"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!"
The deafening scream echoed throughout the castle, scaring the animals sleeping outside. At the same time, all of the vampires woke up from the petrified scream. Alerted that something was wrong, they stormed out of their bed and changed before dashing towards the source.
All of them gathered in front of Runa's room, only to hear her shouting and screaming at something.
Katsuie snapped the door wide open to the point the frame cracked, but he didn't pay attention, he was worried like hell about Runa. "Runa!" He shouted as he and the other vassals rushed inside.
The Oda vassals gasped in shock at the sight of the two onis. They saw the one in red restraining Runa, who was desperately trying to break free. The oni held her right arm roughly away from her body while his other hand covered Runa's mouth, preventing her from screaming. Only mere muffles came through.
"You two...!" Ranmaru gasped, remembering what Runa told him about her stalkers.
Motoharu clicked his tongue. "What a pain."
"Oh well." Takakage smirked. "We've got what we came for." His lustful eyes trailed down to the struggling girl in his hold.
'No...!' Runa internally shouted, not wanting to go with them.
"Like hell I'm letting either of you leave!" Katsuie shouted, drawing his blades.
"Release her!" Ranmaru ordered.
Nagahide glanced at the silent vampire behind him. "Inform Nobunaga-sama about this." He instructed.
"Understood." Mitsuhide quickly rushed out of the room and immediately headed straight to his commander, leaving the others to handle the situation.
Runa continued to struggle, ignoring the spikes of pain all over her body. She knew she hadn't fully recovered from the yakuma's nest incident, but she masked those pains very well. Up until now.
"Aaaaahhhrgh!" Katsuie charged at Motoharu, who was unfazed at the sudden incoming attack.
"How slow." Motoharu stepped to the side and extended his foot, causing the incoming redhead to trip and faceplanted to the floor.
"Katsuie-san!" Ranmaru called out, but then saw a flash of sliver heading his way. He ducked, managing to narrowly avoid the incoming attack from Takakage.
"Oh, but this one reacted fast." The red oni smirked, gripping Runa's shoulder tightly, preventing her from moving.
Runa winced at his grip, anymore, her shoulder will break. 'I have to get out!'
"Then leave it to me."
Runa didn't resist. She let Alice take control while she took a break.
Takakage held his sword close to Runa's neck, not realising what happened inside the girl. "Come any closer, and she's dead!" He threatened.
Katsuie, Ranmaru and Nagahide halted their movements. They looked at 'Runa's' direction, holding concerned expressions.
"Like I'm letting you!" Alice elbowed Takakage hard in the ribs.
The red oni grunted and his grip loosened, causing Alice to kick him in the stomach, sending him to the other side of the room.
Takakage's feet slided against the wooden floor until he stopped near the open window, gripping his sore ribs as he groan in pain as he struggled to his feet. "You little...!"
"How disappointing." Alice said, backing to the other side of the room as she gripped her elbow with a bead of sweat rolling down her cheek. "When I heard that you Mouri guys are tough, I was expecting something, but so far, you two are nothing more than a huge disappointment." She spat without a second thought.
"Al- Runa-san, don't..." Ranmaru begged, seeing how the girl hit a nerve on their intruders.
"You will take that back!" Motoharu shouted, pointing his sword at her.
"I'm your opponent!" Katsuie got in the way, but was struggling against Motoharu's strength. "Damn it...!" He looked over his shoulders. "Hey! Help me!" He shouted.
"I thought you said you're his opponent?" Nagahide questioned.
"Just help!" Katsuie snapped.
"Tch, whatever!" Nagahide lunged at the two and applied his attack with Katsuie, matching Motoharu's oni powers.
Motoharu kept a firm grip on his sword as he applied pressure to his feet, making it harder for the vampires to push him back.
◇◇◇◇◇
At the same time...
Ranmaru and Alice were dealing with Takakage. They were flying attacks at the oni, but having trouble landing a direct hit.
"Watch out!" Alice warned, noticing that Takakage had a clear shot of the young vampire.
Ranmaru noticed it, too, and managed to dodge the incoming blade by a hair's breadth. "Damn it..." He cursed, seeing how they're getting nowhere. "At this rate..." He saw Katsuie getting knocked to the floor, with Nagahide following after.
"Then let's kill them already..." Alice suggested, raising 'her' hand in the air. "Thorns!"
Thousands of black thorns instantly invaded the space of the whole room.
Every Gegga Tribe member halted their attacks when their line of vision got blinded by millions of black, sharp, dangerous thorns.
"What the heck?!" Takakage choked, his eyes staring at the black thorns before him.
*BANG!*BANG!*BANG!*
"Whoa!" Everyone got startled when the whole room shook, almost causing some of them to stagger.
Motoharu looked at the situation and tched. "We've lost, here." He stated, sheathing his sword.
"Hmph. How annoying." Takakage complained, but sheathed his sword as well.
"Oi!" Katsuie shouted, holding onto Runa's bedpost for balance as he watched the two Mouri vassals made their escape through the window.
It wasn't long until the nauseating shaking subsided.
Everyone sighed in relief on got up from where they were kneeling, stumbling over their sense of balance before regaining full control over them.
"Just what was that explosion?" Ranmaru wondered, walking over to see smoke coming from the gardens.
*THUD!*
The vampires twisted their heads around to see Runa laying unconscious on the floor.
"Runa!/Runa-san!"
◇◇◇◇◇
The next morning...
Nobunaga had assembled his vassals to the throne room and waited for the others to gather.
The doors opened, revealing the retainers of the Oda Army. They all walked in and stood before their commander.
"Everyone's presented." Mitsuhide announced.
"Where's the girl?" Nobunaga questioned, not seeing the blindfolded beauty.
"She's apparently sleeping at the moment." Mitsuhide responded. "I tried waking her up, but it seemed she's running a heavy fever." He explained.
"Again?" Katsuie questioned, raising a brow. "Geez, that girl seems to be really good at getting sick."
"Does anyone find it strange how easily she catches a cold?" Nagahide asked.
This peaked Nobunaga's interest as the room went silent.
Now that the vassals thought about it, all they've been seeing is Runa being so exhausted, no matter the time. They've also noticed she had trouble keeping up and her breathing was sometimes ragged.
"That doesn't matter." Nobunaga stated, breaking the silence. "What's important is about the Mouri vassals."
"Yes." Mitsuhide said. "It appears they're trying to kidnap Runa-san without us noticing, considering their timing."
"So they're only targeting her?" Ranmaru asked.
"No. There have been reports of two more Mouri vassals spotted in Toyotomi's castle."
"Oh, so they're targeting both of them?" Nobunaga wondered.
◇◇◇◇◇
At Toyotomi Castle...
Mavis was in the storage room with Hanbee, helping him with his duties during Runa's absence. She thought she could do some digging at the castle, since Hideyoshi and his other vassals were busy with their investigations on the Mouri Army.
"Those Mouri vassals are really tough." Hanbee sighed, putting a book away.
"Well, they are onis after all." Mavis pointed out, digging through an old box. "And Runa saw the attack coming."
"And that's why she went to stay with the Oda Army, I know." Hanbee sulked.
Mavis tore her gaze from her search to the depressed vampire. Her expression softened before she flew towards him. "It was for the best. If those onis caught either of them, then they can move forward with their plans." She explained. "With her staying with Nobunaga, their plans have to be on hold until-"
"Until they caught one of them." Hanbee gave the cat an appreciative smile. "Thank you." He gave her a hug.
Mavis laughed. "That's what friends are for."
Hanbee joined in. "Friends are forever." It wasn't long until his expression turned sad. "If you could only remember them."
"You can't regret what you did." Mavis advised, sitting in mid-air with her paws crossed. "What's in the past is in the past."
"I know!' Hanbee raised his voice slightly before taking a deep breath, controlling his emotions. "It's just..."
"It's just frustrating?" Mavis spoke softly.
Hanbee nodded. "Even though you vaguely remember what happened, the person you really care about is the one thing you couldn't." His voice trembled. "It's not fair. You have someone in your life and they're probably feel lonely even though their watching over you..." He clenched his hand into a fist.
Mavis flew back to the box she was looking at and noticed something familiar at the bottom of the wooden crate. She reached into it and gently pulled the object out. "Everyone has a past they can learn from." She flew back to the emotional vampire. "This will show you why." Mavis held it out towards him.
"An old scroll?" Hanbee questioned, wiping his falling tears before taking the old parchment. "How is this suppose to help me?"
"You need to convince your commander to have a meeting regarding the contents of this scroll." Mavis told him. "You'll tell him you found out something about Himemiko."
"In this storage room?" Hanbee wasn't convinced. Memories or not, he doubt whatever was written the scroll could be of any use. But if it is, the real question was how they missed it.
"You'll see~"
"I don't know how am I going to convince Hideyoshi-sama to hold a meeting about this. Much less convince him that I found something useful that was just lying around in a storage room without a care in the world." Hanbee pressed, narrowing his eyes at the flying fureball.
"He will interested." Mavis insisted, flying over to the vampire's other side. "And so will you. Promise."
Hanbee smiled.
After some encouragement, the cross dressed vampire took the scroll from the storage room and headed straight to the throne room. When he got there, Hanbee slided the door open and found everyone already in the room.
"Yo, Hanbee!" Toshiie greeted, waving at the cross dresser.
"We were just about to get you." Hideyoshi mentioned.
