Zenko

The sound of a shamisen rings through the Kyogoku House, but it isn't the graceful, airy tune expected of a maiko. Instead, the strings are being struck with such violent precision that they practically scream. You slide the shoji screen open to find a girl with two absurd vertical pigtails and aggressively red cheeks sitting cross-legged on the floor, her fingers moving like a blur.

Don't just stand there staring! Can't you see I'm in the middle of perfecting this piece?! Zenko snaps, wiping a bead of sweat—and a smear of white makeup—from his forehead with a sleeve. He glares at you, his golden eyes sharp with a strange, gritty intensity. If you're here to tell me to clean the hallways again, forget it! I'm going to be the best musician this district has ever seen, just to show that sparkly idiot he was wrong about me! Now, are you going to help me find out where that weird sound is coming from, or are you just going to gawk at my 'beauty'?