"This is the place," Uncle said. His blue eyes were focused on a small church in the center of a slum on Kaguya's west side.

I descended the air and landed in front of a pair of wooden doors. They looked like they had barely been installed as the paint wasn't chipped like the rest of the building. I glanced to the left and saw a red-haired boy who reminded me of Nori painting a side of the church white.

"A kid?" I asked.

He turned to look at us. "You're princess Setsuko!" he said, putting down his brush. He jumped down and landed right next to my uncle and me. "Are you here to pray? Or are you lost? If so, I can help you out. I'll just have to tell Dad first."

"Is your dad Miki? If so, he's the one we're looking for," Uncle said.

"Yeah, he is. I'll go get him!" he said, running toward the run-down house on the left side of the church.

I'd been to this side of town before, but I'd never paid much attention to this church. Apparently, nor did the people around it as they had allowed it to deteriorate to this extent.

I jumped on the platform and started painting away.

"What are you doing?" Uncle asked.

"I'm painting," I said, keeping my eyes focused on my task.

"I can see that, but why?"

"That boy went to get his dad. Figured I would substitute for him."

"Do you even know how to paint buildings? It's not just back and forth strokes."

"I know. One has to make sure that there are no bubbles. This isn't my first time painting."

"It's not? I'm surprised that my brother let you."

I scoffed. "Who said he did?"

He laughed. "I figured as much. You were always a rebellious child, just like your uncle."

"Yeah, Dad told me how you gave up the crown to become a singer, much to grandpa's annoyance."

Uncle laughed weakly. "Sometimes, I wonder if I should've heeded his warning." He shook his head. "Forget it. There's no use thinking of what-ifs at this point."

I chuckled. "You remind me of Serra."

"I do?"

"Yes, both in appearance and in your pondering of the past. Serrano wishes to move from his past, but it keeps dragging him back."

Uncle rubbed his left shoulder. "I thought so. Our mistakes and his own hang over him like a specter, poking at him when he feels he's finally free from its grasp."

I stared at the white paint. "I think that he's managed to make some progress. The same goes for you."

"Me? How can you tell?"

I shrugged. "It's just a feeling."

"I'm back!" the boy said, running toward us. A man in white robes like those Nori liked to wear followed the child.

"Azami?" Miki asked.

Uncle waved at him. "Yo! Long time no see, old friend."

The red-haired man smiled. "It's good to see you here. You seem a lot better."

Uncle beamed. "It was all thanks to your advice."

"No need to thank me, thank the Holy Father for guiding you to this place."

How did he help my uncle?

Azami chuckled. "Indeed, I do."

Miki waved at us. "Follow me! We can talk more comfortably in the kitchen."

"I'll make some tea!" his son said, running on ahead of us. He stopped and glanced at the gallon of paint on the platform. "But first, I need to close that." Crimson wings emerged from his back. The boy took to the air and grabbed the can of paint, and slapped the tin lid back on. "There! We can go now."

Miki ruffled his hair. "Good going, Heiji. I almost forgot about that."

The boy grinned and ran on ahead.

"That kid sure is energetic," I said, chuckling.

"Yeah. That one takes after his mother's side of the family," Miki said.

Azami chuckled. "Is Hime doing well?"

"Yeah. She went out to buy groceries with Mikhail and Nata. They should be back soon."

"That's great. It's been forever since I'd seen her."

Miki frowned. "You ran off last time before you could."

Azami gulped. "I... didn't want her to see what I'd become."

"What's your connection to this Hime lady?" I asked.

"She's the daughter of my dad's cousin. Making her my second cousin. She also happens to be my estranged wife's first cousin."

Oh, so she's the cousin of Tetsu's dad.

"Is she as strong as Takeshi?" I asked.

"Hime isn't a warrior, but she can pack a mean slap," Miki said as he opened the door to his house. A single sofa and an old-fashioned television decorated the tiny room. Apart from a couple of picture frames, that was it.

I stared at one of the frames and saw Serrano surrounded by a bunch of people. My eyes widened at the sight of Reginald. Serrano knew his grandfather as a toddler? Did he forget?

"I remember this. Reginald took it on Tetsuya's third birthday," Uncle said, smiling. His smile gradually vanished.

Tetsuya's third birthday? Then it had to have been taken a year before things went downhill for him.

"A lot has happened since then," Miki said.

Uncle nodded. "Yeah."

"Thought that you were going to talk in the kitchen," Heiji said, poking his head out of an archway. "I've already started boiling the water for the tea."

"Hold your horses, Heij! We're coming," Miki said, chuckling.

