268 255: A Plague of Phantoms: Privileges of a Demon IV
"Well now that's that is out of the way, onto what I wanted to talk to you about, Master Kingston…." Hideyoshi said, he climbed up onto the palanquin and sat down in front of me. "…about the Lugaloth that you made for me a month ago."
"Oh yeah! Only one I've made since. Been meaning to talk to you about coming in for an inspection per our agreement." I said. I remember it well, hard to forget. The massive thing jumped out of the tank and nearly trampled Haws to get to Hideyoshi. It was drawn to him.
"Well…I would like to commission you to make more." Hideyoshi said. I arched a brow at that and crossed my arms.
"I see…" I said cautiously then glanced over my shoulder at Jane. She took the hint and quickly walked over to my side.
"How many are you talking about Lord Hideyoshi?" Jane asked. Hideyoshi thought about it for a moment then replied.
"Fifteen." He said decisively.
"Fifteen…you plan to make a navel escort unit?" I asked. Hideyoshi looked surprised by that question.
"The thought had crossed my mind. Yes, but that would be a waste of the Lugaloth's potential I believe. They serve much better as navel attack types." Hideyoshi said. "My Myistrum is well on his way of being the most powerful evo in the entire navy."
"Of course I made it!" I exclaimed proudly, earning a eye roll from Jane. "But of course we'll need to talk about price."
"Fifteen billion for all fifteen, and another ten billion if you can deliver half by next month." Hideyoshi said. I shook my head at that.
"Thirty-three billion with nine billion up front." I countered.
"Thirty-three billion for Fifteen evos? You can buy a whole battalion for that price!" Hideyoshi exclaimed.
"You know my shaped evos are worth it. Lugaloth can use shock and torrent attribute mana if I remember correctly. That means it can control water and generate electric shocks, things that are very deadly in the sea. Name one other company that can create evos that can use mana and I'll lower the price to five bucks." I said confidently.
I locked eyes with the ruler and we both stared each other down, unblinking. I could see he wanted those evos bad or he would've sent me away but he also didn't want to bankrupt his country in the process. The only reason I set the price so high was to gauge his interest and to try and see how much I could get out of the Shogun.
"Twenty-eight and half are delivered within a month." Hideyoshi countered. I thought about that for a moment and scratched my chin then smirked as a thought occurred to me.
"Twenty-five and I have them delivered by next month but I'll need something else from you." I countered. Hideyoshi furrowed his brows and crossed his arms.
"What exactly?" He asked.
"Information, about the history of Star farm crystal bearers in your country." I replied. Hideyoshi seemed even more curious now.
"Whatever for?" He asked.
"A personal mystery." I replied. Hideyoshi thought about it for a moment then snapped his fingers.
"Ikku!" He exclaimed.
A panel in the floor near the corner slide back reveling the guard that had been hiding there. He hopped out of the recessed hole and rushed over to Hideyoshi's side and dropped to his knees.
"Yes your Lordship?" Ikku asked.
"Get…that katana." Hideyoshi said. Ikku nodded and quickly scurried out of the room using the passage we came in. "All countries have stories about the Star farm crystal bearers most noble and royal families will even tell you that they descended from one…my country, my family is one of them. On my mother's side. When I was born I was twenty-seventh in line to be Shogun. Then word of the infidelity of several of my predecessor's concubines came to light and a mad rush to prove the legitimacy of each heir began. It was a time of great unrest in Japan."
"AH!" I exclaimed as I felt a sudden twinge of pain in my right hand where my farm crystal was. Jane winced and rubbed the back of her neck where her crystal sat and even Hideyoshi subconsciously rubbed his farm crystal.
"Are you all okay?" Angie asked. I shook my hand and nodded.
"My crystal feels weird though." I said. Movement put the corner of my eye caught my attention and I turned to see both Fours and Empress swaying slightly.
[My Lord, I feel weak...] Empress told me.
[Same here Pretender.] Fours announced.
"My crystal feels like there are needles jabbing into it." Jane spoke up.
"That's because Ikku is returning." Hideyoshi announced.
