Paimon spread her hands helplessly.
"Trying to command troops using stuff from novels—so this is what people mean by 'armchair general,' huh?"
Teppei suddenly lifted his head, proud as a peacock.
"Hmph, don't underestimate me! Just like you two, I'm also studying the art of military command!"
Lumine's jaw dropped, wide enough to fit a whole egg.
"Teppei… don't tell me you're…"
Teppei straightened his back, standing tall like an unshakable mountain.
"That's right! Thanks to my repeated success in naval battles, I've officially been appointed captain of a special operations unit!"
"And it's a brand new team too—Team Herring I! Sounds impressive, right?"
"I even asked Lady Kokomi—she said our uniforms are being custom-made as we speak!"
"Once they're ready, we'll go pick them up together. Just imagining us meeting up in our new uniforms… it's gonna be so cool!"
He paused for a moment, trying to settle the excitement surging in his chest.
He muttered something softly, but Lumine and Paimon couldn't quite catch what he said.
"All thanks to that treasure we got from our sponsor…"
Paimon's eyes sparkled.
"Sounds awesome! Uh… will I get a uniform too?"
Teppei replied as if it were obvious.
"Of course! You're part of the Watatsumi Island army too!"
"Yay!"
…
Just then, while the group chatted, a soldier approached and spoke to Teppei.
"Captain, a new mission just came in."
Teppei nodded.
"Got it. I'll head over right now. I'll see you two later, Lumine, Paimon."
"Better watch out—I might leave you in the dust!"
Paimon clenched her tiny fists.
"We won't lose to you!"
"Haha… we'll see about that."
Teppei patted his chest, brimming with confidence.
"I'm in top shape right now—perfect timing to rack up some merit!"
After Teppei left, Paimon let out a sigh.
"Who would've thought he'd get promoted to squad leader… he must've worked really hard~"
Lumine frowned slightly.
"Paimon, didn't you feel like… something was off about Teppei?"
"Huh?"
Paimon scratched her head.
"You mean like…"
Lumine tried to find the words.
"He looked really worn out… like his face was pale or something?"
Paimon shook her head.
"Not really! I thought he looked full of energy, like someone pumped him full of stimulant potions."
"Since Teppei's off on a mission, let's go handle the one Kokomi gave us."
Though her concerns lingered, Lumine could only push them aside for now.
…..
"This should be the place. But… there's nothing suspicious around."
Paimon looked around in all directions.
"Could it be… they got scared and ran off after hearing we were coming?"
"Still, the atmosphere here is definitely weird."
"Huh?!"
Paimon suddenly spotted someone completely unexpected.
"Teppei? Why are you here too? And… what happened to you?"
The Teppei before them was a shadow of his former self—his hair had turned gray, and his face was ghostly pale.
"Cough cough… I'm just as surprised. So you two were the ones sent to investigate."
"I just got back from delivering supplies to the front. Thought I'd sweep the area for any threats on the way… cough cough cough…"
Lumine frowned instinctively.
"Teppei, are you alright?"
Paimon nodded in concern.
"Yeah, you look weird… like you suddenly aged or something."
Teppei quickly waved his hand dismissively.
"I'm fine, I'm fine. Probably just caught a chill during our last sea sortie."
"I heard someone landed here not long ago to investigate, so I figured I'd drop by."
"If there was any danger, maybe I could play the hero… heh… too bad it's just you two. Looks like I came for nothing."
Paimon raised a finger.
"Teppei, don't you think this place feels… off?"
Teppei glanced around.
"Hmm… now that you mention it, yeah. Maybe it's because we're close to the remains of the god Orobashi. There's still a strong divine aura lingering."
"Orobashi? That's the…"
Paimon blinked in confusion.
"Look, that's the bone he left behind."
Teppei pointed toward a "mountain" in the distance.
"Whoa! That giant snake skeleton is Orobashi's?! That's terrifying!"
Paimon finally realized the massive shape wasn't a mountain, but the remains of a god.
"Orobashi led our ancestors from Enkanomiya to the surface. Without him, Watatsumi Island wouldn't exist."
"Our people revered him as a guardian deity. But during the Archon War, Orobashi invaded Yashiori Island."
Raiden Shogun personally intervened and struck him down with the Musou no Hitotachi. That one slash carved out what's now known as the Musoujin Gorge."
Paimon gasped.
"Musoujin Gorge was made by the Shogun's sword…?! That's incredible!"
Teppei nodded solemnly.
"Yeah. But the Archon War was brutal. Yashiori Island was left in ruins. They say the Shogun lost something precious back then too."
"Orobashi destroyed civilizations. The Shogun stopped him."
"And now she enforces the Vision Hunt Decree, stripping people of their dreams—someone has to stop her too… cough…"
"After Orobashi died, tensions between Watatsumi and the Shogunate worsened. But forming the resistance this time isn't about faith—it's about opposing the Vision Hunt Decree."
"Now, our goal is even nobler: overturn the Sakoku Decree and free Inazuma."
"Cough, cough, cough…"
Whether from emotion or something else, Teppei began coughing violently.
Paimon panicked.
"Teppei, seriously—are you okay?!"
He waved again, forcing a smile.
"Don't worry. I'm still tough as nails."
"I'll head back now. Just took care of some elite Shogunate warriors, so I need a break. Still have more to do later."
"You should go report to Lady Kokomi. The divine aura here might still linger—staying too long isn't good for your health…"
With that, Teppei hurried off.
Paimon turned to Lumine.
"Lumine…"
Lumine nodded slowly.
"Yeah. Teppei's definitely hiding something. And…"
She touched her chest.
"Shajin… is this what you meant when you said we would become enemies…?"
_
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