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alias_sqbrIf you're new to reading this blog: Samurai Love Ballad Party is a phone-based dating sim set in 16th century Japan. Masterlist and guide.
It has two main characters (MC), the one for these stories is a cook working for one of several fictionalised versions of real historical samurai lords, and romancing either the lord or one of his retainers. She starts out crossdressing as a guy called "Yahiko".
This event was about some of the newer love interests, including Kageie whose route isn't out yet. Afaict these are all sequels to earlier event stories I haven't seen, where MC met and fell in love with them.
Shigizane was very sweet.
I liked Kageie's story to start with but it wasn't what I thought it was going to be.
Meanwhile, to begin with I was put off by how manipulative Nobuyuki is, but by the end had ascended to dark amusement.
Date Shigezane:
Shigezane seems to have become lord of his small domain fairly young, so all his retainers and servants still kind of treat him like a sweet, mischievous little boy who needs to be told what to do. And he is sweet and mischievous, and a bit more impulsive than is wise, but he's also an adult and determined to rule his people well.
When heavy snow causes food shortages, he gets MC to help him figure out who's stealing food (a little girl with a sick mother) and then fixes it by...stealing food from his own castle to feed the villagers. His head retainer punishes him by making him practice flower arranging lol.
He's incredibly sweet with MC, I get the feeling he openly fell in love with her quickly (and had a history of falling in love quickly with other women) and she wasn't quite sure how to handle it at first but is now very happy.
Kakizaki Kageie:
Kageie is one of Kenshin's retainers, and will be getting a route in the next few months.
Summary: MC tries to decide if Kageie has feelings for her.
Me: Oh, good, since I don't know much about Kageie, a getting together story would be more fun than established relationship.
Kageie: Come sit with me by the fire, Yahiko :)
MC: He smiled at me!
Me: WAIT. MC tries to decide if Kageie has feelings for her while Kageie thinks she's a man?! :D :D
Yoshichi, another male retainer: *hugs Kageie from behind, nuzzling his shoulders*
Me: :D :D
So yeah. MC, still in disguise as the male Yahiko, fits in perfectly with the other Soft Boys of the Uesugi as they snuggle by the fire on a cold day.
UNFORTUNATELY, I eventually realised that Kageie knows she's a girl, and MC knows he knows, but the narrative flips back forth between him seeing/treating her like a male friend, and like a female love interest. It similarly flips with how she assumes he feels about her. And not in a way that deliberately explored gender and sexuality, it just felt...confused. This is an incredibly sexist, gender essentialist society, which the event reminds you of from time to time, and then it just forgets again, and the character's behaviours never really made sense to me as a coherent whole.
Kenshin's retainers are all enjoyably fluffy and homoerotic though.
Anyway, all that aside, Kageie is a little tersely tsundere in a fluffy, lazy sort of way, which leaves MC confused as to how he feels. He keeps affectionately touching her, but all the guys in this castle touch each other affectionately! But eventually they work it out and are cutely romantic together.
Sanada Nobuyuki:
This was a trip!
The first two thirds was a cute enough story of Nobuyuki bringing MC along as his cook to a diplomatic meeting and her trying to figure out if he LIKES likes her. He keeps being ambiguously flirtatious in a polite, controlled, genially manipulative way. He'll do stuff like softly say her name and kiss her, then go back to normal so doggedly she's just left going WHAT WAS THAT.
She sees some other leaders bitching about the Sanada and gets very upset on Nobuyuki's behalf, wishing she could set them on fire with her mind.
Nobuyuki: But what they say is true. The Sanada will stop at nothing to survive. As will I. So if you're going to run, your time is running short :)
MC: ...?
"Though I am aware that I have been manipulated to some extent, I also feel as if I can't let anything come between us. The more time Lord Nobuyuki and I have spent together, the more I have come to realise that manipulation is part of who he is."
The Sanada-hating Lord Urabe kidnaps MC after seeing her on a quasi-date with Nobuyuki. He sneers about Nobuyuki dallying with a maid and hiding behind his brother Yukimura's battle prowess to hide his own incompetence.
