As the explosion of verdant energies died away, the air swirling around us, volleys of metal darts began flying at us again, f us to take cover. As we retreated I had a sudden bad feeling, so grabbing Shaeu I leapt, and the groued into sharp es of bloody metal, the steel thorns chasing us into the sky. My own energies replied, and as threads of razor sharp wind sshed through the attag spines, severing them, we nded safely on top of a nearby oory building.

  “She’s back again.” I muttered, putting Shaeu down. As she tugged at her yukata, straightening it carefully and adjusting her sash, she nodded.

  “Indeed, she is quite-quite the tenacious female. I ot-not say I approve.” Shaeu retaliated with some bdes of wind, but the hostile defensive barrier easily shrugged them off once more.

  “Yeah, having ratackers within the barrier is cheating.” ent hours rag around the boundary enpassed by the defeny rival didate, and had established quite a lot of useful information. Dropping down behind the building we scampered away to a patch of bare earth, in which I began drawing a crude map with my spear.

  “The area the enemy trols is roughly circur, though there are some jutting parts stig out. It seems to be an area of a bit under eight hundred metres in radius, so nearly the full extent of a Rank two Territory. The barrier feels about as solid as ours was, or the one in Vegas.”

  I had no way of being sure that every Territory followed the same rules, though there seemed to be a lot of simirities. This definitely felt like a Rank 2 one for sure…

  Up overhead a ghostly woman was drifting, keeping an eye on us, and Shaeu clicked her tongue in annoyance. “I believe I snipe-snipe her.” Shaeu told me, not for the first time. “If I my fmes in wind and unch it, I believe it would reach.”

  “Yeah, I know. You are really starting to grasp the fire and wind bination attacks. Still, I don’t think we should tip our hand just to eliminate a few scouts. That would just waste our advantage. No, wheime is right, then we’ll blind them and make our move.” In the same way, I had rejected the idea to use the bo attack we had doo breach the barrier in Las Vegas. Foehn, boosted by her wind and the pink jade bells, was certainly a powerful attack, and as it could g to anything, even intangible barriers, it was able to deal damage over time in addition to the first strike, so it chewed through defences extremely effitly. But if we do that, then they might e up with a way to ter it, and breaking the barrier now is premature. No, best to finish our scouting. Besides… The wraith woman who was stantly trying to impale us on dirty metal spikes was a real threat. I felt Grulgor-level power from her, so if I was going to use Foehn, the Iinguishable Bze might best be served sendio her rest, down in Yomi-no-kuni.

  “I uand, I do.” Shaeu outing. “But I dislike being so-so oppressed by her. My pride demands we strike back.”

  “And we will. But nht now.” I tio draing out a picture of the area based on what we had covered. It was like a pie chart, we’d explored arouy pert of the circumference of the barrier. Sketg on some marks to symbolise Defensive Empts, I drew out arcs of fire from what we had experienced. “There is at least one, maybe two at most, of the Sype. They fire over pretty much the whole area so far. We’ve had a few close calls. In addition, there are others, shorter-ranged, less powerful ohe numbers are unknown, but their firing arcs are here and… here.” With es dug in the dirt, we could see the best approaches. There were whole stretches of blind spots in the lesser defences, but what was iing was…

  “As roached the northern end, we were forced-forced to retreat.” Shaeu observed, using wind to draw her own jagged line on my map, demarg the border where ining fire was fiercest. “The spectral female became angry when we moved this way too-too.”

  At that point Orcs had flooded out as well to drive us off, and we had sughtered many during our retreat. I had even gained a Level-up out of it, which left me in a good mood. Though thanks to that we noticed her fws… she may be strong, but she’s no tacti.

  “Yes, I agree with you indeed-indeed, my master.” Shaeu nodded, once more having guessed my thoughts. Is it me, or is that happening more tely? She definitely seems to get me…

  “She is a failure as a strategist.” Shaeu tinued. “My brothers would never-never have made such a blunder. She is screaming to all who would listen that-that there is something that must be protected to the north.”

