Hizashi Ambassador Mansion Jeoncho

Leading his horse by the reigns, Seijo held his note in his free hand, The scents, the sights, he couldn't help but feel overcome with relief that he was home in Tawakoshi once again. He had separated from the old man Brandalf after their travel by ship and overland to their destination as they'd arrived a day early, allowing him to take a bath and clean his clothes so as to appear more presentable. Approaching the guards he revealed his note, allowing them to take his horse for stabling after he "Helped" Izanami off the back of it.

Led into the building by a servant, he maintained a cool demeanor that showed he had dealt with nobility before, and Izanami followed shortly behind, appearing as a normal young woman, if not unusually attractive. Once the door was opened he spotted the woman already sat down within. It seemed someone had beat him here...or perhaps she was the wife or daughter of this "Uchino Soke" Just to be safe he gave a bow to the woman.

"Greetings, I am Seijo Ito and the woman with me is Izanami." he introduced quickly. "I have arrived after receiving a note about a quest to obtain the Glass Dragon."

Ayame Hisakawa Seijo Ito and Izanami Brandalf

A short while after the last guest had arrived Homura Hizashi entered the room wearing a casual blue and gold haori draped over his grey yukata. The clothes would not be showy, but you'd definitely recognize the fact that they weren't cheap. Wearing a slightly wry but also soft smile he gently sat down at the end of the table and nodded to the servant who would leave the room and close the shoji door behind her.

"Welcome my guests." he said with a clear and warm voice as he gently made eye contact with the guests to acknowledge them individually. The old man with the wooden staff and the stern looking guy seemeed to Homura to be seasoned adventures, but he wondered for what reason the beautiful woman with the strikingly blue eyes seemed to be there. Was she going along with him? He knew that both the vast reaches of Tawakoshi and the rest of the Overworld held many very different people, which was he was perhaps most surprised to see the plain looking young women there. She could hardly had come here by mistake, as she had to have shown the note at the door. However to Homura this didn't matter, these people looked like they had a very diverse set of skills, and he himself was eager to present to them, what he had brought along with him in the black wooden casket on his lap.

"As you may or may not have guessed there is no 'Uchino Soke', that guy is me, Homura Hizashi. I am the ambassador of clan Hizashi here in Jeoncho, and because the current shogun here in Jeoncho and clan Hizashi in Kiyonai... have some disagreements... I would rather not have attention drawn towards me. That is however irrelevant for what I will ask of you here." he said and moved the box to the low table and opened it up.
"Behold the masterpiece The Glass Dragon. Forged 800 years ago by unknown means and still as pristine looking as was it new!" he said proudly while gently holding the artifact up before him so everyone had a chance to see it.

To the eye the dragon seemed to be made by thousands of shards of glass that - while translucent - had a distinct way of reflecting the light - somewhat like crystal would. It was light as paper on his hand and all these pieces were individually segmented by joints. Homura took a nearby fan a waved it gently at the dragon as it caught the wind and immediately starting moving in his hand as if it was a real dragon - only to stop when he put the fan down.

"What do you make of this? It most likely holds one of the best kept secrets in the history of Tawakoshi." he said and smirked. "But before I tell you more, I'd very much like to hear who you are? Care to introduce yourselves first?" he asked politely, curious as to which kind of people they were and if they had any special motivation for coming here at all.

Learning that Ayame was here for the same reasons he was was surprising to say the least. Even so, he supposed appearances could be deceiving. Taking a seat, Izanami sat close to him as they waited in silence. When Brandalf arrived he gave a bow, pleased to see the older man had made it to the correct place. He had more company that he typically took on undertakings, but at least those numbers provided some form of safety.

