>>jehovachiabiThank you~ (^ ^)
I'm glad you liked it~
>>HashirePomeranianIt's okay, HashirePomeranian-san (gosh, that's a mouthful xDDD)
As long as you enjoy what you are reading, I'm good. (^ ^)
And yes, Rena's back does come into my story quite often.
Can't help it you know, it's so perfect and flawless
and I can just drool over it all day~~~~ xDDD
>>sakura_drop_Sakura-san was up at 2:40am?
What were you doing!?
You should've been sleeping!
But thank you for coming back and comments (^ ^)
And something happening when Rena goes back into her room with Jurina after today...
Hmm....
Maybe (^ ^)
I dunno~
I'll think about it xDDD
But I have something in mind.
I might decide to skip a few more months in the for the next chapter~
>>Minami-chanI'm glad Minami-chan likes it~
(^ ^)
>>karomuwiNo!
Rin-chan don't throw the laptop!
If Rin-chan throws her laptop,
how will I be able to
see talk to Rin-chan again!?
And LOL~
My laptop sometimes does that too,
especially when I'm in the middle of typing my chapters~
But thank kami-sama microsoft word have auto recovery~
I'm glad I made Rin-chan to TRY and write an update~
I have been dying to read on~~~
Update, Rin-chan!
Update!
Or I will stop
updating talking to Rin-chan!
(
)
>>JuribaitHehehe...
It might not JUST be Jurina wanting to touch Rena-san's back~
I want to as wellOthers might want to as wel (^ ^)
Hehehe (^m^)
>>sara-chanHahahaha~
Scary Jurina makes an appearance~
But trust me, if sara-chan thinks THAT is scary,
hehehehehe~
I think you will have something to look forward to later in the story~
>>PandahWaaa~ I'm glad I helped then~
Happy Pandah-san is so kawaii *pinches cheeks*
I'm glad Pandah-san likes the update~
But really, no need to salute xDDDD
>>EveryoneNext update~~~
TPB!!!!
I'm sorry, this update is kind of long, and all over the place.
You'll know what I mean when you read it.
It might have been better if I split this into two chapters but...
I planned previously to have all these stuff written into one normal-length chapter.
It just... kind of.... didn't work out.
Anyway, just to make it clear, the stars "***" in the middle of my story,
usually means the change of location/character OR a move forward in time, or both.
So like, it might mean that it switches from one side to the other while having like fast-forwarded three months.
Know what I mean?
Anyway, hope I don't confuse you guys~
Enjoy~
_________________
Jurina picked up the bag of silvers on the tray in front of her and strapped it onto her belt, not even bothering to check the amount. The two girls were just about to turn around and leave when the emperor suddenly called out to them, “Wait.” Curious and surprised, the two girls stopped and turned around. “I,” Togasaki tapped the scroll placed in front of him, “have another one here. Take it.”
Airi frowned, “But we already finished our quota for this month! I thought we made it clear that we won’t kill anymore than we have to?!” If they have to take an extra order, that means it will be Airi’s turn to take the kill and to be honest, having just witnessed Jurina killed one of the advisors for one of the enemy’s general, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to have to see blood again yet.
Togasaki shook her head. He knew this response would come. “This- No... I meant, these targets,” Togasaki rolled up the scroll and lifted it up, “deal with these now and you wouldn’t need to take anymore requests for the next two months.” Seeing the sudden attention he got from Jurina and the surprised face on Airi’s face, he grinned, “These two targets are valuable. Take are of these two and the reward for it will be enormous. Depending on how well the job was done, I might even reward you guys with a horse of your own, since I heard you guys have always wanted one.”
Airi’s eyes widened at the prize.
’A horse! It would take so many request to save up enough money to buy a horse!’ But Airi’s mind eventually trailed back to her original reasoning with herself, the reason of wanting to reject this request,
’It would be my turn to take them out... I can’t even get the image of Jurina’s last kill out of my head yet...’ Slowly, Airi turned to Jurina, hoping that the silent girl will make some sort of comments.
Much to Airi’s expected disappointment, Jurina looked up at the emperor, “Who is the target?”
