Interlude 13 – The Samurai Hero and The Last Hope.

Interlude 13 – The Samurai Hero and The Last Hope.

"Here I come, Lady Amakusa!" An older man in knight's armor called out as he swiftly moved towards a young woman, blade at the ready. “Prepare yourself, and don't think it will be as easy for you this time!”

"Very well. Let's see just how much you've improved, Albert." The young woman smiled as she drew her blade and readied herself for battle. She seemed to be young, not even twenty years old, and her red flower-patterned Kimomo, black hair, and slanted eyes made her stand out from the people that were that were watching the duel. In her hands was a silver katana, and from her stance, it was clear she was far more skilled than her youthful appearance would lead one to believe.

*CLANG* *CLANG* *CLANG* *CLANG*

The two warriors clashed in the middle of the training area, exchanging blows evenly as they danced back and forth across the dirt. It was a relatively even match at first, but it quickly became apparent that Amakusa had the upper hand in every conceivable way.

"You're as resilient as always, Albert." Amakusa laughed as she deftly avoided one of his strikes. “I can tell that you've improved since the last time we clashed blades.” She grinned as she locked blades with him.

"Though no matter how much stronger I get, you're always still one step ahead of me, Lady Amakusa!" Albert smiled as the two continued their duel.

The pair continued their sparring match for a while, until Albert was finally forced to admit defeat. In one swift motion, Amakusa easily got within his guard and placed the tip of her blade at his throat, forcing the older man to surrender.

{Not bad, not bad at all. But you've still got a ways to go if you want to force me to get serious, old man.} (Amakusa)

"Excellent work, Albert. It's amazing that a man who's nearly eighty years old can move like that." Amakusa laughed as she sheathed her blade. “You are always a worthy and fun sparring partner.” She'd dueled with him many times over the years since she'd arrived in this world, and it was always enjoyable.

"I simply look after my body is all!" He rapped on his chest plate and gave a hearty laugh. "I've got a duty to Princess Feline as her head knight, and I can't allow myself to slow down when I'm so young!

{I don't think pushing eighty is 'young', but I guess in this world, it is. I suppose that's what magic does to a person. Hell I don't look any older than I did ten years ago...} (Amakusa)

*CLAP* *CLAP* *CLAP*

As they were discussing their techniques and how Albert managed to improve since their last match, they were interrupted by someone approaching them and clapping. "That was an excellent match, both of you." Both fighters turned and noticed that a woman with strawberry blonde hair wearing a beautiful blue dress was approaching them from the walkway.

"I'm glad you thought so, Your Highness." Albert gave a polite bow. “Though Lady Amakusa has managed to best me once again. Please forgive me for being such a failure.”

“I'd never think of you as a failure, Albert.” Princess Feline chuckled as she walked over.

"He's getting old, but he puts up a good fight. He reminds me of my Dad in that respect." Amakusa smiled. Her father was her mentor and trainer and helped mold her into the warrior she was today. "But I didn't think you'd come to watch us, Feline.” She would do so from time to time, but it had been a while since she'd come to watch Amakusa fight.

"I was passing by the training area on my way back from a meeting with some members of the Church when I saw people gathered around here, so I thought I'd pop in and see what was going on." Feline smiled. "But this works out perfectly, as I needed to speak with you." She turned to Amakusa who could tell that it was something important, as the two only rarely spoke anymore. "Could you please come with me to my office? I would like to speak with you in private. If you don't mind."

From the look in her eyes, Amakusa could tell that whatever was going on was trouble, and while she didn't really want to get involved, it was for the best that she heard Feline out.

“I don't mind, sure.” Amakusa nodded, and after seeing off Albert, the two women walked across the Royal Palace grounds toward the Princess's office. Despite not being the heir to the throne, Princess Feline was regarded quite highly in the Kingdom of Amdamell. As the Holy Princess who summoned her Kingdom's hero, she held quite a bit more authority than one would expect, and there were even those who wished her to take the throne.

The two traveled together in silence, not speaking to one another the entire trip. As they passed place staff or other guests they greeted them appropriately, but Amakusa intentionally avoided speaking directly to Feline the entire time. Once they entered her office, Princess Feline offered Amakusa some tea, and it was only then that the two spoke to each other.

"Let me get this out of the way first. I'm sorry in advance for breaking our promise, and I know that I swore to you that once the Spirits were defeated I'd never ask you for anything ever again." Feline's face showed sorrow and a bit of irritation. The relationship between her Kingdom and Amakusa was not a happy one, and she feared it was completely tainted by past events. "But please hear me out. I wouldn't approach you like this for no reason."

