[Mirrinus]

Let's Play Sengoku Gensokyo - Day 71

Spoiler

Yukari: ...So you've managed to come this far, Reimu.

Reimu: Yes I have. Don't you look incredibly satisfied with yourself.

Of course. You coming all the way here means that you've been quite enamoured with my game, haven't you?

......I have one thing to ask.

Go ahead.

No one ever knows what you're thinking, you never listen to what others have to say, and you love getting other people involved into your annoying matters.

My, that's awfully cruel.

But you're not the type to do things without a motive...What is your aim for this whole mess? In other words...What are you planning?

As I said, it's just a game for everyone to enjoy.

Do you really expect me to believe that after we've come this far?

...Your intuition is as sharp as ever, I see. Well then, I'm sure you're aware...just what you have to do to make me answer that question.

...Yukari. You are all that remains. Once I defeat you, I am the winner. Then, you will spit everything out.

Ehehe...Indeed. Alright then, it's time for my final test for you all...Don't disappoint me!

**********

All right...one more time, Yukari!

BGM: Necrofantasia ~ Sengoku Arr. ~

This one goes a lot better. Mokou was like a magnet for enemy attacks this time, which is perfectly fine for me. She got some excellent use out of Resurrection, which means the rest of my party had enough HP to ensure they could land some strong hits. We didn't competely destroy every enemy, but we got pretty darn close.

Quite a fat amount of exp awaited us for this one. Of course, I'm sure we're all aware by now that this isn't the end...

**********

BGM: Moon Rabbit ~Bathed in Moonlight~

Chen: L-Lady Ran...

Ran: Ooh, ugh...L-Lady Yukari...

Reimu had defeated Yukari and her shikigami, the last army who stood in their way. The long and fateful game had finally come to an end.

Yukari: Boo-hoo...I was thinking that maybe I should let you all win slightly, but you all ended up beating us so badly~.

Marisa: I don't think y'all can lose any worse than you have now, that's for sure.

Reimu: That was pretty vicious in the end, but everything's settled now. And this should finish it all.

Yes, I'm almost reluctant to say it...but oh well. Congratulations, Reimu! You are the champion!

Yaaay! *clap clap clap clap*

*clap clap*

Let's all give a large round of applause!

.........

.........

.........

An uneasy atmosphere settled around the area. Yukari had been smiling jovially and clapping, but the intense stares fixated at her quickly made her hands stop.

Aha...ha...You don't like it?

Obviously!

Wah, come on, you don't have to get so angry about it~.

It's your turn to explain to everyone here just why you started this whole mess in the first place!

Reimu, Marisa, and all the other members of the game gathered around Yukari. Those who were sweet-talked into it by her, those who had different expectations, those who realized what Yukari's goal was...Everyone had different reasons for joining in, but the common thread was that they were all invited by Yukari. It was natural for everyone to want to know what exactly the originator of it all had in mind.

Eiki: ...If you find it difficult to say yourself, would you like me to provide an explanation to everyone else?

Wha? Are ya sayin' ya knew from the start?

Oh, please don't worry about me. I suppose I do have to reveal it, though.

Yukari seemed to come up with an idea as she gave her dress a small wipe. After an uncomfortable silence, she finally opened her mouth.

...It was allllll a prank from me! Hehe, I surprised you all, didn't...I suppose that's not going to work with you all.

We came here with the goal of beating you up...But we know that you wouldn't instigate such a huge incident like this without some ulterior motive.

Your intuition is as sharp as ever...Well, at this point, there's no reason to hide it anymore, so I shall kindly reveal it.

BGM: Legends

...At this point in time, this place is filled with the best of Gensokyo. I believe everyone is well aware of this fact.

Remilia: Indeed I am. There isn't anyone stronger than me, after all.

Sakuya: Milady, that claim is a bit hard to swallow if you consider your loss to Reimu.

You should just keep quiet, no one would've noticed if you didn't point it out.

Cirno: Besides, you're wrong! I'm the strongest!

Yuuka: Now hold on, that claim is simply inexcusable. The strongest in Gensokyo is clearly none other than me.

I'll be the fastest, then.

Aya: Now that's a claim I cannot possibly leave unchallenged.

Merlin: I guess we'd be Gensokyo's best band?

Alice: I'd be Gensokyo's best dollmaster.

Gah, stop derailing the conversation! Yukari, please continue.

Leaving aside who exactly is the strongest for now...It is a fact that everyone is clearly very strong...Yes, perhaps too strong.

For a brief moment, Yukari's face seemed to turn dark from the words she spoke. As she kept talking, her face instantly returned to normal.

Youkai cause incidents, and Reimu resolves them...One of the unwritten rules of Gensokyo. It is done so that youkai can continue to display their power.

