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Chapter 10
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"Uh, yeah. There was no way you could lug this back all by yourself."
Everyone was shocked by the size of the stone lantern Yukio had sent them to retrieve. It looked like it weighed tons and most likely had some trip rigged to it that would create problems later on.
"It's a Peg Lantern," Suguro explained, "It waits in the night for someone to come light it. Once it's lit, it starts moving around. It eats living things for fuel." For a beat, his eyes flickered over to Miyuki and Shiemi; "It's especially fond of girls."
Miyuki shook her head as she rubbed her temples, a headache beginning to form; "Of course it is..."
"It's a demon that'll only stop when it runs out of fuel or when the sun comes up. Once I saw it, I realized we must have misunderstood the purpose of this drill," Konekomaru surmised.
"For this drill, we're gonna have to help each other after all," Suguro spoke sternly, looking at the lantern with calculating eyes.
"Wait a second, Bon," Shima unconsciously let out a short chuckle, "You specifically said that we can't help each other out."
"Look, I didn't know what he meant when he said there were only three slots available!" the mohawked-boy shouted, clearly agitated. Miyuki couldn't help but smile as she watched the amusing interaction.
"He's got a point. Okumura never actually said three people," Konekomaru pointed out. The Yuki-Onna looked up at the giant lantern once again.
"This thing can't be too dangerous, can it?" she mumbled as she tapped the stone tauntingly. Rin quickly grabbed her hand and pulled it away, shooting her a look that managed to convey the message of are you crazy?! She rolled her crimson eyes, although they stayed oblivious to the fact that her wrist stayed in Rin's grip for the remainder of the conversation.
"Um, I...uh, sort of came up with a formation where the six of us can carry it out," Konekomaru mumbled shyly with a raised hand. Miyuki raised a brow and flashed him a closed smile.
"Let's hear it, kid."
"We're literally the same age, Hayami."
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After an agonizingly boring five minutes, everyone was in their positions given to them by Konekomaru, the mastermind.
Rin was at the front of the cart, Shima was on the left with his staff, Konekomaru and Suguro were on the right and backside respectfully, ready to recite some passages, Shiemi was in the cart with the Peg Lantern and Miyuki stood next to Rin.
Her job was to make sure nothing got in his way or distracted him. They were all painfully aware how short his attention span was...
Just as Konekomaru had planned, the flashlight Shiemi held drew the attention of forest's Chuchi Moths. A swarm of the monotone insects came out of the treeline, queuing Shiemi to light a match then throw it into the lantern.
As instructed, Rin used his demonic strength to hoist the lantern into his arms and began to move with it.
"Okumura, what planet do you come from?" Shima asked with wide-set eyes. Miyuki used her hand to stifle her laughter.
"You guys, let's go, let's go, let's go!" her fellow halfbreed shouted, shutting his classmates up.
Of course, things had been going too smoothly and God had to throw some sort of obstacle in their way. Miyuki frowned when they came upon a broken bridge. It was not able to withstand the test of time, evident by the snapped wires, crumbling wood and the faded talismen.
"What are we gonna do about this?" Rin huffed as he not-so-gently sat down the lantern. A girly scream from off to the side told them Shima had looked into the "pond".
"Oh, holy hell, look down! There are tons of 'em!" he shrieked, trembling hands clinging to his staff.
Beneath the bridge was what seemed like millions of bugs, crawling across one another with their freakish legs. Miyuki crossed her arms and inched closer to the edge of the bugless land. They were creepy as hell but...kinda cute?
"Oh, my god...I think I'm gonna piss myself," Shima whimpered, eyes never leaving the creepy crawlies. Miyuki rolled her eyes at his comment and crossed her arms over her chest.
"Maybe you'd feel better if you did. You never know," Rin shrugged, earning a glare from his friend.
"Okumura, please don't say things like that to him! Once someone pees their pants, that's it. Game over," Konekomaru spoke with a hint of remorse and pity.
