Chapter Hundred Twenty-Three

The Trial of Redemption

 

 

However much Nekohiko wanted to keep watching Abihiko on his dais, he wasn't allowed to.

"Psssst," Aomi called him, snapping him out of his daze. He threw one glance at her to realize she was pointing for him to go into the ladybug on her wrist. And once he did... "I know you can't talk because silly Eldest Brother took your mouth away, but can you gesticulate?"

...

As a ladybug, he did have feet to gesture with, but he had six of them. Which was confusing. He didn't even know what to do with his bug wings, let alone a third pair of legs. But oh well. Not like he craved to learn.

"We're very worried about Elder Brother," Aomi whispered. "Can you go check on him through any of the body parts of you that he has? And nod if he's all right? Or shake your head if he isn't? Please?"

"..."

Nekohiko stared at her, mute.

What should be the gesture of "I have no idea since your stupid brother has either destroyed or threw away all of my body parts that he had on him???"

Nekohiko was worried, too. What Aomi and Abihiko had talked about was concerning. Kataji hadn't shown up at Red Stone? And had even ordered some Binder such an elaborate trick to pull as sending the Great Aunt and Uncle a phantasm of himself?

Damn it. How much must it have cost to do something like this? Nekohiko didn't even know if regular non-Binding people like Kataji even had access to such high-level spells or means to buy them.

All he could do for Aomi was to lift his front legs in a gesture of futility. A very pathetic shrug.

It didn't satisfy her. She wanted to demand more, but the Trial was in order and someone very important finally arrived.

There was simply no time to think about Kataji. But Nekohiko had a hunch that Kataji was fine. Being able to pull off that Binding trick for the Red Stone residents didn't sound like something a person in danger would do. Kataji might be in pain and misery, but it was self-inflicted. And clearly nourished by him, with or without Nekohiko's or Abihiko's presence in his life.

The only question about him that bothered Nekohiko now was -- where was Kataji now?

Where? And if Nekohiko or Abihiko had no means to reach him, then who did?

"His Majesty King Morokata!" 

The steady rustle of footsteps brought Nekohiko's focus to the center of the room. The Hisome party's arrival, and at their lead --

Morokata.

His visage surprised Nekohiko. It shouldn't have because he had long learned that one cannot assume anything about him. Even the style of his clothes and appearance.

Because, though usually Morokata had dressed in the signature Hisome pastels and flowery hues, today, the slick black robes of his outfit produced a staggering effect.

Nobody ever saw him in such uncharacteristic colors. Especially since these were the traditional colors of House Nagare.

Streamlined, minimalistic, black, and stiff. With raised collars and military-style epaulets on his shoulders. If his face of pure Hisome beauty wasn't such a dead giveaway, one would easily mistake him for a Nagare noble. The stark blackness of his clothes was only broken up by the dark blue, green, and purple roses in his headdress -- as though in a twisted copy of his yesterday's pale flower crown, only now in the Nagare coloring.

It was a bizarre choice, but it somehow fit him, still. Everything would, with that lovely face and disarming smile on his lips.

"You are late today, too?" Abihiko squinted amicably. "Are you trying to make this a habit, Your Majesty?"

Morokata gave solemn bows to every direction of the dais of the Great Houses. "Not at all, Dear Brother-in-Law. I promise, tomorrow, I won't have to come in late."

"Show-off," Aomi mumbled, shaking her head.

Indeed, so many people on the tribunes were whispering shocked questions at each other. Everyone was perplexed by Morokata's Nagare clothing, seeing as the two Great Houses did not ally and were often at war. This very Trial had been summoned by the member of House Hisome, to boot. What would Suminoe think, knowing his own nephew came to the Trial wearing Hisome colors? people gushed.

Even Kasuga and Mikawa exchanged stunned glances, then directed their silent inquiries at Abihiko.

But Abihiko could not have cared less.

