Heya, been some time. Got busy with real life and other stuff, so I didn't have much time to do this ;-; . Not that I'm gonna stop though. *Ahem* Kay that was depressing, so let's start off with ...news? Well, it was from like a month ago, so...100+ followers yay! Didn't expect this to grow at all Honestly, cause as some of you have probably noticed, my writing is pretty trashy! Umu, I think I have been improving though, so hopefully I can keep up with you guy's expectations. Anyway, this chapter marks the time where touhou starts to get into the story. It will slowly progress from there, so hopefully you'll...stay tuned. though expect the next chapter to appear around Christmas time or something. maybe earlier. Who knows
Also this is in first person, cause I thought it would tell this one part of the story better. Might be bad though, tell me in reviews if this was a bad choice.
Chapter 8
This day full of suprises
White
That was all I could see.
An endless void of white stretched out in front of me.
It was a dream I had for the past couple of days. Or was it a dream? Maybe, but all I saw was just a void of white...I think.
Wait
No, now that I think about it, there was someone else
A...woman? Not sure, I couldn't remember their face. I know that I did talk to them though, and I think I enjoyed it.
It was the same today as well. She stood behind me, and I turned and began to talk. I talked, kept on talking about whatever I wanted. My day, my desires, my past, what I learned anything really. She listened and sometimes responded, but not much.
...her voice is so pretty that it's a shame she doesn't talk much.
I felt myself waking up. I bid the lady goodbye, and waved as the void began to fade. She smiled, that much I know. However, in the end, I still can't see her face for some reason…
*Beep* *Beep*
I lashed out and shut off my alarm. Blinking, I rubbed my eyes and stared into the ceiling for a moment.
I sighed. No good, I can't remember what happened in that dream again. I blinked again.
Huh, weird, this ceiling looks unfamiliar. Then it struck me. Yes, I wasn't at home anymore. I was at Chaldea, an organization dedicated to the preservation of humanity. Well, what's left of it anyway. We're kinda blindly going through this, hoping that once every singularity is fixed, the world will revert back to normal. It's been a week since I was kidnapped here. A lot has happened. I got a shield kouhai, fought an dark, alternate version of my adoptive aunt, summoned my basically dead dad, my actual adoptive aunt except...bigger, the dark version of my aunt,her vassal, and a magical fox girl, learned that Leonardo Da Vinci was female? I think? Also did I mention my Aunt was king Arthur? Well, her name's Artoria, and she's the legendary King Arthur. She uses a lance now for some reason. Because I summoned two of them, we decided to nickname my dark aunt Salter, because she was summoned as a saber class servant...and was an alter servent.
Rolling to my right, I flinched as I saw a face. A woman with pink hair as well as two fox ears was sleeping next to me. She rubbed her eyes and yawned.
"Good morning Tamamo-chan." I said.
Caster class servant, Tamamo no mae, one of the three great monsters of Japan and magical fox girl. She says she's a shrine maiden, but I don't think that's how a shrine maiden dresses, past or present… Well, aside from that, lately she's been sneaking into my bed, not sure why she enjoys sleeping with me though. Personally, I'm fine with it. I mean, look at her tail! It's sooo fluffy! Like seriously, when I first hugged it was like 'Fuwahh' and I blanked out for sometime! Wait, crap, I'm drooling. Anyways, her tail is great, and because Chaldea has the same temperature at all time, it's never a bad time to snuggle it.
She slowly opened her eyes, her ears twitching. Then she widened her eyes and blushed. Huh, so she can get embarrassed huh.
"Dang it! I wanted to wake up earlier than you and go 'Good Morning Master!' like I did with my last master! Why are you so diligent!" she cried.
Well, if anything, I'm surprised she didn't wake up from the alarm. But what's this about her last master? Maybe it has something to do with how she knows dad…
"Mm, glad you're awake too." I responded. I got off my bed, and headed toward the bathroom. Washing my face, brushing my teeth, you know, the usual after you wake up.
*Clatter* "Mikon!"
