April 24th. The hour of the snake (10:00 AM).
Ichijōdani, the base of the Asakura family, the powerful lords of Echizen Province.
This castle town, one of Japan's leading metropolises, was also a natural fortress city, surrounded by mountain ranges to the east, west, and south, with the Asuwa River flowing through its northern part.
In addition to water transport, Ichijōdani also functions as a transportation hub thanks to its well-maintained road network.
For that reason, many people, including merchants, visited this place and played a part in the further prosperity of the castle town.
Currently, Ichijōdani boasts such great prosperity that it is sometimes called "Kita no Kyō" (Northern Capital), and the castle town alone already has a population of over 10,000.
If you factor in the rural population, an even larger number of people await—and Ichijōdani truly stands as the central city of Echizen Province.
However, such great prosperity is only possible because successive heads of the family have dedicated themselves wholeheartedly to it over many years.
Since the Ōnin War, the heads of the Asakura family have been preoccupied with how to lure residents away from Kyoto, which had a vast population.
Therefore, the first thing the heads of the Asakura family did was to maintain order in Ichijōdani.
Violence and bloodshed from successive wars. But then, a city with relatively good public order, and located close to Kyoto, appeared—
It was inevitable that court nobles and high-ranking Buddhist monks would be drawn to her.
First, they began to relocate, followed by a steady stream of cultural figures seeking refuge in Ichijōdani.
The heads of the Asakura family then utilized and skillfully employed their education, transforming Ichijōdani into one of the most prominent cultural cities in the history of the Sengoku period.
Indeed, the current head of the family, Yoshikage Asakura, is no exception to the example of his predecessors—or perhaps even more so—in contributing to the development of Ichijōdani.
He may be even more enthusiastic about the development of the castle town than previous lords.
In any case, for Yoshikage, who reigned at the pinnacle of the prestigious Asakura family, his greatest concern was maintaining order in his own province of Echizen and in Ichijōdani.
His greatest wish was to protect the safety of his people, and, to put it bluntly, he believed that if Ichijōdani and Echizen Province were at peace, there would be no need for war.
However, even with such convictions, the circumstances of the Sengoku period sometimes forced compromise.
And in situations where compromise is unavoidable, the ability to quickly shift one's thinking and respond swiftly will raise the limits of one's own family's survival.
The person who taught him this was his great-uncle, whom Yoshikage respected more than anyone else .朝倉Asakura宗滴Soteki
Thinking of the great hero who is now deceased, Yoshikage straightened his back.
At the main keep of Ichijōdani Castle, which was built in the present day , the cabinet-level officials of the Asakura family, led by Yoshikage, were gathered.一乗城山Ichijo Shiroyama
Yoshikage kept his eyelids closed and didn't move a muscle.
And, excluding Yoshikage, there were nine people in the assembly hall.
These men are all the pillars of the Asakura family.
"And so, Lord Yoshikage, we must get your decision as soon as possible."
Standing closest to Yoshikage, one man spoke in an inflammatory tone.
His name is Yoshikage's cousin and a high-ranking officer in the Asakura clan.朝倉Asakura景鏡Kageakira
"We struck down the Oda behind the Asai family—and to that end, we used the Magara brothers to ravage the border between Echizen and Mino, awakening the slumbering hawk...but to think that the hawk would be hunted down. We can no longer overlook the Asai; it would be best for us to personally and swiftly crush them."Kanagusa
"..."
"My Lord"
One man leaned forward, his knees groaning, while staring intently at Yoshikage, who remained completely silent.
--Yoshie Yamazaki.
He was a senior retainer of the Asakura family and a military officer who held an extremely important position in the Asakura army.
Furthermore, despite being a military officer, he possessed exceptional political and domestic affairs abilities, and was a figure who wielded influence that even Yoshikage could not ignore.
"Currently, Asai Bizen-no-kami is gaining recognition among the people as an extraordinary hero who successfully carried out falconry. And once that perception becomes firmly established, it will inevitably become more difficult to invade northern Omi. If they were to launch an attack, the Asakura clan would face increased opposition, ultimately strangling themselves..."
"..."
"That is precisely why, as Lord Kageakira says, we must make a decision as soon as possible. This moment is the only time we can eliminate Asai Bizen-no-kami."
Saying this, Yoshiie glanced at Kageakira out of the corner of his eye and his mouth twisted into a wide grin.
"Among our forces are those incompetent fools. Asai Hisamasa, and Asai Masayuki, those dimwits..."
"Well, it seems Lord Yoshiie is right after all."
The mirror lowered , as if saying it was incredibly amusing.嗤straw
"We will lend our troops to those incompetent fools and their cronies. It would be fine if they could kill Asai Bizen-no-kami. But it would be better if they couldn't."
"Yes, that's right, that's right."
Yoshiie said, pressing his fingertips firmly against his forehead.
The curved nail dug deeply into the space between my eyebrows, creating an indentation. A little blood flowed, wetting my fingertips and the bridge of my nose.
His unique behavior when he is lost in thought.
He was probably in pain, but he didn't seem to care at all, and he spoke slowly.
"Asai Bizen-no-kami killed his father and brothers—that fact alone is enough. Brand him a patricide, and that's all that matters. Then his reputation will be divided. One will see him as a protector of the people who succeeded in falconry, and the other as a patricide—a general whom the people should shun..."
"That would give us a legitimate justification for our future expansion into northern Omi... We could frame it as not killing a hero, but killing an enemy of the immoral people..."
Yoshiie and Kageakira appealed to Yoshikage in unison.