MC: Lord Nobuyuki never stops thinking about he can help his family. The glory of Lord Yukimura is proof of what Lord Nobuyuki's workings within the clans can accomplish.
Urabe: What would you know? I thought you said you were just a maid.
MC: I know enough. As sure as I stand here in the service of Lord Sanada Nobuyuki, in the pride and glory that makes me a Sanada.
He looks like he's going to hit her and MC hardens her fear into a challenging grin.
Nobuyuki: Do pardon me, but it looks like you are interfering with the duties of one of my clanswomen :) It appears that you wish to inquire into the business of the Sanada. Now that I am here, your business with one of our daughters is finished. It is true that I do not have the same affinity for settling matters on the battlefield as my father and brother. But if a certain lord were to meddle in my affairs he would find I am not as meek of a man as I appear :)
And then his smile becomes so terrifyingly cold that even MC is left deeply unsettled.
Once they've left, he checks that she's ok and her intense desire to confront the men cools. I just realised she's basically f!Yukimura?? That's...a choice, game, but it does work. And/or she's based on the historical Nobuyuki's wife who was an amazing badass.
He gently grabs her wrists and stares at them, then tells her to go to sleep, an edge of authoritarianism under his gentle smile.
That night he confronts the conspirators as they are deciding to kidnap MC again. He smiles and just says "Jinpachi", the name of his ninja.
"Though to some that smile may appear to be quite beautiful, full of wisdom, acceptance and enlightenment...to men like Urabe, it is a mask of terrifying jealousy, the knowing grin of a demon who relishes torment."
The next day...
Conference head: These gifts are truly unique and considerate!
Nobuyuki: It seems it was a good thing I asked my dear wife for her help deciding on them :)
MC: HIS WHAT NOW
Conference head: You are wed?! If she is to marry the heir of the Sanada clan she must be a lady of true peerage.
Nobuyuki just smiles and gets MC to step forward.
Conference head: Oh no I treated her like a servant D:
Nobuyuki: I concealed our engagement since we are not yet formally married and she might be in danger. Isn't that right Lord Urabe? Imagine, though this is ludicrous, if someone KIDNAPPED her :)
Urabe, visibly terrified: Y-yes such ruffians could never be forgiven D:
Nobuyuki's smile is as bright as the summer sun, with the same unspoken threat of suffocating heat. MC doesn't like to think of him as terrifying but it's hard to deny.
Nobuyuki: Father, I have safely gathered the favour of the gathered lords for the Sanada.
Father: Mmn. But why have you returned with so many gifts, did they refuse our favours?
Nobuyuki: No, Father. They're for you, the lords all just like you that much ^_^
Father: Ah, of course.
Yukimura: I would expect nothing less!
Nobuyuki: The same can be said of you, brother, you are well known as a true samurai in every corner of the territories, and I am proud to call you brother.
Yukimura: But it's all thanks to you!
Nobuyuki gives Yukimura a genuinely affectionate smile, quite different to the self satisfied grin he gave their dad. I've always wondered how Nobuyuki feels about Yukimura being raised to see his own death as a good thing, and whether he resents their father for it. Also this is...quite a contrast to how people actually feel about the Sanada...
MC: So I guess we're not...actually engaged, huh. Well, at least I got to serve the Sanada :(
But she decides she really needs to just go Nobuyuki's chambers and ask him wtf is going on. He tilts his head at her curiously like he doesn't know EXACTLY why she's there.
MC: ...why did you kiss me?
Nobuyuki: Because I love you.
MC: !!!! ...you have to be lying.
Nobuyuki: I'm not. The opportunity to tell you never presented itself, I'm sorry.
YOU SNEAKY LYING LITTLE
MC: Oh, this is my fault for assuming he didn't want a relationship
NO
Ok, she does get that he's been fucking with her. "It has always been a game of give and take, capture and escape"
Nobuyuki: I have always wanted us to be lovers.
MC: You are a cruel man.
Nobuyuki: Haha, I am sorry for that. But I did tell you we do what we have to.
And suddenly she realises everything he's done has been to create a situation where they can be together despite their different statuses. "He caught me in his trap. Even when he offered me a way out I refused to take it, as he knew I would. I am aware I have been had, but hold no ill will."
