Merry Christmas & Happy New Year (by the time of posting)! Long time no see... because I've been busy with the holiday season. Additionally, I lost this chapter and the next few ones' drafts due to a mistake in my computer, so I have to rewrite this entire thing from memory. May you all stay healthy and prosperous!

Now, it's been so long I've forgotten what I was supposed to say in this AN. For now, I'll just give a shout-out to my beta works, which you can see in Methrindal's In the Sight of Many and Ganheim's Persona 5: Daywatch. Check them both great writers out! Also, due to some new reveals from Nioh 2's latest DLC, I won't be incorporating those into this story if they simply don't fit. What are they? Well, why don't you buy the game and find out? Support the developers (the proper ones, not Bethesda)!

Here's the mailbag!
uboNiniM: Known of her, yes, but meeting face-to-face? Around that first chapter only. To be honest, EVERYONE knows who Shuten-douji was in this timeline.
Royal Freshness12345: Pink eye? Whatever do you mean by that? Huhuhu... How do you suppose I name this upcoming yuri-filled chapter?
Odinson: Not much more, TBH. You failed to account for his Alteration (and traditional blacksmithing) skills, because I think he'll just break down All-Black into its base components into make a safer sword, so he doesn't need to worry about the corruption. However, should it happens, SHIROU doesn't have specified mental defense against it, needing to rely on [Unlimited Blade Works] and [Mind of Steel], neither of which is suitable against it.
Guest (1): Not sure what you're talking about. Can you explain further? Also, what do you want to ask me about?

The waters in Nihon were well-patrolled by advanced wooden ships, aquatic yōkais, and floating villages of state-sanctioned pirates. It begun when the empire was offensively helpless during the Mongol Invasion, with even the then-Shogun, Yoshitsune, only able to drive off the opposing army via a mix of land projectiles and martial arts. They simply had no tools to chase the Mongols across the sea towards what was now Ming – thus, the Minamoto Clan refocused their efforts in building the imperial navy, both with self-trained troops and absorbing various pirate groups in that era.

Case in point: Takigawa Kazumasu, the Empress's secret twin sister, who led the Kuki Pirates.

To foreigners, this group weren't a proper navy at all, but for those who looked closer, they'd find the ragtag members, dressed and acting sloppily, were well-armed and disciplined during crisis. Of course, the Minamoto Clan tried their utmost to hide this fact, as it did to most affiliated 'pirate groups', since it was a common tactic for a Nanban country in the far western seas from a long time ago to disguise one's naval force as several splintered groups.

Being an islandic empire also eased this tactic's adoption, as there were countless prime spots where a naval base, occasionally disguised as a pirate's cove, could be set up. Yes, it's more administrative work and thus slowed central command flow, but that's the advantage the human-yōkai pact gave: The increased Mystery across all of Nihon's leylines enabled hyper-efficient magical communication, though this was monopolized by the royal family and Minamoto Clan soon after, leaving the current generation with barely an improvement over the past, specialized for national emergencies and not burdened by small, selfish daimyōs with no global perspective.

Only those whom the imperial family explicitly trusted, such as Nobunaga now, would be privy to this communication method in times of need.

For example, right now, as Nobunaga prepared to face off and save her other younger sister, Himiko called upon her mind and bequeathed a request.

"The Yasakani no Magatama has fallen into Nanban hands. Please, for Nihon, retrieve it back… and it shall be your aid."

When Kazumasu, too, showed up just prior to her leaving Sakai back to her base, Nobunaga couldn't help it.

She could only hope her beloved retainers could save Oichi, like they had rescued her from the hell her previous self fell into.

"My lord, please do not worry. My husband… Our husband is reliable," Chiyome patted Nobunaga's lower back awkwardly, considering their difference in height. She smiled to emphasize the correction in her words, though the taller woman was too stiff to realize that. "Nobunaga-sama? Please, breathe."

Despite all her romanticized internal thoughts earlier, she couldn't stop her toes from tapping the ship's metal railing.

This was Nihon's first prototype production metal vessel, Izanagi, evolved from several generation of experiments. Not only was its structure entirely created from various metal alloys, it's also designed to be as naturally flowing as possible, limiting any hard connections and lightening the ship. Most of it was forged in the bowels of Mt. Fuji, under the blessing of Kagutsuchi and channelled through his current chief priest, Sengo Muramasa. That place contained the closest gateway to Takamagahara, granting great efficiency and efficacy of magic power usage, enabling novel construction techniques and design.

