Chronicle Legion:Volume 3 Chapter 5
Chapter 5 - Bloodlines of Sacred Princesses
Part 1
November 22nd, Saturday.
Akigase Rikka's succession to the post of Governor General had taken place exactly a week ago.
During this time, General Wei Qing had headed out to battle, Tōkaidō's elites had gathered at the Fuji tutelary fort, and even Rindou-sensei had arrived.
As for the "Vice-Commander of the Shinsengumi," Tachibana Masatsugu...
He ordered the Tōkaidō Chevaliers to attack Izu once a day.
This was the location of the Nagahama tutelary fort occupied by the Restoration Alliance. In the waters offshore of the Izu Peninsula, the British had three sister ships of the Tintagel on active duty.
Restoration Alliance Legions using that area as their base of operations were protecting the supply lines there.
Namely, the supply lines from Izu to Hakone over, sea, land, and air.
Attacking the three British vessels and the defending force occupying the Nagahama tutelary fort would affect Hakone's supply situation adversely.
For this purpose, Masatsugu had been sending hundreds of Kamuys to various parts of Izu day after day.
General Wei Qing, who was leading the Roman army, and the Kantō Fiefdom's Chevaliers were following the same strategy. Cooperating in surprising concerted attacks, they cleverly disrupted the Izu situation.
Not to be outdone, the Restoration Alliance summoned many Chevaliers to Izu to meet them in battle.
For the past week, both sides engaged in defense and offense every day.
As for today—
Masatsugu set off from the Fuji tutelary fort, but for a different purpose.
First of all, he traveled by car to the Yamanashi region under Tōkaidō jurisdiction. Then switching to helicopter at Yamanashi, he crossed the prefectural border on the east to enter Kanagawa—thus arriving at Odawarajou. Furthermore, he did not go alone.
The new and beautiful Governor General, the little sister, and the noble lady liege also accompanied him.
"During the Edo period, Hakone Checkpoint was established near Lake Ashi."
Akigase Rikka and Tachibana Hatsune were listening attentively to Shiori's history lesson.
"Back then, the checkpoint was roughly four Japanese leagues from Ogawarajou, which is equivalent to sixteen or seventeen kilometers."
"That's less than a day's walk on ordinary roads."
"In practice, this required ascending the precipitous mountain paths of old Tōkaidō, which was no easy task."
"Hakone Checkpoint was a fortress during the Edo period and an inspection point with strict controls over 'the entry of firearms and the exit of women.' In other words, women from daimyo households leaving Edo and the carrying of firearms into Edo."
The current mood was laid back and casual, but it was also true that they were currently gathered at a particularly private location in Odawarajou.
The three girls were at the massive water shrine underground of the tutelary fort—In the bath there.
The decor and architectural style was reminiscent of an ancient Roman bath. The ectoplasmic fluid vat filled with blue holy water was also built from marble, giving off a solemn atmosphere.
Completely naked, the girls were soaking in the artificial ectoplasmic fluid.
The battle to capture Hakone was imminent and they were in the process of resupplying.
As an imperial princess, Shiori had decided to participate in the battle anonymously. Hence, she was also immersing herself in ectoplasmic fluid to boost her mystic powers even though she was not a Chevalier.
Unintentionally, Shiori's thoughts drifted in a certain direction.
"So these two have gotten into intimate relationships with Masatsugu-sama too..."
"? Did you say something, Your Highness?"
"N-Not at all. Nothing of consequence, please pay it no mind."
Shiori had accidentally murmured to herself.
While deflecting Rikka's curiosity with a smile, she secretly pondered.
(Perhaps too much has happened between me and Masatsugu-sama...)
Inexplicably, Shiori felt very curious about the figures of the other two girls.
Akigase Rikka was slim and trim in build.
However, she was by no means bony. Voluptuous in all the right parts as befitted a woman, the line from her bust to her waist was exquisite, bulging out and curving in appropriately, and the beauty of her form was enough to incite jealousy from any woman in the world.
Comparing herself to Rikka's figure... Shiori was a bit disheartened.
The princess had started her growth spurt at the age of fourteen, but she was never a fan of exercise. Compared to a lady Chevalier who trained diligently in martial arts, she seemed too flabby—Bluntly stated, she felt a bit "too fat."
