“I don’t quite follow.” I admitted. “What second chance? I don’t think we are acquainted in any way?”

Hikawa-san continued to smile brightly, patting his daughters reassuringly on the back as he passed them, coming closer to me and Shaeula, who he was eyeing curiously.

“No, no we are not.” He agreed. “Still, I had heard of you, when messengers from Shirohebizumi shrine and some other… more rural Tokyo shrines claimed to have a ‘chosen one’ who could speak to the kami. Now, I’m a man who can believe much, especially when I was already aware of such from our Faction, but I figured any such person who didn’t arise from within the temples and shrines was likely to be rather… unimpressive. No offense.”

“None taken.” I responded automatically. Faction?

“Besides…” he continued, backing up as Shaeula’s face was turning stern from his inspection. “And of course this is a matter of secrecy, but I figure I’ll be open with you. Kiyomizu-Dera temple in Kyoto has a ‘chosen one’ already and is already expecting my support… at the upcoming conclave I’ll have to declare it.”

Another big shrine. And as suspected the conclave is about ‘chosen ones’, candidates to be Astral Emperors…

“I see, and what does that have to do with me?” I asked, readying wind just in case.

“Whoa there, calm down, sport.” Hikawa-san said, seeing me tense up. “No need to get all defensive. Like I said, I felt you would likely be no big thing so I turned down the offer of this shrine to support you, but…” his gaze strayed to his daughters. “My girls here, they go to school with one of the shrine maidens that was at the meeting here. They talked about the two of you, and it was… rather more shocking than I was expecting. My girls you see… they can tell when someone is lying to them.” He scratched one cheek gingerly. “It can be a pain at home, but it has its uses…”

Wait, what… isn’t all this supposed to be secret? We agreed word shouldn’t get out… Seeing my gaze Izumi-san sighed.

“My apologies. The girl who talked is being soundly punished. But she was not foolish enough to speak openly about it. She knew that the twins here are daughters of a true shrine too, so could in some regards be trusted… it was a mistake, but do not think we are spreading knowledge carelessly.”

Well, it was always going to be impossible to keep the Boundary under wraps, as even if I don’t spread it, others will… but the longer I can operate in secrecy the bigger my advantage. I need at least until the Territory upgrades and isn’t so vulnerable, as well as securing my next plan here in the Material… It’s still annoying we have loose lips here though, but will it be to my advantage, or…

“Yeah, go easy on the girl. It all worked out. Must be the guidance of Kushinada-Hime, I’m sure.” Hikawa-san said piously. “Anyway, when I heard I just had to see for myself. And now I have… yeah, you two are fascinating. There was no mention of the Kiyomizu-Dera ‘chosen one’ or any of the others having such a beautiful spiritual companion. It really is a wonder. And so stable here outside the spiritual realm too.”

Others? … “So, where do we go from here?” I asked.

“Well, I’ve heard many interesting things from Izumi-san here. Submitting a request to the conclave was clever, but small local shrines without Faction backing are unlikely to get much support or traction. Home shrine support is good and all, but what matters is the prestige and history of the big guys… lucky for you, our shrine is a major one.”

At that Ren-san looked proud. The little sod does have quite the ego…

“So, let me get this straight. You want to offer us backing? Sounds too good to be true to me.”

“Indeed-indeed.” Shaeula agreed. “Something for nothing is always suspicious. Boons must be matched to have value.”

“I can see why you would think that.” Hikawa-san agreed. “And to be honest, we are not backing you, as we will likely be committed to supporting the candidate at Kiyomizu-Dera. We are happy to support you, though, in exchange for some mutual aid. With our support you and your allied shrines will have an influential voice in the conclave and within our Faction.”

So there is some give and take. But… “The thing is, I don’t know much about your politics, and less about your ‘chosen one’. Maybe we wouldn’t be a good fit, and who knows, maybe I’m a better candidate? After all, I have Shaeula, like you said that puts me in a strong position.”