When Uchino Soke- Or should he say Homura Hizashi -entered the room and began to explain the situation the swordsman listened in silence. At last they were shown the source of their quest: The Glass Dragon itself. Despite himself, Seijo leaned forward to eye the artifact, personally fascinated with its iridescent shifts in colors. He imagined were he younger he may even want one of his own. He glanced over at Izanami who learned in like a schoolgirl, stunning blue eyes locked with crystalline critter as they sparkled with human-like delight. In fact everything seemed fine: Until the other girl spoke up.

"A Miko?" Seijo asked alloud, looking reproachfully at the young woman. "What could a Miko bring to help us? This is no field trip, you should go back to your shrine and let us handle this." he said bluntly.

Homura listened to their individual explanations with great interest. And nodded politely to each of them.
"Mr. Brandalf, I do not doubt some kind of magic is behind the workings of this thing - though its workings are subtle. I am no wizard though, so I couldn't tell which kind they were." he said and returned a warm smile. "I am honored about your fascination with Tawakoshi culture, and I hope our country and people will exceed your expectations." he said and nodded, though it was with some reluctance. The reason he would later tell about when they were ready to journey out.

"Now now, I don't believe a uniform party would be able to accomplish the task I have in mind for you. Different skills - even those not entirely apparent right now - might be asked for on the journey." he said diplomatically to Seijo Ito, pondering why he and the girl hadn't chosen to introduce themselves. Homura then turned to Ayame. "Now it seemed like you had something..." Homura said curiously as he saw Ayame bringing out a book that contained detailed drawings of the Glass Dragon.

"Now... this is remarkable! Can I have a look?" Homura asked excited and if allowed to, he would flip through the pages and found both drawings and descriptions of many kinds. "I have seen single papers of drawings and vague descriptions, but nothing like this." he said surprised before gently putting the books down on the table again. "Maybe it's time I told you a story to put things in perspective. Ayame-san, you may or may not have heard about it, but maybe some of this will be new to you anyway." Homura said and contemplated where to start.

"Dragons haven't been seen in Tawakoshi for many centuries now, but it is a fact, that dragons in many forms and sizes once inhabited Tawakoshi. As any real or credible knowledge about their existence and disappearance have been lost in time, we can only guess why they disappeared. But we know with some certainty that empress Aihara Mina had one of the last great dragons in her possession nearly 800 years ago." Homura said and looked around. This alone should have piqued people's interests, but there were more to the story.

"It is said to have ended tragically despite a close bond between the two. The dragon unfortunately died when she was only 15 years of age and it has officially been recorded that she left at the age of 17 and headed to the mountains to take her own life out of sorrow. The Glass Dragon is said to have disappeared shortly after." He said in a concise manner.

"This is however probably not the truth! My studies indicate that the dragon you see in front of you is a map of some kind - and I'm almost certain that the empress didn't leave it behind but actually brought it with her, as she was looking for something specific." Homura stated with a grave expression.

"And of how and why this dragon came into her possession we know little. But a single place in the annals it is mentioned, that she was given the glass dragon by a wizard when she was ten years old." he said. "This is where you come in. I think this worth an expedition to follow the clues and figure out, what really happened to the empress and why she journeyed out." Homura said with a relieved smile as he once again looked at the book Ayame had brought with her. "Do you think, that you could look through the pages and see if it indicates any places in Tawakoshi one might know?" Homura asked Ayame and handed her back the book. "I am pretty sure, that this book was at least partly written by the empress herself!" he said and looked at the group. "Any questions are welcome, I won't hide anything for you." he simply said with a friendly smile.

When the man, Homura Hizashi, spoke up in Ayame's defense, Seijo shook his head in doubt but did not press the matter further. If this man was paying them to babysit then he would do it, but that didn't mean he would like it. Despite his foul mood, however, he listened attentively as Homura explained the stories that went along with their mission. So they were to follow this map then? It seemed far-fetched but the man before them seemed interested, and he had never seen anything like this decoration or map or...whatever it was, before. He would leave it up to brighter minds to determine its validity, they simply needed his services. Nodding he rose to his feet as well, giving a bow.

