Tokugawa Shingen bowed deeply to Ryosuke.
The guests who had already arrived at the daimyo's residence mostly pretended not to see it.
They sipped their drinks, admired the flowers, and silently cursed the fact that the world hadn't invented smartphones yet, otherwise, they could've just unlocked their screens, swiped left and right a couple of times, then locked it again and shoved it back into their pockets to get through this awkward moment.
The news that Tokugawa intended to hand over Gorin City had long ceased to be a secret. But even so…
He was being way too humble about it.
This was throwing away the dignity of the Land of Wind and letting others trample on it.
Many ministers were full of resentment, and a few simply flicked their sleeves and left, unwilling to take part in such a humiliating banquet any longer.
Dozens of eyes turned toward Ryosuke, waiting to see how he would respond.
But, just like he had told Takeshi in the carriage, Ryosuke didn't care in the slightest what Tokugawa Shingen was doing. He took a glass of wine from a servant's tray, walked over, and asked in surprise, "You're injured? Was it an assassin?"
Tokugawa Shingen supported his waist as he straightened up.
"Ahaha… no, you could say it was a work injury."
He couldn't exactly admit that he'd nearly been stabbed to death by his own Grand Minister.
Luckily, Tokugawa Shingen's body was padded with plenty of fat. The knife had indeed cut open his belly, but there were still a few inches of fat left before it could reach his organs. That was the only reason he'd survived.
Smiling with narrowed eyes, Tokugawa Shingen looked at Ryosuke.
"Mr. Ryosuke, it's an honor to finally meet you. Please, this way."
He gestured politely, leading Ryosuke into the banquet hall.
The moment they stepped inside, countless gazes fell upon Ryosuke. Their owners were men and women, young and old, each with different faces and temperaments.
But they all shared one thing in common,
They possessed power and wealth.
And no matter what they were truly thinking inside, at this moment, every single one of them wore the warmest, most sincere smiles of their lives.
Tokugawa Shingen raised his wine glass high.
"Welcome tonight's guest of honor, Mr. Ryosuke!"
Cups lifted all around. Under the brilliant lights above, the wine shimmered like liquid gold, exuding a mesmerizing aura of luxury and indulgence.
After the toasts, greetings, and introductions were done, people split into small groups, chatting idly as the banquet entered its casual mingling phase.
Takeshi stood silently in a corner, like a tower of iron, stern and imposing even without anger. His sharp eyes swept over the hall, alert for any possible threats.
But every now and then, plump, well-dressed local women approached him, slipping him name cards or strings of numbers, leaving the honest, upright Takeshi completely distressed.
"The Land of Wind has always been this enthusiastic toward guests," Tokugawa Shingen commented.
Ryosuke took a sip of his wine. "Like you?"
"That's right, like me."
Ryosuke studied Tokugawa Shingen closely, trying to read what hid behind those squinting eyes. "You… what exactly are you, "
Before he could finish, Tokugawa Shingen flicked open his folding fan and chuckled.
"Tomorrow, we'll have an entire day to sit at the table and drag through the dull details of our agreement. Tonight, let's not talk about work. Let's talk about poetry and pleasure instead. How about that?"
Ryosuke gave him a long look, then nodded slightly.
Music began to play, dances followed one after another. Tokugawa Shingen watched attentively, applauding enthusiastically whenever a performance reached its highlight.
Ryosuke could tell he wasn't faking it. The man was genuinely absorbed in the show, body and soul.
Soon, the dance portion of the evening began. Daughters of the nobility stepped forward one by one, inviting Ryosuke to dance.
He declined them all.
Instead, Tokugawa Shingen, shameless as ever, took a woman by the hand and gracefully spun her around the dance floor.
Standing at the edge of the hall, holding a glass of wine, Ryosuke's thoughts drifted to everything that had happened since arriving in Warsaw City,
The rats disappearing.
Tokugawa Shingen's sudden surrender.
The inner power struggle among the bureaucrats.
"There's still one faction that hasn't shown itself..."
"The financial conglomerates."
The daimyo belonged to the conglomerates, but the conglomerates didn't necessarily belong to the daimyo. The two supported each other while remaining relatively independent.
"What are the conglomerates up to?"
"Did they surrender too, hiding away somewhere?"
"Or… like last time, did they send assassins again?"
Last time, even with Hidan and Kakuzu, they had failed. Besides, the Land of Wind wasn't the same as the Land of Water.
Tokugawa Shingen had ruled for decades, his power was deeply rooted, his guards were countless samurai. For anyone to break through and assassinate him here would be practically impossible. In all of Warsaw City…
"Probably only I could pull that off."
Ryosuke shook his head. "But why would I kill someone who's already surrendered, and who's about to sign an unequal treaty with me tomorrow?"
"Hey, handsome."
A strange voice interrupted his thoughts.
Standing before him was a tall woman with fair skin and bright, seductive makeup.
"You're…"
Ryosuke remembered her from Tokugawa Shingen's introductions.
"Tokugawa Yukino."
Right, she was Tokugawa Shingen's youngest daughter.
Hearing her name, Ryosuke instinctively glanced downward.
Just as the name suggested, snow-white indeed.
She leaned closer to him. "Care to dance with me?"
"No thanks."
Ryosuke thought she must have come on her father's orders. But from the moment she'd arrived, her eyes hadn't left him once, burning with a fire that looked ready to consume him.
"Do you have someone you like?" she asked suddenly.
Ryosuke looked at her in surprise. "Do you not realize that your father and I are technically enemies?"
Tokugawa Yukino leaned in and whispered in his ear,
"That's what makes it interesting."
Falling in love isn't interesting.
Kissing isn't interesting.
But kissing without falling in love, that's very interesting.
Especially when there's that added layer of tension, an enemy relationship, or someone already taken… Tokugawa Yukino's throat went dry just thinking about it.
She whispered again in his ear, her breath soft and warm.
"You're terrifying, you know that? Just hearing your stories, standing next to you, I can't stop trembling. That kind of aura is just… too alluring."
"So, Lord Ryosuke, when the ball's over, I'd like to hear about your childhood. In exchange… would you like to see my 'Dark Forest'?"
Ryosuke froze on the spot.
So this was what the Land of Wind called hospitality?
Now he understood why Kamihara Hayato could never forget the desert women of this country.
Ryosuke chuckled softly and was just about to refuse when suddenly, the lights went out.
The daimyo's residence stood halfway up a mountain. Looking out from the windows, one could see not only the mansion but most of the city below, and nearly all of Warsaw's lights had gone dark. The entire vast city sank into shadow.
From the sewers below, people began crawling out one by one. They wore gray-black cloaks, standing silently in the streets like rows of dead, leafless trees.
Ryosuke walked to the window. "So this is your Dark Forest, huh."
Then...
A roar echoed through the city.
Ryosuke listened carefully. It didn't take long for him to make out the words being shouted outside, "The old curtain has fallen, let the new world rise!"
"Tonight, the daimyo's blood will wash the land clean!"
Not only Ryosuke, everyone in the banquet hall heard it clearly.
They all turned to look at Tokugawa Shingen.
He raised his glass.
And smiled.
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