Every Pure Academy student was a participant, even if they were unaware of it.
And Koyasu Tsubame, who had "accidentally" fallen into the water, might have been the chosen "sacrifice."
As for Shinomiya Kaguya and Kashiwagi Nagisa jumping into the water to save her, that was most likely a genuine accident.
Although Shinomiya Kōkō had never concealed his hatred for Shinomiya Kaguya, he still would not go so far as to kill his own biological sister. This was not because Shinomiya Kōkō had any so-called "familial affection" for Shinomiya Kaguya. It was simply because Shinomiya Gan'an would never tolerate such behavior from him.
But once Shinomiya Gan'an died, Kumotaka believed Shinomiya Kōkō would kill every heir who might threaten his succession without hesitation, including his own full younger brother, Shinomiya Seiryū!
But no matter what.
Shinomiya Kaguya had survived, and Koyasu Tsubame had also been rescued.
The sacrificial ceremony had been disrupted, and even the deity worshipped by the Shinomiya Family had been killed.
As the person responsible for all this, Shinomiya Kōkō naturally had to bear all the responsibility.
That was why he had been forced to resign as chairman of the board and had even, unprecedentedly, compensated Shinomiya Kaguya with part of the company!
All of this was punishment for Shinomiya Kōkō!
Kumotaka linked all these events together almost immediately. The questions that had puzzled him before now had answers!
Kumotaka took a deep breath, doing his best not to reveal what he truly thought.
"Why do you want to cooperate with me?"
"Because it's convenient."
A line of writing quickly appeared in the notebook.
"Convenient?"
Kumotaka found it somewhat absurd. He had thought the other party wanted to support him in dealing with Shinomiya Kōkō—
Before this, he had even imagined a whole series of events leading up to it.
For example, the other party and Shinomiya Kōkō had once known each other, but had turned against each other for some reason.
And killing the deity of the Shinomiya Family had been revenge against Shinomiya Kōkō.
But now, the other party was telling him that things were not complicated at all.
The reason for killing the deity of the Shinomiya Family had merely been that it was convenient, while the reason for seeking his cooperation was that he was convenient.
He was the only member of the entire Shinomiya Family who attended Shuchiin Academy. Wasn't that convenient?
Kumotaka gave a bitter laugh when he realized that the speech he had prepared beforehand had completely lost its meaning.
Kumotaka took a deep breath and said in a low voice:
"I agree."
"I'll do my best to help you build a shrine at the school, but whether it can actually be done will depend on the old man's decision."
When all was said and done, both he and Shinomiya Kōkō were merely "heirs."
That seventy-year-old man was the true head of the Shinomiya Family.
"Happy cooperation."
The final line of writing appeared in the notebook.
The next second, sunlight pierced through the darkness.
The midday sun shone through the glass into the office, and the darkness that had enveloped everything vanished in an instant.
Kumotaka remained seated in his place. He shifted his gaze away from the little bird chirping as it flew past the window, took a deep breath, pulled out his phone, and dialed a number pinned to the top of his contacts.
The call was answered quickly, and an old yet powerful voice came through the receiver:
"Kumotaka, what is it? Go ahead."
Kumotaka was silent for a moment before asking tentatively:
"Father, an Onmyoji contacted me."
"An Onmyoji?"
"He claims to be an Onmyoji, and he killed the deity of the Shinomiya Family."
"..."
Silence fell on the other end of the line. Only after a long while did the old voice return:
"What did he say?"
"He sent a shikigami to contact me. He wants us to build a shrine on campus and enshrine his shikigami as a deity. In exchange, the Shinomiya Family can receive the protection of this deity."
Kumotaka did not mention that he had already reached an agreement with the other party. He merely relayed the other party's request tactfully.
After a pause, he deliberately changed his wording:
"I didn't agree to him. This person is highly suspicious..."
"Agree to him."
"What did you say?"
Kumotaka raised an eyebrow, his tone filled with apparent confusion.
"Agree to him! No matter what demands he makes! No matter what price you have to pay!"
Chapter 53: Twilight Maiden
"Agree to him! No matter what demands he makes, no matter what price you have to pay!"
The old and resolute voice came from the other end of the phone, causing Kumotaka to narrow his eyes in the office.
Clearly, just as that Onmyoji had said, Shinomiya Gan'an knew exactly what had happened a month ago. He therefore understood perfectly what that Onmyoji represented.
By comparison, despite also being a member of the Shinomiya Family, Kumotaka had known nothing about any of this before now. He had not even known that ghosts, gods, and Onmyoji existed in this world. He had naively believed it was all feudal superstition.