Therefore, while on the outside it's somewhat similar to Nanban voyager ships – though certainly modified in the details to suit Nihon's local currents – its interior was vastly different.

Still, Nobunaga wasn't in the state of mind to enjoy these advantages or appreciate the loving details her lover put into this vessel. Yes, he never directly touched the materials, unlike his personal sword creations, and his duty was to simply stand there to set a Temple where the blacksmith deity could descend, but he did direct most of the clueless industrial workers who'd never crafted at this level before.

Sculpting metal into an abstract shape was easy enough. But creating identical copies all throughout a large ship, as well as the need to work in a team, filled with different personalities and skillsets?

That's the challenge of mass production: the balance of quality and quantity. At the moment, Izanagi was most certainly on the 'quality' side of things. Plans to create its 'wife' ship was on the way, but the urgency Himiko placed on this project, already ongoing for several years and before Nobunaga inherited her current position as heiress, forced them to focus on this ship first.

Chiyome could only shook her head at the Princess General's nervousness. Perhaps her lack of experience in witnessing Muramasa's real strength which led to her doubting his victory? The miko thought back to how controlling Yamata-no-Orochi felt more impossible than uniting Nihon itself, and how he effortlessly did so.

…so, yes, she's quite biased.

The sea breeze today was oddly calm. It was approaching winter, so the winds should be picking up around this area, but perhaps it's just Izanagi's comfort enchantment which allowed her to stroll about this large vessel in her delicate miko uniform, bellowing in the elements without having any clothing mishaps.

She peered down to the side, into the ocean's depths, and tried to commune with its inhabitants in accordance to some of the fascinating stories her husband shared with her in their youths. He spoke of unexplored lands being portals not just to the Reverse Side of this planet, but of other realms as well. Therefore, the possibilities were infinite… as was the danger. However, Yamata-no-Orochi's presence boosted her confidence as he was previously from a partially oceanic realm.

'Nothing…' she noted, before dismissing it and strolled around the top deck, observing the crew's work.

They were reasonably nervous, owing to several things. Nobunaga was here… as well as this mangled figure of a petite girl dressed in a miko outfit. She chose no longer to bother with the gazes – disgusted or lustful or frightened or curious – after reconsolidating her self-confidence these past few days.

On a more serious note, this ship was one-of-a-kind not just in its construction, but also operation. Its abilities meant the traditional limitations and caution no longer permeated the naval experience, and the old adages or taboos no longer applied. Therefore, their hard-earned skills were nearly obsolete, forced to adapt to a new situation quickly under an emergency royal decree.

Add to that the fact if they failed and lost the vessel here, Himiko would perhaps personally chop their heads off… That's not a pleasant sight to look forward to. The veterans on this ship even had the pleasure of being rebuked by the Empress when she was abusing her telepathy to the limit, unearthing their deepest scandals to shame them publicly before slapping them, hard, with her tiny hands.

It was enough to tempt them to seppuku in front of their families, but Himiko cunningly made this journey to be their penance without pay.

Unfortunately, Chiyome wasn't tall enough to watch over some of the machineries and processes, so she had to resort to jumping around the various metal structures while making sure no one could peek up her skirt when she did so. While she didn't mind dressing up in her revealing kunoichi outfit or modifying her miko one into a perverse version in front of her husband, these people didn't deserve to see that.

They were rushing to meet up with the Kuki Pirates under Kazumasu's command, one of Nobunaga's four pillars and secret leader of the royal navy. Perhaps it's fate or by design, but a lot of Minamoto Clan members ended up by Nobunaga's side – not to mention the Empress seemed to favour this Princess General to go along with her 'Tenka Fubu'. Everything which Nobunaga still didn't possess was intentionally kept so in order not to shift the scales too much…

…not until those above them realized the very thing they're standing on was swapped out by something very different.

To Chiyome, it would be a novel experience in meeting this supposed cousin-in-law of hers… because they were both Kōga, yet never worked or even met with each other. Surprising, given both of them were jōnins – it'd be interesting to see how their skills would compare.

Frankly, she was confused how on earth a royal princess managed to join a relatively inactive ninja clan… only to remember they were, in essence, descended from Shuten-dōji, both of blood and skill. While the Minamoto Clan inherited and eventually perfected the martial skills and political nous of Yorimitsu, it could be said Chiyome held the purer bloodline all the way to Yamata-no-Orochi himself. She's just not certain whether that's a good thing or not, since before Muramasa met her, she spent her entire lifetime cursing this fact instead of having gratitude.

