Demon Capital Slayer

Chapter 116 Edo Burning
"I never expected that Mitsurugi-kun would have such a hobby." Akemi put her hands on her hips and looked at Mitsurugi.

"But smoking is bad for your health."

A strong sense of déjà vu washed over him, and for a moment, Yu Jian forgot to explain.

"No, it was Milo who drew it."

He instinctively shoved the pipe into the dog's mouth, but the Samoyed immediately put on an innocent expression, making Yujian's words completely unconvincing.

"No, a man can't shirk responsibility." Akemi patted Milo's head, but her eyes remained fixed on Mitsurugi.

It really was this one that smoked it...

Yu Jian had no choice but to give up resisting, extinguished his pipe, and waved his hand to disperse the surrounding smoke.

"Have you made up your mind?" he asked slowly, looking at the calm-faced girl.

"Yes, I will take responsibility, but before that, I hope Father will allow me to be a little willful." Akemi smiled brightly, but Mitsurugi saw a trace of sadness in her eyes, a sadness that belonged to Chizuru.

As the story unfolds...

He vaguely realized that Chizuru was clearly a very important part of this eternal destiny, and her life experiences would run through the entire plot, making her the so-called female protagonist.

As for Chizuru's identity, it is not difficult to guess from the title "Kubo-sama" mentioned by Hattori Hanzo that she is the daughter of the Shogun.

And what about yourself? A poor boy from the countryside, who happens to meet a runaway princess, and then has a fruitless love affair? Decades later, when you're old and gray, you'll still cherish the memory like gold, right?

It's such a classic (and cliché) plot.

"I'm really looking forward to tomorrow's festival." Akemi looked out the window.

"Chizuru, aren't you worried about those Western demons?" Mitsurugi asked.

“Isn’t there still Imperial Swordsman?” Akemi gave me a big smile, which was like a flashbang.

"A trust that makes one ashamed." The young swordsman shook his head with a smile.

His experience in the Dream of Asura made him accustomed to making assumptions about his enemies. The fighting power shown by the vampires earlier could not prove anything. It was naturally difficult to control an outsider who suddenly gained power.

However, based on his own experience, Yujian believed that as long as one has a strong enough numerical foundation, learning techniques that simply rely on strength would not be too slow, so one should never underestimate the opponent.

Moreover, the truly threatening presence is that enormous black ship floating in Tokyo Bay.

It's simply a pipe dream for an individual to deal with such a behemoth.

Unless... they switch sides?
Yu Jian fell into deep thought.

Although he felt a lot of pressure, he didn't show it on the surface. He simply tapped the hilt of his sword lightly, producing a crisp and powerful clanging sound.

Milo's plan, which involves advancing the plot and then returning to the present world at the right time, is not complicated in itself; its main purpose is to test the abilities of those who carry it out.

Perhaps the Black Ships didn't necessarily have to be destroyed.

In short, participate in the story as it unfolds before it comes to an end.

With that in mind, Miken and Akemi began to chat like ordinary friends.

At the same time, he was also thinking about another question: how to awaken the true consciousness of Akemi Hayashibara hidden beneath Chizuru's 'shell'.

The answer is singing...

For Akemi, who considers singing an integral part of her life, memories related to singing are undoubtedly the most unforgettable.

So, should we find a reason to make Akemi sing...?

How exactly should he do it? Yu Jian couldn't help but fall into thought.

"How did Chizuru leave Edo Castle?" he asked casually.

"Yes, it's a horse-drawn carriage for delivering vegetables." Chizuru covered her mouth and chuckled.

"I hid behind the vegetable delivery cart, and I got out very easily."

"...Is it that simple?" Miken looked out the window in surprise, his Hawkeye ability allowing him to easily spot the ninjas who were observing.

Putting aside the guards on the surface, are these guys just freeloaders?

Focus on doing your job as ninjas! You shouldn't be toiling in the shadows... Uh, seems like we've switched channels?

Never mind, it doesn't matter. The point is to know shame, to know shame.

"I suppose it was Uncle Hattori who secretly let me out. Fortunately, I got to see the city up close before I left." Akemi sighed softly. Since she was born a princess, she couldn't be as naive as an ordinary girl.

"Alright, alright, let's not talk about such heavy topics. Look at this."

Mingmei excitedly presented something that made even Yujian's eyes widen in surprise.

A bottle of sake.

"Huh?" The boy made a puzzled sound.

"Hmph, I've already asked the restaurant to prepare some snacks to go with the drinks. Let's have a little opening celebration before the official celebration tomorrow." Mingmei raised her hand and clenched her fist, looking very excited.

"Isn't this a bit too stimulating?" Yu Jian couldn't help but complain.

"Hey, is Lord Yujian afraid of such a small challenge?" Akemi glanced at her sideways.

"How is this possible?" A strong sense of déjà vu surged into Yu Jian's heart once again.

Back then, back then, that war god giant herring snipe ended up in my hands just like that, damn it! I don't like bugs at all!!!

Although the giant beetle is indeed super cool, like a tank... Akemi clapped her hands, and a maid brought out cooked eel, oranges, and snails, all of which are perfect for pairing with sake. It was clearly premeditated, planned, and meticulously planned all along.

Even Milo got a share, and the dog god very obediently picked up his share and walked away.

Yu Jian was taken aback. "Don't misunderstand, Milosan! No, I didn't, I'm underage."

