Foreword: Guess I'm finally back, but motivation hasn't been my ally lately.
Gotta plan stuff out more delicately in the future, but hopefully this is as fun as the previous chapters.
Touhou Duel Masters Café
Chapter 40 – Ripples
Reimu whipped out an ofuda, and with blinding speed, slapped it on the fang-baring youkai's torso in zero range. The youkai bellowed in rage and pain as the sacred power singed its body, inflicting holy burns on the spot where the ofuda stuck.
"You better run off now before I exterminate you for sure. " Her tone was cold, piercing the ears of the wolf as it writhed in pain. "Considering yourself unlucky that I passed by."
"Grr…grrr…" Snarling, the youkai gathered itself, quickly bounding out of sight and into the woods.
"Thank you… Reimu." The middle-aged man behind the shrine maiden picked himself up, breathing a heavy sigh of relief. He quickly picked up the mushrooms scattered on the ground and tossed them into the basket on his back. "I would be a goner if it weren't for you."
"Don't sweat it. …This has been getting a little frequent lately, youkai attacking humans from the village." Reimu tapped her gohei on her shoulder rhythmically. "Come, I'll escort you back. You'll be safe once you're back in the village."
As Reimu walked the man back to the village, Demon scratched his chin, turning to face the woods where the wolf youkai fled.
The Hakurei shrine maiden's strength… Definitely a threat in physical combat as well, the lion youkai mused. Flexing his fingers, he imagined if he were to engage her in actual combat. He knows little of her prowess aside from her sacred powers and dueling abilities, and while he instructed some of these low-class feral youkai to assault humans, Reimu took them out swiftly every time she was present.
I guess playing small tricks won't help me in the long run then. Demon Subaru concluded as he trudged back to his cottage. Might as well work diligently for the time being rather than trying to cheat his way out. Especially when Yukari had the geass over him…
He paused as he felt someone staring at his back, and twisting sharply, he caught sight of Reimu in the distance turning away, her eyes cold as her voice just now in the brief second he saw into them.
"…Tsk." Shishima…how low have you fallen. How glorious were the days in Sagakin, trying to mold my own world and gathering so much fear… And if I was reigning in the Twilight Kingdom instead of my mother…
Spitting, Demon disappeared into the forest, once again immersed in his memories and thoughts.
The shrine's doors slid open, the old wood creaking slightly under the stress. Reimu grabbed a cup and sat down at the table curtly, pouring herself some tea.
"Welcome back." Marisa, who invited herself over to relax in the shrine as usual, chuckled. "Busy day?"
Reimu shot a glare at her best friend. "You're not the one who has the responsibility to do this, of course you're so relaxed. And you better not have used my best tea leaves."
"Hehe, don't worry, I brought the tea leaves over, I didn't touch any of yours."
"Good." Reimu sipped the warm tea as the drink moistened her drying lips and throat. "I'd be beating the hell out of you if you did."
"So what's the news?" The blonde inquired, refilling her own cup with tea. "More feral youkai attacking humans?"
Reimu nodded in acknowledgement. "Low-class youkai, as usual. I didn't get to question them since they all ran off. Youkai attacking humans isn't so uncommon after all, but it's been happening quite frequently lately."
"Guess they're starving for faith and fear." Marisa smirked. "Good thing too, better to do your job more diligently unless you wanna get scolded by the Enma again."
"Give me a break." The shrine maiden rolled her eyes. "I've had enough scolding already."
Marisa chuckled again. A light breeze picked up in the shrine grounds, and Reimu sighed as she saw the scattered leaves picked up by the wind. Might be the time to start sweeping soon. The shrine needs to be clean to gather offerings after all.
Reimu took another sip of the tea.
…On second thought, maybe Michael can do it when he comes back. And that new youkai…better keep an eye on him.
The frequent youkai attacks stopped as suddenly as they started. It was not something worth noting as a danger or as an incident. A few days passed, and the matter was soon forgotten. Reimu raised an eyebrow at the abrupt halt of assaults, but if they stopped, there wasn't any need to intervene. There's no reason to do any extra work after all. She nibbled on a senbei, watching the azure sky riddled with cotton clouds.
"You aren't planning to work?" Michael sat beside the table, organizing his deck.
"Not right now, I'm tired." Reimu yawned. "Plus there's nothing major right now. No need to get into unnecessary business."