On the other hand, Tachibana Hatsune's maturation had exceeded Shiori, the lady she served.
Even dressing in a kimono could not hide her magnificent bust.
However, Hatsune was a member of the Tachibana clan, who prided themselves on strength, after all. Frequent rowdy incidents and martial training had kept her slim in all the right places. Overall, hers was a voluptuous and undulating figure brimming with feminine beauty.
Needless to say, Hatsune's figure was the more full-bodied type.
However, Shiori was worried that such volume would better suit a man's tastes. Previously, she had read a men's magazine on a whim and one article reported the prevailing world-view of "size matters, the bigger the better."
In addition, there was another worrying element.
Compared to Rikka and Hatsune, Fujinomiya Shiori's intermediate figure was merely "half-baked"—Would this make her insufficiently attractive?
(These thoughts are totally meaningless...)
Recently, Shiori found herself inexplicably bothered by such matters. She was worrying whether Fujinomiya Shiori was lacking in attractiveness compared to the women around her.
She had never faced similar troubles before.
(Why am I agonizing over this? From an objective standpoint, I am undoubtedly a young maiden possessing beauty far beyond average norms...)
Shiori knew on a rational level, but could not stop thinking about it. This was quite a conundrum.
They were about to attack Hakone and she forced herself to banish these thoughts.
At that moment, she noticed that the two other girls had spontaneously fallen silent. Everyone was contemplating, sneaking glances at one another's figure...
"B-By the way, Princess and Rikka-sama," Hatsune hastily spoke up, "That General Wei Qing we just saw earlier... He's pretty handsome."
"I would agree, but of course, he is just not my cup of tea."
Unexpectedly, Rikka joined in on this type of frivolous conversation.
Perhaps she wanted to dispel the current awkward atmosphere too. Presented with this chance opportunity, Shiori decided to take it up.
"His elder sister was a renowned beauty who became the beloved consort of Emperor Wu, whose reign marked the pinnacle of the Han Empire. Perhaps he bears quite a facial resemblance to his sister."
The beautiful Wei Zifu had rose from being the emperor's beloved concubine to official empress.
The Wei family were originally lowly commoners. Wei Zifu worked at the household of Princess Pingyang, Emperor Wu's elder sister, which was how she found the opportunity to catch the emperor's eye.
Hers would be the quintessential tale of rags to riches, and the same applied to her younger brother too.
"Living in the remote mountains of China, tending to sheep, this young man went to the capital and began working as a laborer in the imperial palace thanks to his sister's connections. After learning of this, Emperor Wu made him a general and gave him an army of ten thousand to command."
"T-Ten thousand troops for a newcomer right off the bat!?"
"Yes. First of all, he was the younger brother of the emperor's beloved consort. Additionally, it was because the enemy consisted of Xiongnu nomadic tribes."
Shiori smiled at the sight of Hatsune's look of astonishment.
"General Wei Qing grew up relatively close to the Xiongnu sphere of influence. Furthermore, he knew many nomadic 'colleagues' from his sheep herding days—In other words, he had quite a few Xiongnu acquaintances... This also meant that he knew the ways and customs of the enemy better than anyone else."
"But even with these reasons, isn't he being favored way too much?"
"Normally speaking, people like him would only meet a tragic end, such as leading the army of ten thousand to death or fleeing back to the capital in disgrace. Surprisingly, all the other generals were defeated by the Xiongnu, but only General Wei Qing returned in triumph."
"Meaning that the aforementioned handsome guy had inborn talent as a general, to an unbelievable degree, right?" Rikka was extremely impressed.
Shiori nodded and said, "Yes, General Wei Qing would continue to distinguish himself, accumulating victories against the Xiongnu, rising to the dual posts of Chief Defense Minister and Generalissimo. However, for better or worse, his personality was extremely reserved and low key, and he stayed out of the spotlight in the army and the imperial court. I suppose one could call him a courteous and modest gentleman who treated his subordinates with kindness..."
"Your mission is as I've just explained. Do you understand?"
"...Understood."
Masatsugu confirmed repeatedly and the other party shifted her gaze in response to him.
However, the reply was weak and lacking in confidence. It was hard to say that a dialogue had been established.
The one whom Masatsugu was talking to was precisely the "shy" genie, Sakuya.
