“Wh—? Our dragons! How’d the entire bomber squad get shot down?!” “It’s Hibari’s archers! The Dragon Knights went in too close!” “Shut up, you samurai hicks! It’s just a handful of sacrificial pawns! We’ll overrun them with our numbers!” The Dragon Knights had gone in first to get the drop on the Resistance troops, and seeing them get shot down sent terror through the dominion forces. However, their Silver Knight field commander forcefully stopped the panic and ordered the army to retake the high ground from the Resistance by charging in. The mountain slope rumbled as the soldiers surged up like a tsunami. At a glance, Kira could tell that the enemy vanguard alone outnumbered them by five to one, if not more. Receiving that attack head-on would mean being swept away before ever getting the chance to fight back. And in the face of inevitable obliteration… “How’s your stomach holding up, Master Kira?” “Never better. I made sure to down all the medicine I had in preparation for this,” Kira replied playfully as he stared down at the tidal wave of swords and spears raging its way toward him. All right, it’s time to do as much as we can. Fortunately, we have no shortage of tools to work with! …he drew his commander’s sword and gave the order. “Squads one and four, release the rockslide!” On Kira’s signal, the Resistance members wrenched free the stakes that held up countless boulders across the mountain pass. With nothing to support them, the rocks tumbled downhill, crushing the cavalrymen that made up the dominion army’s advance guard. “““AAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!!””” “Damn it! They’re using our traps!” “What the hell?! Now they’re in the position we were supposed to be in!” “Quit charging straight forward, you hicks! You’ve got room to maneuver, so use it! Remember, you’re fighting to save your dominion lord!” “H-he’s right! We have to protect Lady Mayoi!” “Don’t let the rebels get to her!” The dominion soldiers were dismayed that their own traps were being used against them. However, one little setback wasn’t enough to take the wind out of their sails. The Amagi Pass had been carved out of the mountain specifically to serve as a military supply road, and it was wide enough to accommodate a whole army. There was plenty of room to the sides, and the dominion forces spread out. To their surprise… “Ahhhh!” …the soldiers on each edge of the road took a nasty fall. As soon as they had tried to climb the slope, they crumpled to their knees. Had the path fallen into disrepair? Was that why they’d tripped? Not quite. “Th-the ground’s slippery! I can’t get up the hill!” “What is this stuff? Oil? Oh, shit…!” By the time they realized what was about to happen, it was already too late. “Archers, fire!” “““AAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!””” The moment Kira brought his blade down, the Resistance’s archers loosed burning arrows upon the oil-soaked dominion warriors. Hellfire exploded across the pass, swallowing it in the blink of an eye and forming a searing wall between the two camps. Flames engulfed the charging Yamato soldiers… “Wh-what the hell?! You bastards know why they’re fighting for their domain lord, don’t you?! And now you’re coming at them with no restraint? You’re some heartless sons of bitches! That’s what you people are!” …and the Resistance’s fierce efforts earned a yell from the imperial Silver Knight leading the advance team. Kira heard the indictment…but his heart never wavered. The Silver Knight’s protest was so wrongheaded it wasn’t even worth laughing at. The Resistance knew full well that the Yamato soldiers in the dominion army fought only because of the mind control, and that was precisely why the Resistance met them on the battlefield. This was the only answer to the silent cries for freedom from those who’d been robbed of everything. “Hear me well.” Kira swept his gaze over the enemy ranks and spoke loud and true. “We stand here today not as the Yamato that was beaten by the Freyjagard. We are a hundred of this nation’s best. A hundred who, for three years, never forgot what they were fighting for. Who never gave up in the face of an endless battle. If, knowing that, you still foolishly wish to pass us, then, by all means, come throw away your lives! You can burn our homes, steal our families, and desecrate our land, but you will never extinguish our pride—and you will never crush the will of Yamato!” “““YEAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!””” Their roar shook the mountain far more than a mere hundred people should have been capable of. “Ee-eep!” The imperial troops shrank