— — — — — —
Now that the origin of the monstrous cherry tree had been confirmed, it was time to consider how to deal with it.
"If it came from the Underworld," Midoriko said as Yukari let her through the gap, "shouldn't we just hand it over to an Enma or a Shinigami?"
"No way!"
Yakumo Yukari immediately shot that idea down, almost reflexively.
"No matter what the reason is, the fact that a tree from the Underworld grew into the human realm—and turned into a monster that lures living beings to their death—means the Underworld can't wash its hands of this."
"Yeah, an Enma will come to check things out."
Midoriko raised an eyebrow, not quite following.
Yukari explained, "But there's no guarantee that Enma will handle things the way we want them to."
"…Then let's treat them as a last resort—something we call in if we're really out of options."
Midoriko shot a casual glance toward Saigyouji Yuyuko and instantly understood what Yukari was worried about.
...
A small wisp of black-and-white flame floated from Veyron's fingertip and drifted toward the cherry blossoms.
The shrine maiden and the yokai both turned to look at him.
"Let me give it a try first."
Veyron stepped up to the tree, raised one hand, and extended his index finger.
Fwoosh—
The moment the flame touched the blossoms, it was instantly absorbed.
The tree's pale pink petals—radiating a bewitching aura that seduced living beings toward death—bloomed even more vibrantly on a previously thin-looking branch.
"It looks… happy," Yuyuko murmured, her voice barely above a whisper. "And hungry. Like it's craving more… more death."
"This might actually work," Veyron nodded.
He could clearly sense a faint connection between himself and those few blossoms that bloomed through a destined death. It wasn't deep, but it was enough for him to impose his will.
Which meant his idea had potential.
Yuyuko had once said that the more people took their lives beneath the tree, the more beautifully its flowers bloomed. In other words, death was its fertilizer.
That gave Veyron an idea.
If the death of living beings could feed the Saigyou Ayakashi's growth… then what about destined death—the embodiment of death itself, far more pure and absolute than a regular demise?
If it worked…
Then he wanted to see how the concept of destined death—given to him by the Dimensional Chat Group and cemented in his system as a golden-tier Trait—would stack up against the Ayakashi cherry tree.
Even if the tree had turned into a monster, it didn't have sentience yet. So who would dominate this contest of "death"—him, or the tree?
Raising a hand, he pressed it against the tree's trunk.
Black flames roared to life in his palm, only to be instantly devoured by the cherry tree, not a single flicker wasted.
In that moment, the already radiant blossoms exploded into even more dazzling, almost sinister beauty—so bright they seemed to set that entire corner of the courtyard ablaze with unnatural color.
Inukimi, who had been lazily lounging nearby, suddenly sprang up with a start, her hair bristling. She stared wide-eyed at the tree in shock and fear.
"Take a walk outside," Veyron said calmly. "If anyone—or anything—comes poking around because of this, deal with them however you see fit."
Inukimi nodded, transformed into her true form—a giant demon dog nearly 20 meters long—and rode the wind out of the courtyard.
---
Moments later…
The cherry blossoms were now in full bloom, more lush than ever before. But the tree hadn't taken form yet. Instead, it simply gave a gentle shudder and sent a soft rain of petals fluttering to the ground.
"…What the—?"
Midoriko caught a few petals in her hand. Feeling the death aura within, her brows furrowed.
Those petals that just fell? They were the accumulated death collected from everyone who'd died beneath this tree over the past few years.
"What a greedy little thing," Yukari chuckled.
The Saigyou Ayakashi of the past had basically been like: "Look how pretty my flowers are! Mind dying under me, please?"
But now? The current Saigyou Ayakashi was basically saying, "Low-grade deaths? Don't even come near me. You'll mess up my purity!"
"..."
...
"Yukari, Midoriko, Veyron…" Yuyuko's voice cut through the quiet, "I think it's calling me."
"Do you feel attached to your human identity?" Veyron asked.
"What do you mean?"
Yuyuko looked confused.
Veyron clarified, "I mean, would you mind switching your race? Like becoming a yokai, like her?"
Yukari caught on and took over, "If you don't mind, while this tree hasn't yet developed true self-awareness, Vey here might be able to help you flip the script—take control for yourself. If you're willing... right, Vey?"
"If it hadn't been so greedy earlier—trying to replace all the death it collected with the 'death' I provided—it could have been tricky," Veyron replied, ignoring the way Yukari called him.
"But since it chose greed, what happens next isn't up to it anymore. If Yuyuko doesn't want to give up her human body, I can have it pour all its essence back into you instead."
Yuyuko hesitated, then asked, "What happens if I don't want to become a yokai? What would the tree do?"
"If a yokai loses its essence, it dies," Yukari said. Then, probably considering that 'death' might be confusing here since the tree's power is death-related, she added, "I mean really gone. Totally and utterly dead."
"I…" Yuyuko faltered, unsure.
"Is there any other way besides 'turn Yuyuko into a yokai' or 'make the tree give up its essence'?" Yukari asked, reading Yuyuko's hesitation and speaking for her.
"You two are asking for a lot," Veyron said, turning to them but focusing mainly on Yuyuko. "Are you sure you're not subconsciously being influenced by it?"
"I… don't know," Yuyuko shook her head.
"Come stand by the tree—but just so you know, if anything goes wrong, don't blame me," Veyron warned, motioning for her to take a couple of steps forward.
Veyron focused his control over death through his 'Destined Death' ability and began guiding the now malleable Saigyou Ayakashi for the next step.
Yukari and Midoriko watched as a brilliant, beautiful but eerie and dangerous pink glow spread from the cherry tree, swirling around Yuyuko like mist.
...
Half a day later.
As the pink mist cleared, Yukari's eyes went wide.
Two Yuyukos?
No, that's not right.
She looked at the one floating half an inch above the ground, expressionless and cold, then glanced at the other—curiously kneading her own arm, her body seeming somewhat ghostly.
The two versions of Yuyuko gave Yukari an unsettling feeling she couldn't quite place...
.
.
.