Vengeance
Mr. All Or Nothing
Title from Old English, Dutch, German, and English:
one who had residence near an enclosure,
particularly one that could be locked; a barrier.
[Modern] [supernatural] [Romance]
Backstory
The gods and demons have been at odds for the longest time,
waging war against each other through aeons.
It all came to a ceasefire when Touya Ishikawa, a shrine keeper with strong magical powers,
sealed the Demon Lord away with the guidance and aid of the gods.
While several underlings of the Demon Lord lived on,
they proved to be no threat, abstaining from causing a significant havoc in the mortal realm.
That was, until they discovered the truth behind the seal.
Touya's magical power was what fuelled the seal,
keeping it intact and secure.
Even though he has passed away,
his essence ran in the veins of his children,
continuously protecting the seal in his place.
To severe the human's bloodline would mean the instant break of the seal.
The task proved to be difficult, however,
as Touya's descendants flourished and thrived with many a child.
They picked off a few throughout the centuries,
but never managed to completely finish the deed.
They soon learned a traitor of their kind had been assigned to protect the humans from harm.
Finally, though, an only child was sired.
This may be their only chance to get rid of Ishikawa's bloodline once and for all,
and avenge their Demon Lord.
Primary Cast
Ishikawa Aika is the current and sole heiress of the Ishikawa household. Raised in a loving family, she is an optimistic and sharing girl who has a saviour complex - helping others is her instinct. Thus, opportunist classmates frequently take advantage of her gullibility, which also becomes a dual-edged sword for Aika as she is both courageous and reckless.
A girl who gives it her all in her performance, she has stellar academic results, although when speaking of a love life, she's getting a huge zero. Aika gravitates towards a feminine and cute fashion, and often dons her hair with flower pins.
Due to an unpleasant encounter with a male pervert, Aika has developed a mild case of androphobia (fear of men). At such, she moved to an all-girls boarding academy to continue her middle school education.
Her birthday is on the 5th of December. After an accident that left her hospitalised for weeks, recently-turned-16 Aika had been spending her days in the Jinshin Hospital (translate: Mercy Hospital) doing her best to recuperate. However, she soon discovered that the incident was not circumstantial, but rather, a devised plot to kill her. A thwarted assassination shed light on the true identities of her childhood friend Kohaku, and herself.
It so happened that her ancestor, Ishikawa Touya, had managed to seal off the Demon Lord with the aid of the heaven's gods over 500 years ago. The continual of his bloodline is the only way to keep the seal intact, and the descendants of Tachibana Shizuki had been promised service to protect the Ishikawa household until the end of time.
Now, Aika must preserver and survive until her 17th birthday, when her power bides to its fullest, ensuring her safety.
_
Tachibana Kohaku has known Aika since they were young, having lived in the same neighbourhood, a carefully conceived plan by her uncle Kimitsu. She is energetic but not as upbeat as Aika, a more assertive girl who would do anything to obtain what she needs. Her Achilles' heel is her younger brother, Wakaba, who shares the same birthday (but not year) as her.
By staying close to Aika and absorbing her essence, she has gained a degree of power herself. Kohaku is a mountain-rose demon (gene traces inherited from her grandmother). She has the power to persuade others into a bidding, although this ability dwindles into a weak suggestion if she is away from Aika for too long as the essence wears off.
Early on, she followed Aika to an all-girls' boarding school with the reason that she was worried for her (which she was, only not genuinely as a friend, but rather a paranoid guardian). Over the years, her concern for Aika had developed into a certain level of sincerity.
As it was difficult for her to keep watch of Aika with so many people around, she often skipped out on home visits when the holidays arrived to stay close to her warden. While in the streets, Aika was left unguarded for a moment when Kohaku was distracted with a decoy set-up by the malevolent demons. It was then that the gate keeper was critically wounded by an un-braked van rushing downhill, subsequently leading to the events in the Jinshin Hospital.
