Marisa Kirisame finally walked out of her home, her pockets filled with all kind of magical artifacts specially designed for combat, explosives potions, and protective charms.
"Heh. It's been a while since last time I helped."
And the witch departed, going for the village, with everything prepared. Except for a plan ; she has no idea what to do or where to go, she just knew something was going on.
Alice Margatroid was Marisa's first victim. As she was quietly working in her house, a serie of loud explosions caused her to jump, accidentally breaking up the doll's leg she was working on in several parts. It didn't take long for Alice Margatroid to get her grimoire, lock her door, and go meet the other witch in Gensokyo's sky, in order to peacefully settle the incident in a diplomatic way.
"What the hell is your problem, wannabe-witch?!"
Of course, nothing diplomatic happened. Because Marisa was fully-armed and eager to fight, and Alice was extremely pissed.
"You know me. Going around. Helping people. Solving incident." Answered the younger witch with this insolent smile that she mastered over the course of pissing many people into attacking her.
It worked wonderfully on Alice, and she immediately attacked.
While Marisa Kirisame was on her merry way to a still-unknown destination, people were still busy. Reisen, following the tall woman's orders, left the empty Eientei, followed by the man that slaughtered the mercenary squad. The tall woman herself left the place for an unknown location.
Meanwhile, the colonel Gideon, while returning to the human village, was on the brink of going rogue.
Meanwhile, at Mayohiga, Eirin Yagokoro bowed deeply to Yukari Yakumo.
"Thank you for your hospitality, but I have to go."
"Oh, don't bother going, Ran can cook for one more person," insisted the youkai sage, "and I'm sure everything will be all right even if you don't join the brawl."
The smile on Eirin's face didn't fade, despite the sudden change in her tone as she answered. "I do not want to join that brawl, I have more important things in mind than a game with the summoner or that blond interloper."
"Okay, see ya moonie."
And with these wise words, the brain of the moon left Mayohiga, with nothing but the clothes on her back, and a head full of worries for the wellbeing of her friend and pupil Kaguya Houraisan.
It wouldn't take long for the silver-haired genius to leave Mayohiga, find her way to the Bamboo Forest, and have an unexpected encounter with her former pupil, Reisen Udongein Inaba. Of course, Eirin has been eager to meet the girl that poisoned her and -according to the Yakumo- destroyed a huge part of Eientei. However, as she stared at the bunny girl, Eirin found herself unable to be angry. The last days were nothing but a blur, and there was only one thing the brain of the moon was sure of, and that thing was Udonge's complicity, coerced or not, to the recent poisoning event.
And the old Yakogoro has been famous on the Moon for many things. Patience was not one of these. As she was leaving Mayohiga and Yukari's amused care -the idea of owing something to that woman was aggravating- Eirin's head was filled with numerous, extremely painful torture she was eager to test on the rabbit.
And yet, even know, as she was finally meeting the only being who came close of killing her, Eirin could feel nothing but pity.
The fact that Reisen's throat has been sliced was an important factor. With a sigh, Eirin walked to the corpse, and eerily noticed that despite Udonge's blank stare and lack of reaction, several small, involuntary twitches betrayed the fact that the rabbit was still alive. Dying, her lungs slowly filling with blood, her face becoming paler and paler, but still alive anyway.
Eirin crouched in front of the rabbit, and quickly inspected the wound. With just a quick peek on the bloodied mess, the silver-haired genius decided that the wound was intentional. Someone, probably an earthling, sliced the rabbit's throat with a knife, in one clean cut. The lunarian touched and slowly raised the rabbit's chin. There were bruises on the neck, where the attacker grabbed the neck with one hand, slashing her throat with another.
"What happened, Udonge?"
The rabbit didn't answer. In fact, she wasn't even acknowledging the lunarian's presence, staring at a non-existing point, while losing her last drop of blood.
"You were always a handful, little rabbit. Now more than ever."