Yukari chose then to pause in her explanation. Was it for emphasis, or was there something else she couldn't say? With Yukari's usual behavior, it was impossible to tell which it was.

That's...the spellcard rules that we came to an agreement to, correct? Were there complaints about it?

Not at all. The one-on-one spellcard rules proved to be very popular with nearly every youkai. However...there were no rules regarding the incidents at all. And with the youkai slowly regaining their power...Yes, the incidents themselves were too much.

So ya mean...what, exactly?

Take the Scarlet Mist incident for example. The mist was so excessive that it flooded over to the outside. The outside could've been alerted to our existance.

Patchouli: ...She's right, Remi.

Perhaps we went a little too far.

The Spring Snow incident covered Gensokyo in unseasonal snow. Humans would be unable to live with no spring, and the ecosystem would've been damaged irreparably.

Youmu: Lady Yuko, that would be us...

Yuyuko: I didn't know I did something so amazing.

That is not something to be happy about, Lady Yuyuko...

My my...I suppose so.

And the Eternal Night incident...Causing an incident with the moon would weaken the power of youkai. That would then affact the balance of power in Gensokyo.

Eirin: And that would be our cue.

Kaguya: To be perfectly honest, that possibility never came to my mind.

...All of these incidents have been far too large a scale, and they have threatened the safety of Gensokyo. If this trend continues, soon enough...

Gensokyo will be destroyed...Is that what you're trying to say?

Good, you got my point quickly. And that is why I came up with this whole affair. I started a Gensokyo-scale battle "game", and involved every powerful person...It would give an outlet for all that power, it would be controlled and kept within Gensokyo, and affect nothing else. Brilliant, wasn't it?

Hold up, you've been speakin' this whole time on your reasons for gettin' everyone here involved in your plan.

Yes I have. Is something wrong?

So that means...When you said at the start that you would "make a wish come true"...that was...a lie!?

If I didn't say something like that, no one would want to participate.

Damnit...This was all a...

Marisa fell to the floor, depressed and dejected, as if the entire world had crumbled on top of her. But despite her crestfallen expression, no one said a word.

My my...That hit you hard, didn't it? Well, it may have been a false incentive, but I don't believe I told a lie either, did I?

Whaddaya mean?

After all, the eventual winner gets what they most desired, to be able to proclaim themselves the winner of...That isn't going to fly, is it?

Of course it won't!

Alice: Just what were you going to wish for anyway?

Ahh, ain't it obvious? I woulda wished for...

???: Dearie me, aren't you talking about rewards and wishes far too prematurely?

Who's that!?

An unknown person's voice suddenly rang out above their heads. Everyone faced upwards to see nothing but blue sky at first, but slowly, a shadowy figure began to materialize.

BGM: Moment by Moment ~KIZAKIZA~

Heh heh heh heh...My name is ???, and I have been waiting for...hey, quit it! There's no need to hide my name anymore!

...Um.

Ah, terribly sorry 'bout that. All these people around me made me a little nervous. Let's try this again. Ahem!

Shinki: My name is Shinki, the goddess of Makai! I have endured the worst, hiding in the shadows, waiting for this moment! Good to see you again, Reimu & Marisa!

...Hey Reimu, do ya know her?

Why ask me? She called your name too.

...I've got no clue either.

Heh heh heh...Li'l Yumeko was right, this whole affair would've ended if we just stared and waited!

I think it'd have been better that way.

How could you say that!? We have been surveying Gensokyo for a very long time...Waiting for this exact moment to come to pass!

Umm...No matter what you say, I'm afraid it's already ended.

You won't be getting the good ending if you ignore us! Reimu! Marisa! We challenge you to a battle!

Ugh...I don't want to, we only just finished this whole mess...I just want to go home.

Total agreement here. Alright, I wish for that strange lady to go away.

Ehehehehe...Let's see if you can say that again after watching this! Everyone, how's the operation going?

Shinki spread her arms, and five distortions appeared int he sky above. The distortions were connected with areas quite familiar to those present.

Sara: This is Sara, the target point "Hakugyokurou" has been captured!

Louise: Lady Shinki, "Muenzuka" has been successfully occupied.

Young Alice: The "Magic Forest Interior" is under our control now!

Yuki: This is Yuki. We've taken "Eientei"!

Mai: ......*nod*

Yumeko: Lady Shinki, this is the "SDM Top Floor". There are no abnormalities to report.

And the "Hakurei Shrine"...Hehehe, this shall be mine. My children are excellent, are they not? Well? Will you still be all laid back at our challenge now?

...What's your aim?

Our aim...? For us, to be forgotten is the same as no longer existing...My children, and my world will not disappear so easily.

I'll be waiting at the shrine, Reimu! For you and Marisa, especially...for you two who completely forgot us, I'll make sure that'll never happen again. If somehow, you manage to defeat all my children, you may come to the shrine. Then, I shall be your opponent. Don't keep me waiting! Farewell!