"Let us hope you won't need to," he replied to Morokata with a pleased smirk, then nodded him off to the Hisome dais.

With the last of the Great Lords present, the Trial could begin.

Just like yesterday. The long ritual of casting the Law of Transparency with all the Lords having to consent and participate. The diligent checking with the Towa Binders that the public outside the State Hall was receiving the Memory Images as they should...

Nekohiko had no idea how much more wanted to witness, hear, and know what was going on today at the Trial Defense, but he could guess.

So, so many. Even the courtroom here was brimming with far more public than yesterday's Trial. The doors showed clearly the sneaky crowds who must have paid a lot to the guards to be able to come here and peek from the sidelines. Okinaga's face glistened with a faint sheen of sweat, and Mikawa dabbed his forehead with his handkerchief more than once. Kasuga herself constantly flinched, turning her head to every small rustle of clothes in the tribunes behind her as though agitated by the tension in the room to the point of being spooked by everything.

The atmosphere here was heady.

How Abihiko could handle the pressure of so many people following his every move and word today...? Nekohiko had a hard time not wanting to hide his small bug face in his legs and stop seeing what would happen here today.

Though most of it was routine, too.

Hifumi was reading the long list of rules to follow during the Defense act of the Trial -- from the notes the Spiritway side had prepared for him.

As the representative of the Spiritway, Hifumi was the arbiter on the Trial. He would not judge anything aside from whether or not people followed the rules of the court justice. The actual sentence for the Trial would be decided by all the Lords voting. But the Spiritway had to oversee the process itself and monitor the actions.

Suminoe would, in this case, also represent the claimant side. Since Kasuga's crime was that against the people of the Empire, Suminoe would have been the one in charge of the persecution.

But since Suminoe was not present, and Hifumi had to fulfill the role of an indifferent arbiter, the role of the persecutor fell onto... Morokata.

Because why not?

Was Morokata not the one offended most by Kasuga's actions?

"In which way?" Abihiko asked him during Hifumi's reading of the rules for the courtroom. "Are you representing His Holiness Suminoe's interests here today, King Morokata? As his relative, I suppose?"

"No. As the representative of the people, in general," was Morokata's gentle reply. "But since His Holiness isn't present -- I have to fill in his role, too. I feel it is only understandable. The person whose people have suffered most from Queen Kasuga's abuse of power was the Queen of Towas. Seeing as Queen Iokirihime and I are engaged to marry, I also perceive the Towa people as part of my own.

"Likewise, having to represent Your Supreme Divine Majesty's interests on the Throne during your honeymoon," Morokata went on, suave, "I see fit to overview the charges against any Binding power abuses, too. Usually, it should be the Emperor's role, but this time, the Emperor seems to want to be on the side of the defense of power abuse."

Morokata refused to meet Abihiko's eyes, a sweet smile coloring his expression polite.

"What else is there for me to do but to fill the role of the attack?" he said, cheerful. "What I -- and the people at large -- do not understand, Your Supreme Divine Majesty, is why you have chosen to defend Queen Kasuga in the first place. What goals do you pursue in this Trial?"

"The unification of the Empire under one ruler." Abihiko's voice rang so brightly through the hushed room. "The saving of life of an innocent person. And the redemption of the falsely accused."

The Law of Transparency was already in effect, making sure everyone here spoke the truth, and nothing beyond it.

Thus, both Morokata's and Abihiko's replies had to be truthful. And everyone in the audience knew this. Either of the two young men spoke of such admirable and noble goals, the spectators wouldn't be able to help it but feel drawn to them.

Only Nekohiko knew the profundity of these statements.

Morokata had just outright announced he was filling in Suminoe's role, and nobody but Nekohiko and Abihiko knew what he truly meant by this. And Abihiko had told everyone, in the open, how he wanted to clear Nekohiko's name today...

Truth, even when forced upon everyone present, was still malleable enough that a person could shift it. And mold into the most convenient form for oneself.

