Hayato's face twisted in anger, his fingers curling into tight fists.
"Why the hell would I give you anything?" he snarled.
"You killed everyone I held dear. You burned this place to the ground!"
The owl did not react to his rage.
It only blinked its many eyes, blood still pouring from them like a slow, unending waterfall.
"We did.... And we did not."
Hayato faltered. "Huh?"
"It seems you don't understand your position."
The voices that made up the owl spoke as one, layered and inhuman.
"We thought it would be best to appeal to your human greed and end this quickly....But it seems we have failed. Very well. We will introduce ourselves. Perhaps then, you will understand."
The embers rising from the ground flickered brighter.
"We are the strongest of the Yokai....No human has ever lived to tell the tale of meeting us."
A suffocating presence filled the air.
"We are the collective of all those consumed in flames and unable to pass on. We have existed for centuries. Wherever souls are burned alive, we are there, waiting to take in those unable to pass on."
"That day, when we reached this place, we were surprised to find out that this fire was started by supernatural means."
The world around Hayato seemed to twist.
His vision blurred, and in his mind, he could once again see the roaring inferno—the screams—the hands reaching for salvation that never came.
"The fire started because of you."
His breath hitched.... "What…?"
"You had an ability, Hayato. A curse. A gift. You could burn away your bad karma actively maling you practically sinless."
"It is the reason why the orphanage suddenly caught fire that day."
" The reason you've suffered endlessly as all the consequences of all your sins in present only.. "
His legs felt weak.
"No… that's not—"
"That is what we assumed at first." The owl's voice grew quieter, as if whispering a forbidden truth. "But when we possessed you, hoping to use your ability to burn away our collective karma and finally pass on, we realized something far worse."
"Your ability wasn't so simple."
The owl took another step forward.
"Your real ability… is immortality through reincarnation, the ability to burn away your sins is just there to counteract the effects of cheating death."
Hayato's mind reeled.
"No… no, that can't be…"
"Whenever you die, you are reborn. Again and again.....The downside? You only remember two lives at most."
The owl's many bleeding eyes locked onto him.
"That is how I ended up in this world alongside you."
A wave of cold dread washed over him.
Had he truly been trapped in a cycle of endless suffering?
Because the effects of cheating death would never disappear....
Had he truly been carrying the burden of lifetimes he would never remember?
And worse—
If he died now… would it simply begin again?
Hayato clenched his fists, his nails digging into his palms.
He did not want this.
But had he ever had a choice?
For as long as he could remember, his life had been nothing but suffering. In both lives, pain had been his only true companion.
And now,—he was being asked to make yet another sacrifice.
"What then?" His voice was hoarse, exhausted. "What will happen if I give you all my karma and you pass on?"
The owl's many bleeding eyes bore into him, as if searching for hesitation in his soul.
"You will gain the spiritual strength of billions of humans and animals, their lifespans, and the ability to endure death that many times, control over fire—"
Hayato's lips curled in a bitter smile.
"No."
The owl tilted its grotesque head.
"No?"
Hayato's mind was racing.
This was an overwhelming amount of information, but if he just thought about it logically…
"My reincarnation—there must be a requirement for it, if logically deduced its 'A huge amount of good karma.' "
His eyes narrowed. "My ability preserves it in my body, right? So if I give it all to you, wouldn't that cut me off from reincarnating entirely?"
The owl was silent.
Hayato pressed on, stepping closer.
"And apart from that… my misfortune."
His voice wavered slightly. "It would never stop, would it?"
A long silence stretched between them.
The only sound was the faint crackling of embers rising beneath the owl's monstrous talons.
Finally, the owl spoke.
"Yes."
Its many voices layered over one another, male and female, young and old, human and beast.
"Your technique will be effectively stunted unless you perform miracles—transcending reality itself."
"Even though you will still hold vast reserves of karma, it will be greatly diminished once we use it. Billions of souls passing on requires a proportionate amount."
It lowered its head slightly.
"And yes… your misfortune will never truly stop."
Hayato let out a dry, broken laugh.
How absurd.
All this time, he had believed his suffering to be the cruel hand of fate.
That maybe, just maybe, things would get better if he endured long enough.
But no.
His own ability had been the curse chaining him to this endless cycle of agony.
The irony was almost comical.
"Ah… what a dilemma." His voice was quiet, almost thoughtful.
Then, with a sigh, he muttered, "But what is my little suffering compared to so many souls?"
He lowered his head, running a hand through his hair.
"I'm no hero." He chuckled, the sound hollow. "But it is, indeed, a worthy sacrifice."
The owl, which had been watching him with something akin to caution, suddenly shifted.
For the first time, its grotesque features softened—if only slightly.
"We must apologize."
Hayato blinked.
"Apologize?"
"We did not understand your noble character."
Noble character?
Hayato scoffed, shaking his head.
"No, I'm just…" He trailed off, his smile twisting into something broken. "Just assessing things with logic."
Even as he said it, the weight in his chest was unbearable.
He had spent two lifetimes fighting against the tides of fate.
And now, he was willingly surrendering to them.
Was this weakness? Or was it peace?
The owl bowed its monstrous head. "We thank you. From all we have left of our existence."
Hayato exhaled deeply, closing his eyes for a moment.
Then, he lifted his head.
"One last thing." His voice was steady now. "At least tell me your name."
The owl paused, as if considering the question.
Then, in a voice that trembled like dying embers, it spoke.
"Our name is lost to time. But among fellow yokai, we were once called… Hikeshi-no-Kagutsuchi."
Hayato frowned. "Hikeshi… no… Kagutsuchi?"
"Yes." The owl's many voices whispered as one. "A name forgotten by history. 'The Ashen Extinguisher of Kagutsuchi.' A being born from flames, feeding on the echoes of those consumed by fire."
" We were not always a collective. Our foundation was built in a time long past, when the lands of the world were not yet drowned in humanity."
Hayato let the name settle in his mind.
Hikeshi-no-Kagutsuchi.
It felt… heavy when spoken.
Like it carried some sort of deeper understanding of countless souls, countless tragedies.
And yet, it would soon be gone.
He exhaled once more, the tightness in his chest lifting just slightly.
Then, with a resigned smile, he stepped forward.
"Then let's do this."
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Power Stones and Reviews please