"Found you..." A voice croaks above my head as I'm walking down the path.
"Woah!" I leap aside and shield my face with my arms as a strong wing causes snow flies up. "A-Aya?"
The tengu reporter looks totally drained; there are bags under her eyes, her hair is disheveled, her rumpled clothing has ink blotches over them, and even her standing posture is unsteady. All in all... the picture of someone who has been working an extremely stressful job without any sleep.
"What the heck happened to you?" I ask automatically before I spot the bulky bag she's carrying. Oh, she was working on that.
"Nonstop, typing." Aya croaks, and pulls a newspaper out of the bag. "Here."
I take the copy of the Bunbunmaru from her. "Thanks. You should rest, you know."
She glares at me. "No way! I have a responsibility, to the readers of the Bunbunmaru!"
You'd sound more convincing if you didn't look like one of the Three Fairies could take you out. "Okay, okay. Just make sure to watch yourself, okay?"
With a nod, Aya blasts off to deliver the rest of her papers, and I continue on my journey, reading the newspaper as I walk. Yep, front page article for me. Glad to see she took my suggestion of dividing things into sub-articles. Got to cut out the one of me with Suika and Komachi for keeping.
I can't keep the grin from forming on my face when I see the pictures on the next page. Some of them are extremely impressive, like the one capturing the expressions of Yuuka and Meiling with their hair flying during their furious battle, while the more comedic ones like Tenshi just before she got bulldozed, Tenshi as snow gets dumped down the back of her clothes, and Tenshi getting pasted in the face.
I definitely got to show this to Iku. I continue reading through, but it didn't look like there was anything else interesting enough to match it. Pretty good for a one-tengu newspaper. Come to think of it, I haven't read what the other tengus wrote about the snowball tournament. Maybe I'll ask around the village when I get back. I stow the newspaper in sling bag as I reach my destination, Myouren Temple.
"Good morning, Ikuto." Ichirin greets me as I step through the gates, Unzan watching me from above her head.
"Morning," I return the greeting, "You're looking good this morning. Both of you." Wow, I've really changed if those words just slip off my tongue.
"Thank you. If you're looking for Nee-san, she's in the main hall."
"Thanks, Kumoi-san." I head in the direction she directs me in.
Before I even go another ten meters, I find my way barred by Murasa. "Don't bother Hijiri while she's in the middle of a ceremony." The ghost stops me.
"Sure, anywhere I can wait for her to be done?" I make the change smoothly.
Murasa raises one eyebrow. "I thought you'd be more stubborn than that."
Flowing water mode... I'll alter my course, but I'll keep moving. But of course I don't say that. "Do I look stupid?" I want to know.
A snort escapes her lips. "Actually, no. Come on, let me lead you to the dining room."
She seats me there and sends Nazrin to make some tea, before sitting across from me. We make some small talk, and I let her borrow the newspaper to read Aya's account of the tournament. There's a wistful look on her face as she scans through it, and I start having a few thoughts of 'what-ifs'.
I decide to confirm one of them. "Minamitsu-san, are you... stuck here?" I say it bluntly for the lack of a better way to put it.
"You could say that..." Her eyes have a distant look to them, as though recalling some depressing memory. "But as long as I have Hijiri and the others here with me, I don't mind it so much."
Always in the same surroundings... at least she'll see various types of visitors. But somehow I think her fate might have been better if this place was a tour ship to Makai like in the alternate ending.
"What? I don't need your pity."
"Ah, no, that's not it. So what do you do here most of the time?" I attempt to change the subject, then wince when I realize my mistake. Talk about rubbing salt into the wound.
But Murasa answers without hesitating. "Patrolling, cleaning, cooking, to name a few. What, did you think I just sit around all day long doing nothing?"
"No, of course not."
"Here's the tea." Nazrin's arrival saves me from further embarrassment. "Oh, there's a newspaper article about the tournament?"
"You want to read it? I'm done already." The ghost slides it over to her friend.
"Thanks, Murasa."
And so, Nazrin joins us at the table, and the atmosphere takes on a surprisingly casual air; we discuss all sorts of things, from food to the youkais around the area, we're almost like old friends with the way the talk just shuttles back and forth like... well, a shuttle on a loom.
Yay for lame analogies. The silly grin fades off my face when I hear a familiar voice. "Ah, sounds like she's done. Good morning, Hijiri-san." I greet Byakuren when she comes in through the door.
"Ikuto? When did you arrive?" She asks, surprised.
"Just a while back, actually."
"Hijiri-san, who came?" Shou, following after Byakuren, spots me over her shoulder. "Oh, hello there."
The tiger youkai puts her spear aside, and takes her seat after Byakuren does. I ask about the ceremony they were doing; it turns out to be just a normal Buddhist ceremony of worship. Just how does the issue of faith function, I wonder... it's not like it can be quantified or explained. Well, thinking about it, I'm surprised that Kanako got the kappas' faith. I sip my tea as I listen to the rest of them talk.
My mind goes off on a tangent, imagining Gensokyo as a sort of table-top board game where the main resource is faith, in a three-way fight between the 'nations' of Hakurei, Moriya, and Myouren. The game master would provide the players with 'incidents', and the players would have to satisfy the requirements to gain the rewards. Hakurei would have an extremely high power stat due to initial ambient faith, but have the downside of poor monetary income as well.
Before I can think up likewise conditions for the other two, a chance glance at Shou draws my attention to something... or the lack of something. "Nazrin."
The youkai in question looks at me. "Hm?"
"Do you need help searching?" I purposely ask in such a way so that Shou isn't embarrassed.
However, everyone else immediately looks at her, and Nazrin gives a long-suffering sigh. "Master..."
"I'm sorry! It's in the hall, I'll go get it right away!" Flustered, she gets to her feet and rushes out.