Seconds later, Suguro walked over, still chanting to keep the Peg Lantern at bay as he grabbed Shima's staff. He ruthlessly plunged it into the river of bugs.
"What the hell are you doing?!" the pink-haired boy shrieked. Finally fed up with their antics, Miyuki walked over to a gloomy Shiemi.
"You doing okay?" she asked her friend. The blonde nodded, a somber smile on her pretty face.
"I just wish I could help out some more," she bowed her head in a disappointed manner. Miyuki looked over to the congregating boys with her eyebrows furrowed.
"I wouldn't start praying just yet," she mumbled unconsciously before walking over.
Bon was communicating via notepad while he continued his invocation. He had drawn out a map which Miyuki examined closely, a brow quirking at the plan drawn out before her. Her scarlet eyes stared coldly at the anxious boys that awaited her response.
"Shiemi..." she paused to sigh, "is bait?"
"From the looks of it, it could go after you or Moriyama," Konekomaru replied meekly.
"How kind of you to include me..." the noirette groaned. Then again, did she really have a choice?
With nothing more than an uncaring nod from the demoness, the boys plus Shiemi went about their stupid plan. Konekomaru and Shima took the cart to the other side of the bug swamp, both surprised the bridge didn't break.
Watching from the other side of the bridge, Miyuki stared blankly at Rin as he crawled into the insect pit and let Shiemi sit on his shoulders. The light pink that dusted his cheeks made some feeling build in her chest. She didn't like it.
Miyuki wasn't so prideful that she would deny being jealous of the blonde, she just wouldn't admit it aloud.
"Shiemi, are you sure that you're okay with this?" Rin asked once again, hands hesitantly grabbing the blonde's ankles.
"I got this," she assured herself with a calm yet determined smile. Miyuki sighed and prepared for the next phase of Suguro's plan. She swallowed her envy, along with her pride.
"All right, giddyup!" Suguro removed the talisman from the Peg Lantern.
When it spotted Shiemi, it burst to life like a forest fire on a hot summer's day. It jumped in the swamp and ran after the teens in the bug-infested waters.
"Over here!" Shiemi called as Rin ran across with her on his shoulders.
"You don't have to tease it!" he hissed, the bugs slowing his movements. Miyuki knew it would take too long for him to cross the pit, so she stood at the edge of the turf with her arms outstretched.
"Rin, toss her!" she ordered in a panicked shout.
Just as the lantern leapt after the girls, Rin hurled Shiemi in Miyuki's direction. The noirette caught her and swiftly jumped out of the way. Konekomaru slapped a talisman on it right away and started chanting, returning the Peg Lantern to its lifeless state.
Rin laughed breathlessly as he crawled out of the water and attempted to get his second wind. His celebration was cut short by the fall of the bridge's pillars, which he had been leaning on. The disturbance resulted in the entire bridge collapsing into the water
"Rin! Behind you!" Shiemi warned as something grabbed hold of him. He was hoisted into the air by a giant moth.
"Idiot!" Miyuki yelled., balling up her fists and dropping the temperature around her. Moths hate the cold.
"Shut up!" her friend shouted back. "Don't worry about me! I'll catch up with you after I kick its ass! Everything's cool, just go," he tried to convince the others of his strength but just ended up confusing them more. Suguro narrowed his eyes.
"That son of a — You're always doing that!"
"My bad?"
"You dumbass! I'm gonna help you whether you want me to or not!" Suguro snapped. He took Shima's staff right from the pink-haired boy's hands. "Everyone else, get ready to run!"
Miyuki grabbed one of the bridge's talismen and tossed it towards him as he ran towards the Chuchi Moth. Suguro quickly thanked her then used Shima's staff to pin it to the moth then chanted a verse, making the moth screech and release Rin.
"Whoa, dude! awesome!" the oblivious halfbreed gasped in awe as he fell to the ground. Miyuki dragged him out of the bug-infested water then gave him a swift smack to the back of the head. "What the hell was that for?!"