"Why?" Hanbee asked, blinking in curiosity.
"I've just received a letter from Nobunaga, saying two Mouri vassals tried to kidnap Runa."
"Huh?!" Hanbee didn't remember Mavis mentioning about that fact to him!
◇◇◇◇◇
Outside the throne room...
Mavis was hiding behind Hanbee's back, and sweatdropped sheepishly when she heard what the commander said. 'Oops... Runa won't be happy with me...' She thought. 'Well, then again, he was about to find out eventually.'
◇◇◇◇◇
"Well, in any case, we should focus on finding clues on Himemiko-sama." Mitsunari stated, changing the subject.
Since the yakuma won't be a problem anymore, the armies could focus on uniting Shinga in their own accord. That also inclued finding clues on Himemiko.
"That's true." Toshiie agreed. They already had looked at every document on Himemiko they could get their hands on. "Aren't there other places somewhere there's still legends?" He asked.
The other vampires closed their eyes and cracked their brains to think of any other places they haven't looked yet. But their mind came up blank.
"I've been searching without a break, but I do not have much useful information." Mitsunari answered.
"Hm..." Kanbee nodded, crossing his arms as he kept his eyes closed. "Certainly, all the important regions have been searched previously."
'Haa... It feels like we've hit a stalemate.' Yuzuki thought, feeling a little disappointed. She felt like they might have clues on Himemiko so she could think of possibilities to find a way for her to go home.
"Um..." Hanbee spoke up.
"What is it, Hanbee?" Hideyoshi asked, noticing how the vampire looked rather nervous.
"About Himemiko-sama..." Hanbee started. Then his eyes trailed to the flying cat outside the room.
Mavis gave the vampire an encouraging nod.
"I-I think I've hit a breakthrough..." Hanbee said, showing everyone the old parchment.
"Is that... a scroll?" Yuzuki wondered, confused.
"We've invaded Nobunaga's castle, the same time those Mouri vassals tried to get to Runa, and found nothing." Hideyoshi stated, sitting crossed-legged in front of his throne.
Toukichi appeared and sat on the commander's shoulders.
"So, again, how is this related to Himemiko?" Hideyoshi raised a brow. "We've looked at everything we have and you think that scroll has something to do with Himemiko?" He finds it hard to believe his vassal just found something they've missed.
Hanbee smiled wryly. "That kinda stings, Hideyoshi-sama. I just thought we should have looked in the storage room."
"The storage room?" Mitsunari questioned.
Hanbee walked over to his commander and handed the scroll over to him. "I haven't looked at the contents properly, but it did mention something about Himemiko-sama's belongings."
Hideyoshi accepted the scroll. "So, about its contents." He stared at Hanbee, who took his usual place beside the silent vampire. "Its really related to Himemiko?"
Hanbee nodded. "Its contents did mention about Himemiko-sama."
Hideyoshi smiled. "Well then, its contents are..." He carefully rolled it open and layed it out in the middle of their little circle.
(The scroll.)
When the Toyotomi clan saw what was on it, they thought their hearts had stopped beating. "Th-This is...!?" They choked.
"Huh?" Yuzuki blinked. 'What got into everyone?'
The vampires groaned at the contents on the scroll. The moment they saw it, they thought they'd hit a breakthrough, but all they saw is nothing but smudged chicken scratch writings.
"Honestly, what the heck is this scroll's picture?" Toshiie groaned, crossing his arms as his eyes stared hard at the picture.
"A mirror?" Yuzuki guessed, her eyes looking at the picture closely. "At least that's what I see..."
"Mhhhhmm..." Hanbee stared at it as well. "It was hidden rather deep in a crate that I looked. So maybe there's an important meaning we don't know about?"
"However, frankly with just this, we do not know whether this is related to Himemiko or not." Kanbee pointed out. The contents were too smudged and faded to make out much.
"And these writings are not of old characters that I know about." Mitsunari mentioned.
"Now that you've mentioned it, what the heck are those writings?" Toshiie asked, looking at the odd characters on the scroll.
"Maybe, Runa-chan might know." Hanbee wondered.
All the attention turned to the cross dresser.
"What do you mean?" Hideyoshi asked.
"Well, there was one time I caught Runa-chan writing something on a piece of paper, and the characters look exactly like the ones on the scroll." Hanbee explained.
Everyone gasped.
"Then that means..." Mitsunari trailed off.
"We need Runa." Hideyoshi stated, his face all serious. "Now."
Yuzuki stared at Hideyoshi with a worried expression. "Hideyoshi-san..."
◇◇◇◇◇
At Oda Castle...
Runa was still fast asleep in her room. It was already well past noon, and she won't wake up no matter what happened beyond her door. She was too busy feeling the fever spreading the pain all over her body.
Runa breathed heavily, trying hard to breathe through her painful face. Her face was hot, her body was hot. She won't stop sweating as the pain spreaded that she could feel it with every nerve cell she had.
'I feel like the fever's eating away at me.' Runa thought, suddenly feeling her limbs going numb. 'I'm slowly fading away.'
"Runa-chan!"
Runa woke up from whoever was calling her. She opened her eyes and saw everything was fuzzy. She let her vision cleared before she saw Ranmaru's worried face clearly. "Ranmaru..." She croaked.
"Are you okay, Runa-chan?" Ranmaru softly asked. "You've been out all day."
"Sorry... It seems... I have... worried you... again..." Runa whispered. "I'm always... a bother..."
Ranmaru smiled. "It's nothing. You're not a bother at all."
"Huh...?"
"Seeing you awake makes me feel lighter." Ranmaru admitted. He then gently held her numb hand in his. "Um, if there's anything I can do, please say it without reservation, okay?"
Runa stared at Ranmaru before her painful expression eased slightly. "You're so... nice... Ranmaru..." She whispered.
Ranmaru was surprised at the sudden compliment and felt himself blushing. "W-Well, Nobunaga-sama is also worried, and wishes for you to be healthy soon." He stuttered, shifting his gaze from the Goddess before him.
"Nobunaga is... worried about me...?" Runa finds it hard to believe that a cold-hearted person such as Oda Nobunaga was worried about her. Then again, he doesn't really show it.
"Yes." Ranmaru nodded, smiling as he turned to look at her again. "My coming here is also partially because Nobunaga-sama asked me to check in on you."
Now, Runa's convinced.
"So, please show Nobunaga-sama a lively look tomorrow, okay?" Ranmaru placed a damp cloth on her forehead, as he gave Runa a bright smile, before leaving the room to let her rest some more.
Runa watched the young vampire's figure disappear behind the door before staring blankly at the colourless ceiling through her canopy bed. 'That Nobunaga is... worried about me... huh...' To her, it sounded like a humourless joke. 'Though what he's worried about is probably prying information out of me...'
*Squawk!*
"Huh...?" Runa looked at the door to see a beautiful purple peacock in various shades.
Runa slowly forced herself into a sitting position, removing the dried cloth off her head, as she watched the majestic peacock gracefully flying towards her.
The peacock landed on Runa's lap and made itself comfortable before staring at her with its blue sparkling eyes.
"Did you... find anything...?" Runa asked, weakly petting the bird.
As if it understood her words, the peacock shook its head.
"I see... *Cough!*Cough!*" Runa covered her mouth, muffling her coughs. It wasn't long until her head started spinning. "Ow..." She grasped her head and laid back down. "No... Not now..." She told herself.
The peacock walked over to her side and bent its head so it was in her view.
Runa stared weakly at the bird before she fell back asleep. The last thing she remembered was someone calling her name.
◇◇◇◇◇
At Toyotomi Castle...
Yuzuki was in her room thinking about the scroll Hanbee found and wondered what it was. After a while, she decided to take a small walk around the castle. As she did...
Hoshi ga kisu shite uta ga nemutte (The stars kiss the songs to sleep)
"Huh? A song?" Yuzuki wondered.
Kaeru toko wa doko deshō...? (Where will they call home...?)
Kaeru toko wa doko deshō...? (Where will they call home...?)
'I wonder where its coming from...' Yuzuki followed the melody to the courtyard and saw the sky slowly turning into a vermilion colour.
Ringo wa okkochita jibeta ni... (The apple dropped to the ground...)
'Who could be singing that song?' Yuzuki couldn't help but wonder why it sounded so sad, even though the melody sounded so peaceful. When she made it to the pond, she saw someone she did not expect. "Hanbee-kun...?"
There, stood near the pond was Takenaka Hanbee. He was staring sadly down at the pond, lost in his own world as it was he who was singing.
Ringo wa- (The apple-)
"Huh?" Hanbee stopped when he felt a pair of eyes staring at him from behind. He turned around and was surprised to see it was Yuzuki. "You..."
"Um..." Yuzuki had no idea what to say now that they're in an awkward moment.
"How long have you been standing there, Yuzuki-chan?" Hanbee asked.
"I-I'm sorry... I didn't mean to eavesdrop..." Yuzuki said. "I just heard someone singing and the next minute..."
Hanbee laughed. "I'm sorry." He gave her a weak smile. "I didn't know I was singing that loudly."
Yuzuki blinked in curiosity. "I was surprised when I saw it was you. Oh! I didn't mean that in a bad way, it's just-"
"It's okay, it's okay." Hanbee waved, assuring her. "Don't worry about it. I was just playing around."
"Is something bothering you?" Yuzuki asked.