"I take it that happens a lot?"
"Not that often, but if anyone loses something, nine times out of ten it's her. And it's always the same thing. Probably because it's so much smaller than the spear she carries around." Murasa answers me.
"You mean this spear she carelessly left behind?" I point at the weapon she left in the corner. "Seems like she doesn't handle pressure well."
"What's got Shou in a hurry?" Ichirin inquires as she comes in, "No wait, don't tell me, she lost the pagoda again?"
Her question is answered by a simultaneous nod from everyone, including me.
"Of course it is."
"I can't find it! It's not where I left it!" Shou wails frantically as she comes back in. "Nazri~n!"
I get to my feet. "Need my help?" I offer.
Nazrin shakes her head. "Ah, no. I'll be fine, since it should still be around here. What did you come here to do anyway?"
"Oh right." I reach into my bag and take out the package I was assigned to deliver. "Here's the stuff you ordered." Ceremonial items, no doubt.
"Would you like to stay for some tea?" Byakuren invites.
I chuckle. "I think I already did that. Come by the village to visit sometime."
"We will." Byakuren promises, and I leave.
After a bit of scenery enjoyment as I sprint back, my thoughts turn towards the earlier interactions. Hmm, from that impression, I can get along pretty well with them. I recently decided to source for who stay with next after Keine, but today's the first day I'm doing something active towards that purpose. Nothing wrong with spending more time with my beloved wife. It's a bit lazy... but if Yukari's not around to assist, it also means that she's not around to mess up my life.
"Keine, I'm home~" I call out as I go through the door of the school.
She steps out of the kitchen. "Ikuto? I haven't started on lunch ye- Who are you?"
What? I point at myself. "What are you saying? It's me, Ikuto."
Keine gives me a suspicious look. "If this is some bad joke, please stop it. You don't look like-" Her expression changes to one of surprise as I feel the connection form in my chest. "Wait, it really IS you, Ikuto. Why do you look so different?"
"What do you mean, I look different?" I touch my face all over. "I didn't- waaaaaittt..." There IS one possible reason for this occurrence, now that I think about it.
She waits patiently for me to finish my thoughts.
"I'm going back out again! Be back soon!" I dash out again, followed by the sound of Keine's amused laughter.
Returning to Myouren Temple to search around the grounds, I find the culprit soon enough; she's too busy snickering over Nazrin's inability to find the missing jeweled pagoda to realize that I'm sneaking up on her with the help of Wavebreaker, so she reacts too late when I swap out to Wire Performance and use the wires to grab her legs and yank them out from under her.
"KYA!" Before Nue Houjuu can fight back, more wires loop around her wrists and tie them together against the ground.
Time to give this ability a try! Following a whim, I swing my left hand in a figure-eight motion a few times, snapping my fingers repeatedly.
The day after the tournament, I found out that one of the darkened crystals on the ring had regained its bright color; it's not too hard to come to the conclusion that I 'recharge' one sword a day. But now I'm using all six charges at one go; six ice swords, all shaped differently, lock down her wrists and both separate legs by crossing over the three targets. I made sure to aim them carefully so that they are not only locked in deep, but the extremely sharp edges are able to cut if Nue struggles vigorously. Once Nue's disabled, I banish Wire Performance.
Looks like I don't lose its permanent use even after using up all the charges, I glance at the ring, next I'll test out what happens if I leave it for more days than the maximum number it can hold. I turn back to my captive.
She attempts an escape first, but flinches when she gets cut for her trouble. "Gyah! What are you doing, you stupid human!"
"I could ask you the same. What's the big idea, putting one of your Seeds of Non-identification on me?"
"Che! Found out already, huh?" Nue rolls her eyes. "I'll take it off, so let me go. This ground is cold, in case you haven't noticed." She complains.
I crouch down next to her. "Perhaps you didn't hear me. What's your reason for doing this?"
"I just wanted to- Gya! Wh-what are you trying to do, you lowly human!" She shrieks when I poke her cheek.
"Nyaha." Smirking, I start poking and pinching her soft cheeks as Nue squeals. Man, I'm totally looking evil here... but it's fun. "Alright, that's enough for your punishment."
"Haa... Haa... how... dare you..." She glares at me murderously.
"Oh, grow up. You win sometimes, you lose sometimes." I push the swords aside to free her limbs. "Here." I hold out my hand to her.
She slaps it away. "I don't need help from you." Nue sneers as she gets back up.
"Well, hurry up and take the Seed off."
"I was going to, but I don't think I will after all." She smirks at me. "You mad?"
Woah, my brain momentarily converted that into a meme line. She was actually asking 'Are you going to get angry?'. Something makes me wonder if Yukari put that in when she did this translating trick. "Let me guess... you're hiding the pagoda by putting a Seed on it too, right?"
"Oh-ho~ pretty smart, aren't you-" Nue suddenly stops, having been alerted to the person behind her by the presence of a hand on her shoulder. "Uh oh." She says in a small voice.
"Nue-chan..." The person who had been attracted by Nue's loud voice is now smiling ominously.
"No wonder I couldn't find it." Nazrin comments nearby. "It was right under my nose the entire time, I just didn't recognize it."
I'm torn between wanting to see just what will Byakuren do to Nue, but reasoning that this is something that should be settled among themselves, as well as there being a possibility that Nue might dislike me further if she thinks I'm there to gloat, makes me decide not to. Of course, I make sure to get the Seed removed from me before I leave.
Can get along with them pretty well, I think to myself again, but being around Nue's a risk... Clearly, there's still much to work out before I can consider Myouren Temple one of the places I can stay at next.
"You really should have been there." I say to Iku as I watch the ceiling with my hands behind my head as support. "It was quite fun to watch."
