The village of Koganei fell into a deathly silence as night fell. The streets, once bustling with life, were now empty, as if the very air held a warning. High on the hill, the Kurokawa clan mansion stood imposingly, its elongated shadows casting across the cedar forest surrounding it.

Inside the Japanese structure, Lady Kurokawa Ayame moved with eerie grace. She wore a one-piece kimono, midnight black, comfortable yet elegant, embroidered with red lotus flowers that looked like drops of blood. A delicate silk cloak hung over her shoulders, floating lightly with each movement. Her long, high-heeled boots clacked against the wooden floor, setting a steady, calculated pace. Her gray hair, with a straight fringe and perfectly aligned sides, fell down her back like a silver waterfall. Thin, gold-rimmed glasses rested on his nose, adding a touch of refinement to his cold, penetrating gaze.

In his hand he held a long Japanese pipe, kiseru, from which he exhaled puffs of smoke that intertwined with the shadows of the room. At his side, floating in the air with hypnotic grace, was Orochi, his snake with dark scales and scarlet eyes, which slithered around his kimono like an extension of his own darkness.

"Do they refuse to pay the tax?"—Ayame asked in a soft but dangerous voice, as she watched a servant trembling at her feet.

—Y-yes, my lady —the man stammered, not daring to look up.

Ayame smiled, showing an expression that chilled the blood.— "How pitiful," she murmured, stroking Orochi's head with a hand with long, sharp nails. "It seems they need a lesson from the poison master... one they'll never forget."