Pack Them All Up

Ringetsu's openly condescending words actually put Nuregarasu considerably more at ease.

As long as they did not seize the Karasu Tengu's roots, everything was negotiable.

After a second or two of silence, Nuregarasu, knowing the only thing she could do and having made her decision, slowly lowered her head.

Her dull black hair slipped down with the motion, covering her cheeks like a black curtain and concealing all the tangled, unreadable emotions on her face.

Only a low, hoarse voice filled with resolve emerged from the shadows woven by her hair.

"As long as the Dog Tribe is willing to shelter the Karasu Tengu, I am willing to offer everything!"

Her resolve to burn all bridges fell with the ceaseless thunder of Wind-Thunder Gorge.

Tōga, who had been watching discreetly all along, saw that the two women were no longer at each other's throats. He quietly withdrew his gaze and resumed exploring the treasure-filled surroundings of Thunderclap Hall.

Tōga found and refined the remains of the two Panther Cat Elders, bringing himself another step closer to a breakthrough.

Red Evil Ogre and the others casually killed the few low- and mid-level Panther Cats that had not quite died.

They gathered the processed yokai power crystals and presented them to Tōga like precious treasures, continuing to pave his path toward becoming a high-level yokai.

Tōga was no miser, either. He was already considering how to further strengthen the four members of the Heavenly Host and promote the Dog Yokai who had performed well.

Meanwhile, the elegant, regal Ringetsu looked down at the bowed Nuregarasu. Her slender brows briefly furrowed, then relaxed as she spoke evenly.

"Raise your head, Chief Nuregarasu."

"The Dog Tribe has never wanted groveling slaves. We want claws and fangs that can tear out the Panther Cats' throats."

As she spoke, Ringetsu stepped forward and suddenly reached out to grip Nuregarasu's chin. Her touch was gentle but impossible to escape as she forcefully lifted Nuregarasu's head.

Nuregarasu's hair slipped away from her face, revealing features that were still beautiful but had lost some of their vitality.

"To be honest, I much preferred that vicious hound's expression you wore when you were about to attack me!"

Ringetsu leaned down, drawing close to Nuregarasu. Her golden eyes clearly reflected Nuregarasu's trembling pupils, stirring an instinctive resistance within her.

"Let go of me!"

"Hmm?"

The power of wind and thunder began to stir around Nuregarasu, only to subside at Ringetsu's soft, inscrutable chuckle.

Just as a subordinate was not allowed to kiss her superior on the lips, Nuregarasu understood perfectly well that her life and everything she had were in the other woman's hands.

Enveloped in Ringetsu's delicately fragrant breath, like orchids and musk, she had no strength to resist. A blush quietly rose to her cheeks, whether from shame or anger, she could not tell.

As her body relaxed and her will collapsed, the string that had kept her nerves taut finally snapped.

Under Ringetsu's and Tōga's identically astonished gazes, Nuregarasu closed her eyes and slumped limply into Ringetsu's arms.

"Oh my, what a crow. She can't take even a little teasing."

Ringetsu lowered her gaze to the unconscious Nuregarasu in her arms. Beads of blood seeped from the girl's pale lips where she had bitten them, looking like crushed cinnabar beneath the moonlight and stirring an involuntary tenderness.

The Dog Yokai also discovered the cave where the remaining Karasu Tengu were hiding.

The Karasu Tengu Tribe, once second only to the Panther Cats and the Dog Tribe in the Western Country, had now dwindled to just a few dozen members.

Tōga took the opportunity to pack them all up and take them away, along with their chief, Nuregarasu.

For the Karasu Tengu Tribe as it was now, remaining in Wind-Thunder Gorge meant certain death.

The Dog Tribe had no troops to spare for a garrison here. Even if they did, strategic considerations would keep them from stationing anyone in this place.

Within a short span, the Leopard Cat had first lost the Fifth Elder, followed in succession by the Sixth Elder, Personal Guard Captain White Bone Maru, and the Third Elder.

Four of the tribe's seven senior figures were gone, leaving only three elders.

Faced with such devastating losses, the Leopard Cat Lord was certain to be furious.

When that happened, even the Dog King might make certain concessions to settle the matter.

For instance, he might publicly surrender Wind-Thunder Gorge for Oyakata to vent his anger on, while secretly keeping Nuregarasu and the other Karasu Tengu.

Tōga knew the Dog King's way of doing things well-as long as tangible benefits were secured, he would readily discard any unimportant considerations of pride.

That was the ideal outcome, however. Given what lay ahead, the Dog King and Oyakata would inevitably have to fight.

Staying outside the tribe's lands at a time like this meant they could encounter Oyakata seeking revenge at any moment!

Beyond taking what was necessary, Tōga did not even consider staying there overnight.

Under the bright moonlight, the group hurried out of Wind-Thunder Gorge and raced toward Dog Tribe Territory.

The Thunder Spear, stripped of all its divine might and still tightly clutched in the unconscious Nuregarasu's hand, did draw an extra glance from Tōga.

That glance frightened the four Karasu Tengu carrying Nuregarasu's stretcher into trembling.

"Tōga, is Chief Nuregarasu pretty?"

The strangely familiar question reached his ears again. Without any change in expression, Tōga calmly turned to look at Ringetsu.

His unwavering stare made the girl's heart skip a beat.

"Tell me, Ringetsu, do you lack confidence in yourself?"

"Of course I don't," Ringetsu immediately retorted.

"In that case, there isn't a woman in this country more beautiful or lovely than my Ringetsu."

Tōga's sudden sweet words caught Ringetsu completely off guard.

Unable to think of a reply for the moment, the girl unconsciously quickened her steps.

A gentle breeze lifted her beautiful hair, allowing Tōga behind her to see the faint blush on her face between the strands.

Only after quite a while did Ringetsu's voice drift back from ahead.

"I examined Nuregarasu's body. The Wind Wing and Thunder Spear are the only things keeping her alive now."

"Now that we've left the gorge with its abundant wind-thunder spirit energy, the Wind-Thunder Twin Treasures she overused during the battle can no longer receive enough spiritual energy to sustain them. Instead, they'll drain Nuregarasu's life."

A hint of pride entered Ringetsu's voice. "Still, with my treatment, I can at least keep her injuries from worsening. The rest will depend on her."

Ringetsu's moonlight yokai power was remarkably effective at healing, and she also shouldered some of the duties of a physician within the tribe.

With a yokai's tenacious vitality, recovery was not difficult once they caught their breath, provided they had not died on the spot.

The vitality of a high-level yokai was even further beyond ordinary imagination.

"You really are amazing, Ringetsu."

"That hardly needed saying."

At Tōga's praise, Ringetsu gently shook her head, sending her twin ponytails tracing cheerful little arcs through the air.

The Karasu Tengu traveling with the Dog Tribe discovered that, although the Dog Yokai around them paid them little attention, they did not hurt them either.

"Amaterasu Ōkami, please protect our tribe. Please protect this child."

Three of the older Karasu Tengu silently glanced at the unconscious Nuregarasu, whose breathing was barely perceptible. Remembering how they had pressured the girl earlier, they were filled with complicated emotions.

All they could do was pray to the bright moon hanging in the sky.

Meanwhile, at the Panther Cat Front Line camp, the Panther Cat Great Elder summoned the Second Elder and the Fourth Elder. The three sat inside the command tent.

"We can't wait any longer!"