Strongest Among the Heavens
Chapter 425: Bringing News

Chapter 425: Bringing News

"You have returned with news, I trust?"

Kazi and Samantha, the primary backers of this assault. Each had their own roles. Without one or the other, this would not succeed. Lord Mosuke was aware of that. So, in the castle of Gate 25, they were asked to reconvene. Kazi started with a smile.

"Yes, Lord Mosuke. My blacksmith has begun forging the weapons. A hundred blades of the highest quality will be ready in two and a half weeks."

Lord Mosuke exhaled. "Earlier than anticipated. And you, Lady Samantha?"

Samantha inclined her head, crisp and confident. "I’ve recruited twenty more otherworlders to our cause."

"That is excellent news," Lord Mosuke said, bowing his head slightly. "Your efforts have been invaluable. But..." His voice trailed off and his gaze turned toward the open shoji doors, where the sun was beginning its descent. "The situation grows more dire with each passing day."

Samantha narrowed her eyes. "I have heard the reports from my guild. Tell me, My Lord, is that dire?"

Lord Mosuke’s voice grew heavy. The wrinkles on his suddenly gave him age. "Monsters emerge from Lake Shinji every sunrise and evening, more numerous and ferocious than before. My spearmen are valiant, but they are no match for these creatures. Only the five students of Miyamoto and your otherworldly allies have been able to hold the line. Even so, the number of beasts increases each day, spreading beyond the lake to Higashinagaecho."

"Does this mean...?"

"Yes. The Bake-kujira is awakening. One of the shamans said it is stirring, drifting in and out of sleep."

In and out of sleep? Hundreds of monsters was only because it was awakening? Ridiculous.

Kazi folded his arms. "Higashinagaecho is a civilian area, isn’t it?"

Lord Mosuke nodded grimly. "Yes. Three men died this morning. Thirty were injured. My men are stretched far too thin. I have already lost more soldiers than I care to count." He hesitated, then bowed deeply, his forehead nearly touching the floor. "If there is anything more you can spare, I beg of you to lend it to us. My samurai and my people are at their limit."

The sight of Lord Mosuke, a proud samurai lord, bowing so humbly, silenced the room. Samantha glanced at Kazi, expecting him to hesitate or at least weigh the situation. Instead, he smiled—a calm, confident expression that almost annoyed her in its composure.

"Lord Mosuke," Kazi said, his tone as warm as it was assured. "You can stop bowing. I’ll personally take care of it."

Mosuke lifted his head, hope mingling with confusion in his eyes. "You will personally take care of it? But the distance... Lake Shinji to Higashinagaecho is vast. How—no. I should not doubt you."

The saint was a saint after all. He saw Kazi’s character. He understood it. There was nothing but the truth and so he trusted him. Samantha was not the same. Up until they were out of Lord Mosuke’s earshot, she held her skepticism.

"Kazi," Samamtha called out, smiling like there was no issue, "how exactly do you plan to ’personally take care of it’? Do you have a magic carpet or something?"

"Those exist?"

"...I don’t know, do they?"

He shrugged.

"What’s your plan, then?" she asked in that same sweet tone. Without Lord Mosuke here, there was a bit of an edge to it, like she knew that he knew of her real nature.

"I’ve been, ah, expanding my repertoire."

Samantha tilted her head. "Expanding your repertoire? A spell?"

Kazi cut her off with a raised finger, his own smile cheeky. "Patience, Samantha. All will be revealed in due time."

Samantha’s eyes shifted with emotion until she clasped them together and said with sweetness that would make a man diabetic, "Please, do not risk your life recklessly! We cannot afford to lose you."

Yeahhh, she didn’t give a fuck.

"I’m not planning on dying anytime soon. Ah, but since we have time before night drops, how about that meeting I requested?"

"Oh, yes. The professor will meet with you."

***

Tiny, floating orbs of light hovered over tables, flickering and blessing light like candlelight but never wavered. The chairs and tables were mismatched between red and yellow.

Kazi leaned back in his chair, his hands wrapped around a cup of strong, black coffee. It wasn’t his thing but Marta insisted. His sharp eyes scanned the room, but his attention snapped back when Samantha walked in, accompanied by a tall woman. As tall as Sun-young, he estimated, her dark hair streaked with silver, cascading down her back in elegant waves. A soft glow surrounded her head—a caul.

’So it’s true. Wow! That’s amazing!’

As described in old legends, it wasn’t a physical veil, but rather an ethereal shimmer, like moonlight refracted on water. Kazi waved and Samantha arrived with the professor. "Kazi, this is Professor Alenora Rizzo. She’s agreed to meet with us."

Kazi stood, quickly smoothing his black garbs. "Professor Rizzo, it’s an honor. I’ve read about the Benandanti in my travels, but I never thought I’d meet one in person."

"That’s a surprise. Most men are interested in vampires and witches."

"Haha, I’m into them too. I like a bit of everything." He winked and sat down. "Can I get you something? Tea? Coffee?"

"Tea, thank you," Alenora replied, sitting gracefully. Samantha settled into the chair beside her, pulling out a notebook and a pen. Kazi signaled a server before sitting back down.

As the tea arrived, Kazi decided to sate his curiousity. "Forgive my directness, Professor, but... were you really born with the caul?"

Swamp green eyes met his hazel and blue. "I was. It’s not as uncommon among the Benandanti as some legends suggest, but it is significant. Those born with the caul are said to be marked by fate, destined to walk the path of the Good Walkers."

"And that path brought you here, to study monsters?"

Alenora took a sip of her tea, her gaze distant for a moment. "Yes. The Benandanti began as defenders against the demonic and the supernatural, but our purpose evolved. We no longer simply hunt; we seek to understand. Knowledge, after all, is the greatest weapon against the unknown."

"Awesome! That’s amazing! In my own time, they say you considered yourselves witches, even though at one point you hunted them down. So do you?"

"No."

She did not like answering that question. Aw.

"Cool! Oh, Samantha might have mentioned it already, but we’re planning to confront the Bake-kujira."

The professor set her teacup down with deliberate care. "You are serious?"

"As serious as I can be," Kazi said. "We don’t have much choice. It’s terrorizing Matsue."

"The Bake-kujira. A Class Five entity. Do you realize what you’re up against?"

"Better than most," Kazi replied. "But I’m hoping you can fill in the gaps."

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