The talkative Shinki returned from the distortion she came from, and disappeared within. The area then became deathly quiet.

...Yukari, what's your excuse for this?

Wait a second, I didn't do anything. And for once, I'm not lying.

Eirin: We just received word from the rabbits...Eientei appears to have fallen into their hands, indeed.

Akyu: so it's probably the same for the other locations as well...

Keine: Good grief, just when I thought it was finally going to calm down around here...

Yuuka: Makai, and Gensokyo...This will be a war unlike all the playing we've been doing up till now. They really didn't like you all forgetting them.

...Actually, I think something's trying to come back to me...but my mind keeps rejectin' it for some reason.

I don't care if they're from Makai or not, they must be very prepared to think they can do what they want here. We have a real incident on our hands now.

Do your best~.

You're the one who started all this! Anyway, let's tidy up and resolve this quickly. They'll see what we've got!

Gensokyo had been unexpectedly attacked by the forces of Makai. Yukari's game would not end until they are chased out of Gensokyo once and for all. The curtain has risen for the final act for Reimu's army.

"Yakumo Clan" has fallen.
Yukari Yakumo has been taken prisoner.
Ran Yakumo has been taken prisoner.
Chen has been taken prisoner.

"Makai Goddess Army" has been formed.
Hakugyokurou placed under control of Makai Goddess Army.
Muenzuka placed under control of Makai Goddess Army.
Magic Forest Interior placed under control of Makai Goddess Army.
Eientei placed under control of Makai Goddess Army.
SDM Top Floor placed under control of Makai Goddess Army.
Hakurei Shrine placed under control of Makai Goddess Army.
"Makai Goddess Army" - War has been declared.

**********

...And the Makai folks immediately get to work by attacking the Night-Blind Road. Their mooks are at a significantly higher level than everyone before them, but they still aren't that much of a difficulty. However, one problem that we must be aware of is our dwindling Ouki supply. Not only did we lose a fair bit for our losses and character defeats against the Yakumos, but we've lost quite a bit of Ryumaku along with the territories that Makai automatically took. I'm seeking to not only win these fights, but do so with as high HP as possible at the end.

...And we're still not done! Makai launches a second attack, this time on the Road of Reconsideration. We hit them hard with some of our best attackers, including the overwhelming might of Pandemonium, which is very good at destroying mooks. The shortness of these fights makes it worth spending the large counter costs on specials like Pandemonium, because you're going to have more than you need anyway.

...And they're still not finished? Yep, Makai gets up to three attacks each turn! We're sort of out of characters by now due to earlier developments, but even if we did win, I was worried about how much damage we would be taking if we weren't using our better teams.

There are now several different territories we can attack, but we must make some decisions regarding our priorities here. How many attacks do we make each turn? Where to we attack first, and for how long? Who should we be using for each attack?

**********

Patchouli: So, what do you need here?

Marisa: We haven't said anythin' yet.

Reimu and Marisa had come to the Great Library with Patchouli. The top floor had been taken by the other group, but apparently Patchouli's Great Library had been left untouched.

Reimu: We actually went to the village first, but...

Akyu: Hmm...I'm sorry, but the Gensokyo Chronicles do not seem to have any information on those people.

...So that's why we thought of coming here and seeing what we could find out.

I see. This place isn't meant for researching on such specific matters, unfortunately...But feel free to spend as long as you want here.

We owe ya.

...And don't take any books away from here.

Yeah yeah, got it. Okay, let's get this done before the sun sets.

Koakuma: I'll help out too~.

Everyone in the library began to gather ancient-looking books, or those with seemingly-related titles, and flipped through them. but with no clues and such a large amount of books, it ended up as a waste of time.

Hmm...Not this one either. Geez, it feels like we'll never find anything 'bout 'em.

This is hopeless, we don't even know where to start.

Searching randomly certainly isn't doing us any good. Let's change our direction then.

What do you mean?

Do you two remember what that weird woman said when she popped up?

Erm, somethng about being the goddess of Makai, and a bunch of other stuff.

Not that part. She called herself "Shinki", and then addressed you two by name, saying that it's been a long time since you all met.

Oh, that's right! What was she talking about then? Both Marisa and I have no memory of her whatsoever!

That would be quite strange. If Reimu is right abou tit being your first meeting with her, how would she know your names, and what both of you looked like?

Couldn't she just have done research on us before the whole mess started?

......

Then the "It's been a long time" part wouldn't make any sense...Marisa, you've been awfully quiet for awhile now. What's wrong?

Eh? Ah, uh...There's somethin' about her...Whenever I think about it, it feels like I'm gonna dig up somethin' I reaaaally don't wanna remember.

Something ou don't want to remember...? You know her, then?

