Guardian of the Spirit

by Nahoko Uehashi

  But when he came of age at fifteen, he was summoned before the Mikado, a privilege that even many nobles rarely enjoyed. “You were born to serve as a Hunter,” the Mikado told him. “There is no greater honor than this. Though most people do not even know they exist, the Hunters are the true heroes of our kingdom, protecting this nation.”

  Mon trembled with pride at these words and entered the Mikado’s service that day. At eighteen, Mon had been ordered to assassinate the Minister of the Left, one of the Mikado’s senior advisors. Creeping into the man’s sleeping quarters, Mon had killed him with a single blow to the head, aiming the knuckle of his middle finger so expertly the Minister’s hair would conceal the bruise; it would seem as if he died naturally, in his sleep. When Mon felt the weight of the old man’s head resting in his palm, he realized what it meant to be a Hunter: Even someone as powerful as the Minister was nothing more than prey. He looked down at the man’s lifeless body and laughed soundlessly.

  Many years later, Mon was startled by the Mikado’s order to kill the Second Prince, but he still carried out his orders faithfully, cracking a rock by the hot spring and shooting the dart that startled the ox. Unbelievably, the prince had survived both attempts. Mon had been furious at his failure — the first in his life. The Master Star Reader’s response, however, had surprised him.

  “You need not feel ashamed,” he said when they met, the morning after the fire at Ninomiya Palace. “I planned both attempts expecting them to fail. By placing the prince’s life in danger, I hoped to learn more about the creature inside him. You did well, Mon. Like your ancestors, yours will be the honor of saving this country, for I am now convinced that the prince has been possessed by the water demon they defeated two centuries ago. As I am sure your father told you, a similar demon also appeared one hundred years ago, but it tore apart the child that carried it before the Hunters could investigate.

  “Fortunately, Prince Chagum has not been as easily overcome as the boy a century ago, thanks to the royal blood flowing in his veins. Perhaps this is the demon’s way of taking revenge on the royal family. If so, then we must eradicate it once and for all. We must reclaim the prince before it kills him and before people begin to suspect. Go now: Kill the bodyguard who travels with him, but bring the prince back to me unharmed. Do you understand?”

  “Yes.”

  “The water demon appears to be controlling him. You must keep that in mind when you are hunting him. And warn the other Hunters too.”

  Mon was acutely aware that this was to be the greatest undertaking of his life, the mission he had been born to accomplish. The seven other Hunters, all trained as he was, were under his command. Two of them had already been sent to assassinate the magic weaver Torogai. He decided to leave two more behind as contacts while he and the remaining three tracked down the prince.

  On the morning that Balsa and Chagum took refuge in Toya’s hut, the four Hunters set out for Ogi no Shimo, disguised as a group of merchants. They split up and gathered information, visiting people who had hired Balsa in the past on the pretext that they too wished to hire a bodyguard. They asked about her history, her character, and people she knew in town. A little past noon, they met up at an inn selected by Mon.

  “This woman Balsa has a very good reputation,” reported Jin. It was clear from the information they had gleaned that Balsa was highly skilled with the short spear and extremely intelligent. Moreover, she was well known in this part of town, particularly among the merchants. While some clients were initially shocked and skeptical at the very idea of a female bodyguard, she had proven her ability and won their trust.

  Mon always used the same approach when stalking someone: In his mind, he became that person, imagining how he or she would think and act. He listened with eyes closed as the Hunters described Balsa, and visualized her in his mind, letting his thoughts follow hers. There are too many people in this town, he thought. But if she tried to leave for another town, she couldn’t possibly cover her tracks, because there are eyes everywhere and the Mikado has surely alerted all the gatekeepers. To escape, she will have to go through the hills, over the Misty Blue Mountains. But she’s not alone. She must take the prince, who’s just a child, and the cold will soon be fierce. Pushing across the mountains could kill him. What will she do? She was given this job with no notice, so she can’t be prepared for such a journey….

