"Little one, is this where you found the Demon-Worshipping Child Spirit?"
One of the Clan Elders spoke up.
Li Xia shook his head.
Seeing this, all three elders immediately cast questioning looks his way.
In that instant, an invisible pressure seemed to rise and settle over him, making his heart feel as though it had tightened.
Feeling the pressure and scrutiny in their gazes, Li Xia hurried to explain:
"Clan Elders, here's what happened. I found that gentle, golden demon nearby, then carefully followed it until I confirmed that the Demon-Worshipping Child Spirit entered this burned-out house every night. That's why I brought you three here to lie in wait."
"I see..."
The three elders nodded in satisfaction.
Just as they were about to head upstairs, one of them glanced doubtfully at the ravaged garden below.
The garden was still a mess.
Although someone had removed the trees and shrubs Mayu had uprooted with her ghostly powers and cleaned the place up, the shallow craters in the concrete walkway and the holes left by the missing plants remained.
"What's wrong, eldest brother?"
"Nothing. Let's head upstairs."
After that, the three elders and the young man entered the site of the fire from several months ago. They split up to investigate. The instant one elder opened the wardrobe where the little girl Mayu had burned to death, his previously calm expression turned grave.
The other two elders, who had been searching the living room and the other rooms, also sensed something and gathered there.
The three exchanged glances, their eyes gleaming.
"There really is a demon's lingering aura here..."
"Not just that. There's also an exceptionally strong ghostly aura lingering in this wardrobe."
"Ghostly energy?
It certainly is strong.
Wait, if that ghost attracted a Demon-Worshipping Child Spirit, it could only be a child's ghost. And the fire here happened several months ago. Doesn't that mean the child has remained in the Mortal World for months, with the Demon-Worshipping Child Spirit's help and indulgence?"
Something occurred to the three of them, and their excitement grew even stronger.
"After remaining in the Mortal World for several months, she must have developed and mastered some abilities unique to ghosts. Could that child's ghost have caused all the damage in the garden below? She has considerable potential."
"Heh heh, could this trip to the Island Nation yield not only an exceedingly precious Demon-Worshipping Child Spirit, but also a child's ghost with intelligence, an independent personality, and several developed ghostly abilities?!"
After all, ever since the Age of Dharma Decline began, even ghosts had found it difficult to remain in the human world for long.
Usually, they dissipated soon after death.
Yet she had existed for several months without disappearing, ascending to heaven, or descending into Hell.
All of this demonstrated the little girl Mayu's tremendous potential.
Back at the hospital.
The little girl had already used her ghostly telekinesis to wreck the ward's windows, lights, and other fixtures.
Kagome and Mayu's mother hurried to the ward's door.
After the two pushed the door open and entered, they saw the little girl's spirit hovering outside the window.
"Mayu, don't do this..."
Kagome tried to soothe her, hoping to explain things and clear up the misunderstandings between mother and daughter, and between sister and brother.
For the first time, her mother saw the daughter she had lost so long ago. Her eyes immediately reddened and filled with tears.
"M-Mayu...!"
"Mom?"
Mom could actually see me now?
The little girl froze.
She felt a little happy, but also hurt and resentful.
Then, seeing her mother's grief-stricken expression, she showed a trace of hesitation and reluctance.
"Mayu, why?
Little Gō is your younger brother.
Why would you do those terrible things?"
Her mother wanted to step forward and stop her daughter from making any more mistakes, but those words instantly set the child off.
"Little Gō, Little Gō, always Little Gō... I'm sick of it!"
Her ghostly telekinesis formed a solid blast of air that struck her mother. Her heart turning cold again, Mayu paid no heed as her mother was flung out of the ward. Even after hearing her mother's muffled cry of pain as her back slammed into the corridor wall, she merely pouted and chose to remain merciless.
Mom played favorites!
Mom only cared about Little Gō, not me! I was a child nobody wanted!
"Ma'am!"
Kagome cried out in alarm.
She turned toward Mayu, trying to reason with her.
