Chapter 119: Gin Tsumugi's Attitude
As time passed, rumors began to spread through the world of Onmyōdō.
Some were true.
Some were false.
All of them centered on one name.
White Fox Gin Tsumugi.
The most reliable version claimed that Gin Tsumugi had personally resolved the supernatural incident involving Shinomiya Kaguya, the eldest daughter of the Shinomiya Conglomerate. During the process, he had single-handedly subjugated and destroyed the Slaughter Ghost, a Great Yokai, thereby proving himself to be one of the strongest combatants in modern Onmyōdō.
The moment that news spread, the major Supernatural Affairs Offices and Onmyoji families were shaken.
White Fox Gin Tsumugi had only recently been appointed as one of the Twelve Divine Generals by the Onmyo Agency, yet he had already grown to the point where he could slay a Great Yokai.
It was monstrous.
Unreasonable.
A genius who had truly matured.
But the other rumors sounded much less believable.
Some claimed that during the battle in Minato Ward, the Slaughter Ghost had not been the only Great Yokai to appear.
Three Great Yokai had descended.
At that, countless Onmyoji laughed and shook their heads.
Even if people wanted to fabricate rumors, could they at least make them sound plausible?
Three Great Yokai.
Most people did not understand the weight of those words.
To put it simply, three Great Yokai were enough to rival the current top combat power of the entire Omnyo Agency. If three Great Yokai had truly descended upon Minato Ward, that district would already have been reduced to a wasteland of blood and curses.
Yet the rumors that followed were even more ridiculous.
Some said that Gin Tsumugi had summoned Zenki and Goki, the legendary Yokai-Gods, as well as Seiryu, one of the Twelve Divine Generals once commanded by the Great Onmyoji Abe no Seimei.
With their aid, he had eliminated the other two Great Yokai.
Absurd.
Preposterous.
Utter nonsense.
There were even rumors that the White Fox Onmyoji had inherited Abe no Seimei's lost Onmyōdō, or that he was fundamentally the reincarnation of the Great Onmyoji himself.
No one believed them.
At least, not openly.
And yet, those who had witnessed the battle in Minato Ward knew the truth.
The most ridiculous rumors were the closest to reality.
The myth of Onmyōdō had indeed returned to this world.
The mixture of truth and falsehood was not accidental. It was a precautionary measure taken jointly by the Omnyo Agency, the Onmyo Alliance, and the Onmyō Academy.
They could not erase what had happened.
Too many people had seen it.
So they muddied the water.
If the rumors spread chaotically, if truth and absurdity mixed together until no one knew which version to believe, the impact would be softened. Perhaps only slightly, but even that was better than making a formal announcement and throwing the entire world of Onmyōdō into panic.
And the source of all those rumors, the man at the center of that storm, had finally ended his training after three days.
Inside the secret chamber beneath the Myriad Laws Supernatural Department, Gin Tsumugi slowly opened his eyes.
The advancement of the role-playing system had brought an enormous qualitative improvement. Myriad Laws alone had surged from thirty percent completion to ninety percent, and adapting to such a dramatic transformation required time.
For three days, Gin had remained in the secret chamber, adjusting to the growth in his power and stabilizing the changes within himself.
Only now did he finally step out.
"You brat. You finally decided to come out."
The moment Gin left the secret chamber, a familiar aged voice reached his ears.
He looked up.
Inside his office at the Myriad Law Supernatural Department, the three Deputy Directors were all present.
Iwanaga Kotoko.
Kohara Daisuke.
Ibe Tomoya.
And sitting there with the air of someone who had been waiting for quite some time was Amami Daizen.
Judging from his posture, the old man had likely been here for an entire day.
"Old man," Gin said, a faint apologetic smile appearing on his face, "I made a breakthrough in strength. To avoid being interrupted, I set up a barrier around the chamber, so I didn't sense your arrival."
After returning from Minato Ward, he had gone directly into seclusion.
Thinking about it now, it was almost amusing.
The last time he advanced through the role-playing system at the White Fox Agency, Amami Daizen had also arrived at nearly the same time. Now, less than a month later, the same thing had happened again.
In less than a month, the role-playing system had advanced twice.
That alone showed how rapidly Gin's strength had grown during this period.
"At least you still have some conscience," Amami Daizen snorted. "You haven't completely forgotten this old man."
Seeing Gin in person, unchanged apart from a faintly more mature air, the worry that had pressed on Amami Daizen's heart finally eased.
Iwanaga Kotoko, Kohara Daisuke, and Ibe Tomoya remained silent.
Their expressions were complicated.
Gin understood why.
After he summoned Zenki, Goki, and Seiryu, he had known this moment would come.
It was time to give the people around him an explanation.
"With your cleverness and experience," Amami Daizen said, "you should already know why this old man came to your Myriad Law Supernatural Department."
