2023-01-02 23:13:45The gala has entered its full swing. Elaborate swirling gowns and even more elaborate symphonies fill the air. Drinks are exchanged between gloved hands before being downed all at once. These are supposed to be sipped but almost everyone here doesn’t really care.
In half an hour, the speeches will start. After that, the play begins, dinner is served, then everyone goes home. But for now, it is the gala’s prime hour, the ball dance.
Gleam stumbles into the edge of the dance floor, having just finished exchanging handshakes with what felt like an endless swarm of people eager to meet her.
“May I take this dance?”
Someone takes Gleam’s hand in theirs. She turns and is greeted by a bespectacled visage that’s all too familiar. Her usual serious expression immediately deepens into a subtle frown. “Tsumugi.”
“Gleam.” Cream-colored fabric glides from her shoulders to her thighs, and is continued by black and white stockings. On the side of her head is a piece of fabric shaped into a flower. It’s just the right amount of childishness, befitting her short stature. “I love your dress.”
“And your suit compliments your eyes.”“Hm.” Tsumugi smiles and adjusts her opaque glasses. “Shall we dance?”
“Let’s.”
Tsumugi leads Gleam into a swirling ballroom dance. The two slip seamlessly into a circle of dancing couples. She ignores the murmurs rippling through the crowd as they see two councilors dancing with one another.
“Seems that Auntie’s dance lessons are still fresh in your mind.” She whispers a message in her ear as she twirls Gleam around.
“Of course. How can I when she’s etched it onto the inside of both of our skulls?”
“That she has.”
“Cut the small talk, Tsumugi.” Tsumugi spins Gleam into a dip before spinning her back. “Why did you kill Kagami?”
“I didn’t.”“Are you implying that I killed her?” Her tone is level, but undeniably hostile.
“You’re awfully defensive considering you benefit the most from her death, after all.”
“True enough. But you too were outside of Takakumo when she died. Not to mention that you are associating with that outsider, Haru Hamamoto.”
“She’s my wife, a legal citizen of Takakumo by virtue of marriage. If you wish to point fingers, you’re the one associating with Ms. Shindou, an outsider by any definition of the term.”
Tsumugi sighs. “I can forgive the circumstantial evidence. Maybe the timing really was just unfortunate and some unknown third party killed Kagami. But you pushed the blame onto me. That, I do not forgive.”
“I did what I had to. No one would believe me over you.”
“It was… a move. Not the move I would have made, but it was a move.”“Hmph.”Tsumugi sighs. “I suppose we can find no middle ground?”
“No.”“You’re as stubborn as ever, I see.” As Tsumugi says that, the violinist plays their final note, and the next dance begins. She leads her to the edge of the dance floor where someone else awaits to take the next dance with her. “Perhaps a more direct conversation is in order.” “Good evening, Lady Gleam.” Tomoe’s dressed in her usual hoodie and sweatpants. It earns her a few confused stares, but nobody says anything.“Lady Kuroihoshi.” Gleam elegantly dabs her brow with her handkerchief. “Shall we dance?”
“I would like that.”The band leads into another song with the sound of trumpets and a distant piano. Salsa. Gleam winces, it’s been too long since her last salsa lesson.
“You’re wearing heels.” Tomoe makes a casual observation. “Please stop stepping on my feet.”
“I could say the same for you, grandma.” This is the third time she’s had to pry her foot from being pinned between the floor and Tomoe’s sole.“Forgive me, my salsa isn’t what it used to be.” Missteps aside, Tomoe’s hips sway left and right so effortlessly that it’s like she doesn’t have an uncountable number of years weighing her down.
“I sense that you’re not dancing with me tonight for leisure?”
Tomoe spins into Gleam’s arms. “I’ve come to offer you two options. Either give up and retire to a villa for the rest of your days, or stand accountable for the murder of Kagami Kentomi and face death by firing squad.”
“Yes, you do have me in a rather tight bind.” Gleam grits her teeth. “And you are very gracious to offer me a binary ultimatum. However, I must refuse both of those options. I haven’t exhausted all my resources. And until I have, I will continue to fight for my justice.”
