《Innocent World Online》 The End 2130. February 29, 2044. That was the time in which the game Innocent World Online would finally shut down its servers. Innocent World Online was the world¡¯s first true ?FullDive VRMMORPG? in which players can fully immerse themselves in the world of the game just by putting on a headset, called the ?NeuroLinker?, which connected the user¡¯s brain to virtual reality. Innocent World Online was released in 2040 and had seen numerous updates over the years, however, the company behind the game¡¯s development, Takt Project Inc., went bankrupt after a lawsuit was filed against the company for a completely unrelated crime. As such, the company could not afford to keep Innocent World Online¡¯s servers functioning. They made the unfortunate announcement on Valentine¡¯s Day of 2044 and stated that the servers will shut down in two weeks and that players should start cashing out their in-game rewards to real currency (as a way to compensate for any players that have spent real money to purchase in-game content). Many players heeded the warning and began leaving the game. Of course, great tears were shed as players complained and spilled their sorrows onto the internet. Some die-hard players decided to stay behind and continue playing the game right up until the last second and converting their data then. However, a few players chose not to do that entirely. These reckless players were the seven original members of the most illustrious guild to ever grace the landscape of Innocent World Online. That guild was called ?Pleiades?, the ¡°Seven Stars¡±.
¡°Hey.¡± ¡°Holy, were you online this whole time?¡± ¡°Well, yes. Didn¡¯t we all agree that we¡¯d stick together until the servers are killed and we¡¯re booted from the game?¡± ¡°Well, I suppose.¡± The wind blew through the currently empty ?Castello Michele?, the name given to the great headquarters of ?Pleiades?. In one of its grand rooms stood a silent round table. At its ¡°head¡± sat a high elf, her fiery crimson hair appearing lackluster due to the poor lighting conditions. Her name was Azusa, a woman known as the ?Twin Crimson Blades?, a testament to her magnificent hair and vermillion swords. She was the guildmaster of Pleiades, considered to be the undisputed strongest guild of IWO. To her right sat her vice-commander, ?Guiding Moonlight? Mondklinge. Not only was he the husband of ?Twin Crimson Blades? Azusa, he was also the strongest known Paladin, being the first to hit the level cap while specking the ?Holy Sword? class. An incredibly popular role model, he was even considered to be the foremost male player and an idol of IWO, being featured numerous times on magazines that target the younger generation to entice them into playing either IWO or the other VRMMO¡¯s that see IWO as competition. As she sat in silence, Azusa placed her elbows on the table and held her knuckles together before resting her chin on her hands. She sighed before inquiring, ¡°Where are the others?¡± ¡°They should be coming on soon,¡± Mondklinge replied through half-closed eyes. ?Heya, guys! Of course the Leader and Vice-Leader would be online first.? ¡°Well, what do you expect? They¡¯re not known as the strongest male player and strongest female player for a reason.¡± ¡°They pretty much live in the game¡­ Even though I see them at school, I just can¡¯t deal with how truly unhealthy they both look.¡± ¡°Well, at least we make sure they eat healthily, right?¡± ¡°We should decide on what other VRMMO to crash with our skills once the game shuts down.¡±If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. Slowly and one after the other, the other members of the guild came online. First was ?Violet Lightning? Tsuchigumo, the most powerful ?Shinobi? of IWO with such powerful skills that she is often called a goddess; indeed, her choice of vestments always include the aesthetic of the great demon foxes of old, something that satisfies her rather unhealthy obsession with said foxes. Despite this, she is among the most mysterious players in the game as no one has ever seen her speak with her only form of communication being through the chatbox in which she displays unusual amounts of bubbly energy despite her silent demeanor. Second was ?Divine Marksman? Noir, an easy-to-approach and outgoing ?Ranger?, the strongest of his class. His epithet, however, is not just for show as he is considered to be the strongest ranged DPS of IWO with his chosen combination of subclasses. When in combat, Noir displays a demeanor quite different from what he displays in normal social interactions: exceedingly cold and deadly precise with his eyes much like that of a hawk, inexplicably and insistently locked onto his targets. Third was ?Saint? Calais, the highest honored ?Sorceress?. The sole possessor of the ?Unique Skill?, ?Ethereal Indictment?, which allows her the ability to channel divine entities to strengthen her magic so much so that she¡¯s the sole ?Sorceress? who can bypass the laws of the undead, reviving them to full life before killing them completely, preventing them from ever returning from death. As the ¡®healer¡¯ of the guild, she has the social rank of ¡®older sister¡¯ despite, in real life, being the youngest of the seven. Fourth was ?Godblade? Fate, known to be the strongest swordsman in IWO, second only to Azusa and Mondklinge. Having hyperspecked ?Ronin?, Fate has become the idol for samurai enthusiasts, his skill with the katana being unrivaled. Although he is quite scary to approach due to his choice of wearing a rather unnerving skull mask, he is actually extremely kind and is quick to offer tips to both veterans and new players, making him, like Noir, the go-to ¡°teacher¡± when it comes to anything IWO. Lastly, there was ?Monkey King? Vitya who, ignoring the fact that she has a female avatar, is considered a male player due to her extreme tomboyish tendencies and her choice of fighting style. She is also labeled an eccentric due to spending some time every single day to livestream her gameplay while cosplaying as a wannabe professional wrestler, something that earned her the social role of the ¡®clown¡¯ of the guild. However, even she was sensitive when it came to matters of the heart and she currently had none of her usual vivacious attitude. Azusa glanced at the time in the corner of her user interface. It stated 2129. ¡°Well, guys, there¡¯s one minute left.¡± ¡°I suppose it was fun while it lasted,¡± Mondklinge sighed. ?Hey, remember when we challenged the ?Final Labyrinth, Athenia??? Tsuchigumo texted. ¡°Oho, that one dungeon that everyone insisted was impossible to clear even for us?¡± Noir laughed. ¡°It should be,¡± Calais retorted. ¡°I pretty much constantly ran out of MP because you dimwits needed healing the entire time." ¡°Hey, at least you still managed to pull through for us,¡± Fate chuckled. ¡°You were a huge help, ¡®Saint¡¯!¡± ¡°Oy, don¡¯t you call me that too!¡± ¡°Well, Cal-chii, we¡¯re all embarrassed by these fancy names those other players gave us,¡± Vitya snickered. ¡°At this point, it¡¯s our identity; we can¡¯t ever separate from our epithets. I mean, they call me the ?Monkey King? all ¡®cause I¡¯m a frigging tomboy!¡± ¡°Weeeeell, you were pretty much like that all the time in real life anyway so¡­¡± Azusa shrugged. ¡°That doesn¡¯t excu-¡± ¡°Oh no, I¡¯m quite sure that does excuse people to call you a dude, Vitya,¡± Noir smirked. That comment made everyone burst out laughing. However, slowly, their laughing slowed down until it faded away completely. ¡°¡­ I really don¡¯t want this to end,¡± Azusa muttered. ?We all feel the same, Leader¡­? Tsuchigumo said. Fate scratched his head. ¡°There was so much more that I wanted to do¡­¡± ¡°¡­ Well. I doubt we¡¯ve got long, so while we still can¡ª¡± Rising from his seat, the Paladin opened his inventory interface and fumbled around before producing a chalice filled with wine. ¡°¡ªFor old times¡¯ sake, everyone?¡± ¡°Pff-,¡± Azusa giggled. ¡°Alright.¡± Azusa opened her own inventory and extracted a drink herself, her guildmates following soon after. ¡°Hmm¡­ I suppose. To new adventures?¡± Mondklinge smiled slightly as he raised his cup. ¡°To new adventures, everyone.¡± ¡°Hell yeah¡ªonly up to go from here, ahaha!¡± Vitya cackled. Noir sighed, ¡°Now, now¡­ though, yes, indeed. To new adventures.¡± ¡°Uhuhu~,¡± Calais giggled. ¡°Yes, to new adventures.¡± ?Let¡¯s do our best again!? ¡°I suppose we¡¯d specialize in the same niches?¡± Fate quipped. Mondklinge chuckled, ¡°We¡¯ll see¡ªmaybe I¡¯ll be able to play something that isn¡¯t a tank for you all next time.¡± With laughter once more exploding from those seated at the table, the seven original members¡ªgreatly exalted as ?Le Sette Spada?¡ªraised their cups on high before downing their drinks. At that moment, the time turned to 2130 and Azusa¡¯s vision went black. Rebirth When Azusa¡¯s vision returned, she found herself still seated in her high throne at the head of the round table within ?Castello Michele?. Confused, she groggily tried to stand up but when she put strength into her legs, she found that she couldn¡¯t even push herself out of her seat. ¡°Nngh¡­¡± she groaned as she wiped her eyes and waited for the feeling to return to her lower half. After three minutes had elapsed, Azusa got up. ¡°This¡­ This is ?La Sala Grande? of our guild headquarters, right¡­?¡± Azu muttered to herself as she looked around. Indeed, the layout of this room was exactly as she remembered it: this is the room in which she and the other six officers of ?Pleiades? gathered to discuss important matters. The seat Azusa had just gotten out of was a decorative chair, adorned with just about every precious jewel in existence, which only allowed Azusa to sit in it. ¡°I¡­ I remember that IWO¡¯s servers were going to be shut down¡­¡± Azusa mumbled, sorting through her memories. ¡°We shared one last toast and then the time ticked 2130¡­ Then my vision went dark¡­¡± She proceeded to rub her temples, hoping that doing so would further jog her recollections. ¡°¡­ No good, I can¡¯t remember anything else after that.¡± She then finally got a clear look at her body. Wait. Her body? Azusa stared at her feet¡­ or at least, she tried to. There were simply just two sacks of meat attached to her chest that shouldn¡¯t be there that were blocking her view. Azusa grabbed her chest¡­ ¡°Ahn?!¡± ¡­ and inelegantly moaned. She then hastily reached underneath her skirt and between her legs, trying to feel for something that should be there. ¡°It¡¯s gone!?¡± Yes, the crowning jewel that was Azusa¡¯s masculinity was gone. Azusa may have been her in-game avatar but in real life, Azusa was Shinsuke Kasuga, a true man who was popular with the ladies. Shinsuke, however, rebuffed their advances even if he was exceedingly glad to receive them. His heart was already taken by another and that person was someone of the same gender. Shinsuke was gay. What one would call a ¡°homosexual¡±. He was in love with his best friend, Atsumu Oikawa, who, in the game, was Mondklinge, the vice-leader of ?Pleiades?. The reason why Shinsuke chose to crossplay (a term used to describe players who played the opposite gender in games) is so that he could experience the joy of being a girl even if it is in a game within virtual reality. When Shinsuke, as Azusa, married Mondklinge, he was positively overjoyed; Shinsuke truly considered that moment to be the happiest moment of his life, however, he never showed it on his face as he worried that if he did, he would be cast out of society. And now, here he was. In the body of the avatar that he had so painstakingly created to reflect what Shinsuke thought was the ideal female version of himself. Th-Then¡­ In this body¡­ I can¡­ Azusa once more tentatively reached beneath her skirt, past where she would normally feel her masculinity to touch the femininity hiding behind her underwear. Her other hand lay on her chest as she massaged it. ¡°Ngh¡­ I¡­ no, I am in a woman¡¯s body now.¡± (Before this sentence, Azusa had always used a predominantly male personal pronoun to refer to herself, however, she has changed her speech to now use a predominantly female personal pronoun to reflect her new self.) Azusa took several deep breaths to calm herself down, her hand over her chest to feel her pounding heartbeat slowing down with every breath. ¡°Okay¡­ First, I need to figure out what exactly is going on.¡± Azusa waved her hand in front of her and invoked the menu as she always did. ¡°Huh, so the menu still works.¡± She scrolled through it and eventually found herself at the bottom to discover that the selection option for ?Log Out? was nonexistent. The tile was just simply blank. ¡°¡­ So I suppose this means I can¡¯t log out anymore? I hope the others got out okay¡­ I¡¯m fine with being the only one remaining¡­ Although, heh, I suppose Micchi wouldn¡¯t be too pleased¡­¡± She continued to peruse the menu and found that she could open up her inventory just fine. She found all of her items still present as well as the ludicrous amounts of currency she possessed. She scratched her left ear, only to find that it was pointy. ¡°¡­¡± Azusa opened her inventory and pulled out a mirror to get a good look at her face. ¡°¡­ Yeah, so I guess I¡¯m an actual high elf now as well?¡± Azusa inquired to no one in particular. ¡°This certainly isn¡¯t just a game anymore.¡± She sighed and went back to her menu inspection after returning the mirror to her inventory. ¡°Wait¡­ Friends list?¡± Azusa quickly opened it and scrolled through the list, noting that most of her friends were ¡°black¡±, as in they were ?offline?, however, she then came across the names of her guildmates¡­ ¡­ and they were all ¡°green¡±. All of them were ?online?. ¡°Does this mean¡­ I¡¯m not alone?¡± Azusa opened the guild menu and scrolled to the guild chatbox to type a message: ?I¡¯m here.?