What Nekohiko feared was that Morokata was much more proficient in doing this than Abihiko.

But the Trial had only just begun.

There was plenty of room for error yet. On both sides.

 

 

---

***

 

 

"What was the witness account of the Hamamatsu-Fuji maneuver from the Towa side, again?" Abihiko demanded.

The process was getting heated and frustrated the longer it went.

The defense of Kasuga's side had begun some time ago, but most of it was Abihiko trying to make a pitch while Morokata issued objections to almost every other word.

All Abihiko was saying was that Kasuga's actions had been caused by the sneak attacks from the Towa side. Towas had caused a lot of damage to civilians in Hamamatsu and Fuji villages and had taken half of the region hostage, forcing Kasuga into the panicked state.

Nekohiko could attest that the fault hadn't been fully Kasuga's. He had been there!

He still remembered vividly the avalanche that the Towas had cast to crush upon the Fuji villages. How much death and destruction would that have brought! No wonder Kasuga had been pressured into a battle frenzy.

Everyone knew how passionate and vulnerable Nagares were to changes in their emotions. Once a Nagare was caught in the turmoil of rage, it was hard to stop them.

And Kasuga had been pushed into it. Calculatingly, as though to a certain plan.

But Morokata almost always had a point to make against that.

"The actions of the Towa army had been within the realm of what martial law allows," Morokata was saying in his usual soft tone. "Queen Kasuga's actions, however, were not."

"Holding civilians hostage and threatening to obliterate several villages full of innocents unless the enemy surrenders is somehow allowed. But attacking an army with overwhelming power is not?" Abihiko took a long breath in, visibly annoyed.

"Power abuse," Morokata scoffed. "A whole army of soldiers is nothing compared to Queen Kasuga's command of Suzumegara. Everyone knows that. The power imbalance was woefully disproportionate--"

"The power balance of civilians against an army was, too, then."

"Objection," Morokata cooed. "An army shares its power among many. Queen Kasuga is just one person. The power is still disproportionate."

For a moment, Abihiko looked as though he wanted to step off the dais and go and choke Morokata with his own hands. He turned to the Spiritway tribune. "Spiritway Priest Hifumi, please maintain the order of the process."

"..." It was as though Hifumi was only now aware something was going on. He stirred, blinking confusedly at the courtroom, then cleared his throat. "There seem to be no problems with the process..."

"The attacking side is interrupting the defense pitch," Okinaga finally growled from his spot. He had long started leaning on his banister heavily, seemingly unable to stand without wanting to pace.

"The defense pitch is not addressing the issue for which the Trial is being held," Morokata called. "The abuse of power and the injustice of one person having so much of it when others aren't able to repel it or defend against it. All the defense is doing is seeking loopholes through which to justify the actions of the few against the thousands where the said thousands have no say in the matter." Charmingly, he beamed. "I merely represent the will of the masses. The non-Binding tensions have risen across the Empire for a while now. Is that not so? Queen Kasuga's Trial seems like such an ample opportunity to address the issue. It sets the precedent for how justice... or injustice... is dealt with. In our blessed Empire."

"Cornering and pushing a person with immense power into using it, then blaming them for doing exactly that -- is one of the vilest injustices, on its own," Abihiko snapped.

Nekohiko almost trembled, so hard Abihiko's words resonated with him.

...

Abihiko was no longer talking about Kasuga, was he?

"Do not speak here about injustice," Abihiko told Morokata grimly.

But Morokata's smile never went away. In fact, his eyes turned to crescents, so amiable, one would think he was a picture of friendliness.

"Injustice against certain individuals is different from injustice against masses. Against the faceless crowd. Against a sea of people. Is it not? So easy, to ignore it when we do not know whom our actions are harming. Queen Kasuga is sweet to defend, but what about hundreds and thousands of others this sweet Queen can obliterate within seconds? Why should I not defend them, in turn? With the same ferocity Your Majesty does to those few worthy of Your Imperial favor, mmm?"

