The next morning…
Dantalion, looking at Atsuko--seemingly in the same state as last night--asked.
"You did not sleep, did you?"
Atsuko nodded, though she did not look like she lacked energy; she indeed had not slept yet.
Nodding as a response, she said, "...I couldn't sleep at all, so I decided to play, thinking it would help me fall asleep."
But she did not fall asleep at all.
Atsuko was so immersed in the game that, if not for the warning that she had been playing for 8 hours and that it was about to run out of energy, she wouldn't have realized it was already the next day.
She would crash sooner or later.
---
After breakfast.
Dantalion put on his earbuds first thing before doing anything else.
Then, after supplying energy to them, he asked Sara which one they would do first.
The music on his earbuds started playing.
"Clearing the Tatarigami would make the rest convenient. Following that would be forming a search party and investigating what happened to the Kanjou Commission soldiers, along with the suspiciously missing village head."
It was not a lot of work; she simply had to personally go to the seals of the Tatarigami to have Dantalion fully absorb it once and for all.
The rest could be dealt with by her subordinates.
Atsuko, hearing all of this--and perhaps because of the strain of her all-night gaming--was bolder than usual.
Raising her hand like a dutiful student, she expressed her thoughts. "We wouldn't have to worry about the rebels…?"
Kujou Sara didn't mind it; it was a casual setting, after all.
"Yes. The Watatsumi Soldiers will remain where they are for the moment. The alternative is to be crushed by the Shogunate completely--which they would be, as you know, given they are at their weakest."
Though Atsuko wanted to ask more--like, wouldn't that just give them time to get back on their feet? Why not destroy them now and finish it all?--she couldn't bring herself to ask further. While it was a casual setting, the General was still the General, and she was still just Atsuko.
However, considering who Kujou Sara was, she had probably already taken it into account.
Through self-convincing, Atsuko had successfully provided a satisfactory answer to her own question.
"As was included in the written recounting and confirmed by the villagers, the suspicion of the Kanjou Soldiers is not unfounded. It would be better if you confirmed it yourself after handling the Tatarigami, to resolve it sooner than the days it would take for your subordinates to travel back and forth from here." Dantalion suggested.
It would take a few minutes at most for Kujou Sara to complete.
No need to delay it when it could simply be done right away.
"I will tell you the location of that village chief later."
Though what Kujou Sara heard from Dantalion was reasonable and contained no real holes to poke at, she could not help but have a suspicion.
"You already investigated it on your own. It would be more efficient if you just told me everything that happened."
Dantalion just probably wanted her to go there physically.
She did not know yet what the reason might be.
Nevertheless, Kujou Sara was certain that the closer something was physically to her, the stronger the effects of Dantalion's abilities would be, with her as the center.
It was only logical to think so.
The farther something was, the harder it was to control--that was how all abilities worked.
Or at least, that was how all manipulation-based abilities worked.
'Perhaps one of the reasons he created those poles--besides their initial purpose--was because he originally lacked the means to conjure a "fired and forgotten" projectile?'
Essentially the same reason as to why she herself practiced the bow despite being a swordswoman.
She, too, could only affect a certain range; outside of that range is for the electrocharged bow to handle.
Though he could extend that range by some means, she was not sure how far.
She could see that Dantalion had not hidden anything regarding it.
Just as he had said to her before--
He truly had not hidden anything.
"You trust my words enough to use them to judge the fate of another?"
"No…?"
Slowly, the epiphany from last night came back to her.
"You. Our conversation about Watatsumi during our venture to the Dark Sea…"
She paused; her clear implications would be enough to remind him.
"No need to describe it in-depth," Dantalion replied. "I remember every single exchange we've had since the first day we met."
"Mhm, that's disgusting--but have you planned all of this just so we could go to the 'Dark Sea' under Watatsumi?"
"That's a waste of effort. We can't even enter Enkanomiya even if we go to Watatsumi--why would I do something like that?" Dantalion denied it.
"Then how do you know we wouldn't be able to enter even if we went? You never mentioned this during that conversation."
"Because it wasn't relevant at the time since you had already refused to go."
"So--"
"Don't fucking start this. It's early in the morning." Dantalion interrupted her, as per usual.
Truly pathetic.
'A loser activity.' She thought.
Nonetheless, she was also aware that he had already lost interest in it after he suggested going to Liyue.
'No, perhaps he just used Liyue to hide his intent to--'
"No, it is not that deep."
Kujou Sara responded only with a gesture. I have my eyes on you.
Any actions that might sully the land of Her Excellency, the Almighty Narukami Ogosho, God of Thunder, would not be tolerated.
"I am literally inside you. What actions would I even be able to take without you seeing it?"
"The ones you do not want Her Excellency, the Almighty Narukami Ogosho, God of Thunder, to see."
