And yet, all of a sudden, it was like the black haze hanging over her heart had dissipated into thin air. Keigetsu brought both hands to her mouth.
“Your flames are beautiful.”
“I’ve scarcely heard such an overstatement,” she mumbled, looking off to the side.
In the privacy of her mind, Keigetsu thought thus: If she could be likened to a brilliant comet, then the way Kou Reirin lit up that comet made her the very sun. She couldn’t hope to imitate this woman’s gallantry or her ability to melt the heart with a single smile. Though she had gotten quite used to acting the part of “Kou Reirin” by now, she could never fully live up to the name.
While Reirin lifted a hand to her lips, deep in thought, Keigetsu proposed, “Why don’t we start by undoing the swap?”
“Pardon?”
“We’ve figured out what His Majesty is thinking, more or less. But it won’t be easy to come up with a way to get the upper hand over him, like you’re suggesting. Our best option is to take our time finding a solution and do everything we can to avoid further suspicion till then.”
Genyou suspected Keigetsu of practicing Daoist magic. As soon as those suspicions became conviction, he would jump straight to interrogating “Shu Keigetsu,” as proven by the earlier water torture session.
“If the worst-case scenario happens before His Majesty realizes we’ve switched places, the guilt will eat me up inside. I’d rather eliminate as many potential concerns as possible.”
That was the last time she ever wanted to see Kou Reirin nearly die in her place.
“‘The worst-case scenario’…?”
By this point, the crowd’s patronizing smiles were starting to get to Keigetsu, so she rushed to make excuses with a blush on her face. “D-don’t get the wrong idea! I’m not worried about you or anything! I just want my own body back, and a ham actress like you can’t afford to keep this charade going for much longer! That’s all!”
Reirin stared back at her, unblinking, only to abruptly shoot to her feet. “Lady Keigetsu!”
“What?!”
“I have an idea!”
“Huh?!”
Keigetsu gawked at her, taken completely by surprise. Reirin grabbed both of her friend’s hands and shook them back and forth.
Then, with an oddly menacing smile on her face, she elaborated.
“I know how to make His Majesty’s position perfectly clear to him.”
As the two Maidens got engrossed in their conversation around the fire, Tousetsu quietly excused herself. Now was her chance to gather firewood and straw from the palanquin that still lay at the foot of the nearby cliff. It was best to get these chores done while the girls had plenty of other people around to look out for them. Tousetsu certainly wasn’t about to drop her guard around Akim.
“Oh, Tousetsu! Off to stock up on firewood? You’re such a hard worker. While you’re at it, mind checking if there’s any liquor stashed inside the palanquin?”
Alas, her efforts to stealthily slip away from the scene were ruined when Keikou looked up and waved a hand in her direction.
“Wait, hold on. You don’t drink, right? Can’t expect you to pick out the good from the bad, then. I’ll go with you.”
What’s worse, he left the group to tag along after her.
Must he, really? I would much prefer that he stayed behind to guard the Maidens.
As frustrating as Tousetsu found his inability to take a hint, a mere court lady was in no position to defy a military officer. Her face as devoid of expression as ever, she simply replied, “I would be much obliged.”
When Keikou found the palanquin stranded at the foot of the cliff, he blithely stroked his chin. “Boy, this sure fell a long way. I’m amazed that it wasn’t wrecked. My poor sister sure has had a rough time of it, huh? First her court ladies turned on her, then she was attacked by brigands, dropped down a cliff in a palanquin, and put through water torture.”
“Most of that could have been avoided had you stuck around to guard her.”
Tousetsu couldn’t help letting a nasty comment slip, but to no surprise, Keikou brushed it off with a laugh. “Point taken! I was too focused on getting things ready to blow up the ice.”
Of course, she did realize that he hadn’t abandoned his guard duty to go fool around. His efforts were the reason that the detonation of the ice and the raven-based back-and-forth had gone as well as they did.
Keeping her urge to nag in check, Tousetsu opted for a change of subject. “Well, amid the many catastrophes, the one silver lining is that Lady Keigetsu rushed to the scene and cleared up the misunderstanding.”
“Misunderstanding? What, did those two get into another fight?” Given what a doting brother he was, Keikou honed in on the topic immediately.
“Yes,” Tousetsu replied as she gathered up the firewood stacked beside the palanquin and a large helping of straw. “Last night, Lady Reirin came running to Cloud Ladder Gardens all by herself, but Lady Keigetsu told her something along the lines of ‘Everyone else helped me out, so I managed just fine without your assistance.’”
