Chapter 3: First Trips and Dark Truths
Eventually, his flight crossed the path of a certain tengu reporter, who had a red tengu-mask over her face, complete with tokin and scarf.
"Huh. Never thought I would find a human up here." The tengu remarked.
"Aya Shameimaru, if I may presume?" Richard asked. "I never thought that you would be wearing a mask at these times."
"Huh. Do I know you?" Aya remarked, before she took her mask off. "Actually, don't answer that. If I don't know you firsthand, you definitely are a Gappy. But still, I never thought that I would find one that knows me at first glance. You really must have brushed up on the local culture, ayayaya! I hope you don't mind if I take a pic or two."
"Uh… is that a good idea?" Richard asked with a concerned expression. "I'm kind of disheveled and beaten up."
"Oho, this smells of a great scoop!" Aya exclaimed. "And don't be shy, the scarred and rugged look tends to get ladies around here! Now spill the beans, who did you get into a fight with, big boy?"
"I… I rather not answer." Richard answered back. "But I can tell you that I got into a big fight with someone. And it ended up with me bloodied, and the other side knocked away. And… it wasn't even a Spell-Card Duel, otherwise I wouldn't be this hurt."
"It wasn't…?" Aya remarked, as her curiosity was substituted with concern that Richard could see. "...Did a feral youkai hurt you this badly?"
"...You could say that." Richard lied firmly, trying to keep his straight to hide his deceit.
Aya was silent for a moment. "Well, could you describe them to me?" Aya asked back.
"I can't remember specific details. All I remember is that there were two, and that they used a lot of danmaku." Richard answered back. "Kunais, orbs, lasers, the whole works. Oh, and I think that they're some sort of mythical beast. They had tails, ears and fur."
"Mhm…" Aya remarked, as she jotted Richard's description down. "Right, suppose I can only get this much. By the way, since we met. What's your name, and what are you doing later?"
"Are you coming onto me?" Richard asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Bwahaha! That's a first!" Aya cawed. "Nah, I just think you're an interesting guy, and I don't seem to be your type."
"It's Richard. Richard Liu." Richard responded back. "I'm just simply taking a sight-seeing tour of Gensokyo, meet certain notable residents. I've already had the pleasure of meeting the Seven-Coloured Puppeteer and her hyper friend, the Ordinary Black-And-White Magician. I've already gotten to meet the staff of the Scarlet Devil Mansion. But I can only say that I'm properly acquainted with the Scarlet Sisters and Patchouli Knowledge, the Unmoving Library."
"Well, I can't wait to see what you'll bring to this sleepy old land." Aya smirked, before she raised her camera. "Now, if you could let me take a photo of you. I promise I'll get your good side."
Richard merely sighed, before he merely did a standard smile, with his hands in front of him, as the camera flashed.
"Nice! Now, I won't get in your way any longer." Aya remarked, before she then took off.
Richard then began to float up, before he then immediately found himself in Heaven, as the realm of clouds greeted him, as he could see the Celestials, as Richard felt fairly uneasy, considering what Marisa and Patchouli said earlier about them.
"So, what brings a mortal like you around here?" A voice remarked, which startled Richard, as he turned around, coming face to face with a female Celestial with brown eyes, black and white hair, with bangs of both colors, a rainbow shirt with a circular pattern, a pink tie, and blue skirt, and a pair of glasses over her eyes, and a large jester's hat of multiple colors.
"You know, it's rude to sneak up on people like that." Richard dryly remarked.
"And it's rude in Heaven to loiter around." The Celestial remarked, crossing her arms. "So, what brings you up here?"
"Just looking around." Richard answered back. "I thought that I could see Heaven first considering it is meant to be a holy place or something…"
"And is it?" The Celestial asked, tilting her head.
"...I don't see much difference from here, compared to down on earth." Richard admitted. "You got the paradise part evident here, but it ain't some sacred place."
"Psh, leave it to humans to flanderize this place." The Celestial scoffed. "But where are my manners? Dokeshi the Celestial."
"Richard. Richard Liu if you want my full name." Richard answered back.
"Ah, so a Gappy then." Dokeshi stated. "In that case, why don't you come along with me? I've got something for you to do."
"I don't think that it would be a good idea to-" Richard tried to argue, only to get dragged along by Dokeshi, silencing whatever protest was in his mouth. "...Alright. Just… be gentle with me."
"Oh man, you're already a riot!" Dokeshi laughed heartily.