“How very… bold of you.” A glimmer of either sadism or respect flickers across Tomoe’s glasses. “Unfortunately, you’re out of time.”“What do you mean?”
“Isn’t it obvious?”“...I see.” Gleam’s face remains stoic, but a bead of sweat betrays her true feelings. “You’ve laced even that with poison… So that’s your game… you’re using the performance as an announcement.”
“You catch on slowly. But yes, the final act of The Wanderer does strongly imply that you are Lady Kentomi’s killer. Then, all we have to do is present the evidence, and the public outcry will be deafening.“
Tomoe blinks. “But that doesn’t have to be the case. All you have to do is give up and retire. Publicly announce it during your speech tonight and we’ll draft up a farce execution.”
“...”
“So, what say you? The firing squad, or a nice peaceful villa?”
“...”“At least consider it. In spite of our political differences, I believe you to be a good person, Gleam. Hence, I offer you a way out.”
“Logically speaking, there’s really nothing I can do to prove my innocence, is there?”
“Whether or not you’re innocent doesn't matter to me. Point is that you're in a checkmated position. There’s nothing left for you to do–”“That was me speaking logically. Illogically speaking, I’m not going to duck my head and stand for this injustice. Do what you want. I refuse your offer.”“Suit yourself.” Tomoe sighs in disappointment right as the salsa music comes to a halt. The two glide along the ground towards the edge of the dance floor. Tomoe opens her mouth to say something to Gleam but she’s already gone, vanished into the crowd. Instead, someone else takes her hand.“Yo, Tomoe.”
“Lady Tsuki.”
They both bow at each other.Tsuki looks up at Tomoe as she finishes the last of her drink. “Shall we dance?”
“It would be my pleasure.” The two join hands and enter the dance floor. A distinctly traditional melody and droning singing begins to fill the air as the dancers enter into a paired folk dance.“So, did she surrender?” Tsuki whispers to Tomoe, her voice just barely rising above the music.
“No. She’s doing things the hard way.”
“Damn.” She clicks her tongue. “Tsumugi’s going to be upset about this.”
“We didn’t tell her about the plan. She’s going to be upset regardless.”
“After all this time, you still don’t have a grasp on human emotions, do you? Tsumugi’s not just going to be upset anymore, she’s going to be livid.” “It’s an unfortunate side effect but it’s nothing that can’t be dealt with in stride.” Tomoe shrugs in between the sweeping motions she’s making with her arms. “Otherwise, Tsumugi would be petty, which I believe she isn’t.”“Hah. Tsumugi is kind, but trust me when I say that she can be terribly petty.”
“Hm. Maybe. I suppose that doesn’t bode well for our political relationship.”
“At this rate, it’s only a matter of time before a schism forms in our faction.” Tsuki closes her eyes for a moment, calculating. “From the beginning, both you and Tsumugi were politically opposed. She wants to open the doors of Takakumo to the world, while you want it to remain stagnant. We’ve managed to get by with Gleam as a common enemy up until this point. With her gone, we’ll have to start picking sides.”
“That seems to be the ultimatum that we’re moving towards.” Tomoe states it plainly, like she added one plus one. “Tsumugi and you against Jessica and me.”
“Ho-hoh. Already so confident in Jessica’s allegiance, are we?”
“I have confidence in my hold over the treasury. Tsumugi whittled away her portions at her charity drives and you don’t have much to begin with. I trust that she’ll cast her lot with whichever one nets her the most profit.”“Gotta love how Gleam’s not even out of the game yet but we’re already discussing a split in our alliance.”
“Hm hm. That may be so.” Tomoe smiles beside herself.
“I look forward to meeting you on the battlefiel–”
Tsuki freezes up. Her heart. It feels like it’s just stopped. And her blood, it feels as though it’s frozen over. She stumbles. She falls. But Tomoe catches her.
“Are you okay?”
“Why… Do you care? We’re going to be enemies, remember?” Her heart begins to pump once again and her blood warms back up. Slowly, shakily, Tsuki draws herself back up onto her feet.“This is this. That is that. For now, we’re still allies.”
