Look - Thank you as always for your support, it means the world to me :)
Morius - YEAH I didn't know if it was right to write that but he seemed like a person out of time so I figured why not LOL.
Osman - Yeah sorry for the rush job, I'll try to give everyone a bit more development. Thanks for the heads up.
10Masamune packed his belongings as they were before. All the while thinking back to his days before everything went to hell. He thought back to the memories that had once been the driving force of his ambitions. Meeting Alisa and the other Campione, learning what it meant to be a Campione and the wisdom that came along with it, not just brute force. They had taught him how to love others during a time when his heart was filled with nothing but despair. If it weren't for them, he would have become a brutal dictator who would have subjecated thousands and slaughtered thousands more.
He began to realize a powerful thought. Since this world was completely different from the one he knew, did that mean that he had a fresh start here? He could right his wrongs, build relationships with the gods who despised him. Rebuild what he had broken and regain what he thought he had lost all those years ago.
Sera and the others were packing and were probably talking to Ra. Honestly he had to admit that this was much easier than he expected. He was expecting a fight, to take things by force. He really hoped everything would be this easy from here on out.
"As if," He sighed and zipped up his backpack.
"Talking to yourself, are we?"
Masamune turned around to see Osiris, smiling at him and closing the door as he walked in.
"L-Lord Osiris," He gulped.
"Oh stop it with the lord thing," Osiris sat at the table, resting on his arm and smiling at Masamune. "Didn't I teach you to live life by your own rules?"
"W-What?"
"Though I have to admit," Osiris chuckled. "Never expected you to gain the Blessing of Olympus. I can't believe you got those stuck ups to like you, but I guess that's always you."
Masamune could feel his heart beating. "O-Osiris?"
Osiris smiled at him. "Long time no see huh kid?"
Before he knew it, tears were filling his eyes. It was him...it was really him. The black hair, the gray eyes, the warm smile and kind personality.
Before he could think, his body reacted. Masamune ran over to Osiris and hugged him, his eyes were flooding. "I missed you. I missed you so much!"
Osiris smiled and placed a hand on his head. "I've missed you too, Masamune. It's been far too long."
Masamune parted, wiping his eyes. "What happened to you? The old man told me you died...but they never found your body."
Osiris smiled awkwardly. "Well, I don't exactly know what happened either. But my best guess is I just replaced the Osiris that was already here...since she died a long time ago. My body must have been absorbed through the barriers of space-time and just...took her place."
"I thought you left..." Masamune hid his face, his body trembling for the first time in awhile. "I thought you left me behind and never came back. I spent months looking for you, combing through every mythology research I could get my hands on."
Osiris smiled saddenly. "I'm sorry kid. I know it must have been painful."
"700 years..." Masamune balled his fist. "700 years that I spent by myself. I couldn't bring myself to come back to Meropolis, or even had the guts to look for you in Duat."
"Masamune..."
"They all died," Masamune said. "Alisa, Kindred, Hotaru...I buried every single one of them..."
"Masamune I-"
Masamune fist connected with Osiris's cheek, sending him flying across the room and creating a crater in the wall.
He heard ruffling from outside as the girls, including Ra, came inside. "Munecchi what happened?" Sera asked.
"Osiris!" Ra gasped.
"Holy shit that hurt," Osiris got up and rubbed his cheek. "You've really gotten strong haven't you? My proudness outweighs my pain right now."
Masamune walked over and grabbed him by the collar. "I...I..."
"Mune-" Sera cried but Ra stopped her.
"Masamune..." Osiris said, looking to him as he cried. "Words cannot express how sorry I am, but for what it's worth, I am so proud of the man you've become. Not as a god slayer or a Campione, but as a person."
"I..." Masamune felt his hands tremble as he fell to his knees. "I missed you...so much..."
"I know," Osiris comforted him as he cried and screamed.
For the first time in a long time, the barriers keeping his emotions in felt like they've broken. Everything came pouring out with such intense passion.
"You idiot!" Masamune cried.
"I know," Osiris patted his head.
Masamune stood at the entrance to the city. A grand archway decorated with gold and hieroglyphs. Before him were Osiris and Horus, who didn't seem happy at all to see Ra go with them.