"Don't you want to at least tune your decks? You've got quite a bit of new toys, no?" A slight hint of saltiness was in Michael's voice.
"Jealous of my new cards are we?" Reimu grinned. "Heheh, no surprise when Draguners got a lot more toys." As if responding to her smirking, Molt NEXT glowed with a faint red on the desk. Michael groaned and rolled his eyes.
"At least Heaven's Gate gained Genmu Emperor as a new finisher." Alphadios, or rather Alpharion since he's now switched to that form, commented. "A very powerful lock for something that can be easily trampled with so many ways."
"Yeah… It's at least something for control decks." Michael shook his head. "Otherwise the game's getting a little too fast to keep up with. I still wish Baki got more support…but Big Mana has really retreated from the meta now. I doubt it'll come back anytime soon."
"Hehe, stay salty." Reimu rolled over, and sitting upright, poured some tea for her and Michael. "Have you tested your decks with the new cards?"
"A little." A sip of tea. "The café was quite busy these days with Nekohana acting as staff. There wasn't a lot of time to rest and test our decks after all. It's only on a Sunday or Wednesday like this we get some rest."
The shine maiden took a long sip of the tea as well. "Better enjoy it while you can and relax like me. Plus there's little trouble right now."
"It would seem so, yeah. Shishima's been laying on the low side, surprisingly." Michael nodded. "I imagined him stirring some trouble and playing tricks."
"He won't be doing anything major, you know Yukari's got him under her thumb. She might just keep him busy with various tasks." Reimu's memories flashed back to her catching his aura in a brief moment during a youkai attack. "…Plus, I'm sure we can take him down if he tried anything funny."
"As expected of the genius 13th Hakurei Shrine Maiden."
"Heheh, compliment me more."
"Of course, milady."
Reimu laughed a little as she turned her sights on three figures landing in front of the shrine.
"Marisa. Jonathan and Alice too." She waved lazily. "What brings you here?"
"Just to have some fun." Marisa took of her hat and handed it to Jonathan. "We met Alice on the way here too."
"Sorry to disturb." The blonde puppeteer bowed lightly. "I suppose we won't be of annoyance?"
"It's not like I can chase you off right now. Feel free to come in."
"Thank you."
Jonathan comes in after Marisa, and throws Michael a sack of food, looking quite weary. It's apparent he's been in the forest picking mushrooms and other edibles for the morning.
"Guess you guys plan on having lunch here today." Michael shook his head, taking the food into the kitchen.
"Huff…" His friend sighed and sat beside the table. "So much for day offs."
Marisa chuckled. "Sorry, but I need more help in gathering materials for food and magic research after all. I'll make it up for making dinner the next couple days."
Jonathan sighed again, but didn't object. Marisa's years of living by herself meant her cooking wasn't bad at least, as he learned in the past few times he tasted her food. "I'll take up your offer on that."
"Good of you to trust my skills in cooking." Marisa helped herself to some tea.
"I see you guys are pretty free today." Jonathan remarked, skimming through the scattered cards in front of him. "Been through some deck building and testing?"
Reimu yawned. "Just Michael, I haven't had the heart or motivation to change my deck drastically as of yet."
"Heh, Malt's gonna weep if you keep it up like that."
"Yeah yeah…" Reimu took another drink of hot tea as she stared up at the blue sky. "Ahhh… Tis good to relax and slack off on a Sunday."
Marisa smirked, as Jonathan went into the kitchen to help out with preparing food.
"You make it sound like you don't do that on other days as well."
"I don't deny slacking off on weekdays as well."
"You should probably do your job more often Reimu." Alice sighed. "I'm probably in no position to say this as a magician…but your responsibility to Gensokyo is heavy, after all."
The shrine maiden grunted and rolled over.
"No sign of Seiga still huh?" The rhythmical thud of knife cutting food and board accompanies the two friends as they exchanged information.
"Unfortunately not… I've been looking around in the Forest of Magic and contacting Satori too, but it's like she disappeared off the face of the Earth." Jonathan shook his head. "These couple weeks have been fairly normal, even with Shishima here… I'd really like a conversation with her, since she now holds a shit ton of intel we don't have."
"Yeah… Having access to the Akashic Record changes the whole game. I dunno how much she changed, and if she could do it again…though I'd rather she didn't." Michael dropped off the carrots and mushrooms into the pot of curry. "But one thing's for sure. She can be a demon or god with the amount of information she holds."