She has always felt bad for not being around more for her brother. In order to compensate and maintain their relationship, Kohaku would text or call her brother whenever possible, much to the aggravation of the latter, who complained, "Because of the phone bill you dumped on me, I can't get a girlfriend!".
_
Tachibana Wakaba is Kohaku's younger brother, born on the same day and month as her (21st March). Because of this connection, he always feels lonely when he celebrates his birthday without her.
This sense of loneliness infested into a resentment when he learned of his family's purpose: to protect the Ishikawa, which he perceived as a barrier between the two siblings. This grudge is intensified by Kohaku's unwavering devotion towards her guardian duty.
He has a higher affinity to the roots of his bloodline, being Aika's true guardian. By merely being exposed to Aika's presence, he can absorb her essence from her more efficiently than Kohaku, and unlike his older sister, Wakaba retains essence received from the gate keeper.
To reduce the pain of being alone most of the times, Wakaba animated a lotus root into a disfigured living doll to accompany him at home, naming the doll "Ren" (?).
Initially, he wanted nothing to do with his destiny and chose to ignore the existence of Aika. When the gate keeper encountered a near-death experience, he felt the impact of her survival directly linked to his, and feared that Aika's demise would spell out the same fate for him, and his sister. As a result, he relented and took up his duty as Aika's guardian, replacing Kohaku who acted as reagent until Wakaba was mentally ready.
He appeared before Aika as her guardian after slaying a jorogumo (spider demon) that masqueraded herself as a hospital nurse in an attempt to kill the garden keeper. Although it was ideal for guardians to keep the truth concealed as much as possible, Wakaba, ruffled and spiteful, spilled every detail to the startled girl.
_
Suzuki Kuranosuke attended a gokon (crewdate) when his friends needed someone to balance the boy-girl ratio. Feeling uneasy to turn them down, he agreed and went, where he met Aika who was also pressurised into attending.
Seeing such, he made a proposition to her and they fled out from the izakaya (sake restaurant). After spending the evening together in a closeby manga cafe, they exchanged numbers and became texting buddies.
One day, his friends dared him to send a love letter to Aika, whom they found out had been single since birth, keeping his glasses hostage. Agitated and desperate, he sneaked his way into Aika's school in a flimsy disguise (that worked, much to his surprise). Lost, he stumbled around and saw Aika, who was with Kohaku, a girl he remebered seeing at the gokon.
Not wanting to do his deed in front of the redhead next to Aika, he went into an empty classroom to hide, hoping the two girls would pass by. To his dismay, Kohaku dragged Aika into the room and began discussing about the supernatural with her. In his startled state, he exposed his hideout and admitted to hearing the secret. While Kohaku had intended to kill him, Aika vehemently fought with her to spare his life.
Kuranosuke had since then felt even more fond of Aika, although he is unsure what his feelings for her exactly are. Despite the dangers involved, he often tries his best to support her in any form he can, with the knowledge he holds about the supernatural from his avid interest in youkai and Japanese folklore.
Secondary Characters
Ishikawa Ichirou and Ayaka are the protective parents of Aika. The former is an easygoing man, a joker at heart; it is obvious that Aika's upbeat personality was greatly nurtured by his influence. He in unaware of the Ishikawa family secrets as his guardian, Kimitsu, never revealed more than necessary to him. Hence he believes that he and his daughter are just "accident-prone". Oblivious to their mortal bond, Ichirou once confessed to Kimitsu that he would entrust his entire family to his bestfriend should he becomes "unable to take care of them".
His wife is more acute to the underlying tension and has more than once suspected beyond the fabrication tailored by Kimitsu. However, she chooses to remain quiet due to the close brotherhood between her husband and him. Aika is closer to her, and this is reflected in how easily Ayaka tells her daughter's expressions apart. She is in a healthy relationship with her parents, who also adore Ichirou's cheerful spirit.
Kimitsu is the true guardian of Ichirou, Aika's father, as well as the uncle of the Tachibana siblings. He is a vine demon, and has the ability to manipulate tree vines as well as roots. Usually, he gives off a jovial and goofy impression - a disguise to conceal his utmost serious side, a facet of his personality that only the closest to him know. Kimitsu treats Aika as his own child.
