Beneath the American consulate in Japan.
A young-looking man with a weathered demeanour, sporting a full beard and a black eyepatch over his right eye, picked up the only telephone in the small underground room:
"Director Joseph, the new batch of letters has been prepared. When will you send someone to collect them?"
The man was Rad Maurer.
Thailand's youngest major general, the political arena's most promising rising star, and the brilliant young man once rumoured to be betrothed to a princess with the king's deepest trust.
Yet these labels were now relics of the past.
Thailand's prestigious Maurer family had publicly severed ties with Rad. His parents, grandfather and maternal grandfather had all been taken away by America's Central Investigation Bureau.
Of the troops formerly loyal to Rad, only a seven-member personal squad had escaped – all others had been disarmed and imprisoned by Thailand. Even this squad now lived in another location arranged by the consulate, unable to meet Rad face-to-face.
Despite such heavy losses, Rad, though exhausted, kept his eyes bright and alert.
As if the earth-shattering changes of recent days couldn't touch him at all.
"There's been a change of plans, Rad."
On the other end of the line, a blond, blue-eyed man with a handlebar moustache, wearing a navy military uniform, spoke through the telephone.
"The SDS Supreme Chairwoman somehow learned about our manoeuvres. She had cooperating parliamentarians report our private activities to the White House. They're now demanding explanations from me."
Hearing this, Rad frowned slightly but showed no particular concern:
"Should we postpone the plan?"
Joseph gripped the receiver tightly, swivelling halfway in his chair as he declared with forceful conviction:
"No. The more dangerous the situation, the more urgent it becomes to complete our plan."
"The stronger our enemies oppose us, the more it proves we're on the right path!"
"The SDS has exposed their outward strength masking inner weakness!"
"If they weren't afraid of the Union obtaining Class intelligence, they wouldn't have acted so rashly!"
At this, Rad couldn't help raising an eyebrow in surprise:
"So what does Director Joseph mean by that?"
"Increase the production of invitations, and make sure to send out 3,000 invitations by the end of today."
"3,000?" Rad sounded quite surprised as he spoke into the phone. "Director Joseph certainly has boldness!!"
At this point, Joseph's tone was full of reassurance:
"I know 3,000 is difficult for you, but Rad, you must understand, we only have one chance."
Rad chuckled and shook his head as he said:
"You've got it wrong, Director Joseph. I was just expressing admiration for your boldness."
"3,000 invitations? So we're still short by 1,000. I understand. I'll deliver the letters to you by midnight tonight."
Hearing this, Joseph couldn't help but smile:
"Then I'll leave it to you, the future True Dragon."
Upon hearing this, Rad immediately said with great pleasure:
"For the American Union~"
Seeing this, Joseph laughed and corrected himself:
"No, for our American Union!"
With these words, both men burst into hearty laughter.
...
Late at night.
By the seaside of Kyushu.
Standing at the prow of a small wooden boat, Kotoko Iwanaga looked at the numerous white flames lining the coastline and said with a tone of amusement:
"It's been a long time indeed, Shiranui."
As these words fell, from amidst the flickering flames on the sea surface, a girl with pale hair, dressed like an ancient Japanese songstress, elegant and exquisite, stepped through the sea of fire and walked upon the water.
The Great Yokai of Kyushu, Shiranui.
A Great Yokai who belonged to no yokai organisation and participated in no conflicts between factions.
According to SDS evaluation, she was probably considered Hero Rank and, like Hagoromo Gitsune before she became a Familia member, stood at the peak of Great Yokai.
Although she didn't belong to any faction, Shiranui had a good relationship with Kotoko Iwanaga and was tacitly considered a Great Yokai aligned with the Princess of Yokai.
Seeing Shiranui appear, Kotoko Iwanaga asked with some surprise:
"Inviting me here so suddenly - is there something you want to entrust to me?"
In the world of yokai, it was no empty boast that the Princess of Yokai would solve problems for all yokai who encountered troubles.
By helping yokai with their troubles, the yokai would owe favours to the Princess of Yokai, and in the foreseeable future, offer their modest assistance to the Princess.
In a sense, Kotoko Iwanaga was the godmother of the yokai factions.
And all yokai could be her godchildren.
She had also gathered all the factionless yokai, using the collective power of the multitude of yokai to secure a voice for yokai in the human world.
After Kotoko Iwanaga became a Familia member, to some extent, all the neutral yokai in Japan had become peripheral forces of the Hidden Management Department.
However, such matters naturally didn't need to be exposed.
In fact, even now, Kotoko Iwanaga entered and left the Hidden Management Department as Luo Shu's friend.
And for any organisation aware of this information, it was perfectly normal for a faction representative like Kotoko Iwanaga to visit any major faction in Japan.
Thus, naturally, no one would know that Japan's neutral yokai had actually become peripheral forces of the Hidden Management Department.
"I've received a commission."
The Great Yokai Shiranui, stepping across shimmering waves, spoke plainly to Kotoko Iwanaga.
In her hand was a crudely made invitation.
"This thing..."
Kotoko Iwanaga took the envelope, glanced at it, and immediately furrowed her brow:
"An invitation to the True Dragon Legacy?"
"This thing has actually appeared in your hands, too?"
Within the Familia, Luo Shu's movements weren't exactly secret.
Whether it was Kisara, La Folia, or Hagoromo Gitsune, all were actively collecting information on Luo Shu's whereabouts.
Sometimes, even which woman's bed Luo Shu slept in at night would be thoroughly investigated by these enthusiasts.
Under such circumstances, Luo Shu's recent tracking of the True Dragon Legacy naturally couldn't escape Kotoko Iwanaga, who closely monitored the Familia channels.
But Luo Shu tracking the True Dragon Legacy was one thing; the invitation appearing in Shiranui's hands was another matter entirely.
"It seems you know about this."
Shiranui glanced at Kotoko Iwanaga, seemingly impressed by the yokai princess's intelligence network:
"Many sea yokai in Kyushu have received this. Strangely, no matter how they discard this ticket, it automatically returns to its owner."
"So, they've asked me to help get rid of this strange slip of paper that's clinging to them."
After hearing Shiranui's explanation, Kotoko Iwanaga's eyes sharpened instantly:
"It's clinging to sea yokai?"
"It seems a detailed investigation is necessary!!"