cover art by h0pe.lez
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'How irritating...'
The King of Curses remains stoic where he sits, taking in the sight of his familiar innate domain. He sighs for the millionth time, seeing through Yuji's perspective all throughout the day. But rather than being worried about his vessel, his mind was occupied by another matter.
'That Sugawara bastard claimed to have killed all of them in one single night...'
In his previous life as a King of Curses, words flooded about the great massacre that Sugawara Michizane led. All sorts of sorcerers gathered and aided this massacre. It became quite the feat, as the word spread rapidly like wildfire. Sukuna wouldn't forget the amusement he felt when his servant told him. As much as he would have wished to have been the one to kill Mikoto Andō and his people for the utter shame they put him through...regardless he was satisfied by the outcome.
'For once I thought that Suguwara bastard did something useful...'
And so, Sukuna was free to reign the lands without any fear of encountering those wretched eyes of the Andō. And he expected so for the next hundreds of years.
But now...
Sukuna narrows, feeling himself grow rather annoyed. He takes back his compliment from years ago.
"That bastard..." Sukuna clicks his tongue, "...He was useless after all,"
Now Sukuna wasn't to appear so easily since there was an Andō around, one who inherited those eyes he despised so much. And since she has allied herself with Gojo Satoru in his plan to take Sukuna, he had to be careful not to be around when she is nearby. Just thinking about hiding behind his vessel made Sukuna churn.
He reaches to grab his head, brows wrinkling as he thought.
'Didn't they say that bastard couldn't have kids..?' Sukuna was referring to Mikoto Andō, the very first heir. At a young age, he was appointed as the head leader of the Andō after losing his parents during a civil war. Around the time Sukuna encountered him, Mikoto was only 23. And it was common for nobility to already be married with kids. But there were rumors speculating that his fiancee left him for being incompetent and unable to give children.
And if Suguwara massacred the entire clan and claimed Mikoto's head proudly, how could there have been a direct descendant of Mikoto?
Just then, Sukuna envisions a sudden flashback. Two faces of slave children that he saw in the Red Light District back when he was looking for slaves. At that moment he found himself ignoring those kids that gave off this eerie feeling. Sukuna lets out a devious grin as every little mystery began to fit the puzzle.
Sukuna chuckles, "Of course...I should have known that bastard wouldn't have gone out so easily~"
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Withering eyes peer upwards at the blue sky, eyes lost in the shallow clouds that move swiftly with the breeze.
'Huh...where am I?'
The wind picks up, ruffling their hair. Just then an older woman with a traditional kimono appears before them, her expression strained with anger as she pointed her finger at them, "Why are you just standing there like a fool? Go fetch us some water!!"
On command, the person began to walk a certain path, yet somewhat unfamiliar.
'Wait...what's going on?'
They looked down, seeing their own bare feet covered in bruises and cuts. Their hand is occupied with an empty wooden bucket. Despite their conflicted thoughts, they continued to walk down the rough path. There were no sights of any kind of roads, just the breathtaking sight of the untouchable forest. They felt a sense of comfort.
Up ahead, there was a wide river that spread across. There was no sight of it ever ending. As the person approaches the vast river, they settle down the bucket beside them. They comfortably sit, running their rough hands through the clear waters.
'These hands...they aren't mine...'
In their conflicting thoughts, the person leans forward towards the river, now their face becoming visibly in the reflection of the waters. It was a young man, and despite his dirtied complexion, he was no doubt beautiful. His skin was pale like the snow, his eyes like melting honey, with his hair a light shade of purple. His long eyelashes curved upwards, with two singular beauty marks under both his eyes.
'Who is this person...?'
Despite their confused thoughts, the expression reflected on their faces did not waver.
'....this isn't my memory...so then whose?'
Just then, their vision began to blur, a white flash blinding them all of a sudden. Closing their eyes, they prepared for whatever impact was to come. But nothing of that sort happens. Now...hazel eyes open slowly.
Haruka Andō found herself standing, blinking as she looks around the empty white abyss, there were four strange doors that stood around her. Beyond these doors, there seems no end of anything, a continuous look without stopping. She felt an odd sense of nostalgia, though she kept herself on guard with this unfamiliar place.
She murmurs to herself, unsure, "What is this place exactly...an innate domain...?"
Then, Haru hears something behind her, and quickly she turns. Her eyes widen when she comes face to face with the stranger before her.
"You...!"
There stood the young man she just saw in that vision from earlier, his honey-like eyes looking straight at her. His light purple locks shimmer and his pale skin is without any blemishes. His loose yukata hung on his body, a red color that was in contrast with everything that surrounded them. He is beautiful with no comparison that he felt inhuman.
