, and you will lose yourself but will find friends. Whether this spells fortune or misfortune for you is up to you.’”

“What does it all mean?” asked Tatsuya curiously.

“I’m sorry, but I’m not so sure myself,” admitted Chihiro.

“Well, this is an epic fail,” said Kana with a groan.

“What are you talking about, Kana-chan?” asked Chihiro.

“It’s nothing,” quickly replied Kana.

Suddenly, a giant fire explosion from the side of the hill caught everyone’s attention. The sound thundered through the air and the bright red flare consumed the skies. Smoke rose up to the clouds and the acrid smell of burnt matter pinched everyone’s noses.

“What the hell was that?” asked Tatsuya aloud.

“Could it be an attack?” offered Arashi.

Without any further discussion, Tatsuya and the girls immediately left for the sight of the explosion. The three miko exchanged worried glances and quickly took off after them. Both groups eventually arrived in a wooded area and grassy area. The smell and sight of the smoke was the key that told them exactly where to go. And the hotter the air became as a result of the excess thermal energy from the explosion revealed to them the location of their target.

The sound of nearing voices forced Tatsuya and the others to hide behind trees and silently observe what was going on. Peeking out from his spot, Tatsuya noticed two figures dressed in miko clothing standing apart from each other, breathing heavily and preparing to engage each other in battle—though the sound of the breathing and their obviously haggard faces told him that the combatants had already had more than enough battles today, or that the battles they were waging were beyond control and used too much energy than it should.

As he focused on the duo, he realized that one of them looked really familiar to him. It didn’t take too long for his memory to recall whatever it was he was trying to remember. Once the realization hit, and Tatsuya could finally put a name to the face, he somehow felt that it was unnecessary and dangerous for him to step in and intervene. The girl that was taking part in this battle was a very pretty human-looking woman that he had encountered before. It was none other than Kazan, the kitsune from the pool.

The two combatants were quite battered and bruised from their fight. Tatsuya glanced over at Kazan’s opponent and saw that it was a very beautiful young girl with short white hair and icy blue eyes. She wore a very enigmatic blank expression that made it hard to discern how she’s feeling right now.

There was no doubt that they both were battling at full power. Kazan had a giant hoop of fire curving above her head with equally spaced dancing flames around the edge like the minutes on a clock. Three balls of fire (hitodama) floated around her and a pair of foxes paced near her feet. On the other hand, Kazan’s opponent had frost and ice around her feet and three large ice crystals protruding from the earth behind her like towering fortresses. A large white wolf stood next to her with bared fangs and a ring of ice spikes formed around her being as projectiles ready to launch at any moment.

The two of them were about to continue with their fight when suddenly Chihiro ran out from her hiding place and placed herself in between them. “Wait a minute you two!” she told them, holding her hands out in front of each of them. “Kazan, Fubuki, what’s gotten into you two?”

“Fubuki’s gone mad,” said Kazan. “I was just trying to talk to her when she suddenly attacked me out of nowhere!”

“What do you mean?” asked Chihiro.

“She’s not the same person anymore!" declared Kazan.

“Are you still going on with that crap?” came Fubuki dismissively.

“Fubuki, what’s going on?” Chihiro asked her.

“This is none of your business, Chihiro-san,” replied Fubuki coldly. “This battle between us was bound to happen.”

“Are you still going on about that?!” yelled out Kazan furiously. “I told you before, that has nothing to do with us!”

“It should!” argued back Fubuki. “No matter what you say, it will affect us and our relationship. We are bound to the gods we serve and we cannot defy their rule!”

“Fubuki—,” said Kazan.

“Enough!” shouted Fubuki. She held out her hand and the ice spikes surrounding her shot through the air like a barrage of missiles.

Tatsuya saw how the projectiles were going to harm Chihiro and immediately jumped out of his hiding place. He pushed her onto the ground and instinctively held out his right hand. The Mark of Marduk glowed brilliantly and the magical invisible barrier activated, protecting him and everyone else behind him from the attack. The ice spikes simply shattered into a million pieces upon coming into contact with the barrier.

“Y-You,” gasped Kazan in surprise.

“W-Who the hell are you?!” shouted Fubuki angrily.

Chihiro, still a little dazed from being saved from harm, looked up at Tatsuya and saw the mark glowing on his hand. She could only gasp upon realizing just what it was. ‘He’s….’

“Stop this meaningless fight!” shouted Tatsuya. “I don’t care what the hell it’s about, but I can tell that it’s doing way too much harm than it should. I can tell by the look on your faces that you didn’t want it to turn out this way, but it did.”

“What do you think you know about us?” scoffed Fubuki.