"I am sorry that I missed experiencing all these for myself." She replies, in the middle of reading the newspaper for herself.
I smile to myself, having heard the faint edge to her tone that indicates she's amused. When your conversation partner isn't one to express her emotions on her face much, you have to come up with other ways to read her.
"Where were you, anyway?"
"I have been... putting aside my duties to come here." Iku admits, "It had reached an extent that it was necessary for me to attend to them no matter what."
"I'm sorry."
"There is no need for you to apologize. The choice was mine."
"I guess..."
"Just like it was her choice to work." Iku continues, "Without your encouraging her to."
The 'her' Iku is referring to can only be Komachi. Like she said, Komachi is actually doing her job without needing me to tell her to do so. My theory for this incredible turn of events is that Komachi isn't inherently lazy, but just acts that way in response to a monotonous work life.
"I'm do~ne!" The person we were just discussing enters the room and flops down onto the floor with a declaration that has forced exhaustion in it.
Maybe my theory is wrong... "Good work. Lap pillow?" I offer.
"Ooh, really? Don't mind if I do!" Komachi shifts around and puts her head on my left thigh, using it as a pillow.
"A closeness that friends do not have, yet not on the level of lovers." Iku comments, but when I look in her direction, her eyes are fixed on the newspaper.
Hm, is she jealous? I don't know her well enough to identify that emotion in her. "Would you like to join in too?" I ask impulsively.
There's a long moment of silence, enough to make me think she's going to accept. However, my expectation turns out to be wrong. "Thank you for the offer, but I must refuse."
"Okay. But the offer stays open-!" I blink. "What did you hit me for?" I ask Komachi, who has an irritated expression despite having her eyes closed.
"I believe it is for being unable to read the mood." Iku answers my question in a mild tone of voice.
Oh. "Sorry." I mutter, stroking Komachi's hair.
"Fufu~" The shinigami purrs.
Still, this event makes me ponder my relationship with these two in various ways; does Iku like me in the same way Komachi does, will I be risking our current relationship if I go for her, and what is the exact nature of my relationship with Komachi? I know we're supposed to be sex friends... but is that really what she thinks? Or am I the only one holding that opinion?
Well, whatever... I'll just kill time here until it's time for me to go back. After all, this place is meant to be a place where I can cut loose and relax.
"Nitori~" I call out as I approach the usual spot.
It's been nearly a week since the tournament, and it's my second time visiting the kappa after I returned the borrowed items the day after the tournament. She blushed profusely when I recounted the words of those who experienced their use; seems like she's not too used to being complimented. She also gave me permission to use her first name because she felt it was too weird that only one of us was using surnames.
A small figure with blue hair and a huge green backpack shimmers into view under a tree. "H-Hello, Ikuto." Nitori greets me back.
"So, can I see the thing you made?"
Instantly, her timid demeanor vanishes, and she nods excitedly. "Sure! Come this way!"
The poor girl's still extremely shy, but just bring up her point of pride, and she gets totally fired up. Somehow that seems like a bad personality trait in the hard-and-fast modern world, with swindlers and what not, but here, the pure innocence is making me want to encourage and protect it.
White knight personality, huh? I follow her as she dives into the cold river, using Eternal Inheritance's dragon crystal to repel the water away from my body. It's no longer as cold as it was, but it's still an insane idea to wade into the icy waters. Now I feel like I'm an RPG character that can only advance after unlocking a special ability.
I expected her workshop to be underwater, but when I asked Nitori about it before, she gave me an incredulous look that screamed 'Are you stupid?', which was a first, and pointed out that kappas might depend on water for survival, but they aren't fish. The actual lab is actually across the river, somewhere I wouldn't be able to get unless I walked a few kilometers downstream to where the river was shallow enough to cross, or flew, or had this dragon crystal. I emerge from the river on the other side, totally dry, and follow Nitori down a hatch hidden behind a tree.
"Woah, just how did you excavate a place this large?" I ask as I step off the ladder.
"One of the kappas from a long time ago invented an amazing digging tool that everyone still uses nowadays." Nitori coughs delicately. "With certain modifications."
I wonder what sort of modifications were made... but something tells me it's not the sort of thing that's meant to be discussed so easily. Whether that is because it's something only for kappas to know, or because it's an embarrassing issue, I have no idea. "So how do you power the place?"
"It used to be powered by the river turning the turbines, but I converted to using the underground reactor about a year ago."
Oh yeah, the events of Subterranean Animism. I think as I take a look around.
Nitori's workshop is at least half the size of the Scarlet Devil Mansion's entrance hall, which is still quite big nonetheless. The ceiling has a few small lights installed, but those are dark. The main and current source of illumination comes from large panels that line the top of the walls, making it as bright as a normal afternoon, not too glaring, but just enough to see every detail of whatever you might be working on. They look like fluorescent, but something tells me they aren't. I didn't see any infrared sensors around the place, but the lights came on the moment Nitori passed out of the ladder shaft.
But what draws my interest more are the pieces of machinery and equipment that fill the place; this place could be called an inventor's heaven, with all the tools, materials and half-finished stuff lying around waiting for someone who would put them to the use they were destined for. The layout is also quite well thought-out; the central area seems dedicated for small workings, while bigger pieces of machinery are placed closer to the walls, where there's additional machinery to lift up or turn them around for work to be done on whichever side the mechanic chooses. Of course, this type of supporting machinery isn't only restricted to the walls; there are conveyor belts, rails, all sorts of stuff to assist in the movement of heavy things. And then there are the doors.
"That looks big enough to fit a tank! Is it an elevator, or a door to a ramp?" I point to let Nitori know which one I'm referring to.
"That's an elevator." Nitori gives me a quizzical look. "Wait, how do you know the term elevator?"
