Hitomi no Catoblepas 7

This translation is reserved for the use of Phase 3 Manga

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Hitomi no Catoblepas
#7 To the House of Kuramochi
[side text: The two 21st Heads of the Guardian Houses, Shimura Tokio and Hosomi Kazuto! The souls of these two men with a mission... shining softly!]
[bottom-right author's name: Tanaka Yasuki]

2
Miiko: If I walk seven steps... // I'll die?!
Hakutaku: "Shichihoda"... // One touched by his saliva receives a deadly curse. // They will not die over a period of time... // But if they walk seven steps from that spot...
Miiko: ...Death...
[side text: The "Curse of Shichihoda" left by the Yoma Itsumade is afflicting Miiko! The countdown to death is a simple "seven steps"?!]

3
Hakutaku: I failed to notice, since the tail of Itsumade ordinarily takes the form of a snake... // *picture* / That Itsumade had been combined through a special technique with Shichihoda. / I can only think that it was a "Chimerama"!!
[TN: I'm guessing this is just a made-up term rather than one of the many terms stolen from mythology, since it looks like a combination of "Chimera" and "Yoma", and the kanji reading of "compound Yoma" backs that up. In an unrelated note, I'm somewhat impressed by Hakutaku's ability to vocalise pictures O_o]
Kazuto: A Chimerama?!
Hakutaku: Chimerama are artificial Yoma that do not occur naturally... // Yoma that were created by someone. // He too was an assassin!!
Tokio: Hakutaku. // We should take Miiko-san to the House of Kuramochi.

4
Hakutaku: ....!! // Tokio-sama... but today is the day of the Ceremony of Succession! / The entrance of outsiders into the House of Kuramochi will be prohibited!
Tokio: But...!
Kazuto: Hakutaku, don't say things like that! // It's my fault that the girl ended up like this. / We'll take her. // I'll do the talking.
Tokio: Kazuto-san!
Miiko: What exactly...?
Tokio: The House of Kuramochi's Yoma, Shakara-Ou, has the power to cure wounds and illnesses. / They may be able to remove your curse, Miiko-san.
[TN: Shakara, or Sagara, is some kind of legendary dragon as far as I can figure, one of the "Hachidairyuuou" (literally "eight great dragon kings"). The "Ou" means "King". Guess they're keeping with the whole Yoma-inspired-by-residence-name thing, since the Seiryuu, the guardian spirit which the Kuramochi family's company is named after, is a dragon.]
Miiko: Really?!

5
Tokio: Ah... [little text: A step...]
Miiko: Oh crap! But how are we going to get there?! I can't move from this spot!!
Kazuto: Pretty lively for someone under a curse... // Tokio, sort this out with your eye! / Stop her time, so we can carry her in a bag or something!
Miiko: Do I look like a piece of luggage?!
Tokio: I... unfortunately, I don't have the power to stop the time of living things. / I can't stop a person's time.
Kazuto: Huh... when the time comes, you're no use at all, huh?
Miiko: Th- then, what should we do?!

6
Tokio: It's all right. The important thing is that you just don't walk "seven steps". / Let's use a car.
Miiko: Of course!
Kazuto: But you don't have a licence, do you? And I came by motorbike... // Where on Earth would we get a-
Hakutaku: Right, everyone please get inside!

7
Tokio: We have a car at the temple. / Since Hakutaku can drive, after all!
Miiko: NO WAY!!
Tokio: So, let's go!
Hakutaku: It's a gold license!
Miiko: You have a license, Hakutaku-san?!
Somebody: To the House of Kuramochi!

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Kazuto: It's years since I've worn a suit...
Miiko: This... this is the House of Kuramochi?!

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Miiko: I thought it would be a temple or something!!
Tokio: The House of Kuramochi run a trading company. / It's a huge group corporation with over 100 members!
Miiko: Woooow... // They must be super-rich!!
[box: The House of Kuramochi / Seiryuu Corp. Head Office Building]

10
Person1: We have been awaiting you... Shimura-sama, Hosomi-sama.
Person2: The ceremony will be held in the reception hall on the 40th floor. / Please come this way.
Miiko: Hey, so what exactly is this "Ceremony of Succession"?
Hakutaku: The current Head of the House of Kuramochi, Tamaki-sama, has fallen victim to a serious illness. The decision has been made to pass the Head's seat to her granddaughter, Michiru-sama.

