17.
17. Kokuyo—she's on my level, or maybe even surpasses me. Auntie, you really don't know your place....
It had been about two weeks since I arrived at the archduke's estate. It was one of those days when Lily was petting me affectionately, and my suppressed urge to kill was starting to bubble over—I was dying for a taste of blood.
"Nazuna, wanna come to the Academy with me?"
"Pardon...? The Academy?"
"Yeah, the one in the capital. It's the law for nobles like me under the Empire—we have to enroll. Technically, there's still a bit over a month till enrollment...."
The capital's Academy. That place was the main stage for this world, the game Souls of Bravery.
Located in Belleta, the capital of the Arvan Empire—the largest human nation in the south—it was where the Empire's young nobles typically studied. But exceptional commoners got a shot at enrollment too....
That was how the playable character, the "Hero" from commoner roots, enrolled and stumbled through chaotic adventures with their student comrades....
The core storyline of Souls of Bravery.
Among them were the Empire's Holy Church "Saintess" and the spirit swordmaster right in front of me, Lily. Well, if I went now, the Hero wouldn't be there yet. Lily was a year ahead of the Hero, after all.
Come to think of it, this was a full year before the game's main story kicked off.
I'd always planned to visit the Academy someday. Why? Like I said before... I wanted to slaughter every last one of those cheerful goody-two-shoes characters from Souls of Bravery.
Ahahat! All of them....
If their precious comrades started dropping dead one by one, unlike the original story... what faces would they make? Would they laugh like me? Or bawl their eyes out...?
Can't wait to find out... Fuhuhu.
"Nazuna, so whaddya think?"
"Oh, the Academy? If Master's cool with it, I'd love to go together.... But don't non-Empire nobles have to take the entrance exam?"
"Yeah, but... one servant of an Empire noble gets exempt. The curriculum's not exactly the same, though."
"Ah."
So I'd be heading to the Empire's Academy sooner than expected.... But the terms were pretty sweet. Exam exemption. Sure, if I took the ninja exam seriously, I'd pass no sweat—but flashing my "skills" during enrollment would draw eyes. Like the original "Hero"....
So slipping in using Lily's "connections" meant hiding my ninja "claws" and infiltrating from within. A ninja's dream deal.
"Th-then... I'd love to go with Master. Hehe...."
"Got it. We'll go together, then. Uhhehe~."
Besides, separating from Lily wasn't even an option. Before coming to the archduke's estate, before meeting her, I might've picked differently. Staying here alone would've let me prep to off her for sure.
While she was gone, quietly eliminate the obstacles... genjutsu the randos into puppets, set traps and all that jazz.... By the time Lily returned, it'd be a tiger's den, not a home.
Furinkazan—using terrain to your advantage is Ninja 101. I don't use it much, but I could if I wanted.
But that day she let me nap on her lap... let her guard down. I'd already passed up one solid chance to kill you.
What I want from you isn't some cheap, easy life, Lily. It's the most intense pleasure imaginable.
And that thrill... it'll only grow as you burrow deeper into me, getting bigger alongside it.
I don't wanna be apart from you, Lily... not until the day I kill you.
So....
"I'll stick with you all the way, Master!"
With those words, the Shinigami held back her murderous urge toward the woman before her once more. If she just endured... this woman stroking her head would one day deliver an exquisite ecstasy beyond compare—through death.
"Worried Kokuyo might botch the job."
"Kokuyo, ma'am? No way, Lady Kasumi.... You know her skills."
In a traditional Japanese-style wooden mansion, two fox beastkin shared this exchange.
One was Inari ninja Kasumi of the Morning Mist. Seated opposite, defending Kokuyo, was her apprentice—apprentice ninja Hisui.
Kasumi wasn't fretting over Kokuyo personally. Just the mission's success or failure.... A flop would tarnish all Inari ninjas. That was a nuisance—meiwaku. She hated nuisances.
"True, Kokuyo... her skills are exceptional. My equal, or beyond."
"......"
"Why the look?"
"N-no, ma'am."
Kasumi felt a twinge of irritation. The girl before her—Hisui—was eyeing her like she didn't know her place.
......
Kasumi knew it herself. Kokuyo's combat prowess had surpassed hers.
That's exactly why she worried about a screw-up.
"Do you grasp how that even qualifies as a ninja?"
"Strength, right?"
"Fool. Strength matters, but you think that's all it takes?"
"......?"
"Hisui, answer me this... If you had to kill someone precious to you, what would you do?"
"Say, an order from the chief?"
"Hypothetical's yours."
"Kill 'em. Even if the order feels off."
"Why?"
"Defy it, and it's a nuisance to everyone... No, bigger issue: my head rolls too. Bad for me."
"Hm......"
"If I can't handle it, chop 'em down, no matter how dear. Right call, I think."
Hisui's instant reply was, to Kasumi, the proper ninja answer.
Correct. Ninjas profit through killing.... No matter how precious, if it's a personal—or group—loss, sever it immediately.
Yet....
"But that girl couldn't make that choice. Despite her talent, she prioritized her treasures... tried to break herself."
"The Shinigami Kokuyo?"
"Yes... so I overwrote her with genjutsu—perception alteration. Instilled desire, ecstasy, pleasure in killing. Stronger the more precious the target."
"......"
"Turned a flawed ninja into a pleasure-killing demon... no big issue so far. But techniques are finite."
"No way...."
"Hate to admit it, but she's surpassed me. Such intricate genjutsu doesn't stick well to the stronger."
"But then it should've broken ages ago. From the moment I first saw Kokuyo, she was already stronger than you...."
"She clings to the genjutsu herself—that's why it holds. But limits are near... it's been over ten years since I cast it on her. Finite, like I said."
Yes, the Genjutsu: Perception Alteration Kasumi placed on Kokuyo would eventually break—that was its fate.
And soon.... If it did, even Kasumi couldn't predict the aftermath.
Like her name Kokuyo—black obsidian—she might shatter like glass. Her original nature was weak.
Crushed by the karma of her kills... go mad, or end herself.
Endless possibilities swirled in Kasumi's mind. If only outside this mission—nuisance avoided.
Failing a job was meiwaku for Inari ninjas, for Kasumi.
Off-duty suicide or madness? She wouldn't care. Though losing her strength would sting....
......
....Or, fitting her name, instead of shattering, her black blade might sharpen keener.
If so, that grudge-filled edge... would it turn on Kasumi herself?
Slurp. Kasumi sipped her tea, a faint aroma wafting to her lips.
"It's just nerves. Even if the genjutsu breaks... Kokuyo will accept her path as a ninja."
"If so, perfect."
But Kasumi doubted it'd go so smoothly. Just a hunch.
Perhaps a prophetic gift from Inari ancestors, like the fox spirit Tamamo-no-Mae.
That was all Kasumi thought.