A moment later the door opened again and Ikku walked inside carrying a Katana. He walked over to Hideyoshi and kneeled and held it out to Hideyoshi, who took it gingerly and nodded to Ikku. Ikku took several steps back and hurried over to his hiding spot and jumped back down, pulling the discarded floor mat back into place on top of him. I would have commented on that if it wasn't for the sudden stabbing feeling in my farm crystal. I looked down and saw that it was glowing with a dark gold color I hadn't seen before. Jane's and Hideyoshi's crystals were both glowing with a pale bronze color.
"What's going on?" I asked.
"What we are feeling is the result of this blade, an ancient one that goes back to the founding of the Shogonate. It was made by a smith and wielded by a warrior of a foreign land known as 'the warrior of the stars.' With this blade, that foreigner united Japan and forged in blood the very tenants that make up most of the laws today. The blade is called…Kūsho, or Void. It is an enchanted blade wielded by the first Shogun of Japan…and can only be drawn by one with the blood of a Star crystal bearer." Hideyoshi said.
I eyed the scabbard of the katana, it was stark black. So dark that it seemed like the light around it was being drawn in and trapped within the ichor of the dull sheen. The guard of the blade was made was made of out of a type of purple crystal, what kind I didn't know, it wasn't common that much was sure. The cord that wrapped the handle of the katana was black as well but it had a glittery shimmer in the fabric of the cord.
"They used this blade to finally prove who was legitimate and who was not." I said suddenly. Hideyoshi nodded, his face grim.
"I was twenty-seventh in line when I was born, within twenty minutes of them conducting this test I jumped to third." Hideyoshi said, he stood and gripped the katana, ready to draw it. "When the two ahead of me refused to attempt to draw the blade, they were declared illegitimate on the spot and suddenly it was my turn…. I was seven years old when they made me draw this blade. I was the only one that could…"
Hideyoshi drew Kūsho from its scabbard and I was transfixed on the beauty of the blade. It was black as midnight, yet shined like the sun in the dull light of the room. A blade of pure darkness, a pure all encompassing abyss. And it sang. The blade rung out with a low thrum as it was pulled from its sheath, a melody for a lullaby I knew all too well. A song I had heard from when I was a child. I felt something compel me to close my eyes as my lips began to move on their own.
"Black crescent moon so high in this dark and lonely sky, an ocean of obsidian tangled in your light…" I sang, switching to Torapos and feeling a warmth wash over me as did. As I sang each verse, pleasant memories flashed in my mind; times when I was younger and with my grandparents. The little moments and the sad moments. The sideways glances and little arguments that lead to deeper understanding. All those countless instances that made up the joys of my life flooded into my mind and surged like a waterfall as I sang the last verse. "…Black crescent moon so high in this dark and lonely sky. An ocean of obsidian tangled in your light, so make a wish now upon a shooting star and wash us fly across the night, into heaven arms."
I suddenly felt a weight in my right hand. I opened my eyes and saw shocked to see me holding Kūsho, the midnight black blade seemed to shimmer slightly now as well. I blinked for several seconds then looked to Hideyoshi in confusion.
"Why…did you put the sword in my hand?" I asked the Shogun. His eyes, which were already wide with exasperation, widened even more and he quickly shook his head.
"I didn't! Once you started singing the Kūsho flew from my hands and into yours!" Hideyoshi exclaimed. I frowned and looked at Jane and Angie for confirmation and realizes they were both standing back from him.
"It really did! Our crystal stopped hurting once you started singing too." Jane confirmed.
"I stopped feeling sick as well my Lord." Empress spoke up. I glanced back at her and Fours and saw they no longer looked sickly.
"Umm…Chase…?" Angie muttered. I glanced over at her again and saw her pointing at Kūsho. I looked down at the blade and saw that the crystal blade guard was glowing. The purple glow then spread to the blade as my farm crystal's glow changed from dark gold to a bright gold and shined even brighter.
The purple glow from the blade guard overtook the blade and merged with the abyssal black of the metal. The color of the glow shifted and changed rapidly before settling on a ever-shifting rainbow swirl that was reminiscent of a galactic cloud. The glow died down but the changed in color remained on the blade and guard.
"Whoa…" I muttered and held the blade up to the light and admired the rainbow shine that came off it. "…this is so cool! Hideyoshi what happened?!"
"Hoshi…the legendary blade has returned…!" Hideyoshi gasped. I looked back at the Shogun and frowned.
