by Fuyumi Ono
"Oh, that's too bad. These days, I call myself Risetsu. Of course, His Highness may get it into his head any day to call me something else, so don't consider that name etched in stone. You know?"
And she cast a look up at the person standing next to her. But of course, Youko thought. Keiki just gaped.
"I am the Royal Han Go Ranshou," Hanrin's companion said with a bemused smile.
Youko came back to herself and nodded. She hastily offered him a chair. "I'm sorry. Please, have a seat. I didn't mean to be rude."
"Nothing of the sort," he smiled.
Illustration
Hanrin laughed, her voice like a bell. "Don't sweat it. We set the ground rules for this meeting, so there's no need to fret about protocol. You can leave the apologizing to me." She tilted her head to the side and said, "I'm pleased you didn't take any of this the wrong way, Youko. His Highness truly does want to meet this general from Tai. A formal visit would take too much time to arrange and would inevitably turn the Imperial Court upside down. That's why we adopted this subterfuge."
"That's perfectly fine with me. It was Risai you wished to meet, then?" Youko said, turning her attention to the Royal Han.
He nodded. "According to the rumors coming out of En, this would be the general of the Zui Provincial Guard. Although she is still recuperating, may I assume a meeting would not be out of the question?"
"It shouldn't be a problem. She's not in any condition to travel far. But the worst of her wounds have healed. She is now working to recover the strength in her legs and arm."
"I'd appreciate you not mentioning precisely who wishes to visit her. I do not want to startle her. Simply say that a visitor from Han would like to speak to her."
Youko nodded. "I'll get her."
"Hey, seeing that you're supposed to be arranging this audience as a private individual, it would make more sense if you went to see her. You can show him the way, can't you, Youko?"
"Sure," said Youko, motioning to the Royal Han.
Slouched in the chair, Hanrin took a firm grip of Keiki's robe and cheekily waved goodbye.
Chapter 32
When Youko arrived at Taishi's manor, Keikei was in the courtyard leading Risai around by the hand. With some assistance, the gaunt Risai was now able to move around under her own power. The other day she'd been able to climb on Hien's back, which brought her no small measure of satisfaction.
"Youko!" Keikei smiled, seeing her. "Look. Risai's able to walk now."
"Try not to overdo it."
"I'm okay."
Youko nodded and then explained that Risai had a guest. Risai cast her eyes on the person who'd entered after Youko. His eccentric countenance notwithstanding, Risai had the feeling she had seen him before.
"Keikei, could you leave us alone for a while?"
Keikei agreed without complaint. "I'll go tend to Hien. Yesterday, Risai taught me how to groom him."
"Is that so?" Youko smiled as he ran off. And then turned back to Risai. "He's come from Han. He wishes to speak with you."
Youko put her arm around Risai's shoulders. As they returned to the parlor, Risai became all the more convinced that she'd seen the man somewhere before.
"You seem to be in good spirits," he said, offering Risai a chair.
Risai nodded in gratitude. "I'm sorry, but do I know you?"
"I've come from Han. There is something I would like you to take a look at."
He took a small, cloth package from the breast pocket of his elegantly embroidered, iron-blue linen kimono. Spreading it out on the table revealed the section of a leather sash. The sash was studded with black silver. The engraved image of a galloping horse graced the metal clasp at one end. Except that the belt itself was no longer than the span of two hands. It was severed in the middle, and worse, the torn end was stained dark red.
The sight of it propelled Risai to her feet as well as her feet could. She immediately almost lost her balance and toppled over. "That is--"
"Risai?"
"I had heard you were a general in the Zui Provincial Guard. Do you recognize this article?"
"Yes," Risai replied in a strained voice. "Where did you come across this?"
"In Han. It was found mixed in with a shipment of gemstones from Tai."
"From Tai--"
"What is it?" Youko asked.
"It belonged to His Highness. I'm positive. This is--" Risai's words failed her mid-sentence. The identity of the unnamed visitor came to her. She had seen him at none other than Gyousou's coronation. Risai let go of Youko's hand and sunk to the ground on her knees. "I was told that it was gift presented by Your Highness at the coronation."
