A powerful, deafening war-cry echoes across the 16th-century battlefield. It is a crisp, clear day, a day many would have chosen to live on, and which many have now chosen to die on. The Japanese troops scream at the top of their lungs the traditional call of their clan -
“SSSSSSEEEEEEEEEEKKKKSSSUUUUUUU”
before either loosing volleys of arrows, or raising their long naginata - polearms - and preparing a charge. Unfortunately for all their bravery, the ashigaru, mere peasant soldiers, are unable to push much of the attack. The clamour of battle drowns out the war-cries, and quickly there are many dead on both sides. The ashigaru are caught in bitter melee, as their Korean opponents load gunpowder rockets in their lethal Hwacha defences.

Audibly overpowering even the strongest shouts, the explosions instantly scatter and crush much of the army. The Daimyo, leading the assault, angrily rallies his force with all his might. The Koreans too have their own commander, oddly, for the time, a woman, and no ordinary one at that. She is rumoured by many of the Japanese troops to be a youkai, running between the ranks and picking off men instantly. She dresses in a flowing, impractical-looking outfit, and fights only her elegant, unusual dual swords. Yet she is as deadly as any well armoured warrior, and carries the strength of several hundred In her strikes. Indeed some claim she stops time itself, and you would doubt these claims…until today.

For you are the Samurai leading this assault, Takeshi Sekkusu, head of your ancient and noble clan. Your bushido code demands fighting to the death, and your men have followed it. And your enemies have accepted this too; despite many casualties on their part, you are the last of your force, and are totally surrounded. You withdraw your wakizashi, a ceremonial blade reserved for seppuku only. For you do not wish public execution, it is one thing for your army to be crushed. But to be executed by one’s enemies would be an even greater shame then falling like a common soldier.
Surrounded by glaring, mocking stares, you close your eyes and ready the blade. You aim for a chink in your armour, and prepare for all to go dark. But as you do so -

“Not so fast, Sekkusu”
Time itself seems to stop, and you briefly hear the voice of the enemy commander. But she’s not barking orders, she’s whispering in your ears. You open your eyes, and she is standing right in front of you, holding your blade.
Awestruck, you find yourself quite literally frozen in place, along with all the living and dead soldiers surrounding you. But the youkai - for who else could do such a thing - stands firm, dark blue hair fluttering in the sea breeze. Her sapphire eyes glow hypnotically, and she seems to float off the ground rather than standing. She has sheathed your sword in her belt, along with hers, and has placed a hand on your armoured shoulder.
You can’t deny she has a seductive aura, and her grip feels…unusually strong, if cold.
All of a sudden she speaks again.
“I’ll be right back in time”
With a clear voice, the maiden snaps her fingers, and you immediately feel hazy, falling to the floor, as all fades to black.

“Sekkusu. Get up.”
You feel a sharp kick in your chest, not to mention a throbbing headache. Far from a battlefield, you’re lying on the floor in a sort of throne room, sheathed in unusual, blue-dyed fabrics. The walls are covered in lettering in strange, foreign tongues - one of which, Korean, you know passing amounts of - along with a variety of Japanese phrases. This is also mixed with Nanban - European - words, the meaning of which utterly escapes you.
“Hey, I didn’t wake you to get you to stare at the place”
The youkai woman kicks you again, and you stumble to your feet - only to find that you have not only lost your armour and weapons, but are leashed on a metal chain. You find this out when she forcibly drags you to the floor with it, and smugly sits back on her golden-red throne.
“Youkai!” you bark, trying to retain some of your authority, “What is the meaning of this trickery?”

The woman simply smirks at you, crossing her legs and fiddling with her hair. You notice all the swords, including yours, are at her side.
If you could just get to them…
“Hmmph. I have a name, you know. You should be grateful for me. After all, if not for my liberal use of my powers, you’d be in the stocks right now” she gloats, yanking the chain to pull you in.
Insulted, you respond immediately “If not for you, my men would be alive and well! It’s only you and those cursed fireworks that keep your fighting spirits alive! Why if I-“
Your ranting is interrupted, and the chain is pulled tight. Instinctively you scramble and flail as she nearly chokes you, until she finally stops.
“Honestly, I shoulda just killed you there.” She sighs, clearly tired of your resistance. You are just grateful you can breathe again, although the air here is hardly the most pleasant smelling. You’d think a youkai like this would at least have a few servants to keep her clean.

“Aren’t you going to ask me my name, ‘Lord’ Sekkusu? It’s rude to keep a lady waiting” she is strangely flirty for someone with a hand on her swords. Clearly she’s figured out your backup plan to get close and stab her. She’s also figured out how to annoy you by mispronouncing certain words.
“It is also rude to not address a Daimyo by his proper title, you-“ she pulls the leash again before your insult lands.
“I can do this aaaallll day, Sekkusu, honest. This is actually kinda fun, so keep doing it.” instead of contempt, she now giggles at you. She continues to lightly tug on the lead like someone wrangling a struggling dog.
What kind of commander is this?
Sighing, you ask, and attempt a formality with your captor, “Fine. Lady Youkai, what do you call yourself?” you clench your teeth, as she giggles again, clearly amused by your resistance.

