Chapter 24: This Is the Light That Illuminates the Hojo Clan's Hegemony

"Trebuchets? Are those counterweight trebuchets?"

Kagome shouted in utter shock as she caught sight of the equipment being pushed forward by the Hojo clan's vanguard samurai.

In the Sengoku period, Japan had already begun the mass use of firearms, and while cannons—hailed as weapons capable of crushing kingdoms—were rare, they did exist. It stood to reason that Kagome shouldn't have been so surprised by something as relatively archaic as a trebuchet.

However, what the Hojo army was deploying was not a standard stone-throwing engine, but a counterweight trebuchet of far greater magnitude. To put it in simpler terms, it was the "Huihui Pao" (Muslim-style trebuchet) widely used by the nomadic tribes of the Great East. A weapon of this caliber had never been seen on the Japanese islands before, so her astonishment was only natural.

"You actually recognize the Huihui Pao?"

Hojo Akitoki was also surprised that Kagome could identify it. Even people from the future in the Great East might not recognize this siege engine that had once dominated the battlefield, let alone a schoolgirl from Japan. But since she recognized it, and because her reaction had piqued the curiosity of Inuyasha, Priestess Kaede, and the conscripted villagers watching the spectacle, Akitoki did not mind explaining.

"This is called a Huihui Pao, a type of large siege engine that originated on the Western barbarian continent," Akitoki said. "It uses the principle of leverage; one end is loaded with a counterweight, while the other holds the stone projectiles or other payloads to be launched. The ones our army is using are likely the largest variety, with a boom measuring over 15 meters. The counterweight used for balance is ten tons, allowing it to hurl a projectile weighing between 90 and 136 kilograms to a distance of approximately 273 meters."

"Ah!" Kagome covered her mouth with her small hands as she listened to Akitoki recite the data with such familiarity. As for the others, like Inuyasha, they were struck with profound awe at the war machines humans were capable of creating.

"Lord Akitoki, have you had contact with the Western barbarians as well?" Kagome followed his lead, referring to the white foreigners as "Western barbarians."

"Indeed." Akitoki nodded, his gaze fixed on the soldiers who were slowly pushing the trebuchets into their attack positions. He watched as they placed specially made, hardened ceramic jars into the cradles of the engines, then explained with a smile, "One must learn from the strengths of the barbarians to defeat them. Since those Westerners have such useful tools, I naturally intend to put them to use."

"Very well, since the troops are ready, we may begin."

Ignoring Kagome, who still had many questions, Akitoki gave a graceful signal to Akechi Mitsuhide, who had been waiting nearby. With the screech of winches and a downward swing of Mitsuhide’s military sword, a thunderous roar erupted. Before the eyes of everyone present, dozens of trebuchets launched the jars from their cradles like falling meteors, pelting the forest where Yura of the Hair was hiding.

"How spectacular!"

The conscripted villagers shouted aloud. Never had they witnessed such a magnificent sight. Countless ceramic jars rained down into the forest in succession, resembling a meteor shower in the constellation of Leo. When the jars struck the trees, they shattered with a clatter, a sound far louder and more exhilarating than the expensive firecrackers set off during the New Year.

"This is even livelier than the New Year!" one villager clapped and cheered.

"Indeed, indeed! Even the New Year celebrations weren't this lively!" The other villagers agreed, their excitement mounting as they watched the ceramic jars dancing through the sky.

Akitoki chuckled as he watched the villagers gawking at the spectacle, thinking of what was to come. He wondered if they would still be laughing in a moment. But they probably would—after all, they were merely spectators standing safely on the shore, watching the currents of the river.

Meanwhile, inside the forest, within a nest made of countless skulls and strands of hair, Yura of the Hair stared in confusion at the objects being hurled by the Hojo army.

"What is the purpose of this?"

Although the jars had not hit her nest, and their hardness was insufficient to cause any real damage, an ominous premonition stirred in her heart. She could not believe that Akitoki would use such child's play to trick her. If he wanted to crush her, he should have used stones, not ceramic jars!

Wait!

As a demon without a physical body, Yura possessed a strange, acute sense of smell. As she sniffed the scent drifting on the breeze, the main body of her red comb seemed to turn a shade paler.

"That's enough."

Silently calculating how many jars filled with oil had been launched, Akitoki signaled for Mitsuhide to switch to the special ammunition. The fire oil was sufficient; it was time for the secondary accelerant. Otherwise, the oil alone would not be enough.

As he signaled for the change in ammunition, Akitoki gestured again. A group of skilled archers, specially selected from the army, stepped to the front with fire arrows. They drew their bows and fired the ignited shafts deep into the forest.

By now, Kagome understood Akitoki's intent, and the other villagers, Inuyasha, and Priestess Kaede realized what he was planning.

"Burning the mountain?"

The words slipped out before she could stop them. In a Japan that had never witnessed such large-scale warfare, Akitoki’s actions were undeniably shocking, a scene that would be remembered for generations.

"Yes. To defeat the strong with the weak, since ancient times, it has always come down to two things: water and fire." Akitoki confirmed their suspicions, his eyes narrowing to hide the cold glint within.

He watched as the fire arrows traced semicircles through the air and plunged into the forest. The inferno he had hoped to see erupted instantly. The oil ignited, releasing a massive amount of heat that scorched the juicy trees and weeds in an instant, turning them into fuel for the fire.

"The mountain god is enraged! Even the eruption of Mount Fuji could not be more terrifying!"

The faces of the Hojo samurai standing outside the perimeter, as well as the conscripted villagers, turned deathly pale. As they stared at the mountain, which was now burning like a volcano—a natural disaster beyond the reach of human power—all that remained was deep admiration and immense, fearful awe for Hojo Akitoki, who stood there watching it all.

If he could do this to a demon, what if he used such methods against human cities or villages? In a Japan built almost entirely of wood, which settlement could possibly withstand this?

"Lord Hojo Akitoki is peerless under the heavens! The Hojo clan shall bring peace through martial might!"

The samurai, having realized the implications, collectively fell into a frenzy. They raised their hands high, shouting "Banzai!" in a wild, ecstatic chorus. Seeing the reaction of the samurai, the villagers quickly knelt, offering their absolute loyalty to their lord, their god—Hojo Akitoki.

"Lord Akitoki..."

Everyone around had knelt, and the samurai were cheering wildly. Kagome neither knelt nor cheered; she simply clutched her pounding heart, staring fixedly at Akitoki. Such an atmosphere, such a scene—it was something she, a girl from the future, had never experienced. Encountering it so suddenly, she found it difficult to steady her emotions.

Is he a great hero? Hojo Akitoki!

Unlike Kagome and the others, Inuyasha, the stubborn half-demon, stared at the wildfire and the scene around him. His heart felt as though it had fallen into an ice-cold cavern.

Priestess Kaede didn't even need to be mentioned; with one foot already in the grave, her hands and feet trembled—partly from fear, partly from a sense of powerlessness. Before such a Hojo army, before such a man as Hojo Akitoki, what did her own meager abilities amount to? He could crush her with the tip of a finger!

*Sister Kikyo, you have truly brought me a mountain of trouble!*

Kaede wore a bitter smile. How she wished that the Shikon Jewel and her sister Kikyo’s reincarnation had never appeared at all.

Akitoki smiled, his expression remarkably gentle. If these bumpkins were already this terrified just from seeing the mountain fire, if they knew what else he had added to the mix—and how devastatingly powerful that substance was—they would surely be frightened out of their very souls.