I point at myself. "Outsider, remember? But your stuff is a lot better than anything I've ever seen." I indicate another, person-sized door. "What about that one?"
"That leads further underground. It's possible to access other kappas' labs from the general area." Nitori sets down her big green backpack and moves over to the nearby desk. "Here it is! Look at this!"
I approach to see what she's referring to. "So... what does this do?" She didn't tell me what it was exactly last time.
The thing she's holding is rectangular in shape, with straps that look as though... Is that meant for an arm? It's too small for me, but it'll be a perfect fit for Nitori's small arm. It had a thin strip that stuck out of one end as well, that looked like it would reach right to the center of a palm.
Sure enough, she affixes it to underside of her right arm and beckons to me. "Here, let me demonstrate."
I hesitate about approaching her when I see the glint in her eyes, but force myself to step forward. Still, I'm taken by surprise when she suddenly delivers a very light slap to my chest, and I hear a soft click from the contraption, but nothing else happens. Nitori pulls it back and shows me how the part of the gadget near her wrist has opened up. A tiny flick of the wrist, and it closes silently.
Woah, Assassin's Creed, hidden blade. "Is it some kind of concealed weapon?"
"That's one of its possible customizations." Nitori concedes, removing the gadget and replacing it back on the table. "But it can be used to carry anything provided they are customized to work with this. Like this one, it's my favorite!" Her voice takes on an excited pitch the more she talks.
She grabs a cylinder and a small square disk nearby, pulls out a bunch of small tools, and begins working on the gadget. Less than a minute later, Nitori turns around to face me and proudly displays the result of her work... which looks no different to when I first saw it a while ago. But when she gives a demonstration again, this time on an extremely battered test dummy in an area that she apparently uses for testing her inventions, her add-on turns out to be a capture net that could be reeled back with a touch of a switch on the gadget itself.
"Wow, that's impressive." I applaud as she detaches the net and starts untangling the dummy from it. Now I'm getting Batman vibes.
The sound of my clapping echoes around the large room, and Nitori suddenly fumbles. Even though I can't see any part of her skin, I'm absolutely sure she's flushing bright red right now. That's just so cute of her.
After showing me the other possible additions, she goes on to show me all sorts of stuff, most of which I have no idea how she comes up with, but are amazing in their own respective ways. The majority of what she has is mechanically inclined, but there are some electronics that require basic computer programming, which comes from another kappa whose forte lies in that area. Apparently, while most kappas are mechanically inclined like Nitori is, there are some that specialize in other fields; there are chemists, weavers, metalworkers, even farmers, since according to Nitori, eating fish and cucumbers all the time is tiring.
"But we do trade with the village for their produce sometimes. Here, look at this..."
She's pretty serious about her work; I've been trying to steer the conversation around, but she always keeps coming back to her creations. Then I realize something. "Say, where do you sleep and eat? I don't see any area around here that you can use for those."
Nitori leads me to one of the small doors and shows me the living area... which has been customized with a fold-out bed and something like an auto-cooker. "I usually forget to eat when I'm absorbed in something, so I set a timer on the cooker for a certain time beforehand, and it will ring a bell to tell me when the food is ready." She ducks her head slightly. "The food it makes isn't very good though..."
"Well, I'm sure you'll find some way to improve on it in the future." I reply consolingly. "What about that one?" I change the subject, seeing as she doesn't seem too comfortable discussing the matter of her life outside of her hobby.
As expected, she brightens up almost instantly. "Ah! That one! It's supposed to be like an exoskeleton, but I still haven't solved the problem of supplying the power..."
Much later, we're sitting at a table, its top cleared for the cups of tea I brewed, finally talking about something other than her inventions.
"Have you read the Bunbunmaru yet?" I pull the battered copy I got from Aya out of my bag and hand it to Nitori, but she shakes her head in refusal.
"I got a copy when Aya came by asking me to fix her typewriter after it broke down. The snowball tournament really sounded fun, from the way she spoke of it."
"Her writing's improved a little too. Though it's still not that objective." I shrug with a smile. "Well, considering that she was playing an active role, I don't think she could stay objective."
"Say, what exactly is the outside world like?" Nitori asks with hopeful curiosity.
"Let's see... you know the saying 'Necessity is the mother of invention'?" I wait for her to nod before continuing, "People can't fly, so they build planes..."
I go on to explain about all sorts of modern machines, most of which seem simple compared to what Nitori has. Similar to Youmu, she's extremely interested in the outside world, but mainly in the areas of technology. I don't really know much about how the latest electronics work, especially since it has been more than half a year already... I think. I forgot whether I've passed the half-year mark.
"But yeah, that's as much as I know." I conclude.
"Wow, that's amazing! I always wondered how those shikigamis you call 'computers' work! You have to share this knowledge with us!"
The one thing I noticed about kappas is that they prefer visible results, which explains why they might be extremely advanced in terms of mechanics, but behind the modern world in programming and the like. Something along the lines of, if I do A, I'll get B. But if B isn't something that can be seen with the eyes... I have a feeling that if their labs weren't situated underground, there would be a lot of explosions and stuff going on.
"Wait, what happened to that thing I gave you last time?" I ask suspiciously.
My jaw almost drops with the shock of seeing the GameCube in pieces, but I soon realize that not only are the disassembled parts arranged in order, but there are notes around the place analyzing and theorizing their importance and roles within the complete item, which has been neatly sketched out in its entirety on a large sheet of paper on facing wall. In contrast, Nitori's handwriting looks rather untidy, but I can read it well enough.
"Could you explain to me how this works?" Nitori asks eagerly. "I figured out that you put something in the part that goes on top for the tiny laser to be scan it, but I have no idea what the rest is for."