The only people in the entire Shinomiya Family who truly understood everything were probably Shinomiya Kōkō and Shinomiya Gan'an. One was the current head of the Shinomiya Family, while the other had likely already been internally designated as the heir.
After figuring this out, Kumotaka finally realized how naïve he had been in the past.
He had thought that as long as he accumulated enough strength, he would have a chance to participate in the Shinomiya Family's power struggle. But only now did he realize that he was merely an outsider, not even qualified to watch from the sidelines!
Now, he barely had the right to watch from the sidelines, but even that was not what Kumotaka wanted.
What he wanted was the right to sit at the table and face Shinomiya Kōkō head-on!
Therefore, this was still far from enough.
Kumotaka was somewhat puzzled.
"Is that really necessary? Japan has eighty thousand shrines. Even if the deity worshipped by the Shinomiya Family was killed, finding another deity to protect the Shinomiya Family shouldn't be difficult, should it?"
"Besides, surely Japan has other Onmyoji you could win over? Why insist on cooperating with the Onmyoji who killed the Shinomiya Family's deity?"
Faced with Kumotaka's questioning, Shinomiya Gan'an displayed an unusual amount of patience. He knew that unless he explained things clearly, his son would not obediently accept his fate. He would only make a complete mess of everything!
"Worshipping a deity isn't as simple as you think!"
"Japan does have eighty thousand shrines, but fewer than one percent of them truly enshrine deities!"
"And these so-called deities are completely different from the one worshipped by the Shinomiya Family."
"As for Onmyoji, the Shinomiya Family does know quite a few. But do you really think just any Onmyoji can kill a deity? That person's strength is enough to rival the Twelve Divine Generals of the Onmyo Bureau, and he may even be stronger than them!"
Kumotaka's expression shifted slightly.
"The Onmyo Bureau? What is that? And what are the Twelve Divine Generals?"
Shinomiya Gan'an cut him off and said in a low voice:
"I'll tell you the details later."
"What you need to do now is agree to every demand the other party makes!"
Kumotaka fell silent. He felt that this world had suddenly become extraordinarily unfamiliar.
Still, obtaining the old man's promise had already far exceeded his expectations.
He did not intend to provoke the old man any further, lest the promise he had secured fall through.
However, Kumotaka still intended to squeeze out a little more.
After waiting for a while, Kumotaka spoke hesitantly:
"I don't have a construction company."
Shinomiya Gan'an seemed to have seen through his thoughts and said flatly:
"I'll have Kōkō transfer Lushan Construction's shares to Kaguya. Go talk to Kaguya."
"Alright."
Kumotaka was silent for a moment, then nodded mutely.
Sure enough, he had been too impatient, leaving the old man somewhat displeased.
Lushan Construction Corporation was only ranked 942nd among the world's top two thousand companies. But just like Ministop before it, once the company's shares were handed over to Shinomiya Kaguya, they would become her personal assets.
Even if she lost the Shinomiya Family's power struggle, these two companies would be enough to guarantee her a permanent place in the Shinomiya Family. Even if she left the Shinomiya Family, she could still live comfortably.
Wasn't the old man being a little too partial to Kaguya? Could it be simply because she was his only daughter?
"Will this really work?"
On the rooftop, Koyuki asked in a low voice after threatening Kumotaka.
Kira Yoshikage's tone was calm.
"Kumotaka is a smart man, and he has enough ambition. Even if he knows it's a trap, he'll step into it willingly. He's confident that even if there's a trap, he can avoid it while swallowing the candy coating and firing the shell back."
"So he'll agree."
Koyuki nodded, seeming to understand but not quite.
"What should I do next?"
Kira Yoshikage put away his phone and turned toward the rooftop door.
"Go to his office in an hour."
"Where are you going?"
"To class."
"Huh?"
Koyuki watched Kira Yoshikage leave the rooftop without even looking back, her face filled with disbelief.
He had just ordered her to threaten the chairman of this school, and now he was turning around and going back to class?
Inside the chairman's office.
Shinomiya Kaguya sat on the sofa opposite Kumotaka, her tone cold.
"It's class time. Why did you call me here?"
Kumotaka was no longer as flustered as before. He interlaced his fingers beneath his chin and said calmly:
"Father just had someone transfer Shimizu Construction's shares to you. He wants you to cooperate with me in building a shrine at the school."
"A shrine?"
Shinomiya Kaguya furrowed her brows slightly, puzzled. "Why do something like that?"
"Don't ask."
Kumotaka's tone was cold.
"It's Father's order."
It seemed that although the old man favored Kaguya, he had not told her everything.
This somewhat restored Kumotaka's sense of balance.