Chapter 270: I'll Fabric—No, I'll Find Intel Good Enough To Make You Satisfied
Passing through the sparsely crowded streets of Hanamizaka, Gorou lowered the brim of his hood a little more as his gaze swept over a towering oni youth loudly arguing with the clerk of Yae Publishing House.
He averted his eyes quickly and continued on.
Getting into Inazuma City had been… surprisingly easy. Much easier than he'd dared to hope.
When he had shown the guards the letter from Lord Battousai, their attitudes had changed in an instant—from suspicion to flattery.
A few polite words, a bow here and there, and the gates opened as if by magic.
But as he stepped deeper into the city, a faint melancholy began to settle over him.
The Inazuma City before him looked… older, dimmer, smaller somehow.
The streets that should have been bustling with life now felt eerily quiet. The laughter and chatter he remembered from before the war were gone, replaced by cautious footsteps and guarded eyes.
Still, Gorou didn't know—while he was studying the city, others were studying him.
A lone wanderer wasn't an uncommon sight once upon a time.
But after the Vision Hunt Decree and Sakoku Decree, almost all the ronin had either fled or gone into hiding.
So, this cloaked figure trying to act inconspicuous?
He might as well have been waving a banner that read, "Suspicious person right here!"
"Hey, you there! Stop and submit to inspection!"
Right on cue, a squad of Tenryou Commission soldiers approached, their tone sharp and commanding.
The moment Gorou saw them, his instincts kicked in. His hand twitched toward his bow—but he froze halfway.
No. Not here. Not now.
If he fought in the heart of the shogunate's capital, he'd never make it out alive.
He forced a calm smile onto his face.
"I am here under the invitation of Yae Publishing House," he said, producing the letter Lord Battousai had given him. "To attend a light novel event."
The same letter that had opened every gate, silenced every guard, and even made high-ranking officers bow… This time, it didn't work.
In the Tenryou Commission, corruption ran deep, especially among those touched by the Fatui's influence. But not everyone had fallen under their sway—and it seemed that today, Gorou had run into one of the uncorrupted ones.
Within the Commission, ranks went from Machibugyō, to Yoriki, and finally Doushin—the foot officers.
Even though Doushin weren't high-ranking, they still had authority, especially over routine inspections like this.
The letter bore Yae Publishing House's seal and a hidden Fatui cipher—enough to fool both shogunate soldiers and Fatui informants alike.
But here, inside Inazuma City itself, that kind of trickery held no power.
"Apologies," the officer said curtly. "This letter proves nothing. Please come with us to the Tenryou Commission headquarters. Until we verify your identity, we'll arrange comfortable lodgings for you there."
In other words—a very polite arrest.
Normally, they might have let it slide out of respect for Yae Publishing House.
But Gorou's earlier reflex—the momentary movement toward his weapon—had sealed his fate.
Only criminals reached for their blades when the Tenryou Commission called out to them.
And in Inazuma City, criminals didn't leave the Commission alive.
Seeing the soldiers begin to close in, Gorou bared his teeth under the rim of his straw hat, his hand inching toward the short blade at his waist.
If he let them take him in, there was no chance he'd walk out again.
He wasn't naive enough to think they wouldn't recognize the General of the Watatsumi Resistance.
Then—
"Head down."
A quiet voice whispered beside his ear—familiar, calm, and steady.
Before he even thought to question it, Gorou obeyed.
"—Shrrk!"
A flash of steel split the air.
A shadow in black darted forward, blade gleaming with a streak of blue light.
"Sonic Impact!"
The name echoed softly under the rain as the dark figure lunged.
The blade hummed through the air, striking true—but deliberately missing vital spots.
Its wielder was fast—too fast.
Within seconds, the Tenryou Commission soldiers were down, groaning, their weapons scattered across the cobblestones.
The impact sent the surrounding soldiers—and the man beside him—crashing hard into the wall.
"Move!"
Seeing the troops staggered into dizziness, the stranger grabbed a still-frozen Gorou and dragged him into a nearby alley. By the time the soldiers recovered their senses, both figures had vanished.
"Sir, shall we pursue?"
The men fought the nausea, looking to the highest-ranking Doushin among them.
"No. Don't chase. That's enough."
He clutched his right shoulder with his left hand as if pain were the reason he gave up the chase. But the look in his eyes told a different story—one that hinted he'd already made his decision for reasons other than injury.
Mission accomplished, Ausbilder-sama! the look seemed to say.
"Battousai-dono…?"
After weaving through the labyrinthine residential alleys of Inazuma, the two finally stopped.
The black-coated man in front of Gorou didn't look anything like the crimson-clad Battousai, but the voice—familiar and unmistakable—gave him away.
He recalled that Battousai once mentioned that he had a specialty for disguise. This must be what he'd meant. No wonder the man had managed to hide in Inazuma City for so long without being discovered. If Gorou hadn't known him well, he might never have recognized him.
"You bring the things?" Bai Luo asked once they'd put some distance between themselves and the Commission.
"I… I brought them."
Gorou's voice came out halting. What he called "them" was, in truth, Miss Hina's outfit. Bai Luo had briefly feared Gorou might've forgotten the clothes given how rough he looked. Yet when Gorou confirmed he had them, Bai Luo felt a small flicker of disappointment.
Because that ragged ronin image sparked a dozen new schemes in Bai Luo's head—ideas like, "Since there isn't the old Miss Hina outfit, we'll have him wear a much shorter skirt as a substitute." The thought made his pulse quicken.
'Hmm… maybe later tonight I'll pilfer his clothes while he sleeps—'
No. Patience, he told himself. Instant gratification is fun, sure—but the long game is far more delicious. Let the plan build tension, little by little.
"I read your letter," Bai Luo said, "But I still advise you to focus on playing Miss Hina for the next few days. You just caused a scene with the Tenryou Commission, now they'll be watching for you."
Gorou had been clear in his letter: he came to gather intel on why the shogunate forces had withdrawn. Bai Luo, however, had no intention of letting him go snooping around alone.
"And... what about the intelligence?"
Gorou's voice trembled with worry. He understood Lord Battosai point, but the whole reason he'd come was to collect information. If he returned empty-handed, what would be the point?
"Leave that to me."
Bai Luo slapped his chest through the mask and, with an arrogantly casual grin, promised, "I'll fabric—no, I'll find intel good enough to make you satisfied."
. . . . .
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