"It hasn't been made public?"
"Not yet."
Yukari confirmed.
This cleared up the confusion Sū ěr had felt for a moment—if it were called that, why hadn't the gods of Izumo City sent an army to attack? It seemed this was just the further ambition that had germinated after she achieved her previous one.
From this perspective, this female Yōkai was truly a credit to her origin... the embodiment of desire, never satisfied.
Would such a Yōkai really vanish without a trace in the modern society of the future?
Sū ěr found it hard to imagine the reason that would make Yukari hide herself... perhaps she took a "hard hit" at some point in the future?
"Then I wish you luck. In truth, Think and I won't stay long this time. Just like last time, just send us back to the moon when the full moon arrives," Sū ěr said plainly, having no desire to get tangled in her complex schemes.
Before arriving at this city of pure Yōkai, Sū ěr had been worried he'd see things that would infuriate him or be unacceptable—after all, there are always man-eating demons among Yōkai. However, perhaps having judged his bottom line from his past attitude, Yukari had long since strictly forbidden her subordinates from feeding on humans.
Sū ěr "favorability" toward her went UP.
While the Yōkai in the city under Yukari command found such an order bizarre, the overall number of humans was small, their bones were too numerous, and their meat was sparse, so they had no intention of disobeying. Since there was plenty of food in Ashihara no Nakatsukuni right now, the order had been effectively implemented.
So Sū ěr had nothing to worry about. He simply offered his blessing to Yukari, who had helped him repeatedly, hoping her position would last and that she wouldn't be overthrown by some other demon.
One had to remember that Yōkai always harbor a heart that refuses to lose, always wanting to overthrow those above. And Yukari power was mostly manifest in the "deceptive" path; her raw output wasn't actually that strong.
"To the moon again?" This request wasn't surprising, but Yukari, whose relationship with Sū ěr had grown closer, was still curious. "What exactly is up there? Danger?"
"It's not exactly dangerous, but it is incredibly desolate," Sū ěr thought for a moment before deciding to be candid. "I don't recommend you go there for fun, because there might be hidden, unknown dangers. Besides, if you actually went up there, you'd probably be shocked into silence... or perhaps collapse upon discovering an unacceptable reality?"
"Shocked? An unacceptable reality?"
Yukari repeated Sū ěr words. Although this man seemed to be advising against a risk, this way of speaking in riddles and leaving things half-said was truly... painful.
Like those people who only tell half a story.
"It's not convenient to elaborate. Just don't be too curious. By the way, do you know where Hoderi [Fire-Shine] is now? I couldn't find his trace in Izumo City."
Well, at the very least, Yukari was in pain right now.
"...He's in this city. Do you need me to call him over?" After a pause, Yukari said with narrowing eyes.
"That would be a help," Sū ěr nodded.
Undoubtedly, this "leaving her hanging" was intentional. Sū ěr was even suppressing a laugh. Yukari curiosity had been thoroughly piqued, but whether she chose to risk a look or not was no longer important.
After this trip, Sū ěr didn't even know if that fake, pancake-like moon would continue to exist, or what the consequences for this box-like prehistoric era would be. But he didn't care.
Yukari didn't pull Hoderi into the palace through a Gap; instead, she sent a message and had the Oni walk in through the main gate.
Sū ěr had no interest in the power plays between Yukari and the Oni. He had never liked the Oni named Hoderi; even the little imp he usually kept by his side was more agreeable to Sū ěr. Fortunately, Sū ěr didn't have to force himself to like him.
The meeting with Hoderi didn't involve any catching up or bonding. Sū ěr simply paid a price to get what he wanted, and then it was just a matter of waiting for the full moon.
It was quite miraculous: despite being a fake moon that didn't rotate or orbit, with nothing blocking it from Ashihara no Nakatsukuni, and despite its light being its own rather than reflected sunlight, it still underwent the phases of the moon. It rose and set with the sun as if it were a planet in motion.
The Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto awakened by the Magatama he had brought likely served as a battery. After reclaiming part of himself, he had sired his... descendants. Those two females could probably be called the descendants of Tsukuyomi.
In any case, with Tsukuyomi now completely turned to stone and dead, there was no telling how much longer this "moon-cake" would stay lit. Perhaps one night, the inhabitants of Ashihara no Nakatsukuni would look up to find the moon they were accustomed to had flickered and gone dark forever.
"Can we begin?" Sū ěr withdrew his gaze from the moon hanging between the frozen Milky Way and asked Yukari calmly.
"Wait a moment... there is still a little time before midnight," Yukari said, checking the moon's position and shaking her head slightly.
Sū ěr didn't reply; he just gazed blankly at the top of the Milky Way.
"Takamagahara..." It wasn't Sū ěr, but Think beside him, murmuring to herself.
It was a bit too mysterious—so mysterious that Sū ěr suspected every anomaly of this era was related to Takamagahara, and the culprit was precisely that Goddess Amaterasu. Even legends from the gods of Izumo—enemies of Amaterasu lineage—portrayed her as having an incredibly good temper, a goddess who would simply hide away if bullied.
Even Yōkai mostly held no ill will toward Amaterasu; they spoke of her with reverence for the sun. The only thing they sneered at was her kindness, which they labeled as cowardice. Other than that, there were no negative evaluations.
But Sū ěr suspected that Amaterasu was the one goddess who knew all the secrets of Ashihara no Nakatsukuni, and was the true mastermind.
He had no reason, just an instinctive rejection of such a praised and flawless perfect existence—Sū ěr didn't believe in perfect gods, especially when these gods acted more like humans than deities.