Tatsuya glanced at her and read her expression. Those jaded eyes that screamed for this fight to end, the frustrated grimace packed full of resentment and guilt, the slight unconscious twitching of the corner of her lips—he could tell exactly what they mean. “I can tell that this wasn’t what you wanted,” he repeated calmly. He let out a sigh and said, “Why don’t we try to talk this out?”

Suddenly, like the swift and silent swing of an executioner’s sword, a large ice crystal shot out from Fubuki’s hand and spiraled straight for Tatsuya’s throat. Tatsuya didn’t know about this sneak attack and therefore couldn’t prepare himself to respond to it. However, he was luckily saved from serious harm by Aika, who jumped out at first sight of the attack and quickly drew her Dragon Regalia to neutralize it. “How dare you plan to harm my Darling?” snarled Aika. She gripped her chain whip tightly with both hands to signify her readiness to dish out punishment.

“Tch! There are even more meddlers now,” complained Fubuki.

Aika held out her right hand into the air and her mark appeared. The mark of her tribe and status as royalty glowed very brightly like an intense star. Kazan immediately kneeled down on the ground after one look at the mark before her. Fubuki also stopped her attack and stood very still.

“Princess Ashira of the Drago Tribe, I am forever humbled to be graced by your presence. May the Draco Tribe forever be prosperous and glorious till the end of all time,” chanted Kazan reverently.

“A royal? Here? In the human realm? Impossible!” muttered Fubuki.

“I’m not one to meddle in a fight between friends or enemies,” began Aika, “but if my Darling is harmed, you can bet that I will show the person responsible no mercy, friend or foe.” She wore a very scary expression on her face with a very commanding presence, something that Tatsuya had seen a few times before but only in rare and extreme occasions.

Fubuki closed her eyes and the ice around her melted away. The wolf by her side sat very still next to her. She opened her eyes again and said with an expressionless face, “This doesn’t change anything. This war is coming and it will affect us whether you like or not, Kazan. I, for one, cannot act as if it is insignificant to my wellbeing just because I live in a different place. My loyalty lies with my god.” She then turned around and turned her head slightly back. A small tear could be seen glistening in the corner of her eye. “I’m sorry, Kazan, but I don’t believe in friendships between enemies.” With that statement as her farewell, Fubuki left with the wolf by her side.

A little bit later, everyone regrouped back at the shrine. Kazan’s wounds were treated by Chihiro, Kana, and Amelia. Despite Tatsuya’s objections, Aika took this chance to question the kitsune about the battle. “You’re name’s Kazan, right?” she asked the kitsune.

“Yes,” answered Kazan.

“Tell me, what was that fight about?” Aika asked her.

Kazan wore a very reluctant expression on her face, a sign that she didn’t really want to talk about it. However, she couldn’t disobey Aika and told her what she wanted to know. “Fubuki and I used to be very good friends,” began Kazan. “I know it must sound weird for a kitsune and a yuki-onna (snow woman) to be best friends, but we became quite close during our time working at the shrine together. However, our relationship had gotten really rocky these past few weeks.”

“Why is that?” asked Aika.

“My princess, I don’t think I should speak any further,” informed Kazan grimly.

“As princess of the Draco tribe and descendant of the great god Draco, I order you to tell me what I want to know. You are a subject of Draco, therefore you must obey my orders,” ordered Aika.

“Oi, Aika,” said Tatsuya. He stood by listening to the entire conversation and could tell by the kitsune’s expression and voice that she desperately didn’t want to talk about it. Seeing her in pain like this really made his heart sink. He could never imagine engaging in a terrible fight with his best friend like that. But say if something like this does happen, he doesn’t think that he could handle it.

“My princess,” said Kazan, “I’m not sure if you’ve heard of this yet. I’m not even sure myself if I should divulge this to you.” She took a breath and steeled herself before continuing. “There is a rumor that a war is coming between the tribes.”

“War?” said Aika with a frown. She processed those words in her head and then turned to Tatsuya and asked for him to step out. When he asked her why, she simply smiled and said that it was a discussion between women that men shouldn’t hear. Once he was out of the way, Aika turned back to Kazan and asked in a grave voice, “Which tribes are going to war?”

Kazan looked up at Aika with stone-cold eyes and replied in an equally chilling voice, “The Draco tribe and the Okami tribe.”

“So that’s why you and the snow woman were fighting,” concluded Aika with a sigh. “It is exemplary that one wholeheartedly follows their god and devote their entire life to them. I cannot reject her piety and loyalty to the kingdom of her kind. Her devotion to the Okami tribe is admirable.”

“But, my princess, this doesn’t mean that we should let it break our bond,” protested Kazan.

