Secret of the Spider Lily

Chapter 3 - Weak Pulse

"Tomioka-San, I'm glad you could make it here on such short notice"

"Of course Ubuyashiki-San. You said it was urgent, so I got here as quickly as I could."

Giyu Tomioka stood before Master Ubuyashiki. He had been summoned urgently, and arrived as quickly as he could.

"Tomioka, I have something to request of you." The Master spoke, remaining calm in his demeanor. "I want you to travel to Sunofureku-San's home to check on her family"

"What? Why would you need me to do that? Isn't Kori on a mission right now?" Giyu questioned.

"She had sent a message by crow last night, saying she had abandoned her mission. She wouldn't have sent that message unless something was wrong."

Even so, why would you need me to go check on her family if she had gone there herself?"

"Because, she had sent another crow a few hours later, saying the front door of her home had been left open."

"Giyu gasped in surprise, his heart beginning to race as his mind raced with all of the possibilities that could've happened. He pushed his thoughts aside and asked, "When did you receive that message?"

"I received it around midnight. I summoned you as soon as I heard, since I know you and Sunofureku are close."

"I see... I'm assuming you haven't heard anything since?"

"That is correct. Please head to her home immediately to see if everything is alright. I'd hate to assume the worst, but I'd rather be safe than sorry."

Giyu nodded in understanding, "I see. I'll make my way there. I'll make it there by sunrise to give a report."

Giyu walked out, making his way to Kori's home, hoping she and her family were alright.

He followed his crow for hours, making his way through the thick forest. The sun had just started to break through the trees, when Giyu finally spotted the family home. Inspecting it from the outside, the only thing that was off was the front door being wide open. He took in a deep breath, and stepped foot inside the home.

What he saw inside, made his heart shatter. It was something he wished he hadn't seen.

Giyu stared in horror, seeing the bloody corpses of Kori's parents and twin sister. His heart weighed heavily seeing his friend's family in this condition.

He kneeled down to check everyone's pulses, going to each person one by one. He started with the father, not feeling any activity from his heart. He then went over to the mother, and again, felt nothing. He finally walked over to Yuki, checking her pulse.

"What the..." he muttered, moving his hand to a different location to feel for a pulse, and he felt his heart benign to pound from the sudden rush of adrenaline, "She's... still alive."

He had felt her pulse on both her wrist and neck, but it was faint. He rushed outside, looking for his crow, seeing it resting on a tree branch nearby. He called it over, then spoke in a commanding tone, "Send this message to Ubuyashiki-San immediately. We need the Kakushi here right away. Two people have been found dead, and Kori's sister Yuki is hanging on by a thread. Have Shinobu prepare a bed at the Butterfly Mansion. Yuki is in a critical condition and needs immediate medical attention."

The crow flew off into the sky towards Ubuyashiki's home. Giyu knew the only thing he could do now was wait for the Kakushi to arrive. He went over to Yuki to inspect her wounds, but noticed something strange about her appearance. Kori had told him she had an identical twin, but something about her hair was slightly different from Kori's. Yuki's hair had an icy blue tint towards the ends.