Land of Demons.
A towering palace complex stood amid the mountains, its upturned eaves and hanging corners packed closely together. An ancient yet majestic aura rushed toward anyone who beheld it.
Countless warriors armed with bows, arrows, and spears stood guard around the entire palace complex and along every uneven corridor.
Yet the building at the very center of the complex differed slightly in style from its surroundings.
Though taller and more eye-catching, it looked more like a shrine than a lavish main palace.
That was because a solemn torii stood silently atop the long staircase leading to its entrance, as though dividing the realm of gods from that of humans.
Inside the shrine, a woman with waist-length white hair tied behind her back suddenly opened her eyes as she sat cross-legged on a cushion.
Her pale red eyes abruptly turned deep violet, countless starlike lights seeming to flicker and swirl within them, profound and mysterious.
"Ah~"
A brief cry escaped her lips, and a trace of alarm instantly appeared on her formerly gentle, noble, and holy face.
"Lady Miroku, Lady Miroku? What's wrong?"
The guard stationed outside immediately called out in a careful yet urgent voice.
"Whew..."
Straightening the slightly crooked red cord knot hanging over her chest, Shrine Maiden Miroku discovered that cold sweat had already soaked her back, causing her loose white shrine maiden robes to cling to her skin.
"That was... Moryo..."
Still shaken, she murmured, "But there were two equally ominous figures beside him. I couldn't see their faces. Were they the ones who helped Moryo break free from his seal ahead of time?"
The Shrine Maiden and Moryo were two sides of the same coin, lifeforms born from the same origin.
Moryo, who had been sealed within the Otherworld for a thousand years, had