I peeked out, wondering what happened. Oh, she tripped over one of my books. Well, if you want to go into a more accurate phrase, than grimoires would be a more accurate phrase. Yep, I was studying magecraft until I went to bed last night, and I may have forgotten to clean it up...huh, how did she get in here without making a sound I wonder.
"Hm, hm. Master's messy side is cute too!" She said with a nod " But make sure to clean it up later, or your father is going get mad! Then he'll think that I'm a bad influence and stop teaching me! Speaking of your father, I need to help him with breakfast." And just like that She ran off.
Huh, guess I'll go help too than after I'm done cleaning. I picked up a rather musty looking book.
Basics on Elemental Magecraft by Paracelsus von Hohenheim It said. One of the greatest magi to ever live, he's influenced both the magical and scientific world. He's also the one who categorized the five main elements, and created the famed philosopher's stone. However, some of his magecraft related books have some unfamiliar names in it. I flipped to the last page. On the back it wrote: Dedicated and inspired by my personal friend, Patchouli Knowledge.
Patchouli Knowledge.
A name that doesn't appear anywhere in history, and appears in almost every one of his books. Trust me, I searched it up on the internet. All I got was a flower. Whether they actually existed, or it was just part of his imagination was impossible to know. Ah well, hope I can summon more, and maybe summon and ask him.
After picking up all the books off the ground, I changed into a hoodie as well as a pair of shorts and walked out. Heading toward the cafeteria, a loud *clang* than a yelp sounded out.
"Awawawa! I broke it again! Oh no...My King is going to be so mad!"
...Third time this week I think? Even though Gareth got knowledge from the...grail...wait does that apply for this system? I think it does because she knew what a computer was... Well, she keeps getting spooked by an alarm clock and smashing it, so we've had to replace it a couple of times.
Ignoring the continued clattering, I continued on until I got to the cafeteria.
Walking in, I saw dad prepping up breakfast in the kitchen. If you looked at the two of us, you probably wouldn't think that we're related in any sort of way. A tall, tan, well built body, white hair slicked back, and a rather deep and smooth voice, he was the epitome of an attractive male apparently. However, he didn't have that in my original world...so it's probably something to do with the counter force. Anyhow, he's good at cooking. Like, BEYOND good at cooking! Anything he makes I swear will be able to impress that one english chef who yells a lot, 100% guarantee! Don't laugh, I'm being serious here. He's also really good at basically anything housework or construction related, and is someone I strive to be like.
Yeah, I probably missed him the most out of everyone back home. My family on this world was...irresponsible? Well, for one, my name, Ritsuka, was actually both my parents' in this world's name. They apparently thought 'Ah, we both have the same name! Let's name out kid that!' and named me that. Not only that, they can't cook, are air headed, are horrible at housework of any sort, irresponsible with money... it's a wonder how I didn't die in my first 7 years of life.
...Well, it's not like I hate them. If anything, I really think of them fondly. After all, they accepted me even though I technically wasn't their daughter. They're really kind, and they always have a positive attitude. I mentioned that they were rookie manga artists, right? Well they are, and most of the money they waste is on otaku things. I did have to take care of most of the housework, but I kind of enjoyed it. My life was...fun. I wouldn't sell that life for anything.
"Morning dad, do you need any help?" I called out. He glanced back, and smiled.
"Morning Ritsuka." He said, then thought for a moment. "Hmmm, nothing much for now. "
I nodded, and took a seat. I started going through my schedule for today in my head. Let's see...first I have a lesson with Tamamo about onmyoudou, then I have to do a test with Da Vinci, then lunch, combat training, then a 'surprise' that Da Vinci said she had that one time she left her workshop, and...I think that's it.
"Ah, good morning senpai, what are you thinking about?" said a voice behind me. A pretty girl with pink hair and glasses sat next to me.
Ah, it's my kouhai!...is what I would say that but she's actually older than me. She calls me senpai because I'm...harmless? I'm kinda confused on that part. Anyways, her name is Mash, and she's probably the world's only demi servant. She's the first person I met at Chaldea, and she's really nice.