...

The room buzzed in aggravated silence, even if it was merely the silence on the dais. The audience was not at all silent.

With a great sigh, Sakai closed his eyes. "Please maintain the order of the process, Spiritway Priest Hifumi."

Once again, Hifumi jolted as though waking up.

"The defense may continue its pitch," he mumbled, shrugging at Abihiko.

And Abihiko did. Through sheer force of will of keeping his calm when faced with the exasperating monstrosity that was Morokata.

The people on the tribunes chattered agitatedly without even bothering to keep quiet. Abihiko had to make his point through the ever-rising tensions. Because not only people here seemed to bubble with excitement about the mention of such heated topics as the non-Binding revolution. From the outside, the clamor of the crowd listening in on what went in the State Hall was also quite evident.

"Queen Kasuga was cornered to consider an action that might have been construed to be a war crime," Abihiko said, carefully picking each word. "No war crime has been committed. This Trial has no grounds to assume her actions would have amounted to a war crime--"

"This Trial is judging whether or not someone in the emotional state that Queen Kasuga was in should even be allowed to wield the powers of such a tier," Morokata objected again.

"Spiritway Priest Hifumi!" Abihiko roared. "Read aloud the charging claims again."

"We will be here the whole day, but sure," Morokata said with an eye-roll.

...

The case was clearly on Abihiko's side. The original statement for the Trial had indeed been about the specific use of Suzumegara against the Towa army during the Fuji battle. But the wording was so vague that... little by little, Morokata found a way to steer the discussion toward the overpowered status of Kasuga as one of the Great Lords.

"The Great Lords indeed have too much. Five people -- hold the majority of magical powers in the Empire. How is this fair?"

"Including yourself?" Abihiko cocked an eyebrow. "Should one person as powerful as Your Majesty Morokata be allowed to bear the burden of your powers, too? Asking just in case."

Even Nekohiko couldn't handle the endless procedural issues between Abihiko and Morokata. At some point, Morokata changed his tune into a different tactic entirely.

"Spiritway Priest Hifumi," he chimed, raising his hand like a dutiful pupil at class. "Permission to shift the process to discuss the age-appropriate limitations of power-wielding. The Trial is about the possibility of sentencing Queen Kasuga to death for the war crime, but the thing is -- Queen Kasuga is fifteen years old. She is a child. And by the Spiritway laws, what does a death sentence to a fifteen-year-old imply?"

Tastefully, he masked a cough by his fist, glancing at Hifumi amusedly.

Hifumi frowned at the papers before him even though he clearly didn't need to.

"Oh." Hifumi twitched, realizing the obvious question. "Fifteen is a child by the Spiritway law. No harm may come to a Binding child before they mature into adulthood at sixteen."

"Mmmmm, indeed," Morokata said. "A child cannot be punished for a war crime, but may wield a power enough to commit a war crime? Tsk tsk tsk, that doesn't sound right. Does it, Your Supreme Divine Majesty?"

Kasuga's jaws tensed as she watched Morokata from her dais, anguish wrought in her features.

She has no idea, Nekohiko thought. A horrible flash back snapped before his eyes to his first meeting with Morokata, years ago.

She has no idea what Morokata could do to a child.

When Nekohiko and Abihiko had dueled Morokata for Kotone's honor... Morokata had broken both their limbs and almost murdered the two of them.

He had not been stopped by the Spiritway laws protecting the children against harm. He had not been stopped by the fact that he, himself, had already been old enough to be called an adult. While Abihiko and Nekohiko were only twelve. Young kids, fighting a grown-ass man who deemed it appropriate to teach them a cruel lesson in consequences of their choices.

He'd told them, "If you wield power enough to kill a person, should you not be killed in response?"

And he had almost done exactly that.

Only Suminoe had stopped him that time. And had paid for it dearly.

...

The same exact argument Morokata made.