Togasaki’s grin grew and he waved the female captain that have been standing at the side over to him and handed her the scroll to give to Jurina and Airi. “The two daughters of the emperor of Sakae,” Togasaki said as the female captain handed the scrolls to Jurina.
Sakiko’s eyes widened at the said names. The scroll slipped from her shaking hands. Then remembering where she was, Sakiko quickly picked up the scroll again and apologized as she handed the scroll to Jurina before backing away.
Jurina opened the scroll and Airi leaned in closer to see the face of their next target. “The daughter of the emperor Akihabara is fighting against huh... But I thought Emperor Yuasa have three daughters?” Airi asked as she tried to recall the extra pieces of information they pick up when they travel around.
Frowning at the amount of comments Airi was making, Togasaki explained, “The third one is too young to be of any harm. It is the two older one that is the problem. The eldest one is too strong and her thinking is too close to her father. The second oldest one is too smart to be left unattended. According to my informant over on Sakae’s side, I heard that Yuasa sometimes talk over battle plans with his second daughter. Because of that, I need that girl gone as well. Is that explanation good enough for you?” His tone of voice showing clear annoyance.
The tone of his voice did not escape Airi. Knowing it will only make it troublesome if she pursed the matter any further, Airi turned her attention to Jurina who was looking at the targets closely. “Jurina, this is the first time we’ve ever been told to target females. Are you sure you want to do it?” Airi whispered to Jurina as she crossed her fingers in her mind and hopes that Jurina will reject the offer. Airi couldn’t stand killing an innocent boy from before and she was almost sure that she would not be able to even hold her sword against a female. She looked at the target again,
’And girls so young too... The oldest one can’t be any older than either Jurina or me...’Jurina ignored Airi’s obvious statement and rolled up the scroll and held onto it as she nodded at the emperor, “We’ll take this request. But after this request is done, don’t expect us to turn up in here again for the next two months. Stick to your promise.”
Togasaki nodded, satisfied with the answer. If Jurina can get rid of Rena and Akane, there truth be told, this war will be a guarantee win. Yuasa will come begging on his knees in front of him to spare his third and by that time, the only daughter he would have left. He reached forward and grabbed the green potion in front of him and gave it to Jurina, “Something for your mother as usual. Remember, Jurina. As long as you work for me, I will protect your mother and make sure your mother will stay alive.” Jurina nodded and took the potion with a word of thanks.
Sakiko watched in defeated silence as the emperor gave Jurina the all-too-familiar potion again. Just like he has been doing every time for the last few months. As much as she wanted to scream at the girl each time,
”Don’t do it!”, she couldn’t. All she could do was watch.
“Go,” Togasaki waved his arm at the girls, dismissing them. “Matsui,” Togasaki turned to the female captain who seems to have frozen on the spot. “Matsui!” Togasaki’s booming voice echoed around the room, snapping the captain’s focus back onto her master.
“H-Hai?!” Sakiko blinked and bowed at the emperor as she cursed herself for being distracted.
“Take the two girls to the stable and get them a horse each. It’s a long way to Sakae, they’ll need a ride. I want them to get this job over and done with as soon as possible,” Togasaki said.
“As you wish, my lord,” Sakiko bowed again as she backed away to the door. Without realizing, Sakiko’s hands shook against the door frame as she slid the door open and exited the room, closing the door behind her silently.
Togasaki let out a long sigh and a new cold grin appear on his face. “Disappointing, Matsui. It’s too bad isn’t it? That you couldn’t last to the end and watch all your effort pay off,” Togasaki chuckled to himself as he watched the captain disappear.
***
“This is the stable,” Sakiko said to the two girls as she mentioned for the horse keepers to open the gate. “I believe this is the first time you two have been here?” The two girls nodded. “Well then, I’ll go get you guys a horse. Wait here for a sec,” Sakiko said as she walked over to the horse keeper.
Airi watched as the female captain said something to the horse keeper. Under the dim moonlight, Airi could tell that the captain had said something surprising to the horse keeper because she could hear the horse keeper’s gasp all the way from where she was standing, next to Jurina, by the gate. The gasp was cut short when Airi saw Sakiko thrust something into the hands of the horse keeper.
