“Not yet. Right now I'm just getting familiar with the capital... and meeting people who seem to know more about my mother than I do.” Midori gave Kageatsu a questioning look. “Speaking of, would you mind telling me what you know about her?”
The ronin grits her teeth in anger and fear, as Chitsukiko nocks an arrow and looses, killing a spider. "I'd rather fight the little ones than the big one." @asddas193 She looks at Kyouka. "What do you think." The spiders draw closer. The group sees another intersecting hallway, though they don't know where it leads, and it's too cramped to fight in.
"Your mother?" He chuckles. "Well, when the Imperial army invaded Terada lands and forced my father into vassalage, I know that she was behind it, ensuring that they had food and ammunition. She was a tricky one, actually. We tried hitting their supply chain, but she always found a way to nullify our raids. Sometimes she'd use decoys, other times ambushes. In fact, she once found a goat path that even we didn't know about, in our own domain!" He gives a laugh. "We were thinking that the imperial army was starving, when in fact they were getting more supplies than they had been before." He smiles wistfully. "After the war, we became friends. In fact, I was the one who purchased her a ticket to go to the Yokuboo domain."
“I see... I wish I had been there to see her in action...” Midori smiled as she imagined what her mother might have been like back then. “Why did she go to the Yokuboo domain? Do you know?”
"Well... Jiro, would you mind checking if the horses have been fed?" The pretty boy shrugs and walks away. "She left because of your father. He was, well... My own father was captivated by your mother, so after surrendering to the emperor, he almost immediately asked for her hand. Unfortunately for father, my youngest brother, Toshiro, had already begun a relationship with her. When father realised this, he demanded Toshiro's head and had him disinherited. Toshiro nearly took his own life, but your mother convinced him not to. Instead, she helped him fake his death, and together they fled to the Yokuboo domain, where one of his teachers had retired to." Kageatsu smiles. "I suppose I haven't been altogether honest with you. You're my niece."
“Oh.” was all Midori managed to say at first. The story had caught her by surprise and she was not sure how to react to it. “I see... so that's what happened... Thank you for telling me... uncle.” She made another pause. “I... did not expect this at all... I'm going to need a few minutes to process it fully.” Still, she wasn't unhappy with the news. (Yeah, that caught me by surprise, but in a good way.)
"I can certainly understand that. I assume the reason she didn't tell you is that she didn't want to force the knowledge on you." Yatsebe puts a hand on Midori's shoulder and squeezes slightly. "Take as long as you need." (Glad to hear it.)
“Thanks.” Midori gave Yatsebe a smile and a nod. “Let's change the topic a bit. Please tell me a bit more about yourselves – and about the Terada family as a whole.” She requested.
"We'd be happy to." Yatsebe nods. Kageatsu begins. "Well, I'm eldest brother to the current lord of Clan Terada, and as you know, Yatsebe is my only daughter. Clan Terada is very old, going back to the foundation of the empire, though we've only had power for a few centuries. We have significant land holdings in the north, with numerous samurai, though my own chunk of that is rather small." He smiles. "Is that the kind of thing you want to know, or would you like to know more about your father?"
"We fight of course!" Kyouka chimes happily as she draws her new sword. But, as they saw the cramped walk way, she points. "Think the spiders would have a hard time there?" She called out, while slicing any spider that came near.
Three seperate spiders attack her before the others can respond, and Kyouka cuts them down effortlessly. She barely even feels resistance against the blade, as if it was a hot knife cutting through butter. The sword feels lighter, as well, meaning that cutting isn't making her as tired as it did previously, which is good, because she's still breathing heavily.
The door opens, and Shintaro is on the other side. "Ah, kid, there you are. I have a job for you, but it's pretty sensitive. You're only getting paid a secretary's wage, so you can turn it down if you want."
"Haa. Crap... all that running around's getting to me." Kyouka pants as she sheathes her sword. Due to her companion's silence, she takes the time to examine whether or not the spiders could fit in the cramped corridor.
The group squeezes into the tunnel, the spiders following behind them, but having trouble fitting their bloated bodies between the walls as they grow ever narrower. Finally, as the four believe that they're stuck, they finally manage to give a heave and escape the tunnel, exiting out into another large chamber, completely dark beyond the torchlight. There's a feminine chuckle, this time audible to everyone. "Like a fly to the spider's web, you come to me." The ronin shouts into the darkness. "Show yourself, you cunt!"
