And despair began to spread like wildfire.
Elsewhere
"Master! We've got a situation!"
The shout snapped Shinomiya Gan'an out of his hazehe was connected to a breathing machine just to stay alive.
Moments later
A frail, elderly man with pale skin and medium-length hair sat at the head of the room, leaning heavily on a cane.
Breathing tube still attached to his nose, he looked like just sitting upright took every ounce of strength he had.
This man was the head of the Shinomiya family. Shinomiya Gan'an.
And yet
Despite holding massive wealth and being the head of one of Japan's most powerful families, he now looked utterly powerless.
It seemed money really couldn't buy everything.
Sweat rolled down his foreheadShinomiya Gan'an couldn't hide how rattled he was.
Behind him, every member of the Shinomiya family had their heads bowed, trembling in silence.
The whole place was dead quietfrozen in fear.
And the reason for this?
Was the woman who had just casually walked through the front gates like she owned the place.
And also
"ROOOAAR!!"
Outside, that hellhound continued to breathe waves of infernal heat, distorting the air itself.
"You've heard of the Lynn Group, haven't you?"
Yukinoshita Haruno sat at the head seat, calm and collected.
Shinomiya Gan'an stiffened.
Wasn't that?
The up-and-coming company everyone was talking about?
And because its assets were incredibly rare and valuable, lots of people had been eyeing it.
The Shinomiya family included.
ButHe never expected the real owner to come knocking like this!
Especially with such insane power!
"My deepest apologies. The Shinomiya family acted out of line," Gan'an said immediately, bowing his head.
Even on the brink of death, the old man knew when to yield. He went full dogeza without hesitation.
If he'd known Lynn's group was backed by the supernatural, he never would've even thought of touching them.
No matter how strong the Shinomiyas were they were just human.
And that hellhound? Yeah, not a joke.
Behind him, all the family members followed his lead and dropped into dogeza.
The flawless dogeza once offered to them by othersthey now performed it themselves.
Haruno paused for a moment, surprised.
She hadn't expected the head of a giant financial empire like the Shinomiyas to fold that quickly.
She had come in ready to cause a scene, but now it all felt a bit boring.
With a wave of her hand, she muttered, "I'm not some villain, y'know."
"I'll give you a day. Prepare the full transfer paperwork for all Shinomiya assets."
With that, she stood up.
"From today onward the Shinomiya family will be just a servant of the Lynn Group."
"!!!"
Gan'an and the rest of the family snapped their heads up.
"Servant"
"Our entire assets?!"
Gan'an's voice shook. Was their glorious house really going to be handed over just like that?
"How about"
Haruno's voice turned icy. "You got a problem with that?"
The moment the words left her mouth
BOOOOM!!
The hellhound outside flared up, the infernal flames erupting even higher!
The entire compound was drowned in blistering heat!
The air itself began to ripple and twist under the pressure.
Gan'an's eyes widened in horror at the hellish scene.
And then
"AAAAAHHHHH!!"
Several family members screamed in agony, bodies writhing, faces contorted in pain!
Even Gan'an's body twitchedhis skin prickled like it was being burned.
Everyone else winced, some clutching their heads as if their very souls were being scorched.
Gan'an gritted his teeth and shouted, "We submit! The Shinomiya family is willing to become your servant!"
One show of power was all it took for him to fully grasp reality.
That thing outside? There was no way the Shinomiyas could deal with something like that.
Haruno looked down at him, expression blank.
"This is fire from hell," she said coldly. "Only those stained with heavy sins will feel its pain."
"I'll let this fire test every member of the Shinomiya family."
"Only those who survive its judgment deserve to live."
Gan'an's mouth fell open, but before he could speak again
"Oh, right."
Haruno suddenly tapped her forehead, then chuckled, "To be honest, I was planning on dealing with the Shinomiya family through normal business means."
"But"
"You have such a lovely daughter."
Gan'an's eyes bulged in shockhe instantly understood what she meant.
.
.
.
Hellfire Trial
Shinomiya Residence
Silence.
It filled every corner of the Shinomiya estate.
Yukinoshita Haruno had left. And she'd taken that terrifying Hellhound with her.
All she left behind was a black flame.
But every single member of the Shinomiya family still seemed stuck in that moment of overwhelming fear.