’Is that silver?’ Airi thought to herself as she saw a sudden flash of moonlight reflecting on that something. The next thing Airi saw was the horse keeper nodding and disappeared inside the stable. “Weird,” Airi mumbled to herself as she recalled the obvious bribing action from the captain.
Sakiko returned shortly with two brown, saddled horses in tow. The captain smiled at them and gave the girls a horse each, “These two are the finest horse we have in possession. Very obedient. You really don’t even need to interact with them much and they’ll let you ride on them. Of course, the emperor’s steeds are much better, but obviously, they are not available to use.”
Jurina nodded and pulled herself up onto her horse, shuffling slightly in the saddle to get into a comfortable position. Airi however, looked at the horse slightly. There was something about the horses that didn’t feel right to Airi. Airi moved to the front of the horse and gently stroked the nose of the horse. The horse looked at her and looked away, not even paying attention to Airi’s hand. Worried, Airi turned to Sakiko and asked, “Are you sure this horse is okay? He doesn’t seem very... what’s that word again...” Airi scratched the back of her head as she tried to think of a word to describe the horse.
“Energized?” Sakiko helped her out.
“Yes! Energized! That was the word I was looking for. The horse doesn’t seem very energized,” Airi said, eyeing her own horse.
Sakiko chuckled, “Don’t worry about it. That horse is always like that. Get him on the move and he’ll show your just how energized he is. It’s just that he has been stuck in the stable for a while and he’s getting slightly moody.”
Airi nodded. Although still not convinced by the female captain’s reassuring words, Airi climbed onto her own ride.
“Good luck and hope you guys make it there,” Sakiko bidded the girls farewell as they took off. Once the girls disappear into the distance, the female captain turned around and looked at the horse keeper, “Not a word to anyone.” The horse keeper responded with a nod and held onto the small bag of silver given by the captain tightly against his chest. Satisfied, Sakiko slowly made her way back to her room.
A shadow watched the scene unfold in front of them from just behind the stable. Seeing the departure of the female captain, the shadow pulled back and disappeared back into the darkness around them.
***
“Let’s stop for a rest, Jurina. We’ve been travelling for almost three days non-stop now,” Airi suggested as she massaged her sore back gained from sleeping on the horse.
Jurina shook her head, “It’ll only be a two days trip once we reach the next town to get to Sakae. We can rest when we get there.”
Airi groaned in annoyance as she took out the a rice ball from the food that she had packed with her for this long trip. “Want one?” Airi held out one towards Jurina when their two horses moved to walk side by side. Jurina shook her head. Airi frowned, “Jurina, you haven’t eaten today yet. Eat something.”
“I’m not hungry.”
Airi sighed and pulled back her hand, unwrapping the rice ball and bit into it herself. Though slightly dried, the rice ball tasted like heaven in her even drier mouth. They have not stopped once since they left Togasaki’s stable and their supply were starting to run low. If they don’t stop in the next town they pass by, not only will their supply run out, their horses will probably also get too tired to continue to move on. Being the fastest horses doesn’t mean they can be on the move non-stop.
Jurina took out the map that the emperor gave her on their first job and opened it. Judging from where they were when the sun was up and having travel for so long that the sun was almost down, it was safe to assume they are almost halfway. Once they reach the next village, they would be exactly halfway. Just as Jurina turned around to put the map back into the bag on her saddle, the front leg of her horse suddenly collapsed. Jurina quickly turned back around and tried to pull her leg loose from the saddle but was too slow. As the horse collapsed, it fell forward, bring Jurina down with it.
“Jurina!” Airi yelled as she tried to stop, only to have her own horse do the same. However, since she was already preparing to get off the saddle the moment she saw Jurina fell, Airi quickly jumped off the horse before it could crush her underneath its body, which was exactly what Jurina’s horse did to Jurina. “Jurina,” Airi breathed out as she kneeled down next to Jurina, hearing her ragged breathing.
