Hajime awoke in the warm cave. In front of him there was a small campfire about to wear off, as well as a bottle of water and a plate filled with roasted chicken legs. His headache and fatigue gone, he decided to feast on the food. As he savored the meal, he recalled the happenings of that night: how he was trapped inside the college, the three encounters with the demons who took the forms of his grandmother's friends, his rescue at the hands of Sayo and their argument before she knocked him out with a punch in the face. Although she saved his life and offered her aid in his mission, she technically took him to the woods by force. Could he really trust the mysterious priestess? Her aversion to answering his questions was indeed suspicious. He opened his suitcase and was relieved to find the laptop and course papers surprisingly intact. The same was for his two decks, which he took out to stare at their trump cards: Kirazeus Savark and Ov Sidia, the creatures which lent him their aid in his darkest hour and who had chosen him to represent the Light civilization, like Tsugumi before him. He hoped they would answer him and advise on how to deal with the situation he was stuck in. Alas, none came from the pieces of cardboard. Giving a disappointed sigh, he got up, packed his luggage and headed out.

The moon greeted him on the late night sky, fresh mountain air helping him properly wake up. He heard the sound of rushing water not too far from his location, so the youth decided to investigate his surroundings. The narrow path which led to the river was abrupt and muddy, short careful steps were required to safely descend it. Just the mere thought of his expensive shoes being soiled by the mud was enough to make him pull his hair out. Walking down the shore filled with rocks proved to be both annoying and painful. How he longed for the city and its cleanly sidewalks... After what seemed like forever, he stumbled upon a pair of wooden sandals, a neatly packed blue yukata and a travel bag on a stick, all placed discreetly near a large rock.

Then he saw her in her full glory. Sayo bathed in the river, completely naked. The pale moonlight fell upon her wet body, accentuating her milky skin. Small drops slided down her long black hair which rested on her back, no longer wrapped in a ponytail. Her hands moved down her curves and breasts, cleansing them with cold water. All alone in that quiet corner of nature, she looked like she belonged in a romanticist painting. Hajime hid behind the rock, but he could not get his eyes off of her; his face was red as a cherry, for her beauty was too alluring. It did not take long for the priestess to catch him from the corner of her eye, so she turned to face him and got up, her breasts and genitals fully exposed.

"Hey there, I didn't expect you to wake up so soon."

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" the blond shouted as he got out of his hideout.

"Taking a bath, obviously." Sayo laughed and placed her hands on her hips. "How about you? What were you doing behind that rock?"

"Have you no decency?! Get some clothes on, for the love of crap!"

"What's the matter with you? Have you not seen a naked woman before?"

"It's not that, there's things called privacy and shame, and right now you're breaking both of them!"

"Oh stop being such a prude! If you want, you can join me, the water's not too cold."

"Sorry, but I'm only used to baths and showers in my own bathroom," Hajime replied, averting his gaze. "You should finish quick and get dressed, else you may catch a cold."

"Thanks for the concern, but I'm used to these temperatures." The priestess then fell on her back, allowing herself to float on the water. "Trust me, when you reach my level of training, surviving in the woods is much easier."

"I'd rather stay in one piece."

Hajime dusted off the rock and sat on it, admiring the picturesque woods and clear night sky. Never before did he witness such peaceful sights, for even the skies were partly obscured by the city's bright lights at night. Despite the highly awkward situation he was in, his rescuer seemed less tense than before. Perhaps it was the right time to strike conversation and discover more about her.

"If I recall correctly, you said your name was Sayo?"

"Yes it is."

"Would this be a good time to ask you some questions?" he jokingly stated, half-expecting to be declined yet again.

"I guess." The young woman got on her knees and started washing her hair. "Go on, I can hear you."

"Was that story about you being raised as a Shinto priestess since early childhood true?"

"Yes, as I previously said, my goal is to rid the world of its evils, and Shishima is a prime example."

"How do you know so much about him?"

"Believe it or not, I have found some ancient texts written by an elite group of monks hidden away in my master's temple. After reading about the Twilight Kingdom's history, I realized that the spiritual world is not merely limited to Heaven or Hell, it could be housing an infinite number of realms. As such, I decided to scan those texts and post them on the internet behind my master's back. Thankfully, I learned from a fellow apprentice how to use computers, so I simply emailed the scans to the owners of a few occult websites, and the rest is history."

Hajime was taken aback by this revelation. Was this girl really the reason why any kind of word about Shishima existed online?

"If that's true, do you know for how long your temple has been hiding this information?"

"I would say over a thousand years, at least. The only reason they were found was because I was cleaning the shrine one day while the master had left to officiate a wedding. They were hidden inside a closet filled with scrolls. Nobody was allowed to access it, with the exception of the high priests. I knew I was breaking the rules by doing this, but my curiosity just had to be satiated."

"I see. By the way, how did you manage to get inside the college? I couldn't open any door or window while I was stuck there, and if I recall correctly, you said something about youkai magic keeping the entrance locked?"

"Yes, that was the reason why you were trapped there." Sayo shook her head to dry her hair, then she used her hands to properly straighten it. "I had arrived in Sagakin on Thursday morning to exorcise a ghost out of a family's home and also give the place a proper blessing. After finishing my job and receiving my just payment, I decided to hang out in your city and enjoy its coastal sights. I know we're in the middle of autumn right now, but I suppose the beach must be wonderful during summers, right?"

"It is, indeed. Or rather, was. Now it's hollow and joyless. Anyway, let's not digress."

