Act Two: The Audience, Part Four

It's a very spacious room. Although, from our perspective...

...it's difficult to say where the hallway ends and the room begins...

Right. The only partitions here are those incredibly flimsy sliding doors, and they are certainly not proper walls!

I do not know how one would go about keeping research results safe with a floor plan like this. I find Japanese architecture fascinating, but also incomprehensible.

All that aside, this does look like it's a special room.

I'm sure this doesn't need to be said, but just to be clear, the original Ooku didn't have any rooms like this. Who does this culprit think they are, changing it around any which way they

Hm? Who goes there!?

I have to ask that you let me handle this, Lady Kasuga-no-Tsubone. I think she's an acquaintance of mine.

...I guess I am. Long time no see, Pārvatī. Don't worry, you're still welcome here, no matter how much I hate you.

Praise be to our stupid reunion. Joy to these ridiculous salutations. Hehe.

It seems like both of us have seen better days, doesn't it?

Yes, she is. I'm just as shocked as you are. I never thought she would be using the same human for an avatar as I am.

No, she's the exact same person. Our bodies may be different ages, but that doesn't really mean anything to us.

I'm only choosing to look this age because it feels right to me.

At any rate, I'm just as shocked as you are. I never thought she would be using the same human for an avatar as I am.

？！

There must be a long story behind how she got like this. She must have left a very checkered fate on the world, too.

You had already taken the half that was in sunlight, so the other shadowy half was still up for grabs.

It's wonderful how you ignored such a glorious fateful connection. I have to commend you for that. Ah, if only...

...you would hurry up and die already. Just looking at myself all filled with light like that makes me sick.

This reading... There is no mistaking it! She is a Divine Spirit Pseudo-Servant!

And on top of that, the fact that she knows Pārvatī must mean she is from the Indian pantheon...

That's right. She's a Divine Spirit, and her name is Kama!

Kama, also known as Kamadeva! The Indian god of love who wields the bow and arrow of lust!

That's me. Do you know what my most famous story is?

The one where I end up in a world of pain thanks to a certain romance-addled goddess?

Ulp. I, uh, I guess I can't blame you for being upset about that...

Even if it was my husband who did it, I'm still terribly sorry about what happened to you...

A-at any rate!

What are you doing here!? Do you have something to do with what's happened to the Ooku?

Ugh, another boring question. But I guess that's just my lot in life, given what kind of god I am.

Fine. The Ooku is a den of lust and decadence where women compete to see who can best win the king's...favor.

Do you really have to ask how a god of love could have something to do with it changing into something that better represents its lascivious nature?

Y-you have the entirely wrong idea about it too! The Ooku couldn't possibly be further from a lascivious den of

S-sorry, Tsubone! You have every right to be angry, but please save the lecture for later!

Hm? Ah, now I see. Well, that's okay.

If you want to help yourself to any other weak, pointless, insignificant leftovers, it's no skin off my nose.

I'd sooner die than be reduced to living inside Pārvatī myself, but hey, you do you.

Anyway, now that I think about it, I've decided I'll properly answer your question after all.

Of course I'm involved with this Ooku. It's mine now. Can't you tell I made it myself?

...!

I used a very special ingredient to knead it into just the right shape. I know you're still only on the first floor, but tell me, what do you think of it so far?

You really got off on it, didn't you?

No. I did not. At all.

...Those attendants may be lifeless puppets, but they're still good enough to make you forget Fusesshoukai, the commandment not to kill.

You should have known that it's okay to kill them. That you SHOULD kill them.

I was sure you would enjoy it.

How disappointing to know that you are either unwilling or unable to accept my gift.

Who are you, anyway? I can tell that you weren't on my guest list, but I don't know anything else about you.

Me? Why, I'm just an ordinary Servant. No more than a nameless nun of such insignificance as to be beneath your attention.

I am fortunate to be here now thanks to the contract Lord Fujimaru so kindly struck with me...

...but that could expire at any time, and I would vanish like so much stardust.

...Well, never mind the guest list. I don't like that you're here, but I can accept it all the same.

U-um, excuse me!

Did you really make this Ooku yourself? Because that would make you the source of this Singularity!

Does that mean you're also the one who lured everyone else from Chaldea here!?

？！

Oh, be quiet. You'll find all that out if you just shut up and keep moving.

That idiocy of yours is just wonderful. What a hassle.

All right, I suppose I can at least say this.

Everyone you think was taken from you belongs to me now. I control whether they live or die.

？！

What's that? You want to free them? Do I really have to spell out something so obvious for you? Wooow.

Of course you can free them if you can make it all the way to the Ooku's lowest floor. Theoretically, anyway.

That's why it doesn't matter what I say. You don't have any choice besides trying to make your way down.

So now, let me tell you about the welcome wagon I prepared for this room.

I guess you can't really get people going unless you destroy juuust the right thing, huh? How degenerate of you. Teehee.

I'm picking up a much bigger hostile reading than anything we've seen before! Be careful!

I'll be honest: I don't actually want to kill any of you.

All I want is for you to stay here in this Ooku...forever.

All I want is for you to get off over and over as you wander around this den of decadence and pleasure.

Then why are you having the attendants attack us? Heck, you're doing it right now!

(Siiigh) I guess you could say that's all part of the fun?

Hmm. Let's just say that you could end up dying if you don't stick to the routine they expect.

Don't worry, I'll take full responsibility if that happens. Even if it is a huge pain in the ass.