"Now is the only time we can do this. Send our troops to northern Omi; that will be the future of the Asakura clan."
Yoshikage slowly raised his head and looked at the two generals.
I understand that this is one of the countless "correct" answers that exist in this world.
There isn't just one right answer. Whatever you choose, it's the right answer, the path the world should take.
What's important, regardless of whether you agree with it or not, is whether you can take responsibility for the choice you've made and see it through to the end with all your might.
And if he were to adopt their advice, as the head of the Asakura family, Yoshikage would have to risk everything to confront the Asai family.
Whether it was a path to ruin or a path to glory, they had to stand in the way of the young man Asai Nagamasa with all their might.
"Please wait, Lord Kageakira, and Lord Yoshiie."
The two generals slowly turned to face the direction of the voice.
Their gaze fell upon a neat, clean-cut man with graying hair.
Cute Yoshimune—He is a civil servant who holds the top position among the Asakura family's highest-ranking cabinet members, known as the "Four Magistrates of Ichijōdani."
"This is the path we must take. Wouldn't it be better to consider this a little more carefully?"
"What did you say..."
Yoshiie's anger was clearly visible on his face.
But Yoshitomo continued speaking calmly and composedly.
"If we become enemies of the Asai, that means we must also be prepared to become enemies of the Oda. Therefore, we must consider how far we can go against both the Asai and the Oda. We must absolutely avoid taking action without a plan to counter them."
"Hmph... I already know that much, you don't need to tell me."
Kageakira chuckled as he stroked the folds of his lips.
"There's no way we, Echizen, can hold off northern Omi, Owari, and Mino all by ourselves. If we foolishly go to war, we're bound to find ourselves in a difficult situation..."
"Then..."
Kageakira swiftly extended his right arm to stop Yoshimune from pressing his advantage.
Holding his left hand to his forehead, he declared clearly, distinctly, and forcefully.
"However, that is merely a conclusion based on a simple difference in national power. I, Kageakira, heard an interesting story from the Rokkaku family just the other day..."
"..."
"Apparently, Asai Bizen-no-kami himself invited the zashiki-warashi (house spirits) that the Rokkaku family had been keeping, and even gave them land."
At those words, the men present changed their expressions.
Even Yoshikage seemed surprised, his eyes widening for a moment before his expression returning to a calm one.
"The Rokkaku family kept a zashiki-warashi simply because its mother was a princess of the Rokkaku family, albeit several generations ago. Unlike the Rokkaku family, who were forced to keep it due to such unavoidable circumstances, the Asai family willingly accepted it... Naturally, those members of the Ikkoshu sect who had persistently urged the Rokkaku family to exterminate the zashiki-warashi will not remain silent about this. I suspect that from now on they will shift their target from the Rokkaku to the Asai and denounce them."
Upon hearing those words, Yoshimune frowned and asked:
"Ikko-mune... Are you saying we should seriously join forces with them, Lord Kageakira?"
"Fortunately, thanks to that 'kind and helpful' General, as you know, a one-year non-aggression pact has been established with the Ikkoshu sect of Kaga. Therefore, if we invite those who invite social filths like zashiki-warashi into their territory to join forces, it will be easy to win over the Ikkoshu followers, who have the extermination of demons as their primary doctrine."
Yoshitomo let out a deep sigh and, stroking his own fingertips, said:頤chin
"But those Ikkōsō people are the kind of people who would even try to destroy horses. Thanks to them, it seems that there are no horses left in Kaga at all."
"We should deal with each case on its own merits. We can use Ikkōshū solely to deal with Asai and Oda. There's no need for us to go along with their doctrines one by one."
Keikyo said this, a dark smile on his face.
"In terms of national scale, we are at a disadvantage. However, if we add the variable of Ikkoso... we can certainly fight. In any case, we cannot simply ignore the expansion of Asai Bizen-no-kami."
The moment Kageakira fell silent, Yoshikage slowly stood up, gazed intently at the faces of the men in the assembly hall, and said:
"—This is ultimately a matter of good faith."
Yoshikage shifted his gaze sharply from Kageakira to Yoshiie, and then to Yoshimune, and said in a steady voice:
"He may be incompetent. But I gave my sister to Masayuki. He is now my brother-in-law... You understand that, don't you?"唯Yui
"I am very sorry."
Yoshiie prostrated himself and apologized.
Keikyo adopted a similar stance, but did not utter a single word.
"Okay, I know he's just an ordinary person. But..."
Then, as if about to say something, Yoshikage simply said, "Let's leave that aside for now," and slowly shook his head.
"Masayuki is my brother-in-law. And if he remains in my Echizen province in despair, then I must send him back, with the appropriate position and sincerity. Even though he is not my blood relative, but merely a brother, that is the duty of a brother."
Kageakira and Yoshiie's eyes gleamed, and Yoshimune slowly took .項垂Unada
Yoshikage took out the war fan he always carried with him from his chest pocket and quickly opened it.
A fierceness residing within elegance—that feeling, along with the war fan, radiates and dances throughout the assembly hall.
"Prepare for battle. You will have 7,000 soldiers. Lend them to Hisamasa. I will assign Kageakira as military supervisor. Kageakira, perform your role well. As for the rest... let's see, take the Magara brothers with you. With them by your side, you are unlikely to make any mistakes in battle. Oh, and... separately, mobilize 10,000 soldiers. Yoshiie will lead this group. Our target is Wakasa... to 'bring' the Takeda people here, understand?"
And the moment they heard those words, Kageakira and Yoshiie flashed sinister, sinister smiles—
"Yes, I understand."
—He responded very concisely.