  “Yeah, and we o know what it is.” I agreed. “We o finish mapping their defeoo, then we return to Shirohebizumi shrine and pn our true offensive. She’s strong, all right, but if the boss doesn’t show themselves, I think we win.”

  “Yes, then we call upon that brute-brute Grulgor and his Trolls. With their aid we should be able to destroy the barrier and rampage within.”

  “Yep, that’s the pn.” I patted her head cheerfully, keeping half an eye on the scouts above. “Anyway, shall we go?”

  At her nod we withdrew, moving away from the Territory, but still to the north. After a while we doubled back, trying to e around from a different dire. The streets here were remi of a red-light district or pleasure quarter, not that I frequented such, of course, the houses and shops blurred and indistinct, aween them were strung long ropes under which dangled many paper nterns, burning red, purple and other exotic hues. As roached, I was getting a strange feeling. It was as if… something bad was going to happen, somethi distant, but ing closer with every moment. It’s hard to describe. An itch… an irritation? I just know something distant is going to g, and every step we take this way brings it closer…

  Several jade and gold pilrs were rising in the distance, and with my excellent eyesight I could make out carvings of beetles and other simir is on them, as well as shimenaes of great width. It must be a shrine. I didn’t know there was one here, though I guess smaller shrines are everywhere, and I never really came to this tourist area, it had an … unsavoury… reputation locally.

  As roached, Shaeu was looking around with her glowing eyes. “I feel-feel the presence of some spirit, much like that of Shirohebizumi shrine. I believe one of your Kami may be here, though it is odd. I see a strange flow of energy… one I ot-not describe…”

  “I see. That plicates things.” As we closed in, a series of explosions started rog the houses and shops in front of us, the nterns breaking free from their hangings and plummeting to the ground like dying stars. ks of rod stone were flying around like shrapnel, so we both called wind up to shield us, the green energies mixing in with the raucous lighting of this pce.

  “Guess we ran into those defences again.” I said, adding the details to my mental map of the area. Running further around we could see glowing bolts of aetheric light sparking towards us from several angles.

  “They have ied rather-rather heavily in defence. Unlike you, Akio. Perhaps this is a lesson for us?” Shaeu grumbled.

  “Yeah it’s oo-do list, once our Anchor has upgraded. Anyway, less talking, more running!” I shot back.

  We tio evade, but as expected our foe was back, and waves of metal projectiles were raining down around us. I deflected what I could with wind and my spear, relying on my armour, strengthened with some of my aether, to defend against the rest. Several impacts stung me, but my armour held.

  “You know…” I said, watg Shaeu running beside me, using me as cover. “… it’s at times like this I envy you being so small.”

  At her ft look I leaked out a ugh. We had run clear of the first wave of Empts, but now bolts were ing from in front of us, pung fist-sized holes in the ground and any buildings that were hit by stray bsts. A tidal-wave of metal spikes was rising ahead of us, so I charged through a wall after strengthening myself with aether, Shaeu following after, as the metal river smmed down behind us.

  “This way…” I said, leaping through a window, shattered gss raining down before vanishing.

  Multiple of the ghostly women were overhead now, c a wide area. One spotted us a out a near-inaudible hiss, attrag attention, and soon we were harassed by a mob of Orcs which were flowing from their Territory. I would like to kill them for ether, but…

  We tio evade, only to run into yet another problem. As we cut back towards the eerritory another force was blog our way, though this one… Good job Eri isn’t here to see this, she’s not a fan of beetles and s, though my sis doesn't hate them…

  Several dozen of what I could only describe as… well, bug-people… were grouped up across a defensive line, barring our path. They were upright beetles with bright green and copper carapaces, with multiple arms, some holding ons, others tipped with cruel cws. And in their eyes… uhe Orcs I see the gleam of intelligence…

  Shaeu spat, her face filled with revulsion. “So disgusting. Such abominations have no-nht to stand before a noble princess such-such as myself.” Shaeu gestured and wind danced out, dirt and debris following in the wake of her sharp attacks. The front row of bugs was struck, but the expected se of severed body parts and mangled corpses did not materialise, ihe is only suffered minor scratches, jade energies glittering from their shells.