"Mayu, think back carefully. Did your mother really abandon you? On the day of the fire, she didn't even know you were home, did she?"
The little girl paused at her words.
She remembered putting a towel on the heater, which had caused the fire.
She also remembered that her refusal to listen had caused her mother's hands to be burned and left her brother Little Gō unconscious to this day. She recalled how she had recently taken her anger out on the classmates and friends who came to visit him, and how she often played nasty pranks in the park on children who enjoyed their mothers' love.
"I already knew all of that."
Mayu vented childishly, with nowhere to direct her frustration.
Of course she understood that what she was doing was wrong. She knew perfectly well that everything had been her own fault.
But she had already made her mistake and lost everything. What was there left that she couldn't do?
"It's all Little Gō's fault. It's all because of him."
Her ghostly telekinesis surged again. Sections of the ward's floor collapsed, and she hurled Little Gō's hospital bed straight out the window with her mind.
This time, she truly intended to kill him. Her resolve was unwavering.
Jealousy led people astray and made them ugly.
"No!"
Kagome screamed.
But the hospital bed still plunged from the sixth floor.
Tragedy seemed unavoidable.
"Little Gō!"
Kagome reached for the bed, trying to save the innocent boy. If Little Gō really died, she couldn't imagine what rash act his mother might commit afterward, or how devastated she would be!
Just then, a voice came from the side, sounding like music to her ears.
"Tch! I couldn't stand watching this anymore..."
The voice was very familiar.
Kagome looked over, overjoyed.
"Inuyasha? You came too?"
The half-demon Inuyasha was gripping Tessaiga, which was embedded in the wall, with one hand. In the other, he held the unconscious Little Gō.
The boy appeared unharmed.
Kagome finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"I told you back there not to stick your nose into this. Look, that little ghost has already backed herself into a dead end. Even if you tell her the whole truth, she can't ascend to heaven anymore. Besides, if she'd gone just a little further, you might have fallen down there too."
"Falling from this high would be dangerous even for you..."
Inuyasha refused to let her off the hook, but his words were full of concern for her.
As he spoke, the silver-haired Inuyasha quietly moved in front of Kagome, Tessaiga in hand.
As his voice faded, the Demon-Worshipping Child Spirit rapidly took solid form behind the hovering Mayu.
Its eyes were now fully open, stained a gloomy dark red.
Before Mayu could react, numerous red chains burst from the Demon-Worshipping Child Spirit's golden body and coiled around her, binding her tight. No amount of struggling could free her.
"What is this?
Wait, no...
Haven't you always stayed with me, protected me, and helped me?
Why are you restraining me and capturing me now?"
Mayu couldn't understand.
Her eyes were filled with terror.
Under Inuyasha and Kagome's grave gazes, the Demon-Worshipping Child Spirit dragged the little girl away, flying straight in one direction.
That direction led to the burned-out house where Mayu's family had once lived.
"Inuyasha, we have to help Mayu..."
The commotion had been considerable and had long since alerted the nurses on night duty.
So, after placing Little Gō beside his mother and calling a nurse to look after them, Kagome promptly had Inuyasha carry her on his back in pursuit.
"I don't know how to deal with ghosts. You'll have to figure out how to resolve this yourself."
"I know! Grandpa Myoga said everything would be fine as long as the children's souls ascended to heaven before they were taken to Hell. Right, the passage to Hell that a Demon-Worshipping Child Spirit opens is usually at the place where the child died. So we can go straight to the house where Mayu used to live."
Four figures had been waiting there so long they were practically withering away!
Just as the three elders were about to lose their patience...
"Hmm? A demonic aura!"
All three turned their gazes toward the hospital several kilometers away.
Naturally, the three Clan Elders couldn't sense anything that far away.
But the Demon-Worshipping Child Spirit had already drawn close, carrying Mayu's ghost with it.
At the sight of the demon resembling a huge golden balloon, their eyes lit up.
"It's definitely a Demon-Worshipping Child Spirit!"
"Good, good, good! We mustn't let this opportunity slip away."
Before you continue