As Dokeshi led them both on, Richard found himself before a large table, as Tenshi Hinanawi, the Eldest Hinanawi Daughter, and another female Celestial, who had a bottle of purple wine in one hand, a glass full of it in another, and dressed in a blue kimono with red flowers embroidered onto it, a white sun-hat with a purple ribbon tied around it that had several strands of light pink hair poking under it, and a pair of sunglasses over her eyes, were waiting. And right ahead of them was another female Celestial, who seemed to be dressed in the same blue attire as Tenshi did, save for having a more thinner bow, pink-tinted glasses, and a large white bucket hat with a large red ribbon on one side, and long flowing purple hair, sitting on a table, with a shogi set on the table.
"Hey, girls! You won't believe who I found!" Dokeshi exclaimed. "I found another Gappy!"
"A Gappy?" The pink-haired Celestial remarked. "...He seemed to be fairly humble in contrast to his expectations."
"Whatever, I bet that you want to put him against Momoi, don't you?" Tenshi remarked, walking over. "I can't wait to see how this will turn out! Momoi NEVER lost a game of shogi before, and she's challenged a lot of people above and below Heaven!"
"Well, I could use a laugh." The Celestial on the table, presumably Momoi remarked, before patting the opposing side of the table, as if beckoning Richard. "Come and take a seat. I won't bite."
Richard didn't make any retort, as Dokeshi let him go, before he then took his seat. "So, I assume that you're Momoi, from what I have heard?" Richard asked.
"Yep." Momoi remarked, before she then rearranged the shogi pieces into their starting positions. "I assume that you know at least how to play the game?'
"I do." Richard nodded back. "...I'm not sure if I'm confident in winning, but I will try my best anyway."
"Hah, give it your best shot." Momoi grinned, before turning to the pink-haired celestial. "Hey, Koshaku, pour me and the Gappy a glass of our wine! It's a courtesy to offer our guests a glass!"
"As you wish." Koshaku remarked, before she left to get two glasses, while Richard arranged the pieces on his end, before the Celestial returned with the glasses, setting them down, and pouring the purple wine into them, as Momoi gulped her glass down without hesitation, while Richard swirled it around, unsure whether to drink it or not.
"What's the matter? Are you worried that the wine is not for you people to drink?" Dokeshi remarked. "Don't worry, this brand is safe for people to drink. You might feel tingly from the glass, but it's safe for you. I assure you."
"If you say so." Richard remarked, before he took a few sips, as the gentle tingle went through his body. "...Quite fruity."
"Thank you for the compliment." Koshaku answered back. "It's naturally-grown."
"Alright, are you done, or you quitting?" Momoi asked.
"Not a chance." Richard declared, trying to sound confident.
Momoi and Richard began to play against each other, as the two of them seemed to be matching each other for the first fifteen moves, going for equivalent trades with each other, as Richard spent a long time contemplating his moves, while Momoi was more confident, and smoothly made her moves.
"Hm. You're not exposing your flank, but you're not turtling either." Momoi noted, looking at the state of the board, as Richard opted to put his pawns to the blade, rather than his other pieces. "You seem to be sacrificing your pawns fairly easily."
"I'm aware, but I at least aim to keep one alive." Richard responded back. "I'm aware of the strategies that a promoted piece can have on the field."
Momoi merely gave a ghost of a smile, before the two of them continued in silence, as several more turns went by, as promoted pieces were made on both sides, as Richard made sure that his knights and bishops were well-promoted as much as he could afford, while safe-guarding any of Momoi's promoted units from setting a game-state where his loss was guaranteed.
"Say… you're oddly quiet." Momo remarked. "People like you tend to brag when you manage to get my board to this state. It looks good on your side, with all those promoted units."
"I've played enough games that promoted pieces does not make the game to your advantage." Richard countered back, as he was sweating heavily, having taken several close calls trying to out-wit Momoi to avoid a certain loss. "Jesus, you really are latching on me like a crocodile to fish meat."
"Apt metaphor." Momoi smirked.
Eventually, the game began to wind down, as the two sides were left to only four pieces, with a promoted bishop for both sides, one promoted knight and promoted lance for Richard, and a gold and silver general each for Momoi's side.
The two of them began to move rapidly to intercept each other, with Richard creating distance to avoid Momoi using her generals to seal his king's escape, until it took more than 30 turns on each side, before the game ended, as Richard managed to trap Momoi's king in a checkmate situation.
"...Well played." Momoi remarked, before reaching a hand out. "You really had me there. I wonder, who was your teacher? I was certain that I had most of the strategies down, but you surprised me time and time again in this match."
