"...dy ...une...?"
"...ady... M...une...?"
"Lady Masamune!"
Third time's the charm, and with the familiar voice's volume raised, a soft and light yawn escaped the mouth of the woman on the bed. The bed, which was a circular-shaped matress and covered with a thin, but very luxurious-looking, silk sheet of a regal red color. Under said sheet lay the woman who was being spoken to, the sheet snuggly aroudn her form and showcasing her rather curvy and alluring physique, with her snow-white hair cascading down across her shoulders and over her rather most-certainly bare chest - conveniently covering any bits that shouldn't be seen by others. With a pair of fluffy fox-ears on her head, which twitched at the sound of the voice, and eyes that slowly opened to reveal a pair of amethyst-colored eyes that lazily looked about the room, this wa the typical morning for the mistress of the Shadowtower Shrine, Ashara Masamune.
Sitting up on the bed, with some effort in steadying herself, a burst of white shot out from underneath and behind her, revealing the nine tails of the fox-spirit as they swayed and danced behind her back as she sat on the bed and looked about. Next to the bed, with arms held at her waist and a grumpy expression on her face, was a familiar sight - the none-too-imaginatively named Mikoto, dressed in her miko-garb. She was a fox-girl too, albeit with only three tails, and golden -blondehair and fur instead of white. Her eyes were also red as rubies, but oherwise, except for a slimmer build and smaller bust, she could have passed for Ashara's little sister - which to some degree, she also was.
"Ah, good morning Mikoto." Ashara said sleepily with a soft smile.
"Don't you 'good morning' me, Lady Masamune! Jeez, do you even know what time it is?"
"Hm.... Dawn, maybe...?"
"No, wrong. It's late! And worse yet, you've been summoned to the Lord's Chambers! A butler just stopped by and delivered the summons to us."
"Oh, I see... Well, what's for breakfast then?"
"... What?"
"Breakfast? The meal you eat in the mroning?"
"I KNOW WHAT BREAKFAST IS! I'm ASKING WHY YOU'RE WORRIED ABOUT THAT?!"
"So loud, Mikoto... I can't very well go see the Lords on an empty stomach, now can I? A rumbling belly and weary visage would be most unbecoming."
"Now see here..." Mikoto began, but stopped as Ashara slid off the bed, in all her absence-of-any-undergarment glory, and walked over the other fox, giving her a warm embrace.
"Come, let us eat something together."
Out through a pair of sliding, paper-windowed doors, the two then went, into a slightly larger room that appeared to be a common-section. There wasn't much here, save for some stools, a knee-high table, some vandles and lanterns and a few other things like benches, stands and small decorations of flowers and the like. Somehow now dressed in her trademark outfit, Ashara sat down at the table, joined by a red-faced Mikoto (who's tails were still wagging).
"Say, Mikoto..."
"Y-yes, what is it?"
"HAve you noticed something this morning?"
"Noticed, what exactly, my lady?"
"How do I put it... The air in the shrine feels... Off, somehow."
"Off? Ah, you mean that it's a bit chillier than usual?"
"Is that what it is? I wonder..."
"Maybe it's just a bit colder than usual today?"
"Perhaps..."
As the two discussed, a pair of new-arrivals entered from the door on the opposite end of the room. These two, also drssed as shrine maidens, were a pair of catws, with two tails each. They had small wooden trays in their hands, with various small plates of food, mostly very light things. Placing them down infront of the foxes, they bowed politely and left the area, leaving the two vulpine women to eat in peace. A quiet meal was had, eaten with chopsticks and in relative silence, with only the occasional clinking when the wooden utensils hit the poecelain. After their meal, hands were clappd, food was thanked and then the two rose to leave.
Going out the same door the cat-girls had come and gone through, they stepped out onto the porch of the shrine. Here, one could finally see the Shadowtower Shrine and all the grounds. The shrine itself was a medium-sized, wooden building of clearly japanese design, and the courtyard was paved with stone tiles, while still keeping patches of grass in secluded sections. There were things like a small coy-pond, a japanese water-fountain, a drying rack for laundry and other such small, niche things strewn about. To the south was the large, red tori-gate, which one had to reach by ascending the winding, narrow-stpped staircase that spanned most of the length of the tower itself. The area around the shrine though, which lay on a pillar-like plateau inside the towrr, was dark and almost reminded one of a starless night. With the exception of the many paper lanterns that lit the courtyard and sides of the buildings - the shrine and the detachment quarters for the other girls - the only other light came from the lazy, docile ghosts and spirits that floated about in the air like aimless balloons. It was a very calm and quiet place,w ith only the pitter-patter of wooden sandals breaking the quiet stillness.
In the yard, many monster-girls milled about, doing various chores, from sweeping to gardening to laundry to carrying items. Ashara smiled softly at the sight - it really looked like just another peaceful day in the Chateau. However, a hand on her shoulder soon brought her attention back to the present, as she turned to look at a worried Mikoto.
"My lady, the summons..."
"Ah, yes of course. Shall we go then?"
"... My lady..."
"Hm, what's the matter?"
"... The summons were only for those in the castle who are above level 40..."
"... What...?"
Ashara's usually calm and serene face was gentuinely surprised. A look of both bewilderment and contemplation washed across the fox-girl's face. What was this all of a sudden? Not only was it rare for the Wandering Executioner to be summoned to the Throne Room of the Lords, but now the call for was only for those of higher strength throughout the entire castle? Mikoto was no slouch, being the highest-level miko at the shrine (at level 35), but for her not to be called alongside Ashara? This was no summons by Lady Deka_Ribbon, that was for sure. Honestly though, that should have been clear from the start - Lady Deka_Ribbon wouldn't have called them away from the shrine, she would have just popped on over herself and visited instead. Perhaps it wasn't just the air feeling colder that was off today after all...
"Mikoto, I'm going then, to answer the calls of our Lords."
"Yes, good luck and please be careful on your way."
Though she would have normally taken the time to walk down the staircase, this seemed urgent enough to warrant her concern. Also, given that she'd spend time eating breakfast, it might be a good idea to - for once - try and get about a little faster. As such, the nine-tailed fox-lady walked on across the courtyard, to a much smaller tori-gate (that was blue in color) on the eastern edge of the grounds. Sighing, she stepped on through - and as she did, her body burst into cherry blossom petals in a very cliché fashion, complete with the sound of multiple ringing bells.
...
In the next moment, she was now standing in the foyer of the castle's ground floor. That teleport was something Deka_Ribbon had installed for those who didn't want to climb the stairs all the way down again. The catch, however, was that only people with sufficient mana pools could use it - as the gate used the character's MP to translocate them. And it wasn't cheap. For Ashara, use of this one-way teleport cost almost 80% of her total mana, meaning she could only make use of it as long as she had max MP. Still, it was a quick - though inelegant - way of getting to the bottom of the chateau fast.
Looking around at the Bone Butlers, hurriedly milling about and moving their skeletal bodies in a frantic race, she continued on her way, walking elegantly and unrushed towards the first Chapter. Each step she took caused the bells around her ankles to jungle slightly, and her straight and proper posture made it look like she was gliding across the floor, rather than walking. Still, she likely wouldn't be the first tor each the Climax Hour, but hopefully she wouldn't be the last either.
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