"What a heavy aura of resentment..."
Sitting on Higokumaru's back, they made a circuit along the coast of Bungo Province, but unfortunately, Yae Sakura and the other two couldn't figure out which of the many islands was Yoshiwara Bay.
There were simply too many islands here.
Still... although they hadn't found the island, they had discovered a place filled with resentment.
A garret in a pleasure quarter by the coast.
"Should we go take a look?"
Yae Sakura turned to look at Kikyo behind her.
"Yes. There's this much resentment even in broad daylight. We can't just leave it alone." Kikyo nodded. As a kind-hearted shrine maiden, she couldn't possibly ignore it.
"Right, let's go take a look. Higokumaru."
"Understood."
At her words, Higokumaru flew straight toward the garret, landing in an empty corner nearby.
After straightening her clothes, Yae Sakura picked up Higokumaru, who had turned into a little fox, and headed toward the garret.
Along the way, however, all the passersby gave Yae Sakura and Kikyo strange looks, leaving the two of them unsure what was going on.
Yae Sakura's ears were hidden beneath her cloak, so they shouldn't have been noticed.
After walking a little farther and seeing the garret and the shops around it, Yae Sakura finally understood why.
This was actually the red-light district. No wonder people were giving them such looks. Two shrine maidens coming to a place like this would naturally attract attention.
In this era, shrine maidens still had a fairly high status. Whether they exorcised evil or served the gods, they were invariably expected to remain pure.
The demons of this world were real, and even daimyos and nobles couldn't force themselves on shrine maidens.
Of course, there were shrine maidens who willingly fell into depravity.
But the strong, holy aura around Kikyo alone made it impossible to believe she was that sort of shrine maiden.
"The resentment is coming from inside this garret... but..." Yae Sakura looked at the building before her, somewhat intrigued.
Huayue Pavilion. This was a brothel.
"I'm not comfortable with the atmosphere here. Let's leave for now!"
Feeling the strange looks from those around them, especially in a place like this, Kikyo felt uneasy.
"Let's leave for now!"
Yae Sakura took Kikyo by the hand and turned to leave.
"Why did they run off? Such beautiful shrine maidens..."
"That pure, holy look makes you want to corrupt them. Think they'd want to become courtesans?"
"Don't talk nonsense. They're shrine maidens..."
"Shrine maidens who come here can't be all that pure, judging by the looks of them. They're both beautiful, especially that air about them. If they came here... maybe they'll be the next oiran?"
"Seems that way..."
Watching the two shrine maidens turn and hurry away, the onlookers couldn't help showing their interest.
"What should we do now? Are we still going?"
After leaving the pleasure quarter, Kikyo couldn't help looking at Yae Sakura.
"Let's go back tonight..." Yae Sakura looked at the sky. There was still some time before nightfall.
"Sounds good."
When night fell, the three of them headed to Huayue Pavilion again. The pleasure quarter seemed even livelier than it had been during the day. Lanterns hung all along the street, and a crowd had gathered around a stage facing out from Huayue Pavilion.
Yae Sakura and Kikyo had changed out of their shrine maiden outfits and into ordinary kimonos.
Many other women in kimonos were gathered around the edge of the crowd, as if an oiran were performing that night.
An oiran was the pinnacle of a brothel's women.
Once a woman became an oiran, countless men would shower her with gold and jewels. She would wear the most luxurious clothes and become one of the most honored people of all.
There wasn't a woman in a brothel who didn't want to become an oiran. After all, who didn't want to bloom like a flower?
But there could only be one oiran, and becoming one was extremely difficult. A woman needed not only exceptional looks, but also to study the tea ceremony, dance, waka poetry, and court music with great dedication.
She had to surpass all the other women in these skills before she could qualify to be chosen as an oiran at the height of her beauty.
Watching the oiran dance gracefully onstage, they had to admit she was beautiful...
Perhaps because this wasn't a traditional version of the Eastern Island world, the oiran here didn't wear ghostlike makeup. Instead, her appearance suited modern tastes.
Well, it leaned a little toward anime.
"Sakura, this oiran..." Kikyo looked at the woman onstage and tapped Yae Sakura on the shoulder.
"Mm, there's something wrong with her... She's almost demonified!"
The oiran was surrounded by an aura of resentment and corruption...
"But there's still time to stop it..."
"Let's wait until her performance is over..."
The oiran's performance lasted about half an hour. When it ended, the crowd began to disperse. The oiran also turned and returned to her room.
"I... can't hold on much longer..."
Back in her room, the oiran sent her attendants away, went to her dressing table, and slowly took off her top.
There, growing on her back, were several evil-looking eyes.
"How disgusting... Why is this happening?" The young oiran looked at the eyes on her back, weakly sank to the floor, and wept in regret...
"The power of demons has never been perfect. If you get what you want, you have to give up what you care about." Just then, a voice rang out, startling the oiran.
"Who's there? Who's in here?" At the sound, the oiran immediately warily scanned her surroundings.
"Just two meddlesome shrine maidens."
Yae Sakura appeared in the oiran's room with Kikyo. Seeing the eyes on the oiran's back, Yae Sakura couldn't help frowning. How disgusting...
For some reason, people who fell into demonic transformation over here in the Eastern Island always seemed to grow eyes all over their bodies.
Was it because a mass of eyes was more frightening?
"Shrine maidens... Can you save me? Please! I'm begging you!" Coming to her senses, the oiran didn't even care that she was naked from the waist up. She went straight to Kikyo and Yae Sakura and fell to her knees.
"Why did you accept a demon's power? Before long, you'll become a monster completely." Kikyo couldn't help asking.
The oiran had become like this because she had willingly accepted the power of a demon.
"I... I... I wanted to become an oiran, but it was too hard to achieve through my own efforts! I know I was wrong! Shrine maidens, please, I'm begging you." As she spoke, the oiran pressed her forehead to the floor.
As mentioned earlier, there was hardly a woman in a brothel who didn't want to become an oiran.
Even as an oiran, she would still be a caged bird, a tool for others to make money. But she would still have it far better than the other women.
It was just like how so many people were willing to be exploited to become stars... or even sought it out themselves.
Oiran and many celebrities weren't all that different.