“Hm. I suppose you’re right.”.“And besides, I hope we can settle this whole dispute as civilly as possible. Who knows? We might be able to stay friends afterwards.”
“Maybe… maybe…” Tsuki coughs. “Alright, I think that’s it for me, chief. I gotta rest up or something.”“Take it easy.”
Tomoe waves Tsuki away as she stumbles away into the crowd.
Previous Chapter
Related Chapters
Corpse March Chapter 44 I Guess You Guys Aren't Ready For That Yet
“Excuse me.” Tsuki forages through a forest of drinks and elaborate ball gowns. She stares at them with mild envy. She always wanted to try dressing up, but her… ‘condition’… never let her. Fun fact, people don’t typically make clothes for mechanical bodies for good reason.Still, it's not as though the night is completely ruined, now is a good time to indulge vice or curiosity. And she finds herself in a unique position to indulge both. Tsuki's eyes drift off elsewhere, to a curious face in a curious crowd "Excuse me. Kikimi, was it?" Tsuki’s tone is polite but the way she stops Kikimi with her hand is just a little too forceful to be purely innocent. "Wh– what do you want?" Her shivering causes soft clinks to sound as they travel up Tsuki’s arm."What anyone else would want on a fine evening such as this. A drink and fine company.""Sorry, I– um, I don't drink.""Trust me. The iced water here is sublime." Tsuki smiles, but Kikimi senses something else hiding behind those eyes o
Corpse March Chapter 45 Sheer Heart Attack
Kuroko sits inside the dark car, sweating. Not from nervousness, but from the heat. She’s wearing something ladylike for once, a gorgeous sequined ball gown with a detachable bottom that lets it transform into a long dress. In spite of the open back and exposed shoulders, the sheer frilliness of the whole thing traps heat like a sponge soaks up water. As she takes a drag from her cigarette, the radio receiver in her hand suddenly speaks up. “Kuroko, come in.”“This is Kuroko, checking in.”“Status report.”“All clear so far. Phase one of the operation is progressing smoothly.” “Good. The payload is in the first floor bathroom. Set the bomb there, maximize structural damage, minimize casualties.” “Understood.” Kuroko puts down the transceiver, extinguishes her cigarette, and retrieves a small handheld mirror from her pocket. It opens with a flick of her wrist. Using her own face as a basis, she begins to weave. In the distance, she hears intense guitar riffs blasting from the mai
Corpse March Chapter 46 Is This Entertaining?
Another day, another beating. Kazuko limps out of the hospital in crutches. The crescent moon above reminds her of the Girls Won’t Cry gangsters’ faces while they beat the lights out of her. It was bad enough that they broke her leg, but hearing them laugh at her took away something that she can never get back. She offers a short prayer to whoever might be listening, thanking them. The fact she’s still alive is a miracle. Kazuko’s heard hushed stories of Girls’ Won’t Cry outright killing people who can’t pay their protection money. Well, ‘protection money’. It always just sounded like ‘extortion’ to Kazuko. She spits on the ground to get the distaste out of her mouth. It’s hard to take the train when your leg is broken. Especially when your leg is broken and the train is full and no one bothers giving you their seat and your armpits ache from the crutches and–. She supposes that this is all just the icing on the cake of a very bad day. The train comes to a screeching halt, one that
Corpse March Chapter 47 Is This Entertaining II?