The oni was curiously absent in her nascent life, maybe owing to her self-loathing which Shuten-dōji deemed a failure. It's certainly a good theory, as when she was determined to train herself once more to not just harness, but also accept her condition… lo and behold, the oni appeared and taught her the secrets of her bloodline. Why she never did this with previous Kōga successors, she didn't know, because there certainly were those who successfully became the premier Kage among their peers while willingly using the serpent deity's powers.

She never believed she was specially chosen. Meeting the people she did in this lifetime was luck, and nothing else… because she'd done nothing to earn anything she now had. Therefore, she'd do her utmost to maintain the life she had right now.

For people who threatened her way of life right now, like this person… well…

The Kuki Pirates reported a Spanish missionary renting a boat to sail out towards a nondescript location. At first, they didn't think much of this because even his appearance made covert operations impossible – they thought this person just wanted to enjoy the peace and quiet only open seas could deliver. Whatever he was planning would also be on full display, since the sailors he hired were all at least acquaintances to the Kuki, and respected Kazumasu highly.

All in all, not particularly suspicious.

Only when a giant clam suddenly got fished out did they take notice.

Ordinarily, clams weren't fished out in the ocean depths where a small ship was necessary to traverse, since most edible, bite-sized ones were readily available in cold-water rocky beaches, easily harvested by hand or trowel. More delicate, larger-fleshed ones were hand-picked by trained, experienced divers, but even that was usually in reef areas ships would dread to travel. Anything deeper was expressly forbidden by Ryūjin, God of the [Sea], as it usually entailed harmful nets which ravaged sea floors and killed everything in that ecosystem – not withstanding very few land-grubbing humans or yōkais could survive in those depths.

Yet this Spanish missionary simply asked for one of the sailors to cast his net to one side, weighted carefully, and pull out anything he felt he caught.

A giant clam, most definitely more than a century old, got heaved up onto the deck, large enough to be visible to the nearby scouts even without a telescope.

'Was that his god's divine miracle?' People around asked in their minds.

Naturally, he was allowed to keep the clam because by chance or not, he was the one who figured out it was there. The sailors thought this Nanban would make the shell into a decoration and use or sell it, because that's what foreigners do, no? They took an interest in something their homeland didn't have, and were willing to pay handsome money for it.

Kazumasa only found out what's inside from her sister's telepathic message, who had received a divine oracle just then.

To Chiyome's knowledge, only the Magatama remained outside of the royal family's hands. Yata-no-Kagami was an heirloom passed down from one of Yoritomo's wives, whose spiritual form graced Oichi today as her Guardian Spirit. She's not too certain how her husband got his hands on Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi – or, considering his skills, whether it's even real or fake. Regardless, the captive inside her reacted strongly around him, which led to the perversion of his emotions into her love. The intense feeling of [Death] when Susanoo killed Yamata-no-Orochi was still vivid in the serpent's mind, triggered in the human couple's first meeting, which her naïve self then translated into lovely longing.

These Three Regalia hadn't been a source for contention until now. Yes, they were powerful, but the Heian Period preceding this era was so steeped in Mystery, plentiful other objects of similar strength were readily available or made. When humans could traverse into the realm of gods, and yōkai could divinely ascend altogether, it made these three Noble Phantasms undesirable aside from symbolism's sake.

And, to be honest, Chiyome also felt this sudden expedition was merely that occasionally-childish Empress noticing someone else had run off with a piece off her collection, got mad, and chucked Nobunaga towards the problem.

'Shirō really needs to give her more attention… Our bodies won't last at this rate…'

What, then, after this? A mission to conquer the lands across the seas?

It felt like the start of a great revolution…

"Hey, you."

The person she called out stiffened, because he was supposed to be alone up high near the masts' crow's nest… yet this miko was casually sitting on the thin railing behind him, calling him out. "Y-Yes, ma'am?!"

"What are those ships called? The Spanish ones, over there," Chiyome pointed out to a fleet of three fine ships, bulkier in design compared to Izanagi, but a lot more advanced than Kazumasu's well-maintained fleet.

"I… believe they call themselves galleons? My pronunciation may be wrong, but…"

"No matter. Sound the alarm. They're going to attack."

"Sengo-sama, we're still well over double cannon fire range, and the wind-"

"INCOMING!"

A shout from the other barrelman, this one having trained his telescope towards the three Spanish ships since the beginning, interrupted them.

In reflex, the seaman instantly turned around and attempted to shield Chiyome from harm, because for sure they're going to get blasted off into the air-

- BANG! BANG! BANG!