The Royal Han nodded. "I did not wish to startle you, but you obviously have figured it out. Get up and sit down. You're going to hurt yourself." He flashed Youko a concerned look. "Han has long enjoyed mutual relations with Tai. Though I did not care for the previous Tai king."
"You didn't care--"
"The man had perfectly awful taste. I simply could not abide someone who took such jolly pleasure in gold and silver-gilded armor." He made no effort to hide the grimace on his face. "Gyousou, though, struck me as a fine man. Unrefined, but not a bore. And Taiki is such a darling. I simply love that steel-blue mane of his."
"You don't say," Youko said, practically goggling at him.
The Royal Han laughed. "And so we established a working relationship. Han has no gemstone fountains or mines. However, I dare say that none of the Twelve Kingdoms can best us when it comes to our craftsmanship with precious metals and jewelry. Tai supplies us with raw materials. We found this article inside a shipment of ore."
He picked up the belt. "As you can see, the engraved strands in the mane of the galloping horse are clearly discernable. I commissioned the most skilled engraver in the Ministry of Winter to make this for the coronation of the Royal Tai. This is definitely one of the items prepared as congratulatory gifts. The workmanship required to produce silver as beautifully burnished as this could be found only in the Han Ministry of Winter. The person who found it in the shipment from Tai surmised its providence and sent it to the Ministry, who forwarded it on to me."
The still kneeling Risai looked up at him. "But where did that shipment come from?"
"Bun Province. Together with ore that arrived from Rin'u. I've heard it was the only mine in Rin'u still in operation at the time."
"Yes," Risai said, nodding. "That would be the case."
The Royal Han turned to Youko. "Tai's best gemstones come from its gemstone fountains. Streams of water course through the mountains. The seed gems grow steeped in these waters. Where the streams emerge from the rock, the gems are deposited in beds of gravel. The stones from those seams are mined for their gem value, but are not sorted when they come out of the ground. The unsorted tailings are shipped off, the mining marks still on them. The precious stones are sorted later, and then cut and polished by artisans. An artisan purchased a lot of stones and found the belt mixed in with the raw ore."
"Have you found a lot of this kind of thing?"
"Not at all. Bun Province is known as a gem-producing area. But due to the lack of other exports the area has been mined out. The rare good stones that emerge were handed over to King Kyou. Han ended up getting the dregs. And even those diminished to a trickle over the years. In particular, for the past few years, even the dregs have dried up. No shipments are arriving at all. This article arrived two years after that suspicious Rescript announcing the death of the Royal Tai. The shipments halted after that. It seems to have fallen into our hands at the last moment."
"It was severed--" Youko observed.
The Royal Han nodded. "The Minister of Winter concluded it was slashed by an edged tool. There are bloodstains on the surface and on the back of the belt. So that would seem to be the case."
"Somebody wounded the Royal Tai--"
"And struck him from behind. Concerned that some sort of calamity must have occurred, we communicated directly with Tai at th
e highest levels, but the Phoenix would not reply. We heard nothing back from the Ministry of State, either. More recently, we were contacted by En and for the first time learned about the particulars of the situation."
The Royal Han wrapped the belt in the cloth. "I present this to you. I was relieved to hear that this cut does not necessarily mean that the Royal Tai has been killed. It came into my possession through a strange series of coincidences. Almost as if the Royal Tai wished evidence of his existence to be known abroad, perhaps?"
"Yes," Risai answered, reverently accepting the cloth package.
"Through this miraculous connection, the Royal Tai and his subjects are still linked together. You must keep the faith."
"Thank you," Risai said, though her words could not be heard through her tears.
Chapter 33
In her bedroom, Risai took a long look at the belt. We are still connected. It was true. Or so she tried to convince herself.
The only working mine near Rin'u about that time was Mt. Kan'you. It was said to be the oldest in Bun Province. From what she could remember, the gemstone fountains had all dried up. The mine only produced small, low-grade stones.