“Hey, don’t speak to my dad like that…” Ren-san began, but his sisters began chiding him gently. Behind Hikawa-san, Izumi-san was looking a little troubled. This is clearly a complicated issue…

“Firstly, our shrine is Susanoo faction, which is unsurprising as one of our enshrined gods is Susanoo. I would say that we come closest to the minor shrines in our faction politics. It would be a decent fit, rather than the more aggressive Amaterasu faction, who want the shrines to regain all their lost influence. Tsukuyomi faction tends to play both sides, and while I feel they are more likely to support us, I can’t say I appreciate the fence-sitters…”

“Indeed.” Izumi-san said slowly, face set sternly. “We approached several larger shrines in Tokyo for their support, but all were Susanoo or Tsukuyomi faction, or neutral. None were much interested in our words, however, until now…”

“Yeah no dice. At least I thought about it before turning you down, man.” Hikawa-san laughed again. “Seriously though… it’s a win-win for you guys. And maybe if you can impress enough of our Faction buddies, you can sit in the hot-seat. I’ve not met our candidate personally, so I don’t know much about then, expect they are supposedly proper old-blood and talented. Still, I ask that you at least give them a chance.”

Shaeula and I exchanged gazes. What to do, what to do…

“Oh yeah. The girl told my daughters that you were going to be training her and some others in how to enhance their talents. Sounds awesome. My kids need to get in on that. Shouldn’t be a problem adding three more, eh?”

Well, in theory no, but…

“I did say only two per shrine…” I began, but he cut me off.

“That’s cool. My baby girls surely count as a single right. Twins are two-in-one after all?”

“Dad, don’t embarrass us…” one went, and the other nodded, flushed.

“Seriously though.” Hikawa-san continued. “If you could show results by the conclave, and with talented youths from a major shrine… everyone wins. I don’t know what the other Factions are doing, or if they have any spirits or kami in the physical world, like this girl here… but I do know that my weight will sway many smaller independent shrines and some of the Susanoo faction. Can you turn that down?”

No, I probably can’t. Real world backing is something I can’t get by expanding in the Astral… and from a shrine even I’ve heard of to boot…

“All right then. I’ll add your children to the training. That I can do. As for the support, I’ll need to decide at the conclave, but assume you have the first chance to impress me.” That was the best I could offer…

“Fine. Say hello to your new teacher then kids.”

“We’ll be in your care, Sensei.” One twin said, the other echoing her. Ren-san looked a bit sick, but he also managed a fairly polite acceptance.

“Now that is settled…” Izumi-san said with some relief. “Just what are you here for today?”

“Oh yeah, we did get distracted.” I produced a bundle of paperwork I had put together that morning. “You’ve go a lot of land here, which is unusual for Tokyo, even here on the outskirts, right?”

“Shrines tend to be landowners, yes.” Hikawa-san agreed. “True shrines have long history and that lends itself to wealth.”

“We do have fallow land on the hill,” Izumi-san said carefully. “Why do you ask?”

I handed him the documents. “I’m planning to construct training facilities here, amongst other things. I did say I’d help your shrine prosper, so this seems like a good way.”

As he looked through the documents, Izumi-san was frowning. Beside him Hikawa-san was eyeing them with interest, muttering “I see, I see.” Shaeula was busy trying to talk to the twins, while Ren-san was butting in, trying to impress her to little avail.

“Ambitious. But not cheap, especially if you want to make swift progress.” Hikawa-san mentioned.

“True, but I’m expecting some money soon. I believe you have some old buildings that are in disrepair? Kana-chan mentioned them before. We could spruce them up for now and make do until construction is done?”

At mention of his granddaughter, Izumi-san agreed. “But these are just wish-lists, not detailed plans… and there is consent, taxes… it is no small undertaking. And the benefit to you is small, compared to what we would gain…”

“That’s why while we are away you should consult an architect to get detailed plans drawn up and start the ball rolling. I’ll cover the bill of course. On my return… I should have the funds to start the project. As for my gain… I suspect it’ll increase my support within the conclave, right?”