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Hakutaku: The rite of transferring the family's Yoma from the current Head to the successor... // That is what is known as the Ceremony of Succession.
Kazuto: We're invited to attend the ceremony. / It's not really a place where ordinary people such as yourself should be allowed. // But who'd've thought it? Looks like that Michiru girl's first task as Head... / is going to be removing a curse from this little hentai. // I kinda pity the girl, don't ya know, Tokio!
Tokio: Please don't look at me...
Miiko: DON'T CALL ME A HENTAI!!
Mitsuki: Ah!

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Mitsuki: Young master, over here!
Igarashi: You are rather late. Did something come up, young master?
[box: House of Hosomi, the "Mitsura Suzaku"]
[TN: Something like "Suzaku Three". I'm not familiar with the term "waka" as a form of address, so there may well be a much better way of translating it than "boy"; if anyone's more familiar with the term, please let me know. I'm tempted to translate it as something like "young master", which would make sense in the context, but Miiko's reaction to it makes it seem like it might be a little UNexpected. Of course, Miiko is prone to overreacting to everything anyway... on reflection, I think I'll play it safe and go with "young master" unless someone tells me otherwise. *changes*]
[boxes (left-to-right): Igarashi // Nanao Mitsuki // Yoshii Touji]

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Kazuto: That's not exactly the way I'd put it... I dealt with a Yoma on the way over.
Miiko: "Young master"...?!
Mitsuki: For real?! That's our young master!! // Oh... // Long time no see! If it isn't Tokio-san! / You really came!
Tokio: Ah, Nanao-kun. It's been a while.
Miiko: Oh... what a nice guy.
Mitsuki: I really thought you wouldn't show up, since you hate going out so much and all, hahaha! // And who is the lovely lady?
Tokio: Well, it's a little complicated...
Mitsuki: Nice to meet you!
Miiko: Who are these people?
Hakutaku: The "Mitsura Suzaku", a trio from the House of Hosomi. / They are Kazuto-sama's closest aides!

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Kazuto: I thought you'd refuse to come as well, to be honest. // You hate meeting other people's eyes, and you're always isolating yourself in that temple... / Never thought you'd just say "Let's go" when we're dealing with a huge gathering of all the Guardian Houses.
Tokio: Is that right...?
Kazuto: Remembering Tokihito's... the day of your brother's ceremony... / You must be a little uneasy. // I mean, Tokihito slaughtered everybody in the Genbu Temple. // Even your father... / and your mother...

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Miiko: ?! // (What... what are they talking about?! // His brother...?!)
Tokio: Something like that... / Must never happen again.
Kazuto: Yeah...

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(no text)

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Oldperson: Hm. You finally arrived.

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Mysteryperson: ...These are the remains of Itsumade... // He was eliminated at the hands of Hosomi Kazuto.
Mysteryperson: He was useless... / Kaimei-sama... We need to stop entrusting business to those of such low class!
[TN: "Kaimei" is a word that can mean "civilisation" or, perhaps more interestingly, "enlightenment".]
Mysteryperson: The destruction of the Guardian Shijin is the dearest wish of we Yoma... and of Hajun-sama.
[TN: Tons of mythological referencing going on here. "Hajun", you might remember from Hakutaku's cryptic comment back in chapter 3 about "Tenma Hajun's suggestion". And "higan", the word used for "dearest wish", is also the word for Buddha's vow to save humanity. Go figure.]
Mysteryperson: Even if we're taking this slowly or whatever, we're not getting anywhere!

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Mysteryperson: Hm... / You wish to take some action? / My Shikyou...
[TN: It's difficult to make it clear in translation, but the "Shikyou" is addressing the four people he's talking to. It's another term borrowed from mythology, and could also be written as "Si-xiong", but that just doesn't look as nice :p As usual, finding information on them is a bitch, but I think they're some kind of quartet of evil deities. Which makes sense, in context.]
Mysteryperson: We will be sure to return with good tidings for Hajun-sama.
[side text: "Shikyou", "Kaimei", and "Tenma Hajun"! The core of darkness is unimaginably deep... They set out toward chaos!]

[TN: All this Buddhist-mythological stuff is confusing the hell out of me, but hey ~_~]

This translation is reserved for the use of Phase 3 Manga