"That's contradictory--you're doubting that the Almighty Narukami Ogosho has the means to see."
"That's impossible. Everything is seen by Her Excellency, the Almighty Narukami Ogosho, God of Thunder."
It would seem she did not care much, as long as it did not affect or disrespect the Raiden Shogun.
Did she simply want an excuse for a small talk?
Maybe not, originally.
But after sleeping on it and concluding it was of no consequence, it had resulted in this.
Still, as much as she found the feeling of being unknowingly led horrible, there was nothing she could really do about it.
So the only thing she could do was let him know that she knew what he was doing.
Atsuko, listening to the exchange, simply fell asleep in her seat.
---
"It would be a pity if the Kitain Clan left no descendants. They might have possessed some trait unique to them if they were trusted by the Raiden Shogun to look after the wards."
Dantalion said this as he watched Kujou Sara mark the locations of the wards she had found during her scouting.
They were actually beside one right now.
This would be the first to be dealt with "permanently."
Not by destroying the wards—nor the Tatarigami itself—but by removing what they contained entirely.
The Tatarigami was not something that could be erased to begin with. It was the lingering will and resentment of a fallen god—something that could only be sealed, dispersed, or contained.
And in the case of how Inazuma uses it, as power used to run the Mikage Furnace, and the other uses linked to it.
The wards merely served as anchors. As long as they remained, so too did the risk that they could be tampered with and release everything at once.
What Kujou Sara meant by "permanent" was not the removal of the Tatarigami's existence, but the end of that risk. By stripping the wards of what they held and placing them somewhere that could not be so easily disturbed, the cycle of sealing and unsealing would end here.
It could even impact the efficiency of the Mikage Furnace, destabilizing it.
Still, that would be the case even if no one tampered with the wards.
But as was exactly what happened, they were tampered with, resulting in the release of the curse.
This removal was to ensure a situation like this would never happen again.
And also… Sara was not aware of anyone else capable of absorbing the corrupted remains of gods other than Dantalion.
Now that the chance had presented itself, it would be foolish not to take it.
The circumstances just happened to be the most convenient.
"They are gone (Kitain Clan). That is why these must be dealt with permanently."
With no one to guard them, it was simply asking for another catastrophe to occur.
From what she had gathered from the Onmyoujis, the Kitain Clan had likely succumbed to the curse themselves long ago--which was how the Orobashi Fanatics had managed to fully unseal it today without any difficulty.
Though Her Excellency, the Almighty Narukami Ogosho, God of Thunder, had sealed the Tatarigami--freeing Yashiori Island from the curse of the slain god--it did not save those in the vicinity of the wards.
Just as with manipulation-based abilities, where proximity meant greater strength, both followed the same principle.
Marking the path she would take by flight to each ward, she jotted down numbers on the map she had just drawn for this sole purpose.
Starting from the altar they were at.
Dantalion let out a small, short chuckle.
He was fully aware that Kujou Sara intended to repurpose the Tatarigami absorbed by him to power the city.
But why not direct it somewhere the Tatarigami Energy was already in use--like the Mikage Furnace?
If it were used like that, though tempting to think it beneficial, there was a problem.
The Mikage Furnace is already unstable.
Especially due to the high saturation of Tatarigami Energy caused by the unsealing of the wards--pouring in more unstable raw Tatarigami would simply cause the entire machine to collapse, potentially causing unsolvable problems in the future.
It was a technology built with the help of experts from Fontaine 400 years ago, and later modified by Alice before the Shogunate's war with the Watatsumi Army, while being accompanied by Kagami Gozen, the leader of the Mikage Furnace workers.
Before Alice's improvements, the Mikage Furnace relied solely on the power drawn from the wards, with those wards acting as a kind of regulator for a stable flow of energy.
But it was inefficient--it drew from all the wards simultaneously, with no way to slow the flow.
Because of the high output, the risk of a potential explosion was always present.
After the modification, the efficiency with which it drew and used energy was greatly improved. At moderate intensity, the Furnace would only draw from a single ward at a time.
But due to that change--since efficiency and resilience often involve a trade-off--now that it was modified for maximum efficiency, it had most likely lowered its tolerance for unexpected overloads. This was evidently what had occurred during the war.
Perhaps that was also the reason the Witch Alice had previously improved the Mikage Furnace's containment dome alongside it--to prevent a potentially larger explosion.
By increasing efficiency and limiting the draw, it ultimately enhanced its safety.
Though Alice was no longer in Inazuma--making it impossible to consult her--it would be safer to conclude that this was the current limit of the Mikage Furnace.
For now, at least.
If the Inazuman and Fontainian engineers commissioned by Tenryou today managed to produce innovations--just as in the past--then that evaluation would naturally change.
As long as Dantalion and Kujou Sara left a single ward untouched and properly sealed away, the rest of the energy that the Mikage Furnace might require could be compensated with Crystal Marrows — affecting the ore's rarity and increasing its value as a result.
