Family heirloom, then turned into a demon girl

Chapter 52 Mission: 07-1 Seal Mutation
"Is this the cave?"

Aguo jumped off the chariot and stood in front of the seaside cave. Uesugi Kenshin, who was driving, still looked a little scared of her, but at least he was no longer trying to escape.

"Yes."

Based on her previous interpretation of the puzzle, Ritsuka told Aguo that the seal "may need to be broken through sacrifice." At this moment, she looked at Aguo with some concern.

"...Indeed, there is an aura similar to Amaterasu." After studying it for a while, Aguo said: "But..."

"but?"

"It's a strange feeling. I can tell that it's a sun god who has sealed this cave, and the seal does require a sacrifice to break. But the object of the sacrifice seems to point to the depths of the seal."

Ritsuka immediately thought of the phrase "the sun is being devoured by hatred," and a thought occurred to him: "Could it be that the Sun God sealed himself in the cave? No, it must be the other way around...someone 'devouring the Sun God' has used the Sun God's divine power to seal this place!"

This conclusion isn't difficult to reach. First, one thing is clear: since the power of the Sun God seals the cave, the phrase "the Sun is being devoured by hatred" isn't just a directional reference; it's a double entendre. It's likely true that the power of the Sun God is being devoured by some entity.

It was the Middle Ages, the last glimmer of the Age of Gods, before the dawn of human enlightenment. Although no gods had walked the earth since the Common Era, occasional glimpses of their former selves remained. With the advent of the Renaissance and the Age of Exploration, these so-called "mysteries" were no longer visible to the civilized world. If Hernández had not pursued the legend of the El Dorado and intruded into the ancient rituals of the Aztecs, her ring would have remained just an ordinary ring.

Therefore, it's not impossible that the Demon Pillar chose to devour the weakened Sun God himself, or helped someone else, at this moment. Since the Sun God was being devoured, it's unlikely that He would actively seal this place to facilitate the Demon Pillar's action. The seal only exists because the devourer doesn't want to be interfered with by others.

And considering the demonic power coming from deep underground, the existence that devoured the Sun God could only be... a powerful demon?

Ritsuka immediately turned his gaze towards Mephistopheles.

"I don't know anything." The demon shrugged.

Maybe she really didn't know, but Ritsuka wouldn't easily believe the devil's words. She turned to Aguo and asked, "What kind of sacrifice do you need?"

"Sacrifices are no longer necessary."

But Aguo's answer confused Lixiang. What did "no longer needed" mean?
Does this mean that the sacrifice has been made to the sun god?

"The sacrifice that needs to be offered is 'Seven Sunsets,'" Ah Guo said. "Every time a sun sets into the sea, the power of the seal will be weakened. After the seventh sun sets, the seal will be lifted. We have been summoned for six days now, so breaking the seal will not be difficult."

Ritsuka looked at Mephisto again, only to see that the demon was still smiling, as if everything was under control.

Indeed, the clue it once gave for a puzzle was a "bleeding bird." From the perspective of Eastern mythology, couldn't this be understood as "the sun setting"?

How much inside information does this guy know?
But now was not the time to dwell on this matter. Ritsuka was convinced that even if he threatened with his real name, the demon would still just laugh it off.

"Then let's do it."

"Will you let me try?" Georgos asked. She had faced this seal the last time she came here, and at the time, she'd concluded that even unleashing her Noble Phantasm with all her might wouldn't break it. But two suns had already set since that day, so it wasn't surprising that the seal had become breakable.

"No, let Miss Aguo come." Li Xiang looked at Aguo and said, "Can I ask you?" "After all, it's something I promised a long time ago."

Even though they only knew that the seal was weakening every day, finding Aguo and Uesugi Kenshin wouldn't be in vain. At least, it would be much easier for Aguo, a miko, to break the seal than for anyone else.

A Kuni held the naginata upside down, with a white zigzag strip of paper hanging from the end. The naginata then transformed into a bladed coin, which A Kuni held in his hand and began a spear dance in honor of the gods.

As the founder of Kabuki, Okuni secularized and furthered the shrine maiden's divine dance. This elevated the dance form, which became her Noble Phantasm after she transformed into a Heroic Spirit.

"Akoku Shichiba: Izumo Aragami Kabuki"—this mysterious and beautiful dance can soothe violent gods and dispel evil spirits. To break the weak seal before you, you don't even need to release your True Name.

However, looking at the dancing shrine maiden in front of him, Ritsuka couldn't help but think -

Are there too many guys related to demons and monsters in this singularity?

As the dance gradually subsided, Ah Guo gently tapped the center of the seal with the imperial coin in his hand. Suddenly, the seal shattered like glass, and an evil wind rushed out from the inside.

"Master, be careful!"

Georgos was the first to become alert. She stepped forward, blocking Ritsuka behind her, and pointed her sword directly into the cave.

Pairs of scarlet eyes lit up like stars, approaching with endless evil energy. Then, like a dam bursting, they surged out of the cave, drowning the four people and the demon present.

These demons were large and small, with various shapes. After slashing several of them with his sword, Georgos realized that he couldn't protect Ritsuka alone, so he turned around and sent her to Uesugi Kenshin's chariot: "Send the Master away!"

"Take me with you too!"

Aguo was closer to the cave and was surrounded by demons earlier. At this moment, only one hand was sticking out of it.

The demons came too fast and she was restrained before she was ready.

Georgos unleashed his magic power, shaking off the nearby demons. He rushed in with his holy sword, grabbed Aguo, and threw him towards Uesugi Kenshin's carriage: "Hurry! There are too many of them, we can't stop them all!"

Just as she said, these demons had no intention of staying here to besiege them. The vanguard had already fled far away and headed towards the east of the cave.

Then, Ritsuka, who had picked up Aguo in the chariot, immediately heard the worst news from Mashu:

"Senior, this is bad! These demons are fleeing towards Ratvinchi Town!"

"Tell Miss Nero to let her and Hernan hold on first! We'll be back soon!"

At Li Xiang's command, the chariot rushed to the town at the fastest speed.

(End of this chapter)