The Daimyo Residence's Kneeling Plea for Aid and the Harsh Political Noose

BOOM—!!!

Another deafening explosion rocked the entire main hall of the Daimyo Residence. The beams groaned under the strain, while large clouds of dust and debris sifted down from between the carved rafters, pelting the usually pampered, now utterly bedraggled clan elders.

The air was thick with smoke, the charred stench of burning timber, and the faint scent of blood drifting in from outside.

"Ah—!!!"

A young clan elder could no longer bear this apocalyptic terror. Clutching his head, he let out a shrill scream as his mind completely collapsed.

"It's over... It's all over..."

"Those monsters... Those monsters destroyed the entire inner city!"

"That madman Tokugawa! He dragged every one of us into hell!"

The dozen or so surviving clan elders and nobles huddled in the center of the spacious, luxurious main hall like quails caught in a storm, trembling uncontrollably. Their fine clothes were filthy with dust, and their faces were stamped with terror and despair.

Not long ago, they had still been congratulating themselves on surviving Hojo Tokugawa's first purge. Some had even mocked Tokugawa's foolishness in private for being devoured by the monsters he had summoned himself.

But now, no one could laugh.

After smashing through the hidden chamber where Hojo Tokugawa had been hiding and tearing him to pieces, those twelve rampaging killing machines had completely transformed into incarnations of indiscriminate destruction. They no longer had any target. They simply followed their most primitive instincts, destroying every living thing and structure in sight.

Kyoto's inner city, the heart of the Land of Fire, was being crushed inch by inch.

"Daimyo! Daimyo, please think of something!"

Watanabe Jun, the clan elder who had been the first to stand up and testify against Tokugawa in the council chamber, crawled to the Daimyo's feet with tears and mucus