As the students found with the technological side of Monochio's assignment, it would take more than one day to complete Izanami's ritual of resurrection. Guided by the grimoire, Hiiro guided her classmates in the proceedings and preparations.
The first gods summoned two divine beings into existence, the male Izanagi and the female Izanami, and charged them with creating the first land. To help them do this, Izanagi and Izanami were given a spear decorated with jewels, named Amenonuhoko (heavenly spear).
"Of course, we shan't find a spear within these walls," said Hiiro as she stood atop the V4-VR platform, the other students standing before her and listening well. "However, I am certain that we can find a suitable substitute…"
"Pfft! How the hell are we supposed to do that?!" Muni scoffed skeptically, hands on her hips. This wasn't some RPG crafting mechanic!
"Well, there are plenty of arts-n-crafts rooms on the fourth floor…" said Hiiro, eyes darting towards the ceiling. "And on the third floor," she said, meeting Muni's piercing gaze evenly, "I believe there are various manufacturing workshops for wood, metal, and the like."
"No way! You're suggesting we build the spear from scratch?!" Both Rinku and Rika's eyes lit up in excitement. Muni shot them an exasperated and deadpanning look of disbelief, but Esora tapped her chin with her remaining hand thoughtfully.
"That is… actually a clever idea…!" Her mental sanity was fraying, but like Hiiro, she held onto the hope of bringing back her lost loved one. She was also certain that Monochio wasn't going to let them keep their resurrected friends without a price, but she was willing to take it as it came.
The two deities then went to the bridge between heaven and earth, Ame-no-ukihashi ("floating bridge of heaven") and churned the sea below with the spear. When drops of salty water fell from the spear, Onogoroshima was created. They descended from the bridge of heaven and made their home on the island. Eventually, they wished to be mated, so they built a pillar called Ame-no-mihashira ("pillar of heaven") and around it they built a palace called Yahiro-dono. Izanagi and Izanami circled the pillar in opposite directions and, when they met on the other side, greeted one another and were married and mated.
In the coming days, the students were kept busy as they worked together and apart to craft the spear, bridge, and pillar.
"Jeez, why do deities have to be so extra?" Muni whined as she and several others helped lug wood from the workshop to make the bridge.
Maho smirked dryly, watching her from behind. She, too, strained under the weight of some of the large wood boards, but she took her newfound role as the honorary third/fourth member of the Muscle Trio (Quartet?) with seriousness and pride.
"Need some help?" Dalia's soft, low voice brushed past her ear and the wood board suddenly became infinitely lighter as Dalia grabbed one end, allowing Maho to shift towards the other. Though then the height difference made it a bit difficult.
"Thanks," Maho grunted, at first casting a quick glance over her shoulder to smile at Dalia. Then— "Woah!" Dalia lifted the plank clean out of Maho's hands entirely, and all she'd done was stand up from a slightly crouched position.
"Didn't mean to do that, my bad," Dalia chuckled lowly, then she tried to lower herself back down to an acceptable height for Maho.
"Don't patronize me," Maho teased. "And don't hurt your back either!"
"How old do you think I am?" Dalia teased her right back without missing a beat, and the two shared a laugh.
"Hey, you two, old slowpokes, c'mon!" Yuka's cheerful voice interrupted them as she walked by carrying a wood board in each arm.
"Oh no…" Maho chuckled and had just enough time to look at Dalia before Dalia thoughtlessly stood up again.
"Oh, you're on!" she chuckled, grabbing the nearest second wood board and copying Yuka. She left Maho in the dust, already forgetting all about her, and Maho could only chuckle weakly again and shake her head.
In the metal workshop, another group of students crafted the spear. The base was a metal flagpole they'd taken from outside. They had all the tools they needed to sharpen the tip to a deadly point, but for safety's sake, it was unanimously agreed that they would keep it blunt and simply paint a tip over the top of it. As Hiiro said, they would be unable to completely and accurately replicate the various elements of the ritual of resurrection, but as the old cliché went, it was the thought that counted. Besides, if the tool was meant to resurrect, it didn't have to have a deadly tip.
Likewise, because the ritual did not have to be a perfect copy, Hiiro's priestesses and acolytes were such a spiritually diverse bunch. Esora was one of them, both on behalf of Rei and herself. Ibuki was another, due to her own past as a shrine maiden as well as a Photon Maiden. So for a time, she stayed on Hiiro's wrist rather than Towa's, Towa busy helping paint the flagpole gold. Then Miyu was the last, for although she was Catholic and thusly did not share an exact religion with Hiiro, Esora, Rei, or Ibuki, she was still a highly spiritual person, and that sort of power and energy was all Hiiro needed.
The Ultimate Diviner closed her eyes and inhaled deeply as the students hustled and bustled all around her. The time was nigh…
Izanagi is said to have performed ritualistic cleansing, harai, after witnessing the decomposing body of his wife. This is the traditional explanation for the purification rituals often performed at Shinto shrines, where shrine-goers wash themselves with water before entering the sacred space.
The words of the grimoire ringing in her head, Hiiro fetched a bowl of water, then she and her three priestesses and acolytes each prayed over and blessed it. Storing it for the end of the ritual, Hiiro peered once into its crystal depths and, with slow breathing and concentrated thought, slowly worked herself into a trance, silently praying for some sort of sign or vision with the rippling glass surface…
What she saw, however, did not pertain to the ritual, rather, it was a vision of the past instead of a prediction of the future. She saw the DJs performing, the rest of the units in a mosh pit, jumping and dancing and cheering them on. But a dark cloud hung over the proceedings, and the show was violently interrupted by blood and battle, pink splattering across Hiiro's vision until she was almost convinced that her bowl of holy, pure, and cleansed water had also become tainted. From a lively melody to a killing harmony, screaming and Despairful music overtook the vision.
Hiiro reeled back with a sharp inhale. I have no proof this was not a vision of the future, and yet… Something stirs within my memory…
It was not the sort of feeling she got when her powers were feeling prophetic. Whatever she'd just witnessed in the water was… something she could not fully understand. All she knew was that the pink was becoming paler and paler until the water was crystal clear again. Hmmm… Perhaps it is fitting, as this motive is having us dip into the past—and what was lost—so much already…
Suddenly reminded of their mission at hand, Hiiro straightened up and her stomach tightened as she set the bowl aside. The time was nigh for the ritual of resurrection, but they were not quite there yet…