back… “The will…of Yamato…” …and the brainwashed Yamato soldiers gazed up through the wall of fire at the Resistance as though entranced. They could feel an emotion swelling in their hearts, although none of them understood what it was. Up on the Amagi Pass, the Resistance and dominion forces were finally coming to a head. The dominion advance guard had the superior numbers, but they had left the pass in too much of a hurry to disassemble their defensive fortifications, and Kira’s Resistance forces were making full use of them all to stop the enemy in its tracks. The dominion advance guard was in for a rough fight. Meanwhile, the rest of the dominion forces marched from the empty Fort Steadfast toward the road through the mountains. Jade, their supreme commander, was riding in the middle with the army’s central company. “Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit! You’re telling me that Fort Steadfast was bait and the Divine Lightning was a fake?! Are you fucking kidding me?!” he roared, pulling at his hair. His eyes were bloodshot, and there was no reason or composure to be found in them. The imperial knights he was with kept a safe distance for fear of becoming the object of his fury. However, Jade found that irritating in and of itself, and he turned to one of the knights and snapped angrily, “I want answers! Why hasn’t the advance guard crushed those Resistance numbskulls yet?! They’re only a few weaklings, right?!” Jade seethed with frustration, but he forced his mind to remain on the present situation. His foes had lured the dominion army down to Fort Steadfast, and it stood to reason they would use that opening to try to take Azuchi. It was hard to imagine them having left more than a handful of fighters on the pass, so the dominion advance guard should have routed them by now. Jade had yet to receive any good news from the front lines, however. Beneath Jade’s incensed glare, an imperial knight beside him stammered an answer. “I—I believe it’s because they’ve taken our defensive fortifications and are using them for themselves, and, um…us abandoning our position and attacking Fort Steadfast completely backfired on us…” “Oh, so what, you’re saying it’s my fault?!” “P-perish the thought, sir! I’m only stating that because we handed our traps over to the enemy, it’s going to take some time to break their line, even with, um, our superior numbers…” Jade’s handsome features twisted further, and he ground his teeth. “What about Shishi, then?! Why isn’t that worthless chump back yet?! That damn geezer isn’t some chick changing her clothes, so why’s he taking as long as one?!” “At the moment, he’s inside Fort Steadfast facing off against the angel dressed like a samurai who single-handedly bested the Azuchi Castle defenses!” “Aoi…,” Jade growled. “The angel is terrifyingly strong, and she’s actually fighting Master Shishi to a standstill! We thought of going in to help, but the battle is so far beyond what we can keep up with, our interference would be a needless sacrifice…” Jade had seen Aoi’s combat prowess with his own two eyes. He had thrown every soldier the castle had at her, yet it hadn’t slowed her down. It came as little surprise that she was able to hold her own against the man hailed as the greatest samurai in Yamato. “Damn it, I’m surrounded by incompetents! I am up to here with this shit!” Were Shishi with the dominion army, his power would have easily broken through the pass. There was nothing Jade could do about that now, though. His frustration mounted, and he kicked the neighboring knight’s steed. “If Shishi’s not coming, then it’s up to you assholes to pick up the slack! Go join those advance guard good-for-nothings! Move it! The only thing you idiots have going for you is your numbers, so use ’em already!” No sooner had Jade given the order… “““???!!!!!””” …than a tremor and a terrible roar the likes of which none had heard before shook the entire army as it thundered down the Amagi Pass supply road. There was something unnatural about the noise. It was like a series of thunderclaps, all ringing out at the exact same time. Something had happened. The sound made that clear enough. “Wh-what the hell was that about?!” Jade immediately raised his head to survey the situation… “Ahhhhhh! Administrator, u-up there!” …then looked to where the knight beside him was pointing. There lay their destination: the Amagi Pass’s peak, where the dominion advance guard was engaging the Resistance. The path there, as well as the mountain beneath it, had been reduced to dust and rubble. “What…the…?” The sheer scale of the destruction forced the