"Well," Ra placed her hands on her hips. "I guess things are in your hands now, Osiris."
"I'll do my best," Osiris smiled. "I had a lot of experience being Pharaoh before I came to this world so I think it'll be okay. Plus," He placed a hand on Horus's head. "I'll teach Horus what it means to lead."
"Be sure of it," Ra grinned.
"Masamune," Osiris said. "I'm sorry that our reunion was short, but be sure to come back and visit. I wanna hear all about your adventures when you return."
Masamune smiled. "Of course."
"We're off then," Ra waved as the six of them exited the city.
The deserts were as hot as ever, even with Cosmic Eclipse locked away. Ra was definitely dressed for the ocassion, wearing only a pair of wraps around her breasts and loose pants tucked into boots. Her blonde hair was tied back into a ponytail and a bright smile on her face.
"I'm glad you reconnected with Osiris," Sera took his hand. "I haven't never seen you so happy."
"Really?" He raised an eyebrow. "Sorry, it just gives me hope that maybe my life wasn't meant to be for war. Maybe I can have a normal life, like an old friend of mine."
"The one who just wanted to live normally?" Gabriel asked.
"Yeah," Masamune said. "He was the previous 7th Campione, a lot happened but I ended up taking his position. I still wonder what he's up to now but..."聽
"Munecchi?" Sera asked.聽
He shook his head, throwing the thought aside. "Nothing, everything's fine." He grabbed Sera's hand and quickly caught up with the other four. "So, where are we headed now? Kyoto?"聽
"Yep," Kuroka smirked. "It seems the youkai have gotten their hands on a pretty powerful relic."
"Masamune," Ra said, her hands behind her back. "Any idea what we're getting ourselves into? What type of relic is it?"
"I noticed it awhile ago before we left Kuoh but…" Masamune said. "I'm sure it has to be the Ama-no-Murakumo."
"Wait a minute," Rossweisse said. "You mean the legendary sword? The Kusanagi Sword?"
Masamune nodded. "It was my first weapon after I defeated Susanoo. Ama-no-Murakumo is a powerful Divine Object with the ability to cause storms and bestows it's user with an enormous and untold amount of magic. The problem is…"
"The brainwashing," Gabriel finished his thought.
"Brainwashing?" Ra asked. "You're saying these relics can overwrite someone's mind? I've heard of gods doing such things but never an object."
"Unfortunately it's true," Masamune sighed. "If we don't get to it soon, things are going to get bad."
Ra sighed. "My first day with humanity and we're already facing a crisis, fantastic." She jumped back and grabbed Masamune's hand, raising them over their heads. "But we got this."
"R-Ra…" Masamune said.
"Which reminds me," Gabrielle said. "Perhaps we should come up with a name for her."
"Huh? Why?" Masamune asked.
"Think about it master," Kuroka said. "We can't just be walking around with a goddess and not attract attention. She can suppress her magic all she wants, but if we just outright call her Ra…"
"I see," Masamune sighed. He turned to Ra, who looked like she didn't have a care in the world. "What do you want to be called?"
"Hmm…a name huh?" Ra began to think. "Well how about Astrea? It's a Greek name so it fits in great with the Blessing of Olympus, don't you think?"
"Astrea…" Masamune grinned. "I like it."
"Well then," Astrea jumped forward and pointed forward. "Onwards and forwards to Kyoto!"
…
Astrea did something…completely unexpected. Masamune knew that Ra had access to the grand chariot of the sun. The old man used it every day to withdraw into the skies whenever he didn't want to deal with the work load in Egypt, but it was nothing compared to the chariot that Astrea had. Instead of a horse drawn chariot which he was used to, her chariot was a complete battle ready warship about the size of the palace, with cannons on either side and a front hull that was basically a giant sword pointed forward.
They flew the rest of the way to Kyoto, occasionally stopping in neighboring towns to get food and just wander around. Luckily, Astrea could cloak the ship or even just send it back into the Heavens. However this made travel a lot easier. On the ship, everyone even had their own rooms, with Masamune's room in what seemed like the captain's quarters. He got the feeling this was just a giant pirate ship without the flags and flew using magic drawn from the sun.
