Under the moonlight, a lone silhouette was advancing in the street.

After his talk with Akeno, he tried to convince her to come with him, but no matter what he said, she wouldn't accept. In the end, he relented and went away. But, how could he let a little girl like that live alone? It didn't matter that she already did it for more than one year. He didn't know her then. But now he did.

That's why he asked Evermillion to stay in her shadow and protect her.

His relationship with Evermillion was getting better and better as time passed, he didn't know exactly how many myths were used to create her, he did some research about panthers in different mythologies.

The results were rather surprising to say the least.

In basically all myths, panthers are basically god class beings or beasts following god class beings. For example in Hinduism, they are considered as the protectors of the universe.

To the indians of North and South America, the jaguar especially in the form of the Black Panther - was endowed with great magic and power. Because it could function so well in so many areas, it became the symbol of mastery over all dimensions. To the Tucano Indians of the Amazon, the roar of the jaguar was the roar of thunder.

But more importantly, the panther also had a very great significance in Christianism. The panther was said to save people from the dragon or evil beings. It also signals a time of rebirth after a period of suffering and death on some level.

If you mixed all those sources. You could get some repetitive abilities so most likely accurate powers. It is often a symbol of darkness, death, and rebirth. If he added the lightning that struck him when he first got her. Then this means she also had the lightning element.

You could say that the more time he passed with her, the more he realized how powerful and how suited she was for him.

He began training since then and obtained an initial mastery on some of her power over darkness. The most important one. [SHADOW WALK]

Of course. The first skill he tried to learn was an escaping one. After all, in his eyes only the living were the winners. The dead ones were always losers. In order to not become a loser. He needed to be able to flee when meeting people stronger than him.

Anyway. As of now, he couldn't shadow walk by himself. But he could shadow walk to the position where Evermillion was. To put it simply. No matter how far away Evermillion was from him, he could instantly teleport to her side. One didn't need to be a genius to understand why he let her stay hidden in Akeno's shadow.

'*Sigh* I made so many preparations but let's hope nothing will happen.'

----

The next morning, Akeno was going out from a public bath.

Those kinds of places were rather popular in Japan and since she didn't have much money on her it was the sole place she could take a bath in.

'I have decided. I will do one last exorcism and get some money then I will leave.'

The money she received previously was not bad, but since she could go many days without a job, she couldn't afford to waste it. She needed to be careful with all her resources. It was a harsh lesson she learned fast.

As she walked she couldn't help but feel a little melancholic.

'I will miss Onii-Sama.'

She did not know why, but calling him like that brought peace to her heart. She had always wished to have a big brother. Someone who would protect her from everything and dote on her. Even though she only met him for a day and half, Azrael fit perfectly the definition of the big brother she had in her mind.

'I will be sad but I can't afford to create problems for him.'

From his story, she got that he seemed to be some kind of big shot. Or at least the son of one. But the five principal clans were stronger.

For Akeno, it was basically impossible to imagine a power greater than the five clans. This was the reality under which she lived.

She decided to go towards the outer circle of the town. Evil spirits liked such isolated places. Most likely she could get some little job there.

---

She fucked up.