“It shouldn’t, but it will,” answered back Aika grimly. “If the Draco tribe is ever in danger, wouldn’t you risk your life to help protect it too?” she asked the kitsune. Kazan remained silent and answered with a slow yet serious nod. “It is easier and less taxing on the heart to fight for one’s home country and family than to fight against it. Protecting those who are closer to you by blood and culture is easier and more righteous than fighting for those who are only tied to you through bonds of word and spirit.” Aika spoke the truth. Being the princess of a tribe, she knew exactly what she was saying and the reality behind each and every word. It wasn’t just something she was taught in school or by her parents, but a fact that she had witnessed herself through her hundreds of years of life.

After hearing about the reason why, there was something that still bothered her. “What is this war about? And where did you hear it from?” Aika asked Kazan.

“There has been a rumor about it for a while now,” answered the kitsune. “Every magical creature in the human realm is aware of it. We don’t know exactly what the war is about, but we do know that it is coming.”

Aika found the information to be weird. ‘Why would the Draco tribe and Okami tribe go to war?’ she wondered to herself. It was a known fact that the Draco tribe and Okami tribe weren’t exactly on the best of terms (they have been rivals ever since time immemorial), but they’ve been peaceful with each other and had formed a rather lukewarm acquaintance as a result of the era of peace that now governs the dragon realm. ‘So why now?’ she asked herself.

Satisfied with the knowledge she acquired, Aika stood up and wished for Kazan’s speedy recovery. She then said farewell to the kitsune and the three miko and rejoined Tatsuya and the group outside. “Say, what were you two talking about?” he asked her.

“It’s a secret between women,” Aika told him with a smile. “Anyway, should we get home?” she suggested.

“Yeah, let’s go,” agreed Tatsuya. His body shook a little as a cool breeze flew past his abdomen. “I don’t want to catch another cold,” he said.

“If you get sick, I can take care of you again, Darling,” said Aika cheerfully.

“I don’t want to miss my first day back for the new semester,” said Tatsuya.

“Aw, but it would really be a good time for us to increase our love level!” announced Aika shamelessly.

“I want to increase my love level with Oniichan too!” joined in Mika.

“A-Ah, m-m-m-me too!” stuttered Kanjomizu.

“Tatsu-kun, me too,” added Shurai.

“I’ll give you treatment worthy of an elite like me, Boyfriend! Look forward to my greatness! Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!” declared Takara.

“I’ll take very good care of you and satisfy all your needs,” said Arashi with a wink.

“Y-Y-Y-You quean!” shouted Sunaji, “A malicious strumpet like you is more than incapable of providing medical help!” She then turned to Tatsuya and added, “I should take it upon myself to provide you with medical care. I-It’s only for your own good.”

“I’m thankful for your thoughtfulness,” said Tatsuya, “but I would rather not get sick in the first place.”

Behind them, the miko looked on as the happy group left the shrine and descended down the mountain. Kana sighed and said, “Chihiro, you’re really behind, you know that? It seems that the guy is more popular with girls than you’d think. If you don’t do anything, those girls are going to steal him away from you forever.”

“He’s…,” said Chihiro under her breath.

“Oh, and wasn’t that red-haired girl a dragon princess?” asked Amelia.

“You’re right,” agreed Kana with a nod. “That mark on her hand was the symbol of Draco, wasn’t it?”

“What about the symbol on the boy?” pointed out Amelia.

“That’s…,” said Kana, at a total loss for an answer.

“He’s one of them,” answered Chihiro.

"What do you mean?" asked Kana.

“That mark on his hand, that’s the Mark of Marduk," revealed Chihiro. "There's no doubt about it. It's just like how the head priest described it."

“But isn’t there four of them? The Mark of Marduk, that is,” remembered Amelia.

“What does that mean?” asked Kana, scratching her head.

“There are four Dragonborns,” explained Chihiro. “However, only one of them will rise up above the rest and become the universe’ designated messiah.”

“Then how do we know that he’s the one?” asked Kana.

“The universe had put in place three signs,” said Chihiro. “One of those signs is the mark. If he also possess the other two signs, then it would mean that he is indeed the universe’ designated messiah. It’s our job to watch over his progress and protect him if he does indeed become the chosen one among chosen ones.”

Kana smiled slyly and lightly jabbed Chihiro in the ribs, saying, “But that’s not the only reason why you want to “watch over” him, right?”

Chihiro’s face became bright red like a ripe tomato. “K-Kana-chan!” she screamed. Kana and Amelia laughed at her reaction. “Geez, it’s not like that, I tell you,” said Chihiro stubbornly. She looked out into the distance and watched as the sun slowly drifted to the West. ‘Owatatsumi Tatsuya, huh,’ she thought to herself. A small smile tugged at her lips and her heart fluttered a bit at the thought. ‘Will you be the one the universe will choose?’