In the village, where night had not yet fully risen, Takamine Myo gazed blankly at the sun that had just begun to peek out from between the mountains.
Hibari Village, which was being developed with the support of the Asai family, was still a developing village—but many of its inhabitants were busy clearing land for fields day and night, or working hard to control floods by piling sandbags along the riverbanks.
Thanks to these efforts, Hibari Village has recovered to a level that is above average for a village from the Sengoku period.
The living conditions themselves were better than in the hometown where the Takamine Party had lived up until then.
Attacks from other ninja groups and land disputes, which were frequent when I was in Koga, no longer occur.
What this meant was that the risk of wives and children losing their husbands and fathers was greatly reduced, and for husbands, it meant they didn't have to witness the tragedy of their wives and children being raped and murdered.
That's why the men can go to work outside the village with peace of mind.
There are hardly any men left in the village now.
If there are any such people, they are likely to be elderly, have lost a body part in an accident making it difficult to work as a ninja, or are simply physically weak from birth.
Many of the men infiltrated Echizen Province, the base of the Asakura family, or the castle town of Kanegasaki Castle, an important strategic point connecting Wakasa Province and Omi Province.
A few of them are scattered throughout southern Omi, which is under the control of the Rokkaku clan, but they will soon retreat from there.
For the Asai family at this point, the Rokkaku family is no longer a force they need to directly oppose.
"Lady Myo, it seems Asakura has finally begun to make his move."
"...yes"
As Yashichiro suddenly appeared from the pitch-black shadows of the trees, Myo murmured:
"...Where is Lord Bizen-no-kami?"
"Thank you for your hard work. Now it's our job," he said.
"...Where's everyone?"
"We'll start our duties in shifts, after we've had some rice cakes and rice porridge bestowed upon us by Lord Bizen-no-kami..."
"...yes"
With a gentle expression, Myo clasped her hands softly on her developing breasts.
Her long, blue hair was blown by the wind, and her cat ears drooped limply.
"Everyone is being cared for...that's good."
"Not only Lord Bizen-no-kami, but also Lord Endo Naotsune has been very kind to us. Thanks to both of them, we are currently able to carry out our activities smoothly and without any problems."
"...Yeah"
The still-innocent-looking girl nodded to Yashichiro, holding back her hair that was swaying in the wind.
"...But for Lord Bizen-no-kami's sake, I must do one more thing, right?"
"Well... I imagine this will be a burden for you, Myo-sama..."
"That's not true. I'll do anything for Lord Bizen-no-kami."
Myo smiled softly at Yashichiro.
He was like an older brother to the girl.
If I hadn't been there, he would have led the Takamine faction as its leader.
I understood it quite well, strangely enough.
I realized that I lacked the leadership skills to guide others.
However, they are well aware that their only real strength lies in their ability to kill humans and monsters—or perhaps that's all they're worth.
"Let's go to Shizugatake."
"teeth..."
Myo's supple body danced in the dark night, with Yashichiro running right beside her.
It's absolutely impossible to go as fast as a horse.
However, at a speed clearly far exceeding that of ordinary people, and without even a hint of breathlessness, the two shadows ran towards the northwest.
Along the way, there are small bases brightly lit by torches and bonfires.
All of these were hastily constructed under the orders of Asai Nagamasa, whom the Takamine faction admired.
However, these are not defensive structures like fortresses, but rather bases intended from the outset to maintain logistics, where food, weapons, and other supplies are stored.
The purpose of deploying these in various locations in northern Omi is to reduce the burden on the supply trains.
The idea is that once the crisis is over, it will be used as a storage facility for the tribute paid by the farmers, and as a base for supplying grain in times of famine—to a girl like Myo, it's a world that can only be described as "amazing."
"...Myō-sama"
"Yes, I found it."
I don't really understand politics.
Myo was a ninja. And she was also the trump card for the Takamine faction.
How to approach people and monsters under the cover of darkness and "touch" the target...
The role that the Takamine Party requests of the girl, Myo, is that of a secret agent, and she has received little to no training in ninja techniques, such as how to extract information from the enemy.
That's why Myo was so sensitive.
She is a girl who is extremely specialized in recognizing targets to be killed and in figuring out how to "touch" them.
Otherwise, the Takamine Party, constantly facing the threat of extinction, would never have chosen a young girl to be their leader.神輿portable shrine
A supply base illuminated by flames.
And the flames are emitting light not only from the base but also from the surrounding area.
The light cast an unnatural shadow.
Considering that dawn was approaching, one might assume that the neighboring farmers were simply observing the situation—but Myo and Yashichiro's intuition told them otherwise.
Several figures were scattered in the shade of the trees, a short distance from the base, holding their breath and remaining motionless, intently watching the crucial supply base.
That's clearly not the work of an amateur.
He has the same scent of an outcast as Myo and the others.
"...Myō-sama"
"I'll stay this way."
"In that case, I'll go to the north side. We can't afford to miss any of them."
"...yes"
And with that, the conversation between Myo and Yashichiro ended. Very simply.
