"This actually involves spatial attacks?!"
"But honestly, this is the first time I've seen it, where an item inside can be damaged before the protective barrier of the storage space is broken..."
Chizuru Ginpa's pale face immediately turned grim.
After all, she had stored countless treasures in her own storage space.
This included a vast number of artificial mechanical devices.
Now, these devices were wiped out in one go by this "wind of destruction" that claimed to target machinery. How could she accept this?
Even a conservative estimate showed that the losses were immense...
Tanaka Ken'ichi on the other side wore an equally stunned expression.
From his pained look, it was evident that what he had lost was likely no less than what Chizuru Ginpa had.
"What do we do now?"
Having lost contact with her master, Chizuru Ginpa panicked slightly and looked at Tanaka Ken'ichi as if seeking help.
Facing a situation where they were back to square one overnight, Tanaka Ken'ichi's composure was slightly better than Chizuru Ginpa's. After a long sigh, he fixed his gaze on the ruins ahead:
"We still don't know who is responsible for this wind of destruction that can corrode machinery, but it's likely indiscriminate.
"So, Jiubai and his crusaders, as well as the Kannagū Priestess, must have also been affected."
"What we need to do now is to find these two groups and eliminate them!"
"Besides, hasn't your master already sealed off this area completely with a spatial barrier? No one inside can possibly escape..."
"If we don't strike while the iron is hot, what are we waiting for?"
"Wait for reinforcements that the Kannagū Priestess might have called?"
Chizuru Ginpa nodded as if waking from a dream and also looked towards the ruins ahead:
"Let's go! I'll go with you."
Just as the two made up their minds, a pile of rubble in front of them suddenly shook on the ground, and then a person emerged from it.
Jiubai!
Along with him appeared a large number of crusaders who had fallen to the ground, all staring at the approaching main force with murderous intent.
Jiubai, in particular, had bloodshot eyes due to extreme anger:
"You dog! Man! Woman!!!"
"One is a spokesperson for a Sakura Nation noble family, and the other is the chief saintess of a shrine organization..."
"You represent your respective factions, collude with each other, and shamelessly lead an army to attack the Emperor's palace, even reducing this place to ruins!"
"Do you know what you are doing?!"
Seeing that their scheme was exposed, Tanaka Ken'ichi stopped pretending and chuckled:
"We know, of course we know..."
"What to do, what not to do, do we need you to teach us?"
"It's just assassinating that inexperienced brat Kannagū Priest, why are you yelling so loud?"
Jiubai almost thought he misheard and raised his face in disbelief:
"You... what did you say?"
Chizuru Ginpa's demeanor had also returned to its usual coldness:
"That's right, we are here to kill the current Sakura Emperor, Kannagū Priest..."
"If you know what's good for you, hand him over quickly."
"After all, with your personal will, you cannot change the outcome that is bound to happen, so there is no need to struggle any further."
"You are loyal only to the Sakura Imperial Family anyway, so it doesn't matter who becomes the Emperor, right?"
Jiubai was almost choked with anger:
"What did you say?!"
Tanaka Ken'ichi also revealed a sinister smile at this moment:
"The throne of Emperor belongs to the most capable!"
"If Kannagū Priest can be Emperor, why can't I, Tanaka Ken'ichi? There's no such logic!"
"Now that the Sakura Nation is at a critical juncture of life and death, it naturally needs a person with great wisdom and talent to lead the entire country towards prosperity and strength..."
"Looking across the entire Sakura Nation, who is more qualified than I?"
Jiubai was so angered that he felt like he was going to have a heart attack:
"Good, good..."
"I can't believe you traitors are justifying your rebellion so righteously?"
"Yes... our Sakura Nation's predicament is indeed not optimistic, but that is not a reason to doubt His Majesty the current Emperor, nor can it be a reason for your rebellion!"
"And don't you know that your rebellion will plunge the entire Sakura Nation into an even more hopeless situation and exacerbate internal conflict?"
Tanaka Ken'ichi put on a rather stern expression:
"A long pain is worse than a short pain..."
"Compared to gradually heading towards destruction, I think a vigorous reform is more satisfying."
"At least this way, there is a chance to turn things around..."
"It's much better than a slow death."
Jiubai laughed in anger:
"There's really nothing to say to a beast like you who has gone mad!"
"You push Sakura towards the abyss with your own hands, yet you shift the blame onto others..."
"In that case, you will all die here obediently!"
"I will use your blood to mourn my fallen brothers!"
Saying this, Jiubai began to lay out his black vines again.
Tanaka Ken'ichi sighed softly:
"A pity..."
"I originally thought you were a talented person and intended to build a new Sakura Nation with you..."
"Since you remain so misguided, you can only be buried here along with them."
"I didn't expect you to die before Kannagū Priest, that little tyrant..."
"Let's see how long he can hide after you're gone!"
Jiubai, who was now in a state of rage, suddenly fell into thought because of Tanaka Ken'ichi's words.
This was not because Tanaka Ken'ichi was mocking him about dying here, but because Tanaka Ken'ichi's group kept mentioning Kannagū Priest by name.
They seemed to be convinced that Kannagū Priest was hiding in their palace...
Although Jiubai didn't know how they came to this conclusion, since they thought so, he would let them think so for now.
After all, the mystery of the strange gust of wind that could corrode all mechanical equipment had not been solved yet, and he couldn't afford to think too much about it now.
At least, if he didn't expose this pretense, he could still help Kannagū Priest, who was not here, attract attention and hatred.
However, since Tanaka Ken'ichi and Chizuru Ginpa were so certain that Kannagū Priest would survive by hiding here...
It only showed that the current situation of Kannagū Priest, the Sakura Emperor, was indeed dire.
This couldn't help but cast a faint shadow over Jiubai's heart.