Just outside an orphanage in the capital city of the Tourboisian Empire, Vignon. "Aww, you''ve got to go already?" "No fair! We''re still in the middle of that fight scene!" Gathering outside the orphanage¡¯s entrance, a group of children began calling out to a traveling bard; his attention returning to the little ones, his audience just moments ago now begging for his stay. "Sorry, everyone. I do have to leave now, though; if I''m late to be back tomorrow, I''ll be in trouble, ahaha¡­ goodness, I hope it wasn''t too much trouble, Shanoa-san." "Oh, no, it''s alright~! The children are happy to have you visit once in a while, Oikawa-dono," came a friendly reply, as the children¡¯s caretaker gave an amiable smile. A peal of soft laughter escaped the bard in red, as he tipped his hat in turn and gazed towards the skies. Dusk approaches, the man could tell in an instant; it was for the best Oikawa took leave now, or he risked having to camp outdoors for the night. Not that it would be a problem... though it''ll be annoying to report to them in the morning otherwise, the bard mused with a sigh. The trip back was swift; the trek from the slums of Vignon into the bustling nightlife of its capital took merely ten minutes, leaving the bard plenty of time to enjoy himself. Yet, Mondklinge chose to close himself off and settle in for the night as he checked into a quiet inn by the edge of town, striking up light pleasantries with the innkeeper, polite greetings, amusing tidbits, and other simple speakings all too easy for Oikawa the bard to manage. Or rather, for ?Mondklinge? to manage. Yes, it¡¯d been two years ever since the supposed ¡®closing¡¯ of Innocent World Online. The members of ?Pleiades?, a guild he¡¯d founded with six others and led as vice-commander, were having a final toast in the game¡¯s last moments just then. Seating himself at the bed by the room¡¯s corner, the young man pulled up an interface, bringing up the main menu and soon, various other windows. With a bit of tinkering, Mondklinge stripped himself from the troubadour¡¯s garb, returning to the comfort of his holy garb, layered and stifling as it may have been. A gaze towards the friend list set on the other side of the main menu told the Paladin just enough. ¡°...Not even today, hm.¡± Five bright icons marked with a green light by their names and standing tall amidst the sea of dull, lifeless grey. As far as Mondklinge knew, only five of his guildmates were ?Online?¡ªalive, so he concluded back then. Even if he knew not their location, even if he knew not the way to reach them¡ªeven if something as simple as the guild chat remained unusable, for whatever reason ¡ª that was¡­ ¡­no. It wasn¡¯t fine. A solemn quiet filled the room that was only broken by the clasping of hands, a silent prayer for a wish, unfulfilled. Mond prayed for the return of a dear friend; a confidante within and beyond this virtual world, and an important presence not only to him but to the rest of ?Pleiades?. Her name was ?Azusa?. The guildmaster. The ?Leader?. Perhaps most importantly, Mondklinge¡¯s wife, even if the status was only within the boundaries of the game. In those two years since Mondklinge¡¯s awakening, he¡¯d seen many things and done many more, from finding himself awakening within the Grand Cathedral of the Tourboisian Empire¡¯s capital, to becoming a famed Paladin of the clergy. Yes, he had to make the best of the situation he¡¯d been thrown into, and yet he¡¯d made no progress on how to seek the rest of ?Pleiades?. He knew not why he didn¡¯t wake up on the bed in the world he once knew, he still knew not why Azusa refused to return; he still knew not how to cope with all this change. Donning the guise of ?Oikawa, the Bard? only gave the man light reprieve; even if entertaining the townsfolk and children of a certain orphanage brought peace to his heart, it wasn¡¯t enough to cease the Paladin¡¯s doubts. Frankly, for all the level-headed composure and calculated intelligence Mondklinge was known for, at the end of the day he was still just a kid playing a game. To think that before all this he was still a student attending school, with the rest of his friends¡­ ¡­If my guildmates were to see me now, they¡¯d laugh; wouldn¡¯t they? A trickle of wry laughter escaped Mondklinge, now reaching to close the menus he¡¯d brought out. Even if he was in private like this, he wouldn¡¯t give in and break down. No; not until he¡¯d reunited with everyone. Not until Azusa had returned until Mondklinge found his partner in the flesh¡ª Closing the interfaces, the Paladin left the bed and knelt onto the floor. A meaningless gesture, perhaps¡ªbut to Mond now, it was all he could do. The man opened the friend list again. ¡­Nothing, still. It was fine. He¡¯ll just have to wait again, as long as he needs to. With resignation, Mondklinge moved his finger to retract the friend list interface; yet a spark of green caught his attention before he could. The man paused and eyed the list once more. ?Azusa? ¡ª¡ª¡ª Online. There she was. A minute passed in silence. Then, another. Mondklinge was stunned; caught between disbelief and shock, the man found himself collapsing by the tavern bed, having lost his balance for a moment too long. The Paladin couldn¡¯t tell for certain the feeling welling up in his chest, now©`. Was it joy? Anxiety? Relief? Hope? ¡­No. Perhaps this was freedom. He knew not how or why Azusa would choose now to return. After two years trapped in darkness, perhaps this spark of deliverance was just what the Paladin had needed; one made certain upon a glance to the window blinking into existence before his eyes¡­ ?I¡¯m here.? ¡­Goddamnit. Of course he¡¯d return with something that casual. Mond wanted to laugh. As if instinctually, the man reached for the guild-wide chat box in the window. Of all times for it to have been active¡­ No. No, it wouldn¡¯t matter. He just needed to inform Azusa that he was fine. He just needed to make sure the rest of ?Pleiades? knew he was fine. Alive. Whatever the case. ¡­the chewing out of the crew can be saved for later. ?Kept us waiting, didn¡¯t you??
