With all seven magic orbs finally in their possession, they decided to head straight to the Central Holy Land to summon the deity, determined to avoid any further complications.
"What do we do now?" the ninja asked coldly, standing before a stone sacrificial altar beneath a massive vermilion torii gate.
Without a word, Himiko stepped forward. She took out the Summoning Banner and thrust it into a circular hole on the altar. The ground immediately began to tremble. A moment later, a six-pointed magic hexagram emerged from the earth, encompassing the entire giant torii. At each point of the star was a circular indentation. Que Tang immediately signaled Himiko to produce the six magic orbs.
Taking the orbs, Que Tang walked the perimeter and placed each one into its respective socket. She gave Himiko a nod from a distance. The priestess then walked to the front of the altar, knelt with her back to it, and assumed a posture of "maiden’s prayer." In the next instant, her hair flashed and transformed into a deep purple.
Standing guard nearby, the Hero cried out in adorable shock, "Th-this... isn't this the Demon King who turned me into a slime? Himiko, you... you’re the Demon King?"
The young priestess, who had been piously closing her eyes, suddenly snapped them open. Her pupils had already turned the same deep purple as her long hair. She gazed at the Hero expressionlessly, her voice revealing a startling truth. "Outworlder, you hid in the shadows and peeped while I was purifying myself in the bath. I gave you the chance to leave on your own, yet you remained, shameless and brazen. Turning you into a slime was merely a small punishment. In light of your hard work collecting the seven magic orbs, I shall now restore you to your original form."
With a wave of her hand, Aotian the Slime was enveloped in white light, returning to his human shape.
The restored Hero looked at his hands in pleasant surprise. Completely ignoring the facts the priestess had just revealed, he turned excitedly to the priestess and the ninja. "Himiko, Tang, look! I’m human again! Oh, right—my true name is actually Hinata Aotian."
The ninja gave him a flat look. As expected of a chuunibyou protagonist, he was wearing a high school uniform even after turning back into a human.
"Himiko, I apologize for my previous rudeness. Please, continue praying to the deity for help," the protagonist said with a bright, energetic smile.
The priestess ignored the Hero entirely, staring fixedly at the ninja instead. Only after Que Tang nodded did she close her eyes again to resume her interrupted ritual.
Himiko felt the power of the world converging upon her in response to her prayer. Once her body was brimming with magic, she opened her mouth to chant an incantation: "Darkness beyond blackest pitch, deeper than the deepest night, drifting in the sea of chaos... I call upon thee here. To all the foolish things that stand before me, combine our power to grant them an equal destruction!"
As the chant ended, a pillar of light descended from the heavens onto the altar.
Himiko suddenly lost all strength and collapsed to the side, falling into a pair of waiting arms. She forced her eyes open to look. "Ninja-sama..."
Hinata Aotian had also reached out to catch the priestess, but seeing the tender atmosphere between them, he merely assumed they were sisters with a deep bond. He rejoiced inwardly at the harmony within his "harem" and pulled his hand back, unbothered by being ignored.
"Good work." Que Tang, who had already been trained into a loyal hound of a ninja by Toyo’s domineering aura, still didn't dare to be careless even though Himiko had now merged with her. After speaking coldly, she lifted the girl in a bridal carry and stood to the side to watch the pillar of light.
The light concentrated on the Summoning Banner. Suddenly, the banner sank into the altar, and the altar itself began to rise slowly.
The three of them stood by as the subterranean portion of the altar rose above the ground, revealing an entrance. The altar only stopped ascending once it was level with the top of the torii gate, at which point the entrance was fully visible.
"This... could this be the entrance to the Ruins of Gods and Demons?" Hinata Aotian mused, rubbing his chin. "In that case, perhaps the method to defeat the Demon King is hidden inside. Let's go!" He took the lead, stepping with his long legs into the dark, lightless passage.
Hinata Aotian considered himself the man of the group, so he walked in front the whole way. Himiko, still in Que Tang’s arms, wanted to get down and walk, but as soon as she was set down, her legs buckled, and she nearly fell. She had no choice but to continue troubling the ninja.
She cast a spell to light the lamps along the passage walls, then leaned obediently into the ninja’s embrace, looking up at Que Tang’s soft jawline.
Unexpectedly, they encountered no traps or enemies along the way, only the musty scent of a long-sealed space. Soon, they emerged from the passage into a towering hall.
The high walls were covered in murals depicting gods in battle, and finally, a figure shrouded in a cloak with an obscured face, standing tall above the fallen bodies of all the deities.
"Is this cloaked person the true Demon King?" Hinata Aotian’s eyes widened.
Que Tang frowned slightly, feeling concerned about the mission to defeat the Demon King. If the opponent could defeat all the gods single-handedly, how could a few mere mortals hope to win?
Was her mission about to fail?
While the ninja and the hero were awestruck by the murals, only Himiko noticed the object on a distant stone table.
