Fujimaru Ritsuka did not seem to be affected by the anomaly.
The sunlight today was indeed quite nice.
But—
Standing on the ridge, the group looked down together, yet they did not see anything.
There was only a black lake that seemed eternally unchanged.
For some reason, Yuna's expression looked somewhat sorrowful. She turned her face slightly to the side, pursed her lips, and bit down hard.
"Don't be afraid. Mama is here."
Mother Bear gently drew Yuna into her arms and patted her back.
Yet her gaze toward that black lake was equally complicated.
The lake was black. It had always been black.
It had already been black even before they were killed and sunk into the lake. But back then, the blackness was simply like it was now—merely a normal phenomenon.
By the time Yuna truly became a yokai, that blackness had become something else entirely.
Yuna could feel another self within her stirring restlessly, as though showing signs of awakening.
"My sister, my other half, be patient."
She was startled and hurriedly patted her chest, calming herself down.
No matter what, letting her out here would not be a good thing.
"Let's go down and take a look."
"I don't seem to see Oda Nobunaga."
Hijikata Toshizo spoke to the others beside him, then slid down the slanted slope.
Sakumura nodded and followed after him, jumping down as well.
". . . Let's go down too."
After a moment of silence, Yuna said to Fujimaru Ritsuka.
"I want to get closer and look at that lake."
"I want to see whether there really is anything abnormal in the water."
No one understood Black River Mountain and Lake Kurokawa better than Hoshiguma Yuna, the great yokai of Black River Mountain—the Day-Hiding Demon.
After all, she had been within