I read the note at the other end of the arrow that points to the disc reader. Laser is not strong enough to effect physical changes. Other possible uses... She's thought things through quite well, but not that I think about it, I didn't see any construction plans. Does she work it all out in her head?
"Ikuto?"
"Huh? Oh yeah... I'm not too sure on how everything here works, but this thing here is something called a game system. Except that it requires other things before it can be put to its full use."
"Where can I get them?" Nitori immediately blurts out, then covers her mouth. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't be so demanding, but I-"
I hold up a hand to stop her. "It's fine, it's fine. It's okay to be curious." I'm speaking to her like she's a kid even though she's probably older than me.
I'm halfway through half-talking, half-bullshitting about processors and memory storage before I realize the time. Making my excuses to Nitori, I quickly climb back up the ladder to emerge into a winter's late afternoon, and still darkening.
As I set off back towards the village, my thoughts are focused on Nitori, and the kappa race. It doesn't seem like they do REALLY big projects, possibly for the same reason their programming skills aren't as advanced. A mentality that expects results quickly, perhaps? As for why there hasn't been much advancements in their programming despite outsiders coming in... Oh, of course.
I pull out my key and manifest Phantom Blossom. "It's because normal humans don't have the capabilities to make it all the way out here alive..." I answer the question out loud.
Guess that means I'm not normal anymore. I think as I charge forward, heading for the youkais that stand in my way. Well, I guess I can consider Nitori as a possible candidate for someone to stay with too, but I need to get to know her more before I can even consider asking. But what is this feeling? I wonder, slicing right through them repeatedly without stopping. Something seems... off. I continue my run back home, trying to figure my heart out.
"I'm sorry, please have mercy on my empty wallet, Yuyuko-sama." I actually go down onto my hands and knees.
"Hmm~ What are you sorry for~?"
"I'm deeply sorry for excluding you from the snowball tournament!" I touch my head to the floor of the restaurant.
To be honest, I was somewhat expecting this; from the time I spent with Yuyuko, I knew she was the time to hate being left out of stuff, and with Aya writing about the thing in the Bunbunmaru, it was only a matter of time before she came to confront me over it. But the reality of having my initially fat wallet eaten down to nothing is harsher than I thought it would be; it's already the sixth restaurant we've been to, and my calculations have put the current cost of this one leaving me with only a few coins. Good thing I settled all my debts before this.
Nearby, Youmu is probably giving me a pitying look. But you can't go against Yuyuko, can you?
"Hmm~ Should I~?"
"Please! I beg for your forgiveness!"
"Okay! You're forgiven!"
Thank god.
"After you treat me to another plate of this."
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO...
Youmu steps in. "Yuyuko-sama."
"Yes, Youmu?"
"Haven't you had enough already?"
"Ehh~" Yuyuko whines, "But there's so many shops I haven't been to yet!"
Instead of a facepalm, I do a faceground. So it turned into a gourmet trip for her! Is she gonna draw this out so she can eat all she likes?
"Yuyuko-sama..." Youmu's voice hardens slightly.
"Okay..." But she sounds extremely unsatisfied.
I settle the bill and leave with the two of them in tow. As we talk, I find out that Youmu was the one responsible for Yuyuko finding about it late, having concealed the newspaper that Aya delivered. It was only a fluke that Yuyuko came across it while puttering around, though I wonder if Yuyuko knew already. It's hard to tell with her.
"Small bone~ Small bone~"
Just what song is that? "Yuyuko, just what is that song?" I can't resist asking.
She gives me a look of surprise. "Oh, you don't like it? How about this? Pretty flowers~ Pretty flowers~ Flowers in both hands~"
FACEPALM!
"Have you been training lately?" Youmu asks me from my right.
Gurk... this is embarrassing. "Umm... I have been keeping up with my fitness, but..."
"Would you like to spar sometime?" She invites.
"That would be good." I need to check the level of my abilities. This might be a good wakeup call.
"Then let's do it a week from now."
"Sure!" Gotta train up for that.
I walk them to the outskirts of the village, where Yuyuko kisses my cheek and pushes her gardener into doing the same, before they fly off to return back to Hakugyokurou.
I hardly interact with them nowadays... unlike back then when I used to see them every day. At least I get to see Eirin and the rest whenever I want even after I left Eientei. I check the weather. Almost time; I rather not make them wait any longer.
I recently made arrangements to visit the Scarlet Devil Mansion, mainly to satisfy Remilia's demand that I do so. But I also want to examine whether the place is suited for me to stay there, or will I be risking my life? My initial plan was to stay there after another place, but that doesn't mean I can't scout out the place first.
As I'm crossing the bridge, I spot Cirno having a snowball fight with the Three Fairies as Letty watches on, a good distance away from where I am, but decide to stay out of it. Or...
Maybe not... I gather snow and mold three snowballs, placing it on the wall of the bridge. This should work, since Wavebreaker Form Two seems to be able to modify the nature of its shots. I assemble the rifle, and take up the appropriate position. This reminds me of playing pool. Line up the end with the ball and the target... let's see, first one definitely has to be Star. Modifying power level for propulsion...
I ensure that I'm locked onto Star's head, and wait for her to reveal herself from behind her snow fort. "Shoot!" I whisper.
"Ugyah!" I hear her faint yelp from where I am, and she sways around in a weird pose on one leg before collapsing.
"Star?" Her friends notice right away, but they haven't realized the cause yet.
Next, Sunny. Before she can hide herself with her light control. Target, lock. "Shoot."
"Wahyah!" The sunlight fairy takes the hit squarely in her face and flies off her feet to crash into the snow fort behind her.
"Eh? Eh? What's going on?" Luna, the only one left, turns to Cirno. "What did you-"
"Shoot."
