'Date...Masamune? Then that person over there is....
This is my vassal, Katakura Koxjuro Kagetsuna.
It's a pleasure to meet you.

　The threadbare young man bows his head quietly. I knew it. It's a good idea to have a good time with Katakura Kojuro Kagetsuna when it comes to Date Masamune. Because they are an inseparable pair.
　Or rather, more importantly.

It's a good idea to be able to have a good time with them.
How true. I wanted to see Hideyoshi at least once. And I'm curious about that golden gourd or whatever it is.

　Masamune smiles fearlessly. It's a very prankster boy smile. He seems to be planning something.....
　Seeing this, Ieyasu-san lets out a dumbfounded voice with a sigh.

''Masamun-dono. Most likely, he's thinking of getting a golden gourd and using it for himself or something, but you shouldn't do that.
Nuh-uh? Why do you know what's on my mind!
'Master Masamune. Your thoughts were perfectly apparent.

　Arc Juro gives advice to Masamune, who flinches, from behind. 'So this is what it means to fall to talk.

''I'll tell you what, depending on the case, we'll destroy the gourd. And apparently it's an artifact that's not even a stipend.
Mmmm.... It can't be helped. What Shirogane-dono says is also valid. Let's just do what he says.

　Instead of saying that, Masamune's face is grinning. He's really a guy who shows it on his face.

'........right before you break it, you're thinking of snatching it from the side, right?
Nuh-uh? Why do you know what's on my mind!
''That's why, Master Masamune. My thoughts are beautifully expressed in my face.

　Squire Date has the same exchange as before. Hmm, I don't think he's a bad guy. Wasn't Date Masamune from the original world also said to be a conspiratorial person? But the point at which it is wonderfully exposed is completely different.

''However, Ieyasu-san, is it okay to take the lord of Date into the middle of the enemy lines?
I can't say for certain, since that's the Date family business.

　For Ieyasu-san, even though he is an ally, he doesn't seem to have any intention of interfering that much, but if Masamune dies, the alliance with Date will probably be broken.

I want to go to Osaka Castle too. I'm not so shameless as to leave the whole battle to our guests and lie down in a pile.

　Mmm. I'm not going to be able to finish the job by myself.

Then surround Osaka Castle and distract the soldiers in the castle. I'll take care of the gourd and leave the rest to Ieyasu and the others.
'That's fine, but how far is it from here to Osaka Castle....

　It was not good to empty the castle, so he decided to send about 30,000 soldiers, Tokugawa and Date together, to expedition. Since we were going to attack the castle, this was enough.

But even if we manage Hideyoshi, will this civil war subside?
Oda started the fight originally, and Hashiba has taken over, making it what it is today. I think if we can do something about Hashiba, the battle will end...
But the emperor does not have the power to rule this country. To whom will the paper balloon in the sky fall?

　Masamune said and crossed his arms. You've got a bad look on your face, man. There is no doubt that he is up to something. If that's the case, there's no way you can compete with Ieyasu-san and the raccoons of the sea and mountains.
　If this were to crush Hashiba, which had absorbed Oda, Ieyasu-san would in all likelihood become the most powerful feudal lord.
　Hmm? Huh? Does that mean that the Battle of Sekigahara is about to begin? But the place is Osaka Castle, so is it the summer camp in Osaka? No, that was after Hideyoshi's death, and it's winter now. But it will be spring soon.
　Well, it's no use thinking about it. Anyway, it's troublesome to have Hideyoshi unify the country and be attacked by Euron.




"That's Osaka Castle...?

　What is this? It's shiny gold. The wall, the roof tile, and the stone wall are shining in gold. Isn't it the Golden Pavilion? The shape is also different from the Osaka castle in my memory. I wondered how much it cost.
　If I kept looking at it, the sunshine reflected off it and made my eyes flicker.
　Is Hideyoshi there? I tried to search the map, but I couldn't find it. I'll just have to go there.
　In the meantime, I'll just transfer everyone there.
　Outside of the moat and ramparts surrounding the golden castle, the soldiers of the Tokugawa and Date allied forces appear on all sides of the moat and ramparts.
　Soon, the sound of conch shells could be heard from somewhere, and the drums were beaten. At once, soldiers rushed to Osaka Castle from all directions, and soon they were shooting at each other with bows and arrows.
　The Osaka side seemed to be on the defensive, as they were not prepared for this sudden attack.

''Alright, let's break into the castle while we can.
"Umm..... Osaka Castle is warded and you can't enter it with transference magic, that you can't, right? So, then, how.......no way.......
Sure, fly.

　Yae makes a blatantly uncomfortable face at my words. Do you really dislike it that much?
　Rosetta's ride 'Gungnir' is waiting up in the sky above, but even if you don't go all the way to that castle with it, I think it's faster to fly directly to it.

''If you want, we can wait here, but...''
No, I'm coming too, that I am. As a future wife, I would love to share my fate with my husband, that I do.

　My future wife clasps her hands in front of her chest and gets fired up. 'I'm happy for you, but I don't want you to sound like you're going to die.

'Let's go then. Yae, can you take a ride in Amber for me?
Okay?

　The yae who straddle the amber are made to float with "Levitation".
　The Yae who floated up softly and flew to Osaka Castle at once with 'Fly'. Naturally, he disappears with Invisible, so he can't be shot at with a bow and arrow.
　When I got inside the castle tower, I found a large boarded-up room. What is this, even the inside is gilded.... From the ceiling to the walls and pillars, it was sparkling.