Their eyes were blank, their faces pale with dread.
Shinomiya Gan'an leaned on his cane, face as white as a sheet, lips trembling slightly.
Even though the person sitting at the head of the room had already left, he remained seated off to the side, deep in thought.
Haruno's last words echoed in his ears.
"Kaguya, huh"
It was a while before he finally muttered his daughter's name under his breath.
Closing his eyes briefly, a wave of bitterness welled up in his chest.
He knew his youngest daughter's personality all too well.
Offending people here and there was just something that came naturally to her.
But this timethis time she messed with someone the Shinomiya family absolutely couldn't afford to cross.
And yet...
Gan'an didn't completely blame Kaguya for what happened.
Because in the end, the kind of person she turned out to be was a direct result of the way their family raised her.
Besides... Even if Kaguya hadn't been involved, with how the Shinomiya family kept expanding, a clash with the Lynn Group was bound to happen sooner or later.
Maybe it was actually a good thing this confrontation happened now, before things got truly irreversible.
If the Shinomiya family ever did something they couldn't take back while trying to go against the Lynn Group
That would be a disaster they'd never recover from.
And by then, Haruno showing up with that Hellhound, forcing them to submit and become a vassal family, wouldn't even be an option anymore.
Still
Just thinking about handing over the family's entire empire like thatit made his heart ache.
The frustration and suffocating helplessness were piling up inside him.
"Cough, cough!"
Gan'an couldn't help but cough violently.
"Father, are you alright?" Shinomiya Un'yo quickly stepped forward, patting him on the back.
Gan'an raised a hand. "Still got a few more years left in me."
Un'yo's face was complicated. Gritting his teeth, he asked, "Father, do we really have to"
"Un'yo!"
Gan'an cut him off coldly. "Don't even think about it."
Un'yo opened his mouth but ended up swallowing his words in silence.
But the frustration didn't go away. Not even a little.
Sure, he didn't hold much power in the family, but he was still the patriarch's son.
He was born with a silver spoon in his mouthwhen had he ever had to swallow his pride like this?
But then he thought about that monsterthe Hellhoundand couldn't stop the shiver that ran down his spine.
Gan'an understood what was going through his son's head.
But...
The moment Haruno stepped into the Shinomiya estate, the outcome was already set in stone.
Especially Gan'anhe understood all too well.
He had long been aware of the hidden side of the world. Which was exactly why he'd made preparations.
The Shinomiya estate was protected by a special formation he'd bought at a ridiculous price from the Onmyoji Bureau.
Because of it, the estate had remained a "safe zone" amidst a society crawling with cursed spirits.
That formation was supposedly strong enough to defend against Grade A threats.
And yet...Gan'an let out a long sigh.
When Haruno showed up with that Hellhound, the formation might as well have not even existed.
It didn't do a damn thing.
No, actually...
Gan'an looked down at the cracked purple stone embedded in his cane.
It had all happened in an instant.
The whole formation shattered just like that.
A formation that could withstand a Grade A cursed spirit didn't even last a second.
Did that mean Haruno or that Hellhound had already reached Grade S?
NoMaybe even stronger.
Stronger than even the top experts at the Onmyoji Bureau.
That's what made Gan'an realize just how hopeless it was.
When you're facing something even the Bureau's elites can't handle, what chance does a corporate family like the Shinomiyas have?
On top of that...
He wasn't even sure if Haruno represented the full strength of the Lynn Group.
Who's to say there wasn't something even scarier behind her?
So yeah
Backing down was their only option.
At the very least, that way, some members of the Shinomiya bloodline might survive.
Yesonly some.
Gan'an looked at the black Hellfire Haruno left behind.
Only those who could endure the burning of that Hellfire were allowed to live.
The message couldn't have been clearer.
And the way she'd left only the flame behind spoke volumes about her confidence.
She wasn't scared at all of the Shinomiya family retaliating.
That kind of attitude practically dared them to resistgo find outside help, run if you want.
Or
Walk straight into the Hellfire, pass the trial, and become one of Lynn's subordinate families.
The choice she gave them only made Gan'an feel worse.
That wasn't just domination.
That was psychological warfare.
Gan'an's cloudy eyes flickered with helplessness.