In the Adventurer¡¯s Guild¡¯s teaching division of Amphicea in the Kingdom of Histhusme.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. In an archery range were several young students. They all were of more or less the same age and each had a different expression. Some were concentrating, some were struggling, and still others were simply standing there. Above them, the colorful blue sky riddled with white clouds stared down from above to illuminate the stern visage of a young man, Noir. It had been a solid three years since his first appearance inside IWO. Things have taken a drastic turn, for better or for worse. Nothing changed for Noir with his friendly persona remaining more or less the same despite having lived a different life than before for four years, however, this does not necessarily mean that he was the same Noir. Seated silently on a bench, Noir watched the youngsters drawing their bowstrings and repeatedly letting them loose in multiple, sometimes fruitless, attempts to nail the practice targets. Through his three years of lonesome hardship, he had hardened his heart; he wasn¡¯t just a young man trapped inside a virtual world but was now a teacher in guiding the future of the people. Absentmindedly, Noir opened the menu and looked at the friend list. He noted how everyone else he knew was ?online? aside from one. Sighing, he waved his hand to close the menu before suddenly stopping, his eyes widening. The Leader had finally come ?online? and no sooner after that, an air window opened up in front of him with only two words written across its face. ?I¡¯m here.? Noir gasped and chuckled. He hid his face behind his hands as he didn¡¯t want his students to see that he had now shed small droplets of tears. He mumbled to himself, ¡°I didn¡¯t think it would be now, but finally, you¡¯re here, too¡­.¡±
Within Tensei Castle inside the territory of the Adachi clan. Seated in seiza facing the altar was a true exemplary warrior. He was silently doing his daily prayers to the gods for blessings in the current war. At his side sat his wife, Chiyono, of the Kiichi clan, who now carried the name of the Adachi clan as Adachi Chiyono. She too attended to her husband and followed him in his daily prayer ritual. ¡°Thank you, Chiyono,¡± the warlord said. ¡°You may leave my side and begin organizing the troops. I shall come after you.¡± ¡°As you command, dear husband.¡± Chiyono left her husband¡¯s side and the warlord let out a sigh of relief. ¡°Ugh, I still can¡¯t get used to the fact that I had to marry her¡­¡± he complained. ¡°Once again, I¡¯m sorry, Tsucchi, but I¡¯ve betrayed you.¡± He apologized to his girlfriend and lover whom he had loved since both his past life and his life within the game. However, he was currently a warlord. For now, out of necessity, he had had to discard the name of ¡°Fate¡± and instead adopted the name of Adachi Yoshinobu. Fortunately, even the warlord has his fleeting moments of peace and this time after morning prayers is one of them. He opened the menu and brought up the friends list, perusing through it as he always did during this time. However, there was something different today. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the name Azusa and saw that she had come ?online?. As he blinked his eyes, wondering if he was seeing things, an air window appeared in front of him, confirming that he had not gone insane. ?I¡¯m here.? ¡°Ohoho¡­¡± Fate laughed as tears began forming in his eyes. ¡°Leader, you¡¯re late¡­¡±
An elaborate shrine built into the city center of Nipucolenia on the shores of Lalenha River in the Republic of Coimbra. Within a shrine, slept a fox spirit. She was considered to be a local deity due to her constitution; after all, she possessed a true fox tail as well as fluffy ears. Besides, she also never spoke and always had a scroll covering her mouth like she had sealed away her powers or something. Either way, she appreciated the attention and the calm she would get as she spent the rather uneventful days sleeping. Occasionally, she would wake up to check the menu, noting whether or not there were any differences in her comrades¡¯ status. Today was one of those days. She sat up from her bed and waved her arm. Once again, she noted no changes as it had been for the past nine months. However, just when she was about to fall asleep, she noticed a blazing green light. At last, the last member had come ?online?. She then untied the scroll from her mouth and an air window opened in front of her. ?I¡¯m here.? ¡°Leader¡­¡± Tsuchigumo mumbled as she began to cry. ¡°It is time for you to pay your dues and make good on our last promise.¡±
The throne room of Diavolo Rosso Castle located in the capital city of the Grand Duchy of Boisesonia, Borcatressa. The throne room¡¯s most prominent feature is of course the seat of honor. The one in Diavolo Rosso Castle was no different as it was adorned with every precious stone known to man. Seated in its elaborate cushions was a young woman of high caliber, otherworldly powers and beauty, and uncanny benevolence. Kneeling at her feet was a gathering of demonic maidservants and male servants. ?Saint Calais? At least, that was what she was supposed to be. A ?Saint? unopposed by any and all forces of evil. Currently, however, she was surrounded by the very beings she was supposed to oppose. How did she even become the ruler of Boisesonia, the country overrun and composed solely of demons? This was doubly concerning considering her status as a saint. Yet here she was, somehow having the empty throne of the Demon Lord shoved upon her just because her strength made the demons think that she was the daughter of the Demon Lord. They somehow didn¡¯t even question the fact that Calais¡¯ abilities were of both the holy and demonic elements; they just simply accepted that Calais was the Demon Lord¡¯s daughter. ¡­ How exactly did I end up in this situation again? Calais scratched her hair as she racked her brain. Either way, possessing a high status of honor would greatly help her in gathering information but at the same time, it also greatly irked her as she wasn¡¯t much of the ¡°leader-type¡±, something that the actual Leader had a great abundance of. Nonetheless, she worked tirelessly to never let that irritation show on her face. She waved her hand in front of her and opened the menu, scrolling through it to find the friends list. Reviewing it for the first time that day, she noted how everyone else but the leader was ?online?. Sighing, Calais moved to shut the window, losing hope on Azusa¡¯s return when suddenly, the icon next to Azusa¡¯s name flashed green. Soon after, an air window opened. ?I¡¯m here.? ¡°Leader¡­!¡± All of Calais¡¯ efforts went down the drain as she finally broke down in tears. Her subjects quickly tried placating her but she raised her hand, forcing them to remain in place. She then stood up from her throne and threw her hand out after wiping her tears. ¡°Alright, you louts, you want war? I¡¯ll give you war. Begin the preparations! I shall lead the vanguard myself as we topple the Tourboisian Empire!¡±
In the Great Colisseum of Pauranoas, the capital city of the Principality of Beitade. Vitya was currently adjusting her knuckle guards. Today was her title match to win the greatest honors as a wrestler in the Principality of Beitade. Slapping herself to psyche her up, she then waved her hand in front of her to open her menu. Extracting a pint of ale, she immediately downed it and slammed it on her table. ¡°Phew! I¡¯m totally ready now!¡± Vitya yelled. ¡°Oh wait, I still have to check¡­¡± She opened her menu again and looked in the friend list. ¡°Aw, Leader¡¯s still not here¡­ Ah well.¡± Lamenting that the name still has yet to turn green, Vitya waved her hand to close the menu but not before noticing a green flash. ¡°Eh?¡± ¡°Leader!¡± Vitya rejoiced as the air window popped in front of her and announced Azusa¡¯s arrival. ¡°Woohoo!¡± Vitya cheered as she pumped her fist. ¡°Alright, I definitely can¡¯t lose today! Leader, I¡¯ll win this and come find you so hang tight, a¡¯ight!?¡±
Azusa watched as one after another, her friends confirmed that they were here and they had waited for her for so long. She cried as she sent back a message, apologizing for being late and sending her best wishes. Wiping her tears, she fixed an expression of determination. ¡°Okay, first, I need to find answers.¡± Azusa walked out of ?La Sala Grande? and into the corridors of the building. As Azusa walked, she marveled once more at how the decorations were now real and not just mere rendered pixels of cyberspace. Eventually, after around half an hour of walking (as she spent some time exploring the place despite having seen it so many times before), she reached the massive front door and after throwing them open, she noticed the two massive statues stationed on either side of the door. ¡°Hey, wait a minute¡­ Aren¡¯t these¡­?¡± Her question was immediately answered when the two statues uncrossed their spears (which were crossed over the door, preventing anyone from entering from the outside) and hopped off of their pedestals. The giant thirty-meter tall statues then began to shrink and human coloration returned to their once-gold visages. Soon, they diminished in size to appear the same as normal humans and as their armor clinked, they knelt at Azusa¡¯s feet with their spears pointed skyward. The one with silver hair said, ¡°Your Majesty, it has been far too long.¡± Azusa blinked several times as she tried to make sense of what just happened. Back when this was still a game, these two statues plus two more were ¡°in-game purchases¡± Azusa and the rest of her friends decided to make to guard their headquarters. After all, they were extremely powerful and were often the targets of griefers who would aim to harass them as much as they can. They bought a total of four so they could maximize security: one was located in the garden outside (and its mere presence kept the garden alive with no need for anyone to tend to it; Azusa figured that was just something the developers tacked on), the two she was currently speaking to guarded the main entrance, and the final fourth one guarded the inside of the building with the main purpose of defending the guild¡¯s treasury. The statues themselves were good enough for the job but Calais had other ideas; she experimented with Reanimation Magic and tried to give ¡°life¡± to the statues, however, it didn¡¯t exactly work outside of giving them the ability to move. Yet, here they are, somehow having both the ability to move and converse as well as shrinking down into human-sized valkyries. ¡°Umm¡­ You are¡­¡± ¡°I am Hildr, Your Majesty,¡± the blonde girl supplied. ¡°I was given the name of Thr¨²d,¡± the girl with pink hair added. ¡°O-Oh, okay¡­¡± Azusa stammered. ¡°And©`¡± ¡°Our sister, Ortlinde, is still guarding the garden and our captain is guarding the treasury as you¡¯ve commanded,¡± Hildr said. Yeesh, these girls know exactly what and what not to report¡­ Azusa thought. I must say, I suppose we were wrong when we thought Calais¡¯ Reanimation Magic was a failure. It must have been stunted due to it still being a game. ¡°Alright, thank you,¡± Azusa said. ¡°You may return to your posts.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, I have a question,¡± Thr¨²d inquired. ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°Where is His Highness and the other Lady¡¯s and Sir¡¯s?¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Azusa¡¯s expression fell slightly. ¡°Oh¡­ Your Majesty, I sincerely apologize!¡± Thr¨²d panicked. ¡°I shan''t ask again!¡± ¡°No, no, it¡¯s alright,¡± Azusa stuttered. ¡°Please, return to your posts. I shall return©`¡± As she took a step forward, Azusa wobbled on her foot and collapsed forward. ¡°Eh?¡± ¡°Your Majesty!?