A foreigner's journey

Tsuruga Camouflage narrowed his beautiful red eyes and looked at Heather:

"Sir Sekiro, you really know a lot... Shikizaki Kiki's sword poison, have you tried it?"

Heather shrugged: "I haven't had that honor yet."

"Then do you know the origins of the black witches in Santu Shrine?"

"Appreciate further details."

"They are all women who have been brutally abused by men for a long time and continuously. Maid workers who work in high-ranking officials' mansions, daughters who were sold to the powerful class by their parents, and even daughters of former daimyo who lost their status."

Tsuruga Camouflage looked at the black miko who were standing motionless at the door, with a hint of sarcasm and a touch of sadness in his tone:

"Both the body and mind have been abused to the limit. Even if they exceed the limit, they continue to be abused. Out of dirty and dark thoughts or simply because of hidden uneasiness, the abuser will only inflict torture in the secret room. So violent until something is clearly broken."

"After it's broken?"

"What else can it do, it will just be thrown away. Then, what I picked up from the place where they were thrown away were these one thousand black witches. As you guessed, because their hearts have been damaged to the point of being almost irreparable, I used Shikisaki Kiki's sword is used as 'medicine'."

"The medicine...is obviously knife poison."

"It's medicine and poison, but poison can also be used as medicine. The sword poison is used to rebuild their damaged hearts, and the sword is used as a weapon of self-defense. It is their legitimate weapon as a shrine maiden serving an armed shrine."

"Do you really believe in [Knife Poison]?"

"As long as you hold Shikisaki Kiki's completed variant sword, you will personally experience the indescribable 'toxicity'. Moreover, even if it is not true, there is a saying in psychology that the effect of counterfeit medicine is."

"Hey, what about the charms on their faces? Isn't it also part of the auto-suggestion?"

"No, it was just put on to hide your face. As I said, the people here are all insiders, and a large part of them are wanted by the shogunate. It is very dangerous to show your face. So it is necessary Covering the face, thoroughly implementing the impersonal concept of [Black Miko], as a shrine, it can also bluff people. What they need is [Thousand Swords], and [Thousand Swords] is the last resort for them to barely maintain themselves. , is where the soul rests.”

Tsuruga's camouflage eyes looked sharply at the man in front of him with a charming posture that made him feel a little nervous:

"So, I can't lose Qian Dao, do you understand?"

She didn't want to be Heather's enemy if she could help it. It wasn't that she was deceived by Heather's appearance, nor was it hindered by Heather's upright reputation as a knight, but because of her strength.

If even 10% of the legend about Sekiro was true, then once he and Heather took action, it would be hard to say whether the Santu Shrine could be saved, let alone those black mikos whose physical abilities were just ordinary women.

Therefore, she wants to use the "sympathy tactic" to make Heather retreat, which can be described as the flash of a sword between words.

Heather shook the bottle with only a little bit of wine remaining, raised her neck and drank it all:

"In the final analysis, what they lack is [target] and [force] sufficient to defend themselves. I understand that, right?"

"exactly."

Tsuruga camouflage maintains a sitting posture with a solemn attitude.

Heather turned to look at the black witches standing aside. Feeling Heather's scrutinizing gaze, the originally silent and motionless witches made waves of uneasy commotion.

Tsuruga Camouflage frowned. Are they afraid of Heather, who is a male? No, it's more like a feeling of worship like seeing an idol.

Could it be that just a few minutes of contact had such an impact? The fifty black witches staying at the mountaintop shrine are all girls with the most seriously injured hearts and the most need of care. Even they, who are extremely afraid of men, are actually seduced by Heather's appearance.

The appearance of the man in front of me is more like a [curse] than a [god-given].

A curse for the opposite sex.

She took a deep breath to calm down, and then said slowly: "Sir Sekiro, I'm curious about the 'solution' you mentioned before. Can you elaborate on it?"

"I thought you wouldn't ask, but just start fighting. Ladies over there, could you leave us some space to talk? Thank you."

Heather changed her sitting position, not so slouched this time. He waved at the black miko, and Tsuruga Camouflage was shocked to find that before he, the leader of mikos, could issue an order, they actually exited the hall obediently.

