“Master,” Eisei addressed him cautiously. “Would you like me to make you some tea?”
“That’d be nice…”
Koshun closed his eyes and let out a sigh.
You’ll come back, won’t you?
That was what he’d wanted to ask her—but he couldn’t bring himself to do it.
After dropping by the Hien Palace, Jusetsu returned to the Yamei Palace and quickly got dressed in her men’s robes. She let down her hair and then tied it all together at the back.
“Jiujiu, take Kogyo and Keishi with you to the Hien Palace,” she said. “I’ve asked Kajo to take care of you while I’m away.”
Jiujiu was folding Jusetsu’s clothes and putting them back into her storage chest. She looked up in surprise. “I’m coming with you to Je Island, niangniang,” she protested.
“You can’t,” Jusetsu replied curtly.
For a second, Jiujiu looked like she was about to cry, but she immediately pursed her lips together to conceal any emotion.
“I’m coming with you,” the lady-in-waiting said again.
“Jiujiu…”
“Give it up. It’s too dangerous,” interrupted an onlooker. It was Tankai. “We won’t be able to take care of you—and neither will niangniang.”
Tankai and Onkei were going along as Jusetsu’s bodyguards, and so were Shinshin and the Owl. The two eunuchs were rushing to get ready.
“I don’t need to be taken care of,” Jiujiu said.
“You say that now, but I know what you’re like.”
“But niangniang…” Jiujiu held her tongue for a moment as she stared intently into Jusetsu’s eyes. “If we say goodbye now, I have a feeling we’ll never be able to see each other again…”
“Hey.” Tankai frowned. “Don’t say things like that just as we’re about to leave. You’ll jinx it.”
“If I say I’m coming, then I’m coming,” Jiujiu stubbornly insisted.
Just as the others wondered what triggered this new swell of obstinacy in her, they noticed that Kogyo had appeared from the kitchen. Jusetsu assumed she was coming to knock some sense into Jiujiu—but instead, the woman grabbed Jusetsu by the hand and squeezed it imploringly. As she was unable to speak, she simply stared fixedly into Jusetsu’s eyes, then glanced back at Jiujiu.
“…Are you telling me to bring her along?” Jusetsu asked.
Kogyo gave her a firm nod. Since Kogyo was usually very firm with Jiujiu, seeing her be so insistent made Jusetsu feel weak.
“But…”
Kogyo shook her head from side to side.
“Take her with you. You’ll need a female helper on your journey, anyway,” said Keishi, who had just poked her head out from the kitchen. An uncompromising old lady, she refused to set foot inside the room, even in this situation.
Then Keishi held out a cloth parcel. Jiujiu took it and brought it over to Jusetsu. The parcel was warm and had a sweet yet subtle aroma coming from it. It smelled like baozi steamed buns. They were probably stuffed with lotus seed paste—Jusetsu’s favorite.
“Reijo was right,” Keishi said.
“Reijo…?” Jusetsu asked. “What did she say?”
“That you’d be the one to break the curse plaguing the Raven Consorts.”
Reijo.
Visions of her came to Jusetsu’s mind.
“She was certain that you’d be the one to rid them of their sorrow.”
“But…I didn’t follow her rules. I didn’t keep to myself,” argued Jusetsu.
“Reijo wasn’t alone either, you know.” A slight smile came to Keishi’s face—something which was uncharacteristic for her. “She had you.” With that, the woman withdrew into the kitchen.
“Keishi…” Jusetsu whispered, looking down at the cloth parcel in her hands. Its warmth had transferred into her as she held it.
When she closed her eyes, Reijo’s stern yet kind gaze was the first thing she saw.
Reijo… I…
When she opened her eyes again, Jusetsu had something to say to Jiujiu.
“If you’re coming along, change into some different robes. That outfit isn’t going to work.”
“I will!” Jiujiu energetically replied.
It was as they were sailing south down the waterway that Jusetsu heard the news.
“An eruption?”
“Yes. From the underwater volcano near Je Island, apparently.” Tankai had gotten wind of this rumor while they were anchored at one of the waterway’s docks. “I don’t know whether it’s still ongoing, but now isn’t the time to be going there.”
Jusetsu brought her hand to her chest. Was this what that sense of foreboding was trying to warn her about?
“Has this news reached Koshun—I mean, the imperial capital?” she asked.
“I’m sure an expedited messenger is on his way. For all we know, he might have already got there.”
“Owl.” Jusetsu called out to the star raven, who was perched on the edge of the boat.
The bird’s head spun around.
However, it wasn’t the Owl who responded, but the Raven.
“It looks like the message has already reached him,” said the voice of a young girl. It sounded like the voice was resonating inside Jusetsu’s chest. Ever since she acquired the ability to hear the Raven speak, the Raven started to speak to her whenever she felt fit—regardless of what time of the day or night it was.
“That’s what the Owl is saying,” the Raven said.
“What is he saying, exactly?”
“…That the message has reached the imperial capital, and things are looking hectic… The emperor is speaking to his vassals.”
“Do you know if Senri and Shiki are safe?” Jusetsu asked.
“According to the Owl…there hasn’t been any news about them.”
Jusetsu felt her stomach tighten.
I hope they weren’t caught up in the eruption.
“Unless somebody can get in touch with Je Island’s…foreign trade director? Then there’s no way of knowing the situation on the island,” the Raven explained to the best of her ability. “The eruption cut Je Island and the mainland off from each other.”
Jusetsu nodded. “Understood. In that case, we’ll send as much information as possible their way. Pass on the message.”
The star raven narrowed its eyes in response.
“The Owl says he understands.”
Jusetsu was the only person who was able to hear the Raven’s voice. To an outsider, it’d seem like she was talking to herself while looking at the star raven—not that there was anyone other than Jusetsu and her companions on the boat anyway. Koshun had sent two military officers to act as additional protection for her, but they were stationed at either end of the boat, keeping an eye on the surrounding area.