“How should we deal with her? Lady Bishamonten, she has humiliated and tortured you. Please, I’ll leave the decision to you,” Lily said.
Bishamonten’s cold gaze fell upon the disheveled woman before her. “A depraved and spiteful demoness like her is of no use to anyone. Kill her.”
At those words, Furaku’s entire body trembled. Overwheld by fear and the lingering effects of the artifact, she nearly lost consciousness. “You can’t kill … I never truly ant to take your lives…”
“I only wanted to beco stronger! Can’t you understand? I may have once been a human adept, but after falling into Yomi and being forced by Lord Shikikai, I lost everything. I’m not asking for sympathy, but even in that humiliation, all I sought was strength! I only wanted to live with dignity as a female Supre God, no longer to be trampled upon!”
“Strength?” Lily’s voice grew cold as she summoned Oborozuki Muramasa, its edge gleaming nacingly. “That’s your excuse for tornting Lady Bishamonten, and even trying to defile ?”
“No!” Sensing Lily’s killing intent, Furaku panicked and threw herself forward in a desperate attempt to plead.
“What do you think you’re doing? You’ve dirtied my feet, shaless woman!” Lily scowled, stepping back in disgust.
Biting her lip, Furaku’s face flushed crimson with sha and tears streaked down her cheeks. “Stop it! Why must you treat like this?! If this is punishnt for what I did to you before, then I… I’ll atone for it! Please, I don’t want to die! There’s no real enmity between and you Celestial Maidens. I only wanted treasures! I’ve lost, I admit it… I surrender! Isn’t that enough?”
For reasons even she couldn’t explain, her face remained flushed. Deep down, Furaku had always been a proud woman. But Lily’s strength had utterly shattered that pride. Even if she were free and unbound, she knew she could never match Lily, in either skill or wealth.
To think that such a young girl, barely twenty years old, had reached the peak of the divinities… what kind of genius was this? Perhaps… being punished by such a prodigy wasn’t sothing entirely unbearable.
Although Lily had punished her using her own artifact, Furaku found herself feeling little hatred. What lingered instead was an indescribable sense of humiliation, of being subdued by soone younger, stronger, more beautiful, and infinitely more brilliant than herself.
“Miss Lily, I surrender, isn’t that enough…? Do whatever you wish with , I’ll accept it, but please don’t kill ! I don’t want to die for Takamagahara’s war! If you kill , the clash of our powers will trigger the barrier and alert A-no-Tajikarao! What good would that do any of us?”1
Listening to her pitiful plea, Lily could hardly believe what she was hearing.
“What did you just say? You call yourself a master interrogator?”
“…” Furaku fell silent, too weary to respond. She had trained relentlessly, mastering every cruel art of interrogation, but in truth, she wasn’t born for such darkness. Maybe all along, she only wanted revenge, only sought balance for the pain she’d suffered.
“Lily,” Bishamonten spoke softly, “she has a point. Killing a Supre God is no simple matter. The backlash of such power would trigger the formation and draw A-no-Tajikarao’s attention. If she’s cornered and chooses to self-destruct her divinity, the explosion would be impossible to conceal. He would co imdiately.”
“Self-destruct her divinity? A coward like her?” Lily scoffed and stomped her foot down on Furaku’s voluptuous rear. “You really think she has the courage for that?”
After everything Furaku had done to Bishamonten, there was no way Lily could forgive her so easily. Furaku let out a muffled groan of humiliation, though strangely, she didn’t seem to be in much pain.
“But if we spare her, what if she secretly informs A-no-Tajikarao?” Lily said with a frown. Bishamonten’s expression darkened, clearly sharing the sa worry.
“Miss Lily, I… I won’t,” Furaku stamred, her face burning. “Look at ! I failed to extract any secrets from you, and now I’ve been utterly humiliated. Do you think I’d want the Heroic Gods to see like this? If I report you, they’ll only punish . I’d gain nothing but deeper sha. And besides… Miss Lily, I’ve lost to you. I… I surrender. I don’t want to fight you anymore.”
Her voice trembled with heat and confusion. She didn’t even understand why she could say sothing so disgraceful to another woman. Was it because that woman was simply stronger, more beautiful, more gifted than she was?
Lily froze for a mont, then spoke coldly. “You don’t want to resist ? What, do you plan to beco my slave?”
“No, that’s not it, Miss Lily… It’s just… since I’ve lost, I’ll obey whatever you command.”
“You want to be my slave? I’m afraid you’re not even worthy.” With that, Lily kicked her aside. The asured kick left Furaku’s cheeks burning with humiliation. Even after being reduced to such a state, she was still being looked down upon, it was unbearable.