Jonathan nodded. His friend was right. Having all knowledge of this universe could lead to drastic consequences, and even if a crisis was averted in the end, there's no guarantee this knowledge could be used for other sinister purposes. Deep down Jonathan hoped that Seiga disappearing was that she feared her own power bringing disaster, or she wrote her own existence off the Akashic Record to prevent any loose ends… But alas, if it were the latter, they'd never catch any strands of evidence or leads ever again.
A sudden voice from outside the kitchen window caught their attention.
"This Akashic Record…tell me more about it."
"Shishima…how about no?" Michael didn't attempt to hide the annoyance in his voice.
Demon didn't show himself, but he kept talking. "I've heard some things about it. A plane including all and every piece of knowledge in a universe… Even being able to rewrite reality to your will. Keheheh… This is sublime material for me to create my own world."
"Why bother asking then?"
"I just wanted to know if you had any other information regarding it…such as the method of reaching it."
"Can't help you." Jonathan stirred the pot of curry. "Only lead's gone and we haven't found anything yet. Plus, why'd you think we'd tell you?"
"Figures. Humans don't have the strength or willpower to attain such high levels. But I… I will eventually reach the zenith of power and rule supreme in my world… Keheheh…"
And exact revenge on my mother… he silently added to himself.
"You can wait for Yukari to do that once you fulfill your end of the bargain. Plus, you'd believe Yukari would just let you run rampant and go bending the laws to your will? You're underestimating her."
"Oh I don't dare to resist her. …Not yet anyway, until my geass is lifted. I just need to know so I can reach there when the time comes." Demon smiled to himself as he licked his claws.
"No can help." Michael huffed. "Go ask Patchouli, if Remilia even lets you in her mansion. Now if you're finished, get the fuck out before Reimu sends you to see the Enma. She knows you're here. Just go on your Gensokyo field trip if you're not busy."
"Keh, that's expected. Until the next time I call upon your service for my tour of Gensokyo…"
The duo heard a soft thud as Demon leapt off the shrine's rooftop, heading who-knows-where.
"I still don't like him."
"Me neither, but it can't be helped. Yukari will hopefully keep him on a tight enough leash to not let him get anywhere that harms Gensokyo."
"…Yeah. And hopefully Nekohana can help with that."
"Ah… That was good one." Marisa remarked, patting her full stomach. "Thanks for the meal guys!"
"Glad you liked it." Jonathan picked up the empty dishes, getting an approving nod from Alice, who seemed to enjoy her share of the meal as well.
"Well, now that meal's done, who's up for a duel?" Marisa got up, brandishing her deck. "Gotta have some exercise to help digesting right?"
Reimu groaned. "Can't that wait? We've just had lunch and had an unwelcome visitor just now."
"Come on, we're best friends right? I'm sure I'm more than welcome here."
"It's not …ugh, whatever."
"I'd love to help, but unfortunately my deck is extremely disadvantaged when matched up with yours, so I'll sit this one out." Alice said a little apologetically, as her doll Shanghai rested on shoulder.
"Fine… Seeing as they're doing the dishes, I'll be your opponent. And I guess for a bit of deck testing as well."
"That's the Reimu I know!" Marisa bounded onto the shrine grounds with her friend. "Alright then…"
""Duel!""
BGM: Tonight Stars an Easygoing Egoist (Touhou 15.5)
"I cast Dark Life." Reimu declared as she looked at the top 2 cards of her deck. "I charge Triple Mouth to my mana and drop Atari Ponnnosuke to my grave."
"I expected Draguners, but doesn't seem to be the case huh?" Marisa raised her eyebrows as she proceeded to draw. "I charge a mana and cast Afro Heading Out! I draw 2 cards after discarding The Lost. Turn end!"
"…Hm."Reimu started her turn. "Draw. I charge a mana and summon Dismantling Puppet Jenny. Let's see what you got."
"Che…" Marisa revealed her hand, consisting of Dolulu Finn, 5000GT, Darth Sis K, Darth Rayne and BalChuris.
"Let's get rid of Darth Sis K." The Death Puppet acted upon command, slicing said card away from Marisa's hand.
