Onmyoji, a nobleman in Heian-kyo

Page 1416

Kagura and Sakayanagi Arisu joined the team.

Kagura walked to the other side of Kousaka Kyosuke, standing opposite Higanbana, while Sakayanagi Arisu followed closely behind Kagura, the small group orderly.

"Yes, I'm curious about your opinion of the Han family."

As if struck by a thought, the spider lily suddenly asked a question.

Kousaka Kyosuke hesitated for a second or two before speaking: "It's troublesome. Their complexity is beyond imagination."

Although he suspected that it was inappropriate for the other shore flower to ask this question when there were so many people around, he didn't mind answering it.

Kagura, who was by his side, knew almost all his secrets, and Sakayanagi Arisu was a very smart and sensible girl who also had a close relationship with him, so naturally he had no reason to avoid anything.

"Oh? I'm curious, could you tell me more about it?"

“I have seen many of the fellow ghosts they brought with them. Those ghosts have the same aura as the underworld messengers. You should know what that means.”

"Hehe. Sometimes, ghosts filled with great resentment want to use the power of ghost messengers to take revenge. However, after taking revenge, they will be punished. They will have to take over the ghost messenger who helped them and become the new generation of ghost messengers. This is the general origin of all ghost messengers in the underworld."

The red spider lily strolled along slowly, recounting detailed information about the underworld messengers.

Having lived by the River Styx for countless years, and with her flowers stretching for an immeasurable distance, she naturally knew much about the underworld.

Sakayanagi Arisu was quite taken aback when she heard this: "Is it an official position or punishment in the underworld?"

"Don't think this is something to be proud of," Higanbana added, as if guessing what Sakayanagi Arisu was thinking. "To put it nicely, a ghost messenger is a ghost messenger; to put it bluntly, he's a slave laborer."

"Many people die every day, and just being a guide is enough to crush the will of a ghost messenger. In short, there is almost no time to rest. Of course, it's not impossible to try to slack off, but I don't seem to have heard of any ghost messengers like that..."

The words, left unfinished, left much to ponder, but there's really no need to continue.

Since the underworld actually has eighteen infamous punishments, it's unlikely that they're only used on evil spirits; disobedient ghost messengers could also be among the targets.

By this time, Sakayanagi Arisu had already basically imagined the situation of the demon messenger.

Similar to salespeople in the modern world, they have targets set by their superiors and need to constantly run around to complete them. If they fail to meet the targets, they only receive a meager base salary.

It really is hard labor!

“If they are really trying to escape hard labor, I don’t think that’s right. Lord Enma has eyes that see through the good and evil of all things, and he will certainly not give them such an opportunity to take advantage of the situation,” Kagura said.

In fact, she had already guessed when she saw the souls of the Han clan members before, but considering that it was someone else's business, she naturally didn't say anything.

Now that the discussion has begun, she doesn't hesitate to share her views.

Kyosuke Kosaka thought to himself, "Kagura, you're absolutely right. It's just that you might not know the rules in the Central Plains."

Based on extensive analysis of mythological stories.

Good people who performed good deeds and made great contributions in the mortal world during their lifetime are qualified to become ghost immortals and hold important positions in the underworld.

Kyosuke Kosaka wasn't quite sure what the rules of the underworld were in the Central Plains, but he had no doubt that the underworld probably did recruit some capable and talented people.

These people are very likely to be famous figures in history, which means that the Han family, which belongs to the tomb raiding family, has most likely offended many such people.

That's why Kyosuke Kousaka bluntly stated that they were a problem.

He doesn't discriminate against other people's professions, but if that person is likely to cause him trouble, then it goes without saying what choice he should make.

"The best outcome is to continue doing hard labor. If their reasons are not just to avoid hard labor, then continuing like this is something they can accept," said the Spider Lily.

It seems that the red spider lily also guessed the other possibility, and that was indeed correct.

Given Kyosuke Kosaka's understanding of the plot of "The Legend of Sword and Fairy", his guess just now is highly likely.

"Alright," Kousaka Kyosuke raised his voice slightly, "let's leave it at that. As long as we know the Han family are guests of the manor, that's enough."

"Oh, I'd also like to discuss some interesting things that might happen when people from the Tang Dynasty serve as ghost messengers in Japan."

"Is this what you call being coquettish? Being coquettish won't work."

Kyosuke Kosaka patted the spider lily that he was pretending to be regretful, but inwardly he was surprised.

Yes, once Orochi brings trouble to the Underworld, many ghost messengers will suffer. If the Han family also joins in... wouldn't they become a vital force in the Underworld?

I remember that the souls of the Han family who had performed hard labor in the Central Plains underworld possessed relatively strong soul power. If they were recruited by Yama and given the power of ghost messengers, they would certainly be stronger than ordinary ghost messengers.