Now in front of a Grand Spiritway Tribunal instead of a small meadow full of schoolchildren at night.

"Is it fair, to give so much status, power, and privilege to a single person who is, herself, a mere child and does not know what she is doing?" Morokata raised his voice. "You are asking me -- is it fair for any of the Great Lords to wield as much power as we do? And I answer that -- no. It is not fair.

"Our blessed Empire is not known for being fair, though. Even the concept of Binding itself is unjust. Only the select few have it while the poor, trampled masses are left beneath, mere victims of the system that despises them."

What... demagogy!

No wonder people talked so much about the non-Binding issues lately. And now wonder how the non-Binding revolution had survived for so long. Aomi was right.

Morokata had to be behind it.

But Nekohiko still could not understand why. What did it give him? Would he not be pushed away from the power if all the Binders were?

This just made no sense whatsoever.

"What a beautiful sentiment," Abihiko replied, calm. "The question of fairness is important for the Land, the Spirits, and the people. But, Your Majesty, this is not the question we are solving here, today. You are shifting the goal of this Trial to something it is not."

"I am only looking out for the pitiful and the oppressed. For the victims," Morokata said through a toothy smile.

"You do not offer any proposals to solve the issue, though," Abihiko said with just as sincere a smile. "You are sowing chaos and discord. Unrest. Disjointedness."

Morokata gasped. "Is the plight of your own people mere unrest and discord to Your Supreme Divine Majesty?!"

"Goddammit," Aomi squeezed out, throwing vengeful looks Morokata's way and hopeful ones -- toward Abihiko.

And yeah. Arghhh.

Nekohiko fully agreed with her.

"Unity is integral to this land's future," Abihiko said. "Anything that splits it apart will lead to the Empire's ruin. And with it -- to the death of our people and our hopes. I advise you and every Great Lord to tread lightly if you want to further pull apart the fragile core of this land.

"The Spirits already fray it at the seams. The borders are boiling in anguish and turmoil. The Savage Spirits attack our lands. The core is corrupted from within. The Empire needs healing and the balance of all the Great Powers. The more any of the Great Lords and the Five Kingdoms push disjointed goals ahead, the more the Empire bleeds, breaking."

"The Empire seemed much better the past month after the Imperial Wedding, no?" Morokata hummed coyly. "Maybe it was merely the fact that a wrong person was on the Emerald Throne, and not at all the lack of unity among the Lords, mmm?"

...

"The wrong person on the throne?" Abihiko cocked his chin. "Me?"

Of course Morokata had omitted the important detail about Nekohiko being on the Throne, once again abusing the Law of Transparency and the ambiguity it allowed.

For everyone in the world, his statement merely meant that he, Morokata, was on the Throne during the honeymoon.

Therefore welcomed by the Spirits as their ruler. Trusting the Law of Transparency, almost nobody would miss the hint he was making.

Morokata measured Abihiko up and down, eyelashes fluttering. "Your Supreme Divine Majesty does not even deign to wear the Emerald Throne's colors today, but instead chooses his own."

Oooooo.

Nekohiko could almost feel the overexcited attention from everyone gathered here and outside. The irony of Morokata wearing the Nagare colors instead of his usual Hisome ones wasn't lost on Nekohiko. But was probably completely disregarded by everyone else.

Abihiko took the jab in stride. He shifted his pose to a languid, easy one. With a magnificent swoosh of his sleeves, he stepped off his dais and gave the tribunes an imposing gaze. The searing red of his robes truly clashed in the center of the room filled with Emerald-hued heraldry and emblems. Like a flame, so ostentatious and playful in the soothing domain of green.

He clasped his hands behind, slowly pacing the length of the room as though prowling in the direction of Morokata on the Hisome tribunes.

Morokata, in turn, only raised his chin, looking him down from the height of the dais. A round paper fan in Morokata's hand gently breathed at his face, making his hair stir with the motion.