She tells him she loves him and he says "Thanks".
ROMANCE.
It has two main characters (MC), the one for these stories is a cook working for one of several fictionalised versions of real historical samurai lords, and romancing either the lord or one of his retainers. She starts out crossdressing as a guy called "Yahiko".
This event was about some of the newer love interests, including Kageie whose route isn't out yet. Afaict these are all sequels to earlier event stories I haven't seen, where MC met and fell in love with them.
Shigizane was very sweet.
I liked Kageie's story to start with but it wasn't what I thought it was going to be.
Meanwhile, to begin with I was put off by how manipulative Nobuyuki is, but by the end had ascended to dark amusement.
Date Shigezane:
Shigezane seems to have become lord of his small domain fairly young, so all his retainers and servants still kind of treat him like a sweet, mischievous little boy who needs to be told what to do. And he is sweet and mischievous, and a bit more impulsive than is wise, but he's also an adult and determined to rule his people well.
When heavy snow causes food shortages, he gets MC to help him figure out who's stealing food (a little girl with a sick mother) and then fixes it by...stealing food from his own castle to feed the villagers. His head retainer punishes him by making him practice flower arranging lol.
He's incredibly sweet with MC, I get the feeling he openly fell in love with her quickly (and had a history of falling in love quickly with other women) and she wasn't quite sure how to handle it at first but is now very happy.
Kakizaki Kageie:
Kageie is one of Kenshin's retainers, and will be getting a route in the next few months.
Summary: MC tries to decide if Kageie has feelings for her.
Me: Oh, good, since I don't know much about Kageie, a getting together story would be more fun than established relationship.
Kageie: Come sit with me by the fire, Yahiko :)
MC: He smiled at me!
Me: WAIT. MC tries to decide if Kageie has feelings for her while Kageie thinks she's a man?! :D :D
Yoshichi, another male retainer: *hugs Kageie from behind, nuzzling his shoulders*
Me: :D :D
So yeah. MC, still in disguise as the male Yahiko, fits in perfectly with the other Soft Boys of the Uesugi as they snuggle by the fire on a cold day.
UNFORTUNATELY, I eventually realised that Kageie knows she's a girl, and MC knows he knows, but the narrative flips back forth between him seeing/treating her like a male friend, and like a female love interest. It similarly flips with how she assumes he feels about her. And not in a way that deliberately explored gender and sexuality, it just felt...confused. This is an incredibly sexist, gender essentialist society, which the event reminds you of from time to time, and then it just forgets again, and the character's behaviours never really made sense to me as a coherent whole.
Kenshin's retainers are all enjoyably fluffy and homoerotic though.
Anyway, all that aside, Kageie is a little tersely tsundere in a fluffy, lazy sort of way, which leaves MC confused as to how he feels. He keeps affectionately touching her, but all the guys in this castle touch each other affectionately! But eventually they work it out and are cutely romantic together.
Sanada Nobuyuki:
This was a trip!
The first two thirds was a cute enough story of Nobuyuki bringing MC along as his cook to a diplomatic meeting and her trying to figure out if he LIKES likes her. He keeps being ambiguously flirtatious in a polite, controlled, genially manipulative way. He'll do stuff like softly say her name and kiss her, then go back to normal so doggedly she's just left going WHAT WAS THAT.
She sees some other leaders bitching about the Sanada and gets very upset on Nobuyuki's behalf, wishing she could set them on fire with her mind.
Nobuyuki: But what they say is true. The Sanada will stop at nothing to survive. As will I. So if you're going to run, your time is running short :)
MC: ...?
"Though I am aware that I have been manipulated to some extent, I also feel as if I can't let anything come between us. The more time Lord Nobuyuki and I have spent together, the more I have come to realise that manipulation is part of who he is."
The Sanada-hating Lord Urabe kidnaps MC after seeing her on a quasi-date with Nobuyuki. He sneers about Nobuyuki dallying with a maid and hiding behind his brother Yukimura's battle prowess to hide his own incompetence.
MC: Lord Nobuyuki never stops thinking about he can help his family. The glory of Lord Yukimura is proof of what Lord Nobuyuki's workings within the clans can accomplish.