Masamune was in his room, a fairly small quarter unlike the palace of his apartment, with no windows. His bed was in the corner with a map in the center table with all the possible locations of Divine Relics. He had already crossed off Meropolis and now they were en route to Kyoto.
"Captain! We're almost to Kyoto," Astrea shouted.
Masamune sighed and grabbed his coat from the chair and joined the girls outside on the front deck.
"You know, I'm really not the captain," Masamune smiled as he joined Astrea on her throne on top of his room.
Aside from the chair, the main hull was basically a battle station. Masamune could tell this ship was meant to be piloted by a bigger crew, but somehow Astrea was flying it all on her own.
He took a look at the ship from up here. The entire top deck was made of wood, with doors leading underneath to the other rooms and quarters. The outside of the ship was protected with enchanted red metals and even outlined with gold.
In the distance, he could see them drawing closer to Kyoto. Even from this far away, he could sense the Ama-No-Murakumo's power. That, and the fact that there were storm clouds over the city despite the outside of the city was free of any clouds.
"I wonder if we'll be welcomed kindly," Sera asked. "The youkai aren't a war loving bunch, but I can't tell anymore with this weapon there."
"We'll just have to hope for the best, but be prepared for the worst," Gabriel said, tightening the golden gauntlets on her forearms.
Masamune looked at her in awe. For some reason she reminded him of Athena, the goddess of wisdom of war. Even though they had different hair colors and personalities, the resemblance was suddenly uncanny. She was even dressed the same as Athena. A flowing white dress with a golden belt around her waist and golden gauntlets on her forearms.
"W-What are you staring at?" Gabriel blushed.
"S-Sorry, you just reminded me of an old friend," Masamune smiled. "You look great."
From his left side, he felt a rock smashing into his cheek and sending him on his knees. "S-Sera! What the hell!"
"That's what you get for looking at other girls," She scoffed and crossed her arms, looking away.
"W-What?" Masamune got up. He walked over to her and admired her appearance as well. She wore an unbuttoned blue dress shirt over a black T-shirt, a black skirt and stockings. She wore no armor, and yet he felt like she didn't care. He smiled and patted her on the head. "You look great too, Sera."
She blushed and enjoyed his hand. From the corner of his eye, he could see Astrea grinning at him. "Oh my, Masamune. You're such a man."
"S-Shut up," He sighed and looked forward to Kyoto. "Maybe we should park her in the forest and go in by foot. It'd be safer."
"I suppose you're right," Astrea began to descend the ship and parked her in the trees, hiding the ship from view. As soon as all of them were on the ground, the ship automatically used magic to cloak itself from view and hid it's presence.
"By the way, Astrea," Masamune looked up. "What's her name?"
"Oh her?" Astrea smirked. "I call her the Galleon. I was friends with Hephaestus and we redesigned my old chariot into a warship. It's not tradition, but I didn't really care."
"The Galleon…huh?" He smiled. "A fitting name."
"Right?" Astrea giggled. "C'mon, we'd better get going."
Astrea grabbed Kuroka and Rossweisse's hands and ran ahead. Masamune was left with Sera and Gabriel by his side as they walked through the forest into enter the city.
He looked over to Sera, who seemed kind of distracted and sad. "Are you okay? You seem kind of down."
"Hmm? Oh, it's nothing," She smiled, but relaxed. "I just wanted my sister to see Kyoto too. Sona's body is pretty weak so she rarely leaves the manor, so whenever I go out to different cities, I always bring her back souvenirs to make her happy. I just realized I won't see her for awhile…"
"I see…" Masamune said. "I'm sorry…for making you come with me. I didn't realize it at the time, but you guys all have your own lives to life. And yet I made everything about myself and dragged you all along."
Gabriel planted her fist into his head, jokingly and softly. "Don't be such an idiot, Masamune-Kun. You didn't make any of us come along, we all chose to do it. Do you really think we're the type of people who would do something unless we wanted to ourselves?"
He looked to Astrea, who was cheerfully talking to Kuroka and Rossweisse. Kuroka seemed happy, smiling as she talked to the goddess, and Rossweisse seemed to be adjusting to life outside of Asgard well.
"Who knows what would have happened to them if you hadn't been there," Gabriel said. "Kuroka might still be with that horrible Devil, doing unspeakable things. Rossweisse might still be in Asgard, and probably stayed there for the rest of her life. They're here now because they met you, so don't go thinking that you did something bad, when it's clearly something so great."