¡± the two valkyries exclaimed. ¡°A-Ah, it¡¯s nothing¡­¡± Azusa reassured them as she, having fallen to her knees to stare at the ground. ¡­ Since when did my MP gauge drop to zero? Just then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw the last vestiges of a magic circle disappearing from the pedestal of the two statues. Ah, I see. Calais¡¯ spell must¡¯ve been put on stasis until someone with high enough levels of mana came by to fuel the spell. Damn you, Cal. Azusa reached into her inventory, pulled out a mana crystal, and broke it; her gauge instantly refilled. The valkyries saluted before leaping onto their pedestals with a jump impressive enough to make Olympic gymnastics champions lay down their medals. Azusa wolf-whistled in appreciation as she entered the garden. Ortlinde saw her and she stopped watering the plants to kneel. ¡°It is my greatest pleasure to have the honor of finally meeting you, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Ah, so it was you that continued to tend to the gardens.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty,¡± Ortlinde replied, bobbing her silvery head lower. ¡°While I wasn¡¯t exactly able to ¡®water¡¯ the plants four hundred years ago, I now have the great luxury of watering them my©`¡± Azusa cut her off, ¡°Wait, hold on. Four hundred years ago?¡± While still kneeling, Ortlinde looked up to stare at Azusa¡¯s face. ¡°Yes. It was exactly four hundred years ago when both of Your Majesties and the Lords and Ladies vanished. We do not know where the others are but you are the first we¡¯ve seen, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± So that means that the others appeared in the other countries or even the other continents. If memory serves, there were three in the latest updates of IWO. Assuming this world is the same, the continents would be the same as well. I¡¯m currently in the Divine Empire of Obelden as that¡¯s where we chose to place the ?Castello Michele?¡­ Wait, speaking of which©` Azusa motioned in front of her, bringing up the menu and opening the map. ¡°¡­ Huh, the map still works.¡± But wait, why is the map scratched out in certain areas? Azusa studied the map which did show her current location and about two hundred kilometers around her. However, beyond that was a blackness that said ?No Data?. Confused, Azusa tried one of her original spells but instantly wobbled on her feet. ¡°Ow.¡± Her head suddenly underwent a massive throbbing. ¡°Yeesh, so I can¡¯t just ?Teleport? to the areas labeled as ?No Data? despite knowing the coordinates already¡­ Anyway, guess I¡¯ll go find the Tourboisian Empire anothe©`wait.¡± Azusa¡¯s train of thought came to an abrupt halt as she realized that she can now somehow innately use the magic when previously, she had to manually select to use. ¡°Well, that¡¯s a discovery¡­ So I suppose this means ¡®game mechanics¡¯-wise, anything in the magic system that I had to ¡®select¡¯ to use can now just be used by either thinking or speaking it¡­¡± To test her theory, Azusa left the garden and out into the main road that led to ?Castello Michele?. Pointing her hand at a tree, Azusa spoke the words that somehow appeared in her head when she thought about casting the spell: ¡°Come forth, Fire! Blaze Sphere ?Fireball?!¡± A ten-centimeter sphere of fire appeared at Azusa¡¯s fingertip before blasting itself into the tree, burning a perfectly circular hole through the trunk. ¡°¡­ The words really did just appear in my head. So does this mean all of the magic I use will have to be used this way? Hmm, wait, but earlier, I was able to incant ?Teleport? without saying anything¡­ Hmm¡­¡± Lost in thought, Azusa walked down the road that she remembered would take her to Koberheim, the capital of Obelden, when her sharp ears picked up the sounds of screaming. Twitching, she muttered, ¡°What?¡± Upon focusing her hearing, she picked up even more information: a rather large force of some kind with the screams of wounded, possibly dying, soldiers and the yelling of a commanding officer. However, what shook her more was the roar. ¡°Damn, the first monster I encounter is an elder dragon? Must be the karma from all the good luck I got¡­ Anyhow, got no time. I have to save them! ?Accel Boost?!¡± Using two of her original spells at once, Azusa exponentially increased both her physical and mental abilities as she dashed as quickly as she could to the scene of the crime. Azusa arrived at the scene but a ways away as she didn¡¯t want to just randomly appear out of nowhere. ¡°Hoo, boy, that¡¯s gotta be level 300¡­¡± Azusa peered at the current situation where an army of around forty soldiers (who she assumed were all high level) tried to face off against the elder dragon. ¡°Well, they seem to be doing alright but¡­ sorry, I¡¯m gonna steal your kill~.¡± Emerging from her hiding spot in the trees, Azusa leaped into the air. Thanks to the effects of ?Accel Boost?, she managed an incredibly high jump that would be biologically impossible to achieve with raw human strength. Azusa then hugged her legs close and spun in midair, building momentum before delivering a single ax kick straight into the dragon¡¯s head. The collision sent the dragon spiraling straight toward the ground, its impact reverberating throughout the soils not dissimilar to an earthquake. ¡°Oh, phew, is it just me or am I stronger now?¡± Azusa muttered as she fell out of the sky and stood on top of the dragon¡¯s head. ¡°Or is this just the effect of having a truly material body?¡± Azusa crossed her arms as she sank into thought. ¡°Umm¡­¡± From her perch, Azusa looked at the person who addressed her. He was, to put it lightly, a rather seedy-looking priest. Azusa had already decided that he was likely as sleazy as his clothes would suggest. ¡°Sorry but you seemed to be struggling so I decided to lend a hand,¡± Azusa stated flatly. ¡°N-No, it¡¯s not that¡­¡± the priest stammered. ¡°Wou-Would you happen to be Her Esteemed Eminence, Saint Azusa Trismegistus?¡± ¡°¡­ Eh?¡± Mother and Child ¡°Excuse me?¡± Once again, Azusa expressed great confusion. ¡°I-I do apologize if I¡¯m wrong but¡­¡± the priest said. ¡°The icons¡­ All of the icons depict Saint Azusa Trismegistus as an elf with blazing crimson hair and three swords, two strapped on her back and one strapped at her waist. She is also often depicted with armor¡­ similar©`no, exactly the same©`in design to the one you are wearing right now.¡± At that, Azusa subconsciously reached for the main sword strapped on her back with her right hand while her left hand palmed the hilt of the katana at her waist. ¡°A-And that!¡± the priest continued as he spotted a gleam from Azusa¡¯s hand. ¡°Th-The ring on your left hand or more accurately, the paired ring on your left hand¡­ is an unparalleled pair of legendary items. The single most unique enchantment ever placed on items, ?Astral Resonance?©`that is the name of the enchantment your ring has, right?¡± ¡°¡­ Um.¡± All Azusa could manage was a grunt because what the priest was saying was entirely true. She indeed had red hair and wore a vermillion set of armor that fitted tightly to her curves. The ring the priest mentioned was of course the full set of rings she has to signify her love and marriage with her husband. They even knew the name of the rare enchantment she had placed on them thanks to her Null spells, ?Enchant? and ?Cracking?. If anything, Azusa wanted to run away and hide to cry alone in absolute shame because she was now apparently someone to be worshiped¡­ ¡°Grrrrr©`¡± At Azusa¡¯s feet, the elder dragon began to struggle back as it regained its bearings from having its skull slammed into the ground. ¡°Dammit, just when I¡¯m trying to think¡­!¡± Azusa jumped off of the dragon as it beat its wings to once more take off into the sky. ¡°Alright then, sky emperor, you want to play up there? I¡¯ll come to you.¡± Azusa bounded into the sky, ignoring the priest''s cries (¡°Wa-Wait!¡±). Keeping her swords in their scabbards, she delivered a kick into the dragon¡¯s abdomen as it was rising up into the air. ¡°Tch! Freaking heavy!¡± Seeing as her initial kick had no effect, Azusa sank back down to the ground before once more rising up into the air. She drove her fist into the dragon¡¯s abdomen and shouted, ¡°?Multiple: Absorb?!¡± Immediately spawning fifty magic circles, Azusa began to drain the dragon of mana, channeling it through her body into her other fist. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s see¡­ I should have enough to use it now. Spiral forth, Fire! Purgatorial Blaze Compression Tornado ?Crimson Spearhand?!¡± A massive river of magic flowed to concentrate into Azusa¡¯s free right hand as it quickly burned crimson. As the spell indicates, the magic flames began to spiral into an all-piercing firestorm consolidated around Azusa¡¯s knife-hand. ¡°Yaaaaaaaahh!!¡± Azusa yelled as she drove her fire spear into the dragon. The magic in her hand exploded and a pillar of fire burst into existence as it burned its way through the dragon; a column of flame all but erupted out the other side. The dragon fell to the ground and Azusa fell along with it, landing gracefully on the ground on her feet in a feline dance. ¡°Pheeeew,¡± she sighed. ¡°Yikes, I suppose I should ban myself from using the spell ever again¡­ especially after absorbing an elder dragon¡¯s mana.¡± The dragon disintegrated¡­ or that was what was supposed to happen. Instead, the dragon seemingly shrank in size and settled into the form of a girl. ¡°Umm¡­ What?¡± ¡°Thou hast soundly defeated me,¡± the dragon-turned-girl spoke. ¡°Henceforth, I shall be thine slave and lowly servant.¡± Azusa¡¯s confusion reached such a high peak that she accidentally spoke the next phrase in French: ¡°Excuse-moi?¡±
Oh lord almighty, I got so confused my speech switched to French¡­ In her past life, Azusa was an exceedingly well-blessed student and two of her favorite extracurricular subjects were the study of French and Latin. Either way, her studies of those two languages often led her to use them in casual speech, however, she did try limiting how much she used those languages when talking. The only time she forgets is when she is greatly shocked or surprised as she had just now been. ¡°Ahem,¡± Azusa cleared her throat, a clear tinge of red coloring her face. ¡°So¡­ Who the heck are you?¡± ¡°Alack, my most humble apologies for I hath sinned,¡± the dragon said as she knelt. ¡°My name is Rhiannon Pendragon. ¡®Tis a name bestowed upon me by my father.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± Azusa muttered as she gestured at the dragon to stand up. She then turned toward the priest, ¡°And uh¡­¡± ¡°My name is Richard Audeley, Saint,¡± the priest replied. ¡°This man next to me is the incumbent Knight-Leader of the Order of Silver Wings, Adrian Arderne. Is it safe to assume that you are Saint Azusa? That strength you displayed is certainly sourced from the divine blessings granted to you by the Goddess of Creation, Roselia Ishtaris.¡± Wait, wait, wait, the hell? Azusa thought. Did they legit come up with their own lore!? This wasn¡¯t in the game¡¯s settings! Actually, that aside, how the heck can I speak to them!? Judging from their lip movements, they¡¯re not speaking anything close to Japanese yet I can fully understand them! Besides, I shouldn¡¯t be able to communicate with them but somehow, the words are coming out in whatever language they¡¯re using! Azusa continuously rambled on to herself in her mind before just mentally scratching her head. You know what? Screw this. I¡¯m just not gonna care. I¡¯m already at rock-bottom because of the fact that I¡¯m somehow a freaking saint. Resigning herself to her fate, Azusa admitted, ¡°Yes, I am she. I have spent the last four hundred years sleeping within ?Castello Michele?.¡± ¡°S-So it is true¡­!¡± Audeley fell to his knees and everyone else quickly followed his example. ¡°We have long waited for your return! I beg for your greatest mercy as I presumptuously ask of you: would you please accompany me to the Holy Capital Koberheim?¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Azusa said. ¡°I was heading that way anyway.¡± ¡°¡®Tis a duty of a servant to follow her master,¡± Rhiannon asserted. ¡°I shall come with.¡± ¡°Suit yourself.