"-gyafuh!" With that, all three fairies are down, and Cirno is left confused as to the reason why.
Oh yeah~ I disassemble the weapon and put away the key. Okay, now that that's over, I better get back on track.
Meiling seems asleep from afar, but when I get within ten meters of her, she immediately wakes up. "Who goes there?" She demands sleepily, rubbing her eyes.
"It's me. You know, me." (1) Huh, she wakes up only when I get this close? Quite different from when it's Marisa. Is it because I'm walking? Or...
She stops rubbing her eyes to peek at me. "Oh, it's you, Ikuto. Go on in."
I walk past her. "Thanks." I have to get her to teach me how to sense people like that. But I suppose that can wait until later.
The door opens before I step onto the bottom step, revealing Sakuya, who clearly has been waiting for me. "Good afternoon, Ikuto."
"Afternoon..."
"Please follow me. I will show you to where Milady is."
She leads me to a sitting room, where Remilia is standing by the window looking out at the snow-covered garden. But before I can say anything, a small figure suddenly dashes towards me from a shadowy corner, jumping right for me.
"Onii-chan!" Flandre's arms are outstretched as she dives towards me.
I react automatically, grabbing her by the wrists from the outside of her arms and swinging her around to bleed off the momentum. It takes two full spins before I judge it safe enough to slow down enough to put her back down on the ground.
"Hi Flan." I let go of her hands and bop her on the head lightly. "It's rude to jump like that."
Rather than reacting with childish outrage, she covers her head and whines like a dog begging for forgiveness. "Auuu..."
"Come on." I pull her over to an empty armchair and sit down, before taking a knife to cut my finger. "Here you go, Flan." I stick my bleeding finger into the loli vampire's mouth, and let her suck on it.
"You seem to have my little sister wrapped around your finger, Ikuto." Remilia, sitting in an armchair opposite me, comments. "In more ways than one."
"Better than me being splattered over her." I retort without thinking, then quickly slap my free hand over my mouth. "Um... could you pretend you didn't hear that?" I remove my hand to say weakly. Guess the impact of seeing Flan jump at me with that wide smile affected me more than I thought.
"..." Remilia closes one eye and looks at me with the other, acting the bored, yet threatening lady of the mansion. "I see you know of her... eccentricities."
That's one way of putting it. "Yes, Lady Remilia."
"You learned it from the human known as Hieda no Akyu?"
That and latent Touhou knowledge. I nod, pulling my finger out of Flan's mouth. "Okay, that's enough, Flan. No, don't give me that look. Too much at a time isn't good for you. Here," I pull her onto my lap, and bouncing her up and down. "Upsy-daisy!"
"Ahaha!" Pure innocent laughter fills the room.
Both Sakuya and Remilia are smiling as they watch Flan enjoy herself, and even I find myself getting pulled along by it. Enough to forget that I'm bouncing an unstable walking weapon of destruction on my knees.
And then I had to go and think that. I stop and start patting Flan's head. "Good girl, Flan."
"Really? Waaai!" She twists around...
Oh shit! I grab hold of the key in my pocket and call out Festival Horn, just as Flan embraces me really hard. Even with this... it hurts... shit, cold too... "Flan..." I keep my voice tightly controlled. "You're squeezing too hard."
She immediately releases her hold on me. "Ah, sorry, Onii-chan!"
I pat her head again. "It's okay, just be careful, okay?"
Flan grins at me toothily. "Okay!"
Remilia picks that moment to interrupt. "Flan. Could you leave us alone for a while? I wish to talk to Ikuto in private."
Flan seems reluctant, but with Sakuya chivying her along, she has no choice but to leave. Now only Remilia and I are in this sitting room, watching each other over a small tea table. Her expression is quietly thoughtful, but mine is probably a mix of cautiousness and respect that any predator should be faced with.
Doesn't help that my danger sense is screaming. I wait for her to speak first. After all, that's normal politeness, right?
"I can tell you have a request to ask of me. Speak."
I switch over to Blaze Revive to fix my injury. "Request... I don't think it can be called that. But hear me out."
Unlike the previous candidates, this isn't one I can hide my purpose from. I tell her about how I was thinking of moving on to a new place after Keine's, but wasn't sure about who to stay with. She asks, and I tell her who the other candidates are. Throughout the entire conversation, Remilia doesn't let on what she's thinking, despite my attempts to read her facial expressions.
"Ho... Following the will of that gap hag, I see."
Hey, that actually raises a good point. Why am I following Yukari's plan? The answer comes to me nearly instantly. "It's a great way to experience more of Gensokyo, wouldn't you say?"
"I suppose with your short lifespan, you have to make every moment count." Remilia says snidely.
I tilt my head and return her mocking smile with a meaningless one of my own. "I would say it makes life worth living."
Remilia doesn't say anything, but I get a slight feeling that she concedes to my opinion. In the end, she dismisses me from her presence while she 'thinks about it'.
Just to be safe, let's try convincing Patchouli to join my side. Just in case. I add again mentally. Let's see... this is the second floor, so the best way to the library is through the first floor entrance.
I manage to make my way there without being molested by any of the fairy maids, though they did give me some wary glances before returning to their work. It's easy enough to spot Patchouli's location by the extra touch of brightness as I'm descending the spiral staircase, and navigating in that general direction. This time, I take great care to check my surroundings for Koakuma.
"Ikuto. What are you hesitating there for?" Patchouli calls out to me
"Hi there." Stepping out, I greet the sorceress and librarian of this Great Library. "How ya doin'?"
One purple eyebrow lifts. "I confess that I'm deeply curious as to why you choose to address me with such brogue."
"Just my way to adding some levity to the situation." I reply gaily, approaching closer. "So..."