dominion forces to stop in astonishment. “Messenger! Messenger coming through!” As Jade sat upon his horse in disbelief, an orderly came dashing from the front of the central company. “What the hell was that?” Jade demanded. “What the hell just happened?!” White-faced, the orderly replied, “I have news! The Resistance forces encamped ahead blew up the road and caved in a large chunk of the mountain!” “WH…WHAAAAAAAT?!” “We suspect they used the blasting powder we left behind in our hurry to make it to the fort! The advance guard was fighting them at the time of the rupture and was caught in the landslide! Our soldiers have been routed, and they’ve suffered serious casualties! Furthermore, the supply route has been completely destroyed, and there’s no way we can march our army through the pass!” “” Jade’s entire body shook, nearly causing him to tumble off his horse. He was so dizzy it felt as though the world lurched beneath him. Although he remained on his mount, he couldn’t stop the cold sweat flowing from his pores. How…how is this happening? He’d done everything right. Not once had he spurred on his army in frivolity or haste. No, he’d carefully scrutinized all his actions before taking them. Yet even so, his position kept getting worse. Nothing was going his way, and he didn’t understand why. How had the situation gotten so bad? Jade hadn’t made any errors—at least, he didn’t believe so. Sure, looking at it in retrospect, the Divine Lightning was a fake, and he’d fallen for the enemy’s diversion, but what if it had been real? Allowing the Resistance to keep a weapon that could attack Azuchi directly from Fort Steadfast was ludicrous. His choice to mobilize the army as quickly as possible had been correct. Given the predicament, it had been the only option. There had been no other reasonable choices. He’d been placed in a scenario with no superior alternatives. “~~~~~~?!” The moment he arrived at that realization, a shiver ran through Jade’s body, and a memory played out in his head. He recalled the dinner party with the Elm ambassadors in Azuchi, and, more specifically, he remembered those heterochromatic red and blue eyes staring at him from across the table. Jade prided himself on his diplomacy, and he’d recognized that Tsukasa had been observing him as surely as he’d been watching Tsukasa. However, it still boggled the mind. What enabled Tsukasa to play him so thoroughly? How much practice did a person need observing others to pull off something like that? Or did Jade have it all wrong? Was the real reason Tsukasa had read him like a book in only half a day… …’Cause I’m really just that shallow of a dude? “A-Administrator, what do we do?!” “Should we head for the Oono Plains?! We still have a thousand soldiers in Azuchi, and they might well hold out long enough for us to make the detour!” “We’re pushing through…” “What?” When Jade gave his order, the imperial knights gawked, certain their ears had deceived them. Upon seeing their expressions…something inside Jade snapped. “All troops, continue on the present course! I don’t care if we have to scramble through the rubble and climb up a sheer cliff face. We’re getting through that pass and butchering the Resistance down to their last warrior!” “B-but sir, marching through the debris will make us sitting ducks! It’ll be a bloodbath!” “So what?! How many arrows did the enemy bring? A hundred? Then I guess a hundred of you will just have to eat dirt! A thousand? Then a thousand of you can bite it! We’ll still have over a thousand soldiers left, and they’ll have the corpses of their useless brethren to pile up and climb over! I have Mayoi’s full backing in all acts of dominion leadership, and that means my orders are her orders! Quit your bitching and moaning, and get up there!” “A-at once, sir!” As the army stood around flustered, Jade spurred them back into action by glaring at them with the ferocity of a man who might draw his sword and start lashing out at any moment. There was no plan. He had nothing but numbers and was determined to use them to force through the Amagi Pass. Fuck this. I’m not going down. Not here, not like this! Jade’s body trembled as if those heterochromatic eyes were staring at him. Meanwhile… Deep inside Azuchi Castle, a young woman was gasping in agony atop a futon in the main castle tower’s keep. Her tawny brown skin was damp with sweat, and there was a black crystal fused into her stomach. Her chest heaved up and down with pain. It was Mayoi, dominion lord of the Yamato self-governing dominion. “Hahh, hahh, hahh…!” “Try to stay strong, Lady Mayoi,” her lady-in-waiting said, concerned. She