Gathering at Tenshukaku: A New Video Shakes Inazuma!

Inazuma, Tenshukaku.

Ever since the Sakoku Decree and the Vision Hunt Decree had ended, the nation of Inazuma had been changing with each passing day.

It had completely shaken off its former state of poverty and weakness and begun striving toward good governance.

The entire country had not only begun trading with other nations, but had also promoted ordinary Vision bearers into the military and government in large numbers. It had thoroughly purged the corruption of the old bureaucracy, giving the nation a whole new look.

Even Watatsumi Island, which had once rebelled, was now cooperating with the Inazuma Shogunate, and the two sides had formed a friendly alliance.

Yet amid these enormous changes in Inazuma, many people had been left with a vague, inexpressible feeling.

Everything had changed far too quickly, like a novel with crucial pages torn out.

Something important should clearly have happened in between, but most people had completely forgotten all the key details.

That even included Raiden Makoto, the deity who now ruled Inazuma.

Although Raiden Makoto ruled Inazuma as a matter of course as its god, she occasionally felt something she could not put to rest, as though her very survival were something that should not have been.

And she was far from the only one who felt that way.

Many people now serving the Inazuma Shogunate were deeply bewildered by the current state of affairs and could not easily accept the reality they found themselves in.

"Reporting to the Shogun, the A Hundred Lifetimes of Reincarnation series has released another video online. It seems to have something to do with our Inazuma."

Hearing her subordinate's report, Raiden Makoto, who now held the position of Shogun, spoke decisively. "Go and summon the ministers and Ei. I have a feeling this video might tell us some of the truth."

"Yes, ma'am."

The subordinate nodded and immediately went to summon Inazuma's ministers.

Before long, many of Inazuma's current leading figures had gathered in the main hall of Tenshukaku.

They were the Kamisato Clan siblings in charge of the Yashiro Commission, Kamisato Ayaka and Kamisato Ayato; Kujou Sara, who oversaw the Tenryou Commission; Sangonomiya Kokomi, the shrine maiden who governed Watatsumi Island; Naganohara Yoimiya, a renowned craftswoman of Inazuma; Kaedehara Kazuha, a former rebel leader; and Raiden Makoto's younger sister, Raiden Ei, the Raiden Shogun who had once controlled Inazuma for over five hundred years...

These people, who could never have come together just a few years ago, had now been brought together under Inazuma's new order and even jointly formed the new Inazuma Shogunate.

Over the preceding decade or more, such a thing would have been utterly impossible.

Yet in the end, it had actually happened.

And everything that had happened in between was like a blank in their memories. They could never clearly recall each step of the process, and there always seemed to be gaps and empty spaces at crucial points.

It was easy to see why none of them, like Raiden Makoto, could easily come to terms with the present state of affairs.

Some time ago, when the A Hundred Lifetimes of Reincarnation series began airing and revealing histories that had been erased and hidden, the members of Inazuma's Shogunate had immediately taken notice.

After all, unlike the histories of other nations, which had taken place hundreds or thousands of years ago,

the events in Inazuma had happened only within the past few years. No one had come to terms with them, nor could they forget them.

They desperately wanted to uncover the erased truth and learn what story lay behind it!

"Can I watch here too?"

Yoimiya looked at the images playing on the Akasha Terminal projector set up by specialists, a complicated expression on her face.

She was, after all, the most ordinary person present and should not have been involved in a gathering like this. But Raiden Makoto thought highly of her, believing that young talents like her were Inazuma's hope, so she had given her a special status that allowed her access to the Shogunate.

And that was also why Inazuma was growing ever stronger.

Unlike Raiden Ei, who had completely neglected domestic affairs and the people's livelihood in the past, Raiden Makoto excelled at finding and promoting capable people and involving these promising young people in Inazuma's development.

"I've always wondered why I'm here..." Kaedehara Kazuha's expression. "I used to be determined to defeat the Shogunate and end the Vision Hunt Decree and the Sakoku Decree, but then one day, that goal suddenly came true out of nowhere. Not only that, I also learned that Lady Makoto was the true Electro Archon all along, and that the Raiden Shogun had only been a puppet created by Lady Ei."

"It all happened so suddenly, as if someone had shoved the conclusion into my head out of thin air, but no one ever told me how any of it actually happened."

Kazuha's thoughts were shared by most of the people present.

Whether the Kamisato siblings or Sangonomiya Kokomi, they had all once aimed to end the Vision Hunt Decree and the Sakoku Decree and overthrow the Inazuma Shogunate, but everything had suddenly been resolved in the middle of their struggle.

It was as if an author had chosen to cut corners, skipping straight to the 'happy ending' halfway through the story and leaving out the struggle in between.

Or as if someone had deliberately erased the course of that struggle to bury some truth that could not be revealed.

That might have been a good thing for the world, but for the people of Inazuma, it was something they could not easily put to rest, no matter what.

They had to know the truth and learn the secret that had been hidden away!

"Everyone, I believe every one of us here is full of questions."

Raiden Makoto looked at the members of the Shogunate and spoke slowly. "Like you, I can't put any of this to rest, and I find it hard to accept this outcome that appeared out of nowhere. So I truly hope this video can give us answers and tell us the truth that was erased and hidden away... Ei, you hope so too, don't you?"

As Raiden Makoto finished, she made a point of looking at her younger sister, Raiden Ei, who stood beside her with mixed feelings.

For some reason, Raiden Ei found it hard to hold her head up in response to Raiden Makoto's words.

She was probably the only person present who did not want to know the truth.

After all, learning the truth would inevitably bring up the mistakes she had made in the past and the foolish choices she had made.

Even Raiden Ei would find it hard to accept having people publicly call out her mistakes.

Even so, alongside her self-reproach and fear, Raiden Ei was also curious about the truth.

She therefore took a deep breath and said, having made up her mind, "Yes, I want to know the truth too..."

"Good. Then let's see what really happened in that hidden past."

Raiden Makoto nodded and signaled her subordinates to start the video.

Soon, familiar captions began to appear on the video.

[The wind brings the seeds of stories, and time makes them sprout]

[The departed are gone. Even lightning cannot catch up to death. To catch up to death, one must-transcend time!]