"I think I'm on the Phoenix 'meh' list. Didn't get poisoned, maimed, lost or whatever, but did nothing impressive either. Met quite a few interesting people too, and might have left a good impression on some. Too soon to say if that will turn into something in the long term.

All in one, if not for the moments when I feel I'm pulled into the local politics against my will, it's quite a cool experience.

As for your issues with connections... Well, what did you expect exactly as a Spider? You people are rarely welcomed anywhere."

Tsugiharu genuinely laughed at that question.

"Ah, you are a funny one Hida-san. I'm not sure if I'm an adequate tsukkomi to your boke but I'll try." he said, genuinely amused by the question.

"Why should my expectations matter when it comes to what I want? Does your fridge being empty make you any less hungry? "

Akemi shrugged:

"I mean, unless you were roped into this miai a the last minute, you did know you were coming here. You could have, I dunno, prepare something to make you more popular? Like write a medical book and offer it to the Phoenix?

Well, they might have taken that as an insult to their own skills if done wrong of course..."

Tsugiharu shrugged.

"And if I had acted differently in a past life, I might've been born in different colors? I can no more affect those events now then the ones you mentioned, Hida-san. A samurai should not live in regret, we must keep moving forward." he replied.

"Then if forward is the way you want to go... What's your plan to correct that bad start? The miai is far from over and you have a better understanding of the situation now."

With crazy cultists loose on the planet of the cruel and indifferent Phoenix, Hida Life Coach was not what Tsugiharu wanted to hear right about now. It's not that there were no value to her words, indeed they mirrored what he had been saying to Atena quite a bit. But it was fairly clear that all the most likely candidates he'd been hoping to match with favored someone else, and he was just not favored enough by Benten to woo them away.

"When you jump off a bridge, Hida-san," he said, enjoying that thought for a split second before continuing. "Moving forward might just be moving down. Maybe you can aim for some water, maybe your piety will save you, maybe you'll grab on to a passing eagle and fly off in to the sunset."

He paused for a moment.

"But eventually, there comes a time when you must accept that you ARE going to hit the ground. When all options are exhausted, when you've given it your all, when all hope is lost, and there's nothing left but to hit the ground. And all you can do is face it, secure in the moment, without fear, without desire. I have not fallen that far yet, but I can see the ground, and while I still am actively looking for a way out, I can be aware that there may not be one."

Akemi shrugged again, a movement she had definitely mastered by now, both her shoulders, flesh and metal, rolling in perfect harmony.

"Fine. I guess you know your own situation better than me."

She was actually persuaded the Spider was just hiding his plans from her but didn't feel like questioning him any further would actually help unveil them.

She grabbed a copy of the Fire Dragon Book (an old, classic treaty about the use of firearms in warfare, easily available anywhere) from a shelf and sat on a chair.

"Unless you've got something else you want to discuss about, I guess I'll use the opportunity to study. I'm a bit behind schedule in my tactical course."

Tsugiharu bowed at that.

"No, I think I'll step out, get a drink from the vending machine and stretch for a bit. These all-day research marathons need breaks from the madness that is the Phoenix's filing system. May the Wise One's lantern guide you through the darkness." he offered, making his way out.