Turning around, he saw Chizuru, no, Hayashihara Akemi, chugging wine into a wine cup bigger than her own face.

This type of wine cup, resembling a saucer, is modeled after Tang Dynasty wine cups. It has a wide mouth, small foot, and sloping straight walls. It is generally smaller than a rice bowl but larger than a wine cup, but what wine cup is bigger than a face?!
Is this size even suitable for humans? The last time I saw something similar was in the hands of Hoshiguma Yuugi, but that was a two-dimensional character, okay? And his race was oni!

Hey, isn't anyone going to do anything about this? It's illegal for minors to drink alcohol!

Hmm, wait a minute, if it's Ming Qing Shi who's drinking, then that 24-year-old ronin guy is already an adult five or six years ago, so it doesn't seem like there's any big problem.

While Yujian was agonizing over whether this was a case of moral decay or legal failure, Hayashihara Akemi had already drunk a cup of wine by herself.

Judging from her extremely practiced manner, one can only say that she is indeed an adult. This little drunkard characteristic is either a hidden attribute of Chizuru's 'shell' or Akemi's true nature.

"Phew, as expected, Junmai Nama Genshu (raw sake) is best paired with grilled eel and fruit. The aroma and aftertaste bring out the umami of the fish and the sweetness of the fruit, while the latter enhances the flavor of the sake, creating more layers of complexity. It's simply perfect!"

Complex terminology has appeared; it's a combination of complex terms that laypeople wouldn't understand and commentary that sounds very professional.

Yujian immediately switched to吐槽 (tu cao, a Chinese internet slang term for sarcastic or critical comments) mode, while also wondering if Akemi was gradually shedding the 'shell' given to her by the ordinary world, and whether this would be good or bad for their upcoming actions.

Then, a wine cup that was more than half-empty was shoved in front of him.

"bright!"

The world judges by appearances, and calling a beautiful woman by her first name is not rude at all; in fact, it's rather endearing.

"Please forgive me for refusing!"

Yu Jian chose to say NO. Alcohol might make his hands tremble, but a swordsman's hands cannot waver even slightly, because this hand holds the power of life and death.

Then, something else came closer.

A hand touched the boy's cheek.

"Really, Ming is still just a child."

On the other side, aboard the black ship.

"Are you kidding me?! Are you kidding me?! Are you kidding me?!"

Inside the captain's cabin, Nishiki Aoi is transforming into a desktop cleaning master.

"Whether it's meeting Akemi or being treated gently by Akemi, I was the one who arrived first!"

The blonde girl let out a series of screams in Japanese, then waved her hand, unleashing a surge of crimson magic. The zombie servant standing quietly beside her was sent flying like a baseball, crashing into the wall and breaking its bones. It seemed it could only be sent to the lower-level ghouls to be reassembled into human-like, laborer-like zombie servants.

“My lord.” The pale-faced adjutant couldn’t help but step forward.

He couldn't understand the local language and assumed the captain's anger stemmed from something else.

"The shogunate rejected our proposal again, seemingly unwilling to fulfill the contract and hand over the key technology of brocade weaving. They made excuses, saying that the relevant personnel had not completed all their training and needed to receive further education to meet the requirements."

"Moreover, after inspecting the first batch of raw silk that arrived at the port, we found that the quality was inconsistent and could not compare with the Eastern gold that Arabian merchants transported to Europe."

"..." Upon hearing this, Nishiki Aoi trembled as she removed the tricorn hat that represented the captain.

“The ordinary crew and the undead servants all go out. The first mate, second mate, and boatswain stay behind.” This time she spoke in Anglo-Saxon.

The vampire crew members looked at each other in bewilderment. The management who hadn't been called out quickly directed their undead servants to leave the captain's cabin with them.

All that remained were the first mate, the second mate, who were the captain's confidants, and the bosun, who also managed the combat sailors.

"This makes me angry!"

"This week, we should have set off home with the core technical experts in brocade weaving! And then gained countless gold and power!"

It's unclear what switch was flipped, but at this moment, Aoi Mianmu was actually behaving like a powerful and ambitious high-ranking vampire.

"But that short general named Tokugawa is clearly using his clumsy political maneuvering to buy time and wear down our patience. He is attempting to violate the sacred covenant that we have already signed by using such despicable, base, and insidious methods!"

"Only the most despicable barbarians would do such a thing! We civilized people disdain to associate with them!"

The first mate and the second mate exchanged a glance, subtly wanting to remind the captain that the Black Ships had also broken contracts, and more than once or twice.

But given their positions in management, neither of them was truly foolish. Such thoughts only briefly crossed their minds before readily disappearing elsewhere.

As for which specific part? In short, it's the more suitable area.

Despite Captain Arthur Claudius, a high-ranking vampire who inherited the noble bloodline of the Senate, behaving strangely these past two days, as if he were truly infatuated with that local native girl.

However, he undoubtedly possesses the powerful authority of a high-ranking vampire, capable of easily deciding the life and death of a lower-ranking vampire like himself who comes from an ordinary background.

Therefore, it's better to just be a statue in this situation.

But what followed, the instructions given by the captain, moved them deeply.

"Since he is unwilling to keep his promise, let's use the methods we are best at to get what we want."

"Magic Engine Warm-up! All Cannon Doors Open!"

"Let Edo's tomorrow burn!!!"

(End of this chapter)