Urabe: What would you know? I thought you said you were just a maid.
MC: I know enough. As sure as I stand here in the service of Lord Sanada Nobuyuki, in the pride and glory that makes me a Sanada.
He looks like he's going to hit her and MC hardens her fear into a challenging grin.
Nobuyuki: Do pardon me, but it looks like you are interfering with the duties of one of my clanswomen :) It appears that you wish to inquire into the business of the Sanada. Now that I am here, your business with one of our daughters is finished. It is true that I do not have the same affinity for settling matters on the battlefield as my father and brother. But if a certain lord were to meddle in my affairs he would find I am not as meek of a man as I appear :)
And then his smile becomes so terrifyingly cold that even MC is left deeply unsettled.
Once they've left, he checks that she's ok and her intense desire to confront the men cools. I just realised she's basically f!Yukimura?? That's...a choice, game, but it does work. And/or she's based on the historical Nobuyuki's wife who was an amazing badass.
He gently grabs her wrists and stares at them, then tells her to go to sleep, an edge of authoritarianism under his gentle smile.
That night he confronts the conspirators as they are deciding to kidnap MC again. He smiles and just says "Jinpachi", the name of his ninja.
"Though to some that smile may appear to be quite beautiful, full of wisdom, acceptance and enlightenment...to men like Urabe, it is a mask of terrifying jealousy, the knowing grin of a demon who relishes torment."
The next day...
Conference head: These gifts are truly unique and considerate!
Nobuyuki: It seems it was a good thing I asked my dear wife for her help deciding on them :)
MC: HIS WHAT NOW
Conference head: You are wed?! If she is to marry the heir of the Sanada clan she must be a lady of true peerage.
Nobuyuki just smiles and gets MC to step forward.
Conference head: Oh no I treated her like a servant D:
Nobuyuki: I concealed our engagement since we are not yet formally married and she might be in danger. Isn't that right Lord Urabe? Imagine, though this is ludicrous, if someone KIDNAPPED her :)
Urabe, visibly terrified: Y-yes such ruffians could never be forgiven D:
Nobuyuki's smile is as bright as the summer sun, with the same unspoken threat of suffocating heat. MC doesn't like to think of him as terrifying but it's hard to deny.
Nobuyuki: Father, I have safely gathered the favour of the gathered lords for the Sanada.
Father: Mmn. But why have you returned with so many gifts, did they refuse our favours?
Nobuyuki: No, Father. They're for you, the lords all just like you that much ^_^
Father: Ah, of course.
Yukimura: I would expect nothing less!
Nobuyuki: The same can be said of you, brother, you are well known as a true samurai in every corner of the territories, and I am proud to call you brother.
Yukimura: But it's all thanks to you!
Nobuyuki gives Yukimura a genuinely affectionate smile, quite different to the self satisfied grin he gave their dad. I've always wondered how Nobuyuki feels about Yukimura being raised to see his own death as a good thing, and whether he resents their father for it. Also this is...quite a contrast to how people actually feel about the Sanada...
MC: So I guess we're not...actually engaged, huh. Well, at least I got to serve the Sanada :(
But she decides she really needs to just go Nobuyuki's chambers and ask him wtf is going on. He tilts his head at her curiously like he doesn't know EXACTLY why she's there.
MC: ...why did you kiss me?
Nobuyuki: Because I love you.
MC: !!!! ...you have to be lying.
Nobuyuki: I'm not. The opportunity to tell you never presented itself, I'm sorry.
YOU SNEAKY LYING LITTLE
MC: Oh, this is my fault for assuming he didn't want a relationship
NO
Ok, she does get that he's been fucking with her. "It has always been a game of give and take, capture and escape"
Nobuyuki: I have always wanted us to be lovers.
MC: You are a cruel man.
Nobuyuki: Haha, I am sorry for that. But I did tell you we do what we have to.
And suddenly she realises everything he's done has been to create a situation where they can be together despite their different statuses. "He caught me in his trap. Even when he offered me a way out I refused to take it, as he knew I would. I am aware I have been had, but hold no ill will."
She tells him she loves him and he says "Thanks".
ROMANCE.