"I am Seijo Ito and this is Izanami. Your offer sounds worth consideration, and will lend you my blade." With him simple statement he shifted slightly closer, getting a better look over the girl at the book she had presented. Well, at least she seemed useful for something as she deciphered the clues that might be the destination of their journey.

Ayamé Seijo Ito and Izanami Brandalf

Homura looked slightly surprised at Seijo Ito as he stood up and very formally presented himself but gave a polite nod of recognition.
"I'm pleased you would do so! And rest assured, I will pay handsomely when you get back - and of course I'll supply you with adequate funds to use on your trip." he said and smiled. He looked at the woman again and addressed her personally. "You were Izanami-san right? Are you accompanying Seijo Ito-san on the trip?" he asked curiously, having not heard her speak a word yet.

As Brandalf projected his mana into the glass dragon it would shiver slightly. If not formerly acquainted with the nature and spiritual based magic used in Tawakoshi, he would find it hard to unlock any facts about the glass dragon, though he would sure feel that the dragon did hold several enchantments. If having studied Tawakoshi magic lore a little the wizard would know, that in Tawakoshi you'd often make an enchantment so that it would lay dormant until brought back into contact with a certain place or item. Often a place or item of great magical or spiritual power.

Homura reached for the book and compared this to a modern map of Tawakoshi he had himself.
"This... can almost only be here!" he said and pointed his finger on the spot and showed the others where it was. "It looks like today there's a small village right there south of Kiyonai City before the mountains, but this old map marks the exact place as being up in the mountains. It doesn't seem as if there was a town there 800 years ago." Homura said and mused. If only they had a clue of where to look. 

Modern map of Tawakoshi

As the others spoke, Seijo resumed his seat once again. It seemed they had everything they needed amongst themselves, and if it had nothing to do with spirits or battle, was wasn't going to be much help. Still, he wasn't dissatisfied, this simply was not his job. When the man, Homura, spoke to Izanami however, she gave a fair smile and nodded once to confirm she was indeed to travel with Seijo. The swordsman spoke up, saving Homura the trouble of asking further questions.

"She cannot speak." he informed him, "A disease ravaged her throat when she was young, she can nod and shake her head but not much else." he wasn't sure how long he'd be travelling this land or how much time he'd be spending with this man. The Shogan was notorious for his strict policy against magic and while this was ancient magic, as valuable as his faith he wasn't going to risk word getting out.

"Then I'm very sorry for being so rude!" Homura said and nodded with a smile. Although Homura was curious to why such a frail but stunning looking you women would be travelling with a seasoned swordsman like that when he had just criticized Ayame for not being able to handle himself, he did not press the matter further. In Jeoncho magic was frowned upon, and if Seijo didn't want to explain about her magical abilities, that was understandable.

"That is exactly right Ayame-san!" Homura said and friendly voice and would smile softly seeing her embarrassed. "Despite the fact that I'd like to study that book thoroughly, I do think you should bring it with you. And I hope you can find a way to interpret it better as you go when you get a chance to look at it more." he said and closed the book before handing it back to her with an acknowledging smile.

Something as 'chairs' wasn't available inside this room and Brandalf would have to sit on the floor at the low table like it was custom in most of Tawakoshi - even though his knees might not like it. He had remained quiet for a while but as he spoke up Homura was impressed with his concise deduction. "I think you may be right!" Homura said and nodded in acknowledgement. "I don't know of any shrines there, but that city would be the best place to start your search I think." he said and looked around weather everyone agreed.

Watching the exchange, Seijo nodded as they all seemed to reach the same conclusion. If they wanted to travel to the village, he certainly wasn't going to protest. So, they had a destination and a team (For better or worse) now all they needed was to leave.

"So when do we set out?" he asked simply, looking at Homura. He didn't want to be stuck here for long, but investigations took time, and he guessed with an old man and the woman they'd be forced to rest more often.