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Celebrating 13 years (1608) August 15th -
A few days of being swayed by boat through Setouchi.
I, Hideyoshi Toyotomi, finally got off to Kyushu.
But he was stunned by the sight that spread before him.
"Hey, what the...!? This place..."
It was Toyoko that arrived.
A canal runs straight from the harbor all the way into the city.
All the bridges on that canal are made of stone.
It's like a city that reminds me of Venice in Italy.
And a magnificent castle surrounded by walls reminiscent of the modern West...
In my former days, it was built in that theme park called The Land of Dreams, it looks just like that castle...
"Impossible..."
I thought the expression that an open mouth wouldn't block was a metaphor, but I never actually thought of it happening to me. Besides, in Kyushu land...
While doing so, the ship was sidelined by a dock in the Fukuuchi Castle, known as "Kyoto".
And when you got off the ship, you were waiting for me...
"Impossible!!
What a line of westerners greeted us.
Old and young, and even people of a race who are clearly not Japanese.
I was totally drunk, no matter where I saw it. I didn't think it was the same early Edo period in Japan.
"Welcome to my castle in the province"
What stood in front of a castle gate like an iron fence was a man dressed like 'Butler'.
The way you bow, that's all the butler looks like.
But I was told by his mouth...
"It is located in the clan of Toyoko Prefecture and in the clan lord Yoshiyuki Otomo. After that, I want you to know me."
Was...
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Funai Castle was not just an exterior, but the interior was just what reminded me of a Western castle.
Red carpet stretches on, stunning religious painting on the ceiling. And there's even a chandelier.
And when I opened the big door, I went into the big room.
"It's over there"
"Will your lord not go with you?
"No, the king wants a one-on-one meeting with Hideyoshi."
"Wang...? One-on-one...?
At the moment that Yukido said so, soldiers in iron masks appeared from around them, surrounding Yukimura Maida, Gideo Ono, and Reisei Kimura, who had accompanied them as offerings.
"Hey, what the fuck!! Rude!!
Ji De cried bright red in his face, but I controlled him with my eyes.
And when he shifted his gaze toward Yukimura, he nodded small.
- I'm fine.
And that's the signal.
Yukimura also nodded small again, inquiring in a gentle tone to the orthodox.
"So where should we wait for you?
"We have another room for you, so please follow me"
"Never mind."
I was left alone in the room when I took one unconvincing Ji De Sheng while he grabbed the root.
I take the soft carpet one step at a time, honking my chest in tension.
And I got there. I was waiting for you ahead of me...
He was a demon king.
"Are you Hideyoshi Toyotomi?
The old man, sitting in a giant chair, was exactly what he deserved to describe as the 'demon king'.
The age looks even better than Tokugawa Jiayang.
Skinny, but the back length is quite large, even when seated, I knew very well.
And he was looking down at me, spinning a glass of wine as he put his legs together.
"I am Hideyoshi, Minister Right of Toyotomi"
"… is. Come closer."
Who the hell are you...
Are there people in this world who can order Hideyoshi Toyotomi to "come near"...?
But with or without my eyes, I put my foot in front of him so that I could attract him.
Then...
- Gah!
And suddenly he grabbed my cheek with one hand.
Besides, it's so powerful that I don't think of it as an old man...
"Guru!?
But while he also tried to resist, he quickly let go of his hand.
And he said in a low voice.
"You have good eyes for bald rat kids. I can see the tea blood thick."
"Ha, bald rats!?
My father, Hideyoshi Tai, told me he was a bald rat...!?
Stupid......
To the best of my knowledge, there is only one person who can call Hideyoshi with such disdain.
"Is your Lord 'Nobunaga Oda'...?
Silence flows for a while in my questioning.
That gaze staring at me as I narrowed my eyes seemed to pierce me with a cold blade of ice.
And I finally remembered the words that came out of my open mouth.
"Who are you?
"Huh...?
"Just by the name of bald rat, why does the name 'Nobunaga Oda' come up?
"Oh, that's..."
Shit! It was a pleasure!
If I were to rely on Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the real Toyotomi Hideyoshi, there would be no reason to know the fact that Toyotomi Hideyoshi was called a bald rat. Because that's like insulting someone who climbed up to Tai Chi.
But I acted as if I knew the truth.
He has poked at it.
Cold sweat drips from all over your body.
But if you put it on your face, that's what you'll be suspicious of.
I was staring at him in silence, desperately disguised as calm.
Then he slackened his mouth, saying in a gentle tone.
"It has nothing to do with who your Lord is. That would be the same for you. My name is Tae-jung. Wouldn't that be all?"
"Ah, oh. Exactly. But the lord is Yoshio Otomo, isn't he?
Totally drunk by their condition, I asked desperately, trying to attract the flow to myself.
Then...
"Ugh haha!!
And he began to laugh.
Overwhelmed by too much loudness, I take a step back.
And he said with a niggered face.
"Can it fit into the 'frame' laid down by Rukichiyo Takechiyo?
"What...?
He slammed a single letter against me with his eyes round a word that could be surprisingly said.
It was a letter sent by Tokugawa Jiayang to various great names.
"Did you follow this book?
"Yes, no..."
"Kukuk, what did you do with this?
"What's up, what?
"This is what you did? I'm asking!!
- Billy Billy!!
How dare he begin to break the script.
And the finely chopped pieces of paper rose high in the sky.
Between the harrowing and falling paper and the paper, his figure of continuing laughter is nothing but the Demon King of Fear.
And as they all fell to the floor, he said, trampling on one foot.
"If you can't be good enough to fit in a mold, why don't you break it?
"Break the mould..."
"You are still null. Don't let the rest down. Or..."
"Or?"
Only for a moment, he asked, as always, with a gaze that looked down at me.
"Or do you swear allegiance to the rest of us?
And...
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The next day...
We left the castle in the province and went all the way from Nikko to Satsuma.
What a surprise until the end because all the major streets in Toyoko were cobbled up and our journey was due to carriages until we left the country.
And when I went into Hitachi, Yukimura asked me.
"What did they tell you about who would be their 'king'?
Two people on the side of that inquiry, Shisei and Ji De, peek into my face as well.
I answered sayingly.
He asked me if he would swear allegiance to Me.
Everyone stares at me with their eyes wide open.
To Ji De, he said, "Hey! You rude bastards! He slaps me!" Suddenly, the multiplication was desperately pushing him to stay where he was about to go back down the road.
But I went on without worrying about their reaction.
"Of course I've turned it down"
"And what was the response of his king?
"Then the next thing you know, you're gonna have to face each other on the battlefield."
Not only Happy Village, but even Ji De has lost his word to too many shocking remarks.
But I don't even know how they react.
The first time I heard it, I was so wolfish that I could forget.
But if you think calmly, one question has arisen.
- Is it as an 'enemy' or as an 'ally' to face each other on the battlefield...?
At least a man named Tae-gi doesn't seem to be going to follow Tokugawa Jiayang.
I mean, if we just cut that part off, let's just say me and him have something in common.
But if he were to be my 'ally', I'd have to be his' under ', that's what I was thinking.
Of course I can't do that.
If so, is there still nothing else than 'hostility'...
I wonder what the hell Tae-jung is up to.
I don't know that.
Because their existence and that of this country is completely unlikely in historical fact.
The Toyoko prefectural clan showed so much execution and economic power that it completely westernized a country in just a few years.
How will their existence affect my future?
With unspeakable anxiety, we tried to escape and went south on the Sunset Country.