  “It’s like the big beetles.” I began. “They too must have… oh shit…” I was interrupted by a vast volley of attacks, rains of green bullets of air, olivine bdes of slig wind, and emerald hammers of pressure.

  I unleashed fire, and Shaeu followed suit, yellow energies g with green, the resulting explosion thunderous and painful. In the end, our fmes won out, and we were able to retreat, only to be barraged by more flying nails from a distance. Blood was running down my cheek from where I had been luot to lose an eye, and Shaeu staggered, almost falling, as one had drilled through her ankle before ing out bloody the other side. As she stumbled, I stowed my spear and grabbed her in a princess carry, usiher tthen myself once more.

  “Hang on tight, we are retreating. Otherwise I think we are in trouble…”

  Orcs were mounting the buildings around us, crossbows releasing a rain of sharp quarrels down at us, and I was struck by several, my armour barely holding. Whips and bdes of wind were falling around us, and eveerritory defences were joining in, bolts of light narrowly missing us.

  “A perfectly executed ambush. Seems she's a better tacti than we gave her credit for…” I muttered, as we ran deeper into unknown nds, desperate to escape…

  ***

  Putting Shaeu dowly, I then colpsed to my knees, spent. I had finally mao shake our pursuers, though some of that was by luring them into areas where other beings held trol. Yeah, seeing a dozen Orcs simply … ed… by some massive toothy octopus-type thing was not high on my wish list to experience…

  She was looking flushed, and her leg was slick with blood. “Does it hurt? Sorry, let me take a look.” I reached over and pulled up her yukata, getting a yelp in response.

  “No time for modesty, you’re hurt.” I chided, gently feeling around the wound. Luckily the nail had missed bone, going straight through her flesh, but it was ugly, skin and muscle caved in and clotted with blood. How the tables have turned. It reminds me a little of Inuyama…

  Ripping the sleeves off my shirt, I used them to wipe away the filth, before shredding the rest of my upper clothing to make bandages. I worked as gently as I could, but even so, she was still in pain, fling at my touch. I used Ether Healing to trickle in energy, accelerating the recovery of her wound, and while I felt resistance doing this, the makeup of her body strahe angry infmmation around the edges of the hole diminished, and she started breathing easier.

  “My thanks, Akio. I was careless. That female, I shall make-make her pay in kind for this grave-grave insult.”

  “Yeah. I didn’t expect her to have a hidden army. Those beetles are dangerous. Individually they aren’t a pat your Kamaitachi, but in a big group… yeah, any assault we make is going to have to sist of our elites only. Otherwise we’ll just be getting them killed for no gain.”

  “However…” Shaeu forced a grie the still lingering pain she felt. “… we have achieved our objective, have we not-not?”

  I nodded. “That we did. There are a few bnks in the map of their defences we are missing, but in general we have aveo attack, as well as disc one of their weakhe shrine. If we take that…”

  “… then they will likely lose-lose the siege beetles and those hideous beetle-men.” she finished for me.

  “Good girl.” I patted her head gently. “All right the on.” I tapped my back, and she looked at me, fused.

  “You ’t walk back, you? So it’s a piggyback ride all the way to our Territory. e on, don’t be shy.”

  She looked away for a moment, before nodding and holding out her arms. I let loose a chuckle, before pig her up aing her on my back. As she snaked her arms around me, I could feel her amber hair tig me, her breath hot on my face. I still don’t knoe breathe here. One day I’d like to find out if we eveo, but I guess old habits die hard, maybe?

  “Master, are we going?” she asked, and I realised I had been lost in thought over stupid things again.

  “We sure are, so hold on tight.” My own hands were under her thighs, and I realised it was rather immodest, but… What I do? It’s my fault she got injured, I should have protected her better…

  “All right then, off we go!”