Only for his arms, ready to hug her tight, met clear air as the petite girl gently landed perpendicular to the steel mast slightly below his lookout box, her gaze still fixated on the offending ships.

There were several hard impacts on Izanagi… but far duller than he feared. The tremors were enough to send him tumbling, smacking his nose against the railing where she was sitting earlier – still warm – but the giant explosions and the sensation of being flung onto the air and into the water didn't come.

Rubbing his bleeding nose, he just noticed how the colours of the sky had changed… into deep, harrowing, hellish crimson.

"A… gasha-dokuro?"

"Yes. It is Nobunaga-sama."

The few shots which actually landed on their vessel were blocked by a flaming ethereal skeleton, placing Izanagi square in the middle of its… insides? The scout couldn't really tell whether they're among the ribcage or spine or other bones – all he knew was the sight of metal cannonballs crumbling into dust where they hit.

Standing proud on the keel, glaring at the Spaniards, was Nobunaga. Her hair was shining and burning with crimson flames, emitting embers which warped the very light travelling around her. Her fire was somewhat brighter than the Guardian Spirit's, who had a black tint to its smouldering visage.

Sword in one hand, musket on the other.

Her lips moved, but from here, Chiyome could only read what she's saying.

Papiyas Metamorphosis
~ Demon King of a Thousand Heavens ~

"Didn't think these backwater monkeys have spirits that powerful! Cabal, your info's wrong!" Edward Kelley growled deeply – in English, since he wasn't bothered to learn Spanish – intensifying his Od to connect with the foreign Mana in the air to prepare for battle. "Where the hell's our reinforcements, anyway?!"

"Three ships against one… and you still want reinforcements?" The cold-looking bishop dryly commented with nary an accent, standing near a frozen giant clam. This 'prize' of his should naturally be preserved as best as possible, notwithstanding its contents. The clam's meat should be the best reward for this humble man of God. "Now, given you are here under my wallet's sponsorship, I suggest you get a move on."

"Curse you, fake priest!" The bald man hollered, before energetically moving and rotating his arms to cast large arrays of magic circles levitating perpendicular to his body. "Ouroboros!"

…yet, despite his spirited yell, his Guardian Spirit didn't show up.

Only a lingering voice rang across the galleon deck, saying, "I'm still hibernating. Sorry, tough luck."

"You little bi-"

- Clang!

He forcibly materialized a snake-patterned cane and interrupt his own cursing towards his lazy Guardian Spirit, because a long, thin blade had suddenly shot towards his neck. It was of similar design to the samurais he'd seen, but with less curve and more flexibility to increase its thrusting capability.

But what caught his eyes wasn't the unusual design or how oddly-dressed his female assailant was. The moment their gazes met-

Twin slitted eyes met a similar single right one, though clearly both sides were from different serpentine species.

"Did the person wielding that skeleton… throw you all the way over here?" Edward asked in disbelief, his breathy, nasal tone steadying by the second. "Are you people right in the head?"

In his shock, he forgot to use his translation spell to speak to this clearly Eastern woman. To be honest, in his racist eyes, these yellow people all looked the same, and thus he'd long since stopped trying to differentiate between the three major empires – Ming, Joseon, and Nihon. It's just too much work.

"A British magus… on a Spanish galleon?" The petite woman with snake skin unfurling through her skin queried, before switching to – surprise, surprise – British English, "Why don't you come over here and find out?"

Edward clicked his tongue, annoyed due to a myriad of reasons so annoying he couldn't be bothered to everything else other than killing and skinning this woman for him to bring back home as a trophy. The explorers back home all boasted of their kills, flooding the taxidermies with their orders and placing the hunted beasts proudly as their living rooms' centrepieces. This ugly thing should work – his master needed a new, interesting specimen, anyway.

Ah, the thought of his master, John Dee, made him consider things he'd rather not in this arena of combat, especially because he's far from used to fighting on top of a rocking, damp ship deck.

It was already unbecoming for an alchemist of his stature to be forced to humble himself in front of a fucking priest – a Spanish one, at that – and beg for a ride to this land rich with Mystery and magic stones. An unfamiliar land, with food he couldn't really stomach, with company so loud and dirty he considered burning his own Od to forcibly bring that lazy Ouroboros over here and devour everything in front of him…

It hadn't been a pleasant experience.

The Dragon Heritage had abandoned the royal crown.

