Female Swordsman Training Dojo

This grand event, commissioned by the Emperor and costly to recruit talent, has been botched. It's become a laughingstock in the newspapers, and a pretext for the feudal lords to attack the Emperor—you deserve to die!

For a moment, Tsuchimikado Nobuhara completely abandoned the idea of ​​forcibly taking Ashikaga Anno's corpse and the demon sword; his mind was only focused on how to deal with this mess. After all, this was no joke. The Bureau of Onmyō was different from ordinary institutions; it was directly under the Emperor, and the Emperor could do whatever he wanted with it.

Uesugi Yoshinobu shook his head at the panicked Tsuchimikado Nobuhara. He was more mild-mannered, and seeing Nobuhara's state, his anger subsided. He simply nodded to him: "Dr. Tsuchimikado, the rest is up to you. It's only noon; you should at least make sure today's scheduled matches are finished."

Tsuchimikado Nobuhara nodded blankly, then turned to his subordinates: "Second and third groups, hurry up and check the arena's defenses. Fourth group, cast a calming spell to ensure the audience's condition. And you, yes, you, go and call all the referees out to preside! Quickly!"

After issuing a series of orders, Tsuchimikado Nobuhara finally came to his senses and immediately threw himself into his work. Fortunately, Ashikaga Anno did not cause too much damage, and the only fatality was that of a disciple of the Justice Hall. The situation was quickly brought back under control.

However, his flustered and busy appearance was noticed by many people, including Tsuchimikado Haru and Tachibana Yuzu.

The mischievous little girl chuckled and poked Tsuchimikado Haru's belly: "Hey, Haru~ I was right, wasn't I?"

“He is, how, but…” Tsuchimikado Haru was in a state of confusion. Throughout her life, she had been instilled with the idea that spellcasters were superior beings, and those without magic were just useless stones, no matter how strong they were in a fight, they were nothing more than a bunch of brutes. Even though she was very smart, the reality of being bullied because she had no magic had still made her unconsciously accept this view.

That's why she desperately wanted to reclaim her magical powers and become a spellcaster, an Onmyoji of the Tsuchimikado family.

But is this all the Onmyoji from the Tsuchimikado family are?

She was at a loss.

The author says:

Author's note: Please vote!

Chapter 317: Thorough Investigation! A thorough investigation is imperative!

Inside the Imperial Palace, Princess Misuru was drinking tea. Shiranui Ran knelt respectfully behind her, her head bowed, staring at the ground. A quiet and peaceful atmosphere permeated the space between mistress and servant, exuding a relaxed and leisurely air.

Emperor Taisho, sitting opposite Princess Misuru, was clearly not in such a leisurely mood.

"A bunch of trash!"

"They're all trash!"

"Dozens of spellcasters! Nearly 100,000 yen spent! And then they were attacked from the air! And then a demon-possessed samurai scared them so much they didn't even dare to fight! What use are they to me?!"

"Isn't it shameful?! Isn't it shameful?!"

"How could the Tsuchimikado family produce such a useless piece of trash?!"

Emperor Taisho roared angrily, slamming his fist on the table with each shout. This imperial examination was entirely his doing, a result of his arbitrary decision-making, and now this farce had turned out so utterly disgraceful!

Princess Misuru held her teacup and sipped her tea elegantly. Only after Emperor Taisho had finally finished patting her did she put down the empty teacup and slowly say, "On the bright side, at least the samurai performed well in these two incidents, and their prestige has increased considerably as a result. The audience here are the core citizens, and with their support, Father, your strategies can be implemented more effectively."

Emperor Taisho's expression softened slightly, then he sighed: "But the prerequisite is to find the mastermind behind this, otherwise who knows if the audience will be affected next time—Blue, do you have any news?"

Shiranui Ran raised her head: "According to the current investigation, it seems that the Ashikaga samurai purchased a new cursed sword through illegal channels, but failed to control it."

"Can you find out who made the demon sword?" Emperor Taisho nodded slightly, not overly excited. He was only asking casually; after all, the demon sword was merely a tool, and the real target was the person behind it. Besides, demon swords made through illegal channels were obviously unregistered.

That's probably impossible...

Seeing Shiranui Ran hesitate to speak, Emperor Taisho had a bad feeling: "Just say it, there are no outsiders here anyway."

Seeing that Misuruhime had made a hand gesture, Shiranui Ran said, "According to the investigation, that sword was forged by Fujiwara no Sanbei."

"Fujiwara no Sanbei?!" Emperor Taisho reacted violently, almost jumping up. But it's understandable; when Shiranui Ran found out the results, she was also extremely incredulous.