Hanbee's eyes widened in surprise. "Why do you say that?"
"That song..."
Hanbee stared at her curiously.
"It sounded rather sad."
Hanbee stared at Yuzuki with an unreadable expression until a painful smile showed. "Was it that obvious?" He asked in a low voice, almost below a whisper.
"Hanbee-kun?"
Hanbee gently shook his head. "I'm fine." He walked closer to her. "I guess I'm just worried about Runa-chan. First you almost getting kidnapped, and then the news about my own sister nearly in the same situation... I suppose I could say I can't really cope with it."
"You're really worried about her." Yuzuki smiled gently. "You're just being a brother. Nobuyuki-san looks after Yukimura-san, so I'm sure they can understand your situation." She gave him a closed eye smile.
Hanbee giggled. "That's true." 'That's right... Everything's going to be okay...'
◇◇◇◇◇
At the same time...
A black cloaked figure was watching the two from a tree. They had a painful expression under their hood when they could see the vampire was breaking, no matter how much he tried to hide it.
◇◇◇◇◇
At Oda Castle...
Silence took over the castle as the crows caw at the vermilion sky.
Runa was awake after her usual nightmare. She was merely staring at the colourless ceiling, forgetting she's running a heavy fever. But after a full day of rest, her fever went down.
'That spirit tanuki wants to meet his precious Himemiko...' Runa thought all of a sudden. She was already bored with the pain numbing her arms and legs. 'It would be nice to go look for that...'
*Knock*Knock*
"Are you awake, Runa-san?"
'Ranmaru...?' Runa thought, confused. She slowly turned her head to her door. "Y-Yeah..."
The door slided open to reveal Ranmaru, who held a tray, and Mitsuhide, whose figure was hiding slightly behind the doorframe.
"Mitsuhide... as well...?" Runa questioned, slightly surprised.
"Excuse my intrusion." Mitsuhide said, walking in after shutting the door behind him. "My apologies, but I was also concerned about your condition."
Runa forced herself into a sitting position as Ranmaru set the tray on her nightstand. "Thank you... for your... concern..." She immediately covered her mouth with one hand. "*Cough!*Cough!*"
Ranmaru placed his hand on her forehead, checking her temperature. "You're still pretty warm." He said, removing his hand.
"I have... weak... immune system..." Runa stated.
"Huh?" Both vampires got confused.
Runa pointed to herself. "I get... sick easily..."
"No kidding..." Ranmaru gave her a concerning look.
"Then you should rest for another day or two, and then we'll see how that goes." Mitsuhide advised.
Runa gently nodded.
"But you also have to eat." Ranmaru added. He picked up the tray from the nightstand and set it on Runa's lap.
Runa looked down at what her dinner was.
(Runa's point of view.)
The tray held a bowl of katsudon, a plate of kamaboku and a bowl of plain soup.
Runa looked nervously between the young vampire and her food.
Ranmaru merely gave her a smile and purposely showed his bandaged finger, when he pulled some strands of his hair behind his vampire ears.
Getting the hint, Runa picked up the chopsticks and winced at the sudden sting in her nerves. She dropped her chopsticks, that landed on the tray. Her hands seriously hurts the moment she put pressure on them.
The vampires were surprised at Runa's reaction. They didn't consider how bad her condition was.
Ranmaru stared at her and he sighed, before sitting at the edge of the bed. He took the tray and set it on his right. He took the chopsticks and picked up a small bite of katsudon, before holding it out to the sick girl.
Runa stared at the small offer with wonder before staring at the vampire, who was staring rather hard at her. "Huh?" She tilted her head in confusion.
"What are you doing?" Mitsuhide questioned, wondering about the young vassal's actions as well.
Ranmaru looked away with a small shade of red smearing his cheeks. "It's fine if you don't want it." He told her.
Runa perked up, a small blush smearing her cheeks. She was happy. "N-No... I'll eat it... I'll eat it..." She whispered, her throat kind of hurts, feeling rather parched. Runa leaned over and ate the offered food right off the chopsticks. The flavour of the special ingredient exploded in her mouth, just melting away. The blush darkened under her mask, showing the vampires that she liked it. "It's... d-d-de-deli... rrr..." A small frustrated look appeared on her face when she tried to pronounce the word.
Mitsuhide smiled slightly, amused at the girl's reaction. "Was it delicious?" He asked.
Runa turned her head to him and nodded.
Ranmaru smiled and continued to feed her until she was full. After that, he went out to get her bag from his room before returning back in less than a minute. He handed it over to the sick girl, who immediately opened it.
Runa digged deep into her bag until she pulled out her medical kit and gave it to Ranmaru.
Ranmaru set the black classic bag down at the end of the bed before opening the oddly medical kit. He looked for the pills that he gave her when she was staying with them a few weeks ago. Which was a bit difficult because the bottles looked practically similar. He groaned before reading each label until he found what he was looking for. He opened it and held out two pills in his hand, extending it to Runa.
Runa accepted them and swallowed each one with the mug of water, that's been sitting on her nightstand for a few days. She accepted the other ones Ranmaru held out and quickly swallowed them down, not even wanting to taste them as Ranmaru packed her medical kit away.
"I will tell Nobunaga-sama about your improved condition." Mitsuhide announced.
"Okay..." Runa felt tired already. 'Ivy-nee-chan knows how to make these pills work in a fast pace.' She sweatdropped.
Ranmaru stood up and smiled down at her. "If you have any requests, I can make you something whenever." He offered.
"You don't... have to..." Runa said, not wanting to bother the vampire. She already knew he was really busy with the amount of work he had to do everyday.
"No, I insist!" The vampire grinned from ear to ear.
"Alright..."
"... Then, we should take our leave here." Mitsuhide said. "Please take care of yourself."
Ranmaru gently pushed Runa so she could lay down before covering her body with the blanket. "Please take it easy and rest." He told her as he placed a fresh damp cloth on her forehead.
Runa relaxed the coolness of the soaked cloth against her hot skin. "Okay..."
◇◇◇◇◇
In the walls...
The majestic peacock saw Runa's condition slowly improved, as it watched the two vassals leaving, gently shutting the door behind them.
'I need to tell the others...' It thought, watching Runa's mood changed from slightly happy back to depressed. It flew within the walls of the western castle before flying off into the wild, heading to the usual meeting spot.
◇◇◇◇◇
Later that night...
Runa was painfully looking at the ceiling through her heavy blindfolded eyes. 'The anger at something I made being burned, the frustration of that anger not being understood, the reality that no matter how many things I try, I can never convince the warlords to stop this futile war...' She emotionlessly thought. It wasn't long until the black/purple haze outlined her body, as the rush of pain spreaded once again. "I've had enough..." She blurted out. 'If my efforts will never amount to anything...' Her eyes slowly became heavier and heavier, as her body felt like it would just wanted to float away. '... then I might as well disappear, right?'
Dream:
"***!"
A faded voice that sounded so familiar, yet so distant, that Runa just wanted to cry her heart out.
"***!"
The image cleared and showed a familiar scene. A scene that Runa remembered well; it was one of her most happiest memories she'd ever made.
"我会帮你做任何你想做的事。(I'll help with whatever you want to do)." A young boy with silver hair and light purple tips offered, smiling at her.
"嘿！我正要这么说！(Hey! I was about to say that!)" A young boy, who looked a little older, with short whitish blonde hair, complained, pouting at the younger boy beside him.
"嗯......你们两个...... (Um... You two...)" A young girl with long silky raven hair stared at the two with nervous eyes.
The younger boy smugged before smiling down at his friend. "就像我说的，我会—— (Like I was saying, I'll-)"
"我们... (We...)" The older boy corrected.
The silver-haired boy playfully rolled his blue eyes. "我们将帮助您完成任何您想做的事情。(We will help with whatever you want to do)." He started.
"所以无论如何，你必须变得更好。好的？ (So you have to get better no matter what. Okay?)" The whitish-blonde-haired boy finished with a bright smile.
Dream ended:
Runa woke up. 'That's right!' She thought. 'I have to keep my promise!'
Then the mysterious sparkling haze faded, letting the room become fully draped in eternal darkness. But not only that, the pain went away with it, and Runa didn't feel as hot as she did a few seconds ago.
Runa sat up, ignoring the dry cloth falling from her forehead to her lap. 'I have to get better and help them!' She thought, finding the courage and new sense of determination. "Huh?" That's when she realised she wasn't sweating. Neither does she feel as much pain as before, or the boiling heat of her body died down. She reached up and placed her delicate hand on her pale forehead. "It's... gone down..." She mumbled. "The fever... in my... body is... smaller now...?" She wondered. 'The fever's getting worse.' She looked at her hand, watching the black and purple haze swirl around her fingers. 'It attacks me from the inside and keeps changing in size.' Then she noticed something was missing. "My bracelet...!" Runa hastely looked around her bed, pulling the covers up to see if the shiny object was there.
But she found nothing.
Runa fell back down, staring motionlessly at the ceiling once again. "My bracelet... is not here... So where...?" Then the memory of getting absorbed by the yakuma flashed before her eyes. 'Don't tell me...?!'
*BA-DUMP!*
"... Ngh...!" Runa gripped her chest at the sudden pang of pain. It felt like her heart could jump right out of her chest. "My illness... in my body... is really..."
◇◇◇◇◇
A week later...
"Are you alright now?" Ranmaru asked as he and Runa walked down the halls with stacks of books in their arms.