The more traumatized your soul is, the easier it is to be captured by the charm of the man in front of you? Tsuruga Camouflage had become very alert, and his fingers secretly pinched his thigh through the miko's pants.

"They are all good and obedient children. How could they be as exaggerated as you said?"

Seeing that there were no more black witches around, Heather looked at Tsuruga Camouflage and said with a smile:

"Master of the Camouflage Hall, let's open the skylight and speak frankly. You can't hold on to this [Thousand Knife·铩]. This is an iron fact."

"Oh? Are you planning to rob openly?" Tsuruga's body in camouflage was slightly raised, his hands were lifted from his kneeling thighs, and he suddenly assumed a posture ready to face the enemy.

"No, no, no, it's not me. Your murderous look is really scary." Heather quickly waved her remaining left hand: "It's [Shogunate]."

"...!!"

Tsuruga Camouflage was startled, and then sat back in silence.

"The shogunate will not continue to tolerate masters like you continuing to control the twelve completed variant swords. I don't need to say more about the Oshu chaos twenty years ago. You should have a deep understanding of it, right? The shogunate is afraid that the next Hida will appear. Yingbi, etc.], if left alone, the old generals from a hundred and fifty years ago are the best negative teaching materials."

Heather's voice was like a devil whispering in her ears——

"The levy of swords has begun. The General Superintendent of the Preparatory Office directly under the general's jurisdiction personally recruited the Void Swordsmen. He successfully collected the [Jue Sword] and headed to Inaba. Ordinary people may not know what is there, but your words don't need it. Can I say more?"

"Inaba...[Zhan Dao·Blunt]."

"Yes, Uren Ginkaku, the lord of Shimoku Castle, the [Zanto: Blunt] held by him will be confiscated without incident. And the holder of the variant sword closest to Inaba is Izumo's Santu Shrine. Master of the Camouflage Palace, this is a fate you cannot escape."

"Your Excellency, do you think I will lose? To the Void Sword Style? Or to you?"

"Haha, as the daughter of the former captain of the second division of the third company of the Izumo Goddess, you have inherited the [Sento Style]. Naturally, I dare not say that you have a 100% chance of winning."

"…………"

Tsuruga Camouflage clenched his fingers in silence.

The gap in information is too big. Where did the other party get the information?

"Twenty years ago, the unprecedented chaos in Oshu was caused by Hida Takabi and others. Even Izumo, who had extraterritorial jurisdiction, could not escape the flames of war alone. The three guardian companies were wiped out, and your father and all the disciples in the gym were also killed. On the battlefield, if the surrounding countries had not taken the initiative to help, even Izumo would have become history."

Heather's voice was full of magnetism, but the content made Tsuruga Camouflage's heart grow cold little by little:

"Did you know that this time the shogunate is responsible for collecting the twelve mutant swords as the general supervisor? His name is 'Jiu'er', and his true identity is the only daughter of Hida Takahito who caused the great chaos twenty years ago, Rong Sheji .You want to hand the knife to the daughter of the enemy who killed her father?"

"...What on earth do you want to say?" He didn't even use the honorific. It was obvious that Tsuruga Camouflage was upset at this time.

"At the same time, there are also the sword master Qiu Baibing who is known as the "strongest in the country", the Shini Ninja Army who is as famous as Iga Koga, and of course, me. Master of the Camouflage Palace, let me say it again, you really can't hold it. This [Thousand Swords·铩], these Santu Shrine and a thousand black shrine maidens are your biggest weaknesses. Once you openly resist the shogunate's sword conquest, everything you cherish will be in vain."

Heather leaned forward and whispered in Tsuruga Camouflage's ear:

"You have a weakness. You are no longer the 'Sento-ryu' who could receive slashes with the black key when you were a child."

Feeling the heat coming from his ears, Tsuruga Camouflage clenched his fists and said in a low voice, "So, do you have a solution?"

"Of course, that's exactly what I'm here for."

Heather sat back with a bright smile.

Like a beast biting the throat of its prey.