  Mon opened his eyes suddenly and said quietly, “The first thing she’ll have to do is buy whatever she needs as quickly as possible. But she’s too well known. She can’t shop for herself. So how will she do it?”

  Jin answered readily. “If she can’t shop for herself, the only choice she has left is to ask someone else to do it for her.”

  Mon nodded. “All right then. We’ll gamble on her doing just that. Let’s look for people who would do Balsa’s shopping for her, especially someone who’s buying things needed for crossing the mountains in winter. But even if we split up, it will take too long…. Any candidates from this morning’s search?”

  After thinking for a moment, Jin spoke up. Although he looked unremarkable, he was the smartest of Mon’s men. “What about one of the merchants who hired her as a bodyguard? She wouldn’t even need to shop in that case. All she’d have to do is take what she wanted out of his warehouse.”

  “Hmm. Did anyone meet a merchant that she could rely on?”

  “You mean someone so grateful that she could trust him to keep his mouth shut?”

  Jin glanced at the other two. Zen narrowed his eyes. It was impossible to tell from his expressionless face what he was thinking. Yun scratched his chin roughly, then looked at Jin and shook his head. “I didn’t meet anyone like that. I talked to Ishiro the pharmacist and Gasaku the weaver, but both were just regular merchants. As far as they were concerned, Balsa did what she was paid to do. I wouldn’t trust them if I was her.”

  “And besides,” Zen added, “to cross the mountains, she’ll need more than food. She’ll need furs, a cooking pot, oiled paper to keep off the rain….”

  Jin nodded. “Yes, I see what you mean. She won’t be able to get everything at one shop — she’ll have to buy things at many different places. But it wouldn’t be difficult to get one of the merchant’s workers or even his children to help.”

  At this Mon shook his head. “No, I don’t think she’s likely to ask a merchant, for two reasons. First, if she uses anyone from a shop, sooner or later someone is going to talk. I suppose if it were a merchant who frequently crossed the mountains, he could tell his workers that he needed to prepare for a journey, but for anyone else, people would wonder why he suddenly needed supplies.”

  “What if she told the servant what was going on too?” Yun asked, but this time Jin and Zen shook their heads as well.

  “If there were no other way, perhaps,” Mon said. “But someone as experienced as Balsa would know only too well that the more people who share a secret, the more likely it is to leak out. Besides, the Second Queen hired her to guard the prince. The queen must have realized that someone is trying to kill him, and she certainly would have told Balsa. That means she knows she is being hunted. If I were her, I wouldn’t rely on a merchant I once worked for, because that would be the first place people would look.” The others nodded in agreement. “All the same, she had no time to plan. What do you think? Did you hear of anyone else she might go to?”

  They thought back carefully, but no one could remember anything helpful.

  Mon made up his mind. “Then we have no choice. We’re racing against time. Let’s spread out through town. We have to visit every shop that might sell things for a mountain crossing and find out if anyone connected to Balsa shopped there today. Go!”

  Jin, Zen, and Yun nodded and swiftly set off in different directions. Mon followed suit. They had until nightfall: By then, Balsa would have everything she needed to escape. True, she was traveling with the prince, but even so, once she made it to the mountains, it would be very hard to find someone so experience
d.

  Time flew by and dusk fell on the town. The sound of shops closing up for the night echoed along the streets, and the light had grown so dim it was hard to see the road underfoot. Just when the Hunters had begun to give up hope of ever succeeding, Jin turned down yet another street and noticed a small shop that he had overlooked before. The owner was carefully packing away dried goods laid out on a low bench under the eaves. Among his wares were dried meat and rice, both of which would keep well on a long journey. There were countless stores selling dried food in town, and Jin entertained not even a flicker of hope, but still he approached the owner.

  “Are you closing up already?” he asked. “Can I buy a little from you first?”

  The owner, his cheeks covered in stubble, looked up at him. “Sure, what do you need?”

  Jin pretended to be relieved. “I’m so glad I got here in time — I heard you have the best dried meat! Do you have any beef? Shoulder cut? I’m going over the mountains, so I want something that keeps well.”