“Alright, I’ll tell you.” She has that smug grin the entire time. “My name is Ouro Kronii. But you can call me…Lady Kronii. Yeah, I like the sound of that.”
Intrigued, you push her further, since knowing who holds you captive is an easy step to asking why. “And why do you hold me prisoner? Why did you not let me die honourably?”
“Oh, you Samurai and your stupid honour, you’re just as bad as those Vikings that Mumei-“ she can see the burning rage in your eyes, not to mention your confusion at these unfamiliar names. She’s hardly intimidated, but she gets to the point.
“Alright Sekkusu, I’ve got a deal for ya. I’ll let the world think you fell in battle with your men, since being a living commander of a failed assault is such a dishonour.” So far so good, although you worry for your life back home, but then your clan has other branches.
“And in exchange…” she stands up and pulls you to your feet, rather abruptly. She is tall enough to stand just a little above you, and her sudden pulling forces you to your knees as quickly as you stood up.
“I will have you as my personal servant”
Your face turns red, flustered in a mix of embarrassment and anger.
“A servant? I am a samurai, servant only to the Shogun and the Empreror! What right do you have to tell me otherwise? I will not toil in the fields, or clean the floorboards, just so-“
Yet again she silences your outburst, pulling you forward, almost shoving your face in her lap as she near-chokes you.

“You disappoint me, Sekkusu. I am not needing house keeping so much as…” she pauses, as if looking for the right words “Uhhh, snake-keeping. That’s the word. I need a noble samurai such as yourself to keep my swords and my snake, Boros, in good shape.
You notice she is very sweaty at saying this, as if she is trying to cover something up.
Snake-keeping? Sword-polishing? You hope to yourself these aren’t some of those weird foreign euphemisms. How does she speak such good Japanese anyway?
“Do not worry about busywork, I have a maid who helps me with that. And she’ll show you around too, perhaps even give you some tours of the private quarters…”
Now she’s talking…
“…under my supervision. Don’t think you’ll have your way with any servant girls when I’m around, Sekkusu.” She’s glaring at you, pretty obviously aware of your interest in any easy-to-get maids. Perhaps she’s right, it’s going to be harder to get away with things if you’re here compared to Japan. After all, you’re not the one in charge anymore.

“Well then, Sekkusu, have you made your choice?”
“I wasn’t aware I had a choice, Lady Kronii” you find yourself starting to give in the formalities, if only to get away from this sweaty smell she seems to have. For a woman with servants she appears happy to remain in the same clothing for quite some time.
“Oh, you do” she chuckles “it’s just the choice is “me” or “I’ll kill you on the spot”
You sigh, again. You reckon there’s worse fates to be had. After all, you heard of the insatiably lustful wokou, the Nanban-obsessed Houshou Marine, that got herself captured by a Korean woman. Allegedly a kirishitan vulnerable to foreign influences, she is rumoured to have fallen into a depraved sexual relationship with her captor. A captor that, now that you think about it, is remarkably similar sounding to Lady Kronii.

“Sekkusu!” She kicks you with quite some force, breaking your thought tangent. “Are you staying with me or not? Because if you are, you need to daydream less. That’s my job”
“Get it, daydream?” She seems to think she’s made a brilliant reference, before mumbling “Oh, wait, wrong timeline. Anyway, you ready?” She looks at you expectantly. “As you wish, Lady Kronii…” you attempt a bow, which isn’t easy when you’re still kneeling. “I, Takeshi of the Sekkusu clan, pledge myself to your service…” you made this sort of oath to the Shogun before. But before you can recite it fully, she rests her feet upon your back.
“That’s better. I could use a new footstool~”
She giggles again…you have to admit, she’s starting to grow on you. Although you don’t like the degradation much.
An unfamiliar, soft voice perks up through the silence. “Umm, miss Kronii?”
The youkai moves her feet and you raise your head again. Turning, you can seen an elegant looking green-haired woman with horns nervously walking over. She is wearing a maid outfit of sorts, although you reckon it’s another Nanban style one.
“Ah, Fauna! C’mere, I want you to meet our new…” she glances down at you, evidently unsure of your title, “Uhh, snake…charmer?”
She laughs to herself, trying to minimise the awkwardness. “Okay, I’ve not decided on the job title yet, but I know he’s gonna be useful around here, so come say hi!”
The maid gives off a surprisingly intoxicating floral scent, and you wonder if she’s a youkai herself. She seems to have glowing yellow eyes that become hypnotic as she closes in, and you hear her giggling as she walks up…locking eyes with her, you watch as she leans in, almost for a kiss. Instead of that, she merely says “Konfaunaaaa~” in a soft, western voice, right in your ears. Within seconds, you feel yourself going numb, and the room starting to spin. Both women are giggling again as you fade from consciousness, suddenly feeling warm arms around you…