#Episode 7: Earth Vein
#Scent -- The Mountain Breathes
The mountain village lay sunk in mist. Morning had come, but the mist had not lifted. The torii at the village entrance leaned to one side, and the writing on the hanging talisman had peeled away until it could no longer be read. Thick moss clung to the stone steps. It was a place people had stopped visiting long ago.
Ryun stood in the middle of the village and set his palm on the ground. He closed his eyes. Something flowed beneath his fingertips. A current that began deep in the mountain. It was not water. It was slower than water, heavier than wind. It was the breath of the earth. Ryun followed it -- with his fingertips, with his breath. The current passed under the village. What had once flowed straight had twisted at one point. It was not blocked. It had merely been bent. At the bend, qi tangled; the tangled qi disturbed the whole village.
"The spirit vein is twisted." Ryun opened his eyes. "This is why the village is ill."
The village had been wrong for half a year. Crops in the fields withered, and beasts no longer came down from the mountain. Children dreamed nightmares every night. The temple bell rang by itself. It was neither illness nor disaster -- an unexplainable unease had wrapped the whole village.
Miko knelt before the village's small shrine. The shrine was shabby. Thatch had fallen from the roof, and the wood of the chest holding the sacred object had split. But Miko was not looking at the shrine's condition. Her eyes were closed, and her hands were joined in prayer. A prayer offered without sound, only through the heart. Around her, the air changed slightly. It grew still. The wind settled, and the mist thinned only around the shrine. Within a few steps of where Miko sat, the unease covering the village did not reach.
Hanabi sat on a mossy rock near the village edge. A small shime-daiko rested on her knees, and she tapped the skin with her fingers. To-to. To-to-to. It was not a melody. There was only rhythm. One village child came closer and looked up at Hanabi. Hanabi smiled. She struck the drum once and gave the child a glance. The child laughed briefly and ran away. Laughter in the mist. It was a small thing, but it was a sound the village had not heard for a long time.
Ryun climbed the foot of the mountain behind the village. Miko and Hanabi followed. Even as he walked, Ryun kept one hand near the ground. From time to time he stopped and touched the soil. He read the soil's temperature, its moisture, and the current below it.
"It bends here." Ryun stopped before a flat rock at the mountain's foot. A crack ran through the rock. Faint heat rose from the cracked place. Behind the rock, a wooden stake had been driven into the ground. It was old and almost rotten, but a pattern carved into its tip could still be seen.
"Someone deliberately bent the vein. Long ago."
Miko touched the stake. It was cold. Not the coldness of wood, but the coldness of resentment. "Something dwells in this stake. It is not human resentment. It is older than that -- something of this mountain."
"It can be set right. But if I restore the vein, the qi trapped at the twisted place will be released all at once."
"It will not be clean," Miko said. "It has fed on the village's unease for half a year."
The three looked at one another. Ryun said, "I will restore the vein. Lady Miko, please shield the village." Miko nodded.
"What about me?" Hanabi asked. "Lady Hanabi, stay in the village. The people need someone to soothe their unease."
Hanabi struck the shime-daiko once. The sound was small, but clear. "Understood."
Miko sat before the shrine. This time the prayer had a different weight. It was a prayer into which she poured her whole heart. The air changed around Miko. It seemed as if an invisible wall rose around the shrine. Inside that wall, neither wind, nor mist, nor unease could enter.
At the mountain's foot, Ryun began to move. He put his hands on the ground around the stake and pressed against the opposite side of the twisted current. It was work like turning a watercourse back, straightening what had bent. Sweat gathered on Ryun's brow. He was facing the breath of an entire mountain.
The ground shook. The tremor reached the village. Hanabi began to beat the shime-daiko. To-to. To-to-to. A slow, regular rhythm like a heartbeat. People's eyes turned to Hanabi. She was smiling. That smile reached them before words could: it is all right. Do not be afraid.
Black mist surged from the crack in the rock. The impure qi that had been trapped for half a year had been released all at once. The black mist flowed down the mountain toward the village. Trees trembled. Birds flew up. Just before the black qi touched the village --
Miko's prayer became a wall. The black mist struck the wall and split. It could not cross. Sweat gathered on Miko's brow too. She could not stop praying. If she stopped, the wall would fall. Miko's figure, sitting before the shrine in prayer, gave the people an inexplicable relief. That person is holding something at bay. They knew it without being told.
Hanabi's drum did not stop. While the black mist wrapped the outside of the village, the drum sound wrapped the inside. Children did not cry. Old people did not tremble. The drum filled the place where unease would have entered. Filling an empty place with sound. That was all Hanabi could do, and it was enough.
Ryun gave one last surge of strength. The twisted vein straightened. The original flow returned. The crack in the rock slowly closed. The black mist began to thin. The rotten stake collapsed into the soil.
The mist cleared. For the first time in half a year, sunlight fell on the village. Miko stopped praying. She swayed. A villager beside her caught her. Miko smiled faintly. "I am all right."