Thus, the queen was pressed to bring in foreign magic energy sources back to Britain, just to maintain appearances in front of their rivals, such as Spain, Portugal, and France in this race to colonize the rest of the world. This news hadn't leaked out yet, though his presence here might led Pedro Cabal – the shitty priest who still refused to move an inch despite his ship now technically was boarded by an enemy – to suspect something… which would bring the rest of the Spanish investigators right up his arse.

This esteemed, powerful bloodline had officially cut ties with the crown, now residing within the palms of Countess Bathory. While the Kingdom of Hungary was nowhere near as internationally powerful as Britain, owing to its tripartite division. While the Countess was originally of Royal Hungary, her time under the Immortal Saint's tutelage had vastly grown her physical, spiritual, and political power – enough to deny the Habsburgs and move her entire heritage to a small territory in Transylvania. She's actually in the process of repossessing the entire independent principality into a land of dragons, mysteries, and blessings – making her incredibly popular and deified by the masses, with scores of people transmigrating into her land daily.

There, the royal crown had no power. At all. In fact, if Queen Elizabeth – the Countess's namesake, at that – showed up personally to plead for the Heritage's return, her entourage would just be burnt to a crisp after one step into this area… without repercussions. The Hungarian rulers were falling over themselves to placate this new, rising power, sensing an opportunity to push their imperial power into a higher level – who'd give the Queen of England face, when soon, she'd be the one grovelling near their feet?

Thus, John Dee was given the imperial mandate to recover Nihon's magic stones at all costs. The time for bloodless diplomacy was over – soon, Britain would be the conquered, instead of the conqueror.

Worse of all… said Immortal Saint was coming here.

He didn't know what she'd do when she saw what fake priests like Pedro was doing, but it wouldn't be pretty. Even his master feared this woman, who endured every single execution method known to the British Empire and survived. Incredibly well… too well, John Dee would say. Edward wasn't in the illusion he could hold a candle to her power – thus, he hurriedly re-summoned several of his magic circles to engage this new foe.

He launched himself into the air to avoid an invisible snake bite rising from the deck floor, not minding it left Pedro and the clam open. If this priest had no intention of assisting his own cause by supporting Edward, then the alchemist also wouldn't expend unnecessary concentration and energy to overprotect him. As a result, as the thin woman leapt into the air to match his movements, yet another gigantic invisible snake joined the first one in rushing towards the clam.

Kelly couldn't literally see these beasts, but his serpentine nature enabled him to somewhat sense where they were despite their cloaking spell also blocking infrared vision. Let Pedro have a piece of this fun, too, he thought.

The thin near-straightsword was parried by several hardened strands of glowing threads, before they relaxed and wrapped around to capture the blade. However, it appeared this woman was also well-versed in using similar weapon – and Edward miscalculated – because the strange tanto also bent, flopping into an ultra-thin sheet of metal which entangled into his wires, duelling for supremacy like two mystical serpents.

- Crack!

Of course, before he could decode what Mystic Code his opponent was using, a lithe foot had already kicked him in the face, hard enough to rotate it fully once and clearly breaking his neck.

It also seemed this woman was used to fighting people like him, because she didn't get complacent and initiated a black flame spell, igniting her weapon and transmitting it through their impromptu connection. Edward instantly abandoned this husk and deflated into dried skin, before reforming a new one around his escaped soul… but he immediately had to craft a solid circle to manoeuvre around an elongated punch to the face, courtesy of her lengthening limb.

Meanwhile, below, Pedro had casually erected a [Light] barrier, focused on defence, creating ear-splitting sounds when the invisible snakes' fangs ground against it.

- BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

In the span of this exchange, the galleons had already reoriented themselves around the single strange ship in the distance, launching another concentrated volley. This time, having seen the first half-hearted one easily blocked, they chose not to underestimate this opponent now… especially because of the gigantic freaking flaming skeleton they'd never seen before guarding it. Its appearance reminded them of certain passages in the Bible – a mix-and-match of creatures of destruction – and elicited thoughts of fear and uncertainty.

- Boom… Boom… Boom… Boom… Boom…

From this distance, where the Reinforced galleons' cannon fire still reached but not this single vessel's, sprays of seawater blasted high in the air from all the missed shots. The ship turned sharply in various directions impressively quickly, and even from this distance, the Spanish sailors could appreciate its stability while doing so. Clearly, it's not completely made out of wood, unlike their galleons, since just purely the sails' changes of direction's swiftness should be difficult to maintain with wooden masts.

"That blasphemous ship… has impressive agility," Pedro commented to no one in particular. "But it shall fall under God's graces."

[You know, it's exactly that kind of thought which led to your leader, Richard, being so hated.]