"Ah, nothing. Just thinking about what I have to do for today." I replied. She nodded.
"It's good to have a schedule for things. Ah, I grabbed a plate of breakfast for you too, Senpai" She said, and placed a plate in front of me. Omelettes,
*Ding* *Ding*
A bell rang out. That's the bell for breakfast. I began counting in my head.
10...9...8...7...6...5
"LET ME IN!" Several voices synchronized perfectly into a single shout. Oh, they're here early. A smile slowly creeped on my face. As soon as the doors opened, a stream of people sprinted through. As usual, both? Of my aunts were at the lead, specifically Aunt Artoria was in the lead. On a horse. Huh, Aunt Salters in close second! Wait, that's actually really impressive, considering the other one is on a horse. So...yeah, a crowd usually forms when it's time to eat. Ever since dad served all the employees food, they've become obsessed with it, and. As a result, they got banned from going into the cafeteria before breakfast time.
...I'd like to praise myself from holding back, 'cause I'm one of the few that aren't banned.
After breakfast, I headed back to my room. Apparently Tamamo wanted to hold the lesson about onmyoudou in my room. If you didn't know, onmyoudou is a japanese type of magecraft. I never studied it, but I'd like to assume that it's similar to what I read in mangas, like having familiars called shikigami, or having a completely different elemental system. Anyways, I was just interested in it, and Tamamo just happened to know about it, so she offered to teach me.
When I walked in, Tamamo was already waiting inside...wait, why's she in a teacher outfit?! Where did she get that?
"Huhu! Welcome to Tamamo's class on onmyoudou!" She said, and a whiteboard popped up behind her. Glasses, a long pointer, and the typical suit, she was in full teacher uniform.
"Um...why-?" I asked, glancing at her outfit, before she interrupted me.
"Miikon! Knew you were going to ask that! It's more to fit the mood if anything. Glasses are just for show!" She said with a smug smile. "Well, aside from that, let me ask you, what do you know about onmyoudou?˜
"Uh… not much actually. I've heard that they generally use a different system of elements, and that they use things like paper seals, shikigami, and needles as a form of attack." I replied. Mind you, all this info is only from the manga I borrowed from my parents, like Yu Yu Hakasho and Inuyasha.
"Hm, well, they're not exactly secretive about how their system works, so that much should be obvious." She replied. Snapping her fingers, a diagram appeared, with five circles and arrows pointing in between them. "Generally you've got everything correct. They work under the eastern system of elements, which consist of the five main ones, fire, water, wood, metal, and earth, as well as two outside ones, sun and moon. The main five react with each other, helping one and dominating another. Water beats fire but helps wood, metal beats wood but helps earth, so on and so forth."
"The remaining two are simply powerful on their own, without weakness or strength. Sun is used for offensive spells while moon is for more defensive spells. Having an affinity for all seven is even rarer than being an 'Average One'. Ah, by the way, I have a sun affinity!"
Huh, that's neat. In case you didn't know, 'Average One' doesn't mean average in a bad way. It simply means that a mage has compatibility with all five main elements. By the way, I'm one, and so is my mom.
"Because of that, Onmyouji usually need to form pairs due to using these types of elements."
"Ah, wasn't Abe no Seimei the most powerful Onmyouji?" I asked
Tamamo clicked her tongue and furrowed her brow. "That brat did nothing worth noting honestly. He only happened to be there when something big occured, and needlessly spouted out his tales." A dark murderous look loomed over her face and she began muttering something. Wow...that's uh...
Noticing my expression, she froze and stuck out her tongue in a "Teehee" face. Please keep you feelings to yourself next time.
Coughing, she continued. "*Ahem* No, he wasn't the most powerful. His descendent did sniff me out, but I didn't even know I was a fox at that time. His best accomplishment was defeating Ibaraki Douji, and she wasn't even considered strong among the oni. In other words, he is the most famous, but he his far from the most powerful practitioner. Rather, the most powerful Onmyouji were...well youkai actually."