'He's beautiful...' Haru mellows, unable to say anything as she continues to look at him.
"You must be the current Heir..." His voice was deep, in contrast to his pretty face. It appeared that the young man analyzed her quietly, tilting his head with thought. Haru felt rather intimidated by his gaze.
"Hmmm...I never expected you to be a woman..." He hums, thinking. He continues to stare at Haru with a contemplating look before he visibly shrugs.
Haru finally speaks, a bit startled by his appearance, "...who are you?"
He tilts his head downwards as he introduces himself, "My name is Hikone...the 4th user of the King's Eyes," Seeing his courteous greeting, Haru felt obliged to introduce herself as well, "Haruka..."
The young man now looks around, "Just as you said, this is our innate domain. We call it the Hall of the Kings,"
"Hall of the Kings?" Haru whispers, the words coming out like some sort of spell.
"All the past King's Eyes users remain here in this space, a haven that we call our home," Hikone begins, now taking a few steps towards her, "Often, we come to this place to meditate,"
Haru turns when he passes her, she feels bound to follow him. They didn't seem like they were heading anywhere since there was nothing but an empty abyss of white ahead of them. They walked as Hikone continues to speak.
"The King's Eyes is a rare trait, and not every Andō is worthy to inherit it,"
'Worthy?' Haru frowns at such words, 'And what makes me worthy exactly?'
Hikone eyes her, seemingly reading her expression well, "We do not know how we get chosen. Since ████████ ██ ███ ███ ███ ███████ ██ ████ ████ ██████ ███ ████████ ████████,"
Haru becomes stiff upon his words. She became even more shocked when Hikone continued to talk without a thought. Haru was not fully prepared for this unexpected information, the first time ever heard any of this. Yet, it somewhat made sense with all the things that have been happening.
"All this time..." Haru presses her fingers against her head, memories of Hikone still fresh in her mind. It was as if she was the one who experienced every little detail of that life. That is when another question surged, though before she can have a say, Hikone spoke first.
"I didn't expect you to be so shocked," Hikone tilts his head, and a rather confused look states over him.
"Just how much do you know exactly?" Hikone asked, his gaze narrow at her for answers. Haru blinks at his question, unsure what to exactly say. Was she supposed to already know about their history? She became skeptical.
"How much am I supposed to know...?" Haru is careful, feeling a bit tense with the way Hikone stared at her. He almost seemed hostile.
Hikone continues to observe her, his expression hard to read as he stays quiet. Haru became unnerved by his unexpected silence. Did she say something wrong? He then closes his eyes, letting out a soft sigh escape from his lips.
"Nevermind...knowing nothing is for the better," Hikone mutters, though it was unsure whether it was to himself or to Haru. And he did not let her speak since he goes back to his walk, not waiting for her response.
"Since you only were able to meet me, means that you haven't reached your fullest potential," Hikone began, his walk quick. Haru manages to walk side to side again, staring over at him, "We will let time be its guidance, soon you will be able to know and meet all,"
Haru reckons, "And how long will that take?"
Hikone stops, turning toward her, she has yet to get used to his beautiful complexion, "For as long as it needs to take,"
That wasn't quite the answer she was looking for, and it didn't properly tell her how long it would take for her to understand her purpose as an Andō. Haru eyes Hikone again, she had this gut feeling that he wasn't being completely honest with her. And it was more prominent when he questioned her current knowledge.
'It seems that I won't be getting answers anytime soon,' Haru muses to herself, looking around the empty abyss. No matter how much she looked, nothing appeared. An innate domain that was blank like a canvas.
'Who...exactly are we?' She looks down at her palm as if searching for her answers there. But she can only speculate from now on. As to what Hikone has said, time will be her guidance. But for how long will that exactly be?
Lost in her own thoughts, Hikone glances over at Haru, his eyes seemingly doubtful but he says nothing. The two finally reach back towards the 4 strange doors, back to where they both met from the start. It was a long silence, her lips parted to speak but she felt herself lose focus.
"We will meet again here..." Hikone spoke softly, as he watches Haru lose her focus. She wanted to say more, but her time was already up, it was time for her to go back.
"We will all be waiting..."
And Just like that, Haru's body disappears into particles, and she was no longer inside the innate domain. Hikone stood there with a blank expression, his cold eyes glancing over the 4 doors that stood beside him. He could almost feel them mocking him. Hikone spoke again, but this time...it wasn't for himself.
"Seems like our time is almost up..."
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Thank you for reading!!