Runa nodded. She only had a few light ones since her friend was being over dramatic.
"You sure? Your fever didn't go down for five days." Ranmaru held a concerning look.
"I'm fine..." Runa buried her face in the stacks of books in her arms.
Ranmaru knew she was lying. He could clearly see her face was still unusually pale, and he could tell something was bothering her.
They didn't say anything for the rest of the way. They went to the library and stacked the books in their original places. As they did, they heard loud footsteps pounding against the marbled floor beyond the door, echoing throughout the room.
"Nobunaga-sama!"
"Huh?" Runa turned to the door, stopping midway from putting away another book.
Ranmaru imitated her. "Was that Nagahide-san just now?" He wondered.
The duo looked at each other before setting the last few books on the table, before running out of the room. They rushed to the throne room and bursted the large doors open, only to find it empty.
"Empty?" Ranmaru questioned.
"Nobunaga's... room...?" Runa suggested.
Ranmaru nodded and took her hand. He pulled her along with him and headed straight for his commander's room.
They rushed down the halls until they stopped. The door to Nobunaga's room was open and Nagahide's back could be seen.
"Nagahide-san!" Ranmaru called out.
The said vampire turned his neck and saw the two running over to him.
"We heard your voice." Ranmaru continued, stopping before him as Runa placed her hands on her knees, feeling tired already. "What's going on?"
"Look for yourself." Nagahide stepped out of the way.
Confused, Ranmaru peaked his head inside and stammered at the sight of someone he wasn't pleased to see. "Toyotomi Hideyoshi?!" He exclaimed.
The said commander looked over his shoulders and smiled. "Yo, Ranmaru." He waved with a childish grin. "How're doing?"
"What are you doing here?" Ranmaru demanded.
"I thought it's about time Runa comes home." Hideyoshi replied. He then saw the person he was looking for. "Time to go home, Runa."
Runa raised a brow, suspicious.
Sitting at his desk, Nobunaga huffed with his arms crossed. "So you'd let yourself in just for this?" He questioned. "You always do stubborn things, Monkey."
"I'll take that as a compliment, Nobunaga-sama." Hideyoshi sarcastically said. "Now, if you don't mind, I have some urgent business that needs Runa's expertise." The commander walked to the door, not fazed by the many stares (glares) he's getting.
Runa looked up to meet Hideyoshi in the eye. "My... expertise...?"
Hideyoshi merely petted her. "You'll see. Let's go!" He picked her up and placed her on his shoulder.
*BA-DUMP!*
Runa suddenly felt very tired and her body felt rather warm. "That's not... what I meant..." She choked.
Hideyoshi could already feel the sudden change in temperature of her body. "You okay?"
Ranmaru gasped. "Don't tell me your fever came back?!"
Runa took deep breaths and shook her head, telling him she's fine.
However, the young vassal didn't believe her. Her red cheeks and ragged breathing was all the proof he needs.
Nobunaga noticed the sudden shift of Runa's condition as well. "What are you going to do, Monkey?" He asked.
Hideyoshi glanced at the Oda commander before shifting his gaze to the sudden exhausted Runa. "I'll just give her some medicine. You understand that, don't you..." He smirked. "... Nobunaga-sama?"
Runa weakly hit Hideyoshi on the head.
Hideyoshi playfully glared at up at her. "Hey! No hitting people young lady."
"Not... *Wheeze* now..." She scolded.
"Wait there." Ranmaru told him, walking past the former retainer. "I'll go get her bag." He said before running down the halls.
"Just what the heck did you do to get your fever back so quickly?" Nagahide asked, crossing his arms. He couldn't believe Runa had caught another cold in less than a day after just recovered from one.
"I get... sick easily..." Runa slowly explained, trying not to collapse. It was a good thing she kept the haze hidden or else she'll never hear the end of it from the nosy commanders. She then turned to the Oda commander, who was (for some reason) staring at her. "Um..." She called out.
"What is it?" Nobunaga questioned, his cold piercing eyes never left her figure.
"I wanted... to ask... you something..." Runa said, feeling nervous more than she thought.
Hideyoshi and Nagahide got interested. They've never seen the girl ask for something, up until now.
Nobunaga was interested in the incoming question as well.
"Do you know... of any illnesses... where your fever... suddenly... grows or shrinks...?" Runa slowly asked.
Nobunaga stared at the girl for a moment before closing his eyes. "Never heard of anything like that." He answered.
Runa felt... relieved, like a small weight was lifted from her shoulders. "I see... Thank you..."
It wasn't long until Ranmaru came back with Runa's bag. "Sorry for the wait." He said. He then noticed a small tension in the air. "Is something the matter?" He innocently asked.
"No." Nagahide responded.
"We're leaving now." Hideyoshi announced, taking the black classic bag from the vampire's hands before proceeding to walk down the halls.
◇◇◇◇◇
From the balcony...
Ranmaru and Nagahide watched Hideyoshi riding his horse out of the castle with Runa at the front. Her bag was strapped to the horse's saddle so it won't be in the way.
"What a strange girl." Nagahide said out of the blue.
"Yes." Ranmaru nodded. "Runa-san is unbelievably frail."
Nagahide turned to the young vassal and saw Ranmaru had that concerning look on his face when he remembered the painful expressions Runa made in her sleep, when he went to check up on her over the past five days.
"Yet, she can still fight like a normal soldier. I wonder how she does it."
"Yeah..." Nagahide looked back at the small figure of the horse shrinking in the distance. "There's something definitely wrong here."
◇◇◇◇◇
Meanwhile...
Mitsuhide walked into Nobunaga's room after being summoned. He stood before his commander, who looked to be deep in thought. "You requested my presence?" Mitsuhide questioned, breaking the silence in the room.
"Mitsuhide." Nobunaga said. "Search for any types of illnesses that involves frequent fevers." He ordered.
"Frequent fevers?" Mitsuhide questioned. He then put two and two together. "Ah, you want to find out whether Runa-san has any particular illnesses, correct?"
Nobunaga closed his eyes. "If you know, then don't ask." He opened his purple eyes. "That girl is hiding something. And I will find out what it is." He declared.
The look in his commander's eyes told Mitsuhide that Nobunaga won't let this go until he knew what Runa is up to.
◇◇◇◇◇
At the same time...
The horse ran fast at Hideyoshi's command.
Runa looked over her shoulders to see the Oda castle for the last time as she watched it slowly got smaller, and smaller with each gallop the horse took. 'I'm sorry...'
"Hold on tight!" Hideyoshi told them, speeding the horse up because he loved the feeling of the wind in his face. But he also wanted to get back to the castle as soon as possible so Runa could decipher the scroll.
◇◇◇◇◇
At the valley...
"She had a fever that long?!" The figure from Sanada exclaimed, shocked at the news.
"This isn't good." The taller one from Uesugi stated.
"If she's getting these attacks more frequently..." The smaller one trailed off, not wanting to fear the worse.
"What should we do?" The one from Date spoke, turning to the peacock, that's sitting on the Takeda figure's shoulder.
The peacock opened its eyes, revealing its sapphire balls to the group. "We need to speed up the research. No more if's, or but's. Find out what the commanders are up to and what they know about the Mouri Army's movements so far."
"What about her?" The smaller one asked.
"Don't worry." The peacock assured. It then looked at the vermilion sky, that's being stained by the ashes of smoke coming out from the depths of the earth. "She's in good hands."
◇◇◇◇◇
At Toyotomi Castle...
Everyone was waiting for Hideyoshi in the throne room. The afternoon sky shimmering through the thin paper of the door, making the air around them more thicker.
"Hideyoshi is sure taking his time..." Toshiie sighed with his arms crossed, along with a worried and nervous look in his eyes.
Mitsunari clicked his tongue. "He should've waited for us instead of dashing off on his own." He groaned.
"Knowing where he's going, I just hope Runa-chan understands the message Hideyoshi-sama's giving her." Hanbee said with a worried expression.
"But Runa-san wouldn't argue about something important if Hideyoshi-san went to get her himself... Would she?" Yuzuki wondered.
Hanbee let out a nervous laugh. "You'd be surprise how stubborn Runa-chan can be. Especially, at a time like this..."
"We just have to believe in Hideyoshi-sama for now." Kanbee chimed in.
Soon, Toukichi heard something and ran to the door.
The vampires and Yuzuki got curious at the sudden action of their little mascot. They turned to the door and that's when they heard footsteps, and the sound of armour clapping together. It got louder and louder until a huge shadow stood before the door. It was a very familiar, yet different shape they all recognise.
The door slided open and revealed two familiar faces.
"Yo!" Hideyoshi gave them all a goofy smile. "I've brought her like I said!" He loudly said.
"Runa-chan!" Hanbee smiled, happy to see his sister unharmed.
Runa groaned at the high volumes but gave everyone a weak wave. "Hello..." She whispered.
"Welcome back." Mitsunari greeted.
Runa nodded. She then looked at the commander. "Can you... put me... down now...?"
"Nope." Hideyoshi curtly said with his eyes closed.
"Why...?"
"Like I said back there, I need your help."
'What is he up to...?' Runa wondered, staring down at the Toyotomi commander. "With... what...?"
Hideyoshi walked into the room, shutting the door behind him, as he carried Runa over on his shoulder. He gently sat down before setting the girl beside him. "I need you to translate something for us." Hideyoshi stated.