Fujiwara no Sanbei is the current chief swordsmith, arguably the foremost swordsmith in the land. Moreover, his surname reveals him to be a member of the Fujiwara clan, a group of considerable status. Furthermore, he is even an honorary elder of the Shiranui clan—because ninjas also require excellent equipment.

Even the two ninja swords that Shiranui Ran is currently using were made by Fujiwara no Sanbei. These were gifts she received from Fujiwara no Sanbei on the day she became the current Fire Demon.

How could such a highly respected figure be connected to someone as insignificant as Ashikaga Anno? No, that's not right. The key point is, how could Fujiwara Sanbei's works possibly end up in illegal channels? So many people want one of his swords!

Emperor Taisho didn't even doubt that it was a forgery, because the demon sword forged by Fujiwara no Sanbei was very different from other people's demon swords, and it was something that could not be forged!

Shiranui Ran shook her head helplessly: "We're investigating, but..."

Although Fujiwara no Sanbei's strength was average, he held a prestigious position and had extensive and deep connections. Obviously, the Great Memory Restoration Technique could not be used on such a person at will.

Emperor Taisho understood what Shiranui Ran meant. Fujiwara Sanbei could not be treated casually, after all, even if you removed everything else, he was still a member of the Fujiwara clan.

However, this matter cannot be overlooked. The Tianlan Trial is a crucial move for him, as it relates to his consolidation of power and the balance of power in the court...

After much deliberation, Emperor Taisho spoke: "Mitsurai, did you hear that?"

The current head of the Fujiwara clan, Fujiwara Mitsuyori with his yin-yang hair, emerged from a corner of the room: "Your Majesty, please give your orders."

"Go with the Fire Demon and find out exactly what happened to Fujiwara Sanbei! Investigate thoroughly!" Emperor Taisho looked solemnly at the old Onmyoji, whose hair was gray but whose former handsomeness was still undeniable. "This matter is very important. Even if you hate samurai, you should still care about the power of corruption."

Fujiwara no Mitsuyori nodded: "Your Majesty's command."

He does care a lot about the power of filth. Although the Tsuchimikado boy is still inexperienced and his magic is still immature, his judgment is still trustworthy.

He was also very curious as to why Fujiwara Sanbei's demon sword had bypassed the Fujiwara clan's control and leaked out into the outside world. Not to mention, why did it contain corrupting power? Was that old man plotting something against the Fujiwara clan's Onmyoji?

The two sides hit it off immediately. Under the hand gestures of Misuruhime, Shiranui Ran got up and followed Fujiwara no Mitsuyori out of the room.

In the empty courtyard, Fujiwara no Mitsuyori stopped and took out a wooden puppet from the wide sleeves of his hunting robe. Shiranui Ran understood and stopped, moving within three meters of him.

A child with a standard Hime cut and wearing a black embroidered kimono suddenly appeared nearby. His appearance was androgynous, and he looked very similar to the doll in Fujiwara no Mitsuyori's hands.

"Zashiki-warashi, take us home."

A hint of displeasure appeared on the fair face of the Zashiki-warashi, but she still clapped her hands. Then, the interior of the Fujiwara family mansion appeared before Shiranui Ran.

The magic of instant teleportation, although it can only return "home" from outside, is still a very powerful ability, almost an absolute life-saving skill.

Chapter 342

Not every Zashiki-warashi possesses such powerful magic, let alone someone who can subdue a Zashiki-warashi with such powerful magic as a shikigami.

This is one of the reasons why Fujiwara no Mitsuyori was able to become a yin-yang head.

"Master, you're back." A beautiful woman immediately came out of the room to greet him upon arrival, but her smile stiffened slightly when she saw Shiranui Ran. "And this lady is?"

“Fire Demon,” Fujiwara Mitsuyori said curtly, “Where is Sanbei?”

However, upon hearing the words "Fire Demon," the beautiful woman immediately relaxed. There was no way the leader of the Imperial Ninja Guards would be with an elder of the Fujiwara clan. So she quickly replied, "The swordsmith master should be in the workshop now. Should I go and fetch him?"

"No need." Fujiwara no Mitsuyori shook the puppet in his hand again, summoning the adorable zashiki-warashi who was being haunted by several ghosts. "Go to the workshop."

The scene shifted again, from the quiet, wabi-sabi entrance of a house to a steaming, noisy forging workshop. Several one-eyed, one-legged, red-skinned, red-haired monsters were wielding large hammers, relentlessly pounding the scalding hot embryos in front of them.