It was a horrifying sight to see. Or at least, for Airi it was. It was even scarier than seeing Jurina coming home with blood that day she tried to steal from Togasaki a few months ago. There was Jurina, her foot stuck in the saddle, crushed under her horse. Jurina was still alive though, as anyone could tell that Jurina was struggling to breathe in. Pain was written all over the girl’s face, even though she is silent.
“Jurina, are you alright?” Airi asked as she tried to look for a way to somehow free Jurina’s leg from the saddle. It was difficult though, since Airi couldn’t see Jurina’s foot in the first place. Jurina nodded. “Can you move your leg?” Airi pointed to the girl’s left leg, the one that was under the horse.
Jurina tried to pull her leg from the saddle but stopped almost as soon as she moved as the pain was too much for her to bear. And the weight of the horse pushing down against her leg made it ten times worse. The girl bit on her bottom lip and her entire being shook as she tried to hold in the pain. Once the pain has passed, Jurina shook her head slightly.
Airi frowned as she looked around for anything that could help. Then spying a large branch on the side, Airi picked it up. Stabbing the branch between the ground and the horse, using it as a lever, Airi pushed down onto the end of the branch as hard as she could. Jurina hissed in pain when she felt the horse’s weight shifting, which in her case, was sliding across her already painful leg.
“Sorry, Jurina. Please hold on for a while longer, this is going to hurt a bit,” Airi said as she pushed down on the branch again. With each push, the horse moved down slightly. Luckily for both Jurina and Airi, Jurina’s leg was not completely tangled up in the saddle and therefore, only moving the horse was enough to free Jurina’s leg. “Can you move it now?” Airi asked when she moved the horse enough to finally see Jurina’s foot.
Jurina moved her foot slightly and nodded. The pain was still there, the pain on her leg. In the exact same place where the horse had landed on. However, ignoring the pain, Jurina’s leg was at least free and she could move it again. Slowly, Jurina pulled her leg back, droplets forming on her forehead, and she pushed herself back up. She half-hopped, half-limped to the unresponsive horse and untied her bag from the saddle. Putting the map that she still clenched in her hand during the fall inside the bag, Jurina slowly made her way towards the road once again.
Confused and shocked, Airi pulled Jurina back as the girl went past her, “Where do you think you’re going?”
“To the next town,” Jurina replied as she tried to pull Airi’s arm off her.
“Can’t you just rest for a while?” Airi asked, keeping a firm hold on the girl’s arm. “Look at your leg!” Airi yelled at her when the girl ignored her and pointed at her bleeding ankle.
Jurina shrugged and twisted her arm, successfully breaking off Airi’s grip. Without waiting for the girl, Jurina started walking off again, in the same direction they were travelling in before everything happened.
Airi frowned as she watched Jurina limp off. She knew it was hard to change the girl’s mind once she is determined to do something. However, even till now, Airi didn’t understand why Jurina was so eager to get this job done. Travelling non-stop for days, not eating, and now continue to travel even with though she is hurt.
’Was it because Jurina want to get this job done with so she doesn’t have to do anything for the next two months?’ Airi would really rather kill more people than to see Jurina push herself to the limit and hurt herself for such a reason.
Knowing she will have to catch up to Jurina soon if she wants to make sure the girl is fine, Airi quickly packed her own stuff from her saddle. Before leaving, Airi took one last look at her horse. Her horse was still alive, yes. But its redshot eyes and rapid breathing already told Airi, who was no expert when it comes to animals, that this was not a healthy horse. Healthy horses do not look like that, nor do they suddenly collapse, even after intense non-stop travelling like theirs.
’Finest horse? I thought something wasn’t right with that captain...’ Airi thought to herself as she recalled the night when the captain handed them their horses,
’Why do I get such a bad feeling about this job...?’Airi shook her head, shaking the thoughts out of her head. Looking over her shoulder, Airi realized that Jurina, even with her bleeding leg, has already disappeared far off in the distance. “How does she limp so fast?” Airi mumbled to herself as she quickly took her things and chased after Jurina, leaving the horses behind. Upon catching up to Jurina, Airi grabbed one of Jurina’s arm and instead of stopping the girl, she fling her arm over her shoulders and allowed Jurina to lean on her as she walked. Jurina gave a silent sigh of relief as she leaned her weight onto Airi. Suddenly, everything felt like they were way before they started on their first job. Except, Jurina knew better. Nothing could ever be the same as before anymore. But even so, Jurina allowed Airi to support her as they make their way to the next town.