Gyousou had vanished on the outskirts of Rin'u in the heat of combat. And this belt was discovered at Mt. Kan'you. That would suggest that Gyousou's enemies caught up with him at Mt. Kan'you. But what happened after that? Though the details were completely unclear, a small trail of breadcrumbs had been left behind, traces of Gyousou that Risai could pursue if she ever made it back to Tai.
Risai took a deep breath and clenched her fists. The other kingdoms said they would help in the search for Taiki. Even if that did not produce the results they wanted, she had not yet exhausted all her options.
She was trying to convince herself of this when Koshou's big-hearted voice boomed out behind her. "Risai, seen Keikei about?"
Risai glanced over her shoulder. "The Royal Kei was visiting earlier. I sent him out to play. He said he was going down to the stables."
"That's odd. I took a gander around the stables on my way here and didn't see him. He's not one to stay rooted in one place for too long."
Risai smiled. "He's a lively kid."
"Full of vim and vigor, that's for sure."
"A good boy, too."
"Well, you know--" Koshou grinned self-consciously, as if he himself was the one being praised. "He's a hard worker, all right, and not one to get himself into a snit."
"He doesn't have any close relatives?"
"His mom and dad died a while back and he ended up at an orphanage. He had an older sister, but she got killed."
"That's so sad--"
"A sad story, to be sure. But the way he's dealt with it, there's a big man inside that small body."
"He really is a fine young lad. But is it right for Keikei-dono to be working in the stables, Koshou? Doesn't he have school or other tasks to tend to? Besides, though Hien may have a calm disposition, she's still a kijuu. I know we're talking one chance in a thousand, but--"
"Ah, don't worry about it. He begged to do it himself, after all." Koshou added with a grin, "You don't need to call him 'dono,' neither. Just Keikei's fine. Like he said, he's the butler."
"Has he been listed upon the Registry of Wizards?"
"He's too young for that. Youko wants him to make up his own mind when he gets older about what path he wants to follow. It's a bit odd, the way you refer to him. Makes him sound like a little prince or something."
"Do I?" It had never occurred to her. But when she thought about it, that did seem to be the case. "I guess so, now that you mention it."
"You mean you weren't aware of it yourself?"
Risai shook her head. The sound of someone singing somewhere in the manor reached her ears. The clear, bright voice of a vivacious young woman. "I believe that's Shoukei. The royal scribe and the lady-in-waiting come and go around the clock here."
"That's true. Both coming and going, and living here."
Risai blinked. "And which would describe their relationship to you?"
"None of the above," Koshou said, with a wave of his hand. "Let's just say I'm borrowing the place for the time being. No relation whatsoever."
"And no relation to Youko or Keiki as well?" Risai pressed.
Koshou answered with a confused smile. "I know this will sound a bit strange to you. But I started out my career as a ruffian with no connection whatsoever to government ministers and such."
"I believe the Royal Kei referred to you as a rogue knight."
"Nothing so high-falutin' as that. There was this bad apple of an official, see. And we got a bunch of brave and patriotic souls together to give his butt a hard kicking. Under normal circumstances, raising the flag of revolution would have made us all wanted men. But wouldn't you know it, one of those brave souls happened to be Youko."
"The Royal Kei? One of your revolutionary band?"
"That's a state secret," Koshou grinned. "Youko's a taika. She wasn't born here. You know about that?"
"Yes."
"That's why she doesn't know anything about this world. So she left the city and went to study at the feet of Enho, who'd been the headmaster of a famous private school. Quite accidentally she happened to get caught up in our little revolution."
"I see." Though she was unfamiliar with the details, Risai nodded.
Koshou lowered his eyes. "Not much time has passed since the coronation. I'm pretty sure she has what it takes to make a great empress, but a lot of my mates aren't so sure. Kei hasn't had good experiences with empresses. On top of that, she's a taika. She doesn't understand even perfectly obvious stuff. Everybody looks on her with mistrust. For the time being, the government has been reorganized. But there are still plenty of traitors about. Especially those harboring resentments about how they've been treated. Nobody knows what they have in store for Youko."
