Nine hundred years is a long time to go without answers. All of the former members of the Goko Clan have done their best with their unexpected time in the world, but none of them have had any true notion of why they continued to live – or even what truly caused the downfall of their group back in the Heian era. The mysteries seemed to center on Daigo and Sana, the two people who have remained missing from the Taisho era. And while Sana remains conspicuous in her absence, they now know where Daigo has been: in Natsuno's eyes.

Natsuno has been a standout character in MAO as one of the puzzle pieces that doesn't quite fit. Her allegiance has been solely to Nanoka's training rather than part of the larger schemes and machinations, making her a largely neutral party. The fact that she might disappear in service of bringing Daigo back is, therefore, one of the greater unknowns of the story. Daigo has been defined by the space he used to take up: he was Sana's lover, Mao's friend and mentor, and an ostensible heir to the Goko Clan. These aren't precisely contradictory, but they are all roles that necessitate him picking a side. While we could argue that Natsuno devoting herself to Nanoka's training means that she's on Mao's side, her actions more squarely place her in the middle. Nanoka is her purpose, something she has, according to this volume, mentioned to him.

All of this means that, along with the much-needed answers for Hakubi, Mao, and the others, this volume presents Nanoka with her first real loss. She's watched other people die, and as a little girl she lost her parents in the accident that allied her with Byoki, but Natsuno is someone she knows now. She's been instrumental in Nanoka's development of her powers, but also in helping Nanoka to find a place for herself in the Taisho era. Mao himself has been supportive, verging on romantically interested, but Natsuno has been a friend.

The revelation of Daigo's whereabouts also begs the question of how much of his personality is in Natsuno. That's not something this volume answers, but it's definitely a question worth asking, especially given Sana's continued absence. But the majority of this volume's plot is about the Goko Clan's depredations and how it has continued into the 1920s, and what bringing Daigo back to life (for lack of a better term) will mean for everyone in the immediate moment.

The mystery of the five-sided temple and the eternal life of those who were in it nine hundred years ago are the central mysteries elucidated here. The Goko Clan's fascination with kodoku, an arcane method of casting curses, has been a throughline for the series, and it's perhaps unsurprising that the head of the group nine centuries prior had bigger ambitions for the technique. While most kodoku involve small poisonous animals or insects left to kill each other in a sealed container, Byoki turns out to be a cat-shaped kodoku (he was never Haimaru, Sana's beloved pet, or at least never just Haimaru), but that's also not far enough for the late master. His goals involve the creation of human kodoku, and you can probably guess what his sealed container is. Since the kodoku spell wasn't fully carried out, the ingredients remain alive. Their preternaturally long lives are the result of a failed spell, which has become a curse of its own.

No one really has a chance to react to this. We're not sure how they feel about the reason for their continued existence. Do they envy Natsuno, who can stop living? Are they glad to be able to continue? These questions feel like the heart of the story, and no one seems prepared to answer them yet. Daigo's return and the answers he provides throw such a wrench into the works that everyone's still processing them. Small details, like the way Mao's scar mimics tear tracks on his cheek, may provide clues to how he specifically feels, but everyone's been alive so long that they've become adept at hiding their emotions.

Nanoka is the only one free to express herself. That feels like another gift Natsuno has given her, even as it's also a reminder that she's a modern girl who has lived a mere handful of years. Will Daigo's return change that? We'll have to wait and see.