Wait, but wasn't Onm-
"It's a type of magecraft. Who says that non-humans can't use it?" She said, interrupting my thoughts. "If anything, they should be better, especially the older ones due to their superior mana quantity and output. Besides, they are one of the few mythological beings that have human levels of intelligence. Not that it really matters though, as most have moved to the reverse side of the world, or have ceased to exist. Very few still exist in this world, so most Onmyouji simply work as exorcists rather than youkai exterminators. On that note, supposedly there was one family whose ability on exterminating youkai was second to none, but I never found out their name."
Yeah, that makes sense. I wonder who that family is though.
The rest of class was going over the weaknesses of onmyoudou. Apparently it was... water. Most seals and spells involved the use of paper slips, and shikigami were also made of paper. So...were water affinity onmyouji super rare? 'Cause I'd think that they'd have an advantage no matter who they faced. Of course, there were those who didn't need a paper slip to activate spells, but paper slips could store Magecraft, are cheap, and have a massive amount of utility so they were still used.
We ended class after that, so I headed to Da Vinci's room after that. Ever since I summoned several days ago, she's been stuck in there. She only came out yesterday to ask me to help with something.
I opened the door. A massive workshop with an appearance reminiscent of the renaissance era stood before me. Blue prints were pinned everywhere on the wall, and several contraptions that matched some of the blueprints were scattered over the desk and floor. Da Vinci was wearing glasses and staring at an ornate sheathed katana on her desk. Several other objects were placed there as well. She looked up as she heard the door open.
"Oh! Ritsuka!" She cried with a smile. "Come in, come in. Pardon the mess, I was busy looking for several things." She beckoned my forward and pulled up a seat.
"So...what do you need help with?" I asked.
"Hm, hm, well first, do these glasses look good on me?" She said while pushing up her glasses.
"Well...you're already really pretty, so of course they look good." I responded honestly.
"My, you sure know how to flatter someone!" She said with a mischievous smile. "Jokes aside, look at this for me please, and recite it's history please."
She grabbed a rusted piece of metal and held it in front of her. I traced it, causing a flash of information to appear in my head. It feels weird, suddenly seeing the history of the object. It might be an object full of warm memories, or it could be one full of tragic and dark memories. Like this one. "1781 bayonet head. Used in the revolutionary war, it's killed 27 people with it alone. It was dropped into Chesapeake Bay, until 2013 where it was recovered by a group of fishermen. Later given to Chaldea because Da Vinci happened to be interested in this rusty piece of metal, and the director relented."
Da Vinci nodded. "Hm, the last part sounds weirdly accurate. Well, that's proof that your ability works as well as I hoped. Now than…" she grabbed the sheathed katana. "Trace this."
A katana? Well, it might be something like a demonic sword at most, but it can't be any...thing...special…
…
I broke out into a cold sweat.
what?
WHAT?!
Crap, I almost took a step back. But what is THAT doing here?! That's impossible! It shouldn't be here!
"So, what is it?" Da Vinci asked.
I contemplated telling her the truth, or just dumbing it down. But... but… it's THAT. If I lie, than maybe they'll let me keep it…?
"It's just a regular katana."
I lied through my teeth. Dang it, now I feel guilty. I decided to tell the truth.
"That was a lie." I said "That's not a regular katana."
"Yeah, I could tell from your face." Da Vinci replied. "So? What's so amazing about this sword."
"It's...Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi or Kusanagi as it's better known." I said.
Kusanagi, one of the most famous swords of Japan, and one of it's 3 imperial regalia. A divine construct which had a rather strange origin. While other divine constructs and weapons in history were all crafted by either a god,human or the planet itself, this blade came out in a complete state out of the tail of the eight headed snake, Yamata no Orochi. It was lost at sea several centuries ago, and never actually recovered, according to the history I read.
Da Vinci gaped a little, before clearing her throat.