Being a man of the Kou, Keikou gave an exaggerated shudder. “Whew, that was mean!”
“From Lady Keigetsu’s perspective, it was an attempt to relieve Lady Reirin’s burden. Meanwhile, Lady Reirin hid her own reckless behavior from Lady Keigetsu to keep her from worrying.”
“Sounds like something straight out of a love story. Why can’t they just be honest with each other?”
“I couldn’t agree more,” Tousetsu said with a nod, “but the pair had been out of contact for almost a month. I imagine that made it harder to come out and say the things they might have otherwise.”
Tousetsu cast a glance in the direction of the two Maidens. Her mistresses were on the edge of their seats, embroiled in a heated debate before the flickering flames. Having regained her usual cheer, Reirin was coming up with plan after plan to save Keigetsu from persecution. Tousetsu couldn’t help but smile at the sight.
“I feared this might become a repeat of the Rite of Reverence, but despite their conflict, Lady Keigetsu rushed to Lady Reirin’s rescue in tears. I imagine that alleviated Lady Reirin’s doubts about their friendship.” Nothing could be more irrefutable proof of a bond than a dramatic rescue. Taking that for granted, Tousetsu approvingly concluded, “‘Adversity strengthens the foundations,’ as the saying goes.”
“Hrm.” Keikou’s response was underwhelming; it sounded incredulous, somewhere between a grunt of acknowledgment and a groan. “That’s a touching thought and all, but…is that really all it takes to resolve the issue? One side bursts into worried tears, and suddenly everything’s fine?” he asked, puzzled.
“Pardon?” Tousetsu asked, surprised. “Why wouldn’t it be? Lady Keigetsu was frantic to save Lady Reirin. That must have reassured Lady Reirin of just how much they mean to each other.”
“If you say so,” Keikou replied noncommittally, neither arguing nor agreeing with her.
Annoyed that he had put a damper on the heartwarming rescue, Tousetsu aimed a scowl in his direction. “If you have something to say, by all means, come out and say it.”
“Eh, it’s nothing important.” With a chuckle, Keikou plucked most of the firewood and straw from Tousetsu’s arms. “It’s no secret how much every Kou longs to be seen as dependable, that’s all. If I wanted someone to rely on me more, only to end up getting saved by them, I don’t think I’d feel too great about it. But Reirin’s a lot more mature than I am, so who knows.”
Tousetsu grew flustered. “Wait, I can carry the firewood my—”
“Denied! You’ve got to rely on me more, or I’ll get sulky.” He spoke in a deliberately cutesy voice, only to abruptly look her right in the face. “I know how much you care about your mistress, so I apologize if I upset you just now. Forget I said anything.”
“…No need.”
“Also, I hear you were the first to notice the raven I sent out. Thanks for that.” Keikou fished around in the breast of his robes with one hand, then tossed a shell full of something to Tousetsu. “Take this as a token of my appreciation.”
“Why? I haven’t done anything particularly deserving of thanks.”
“When you forced your way into the battle to save Leelee, one of those throwing darts grazed your leg, right?” he casually pointed out. “Go ahead and use that. It’s an ointment that stops bleeding and counteracts poison.”
Tousetsu’s head snapped up. She hadn’t expected anyone to notice. “You could tell from that distance?”
“I didn’t see it happen during the fight, but I see it now. You’re limping a bit,” Keikou answered completely matter-of-factly, then turned back to the palanquin. “Let’s see, is there any booze in here? Hmm, looks like it’s all medicine.”
Tousetsu tightened her grip on the ointment. She really couldn’t stand this man. He was so boorish and clueless, yet somehow she could never get anything past him.
“Thank you very much,” she forced out with a sour expression. When she heard the man chuckle amid his search for alcohol, she had to wonder if he had eyes on the back of his head.
Alas, Tousetsu herself only had them on her face, which she once again turned in the direction of the Maidens sitting around the fire. It was a familiar scene, with Reirin craning forward to pitch some brilliant idea, while Keigetsu recoiled in disbelief and yelled at her. The pair looked like their usual selves: her mistress making every effort for her friend and said friend playing along despite her dismay.
If you ask me, they’re getting along swimmingly.
Tomorrow, they would take on the highest authority in the kingdom. Kou Reirin and Shu Keigetsu’s friendship was strong enough to stand against the emperor.
“Ooh! Is this alcohol?!” Keikou cried, sticking his head into the palanquin. “Agh, no! It was a spittoon! I was tricked!”
“I imagine you might have more luck if you weren’t searching with one hand.”
With a small sigh, Tousetsu took back a small portion of the firewood he had taken off her hands.