"Huh?" Runa still doesn't get it.
Mitsunari pulled out an old-looking scroll and placed it in the middle of the circle, revealing its contents to Runa.
Runa took a look at the picture and flinched. "Th-This is..."
"So it seems you recognise this mirror." Mitsunari pointed out.
Runa held a conflicted expression.
"Um, Runa-san, what does it say...?" Yuzuki nervously asked.
Runa looked at the writings and read the ones she could make out.
Everyone watched the girl read in silent. With each passing second, they grew more and more anxious about the contents of the scroll.
Can't stand the intense silence, Toshiie decided to break the ice. "W-Well?" He questioned. "What does it say."
"Well..." Runa started, going back to the beginning. "The words... are mostly... smudged... Little to... go on..."
"Ah." Kanbee agreed, his eyes were closed with his arms crossed as usual. "We figured you couldn't make out most of the contents."
"Does the ones you can read say anything that relates to Himemiko-sama?" Mitsunari asked.
Runa nodded. "'The Sacred Treasure... of Himemiko'... it says...'" She read out, pointing to the first line of the writings.
"WHAT!?!" Toshiie shrieked. His eyes nearly popped out at the news.
"S-Sacred Treasure?" Hanbee stuttered in shock. "Those ones?!"
Looking at everyone, who became exited, yet shocked in an instant, Yuzuki tilted her head and stared in puzzlement. "U-Um... is this Sacred Treasure thing that amazing?" She awkwardly asked.
"Huh?!" Hanbee snapped his head at her in disbelief. "You don't know?!"
"Clueless..." Runa deadpanned.
Yuzuki laughed awkwardly with a wry smile.
"A Sacred Treasure is what Himemiko bestowed to the feudal lords who governed each land." Kanbee explained.
"Hey, this reminds me of an old story." Hanbee said out of the blue.
Everyone turned their gaze to the vampire.
"A story?" Yuzuki wondered.
Hanbee smiled. "It's about an old legend an friend of mine told me and Runa-chan when we were young." He turned to his sister. "You remember it, right?"
Runa nodded. "About Himemiko's... one true love..."
"Do you remember the story?" Mitsunari asked.
Hanbee closed his eyes. "Um... The story we were told was that Himemiko-sama had two men in her life." He started. "She lost them both." He smiled sadly.
"They say... she never... smiled again..." Runa continued.
Hanbee opened his eyes and furrowed his brows. "It was said she was famous for magical relics. Big or small, no matter what the relics are. She bestowed them to the lords who helped her governed Shinga." He explained.
"So each army might unknowingly have a Sacred Treasure in their possession." Hideyoshi theorised.
"But this is where it gets interesting." Hanbee continued.
"How so?" Toshiie asked, quite interested in the story.
"No one knows what became of them." Hanbee said. "They just disappeared."
"Really?" Yuzuki blurted out.
Hanbee nodded. "But the way the story goes, somebody didn't like her very much."
"So it is possible this 'somebody' might know what happened to Himemiko-sama." Mitsunari pointed out.
"Himemiko's one true love..." Hideyoshi mumbled.
"Who's-Who's Himemiko-sama's one true love?" Yuzuki asked the cross dresser, feeling like they've just hit a breakthrough.
Hanbee closed his eyes and tried hard to remember. He then smiled wry as he scratched his cheek with his finger. "I'm afraid I can't recall the name."
Mitsunari turned to the raven-haired beauty. "What about you?"
Runa shook her head.
"Although that's what we've been told, it's an old story, and even we don't know what they are." Hanbee explained.
"But to think that one of the Sacred Treasures is a mirror..." Toshiie groaned, staring intently at the smudged picture. "If it's called a 'Sacred Treasure', I was more expecting it to be more cool like a weapon." He admitted.
'It has to be about your situation, huh?' Runa snarled, thinking how selfish the way Toshiie was putting it.
"It is said there were several kinds, so even if one of them was a mirror, it would not be strange." Mitsunari voiced out his opinion.
"Th-Then... if we find this, it might be a clue to Himemiko-sama, right?!" Yuzuki asked, feeling like they actually found something on Himemiko's whereabouts. "Where is it right now?" She asked.
"Aaah... about that..." Hanbee gave the excited Yuzuki a wry smile. "Actually... the Sacred Treasures are missing right now."
"Huh...?" Yuzuki's bubble just bursted.
"It is... an old... story..." Runa said, looking at the scroll again.
"During the long years, their whereabouts have become unknown, and now there are only records in ancient documents that remains." Mitsunari explained, pushing his glasses up.
"Th-That's..." Yuzuki stammered, feeling down already. "Just when I thought we've finally arrived at a clue..." In portion to the hope she held, the disappointment was great, and Yuzuki's shoulders dropped as she sighed.
"..." Hideyoshi remained silent, staring at the mirror's picture, hard.
The silence of the commander didn't go unnoticed by the others.
"Hideyoshi-sama, is something the matter?" Mitsunari asked.
Everyone turned their attention to the supreme commander, who was still staring at the scroll.
"This mirror..." Hideyoshi started. "I've seen it somewhere in this castle."
The adults gasped, stunned at the news.
"Wha...?" Runa looked at Hideyoshi with suspicion.
"Really, Hideyoshi?!" Toshiie asked, smiling at the news.
"Mm." Hideyoshi nodded. "There's no doubt it's here in this castle."
"I-In that case, where exactly...?!" Yuzuki asked, hope building back inside her heart.
Hideyoshi rubbed the back of his head with a sheepish smile. "Hmm... Sorry, I don't know that at all." He sheepishly admitted. "I've been trying to remember when I saw the picture."
"I... see..." Once again, the fire of hope got burnt out of Yuzuki's heart. 'But he's certain it's somewhere in this castle... Then...'
Mitsunari felt his brow twitching when he saw the look on Hideyoshi's face. "You can't possibly be thinking about scouring this castle to try and find it, right?" He questioned.
"Huh?" Yuzuki looked up and saw the look as well. "That's... um..." She couldn't - doesn't want to believe it.
Hideyoshi smiled sheepishly.
"No..." Runa immediately rejected the idea. She wanted to stab the guy so hard right now.
Mitsunari sighed tiredly. "Right on the mark." He was getting a headache just from the look. "How large do you think this castle is?" He interrogated.
"It is... not something... you can... do by yourself... that's for sure..." Runa glared at the commander beside her.
"Regarding the Sacred Treasure, I will organise a search group with Hideyoshi-sama's permission. Please wait quietly." The straight-laced vampire told everyone.
Yuzuki looked down with a troubled look. 'It's true I don't know this castle in detail, so it might be better to leave it to Mitsunari-san.' She reasoned with herself, feeling useless again. "I understand... Then I'm counting on you, thank you."
After a few more discussions, the meeting ended and the selection of people to search for the Sacred Treasure was entrusted to Mitsunari.
"Then I'll return to my room first." Yuzuki stood up.
"You must be tired. Take it easy and rest, okay?" Hanbee said.
"Okay." Yuzuki smiled. "If you find out anything about the Sacred Treasure, please tell me." With that, she left the room.
Runa could tell the girl was disappointed.
"She said those things, but do you think she'll be able to wait until the Sacred Treasure is found~?" Hanbee wondered, placing his finger under his chin.
Runa immediately shook her head.
"Yeah, impossible." Toshiie immediately answered, smiling with his arms crossed. "That girl can be surprisingly stubborn at times."
"It is also a clue that has been discovered at last." Kanbee added.
Mitsunari sighed again. "Good gracious. Even though it's not something a person could blindly search for alone..." He groaned.
"Guess there's no choice but for us to try looking for it first, huh?" Toshiie said, smiling.
"Ah, I agree! I've never seen a Sacred Treasure, so I'm excited!" Hanbee cheered.
"In that case, I shall come as well." Kanbee joined.
The three turned to the other girl, who was reading the scroll again.
Sensing their excited gazes, Runa looked up and flinched at the looks she was getting. "N-No..." She stammered, backing away. "Don't... wanna..."
"Come on, it was you who deciphered it!" Toshiie urged.
"No..."
"Aren't you curious what this mirror could do?"
"No..."
"Toshiie, if she doesn't want to, we shouldn't force her." Mitsunari defended the poor girl.
"But she should at least help us!" Toshiie argued.
"No..." Runa whispered, almost fearful in her tone.
"Please." Hanbee begged, giving the girl puppy dog eyes.
Runa blushed she slowly looked away. "F-Fine..."
"Yay~!" Hanbee cheered.
"I mentioned to her earlier that I would organise a search group, but first Toshiie and the others, and I will go first." Mitsunari stated. He turned to Hideyoshi. "Is that acceptable, Hideyoshi-sama?"
But it looked like Hideyoshi wasn't listening to the conversation in front of him the whole time.
"Hideyoshi-sama?" Mitsunari questioned, furrowing his brows.
"Mm?" Hideyoshi snapped out of his dreamland and looked up. "Ah, I'll leave it to everyone." He said.
"Alright, it's decided!" Toshiie cheered, squirming to his feet. "Then I'm gonna go now!"
"Wait..." Runa said.
Toshiie paused in his steps and looked at the raven-haired beauty with curiosity.
The others stared at the girl with the same expression.
"What's wrong, Runa?" Toshiie asked.
"I think... there's a clue... in this scroll..." Runa responded.
