Nagisa’s jaw dropped. “Are you serious? The world of spirits? Such a place exists?”
Seiho nodded. “Mount Osore is directly connected to the afterlife. The veil to the other side is thin here. If I stay on top of the castle and look in the distance I can see Lake Usori and beyond it, Sanzu River which takes spirits to the afterlife. Gates for crossing over can be unlocked from any location, but Mount Osore is the one place where the gates are always open.”
“Are ghosts roaming this mountain? Passing by going to the afterlife?”
“Yes, but they’re not visible to you, not all of them at least. It’s clear how thin the veil is here since you saw myreiryoku—my spiritual energy.”
“The purple wind,” Nagisa said, remembering the shimmering tendrils, swirling around Seiho as he played the flute. “Why move the entire castle? Wouldn’t it have been easier to barricade it with spells and leave it where it was?”
The question made Seiho close his eyes and rub a hand over his face. “It was a mistake,” he said, his voice low and shaky. “I thought moving it to the world of spirits would keep the jikininki there. I pulled back the barricade, only protecting myself, and attempted to move the castle back without the jikininki. But the castle didn’t budge and the monster scratched at the barricade instead of following Sanzu River.”
“Is that what spirits are supposed to do?”
“Yes. Once they see the river they’re compelled to follow it and not stray away. The jikininki wouldn’t even look at it. And though I have power over spirits in the world of the living, I can’t force them to do anything on the other side.” Seiho sighed. “This is when I made the deal.”
Nagisa’s eyes widened. “With your heart?”
Seiho nodded. “After I extended my barricade back and trapped him inside again with me, I attempted to return the castle to the village. For some reason, it didn’t work, so I placed it on the little hill behind Osore-zan Buddhist Temple. The lord was angered and attacked me, plunging its nails into my chest.”
Seiho sat up and tugged on the collar of his kimono shirt, pulling it down his shoulder and baring the left side of his chest. Five elongated, thin marks covered his pectoral. The skin was a bit crinkled and lighter in color. Nagisa rose too and traced a finger over one of the marks.
“As I struggled under his grasp,” Seiho said, “I could see my spell weakening. If I died at that moment, the jikininki would’ve been free among the living. It hesitated to kill me and I thought the lord must’ve had lingering feelings for me even in death. So I said, I’ll give you my heart and in exchange let me stay here and serve you. When I die, you can take my heart. That’s how I got into this mess.”
“Sounds like a ruse. You can’t die, so he can’t get your heart.”
“Indeed. The shifting walls and the maze of hallways are under the jikininki’s curse and moving the building between the two realms falls under my control. Though I can keep the jikininki in here, I can’t stop living humans from coming inside and exploring. But few people come here at night, so I alternate between holding the castle on the other side during daylight when this area is crowded and keeping it here during nighttime. I’m not strong enough to keep it only on the other side.”
“Have you attempted to kill it again?”
“Multiple times with no success. Last time I tried, it made the jikininki so furious that it ordered me to clean the path up to the castle as punishment. For a while I hoped someone would find me and help me. But it never happened. And the more I kept the castle in the afterlife, the faster time passed for me. I only aged when I was outside the barricade of spells.”
“But you told me you can’t leave it.”
Seiho averted his gaze. “I lied. I’m sorry. If I leave it and I start aging again, I’ll die and the jikininki will be free to roam among the living.”
“That’s not such a bad idea. Let others take care of it.”
“No! This is my mistake. My burden to bear and no one else’s.” Seiho clasped his fingers in his lap, twirling his thumbs. “The world is changing, advancing fast. I come from an era so far away in the past that even if I somehow manage to escape this curse I… don’t belong here. I wouldn’t know where to go and what to do.” He glanced at Nagisa. “I’ve accepted my fate. I’ll remain here with the monster for eternity.”
Nagisa took Seiho’s hands in his. “If this creature is killed, then you’ll be free, won’t you?”
“I think so, yes.”
“Then I’ll get you out.”
“Nagisa, I…”
“Don’t you want to see the world? To not live trapped in here? Not clean bones after a monster?” He paused, his grip tightening on Seiho’s hands. “Maybe to love again?”
Seiho’s lips trembled and he released a slow breath. “I want that very much. I want to live and age and die like a normal person. I don’t want to be alone anymore.”
“That’s all I needed to hear.” Nagisa smiled.
~ * ~
They lay cocooned in the warmth of the duvet, their legs entwined, sharing slow kisses. Among all the thoughts swirling in Nagisa’s mind, one prevailed: he had to come up with a plan to get Seiho out of the castle. Forever. Since Seiho couldn’t kill the creature as they were bound, they had to find a way around that. Some loophole Seiho overlooked.
“You’re lost in thought,” Seiho said. He rested his head on one hand, trailing the other over Nagisa’s chest.