"I wanted to segue into my next point from talking about the lack of unity among the Great Lords," Abihiko spoke as though meaning these words solely for Morokata's sake, even though his voice rang loudly in the hushed and expectant room. "How the constant clashes and schemes put the Empire in danger, threatening to collapse it in its entirety. And about how crucial it is, to not let these petty manipulations overtake the Throne and poison the mind of the ruler. The Great Lords all want different things. They all demand them, crushing the lone Emperor in their grip. Then blaming him for being unable to rule when they meddle so much in his business.

"Last time that happened, the Great Lords pushed the Emperor to the brink of madness. Calculatingly. Counting on making him slip and stumble. And once he did -- they blamed him for failing. When, in actuality, they had dug a hole for him to fall into long before he even tripped.

"I wanted to segue into my next point from your claim about a child of fifteen, wielding powers no mortal ever dreamed off. And whether or not an innocent person like that should have even been allowed to wield it. Especially when everyone pushed these powers on him. Forced him to have them, slowly kicking him closer and closer to the abyss. It would have made a perfect opportunity for me to snatch the reins of the discussion and say what I wanted, then.

"But now, Your Majesty Morokata," Abihiko went on, slowly drawing nearer to the Hisome dais. Step by step. Careful, and steady. "Now, you started talking about the Imperial Marriage and how it soothed and healed the many Spirits in the Empire by the presence of a true ruler on the Emerald Throne. And I simply cannot take it anymore.

"You offer me so many beautiful opportunities to speak my mind and make my defense -- an apology -- a redemption claim for someone very dear to me. And while I know you are pushing me into it because you have already hidden some trick in your sleeve and want to abuse what I want to do. While I already expect you to backstab me in the middle of my defense pitch and sow even more discord during it. And while I know this is likely just another ploy on your part, and another scheme you wish me to fall into as you gloat. Because I am not as stupid as you think I am and I know it has been a bit too easy yesterday and today..."

Abihiko stopped at last. Mere inches away from Morokata's dais and the banister that separated the two of them.

With a relieved chuckle, Abihiko shook his head.

"--I still just cannot help myself, Your Majesty. I will fall into your trap you so dutifully put before me. But I will not fall alone," he added, lower. "Make no mistake about that."

Morokata blinked fast, all innocence and charm.

"A trap? What trap are you talking about, Dear Brother-in-Law?"

...

Abihiko stilled.

Nekohiko's heart stilled, too. Before, Morokata had never allowed himself to address Abihiko as "Dear Brother-in-Law" under the effects of the Law of Transparency. Nekohiko had assumed it meant that he was careful enough to avoid saying something so obviously untrue because the truth spells wouldn't let him, anyway.

But now...

He clearly said this to let Abihiko know.

That he, Morokata, was not held back by the Law of Transparency. This was a rumor many people had claimed before, in legends and myths, mainly. That the bloodborne Hisome descendants could trick the Empire's Spirits and do whatever the hell they wanted without the Spirits holding a grudge against them.

During their first duel many years ago, Morokata had almost killed the two children -- Abihiko and Nekohiko. And no Spirit in the world had stopped him, even though normally, they would.

Nekohiko had suspected Morokata knew ways to trick Spirits with the murder of children.

But the Law of Transparency, too?

...

And he'd said this so openly, right to Abihiko's face, to give him a taste of how freely he could bend the truth if he wanted?

Nekohiko's heart fell.

What was Abihiko even counting on, going against a Hisome in court?! Abihiko could not lie under the Law of Transparency! Morokata could.

This would not be a fair fight, just like the duel between them back when Abihiko had been a cute, arrogant twelve-year-old and Morokata had been a fully-fledged adult.

This was so unjust.

Now Nekohiko understood why Abihiko had wanted to take away his ability to speak. Nekohiko wanted to hiss at him, to stop him and pull him back for some other time. This was too suspicious, too easy, too dangerous, dammit!