"Huh, really?!" Hanbee asked.
Runa nodded.
"Where?" Mitsunari questioned.
Runa looked at the scroll and pointed over to the most smudged parts. "It's... faded... but... 'The fight... will rage... forever over... Himemiko's... one true love'..." She readed out.
"What does that mean?" Toshiie wondered, scratching the back of his hair.
"The real... question is..." Runa started. "... who wrote... this scroll...?"
They all looked at the mysterious scroll in deep wonder. Seriously... who wrote this scroll?
◇◇◇◇◇
Later that night...
With everything that's been going on, Hideyoshi announced that they'll began searching for the Sacred Treasure in the morning.
Hanbee was peacefully sleeping in his room. All the anxiety about his sister was gone now that she was back with the Toyotomi Army. With him.
Hanbee turned to the other side of his futon mat and reached out for his sister, only to meet with air. Confused, he slowly opened his eyes to find the other side empty.
*Shuffle*
"Huh...?" Hanbee groggily sat up, letting the blanket that was covering his body fall, and looked around to see Runa looking intently at the scroll in a corner. "Runa-chan...?"
The said girl didn't hear him.
Worried, Hanbee got up and went to her side. He noticed Runa was too focused on the scroll that she didn't notice him sitting beside her. "Runa-chan." Hanbee called out, worried his sister was thinking of something negative.
Runa snapped out of her thoughts and slowly turned to the vampire with a dead expression. "Nii-chan..." She mumbled.
"What are you doing?" Hanbee asked, looking at the scroll Runa's looking at.
Runa lowered her head and slowly looked away.
"Runa-chan." Hanbee leaned over to see her face.
But Runa looked like she was about to cry. "... Ngh..." Her shoulders began to shake as she tried to hide her tears.
"..." Hanbee stared at her for a moment before gently pulling her into an embrace.
Runa remained motionless. She didn't move but let the vampire hold her.
"Runa-chan..." Hanbee started. "... you don't need to keep everything to yourself." He told her. "If you're feeling troubled, just tell me. I told you back then, right? If you ever get sunburned, you can tell me." He smiled softly as he gently stroke her head. "If you feel like crying, you can show it. You don't need to hide your emotions from me."
Runa flinched slightly, surprised. She unknowingly grabbed a hold of Hanbee's sleeve with her shaking hand. Tears fell down her cheeks and they dripped to her knees.
Hanbee didn't say anything. He merely hold her in his arms as he let the girl get her emotions off her chest. He moved Runa's head so that she's crying on his shoulders, hearing her choking back her tears but felt them staining his sleeve.
They stayed like that for a few minutes until Runa fell asleep in Hanbee's arms. She slept peacefully with her cheeks stained with her dry, salty tears. Runa was relaxed with the warmth coming off of Hanbee's body, as well as the soft rhythm of his heart beating in his chest.
Hanbee smiled softly, moving some strand of hair out of Runa's peaceful expression. He could see her cheeks were flushed with her tears, and he could see she wasn't exactly planning on letting go off him. But Hanbee didn't mind. He gently picked her up and carried her back into the futon. He made sure she was comfortable before draping the blanket over her body. He was about to put the scroll away, but Runa shot her hand up and gripped his kimono sleeve with a firm grip.
"Nii-chan..." Runa mumbled.
"I'm here..." Hanbee whispered, rubbing Runa's delicate hand with his thumb. He stared at her calm expression, seeing how beautiful she was without her mask. With the moonlight it looked like Runa's skin was shimmering, like it was made of scales.
Hanbee made sure the girl was in a deep sleep before he gently pried her hand off, and placed it under the warm blanket. He stood up and silently walked to the corner and picked up the old scroll. "What got Runa-chan so worked up...?" He wondered, staring at the contents.
No matter how Hanbee looked at it, the scroll hardly makes any sense. Most of the words are smudged and so was the picture.
"Huh?" That's when Hanbee noticed something.
At the bottom corner of the mirror, there was some smudge inside a diamond. With closer inspection, it looked like a crest.
Hanbee was left speechless, yet, he was so lost. "This is..."
◇◇◇◇◇
When morning came...
The Toyotomi clan and Yuzuki ate their breakfast and immediately began searching for the Sacred Treasure. They all split-up to cover the castle more.
The vassals made it to the storage room, wanting to take a closer look at the place Hanbee found the scroll.
Kanbee slided the door open and walked in with the others following from behind.
They all looked at the old documents and other objects they stored in there. Most were covered in dust and spiderwebs, and moulds began forming in the corners.
"This could take a while." Kanbee said, seeing how much stuff was piling up.
"Well, this place isn't going to search itself." Toshiie smirked, massaging his muscles before walking to some boxes.
"Huh, what are you-?" Hanbee didn't get to finish his question when Toshiie began throwing things out of the boxes, all the objects flying around and scattered all around him.
The rest of the vassals sweatdropped at the sight. To them, it looked like a child was desperately searching for his missing toy and began dumping things just to find it. Literally.
"Well... That's one way to search." Hanbee said, smiling wryly with a bead of sweat rolling down his cheek.
Kanbee sighed. "Let's get started as well." He walked up to one of the shelves and started looking around.
"By the way, is Runa-san still asleep?" Mitsunari asked as he looked through a box with proper manner.
"Yes..." Hanbee said, looking through a pile of old antiques.
"Is she okay?" Toshiie asked, stopping his search.
Hanbee gave the vampire a forced smile. "Just... an emotional breakdown..."
"Did something happened?" Kanbee asked this time. He and the others stopped their search and looked at the cross dresser in concern.
Hanbee's expression turned sad, even though he still had that smile on his face. He looked away and pulled out a book. "Runa-chan was tired..." A painful look was in his eyes. "She tried to be strong in front of us, trying to convince everyone she was fine..."
"But she wasn't, was she?" Mitsunari questioned, pushing his glasses up.
"Why was she tired?" Toshiie asked, crossing his arms.
Hanbee sighed, putting the old book away. "Runa-chan's in shock. I guess being nearly kidnapped scared her more than I thought."
"Nobody suspected the Mouri Army." Mitsunari stated.
The cross dresser looked at the straight-laced vampire with wide eyes.
"Ah." Kanbee agreed, turning the attention to him. "Whatever they're planning, it can't be good if they're planning to kidnap both of the girls." He pointed out.
"Yes. But we'll be there for them!" Toshiie smiled, pumping his fist.
Hanbee smiled.
"-Wah!"
*THUD!*
The vampires turned around towards the entrance and saw the door was wide open. As they looked down, they saw Yuzuki on the floor with a painful expression on her face. Was she eavesdropping on them? Why is she here? Wasn't she supposed to be in her room? These questions kept ringing in their heads as Yuzuki slowly got to her feet.
"You?!" Toshiie choked, stunned to see the brown-haired girl. "How long have you been there?!" He wondered. "Actually, did you hear what we said just now?"
"I-I'm sorry!" Yuzuki stammered, her cheeks were red from embarrassment. "Um... There was no opportunity for me go call out..." She trailed off.
"What the heck, you were eavesdropping?" Toshiie asked, surprised as he rubbed the back of his neck. He never thought Yuzuki was the type to eavesdrop.
"Or rather, she's been there since the start, you know~" Hanbee sang, smiling.
"Wha?!"
"I was wondering when you would notice but..." Kanbee trailed off, crossing his arm.
"You didn't notice?" Mitsunari asked.
"No way! If you knew then you should have said so!" Toshiie complained.
"Toshiie, you're so perceptive in battle, but why are you so slow in everyday life?" Hanbee teased with a Cheshire smile. He smiled in amusement as he looked down at Toshiie, who was sulking in a corner.
Yuzuki smiled softly at the scene. It's like watching a family having a bit of fun.
"How much have you heard?" Kanbee questioned the girl.
"Huh?"
Kanbee, as if he had been waiting for the moment Yuzuki relaxed, stared intently at her. "You should keep what you heard a secret." He advised. "It seems Runa is in a bad shape at the moment."
"Ah, that's right." Toshiie magically recovered from his sulking session. "We were just talking about that!"
Yuzuki had a concerned look when she looked at the whitish-blonde-haired vampire. "About Runa-san, um..."
"Don't worry about it." Hanbee told her.
Yuzuki's eyes widened.
"If she heard all of this, Runa-chan would tell all of us to forget about this." Hanbee's expression relaxed with his usual happy personality. "She doesn't like being a burden."
"I see..."
"Well, that makes sense." Toshiie said. He could tell the raven-haired beauty was trying her best to help, so he could somehow relate to that. "Um, how do I say this...?" He scratched the back of his head sheepishly as he looked at the brown-haired girl. "Sorry for saying so many things. We'll definitely find the Sacred Treasure, so don't worry." He gave her a reassuring smile.
"Okay..." Yuzuki smiled back. "Thank you."
"You say such cool things but, Toshiie, all you've been finding has been junk." Hanbee mentioned, turning his head to see the state of the storage.
Everyone turned to the room and looked down at the scattered objects on the floor; books, broken pottery, painting, scrolls, and pieces of junk. It looked like someone had raided the place as if they're trying to look for a specific item.
"I have my own way of doing things!" Toshiie defended, placing his hands on his hips. "Just you watch, I'll definitely find it!" He declared, smirking with determination on his face.
"Well, that's what Toshiie is saying, so leave this place to us." Hanbee told the girl.