Sakuya looked like a young black-haired girl dressed as a shrine maiden. They were currently at Odagawarajou's central keep, overlooking the streets of Odagawara City and Sagami Bay.
This regional city facing the Pacific Ocean was located on the western end of the Kantō plain.
During the Sengoku period, the Houjou clan dominated the Kantō region and Odagawara was their stronghold. Like Atsumi, this historic castle town was the port city nearest to Hakone.
"Why can't you be more like that Rindou-sensei?"
"......?"
"Rather, I suppose Rindou-sensei is the exception."
The first thing Masatsugu did after arriving at this castle was establishing a tutelary pact with the underground water shrine.
The girls in his company were currently bathing to replenish ectoplasmic fluid. Masatsugu used this opportunity to talk to Sakuya, who had been brought here to undertake a certain mission. Very clearly, their dialogue was not lively at all.
"Looks like asking Rikka-dono to come along was the right decision."
Sakuya was the Suruga tutelary fort's guardian spirit. The principal image of the ifrit was still at Suruga.
They had brought Sakuya along for her to fulfill a certain mission. However, Sakuya was only willing to open her heart to long-time acquaintances. Just as Masatsugu shrugged, someone spoke to him, "You are Tachibana Masatsugu-dono, I presume?"
"And you are—General Wei Qing, right?"
This was the first encounter between these two, brought back to life from their deaths in the ancient past.
This general of the Eastern Roman Empire was a gentle-looking handsome man dressed in blue Chinese clothing. In contrast, Masatsugu was wearing his usual stiff-collar uniform with a new battle surcoat on top.
"I am counting on your support today, General Wei Qing. By the way, are you sure you don't mind?"
"What do you mean?"
"General Wei Qing, you will be serving as my support on this occasion. I feel bad about relegating you to such an unassuming role."
With Alexis Yang as the liaison, the Tōkaidō side had contacted the Roman army at Ogawarajou and the Kantō Fiefdom's castellan of Ogawara a number of times. Using the telephone or relaying messages through retainer beasts, there were many opportunities for direct communications.
Of course, the Ogawara castellan essentially agreed with everything said by the Roman side.
In actual practice, General Wei Qing was the only person whom Masatsugu needed to talk to. The battle plan the two of them devised today basically followed Masatsugu's ideas.
The was because General Wei Qing had accepted all requests made by the Tōkaidō side.
When the discussion was essentially over, Masatsugu wondered to himself. Why did General Wei Qing not raise any opposition against Tōkaidō at all?
Was he passive as a person or did he not have any plan better than Masatsugu's?
Or perhaps, he held a kind of enlightenment and confidence—He was deeply convinced of his ability to prevail over any kind of situation? For some reason, Masatsugu felt that this was the most probable.
"Hahaha, please do not let something so trivial bother you."
Masatsugu had apologized first, but General Wei Qing laughed cheerfully.
"This is actually better because I do not like excessive attention."
"It's great to hear that from you."
Looking at General Wei Qing's handsome face, gentle and smiling, Masatsugu was very certain.
Richard the Lionheart, Edward the Black Prince, and Generalissimo Caesar were all people who enjoyed being the center of attention, but this man was the complete opposite.
Perhaps because of that, Wei Qing was a famed general with unique qualities—
Masatsugu noticed General Wei Qing staring at him with curiosity.
"Is there something on my face?"
"No, actually, I have this unbelievable feeling."
The handsome Resurrectee showed an expression of nostalgia.
"When speaking to you, I get this impression... as though I am meeting someone from my homeland of the past. Excuse me for being forward, but may I inquire of your origins?"
"......"
"Born within the borders of Chinese territory—That does not seem to be the case for you. How unbelievable."
"Don't ask questions of this sort. I can't answer you."
"My apologies." General Wei Qing apologized to Masatsugu with a light smile. "I overstepped my bounds. Please forget I ever asked."
Prior to setting off to this battle, Masatsugu had received a great amount of ectoplasmic fluid.
This was owed to the three girls helping him. However, the powerful noesis emanating from him made it impossible to hide the fact that he was a Resurrectee.
Masatsugu politely declined probing attempts and General Wei Qing accepted with an open mind.
In any case, the two ancient generals were about to fight a common enemy in a joint operation.
Part 2
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Part 3
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Part 4
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Part 5
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