“Wh-what?” Crying, breathing heavily, face contorted in internal agony, Kazumi slowly opens her eyes. “I’ll… buy you a cola.” Kazuko can’t believe she said something so stupid. She almost shrinks as she repeats herself. "...""..."“Ku…” In spite of the situation, Kazumi somehow finds it in herself to laugh. “A cola? That’s your plan? That’s your plan to stop me from killing myself?” “It was all I could think of at the moment...” “A cola? Really? Like someone like me deserves something like a cola. Even after killing someone, you’d still buy me a cola?” “I rarely ever get to drink one...” “I think I’m going to need more than a cola.” Kazumi slowly lowers the gun, and sits down at the edge of the roof. Her dead eyes are fixed at her feet. The situation has been defused. For now.“How do you feel?”“Jesus Christ, how do you think I feel?” “Like shit?”“Yeah.” “It really do be like that sometimes.” Kazuko carefully walks towards Kazumi and sits down next to her. Kazumi leans for
Corpse March Chapter 48 Sheer Heart Attack II
“Ring any bells?”“Well…” Haru curls her hair around her finger. “Not really, no. I’m pretty bad with faces and voices so…” “Tsk.” Kazuko puts the pair of glasses back into her pocket. “Regardless! The consequences of your actions have finally arrived.” “Consequences…?” What is this girl talking about? “Listen, this isn’t exactly the best time. Could we do this some other time? There’s a bomb in the stall.”“...oh. That is rather serious, actually.” “Yeah, so either help me out or get out of my way.” “Take your time.” Kazuko raises her hands and leans against the wall while Haru opens the stall and starts defusing. Or tries to, anyway.“Have you ever defused a bomb before?” “Nope, but I’ll figure it out.” “...”“Errr, you know how it’s always red or blue wire in the movies?”“Yeah?”“What am I supposed to do when all the wires are black?”“Jeez. You really don’t know what you’re doing, do you?”Haru places her hands on her hips. “Well, excuse me for trying. Tell you what, why do
Corpse March Chapter 49 Sheer Heart Attack III
Minutes earlier. Step. Pause. Step. Pause. Turn. Step. Pause. So on and so on. The guards move about their patrols in perfect lock step. They keep their eyes peeled, not daring to blink, fearing both what they might miss should they avert their gaze and the retribution that they might incur. If there’s one thing they’ve learned working underneath Haru, it’s that if there’s a mistake, she’ll erase it herself. No exceptions. One of the guards, one with a red handkerchief sticking out of her breast pocket, breaks away from the pack and heads to the second floor bathroom. Nothing out of the ordinary. No one bats an eye. Perfect. She locks the bathroom door behind her and checks every single stall for any sign of anyone inside. Once she’s sure that she’s alone, she takes out her handkerchief before unfolding it onto the ground. A moment passes before her master pushes open the door to the bathroom himself and locks the door behind him. “Sir Florence, sir.” “At ease.” Florence kneels
Corpse March Chapter 50 Bites The Dust
Minutes Earlier. “Excuse me, Miss Asuka? Hostile presences have been detected in the first and second floor bathroom.” “Hm.” A quick glance at the first second floor bathroom is all she needs to confirm that yes, there is indeed a bomb in the second stall. Even more curiously is that there’s a dead body next to the door, and Councilor Florence is holding the gun. Downstairs, Asuka sees that Haru’s engaged in combat with the lanky girl she’s seen hanging around Gleam. “Hostile presences confirmed.” “Should I alert the others?“No.” There’s a reason why Haru’s going it alone downstairs. If Asuka had to guess, it’s most likely because a panic is the last thing they need. If a panic were to occur, then Gleam wins. She’s proved that there’s a hostile threat in Takakumo. Technically, the lanky girl is an outsider by Takakumo standards. As for how Councilor Florence fits into all this? Asuka isn’t exactly sure. But what she does know is that this, all this, has to be resolved as quietly
Corpse March Chapter 51 Utopia - Ascent
