Somehow, Minoru keeps hearing the bells, even though the others do not. He’s certain he sees another Scorpion sitting on the roof of a building nearby, but no one sees him either, and soon they reach the camp at the western bank. The camp is set up next to the burakumin commune, which is on higher ground and much safer, cleaner and orderly than any the group have encountered before, and watch as the townspeople who survived are made welcome in their homes.
Miya Wakaba, one of Shogo’s Imperial counterparts, informs them that Shogo hasn’t made it back yet as they direct them to a tent with blankets, maps, food and fire. Wakaba asks for updates and if they had met any other Imperials, worried about a Miya Sora, who Shogo may be looking for in the governor’s quarters. After some time talking and updating maps, a wounded Shogo arrives at the tent, declaring that the local authorities will be of no help to them. He theorizes that the pitch black boat belonged to river pirates and talks to Minoru about the sabotaged watchtower, deciding it will become an active investigation come the spring.
After a rest, Shogo tells his yoriki that there are fires breaking out in the samurai quarter, which could be the result of looters, and that the Moth clan have secluded themselves in their keep entirely. He also notes his suspicions about activity going on in the city in the weeks leading up to the flood, and impresses upon them the importance of making sure the local court records are found and kept safe.
Before they leave, Hajime speaks with Shogo privately to discuss the strange feeling he got from the keep of the Moth, which Shogo felt in the samurai quarter as well. Shogo tells him that powerful fire kami have historically been attached to Hirosaka, and that this may have something to do with the Moth’s strange seclusion. He tells Hajime to keep an eye out for strange goings-on and to play it safe while they investigate the samurai quarter.
Eiko slides Shogo a note as the group leaves, its contents unknown, and the others head north to the samurai quarter. Yuzume notices that part of the city was built by the Crab, who must have held the land at some point in the past before the Moth did. The samurai quarters are all protected by much sturdier walls and made of stronger stuff than the commoners’ quarters, and she wonders if this was on purpose, or if the city just started small and grew larger once the Moth took over. She’s snapped out of this as a bolt of lightning crashes nearby, and another strikes the estates of the Moth. The samurai quarter itself is mostly in ruins, with only one house seeming to be untouched by the devastation, owned by Ide Rise, the merchant patron who hosted Yuzume when she first visited Hirosaka a few years ago.
However, the house has clearly been broken into, so Minoru and Hajime enter with their swords out in case it’s currently being looted. Hajime finds a man (Mako) and his child (Yoshi) hiding in the teahouse, where they admit they broke in to seek refuge from the storm. Hajime then notices that the area around the two exudes a strange calm compared to the rest of the city. Eiko interrogates them and, after a brief spat with Hajime, Yoshi shouts at Yuzume about how he protected the house and shouldn’t have to leave. She realizes that he’s a shugenja, and has been asking the fire kami to protect the house, so entrusts him to continue to do so before the team leaves.
When they make it to the magistrate’s station, they hear shouting from inside and find Shogo arguing with Miya Sora. They stop when they’re caught by the group, but Shogo is clearly furious, and Eiko and Yuzume work out that Sora was about to order Shogo to do something he really didn’t want to do. After Sora leaves and they tell Shogo that the fires are caused by spirits, he hands over two chest full of documents – the court records mentioned earlier – and declares that it’s time to meet the Moth.
As they leave the magistrate’s station, several bolts of lightning land on the roof of the Moth’s keep and sets it on fire. Shogo, Minoru and Hajime pull some debris toward a damaged section of the wall so that he can climb it. The rain has stopped, and it begins to snow, while the strange smell of pine and earth fills the air. Shogo tells the team to keep the court records safe and send them to Doji Satsume in the spring, clearly ready to go off on his own again. The group says their goodbyes, and Yuzume cloaks him in night in the hopes of keeping him safe as he scales the wall to enter the flaming keep.
The team return to camp as night turns to day, and are told hours later that the keep has been reduced to ash, and that no one has survived.
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