"Just… a moment." Richard remarked, as his entire head was drenched with sweat at how tense he was, before he then used magic to cleanse his body of the sweat, and taking Momoi's hand. "I didn't even know how I won. I was just literally flying by the edge of my pants in the last third of the game, instinctively reacting with pieces to make the proper balance between defense and offense."
"Hm… that could work in the future." Momoi stated. "Thanks for the lesson."
"Wow, you really showed Momoi, didn't you?" Tenshi remarked, licking a cone of sherbet in her hand. "Seems it took an Earthling Gappy to beat your perfect streak, didn't it?"
"Oh be quiet, Tenshi." Momoi chuckled good-naturedly.
"You know, I oughta keep my eye on you." Tenshi remarked with an eager smile.
"...Hopefully, it's for good reasons. I wouldn't mind getting to know you." Richard answered back cordially. "But I should be off, wouldn't want to stink up your Heaven with this impure existence of mine…"
Richard then hurriedly took off, as the Celestials watched him leave with interest in their eyes.
Eventually, Richard managed to come down right before Hakugyokurou, which was the closest place he could find after descending down from Heaven's nearest exit, fitting for his currently hungry state.
As he landed right on the gates of Hakugyokurou, he was greeted at the tip of Roukanken, held by Youmu, who was glaring at Richard firmly.
"Halt there. Who are you to stand before the gates of Hakugyokurou?" Youmu demanded.
"My name is Richard Liu, an outsider who has recently arrived here." Richard responded back. "...I would like to kindly ask if there is a chance that I could have some of your harvest to feed myself."
"How direct. Do you not fear dying then?" Youmu retorted, as she immediately pressed her blade's tip onto Richard's chest. "I should cut you down where you stand for trespassing."
"I mean no harm in my actions." Richard spoke in a disarming manner, placing a hand against his stomach. "I have not eaten since I have been placed here, and I am starting to feel the effects of starvation. Please, in the name of your mistress's kindness, please, let me share a meal with her. I promise that as soon as I can, I shall repay her in labor or wealth, whichever she desires."
Youmu glared at Richard for a moment, expecting to find a hint of deceit, only to find none, before she then lowered her katana.
"...Very well. I cannot simply turn away a man who is afflicted with hunger." Youmu responded back, before turning around. "But make no mistake, attempt any crime within these grounds, and I shall claim blood and flesh from you as retribution."
"I understand." Richard responded back.
Richard was then guided right into the mansion, through the garden doors, as he kicked off his shoes in courtesy of Japanese traditions, as he tread through the house on socks only. Eventually, he managed to find Yuyuko, who was sitting on a small kotatsu.
"Yuyuko-sama." Youmu remarked. "I have found an outsider who has come here asking to be fed. He is genuinely starving, and he has been courteous to ask your permission."
"Oh, such a nice young man." Yuyuko smiled, before patting the other side of the table. "Come, sit down with me. I would be truly curious about how you got here."
Richard immediately knelt down on the other side, while Youmu left the room for a moment.
"Now, if you would tell me your name, please." Yuyuko said to Richard. "I never thought that I would find such a cultured person to be placed here by Yukari."
"It's Richard. Richard Liu." Richard answered back. "I am glad to meet you, Yuyuko Saigyouji, mistress of Hakugyokurou. I am honored that you would think well of me. I will do what I can to ensure that your courtesy towards me is not left unpaid."
"No, no, there is no need to be humble." Yuyuko answered back. "I genuinely enjoy the company of someone who is polite enough to treat my little Youmu so nicely. Other people tend to treat me like some sort of simple gardener."
"One of the most skilled swordswomen of all of Gensokyo?" Richard asked with mock shock. "Oh, I would never! She really could have killed me back then if I showed her any sass."
"Oh, she wouldn't actually do that." Yuyuko chickled. "She's too merciful to do that to people willy-nilly. She's just trying to scare people off. Most of the time, outsiders tend to sneak into here to meet me, than to deal with her… and they don't seem to remember that fact when she comes into our meetings."
"I… I'm not like them." Richard frowned. "...But thank you for giving me more understanding as to why outsiders are not too welcomed here."
"Yuyuko-sama, Richard." Youmu remarked, before she came with a tray of onigiri, and a pair of cups filled with green tea. "Your food and drinks."
"Thank you, Youmu." Yuyuko answered back.
"I'm grateful." Richard added, before Youmu set the tray down on the kotatsu.
