Seino Raimei was an annoying fellow.
It was a mistake to choose him as a close guard.
However, the snacks he made were passable.
This was Ei's first impression of Seino Raimei.
What was it called again?
Dango milk, though it wasn't clear if it was dango or milk.
The first time she saw him make it was on an autumn afternoon, when the scattered autumn light cast shadows of pine and cypress trees all over the courtyard.
After Ei had practiced swordsmanship in the courtyard, the sky had already dimmed. She returned directly to her chambers, passing through a long corridor. As she passed by a side room, she smelled a strange fragrance.
Sticky rice dango were being pressed by slender fingers. The young man slowly added them to milk. Fresh milk mixed with pure white dango, shaping them before Seino placed them all in the oven.
"Hello, Ei. Would you like some snacks?"
"This is dango milk. I once ate it in the streets of Inazuma. It has a smooth but not greasy texture."
He had clearly seen Ei and asked.
His lack of formality was also very annoying. Moreover, for an ascetic warrior, food was merely to meet basic daily needs. Ei had always sneered at such "delicacies". Furthermore, this was just a snack for children.
"Mortal," Ei said calmly, "Those who practice asceticism do not eat such miscellaneous things... Moreover..."
When she said the next sentence, her gaze became even more stern, with the unique aura of the Raiden Shogun appearing in her eyes:
"When did I allow you to address me by name?"
"You've become a bit full of yourself."
Cold.
Rejected, the young samurai showed a helpless smile. He scratched his head, "...Maybe it's delicious? Have a little, just a little, to fulfill a citizen's wish? This is also one of the Raiden Shogun's duties, isn't it?"
"I've already said, this will disrupt my practice... I don't like mortal food."
"Ah... it's ready. Do you want to eat?"
"..."
This kid was truly annoying. Recruiting him as a close attendant was a mistake... and he was as stubborn as an ox.
"...I'll eat just one piece," Ei said, somewhat resignedly at that time.
—
Lately, she'd been thinking about past events.
"Can you make milk dango?" Ei asked the attendant before her, looking at the snowy scene outside the window.
"Huh..?"
Seino Sara was a bit confused.
The Raiden Shogun suddenly asking such a question, she didn't know how to answer. She responded straightforwardly, "This humble one only knows how to eat them."
"Didn't your master teach you?" Ei asked.
"No."
"Is making milk dango also part of a samurai's assessment?" The honest girl was shocked.
"Never mind." Ei turned her gaze back to the wooden window.
It was nearing dusk, yet snow was still falling. The view from Tenshukaku was excellent, allowing one to see all the way to the horizon. Drifting snow covered the clouds, blocking the sunlight from reaching down, forcing it to slant entirely on the cloud layer, painting half the clouds red and half dark.
The sky darkened. Under that half-dark cloud was the dim Inazuma City, with smoke rising from every household.
It was time for dinner.
That annoying mortal.
After she had spoken such resolute words that day, he hadn't made any movement in these four days...?
Was he really going to resign and ask for retirement?
Did he really think this vast Tenshukaku, this vast Inazuma City, couldn't do without him?
Ei found it truly laughable.
If he wanted to resign from the position of general, so be it. After all, he was indeed getting old. Being a close attendant for hundreds of years was already just an honorary position. Who was he resigning for...?
Thin, soft snow covered the eaves of Tenshukaku, accumulating into a thick layer. As Ei looked at the snow on the corner of the eaves, she suddenly remembered the last time she ate his 'milk dango' on a day with such heavy snow.
That day, the archon Orobashi declared war, leading the Watatsumi Island rebels to attack Yashiori Island. All the defenders were killed, the people were in dire straits, and urgent reports came from thousands of miles away. At that time, snow also accumulated on the corner of Tenshukaku's eaves like this.
The first to rush to Yashiori Island's aid was the Shogunate army stationed on Narukami Island — led by Seino Raimei.
Using the reason that a general in the field may disobey orders, he ignored Ei's order to stand by and went directly to Yashiori Island.
That night, Ei also waited at Tenshukaku, watching the fine snow hanging from the corner of the eaves, gently wiping the scabbard in her hand, looking at the distance where snow mixed with night color, watching until midnight.
Shogun Seino returned, covered in blood. The first thing he did upon returning was to go up to Tenshukaku and make a bowl of milk dango for the Shogun.
Dango like snow, with a slightly astringent taste, and a light sweetness in the aftertaste — this was Ei's last impression of 'milk dango'.
Today, for some reason, she was thinking a bit too much.
She didn't know why, she wasn't usually one to dwell on things, so why was she being so 'annoying' when it came to this mortal?
She might as well give him one last chance.
"Seino Sara," she suddenly said, somewhat irritably, "Go call your master again. Tell him this is a military order."
...It had only been four days.
Seino Sara was still confused, but she immediately replied:
"I'm afraid that's not possible, Your Excellency Raiden Shogun."