***
Silently sliding the door open, a shadow slipped inside the room that no one dares to enter without permission. As quickly and quietly as they can, the shadow took a green potion from the hidden cabinet that they have seen the emperor open so many times. Hiding it in their sleeves, as smoothly as they got in, the shadow slipped back out of the room and slid the door shut behind them.
***
“How is her leg?” Airi asked the local healer. Their travel was put on hold when Jurina suddenly collapsed on their way to town. Airi picked her up and carried her to town as fast as she could, they managed to make it in just before they close off entry for the night. Almost a week has past now, since Airi had placed Jurina under the healer’s care.
The healer unwrapped the cloth around Jurina’s leg and pointed at the healing wound, “This girl heals fast, if I must say so myself. I have never seen anyone capable of healing from a slightly infected wound so fast. However, although her outside wound is healed, I think she might have broken something inside...”
Airi’s eyes widened, “What do you mean?”
The healer tapped his chin, “You mentioned that a horse fell on her right?” Airi nodded. “Well then, from my prediction, I think the weight of the horse must’ve been too much for her bones when it fell on her and I think the impact might have crushed some bones. Not very serious though, probably just cracked some bones, seeing the girl isn’t in too much pain. I, however, don’t have the resources needed to fix broken bones right now so I’m afraid you will have to get her to the next town.”
The body on the bed shifted. Airi’s mind immediately blocked out everything and focused only on Jurina. Airi grabbed Jurina’s hand and gave it a comforting squeeze, “Jurina, you’re finally awake.”
Jurina groaned as she felt her eyes were being pierced by the sunlight shining through the window. “Wh-“ Jurina coughed when the words choked on her throat, “Where am I?”
The healer handed Airi a cup of water as he checked Jurina’s leg closer. Airi lifted the cup in front of Jurina’s face, about to help the girl drink only to have Jurina stop her hand and take the cup herself. Airi sighed and ignored the cold action from the girl. “We’re in the next town, half way there. You collapsed on the way and I carried you here. This is the local healer’s house. Your leg was slightly infected but it’s all healed now. You might have some crushed bones inside your leg though, but it isn’t a lot, and since the healers here don’t have the resources, we won’t be able to get that fixed now. You will have to deal with the crushed bones for now until we reach the next big town which will have healers who have the resources and by then, we would’ve reached Sakae,” Airi explained fully, knowing the girls have a lot of questions on her mind.
Jurina nodded and poured the rest of the water down her throat before setting the cup aside, “How long was I out?”
“About a week.”
Jurina shook her head and pushed herself off bed, ignoring the comments from the healer, “We have to go. Too much time have been wasted.” Jurina’s legs gave out from underneath her the moment she stood up. If it wasn’t for Airi kneeling next to her and grabbed onto her just in time, Jurina would’ve fell again.
“My child, you haven’t moved for a week,” The healer helped Airi helped Jurina back onto the bed, “Whatever is so important that makes you needing to go off immediately, at least stay for a while longer to get some hot food and drinks to settle in your stomach before you move on. You need to get your body used to moving as well, many of your joints have probably turned stiff from lying still for a week.” The healer stood up from his position and excuses himself from the room, leaving the two girls alone.
Unwillingly, Jurina gave up resisting when a female walked into the room with a tray of steaming hot food. The female placed the tray down and walked out of the room. From where she was sitting down, Jurina smell the food the moment it was carried into the room.
Airi walked over and carried the tray over and placed it in front of Jurina, “Eat up, Jurina. Only then can we continue. I managed to get a horse from the healer in exchange for two of the rings that you kept from our previous jobs. If we get moving tonight, we will probably be able to get to Sakae in a few more days.”
