"W-What?!"
Mori's face twisted into an almost comical expression, but Dōma completely ignored him.
Rising with nonchalance, he closed the door behind the young boy.
The room was immediately plunged into darkness, disturbed only by a few thin beams of light filtering through the cracks in the wall. A familiar setting that Dōma often used to practice his vector manipulation.
"B-But, Father! I rarely ask you for anything…" Mori insisted, trying to argue. But he didn't get the reaction he hoped for.
Dōma merely flashed a fake smile before shaking his head gently.
"Sorry, but Ume-san is a guest, not a cult servant like Yuzuru." A half-truth he delivered without flinching. After all, Gyutaro hadn't yet become his subordinate; for now, he remained very much a guest.
Mori's lips tightened in frustration. He bit his lower lip, unable to retort. But what could he do against his father?
At present, he was the cult's leader in name only, with no real authority in the face of Dōma.
'Mother's right… if I truly want to make everyone happy…'
Mori's scarlet eyes gleamed with an odd light. A subtle nuance, imperceptible to any ordinary father.
The idea of forcing Dōma into retirement was taking up more and more space in his young mind.
A situation that the man in question found both amusing… and endearing.
After all, if his plan succeeded, Ume would remain forever out of reach for young Mori.
'Sorry, kid… but you're still too young to play this game with me.'
These thoughts brought Dōma back to his own memories: the time when he had become the cult's leader. He was even younger than Mori then… yet had to manage a horde of greedy adults, all craving power and influence.
Bittersweet memories that drew a smile behind his golden fan.
"On another note, it seems you're injured."
Dōma's remark immediately caught the boy's attention, and he frowned.
He was certain he hadn't sustained a single scratch after his "complicated" interaction with the monster standing by his beloved's side.
"That's impossible…"
He didn't have time to finish. A cold finger touched his cheek, collecting a faint trace of blood.
A slight cut.
A wound so minor he hadn't even noticed it… until Dōma pointed it out.
'When could he have done that…?'
Mori froze, mentally replaying the encounter with the brother-sister duo.
…
After Dōma left the two children and Taiga, the former demon slayer led them to the guest quarters, a place the cult used to house aspiring followers.
The atmosphere was heavy between them.
The two children felt crushed by the mere passive aura Taiga exuded.
Even though he seemed more approachable when with Dōma, the swordsman was not, by nature, a talkative man.
"Shishō-san, where are you coming back from?" Mori asked hesitantly.
Due to his responsibilities with the Eternal Paradise Faith cult, the boy had to wake up early every day, often with Yuzuru's help. His presence, along with that of the servant, didn't surprise the monastery's head of security.
"Since when do you ask me such questions?" the man replied in a muffled voice from behind his mask.
Mori's brows furrowed at the response, but he kept his composure. Though his influence within the cult was growing, Taiga remained a unique figure.
He was even his master when it came to sword training—a piece of advice his father had once given him.
"Haha… sorry if I was rude," Mori finally said, offering a slight, friendly smile.
But after meeting the eyes hidden behind the mask, he instinctively took a step back.
He didn't know why… but he had the unpleasant feeling that Taiga was upset with him for some unknown reason.
'Does he know about my goal? No… that's impossible, but…'
Mori knew that was the only explanation for Taiga's unusual behavior.
Though the man was distant by nature, he was gentle at heart. That was Mori's analysis of the individual named Taiga.
In a way, he wasn't wrong.
Taiga hesitated to become a demon, largely due to his compassionate side.
The only logical explanation for his behavior toward Mori lay in his loyalty to Dōma.
Mori made a mental note that these actions might already be known to his father. Information his mother would surely not appreciate.
"Uh… Taiga-san, who's this brat?"
Gyutaro's grating voice immediately interrupted the speculations swirling in Mori's mind.
The boy turned his gaze toward the "creature" following Taiga through the monastery.
Unlike Dōma, who never judged his followers emotionally because his feelings rarely surfaced in a week, young Mori was different.
He gave effective advice and had good judgment, but he often assessed situations from an emotional perspective.
A flaw attributed to his "normal" nature.
It was also the reason he would make a significant mistake that day, one he would later regret.