It seems that a basic relationship can be maintained; there's no need to keep a respectful distance. Let's see how Enma treats them first.

The attitude held by Yama, the king of the underworld, is of utmost importance.

Leaving those thoughts aside, Kyosuke Kosaka took Kagura, Higanbana, and Arisu Sakayanagi to the band's training location.

The training area was separated by huge wooden screens with intricate carvings.

This is a structure similar to a tennis court, with a soundproof array inside, allowing others to train together while also keeping an eye on the surrounding bands.

"Kyosuke-sama!"

Upon spotting Kyosuke Kousaka, Kotobuki, the band leader, jogged over. The other band members, however, bowed respectfully to Kyosuke and the others from a distance.

“We’re here to listen to music. You know Kagura and Arisu. This is the Spider Lily. This is the first time you’ve met, so I’m introducing you.”

"Nice to meet you, Miss Higanbana. My name is...? You can just call me that."

"What an elegant and polite child! Please take good care of him/her in the future."

The red spider lily greeted Qin Chui politely.

Kyosuke Kosaka felt that this woman was becoming more and more down-to-earth. Could it be that he had successfully regulated her?

Amazing.

She truly captivated Miss Red Spider Lily.

Sakayanagi Arisu was secretly surprised, her inner emotions were incredibly subtle.

Having witnessed firsthand how willful Higanbana's personality was in the illusion, she almost assumed that Higanbana wouldn't have much attachment to Kousaka Kyosuke, or at least that she was relatively independent.

In fact, the spider lily appears to be becoming more and more amiable on the surface.

It's obvious to anyone that Higanbana did this out of respect for Kousaka Kyosuke!

"I won't go into any more details, since we're here to listen to music. You have 15 minutes to prepare."

Kyosuke Kosaka smiled and held up one finger.

Seeing this, Kotobuki immediately said, "Reporting to Lord Kyosuke, we can begin our performance immediately."

"We should at least exchange a few words while preparing that cup of tea," Kousaka Kyosuke continued.

A quarter of an hour is fifteen minutes, a cup of tea is five minutes, and a simple discussion is about enough.

“Alright, then please sit over there, Kyosuke-sama. I—”

"We can find seats ourselves."

Kousaka Kyosuke smiled and shook his head, understanding that Kotobuki wanted to invite them, but there was no need; they could just sit for a while.

“I’ll take care of this,” Sakayanagi Arisu said.

"Okay, please, Arisu."

Kotobuki smiled at Sakayanagi Arisu, then bowed to Kousaka Kyosuke, Kagura, and their group before turning and leaving in a hurry.

Back in the group, Kotobuki immediately started talking to everyone about the performance.

"Looks like we need to step up our game! We can't let you be looked down upon." Ritsu Tainaka stretched his arms out forcefully.

Nakano Azusa said earnestly, "We absolutely cannot fail!"

This failure puts all the pressure on Kotobuki, and of course she doesn't want that to happen.

"If we continue at the original pace... it should be fine, right?" Hirasawa Yui tapped her cheek with her finger, sounding somewhat uncertain.

Mio Akiyama: "That's fine. As long as there are no mistakes and you perform normally, there's no problem. There's no need to be too aggressive."

Ritsu Tainaka looked regretful: "I was planning to perform exceptionally well."

Akiyama Mio said with a serious face, "Please don't do that. It's still a question whether everyone can keep up with your rhythm. Ritsu, you're the drummer, you absolutely can't act impulsively!"

"Okay, I understand." Ritsu Tainaka quickly bowed his head and admitted his mistake.

at the same time.

The members of the Naruto and Hinata squad, who were training next door, suddenly noticed the situation.

Even with soundproofing and screens, people can still observe each other through the gaps, and they often chat when they notice that they haven't trained.

Just then, Nagasaki Motoyo, who had just taken a break, glanced at the K-On! team and immediately spotted Kousaka Kyosuke, Kagura, and the others through the gaps in the screen.

"Xiangzi, Kyosuke-sama went to the Light Music Squad's place, and it seems he's just listening—"

"I understand, everyone get ready." Toyokawa Shoko, who was still arranging the keyboard instruments, suddenly became sharp-eyed and raised her voice.

"Yes!" the others responded in unison.

Chihaya Aine, who joined the band as an assistant through her father's retainer and was actually there to help handle various trivial matters for the band members, opened her mouth but ultimately did not respond.

She does want to join a band and become someone everyone envies.

The problem is that Toyokawa Shoko is a woman who is frighteningly picky about music, and Chihaya Aine's guitar skills, which she had worked hard to learn, were simply not good enough.

Especially after Chihaya Aine witnessed Wakaba Mutsumi's guitar skills, she didn't go and humiliate herself.

Nowadays, musicians and singers are all highly selective, and almost all of them are likely to serve the most important owner of the manor, so it's impossible for them to be just there to fill a position.