"Gabriel…" She never ceases to amaze him at how uplifting and inspiring her words could be. He keeps forgetting that she's an Angel who's been alive for a long time, far longer than he.
"You got that right," Sera wrapped an arm around him. "I'll bring her back souvenirs from every city we visit. I'll bring back plenty of stories to tell her."
He smiled. "Yeah."
Kyoto was as big of a city here as it was in his own world. A vast ocean of buildings blending in newer and advanced architecture with the old and traditional temples and gates. It was an amazing sight to behold, a view he hadn't seen in quite awhile.
For the first few hours, it seemed like they had all forgotten why they were really here. Instead of searching for the youkai, they were all running around enjoying the stalls and the shop vendors. Even Masamune was distracted as he enjoyed the amazing food and breathtaking scenery.
Eventually, they found themselves wandering around into a sort of abandoned area of Kyoto. Not a lot of people were passing by, in fact it was just the six of them.
"Wait a minute," Astrea said to them, her hands completely full of food and toys, she even wore a sailor's hat. "That way." She pointed left, towards a narrow alleyway.
"What's over there?" Masamune asked, peeking in. "There's nothing, I can't see anything."
"The youkai district," Sera said. "I had forgotten that that's where all the youkai gather since they can't appear in front of humans.
The girls gathered around them and seemed nervous. "What's wrong everyone?" He asked.
"It's a really…tight alleyway…" Gabriel said, her hands over her chest.
"I'm not sure we can fit, master," Kuroka blushed.
He tilted his head, until he realized what they meant. There wasn't a single girl here who was smaller than a D cup. His mind practically exploded when he realized the girls around him…they were all beautiful and blessed with well endowed figures…
He blushed and quickly looked towards the alleyway. "M-My king?" Rossweisse asked.
"Step back," Masamune said as he clapped his hands together and pressed them onto either side of the alleyway. Using Hephaestus's Alchemy, he pushed both buildings to side by just a few inches, giving the girls at least a bit of breathing room. He looked back to them. "This should be okay, right?"
"I…I suppose so…" Sera blushed.
Masamune gulped and went on ahead. "Follow me." One by one, everyone squeezed through the alleyway and made their way to the end. A blinding light enveloped them as Masamune tripped on his foot at the end of the alleyway, falling flat on his face. It seems the girls didn't notice and tripped over him, one by one landing on top of him.
Masamune, ignoring the breasts that were almost suffocating him, looked up ahead. "T-This…is the youkai district?"
"Munecchi, watch where you're stepping," Sera got up and rubbed his chest, until she gasped at what she saw.
"What is this?" Gabriel looked in horror.
"T-This…this isn't what…" Kuroka covered her mouth.
Rossweisse and Astrea looked on ahead in silence. "This is a battlefield," Astrea said.
Masamune got up and looked around. The entire district was shrouded underneath a blanket of darkness, only visible due to the numerous amount of torches all around the buildings. The buildings themselves were mostly burnt or destroyed. He saw explosions happening all around him, with screams and cries in every corner of his ears.
"Somebody!" A voice cried. "Somebody help me!"
It was small girl…she had a furry tail and tripped on a rock. Behind her, a youkai came from the darkness, holding a copy of the Ama-No-Murakumo. He was about to swing at the girl with a ferocious growl, when Astrea appeared before him. She simply blocked the swing with her bare hands and stared at the youkai.
"What do you think you're doing?"
It didn't even seem to faze him as he roared and applied more pressure. "Impudence." Astrea broke the sword simply by closing her hands into a fist. She pressed a hand against his stomach, and sent him flying with flames trailing him. He slammed into on of the house as Astrea went to check on the girl.
Masamune and the girl ran over to help. "Are you okay?" He knelt down to help her up.
"M-Mommy!" She cried into Masamune's arms. She couldn't have been older then 10 years old. Long brown hair and golden eyes. She somehow resembled a monkey, in no disrespect.
"She's a monkey youkai," Kuroka knelt down and picked her up, carrying her on her back. "Let's go find your mommy, okay? So be brave and don't cry."
The girl sniffled and nodded. "Okay."