"Okay!" Heiji said, dashing back over to a gas stove. This was my first time seeing one in person. All stoves I'd seen were electric.

"Everything here feels like a time capsule," I mumbled.

"Setsuko!" Uncle snapped.

I bit my tongue. Dang it, I pulled a Kohri.

Miki chuckled. "Your niece appears to have your blunt personality!"

Azami smiled. "Yeah. My oldest boy, meanwhile, is more like her dad. A crybaby."

I blinked. "Dad was a crybaby?"

"Yeah. Osa used to hang on to me like a lost puppy!" He sighed. "My little bro was so cute back in those days. Hard to believe he became so cold."

Yeah... "Dad does have a teasing side, though." I pouted. "He loved making fun of me."

Azami laughed. "I remember that! You used to get so mad that you would punch him."

I averted my gaze. Uncle's smile just now was like my dad's back then. After Mom died, I barely saw it. One could say that his joy died alongside her.

I rubbed my eyes and walked over to the table.

"Take a seat. The tea will be ready in a few minutes," Heiji said, looking over his shoulder.

"Thanks." I could really use some right now. My eyes widened. As soon as I pulled back the chair closest to me, it lost a leg.

Heiji sighed and ran over to the chair. "Sorry about that. Thought that I had fixed it." He kneeled and shook the loose foot. "The screw came loose again. Can you watch the tea for me? I'll be right back. I need to run to the closet and grab the screwdriver!"

"No need. I'll just stand."

"Oh. Okay. But it's probably best that I fix it for the next person." He dashed away.

"He sure is a diligent kid," Uncle said, laughing.

"Yeah. He's always helping me around the house." Miki lowered his head.

"What's wrong?" Uncle asked, putting a hand on the priest's shoulders.

"I wish that I could've provided the kids with a better life. Xime had to work long shifts and stay up all night studying to make it into Elitia."

I gasped Xime? Is he Ximena's dad? Of course, she said her dad was a priest, and she's part nekomata...

"I think that the hardships made them good kids," I said.

Miki smiled. "I think so too, but I don't like them working themselves to the bone. If we had a bit more money, we might've been able to make their lives a bit easier. At least Xime wouldn't have needed to work extra hours to afford her textbooks."

Ximena had to do that? Why did Serrano not help her? No, knowing him, he likely offered assistance. I scoffed. Never thought that Ximena was as prideful as me. Could that have been his type— girls that did things their own way?

My face reddened. What was I thinking? He didn't like me! The two of us were simply engaged.

"You okay?" Uncle asked. "You seem to be burning up."

I cleared my throat. "I'm just a bit warm, is all," I whispered.

"Feels chilly to me, but if you say so."

I sighed. Seemed that Dad wasn't the only one who could see right through me. Then again, I liked wearing my heart on my sleeve.

"So, what did you wish to talk to me about?" Miki asked, staring at the teapot.

"Oh right, almost forgot! We want your help in purifying the palace," Uncle said.

Ximena's father looked over his shoulder. "Purify it?"

"Yeah, an archdemon was inhabiting it. We also want to put charms around the palace to keep it away."

"So, I was right to think that place was suspicious."

"Think that you'll be able to do it? We'll pay you well," I said.

Miki turned his attention back to the teapot. "Payment was never a question. A priest who seeks money for his work isn't true to his profession. If anything, it creates a conflict of interest. We cannot serve the Holy One and Mammon at the same time."

Uncle laughed nervously. "Good thing you think that way as the one we're up against is Mammon herself."

Miki chuckled as he turned off the stove. "Yeah. I'll be right back. I need to go get my exorcism equipment. Enjoy the tea in the meantime."

"Alright," I said, walking over to grab the bronze teapot.

"Careful, it's hot," Uncle said.

"I can handle it," I said, picking up the teapot after covering my hand with a thin layer of mana. Tetsuya and Hideo's flames were a lot hotter than a teapot.

"Say, who is stronger, you or Serra?"

I chuckled. "Who do you think?"

"Assume that means you?"

I nodded. "Yeah. That isn't to say that Serrano hasn't lost to me before, but I don't think that he'll catch up to me for a while."

Uncle raised an eyebrow at me. "You think you left him behind in the dust?"

I poured tea into the cup on his side. "Well, yeah. I trained for what felt like a year in Munil." Then again, Serra was almost on par with Tetsuya after awakening Aventine, so maybe he wasn't too far behind.

"Munil, huh? My brother trained there once."

"Kaliq mentioned that too. How did he discover that realm?"

He rubbed his chin. "Think it was your mother or uncle who opened the gateway there."