"The news of a serial killer had reached me fairly quickly. The whole city must have been terrorized by Shishima's murders, I noticed that people were walking only in pairs outside, avoiding eye contact and staying locked inside after dark. At first I was not interested in the case, after all, it was the police's duty, not mine. But then I happened to see a picture of one of the bodies on the news. No human being could mutilate another in such a beastly manner, that was clearly the work of something supernatural. As I contemplated on what kind of evil spirit could pull off such feats, my mind went to the ancient texts which I had leaked, and suddenly, it all made sense."

"It did?"

"The demon's power is so vast, that it can make men see things which are not there, and plunge their minds into despair, fear and inevitable death. The creature wields the shadows like its puppets, and if it enters a man's mind, then that person is lost forever..." Sayo quoted. "My theory is that Shishima possessed a human in your city and turned him or her into a vessel."

"If that were the case, does he have the power to rejuvenate said vessel?"

"From my understanding, at most he can just channel his powers through it and make the body stronger, despite age or shape. I am not sure about rejuvenation. Regardless, I decided to stay in Sagakin and do my own investigation at night, hoping I could catch any other sort of supernatural activity; and that was when I had found your college surrounded by red fog. Its walls reeked of youkai magic, so the only way I could find an opening was by placing ofudas on a window and using incantations to repel the barrier, at least temporarily. Once I was sure that the barrier was weakened, I used a rock to break in, and you already know the rest."

"I do. Listen, Sayo, thank you for rescuing me. I am sorry for being so rude to you back then."

"Apology accepted," she said and walked out of the river to pick up a towel from her travel bag, Hajime trying his best not to look at her shameless nudity. "Now, are you willing to accept my offer of working together?"

"If you have any plans, I'm game. I tried working on my own after my friends abandoned me, but I still wound up right where Shishima wanted me."

"Plans? Right now my only plan is for us to stay hidden and regroup so we can face him another day. You mentioned something about having some friends, would they happen to be duelists as well?"

"Yes, they are. But they don't want to involve themselves in this case anymore. One of them had infiltrated Shishima's cult on my behalf and is now scared for his life."

"They must not be fully aware of how dire this ordeal is."

"Oh, I think they are, that's the reason why they chose to run away back into the United States."

"Running away is smart only when you are directly threatened, like we were tonight. But one can't keep running forever, there will come a time in everyone's lives when they will have to face their fears headfirst." Sayo finished drying herself and fetched a new pair of clothes – a white kimono robe known as a kosode and a long red skirt known as a hakama. "I mostly keep these for when I visit shrines, but I think it's time I actually looked like a priestess for a change."

"Whatever, as long as I don't have to look at your naked b-" Hajime stopped and bit his tongue, how could he be so improper? It was that damn girl's fault, her indecency was beginning to rub off on him.

"My naked what?" she sneakily insisted, giggling at his awkward reaction.

"Just get dressed already!" he raised his voice at her, avoiding looking anywhere near her general direction.

In a matter of minutes, Sayo was wearing her new garments and she had also packed her yukata and towel back in the travel bag. The blond gave a loud sigh, relieved that he could finally look at her without the risk of getting aroused.

"Now where were we? Oh right, do you think you can somehow convince your friends to join our cause?" she asked while tying her hair back into a ponytail. "We will need all the manpower we can get if we wish to have a chance against Shishima's forces."

"I'm not sure about that, they seemed pretty hellbent on leaving. I could try talking with them, but I doubt they will listen," Hajime argued as he recalled his last physical interaction with Jack and Lori.

"I say it's worth a shot. You can call them tomorrow when we will be on our way to Tokyo."

"Huh? You're no longer opposed to us seeking refuge there?"

"I gave it some thought and came to the conclusion that you were right. You need the emotional comfort of your family in these trying times and I also need to run some errands there, so I suggest we go ahead with your plan of catching a train to the capital."

"That's a relief." The boy got off of the rock and picked his suitcase. "Then shall we head back and get some sleep? It sounds like tomorrow we've got a long day ahead of us."

"Of course, lead the way." The girl smiled at him, pleased that they were finally beginning to get along. And so they went to climb back to their warm shelter for a good night's sleep.

"Hey Sayo, do you mind if I ask you just one more question?"

"Of course not, feel free to."

"While you were dueling, I noticed that you were using quite the number of Darkness and Fire cards. I found it quite odd."

"How so?"

"You're a priestess, aren't you supposed to use something 'holier', for lack of a better term? I honestly expected you to bring a Light Nature deck, if anything."

"Haha, I guess that is a bit unorthodox of me, now isn't it?" Sayo laughed, scratching the back of her head. "The truth is, the cards I am using are mostly Demon Command Dragons based on plants. The reason for this is that I feel like I have a deeper connection to nature, especially plants. It's also the reason why I can adapt so easily to the great outdoors, city boy!"

"I see, didn't think of it that way, to be honest."

"If that is the case, may I also ask why you are only playing Light cards?"

"You will laugh. It's mostly because my grandmother did the same, I picked up this game because she wanted to teach me," Hajime confessed, recalling the moments he spent with Tsugumi, a treasure he would keep in his heart for the rest of his life. "As I researched the cards some more, I found this civilization as the most appealing. Their order and sense of justice really resonated with me."

"To be honest, that quite suits you a lot, I dare say. However, we will both have to become better when it comes to dueling. Now that you have witnessed firsthand not only Shishima's terrors, but also his skills as a duelist, you know very well just what we are up against."

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there. For now our main goal is to safely arrive in Tokyo."

Sayo nodded in agreement. They remained silent for the rest of their short journey. Soon enough, they were both back in the cave, tucked under cozy blankets by the weakened embers of what used to be their campfire. There were only a couple of hours left for them to sleep. As soon as the dawn broke, they would pack up and leave, before Shishima could send more of his minions to track them down.