¡± Azusa watched in slight amusement as the priest basically repeatedly tripped over himself to stand up and fix his robes before (essentially) forcing her into Arderne¡¯s carriage. Azusa lazily watched the sky go by as the horses clopped their way to the capital. It took just over ten days but they safely reached the Holy Capital Koberheim; from her mental calculations, Azusa guessed that they traveled one thousand kilometers (or roughly 620 miles). The city was©`to put it simply©`magnificent. If anything, Azusa was only able to sum up the city as a different world¡¯s attempt at replicating the great city of Rome. Even a lookalike of the historic Saint Peter¡¯s Basilica was centered in the city built atop an acropolis; Azusa was able to see it even before she got within ten kilometers of the city gates (as a note, Azusa had learned that their measurements are known as ¡°mil¡± with said measurements equating to the same as the metric system she already knows; in their units, ¡®ten kilometers¡¯ would be ¡®ten kilomils¡¯). Azusa could just barely lend an ear as the priest began a tirade. ¡°This is the Holy Capital Koberheim! It is the crowning jewel of the Divine Empire built over a millennium ago in the previous era that used the Chaos Calendar. Today, we make use of the Innocence Calendar which was established by none other than you yourself, Saint Azusa.¡±If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Excuse me? ¡°Yes, of course, I do remember establishing the calendar as a result of¡­¡± ¡°You established a new era after you and the other Lords and Ladies of the ?Seven Stars? cleared the ?Final Labyrinth, Athenia? on the now-lost continent of Atlantea. It was scaled off of your birthday with the first year being the year of your birth which on the old Chaos Calendar would be Year 7263. You headed the efforts of building the Papal Basilica of the Goddess Roselia in honor of your divine mother¡­ although, nowadays, the main object of worship in said basilica is you which is why it¡¯s now more commonly referred to as Saint Azusa¡¯s Basilica.¡± Hnngggh¡­ I¡¯m getting flashbacks to my ¡°eight-grade¡± phase¡­ ¡°Ye-Yes, I see¡­¡± Azusa tried giving a reply as she internally cringed while sipping the tea that one of the knights had brewed for her. What sorts of things did the me from this world do, exactly? ¡°Your son and daughter have taken the helm of leading the Holy Church©`¡± ¡°PFFF-¡± Azusa unceremoniously spit out her tea, soaking the knight seated in front of her. ¡°A-Ah, I¡¯m sorry!¡± She quickly pulled out her handkerchief and attempted to wipe his face but the knight stayed her hand. ¡°No, no, Saint, you shouldn¡¯t trouble yourself! This is nothing compared to your shock of hearing how much the world has changed over four hundred years.¡± ¡°St-Still, I apologize,¡± Azusa insisted as she forced her way past the knight¡¯s grip and wiped his face. ¡°Sheesh, I really doused you¡­¡± ¡°Sa-Saint, please, this isn¡¯t necessary¡­¡± ¡°Bwahaha!¡± Arderne burst out laughing as he threw his arm around him and gave the boy a noogie. ¡°Well then, little Bernard, you¡¯ve had your face wiped by the Saint Herself! You¡¯ve earned quite the bragging rights! I should¡¯ve sat there (LOL).¡± ¡°Ow-ow-ow, Commander, that hurts!¡± the boy, who apparently was named Bernard, exclaimed. Arderne let him go, turning to Azusa and said, ¡°This boy¡¯s Bernard Valentin von Shicksalsheimr, the fourth son of House Shicksalsheimr. He may seem like a spineless little kid but he¡¯s my vice-captain. I trust him with my life.¡± ¡°Ooooh, I see¡­¡± Azusa¡¯s eyes, her right being liquid gold and her left being deep crimson, shone as magical energy gathered into her eye socket. Her audience watched in awe as her irides flickered white. Interesting¡­ Level 163? That¡¯s quite the high level despite being only seventeen. As for classes¡­ ?Holy Sword?, ?Duelist?, and ?Lancer?? He¡¯s practically built for the role of a Holy Knight. It¡¯s unfortunate that he can¡¯t exactly be a Spellsword but whatever¡­ Azusa¡¯s eyes returned to normal, sipping her tea as she tried pretending that nothing happened; her curiosity simply beat her to it. ¡°¡­ Saint, was that just now your Mystic Eyes of Eminence Discernment?¡± Arderne inquired. ¡°Mhm,¡± Azusa nodded. ¡°I was just curious about his status. I must say, I never expected to see such a young child be that high of a level.¡± ¡°Well, little Bernard here is simply lucky. He inherited a high level from his parents from birth and therefore, had a higher starting point.¡± ¡°Aha? I see now. That is something that wasn¡¯t a thing around my day, was it?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s all thanks to your third child, the Runeweaver,¡± Audeley offered. ¡°She was the one who created ?Level Subsidy?, the spell that was cast on the ancestors of all of the current noble families who live in Koberheim.¡± ¡°Ha, as expected of my daughter,¡± Azusa laughed. Internally, however, she was rolling over in circles in absolute pain. AaAaAaAaAaAaAa! Dammit, I was prepared for this but gawd, this really feels like I reverted back to an eighth-grader!! At that, the carriage finally stopped moving for the last time. Arderne got out of his seat, opened the door¡¯s carriage, and stepped outside. Holding the door open, he held out his hand. ¡°Need a hand?¡± ¡°Why, thank you,¡± Azusa smiled as she took it and stepped out of the carriage herself. She looked around and thought, Hmm, I don¡¯t think my current state of dress is appropriate. She waved her hand in front of her, manipulating the menu and selecting a brilliant red ballgown, complete with a corset to streamline her body and support her breasts. Opening up the decorated silver hand fan she also summoned, she waved at her face. ¡°Well, this is a sight.¡± Of course, to everyone else¡¯s perspective, it was as if Azusa had simply willed her clothes to change. ¡°T-To think that the Saint can do that as well¡­¡± ¡°¡­ Eh?¡±
Okay, this is just bullshit. So you¡¯re telling me that I¡¯m the only one who can pull up a menu like that? It seems like they can open basic status windows by drawing an ¡®S¡¯ in the air with a finger but they don¡¯t have inventories, a friends list, a guild menu, or anything else like I have¡­ Ugh, I just gave them more material for them to idolize me with¡­ Dear, please save me! At the same time, a certain man seated in his office in Vignon, the capital of the Tourboisian Empire, sneezed. ¡°¡­ Is someone talking about me?¡± he muttered as he glanced at the wedding ring on his finger which had also simultaneously glowed brighter, if ever so slightly. Azusa sighed as she entered the Papal Basilica of the Goddess Roselia©`or more accurately to the times©`Saint Azusa¡¯s Basilica and marveled at the architecture. The interior design greatly reminded of the Sistine Chapel which was painted by perhaps the most well-known of the all-time greats in painters, Michelangelo. What jarred her the most, however, weren¡¯t the paintings on the ceiling but the many paintings lined across the walls¡­ Of course, as this was a cathedral that was more or less remodeled to idolize Azusa as the Goddess Roselia¡¯s most well-known servant, there were many icons that depicted her from all stages of her supposed ¡°life¡±. Azusa could see a painting of her birth and of her growing up, another painting depicting her receiving the blessing of the Goddess, while another painting illustrated the moment of the founding of ?Pleiades?. Still another icon portrayed her marriage to Mondklinge. The artworks simply showed Azusa in all of her forms. Frankly, it was embarrassing. Nevertheless, Azusa forced herself to keep her face straight as she pretended to marvel at the paintings of her life. ¡°It is here, Saint,¡± Audeley, Arderne, and Shicksalsheimr stopped in front of a large double door built out of mahogany wood. ¡°Archbishop Ghislaine is inside.¡± Azusa folded her fan against her hand and pushed open the door. Inside, she found an elf seated as his desk scribbling away. ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°Well, I suppose I can come again at another time.¡± Ghislaine stopped writing and looked up. Both his pen and his jaw went slack as the former fell out of his hand while the latter fell open. ¡°Mo-Mother¡­?¡± ¡°Ngh,¡± Azusa grunted, bending over in pain. I was expecting this as well but it hurts more than I predicted¡­ But wait, ¡°Mother¡±? Why so formal? ¡°Mo-Mother!¡± Ghislaine tripped out of his chair and ambled over to Azusa¡¯s side. ¡°Are you okay!?¡± ¡°N-No, it¡¯s nothing, I¡¯m fine,¡± Azusa stammered back. ¡°It¡¯s just I wasn¡¯t prepared for this¡­¡± ¡°Umm? What exactly do you mean, Mother?¡± ¡°Ngh!¡± she groaned again. ¡°¡­ It¡¯s nothing.¡± Fractured Sun At the same time as Azusa reaching the Holy Capital Koberheim¡­ Eighteenth Day of the Eleventh Month, the 673rd Year of the Innocence Calendar. Miwako Plains, outside of Yanamiya, Hakuga Province. ¡°Charge!!¡± A shout from the commanding officer on the frontlines reverberated through the battlefield. He was in charge of the frontline soldiers of the three-clan coalition between the Mononobe Clan, Kazurai Clan, and Sakata Clan, which were formed to combat the rising warlord, Adachi Yoshinobu, and his powerful Adachi clan. The aforementioned Adachi Yoshinobu had only recently risen to power and yet had already conquered both Shizumi Province and Gendai Province alongside a large swath of Hakuga Province in the five years since his ascension as head of the Adachi clan. In an effort to stunt his efforts, the three most powerful clans still remaining in Hakuga Province combined their armies to defeat Yoshinobu. Currently, they were outside Yanamiya Castle, the castle of the now-destroyed Fujimoto Clan, and the castle in which Yoshinobu has taken up residence in his campaign to conquer Hakuga Province. The armies of the Mononobe, Kazurai, and Sakata had already destroyed the bridges that would allow the Adachi safe crossing of the Sumisawa River. Their current charge is a show of confidence that they can easily crush the Adachi army no matter what strategies the so-called ¡®Apostle of War¡¯ is capable of. From within the castle walls, the Adachi clan army can hear the spirited screams of their enemies. Several soldiers on the castle walls looked down at the approaching army and began to banter. ¡°Phew, that¡¯s a pretty loud scream!¡± ¡°I agree! I must say, if I didn¡¯t go to the lavatory earlier, I would¡¯ve leaked!¡± ¡°Ew, gross, get out of here!¡± ¡°Hey, hey, you know what our lord says! If you need to go, you need to go! There is no shame in going!¡± ¡°Oy, you shuddup, that was advice our lord whispered out in his sleep! Lady Chiyono was the one who spread it to her courtesans.¡± ¡°Well, luckily, our lord has yet to realize that we are privy to his nightly ramblings!¡± ¡°Hey, that¡¯s blasphemy towards our lord!¡± ¡°Brother, I¡¯m just joking! Don¡¯t get so riled up.¡± The soldiers never expressed fear in the fact that they were going to fight a war. The soldiers never expressed anxiety in the fact that they were outnumbered in a possibly losing battle. The soldiers never expressed despair in the fact that this could be the last time they would speak to each other as friends. Instead, the soldiers expressed hope and confidence that their lord, the all-powerful Adachi Yoshinobu, would deliver them from their fate. Meanwhile, inside the castle proper, a young adult was seated in seiza, facing the makeshift great altar set up in the great hall. He was busy meditating, asking the spirits of the deceased for guidance. Suddenly, he felt a gentle touch on his shoulder. ¡°Dear Husband, it is time.¡± ¡°Ah, is it that time already?¡± the man groaned, opening his eyes. ¡°I would have thought that Arisa-dono would wait several days before launching an attack¡­¡± Hugging him from behind, the girl©`no, the woman©`smiled and replied, ¡°Do not worry, Dear Husband, you have me by your side.¡± He stretched out his right hand and placed it over the woman¡¯s hand. ¡°I suppose you are right, Chiyono.