|3rd POV|
Yasaka is worried. She can see the massive Oni sitting next to Elder Fuchen. He is massive, with a body filled with muscle. He is loud and perverted. If not for the fact that this is an official battle and inviting a prostitute is not prohibited, she would have already thrown him out.
"That man is late."
"Bah! He is a coward! He knows that I am your champion and decides to run away!"
"Mah~ Mah~ Don't be like that, Kujo. There are still a few more hours left before the ceremony starts."
She grits her teeth and can feel her Sky Flame appear on the tips of her tails. However, she takes a deep breath and lets them talk about whatever they want. She trusts Vale, and she knows that he will come to defeat the Oni.
Even though he is a descendant of the infamous Ibaraki Douji, the strongest Oni in history, Yasaka believes Vale is able to defeat him.
"I cannot wait to crush him! I want to eat his flesh and crush his bones! I will turn his bones into wine! His bones shall make a delicious wine!"
Orange flames appear on the tips of her tails and head at those words. She is ready to attack him now because insulting Vale means also insulting her. She has enough reason to attack. Nurarihyon, sitting next to her, prepares to hold her back because he doesn't want something as troublesome happening on this supposedly good day.
However, she does not need to do that, as the entire room starts shaking.
Everyone inside looks out and sees a wolf youkai walking toward their room. White clouds surround him, and the air itself freezes in his presence. However, what makes the people silent in shock is the aura around him.
It is divinity. There are other energies surrounding him. They can feel chakra, natural energy, and Dying Will Flame. However, each of them is coated in divinity, making all the energies even heavier.
To them, it is proof that the man in front of them is the host of one of the Three Sacred Beasts.
And they are proven correct when he sits next to Yasaka and changes back into his human form. Vale looks at the Oni in front of him and says,
"Truly? Crushing me, huh? You are not worthy."
"You!"
The Oni releases his aura and prepares to jump at Vale. However, before he can do that, another pressure appears, but this time, it is entirely made of divinity. A portal appears in the middle of the room, and a beautiful woman walks through it.
She looks at the Oni and sees him backing down. No matter how powerful he is, he cannot fight a proper Goddess. Especially with someone who still has many worshippers in the country like her. Inari is among the few Divine Beings who still have more than a thousand worshippers, and that means her power is something that cannot be scoffed at.
"Everyone is here. Good. I've prepared an arena for the two fighters to fight. For now, introduce yourselves. Challenger, you first."
The Oni grins and stands up. His muscles bulge slightly, and he declares loudly,
"I am Kujo of Mount Ooe! I shall win this fight and crush you, puny human!"
Inari ignores him and looks at Vale, who nods his head. He stands up and says,
"My name is Valerian Millefiore, Lord of the Millefiore Family, Lord of the Romanian Magical Coven, Sky of the Millefiore Family, Sage of Romania, and Lord of Vindicare."
Each time he delivers his title, he uses his power to project a pressure that makes even Goddess Inari look at him in surprise, while the weaker people in the room sweat like a fountain.
He even enters his Sage Mode to project his position as a Sage, a position that not many can claim. Even Yasaka, the strongest youkai in Japan, cannot claim that she is a Sage.
After a few seconds of silence, he turns off his powers but still maintains his Sage Mode.
"Very well. Kujo of Mount Ooe and Valerian Millefiore, Lord of the Millefiore Family. Both fighters shall fight tomorrow in the arena I've prepared. Tonight, we shall eat; tomorrow, you two shall fight with all of your power."
With a snap of her hand, another portal appears, and this time, a group of white foxes walks out of it carrying food on their heads.
"Eat! Enjoy the feast I've prepared! Enjoy the feast from the Goddess of Fox, Rice, and Tea!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yasaka and I sit in the middle of the zen garden. A pot of tea is on the table, with a plate of dango next to it. I take one of the dango and sip on the tea. I release a sigh and look at Yasaka.
"You look relaxed, dear."
"Hmmm~ Because I know that you will win, Vale. I know that you will take my hand and that the two of us will marry."
I laugh for a moment and lean closer to her, giving her a kiss on the cheek.
"And I will not disappoint you. I've been training really hard and am ready to fight anyone."
"What kind of training do you perform? Your internal energy has shot up really high, and it is wilder. Your Senjutsu has also become denser and wilder than before."
"It is a place where natural energy is still in its primal form. I think you will lose your mind if you are not careful. The natural energy in that place even affects me because of how primal its state is."
"Truly? I don't mind visiting that place. I know a few seals and artifacts that block that kind of natural energy."
"Truly? Then I will take you there, alongside telling you some secret that I've been keeping."
"Oh? What kind of secret?"
"It is not a secret if I tell you, right?"
I smile teasingly at her and continue,
"Don't worry. You will know when all of this is over. For now, can you tell me about my opponent?"
"Very well. As you already know, he is Kujo of Mount Ooe. Just like his name suggests, he is an Oni from Mount Ooe and a direct descendant of Ibaraki Douji. Even without Touki, Youjutsu, and Senjutsu, he has already reached High Rank in terms of physical strength."
"So, he should reach Ultimate Rank if he uses all of those powers, huh?"
"Yes. However, what concerns me is his inherited ability from being a direct descendant of Ibaraki Douji. Ibaraki Douji is known to use an ability called Oni Hell Flame. It is a unique flame belonging to Ibaraki Douji and his direct descendants. It is a flame that can even burn a Divine Being and makes injuries caused by it difficult to heal."
"Is it comparable to my Dying Will Flame?"
"Sadly, I don't know. I have never tested my flame against his. It looks and acts almost like the Storm Flame, but it is not destructive. It is rather subtle for a flame. It looks like Touki, in fact. It is white and flares around the body. He uses it alongside his Touki to catch his opponent off guard."
"So, he is not someone who is reckless and charges head-on without thinking, huh?"
"Oh, he does that. However, he is also more than willing to play dirty when people least expect it. That is the reason why he was able to defeat the previous leader of Mount Ooe and take over."
"How can you heal the flame?"
"Through powerful senjutsu healing. Yes, you are lucky to meet him because your Senjutsu is the strongest I've ever seen. However, do not underestimate him. That flame is dangerous because not only is it hard to heal, but it is also powerful enough to injure a God."
"I will, Yasaka. You do not need to worry. I will make sure not to charge ahead recklessly. I don't want those bastards to have you, after all. You are mine."
"I love it when you are possessive like that."
She snuggles up to me, and I close my eyes, enjoying the touch of my loved one.