Risai was a bit taken aback. So that's what always went on in a new Imperial Court. But Youko had struck her as an empress Kei should have welcomed with open arms.
"There are conspirators about intending to attack the Empress and her retinue before everything goes south again. That's why bureaucrats we don't know aren't allowed into the private quarters of the Inner Palace."
Risai perfectly understood where he was coming from. Even when she was housed in the conservatory, she saw very few ministers or officials about. Though the conservatory was inside the Seishin, life there had been awfully quiet. Risai was looked after by the lady-in-waiting, Suzu, and occasionally by the royal scribe, Shoukei. Aside from them, she saw no other lower-ranked officials.
"I thought that was because you were suspicious of me."
"No, that wasn't the case. Few people are allowed in the Imperial living quarters. We don't want the old guard hanging around Youko. Only those we trust completely. Little by little, we bring people on board as we get to know them and what kind of people they are."
Risai was amazed at first, but on second thought found this approach quite understandable. As the Royal Kei had observed, Gyousou had run the provisional court with a firm hand preceding his coronation. To begin with, Gyousou hadn't needed to shake things up that much around the court. As one of the senior statesmen, his popularity was hard-won and deserved. But what had happened in Tai had happened nonetheless.
"So Kei is still in dire straights."
"A little more patience is all we need. I really believe that."
Risai nodded. The Imperial Court in Kei had not returned to a solid footing. Risai had come literally barging in, tempting this young woman--still frantically trying to patch the nascent Imperial Court back together--to sin against Heaven. At this late hour, a recognition of the true gravity of her actions was beginning to seep into her soul. She had committed a terrible indiscretion. The tenaciousness with which she stuck to her objective was nothing she should boast about.
The Royal Kei bore so many burdens. Kei had nothing left over to spare for a kingdom like Tai. And yet, while bearing up the
kingdom with one arm, its young Empress had embraced Risai with the other. She had even promised to do all in her power for Risai, as if she couldn't be expected to do anything less.
I should not hope for anything more than this.
They said they would search for Taiki. And that was enough. Even if Taiki was not found, coming to Kei would not have been in vain.
"That's why," Koshou continued, seemingly a bit abashed at having to admit it, "we keep the people around Youko to a minimum. Besides Suzu, the only other court lady attending to her on a day-to-day basis is Shoukei, who had been appointed royal scribe. The junior retainers are all old friends, or are chosen from among those absolutely trusted by the General of the Palace Guard. That's why we're all cooped up at the Palace. I got a place of my own, but I hardly spend any time there these days."
"And so you're staying here?"
"That's what it boils down to. You know, I've got a kid brother."
"A real brother?"
"Yeah. Right now, he's attending the Provincial Academy in Ei Province. He's living in the dorms."
"He must show a lot of promise."
"Yeah, he does," Koshou said with a bright smile. "I was really glad he got to go, but after he got accepted, to be honest, things got a bit lonely. He's the only family I've got. Suzu's a good friend, but she deserves better than hanging around a bunch of ornery guys. So Youko asked me to look after Enho and Keikei."
"Ah, that would make this the Taishi's place."
"That would. I mean, me looking after Enho hardly means moving the Taishi into the Daiboku's flat. Anyway, Enho is practically glued to Youko's side from morning till night. She's a bit iffy when it comes to the workings of government and still has a lot of studying to do. So Enho lent me these rooms and pretty much gives me free rein to look after whatever needs looking after."
Koshou laughed bashfully. "I grew up a poor innkeeper's kid. So a guy like me isn't going to get far either if he can't ask people what's good manners and what isn't. I even got to make Keikei mind his p's and q's. The kid's always had a good head on his shoulders. So I jumped at the chance to take care of Enho. Except without a woman's touch, things of late were grinding to a halt. Finally, Suzu and Shoukei pitched in. What you see here is mostly thanks to them."