  The owner snorted. “All dried meat keeps well. But if it’s shoulder beef you want, sorry, I’m sold out. It usually doesn’t sell so fast, but today seems to be an exception.”

  A faint hope began to glimmer in Jin’s chest. “Some days are like that, aren’t they? Did you have that many customers buying dried beef today?”

  “Well, no, not so many — just one, actually. But he took everything I had! He’s an errand boy, so he was probably buying for some migrant workers from Kanbal — they’re about to head home for the winter.”

  “An errand boy?” Jin repeated. Someone this morning had mentioned an errand boy. But who was it, and what had he said?

  “That’s really too grand a name for him,” the merchant continued. “He’s just one of the beggars who live under the bridge along the canal. A smart kid, though, and his younger sister’s a real beauty. It’s a shame she’s a beggar too.”

  A light flashed on in Jin’s brain: a man’s face, spittle flying as he talked, babbling as he tried to show off his knowledge. “Balsa’s business really picked up when she rescued some beggar kids,” he had said. “It was amazing! Before you could blink, she flattened these five thugs after a pretty little beggar girl! The kids ran errands in the town, they spread the word, and Balsa’s reputation grew.”

  That’s it! Jin thought. “If you have no dried beef,” he said to the owner, “it can’t be helped. I’ll come back another time.” And then he hurried off, tingling with excitement, their prey in sight at last.

  Balsa slipped a wooden sheath over the tip of her spear, which she had just finished sharpening. It fit perfectly, as if glued to the point. The sheath never fell off by itself, yet it would drop away with a single flick of her wrist to reveal the blade’s wicked edge when needed.

  Chagum hoisted a knapsack filled with dried meat, oiled paper, and various medicines onto his back. Although not heavy, it was the first load he had ever had to carry for himself. Balsa nodded. “That’s your share, Chagum,” she said. “I’m counting on you.” She swiftly finished packing and swung the rest of their gear onto her back, leaving her hands free.

  “The leather scratches,” Chagum complained. Under his clothing, a thick piece of tanned hide covered him from chest to waist, matching the one Balsa wore under her own clothes. She laid a hand on his shoulder.

  “Listen carefully,” she told him. “Think of your body as having a belt, about the width of your neck, which stretches straight down your middle, from the top of your head to your crotch. Most of your vital points lie inside that belt.”

  “What do you mean by ‘vital points’?”

  “Weak points. If someone hits one, they can knock you out or even kill you.” She pointed her finger at his body, moving it slowly downward as she spoke. “The top of your head, between your eyes, your nose, your upper lip, your chin, your Adam’s apple, your heart, the center of your chest, the pit of your stomach. For men, the private parts are also a weak point. There are many others — I’ll teach them to you when I have a chance. Just remember, protecting those points can make a big difference — those plus your back. If you’re attacked from behind, the weapon will go right through because there are no ribs guarding your heart. But your knapsack will protect you from any arrows, and that strip of hide may feel a little uncomfortable, but it’s a lot better than dying, right?”

  Chagum nodded reluctantly.

  “Let’s go, then,” Balsa said. “Toya, Saya, thank you for everything. If luck is with us, we’ll meet again.”

  “Why don’t I go with you to the foot of the mountains?” Toya offered. “I could keep watch and let you know if you’re being followed.” He and Saya knew this might be the last time they would see Balsa, and tears trembled at the corners of their eyes.

  Still, Balsa shook her head emphatically. “Thanks, but it’s enough to know you’d do that for us. If anyone was following me, they’d kill you with one blow before you even noticed. That’s what they’re like. I’m sorry I had to involve you in the first place…. From this point on, you have no obligation to us whatsoever. If they come to find us, tell them everything you know, understand? I’ve been in this business a long time, so even if you tell them, it won’t matter. I’m sure we can get away. Okay?” Toya nodded. “All right, then. It’s time to go. Say good-bye, Chagum.”

  Chagum looked up at them and whispered, “Good-bye.”