Amakusa glared at her while she sipped her tea. She got along well enough with Feline well enough, but the events of the war, combined with a betrayal by the upper echelons of the Kingdom had left a bitter taste in her mouth. As a result, she'd begun to have doubts about the Church and the gods who brought her to this world, not to mention she'd almost entirely lost the ability to trust anyone within the Palace, including her once best friend Feline.

“Out of consideration for our former friendship, I'll listen to you. But I hope whatever you've got going on is enough to go breaking that promise. You know better than anyone else just how thin the ice you're walking on is.” Amakusa spoke frankly and made her displeasure known. In the past she and Feline had been good friends, and while she did not hate the Princess, she still found herself unable to fully trust her after the events that had transpired.

"I just finished speaking with High Priest Lauralmen and he informed me that the gods have another mission for you..." Feline explained the situation, her words falling off as she reached the end. She hated the fact that her once close friend no longer trusted her, and was angry at the Church and her Father for allowing things to deteriorate to this level.

{To think that we would treat one of the Heroes that saved this world so poorly, and to go behind her back in the manner that we did... It angers me to no end that her relationship with me was damaged because of what other foolish people did. Its a miracle that she's even stayed within the Kingdom for as long as she did, and I'm honestly surprised nobody had turned up dead.} (Feline)

"And what do they want of me?" Amakusa had little interest in helping the gods more, but she knew it would be best to at least hear her out.

"Please remember that I will always be your friend, Shiroe." Feline used her first name, something that she hadn't done since Amakusa told her their friendship was over. "Even if you don't see me that way anymore, and even if you stop being this Kingdom's Hero... Know that I'll always be here for you..." Her words were laced with all sorts of emotions, as if she was holding in a torrent of thoughts.

{I'm so sorry for what they did... I'll... I'll find a way to make this right, if its the last thing I do...} (Feline)

"I know, Feline. Thank you... for everything..." Amakusa smiled as she walked out of the office, leaving Feline alone with her thoughts.

"Pffffff." Feline let out a deep breath as she slunk back into her chair. This encounter took more out of her than she expected, and she could feel a headache coming on. "I don't have much time. I need to find that girl soon, or I fear that Shiroe will never trust any of us ever again..."

{The only problem is... I think the place they sent her... Might only make things worse if Shiroe finds out...} (Feline)

_____________________________________________________________________________

<Halifax POV>

*WOOSH*

A quick burst of magical energy appeared on a hilltop overlooking Kyoto, it was intense but swift, and was gone in only a matter of moments and leaving behind a few toppled over trees.

"Ugh..." Halifax stumbled forward before falling onto the ground, dizzy. "I think I'm gonna hurl..." After taking a moment to catch her breath, and letting her stomach calm down, she stood up and looked around the forest.

"Well, I guess that means it worked." Halifax commented as she stood up.

{Odd, I feel no magical energy in the surrounding environment. Did I transport into a dead zone?} She flexed her arm before snapping her fingers and casting a small flame spell in her hand. {I can still cast magic, but it seems to be drawn solely from my innate reserves rather from the surrounding environment. It is still recovering, albeit much slower than normal. Strange...}

"Before I get side tracked, I need to figure out where I am and if there is anyone around." Halifax set off into the woods, hoping to get her bearings. She had no idea where she was, but figured she'd find a road or something eventually.

{I should conceal my presence before I go any further. The people of this world might be hostile, and I don't want to be caught off guard if someone detected my appearance.} Halifax repressed her magical aura making her harder to detect. There was still a bit of a signal, but it was weak enough that most couldn't pick it up.

As she trudged through the forest, she was greeted by several different kinds of wildlife, ranging from deer, to birds and even a bear. All of which quickly fled as soon as they caught sight of her, likely sensing that she was dangerous. After walking for what felt like hours, Halifax eventually came across a windy mountain road, and figured it wouldn't be long until she found other people.

"Finally." She slowly descended through the tree line, toward the road. "I've never seen a road that looked this nice, but I guess that means there are people around here." As Halifax got down to the bottom and put her foot on the asphalt road, she was startled as a car flew by, and she jumped backward in a panic.

{What the hell was that?!?} Halifax was stunned by its speed and size.

"Was that a carriage? It had no horse, and it looked kinda funny." Halifax looked up and down the road, but no other cars came. "I guess that means I'm close to a-" Her eyes went wide and her words stopped as her gaze finally turned to Kyoto itself, which was visible from this particular spot on the mountainside.

"Wha-What?!?" Halifax rushed across the road to get a better look, leaning on the guard rail. "That's a massive city! Even the Imperial Capital isn't this huge!" She was shocked. In all her years, Halifax'd never seen a city this large.

{Just what kind of world is this if they have cities that massive?!? And how am I supposed to find someone to help in a place like that!?} (Halifax)

Spoiler

Shiroe Amakusa!

Feline Amdamell!

Unrelated but I wanted to share!

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