However, this is only possible because they know each other well.
Myo narrowed her golden eyes, lowered her body, and crawled along the ground into the shade of the trees.
Because she jumped in with such force, a branch from a plant pierced and tore the girl's cheek.
However, the girl, as if thinking, "As long as my eyes aren't hurt, everything will be fine," kept her body low and moved straight towards her target.
The speed is incredible.
As it charges forward, kicking up humus and dead leaves, it looks just like a beast in human form.
Having given no thought to being stealthy, the man immediately noticed the strange presence.
But it's too late.
Before the man could resist, Myo pounced on his torso and thrust her palm forward.
And at that moment—a pale blue light flashed, dispelling the surrounding dimness—and a loud bang echoed, like flesh bursting!
"..."
Indeed, right before Myo's eyes lay a corpse, its abdomen charred and emitting smoke.
The girl stared at it expressionlessly, her slender fingertips trembling uncontrollably.
Tiny electric currents crackled between her trembling fingers, and the girl clenched her fist tightly to suppress the trembling.
This power was the reason why a young girl, barely a teenager, was placed at the top of the unique group known as the Takamine Party.
In other words, Takamine Myo can generate electricity with a high voltage in a localized area.
In short, the girl was a zashiki-warashi (a type of house spirit) that was extremely close to being demonic.
A powerful monster that lives in the highlands and slaughters its prey and enemies with the electric current it carries—a zashiki-warashi (house spirit) that strongly retains the characteristics of a "cat."
However, unlike Myo, it cannot continuously generate electric current.魔物original
It can only be generated for an extremely short time, less than a second. Just like an electric eel.
Furthermore, the only parts of the girl's body that can generate electricity are the palms of her hands.
Unlike the mysteries of nature, such as lightning, it's impossible to transmit electric current over long distances—the only target to which you can send electricity is someone you touch directly.
"...Mmh"
But even so, Myo was a zashiki-warashi (house spirit) who could "definitely kill anyone she could touch."
Even if generating electricity causes fatigue to accumulate in the palms of the hands, eventually leading to convulsions throughout the entire arm and rendering it unusable for about a week—for the Takamine Party, it holds great significance.
Because the number of Zashiki-warashi (house spirits) is inherently small, the Takamine clan, boasting a size of 300 members, can be said to be one of the largest communities in Japan.
Even then, there was no one other than Myo who possessed those distinctive characteristics and could even partially utilize their power.魔物original
In fact, there are only a handful of people in Koga and Iga who could go head-to-head with a girl and win.
That's why, once the Rokkaku family's control was gone from Koga, attacks on the Takamine faction were carried out relentlessly—but to Myo at that moment, it was all irrelevant.
Ever since meeting Asai Nagamasa, a man who "cherishes" her like a father or an older brother, the girl's main concern has been how, and to what extent, she can serve him.
"...yes"
With her blue ears perked up, Myo slowly turned to the left.
The girl could clearly hear the dying screams of the man, presumably killed by Yashichiro, as well as the sounds of decaying leaves and dead leaves being trampled by the fleeing men.
"...Two more to go."
As Myo focused on a single point, her pupils began to dilate.
He arched both his shoulders, cracking his bones, and then clenched his fists tightly.
My hand joints creak and crack, making loud popping noises.
Then, spreading her arms, the girl lowered her body and began to run.
(Yashichiro will surely take care of the other one.)
On the still innocent face of Myo, a blank expression remains as usual—but behind it, thoughts are racing as she tries to find the optimal way to "touch" her subject.
Her ears picked up on the sound of the man's footsteps as he ran ahead, and her dilated golden eyes fixed on the man's retreating back.
"...hang on"
It absorbs the impact of stepping on the ground and converts that into forward thrust.
I wonder if he noticed the girl's increasing speed as she walked.
"Ah, aa
The man turned around, his eyes wide with surprise at the sight of Myo, and screamed.
The girl's hands reached out towards the man's back—but they cut through empty air as he bent backward.
But her slender arms were drawn straight down to the man's waist.
Myo's five slender fingers wrapped around the man's waist from both sides.
A blue flash of light erupted from the girl's palm, and the man lost all strength in his body, falling forward.
As the man stopped in his tracks, Myo's body slammed into his back, and she fell to the ground, knocking him down.
The man's body, stripped of its life, became heavy and limp, acting as a cushion for the girl, absorbing the impact.
Raising abruptly from the man's back, the girl stood up, swinging her arms listlessly, perhaps due to generating too much electricity. At that very moment—
"--teeth"
—With a whooshing sound, the flying kunai was hurled towards the girl.
Myo's body had already sensed the danger instinctively, and she had leaped back to the side.
As she rolled along the ground, the girl's golden eyes gleamed brightly, and she crouched down, peering into the darkness, ready to act at any moment.
"Oh? Well done, little girl. Hahaha... Good, very good. I couldn't believe my ears when I heard that Takamine had taken refuge with the Asai family—but it's the real deal after all!!"