You're still not giving us a straight answer... Why do you even want to keep us wandering around this Ooku forever, anyway?

Don't you know nobody wants to date a woman who asks too many questions? Oh, wait, you think you're safe because you got married while you were still young and hot? Well, bully for you.

Anyway, why don't you all enjoy yourselves with this little beauty for now? I just came here to check up on you, so I won't be joining in the fun.

I mean, how would it look for the proprietor of a fine entertainment establishment to enjoy herself with her guests right when they walk in the door? Not that I really care about that.

Anyway, if you want to play with me that badly, you'll have to keep going deeper and deeper... Teehee, don't keep me waiting too long...

Kama! Get back here!

Ugh. It looks like we'll need to do something about this before we can keep going.

I find this all rather distasteful, but I suppose if there is no other way forward, then I have no choice.

(Sigh) It really is quite frustrating, having to do such backbreaking labor on behalf of someone else...

I suppose now I understand how those people who constantly go on about being averse manual labor must feel...

The hostile entities have been eliminated! But, I'm afraid

We let Kama get away. That's too bad... Huh?

Well now, what's this? It looks quite benign.

That's an inrou, a pillbox used as identification. And those three hollyhock leaves are the Tokugawa crest.

The attendant dolls you have been seeing here are a type of familiar that Kama put together.

Since that pillbox was inside of them, we should probably assume it was the catalyst used to create that ghostly attendant...

？！

What happened to the shogun... Everything he says sounds like utter nonsense to me...

Shh. You'll be finished if someone hears that... Along with the old dog-lover shogun himself...

You can't say things like that... The shogun cares more about dogs than he does about his people, after all...

It's all right. It's okay. You didn't do anything wrong. It's wonderful that you love animals so much.

You have nothing to worry about. Nothing to fret over.

I understand you. I'm the only one who does.

That's why I love you. I love how compassionate you are.

And I always, always will...

？！

Is something wrong, Master?

I see... You were just hearing voices?

I'm afraid we didn't hear anything ourselves, and there isn't anything in the log either...

？！

I hope you don't mind if I open it. Hmm. It looks like it's empty...

No, wait, there's something inscribed in it. I think it's the owner's name.

Tsunayoshi...?

There's an entry for that name in our database. It looks like...that was the name of the fifth Tokugawa shogun.

The fifth? But, the current shogun is the third Tokugawa, Lord Iemitsu.

Let me explain. To make a long story short, we members of the Indian goddess's entourage are all goddesses ourselves, so we happen to know a little bit about what happens in the future.

Tsunayoshi is Iemitsu's fourth son. Apparently, he goes by "Tokumatsu" as a child.

One of the shogun's children, you say!? Well, that's just wonderful!

That must mean that the Tokugawa family will continue to preserve peace in Japan in the future. That's the best news I've heard in years.

Now I can truly rest in peace!

Although... What's a pillbox belonging to a future shogun doing here?

Good question. But just because it has his name on it does not necessarily mean it belonged to him.

Let me take a closer look.

Hmm? This pillbox... There's something spiritual contained within it.

Furthermore, it is packaged in a way that limits its attributes. This may be a real find.

What do you mean?

I mean that we can easily use it for ourselves.

If we pair it with an output device, we should be able to have it manifest magecraft.

Specifically, we can install it in Fujimaru's Mystic Code...

...and use it to rearrange the Mystic Code's capabilities.

Are you sure that's safe?

It may have a particular inclination, but it is essentially nothing more than pure magical energy.

There is no sign that it has been tampered with, so I think we should be able to make effective use of it.

So, what do you think? It could give you more ways to tackle this Ooku expedition.

？！

Okay then, let's do it! It is human nature to try new things, after all!

All right, hang on while I figure out how to install it. I will tell you how to do so once I am done.

There we go! You did it perfectly! Just as I calculated!

Hehe. You're very good with your hands, aren't you, Lady Sion?

My area of expertise is the mind and spirit, so I am so very impressed.

This Ooku is positively bristling with traps, just like a puzzle box.

Anything that can help keep Master safe is wonderful in my book. Well done, truly!

All right then, what do you say we keep going?

Now that we know that girl is the one who turned my Ooku into...this, all we have to do is find her and defeat her!

I understand she's an acquaintance of yours, Lady Par, but she is still my enemy. I can't go easy on her even if I wanted to!

Don't worry about holding back on my behalf. I'm sure you've figured this out by now, but she isn't exactly fond of me.

I can't blame her for that, seeing as how what happened to her is Shiva's and my fault, but I do think Indra and the other gods deserve some blame for fanning the fla

I-I mean, never mind that!

No matter what she went through in her past, that doesn't give her the right to hurt innocent people who had nothing to do with it.

We can't let her get away with this.

I don't know what her true goal is, but we have to stop her if we're going to rescue everyone from both Edo Castle and Chaldea.

...Right.

Although, if she really does have everyone's lives in the palm of her hand, that's going to make things very difficult.

For the moment, I guess we do not have a choice but to take her at her word and make our way to the bottom floor.

She did say she wanted us to wander around this Ooku forever, so I'm sure the labyrinth is only going to become even harder to navigate from here on.

I'm sorry to ask you to take on such a difficult mission, Master, but...we're counting on you to rescue everyone.

？！

Hmm. All that said, there is still something bugging me about Kama.

Me too. But at least in regards to that, I don't think it will come up again soon. I just hope it isn't related...

...

Anyway, yes, we should get going. I'm sure we still have a very long road ahead of us, after all...