The two of them began to eat the food, as Richard let Yuyuko take first-pick, as they each shared half of the tray of onigiri, as Richard eat in small nibbles, while Yuyuko eat in more heavier bites, as if she enjoyed the taste of the food, something the ghost princess noticed.
"You don't seem to be eating too quickly." Yuyuko remarked "...Something wrong?"
"No, no, nothing wrong." Richard answered back. "I just… don't want to be disrespectful by wolfing down the food. Cuisine like this should be appreciated bite by bite."
"Fufufu, Youmu would blush if she heard that from you. Her food is nothing special, but it's her heart into cooking her dishes that make them taste so good." Yuyuko gently chuckled.
"Food made by your closest friends and family tend to taste better than those made from others' hands." Richard recited, before he then immediately took his cup of tea, rotating the cup slightly so that the front was moved away, as he then drank it down in several gulps. "...And the tea's fresh. Hakugyokurou brand?"
"No, just imported from the Human Village." Yuyuko responded back. "I must say, that is the impeccable performance of the tea ceremony right there. You must know the tradition well, don't you?"
"I'm a commoner in such cultures." Richard answered back, before tilting the cup slightly, so that the front faced Yuyuko, and then bowing gently with his head.
"Oh. In that case, would you like some more tea?" Yuyuko offered, to which Richard nodded in affirmation. "Youmu, give this polite young man some more tea!"
Youmu walked over, holding the tea pot, as she poured Richard some more green tea, as Richard gently blew on it to cool it slightly, before he then took a few more gulps to clear it out, drinking in a slow pace to avoid scalding his tongue, as he then set the cup down.
"...I thank you for your hospitality." Richard told Yuyuko gratefully. "If there is anything that I can do for you by giving me this feast of food, I will be willing to perform it."
"Just getting to know you is enough." Yuyuko smiled back. "You have much more of Gensokyo to visit, don't you? I won't hold you for much longer. And please… don't be so harsh on Yukari. She tries her best to do things well."
Richard didn't answer that immediately, as there was a concerned expression on his face. "I'll… I'll try." He hesitantly responded back.
"That's enough for me." Yuyuko gently responded back.
Richard then got up, before he then met Youmu on the way out, before bowing to her.
"Thanks for the meal, Youmu." Richard thanked her.
"You're welcome." Youmu nodded, as her expression was fairly accepting of Richard's gratitude.
Richard then took off, as he decided to wander around slightly, before he then began to think on what happened before.
'Why would Ran just simply attack me out of the blue like that? It doesn't make sense that someone like Ran, a stickler to rules, would actually do something like that.' Richard thought. 'It doesn't make sense… Yukari just seems off to me somehow. I can't put a finger on it, but she doesn't have anything good planned with me, that's for sure. She's nothing like the Yukari that helped me a long time ago… Slightly scheming, but more considerate of other people.'
Richard winced slightly, as he felt a slight headache thinking about the circumstances that lead up to now, making him wish that he could find somewhere to drink his own worries away, if only temporarily.
After searching his own memories of Gensokyo for a moment, he decided to crash into a pub in the Old Capital underground, as he decided to keep his attention away from the residents in the place, especially the oni, fearing that they might try to challenge him.
"Hey, would you mind if I have a glass of beer?" Richard asked. "I… I don't have money for now, but if you would put it on a tab for tonight, I'll find a way to repay you in the coming days."
"Hm…" The oni bartender remarked, squaring up Richard with her eyes. "You know… I might actually consider that, if only because you got a cute face."
"Do I?" Richard asked, gently pressing his face, which made the bartender chuckle. "Well, thank you, I suppose… but is that a yes?"
"Sure, why not-" The bartender remarked, before the doors into the bar slammed open, as the strongest of the Four Devas, Yuugi Hoshiguma busted right into the bar.
"Hey there, guys!" Yuugi exclaimed. "How y'all doing today!?"
"Same old, same old, Yuugi-senpai!" One of the onus remarked.
"And what do we have here?" Yuugi remarked, before spinning Richard around, who was startled momentarily. "I managed to find a human down here. Must be a real oddity down here, right?"
"Well, I suppose so. I'm not here to cause trouble-" Richard said awkwardly.
"Could you not scare off this little boy?" The bartender said in an annoyed tone. "He's such a cutie, and I want to enjoy his presence a little longer."
"Bah! Who cares!?" Yuugi scoffed, before bending down to stare right at Richard. "Tell you what, I can tell that you've had your fair share of liquor. And don't you dare deny it, I can smell and sense the spirit of a drunk within you."