Ask for help? Run away?
He had no such delusions.
Unless the entire Onmyoji Bureau stepped in, there was no hope.
And honestly, even the mighty Shinomiya family didn't have the kind of value that'd make the Bureau go all in.
SoThat's it.
Gan'an made up his mind.
Knock knock!
He tapped the floor with his cane, snapping the rest of the family out of their daze.
"Un'yo," he said flatly, "Start preparing the family for the Hellfire trial."
Un'yo flinched, fists clenching tightly, eyes full of resentment.
With those words, the fate of the Shinomiya family was sealed.
"Understood"
His shoulders slumped as he replied.
He didn't have the courage to go against it.
Besides
He wasn't even the heir of the family. Let Shinomiya Oko and the others deal with the fallout.
Thinking that, Un'yo let it go. His mind cleared up.
Then his gaze swept across the rest of the family.
Everyone he looked at froze.
"N-No"
"I refuse!"
"I'm not going through that damn Hellfire!"
One man's face twisted in fear, his body backing away before he turned and made a break for the door.
"You're insane! All of you! Completely insane!!" he shouted while running.
"You're gonna destroy everything the Shinomiya family has built!"
Gan'an watched without a hint of surprise.
BecauseThey knew what they had done.
They knew what kind of sins they were carrying.
"Un'yo," Gan'an said quietly, "Don't let a single one escape."
Un'yo stiffened, then nodded. "Understood."
As soon as he spoke, he ordered the guards to lock everything down.
One by one, the Shinomiya family members were rounded up and lined up to face the Hellfire trial.
Those who tried to run had their legs broken and were dragged back.
No one was getting out of this.
Not anymore.
Gan'an spoke again. "Get Kaguya and Oko back here, now."
He didn't want to outright blame Kaguya, but still
At the very least, he needed to find out what the hell Kaguya had been doing lately.
And more importantly...
Kaguya was right under Oko's watch and she still managed to screw up this badly?
When that idiot gets back, he's going through the hellfire first!
Gan'an, as the head of the family, needed to see exactly what kind of idiocy Oko had pulled while he was sick and bedridden.
—
Yukinoshita Haruno, having left the Shinomiya estate, clicked her tongue in amusement as she stared at the monstrous three-headed Hellhound.
"When did the Familia start keeping beasts like that?"
Hone Onna sat lazily on a tree branch nearby and replied, "After the dog demons joined Hell's organization, they started going through changes like that. Don't ask me howI don't get paid enough to answer long questions."
(A/N: Hone Onna is a follower of Enma Ai and the one Lynn accepted into his Familia, turning her into a special devil Bone Devil.)
Haruno narrowed her eyes.
So just having a job in Hell comes with perks like this?
Hone Onna looked toward the Shinomiya estate and asked, "Want me to keep monitoring the place?"
Haruno nodded. "Yeah. If anything weird happens, kill everyone involved."
"Oh, and one more thing."
As if remembering something important, she added, "Leave the beautiful women alive."
Hone Onna: "..."
—
A short while later
Kaguya, Oko, and Seiry returned to the main house, confused and anxious after hearing the news.
What greeted them was a scene straight out of a disaster zone.
It looked like the entire estate had been ravaged by fire.
And...
There were massive scorched craters in the groundlike something inhuman had stomped through the place.
Thud, thud!
Their hearts pounded harder with each step.
A horrible feeling of dread settled over them.
They rushed into the main hallonly to be greeted by something even more surreal.
A pillar of pitch-black fire burned silently in the center.
And one by one, their family members were stepping into itsome willingly, others forced in.
"AAAHHHHH!!"
Agonized screams rang out from within the flames, piercing and horrifying.
Every. Single. One. Screamed in pain.
But the outcomes differed.
Some were thrown out of the fire, writhing in pain.
Others vanished completely.
Oko and Kaguya stared in shock, eyes wide, minds blank.
Gulp.
Oko audibly swallowed.
He shifted his gazetoward the one sitting at the head seat of the hall no, wait, the side seat?
He blinked in confusion, then stammered, "F-Father?"
Had his dad joined some kind of cult?
Kaguya was speechless, too. Her empty gaze locked on the long line of relatives jumping into what looked like a literal pit of hellfire.