"For being reckless, now go with the others. I'm gonna clean up this mess," the demoness scoffed. Rin nodded sharply then ran to join the group.
Miyuki tailed behind everyone else purposefully. Since no one was around, she took a second to turn around and attack the giant insect. With a bit of force and some thorough hand movements, spires of ice arose from the bug swamp, puncturing the moth's wing. It fell to the ground, where Miyuki then used claws made of icicles to end the overgrown insect.
Eventually, she caught up with her classmates. Did she wish she had waited to rejoin them in order to skip their little friendship spiel? Most definitely.
"You've got friends, don't forget that!" Suguro snapped at Rin. He shrunk a bit out of intimidation.
"You go, Bon. Couldn't have said it better myself," Shima chuckled, receiving a glare from the boy with the two-toned hair.
"If you're gonna take Satan on, you're definitely going to need some help," Konekomaru muttered with a sheepish but supportive expression.
"I'm a wimp, but I got your back. Course, if there's gonna be bugs involved, I won't do you much good," Shima chuckled and scratched the nape of his neck.
"You guys are..." Rin's mouth was slightly agape and his eyes were wide.
"Rin, we're here for you," Shiemi flashed him a warm smile. Miyuki silently watched the team she didn't feel she needed to be a part of.
The group had definitely noticed her standoff-ish demeanour because Shima grabbed her sleeve and pulled her further into the little semi-circle they had made around Rin. She sighed heavily.
"I'm not into all this cheesy friendship crap..." she grumbled. "But whether you like it or not, I'll be by your side, dumb ass." Rin winced then laughed as she punched him in the arm.
"Thanks, Ice Queen," his expression softened ever so slightly.
"I hate to say it, Shima, but this time you were totally useless," Suguro sighed, turning to Shima.
"Hey, c'mon! Easy, Bon! I'm doing the best I can, considering..." the pinkette's voice trailed off.
Everyone laughed, despite the fact that mere moments ago, they had risked their lives over some stupid trial. Miyuki looked down to the ground with a smile. This feeling of camaraderie wasn't new to her (Strix and Aliza were her best friends back home) but this time felt different.
They weren't here because of duty or because of her superiority. These humans were around her and Rin because they wanted to be. Out of nothing but intrigue, she tuned into Rin's thoughts.
"What if everyone found out I was the son of Satan...? What would they think of me then?"
Her smile faded.
"For what it's worth, Rin, you're a good guy. Your blood doesn't change that," she reminded him in a hushed whisper while the others continued their playful banter. He looked over to her with a shocked expression that melted into a warm smile.
"Thanks, Miyuki. You're pretty cool yourself," he ruffled her dark hair as he passed. Miyuki huffed in annoyance but couldn't stop the blush that spread across her face.
"That was a horrible pun," she smirked.
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"Ow…" Shiemi reached for her neck, flinching. Ever since the group made it back to camp, the blonde had been suffering from some kind of bug bite.
Persistent fucking mosquitos, Miyuki thought. Rin tended to the girl, asking her if she was okay and whatnot while the others checked in with Shura.
"Hang on, is this it? Everyone's back?" the swordswoman asked. She recounted, making sure everyone was, in fact, present. "So none of you gave up? Then who set off that bottle rocket?"
Miyuki's eyes narrowed. She remembered that moment. Before her group had reached the bug swamp, a rocket went off. They figured it was Kamiki but deep down, she knew the spunky tsundere wouldn't throw in the towel so quickly.
"Shiemi?" Rin asked again as the shorter girl once again flinched in pain. Before Miyuki could approach and try to offer some sort of assistance, she felt a strong, overbearing presence from above. She widened her eyes as she immediately understood who it belonged to.
"Oh, no..."
"WHOO-HOO!"
A green blur dropped onto the ground, kicking up dirt and creating a small crater in the Earth. His eyes locked on to Miyuki's rage-filled scarlet orbs once the dust settled.
"Son of a bitch," she growled in a low, dangerous tone. Shiemi's pained whimper drew her back to her classmates around her.