"Tsk. Don't get too confident yet Reimu. My turn! The Lost revives himself by burning one of my shields, and since one of my creatures are revived from the grave, Ritual of Resurrection allows me to mill two more cards from my deck." Marisa smiled as her grave now consisted of 5 cards. "I charge BalChuris and then summon Dolulu Finn. Turn End."
"My turn, draw. I charge Lost Mind and summon Pokuchinchin!" Reimu brandished the Jokers in her hand.
"Damn it." Marisa clicked her tongue. "Now my grave's empty again."
"Exactly. Pokuchinchin shuffles your grave into your deck." Reimu smirked. "Now you're back to square one."
"I wouldn't be so sure yet. My turn, draw! …I charge a mana, and I evolve The Lost into Darth Rayne." The Dark Knightmare was embalmed in the light of evolution, and reappeared again as the evolved creature. "I mill the top 3 cards of my deck…bingo! I return Darth Sis K back to my hand."
"Lucky."
"Heheh. I destroy Dolulu Finn, mill the top card of my deck and discard Crossfire from my hand to summon Darth Sis K for no cost. Then Dolulu Finn mills the top 5 cards of my deck when he's destroyed. And now since 8 cards are in my graveyard, Ritual of Graveyard allows me to give -3000 to one of our creatures. Begone, Pokuchinchin!"
Reimu frowned as her Jokers was sent to her grave. "But Pokuchinchin's effect still activates and Darth Sis K and sent to your deck bottom."
"Sure thing." Unfazed, Marisa declared the end of her turn.
"My turn." Reimu drew a card. "I charge Ochappi and cast Hyperspatial Revive Hole to salvage Pokuchinchin. Then I bring out Prinprin to stop Darth Rayne from attacking next turn."
"You won't be using that anymore." Marisa smiled. "I revive The Lost from my grave by burning another shield. Then I summon 5000GT!" The red dragonic Outrage roared as he materialized, obliterating all psychic creatures and creatures with 5000 power or less.
"Let's do this, Marisa." 5000GT bellowed his blazing flames incinerated Jenny, Prinprin and The Lost.
"Sure thing! When 3 creatures have been destroyed, I attach Ritual of Destruction to Zerom and return Obuza 08 to my hand. Go, 5000GT, triple break!"
Reimu shielded herself from the shattering shields as 5000GT's buzzing saw slashed through all of them in an instant reducing her defenses to 2. The reformed cards flew to her hand as 5000GT retreated back to his master's side, and Reimu declared the activation of a shield trigger.
"Shield Trigger. Onifuda Kingdom! Since we both have less 6 than shields combined, I destroy a creature that costs 8 or less, Darth Rayne, and I revive Atari Ponnosuke and choose 5000GT. Now his effects are ignored and we can summon creatures again." The cartoon skull-themed Joker waved his arms, reducing 5000GT's text to nothing, as a barrage of fire destroyed Marisa's second creature.
"I should've thought you'd have some revival card to bring that out. Thankfully I didn't charge a mana this turn." Marisa huffed. "I end my turn here."
BGM: Idola Deus (Entrusting This World to Idols ~ Idolatrize World ~ Remix by Maritumix)
"My turn. I summon Justice and look at the top 5 cards of my deck…I cast Emperor Hole from among them to bring out Black Ganveet and destroy 5000GT!"
The Demon Command on a skeletal horse rode forward from the Hyperspatial zone, impaling the Outrage with his sword.
"Guwa…I'm sorry…Marisa…" 5000GT vanished into light, his card bouncing from the battle zone to the grave.
"Kuh…"
"Hehe. Not so confident now are we?" Reimu smirked, ending her turn.
"Chi… My turn. I charge a mana and summon Obuza 08 for 1 mana, then I choose Atari Ponnosuke with Obuza's ability! Atari gets -11000 power and is destroyed. Then Gravity Zero! I summon Moors for no cost since I have more than 6 creatures in my grave. I salvage 5000GT from my grave, and summon him! Now that Atari Ponnosuke is no longer on the field, I can activate his abilities again! Begone, Black Ganveet!"
5000GT once again materialized on the battlefield beside his master, burning both Ganveet and Moors to cinders. "Heh, nice comeback, Marisa!"
"5000GT! Break Reimu's last shields!"
"Tsk…" Reimu's final defenses were shattered, and much to her disappointment, there were no triggers left among them.