"Legendary blade?" I repeated and lowered the sword. Hideyoshi nodded without taking his eyed off the blade.
"Hoshi or Star is the real name of the blade. When the first Shogun wielded the blade it was said to glow with the radiance of the cosmos and rendered the magic of the enemies useless. But once the crowned prince ascended to the throne and took the blade as his own following his father's passing, the blade changed into the abyssal black blade you saw earlier. The blade disrupted the mana of anyone who is the descendant of a Star crystal bearer and siphons the mana of all other splicers." Hideyoshi explained.
"That's so freaking cool!" I exclaimed and examined the blade.
I noticed there were dozens of runes that were arranged in intricate designs along the spine of the blade. I could read most of them and what made them more interesting was the fact that they all the intricate designs were actually larger runes. The sword was a true masterpiece of enchanted weaponry, it had multiple enchantments on it working together in harmony to create a larger effect.
"I feel stronger somehow." Jane said suddenly. I looked away from the blade and over at her and saw her farm crystal was glowing a bright bronze color, Hideyoshi's was doing the same.
"The blade is draining mana from non-star crystal bearers, purifying it and releasing it in the air to increase the quality of their internal mana and replenish it if needed." I said as I traced a finger over the runes. "That's not all it can do either…I can't read all the runes though."
"Impressive! No! More than Impressive! It's Masterful! Divine! To see Hoshi in its true form after thousands of years!" Hideyoshi exclaimed then clapped his hands. "The blade that the first Shogun used to cut down those afflicted by the plague of Izanami."
I froze at that and narrowed my eyes at Hideyoshi.
"Plague of Izanami? What's that?" I asked. Hideyoshi sighed and crossed his arms.
"A plague that struck Japan several thousand years ago shortly after the Shogun United Japan. Those affected either died or became monsters wielding strange powers." Hideyoshi explained.
"Sounds like the plague of Set that struck when Pharaoh Ramus Azushal ruled." Jane muttered. Hideyoshi arched a brow.
"The star blessed king? Wait that wasn't a Egyptian myth?!" Hideyoshi exclaimed. I shook my head.
"No he was real and the reason I was asking about information on Star crystal bearers in your country. I'm trying to learn more about the past, and how Star crystal bearers like myself fit into the world." I lied, I was really hoping to find information on the plagues.
"I see…I hope I'm correct in assuming that the information on the sword was enough?" Hideyoshi asked. I nodded and rested the back of the blade on my shoulder.
"It was more than enough! We'll get those Lugaloth to you by the end of the month!" I exclaimed. I turned and started towards the door.
"Ummm…Master Kingston that blade is properly of the Shogonate and a national treasure." Hideyoshi said. I froze and groaned.
"Wait, you mean I can't keep it?!" I groaned and slumped a bit.
"Chase give the Shogun back the legendary sword! The last thing you need is a overpowered ancient enchanted sword!" Jane exclaimed. I held the blade diagonally and flashed puppy dog eyes at Jane.
"But it's so pretty! And I don't have any katanas!" I exclaimed. Jane narrowed her eyes at me and then smacked the back of my head
"GIVE HIM BACK THE BLADE!" Jane barked.
"OWWWW! SHIT! ALRIGHT!" I exclaimed and turned back towards Hideyoshi and held the blade out respectfully for him to take.
Hideyoshi smiled and took the blade from me. The moment Hideyoshi touched the grip the blade changed back to its midnight black color and I started to feel sick again. Hideyoshi quickly sheathed the blade then snapped his fingers. Ikku jumped back up from his little hiding spot and took the blade, quickly retreating from the room.
"Then I guess we have an agreement." Hideyoshi said. I nodded and held my hand out.
"We do. We'll have to send you a formal contract to sign later." I said. Hideyoshi shook my hand and smiled.
"I'll be looking for it. But in the mean time it's probably best to get you all back to the commencement ceremony. It's going to start soon." Hideyoshi said.
"Doesn't the Shogun start the commencement ceremony?" Jane asked. Hideyoshi shook hid head.
"The Shogun isn't the one that will be starting the ceremony. It'll be the Ministers of Militia and Commerce. I'll just be attending as military personnel, even if the Shogun did it would be the mana-doll doing it. This is to protect my identity." Hideyoshi said then walked around my group and headed to the door. "Now…shall we head out?"