"Er…" Richard blurted out, as he felt that Yuugi felt this way, was due to him having enjoyed his fair share of alcoholic products all around his own Gensokyo. "...Sure. If you're asking for a drinking game, I won't be against it."
"That's the spirit!" Yuugi laughed heartily. "Bartender, get the Oni Fire bottles! We got a duel on our hands!"
The bartender complied, before slamming two lines of liquor bottles, as Richard took a whiff from it, as he flinched from the sheer smell of the alcohol, able to tell that it was at least 100 proof.
"Alright, first one to topple is the loser! Don't go down easy! I've been waiting to see how a human can handle these drinks!" Yuugi exclaimed. "Alright, GO!"
The entire crowd of onis and other underground residents began to surround the group, as Yuugi immediately began to start chugging her bottles down, as Richard instinctively began to do so as well, as he tried to keep pace with Yuugi, even though the alcohol feel like it was burning down his own gullet.
After a few bottles, Richard was beginning to feel drunk, as Yuugi was still chugging along.
"Shit, I can't handle this much liquor in a short amount of time… if this keeps up, I'll have a killer hangover once I topple! And who knows what the onis could do in the meantime!" Richard desperately thought. "Unless…"
Richard began to use his magic to create a cooling zone in his own mouth, almost to freezing temperatures, before he then used fire magic to burn away the alcohol going into it, as the fires were short-lived in his mouth, and didn't burn it due to the cooling zone extinguishing the flames as quickly as they were started, although the fumes left by the evaporated alcohol still affected Richard, although far less than chugging it along.
"CHUG! CHUG! CHUG!" The crowd cried, as Yuugi noticed that Richard was picking up his pace, as the two of them were downing bottle after bottle at a neck-to-neck pace.
Both RIchard and Yuugi continued to chug, becoming more and more drunk as they drank, or inhaled in Richard's case, until one of them fell, as Yuugi toppled over with face completely red, and the entire crowd erupting into cheers, as Richard was barely in control of himself, swaying and bobbing on his feet.
"Wow! I have never seen a human being able to outdrink Yuugi before!" One of the onis exclaimed. "I guess she really found a worthy challenger!"
"Come here, you alcohol-breathing stud-muffin!" Suika exclaimed, as she tackled Richard down, and kissed him all over, as he immediately fainted as a result of being over-excited by the kissing, as the howling of the crowd faded with his consciousness.
As soon as Richard woke up, he found himself on the entrance to Old Hell, as he could feel the wet kiss-marks of Suika on his face, causing him to blush slightly, before he felt that there was a card left behind.
'Be sure you come back so that we can share a drink some other time - Suika Ibuki'
"Heh." Richard merely chuckled, before he then decided that enough was enough, as he headed back towards Mayohiga, to face the news, but not before he created armaments for himself, in the form of a steel sword, as well as a small steel dagger that he hid in one of his inner pockets.
Richard then closed his eyes, before taking a deep breath, and entering Yukari's house, finding that Yukari was standing before the same table that he left from, with a disappointed expression, and both Chen and Ran in bed, as both of them were unconscious, with several bandaged injuries.
Richard then walked over, before he then knelt right before the table, looking Yukari right in her eyes.
"...Now that I've gotten a taste of Gensokyo, I believe that we have much to talk about." Richard declared, keeping himself calm. "And I doubt that I'll have the first word here."
"I cannot believe this." Yukari dryly stated. "I expected that you are reasonable enough to stay and wait while I get your powers unlocked. That involves not leaving my house. Instead, you nearly died to gain a bunch of undeserved powers that you have no moral capacity to use."
"Is that what you have to say?" Richard asked, as Yukari didn't answer. "Right, first off, those are my powers. They ARE deserved, because they belonged to me in the first place. And second, you're right, I almost died to get them back. Turns out Rumia just so coincidentally appeared in my path, and it was almost a fatal encounter, had it not been for the charity of Eientei."
"And you decided to continue on, despite nearly dying?" Yukari asked, narrowing her eyes.
"I'm getting those powers one way or another. You know I need these powers to survive, and I got them as I did. No fuss, no mess." Richard responded back. "Or at least it would have been, if you didn't send Ran and Chen to drag me back."
"Ah yes, you hurt them quite badly. That doesn't bode well for my opinion of you, doesn't it?" Yukari retorted, tenting her fingers in front of her.
Richard bit back a scowl, half-tempted to tell Yukari to take a hike, although he knew better to say such things to a sage who was more than capable of making his life hell if she so desired.