"Heheh… Guess this is game for me then. I have no hands…but I'm not taking the risk to awaken Zeron. I end my turn here."
"Wise choice, Marisa, but don't be sure of victory just yet. My turn, draw!" Reimu started her turn, peeking at her card. Not quite the card she was expecting. "Guess it's plan B. I charge a mana and summon Jurannail. Then I summon Sacred Execution Acid with the rest of my mana. Come, Acid!"
The Naga-like Oraclion, wielding multiple weapons, materialized on the battle zone along with the slumbering dragon.
"End phase. I destroy Jurannail with Acid's ability and I exchange him with another Justice from my deck!" Reimu's deck shuffled itself as the 2nd copy of the Angel Command/God Nova surfaced from the summoning circle Acid invoked on the shrine grounds. "Justice's effect! I look at the top 5 cards of my deck…and I cast a second Onifuda Kingdom! I revive Atari Ponnosuke and choose 5000GT!"
"That card just doesn't know how to stay dead…my turn, draw!" Marisa started her turn. "…Battle phase! 5000GT! Direct attack!"
"Acid blocks that attack!"
"Obuza! Attack! …And when I declare that attack, I declare Balchuris' effect from my hand too! Whenever my creatures attack, if it's the second attack, I can put him into the battle zone from my hand after the attack!"
"…! Ninja Strike! Hayabusamaru! I turn him into a blocker and block Obuza's attack as well!"
The Guardian Shinobi raised its defenses, but crumbled under the onslaught, joining Acid in the grave as well.
"Then after the attack, Balchuris comes out from my hand! Balchuris is a Speed Attacker, and I don't think you have any more defenses as well! Go! Direct Attack!"
Reimu huffed, but smiled and admitted defeat nonetheless.
"Heh, not bad, Marisa."
"Woohoo! That's another win for me! It wasn't against Molt NEXT, but a win is a win!" Marisa pumped her fists as their duel pads dissipated along with their creatures, 5000GT giving his partner a thumbs up before disappearing as well. "That turns out win ratio into 6:4!"
"Don't push it. It's 7:3."
"No, it's definitely 6:4!"
"It's…"
Demon folded his arms as he watched from afar, high in the sky.
So that's the duel of the Hakurei shrine maiden and her friend… He was aware Reimu wasn't using her best deck, and Molt NEXT was definitely not an opponent he'd want to face any time soon. From the information he could gather, Reimu was still the best duelist in Gensokyo official tournaments, and could've won if she wasn't using Acid. Marisa wasn't to be underestimated either, being Reimu's comrade-in-arms and another incident solver.
Indeed, it was better to see with his own eyes rather than just believing what he could gather with his ears, and he decided it was best to steer clear away of trouble with these 2 girls, like with many other powerful beings in Gensokyo.
"Tsk…" He cursed Muspel under his breath, despite him already taking Muspel down with his own hands. If only he wasn't tossed in Gensokyo, he would've been king of his own world, and avenging his father… He needed to break out this geass, and for that he needed to know more about Gensokyo, and hopefully learn more about this Akashic Record and how to reach it…
Taking one last look at the bickering girls, he sped back towards his home in the outskirts of the Human Village.
Nekohana was watering her plants in the modest backyard of the café, humming. The setting sun dyed everything around beautifully orange, and the lioness was enjoying every moment of this. Forbidden from planting anything demonic or harmful, she opted to just raise some ordinary, pretty looking flowers she gathered on her long journey.
She looked at her empty water jar, satisfied with the day's work as she stood up. Her plants are well fed with nutrients and water, like they should be.
A faint fragrant caught her attention. It was…sunflower? But not like any ordinary sunflower she encountered. She turned her head towards the origin of the scent, and caught sight of a shorthaired lady carrying a parasol, dressed in a checkered long skirt and blouse.
Noticing her gaze, the woman glanced briefly back at Nekohana, but quickly resumed on her track, leaving the village. When Nekohana came back to her senses, she was already gone from view, leaving only Nekohana standing among the lingering scent of sunflower in the amber village.
"…"
Just who was that…? Cocking her head, Nekohana pondered. It might be worth asking around sometime later.
Picking up her empty water jar, she retreated back into the café, closing the door behind her.
Decks:
Reimu: Black Green t Red Acid (黒緑アシッド)
Marisa: Zeron Graveyard Source (零龍墓地ソ)