"It's in bad taste, that it is....
Agreed.

　They say that people who like gold are more upwardly mobile, but I don't like it when they're this thorough.
　Anyway, since Hideyoshi didn't seem to be here, I went down the stairs.
　There was no one downstairs either. But on the way out of the long wooden corridor, I felt a strange presence. It's a faint, but distinctly foreign presence. I can't seem to sense it in Yae and the others, but I can clearly see it.
　I cautiously head towards the direction of the presence, open the gilt-covered sliding doors one by one, and approach them.

''Huh?''
What's going on?

　I opened the sliding door a bit to peer in, trying to get a better look at the situation, but I quickly closed it. What the hell was that? I thought my eyes were going crazy, so I rubbed them lightly and then opened the sliding door again for a bit.
　Inside was a large hall, and there was a person lying on a raised level. He is wearing a kosode dyed in red and purple and a gold hakama and bodysuit, and is scratching his hips with a pollywheel. A golden gourd as big as a two-liter plastic bottle was strapped to his waist. No way, that's Hideyoshi!
　Yae, who looked inside from my side where I was raptured, saw it and mumbled to herself.

'.........it's a monkey.
Oh, you're sure you're not mistaken?

　I was relieved in a way at Yae's words. It wasn't that my eyes were going crazy.
　No matter how many times I looked at him, he was still a monkey relaxing in the hall. I don't mean a "monkey-looker"; he was a monkey. It was a monkey.
　He was a little smaller than a double-headed monkey. They looked like either a Japanese macaque or an orangutan. There is no such a big macaque, though. Is it a hexenbiest?

What do you mean? Is that guy a pet owned by Hideyoshi or something?
"Who is there?

　He spoke. The monkey spoke. He turned his gaze toward me and tapped the fan at hand.
　If you've been spotted, there's no point in staying like this. You open the sliding door and face the monkey.

''Ho. An ogre, a woman, and a white tiger. This is an unusual guest. Are you one of the people who are screaming out there?
.... are you really Hideyoshi?
I am Chikuzenkami Hideyoshi of Hashiba. I am Chikuzen no Kami, Hideyoshi of Chikuzen, the guardian of Hashiba.

　I can hear the voices, but I can also hear the monkeys squeaking at the same time. What is this uncomfortable feeling. I feel like I'm being made to listen to a movie dubbed by a bad talent.

I'm amazed that you've made it this far. I'll give you credit. I'm going to reward you for making it this far, and I'm going to promote you to my inner circle.
I'm grateful for that. But I don't appreciate it.
I can't say no to you guys.

　Hideyoshi's eyes glowed red for a moment. At that moment, I didn't miss what was released from the gourd at his waist.
　Suddenly, the Yae and Amber next to me went rigid and their eyes seemed to be unfocused. It's as if they were deprived of their consciousness during the introduction of hypnosis.

''Well you, what did you do? No, it's not that...
Nuh-uh? Why are you unconcerned?

　The monkey stands up as if in a panic. The monkey's eyes gleam again, and 'it' leaks out of the golden gourd. I knew it was this guy........

''Why? Why doesn't it work?
You're just a monkey after all, aren't you? And the main body is that gourd... no, show me what it is, the subordinate god...
You! Who are you?

　The monkey's eyes turned bright red. And what slightly leaked out of the gourd was an unmistakable divine Qi. It's a qi that only those from the God Realm can possess, but unlike the World God's and Hanakoi's sisters', it appears cloudy.
　As I recall, a subordinate god is another god below that of a lower level god. Even though they are subordinate gods, they are still gods. That's an easy way to control humans.
　I was able to resist because I had divine power, right? Maybe Amber couldn't resist because she exists under my magical power.

''Ruri, can you hear me?
Yes, Lord. Yes, my Lord.
''Find sister Hanakoi or sister Morobane right now and tell her. I'll know right away if I tell them I found a subordinate god.
I will.

　My sister said that if you use divine power, you can tell where in the world you are, but this guy must have been using divine power at the very edge of that undetectable line. That's why divine power only leaks out the moment it is emitted.
　That's right, my divine energy should have leaked out too, but this guy didn't notice it. Or has he become able to control it to some extent? Let's give it a try.
　I close my eyes and turn my consciousness to the inside of my body.
　.........Ah, I can definitely feel something else than the magical power inside my body. What can I call it, it's as clear as the temperature difference in the air. I'm trying to get this out of my body so that it doesn't emit magic power....
　In the next moment, a dazzling flash is born from my body, and the area is wrapped in a whirlpool of light. The shimmer of light color separation danced wildly throughout the room.

''U........''

　When I thought it had settled down, before I knew it, a faint phosphorescence emanated from my body. When I looked down to look at my hands in surprise, something flowed from my shoulders without hesitation. Eh? Hair?
　When I put my hand to my head, my hair had grown to my waist. What is this........ Even the color is gold, or is it platinum? It's a color like that!

"You! That, that divine power! 'A messenger of the gods!'

　The monkey backs away as if frightened. A gourd rolled off the monkey's waist, gradually taking on the form of a human being with a murky golden glow.
　There stood a scrawny, white-bearded old man, staring at me with hateful eyes.