He flinched at the sudden telepathic voice – in accented Spanish, this time – resounding across the ocean, delivered to all the Spanish crews at the same time. A regal woman's voice, yet demonic and oppressive at the same time.

- BOOM!

One of the galleons by the side suddenly exploded into flaming smithereens, sending cinder shards into the bodies of the nearby crews.

From afar, the flaming skeleton was already coming down from a stylish, palm-outstretched pose, and thunderously walking towards their position. The sea surface between the two parties in a straight line was still boiling, caving into a slight trench which the surrounding water furiously tried to refill and creating a thin, long vortex which pegged the galleons' steering.

- Clap!

Pedro, now visibly sweating, smacked his palm together and expanded his barrier to cover the entire ship he's on, leaving the other one bare. Soon after, he slammed them onto the floor, Reinforcing and Altering the galleon with his own Element, [Holy] – an authority usually only granted to the ship's captain.

Still, that was barely enough to protect from a concentrated crimson beam coming from the giant flaming skeleton's finger, the entire ship juddering and creaking heavily when it impacted, the barrier immediately cracking into shining spiderwebs and barely holding together. Blood spurted out profusely from Pedro's nose, staining his plain habit red, but his figure still stood strong and firm, if a tad forced.

The other ship – the unprotected one – wasn't as lucky, experiencing the same fate as its departed sister.

- BOOM!

The main galleon had moved slightly from its original position, and thus was spared another showering of flaming wood and charred flesh.

The screams and shouts fell onto Pedro's and Edward's deaf ears, each so preoccupied by their respective opponents.

"Ouroboros! Wake the fuck up!"

The Mana in Nihon was particularly hostile to them, since they were none the wiser regarding the poison set into the leylines by the first shogun's wives, who were all masters of Thaumaturgy at the level of Divine Spirits. First enacted right after the first Mongolian invasion, it contained conditions such as 'protector of humanity' and 'idealistic utopia', with several conditions filtering out the psychos who fulfilled both of these conditions but still utilized destructive methods. As such, not only hostile foreigners, but domestic traitors would sense the habitat around them constantly inhibiting their efforts, proportionately increasing with the negative energy they're emitting.

Thus, since earlier, these Spanish galleons had most of their enchantments stripped by the time they entered Nihon waters, requiring costly magic energy supply just to survive the constant naval dangers around. While certain individuals who had earned the locals' trust were able to operate normally, such as Louíse Fróis, these two men certainly had nothing good planned for Nihon.

Therefore, Edward had been desperate to summon Ouroboros out of her slumber… but was unable to forcibly awaken her by jamming magic energy into his body because Nihon's Mana would've just wrecked his Magic Circuits from the inside – ditto with Pedro.

Combine that with Nobunaga's natural advantage against people who perverted their divine teachings like the priest, as well as Chiyome's knowledge of serpent-based Magecraft, the two men were on a decided disadvantage.

And the women didn't intent on letting things as they were. Who knew what could happen? Be diligent, relentless, and decisive – that's what the man they both loved taught and gave examples to them time and time again.

To start, have, and end a battle in as boring way as possible – that's the pinnacle of martial arts and killing ability. It's a style commonfolk had long forgotten in their thirst of bards, prose, legends, and stories, forgetting this was the essence which maintained their livelihood until now. The Minamoto Clan rose to their current prominence due to their extreme pragmatism, and even though they never bothered to hide it from the masses, the latter ended up idolizing and idealizing the royal family, leading to further losses and distortion of the truth.

"Oi, fake priest! A big one's coming your way!" Edward yelled, Reinforcing his voice so it rose above the cacophony of destruction. "Ah, shit!"

He cursed when once again, there was no response from Ouroboros. Numerous tiny magic circles appeared around him, momentarily glowing before shooting countless ivory beams. Yet, despite their speed and range, this snake woman was even more agile than he in aerial manoeuvring, contorting, lengthening, and contracting various body parts not just to avoid the blows, but also change how airflow moved around her, increasing and decreasing her speed to create a confusing tempo and avoid Edward locking onto her rhythm.

All the while, that near-identical right eye of hers to his own pair never let any small muscle twitch escape its sight.

'Tsk! Not wanting to use this, but…'

Ouroboros's Origin, obviously, was [Infinity] – a Divine Spirit of the highest order with a conceptual Authority, not simply elemental like most deities. He was proud when he was eligible for her stewardship… until he found out he was chosen only on a whim, when this black-haired short girl threw a dart onto a list of names.