¡± The woman lifted her body up and seated herself next to her husband. ¡°Wherever you go, I shall follow,¡± she said. ¡°I am your wife.¡± ¡°In that case, I suppose I have a duty as your husband to protect you.¡± ¡°Surely you jest, Dear Husband,¡± she giggled. ¡°Since when have I required your protection?¡± ¡°Aha, I apologize, it seems I¡¯ve struck a nerve,¡± he coyly shot back. After that, a silence passed between them before the man reached his hand out towards the woman¡¯s chin before turning her face his way and planting a kiss on her lips. He remained there until¡­ ¡°Our Lord! Princess!¡± A voice from behind suddenly interrupted them. The couple hastily broke away as Chiyono squeaked, ¡°Ye-Yes? What is it, Aguri?¡± The girl who had just entered was wearing the standard armor associated with a high-ranking officer (in terms of the real world, her outfit was the textbook example of an onna-bugeisha). ¡°¡­ I can come back in a few minutes if you need some time to yourself~,¡± she snickered, having read the air and inferred on what had just occurred. ¡°He-Hey! Get to the point!¡± Chiyono stammered, her face reddening as she lost the dignity and poise she had earlier displayed to her husband. ¡°Hehehe, apologies, Princess,¡± Aguri chuckled. Her expression then shifted to a serious one. ¡°I¡¯m sure you already know but the three-clan coalition between the Mononobe, Kazurai, and Sakata clans have begun their assault of our castle. They have burned the bridges spanning the Sumisawa River and have also set up siege castles to the north, south, and east.¡± ¡°Hmm, I suppose the river itself blocks an attack from the west¡­¡± the man muttered. ¡°How far north are these encampments?¡± ¡°Umm, about a hundred meters out.¡± ¡°Hoh, that¡¯s quite close¡­ That must be where the Kazurai clan is entrenched as Arisa-dono wouldn¡¯t be that foolish to leave such a blatant opening.¡± ¡°¡­ Amazing, Our Lord, you would be entirely correct,¡± Aguri blinked. ¡°Heh, let me guess,¡± the man continued. ¡°Arisa-dono and the main retinue of the Mononobe clan are situated to the east while the Sakata clan is to the south.¡± ¡°¡­ You are correct yet again, Our Lord.¡± ¡°And that battle cry I heard earlier was a separate retinue of a small elite force combining the three armies barging towards the main gate to our southwest.¡± ¡°¡­ Our Lord, are you sure you do not have eyes that see through everything?¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± Is it safe to reveal this to them? Chiyono already knows but I have kept this a secret from anyone else because of the chance that the information may leak to another clan. However, before he could reach a decision, his wife bailed him out. ¡°Now, now, Aguri, it is rude to inquire upon the gifts the gods have given him.¡± Chiyono sent a wink in her husband''s direction and he replied by apologizing with his eyes. ¡°A-Ah, yes, of course,¡± she stammered. ¡°I apologize. In any case, what should we do, Our Lord?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ This requires an exit strategy taken directly from Oda Nobunaga¡­¡± ¡°Um¡­? Who is that?¡± ¡°Ah, sorry, those were nonsensical ramblings,¡± he quickly denied. ¡°Now, Chiyo©`¡± Chiyono cut him off, ¡°Oh, I know, Dear Husband. I shall lead the vanguard and break out to the north. The Kazurai clan is the weakest link in this coalition.¡±Stolen story; please report. ¡°Perfect,¡± he nodded. ¡°You really do know me.¡± ¡°Ehe, well, again, I am your wife,¡± she giggled before kissing him on the lips once more. ¡°I shall be off.¡± ¡°Fare well in battle,¡± he saluted as Chiyono quickly left the room. ¡°In any case¡­ Aguri, I need you to accompany me.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Aguri?¡± ¡°Ah!? Uh, yes, of course!¡± Aguri stuttered, giving a rather late reply thanks to her confusion of witnessing her mistress giving him a kiss in this situation. ¡°Excellent,¡± he smirked. ¡°Are you confident in your legs?¡±
For Adachi Yoshinobu©`or more accurately, Fate of ?Le Sette Spada?, the last five years were a blur. The last thing the samurai remembered was toasting one final time with his friends. The next thing he knew was an all-consuming void. A great emptiness that painfully persisted in its attempt to consume the samurai until it finally let him go. With his consciousness returning to him, the samurai felt something soft beneath him as well as an acrid smell infecting his nose with its abhorrent scent. Regaining his bearings, Fate slowly stood up as he confoundedly looked around. He finally managed to fully take in his surroundings. He was currently somewhere in a forest, perhaps near the edge of it considering the thinning density of the trees around him. Above him, the sky was an evil gray as rain pattered relentlessly against him. Wait. I can feel it? Fate began to touch himself, feeling his face, his shoulders, his chest, his arms, and his legs. He found that he was able to fully feel it. He then opened his inventory and fetched a sandwich before chewing on it. ¡°¡­ I can taste it!?¡± Previously, I had no sense of taste or smell but this¡­ What is this? Where am I? He had just earlier confirmed that he could open the menu and upon a secondary inspection, he found that he was in the exact same outfit that he had on in the final minutes of IWO. The outfit was a testament to Fate¡¯s©`or, well, Michinari Kozume¡¯s©`love of the Sengoku period and its warlords. His armor was, to put it rudely, direct plagiarism of the armor used by the warlord known as the ¡°Dragon of Echigo¡±, Uesugi Kenshin. At his waist, there were his four beloved swords, ?Ayasakura?, ?Chisetsuzuki?, ?Amanomurakumo?, and ?Amenohabakiri?, all in pristine condition. Sighing, he decided to exit the forest to find out more about where he was. As soon as he was about to exit the forest, his senses tingled. Immediately, he hid behind a tree and initiated his ?Searching? skill with the skill mod, ?Hyperenhanced Hearing?, active. He listened to the sounds his now-augmented hearing picked up. The crunch of boots. The swinging of swords. The clashing of steel against steel. It seems I was dropped right in the middle of a warzone¡­ A smile crept onto his face as he began radiating excitement. Just the way I like it! But, for now, be patient, me. You need to gather information first. Fate once again strained his hearing. ¡°Quickly, find Our Lord!¡± ¡°He was last spotted in this area¡­ I refuse to believe that he has died!¡± ¡°He must be pulling one of his pranks again¡­ Yes, that¡¯s gotta be it!¡± ¡­ Wow, this ¡®Our Lord¡¯ guy must be a pretty important dude. I¡¯m guessing that they just can¡¯t accept the fact that he¡¯s deceased? Well, I suppose I¡¯ve heard enough. I don¡¯t want to ask them about my plight when they have their own problems. As Fate prepared to walk away, the voices came closer until¡­ ¡°Hey! Isn¡¯t that Our Lord?¡± ¡°Ohh! Our Lord!¡± Oh shi©` Before Fate could run away, he was surrounded by a group of people: three men and two women. Or is it more accurate to describe the women as girls? To Fate, they didn¡¯t seem to be any older than himself. ¡°Wait, I¡¯m no©`¡± He could not even explain himself as one of the younger men said, ¡°Our Lord, that was a very mean-spirited joke! What are you doing, spreading the news that you were deceased?¡± ¡°Like I said, I¡¯m no©`¡± ¡°Now, now, Harunobu-dono, even Our Lord requires his alone time but I must agree,¡± the other man, a much older-looking one (Fate estimates that he¡¯s around 50), chided. ¡°Our Lord, that was quite a jest to pull on us.¡± ¡°Again, I¡¯m no©`¡± ¡°In any case, we have found him.¡± The more mature-looking girl spoke up and Fate could find his heart skipping a beat before immediately chiding himself as he already has a girl in his heart. However, he couldn¡¯t help but sneak a second look; her beauty was simply otherworldly. Her hair seemed to be entirely made out of liquid silver as it bubbled up from her crown and dribbled down the sides of her face. ¡°We must prepare for the ceremony." Wait¡­ What ceremony!? Fate then once again looked over the mature-looking girl. He finally noticed that she was wearing what seemed to be a shiromuku, a traditional Japanese bridal gown, under a cape along with three blades hanging at her waist. ¡°Indeed,¡± Harunobu nodded. ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be prudent to make Chiyono-sama wait any longer.¡± Fate was then surrounded on both sides by the three gentlemen who proceeded to shove him into a carriage and bring him to who knows where. Within Fate¡¯s mind, he was once more screaming, Again, what ceremony!? His mental question was answered about ten minutes later when the carriage he was in arrived in a rather fancy castle which greatly intrigued Fate as the design reminded him of Kasugayama Castle, the primary fortress of the same warlord his armor was modeled after. He exited the carriage and was escorted inside where he spent the next ten minutes being dizzily spun around; his armor was exchanged for a black kimono, its elegance not losing to the brilliance Fate had earlier seen with Chiyono¡¯s shiromuku. After that was done, he was escorted into the inner chambers where he was once again reunited with Chiyono and Fate honestly could not deny that she was exceedingly beautiful. Fate already had someone in his heart, Tsuchigumo of ?Le Sette Spada?, who Fate knew in real life as Natsume Shiraishi. In real life, Michinari and Natsume had already consummated their relationship even if Michinari had to be slightly pushy to get to that point. In his heart, he was satisfied. However, there was a part of him that wanted to explore other girls. Back in real life, he had always eyed Kaori Saionji, the girl behind Calais in IWO. Of course, he already knew that Calais was in love with Noir who was also Michinari¡¯s friend from real life, Tomoki Kageyama. He consistently kept his fantasies to himself but he couldn¡¯t help but always steal glances at Kaori¡¯s charm. Now, here, in this new unknown world, Fate was to be married to a girl he had just met. He couldn¡¯t deny that a small part of him rejoiced immensely because of her sensational allure. Her loveliness can surely only be described as perfectly formed artistry. As Fate mulled over what to do in his mind, he felt Chiyono wrap her fingers around his left hand. ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Dear Husband?¡± ¡­ Nope. I can¡¯t. I¡¯m sorry, Tsucchi, but I can¡¯t. She¡¯s too pretty for me to pass up! Fate smiled back, ¡°Nothing at all, my sweet. I was merely admiring your figure.¡± Chiyono¡¯s face colored a light pink as she muttered, ¡°¡­ Were the rumors true after all?¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°¡­ No, it¡¯s nothing.¡± Chiyono let go of his hand and attended to Fate¡¯s side as their procession made their way across the city to the shrine by the ocean. Along the way, Fate observed how everyone was celebrating with a ¡®mask¡¯ on; it wasn¡¯t a physical mask but an emotional one. It was as if they were forcing themselves to celebrate an occasion, an occasion that would normally bring genuine smiles on everyone¡¯s faces. Fate tried not to let it bother him too much because he has more important things to worry about, namely, presences that his ?Searching? skill picked up and his extra skill ?Shingan? confirmed to be legitimate presences. They were about fifty kilometers away but they were approaching exceedingly fast. Fate kept himself on guard just in case he ever needed to leap into action at any moment. However, he arrived at the shrine with Chiyono at his side with no issue. The priest then began to purify the shrine before pouring Fate a small cup of sake. Intuitively knowing what to do, he tilted his head back and drank before passing the cup to his bride who then did the same. The priest repeated the process with Chiyono who drank from the cup and gave it to Fate who also drank before the priest gave Fate another cup, repeating the process a third time. Just when Fate was about to stand up to read his vows (or more accurately, the vows of the person Fate was currently impersonating), a samurai unceremoniously burst into the room. ¡°Our Lord! Princess! I bring grave news!