"Huh, well, thats rather shocking. Well, actually that makes more sense." She replied. "1 month ago, there was an extraordinary amount of magical energy that emerged in a museum holding one of Muramasa's swords. When the Clocktower went to see what happened, this sword was found in the Muramasa's place. Because the mage association did not have the time to look at it, and the atlas academy was working on their own thing, we took ownership of it. Coincidentally, It was delivered here on the same day you arrived."
"It's a bit weird though. Some of the history has been...well, covered. There's a massive blot between when it was lost, and when it was found in the museum that I just can't read." I replied. Normally even those events would be recorded, and they were there! It's just...I can't read it. It's like a well written book with hundreds of pages, but at the last couple of pages, it's blotted out. It's there, but I can't read it. Weird, I've never heard of anything capable of doing that.
Da Vinci thought for a moment, then handed Kusanagi to me. "Here, take it. I'd say that it would be safer here, but it's not like Kusanagi will help by sitting here. Besides, it's good to have something to defend yourself with."
"...I meaaann, yeah sure!" I said, trying to look reluctant. I gripped the sheath in my hand. Wow, it's really light. I pulled it, but the blade wouldn't come out.
"Ah right, I forgot about that." Said Da Vinci with a sheepish grin. "Nobody has been able to unlock the blade."
Seriously? I sighed and glanced at the sheathe, and attempted to trace it. No good, I can't do it for some reason. Taking a step back, I stumbled over a box full of papers and fell, scraping my knee.
I yelped in pain. The sword clattered and brushed against my knee
Suddenly…
*Beep*
Divinity Detected
Searching Alignment...
Alignment Found: Chaotic Good
Conditions Have Been Met
Unlocking Sheathe
The top of the sheathe gave a *whirr* sound, before the blade suddenly came loose. While the grip as well as the guard were simple enough, the blade itself was simply breathtaking. The steel had a vermillion red hue, with several strange characters carved into the bottom half of the blade. Apart from the carvings, the balde was free from any marks that showed it was forged. It was not something that could be forged by anyone's hand, whether he be god or human. But something was weird about the words it just said…
'Divinity Detected'
Wait, I'm not a god though. Or demigod. I'm... I'm pretty sure my parents were both human right? Right?! My dad was definitely a human, while my mom was a magician! Maybe my parents in this world had a connection to a demigod?! Maybe...no, with that personality that's really hard to believe. Than again...
"Huh, I did-"
"Stop, don't finish that. I didn't know either." I interrupted her before she finished.
"Well I was about to say 'I didn't know that Kusanagi would be shaped like a katana' because all the swords at that time were double edged."
Oh.
But seriously, how did Kusangi of all things get here?
I went through the rest of the day while thinking that.
"Um, Senpai? Are you alright?" Mash asked. I snapped out of my daze. We were currently in the hallway and heading toward the summoning chamber.
I sighed.
"Nothing. Da vinci just announced that we could summon using the excess energy from the generators now, so I'm just a bit shocked now. Also I got the legitimate Kusanagi, and apparently I have some divinity in me. It's weird, I know, I'm bothered too. But I really really, REALLY, want to try out this sword! Ah, sorry for rambling." I blurted.
Mash looked at me with a worried expression. I glanced back and shook my head. We were about to summon anyway, so I shouldn't show a weird face if a servant shows up. Smacking my cheeks, I headed into the summoning chamber.
Inside, dad, Aunt Artoria and Gareth were waiting inside. Dad and Gareth were both wearing casual clothes, and looked like they had just taken a shower. They must have been sparing. Dad glanced at Kusanagi, which was in my hand, and flinched. He flashed a questioning look at me. I gestured that I would tell him later, which he accepted with a sigh.
The process for summoning was the same as before. However, I was a bit unlucky this time. 9 craft essences appeared. Apparently this was the norm before the system stabilized. I got three sets of black keys, a craft essence with a floating blue cube in the middle, another craft essence with a man holding a cup of tea...huh, isn't that gramps? Never met him, but I've seen photos. Aunt Sakura hated him, while Mom thought he put magecraft over family, which was normal apparently. Than, a couple plates of Mapo Tofu later, we were already at our final summon.