“As a female adept, perhaps your early misfortunes do earn my sympathy,” Lily said coldly. “To endure that lecher’s abuse and still maintain your sanity, training yourself to reach such heights, is sowhat admirable. But after gaining power, you could have freed yourself from that old degenerate. Instead, you chose to aid his tyranny, venting your pain and sha upon other won just to soothe your pathetic heart! A woman like you, I could never look up to.”
Lily flicked her sleeve and strode past, her bare heel stepping over Furaku’s line of sight.
“Wait, Miss Lily…”
“What now?” Lily asked impatiently.
“Miss Lily, no matter what you think of , at least allow to help you escape. I can command the prison guards and know the chanisms and secret passages here. You’ll never make it out if you try to fight your way through, the Heroic Gods will capture you for sure,” Furaku said earnestly.
Lily stopped and crouched down, not caring that Furaku might glimpse under her skirt. Resting her chin on her hand, she asked, “And why should I trust you? Aren’t you just looking for a chance to betray ?”
“If I truly wanted revenge, I wouldn’t need to wait for you to spare . Once you leave, I could simply report to the Yuten Army. Even if you tried to kill , the disturbance alone would trigger the barrier. But, Miss Lily, I really don’t wish to fight you anymore! Think about it, what good would that do ? As an interrogator, I’ve already lost all value. If I return, I’ll only be despised by the Heroic Gods and gain nothing at all! Yet if I let you escape and stay behind, I’ll surely be punished by A-no-Tajikarao. So whether or not you think worthy, please…allow to help you escape Yuten Castle together.”
Lily turned toward Bishamonten. “Can we trust what this woman says?”
Bishamonten’s expression was thoughtful. “A woman’s heart is difficult to fathom. But because of that, it’s also unwise to dismiss her entirely. If she wished to alert A-no-Tajikarao, she could have done so already. Letting her lead the way might not worsen our situation.”
Lily nodded slightly. “You may guide us, but your collar stays on. I’ll only remove it once we’ve reached a safe place.”
Furaku bowed submissively. “As you wish, Miss Lily. It will be as you command. Only…”
“Only what?”
“I no longer dare to covet what isn’t mine. But… could you return the treasures you took from earlier…?”
“What!?”
“N-no, not the paddle! Forget that one! Just… perhaps exchange it for one or two spirit tools I use for training?”
Lily shook her head in disdain, yet the woman’s petty request oddly reassured her, soone preoccupied with such things was unlikely to be scheming betrayal.
“Though it’s natural for the victor to claim the spoils of the defeated, your belongings aren’t worth much. There are a few I’ll need to study, so I can’t return them. Once we’re safe, I’ll compensate you with treasures of equal value,” Lily said.
As she spoke, Lily untied the ropes binding Furaku. “How do you plan to get us out of here?” Lily asked.
Furaku straightened her garnts and replied, “It will require so acting. I’ll have to tie you both up again, but I’ll weave hidden knots you can easily break free from. This is sothing I’m quite skilled at, you can rest assured. Then, I’ll order Riyuki’s Celestial Maiden squad to escort you out. They’re newly assigned here and unfamiliar with the prison layout, least likely to suspect anything.”
Lily and Bishamonten exchanged a glance, then nodded in agreent.
Furaku proceeded to bind them with ropes fitted with concealed clasps, ensuring both could easily undo them at will. Lily wasn’t worried, each knot could be inspected as it was tied.
As for Furaku herself, she changed into a fresh set of robes, tidied her hair, and adjusted her expression so not a trace of her earlier humiliation remained.
Once everything was ready, she drew a deep breath and called out, her voice ringing with authority once more. “Soone, co in!”
Her command carried through the air using the resonant waves of her Charm Heavenly Path, directly reaching Riyuki’s ears. Earlier, she had ordered that no one was to enter regardless of what sounds ca from inside. The prison’s soundproofing was, after all, exceptional.
Monts later, the heavy gate opened from the outside.
Riyuki entered with two Celestial Maidens; one dressed in cyan, the other in pink. Both were won Lily had once seen back in the Hekiraku Realm.
“Lord A-no-Tajikarao has given orders,” Furaku declared with authority. “He will personally interrogate them. Escort them to him at once!”
Riyuki hesitated briefly, frowning. “My Lady, escorting Kagami Lily is one thing, but with our current manpower, taking Bishamonten as well… I fear—”
“Even if every Celestial Maiden guarding this prison ca together, do you think you could restrain her?” Furaku snapped. “Rest easy. Under my interrogation, they’ve been completely subdued. They’ve also been bound by my secret spells and restraining artifacts, they can’t use their power.”
“Yes, my Lady,” Riyuki replied respectfully, bowing her head.
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