From the darkness, a robust man slowly made his way towards the mysterious figure, his feet firmly planted on the ground.
He wore a black eboshi hat tied with a pure white headband, and a jinbaori (warrior's surcoat) with a Shōjō (mythical creature) pattern over his modern armor .緋色Shōjō Hiiro
He was clad in fine muscles that were visible even through his armor, and in his right hand he gripped a large matchlock gun, about two meters long.
The tip of the matchlock gun had a large, protruding blade that gleamed with a bluish-silver color.
The moment she saw him, a look of astonishment appeared on Myo's previously expressionless face—and immediately, a look of terror began to mix in.
She, the leader of the Takamine Party, knew it well.
He was the leader of a family that abandoned the Rokkaku clan and defected from Koga earlier than they had.
Or perhaps, in Koga, there was an extraordinary man who was no match for even the combined heads of the other 21 Koga families.
There must never be any conflict, and if such a situation were to arise—you must immediately flee from the greatest ninja Koga has ever produced.
He is not a zashiki-warashi (a type of house spirit), but a man with physical abilities that surpass even that of a zashiki-warashi.
This man once single-handedly accomplished the extraordinary feat of wiping out a mother tiger and her cub that lived in Koga.
And that man appeared before Tae.
"...Takigawa...Takigawa, Kazumasu...Lord"
As Myo called out the name, squeezing it out from her parched throat, Takigawa Kazumasu responded without stopping, approaching the girl.
"This is an honor. To think that the princess of the Rokkaku family, a descendant of a princess and a 'highly distinguished Zashiki-warashi,' knows of me—it is truly an honor."
"Wh-why... you're in Omi..."
Facing the man with a plastered-on smile, Myo slowly backed away, concentrating all her attention on Kazumasu's every move, and adopting a posture that would allow her to escape at any moment.
As he kicked the corpse of the man who had been electrocuted to death earlier, Kazumasu said:
"Why...? It's simply because I have business in this land. No one would be so eccentric as to visit another country without a reason. Especially in times like these, you never know when you might be attacked by someone, ha ha ha..."
Kazumasu chuckled softly.
"To be precise, it's not this land, but a person...that's the person I have business with."
"Ah... uh... ah..."
It may seem like they're keeping their distance, but that's not the case.
On the contrary, the fact that the distance between them was closing rapidly overwhelmed Myo, and only unclear sounds escaped her lips as she was overcome with fear.
That's how immense the influence of the name "Takigawa Kazumasu" was on the people of Koga. However—
"Lord Asai Bizen-no-kami Nagamasa...the only person I have business with is you..."
"...!?"
"I have no other business in northern Omi. I am only concerned with Lord Bizen-no-kami, and I have no other interest in anything else. I will be leaving soon, so please rest assured. I will not destroy you."高峰党は...
—That one sentence was the deciding factor.
Fear lingered on Myo's face—but her trembling legs chose to stand firm, not retreat.
"I...I won't let you...!"
Noticing the girl's change, Kazumasu also stopped walking and looked like he wanted to say something—but then he seemed to change his mind immediately, and the corners of his mouth twisted to the sides, creating a distorted expression.
"What are you saying you won't allow?"
"I won't let you go... I won't let you go to Lord Bizen-no-kami...!"
"...Oh!"
With a thud, Kazumasu's foot slammed into the ground.
They probably couldn't react to that speed, or perhaps to that natural movement.
Beneath his shoes, several crickets were crushed and trampled, their souls sent to heaven.
"Do you know that I am Takigawa Kazumasu, and yet you intend to block my path...? Lord Takamine?"
"No... Absolutely not, absolutely not!"
With a crackling sound, a pale blue light flashed from between Myo's fingers.
Seeing this, Kazumasu's mouth twisted even further into a grin, and he swiftly pointed the tip of his matchlock gun, which had a fluorite blade attached, at the girl.
"Get out of the way, Takamine. Even though I'm dealing with a zashiki-warashi, I want to avoid laying a hand on a woman. Besides, I want to avoid unnecessary trouble... Can't you understand?"
"I won't back down...! I will protect... Lord Bizen-no-kami, I will...!"
"Haha... Hahahahahahaha!!"
With his left hand still holding the muzzle of the matchlock gun steady, he covered his face with his right hand—and Kazumasu broke into a grin, clearly amused.
"I see... so Takamine has been tamed, so he has been tamed... I see, interesting. Lord Bizen is interesting... I see, I see!"
"..."
The morning sun rises, gradually dispelling the darkness of night.
As the sunlight spreads across the earth and illuminates it, Myo and Kazumasu continue to face each other.
However, that situation came to an end. Kazumasu sighed, stroking his thick mustache.
"But I'm not idle either—I'll push through."
"--!"
By the time Myo realized what was happening, it was already too late.
In front of me was Kazumasu's body. His arm was already raised, and in his hand was a matchlock gun with a blue-silver blade.
It was brought down with tremendous speed, striking the girl's body.
Indeed, she was unable to put up any real resistance—Myo's consciousness was soon extinguished, and everything went dark.