"You know, if they were so inclined to take me back, they should have accepted a Spell-Card Duel." Richard countered back firmly, as his eyes were cold. "But you want to know what your shikigami did instead, tried to fight me baseline. Second time I almost died, because your shikigami would rather beat me to an inch of life than to take the ordained rule of combat. So I turn the question back on you. On what grounds do I have to trust you, after you green-lighted that brutality on me."
Yukari and Richard locked eyes for a moment, before Yukari merely sucked a deep breath, as she conceded to Richard's point with a sigh, although Richard knew that it wasn't genuine at all.
"Fine. Maybe I should have told Ran to be less extreme." Yukari answered back. "But that doesn't absolve you of the fact that you went and took your powers without warning."
"No, no it doesn't." Richard answered back. "But are there any reports that Gensokyo is burning or that I bullied some resident out of the blue? No, the only conflict I had was with your shikigamis. And so long as I can help it, I don't intend to pick fights just for the sake of it. I plan to make my stay a peaceful one."
"And you believe that your powers are enough to act a beat-stick to scare off any potential aggressors?" Yukari harshly questioned.
"There are always dumb-asses, Yukari. Especially among the residents." Richard growled back. "I know that a quiet life is never in the lines in Gensokyo, but like fuck am I going to not make an effort to keep it so. I don't use my power as a crowbar against residents, I use it more like a shield, or more aptly, a multi-tool."
"And if I were to take those away from you-" Yukari remarked, before Richard slapped his blade onto the table.
"I made a sword, Yukari. And I made it so that it has defensive properties in being able to cut down magical projectiles, or even in some cases reflect them." Richard declared. "And before you go into some damn tirade about how cliche it is to use a sword, I trained with it, I know the weaknesses and strength of being melee, and trust me, I'm far from an ideal figure to be wielding swords. But I much rather have multiple specializations, than to over-focus on one area. Meeting Alice who was so kind to treat the wounds that YOUR shikigami gave me proved me true."
"And you think that you can beat me, or to be more accurate, beat any of the notable residents with just that blade of yours?" Yukari sneered.
"No. But I'll fight enough for them to realize that the conflict is a stupid idea. And don't judge a book by its cover. I have hidden aces that I only use if I truly must." Richard stated. "After all, cunning wins a battle far more often than brute prowess does."
"...You truly are far more smart than I give you credit for." Yukari muttered under her breath.
"Come again?" Richard asked.
"Nothing worth your concern." Yukari remarked. "So, let me get this straight, you only fought because Ran pressured you, is that what you're saying?"
"I'm dying on that hill." Richard crossed his arms. "Don't play coy with me, Yukari. We both know how the events went. So tell me, what other reason do you want me to be by your side? After all, you DID plan a certain lunar invasion that ruffled several feathers."
For a moment, Richard could have sworn that Yukari's eyes widened out of alarm, before she then quickly hid her shock by closing her eyes with a long drawn sigh, before opening them again.
"Fine, you win, Richard Liu." Yukari answered back. "If you truly want to know why I'm attempting to smother your own options so much, then let me show you."
Yukari then immediately gapped the both of them into a small household, both of them dropping on a large sofa, with a large TV set before them.
"One of your houses? Or is it one of the outsiders?" Richard questioned Yukari about the house itself.
"It's a house one of my apprentices built years ago, but when he died, I began using it as my guest house." Yukari remarked. "And assuming that you have went over enough of Gensokyo to learn it, you are not the first outsider here."
"Get with the point." Richard answered back. "What do you want to show me so much that you would have this TV set before me."
"How impatient. But I cannot blame you for the sass." Yukari chuckled, before pulling out a remote. "So, allow me to show you a film about my last apprentice."
As the TV flicked on, the sound of Yoshi's Athletic Field began to play, as the title screen was merely a pink overlay with the words 'A Majcher Mistake! The tragic tale of Arturo Majcher!', which made Richard scoff, as the scene moved over to a bunch of chibi figures, the art-style which Richard noticed.
"Hm, interesting art-style." Richard commented.
"Gee, it sure is boring around this school!" Arturo exclaimed.
"Hmph, be careful what you wish for, boy." Richard scoffed, as he recalled his own past, causing his eyes to be slightly solemn
Then one day, a mysterious woman appeared in his house!
"Come to Gensokyo! You can get powers and we got a bunch of girls!" The woman told him, as Arturo was over the moon.
"Hells yeah! This is going to be awesome!" Arturo exclaimed.
But instead of following Yukari's orders, he ventured out on his own, and he ran into a youkai as a result.