“Very clever.” Hikawa-san agreed. “You know what, I think I like you, Oshiro-san. I think we will work well together…”

“Oh, and while I remember, Chairoakitara shrine is sending a shrine maiden here to learn and support the alliance. We need to make arrangements for her…”

As we made further plans and shared words of alliance, Keomi-chan returned with cake. The twins and Ren-san enjoyed some with Shaeula and the other shrine maidens, and later when Kana-chan returned she too joined in…

*********

“So, tomorrow is the day.” I said, releasing the last of the wind energy to the sky of the Boundary, green wisps floating away. “A shame, as I’m so close to finally increasing my ability to create wind energy. Just one more push…”

“You can not-not help it if you are inferior to my majesty, master.” Shaeula patted me gently on the head, reversing our usual roles. “You will succeed in due-due time. Until then merely remember you owe me a boon, for I won our wager.” With that said her eyes went to the dark Boundary skies. “I can hardly wait to fly on this aeroplane. I have seen-seen them on your television, and am most curious as to the experience. I look forward to seeing Eri and Aiko again. Eri must be missing her beloved too-too.” With that she snickered nastily.

“I guess. I’d be happy to see her too.” It’s a strange feeling. Me, a girlfriend. And it’s Eri. Even so, things don’t feel too different between us. After all, I’ve always liked her from a young age… oh man, I’m no good with this sort of thing…

Putting thoughts of budding romance out of my head I decided to take a look at my status. There was little else to do but train in the Boundary, as the Territory was still a long way from upgrading to Rank 3. Here we go then.

[Material Statistics] [Intangible Statistics] Might 83 128 Fortune 5 10 Fortitude 80 123 Majesty 2 5 Intellect 102 147 Charm 4 9 Resilience 106 154 ??? 2 Alacrity 78 121 Determination 3 Precision 99 142 ??? Aether 159 370 ??? [Material Skills] [Aetheric Skills] Silver Cord Rank 2 Rank 3 Eight Moons Chakra Network Rank 2 Aether Manipulation Rank 2 Rank 3 Aether Combat Technique Rank 1 Rank 2 Heart Chakra Of Wind Rank 1 Rank 3 Wind Manipulation Rank 4 Ether Healing Rank 1 [Physical Combat Skills] Spear Technique Rank 3 Combat Technique Rank 1 Wind Spear Technique Rank 1 Rank 2 [Practical Skills] Ether Crafting Rank 2 Rank 3 [Intangible Skills] [Perceptive Skills] Self-Examination Rank 5 Self-Examination, Territory Rank 4 Rank 5 Kin Examination Rank 2 Rank 3 [Unique Skills] ???????????????? Rank 0 ???????????????? Rank 0 [Level] 11 22 [Class]

Fae-Bonded 7/20 12/20

Kami-Blessed 5/20

Territory Rank 2

It made welcome reading. All of my physical stats were shattering human limits, and my aether had massively improved, though of course Shaeula still owned me hard in that regard, as she reminded me with a chortle when I shared my figures with her. My Fortune was giving me a 20% boost to acts of random chance, which Shaeula could double with her winds, putting me in the right place for a trip to Las Vegas! I also now had much higher Charm, which while nice was a bit of a double-edged sword. No wonder Yae found me so appealing, it didn’t make much sense otherwise…

In addition I now had Determination, and ???, which was possibly the same ??? as Shaeula had.

Skills-wise the picture was decent, but it was very hard to raise skills. I was close to Heart Chakra Of Wind Rank 4, I could feel it, but I just needed an insight or something to push me to a breakthrough. It seemed that each level of a skill was an order of magnitude harder than the last to gain, and at Rank 5 it really slowed to a crawl even more. My unknown Unique skills were still Rank 0, and I was eager to know what they were, but alas, it seemed not to be time yet.

Turning back to Shaeula I decided to call it for the night, as we had a busy weekend ahead of us… Las Vegas, here we come!