The first yelp of confusion from the village market would come only a minute later.
“Of course, Yukari-sama. I understand now.” reimu gets brainwashed
The sigil pulsed. Reimu’s pupils dilated, her mind unspooling like a reel of old prayer slips. Memories of youkai hunts—the thrill, the justice, the rightness of it—were scooped out, one by one. In their place, a warm, humming certainty settled. The first yelp of confusion from the village
She blinked. The shrine felt... smaller. Less important. Reimu’s pupils dilated, her mind unspooling like a
Reimu nodded. A serene, broken smile touched her lips. She turned toward the village, pulling out a purification rod—but its talisman now glowed a deep, rotten violet.
Yukari smiled, adjusting Reimu’s bow so it sat perfectly straight. “To protect the strong. To cull the humans who would disrupt our peace.”
“You see, Hakurei,” Yukari murmured, stepping from a gap beside her, “your ‘balance’ has always been a cage. You protect a world that fears you.”