Huh, so this is what being unlucky feels like. Getting four servants last time must have wasted all of my luck. I would've liked to get someone like Paracelsus, and ask him who in the world Patchouli is, but oh well.
Suddenly, three rings signifying a servant flashed in front of me. A slender man wearing a white robe and several glass beakers stood in front of me. Long black hair draped over his shoulders, and his eyes held a sorrowful gleam.
"I have been summoned upon your request. Please, be friends with me, Paracelsus." He said.
Speak of the devil.
2 Months Ago
?, Japan
An old wooden hut sat in the middle of the forest. If one were to take a glance, they would think it would collapse with only a touch. However, upon closer inspection, the building was surprisingly well maintained. Inside, a row of shelves filled with miscellaneous items sat. Items people would normally consider of little value, such as old computers, a broken down chair, or just an ordinary light bulb sat on several of the shelves. On the flip side, items that seemed old enough that a museum would be desperate to obtain it were there as well, including armor, fans, statues, and swords. Flipping the page of a book, a white haired man wearing glasses as well as a kimono was sitting in front of a desk counter, A small gas heater slowly burning at his side.
*Ding*
A bell rung, signaling the arrival of a customer. A woman wearing a violet dress and a bonnet stepped inside. With blond hair, and violet eyes, and a voluptuous body, she looked to be a matchless european beauty. However, her eyes betrayed an age that rivaled even the most ancient of gods.
"Sorry, I don't need any more fuel for now, so you don't really need to come." The man said curtly without looking up.
A giggle came from the woman. "Hm, I am not quite here to give you anything. Rather, I'm actually looking for something. A certain...Kusanagi no Tsurugi"
The man grunted, and stood up, reaching below the desk. Taking out a katana, he began to hand it over to her, before abruptly pulling it back.
"Normally I'd comply with your request, but this here's a divine relic. Unless you tell me why, I won't hand it to you." He said with a frown. However, the blade vanished from his hand. A slit appeared in the air, where the sword promptly fell into the woman's hand.
"Please, you honestly believe you can actually do anything to me?" She said with a slight smile. "Well, I do owe you a few favors, so I might as well tell you."
Her cheerful demeanor suddenly darkened. "I was wandering around a bit, and found that the outside world will soon face a crisis." She said.
"Not only that, if the outside does not succeed in fixing this mess, Gensokyo will be in danger as well. So, I thought of giving them a bit of assistance."
The man paled, and thought for a moment, a worried expression appearing on his face. "...Well, alright than. I'll let you have it. However, I've heard that the outer world may have people who can read the history of an object, so they may find out about Gensokyo. Also, as you know, that's not just any sword. Only a god or someone related to one can wield it. How are you going to get it to the right person?"
The woman blinked, then chuckled. "First, we shall for-*ahem* request a certain half youkai to eat this sword's history, then have a certain moon sage seal the sword and create a sheath that will only unlock once the conditions have been met." Her smile widened. "As an extra precaution, I will ask that vampire to manipulate this sword's destiny."
The man scratched his head, an exasperated expression on his face. "That's quite overkill. Well, knowing you, this must be quite the 'incident' if it requires giving Kusanagi back to the outside."
"Glad to see you on board." She replied. A large steel container suddenly appeared in the air. The man yelped as he was nearly crushed by it
"Before I forget, Humanity will not exist for some time, so allow me to gift you a year's worth of fuel as thanks." She said before suddenly disappearing in front of his eye's.
He sighed. "...Coming in like a storm, than leaving. What in the world could obliterate the outside?"
Yeah, Kusanagi appears in touhou. Introduced eastern style magecraft because a certain unmoving library does that. Also that library is at least 100 years old, so I made it so it was as old a Paracelsus, cause they both use philosophers stones, and I thought it would be cool if they had a sort of relationship.
So yeah, Orleans will start next. Memes will appear, lasers will flash, and some more cheesy stuff will happen!
Stay tuned! :D