"Shiemi?" she gave her friend a concerned look. Her moment of sympathy was cut short by Amaimon unleashing his pet, Behemoth with a wild laugh.
"Go get them, Behemoth!" the green-haired freak ordered. The demon roared and bounded straight towards the kids.
"Took him long enough," Shura huffed, sounding more annoyed than shocked. The swordswoman whistled, conjuring flames along the magic circle the students had painted around the camp. Both Amaimon and Behemoth were sent flying.
"An absolute barrier?" Suguro's eyes widened.
"Yep, everything inside the circle is safe and everything outside is repelled. You guy should be safe here for a little while," Shura explained with a curt nod. Using a spare hair tie, she pulled her hair into a bun then hardened her resolve. "Training's over for today. We have to get ready for Amaimon's next attack."
"Amaimon?!" cried the human kids. Miyuki and Rin shared a look, both at least somewhat aware of the trouble they were in.
"Do you mean one of the eight kings? The Baal? The King of Earth? That Amaimon?" Kamiki asked in a very obvious panic.
"He's got too many goddamned names," Miyuki grumbled to herself as she looked to the forest with an annoyed expression.
"Agreed. Since he's one of the big guns, you Exwires don't stand much of a chance on your own against him," Shura pulled a marked canister out of a cooler. Holy water. Miyuki instinctually frowned.
"Everyone gather around. I'm gonna give you a dose of some triple-c concentrated holy water."
Before anyone could ask questions, Shura was throwing the purified liquid into their faces. She moved from kid to kid until her gaze turned to Rin and Miyuki she stopped herself.
"Whoops. That would have gotten ugly if I ended up pouring some on you," she drunkenly chuckled to herself before drenching Konekomaru. She muttered a quick prayer then stood before the kids with a tough look on her face. "All right, you guys are good until the holy water dries. No matter what happens, the damage shouldn't be too bad…"
"What about Okumura? Aren't you gonna splash him with some?" Suguro asked.
Shima pointed to Miyuki, "And what about Hayami?"
"I'm allergic," Miyuki quipped. Because of her serious tone, her friends failed to realise she was joking.
"Allergic to holy water?! I've never heard that one before!" Suguro shouted at her. Wanting to change the subject, the raven-haired girl turned to Shiemi, who had closed her eyes.
"Shiemi? Shiemi, are you okay?" she shook her blonde friend slightly. In a fraction of a second, Shiemi's eyes dulled and her movements clearly weren't her own.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Somebody stop her!" Shura yelled as the blonde crossed the magic circle barrier. The two halfbreeds of the group ran after her, shouting her name in unison.
As soon as she reached the treeline, Miyuki felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist then hoist her up into the air. Amaimon had jumped out and grabbed her and Shiemi before bounding deeper into the woods.
"Let me go, idiot!" she hissed, clawing at her captor's arms.
"And a hello to you too, Yuki-Onna," Amaimon faked a smile. Miyuki narrowed her eyes as the green creep ignored her purposefully.
"Get back here, you cone-headed freak!" she could hear Rin yell and begin to give chase.
"Hey, you idiot, come back here!" Shura called after him, voices growing farther and farther with each inhumane leap.
"What do you want with us?" Miyuki asked Amaimon. The King of Earth sighed in an annoyed manner, eyes lazily watching the rapidly moving terrain.
"You've always been my little plaything. Watching your power grow has been fun but I think our game's going to end when Father gets his hands on you," he spoke in an uncharacteristically grim voice. If anything, Miyuki might have thought he was trying to scare her.
"My death will mean nothing if Rin fulfils his destiny and kills Satan himself," she grumbled while closing her eyes. The air was starting to dry them up.
"You've really lost faith in the only family you've ever had? He saved you, ya'know?"
"You used me. There's a difference, you fucking Brussels sprout."
Thankfully, Rin managed to catch up within a few minutes. He skidded to a halt behind Amaimon, who had turned to face his target.