Ryun came down from the mountain. Hanabi handed him water. Ryun looked around the village. The mist had cleared. The shrine's torii still leaned, but the air was different.
"The vein has returned. But this village's vein was never strong to begin with. It needs someone to tend it."
Miko looked back at the shrine. "I will stay here. Even if only for a while."
Hanabi slung the shime-daiko over her shoulder. "Me too. A village needs songs, doesn't it?"
Ryun looked at them both. Setting the earth right was something Ryun could do. Setting people right was something Miko and Hanabi could do.
"Thank you."
Wind blew from the mountain behind the village. This time, it was a good wind.
#Law -- Session Actual Play
Kuro(GM) / Hana(Ryun) / Mei(Miko). Hanabi is an NPC.
Kuro: Episode 7. Noncombat + spiritual combat. Zone transformation, barriers, Faith resources, and the entertainer's lull recovery. Scent/Law are fully separated. Check sheets.
[PC]
Ryun (feng shui master 3rd dan): Wisdom +3, Physique +1. Energy 11, Wounds 4.
Twist Earth Veins(1st dan): zone Domination cap -3 (1/round, 2 Energy).
Earth-Vein Resonance(3rd dan): [aptitude] grasp battlefield-wide Domination. Automatically detect spirit veins/corruption.
Barrier(Licensed): install a barrier in 1 zone. 2 Energy, Exorcism/Sorcery check.
Miko (arahitogami 1st dan): Presence +3, Wisdom +1. Energy 10, Wounds 3. Starting Faith 3.
Manifest Divine Authority(1st dan): [stance] form a Sacred Domain.
fear immunity / prevents Cohesion collapse / Presence aura multiplied by 2(Presence +3→Domination +6).
Maintain: spend Faith 1 each round.
[NPC]
Hanabi (entertainer 1st dan): Presence +2, Fate +1. Energy 10, Wounds 2.
Battlefield Flower(1st dan): [upkeep] at lull, recover Wounds 1 or Cohesion 1.Mei: Summarize the Faith rules.
Kuro:
[Faith — arahitogami-only resource]
Start 3, maximum 10. Gain: lull +1(automatic), barrier/buff survival +1, Heavenly Mandate +3.
Loss: Wounds decrease -1, Fumble -2, incapacitation all, squad Rout -1.
0 effect: all divinity abilities unusable. Gradually recovers by lull +1.
Noncombat: maintaining Sacred Domain costs Faith 1 per scene. Reverence +1~2 [GM discretion]. Doubt -1~3 [GM discretion].Hana: Faith management is the key in noncombat.
Kuro: 1st dan starts at 3, so 2~3 scenes are the limit. Let's look at the battlefield structure.
[Zones — Spiritual Battlefield]
Village: allied zone. Hanabi deployed. Gimmick — spiritual corruption(weak, unease check Courage >= 10).
Shrine: barrier zone. Miko deployed. Sacred Domain formation point.
Mountain Foot: spirit-vein zone. Ryun deployed. Gimmick — unstable spirit vein.
Mountain: cause zone. Rotten stake. Corruption source.[Gimmick — Unstable Spirit Vein]
Activation: feng shui master Twist Earth Veins(reverse direction). 2d10+Wisdom >= 15.
Success → spirit vein activates. Corruption removed. Lull Wounds +1.
Failure → spirit vein corruption. Black mist rampages. Everyone in the zone takes 1 Wound.
On rampage: without a barrier, Mental Save(Courage >= 13). With a barrier, block by spending durability.Hana: We use Twist Earth Veins in reverse?
Kuro: It is normally a zone-limiting technique. As a noncombat application, you use it to restore a twisted vein. The check is the same.
Kuro: Scene progression.
[Scenario — Scene Structure]
1. Arrive at village. Earth-Vein Resonance(automatic). 2. Search the mountain foot(check).
3. Preparation — install barrier. 4. Spirit-vein restoration(core). 5. Mist rampage — barrier holds.
6. Settlement — lull.Kuro: Scene 1. Earth-Vein Resonance is an aptitude, so it is automatic. You detect 1 spirit vein(unstable, artificially twisted) and weak corruption across the whole village.
Kuro: Scene 2. Search. Ryun 2d10 + Wisdom(+3) >= 11. Miko 2d10 + Wisdom(+1) >= 11 assist.
Hana: Ryun 2d10... 8, 5 = 13. +3 = 16. Success.
Mei: Miko 2d10... 7, 3 = 10. +1 = 11. Barely succeeds.
Kuro: Ryun detects the physical cause(stake), and Miko detects the spiritual cause(the mountain's resentment). Full information revealed.
Kuro: Scene 3. Barrier installation. Ryun sets a barrier at the shrine.
[Barrier Installation — Shrine]
Install: Ryun(Barrier Licensed). 2d10 + Wisdom(+3) >= 13.