He used to juggle between taking care of his niece and nephew after the sudden disappearance of his cousin, Tachibana Rin, before deciding to put them close with the Ishikawa to lessen the burden of having to simultaneously protect Ichirou's family. He is aware of the strong marriage between his bestfriend and Ayaka, whom he is unsure of how to deal with as he well knows that she suspects his real background, and tries to conceal his less than righteous attention towards her, finding her both a nuisance that threatens his exposure and lovely, intelligent woman.
Tachibana Rin was the true guardian of Ishikawa Chie, Ichirou's older sister. After a quarrel between them, Chie sent him away out of anger, and he in turn left for a moment, only to return in panic when he felt his essence source undetectable. In grief that he failed his duty, Rin exalted himself from his family and went off to atone his sins aimlessly. His wife, Nao, left the children to Kimitsu after three years of chronic depression and went off with another man. His whereabouts have since been unknown.
500 years ago.
"Shizuki, tree dryad. Heed. You have done no wrong all your existence, choosing to live in peace far away from civilisation. For that, you have been granted a human form to dwell the mortal world. In exchange, you are given one mission. You must protect the Ishikawa bloodline from harm, ensuring the stability of the gate seal. Should you fail, you and your descendants will cease to exist."
400 years ago.
"The seal is not invincible! We must destroy the damned priest's bloodline!"
300 years ago.
"Traitors! You have been helping the enemy all along!"
200 years ago.
"Have we no chance? The seal is unbreakable now that the child has grown .."
10 years ago.
"Otou-chan!"
"Kohaku .."
"Please don't leave."
"I failed as a guardian. This is my punishment - an endless sense of loss."
"But-"
"Please promise me you won't follow my footsteps. You'll do well?"
"I'll .. I'll be a good guardian and protect the humans."
"Good girl."
"Otou-chan? Otou-chan!"
"Otou-chan!"
"Nee-chan? What's wrong? Did you dream of our father again?"
A muffled sob.
"Don't think about him! He left us, and our mother as well."
"Wakaba .."
"I only have you, nee-chan. Please be well."
"I'll do well .."
"?"
9 years ago.
"Kohaku, Wakaba, this is Aika-chan."
"Hello! I'm Kohaku, Tachibaba Kohaku. This is my baby brother Wakaba. He's 7, I'm 8."
"Hi .." A bright red face. "I-I'm Aika! Ishikawa Aika! Nice to meet you." A bow.
"O-Oh." The other bowed as well. "Ouch!"
The boy stared at the two girls before snorting. "Don't bow so close to each other."
The two girls looked at each other before giggling.
8 years ago.
"Nee-chan?! Why are you bleeding?"
"The rose grew so fast when I touched it .."
"Nee-chan .."
"This power .. Ai-chan's essence .. is so strong."
7 years ago.
"Ai-chan, why don't you go in to read a manga first? I'll go buy us some snacks."
"Okay! Be careful when you cross the street, Ko-chan!"
"T-That's you .."
A giggle. A chime.
"Back off or I'll kill you."
"What can a stupid little girl like you do?"
"Do you want to find out?"
..
A chime. A cry.
"Ai-chan, what's wrong?!"
"There was a man inside. I think he's a pervert .. he kept looking at me weirdly."
"Wh- ?! I was careless .."
"I want to go home .."
"Yes, let's go home .."
They walked past an alley with a deformed figure glued to the grimey wall, rose vines prickled with thorn coiling over the bloody mess in life.
5 years ago.
"I'm moving out to an all-girls academy with Ai-chan."
"But-"
"I have to protect her at all costs, Wakaba!"
".. I hate all this."
3 years ago.
"It feels lonely without you on our birthday, nee-chan."
A year ago.
"We must kill her before it is too late."
Present Day
The redhead poked her head in the ward door, peering around shyly before leaning closer in to visit her hospitalised friend. "Ai-chan?"
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