novelraw Chapter 208-1: The Evil God, Golden Roc Raptor Claw (1)
Chapter 208-1: The Evil God, Golden Roc Raptor Claw (1)
[Letter from Murasakiyo (Document)]
[…]
[Master, I wonder if your health has improved lately.]
[You really don’t need to keep worrying about me. Everything here at the shrine is fine. The monotonous life repeats day after day, cleaning the statues, performing kagura dances, that sort of thing.]
[After all these years, I still feel constrained by the white and scarlet robes of a miko, they’re nowhere near as convenient as ninja garb. Even the ritual implements used by mikos, I still haven’t grown used to them.]
[But it’s not all bad news… With your guidance through your letters, I’ve finally grasped the ultimate technique of the great naginata. My swings now flow as smoothly as water, without a single hitch.]
[Oh, there’s one more thing I almost forgot to mention, I’ve been promoted again. For some reason, the high priest appointed me as a full miko, surpassing all the others. Even though I have little interest in ritual implements like the kagura bells or the hinoki fan, and my use of them is worse than theirs…]
[Becoming a full miko is an enormous responsibility. Giving such an important role to someone like me, an ‘outsider’ miko, doesn’t feel like a very sound decision… Of course, saying this doesn’t mean I question the high priest’s judgment.]
[Well, Master, that’s enough rambling for now. Remember to take your medicine on time and take care of yourself.]
[…][You stared at the letter in your hand, feeling that something was odd.]
[The tone was unmistakably that of Tsukishiro Murasakiyo herself. The strange part wasn’t that, but rather the paper.]
[You recalled your master had once taught you a secret technique: soaking paper in a special solution could conceal the writing upon it. This letter’s paper appeared to have undergone that very process.]
[You approached the shrine, carefully holding the letter near the candle flame.]
[In an instant, the writing began to change.]
[The elegant black ink vanished, replaced by a line of blood-red scrawl…]
Master! Help me! They mean to offer me to the Evil God as a wife…
[The characters were crooked and incomplete, showing how desperate the writer had been.]
[As you stared at the blood-red words, your heart twisted in shock and pain. You had believed Senior Sister Murasakiyo was living in peace at the shrine, never imagining she was in such dire straits, waiting for you to save her.]
[The No-Illusions Shrine, outwardly devoted to the true gods, had secretly pledged itself to the Evil God, becoming a den of heretics…]
[No wonder your master, who had not left the island for years, had suddenly departed yesterday, claiming he needed to clear his head. You knew full well, though your master was powerful, he had long been afflicted by a grave illness and had been quietly recuperating on the island. This sudden trip would only worsen his condition.]
[You could hardly stop yourself from leaping aboard a ship that instant, bound for Sakura Falls to storm the No-Illusions Shrine and rescue your senior sister…]
Lin Xun’s eyes widened.
“Is this a hidden quest?”
He could almost hear a crisp ‘ding,’ as if a golden pop-up had just appeared before him.
From the text, it was clear that the No-Illusions Shrine’s senior clergy had secretly turned to the Evil God and intended to offer the miko Tsukishiro Murasakiyo as the Evil God’s bride… or perhaps breeding stock?
In earlier gameplay, the little dragonkin shell had been labeled a demonic pawn, suggesting that the Evil God was somehow related to the world’s dragonkind.
“Not bad, just entered the new chapter and already ran into a hidden quest, and even got a lead on the dragon race.”
Lin Xun turned to the second item, the map.
[Hidden Hut in the Rear Mountain of Tisi Island (Map): A blank sheet recording the location of a secluded hut in the rear mountain of Tisi Island. With this map in your possession, you can follow its guidance to reach the marked place.]
“The rear mountain definitely has something good!”
He immediately decided to go investigate.
[You left the abandoned ninja dojo and set out toward the rear mountain of Tisi Island, guided by the map…]
[…]
[The low slopes of the rear mountain were thick with undergrowth, with no sign of people. You remembered your master’s warnings and had never set foot in this mysterious place.]
[Brandishing your ninja sword, you hacked away the bushes and branches, clearing a path up the mountain.]
[…]
[After a long climb, you finally reached the mountainside. Following the map, you found a dilapidated hut hidden among the dense trees.]
[Outside the hut stood a weathered stone stele, plastered with countless yellow ofuda charms.]
[You started toward the hut, only to be stopped by an invisible wall.]
[Your heart skipped a beat. You realized this was a barrier set by an onmyoji. The power of the barrier flowed from the stele and the charms affixed to it.]
[You recalled that your master had many powerful friends, this in itself wasn’t surprising. But you hadn’t expected that your master was even acquainted with exalted onmyoji…]
[Breaking such a barrier required ninja arts of Jonin rank, you had never learned them. But you knew there were only a few legitimate ways to enter: carrying a specific object or bearing a particular aura.]
[You tried circulating the Heartless Flow Ninjutsu, spreading Qi throughout your body, and stepped forward again…]
[You felt as if you were pushing through a curtain of water, then passed safely into the barrier.]
[Approaching the stele, you tried pulling off one of the charms. The crimson script on the yellow paper instantly dimmed and faded.]
[You obtained Unknown Ofuda Charm (Junk).]
Lin Xun opened the inventory to inspect it.
[Unknown Ofuda Charm (Junk): A talisman drawn by a powerful onmyoji to maintain a barrier. The barrier itself is so strong that brute force cannot break it. But once removed from within the barrier, the charm loses its special power and becomes nothing but waste paper.]
“Onmyoji… Could this be the mage profession of this chapter?”
Lin Xun had only just begun to explore this chapter, yet already he had learned of numerous professions, ninjas, samurai, miko, onmyoji, and so on.
He reckoned that he would encounter even more professions later in the story, making this chapter a true treasure trove for his soul talent, Thousand Faces, Ten Thousand Forms.
[You pushed open the hut’s wooden door. Inside, everything was covered in dust and cobwebs. On the floor was a trail of clear footprints, very fresh, left not long ago.]
[Years of ninja training allowed you to instantly judge the height and build of the footprint’s owner. In your mind appeared the figure of your master, wearing a bamboo hat, stooped and short, always coughing.]
[You stepped forward and saw a sword rack set up in the hut, but it was completely empty. The blade that belonged there had vanished.]