Kaze Burakku
The Great River

Fuyuse obviously wasn’t too keen on Kaze’s disposition, and Kaze had to admit, to someone of her stature, he had to be coming across as a real idiot. Like, the not very reliable kind. Even if he knew magic. In fact, that might make it even worse. The bards never sang songs about idiot mages. Well, never in a good way, anyway.

Okay, okay, get it together! Get your head out of your butt and start thinking like a normal human being around these ladies, dummy! Because if you mess this up…!

She and Nakano had suggested going in formation, which Kaze nodded and he could see where they were getting at. That was a solid, respectable, tactical plan. From here on in, he couldn’t keep getting careless or start looking like he should have been a court jester instead of a druid. That wouldn’t have gone down well at all and he didn’t need even more people thinking he was an idiot, a drunk, a maniac, or any possible combination of distribution among those three roles.

“I like the formation idea, let’s go with that,” Kaze replied with a nod.

See, that wasn’t so hard, was it? That didn’t look goofy at all!

When they approached the keep, the watchguards smiled, hailed the goddess and the bodyguards, mentioned they were informed of her arrival, and the keep’s gates opened to allow Juno and the rest of the group passage. Just. Like. That.

Something seemed really fishy. And Fuyuse and Nakano were right, he couldn’t afford to be a complete idiot in this kind of situation. There was too much on the line! That and in there, he’d be surrounded by walls. Thick, stone, walls. The deeper they went in, the more walls he’d be surrounded by and the further away from nature he’d be. And that meant he’d be more out of his element. It was hard to summon up plant roots and the forces of nature in a confined area surrounded by stone!

“Hold it!” Kaze shouted out to Juno before she took another step.

He knew once they went past that gate, there was no turning back… if it slammed shut. They would be at the mercy of this keep and he felt that was a really bad position to be in.

“Something just doesn’t seem right, Juno,” Kaze told her with a whisper, just out of earshot of the guards as he was getting a little anxious about the whole situation. “I think it’s a trap. It’s got to be. How could they have already been informed about our arrival, we just left the elder’s house only a short while ago! And I don’t think any rider or Pokémon messenger was dispatched to reach the keep beforehand to let us know we were coming. That and the weird thing is, if they wanted to give you this Sacred Bow of Miko and Heroines, wouldn’t it have made sense to take it to the elder’s house so you’d have it as soon as the journey started!?”

“It’s just seems a little suspicious they’re this welcoming,” Kaze told her, looking around him and not quite convinced these smiling guards could be trusted especially considering the possibilities that Fuyuse and Nakano mentioned earlier. “Sure, it’s nice, but… it’s too nice. Nobunaga seems like just the kind of guy that would pull a stunt like this to take us all out early before we even knew what hit us. Set up a welcoming party, make it look all inviting, throw open the doors and make it look like hospitality’s on the house, and once we’re in a spot we can’t run away from, everything slams shut, they lock the doors, kill the lights, and we’re trapped like Ratattas in a cage. You know, this is why I’m not an indoors type of person, by the way!”

He didn’t have a whole lot of time to think of a plan, but something came to mind and it wasn’t half bad.

“Look, let’s mention we’re in a hurry,” Kaze suggested. “We only just started this journey and we don’t need the breaktime anyway, so we can ask they deliver the bow out here and I can use my magic to see if there’s any traces of poison or if it’s been cursed in any way before you lay a finger on it. If I can confirm it’s safe, then take it and we go. But as long as we’re out here, we can still make a run for it if we need to if things even look a tiny bit doubtful. In there, not so much.”

“And from here on in, let’s lose the star and the rainbow ribbon,” Kaze recommended. “That and any sign that makes it clear you’re the rainbow goddess. Wear a dark, black cloak instead that hides most of your face and gives no indication as to who you are and we stay off the main roads wherever we can until we know we’re in safer territory. Nobunaga could have assassins and snipers anywhere just waiting for us to show our faces. Better to have it where we can be mistaken for nondescript everyday people rather than make it abundantly clear you’re his top target to everyone we pass by. Our job is to keep you safe, and the way we do that is not attracting any unnecessary attention.”

Fuyuse and Nakano were right about their wake-up call. At this point, personally, Kaze was almost thinking of forgoing the bow entirely, no matter how pretty or powerful it was. Fuyuse and Nakano had their weapons and their Pokémon while Kaze had his own magic and Pokémon as well. Meanwhile, Juno had her Ninetales, Crystal who could also protect her. They really didn’t even need the bow and what a fool he’d feel like if the second Juno laid a finger on it, it exploded and killed them all. It couldn’t be worth the risk! If she really needed a bow, they could buy a decent one at the next town they visited. A normal weapons merchant wouldn’t booby-trap a piece of their own merchandise intended for their regular clienteles. But these strangers that already knew about the rainbow goddess and had prepared this bow Kaze never heard of just waiting and intending it specifically just for her… that had potential of being a disaster.