Effect: block impure qi(durability 3). Fear immunity. Negates corruption.
Assist: Miko Sacred Domain in the same zone → durability +1(total 4).Hana: 2d10... 6, 8 = 14. +3 = 17. Success.
Kuro: Barrier durability 4. Miko maintains Sacred Domain — Faith 3→2.
Kuro: Scene 4. The core. Spirit-vein restoration.
[Spirit-Vein Restoration — Step by Step]
Step 1: sense flow (automatic). Step 2: release twist (2d10+Wisdom >= 15).
Step 3: release impure qi (automatic side effect). Step 4: stabilize (2d10+Wisdom >= 11).Hana: Step 2. 2d10... 7, 7 = 14. Double!
Kuro: 7-7! 14+3 = 17 >= 15. Double + success = Critical Hit! Noncombat Critical Hit — half the impure-qi release + strong spirit-vein activation(lull Wounds +2).
Hana: Step 4. 2d10... 9, 3 = 12. +3 = 15. Success!
Kuro: Fully stabilized!
Kuro: Scene 5. Black mist rampage. This is spiritual combat.
[Spiritual Combat — Black Mist vs Barrier]
Mist intensity: 2 (halved by Critical Hit). Barrier durability: 4.
Resolution: durability 4→2. Miko maintains Sacred Domain — Faith 2→1.
Miko makes a barrier-assist check. `2d10 + Presence(+3) >= 13`.Mei: 2d10... 8, 6 = 14. +3 = 17. Success!
Kuro: The barrier block succeeds completely. The village is safe. Hanabi is reflected in the check too.
[Hanabi — Noncombat Morale Maintenance]
Normally: village NPC unease check(Courage >= 10). Hanabi present → check waived.
Basis: entertainer Presence aura + Battlefield Flower(noncombat extension of upkeep effect).Kuro: Scene 6. Lull.
[Lull Resolution]
- Spirit-vein activation(strong): Wounds +2. Ryun 4→5(maximum). Miko 3(no loss).
- Hanabi Battlefield Flower: no Wounds loss, so no practical trigger.
- Miko Faith: lull +1(automatic) + village reverence +1 = Faith 1→3.
- Noncombat Faith event: "direct salvation of the people" → permanent starting value +1 (3→4).Mei: Starting at 4 should feel quite different.
Kuro: A 1st-dan arahitogami has a tight start at 3, so maintaining Sacred Domain is limited to 2~3 scenes. With 4, you get one extra scene of room. It shines in Episode 13.
Kuro: Let's mark Three Ways and Six Hearts.
[Three Ways and Six Hearts — Episode 7]
Ryun: 眞(respect balance, entrust the village with maintenance after restoration) / temptation of 覇(dominate the spirit vein) → chooses 眞.
Miko: 慈(protect the village through prayer) / temptation of 虛("does my prayer truly have effect?") → maintains 慈.Kuro: Rules summary.
[Rules Confirmed in Episode 7 — authority tag assigned to each item]
1. Feng shui master Twist Earth Veins: zone Domination cap -3. [Official] / noncombat application(spirit-vein restoration): [GM discretion].
2. Feng shui master Earth-Vein Resonance(3rd dan): aptitude. Automatically detect battlefield-wide Domination/spirit veins/corruption. [Official]
3. Arahitogami Manifest Divine Authority: stance. Sacred Domain — fear immunity, prevents Cohesion collapse, Presence aura multiplied by 2. [Official]
4. Sacred Domain maintenance: spend Faith 1 each round(scene). At 0, it vanishes.
5. Faith: start 3, maximum 10. lull +1, reverence +1, Fumble -2, incapacitation all.
6. Barrier: Exorcism/Sorcery check. Durability 3. Sacred Domain assist +1. Blocks impure qi/yoma.
7. Entertainer Battlefield Flower: upkeep. At lull, recover Wounds 1 or Cohesion 1. Noncombat — morale maintenance.
8. Zone gimmick — unstable spirit vein: activation/corruption in both directions. Branch by feng shui master check.
9. Noncombat Critical Hit: double+success. Half side effect, strengthened effect.
10. Noncombat Faith gain: salvation of the people → permanent starting value +1.
11. Spiritual combat: nonviolent check(Barrier vs corruption). Energy/Faith expenditure.Hana: When does Ryun appear next?
Kuro: Outside the scope of the short-story collection. In Part 2 of the main story, in a castle-design episode. Feng shui is used as architecture.
Mei: What about Miko?
Kuro: Episode 13. Gate of the Spirit Realm. She joins Seika and Shion. Starting Faith 4 shines there.
Hana: Hanabi?
Kuro: This is it for the short-story collection. Entertainers do not fight. But without an entertainer, the battlefield is only despair. That's all for today.
"The earth breathed, prayer became a wall, and drumbeats filled the heart. There was a battle in which not a single blade was drawn."