But the original intent would still proceed as planned: repurposing the Tatarigami absorbed by Dantalion to power the city.
'Should we commission more…?' Kujou Sara thought, considering the workload of researching and recreating Dantalion's vehicles and technology, the number of--
Of course, it would be a long time before this energy could be of any use, as the machines needed to harness it had yet to be created.
If, during their trip to Liyue, the adeptus Dantalion spoke of agreeing to stay in Inazuma for a time to assist with these innovations, then being led to this situation seemed not such a bad trade after all.
To summarize it, what Kujou Sara meant by "permanently" removing was the effects of the Tatarigami on the island--not the Tatarigami itself.
"Is something funny to you?" Kujou Sara retorted sharply.
"Yeah."
She responded only by halting what she was doing and looking at him--waiting for him to continue.
Conveyance: Are you going to elaborate?
"No." He answered, laughing as he said it.
Though she felt a sense of unease from the way he was acting--as though he was watching something very, very entertaining--she ignored it for now.
Kujou Sara's thoughts on the whole matter concerning what other use the Tatarigami potentially has, obviously contradicted what the Raiden Shogun desired.
She decided to look around first, taking a deep breath and stretching for a few seconds.
Folding the map and tucking it back into her pocket.
With the locations already memorized, there was nothing left to do but go.
She leaped--launching herself upward with sheer strength, then manipulating the wind to propel her launch further.
Once reaching a certain height, without even unfurling her wings, she used the wind to propel herself again.
It was just like how Dantalion had used the wind during their venture to the Dark Sea.
The only downside was the noise it created.
BOOM
BOOM
BOOM
BOOM
BOOM
BOOM
BOOM
BOOM
---
The booming resounded as Kujou Sara proceeded to the next ward.
What would become of Kujou Sara if she brought uncontrolled change upon Inazuma?
He had no hand in this--this was all hers.
From this very moment, and stretching back to when he first gave her the means of easier communication, the radio.
The Radio--followed by small convenience-wise "artifacts," with the truck and weapons joining later--Kujou Sara had been consistently pushing Inazuma forward.
It was not that Kujou Sara rejected Ei's ideal of Eternity.
It was simply that Kujou Sara moved in accordance with her own understanding of it.
She was not consciously trying to modernize Inazuma--but her commitment to duty naturally pushed her toward innovation when it served the Shogun's will better.
But these were not uncontrolled changes.
Evidently, with the creation of the Mikage Furnace 400 years ago--during the time when the Raiden Shogun puppet was already enforcing her ideal--Ei did not seem to micro-manage every technological improvement, so long as it did not bring societal upheaval.
Innovation did continue under her reign, as long as it didn't alter the social or philosophical balance of Inazuma.
Though extremely slow compared to other nations, it had progressed compared to 500 years ago.
By "extremely slow," it means the kind of progress one might describe as going from blunt sticks to sharp pointed sticks.
In fact, besides the Mikage Furnace and the controlled use of Tatarigami energy, technological progress had been essentially negligible.
But progress is progress, no matter how small.
With Kujou Sara's actions up to now, she appeared to be operating in the gray area that Ei--or the puppet--would consider acceptable.
If Sara were to mass-produce all of the "artifacts" she received from Dantalion, she would absolutely be in trouble.
Whether Kujou Sara understood that was not something Dantalion concerned himself with.
Sara's safety was something he had secured during their talk.
Kujou Sara's role as the gate--and only connection to the world--was important to him.
With no guarantees as to what would happen to him if Kujou Sara were to die, it was only logical to ensure her protection.
Back to the question.
What would become of Kujou Sara if she brought uncontrolled change upon Inazuma?
Dantalion did not mean what Ei or the puppet would do.
He meant what would be left of Kujou Sara herself.
With thoughts like: "Her Excellency once sealed this god's wrath to protect the people. Now I ensure it can never rise again--by binding it into service for those same people."
Her entire life could essentially be summed up in that.
'How to say this…'
Dantalion's annoyance--as often mentioned before, with Ei being unreachable--was similar to the annoyance one feels when a mosquito keeps circling near one's face.
"Instead of using this as you planned, how about using it to strengthen yourself?"
Dantalion suggested as he absorbed the Tatarigami, emptying the ward of everything it contained and all that lingered in the air.
"No one would benefit from me becoming more powerful."
No one in the entirety of Inazuma posed a hopeless threat to her--save for Dantalion.
While some would give her trouble--as said before, not a hopeless threat.
Using the Tatarigami as a power station seemed more practical.
---
-Chapter End-
-Can we get this fic to at least have 10 reviews? I will release 5 Chapters at once if/when we hit that number. Webnovel doesn't show the ratings unless there are at least 10 reviews.