Jurina just nodded as she picked up the bowl, ignoring the heat, and ate as if she had been starved for days. There was nothing on Jurina’s mind but the warmth she felt from the ramen that was now resting in her stomach. Without waiting, Jurina placed the finished bowl aside and picked up the second bowl, eating and drinking every one last drop of the ramen soup as quickly as she did with the first bowl.
“Slow down, Jurina,” Airi smiled at the girl as she wiped the corner of Jurina’s mouth with her sleeves. As if by magic, the Jurina in front of her suddenly turned back into the little kid back home. The girl that sneaked into her bed after having nightmares. The girl that was always out on the street, beating up the boys that comes and pick a fight with them. But before Airi could enjoy the moment, Jurina’s face turned back to the emotionless one again. She placed the tray aside and once again tried to get herself moving again while ignoring that numbing pain in her leg.
Airi sighed.
’The girls would be walking perfectly fine in no time...’ She stood up from the bedside and said as she walked out of the door, leaving Jurina behind to walk, “I’ll go get the horse ready.”
***
Rena stood up from her bed and walked over to her window and looked down at the busy streets. Few minutes later, the princess turned around and walked over to her kimono and straightened the clothing, smoothing any visible folds. Once done, Rena walked over to her mirror and adjusted the position of the mirror so that she could see herself while standing up.
“Rena-chan, you have been walking around your room for almost an hour, can you please just... sit? My head is starting to get dizzy already,” Imade complained as she clamped her hands to the both side of her head, trying to steady her spinning mind.
Rena frowned and sat herself back onto her bed. Unable to keep still, Rena started rolling on her bed.
“Rena-chan, what are you doing?!” Imade asked in surprise as she watched the princess started rolling around on her bed like a child.
“Argh! I can’t stand this anymore, Mai-chan. I see soldiers go off every day, while I,” Rena pointed to herself, “sit in my room. I watch them go off as groups, and I watch them come back individually. Scattered. No formation. No chatters. Can you really expect me to just sit around doing nothing to help while others are out there, in the field, risking their lives for us?”
Imade sighed as she waited for Rena to finish her outburst. This was the princess’s fifth outburst this week. “Rena-chan, we are already doing the best to find a suitable person to protect you so that we can persuade your father to let you go,” Imade repeated this line for the nth time that week. There was nothing else that she could say after all but this. This was the truth. Imade really was working as much as she can to gather people to help them look for suitable people, but as Yuria said, good female fighters are not easy to come by these days.
“I’m going to go practice again, get my clothes,” Rena commanded as she grabbed her bow and arrows. Imade nodded but spoke no further, knowing the princess is in a bad mood. She quickly helped Rena slip on her practice gear and opened the door for Rena as the princess stomped off.
“Ah! Rena!” Two voices called from behind them.
Rena and Imade turned around and saw two other two princesses catching up to them.
Surprised at the sudden appearance of the two girls, Rena asked as she looked at the two girls and the bird, “What are you two doing here? Aren’t you two supposed to be in your room?”
Akane said excitedly as she pointed to her bird, “Papi wanted to come out for some fresh air so Kanakana and me decided to bring Papi out!” Kanako nodded as she played with Akane’s bird.
“Are you sure it wasn’t Churi that wanted to come out and play?” Rena smiled at the two girls, her own troubling thoughts disappearing the moment she saw her sisters again, “And it’s Kanakana and I, not Kanakana and me. How many times have I told you that?”
Akane smiled back, “It was all three of us.”
Kanako nodded again before pointing at Rena’s bow, “Rena going for practice again?”
Rena nodded, “I wanted to come out for some fresh air too.”
“We want to come to!” The two girls grabbed onto Rena’s arm as they jumped up and down, begging for their oldest sister to let them go.
Rena sighed, “You guys will be bored. And you guys will start complaining again half way through.”
Kanako shook her head furiously, “No way! Last time got boring because it was just you. But this time,” the girl bounded up to the girl standing a few steps behind Rena, “we have Mai-chan as well!”
“Are you saying I am boring compared to Mai-chan?” Rena gasped in a joking tone.
“Just a bit,” Akane giggled as she dragged Rena along, “C’mon, take us there! Take us there! We haven’t watched you shoot for so long!”