“Haa… Haa… That was close…” Florence checks himself to make sure he’s still all there. Hands check, legs check, head check. He breathes a sigh of relief. He just barely managed to slip back into the portal there. Thank Lady Tsubame that he set up this emergency exit to his bedchamber just in time. Still, that girl managed to get a shot into his stomach. He tries sitting up but what feels like a spike driving itself into his abdomen prevents him from getting any further. He crumples back onto the ground, panting from the pain. He was hoping to not have to use this but it seems he doesn’t have a choice. He reaches into his cloak and retrieves a small vial of red liquid. Uncorking it with his teeth, he pours half of its contents directly onto the wound. Immediately, the wound begins to close, the pain starts to fade, and the bullet pops out of his stomach. He sighs from the relief.Standing up, Florence lifts the now tattered teleportation cloth up to the light before throwing it to h
Latest Chapter
Chapter 70 Epilogue
“Please, help yourself to some tea.” Nanashi gestures at the chair across from her for Haru to sit down. It hasn’t been that long since they’ve last met but already, she’s made a little home for herself in Takakumo. It’s surprising how much laboratory apparatus she’s managed to cram into such a tiny space. Arcane sigils, test tubes, and strange machines clutter the room in an organizational system that Haru could never decipher even if she had a lifetime to try. And in the center, is a simple table and two stools set up. “No thank you, I have a temperature-sensitive tongue. It burns when I eat even slightly warm food.” “Ah well, that’s a pity.” Nanashi takes the teacup away. It looks comically tiny in her armored grasp. “So, what business do you have with me?” “I believe your terms with Tsumugi stipulated that only half of the Papilio in Takakumo return to their Think-Tanks, correct?” “Yes, that is true.” “By any chance, would you ever consider capturing Takakumo for yourself and
Chapter 69 Cask
“Long time no see, Tot.” “It’s literally been a single day.” Kazuko walks along the pristine battlefield and comes to a stop exactly ten paces away from where Haru’s standing. “What do you want?” Haru adjusts her stance, placing herself between Kazuko and the unconscious Tsumugi. “I’ve come to talk.”“That’s it?” “Yep. I realized that after all this time, we never got a chance to properly talk to each other.” “I suppose you’re right.” “I must thank you, Tot.” Kazuko plants her rapier on the ground. “I think you’ve helped me to realize something about myself.” “And what is that?” “That you and I are the same. We’re two sides of the same coin, you and I. We can claim to be soldiers or heroes or avenging angels all we want, but in the end, we both kill.” “You’ve come all this way just to tell me that?” “Not quite. I’ve decided that I won’t tolerate any more excuses. From you or from myself. Regardless of whether we chose our lives or our lives chose us, we’re both killers. Jud
Chapter 68 Stellar Stellar
A gargantuan scythe blade the size of a mountain manifests from the tip of Tsumugi’s staff while Gleam blazes pure white, light magic seeping out of her very being. With a ponderous sweep of her arm, Tsumugi brings the scythe down, its tip aimed right for the crowd. The Deathless start to disperse but there’s not enough time. Someone trips. She closes her eyes to brace for impact but the impact never comes. Instead, there’s a brutal grinding sound. Opening her eyes, instead of seeing the tip of the scythe bearing down on her, she sees Gleam’s back as she clashes against Tsumugi’s scythe. “RUN!” The girl scrambles to her feet and runs away. Now all Gleam has to worry about is the mountain of cursed energy bearing down on her. “GRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGHHH!!!” Gleam lets out an unearthly cry as she wills herself to go faster, to break through Tsumugi’s attack, to turn the tides of this battle. “STELLAR!” The speed of light isn’t fast enough to move the scythe more than a few inches.
Chapter 67 Motteke! Sailor Fuku!