Yes, he understood her reason. Her strength was so great, no one individual could harness everything she had – at least, not the people he knew. Therefore, whomever her host was inconsequential, because they'd die all the same if she ever granted a large fraction of her full power to that person.

Still, he sensed this woman in front of him was more talented in that aspect, at the cost of her marred features, far cruder and gruesome than his ceremonial tattoos when Ouroboros was bestowed upon him.

'Can't that old hag hurry and wake up?!' He shouted nonstop in his mind, yet to no avail. He could tell her 'hibernating' excuse was just made up on the spot, such was her apathy to whatever's going on. If her host died, she could have another one right next instant with similar power and talent – Edward's likeness was a dime a dozen to her. 'Fuck her!'

Consecutive sparks and minor thunderclaps appeared all around him, grinding down his magical defences. She's throwing a lot at him – invisible summoned snakes, various elemental spells, her unique flexible hand-to-hand combat, poison and curses, and so on, not giving him space to apply his alchemy. Every vial of 'special liquid' was immediately homed into, forcing him to place them back to his small pocket dimension lest his supplies were destroyed.

Pedro wasn't doing much better.

He chose to focus his defensive barriers to small sections, because there's no sense in covering the entire ship when the inferno beams were only coming in one direction. At the very least, the priestess girl was busy with Edward, so no invisible snakes at the moment. Still, every blow was enough to shatter each shield, the impact reverberating through his connection and injuring his body more and more.

That was the advantages and disadvantages of someone specialized in the [Holy] Element, strengthening their skills with the Scriptures. There were a myriad of automated self-healing spells so long as magic energy and local beliefs were available – both of which he's lacking right now, given his failure in converting Nihon people to his cause when compared to Louíse and Organtino – but under the assault of demonic energy, the slightest deviation of faith, understanding, and God's favour would destroy his body from the inside.

There was no need of further proof for a person of faith. The Immortal Saint, for example, had her captors, torturers, judges, and executioners all cursed to death the instant heaven's blessings poured down upon her, with angels personally doing the deed for her. And with her, most of Europe's corrupt church structure was stripped of their powers. There were talks since a few decades ago to have her become the first female Pope, but she preferred to traverse the lands and spread the gospel instead, picking up numerous influential students along the way and weakening the Vatican's influence tremendously from her different style of teaching.

She was akin to a moving blessed land, where all God's miracles were boosted around her, but she and her students were the exception and not the rule. 'Normal' priests like Pedro had to establish his foundations first before optimizing his strength… Unfortunately, the chance to grab one of Nihon's legendary Three Regalia came too early, and he had to take it prematurely.

As roars of cannon fire and disturbed waves exploded all around them, by comparison, Masamune and Louíse were left with nothing to do.

For once, the little girl restrained herself from bothering her buxom caretaker, because the nun looked gloomy and full of doubt in this private room in Izanagi.

They were brought alongside Nobunaga's entourage for multiple reasons, but mostly security. Masamune's display of her loss of control meant staying in Sakai wasn't an option – she wasn't from that area's nobility anyway, and the Date Clan's influence was minimal in that port city – and Louíse's house, the destroyed church, was naturally no more. Rather than have a woman of her beauty alone among recently-converted men, Nobunaga chose to escort them to their next destination.

As for where that was, Masamune didn't really know yet. While she wanted to make a name for herself in her travels, Louíse's presence meant she had to constantly worry about her safety. The nun had her own powers, yes, but nothing compared to the Beast shard living inside her.

Despite her interaction with Nobunaga and Nō, she was on the border of despair before the other Princess General showed up. If she lost control and killed Louíse by mistake – the first person she truly cared about in the world – who knew what she'd let herself do. Even with Louíse fulfilling most of her need of affection, the Beast's temptation always managed to leak out and influence the things around her.

Other than her gratitude, what Masamune felt towards Nobunaga was… respect, mostly, when she's not turned on by the 'sisterly love' the two siblings were showcasing in front of her immature eyes.

That woman was the example of what she could and should be. Not a victim of demons, but their ruler instead. Instead of resorting to tricks to have people listen to her, Nobunaga earned the respect and loyalty of her retainers by being herself – not a poor accursed woman, not an uncontrollable monster, not a sly vindictive child.

Sadly, this revelation didn't help her to control whatever overwhelmed her back then one bit.

She suspected Nobunaga had some ideas, but this sudden deployment meant the Oda Princess General's time was too busy for Masamune to interrupt. It's certainly not something Louíse had ever seen before, or the nun would've made preparations just in case it got out of her hand like last time. As it was, Louíse was nearly killed in the process, nothing she did was effective fighting… whatever Masamune was about to turn into.