took a cloth and wiped Mayoi’s naked body. No matter how much the lady-in-waiting cleaned, though, more sweat kept coming. “Miasma has gotten inside the cut. It was a pretty nasty injury you took.” What she was saying—in this world’s parlance—was that Mayoi’s pain stemmed from the wound she had suffered when her ear got lopped off. Bacteria had entered the cut and was wreaking havoc on her body. “Not to worry, though. We were able to treat it quickly, so I’m sure it will heal before long. I must say, though, it was truly savage of them to cut off your ear. And to then join with the Resistance malcontents who refuse to see how just your rule is? They may claim to be angels, but they’re devils through and through.” In truth, Jade was the one who’d lopped off Mayoi’s ear, but the lady-in-waiting didn’t know that, so her burning anger was directed at the Seven Luminaries. Mayoi looked up at her, still panting in pain. “H-how…is…my darling? Is…there any news?” The lady-in-waiting gave her a sad look. “Not yet, I’m afraid. I’m sorry, my lady…” “…Oh.” Mayoi’s expression darkened with concern for Jade’s well-being out on the war front, and the lady-in-waiting tried gently to cheer her up. “I’m sure that Administrator Jade is doing just fine, though. His force vastly outnumbers the Resistance, and we have Master Shishi on our side. He would never lose to some frail rebellion. The administrator should be back in no time.” It was obvious that Mayoi needed all the energy and willpower she could muster to fight through the disease. However… “For now, all you should worry about is your own health…Lady Kaguya.” …the lady-in-waiting’s tongue slipped. Her expression froze. “O-oh dear.” “” “Wh-why did I just…?” Kaguya. That was the name of Mayoi’s sister, and as far as the people of Yamato were concerned, it was the name of a traitor jeopardizing Yamato’s peace. Why had that woman’s name come out of her mouth? And why…why did saying it fill her with such a sense of affection? A flustered look crossed the lady-in-waiting’s face… “Why? Ha. Ha-ha-ha!” …and upon seeing it, Mayoi burst into scornful laughter. “That’s a stupid question. It’s what you people have always done.” “Lady…Mayoi??!” The lady-in-waiting didn’t understand what Mayoi was saying. She looked to her ruler and recognized something in the young woman’s eyes—hatred. It burned hot enough to spit flames. Mayoi’s rage was so intense, in fact, that glimpsing it brought all the lady-in-waiting’s stolen memories back in the span of an instant… “Burn your mouth with that brazier and never speak again.” “As you wish, my lady.” …but when the stone embedded in Mayoi’s stomach flashed, the lady-in-waiting plunged her head into the nearby fire. Flesh sizzled, and the lady-in-waiting’s body convulsed violently. Even so, though, she made no move to raise her head. Her body jolted a few times, then moved no more. “…It stinks.” Mayoi scrunched up her face as the acrid scent of burnt flesh permeated the room. Using a post for support, she struggled her way up from her futon and tottered unsteadily out of the room. “Lady Mayoi?! Are you sure you’re all right to be up and about already?!” “Do you need a hand, my lady?” “Where is it you need to go at this late hour?” “Shut up. Shut up. Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up!” Mayoi’s other servants rushed to her side, and she covered the sides of her head with her hands to silence their voices. She felt sick and wanted to vomit, but it wasn’t because of her illness. It was because of their faces. It was the love and respect in their expressions. Everything about them disgusted Mayoi, and it was because she knew that all of it was a sham. Under normal circumstances, she would have no value to these people, and they would never… “Rrrgh~~~~~!” Thinking about it sent a sharp wave of nausea through Mayoi, and she clamped her hands over her mouth. However, the revulsion refused to subside. Mayoi felt as though she were going mad. Looking at their faces? Hearing their voices? Having to breathe the same air they breathed? It was all intolerable. Jade was the only reason she’d endured it all. He’d told her to rule Yamato, so she had. Knowing that was what he needed to improve his position, and knowing that she was helping him gave Mayoi the strength to suffer through. Now, though, Jade was gone. And without him there, Mayoi couldn’t stand a single thing about this nation. She wanted to slaughter every last person in it as soon as possible. That wasn’t what Jade wanted, however. It’d only make problems for him. Thus, Mayoi struggled desperately to push down her nausea and