"Gimme yo' money, sucka!" Kyouko exclaimed.
Luckily, his powers started working for some reason, as Arturo smited that youkai with little effort.
"Well, lucky for him." Richard scoffed, before nursing his wounds. "...If it was Rumia instead, he would be dead on the spot, even with the powers, as a likely outcome before he can understand he even HAS powers."
"My, my, do I sense jealousy?" Yukari teased.
"Fuck. Off." Richard spat out, temporarily disregarding his own advice, to mouth off at Yukari, who merely found it amusing.
Then one day, he ran into a plant youkai, and for his lasering abilities, they quickly fell in love.
"Oh?" Richard remarked, intrigue , as the screen showed Yuuka and Arturo mad in love.
So, one day, while the two of them were making out (because that's what people in love do!)...
"Yuuka, I'm tired of being a virgin. I think it's time the two of us had sex." Arturo suggested. "Truth be told, I only came to Gensokyo, because I heard there were girls here, so…"
"Sure! I'll do it, but under one condition." Yuuka offered, with a sadistic smile. "I want you to kill as many children near my sunflower garden as possible. Show them they can't waltz in here and play with my flowers like they're toys!"
Yukari merely looked at Richard, with a smug smile, expecting to see a reaction from Richard, only to get nothing.
"What? I think that we both know where this is going. So why should I be horrified?" Richard told Yukari, his expression merely contemplating.
"Oh?" Yukari asked back. "Is that so?"
"Just get with the program." Richard stated. "A true man's test of character happens when they are given temptations like these. You do cruelty for the sake of desire, karma will deal you a bad hand. What are you in the dark indeed…"
So Arturo went to the human village and murdered every child he could find! But then Keine Kamishirasawa, the human village's teacher and protector, came to fight Arturo! But then he used his magics to knock her out instantly!
With Keine out of the way, Arturo killed every single student in her class that day!
"I love it when sex is at stake. A virgin will put any price on it. Even if it means murdering children." Yukari remarked off-handedly, hoping to get a reaction from Richard.
"Power goes to one's mind. And there are worse crimes that the powerless can do to others." Richard cryptically remarked.
But when Arturo ran out of children, he decided he would start working on much younger humans!
As the mass infantcide played out on the scream in its full bloody glory, Richard's gaze at the screen withered even more, as he did his best not to crush the grip of the couch in his hand, while Yukari snickered.
"Something funny, Yukari Yakumo?" Richard asked softly.
"This man's actions are so ridiculous that I can't take them seriously." Yukari answered back,
"Typical Sage perspective." Richard scoffed, as Yukari fell deeper from her graces for dehumanizing the death of children, even from a fictional medium.
After obliterating roughly half of the Human Village's children unopposed, he finally got to sleep with the plant youkai. And since the teacher at the village had no more children to teach, and since she couldn't fight Arturo back…
"I'm siiingin' in the rain, just siiingin' in the rain, what a gloooorious feeling, I'm happy again!" Arturo sang, as he raped Keine, who was in absolute despair.
The only solution was to gang up on Arturo before he could cause any more harm to Gensokyo.
Finally, every hunter in Gensokyo cornered Arturo and mutilated him beyond recognition.
Yukari could hear a released sigh from Richard's mouth, as if Arturo's ultimate fate had given him some sort of catharsis.
"Well, you seem to be pleased." Yukari remarked, as Richard didn't even deign to answer that, merely acknowledging her with a brief side-glanced.
On his way to the Ministry for judgment, the ferry-woman, a death god, told him that the sins he committed are irredeemable and that he'll probably go to hell. He tried to use his powers on her, but they did not work in the afterlife.
At the Ministry, he was judged by the highest judge, Shiki Eiki, who specializes in only the worst of sinners.
"We tried to get your soul away from Gensokyo because your desperation for love would cause irreversible damage." Eiki declared.
"It's just not fair! I waited my whole life to have sex, and I don't deserve to die for it!" Arturo wailed. "I demand a second chance!"
"You've already had ten chances. Your soul must be 'repurposed'." Eiki declared, with the darkest glare that she could give to a sinner.
To repurpose a soul, the consciousness associated with it must cease to exist, no afterlife, not even darkness, not even time.
"Arturo Majcher, do you have any last words before your soul is burned in hell?" Eiki asked, as her fellow Yamas had Arturo bound with runic cloth to keep him restrained.
"I want another chance! Just give me one more chance!" Arturo pleaded.
"Drop him in!" Eiki ordered, as her fellow Yama kicked Arturo into the hole that lead to the deepest parts of Hell.