Her tongue was held further when she considered the treatment she'd one-sidedly received from the black-haired beauty. This ship was meant to be a combat vessel, which meant minimal accommodation suitable for VIPs. Yet, this room must've been Nobunaga's because of its luxury, furnished by thick, Nanban-style mattress, wooden decorations, and even scented beautifully to neutralize the sea's most acrid aromas.

The cannon fires sounded dull through the sound deadening features in this room, either achieved structurally or magically, giving the two girls some peace and quiet. However, either one experienced it differently, with Masamune's still-ongoing restlessness watching Louíse's troubled prayers.

With this naval battle, the Christian missionaries' standing in Nihon was sure to be heavily damaged. Ordinarily, the local humans and yōkais had natural mistrust against foreigners, considering their history with their neighbours' invasions. However, it's gotten much better from a simple fact – a race would usually hold aggression against others who didn't look like them. The fact humans and yōkais had spent so long living together allowed them to accept other cultures more readily, which surprised the missionaries with how warmly they're received when compared to the near-hostile rejections they had in other lands.

No one was of the illusion this could be maintained forever, though. One mistake – like this one – and the whole delicate balance would crumble.

Louíse's praying figure was beautiful and elegant like always, but her muddled thoughts leaked out so much Masamune could clearly see it, despite the little girl usually being very callous to others.

She didn't deserve to know and experience all of this, because other than the coincidence Masamune's father was of the same racial disposition as Louíse, what Pedro had done – and was doing right now – she could've stopped him.

The three of them – Louíse, Organtino, and Pedro – each had their own ways to spread the gospel… as well as their own reasons. She and the young Italian boy were almost born at the convent, having learnt God's miracles since they were innocent, abandoned orphans in their respective council houses, before joining the Society when their Thaumaturgical talents were unearthed.

Pedro, meanwhile, came from military nobility, and very close to his country's various commanders. She wasn't privy of his theological education, but her time with him showed his excellence with miracles wasn't fake or nepotism-based. The Immortal Saint's teachings had purified the Thaumaturgical System up to where the Holy Son originated, cleansing the corruption from victims of the Crusades, Borgias, and other misuse of God's words – which meant no non-believer and repeat sinner could ever wield His teachings anymore.

Pedro… was different. Yes, he was pious, as shown by his skill and faith, but…

…a 'believer' could also be a 'zealot'.

Louíse had her suspicions, but he never showed any evidence he was no better than those murderous kings and soldiers of those dark times, where innocents were slaughtered 'in the name of the Lord'. The imagery of hung, tortured, dismembered bodies of those accused as 'witches' was fresh in her mind, showcased as the Church's wrongdoings as per the Saint's teaching. She'd never met the exalted woman, but having a figure to look up to completely bolstered her personal faith and drive, enabling a delicate, innocently sensual woman like her to be a true evangelist, instead of being captured and sent to whorehouses like so many girls her age and background.

With her church's destruction in Sakai, she was worried about the image it'd give to the populace. She wasn't worried about herself, but what if Masamune was ostracized further due to her carelessness and powerlessness? What good was her dreams of salvation if she couldn't grant one little girl exactly that?

Therefore, for the first time in her life, she prayed for another's demise.

Pedro Cabal must be stopped.

Her quiet prayers enabled her some retrospective. Considering what she knew of him, it's highly likely the Spanish Empire directly sponsored his efforts, hidden until now by the fact he travelled here humbly, along with his fellow believers from other countries. The expansion efforts the three of them were a part of was initiated by Britain's sudden loss of their Dragon's Heritage, and while she didn't want to believe it, she was supposed to be just another soldier in the front lines of colonization, sent here to gauge which land to conquer and control.

Therefore, she was grateful for people like Nobunaga who gave her the chance to cut ties with those poisonous vines and start anew, the way she wanted to and believed in.

For someone like Pedro who used his gifts to harm her prospects – and in extent the current converts in Nihon – she'd do her utmost to foil him.

Yet, what could she do? Right now, she's cooped up in here while Nobunaga was doing the Lord's work – almost literally and ironically – and engaging the Spanish armada.

"Bontenmaru."

"H-Hyesh?!" The little girl perked up, surprised at the sudden call. "I-I wasn't noisy and d-disturbing your prayers, I s-swear!"

She smiled at the heterochromatic girl's usual excuses, before reaching out and holding her up by her thin hips, placing her on her lap. "I… need your power. Can you do that for me and Nobunaga-sama?"