"You wish for me to speak to Remi." The way she puts it isn't a question, but a statement of fact.
"Yes- wait, how'd you know?"
"I have my sources." Her eyes drop back down to her book.
Probably some listening spell. Who knows? "Well, yeah, so..."
"I will lend my help." Patchouli speaks without looking up.
"Really?"
"When you've recovered my books from that witch."
Knew it would be that. Good thing I didn't get my hopes up. "Ah, that... It's just a matter of timing, isn't it?"
Patchouli closes her eyes. "The sooner the better, if possible. My part in it has been done. All that's left is yours."
"Aye aye."
There's a moment of silence, after which she opens her eyes and notice that I'm still standing there. "Is there something else?"
"Is it possible for me to learn magic?" I ask bluntly.
Patchouli blinks, but she doesn't seem too surprised. "Have you shown any expertise?" She asks, almost clinically.
Temperature regulation, a bit of Alice's thread control magic, though I haven't really used the latter much outside of serving as a radar. I fill her in on that information, and she responds by nodding, though the sigh that comes with it doesn't sound reassuring. "I can't fly, though." I conclude.
"Clearly you can use it to some extent, but I doubt you will be able to reach even the level of an apprentice."
I shrug. "Figures. Is it because I don't have any inherent magic, and am only using the ambient magic around me?" I throw that idea off the top of my head.
"Exactly. The store of magic you say you have inside yourself is nothing more than a miniscule amount that diffuses into you from your surroundings. But you already knew that, it appears."
"Actually no. I guessed." I confess.
This time, both eyebrows go up. "That 'guess', as you call it, isn't something that anybody can make without the relevant information."
"Okay, fine." I throw my hands up in mock defeat. "I admit, I did think about it a little. But anyway, you said I can use some magic. So that means you can teach me?"
Patchouli trades her book for another, focusing on the new tome. "You'd have to stay here."
Her tone makes it clear enough: If I don't get her books back from Marisa, I can forget about learning magic from her. Recognizing the futility of trying to persuade her any further, I take my leave. As I retrace my steps back to the spiral staircase, I notice Koakuma hurry out from another bookshelf, casting an apologetic look at me; it appears that I wasn't the only one trying to avoid an inadvertent collision.
Seeing as Remilia was still 'considering' my request, I head outside to pose Meiling a similar question to the one I asked Patchouli.
"You want ME to teach you how to use Ki?" The gate guard points at herself as she asks incredulously.
"Is it possible?"
"Well... anyone can learn its use, but it'll take a while." Meiling doesn't sound too sure of herself, as she rubs her chin thoughtfully while her other arm is propped under her...
Look away from there, you idiot. I remind myself. Hmm, so it's a matter of time, huh? That doesn't sound good. "Alright. But martial arts, you can teach me that, right?"
She raises her index finger, like a teacher explaining a concept to a student. "As long as it doesn't disrupt my duties, yes."
"That's good enough, thanks."
Meiling stops me just as I'm about to leave. "Wait, why do you want to learn from me?"
"Because..." I stop mid-answer. I admire the power that everyone else has but I don't? "I'm not too sure myself..."
"I see." She turns away from me. "Tell me when you do know."
Huh, the atmosphere suddenly got a lot heavier... just what did I do to piss her off? And just what is my reason? I feel like I'm forgetting something important...
Like when I entered earlier, Sakuya is waiting near the door to lead me to where Remilia is waiting. The answer I get actually makes me step back in shock, and I barely keep myself from stuttering as I give my acknowledgement and leave the Mansion. Still, I can hear her words ringing in my mind.
"My condition for your staying is simple. You will cede that key of yours to me for the length of your stay here."
The question is, can I really afford to do that?
With my visit to the Scarlet Devil Mansion only yesterday, the memory is still weighing heavily on my mind when I decide to go pay a visit to Reimu. It looks like I really should rule that place out; forget about the place after the next... I might put it as the last place on the list. At least I will have seen the rest of Gensokyo before Flandre 'accidentally' kills me. I tuck my hands into my pockets as I head for the gate.
"Oh what a surprise! Would you accept my invitation to have some tea at my place?"
I don't realize what the falsely cheerful voice said until my feet are far off the ground, courtesy of the person who's carrying me by the back of my collar. That voice sounded familiar... who would do- Oh, HER. I cross my arms in useless defiance as Yuuka brings me back to a small cottage where her field of sunflowers should be. Guess she doesn't want to make them grow until it's spring- Oh wait, there are a few there.
"So what's all this about, Yuuka-san?" I ask as she drops me off none too gently in front of her place.
"I thought you promised to come visit me." The sadistic flower youkai lies through her teeth, poking me in the chest with her parasol hard enough to make me wince. "I suppose you forgot, just like how you're forgetting to address me without any honorifics."
Yes, and your poking is meant to help me jog my memory. "Oh yeah, I did." I play along. "So, shouldn't you invite me in?" Let's play, then.
It reminds me of the times I used to engage in verbal battles with Eirin over mealtimes, the way Yuuka and I are making up stuff in order to irritate each other. Of course, another similarity between the two cases is that I'm losing.
"So," I grunt, "How does, this, feel!" I grind my elbow down hard.
Below me, Yuuka moans with pleasure, turning the head she's resting on her arms around to give me a look of approval. "Mm, that's nice. A bit harder, if you would."
Goddammit! I'm practically using all my strength giving her this back massage already! A normal person would have a broken bone at least! "Okay then, let me try something else..."
I wonder what Aya would think of this scene; I'm doing one-armed fist pushups on Yuuka with my fist, focusing most of the weight through my knuckles and around her left shoulder blade where anyone should be extremely sensitive. And yet all she does is chuckle like I'm tickling her with a feather.
"The other side, please."