Then his Spirit Insight Power activated.
The old man's eyes changed slightly.
A flash of shock passed through them.
"Your strength..."
He stared at Gin.
"You've reached National First-Class."
His voice sank.
"Are you recovering?"
The words made Iwanaga Kotoko, Ibe Tomoya, and Kohara Daisuke tense at first.
National Level Onmyoji already stood at the top of modern Onmyōdō. A National First-Class Onmyoji was someone truly placed among the strongest of the era.
But after remembering the matter of their Department Head's identity, that shock somehow became less shocking.
Perhaps, as Amami Daizen said, he was merely recovering.
Recovering the glory and impossible strength he had once possessed.
After all, the person standing before them was likely the faith of Onmyōdō itself, the figure every Onmyoji throughout history had pursued as an unreachable ideal.
The legendary Great Onmyoji.
Abe no Seimei.
When the three of them had received the news at the Myriad Law Supernatural Department, the impact had been overwhelming. Even now, they still felt dazed, as if the world had shifted beneath their feet.
Their Department Head.
Their immediate superior.
The young man who had founded the Myriad Law Supernatural Department and led them through Shibuya's chaos.
He might be Abe no Seimei.
Then came the massacre in Minato Ward.
Zenki.
Goki.
Seiryu.
Three Great Yokai buried in a single night.
If not for the consequences that followed, the three Deputy Directors might already have been celebrating. But there was no room for that now.
All they wanted was an answer.
A reasonable explanation.
Anything that could help them regain their footing.
"Old man," Gin asked, "what exactly do you want to know?"
Amami Daizen's expression became solemn.
"What I want to know most is simple."
His gaze fixed on Gin.
"Are you truly him?"
This was the question everyone wanted answered.
Not only Amami Daizen.
The upper echelons of the Omnyo Agency, the Onmyo Alliance, and the Onmyō Academy all wanted confirmation.
They had gathered clues.
They had consulted old records.
They had obtained information from the Tsuchimikado Clan.
In their hearts, most had already reached a conclusion.
But they still needed the answer from Gin himself.
"Him," Gin repeated softly.
For a moment, a faint melancholy passed through his eyes.
Then he said, "He is me. That much is true."
The room fell silent.
Gin continued calmly.
"But my self is Gin Tsumugi. That is how it is now, and that is how it will be in the future."
As the role-playing system continued to advance, Gin had come to understand something clearly.
He had always maintained the self of "Gin Tsumugi."
But "his" experiences, "his" memories, "his" emotions, "his" bloodline, and "his" powers were reflecting onto Gin one after another, as if drawn back through the long river of time.
That meant the Great Onmyoji Abe no Seimei was indeed him.
That was not wrong.
But there was one point that would never change.
His core was Gin Tsumugi.
And it would remain so.
To Amami Daizen, Iwanaga Kotoko, Ibe Tomoya, and Kohara Daisuke, those words were enough.
Gin had personally confirmed his connection to Abe no Seimei, the myth of Onmyōdō.
Or perhaps, he had confirmed that he truly was the reincarnation of the Great Onmyoji.
Even though they had already guessed it, hearing it from Gin's own mouth still struck them like a storm.
That myth.
That legend.
The Great Onmyoji Abe no Seimei.
The existence standing at the end of Onmyōdō.
He had been beside them all along.
Openly.
Naturally.
Like an ordinary young man.
It felt like discovering that the deity one had worshipped for years was someone one knew personally. Aside from shock, there was a strange dreamlike unreality.
Ibe Tomoya and Kohara Daisuke exchanged a glance.
Both saw the same stunned expression in each other's eyes.
What could be more surreal than finding out that their immediate superior was the legendary Great Onmyoji Abe no Seimei?
"No wonder Lord Tsuchizawa always said the Department Head resembled Abe no Seimei," Iwanaga Kotoko murmured.
She remembered the words of the fallen god Tsuchizawa.
At the time, she had thought Lord Tsuchizawa's perception was flawed, or that Gin merely resembled the legendary Great Onmyoji by coincidence.
She had not taken it seriously.
"So the truth was right in front of us from the beginning."
Her smile turned slightly bitter.
"Is it like Tsuchimikado Yakou?" Amami Daizen asked. "Reincarnation and rebirth through the Taizan Fukun Rirtual?"
Gin shook his head.
"The details cannot be explained in a few words. I can only say that the Taizan Fukun Ritual is not friendly to me, much less suitable for my reincarnation."
Anything related to the role-playing system could not be revealed.
That was Gin's bottom line.
His greatest secret.
Seeing his attitude, Amami Daizen did not continue pressing.
"Old man," Gin said, "you didn't come here only to confirm my identity, did you?"
"Confirming your identity was more of a formality."