"Uncle Bastion or Mom? How did they do that?"

"I'm back! Took longer to find the screwdriver than I thought," Heiji said, smiling at us.

"No problem. Want some tea? It's ready," I said, raising the teapot.

"Sure, let me just fix this first." The boy knelt down and got to work on the chair. "Say, where is my dad?"

"He went to get his exorcism gear," Uncle said.

Heiji glanced up from the chair. "Exorcism? What kind of demon or spirit is it?"

"The highest rank there is, an archdemon."

The kid's eyes widened. "An archdemon?" He stood up. "Dad's holy magic is strong, but I don't think it's enough to take care of one of those."

"Thankfully, we are only clearing the place of the remnant of its aura."

The kid sighed in relief. "Oh. That he might be able to do."

"Alright, all ready to go," Miki said, coming into the room. He carried a giant casket on his back. Did Takuya have demon-hunting gear like that too? Having him and Nori around would've been great.

"Can I come with you too, Dad?" Heiji asked as he lowered his cup of tea.

"Heiji, are you still thinking of becoming a demon hunter?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I want to be like Taku!"

"You know Takuya?" I asked.

Heiji turned to look at me. "Yup! Dad taught him some of his demon hunter techniques, such as how to restrain and seal them. Taku also helped purify a relic that was found in my elementary. A huge scary monster showed up." He lowered his head. "I tried to fight it, but I couldn't even scratch it." He raised his head and grinned at us. "That was when Taku swooped in and saved me. It took him a while, but he managed to take down the creature. It turned out to be a demon feeding on negative emotions."

"Of the students?" I asked

"Yeah, and the teachers."

"Makes sense. Kids have their own issues," Uncle said. "Actually, a lot of the stuff that one deals with as an adult can be traced back to childhood."

I nodded. "True."

"So, can I go with you?" Heiji asked, staring into his father's eyes.

The priest sighed and nodded. "Fine, but just watch. We aren't sure what the demon traces can do."

Heiji saluted his father. "Understood."

Uncle chuckled. "Let's get going then."

The three of us finished our tea and headed for the palace. As we did, we noticed dark clouds gathering overhead. The center of the storm system was the palace.

"This doesn't look like a normal storm," Uncle muttered.

"It's miasma," Miki said as he followed us from the ground. "And not just any regular one either. It's coming together to form a portal connecting this world to Cianio.

Heiji gulped. "This is bad!"

"I'll go on ahead!" I yelled, rushing past my uncle. I arrived at the palace airspace in no time, only to find the guards on the floor. Their skin was turning purple.

I intensified the mana around me to keep the miasma from affecting me.

"It's acidic," I mumbled. I transformed Alma into its weapon form and twirled it around. "I better put a stop to it now. Meteor Strike!" I threw my weapon into the air, cutting the giant cloud in half.

"Princess?" a voice called out. Nana Imelda emerged from the palace. Like the guards, her skin had turned purple.

"Nana, what happened while we were gone?"

"A vile darkness emerged from the mosaic of the Great Ancestors and the throne room."

I glanced at the mosaic; a dark aura had deformed it. The darkness continued to seep out from underneath it.

"Hanketsu is in danger," Valencia's voice whispered in my head. "Ifrit must've assimilated him."

"What?" What happened to Conrad?

My ears twitched as I felt someone behind me. I spun around and saw Teresa. Accompanying her were Etsuo, Kiara, Silas, and the Duke of Makkuroyama.

"What happened here?" Teresa asked. "Did the abysmals do this?"

"No, this doesn't look like my kind's handiwork," Etsuo said, staring at the darkness coming out of the mosaic. "This aura, it's demonic in nature."

"What are you guys doing here?" I asked.

"We were on our way to Mizu no Kin, but we stopped to see what was going on."

"Looks like our trip will have to wait," Hideaki said, watching as several bolts of red lightning struck the garden outside.

Etsuo gritted his teeth. He seemed anxious about something.

"Don't worry, we'll get the last ingredients after we deal with this," Kiara said, patting Etsuo on the shoulder.

"Ingredients for what?" I asked.

"For his partner," Silas said as he ran outside.

Roa?

"Wait, Silas! It's dangerous!" Kiara yelled, chasing after him.

I shook my head. That could wait for later. Right now, we needed to stop this portal, else we would have more than the abysmals to deal with.

**Solar Note: Hope that you enjoyed this chapter ^^. It's a bit later than my usual publications as I've been feeling under the weather since yesterday (so I couldn't finish it for an early morning release today). Still feeling a bit feverish**