Sea of the Wind, Shore of the Maze, Chapter 7

what should we do?" Risai was a little uncertain.
    "Why don't we go in for a look?" said Gyousou with his back to the others, and then turned around to  look at Taiki. "What do you think?"
    "Ah... I don't know."
    "Then let's go inside and look around."
    Risai walked into the cavern. "I'll walk in front. Sir Gyousou, please watch over the Kou."
    "All right."
    Taiki had some reservations and looked up at Gyousou. "Um..."
    "Scared?"
    He was originally going to shake his head, but then Taiki decided to speak honestly. "A little..."
    "What's wrong?" Risai had already walked to the turn.
    "We're going in now. Kou, you must not leave my side."
    "Yes..."
    - - - - -
    It seemed as if the tunnel passed under the mountainous crags. The path extended slowly downward,  twisting and turning, as if it had no end. Though there was no wind, their flame wavered, which meant that  there was air circulation. Though this path turned so much that it was hard to travel, there were no branches  to distract them.
    "It's fairly long..." Gyousou's voice echoed throughout the inside of the cave. Risai, who was in the  front, stopped walking.
    "There's no more road in front of us."
    Looking in Risai's direction, there seemed to be a small open area beyond her. Except, the ground of  the open area was lower than the path of the subterranean tunnel they had walked through. The difference in  the elevation of the two was almost Taiki's height.
    Risai jumped down and looked around this space, uneven because it was piled with rocks.
    "Strange... There's nothing here."
    "That shouldn't be. There's a bad smell inside this cave."
    Taiki crinkled his eyebrows. A stench permeated the air just as Gyousou said this.
    The smell wasn't so bad that it disgusted people. It was just enough to be bothersome.
    In this rocky area, Risai constantly stepped up and down to get through it. At the next moment, Taiki  saw her squatting next to a sloped, prominently smooth rock. After her figure moved farther and farther  away, Taiki began to feel a strong anxiety.
    "Ah! There's another tunnel over here that goes further down."

    "Where?" Gyousou picked Taiki up and jumped down into the open area. He stood on a piece of rock  and looked where Risai was pointing.
    --It was a dark cave.
    "It looks like...there's something inside." Taiki murmured to himself.
    "Hm?" Both Gyousou and Risai looked over at Taiki. He felt a chill running up his body from the  soles of his feet. His heartbeat quickened and he became very distressed.
    "...Let's go back... Over there... It's not safe."
    "What's wrong?"
    Taiki grabbed Gyousou's hand and reached out with his other toward Risai.
    "I don't like that place."
    Risai and Gyousou exchanged looks. Risai smiled and placed her hand at the edge of the cave.
    "I just want to make sure whether anything is inside the cave."
    "No! No, don't go over there!" Taiki was about to go forward and stop Risai, but after he took only  one step, something suddenly appeared on the rocks and blocked him from going any further.
    "You can't go over there!"
    "Sanshi!"
    The abrupt appearance of the nin'you caused Gyousou to immediately clutch the hilt of his sword,  preparing to draw it. But then, Taiki let go of his hand and hugged the nin'you in front of him, at which point  he realized that this nin'you was the nyokai that Taiki had mentioned before.
    Risai was also very surprised, widening her eyes at the emergence of the white nin'you. Her hand was  still placed upon the side of the cave as she turned the upper portion of her body toward Taiki, and just then,  something suddenly took a hold of her hand.
    Risai didn't even have time to react. She only heard the child next to Gyousou cry out.
    "...Risai!"
    Unable to hide the look of shock on her face, Risai's body was pulled into the cave. They saw her  struggling legs just as they turned to look, and before they knew it, she was gone.
    "...Risai!!"
    As if in response to Taiki's desperate cries, a scream came from deep inside the cave.
    Gyousou rushed toward the cave into which Risai had been swallowed up.
    The dark tunnel extended downward, as if it had no end.
    "Sir Gyousou!"
    "Sanshi, please take the Kou away from here and ride Keito back to Mt. Hou!"
    Sanshi nodded. However, Taiki had already run to Gyousou's side.
    "Taiki, you cannot go!" Sanshi leapt forward and held onto the child.

    "But, Madam Risai, she..."
    Gyousou's glare stopped Taiki who had been pointing at the cave. "Entrust the