"Brat? Haha… at least I look human," he said mockingly, before covering his mouth with the long sleeve of his ceremonial robe.
"What?!" Gyutaro was stunned by those words.
When he came here with Ume, he had heard plenty of praise from Dōma.
He had expected a possible "normal" life, but nothing seemed to have changed.
The young boy caught the shadow of an emotion he had long observed in others' eyes: contempt.
Unconsciously, Gyutaro tightened his grip on his sickle… but he didn't attack.
He couldn't risk losing the place Ume cherished, despite his personal feelings.
He chose to suppress his anger.
Gyutaro had already endured the contempt of everyone, even his own mother. He had a well-honed sense of restraint.
'Yes… as long as Ume is safe…' he thought, before clicking his tongue in frustration and looking away.
"Hmph… no reaction? *Sigh*, at least you've got a brain," Mori said, after turning his eyes away from Gyutaro.
Mori's scarlet pupils fell on Ume's blue, angry eyes.
"Beautiful…" Mori didn't know the feeling called love due to his young age.
Yet, he felt it deep within.
This girl had to be his.
Unfortunately, the young girl had clearly overheard the interaction between him and the boy at her side.
'It's fine, they're too different to be connected,' he concluded mentally, before moving closer to Ume.
"Who are you? I haven't seen you around here before. I'm Ogai Mori."
The words flowed from Mori's mouth with great eloquence, befitting his current status.
Unfortunately, he received only a "hmph" from Ume.
She even tried to slip behind Taiga to hide from Mori's presence.
However, the young boy didn't yet understand the concept of consent at his age.
Before Ume could hide behind Taiga, the young cult leader grabbed her arm.
"Don't be shy, I don't bite… oh~" Mori dodged a blade that grazed his cheek.
But he didn't notice the small wound.
"If you get any closer to MY Ume, I'll kill you!" Gyutaro stepped between his sister and the unknown boy.
"Kill me? Ridiculous, but I'm curious to see you try." Barely had he finished speaking when Mori grabbed Gyutaro's head and attempted to slam him violently to the ground.
Though Gyutaro was born with a strong physique, so was Mori.
However, Mori had something Gyutaro lacked at that moment in the monastery.
A demon slayer's breathing technique.
Fortunately for Ume's older brother, the young boy's actions were stopped in time by Taiga.
"You heard him, didn't you? He said he'd kill YOUR cult leader," Mori declared, clenching his fists in the air.
Gyutaro was whisked away by Taiga, thanks to his superhuman speed and superior mastery of the Flame Breathing technique.
"Leader or not, they're under MY responsibility." Taiga's words left no room for negotiation.
The former demon slayer even gripped his katana after his statement.
Mori sensed a certain enthusiasm in his gesture.
If he kept pushing, something bad might happen here.
'If only I had my katana,'the boy thought, casting one last glance at Ume.
Taiga was stronger than Mori.
That was undeniable, but Mori believed he could challenge him and use the cult's followers to secure a victory.
An irrational decision that Dōma would never make, but Mori was different.
He had inherited Dōma's intelligence and Kaguya's emotions.
A yandere-type woman.
Beyond that, Mori had been at the top of the food chain in his generation, even among adults.
The exceptions were Taiga, Kaguya, Kikyo, and Dōma.
Kaguya and Kikyo were only authority figures due to their "familial" connection in Mori's perception.
Taiga and Dōma, however, were different.
One was his mentor, the other a goal to surpass and a figure of admiration.
That's why Mori considered removing one person from that list.
Was an outdated mentor a significant figure? The logical answer was no.
"Fine, fine. Father will agree with me anyway," Mori declared, shrugging.
The young boy turned and left as he had come.
'Even if Father keeps his distance, he's never refused me anything,' he thought cheerfully.
He was already imagining having Ume as his personal servant and no longer sharing Yuzuru with Dōma.
Later, he received an unexpected response.
"I refuse."
***
Author's Note : Now, Gyutaro's training arc is approaching.
Unfortunately, due to my decision to focus more on KNY, the main story is being pushed back a bit lol.
Luckily, I had anticipated such a situation, but bonus chapters are a bit rare (I need to adjust the planned ones and add a few mini-arcs).
A bonus chapter for 1,210 stones (I'm counting on you).