"Four days of illness should be enough to recover."
"But... after resigning, my master went on vacation. This subordinate doesn't know his exact whereabouts."
"..."
She really should kill him!
This bastard, did he really want to resign?
If you want to leave, then leave!
Perhaps it was because the daylight was gradually fading, but Ei's face visibly darkened. One could even hear the sound of her lightly grinding her silver teeth.
"Send him a message. He can die out there, don't come back to Inazuma."
Ei left these last words, then slowly closed her eyes, left Tenshukaku, and returned to the Plane of Euthymia.
The snow continued to fall.
...
The snow continued to fall as Seino sat on the boat.
He slowly exhaled a breath.
He took off his straw hat, wiped Snake Cutter one last time. The white snow reflected the blade's light, and the sword body emitted a slight tremor.
Mishima Suminoe stopped the boat at the shore. It was a large double-masted military ship, still flying the flag of the Shogunate army: Lightning and Snake.
"Young man, there's a war going on here... we shouldn't stop here," Mishima Suminoe said to Seino, leaning on his oar. "We should go to the other side of the island. There are reinforcements there who will escort all the civilians away."
This soldier was still living in the past hundreds of years ago. In these hundreds of years, he had been futilely and stubbornly shuttling between the two shores, wanting to save more people, wanting to save more people... It was with such a strong obsession that he became a lingering soul under the impurity, forever wandering in the human world.
"Mishima," Seino said.
He got off the boat. This physical body had reached its limit for today. As he stepped forward, his appearance began to change.
"You're actually already dead."
The first thing to change was his demeanor.
Gone was the youthful lightness. The purple color in his eyes quickly dissipated, converging into a frost-like silver-gray, appearing much heavier.
White long hair trailed behind him. The man slowly tied up his hair with a crown, took off the slightly bulky cloak, picked up the clanging Snake Cutter, and the wind blew his samurai clothes.
This face was familiar, unforgettable to all soldiers of the Shogunate army.
Although, he looked much more weathered now.
Mishima blinked, recognizing Seino. He couldn't help but blurt out, "Lord Shogun?"
"Dead... dead?"
"So I'm dead?"
Mishima looked at him, remembering something. He scratched his head belatedly, seeming to realize:
"So I'm dead... So that's how it is."
"Dead."
Death.
Hearing of his own death, and seeing the Shogun general.
He had countless things he wanted to say, countless things he wanted to do, but when he actually met him, he couldn't say anything. Death is such a sudden and abrupt thing, taking away in an instant all the words you wanted to say.
He choked up a bit, his shoulders trembling slightly. Finally, he squeezed out words from deep in his throat:
"Are the civilians safe?"
Faced with his own death, this was the only sentence he could utter.
"Then... General, did I complete my mission? I didn't desert, did I... Did I send all the civilians home?"
"Mishima Suminoe," Seino looked at him and said, "You did it. We all did it. Not a single civilian was harmed."
"We did it, that's good, that's good..."
Mishima mumbled with a sigh. Suddenly, his eyes seemed to sparkle with a crystalline light.
"Then my wife and children are safe too. That's great, father didn't let his children down. Ah, that's wonderful..."
He smiled, tears in his eyes, yet smiling happily.
"Mishima Suminoe, you're a good man,"
Shogun Seino took out a roll of tobacco from his bosom, lit it, and watched the smoke dissipate.
"This is how a good man should be. This is how a man should be, protecting his girl, carrying a sword to guard the borders, returning home to make her a midnight snack — this is my view, I think this is the most worthwhile thing to uphold, very cool."
"But I can't go home anymore, can't make midnight snacks for Yoshiko anymore."
Seino took a deep drag of his cigarette, his lungs moving, coughing lightly,
"Same for me."
Mishima didn't hear the Shogun's words clearly. In fact, from the moment he knew he was dead, he had already started to dissipate.
Or rather, find peace.
In his final moments, he asked:
"...Lord Shogun, what are you going to do on the island?"
Seino extinguished the cigarette, crushed it, and got off the boat. His wooden clogs made steady sounds as they stepped on the light white snow. He slowly walked towards the distance.
"To allow men who can't come home to be able to return home in the future — that's what I'm going to do."
That dragon-like great serpent coiled on the peak of Yashiori Island, opening its blood-red eyes as tall as a man, coldly staring at him.
They would put an end to their centuries-old fate.
"Did I help the great Shogun then?" came Mishima's voice from behind.
"You did great, soldier."
"Have a good sleep now, you've been tired for a hundred years. No one will disturb you anymore."
Mishima stared blankly at Seino's gradually receding figure. He suddenly realized that the Shogun had also grown old, his hair had turned white.
The snow continued to fall. He paused, perhaps understanding what the Shogun was about to do. Mishima lowered his head:
"Glory to the Shogun and her everlasting reign." he said softly.