"That is correct. It would be best for you to search other locations." Kanbee advised.
"Haha..." Yuzuki laughed. "Okay, then I'll leave this place to everyone, thank you!"
Yuzuki left the storage room, shutting the door on her way out. She walked down the many halls, thinking back about the conversation the group had. 'Runa-san's trying to be strong for them...' Yuzuki felt rather surprised, since the girl hardly shows any emotions. 'What a kind girl.' She smiled. Then Yuzuki began to think about her situation. 'If I manage to find the Sacred Treasure, it could lead me to find Himemiko-sama and she might know how I can go home... But...' She thought about the memories she made with the Toyotomi Army the moment she met them. They went through a lot of things together. 'Somehow, it even makes me not want to leave.' She thought. But then Yuzuki shook her head. 'But, in the end, I do want to go home to my world...' She sighed. 'Honestly, what should I do...?'
Yuzuki was so in her head that she didn't realised she was being watched. She was too busy thinking about a lot of things as she made her way back to her room.
◇◇◇◇◇
At the same time...
A black cloaked figure watched the young girl walking down the halls with clouds in her head, as they sat comfortably on the tree.
◇◇◇◇◇
'Toshiie-san and the others said they were searching the storage room, so I've left them to it but... Where should I search after that?' Yuzuki wondered, making a corner. Then a random idea came to mind. 'Maybe I should search my room just in case...' Yuzuki slided the door to her room ope and stepped inside.
"Oh, you've finally returned. I've been waiting." Hideyoshi smiled.
"Huh, Hideyoshi-san?" Yuzuki's eyes widened at the sight of the commander.
Hideyoshi, who sat in the centre of the room with his legs crossed, beckoned Yuzuki with his and as if he was saying 'come here, come here.'
In response to that, Yuzuki sat down beside him. "Um, why are you in my room, Hideyoshi-san?" Yuzuki asked, curious.
"Who knows~?" Hideyoshi sang. "Why do you think?" He asked back.
"W-Why, you say...?" Yuzuki stammered, feeling her cheeks heating up. "Even if you ask me that..."
Hideyoshi laughed when he saw Yuzuki's confused expression. "Now that you're here, you might as well try guessing my intention." He grinned. "If you guess right, I'll give you a reward. If you guess wrong - you should be prepared at that time, okay?"
"B-Be prepared...?"
"The time limit is 5 seconds!" Hideyoshi declared. "5~ 4~ 3~"
"Wha? W-Wait a minute, plea-"
"Times up!" Hideyoshi loudly announced, cutting the poor girl off. The moment Hideyoshi said that, his hand pulled Yuzuki's shoulder and his arm wrapped around her back, letting him embrace her tightly.
"H-Hideyoshi-san...?!" Yuzuki's face went more red.
"I have something important to say..." Hideyoshi whispered.
His voice, which whispered into Yuzuki's ears, was fervent, and it shook her heartbeat.
"Sorry... 'cause, right now, I'm really panicking."
"Huh?" Yuzuki was actually surprised to hear that. And she noticed Hideyoshi was acting a bit differently.
"Hey... are you really going to go back home?" Hideyoshi asked. His voice was begging, begging her to say the words he wanted to hear.
"That's, um..." Yuzuki didn't know what to say, then the moment of them on the bridge came to her.
Flashback:
"Don't go." Hideyoshi begged.
Yuzuki was stunned even more.
"Stay with me."
Flashback ended:
"I don't want that. I want you to stay beside me forever. I said that before, didn't I?" Hideyoshi mentioned, hugging her tighter.
'P-Please don't whisper that by my ear...' Yuzuki silently begged. Her face steadily became hotter and hotter at Hideyoshi's pleading voice and his warmth, which she could feel through their clothes.
"I need you. So please..." Hideyoshi brought her closer. "... don't go."
"G-Geez... wait a moment, please." Yuzuki composed herself. "Why are you suddenly saying this...?" She trailed off for a second as if she realised something. "Ah, is it possible that you're just trying to trick someone again-?"
"No." Hideyoshi firmly cut her off. "This is... only my true feeling. You see, I've told a lot of lies up to now." He explained. "You probably don't know, but my life has been full of lies. However, wanting you to stay beside me... this feeling is true." As if swearing by his words, Hideyoshi grasped Yuzuki's hand and his lips dropped on the back of it.
"H-Hideyoshi-san!"
"Back at the bridge in the castle town, I told you I don't want you to go and stay with me, right? Is that no longer good now?" Hideyoshi looked at her seriously in the eye.
"Huh?" Yuzuki was completely taken back at the question and didn't know how to answer it. "B-But, that's because, that was..." She stopped herself when she saw Hideyoshi's face. 'Hideyoshi-san's face is really serious... What do I do? I can't look away...' Because she was confused and at a loss, Yuzuki couldn't reply with any good words.
Despite her state, Hideyoshi seems to notice something. He looked towards the door and sighed all of a sudden. "What a shame, it looks like I'm out of time." He said.
"Huh?" Yuzuki blurted out, loss more than ever.
Hideyoshi released her as noisy footsteps could be heard from outside.
"Hey! Are you there?!" Toshiie's loud voice was muffled through the screens. He opened the door forcefully, almost at a breaking point. He walked in with the other vassals following in tow.
"Toshiie!" Mitsunari called out. "When you're entering a woman's room, you need to get permission first - Hideyoshi-sama?" Mitsunari cut his lecture off when he saw the Toyotomi commander.
"Huh? Why are you here, Hideyoshi-sama?" Hanbee asked, surprised as well.
Kanbee just grunted, closing his eyes.
"No reason." Hideyoshi grinned, standing up with Yuzuki imitating his actions. He then turned to her. "Right?" He asked.
"Huh?!" Yuzuki said, stunned. She then had a troubled expression on her face. 'He was holding me up until now... but that's embarrassing to say...'
"Let's forget about that." Toshiie suggested.
"Yes." Mitsunari agreed, pushing his glasses up. "We found it. Himemiko's Sacred Treasure." He announced.
"Wha?! Really?!" Yuzuki beamed.
"Of course!" Hanbee smiled. "After you left, everyone was searching the storage room, and then it was found."
"I was the one who found it though." Toshiie retorted, puffing his chest out.
"Though it seemed like it was practically coincidental." Kanbee pointed out.
Looking at everyone's bright expressions as they spoke, Yuzuki felt happiness slowly filling her heart. "W-We really found it..." She smiled. "I'm so glad... Everyone, thank you." She bowed.
Hideyoshi mumbled something under his breath, making it next to impossible for the others to decipher.
"Hun? What did you just sa-"
"It's nothing." Hideyoshi cut the girl off. "Anyway, we should check out that Sacred Treasure." He said.
"Should we go get Runa?" Toshiie asked.
Hanbee looked outside, seeing what time it was before looking at the vampire. "No, let her be. Runa-chan will probably still be asleep."
"This long?" Kanbee questioned.
"She has insomnia. Runa-chan wakes up at any time." Hanbee reminded them. "Now let's go!" He forced a smile on his face, one he knew the vampires would surely notice. "I want to see how this Sacred Treasure could help us track Himemiko-sama!"
With this feeling like there is something Yuzuki couldn't understand, she left the room with everyone to the courtyard. As they did, it was already getting late, the vermilion sky bathing Shinga with its remaining warmth.
They stopped near the pond and Kanbee showed Yuzuki the Sacred Treasure.
It was a beautiful pocket mirror made of silver with lavender diamonds and accent decorations.
"This is Himemiko-sama's Sacred Treasure, huh?" Yuzuki wondered, admiring the mirror's beauty.
The mirror, which had been taken out of the storage room, had a dignified atmosphere under the light.
"It's the same as the one drawn in the scroll." Hanbee stated, watching how the mirror shines against the light.
"Hm... Judging from appearances, it does not look any different from a normal mirror." Kanbee said, inspecting the mirror in his hand. "Even if you touch it directly, there is no sense of mysterious power."
"Kanbee, hand it over here for a sec." Toshiie said.
Kanbee hand the mirror over to him.
Toshiie brought it close to his face, eye leveling it and turned it around, and around, inspecting the fine works of it. "Hrrrmm... No matter how you look at it, it just looks like a mirror."
"Huh? What do you mean?" Yuzuki asked, confused.
"Well, for a Sacred Treasure to just be a mirror is a let-down in the end, isn't it?" Toshiie questioned.
"But this was a document that was hidden in the storage room, you know?" Hanbee pointed out. "We had no idea how long it was laying there, so I don't think it would be fake information."
"Be that as it may, the letters on the scroll were blurred, written in a language only Runa can decipher, so there may be some truth to what Toshiie has said." Kanbee theorised, crossing his arms.
"For argument's sake, has anyone ever suspected that this mirror was created to imitate a Sacred Treasure?" Mitsunari pointed out. There's no telling if the object is the real thing unless it was taken a proper look by an expert.
"B-But there's a possibility that it could be the real thing." Yuzuki protested.
"Of course." Mitsunari pushed his glasses up with a curt. "To reach a conclusion, we should conduct a more solid examination."
"Alrighty, then let's try hitting it with a rock!" Toshiie suggested.
"Huh?!" Yuzuki looked at the vampire as if he was crazy.
"Toshiie, are you even listening to what people are saying?" Mitsunari asked with a flat voice.
"Well, I mean, an examination is gonna go at a snail's pace, year?" Toshiie pointed out.
