In the halls of the temple, where silence was supposed to reign, laughter echoed loudly.
"Hey, Tsubaki," one of them called out. "Should we ditch work and go mess with the guards again?"
"Come on, it's torture to them at this point," she replied, laughing.
"Hey, I know. Why don't we go and mess with that girl again?" she added.
"You mean the one who mouthed off to you last time?" one of them asked.
"Who else," she replied. "Breaking that hairpin of hers wasn't enough. She needs to get on her knees and apologise."
"I can already imagine her expression," another said.
They burst into laughter so hard that they didn't notice the girl walking toward them until they bumped into each other.
"Hey, watch where you're walking!" Tsubaki shot at the orange-haired girl.
"No, you watch where you're going," she shot back.
"Now get out of my way," she said, forcing her way past them.
The group of four looked on as she walked away, and one of them said, "What's up with her?"
"Is she trying to pick a fight?" another of them asked.
"Let her go," Tsubaki said, gesturing them back. "With her attitude, you'd expect that she has the strength to back it up."
"But enough of her," she continued. "Let's go find that tiny bitch. I've got some extra anger to let out now."
They turned to leave, but as they did, they came face to face with a maiden of the upper echelon.
The sounds of laughter quickly receded into silence. They tried to walk past her, but just when they thought they were in the clear, she cleared her throat.
"You're Tsubaki Hanasuba, if I'm not mistaken, right?" she said, turning to face her.
"I am," she replied quietly.
"Then follow me," the maiden said. "You've been summoned by the Mistress."
"What for?" she asked.
"You'll find out soon enough," the maiden replied.
Her friends turned to her, confused.
"It's fine," she assured them. "It's probably just a misunderstanding. I'll be back soon."
Then she followed her, waving at them as she went. Once they were past the corner, her smile faded.
Though she had been putting on a brave face before, she couldn't help but worry. Who wouldn't, when you've been summoned by the Shrine Priestess herself?
The walk to the back temple, which served as the Shrine Priestess's residence, was deathly quiet. She could feel her heart beating wildly with every step, and her vision felt blurry, but she kept steady, whispering to herself that it was just a misunderstanding.
Once they were inside, the strong aroma filling the air made it feel stuffy, and the creaking of the floorboards beneath their steps felt sharp.
Then they came upon a wooden door and stopped. The maiden slid it open slowly, and sitting inside reading some scrolls was the Priestess.
"Mistress, I've brought her to you as you asked," the maiden said with a bow.
"That was quick," she replied, looking up from her scrolls. "Thank you for the help as well."
"I'm honoured by your praise," she said before turning and walking out of the room.
With her out of the way, the two of them locked eyes.
"So you are Tsubaki Hanasuba," she said softly. "Please, have a seat."
She obliged immediately and sat in front of her.
Then she faced her and said, "My lady, if I may be so rude, may I ask why you've summoned me here today? I hope my brazenness hasn't offended you."
"Not at all," she replied. "I'm sure the sudden summons has you feeling anxious."
"Miss Hanasuba, how long has it been since you first joined us?" she asked.
"It was three months ago in the eighth cycle," she replied. "I was brought here by my mother."
"My, the eighth cycle is already three months past," she exclaimed. "How time flies. It's almost time for the New Year's Festival."
"So how has your treatment been so far?" she asked.
"It's been wonderful," Tsubaki replied, "as is to be expected by the Ember Shrine."
"Good," she said, her voice soft as a lullaby. "And how have your duties been going?"
"They've been going well," she replied as a tiny drop of sweat slid down her cheek.
"Is that right?" the Priestess said, looking her dead in the eye. "That's strange."
"What's strange?" she asked nervously.
"I'm sure that you are aware that I have ears and eyes everywhere, so it's strange that they contradict what you're saying now," she replied.
"Those eyes and ears also tell me of many rumours surrounding your name," she continued. "One of them I found particularly interesting."
Tsubaki didn't say anything. Instead, she turned her gaze away from her.
"I hear that you were found sneaking away from the shrine to go drinking in town late in the night," she said in a newly sharp tone. "So what do you think of that?"
Hearing that, Tsubaki immediately turned her head back to face her, shocked.
"Those are just baseless rumours, my lady," she shot back. "Please don't believe them."
"But these baseless rumours have been supported by multiple sources, each consistent with the claim," she said sharply. "As far as I'm aware, it's true."
"I'm afraid that you broke the ribbon."
"No, no, no!" she said, panicking. "There's no way."
"I'm sure you know what that means," she said, looking down at her as she buried her head in her arms.
"No, please don't," Tsubaki begged. "I'm innocent."
"I don't have a choice in the matter, Miss Hanasuba," she replied.
"Unless you're willing to redeem yourself."
"Of course!" she said, shooting back up. "I'll do anything."
"I like your thinking," Kiyohara said as she patted her head.
Then she gently brushed down to her shoulder as she said, "Now listen closely, Tsubaki."
"Remember that your fate in the shrine depends on this."
Elsewhere, in a secluded corner by the kitchen, Yuriko stood facing the wall, her right index and middle finger over her ear.
"So Takae's hunch was right after all," she thought. "I thought she was just being pessimistic to assume that Tsubaki would be next, but she was right on the money."
"We can't let this chance slip away," she thought as she reached into her robe with her left hand. "We can finally get to the bottom of this."
She looked back to see if anyone was watching her before pulling out a spell tag.
She held it tight, and the side of it sparked and lit on fire.
The pattern inscribed on the paper gave off a faint glow, and she closed her eyes and took a breath.
Then came the thought.
"Neural interface on!"