“Fine, fine. But don’t complain if it gets boring again, okay?” Rena said as she slowly made her way to the practice range.
Akane and Kanako chatted with Imade as they sat behind Rena and watched her as she practiced over and over again. The girls laughed when Papi suddenly jumped onto Imade’s head and stayed there, not wanting to get off. “Papi likes you, Mai-chan,” Akane laughed as she stroked the bird’s feather again.
Trying very hard to keep still as the bird rested on her head, Imade said nervously as she tried to look up to see what the bird was doing to her head, “Y-Yeah... I can see that... Churi, can you please get this little guy off my head?” Kanako giggled as she placed her finger next to the bird’s feet. Almost immediately, the bird fluttered onto Kanako’s finger and left Imade alone to try fix and redo her hair on the spot.
While Rena practiced, the girls stayed like that, chatting and messing around. Before anyone knew it, servants have come to light the candles already, the sun was setting already. “Nee, Rena-chan, let’s go eat, Churi is getting hungry. I have a feeling the girl is going to bite my arm off soon,” Imade called out as Churi grabbed her arm and grinned at her.
Rena swore she could’ve heard a voice somewhere, calling out to her, talking something about dinner. But she wasn’t sure. All that was on her mind, was the war. Rena closed her eyes and imagined herself being on the battlefield and open her eyes again to aim at the target. Smoothly, she released her arrow and the arrow hit the center just like all her other previous shots. Nodding to herself, satisfied with the shot, Rena retrieved her arrows and started to aim all over again.
The two sisters frowned at the lack of reaction from Rena and turned to Imade. Imade smiled at the girls and patted them on their head, “Maa, don’t be like that. Your sister is just in one of her moments again where she blocks out everything in the world and only focuses on her targets.” Imade waved one of the lower servants across. “I’ll get our dinner served in here today, okay?” Imade said to the girls as she walked off with the servants, only to return a few minutes later with food. It wasn’t a lot, but it was more than what Imade was supposed to get for the three princesses.
“Eat up,” Imade laid down the tray on the table next to the other tray that the other servant had put down, “this was all we could get.” The two princesses quickly took their portion of the food and started eating. Imade took a step closer and called out to Rena again, “Rena-chan, we have some food here, do you want to eat something?” The princess shot another arrow, completely unaware of Imade talking to her. “I got a melonpan from the chef just for you,” Imade said again as she held up the bread.
Rena’s bow lowered and she spoke, “Bring it over.”
Imade smiled, knowing that there was no way Rena could resist melonpan since it was the girl’s favorite food. After seeing Rena take a bite into the bread, Imade returned to the two girls and started eating her own food. A smaller portion compared to the princesses, and less tasty too, but Imade was used to that by now.
When the meals were finished, everything returned to normal again. Rena kept on practicing while the girls kept chatting. It seemed to Imade that Kanako still wasn’t troubled by the war yet, that is if, the girl realized there was a war at all. Imade knew Akane knows about what was going on and was actually surprised to see the girl acting as if nothing happened around Kanako.
’Ah, Churi is so much more intelligent and mature than she seems,’ Imade thought to herself with a small smile as she watched the two girls tickle each other.
After a while longer, Imade looked outside the window, it was completely dark outside already, and the street was silent. “Rena-chan, I think it’s time to call it a break. We’ve been here for a long time now, it’s completely dark outside and I think almost the whole city is asleep already,” Imade said as she walked back.
Akane nodded, agreeing with Imade, “Yeah. Neechan, let’s go. Kanakana is getting sleepy, I think. She’s gone all quiet.”
Rena lowered her bow and rolled her stiff shoulder.
’Yeah... My shoulders are starting to get sore too...’ Rena thought to herself as she started to walk to the target to get her arrows.
Imade sighed with relief when she saw Rena finally starting to pack away. If the princess practiced any longer, Imade was sure she would end up massaging Rena’s shoulder the whole day tomorrow. “C’mon, let’s go,” Imade tapped Kanako’s shoulder and took the girl’s hand. Normally, Imade would help Rena pack and tidy up after whatever she does, but when it comes to kyuudou, Imade knows to keep away. Rena hates people touching her bow, even if it’s Imade, the closest friend she have in the entire palace.