loathing. Please…come back soon… I need you… Mayoi swallowed her vomit and let tears gush from her eyes instead. She was in pain and terribly lonely. The oppressive solitude squeezed at her chest. She wanted to be nearer to Jade, even if only a little, so she braced herself against the wall and ascended the stairs of a watchtower with a clear view of the Amagi Pass. Then, as soon as she reached the watchtower’s balcony… Clang! Clang! Clang! …the piercing cry of an alarm bell sounded from below her on the west side of Azuchi. “Huh…?” Mayoi peered down to see what had happened. The Amagi Pass fed into the city’s west side, and from that route came a procession of lit torches bound for Azuchi Castle. The procession’s furious shouts filled the air. After leaving the rear guard behind on the pass, the High-School-Prodigy-led Resistance forces descended the mountain. On their way down, they ran into the cavalrymen who came from Azuchi when Jade gave the order to launch an all-out attack, but their foes were just a jumbled-up pile of soldiers with no real formation to speak of. Between that and the fact that the clash was on a slope where being mounted offered few of its usual advantages, the Resistance force was able to pulverize the dominion army with ease. During the darkest hour of night, the Resistance arrived at the heart of Yamato’s corruption—Azuchi, capital of the Yamato self-governing dominion. “We’re here! We made it! After three long years, we’re finally back!” “The enemy stronghold is straight ahead! It’s time we take that traitor down!” “““HRAAAAAAAAH!!!!””” The Resistance fighters flooded into the capital like a dam had burst. There were over five hundred of them, and they were done committing petty acts of domestic terrorism. This attack was nothing short of a bona fide war. The dominion army gawked in horror at the impossible situation—the inconceivable situation—they were in. What the hell was the main dominion army doing? What had happened to the cavalrymen who had just gone to join up with them? Their hearts stirred with fear and questions. “Stop them, dammit! We can’t let the rebels get to Lady Mayoi!” “Don’t fight them head-on! Take advantage of the terrain and cut ’em off!” It was a small mercy that, like the cavalry who’d gone on ahead of them, these dominion warriors were fully armed in preparation to join up with the majority of the army still off with Jade. The infantry squads in Azuchi quickly drew their swords and fanned out across the castle town to stop the enemy encroachment. Due to the earlier diversion, the dominion troops were scattered. Their previously overwhelming numbers advantage had evaporated. However, the Azuchi Castle town was still the dominion’s home turf. The defending troops skillfully used the city’s lattice-shaped network of roads to launch crippling surprise attacks on the Resistance forces making for the castle. Or at least, they attempted to. “I…I-6! H-3! There’s an ambush up ahead!” “Vanguard, ready! Aaand throw!” “Hyah!” “““AAAAAAGH!!!!””” None of their plans worked out. Whenever they got ready to launch a surprise attack, the Resistance hurled explosives at their hiding spots with disturbing accuracy, ruining the ambushes before they began. How did the ill-equipped rebels know exactly where the dominion soldiers were hiding when they didn’t have a single Dragon Knight on their side? The defenders were at a loss. They couldn’t even begin to comprehend what was really happening. They had no idea that the Resistance—or rather, the High School Prodigies—were looking down on everything occurring in Azuchi from far above the sky where the Dragon Knights soared. Beyond even the atmosphere. As long as Ringo Oohoshi had her satellite, there was no way they’d fall for any sneak attacks. While Ringo ran behind Tsukasa and fed him moment-to-moment information on the enemy’s moves, Tsukasa took that information and used it to predict what the enemy would do next. “They’re coming down Peng Street to cut in front of us and aiming to rush out from R-8 to seal our way off.” “What do we do, Mr. Tsukasa?!” “We can’t afford to let our forces get whittled down here. We’re changing course and using Wagtail Street to slip past their flank.” “Yes, sir!” Tsukasa’s tanned, middle-aged samurai attendant Kokubu mobilized the Resistance members. The dominion army had tried to anticipate the invaders’ movements, blocking off a road accordingly. However, the Resistance slipped into an alley the next street over and dashed right on past them, practically laughing in the dominion army’s face. “Wh-whaaaat?!” “C-can they see us or something?!” “After