Behind these monsters, deep within the workshop, an old man with gray hair and a slightly hunched back was intently dealing with the corpse of a cat demon in front of him.

The technique was quite skillful; it was a pleasure to watch.

This is, of course, Fujiwara no Sanbei.

Chapter 318: The Secret Chamber

"Sanbei, come here for a moment." Fujiwara Mitsuyori ordered calmly. As the elder of the Fujiwara clan, his status was higher than Fujiwara Sanbei's, so there was no need for formalities. Besides, he was in a hurry.

Fujiwara Sanbei was somewhat displeased; he was dealing with his sword at a crucial moment. But sensing the odd tone in Fujiwara Mitsuyori's voice, he released the cat-like creature and went over: "What's the rush?"

"Huh? Lan, what brings you here? Is your knife broken?"

Shiranui Ran shook her head: "No, they're very useful. I came today because..."

Shiranui Ran recounted what happened during the Tenran Trial, emphasizing, "After testing, that demon sword does indeed have your sword inscription, and even the sword pattern is Sanbei Aoi's crest."

After hearing this, Fujiwara Sanbei gave a definite answer: "It couldn't have been me! The last time I used Hannya as a material was ten years ago! In the past ten years, I haven't even had the relevant materials, how could I possibly make a demon sword related to Hannya!"

Shiranui Ran remained unmoved and calmly said, "So you mean that someone mastered your forging techniques, made a Hannya demon sword, and officially registered the demon sword in your name without your knowledge?"

This is indeed a good way to shirk responsibility, and it's quite feasible. Although Fujiwara no Sanbei personally forged the sword, he didn't personally go to register it. If someone could make a sword very similar to the one he forged, and then bribe the person responsible for registering it, then the aforementioned thing could indeed be done.

The official in charge of registration didn't forge demon swords, so he couldn't possibly distinguish such a highly similar imitation, much less verify with Fujiwara no Sanbei whether it had been made. His job was simply to register the information.

However, Fujiwara no Sanbei proudly raised his head and denied it, saying, "Impossible! My sword-forging skills are the best in the world! No one can imitate them!"

So the question returns to its very beginning...

"But if it's just my sunflower pattern, it shouldn't be too difficult to imitate. You should have brought that sword, right?"

Fujiwara no Sanbei's abrupt change in tone left Shiranui Ran somewhat bewildered, but she still reached behind her and took the wooden box, opening it towards Fujiwara no Sanbei.

The demon sword, Tenmoku Renzou, Hannya-sama, lay quietly in the wooden box, looking just like an ordinary katana. But none of the three present were fooled by this simple disguise; the eerie and demonic aura emanating from Hannya-sama was quite obvious to them.

Just moments before, Fujiwara Sanbei had been full of confidence, but now he became serious. He casually wiped his hands on his clothes and smeared the unknown liquid that had gotten on him while dealing with the cat demon onto his high-quality work clothes. Then he reached for the Hannya Body.

Shiranui Ran and Fujiwara Mitsuyori both looked over warily, but Fujiwara Sanbei did nothing strange; he simply drew the Hannya Body from its sheath.

Familiar sword inscriptions and patterns appeared before his eyes. Fujiwara Mitsuyori placed the scabbard back into the wooden box and gently ran a finger along the blade. A thin line of blood immediately appeared on his fingertip, while the Hannya body glowed with an eerie red light, as if awakened from a deep slumber.

"How is it, Fujiwara Sanbei? Is there something wrong with this sword?"

Fujiwara Sanbei remained silent, seemingly deep in thought, and indeed he was. However, he wasn't pondering what was wrong with the sword, but rather why Tenmoku Ren would suddenly create such a sword, and why he would choose to use his name for it!

That's right, Fujiwara no Sanbei knew Amaterasu Ren, and they were even on good terms. The reason is simple: they were both true blacksmiths who devoted themselves to forging, pursuing the creation of the strongest and most perfect demon sword!

They even collaborated for a period of time. It was during that collaboration that Fujiwara Sanbei's forging skills truly reached their current level. It can be said that the two had a deep relationship, being both master and disciple to each other.

Furthermore, Tenmokuren is a demon, not a human. So it's true that no one can imitate his sword-forging skills! He wasn't lying!

But now it seems he has no choice but to lie. He can't very well admit to having such close ties with demons, or even to teaching them his sword-forging techniques. It might be fine in private, but to say it in front of Yin-Yang Head and the Fire Demon—is he courting death, or does he think the Emperor is treating him too well?

But how could he fabricate this lie? The knife was truly almost indistinguishable from one he had forged himself, except that the materials used were slightly different and unlike those of a normal Hannya.