They come bursting out from the trees. Large metal transports with segmented armor that makes them resemble pillbugs. A far cry from the train-like things the Monarchs used all those years ago. They speed across the landscape, skimming across the flora of these lands. One transport in particular rushes ahead of the others, setting an example that the other transports follow. Atop its roof, stands a green-haired girl shredding her guitar. Heavy rock music, amplified by her sound sorcery, blasts outwards. It’s so loud that the ground almost seems to vibrate as they approach. But they find nothing. No patrols. No Deathless anywhere. It reeks of a trap. Tsumugi sticks her head out of the transport she’s in to yell at Haru.“Stick to the plan!” Haru nods and swaps tracks to the one corresponding to the signal for ‘Stick to the Plan’. The transition is nearly seamless. One by one, the transports climb the walls protecting Takakumo like it’s nothing. In the distance, they see it, Takakumo
Chapter 66 Aloha
“It seems we’re not welcome here anymore. You’ve been exiled.” Haru relays Gleam’s speech to Tsumugi. “What do we do?” Florence asks. “Nothing has changed. Let’s keep moving.” Haru waves her hand out the car window at the other Elites to follow close behind. They comply, mostly out of fear. They know that their duty is to Lady Kentomi first, Takakumo second, and Haru third, but the thought of going against Haru is just too much. The streets are empty, nearly everyone’s attending Gleam’s speech. What few people are left behind smile and wave at them as they pass, blissfully unaware of what Tsumugi’s become. They know not what she knows. “Where are we going exactly?” “To the forest on the edge of Takakumo’s borders. I’ve arranged for a meeting there.” Ah, to where it all began. The memories of a month or two ago come flooding back to Haru. It felt like a lifetime ago they were on that train and came crashing into Takakumo, completely unwelcome. “This is nostalgic.” Haru rests he
Chapter 65 Alter Ego Messiah
Letters make words, words make sentences, sentences make paragraphs, paragraphs fill pages, and pages fill up the tome. Number 3344 works dutifully, slowly but surely working through the book she’s been tasked to fill up. That is the purpose of the Papilio after all, to lend their minds as processors to the great Monarchian supercomputer complex, Nivosus. It is a purpose shared by the uncountable Papilio filling up this facility. They do not know better. None of them do. So they toil away, their minds working to the bone in the computational visual matrix.Every paragraph, every sentence, every letter is another crumb of data in the great compendium that the Monarchs seek to fill with all knowledge in existence. Years pass in the blink of an eye for the Papilio. Seasons pass them by without being noticed. They all keep their eyes downwards, scribing everything being fed to them. Number 3344 is no different. Just another drop in the ocean. Just another body being kept in a tube. Then
Chapter 64 Preparations
As soon as the door closes behind her, Tsumugi immediately breaks down into tears as everything she’s done and everything that happened to her comes crashing down in a terrible wave. She starts to run, as though she might be able to outrun her guilt. “What have I done?!”She keeps running. Further and further away from Gleam. Further and further away from the best friend that she threw away. Further and further away from any chance of going back. More than once, she considers turning around and apologizing, telling Gleam that she was foolish, begging for her forgiveness. But no matter how much she wants to, she knows she can’t. Tsuki believed in Tsumugi to be able to turn her own dream into a reality. This is the only way. Her dream was always incompatible with Gleam’s. From the very beginning, she knew that. It’s only natural that they would both eventually come into conflict with one another. But even then, her heart aches so much she fears it might shrivel up and die. She slowly
Chapter 63 Preparations
As soon as the door closes behind her, Tsumugi immediately breaks down into tears as everything she’s done and everything that happened to her comes crashing down in a terrible wave. She starts to run, as though she might be able to outrun her guilt. “What have I done?!”She keeps running. Further and further away from Gleam. Further and further away from the best friend that she threw away. Further and further away from any chance of going back. More than once, she considers turning around and apologizing, telling Gleam that she was foolish, begging for her forgiveness. But no matter how much she wants to, she knows she can’t. Tsuki believed in Tsumugi to be able to turn her own dream into a reality. This is the only way. Her dream was always incompatible with Gleam’s. From the very beginning, she knew that. It’s only natural that they would both eventually come into conflict with one another. But even then, her heart aches so much she fears it might shrivel up and die. She slowly
Chapter 62 Bad to Worse
“Kikimi faltered.” Kazuko takes a deep breath just to check if her lung is still punctured. Surprisingly enough, it seems that the damage Tsuki dealt her just a few hours ago has already healed. Usually, it takes a few more hours.“That’s fine. She’s more useful to us dead.” Florence stares out the window at the full moon hanging in the sky. “Now that she’s out of the picture, Gleam’s a legitimate threat to both Tsumugi and Tomoe. But now that they’ve already severed their alliance, it’s going to be that much more difficult to stop her.” “Yeah, whatever. I don’t care about any of that stuff.” Kazuko slowly lifts herself off the chair she was sitting in. “You’re on your own from now on.” “Wait, hold on, what happened to owing me your life?” “A life for a life. My debt has been paid in full.” Florence saved her, and she killed Kikimi. Fair’s fair.“How do I know you won’t just rat me out?” “You don’t. But you don’t have any other choice.” Florence looks on as Kazuko slings her cape