"Got it." I growl, and switch to my left, moving around to her other side to comply with her wish. Should I give her a jab with Burst Needle? Brr, rather not experience what happens if I fail.
Ten minutes later, I'm flat on my back wheezing as she leisurely sips from a cup of tea. Just how did I get pulled along in her pace... after I finished massaging her back, her arms and her legs (I was tempted to grope her breasts as revenge, but that's like asking to get a Double Spark down my throat and up my ass), she went and did the same for me... and rather painfully.
"Can we stop it with the games already?" I ask after getting my breath back. Hey, actually I feel pretty loosened up now... "Just what did you want me for?"
"Why, can't I invite a friend over for some tea?"
I grimace. Of course it wasn't going to be that easy. Why does she have to be so aggravating? "You, a powerful flower youkai who has lived for so long, considering me, a normal human whose powers are merely borrowed, a friend?"
Yuuka puts her cup down. "Can't I?" She responds with a smirk.
"I'm just saying it sounds too good to be true."
"So suspicious of others..."
It was written as such in the Gensokyo Chronicles! "I thought powerful youkais like you aren't interested in the average human."
"But an average human wouldn't have your powers." She easily counters my argument.
Ah, screw it. "Alright, fine. Whatever. Just spit it out already."
"Spit what out?" She asks innocently.
"GAAAAAAAH!" Flopping over onto my front, I thump my head against the tatami flooring repeatedly, as she chuckles.
"You really are interesting!" Yuuka laughs.
I force myself to turn over again, so I can glare at her without turning my head too much. "Just what- no, shortening that, WHY ME?"
Before I register what happened, she's suddenly straddling my body, with her face very close to mine. "Because," Yuuka whispers, her breath smelling like some flower I don't know, "You don't have fear in you. I like that."
"Surely there are other people who don't fear you." I point out. Oh shit... I have no energy to mount a proper resistance or an escape...
"Of course there are. I mean, were." Yuuka amends her words. "They're dead because they were also too crazy not to."
"I suppose I'm going to join that list, aren't I?" I ask clinically.
"Not if you stay on my good side."
Of all people whose interest I could have drawn... it's the one who not only can, but might kill me the moment I make a wrong move. Maybe I should ask Satori what exactly happened to my fear the next time I see her. "So... would you please get off me? It's not that I don't mind having a beautiful lady on top of me-"
"Then there's nothing wrong, is there?" She interrupts, smiling sadistically down at me.
I would have facepalmed if my body had been listening to me. "No, that's not what I'm trying to say. Look, could you just get off? Please?"
"Since you asked so nicely." Yuuka shifts her body off me, and I force myself to sit up.
"So, just what exactly do you want from me?" I ask, thinking to myself about how I must NEVER encounter Yuuka when I'm tired, or else I'll mouth off at her and get Master Spark-ed.
She turns her head aside bashfully, fluttering her eyelashes. "Don't make a girl say something like that, geez..."
I stare at that for maybe two seconds, then repeatedly smash my forehead down into my upraised knee hard enough to see stars. WHY ME? WHY ME? WHY ME?
It's so obvious she's doing all this just to troll me, and succeeding rather brilliantly, too. Part of me wants to hit her for it, but a logical part of myself holds me back from taking the path that will trigger the death flag, which instead dooms me to more trolling by the sadist of Gensokyo, Yuuka Kazami. But bit by bit, she drops enough hints to keep me hooked long enough until I finally piece her real intention together.
"Assist you in spring gardening, you say. Are you seriously inviting me to stay with you?" Day in, day out, nonstop trolling, on top of being made to do all sorts of chores she can do without me in the first place. I'll probably kill myself before a week... or run away.
"Doesn't that sound like a marvelous idea?" Yuuka fake-gushes.
For what seemed like the umpteenth time, I smack my face with my palm. I think I've left an imprint already. "Can I think about it at least... it's too early for me to decide something like this."
"Certainly... I'm sure you'll see the benefits of accepting my invitation once you've thought about it a little." It's amazing how that smile can look angelic and demonic at the same time.
It seems like she's finally letting me go, possibly because she had enough fun out of me from now? Whatever the case, I beat it out of there as fast as I can. Behind me, I can hear her giggles turn to chuckles, gradually increasing in volume until it becomes full-out laughter.
Three prospects and one actual invitation... come to think of it, this is the first time anyone's ever invited me... but I REALLY don't want to stay with Yuuka for some reason. Oh well, I shrug, and wince as my muscles protest that motion, I still have time, right?
(1) An oft-used line by scammers posing as an 'injured' family member of the person they're calling, asking for money to be wired to a specific bank account.
So here's another chapter, this time showing Ikuto going around checking out prospective places to stay at next. However, without Yukari's 'assistance', that list of prospects is VERY short. Won't be pulling off the move anytime soon, but feel free to start guessing where he'll go next. Of course, I won't be revealing this one before the actual reveal.
For someone who puts a lot of emphasis on writing randomly, I rewrote various parts of this chapter quite a few times. I had a serious illness lasting for nearly a week, and even now, I'm not entirely recovered; it's weird how surreal my own story looks when I'm reading it while half-stoned with meds and fever, with part of my mind saying 'This is okay' while another part said 'Nah, this could use some more'. But whichever I went with, I wasn't exactly in the right frame of mind to judge the quality, so I just went with whatever felt right. Even now, I'm still not entirely sure about my writing- WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT. See? Stoned, I tell you.
Plus my exams are coming up again... Going to have to take time off from this story to focus on it. Although to be honest, I first started writing this story as a way to let off stress from cramming for the exams last semester, so maybe I might end up getting a burst of inspiration instead. But then again, my initial chapters were short in length, so even if I do, the update speed won't be as fast as the ones I initially started with.