  Outside, the half moon cast just enough light to shimmer on the surface of the river. Balsa stood still for a few moments, listening with all her senses. She felt nothing, but this did not mean that they were not being watched. The men loosed by the Mikado would not be so incompetent as to let her detect them, and even if she did, they would not dare to attack her in the middle of the city. Too many people lived here for a fight to go unnoticed, and hemmed in by houses, they would lose the advantage of numbers. No, she decided, if they were going to attack, it would happen when fields alone surrounded them. She took Chagum by the hand and started walking.

  From his hiding place behind a water barrel, Yun spied two shadowy figures climbing up from under the bridge. He remained motionless, watching them move off toward the east. Mon had ordered his men not to attack in the town or near water. When Yun was sure that the two were far enough away, he signaled Jin, who was waiting on the opposite bank. The hunt had begun.

  The four Hunters fanned out to the right and left, forming a large semicircle with their quarry in the middle, and began following them slowly. Each one varied his pace, sometimes slow, sometimes fast, never catching up but never letting them out of sight. This made the Hunters much harder to detect than one man stalking on his own.

  Balsa and Chagum finally reached the edge of town, where nothing but the recently harvested fields stretched out in front of them. The Hunters followed them silently for about a mile. Then Mon stopped at the edge of the road some distance behind them and waited for the other Hunters to catch up. Once they had gathered silently at his side, he whispered, “There is no place left to hide. It is time.”

  From the moment she stepped onto the path, Balsa’s tension intensified. There was no longer anything concealing them from view, nowhere to hide and no one to see. If they were being followed, their pursuers could no longer remain hidden either. This would be the place to attack.

  She pushed Chagum in front of her to protect him from arrows or other flying missiles and removed the sheath from the short spear in her right hand, stowing it inside her jacket. In the palm of her left hand, she held five shuriken at the ready — sharp metal throwing darts with blades that bit through flesh.

  The moon cast a faint white glow over the fields. Only the sound of their feet padding along the beaten dirt path could be heard. Just when she had begun to make out the dark outline of the forest beyond the fields, Balsa felt the hair on the nape of her neck rise. Shoving Chagum roughly out of the way, she threw herself to the ground as a blow dart whistled over her head.

  Quickly she shrugged off her pack so it
would not encumber her; she knew it would take her attacker a moment to reload. Before he could send a second dart, she turned and hurled all five shuriken toward him in one throw. They thudded hollowly against the blowgun as he fended them off.

  Three figures leapt out of the darkness and rushed toward her, tall and spidery. A streak of white light flashed from one of the shadows. Balsa’s spear whined, knocking the shining blade aside with a ringing clash. Without stopping, she swung the spear full circle to repel another sword as it slashed at her from the right. Fighting them off as they attacked from three directions at once, she lunged with her spear, twirled it in a figure eight, or spun it so fast it whistled. Each time she parried a thrust, she angled her spear so that her opponent’s blade slipped off harmlessly.

  But while she wielded the spear with lightning speed, she could not create an opportunity to attack. She could only thrust toward one assailant, sliding her spear across the palm of her hand, and if she tried to do that, the other two would kill her. Any one of these men would have been formidable enough, but three of them was impossible.

  In the end, fatigue was her undoing. She stumbled over Chagum, and in trying not to step on him, she leapt across his body, leaving herself wide open. Somehow she managed to parry Yun’s sword, but Chagum now lay between her and the Hunters, cowering on the path where she had pushed him. One stroke, and he would be finished.

  But in that desperate moment, the Hunters altered their positions ever so slightly to focus their attack solely on Balsa. With a shock, she realized this could only mean one thing, and she gambled everything on the chance she was right.

  Instead of protecting Chagum, she launched herself straight at Zen. He twisted his neck aside, barely in time to avoid being impaled on her spear, and the point sliced his left shoulder open. Balsa charged straight into him, applying her full strength to the wound, and the pain was so excruciating that he faltered for an instant, letting her speed straight past.