Amami Daizen leaned back slightly.
"The reason those people sent this old man here is because they want to know your stance."
"My stance?"
"That's right."
Amami Daizen looked at him seriously.
"Your stance toward Onmyōdō. Your stance toward this era. And what your appearance represents."
Gin understood.
Or rather, he understood what the upper echelons of Onmyōdō were worried about.
"Old man, I already said it."
His voice was steady.
"My self now is Gin Tsumugi, not the man from a thousand years ago."
He paused, then continued.
"And this is no longer the Heian Period. No matter how many myths and miracles once existed, a thousand years is enough to dilute them."
His gaze swept across the room.
"You do not need to worry that I have some grand scheme for this era. Nor do you need to fear that I will imitate him from a thousand years ago and directly dominate an age."
Gin's expression was calm, but the weight in his words was unmistakable.
"The name Gin Tsumugi represents my entire stance."
The stone that had been pressing on Amami Daizen's heart finally settled.
He relaxed and smiled.
"If you truly had the ability to completely resolve the Supernatural Recovery of this era, then even if you dominated another age, we old fellows would not necessarily object."
His tone became lighter.
"What worries us is not your strength. It is the clash of thoughts between two different eras."
Then he snorted.
"As for the conspiracy theories raised by certain idiots, if they dare say them again, I'll have them come directly to you and confront you face-to-face. Let's see whether they still have the courage."
Clearly, over the past few days, the upper levels of Onmyōdō had produced all sorts of speculation about Gin.
Some were cautious.
Some were hopeful.
Some were afraid.
And some had already spiraled into conspiracy.
"Oh, right."
Amami Daizen seemed to remember something.
"You brat, this old man was also entrusted with two requests that require your help. Whether you agree is up to you."
"What requests?"
"The first is from Miyaji Hanao."
Amami Daizen said, "He wants to trade with you for the lost ancient-style Fudō Myōō Fire Boundary Mantra. You can set the conditions yourself."
A hint of amusement entered the old man's voice.
"Part of the reason that fellow Miyaji is called the 'Gifted Child of Acala' is his obsession with the Fudō Myōō Fire Boundary Mantra."
"He wants the Fudō Myōō Fire Boundary Mantra."
Gin thought for a moment.
It was not that he was hesitating over whether to trade.
He was considering what to ask for in return.
To others, the Fudō Myōō Fire Boundary Mantra might be a priceless National Level Onmyō Art.
To Gin, it was not particularly important.
"And the other matter?"
"It's Dairenji Suzuka," Amami Daizen said. "That little girl wants to redraw her Onmyōdō Framework. With your ability, you should be able to help her significantly."
"Suzuka."
Gin had not seen Dairenji Suzuka for some time, not since she had been placed under house arrest by the Omnyo Agency because of the Taizan Fukun Ritual incident.
He had not expected her to decide to discard the grafted Onmyōdō Framework and outline her own from scratch.
That decisiveness earned his approval.
Only by independently outlining her own Onmyōdō Framework would she have the possibility of advancing further. Otherwise, her current strength and realm would be her end point.
Dairenji Suzuka had made the right choice.
"Have Suzuka come directly to the Myriad Law Supernatural Department."
Gin nodded.
"I agree to both requests. As for the conditions for trading the Fudō Myōō Fire Boundary Mantra, I'll tell you after I've thought it through."
Amami Daizen nodded.
After chatting with Gin for a while longer, the old man prepared to leave.
After all, a group of people at the Omnyo Agency were still anxiously waiting for his report.
Gin asked Kohara Daisuke and Ibe Tomoya to see Amami Daizen off in his place.
Soon, only Gin and Iwanaga Kotoko remained in the office.
Kotoko stared at him quietly.
Gin raised an eyebrow.
"What? Is there something on my face?"
Kotoko shook her head and sighed.
"It still feels a bit unbelievable."
"I already said it."
Gin's words to Kotoko were far more direct than the ones he had given Amami Daizen.
"I am only Gin Tsumugi. In this era, there is only White Fox Gin Tsumugi. There is no Great Onmyoji Abe no Seimei."
He looked at her.
"You do not need to overthink it."
Kotoko nodded.
But changing how she saw him would not happen immediately.
That would take time.
Gin did not force the matter.
"Tell me about the department," he said. "While I was away, how has the absorption of Shibuya Ward's Supernatural Affairs Offices progressed?"
Kotoko's expression shifted at once.
She entered work mode.
"Five offices have already been fully absorbed. The manpower shortage across the four main sections has been somewhat alleviated, but only temporarily."
She opened the documents in her hand.
"With your strength exposed, Department Head, the offices that were still hesitating should also join us soon."
Gin listened quietly.
Kotoko continued her report, her tone calm and precise.
"Also…"
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