Well, how do ya say this...I guess ya could say my body remembers her, if these goosebumps mean anythin'.

You're confusing me even more...Though I can kinda feel it too...Like I have some very weak memory of them hidden deep inside...

They came into Gensokyo and took over multiple areas at the same time. Thinking about it, it seems possible that their "Makai" is in another dimension.

If that's the case, there's no point hangin' round here. We're just wastin' our time.

Wherever they're from, whatever they are, the fact remains that they dared to take over my shrine. I'll kick them out as fast as possible!

...Indeed, Remi's livid at having part of the mansion overtaken as well.

...Yeah. We gotta chase 'em out fast, or my wish ain't ever gonna be granted...Makai, goddess, whatever. We'll bring the hurt on 'em!

Whoever the enemy was, there was only one option: to defeat them. Just as they were about to leave the library with renewed vigour, Koakuma flew at them hurriedly. She had been searching the whole time.

Hey, I've found a book that looks like it's about them!

My, really?

Awesome, good job, now had it over!

Marisa took the book from Koakuma, and flipped to the page that she pointed at. A portrait of a person that looked very similar to Shinki was displayed there.

That's definitely her! This is amazing! You did really well to be able to find this.

I don't live here for nothing, you know! I know what each and every book here is generally about.

...Perhaps I should employ you as a librarian.

You were more helpful than Patchouli, at least...Hm? Marisa? Your face is all pale...what's wrong?

...W...Wahhhhhhhhhh!!

Ahh, Marisa!?

Marisa suddenly threw the book aside, and flew out of the library with both of her hands holding her head.

E, Ehhh...Ehehehe...Ehehehe...

...We probably should leave her alone.

...Yeah, let's do that.

They picked up the discarded book from the floor, and started reading. It indeed displayed Shinki and her group's names and figures, but did not elaborate further on Makai or any details about the group.

...I wonder what Marisa saw that disturbed her so badly?

Hmm, I don't see anything important here...Ah...

That's...You and Marisa...?

Yeah...Seems like it. And here's another familiar face, too...It's Yuuka. What's this all about?

This surely has something to do with the reason why they seem to know about you two...Whatever the reason actually is.

...This is getting creepy, let's just forget about this and just finish them off quickly. They're going to regret kicking others out of their own homes!

[i]Reimu's decision was to stop thinking too deeply about the entire issue, and concentrate on the reality of chasing them out of her shrine...And at that moment, Marisa was...

Ehehe...Black, White, Black-White...Ehehehehehe...

...She ran away from reality in order to protect her from herself.

**********

Turn: 70
Ouki: 6027
Ryumaku: 116/128
Actions Available: 3

Our Territories:

Night-Blind Road
Defense: 160/160
Cost to Develop: 33 RES

Faintly Dark Path
Defense: 175/175
Cost to Develop: 33 RES

Magic Forest Entrance
Defense: 180/180
Cost to Develop: 33 RES

Magic Forest Border
Defense: 160/160
Cost to Develop: 33 RES

Road of Reconsideration
Defense: 190/190
Cost to Develop: 30 RES

Human Village
Defense: 310/310
Cost to Develop: 36 RES

Garden of the Sun
Defense: 175/175
Cost to Develop: 33 RES

Nameless Hill
Defense: 205/205
Cost to Develop: 9 RES

Misty Lake
Defense: 225/225
Cost to Develop: 9 RES

SDM Gate
Defense: 230/230
Cost to Develop: 18 RES

Great Library
Defense: 195/195
Cost to Develop: 27 RES

Clock Tower
Defense: 210/210
Cost to Develop: 12 RES

Lost Bamboo Forest
Defense: 205/205
Cost to Develop: 9 RES

Hidden House
Defense: 195/195
Cost to Develop: 6 RES

Blossoms Barrier
Defense: 220/220
Cost to Develop: 9 RES

Hakugyokurou Stairs
Defense: 120/200
Cost to Develop: 6 RES

Yakumo Residence
Defense: 310/310
Cost to Develop: 15

Enemy Territories:

Hakugyokurou
Army: Makai Goddess Army
General: Sara
Defense: 235/235

Muenzuka
Army: Makai Goddess Army
General: Louise
Defense: 215/215

Magic Forest Interior
Army: Makai Goddess Army
General: Young Alice
Defense: 210/210

Eientei
Army: Makai Goddess Army
Generals: Yuki and Mai
Defense: 230/230

SDM Top Floor
Army: Makai Goddess Army
General: Yumeko
Defense: 225/225

Hakurei Shrine
Army: Makai Goddess Army
General: Shinki (Leader)
Defense: 250/250

Special Events:

Humans and Magicians
(No cost for this event.)

Prisoners:

Lots of choices as to what to do now. Where should we attack? How many times should we do it? And who should we use each time?