"It's not fair! It's not fair! It's not fair! IT'S NOT-" Arturo remarked with insane fervor, before he was silenced before his entire soul was consumed in the purifying flames of Hell.
Meanwhile, Yuuka's life continued normally.
THE END.
As the movie winded down, Yukari turned to Richard, who just simply looked back.
"So, is there anything that you like to say?" Yukari asked.
"If you're expecting me to feel sorry for that miserable pile of sins that is Arturo Majcher, you're sorely mistaken." Richard answered back. "His fate was written in the books the moment that he went down this path. And frankly enough, although he may seem to be the worst, I doubt that there are only a few that were almost as bad as him. In fact, I think that number goes up to the hundreds."
"Well, I say that you're more astute than you look. And that's quite hard considering how studious your attitude is." Yukari stated. "Well then, have you learned about-"
"I ain't done talking." Richard interrupted. "Yukari, I'll admit that this is a really good movie for me to understand the weight of the matters, but it's just a movie. Nothing more, nothing less."
"Oh, are you saying that the movie has lied about the events?" Yukari challenged back.
"I'm more interested in the fallacies that the movie showed, rather than the plot vehicle that is Arturo Majcher." Richard declared. "First of all, Yuuka may be a ruthless bitch then and there, shown right in the guides, but she is not the kind of youkai who would simply wish death upon humans for even glancing in her direction. She is territorial, not genocidal."
"And you assume that the guides know the true depths of her depravity?" Yukari retorted back.
"Just as much that it's the very opposite. She may not like humans much, but she tends to her garden well." Richard answered back. "And there is proof that she much prefers to meet children alive, rather than as cadavers, from what I heard around Gensokyo. And there is one more thing: Yuuka would sooner split the head of someone open than to even entertain the notion of sex with an insecure human like Arturo. She is prideful."
"You seem to have a lot of faith in people." Yukari accused.
"Distrust sows discord, and discord sows destruction, and upon destruction is death." Richard chanted as if it was a mantra. "I will not allow bad rumors to decide whether I should forsake understanding oneself. Yuuka is in the gray area, whereas you… I think that the answer is apparent where you stand."
"Oh, do tell me then, what else do you think that the movie has gotten wrong?" Yukari asked with an amused smirk.
"The fact that the village is not scarred is proof enough." Richard answered back. "I'm pretty sure that mass slaughter like that tends to cause the villagers to go mad with grief and despair. And also a lot of rage. I don't see the Garden of The Sun in ashes, nor do I see any hints of a historical bloodbath. So Arturo's feat is heavily exaggerated. He could have killed at least a hundred children, but half of the child populace, impossible, considering that there are a lot of human-allied youkai and residents who would have found a way to keep the children away before Arturo could even have the chance."
"Is that all?" Yukari asked, as Richard merely shook his head. "Right, perhaps I did exaggerate events with this movie. But, do you think that it makes what happened there any less true?"
"Definitely not." Richard responded back. "And yes, this has shown me the extent of rot that the outsiders have carved into Gensokyo. You believe that I could be as capable of these acts as they did."
"Well, the path to hell is paved on good intentions." Yukari remarked.
"True, but I'm just going to live my temporary stay here merely as I am." Richard answered back. "Get a humble part-time job, eat, sleep, play, and get to make a few friends here and there to pass the time. Unless a threat comes knocking on the door where many lives are at risk, I have no plans on fighting any time soon."
"Well, let's see how that holds out, hm?" Yukari stated, before she then created a sukima. "By the way, you can have this house. It would be unbecoming for me to let you sleep in the wilds after all of the effort of bringing you here."
"I'm at least thankful for that." Richard conceded. "I plan on making a visit to Reimu Hakurei. We have a lot to talk about, and she has a lot to teach me. I need local knowledge to be prepared for what dangers lurk in the shadows."
Yukari merely smiled, before she then left, as Richard noticed that it was night already, as he quickly found the bedroom, before laying himself on the king-sized bed.
"...I just can't shake the feeling that there's always danger around here…" Richard remarked. "...Echo never truly lies before me. He is forthcoming about most things…. If he knows things that I don't… perhaps I should be careful how I tread here."
He then took a deep sigh, nestling his head on the pillow.
"It doesn't matter… I'm sure that help will arrive soon enough." Richard stated. "...As long as I stay to my own lines, and treat this place like the one I knew… it should be alright, barring some changes due to new knowledge."
Richard dozed off softly, sleeping comfortably for the first of his nights in Gensokyo.