¡± Fate clicked his tongue as he shoved the scroll back into his pocket, palming his swords. ¡°Are we under attack?¡± ¡°¡­ Yes, the Nagakura clan have launched an invasion.¡± ¡°Tch, I knew it,¡± Fate muttered. ¡°Dear Husband?¡± ¡°I sincerely apologize, Chiyono, but I promise I¡¯ll read to you my vows after we drive back the Nagakura,¡± he said. Okay, I need to find out where the hell I am and for now, I need to bail these guys out. They¡¯re the first people I came across in this new life, assuming it is one. I need to pay my dues lest I suffer divine judgment. ¡°Gather the forces! I shall lead the defense myself!¡± Thus began the first battle of Fate after having taken the guise of the late Adachi Yoshinobu, the Siege of Oishi, which ended in a total victory for the Adachi clan. From there, Fate spent the next five years on a campaign in an attempt to reunite the Yamatsu Empire under one banner following the decline of the Katagiri Shogunate. I¡¯m working my ass off, trying to survive. So if you plan on coming, you better survive too! Leader! Disturbance ¡°It is so good to see you again, Mother!¡± ¡°Four hundred years of separation was quite an issue, Mother¡­¡± Azusa drank more tea as she tried to force herself to get used to being called a mom by her children. If I don¡¯t get used to it now, I won¡¯t ever get used to it¡­ Come on, get yourself together, Azusa! ¡°In any case, I see that you have done quite well in my absence.¡± ¡°Yes, indeed¡­¡± Ghislaine, her son, nodded. ¡°We left the care of the floor guardians some three hundred eighty years ago and following their decree, we spread the word about the apostles of the goddess, that is, you, Mother.¡± Azusa¡¯s brow twitched as she forcibly stopped herself from doing yet another spit-take. So it was you who turned me into a literal freaking god! ¡°Ho-Hoh¡­¡± she sighed. ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°I must say, I believe we did quite a good job with it, Mother,¡± Hildegarde, her daughter, stated proudly. ¡°Now everyone is aware of the glory of ?Pleiades?.¡± Haah¡­ I never asked you to do that! ¡°In any case, where is Gwendoline?¡± ¡°Ah, our youngest sibling should still be in ?Castello Michele?,¡± Ghislaine thought. ¡°If not, then she has gone traveling,¡± Hildegarde added. ¡°Do you know what people call her, Mother?¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°They call her ?Runeweaver?,¡± Ghislaine stated. ¡°A pretty cool epithet, wouldn¡¯t you say, Mother?¡± ¡°I-I suppose¡­¡± Yeah, see, this was the kind of epithet I wanted! ?Runeweaver? sounds frigging awesome! How and why did I literally get canonized as a saint in some random polytheistic religion!? ¡°They say that she is blessed by the Goddess of Wisdom, Sophia Nannaris, herself!¡± Hildegarde said, nodding her approval. The Goddess of Wisdom? I better inquire. ¡°Seeing as I¡¯ve holed myself up somewhere for the last four hundred years, who are the divinities you worship?¡± ¡°The name of the divinities?¡± Ghislaine asked. ¡°Well¡­ You have the Goddess of Creation, Roselia Ishtaris, and her husband, Ciel Anunculus, the God of the Sky.¡± ¡°Ishtaris, Elder Brother,¡± Hildegarde chimed in. ¡°He had chosen to take on his wife¡¯s surname.¡± ¡°Ah, yes, indeed,¡± Ghislaine thanked. ¡°Thanks for the correction. In any case, following them is the Goddess of Water, Arethusa Tiamaris, and her husband, the God of Agriculture, Phytos Emeshulus. The other gods have married but they haven¡¯t taken each other¡¯s names by decree of Roselia; apparently, she wanted it to be unique to herself.¡± ¡°After them would be the Goddess of Wisdom, the aforementioned Sophia Nannaris. Her husband is the God of War, Ratimir Ninurtulus.¡± ¡°The God of Love, Amadeus Nayarulus, has taken two wives, the Goddess of Light, Lucina Shamaris, and the Goddess of Darkness, Aliona Suenaris.¡± ¡°Finally, the God of Fire, Fintan Gibiphulus, and his wife, the Goddess of Destruction, Layla Ninkiris, complete the Divine Pantheon.¡± ¡°Brother, you are forgetting the Messenger of the Gods, Evangeline Isinulus. She is married to th©`¡± The door suddenly burst open as a panicked woman in armor barreled into the room. ¡°Captain, terrible news!¡± Sensing the urgency in the woman¡¯s voice, Hildegarde turned to address her but stopped halfway through to look at her mother. Go ahead. It seems to be something that requires your immediate attention, Azusa stated with nothing but her gaze. Thankful for her mother¡¯s approval, Hildegarde asked, ¡°Victoria? What happened?¡± Victoria took a quick glance around and saw that Hildegarde and Ghislaine were speaking with Azusa and quickly grasped the situation. ¡°I sincerely apologize if I was interrupting anything important, however, I have some new information that demands your immediate attention.¡± ¡°Speak.¡± ¡°There have been rumors that the Grand Duchy of Boisesonia is making moves again.¡± Ghislaine slammed the table and stood up in surprise, shouting, ¡°What!? We signed a pact of peace with the demons twenty years ago! Are they planning to violate the treaty?¡± ¡°Calm down, Elder Brother! Victoria, please elaborate. I refuse to believe that it is the Demon Lord¡¯s children that sent out this order.¡± ¡°We-Well¡­¡± Victoria chewed her lip. ¡°The report states that it was indeed the Demon Lord¡¯s son, the current Demon Lord, Anselm Vaulossi. He apparently gave the order at the suggestion of his court magician who appears to be a woman of cloth¡­¡± ¡°¡­ Elder Brother, what should we do?¡± ¡°Hrm¡­ Arrange for a scouting party. I want to make sure that this information is as accurate as possible. If the rumors are true, then we have a possible resurgence of war.¡± ¡°Understood, Elder Brother.¡± Before Hildegarde could leave, however, Azusa whispered, ¡°Wait.¡± As per her orders, everyone stopped moving. ¡°Let me go. I do believe I know this ¡®woman of cloth¡¯.¡± ¡°¡­ Could it be?¡± Hildegarde ventured. ¡°Very possible,¡± Azusa sighed. ¡°While an action that drastic seems to be a bit out of character for her but¡­ assuming that she is doing it in response to being contacted by me eleven days ago¡­¡± ¡°¡­ Mother, are you implying that the other members are here?¡± ¡°Wait, so you didn¡¯t know?¡± ¡°No, we were aware¡­¡± Hildegarde chewed her lip. ¡°It¡¯s just¡­ We simply couldn¡¯t believe it. ?Violet Lightning? aside, as we have yet to properly hear anything about her, we¡¯ve heard rumors of four people who meet the descriptions of the other members.¡± ¡°There is someone fitting the description of the ?Monkey King? in the Principality of Beitade,¡± Ghislaine recalled. ¡°That someone appears to be participating in Colosseum events and winning many competitions.¡± ¡°That sounds like Vitya, alright¡­¡± ¡°A man befitting the visage of ?Guiding Moonlight? is in the Tourboisian Empire, however, the veracity of these rumors have yet to be determined as he was apparently only spotted once,¡± Hildegarde added. ¡°Hmm, that definitely is my husband,¡± Azusa asserted. ¡°He hates being the center of attention. He¡¯d much rather disappear than remain in the spotlight. That was how it was back in the ga©`¡± Azusa cut herself off, clearing her throat. ¡°A-Anyway, what of the others?¡± While Ghislaine and Hildegarde exchanged glances in confusion, they thought nothing of it with Ghislaine continuing, ¡°We¡¯ve caught wind of a new rising warlord in the shattered Yamatsu Empire after the collapse of Katagiri Shogunate. Many have called him a living legend as he had turned a puny clan into a regional powerhouse in just five years.¡± ¡°Heh, that¡¯s certainly Fate,¡± Azusa giggled. ¡°He always went on tirades about that time period¡­¡± ¡°What time period, Mother?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s nothing too important,¡± Azusa dismissed. ¡°The last one is Noir, yes?¡± ¡°Yes, it seems that ?Divine Marksman? is making himself at home as the tutor of Lady Ciara Gainsborough, the only daughter of Charles-Albert, Duke of Ponselesia,¡± Hildegarde finished. ¡°Well, as expected of the one known as the ¡®Teacher¡¯¡­¡± Azusa laughed. ¡°Well, in any case, I guess I better pay a visit to the Tourboisian Empire first¡­ Actually, where is that anyway?¡± ¡°Mother, have you finally gone senile!?¡± Ghislaine gasped. ¡°Hey!¡± ¡°I¡¯m jesting, Mother,¡± he giggled. He then went to his desk to retrieve a parchment. Placing it on the table, he opened it before using his tea saucer as a stopper to keep the parchment open. ¡°This is a map of the world.¡± The map showed three continents and two islands; one of the two islands was nestled below the continent in the middle of the map while the other island was directly east of it and between the middle continent and the easternmost continent. Ghislaine pointed to the middle continent at its southern shoreline. ¡°This right here is where we are in the Holy Capital.¡± He then moved his finger west on the map to touch the continent found there. ¡°Here is the Tourboisian Empire and to the north is the Grand Duchy of Boisesonia, more commonly referred to as the Dark Territory, the home of the demons.¡± ¡°Hmm, I see,¡± Azusa nodded. She looked over the map and absorbed everything she could as the map from her user interface was basically nonfunctional outside of providing her local information from areas she had already previously visited. Down in the right corner, she made note of the elaborate compass rose but below that, she saw the scale bar. Eh¡­? Wait, that scale seems a bit too small¡­? Only six hundred kilometers and this is a world map? That can¡¯t be right.¡±Hey, this seems a bit small¡­¡± ¡°Hmm? What do you mean by small?¡± They aren¡¯t questioning it¡­? That¡¯s strange. This is obviously very small in scale to be considered a ¡®world map¡¯... ¡°No, never mind.¡± I need to dig around and find out why this world map is this small. This only barely covers the entire North American continent. Hell, the largest ¡®continent¡¯ on this map seems to only be just a tad bigger than Greenland! ¡°In any case, this is a very interesting map. I suppose I know where to go now. Ghislaine, Hildegarde, would you like to come with me?¡±This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°¡­ If I could, I would, Mother, however, we simply just can¡¯t abandon our positions,¡± Ghislaine replied. ¡°I could go with you, technically, but I also can¡¯t leave my Order of the Vestal Blue Roses.¡± ¡°Hmm, I see¡­¡± Azusa mumbled. ¡°Alright then. In that case, I pray I get to see you again sometime soon.¡± As Azusa got up and left, the two siblings bowed in the direction of their mother and said at the same time, ¡°Yes, Mother, we also wish you luck on your journey.¡± In the hallway, Azusa looked for a window, opened it, and climbed outside. Hopping up onto the terrace over the window, she reached down and closed the window. ¡°In any case¡­¡± Standing up on the terrace, she opened her menu and reviewed her map, mentally plotting out her route. ¡°It took ten days for me to get from the headquarters to the capital city¡­ even though I could¡¯ve made it here in ten hours.¡± Like a clueless idiot, Azusa casually blurted out something that would only serve to have the people worship her even more and as luck would have it, little Bernard, the vice-captain of the Order of the Silver Wings, just happened to walk in the vicinity of Azusa opening the window. Bernard overheard Azusa¡¯s boast as the window was rather thin and allowed Azusa¡¯s voice to pass through it. By the time he rushed to said window and opened it to speak to Azusa, she was already gone. Bernard took Azusa''s offhand comment to heart and spread it among his colleagues who would then pass the story on to the general citizenry. This only served to further bolster Azusa¡¯s standing as an all-powerful saint and would be a massive source of headaches later down the line but that is a story for another time.
