Jin walks into the nearby carriage yard, walking straight to a carriage.
"How far North are you willing to take me?"
'Say, kid, I'll take you to Neogeinshu. For the right price, of course."
Jin looks at his map, seeing Neogeinshu is the farthest northeast city of the Elvish Kingdom, lying about halfway through the journey.
"Alright, how much Yen do you want?"
"Yen? What the hell is that? I want gold, dammit."
"Is that so?"
Jin pulls out a small bag he took from the manor.
"Is this enough gold?"
"O-Of course… Whenever you want to leave, we can go, sir."
"Well, what are we waiting for… let's go."
Jin grabs onto the side, hoisting himself up, sitting right next to the coachman.
"What the hell' you doin', kid… get in the back where you belong."
Jin makes a cold glare, his eyes icy and cold.
"Do we have a problem?"
"N-no sir…"
"Good, now drive… unless you want a problem."
Jin leans back, kicking his feet up.
"Wake me when we get there."
Jin awakens in the same dark abyss that brought him to this new world.
"Holy shit… I'm stuck again?"
"You're not stu,ck Jin… no need to fear."
"Oh, you're that Aya girl, right?"
"That is correct."
"So where the hell am I? And why did you drag me back here?"
"You're in the realm of Dragons. It's a liminal space between all worlds."
"So I paid for that carriage for no reason?"
"Oh, no, Jin, your body is sleeping soundly on that carriage while you travel."
"So how am I here?"
"Your subconscious left the world in your sleep… and you're now here."
"Well, I have a question now… Was my subconscious the only thing here last time?"
"No… It's very complicated, you see… You were brought here due to being chosen by The Grand."
"The Grand? What's that?"
"You'll learn eventually… but in the meantime, I would like to discuss your actions."
"What about them could YOU possibly want to know?"
"Jin, you're not acting the same as when you previously did. Before you were a ruthless killer and would torment anyone for merely bumping into you… But you've been kind, at least a little."
"I haven't been kind, I've killed a man, I attacked Keiji… none of that was Kind."
"That's true, but let's not forget you helped save a group of women because a child asked it of you…You even reunited the kid with his only family."
"True, but I didn't do it for those girls, I just couldn't stand to see such an innocent smile fade into tears."
"You also sparked a fire inside Keiji. He's proud and happy you're here and even working to be better."
"So what? Not liking I can be better, I'm a curse, a Demon, a tyrant, a dark king, a god of death. Nothing more, nothing less."
"Is that what you believe?"
"It is."
"Then why did you pray to a god, saying how you do not mean any disrespect?"
"Even the mightiest of men are no match for a God."
"So I see."
"HEY KID… WE'VE MADE IT!"
Jin stands in front of Aya, his eyes blank, an expression of dissatisfaction on his face.
"We'll meet again, Aya."
Jin sinks into the abyss, the entire world swirling.
Jin jolts awake. His body is being over taken by an immense freeze, as he starts to rapidly heat up.
"Damn kid, a full three days you slept."
"Is that so? How far are we?"
"You're in the city… but you must know, I used magic to speed up the horses. Someone is out for you."
"Me? That's hard to believe."
"It's true, kid, they spoke of a silver-haired boy killing the lord of the manor… They even marked you as a terrorist."
"How wonderful."
Jin hops off the carriage. Handing a hundred Yen to the man.
"We never met… Got it?"
"Yes, sir."
Jin walks away into Neogeinshu.
Jin continues walking through the streets.
"Such pretty buildings… remind me of those pictures of the United States."
BANG!
A GUNSHOT!? No, that can't be…
Jin turns to look down the alleyway.
Jin spots a woman hidden in a white cloak struggling against a man.
"Now now… do I see a man trying to take advantage of a woman? I hate men like that, you know."
Jin walks forward. A cold glare left his eyes, piercing through the alley.
"WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, BOY?"
"I'm Jin, the King of the Underworld."
"So what, kid, I don't care what you think."
"I wouldn't take Keiji's words lightly now."
The man turns and attempts to swing at Jin.
Instinctively, Jin dodges, pushing the man into the wall.
"So what's your name, little guy?"
"I'm Kaidu, and I'm the son of the major, so get lost."
"Well, that's a shame… tell you what, I'll give you ten seconds to leave or… I'll kill you."
A look of fear crosses Kaidu's face. In a flurry, Kaidu runs for it, bolting out of the alley and away out of sight.
Jin turns to the girl.
The girl's red hair flows slightly in the wind, hand er blue eyes sparkle ever so slightly. Jin notices the elongated ears.
"You know I've never actually met an elf."
"Um, you said you're Jin? Some kind of underworld king?"
"Ya something like that."
"So are you like a high general of the demon army? I'm surprised to see a Dragon Spirit working with Demons."
"I'm not a Dragon Spirit and have nothing to do with the Demon army. I'm just Jin. I ruled an organization back home before leaving."
"Well, that's interesting. Sa,y where are you from exactly?"
"I'm from Japan, a very faraway place."
"And you're not a Dragon Spirit?"
"It's just not possible."
"Whatever you say… Jin, I need to get going."
"Alright… good luck in life."
The woman stops and looks over her shoulder at Jin.
"Well, don't you want to help me at least?"
"What could you possibly need my help with?"
"I need someone to help me make it to the hotel… This is the bad side of town."
"If you promise to point me to someone who can offer me a horse."
"Sounds like a promise."
Jin steps forward with his katana on his shoulder.
"Alright then, I guess we'd better get going."
The two walk out of the alleyway and turn right.
The two walk past a couple of hops, and eventually Jin stops in his tracks.
"Damn, look at this… the entire city just gets suddenly brighter here."
Jin turns to see a picture of his face on a sign.
Looks like I'm wanted… for killing a lord?
"Is something wrong, Mr. Kuroryu?"
"Na,h nothing's wrong… say what was your name again?"
"Oh uh… just call me sylph… that'll work."
The two keep walking. Jin swipes a mirror and a small knife from a nearby stand.
"Hey, I gotta do something in this alley, is that alright?"
"Yes, of course, Mr. Kuroryu."
Jin walks into the alley, flipping out the knife and propping up the mirror.
"Sorry to steal your style, Mori, but it seems like I have no choice."
Jin uses the knife to cut his hair down, and clumps of hair fall and land on the ground.
Jin takes off the overcoat, leaving nothing but his button-down shirt he took from Keiji.
"I had better ditch the coat, they might recognize it… I made a promise to be better, and yet I'm still wanted by the law."
Jin walks out of the alley. And returns to the stand, he took the knife and mirror from.
Jin places them both down and makes a cold, icy glare at the merchant.
Swiftly, Jin turns to walk away, when he glances over his shoulder.
"Thanks for doing bussness with me."