The four girls made their way quietly back to their room. Most of the people were already asleep, except for the troops of patrolling guards that had just walked past them and the occasional servants walking around. “Rena, can we come sleep over in your room tonight?” Akane asked.
“Hmm? Why?” Rena asked, surprised. It has been a long time since the girls had slept over in her room.
“Because we want to sleep with Rena-chan today,” Kanako answered.
Rena thought for a while and smiled, “Are you sure it is not because my room is closer?” The two girls grinned at her. “Alright then,” Rena nodded. “But,” she pointed at the bird, “Papi not allowed in.”
Akane stared at her older sister in horror, “Why!?”
“The last time Papi came in, he stole my melonpan,” Rena answered firmly, still able to remember that event clearly. Papi came with Akane to Rena’s room because the girl had a nightmare and couldn’t sleep. When Rena woke up, her hidden melonpan supply was completely cleared out. That was probably the worst morning Rena had ever woken up to.
Akane frowned and sighed in defeat, “I’ll go put Papi back in my room then.” Akane turned around and made her way to her room around the corner. The girls waited patiently as Akane turned the corner and disappeared from their sight. Suddenly, Rena heard a sound that sounded like the drawing of a sword and the next thing she heard, was Akane’s scream and the screeching of Papi.
***
Sakiko looked around the house.
’Good, no one is here. Seems like the guard have gone back,’ the female captain thought to herself as she entered the familiar house. “Mrs Matsui,” Sakiko called out in a whisper. A small groan replied her, coming from within the opened door nearby. Sakiko followed the sound and walked into the room. She gasped at the sight in front of her. There, on the bed, laid Jurina’s mother, looking weaker than the last time Sakiko visited her.
“Only a month, and you’ve already grown paler,” Sakiko whispered as she kneeled down next to Jurina’s mother.
The mother gave a weak smile, “Even after a month, you still risk your life and come here. Why?”
“To look after you,” Sakiko replied as she took out the green potion. “I’m sorry I couldn’t stop the Togasaki giving this to you. If General Matsui saw this, he would’ve been really disappointed in me.”
The mother shook her head, “My husband would be disappointed in you for risking your life for things like this. He would not want you to risk so much to come down here.”
“You need to stay alive for Jurina,” Sakiko said as she pulled the plug of the bottle open and gave the woman the potion. “The girl will break if you are down.”
The woman drank the potion and a small smile formed on her face, “No wonder my husband kept you by his side, you truly are a kind person. Take care, Sakiko. Look after my daughter. And thank you for bringing this. I will stay alive for as long as I can. I guess you will come back in a week again?”
Sakiko nodded, “If Jurina still not back in a week, I will come back. You need to potion to keep you alive. Not taking it continuously will...” the female captain’s voice trailed off, unwilling to continue her sentence, fearing of it becoming reality.
“Sakiko?” The woman called out just as the captain was about to make her way back.
“Yes, m’am?”
“If I leave too early, can you promise to explain everything to my Jurina?”
Sakiko thought for a while then nodded, “I promise.” Quietly, she closed the door behind her and made her way back to Togasaki’s palace. She needs to be back before finds her gone.
***
Sakiko took off her cloak as she entered the palace. Straightening out her clothes, she silently made her way back into her room. Just as she turned the corner, she saw two guards standing in front of her room. Sakiko’s eyes widened at the colour the two guards were wearing. The red armor told her immediately that Togasaki had sent them to her personally.
’What are Togasaki’s personal guard doing outside my room?’Pretending nothing happened, Sakiko walked casually towards her room. One of the guard sees her and tapped the other’s shoulder. “Captain Matsui?” The guard called.
Sakiko slowed down, feeling like something wasn’t right with the way the guards were looking at her, “Yes...?”
“The emperor wants to speak with you,” the other guard spoke.
Before Sakiko could say anything else, she felt someone pull something over her head, blocking her sight and before she could do anything, something knocked her on the back of her head.
___________
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