¡°Rhiannon, are you there?¡± Yes, I am. What do you need, Mistress? Hanging around Azusa¡¯s neck was a dragonscale necklace. Earlier, she had kept it hidden under her clothes but she had extricated it from her dress, exposing it to the air. This was the form the defeated dragon had taken after Azusa decreed that it would be far too weird for her to remain in her draconic form; the dragon had initially suggested taking a human form but Azusa vetoed that idea as in those circumstances, she didn''t want to further complicate her status by bringing along an immensely powerful dragon-disguised-as-a-human (ironically, her carelessness in her own actions gave more material than what would have happened if Azusa had brought along Rhiannon as is). ¡°Was it stuffy inside of my dress?¡± Oh no, it was perfectly fine. In this form, you can put me anywhere and I¡¯d survive. Well, then again, I¡¯m hard to kill even in my full draconic form so¡­ ¡°Hah, good point,¡± Azusa laughed as she sailed through the road at incredible speeds via ?Accel Boost?. While she took several breaks along the way, Azusa made good on her boast and made it back to ?Castello Michelle? in a little over ten hours. Arriving once more at the front gardens which had been dubbed ?Giardini della Regina?, she was greeted once more by the valkyrie of the enclosure of greenery, Ortlinde.¡°Welcome back, Your Majesty,¡± she began, curtsying as best as she could with a watering can in one hand and a rake in the other. ¡°At ease, Ortlinde.¡± ¡°Is this your home, Mistress?¡± Rhiannon asked as she emerged from the dragonscale necklace (or more accurately, morphed back into a human) and stood slightly to the right and behind Azusa. Ortlinde swiftly swapped her rake for her spear, materializing it out of thin air. ¡°Who are you to Her Majesty?¡± Azusa raised her hands up in a calming gesture. ¡°It¡¯s fine, Ortlinde. She¡¯s my servant too, so to speak.¡± Rhiannon performed a curtsy as well, picking up the hem of her crimson dress as she did so. ¡°I am Rhiannon Pendragon, an elder dragon. I was defeated by Mistress Azusa in mortal combat and decided to swear my eternal fealty to her.¡± ¡°Ah, I see,¡± Ortlinde sighed, dematerializing her weapon and picking up her rake. ¡°It is with great pleasure that I welcome you into our fold.¡± Ortlinde remained in the garden, bowing at Azusa¡¯s retreating back as she entered the headquarters with Rhiannon in tow. The two valkyries guarding the front door said nothing as they bowed to Azusa and Rhiannon; they assumed that if Ortlinde let them pass without any fuss then there was no problem with letting Rhiannon pass them. Upon entering the building, Azusa heard the familiar clinking of a hammer. ¡°Hmm¡­ Now, who would be banging a hammer inside this guild?¡± Just as suddenly as she heard it, it stopped, eliciting a light chuckle from Azusa. Heh, so he can tell that I have returned? ¡°Who was that, Mistress?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll meet them eventually,¡± Azusa replied. ¡°For now, simply follow me.¡± Azusa continued walking and reached the main grand staircase that connected the seven floors of ?Castello Michele? with each other. She scaled the staircase and arrived at the fourth floor which was under the jurisdiction of Tsuchigumo. It truly held the aesthetic of a spacious Japanese house; there was even a genkan where the staircase ended (it spread in a semicircle around the staircase which was built into the wall). As a proper Japanese citizen, Azusa removed her shoes and placed them facing the staircase before going to the raised floor. Rhiannon stepped up herself but Azusa stopped her. ¡°Wait. Remove your shoes.¡± ¡°If you say so, Mistress.¡± Rhiannon obeyed, removing her footwear and placing them in the same manner as her mistress. She then followed behind Azusa as she traversed the floor, fascinated by all of the different designs that she had never seen before. Azusa walked to the back of the massive floor where she found the two largest fusuma in the entire structure. Of course, she proudly swung it open and found the tatami dais just the way she left it. She then maneuvered her menu and swapped out her formal dress for another formal dress, this time in the Japanese customs of her country of birth. Her outfit of choice©`given the name of j¨±nihitoe©`cascaded perfectly around her body. Carefully so as to not disturb the flowing fabrics of her outfit, she sat on the raised tatami dais in the proper seiza position, closing her eyes to meditate. No sooner had she sat down, the fusuma to her left swung open, revealing a pale-skinned woman dressed in a midnight black ball gown with an elaborate sword hanging at her waist. She stepped in (barefoot, of course) and knelt several meters away from the seated Azusa. ¡°Your Majesty, it is with great pleasure that I, your most faithful servant, welcome you with the most felicitous of greetings.¡± While keeping her eyes closed, Azusa declared, ¡°Where are the others?¡± All at once, seven other voices piped in: ¡°In attendance, Your Majesty.¡± Rhiannon could only watch in awe as those seven voices materialized out of nonexistence in a cloud of black smoke. Just as quickly as the smoke had appeared, it dissipated away, revealing seven people of varying genders and magical races, all on one knee, and turned toward the tatami dais. So this is the fellowship of my Mistress. ¡°Where is my daughter?¡± ¡°Princess Gwendoline is currently traveling the world,¡± a woman with violet hair spoke. ¡°I believe her last message stated that she was currently undercover in the Yamatsu Empire before the empire shattered into a state of total war.¡± ¡°Hmm, I see,¡± Azusa replied, her eyes still closed. ¡°Well, she can take care of herself. I¡¯m sure none of you slacked on their education, yes?¡± ¡°But of course, Your Majesty,¡± a superfluous masculine voice replied. ¡°Although I¡¯m more convinced that your children had nothing to learn from us and picked up everything themselves.¡± ¡°Perfect.¡± She finally opened her eyes and stared through the seven gathered in front of her kneeling before standing up and waving the iron fan she had just summoned from her inventory in front of her face. ¡°Very well. You have a new comrade joining you among your ranks. Rhiannon, introduce yourself.¡± Rhiannon suddenly felt the weight of seven hostile stares swinging to her as the floor guardians stood up and leered at her. If she was a normal girl, she would¡¯ve definitely shivered in fear at the immense animosity emanating from the seven glares, however, she was a proud and noble dragon. Even in defeat, she shall stand tall. She copied her mistress¡¯ position and attempted to sit in the seiza position as she introduced herself: ¡°I am Rhiannon Pendragon, the first child and eldest daughter to the Flame Dragon King, Arthur Pendragon. I was soundly defeated by the Mistress in a one-on-one duel and per dragonkin traditions, I have sworn my fealty to the one who has bested me.¡± The woman dressed in black nodded before curtsying. ¡°It is a pleasure to welcome you into our fold, O Dragon Princess. I am the leader of the floor guardians of ?Castello Michele?, Rosella Bloodlily. I am Her Majesty¡¯s most loyal servant and I am the administrator of Her Majesty¡¯s Seventh Floor ?Pavimento Celeste?.¡± Following her, the woman with violet hair spoke, subtly flourishing her hair enough so that Rhiannon could just barely make out small veins of quicksilver streaming down her crown, ¡°My humble name is Isabelle Walsh. I am the assistant leader of the floor guardians and I administer His Majesty Mondklinge¡¯s Sixth Floor ?Piano dell¡¯Ombra?.¡± After her, a horned woman with black hair in a hime-cut bowed, her tail peeking out from underneath her black cheongsam displaying to Rhiannon that this woman was of the same race as her. ¡°You may call me Nagao Kagetora. I am the leader of the ?Kazekiri? and I administer Milord Fate¡¯s Fifth Floor ?Mugon-ky¨­?.¡± The fourth person to introduce herself was of very short stature. She looked up at Rhiannon and said, ¡°I go by the name of Hisomu, given to me by Princess Tsuchigumo. I am the proprietress of Princess¡¯ Fourth Floor ?Heian-ky¨­? and serve as the main artisan of this floor¡¯s mysteries.¡± The next person was an elf who took off his campaign hat and bowed once before replacing it on his head. He was the one who commented in affirmation of Gwendoline¡¯s education. ¡°My name is Gwytheryn and I am the administrator of Sir Noir¡¯s greenhouse of the Third Floor ?Piano Verdeggiante?. If you have questions concerning potion synthesis and other related alchemical inquiries, feel free to pay me a visit.¡± Succeeding the elf were two young girls, dressed in the garb of sisters of cloth. One of them introduced herself, ¡°I am Araphel©`¡± ¡°©`and I am Isaphel.¡± ¡°¡°We serve as the Saint¡¯s disciples and watch over the Second Floor ?Piano Radiante?. We also serve as the head of all of the service staff of this guild.¡±¡± Lastly, the tallest person in the group introduced himself; Rhiannon was very surprised at the man¡¯s species. ¡°I¡¯m just yer average blacksmith. The name¡¯s Grover Woodsborough. I keep an eye on the First Floor ?Piano d¡¯Accoglienza? for Missus Vitya.¡± ¡°It is with the greatest humility that I ask this: allow me to join you in servitude of the One True Master,¡± Rhiannon asked as she knelt on one knee herself. Rosella, as the representative, accepted the dragon¡¯s bid for joining the fellowship of servants after checking one final time with Azusa who replied with a quick snap of the opening of her decorative tessen (iron war fan). ¡°Very well. As Her Majesty was the one who brought you here, I shall not question her judgment. I will welcome you into our fellowship.¡± Azusa watched as Rhiannon was then surrounded by the other floor guardians and pelted with questions. She herself tuned them out as she was thinking to herself. What is the fastest way to move to the Empire? I could most certainly run straight there but my guardians here definitely won¡¯t let me leave so soon after their awakening. ¡­ Actually, wait, before that, why were they inactive in the first place? Or is it that they were active right after I woke up but I never encountered them? Argh, I¡¯ll think about this later! She gathered attention to herself by snapping her fan shut. ¡°Roselle, is the ?Castello Michele? ready to fly?¡± Roselle immediately knelt down again and said, her eyes staring straight at the tatami floor, ¡°Yes, of course, Your Majesty. You simply need to feed the castle your magical energy. It has, after all, been four hundred years since it has tasted your mana.¡± ¡°Hmm, I suppose.¡± Azusa closed her eyes and stood up. She focused her magical energy within herself before opening her eyes, once more revealing her Mystic Eyes of Eminence Discernment. The guardians who were still standing fell onto their knees as Azusa¡¯s eyes trained on them as if the weight of being placed under her piercing gaze was enough to crumble their balance. Getting down on one knee, she placed her left hand onto the ground before releasing a single burst of magical energy. The tremors released from her mana colliding with the building were enough to send a powerful quake through the entire complex. At the same time that the shaking stopped, the floor suddenly became transparent. It was as if the floor was never there in the first place and the view outside was that of the ground slowly getting farther and farther away as ?Castello Michele? took to the skies once more. ¡°¡­ Incredible.¡± That was all Rosella Bloodlily could manage as she marveled at the immense strength that her mistress had displayed. She had never once seen the castle flying as she and the rest of her fellow guardians had only entered into the service of the guild recently, some four hundred years ago; in the format of the game while IWO was still up, Rosella and the rest were NPC¡¯s created by the in-game program just three months before the game shut down and the guild had never traveled anywhere away from its current resting place. ¡°¡­ Is this a sight that one should expect from Her Majesty?¡± Rhiannon ventured. ¡°It most©`¡± ¡°©`certainly is,¡± the nun twins stated. ¡°¡°Her Majesty is the strongest of all. A feat such as this is child¡¯s play for her.¡±¡± With her Mystic Eyes still glowing with power as she probed around the castle, she set course for the Tourboisian Empire.