themmmm! Don’t let them get to the castle!” The dominion forces quickly turned around to give chase. By the time the Resistance arrived at the main road leading to the palace, the dominion soldiers had all but caught up with them. Although the Resistance’s fighters sported only light armaments, noncombatants like Ringo and Lyrule slowed their pace considerably. Just as it seemed the dominion forces were close enough to grab the Resistance attackers, disaster struck. “Arrrrrgh!” “DAMMIT, that hurts!” Screams erupted from the dominion ranks. Their charge was broken, and the reason for that lay at their feet. Torchlight revealed faintly gleaming metal spikes strewn across the ground. “Shit, those assholes dropped caltrops behind them!” “Go around them, and be quick about it!” Whether they liked it or not, that put a definite damper on the dominion army’s pursuit. Meanwhile, the Resistance forces crossed the moat, finally reaching Azuchi Castle’s Nioumon Gate. It was a mighty iron barricade; together, its two doors weighed in at five tons. When the High School Prodigies escaped Azuchi Castle during their earlier visit, it had taken Aoi’s prodigious strength to open the way, and what’s more, they were going in this time rather than coming out. Naturally, the gate was barred from within. No amount of effort would be enough for them to pull it open. Tsukasa had never planned on opening the door, though. “Aim for the support pillars! Aaand throw!” Kokubu shouted out the order, and the handful of Resistance members at the front of the group hurled explosives at the pillars holding up the Nioumon Gate. The bombs they used had been custom-made by Ringo Oohoshi. She’d modified the firebombs the Resistance typically employed, altering the way they were packed to bolster their blasting power vastly. On top of that, she’d also reworked their ignition mechanism such that mere impact with a target generated the heat necessary for detonation. This reduced the number of soldiers needed to wield the weapons effectively, making the explosives functional even in situations where blasting powder was impractical. Any gate, no matter how sturdy, was vulnerable at its hinges. The Nioumon Gate remained shut tight, yet it was helpless before the point-blank bursts. The force from the bombs knocked the gate all the way into the castle, and the Resistance troops trampled over the inert barricade as they hurried into the palace’s outermost ring. “Here’s something to remember us by!” a Resistance member shouted. “““Agh!””” the pursuing dominion soldiers cried. The Resistance rear guard had scattered explosives behind them and blown up the bridge crossing the moat. “Shit, they cut us off!” “Dammit, those bastards… Head around to the west! We can still get to the castle through the Bentenmon Gate! Hurry!” With the bridge floating in chunks down in the moat, the dominion soldiers who’d chased the Resistance from the castle town had to delay their pursuit. The Nioumon Gate wasn’t the only entrance to the palace. A second access point called the Bentenmon Gate existed specifically for emergencies and also led into the castle’s outermost ring. The Resistance hadn’t stopped their enemies completely. However, taking the detour to the west was a time-consuming endeavor. The Resistance had bought themselves a reprieve, and that was enough. “Hell yeah! We made it all to the way to the outer ring without breaking a sweat!” “We can do this! They put so many people up on the pass that the castle’s defenses have more holes than a strainer! Victory is in sight!” “Let’s keep this up and break through to the middle ring!” With no hostiles at their backs, the Resistance turned their full might toward seizing control of the outer ring, and in no time at all, it was theirs. Perhaps owing to how much personnel had been assigned to the Amagi Pass and the rest of the city, the castle’s outer ring had no real defense to speak of. There were no archers in its watchtower, nor any guards stationed at its gate, just a handful of fleeing servants. The plan was proceeding unbelievably well, and morale among the Resistance’s ranks was high. However… “Tsu-Tsukasa…,” Ringo called, her voice heavy with concern. “I know,” he replied. Even without Ringo’s satellite watching their enemies’ movements, observing the situation at hand was plenty for Tsukasa to realize what was going on. “Don’t get careless!” he shouted. “The enemy is lying in wait!” “Wh—?!” “L-look out!” The Resistance forces had been all gung ho about storming the middle ring, but suddenly, they stopped in their tracks. A storm of arrows and gunfire poured