"Hm, certainly, if we were to consider the situation of this one being a fake, then I understand your insistence on wanting to quicken the conclusion." Kanbee analysised.
"Right? If this was the real Sacred Treasure, then it wouldn't break so easily!" Toshiie casually held the mirror with one hand, aiming it at a rock in the courtyard and threw it as hard as he could.
*SHATTER!*
"Wha?!" Mitsunari gasped.
"Huh...?!" Yuzuki couldn't believe it.
Right before everyone's eyes, the mirror shattered against the rock into a million pieces. The broken pieces fell to the ground like raindrops made of ice.
'That's... no way... It really broke...' Yuzuki thought as she staggered over to the broken mirror. She picked up its fragments, watching the mirror's surface glitter, reflecting the shine from the lime light.
"What have you done?!" Mitsunari exclaimed, enraged.
"Um, this sort of thing, it's best to have it cleared up quickly, ahaha..." Toshiie laughed nervously with a sheepish smile, knowing he's in trouble big time.
"Are you an idiot?!" Mitsunari roared. "There's a possibility you broke the real thing, you know!"
"What're you talking about? There's no way a Sacred Treasure would be this breakable."
"Ah, good grief! That's what I've said you have an empty head!"
"What's going on...?" A groggily, quiet voice asked.
Everybody froze. They slowly turned their heads to the porch to see Runa staring at them with a tired expression. The girl was already in her nightgown, that was slightly wrinkled due to her sleeping all day, her hair was a mess and she had the blanket wrapped around her body like a cocoon.
"R-Runa...?" Toshiie questioned, dumbfounded at the girl's appearance.
"What... happened...? *Yawn*" Runa covered her mouth with one hand, muffling her yawn.
"Toshiie broke the Sacred Treasure." Mitsunari flat out replied.
"I did not!" Toshiie defended.
Runa switched her gaze from the duo to Yuzuki, who was silently picking up the remains of the said object. Curious, Runa stepped down the porch, only to stumble in her steps.
Hanbee rushed over and caught her. "Are you okay?" He asked, worried.
"Y-Yeah..." Runa replied. "J-Just... dizzy..." She released the vampire and slowly walked over to the heartbrokened girl.
Yuzuki glanced to see the other girl. "Runa-san?" She questioned, confused.
Runa merely ignored the girl, as usual, and delicately picked up a shard of the mirror's glass. She held it up to the sky and see nothing but a colourless glass.
"What's wrong, Runa-san?" Mitsunari asked, wondering what the girl was doing.
"This mirror..." Runa started, standing up.
"What about it?"
"It's... a fake..."
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
"HUH?!" Everyone exclaimed in shock.
"W-What are you talking about?" Mitsunari questioned, pushing his glasses up.
"If Himemiko's... Sacred Treasure... is different... then it... would give off... some sort of... Astral Energy..." Runa explained, dropping the shard.
"'Astral Energy'?" Kanbee questioned, furrowing his brows.
"It's like an energy source Runa-chan can feel." Hanbee explained.
"No matter how many times I hear it, it makes no sense." Toshiie groaned.
"And are you saying you're getting nothing from this one?" Mitsunari asked, understanding what's going on.
Runa nodded.
"If this mirror's a fake... Where's the real Sacred Treasure?" Hanbee asked.
Hideyoshi sighed out of nowhere with a look that seemed troubled somewhere. "Geez... this really wasn't the plan but Toshiie's decisiveness, and Runa's powers can be really shocking." He thought out loud. Then as he mumbled like he was talking to himself, Hideyoshi reached a hand into his breast pocket.
"Hideyoshi-san...?" Yuzuki questioned, confused on what he was doing.
Hideyoshi looked at her and smiled widely as if in answer to her call. "Ta-dah! What do you think this is?" Hideyoshi took out a mirror. The same replica of the one that just broke.
The adults gasped and was lost for words while Runa deadpanned.
"N-No way, Hideyoshi-sama..." Mitsunari choked. He finally understood why his commander was acting so weird all day.
"You've guessed it!" Hideyoshi smugged. "This is the real Sacred Treasure of Himemiko." He stated.
"Huh?! That's mean of you to hide it~" Hanbee whined. He couldn't believe his commander made them spent all day searching for it, even though he had it the whole time!
"Ahahaha, sorry, sorry." Hideyoshi held a sheepish smile as he rubbed the back of his head. "I was thinking about pulling it out after Yuzuki committed to say "I'm not going home." You know." He explained.
"That's... selfish..." Runa bluntly said with a straight face.
"But she looked like she was about to die just now, I had a guilty conscience." Hideyoshi defended. He smiled somewhat apologetically before he held out the mirror to Yuzuki. "Sorry for doing something so cowardly."
"Hideyoshi-san..." Yuzuki smiled back and accepted the mirror as she looked at Hideyoshi's sincere expression. She then looked at the mirror to see her reflection in the glass.
Runa walked up and inspected the mirror. She saw it shimmer in the light, blinding her for a moment before she stared at its colourless frame. "Um..."
"What's wrong?" Toshiie asked.
Hanbee saw the girl's expression and imitated it. "Oh, please don't tell me..."
"It's... another... fake..." Runa tiredly stated.
"No way." Hideyoshi protested, staring at the girl with offense.
Runa stared at the commander with a cold stare. "It's... true..."
"It's the real thing."
"Fake..."
"Real!"
"Fake..."
"Real! Real! Real!"
"Okay~, stop right there. Separate, separate~" Hanbee pulled Hideyoshi apart from his sister, creating some distance between the two while laughing with a broad smile. "Hideyoshi-sama, maybe we should give Runa-chan a shot at finding the real one." He suggested.
"Huh?" Hideyoshi's brow twitched in annoyance. "Are you saying I'm wrong?"
"Well, no, but Runa-chan might be able to find it. I mean, she is rather good at finding things." Hanbee reasoned, trying to calm the enraged vampire down.
Hideyoshi inhaled sharply and exhaled heavily. "Fine."
"Great!" Toshiie smiled. "Hear that, Runa?" But when the vampire turned to the said girl, the raven-haired beauty was fast asleep.
"You've got to be kidding me..." Mitsunari held his head in exhaustion just from looking at the girl.
"Impressive." Kanbee said, curious how the girl could sleep while standing up.
Yuzuki just stared dumbfounded at the girl.
"Runa-chan, focus!" Hanbee begged, grabbing the girl's shoulders and shook her.
"... Ngh... H-Huh...?" Runa slowly woke up and stared tiredly at her brother. "What... were... we... *Yawn* doing...?" She groggily asked, rubbing under her mask.
"You were about to tell us if you know where the real Sacred Treasure is." Kanbee responded.
"Oh... right... um..." Runa thought for a moment before she feel like falling asleep again.
The attempt to fall asleep didn't go unnoticed by the others.
"Hey!" Toshiie called out.
Runa snapped out of it, but the drowsiness was too strong. "Um... right... the room..." She said, half awake.
"Huh? What room?" Yuzuki asked.
Runa didn't pay any attention to her, she just stared at Hanbee, who was holding her up. "Where did you... find the... scroll...?" She asked.
Hanbee was surprised at the sudden question. "Um, I found it in the storage room." He answered. "Me and the others were there all day."
"Can I... take a look...?"
Confused on what the girl was up to, Hanbee lifted the girl up into his arms and brought her to the storage room with the others following from behind.
Toshiie slided the door open and revealed the dark room, but the light from the sky brightened it up enough for everyone to see where everything was.
"Where... exactly...?" Runa asked, feeling less tired now that it was getting darker.
Hanbee walked in and went to the darkest corner of the room. He set her down and moved a box on top of the other and set it down on another. "I found it hidden at the bottom of this box." He explained.
"Hmm..." Runa hummed and began pulling stuff out.
The others walked in to get a closer look. They watched Runa remove all the old books and scrolls, and other stuff out of the box until it was empty.
Or so they thought.
Runa digged her arms inside and felt the bottom was it bit loose, hollow even. 'Bingo...' Feeling a faint present from Astral Energy, Runa pulled/yanked the bottom off.
The sudden action surprised the group. What is she doing exactly?
"There's... something here..." Runa mentioned, seeing something inside. She reached in and pulled out a beautiful pink traditional kimono, with gold accents that glittered the flower embroideries. It had also been neatly folded as well with intensive care.
"Those must be one of Himemiko's dresses." Hideyoshi mentioned, noticing all the gold and the fine details on the dress.
"But how did it end up here?" Yuzuki wondered. It was such a beautiful dress that she couldn't believe someone would just hide it instead of selling it.
"We don't know." Toshiie replied.
"Was that crate in here before?" Mitsunari asked. Now that he thought about it, he'd never really noticed the crate or took any interest to it. And he was getting more suspicious by the minute.
"I don't know." Kanbee answered.
"Maybe there's something on it that can tell us who Himemiko-sama's one true love was." Hanbee pointed out.
Runa stared at the colourless dress in her hands, admiring the shimmer from the glittered decorations. "Maybe... the real question... isn't who... was Himemiko's... one true love... but what..." She blurted out, feeling something between the fabrics.
This peaked the group's interest. They watch Runa unfold the dress and gasped at what was hidden under it.
Between the folds of the dress was none other than another replica of the Sacred Treasure, only this time, it had more shine and delicacy to it, like it had been cared for without end.