She signaled the ninja to put her down, then stumbled toward the table, staring blankly at the Summoning Banner resting on a rack.
Ever since she stepped into these ruins, she had felt something calling to her—a feeling that grew stronger the deeper they went. Upon entering this hall, her heart began to throb with unprecedented intensity. Once she saw the banner on the stone table, she couldn't look away.
The expressionless girl’s tension was only visible through her slowly extending, trembling right hand. The faint glimmers of light on the banner seemed to pulse with joy at her approach. Himiko could feel its happiness; they were like old friends who had known each other forever, perfectly in sync.
The moment her hand touched the banner, a burst of silver light suddenly erupted, flooding the entire hall.
Que Tang immediately raised her hand to shield her eyes from the blinding glare. What was happening now? What had that girl done this time?
"Tang, are you okay? Where's Himiko?" The Hero had appeared by her side at some point, asking about their situation.
"I'm fine. I don't know," Que Tang replied coldly, her eyes fixed forward. As the light faded, they saw Himiko floating in mid-air, surrounded by silver radiance, her body curled in a fetal position like an infant in a womb.
"Himiko!" Hinata Aotian shouted.
As if responding to his cry, the silver light flared again. The priestess’s deep purple hair instantly turned silver-gray, and her white top and red hakama transformed into a deep, ink-like black.
Himiko snapped her eyes open and stretched her limbs, standing tall in the air as she gazed down at them coldly.
"...This isn't what I think it is, is it, Guide?" Que Tang, who had been silently observing the situation, finally called out to the Little Mushroom in disbelief.
"It is exactly what Host thinks it is, meow~"
"So this priestess doesn't just have a split personality, she has a third transformation personality? How is she this flashy?" Que Tang once again felt that her future was bleak and that the author harbored deep malice.
"Meow~ The other personality inside the priestess was originally a shadow left behind when the Demon King split. As the shadow recovered its strength, it developed its own consciousness and became another personality within Himiko."
"...This author must be a split personality themselves. But honestly, if this story were written seriously, it would be pretty good."
"Meow~ But the Great Author dropped the story halfway. Currently, the plot is stuck right after the Demon King appears. The Great Author said they were going out to 'gather materials' and was never seen again, meow-hoo-hoo~"
"Fine, authors these days have less and less integrity... By the way, is 'meow-hoo-hoo' supposed to be crying?" Que Tang asked curiously.
"Yes, meow~"
Hinata Aotian furrowed his brows, glaring at the girl who no longer looked like Himiko. He demanded loudly, "Who are you? Where is Himiko?"
The girl focused her gaze toward the sound, her silver pupils reflecting Hinata Aotian’s figure. "Who... am I?" Her gaze suddenly turned sharp. "Since you have asked with such sincerity, I shall grant you the mercy of an answer! Listen well: I am the Jinjiang Harmony Demon King of the Thirty-Three Heavens, Toyosuki-iri-hime-no-mikoto."
"What? Then where is Himiko? Where have you hidden her!" the Hero shouted in rage.
"Himiko?" Toyosuki-iri-hime tilted her head. "Do you mean my avatar, the priestess Himiko who was fostered at the Shrine of the Eight Million Gods? She has already returned to my true self. Your questions are finished; now it is my turn to ask."
Suddenly, Que Tang and the Hero were bound by a white light, rendered immobile as they were lifted into the air.
The Harmony Demon King narrowed her eyes. "Why have you awakened me?"
"We came to defeat you and save the world!" Que Tang was about to speak, but the Hero next to her beat her to it with a provocative shout.
Que Tang shook her head, her head beginning to throb.
Sure enough, Toyosuki-iri-hime’s expression shifted, and the white light binding them tightened. "I have slept for a thousand years. To protect this world, I separated a portion of my soul and placed it in the shrine before I fell into slumber. Why, after a thousand years, has another ignorant fool come to wake me?"
"You really are just like the old man said—you try to deceive us by posing as the world's protector," Hinata Aotian retorted. "But I won't believe you, you Demon King who intends to harm the world! I, the Hero Hinata Aotian, will definitely defeat you and save Himiko and this world!"
Que Tang’s face was covered in metaphorical black lines; she felt she was doomed. How could there be such a chuunibyou idiot who couldn't read the room?
Toyosuki-iri-hime ignored the Hero’s shouting and turned to look at the female ninja who hadn't said a word. "And you are..." Before the words 'who' could leave her mouth, Que Tang’s loosened mask suddenly fell, revealing her face. The Demon King’s pupils constricted. "Tang," she murmured to herself. The Demon King closed her eyes in silence for a long moment. When she opened them again, she suddenly waved her hand, tossing the Hero out of the ruins and back to the village outside the forest.
Que Tang floated slowly toward Toyosuki-iri-hime.
"Ninja... no, Outworlder, what is your intent?" The Demon King stared directly into Que Tang’s eyes with her silver gaze. "However, regardless of your intent, do not think of ever leaving my side."
***