Masamune smiled. It was always strange to see Kuroka shed her flirtatious and mischevious nature and become a kind caring mother figure. He figured that Shirone had a lot to do with it.
"This is horrible," Rossweisse said. "Did the sword cause this?'
Masamune nodded. "It can influence a lot of people, plus…" Masamune held out his hand as the sword that the youkai was holding flew to him. He gripped it tight, feeling it's magic. "It's a copy, but this is the Ama-no-Murakumo. It can create duplicates of itself, and each of them can bring out the hidden rage in anyone who wields it."
"Yuuki! Yuuki!" A voice cried out to them. Masamune looked to see a woman scrambling around. "Yuuki!"
"Mommy!" The girl on Kuroka's back cried. "Mommy I'm here!"
Kuroka let the girl down as she ran to her mother. Masamune smiled as he saw their reunion.
"Mommy, these people helped me!" Yuuki smiled at them.
"Thank you, thank you so much," The woman bowed. "Please if there's anything I can do-"
"Mommy, maybe they can help with Lady Yasaka," Yuuki tugged on her mother's kimono.
"Yuuki, you shouldn't-"
"Did something happen to Yasaka?" Kuroka asked, stepping forward. "Where is she?"
The woman had a saddened look. "Lady Yasaka has been injured…this is the result of a coup. She's in critical condition…we're doing everything we can to help her but…"
"Please, take us to her," Kuroka pleaded. "Surely we can help."
"Kuroka…" Masamune was at a loss for words.
The woman looked to Yuuki who just smiled and nodded. "Very well. Please, come with me."
The woman guided them through the district, being careful to avoid any unnecessary combat along the way. In the distance, Masamune saw a massive castle like temple that was easily the size of the palace in Meropolis. It was partially destroyed with fighting going on outside, however the woman led them away from the fighting and to a house on the edge of the district. It was surprisingly safe for a place that was completely unguarded.
"She's in here," The woman slid open the door to Masamune's horror.
Inside, there were a few people hovering a woman with long blonde hair and fox ears. She was incredibly pale and breathing heavily, and in her stomach was the Ama-no-Murakumo.
"T-Tachibana! Who are these people!" An elderly man with similar fox ears asked in a hostile tone.
"E-Elder please, they helped Yuuki when she was lost…" The woman pleaded.
Yuuki grabbed Kuroka's hand and led her to the side of the blonde haired woman. Kuroka knelt down and caressed her face. "Oh Yasaka…"
"Y-You know Lady Yasaka?" The elderly man asked.
Kuroka nodded. "She took care of my little sister and I until we left. She's like a mother to me." She smiled sadly. "What happened here?"
The elderly man sat down and crossed his arms. "One of our own, a kitsune, overthrew Lady Yasaka when he found a strange weapon in the forests. He seemed to control others and quickly attacked the temple. We were luckily able to get Lady Yasaka out, but were ambushed along the way."
Masamune was mortified. He balled his fists in anger, until the crying of a baby broke him out of it.
"Ah! Kunou please!" Yuuki ran to the edge of the room and tended to a baby girl. "It's okay, I'm here. It's okay…" Yuuki played with her hair until the girl slept.
"Is that…" Kuroka asked.
"Kunou is Lady Yasaka's child," The elder said. "She's only two years old. I fear that she'll have to grow up without her mother by her side…" The man was seconds away from crying, until Masamune sat down besides Kuroka.
"M-Master?"
"For I am fierce, and what I display is the sigil of the storm bringer," Masamune grabbed hold of the sword. "Come forth from thine chains and obey my reason and command. I am your master and you are my warrior." He easily slid the sword out of Yasaka's stomach.
"What are you doing!" The elder cried. "She'll bleed out!"
"No, she'll be okay for now," Masamune watched as the sword vanished. "Ama-No-Murakumo carries with it a paralyzing agent that stuns whoever it pierces. Her body should be fighting it off as we speak."
As he finished, the others noticed the color returning to her face. Her breathing slowed down until she fell asleep. "Give it a few hours before she wakes, she shouldn't be moving anytime soon before her body collects the magic it needs."
The elder and Yuuki went to Yasaka's side and held her hands. "Thank you…thank you so much…" The elder said.