But Abihiko had muted him. Even though he carried Nekohiko's seashell in his hand now, gentle as though handling a flower, he still didn't give him a chance to speak his mind and hold him back.

As deathly quiet and serene as Abihiko had come over here, he inclined his head, acknowledging Morokata's claim. Then he lifted eyes, too, locking with Morokata's.

"I am not your Brother-in-Law," he said, loudly enough that everyone heard in the echoing room. "And I'm not your 'dear'. When will you learn?"

The spread of whispers along the tribunes was like wildfire, fast and disorderly. People had no idea why the Emperor told his actual Brother-in-Law such a thing.

Weren't House Hisome and the Imperial House related now?

"I would have been King Morokata's Brother-in-law, had I married Lady Sakami at the Imperial Wedding a month ago as it had been planned," Abihiko went on, slowly turning around to face the room. He gave the stunned room a guilty smirk. "Alas. That had not been Bound to be so in the Spiritway."

...

Nekohiko felt like tumbling into a weightless hole.

His insides churned and he felt dizzy. With fright, with doubts, with shame.

Abihiko did it.

He said it!

He began his pitch at defending Nekohiko on this Trial. Not Kasuga -- no longer her, at all! Just as he'd promised and Nekohiko hadn't fully believed he would.

Abihiko was going to make a defense of Nekohiko's case for the Grand Imperial Tribunal and the whole Empire under whose watchful eyes this Trial was taking place.

And the spells of truth had allowed Abihiko to say this. In front of everyone. This was the unapologetic truth, for everybody to know, at last.

No wonder Nekohiko felt nauseous and mortified at the thought. There was no way back from here.

Only forward. Wherever Abihiko would take it.

...

Several councilors in the Imperial dais gawked, stumbling to their feet from the tribune seats. Some others craned their necks, trying to see the others' reactions before they dared to commit to theirs. Aomi clasped a hand over her grinning mouth while Kasuga and Mikawa stared, unblinkingly, at Abihiko, their faces whiter than rice paper. Stupor and disbelief swept through the room, most everyone not even able to digest what they had just heard.

"What--?"

"Huh?"

"What's going on?"

"The hell is happening...?"

The Law of Transparency did not let people keep their mouths shut when their minds raced so fast and so bafflingly. Curses, nervous laughter, gasps of shock, whelps of confusion, and endless questions poured from all sides.

Okinaga's eyes burned on his face. His jawline hardened as he ground his teeth together, watching Abihiko in some sort of a nightmare. Even Sakai's gaze flickered with a semblance of dark glee as he straightened behind his banister -- let alone everyone else around him.

What must have happened outside, in the square before the Quiet Palace and in the Towa Memory exchange buildings across Nara and other big cities... ah, hard to imagine!

Only Iokirihime was as placid as always, and Hifumi -- in his usual atmosphere of stupefaction and vague disinterest.

"Your Supreme Divine Majesty," Hifumi balked, a slight crease on his pristine forehead. "You haven't married Lady Sakami? But... but whom did you marry, then? The whole Empire witnessed your marriage and the coronation... if it is not Lady Sakami who has been crowned the Empress and who has ascended the Emerald Throne a month ago -- as each of the Great Lords and the Head Priest of Izumo had signed the Imperial papers about, then..."

He wasn't alone in his inability to voice out the actual question.

With a lost spread of his arms, Hifumi finally pushed it out, his face slowly assuming a mask of a person appalled by the sheer blasphemy of the event.

"Then WHO?"

Abihiko flashed a sly look over his shoulder at Morokata.

Morokata went on breezing himself idly with his fan, but his expression was also stony. Frozen in a smile, sinister underneath.

Not that anyone expected less of him.

"I married my lover and the true Emperor of this Land and its Spirits," Abihiko said evenly. "The falsely accused, betrayed, and covered with filth and lies, your only real ruler, of five years ago, of now -- and of forever on."

...

...

...

"I married Nekohiko."