down from the middle ring. “There they are! I have the insurgents in my sights!” “Lady Mayoi is just behind us! We have to stop the brigands here, no matter what!” “““Hraaaaaaah!!!!””” Atop the stone stairs to the middle ring, a densely packed defensive line of soldiers stood before the Kigishinomon Gate. When Kokubu saw them, he gasped. “Tch… Th-there’s so many of them!” “They didn’t have many fighters, so they decided to abandon the outer ring to make their stand here.” In terms of square footage, the outer ring was nearly twice as big as the middle one, and from the look of things, the enemy couldn’t have been working with more than three hundred soldiers. It simply wasn’t possible to cover the outer ring with so few, so their decision was logical. Tsukasa glared up at the Kigishinomon Gate. “Even taking that into account, they have more people left than I anticipated. A fair number must have stayed behind in Azuchi, defying Administrator Jade’s orders.” “Ultimately, the one they follow is Princess Mayoi. Ain’t no surprise they got cold feet at the prospect of leaving the castle unguarded,” Kokubu replied. “What’s the plan? There’s more of us than them, but they’re holed up and have the high ground. And we can’t exactly mill about thinking it over…” “You’re right. If we waste too much time, dominion forces will come through the Bentenmon Gate and hit us from behind.” A growing rumble ran through the ground—footsteps of enemy soldiers running from the west. If things didn’t change soon, the situation would turn ugly. That said, Tsukasa had known the situation would be rough from the get-go. Doctrine held that successfully attacking a castle required a force three to ten times that of the defending side. The size of the army on the Amagi Pass had led them to estimate Azuchi held a thousand warriors, meaning that the Resistance’s five hundred were far from sufficient. If anything, the fact that Jade had mobilized the soldiers in Azuchi to take part in his offensive and left the city with so few guards that they’d been forced to abandon the castle’s outer ring was already more than the Resistance could have possibly hoped for. Tsukasa hadn’t even been counting on it. No, he’d prepared a different move to ensure that storming the castle succeeded. “Worry not, Commander Kokubu. Breaking the middle ring won’t take us long at all.” Not a moment later, an explosion rocked the air, and lights bloomed in the dark sky. “Wh-what’s going on?!” “Fireworks? Who the hell would set off fireworks at a time like this?!” “W-wait, look there! There’s someone up on the roof!” The dominion forces hunkered in the middle ring looked up. A high wall surrounded the middle ring, and a trio of figures stood atop it, silhouetted by the light of the fireworks. Tsukasa called up to them. “Hope we didn’t keep you waiting, Shinobu.” Hope we didn’t keep you waiting. Upon hearing those words, the scarf-clad girl standing atop the ramparts—prodigy journalist Shinobu Sarutobi—replied with a cheerful smile that seemed wildly out of place on a battlefield. “Nope! We just got here ourselves. Just for the record, though, I’m pooped. Going from the empire to Elm, and then hurrying down from there with everyone in tow takes a lot out of a girl.” “Tsukasa! Everyone! I missed you guys!” “Ringo! Please, tail me you didn’t get hurt while you were gone!” The footing up on the roof couldn’t possibly have been stable, yet the spiderlike machine with an array of manipulator arms hopped nimbly up and down on it all the same. He, along with a boy wearing a top hat, waved at their friends below. Ringo’s and Lyrule’s eyes lit up. “Bearabbit!” “Shinobu! Akatsuki! And—” There was one more person with them, too. The white-haired girl with wolf ears and a tail standing between Shinobu and Akatsuki was none other than… “I-it’s Shura!” one of the dominion soldiers cried. “That girl next to the ninja, that’s Shura the White Wolf General!” “But that’s impossible!” another one yelped. “I thought she was locked up in Elm!” “Wait, does that mean Princess Kaguya is in Azuchi, too?!” …Shura the White Wolf General, former Yamato army commander and Samurai General Shishi’s daughter. She was also the mightiest fighter among the Resistance’s ranks, and her arrival sent a chill through the soldiers in the middle ring. How was she there when she was supposed to be imprisoned in the Republic of Elm? As it turned out, the answer was simple: Tsukasa had asked Shinobu to bring her and Kaguya, and she had—by destroying their prison. From there, she sneaked them into Azuchi and waited for the battle to start.
Chapter 100
28 min read