"Elder," Masamune said. "Do you have a minute? I need to speak you alone."
"Y-Yes, of course," the elder stood up and walked outside with his cane.
"You guys stay here and make sure she gets what she needs," Masamune said. "Kuroka, see if you speed up her healing with Senjutsu."
"Y-Yes!" Kuroka said as she rolled up her sleeves.
Masamune and the elder sat outside the house on the steps, watching as the youkai district to hell.
"Elder, who did this?" He asked.
The elder seemed hesitant. He understood why. This was none of their business, a coup under the youkai district meant that it was their own problem to deal with. All he would do is get in the way.
"His name is Kurama," The elder said. "Lady Yasaka's husband and the one who found the sword in the forest. He was a kind and merciful leader, treated us kindly and always put us before himself. He changed when he returned with that sword…it was as if he had been twisted."
"The Ama-no-Murakumo brainwashes it's wielders," Masamune explained. "It enhances their rage and suppresses their heart. This isn't his fault."
"But still…to almost kill Lady Yasaka and even go after his own daughter…" the elder looked back to Yasaka in the room.
"This isn't him, elder," Masamune stood up. "This is the sword. I give you my word that I'll break him free from this nightmare. Yasaka will have her husband back and Kunou will grow up with two loving parents by her side."
"W-Why would you do so much for us?" The elder asked. "You are not a youkai."
"No," He looked to the temple. "But I can't sit idly by while others get hurt because of my mistakes."
"Munecchi!" Sera opened the door. "She's waking up!"
"Already?" He and the elder quickly rushed inside.
Yasaka was sitting up, drinking tea that Tachibana had prepared for her.
"Lady Yasaka…" Kuroka said.
"Oh? Kuroka…oh how good it is to see you again after so many years," Yasaka smiled. "How is little Shirone? Is she with you?'
Kuroka shook her head. "She's safe with friends."
"I see," Yasaka felt her stomach. "What has happened? Where is Kunou?"
Yuuki brought Kunou to Yasaka's side. Masamune tried his best to contain his anger at the sight of a gentle mother crying and loving her child.
"Do you have news on Kurama, elder?" Yasaka asked.
"He's holed up in the temple," The elder replied. "After most of our forces were gone, we decided to run and take you here until we could figure out what to do."
"I see…" Yasaka sighed. "I'm sorry. If I had known that this would happen…"
"None of this is your fault, Lady Yasaka," Kuroka took her hand.
"No," Masamune said. "This is the sword. I'm taking it back and snapping him awake from this."
"Oh? And you are?" Yasaka asked.
"Lady Yasaka," Kuroka smiled. "This is Asa Masamune. He's my…my…" She blushed.
"I'm a friend," Masamune knelt down and smiled at her. "Allow me to help you, Lady Yasaka. Please, just stay here with your daughter."
"B-But…it's my duty to-"
He shook his head. "Your duty is to your daughter first and foremost. I couldn't live with myself if she has to grow up without her parents. Please, stay here with her."
Yasaka looked to Kuroka, who gave her an encouraging smile and nod. Even the elder urged her to listen to him. "Very well. I apologize for giving you this burden, Asa Masamune."
"It's no burden at all," He stood up and smiled. He looked to Rossweisse. "Rossweisse, you stay here with Kuroka and make sure nobody touches a hair on Yasaka or Kunou's head."
"I give you my word, master," Rossweisse placed a hand over her chest.
"W-What will you do?" The elder asked.
Masamune, Sera, Gabriel, and Astrea stepped outside the house and looked to the temple.
"We're gonna take the youkai district back, and save Kurama from himself before he does anything he'll truly regret." Masamune punched his palm.
Yasaka smiled at him. "Thank you, Masamune."
Masamune smiled, before the four of them ran back into the town, and officially entered the battlefield.
Author's Note - Okay I wanted this chapter to be a time skip, but that might happen in a few because I kind of rushed the last chapter so I wanted to take this slow and develop them before skipping. Yasaka won't officially be in the harem until after the time skip, but I hope you guys are okay with this since A LOT of you wanted her LOL. I'll also focus on Astrea and Rossweisse a bit more after the time skip since they haven't gotten much development. I hope you guys liked this chapter and see you again soon :)