Russian Institute: Lesson 1

May 30th, 1431 France Place du Vieux-Marché

June 2nd, Taisho 10 Honnou-ji Temple, Kyoto

Master!

Akechi Mitsuhide has betrayed us!

Mitsuhide?!

Then... it was inevitable.

O Lord!

Let me hear Your voice!

Ranmaru! If there is a world after this one,

then that is where we shall gain dominion!

The Savior-King...

In times long past,

when the universe was still in chaos,

the known world was divided between two stars, called East and West.

The people of each star built many cities and towns,

under the guidance of the dragons' messengers.

On both stars, the people looked up at the starry expanse of heaven above

and wondered what strange lands might exist out there.

Now, after countless years,

the Star of the West has become the first to obtain the Dragon's Breath.

It will soon unite into an empire, under a single ruler.

On the other hand,

the Star of the East is still divided into many nations,

each vying for dominion over the others.

One of them, ruled by the Oda Clan,

Rokkaku Oda Saitou

has managed to survive in this war-torn era

Azai

Takeda

despite being surrounded by powerful nations seeking conquest.

This is a tale of the warriors who were born on those two stars,

and dreamed of conquering the world.

They laughed and cried, loved and lived. This is the proof of their existence.

Ranmaru...

That dream again...

He called me Ranmaru.

Who is he?

Nobu.

Wake up, Nobu.

That dream again?

Yeah.

You betrayed me, Mitsu.

I dream about that a lot lately.

You're lucky it's just me.

But if you attack everyone who wakes you up,

you'll lose all your friends.

That's no big loss.

You and the Monkey are all the friends I need.

It's still a poor example for the Oda Clan's heir to set.

Setting an example? Public image?

Stop talking like my shithead dad.

Did you put on years lately?

Perhaps.

But you shouldn't miss your younger brother Nobukatsu-sama's

coming of age ceremony.

Thanks to Clan Lord Nobuhide-sama's efforts,

Owari has become one of the most powerful nations in the realm.

But there still are other warrior lords to reckon with,

such as Takeda and Uesugi—

Yeah, yeah, I know.

How could I not know after listening to your lectures all the time?

Still, I've never seen anyone with hair that color.

A foreigner, maybe?

Sure smelled great, anyhow.

Was she a beauty?

Well, sure.

Wait, when did I say I was talking about a woman?

I can tell just by looking at your face.

How long have we known each other?

I see!

So it was written all over my face, eh?!

No wonder!

Nobu, please!

You're known by the mocking name "Fool of Oda,"

because you're always acting like this.

What's wrong?

It reeks.

Nobu-sama!

What is it, Monkey?

You ruined the yellow mountain rose bush.

Who cares about flowers?

Wait, that's not what I'm here for...

I've got way bigger news than that!

You must have found something, Hideyoshi.

You won't believe the prey I've found.

That's a big one, all right.

I ran into them when I was scouting our hunting grounds.

War Armor this elaborate must belong to Lord Takeda Shingen's forces.

I wonder what their plan is!

What are you so excited for, Hideyoshi?

If Takeda has this large of a force on his border with our lands, it means—

It reeks.

Nobu?

Skipping Nobukatsu's coming of age ceremony was the right decision.

They're about to march.

Let's get a close look at how the Takeda Clan does battle.

Nobunaga!

Where is Nobunaga?

Katsuie, where has Nobunaga gone?

My lord!

He has not been seen since yesterday, when he left to go hunting.

Hunting?!

Has he no respect for his younger brother's coming of age ceremony?

That fool!

All platoons, begin orchestration chamber entry procedures.

Proceed to seal Armor Shells.

All engines online.

Orchestration system circuits connected.

Armor controls online.

1st War Armor Platoon, forward!

Next, 2nd Platoon, forward!

Cannon Support Units, maintain distance from main troop divisions.

3rd War Armor Platoon, deploy to the left and fan out.

7th Squadron, guard the rear!

I didn't see any signs of a Giant War Armor...

That must mean Lord Shingen isn't here.

But from the looks of it, the war's definitely on, right?

Oh, man!

Real combat at last!

Nope.

Nobu?

They're just testing the waters.

Monkey!

The animal trail that leads to the fortress lies is ahead on our right, no?

Right!

I'm going on ahead!

Mitsu, follow me. Go slow enough so that Monkey won't keel over.

Let's go, Onikage!

Understood.

I see.

By dropping a small-scale decoy on the Oda,

they seek to test our ability to mount an immediate response.

Hey, Mitsuhide...

What can they learn... by testing the waters?

Our force's training, logistical preparation, and communications methods...

Any of that.

Who knows what a veteran like Lord Shingen

could divine from this exercise?

Huh.

What did you just say, Nobunaga-sama?

I will repeat myself!

Takeda War Armors are headed our way.

There's roughly 20 units in all.

They're backed up by about 600 infantry troops.

This fortress cannot hope to withstand an assault of that magnitude.

Do you expect us to take such foolish talk seriously?

Do you think I'd do all this for a joke?

You must retreat for now,

and form a new line of defense at Ootsu!

What?!

You want me to abandon a fort entrusted to me

by Hayashi-sama himself?

How can you call yourself Oda's heir and yet display such weakness?

Should your father, Nobuhide-sama, hear of this,

he will surely be aggrieved.

The Fool is quite the troublemaker.

This fortress's defenses are impregnable.

Even the might of Takeda

will not be enough to let even a lowly footpad breach our walls.

Get down!

Oh, it's Jeanne!

Demon-possessed Jeanne!

Demon-possessed!

Hey!

Jeanne the demon, demon, demon-possessed!

She's looking at us.

Demon-possessed, huh...

It's not like I want to hear voices...

Who's there?!

Razor-sharp instincts, just as the rumors said.

My expectations have greatly increased, Mademoiselle!

Pleased to meet you, Mademoiselle Jeanne Kaguya d'Arc.

And... who are you?

I am a reputable man.

I may not look it, but I serve King Arthur.

King Arthur?

By way of a greeting....

I choose one, right?

Indeed.