"What are you going to do to Shiemi and Miyuki?" the son of Satan asked, eyes burning with a rage-filled fire.
"Good question. I think I'm going to bring the Yuki-Onna back to Gehenna where she will most likely be punished. Then, I'll make this pretty young thing my wife," Amaimon stroked Shiemi's head as she sat mindlessly on his shoulder. It sickened Miyuki.
"From this day forward, will you be mine, to have and to hold? Will you honour me and cherish me in sickness and health? Till death do us part and stuff? And will you love me forever and ever until the day you die?"
"Knock it off!" Rin yelled, jumping up to attack.
"That's not fair. I was going to say the same thing."
With a single kick, Amaimon flung Rin backwards and into the ground. Miyuki tried to roll in his grip so she could help break Rin's fall with ice but he only held on tighter.
"Amaimon, at least let her go. You can take me," she hated having to plead with the demon who screwed her over but that seemed to be her only option.
"Aw, do you want to be my wife instead? Is the Ice Princess jealous?" the green-haired demon asked.
"No," Miyuki narrowed her eyes with revulsion, "More like disgusted."
"Drop 'em!" Rin shouted, lunging for Amaimon again. This time, his flames nicked the arm holding Miyuki. In a moment of sheer surprise, the demon dropped his hostage with a yelp. The fall was rough but she had lived through worse.
When she got back onto her feet, a rocket whizzed past her face and hit Amaimon. She didn't bother trying to contain her laughter when it ignited the spike made of Amaimon's hair. Despite feeling nothing but hatred for the demon king, Miyuki still knew Amaimon's tells.
For instance, the subtle twitching of his brow told her that he was about to snap.
She swiftly jumped in front of Shima who would have received a kick to the gut. While it most likely would have maimed him, Miyuki was simply pushed back a bit. She had learned how to parry Amaimon's moves long ago.
"Why do you protect them?" he asked through grinding teeth before jumping back to put distance between him and the Ice Queen. She never took her eyes off him but could feel the stare of her fellow Exwire's burn through her back.
"You wouldn't understand," she hissed, taking an offensive stance. Thoughts of days of old when she would spar against Amaimon popped into her head. She shook them out forcefully as her opponent began to advance.
"Hayami, look out!" Suguro warned. Before anyone else could call out to her, the noirette side-stepped and grabbed Amaimon's arm. The jaws of her comrades nearly dropped to the floor when she twisted his arm and slammed him into the dirt with brute force she had never displayed before.
"Hayami's gone crazy," Shima laughed in disbelief. Sadly, he had spoken too soon.
"Shit!" Miyuki cried as her ankle was grabbed and she was pulled to the ground. Her hands desperately tried to cling to something — anything — while Amaimon dragged her closer towards him. He got onto his feet, ending in the Yuki-Onna being hung upside down.
"That was rude," he taunted before viciously slamming the halfbreed into the ground. A small crater formed beneath her dirt-covered body.
As if that wasn't enough, she was picked back up and tossed in Rin's direction. The azure-eyes boy scrambled towards her, a panicked look on his face.
"Miyuki, are you okay? Can you hear me?" he shook her shoulders, praying that she wasn't gone.
An abrupt cough told him she was, in fact, alive; "I'm not deaf, idiot...Get off me."
Rin sighed, wrapping his arms around his friend and holding her close. His breathing was slightly shaky from the adrenaline but it only worried Miyuki more.
"Oh, God," he buried his face in the crook of her shoulder. She had to admit it felt nice...
"Yeah, he's not here, but I can take a message," she quipped. A sharp sharp pain in her abdomen told her not to sit up but she tried anyway. In spite of her body's warnings, she stood up. Her wounds were healing as she turned to see her human friends get their asses kicked.
Amaimon jumped up and kicked Shima, hurling him into a nearby tree, then targeted Suguro. Konekomaru somehow found the courage to stand before his friend protectively, but it cost him his arm.
