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| - "Right...what am I going to do with you?" A voice echoed inside an empty room. It was quite dark, only lit by a single candle that was erect just in front of a blond-haired man with his right hand underneath his chin and elbow dug into his knee; he sat cross-legged in thought. It was then that his eyes peered upwards towards the painting of a Golden Dragon on the wall. Its eyes were particularly fierce tonight, for it had been witness to all happenings across the spiritual realms, despite Shiju being unaware of its omniscience. "Minarai." Shiju called out to the sword at his hip, which shaked in response as a young woman with tanned skin, blonde hair and childish features materialized behind him, before sitting on his shoulders. "Hi Shi-kun! Did you wanna play~?" The girl cheekily asked the man, whose deadpan reaction to her comment made her sigh. "Aww...you look sad. What happened, Shi-kun?" "I think you know very well." Shiju responded, pointing towards the dragon in the wall and then the sword. "Tell me, Minarai...do you sense a spirit bound within the confines of that painting and blade?" "Ehhhhh. What a boring task..." Minarai complained, before closing her eyes in response to her master's wishes. In but a moment, her mind was overcome by an extremely powerful force, causing her eyes to shine a bright gold for a fleeting second before her knees collapsed and she was sent to the floor. "Minarai!" Shiju noticed her plight and quickly placed his arms around her shoulders. He supported her as the glow in her eyes disappeared. His expression was of panic...but of strange excitement at the same time. "That spirit...its power is far too great for me." Minarai panted, sweat trickling down her forehead. "That's fine, Minarai." Shiju told her, ruffling her hair. "You can go and rest...I can take care of the rest." Minarai respected that decision and her body seemingly faded away with a golden aura, leaving not a trace of her behind. "Now then." Shiju's voice was seemingly directed to the spirit of the Yellow Dragon in the painting. "Could you show yourself to me, Yellow Dragon?" Shiju asked as if he were in conversation, slightly aware of what would occur next.
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