"Heh~"
Shiki chuckled softly, turned off her Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, blew on the omelet, and took a bite.
...
Time quickly arrived at the appointed day. Shiki brought Ioroi and teleported to Kamisato Estate via a Waypoint. She then walked to the two shrines and waited for Inagi Hotomi to arrive.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, both of you. Preparing the talismans took some time." Inagi Hotomi jumped down from the mountain wall, which made Shiki's eyes widen.
"It's alright, we just got here. But how did you... get down?"
She recalled that she had relied on Kazuha's "Wandering Winds" to go up, and Ioroi's magic to come down. How could Inagi Hotomi, a Shrine Maiden without a Vision, descend so easily?
"Of course, it's thanks to Guuji Yae's talismans. We Shrine Maidens without Visions all ascend and descend the mountain this way. With a slight tear, we can gain the power of the wind."
Hearing Inagi Hotomi's explanation, Shiki felt a little better. She had thought there was some special method for going up and down the mountain, but it turned out she was the only one who didn't know and had climbed for half a day like an idiot.
"Alright, our main task is the Great Cleansing Ritual, isn't it? As Guuji Yae said, our first stop is Konda Village," Inagi Hotomi said.
"Konda Village?" Ioroi questioned, then looked at Shiki.
Evidently, it didn't understand why Konda Village, a place where people lived, would have defilement.
"You'll understand when we get there. Inazuma Shrine Maiden, come with me. I have a way to reach Konda Village quickly."
"Eh?"
Inagi Hotomi had a face full of question marks. A quick way to reach Konda Village? How quick could it be, or were they going to fly?
However, Shiki pulled Inagi Hotomi to the Waypoint without explanation. After Ioroi returned to his true form and set up an illusion, they directly teleported back to Konda Village.
"Mm... Mm!? We're here, already?"
Inagi Hotomi's question marks successfully evolved into bewilderment. What just happened? How did she suddenly go from Kamisato Estate to Konda Village?
"Amazing, isn't it? I felt the same way at first, but you'll get used to it."
Ioroi, acting like a seasoned veteran, patted Inagi Hotomi's shoulder, his words full of a sense of vicissitude.
"Ioroi, don't be silly. We haven't even teleported that many times."
"Uh..."
Shiki mercilessly exposed Ioroi's bragging. The number of times they had teleported could be counted on one hand. Where did "getting used to it" come from?
Ioroi felt as if an arrow had pierced his chest. He just wanted to advise the little Shrine Maiden; was it really necessary to be like this?
Shiki: Was that really advice?
Although shocked by the teleportation, Inagi Hotomi's good composure as a Shrine Maiden quickly allowed her to adjust. She then took out a compass-like object from her travel bag.
"This is a Defilement-Seeking Compass. It will help us find where the defilement is."
However, Shiki shook her head and walked directly behind the Konda Village Chief's house: "No need for that much trouble, I know where it is."
Inagi Hotomi and Ioroi exchanged glances, both shaking their heads helplessly before following her.
Because the incident of the village youths attacking the Shogunate convoy had not yet occurred, the dry well was not yet locked by Village Chief Gentatsu Chosuke.
"Ioroi, quickly shrink down. This small well opening can't fit your big body."
"Ah? Are we going down?" Ioroi looked a little confused. Removing defilement... requires going down a dry well? What kind of strange setting was this?
But by then, Shiki had already put one hand on the well's edge and jumped down. Seeing this, Ioroi could only shrink his body and jump down as well.
Inagi Hotomi hesitated for a moment, but seeing that the talisman's effect was about to expire, she gritted her teeth and followed the two.
To Inagi Hotomi's surprise, the bottom of the well was not flowing river water, but a room similar to a secret chamber.
"You came down?"
"Why do you seem so familiar with this place?" Inagi Hotomi asked, recalling what Yae Guuji had told her. The girl before her became even more mysterious.
"I live in Konda Village, of course I'm familiar with it!" Shiki said as a matter of course, though she seemed to have forgotten that no one would casually go down a well.
"Alright, I'll believe you."
Shiki said nothing, but walked directly to the passage covered by vines. At the same time, a golden electro element ball condensed in her hand, and she pressed it onto the vines.
Zzzzt!
The vines naturally could not resist the electro element and were directly cleared away by Shiki.
"Let's go. Remember to walk along the wall later if you don't want to step in water."
With that, Shiki led the way. The underground of Konda Village was exactly the same as in the game; she could walk through it with her eyes closed.
Oh, right, and that Thunder Sphere barrier that required Electrograna to pass. With elemental power, she could also pick up Electrograna now.
"You go down the ladder first. I'll come down after I get the Electrograna," Shiki said, leaping to the other side. She enveloped the Electrograna with electro element and took them out.
Then she jumped down from the platform. With her body reinforced by electro element, this height was no problem for her.
Shiki led Inagi Hotomi and Ioroi through the barrier. The Electrograna seemed to have consumed too much power by carrying three people at once, and they dissipated after passing through the barrier.
Inagi Hotomi observed her surroundings and said with certainty, "This is the first place where defilement gathers. As long as we force the defilement out of the electro element Sakura Tree root and then clear it, our task for today will be complete."
Shiki took out a gohei-shaped ward from her bag and handed it to Inagi Hotomi: "This is a ward. You should know more about this kind of thing than I do."
"Mm, just leave it to me!"
Inagi Hotomi took the ward and placed it into the lantern-like opening.
After placing it, a five-star alignment pattern appeared beneath the Otorii Gate, which was entwined with tree roots. Immediately after, Inagi Hotomi took out a talisman, lit it, and then clasped her hands together, forming a special seal.
"Open!"
Inagi Hotomi shouted, and the five lanterns surrounding the Otorii Gate automatically arranged themselves in the exact same order as the pattern.
'If the game could do this, would I have spent a whole afternoon on it?'
Shiki secretly sighed, but then became vigilant. According to the progression, the defilement-formed Kairagi should be emerging from the tree roots soon.
"Inazuma Shrine Maiden! Quickly hide behind me!"
"Eh?" Inagi Hotomi clearly didn't know what was about to happen, but Ioroi, having witnessed Kitsune Saiguu perform the Great Cleansing Ritual, directly pulled Inagi Hotomi behind him.
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