Fujiwara no Sanbei wasn't good at lying, and he rarely needed to. So, he couldn't think of a plausible excuse, nor could he just make something up. Others might not be able to forge such a cursed sword, but that didn't mean they couldn't analyze whether the two swords were forged using the same method.

No, that's not right. The fact that the Fire Demon and the Yin-Yang Head came together means they probably already figured out the result.

Fujiwara Sanbei's face remained normal, but his clothes were soaked with sweat.

Shiranui Ran and Fujiwara Mitsuyori exchanged a glance, and then Shiranui Ran said, "It seems you need a little more time. Would you mind if I checked you out here?"

She asked a question, but before anyone could answer, Shiranui Ran had already begun a thorough search. The one-eyed tadala who were forging sword blanks tried to stop her, but Shiranui Ran only glared at them, and these mindless monsters, who had been trained in various ways and had lost their wildness, immediately lay down.

Fujiwara no Sanbei didn't care much about it. Let them search, anyway, he really didn't forge this sword; and he really hadn't touched any unclean power. Just kidding, he was a spellcaster and an Onmyoji, okay? Who would go looking for such terrifying and disgusting things?

This optimistic attitude lasted until Shiranui Ran found a mechanism and opened a secret room.

A musty smell rushed into the space, the kind of smell that comes from a closed space that hasn't been opened for years and is full of dust.

Shiranui Ran waved her hand dismissively in front of her nose, while Fujiwara Mitsuyori raised his sleeve to cover his nose. Both of them looked at Fujiwara Sanbei.

What is the purpose of this secret room?

Fujiwara no Sanbei could no longer maintain his composure. He hadn't used this secret room in so long that he'd practically forgotten it existed. And had he cleaned it out? He should have, right?

It wouldn't matter if Fujiwara no Mitsuyori saw those things, but if Shiranui Ai saw them...

Chapter 343

Fujiwara Sanbei forced a smile and explained, "This is the game room I prepared when I was still in the mood..."

"Alright, but we still need to check." Shiranui Ran formed a hand seal, creating a whirlwind that drove away the disgusting smell in the secret room, and also stepped on the walls to check for traps.

At least it appears that there are no weight-based traps anymore.

Shiranui Ran went inside, and Fujiwara Mitsuyori took out a tengu puppet and summoned a black-feathered tengu to guard it.

They stood guard at the door of the secret room.

The author says:

Author's note: Please continue to vote, I'll do anything!

Chapter 319: Fujiwara Sanbei's Secret

Stepping through the large door in the wall, Shiranui Ran immediately used a spell to detect traces of magical power. Since she had plenty of magical power, she didn't need to conserve it like Fujiwara no Mitsuyori, who, despite being stronger, still had to.

As the faint blue light spread, three lights of different colors suddenly lit up the secret chamber. One was black on the open door of the secret chamber, which Shiranui Ran recognized at a glance as a concealment spell used to hide the existence of the secret chamber.

A pale golden light emanating from the deepest part of the secret chamber indicated that it was likely some kind of rare and powerful magical artifact, most likely one geared towards suppressing evil and purifying. Generally, such artifacts were used to prevent long-abandoned houses from being occupied by demons or evil spirits, or even to prevent the breeding of malevolent entities.

It seems that Fujiwara Sanbei cared a lot about this place, at least for a period of time.

Shiranui Ran then looked at the yellowish-brown light in the corner of the secret room. It was almost integrated with the wall of the secret room. If Shiranui Ran's perception had not been sharp enough, she might not have been able to detect it.

These are usually traces left by spells used to bury something, and since they look like they're fading away, it means they were used a long time ago.

Shiranui Ran cautiously made her way to that corner. Detection spells aren't foolproof; traces that are too weak or too strong, or those that have been manipulated, can easily slip through the detection. There are even spells specifically designed to counter such spells. If Shiranui Ran thought she was safe just because she was detected, she would have been dead hundreds of times over.

Fortunately, perhaps due to years of disrepair, this secret room did not pose any other dangers. Shiranui Ran easily pried open the corner floorboards and unearthed an iron box buried in the mud.

The iron box gleamed with a thick, earthy yellow light, interspersed with fiery red. This indicated that it was sealed by some kind of magic, and if it wasn't opened using a pre-set method, it would at least cause an explosion. The explosion might not affect Shiranui Ai and Fujiwara no Mitsuyori, but it would certainly be enough to destroy everything inside.

Shiranui Ran tilted her head and thought for a moment, then carried the whole box out—surprisingly, it wasn't very heavy, only about three or four hundred pounds.