Tvuj Hosyi waited for the day they would return. And when someone did, it wasn’t anyone she knew. It wasn’t Suruj, Saya, nor Mouka. She and Saya’s Obaa rested along the foggy shores of Wakoku, until the Crown Prince of the eastern kingdom came upon land. The two were whisked away to As-Z̆onghu̐a on a boat.

Tvuj and Saya’s Obaa stayed in Lāoyuàng 'Aimag for a couple of days. The Crown Prince gave them hospitality in a hôtel near the Z̆ongren docks. On a warm night, Tvuj snuck out from the hotel and came down to the pier. Over there, someone sat near the edge, singing an old Azu ballad.

“Kyukko?” Tvuj waited until the ballad ended before calling. The Obaa turned her head.

“Ah, Tvuj. Come take a seat. It’s very beautiful at night,” She gestured slowly. Tvuj sat down next to her. For a moment, she didn’t know what to say. They listened to the gentle waves of the coast. The smell of salt entered their noses.

“Have you gotten accustomed to it here?” Tvuj politely asked, which took all her courage.

“I think As-Z̆onghu̐a is a very nice. I can read the Khanz signage and it reminds me of Azutami. Azutami adopted a lot of things from this nation.”

“I… also believe that it’s beautiful.”

Even though most cities had enough light pollution, this one had very little lights. So they could see the River of Heaven exploding in various colors across the sky. Tvuj reflected upon the events that lead up to the battle with Thiệu. But no matter how many times she tried to think of something different, it would be gone from her mind. She worried about her first friends.

“Kyukko, I have a question.”

“You can call me Obaa-san, little Tvuj.”

“Obaa-san… why did you act so normal in Wakoku?”

There came a pause. Kyukko closed her eyes, before letting out a quiet sigh.

“My full name is Kiyomiya Kyukko. Lojuno is my brother’s child,” She explained, while leaving Tvuj shocked.

“Then there was something with your family?”

“Yes, child. The Kiyomiya bloodline was subjected under a contract, which forced the men for mandatory conscription into the Dineh Kazaàd.”

Tvuj couldn’t wrap her head around it, “L was a part of…”

“He tried to fight it, but soon enough he told me that a man from Al-Wa had taken him in.”

“If you knew that the Dineh Kazaàd was so dangerous…” She spoke up, clenching her fists on the ground, “Why didn’t you stop your granddaughter from joining the tournament?”

“... I had faith in Saya. Faith that she could end the blemish on my family that tortured them generation after generation. Saya’s father was a skilled swordsman who won several competitions himself.”

“So you would throw away your granddaughter for your family?” Tvuj was reminded of how her own father was. Those days locked up in her room.

“Saya is my family,” Kyukko replied, “I wouldn’t have let her join if I was confident enough in her abilities… But now…”

“...” Tvuj knew she was talking about the battle that followed.

“I regret it. And if she was standing in front of me here now… then I would apologize to her with all my heart. I knew the contract could be broken if even a descendant of the lowest consanguinity won the Dineh Kazaàd…” The elderly lady started to wipe her tears, while her words became muffled. Tvuj didn’t know what to do. She’d never had a grandma before, so it was all new to her. Tvuj wanted to take back the things she said.

“Let’s hope they all come back safely,” She reassured Kyukko, giving her some space. “Your granddaughter will make it back here. Alive.”

And she hoped that Suruj and the others would too. Suruj promised to take her to a beach. For a while, Tvuj and Kyukko would be refugees in a foreign land. They waited for what was to come.