There was a gut-wrenching crunch as the bald boy's limb twisted unnaturally under Amaimon's touch. Rin moved as if he was going to defend his comrade but Miyuki was faster.
"Bastard! Pick on someone your own size!" Miyuki yelled as she ran straight up to Amaimon and punched him in the face. Holy hell did that feel good!
He whirled around and tried to get revenge for her cheap attack but she parried with a roundhouse kick. The two traded blows until Amaimon managed to grab hold of Miyuki's throat.
"Shit," she croaked out before being smashed against the ground. The green-haired demon beat her into the ground again and again and again. On the final collision, she spat up a little blood before lying still.
Amaimon was still stronger than her; even after all these years.
"Leave her alone!" Rin shouted from somewhere. She didn't bother opening her eyes. Everything hurt.
"Have you used your charm to creep your way into his heart? Is that why you abandoned your mission?" Amimon leaned don so he could whisper in her ear, "You can't have a normal life, you said so yourself."
"M – Maybe I have gotten soft...but I'd rather hang around these guys than go back to Gehenna with you," Miyuki rasped with a blood smile. She cracked her eyes open to find Rin glaring at Amaimon harder than ever.
Just as he took the cloth off of his sword and prepared for a fight, Yukio ran out of the woods. His eyes widened at the mild chaos before he shook himself back into reality.
"It's a trap!" he yelled in a poor attempt at stopping Rin.
"I'm sorry...I guess I just don't have it in me to lie to everyone," his brother muttered apologetically. Almost somberly, he unsheathed his sword.
Every eye in the forest clearing, both human and demon, stopped to stare at the vibrant, blue flames that wickedly burst to life, covering his entire body. Miyuki felt something different in his energy. His fire was angry, malicious, even, but there was a hint of sadness to it.
"Yay!" Amaimon jumped into the air exuberantly. Miyuki watched helplessly as Rin charged the demon with no hesitation, blue flames illuminating their fight. Knowing she couldn't help in her condition, she turned her eyes towards her classmates...
"I – Is Okumura, what I think he is?" Konekomaru choked out his words as his body practically shook with fear. Miyuki couldn't help but notice how fast the terror sat in. They were too quick to panic. Maybe Rin was right about things changing...
"I'm not letting him do this alone." Miyuki spat out some blood (a sign her body was healing) as she slowly climbed to her feet. The small group turned towards her.
"Hayami! Don't move!" Konekomaru jumped to her side, trying to make the girl sit down. She attempted to push him off but failed, falling down to her knees. She put her hands on the ground to steady herself.
"Everything's...fine. He'll protect us," she exhaled shakily. Amaimon had never unloaded on her like that. She silently wondered if she had pushed too far this time.
The demon king had done an incredible amount of damage to her. She was healing but bigger injuries like broken bones took longer to fix and she was itching to freeze that bastard.
That urge was exactly why her nails and fangs sharpened themselves. Lucky for her, the others were so focused on Rin's fight with Amaimon that they didn't notice, but she knew her secret would be revealed anyway. If Rin was going to defeat Amaimon, she wanted a front row seat.
Not long after, Shura rushed over, having finally taken care of Behemoth, although she was a bit too late. Yukio had just finished pulling out the Chuchi egg from Shiemi's neck while Miyuki regained the strength to stand on her own.
"We gotta bail now. It's not safe here," the swordswoman ordered, eyes raking over the scene to assess the damage.
"We can't just leave him here. He can't beat Amaimon on his own," Miyuki stared at the blur of Rin and Amaimon's battle.
"You aren't prepared for this," Shura snapped, grabbing the demoness' collar to pull her back with the others. It was clear in her glassy-eyed look, she was craving a battle. She was itching to use her powers and Shura knew that unleashing another demon would cause a shit ton of trouble later on.
"Hayami, let's go," Yukio urged, gently laying Shiemi on his back. Miyuki opened her mouth to speak but stopped when a loud pop was heard. Her eyes grew wide and she exhaled small ice crystals and frigid air.
With the healing of her broken arm, was back to perfect health.
