The sun started to rise behind the farmer, framing him in the morning rays. He had not even realized the entire night had passed while they fought.
"What do I care?" Kaito snarled. "She's just one priestess."
The farmer leaned on his rake and with his free hand waggled his finger at Kaito. "Now, now, there's no need to lie to me. I know all about her because I sent her to free you. In fact, you should be thanking me for setting you free."
"You're right, I'll thank you by ripping off your head."
He ran up the hill, but ever since the farmer mentioned it, he noticed how much weaker he felt, as if he couldn't reach the speeds he could normally. The farmer stood smirking as Kaito reached out to grab him. But as he was about to place his hands around his neck, a rip in the air behind him opened up, glimmering with a white border and on the other side a starry sky. The farmer stepped backwards into the rent in the air and gave a backwards wave to Kaito as he went through the portal.
His voice echoed after him. "We'll meet again soon, Dragon."
Chapter Fifteen
She closed her eyes just for a moment, too tired to stay up waiting for the Dragon to return any longer, when a shout woke her. She jumped out of her bedroll and looked around the empty campsite. When Kaito had disappeared, she thought it was to tease her again. Now he was nowhere in sight and all that remained were the smoldering embers of last night's fire. Where has he gone to now? I thought for sure he'd be back by now. She glanced around. There was no sign of him or who had shouted and woke her.
"You men hurry it up. We haven't got all day." The voice was nearby.
It couldn't be. Following the gruff order, she heard the nicker of horses and the trudging of many feet. Suzume ran towards the voices, thankful for her good luck. Over a hill and down an embankment, a dozen tents were arrayed in formation along three lines. Men hurried back and forth, carrying weapons and tending to horses.
She looked to the banners above the biggest tent at the back of the camp. A crimson banner with a yellow sun rising imposed on it flapped in the wind. She could have wept for joy. This has to be a dream. I am saved!
Suzume entered the camp with her head held high. At last, she was among civilized human beings again. A man walking by with a bundle of gear stopped when he saw her.
"Ho, girl, what do you think you're doing?"
Suzume placed her hands on her hips. "I am the emperor's daughter."
He looked her up and down, taking in her stained clothes and her disheveled hair. She had not even taken the time to braid it. Wisps fell into her face. She ran a hand over them, trying to flatten them down.
"What do you take me for, a fool?" he asked.
Suzume opened her mouth to give an angry retort; then she realized no self-respecting noble lady would present herself to a soldier let alone dressed this way. No wonder he does not believe me.
"I demand you take me to your general."
The man shook his head. "We don't have any scraps to give you, now get."
He walked past her. Suzume scowled at him and stomped further into the camp, intent on finding the general on her own. She did not get three steps before a hand came down hard on her shoulder. And he spun Suzume around.
"I told you to leave," the soldier said.
"I demand you unhand me!"
She tussled with the young man, but he was much stronger than her, and he pushed her to the ground. She caught herself with the palms of her hands, scraping them on the ground, and she glared at him from behind the curtain of her hair.
"You will regret this when I am returned to my place," she spat.
He crossed his arms over his chest and just glowered at her, most likely expecting her to turn around and walk away. Perhaps she should have. But after spending a few nightmare days with the Dragon, she was not about to pass up an opportunity to return home. She was even willing to risk him chasing after her, her father's army could protect her, surely.
"I demand I speak to the general!" she shouted. "I am Suzume, daughter of the emperor and his wife Izuki!"
A few more men passing by stopped to stare.
Suzume shouted louder. "I am a daughter of the divine emperor. You will be tortured for seven days and nights if my father learns that you left me here like this."
A crowd gathered. Suzume looked to each of them. None of them moved to help her but instead whispered to one another behind their hands. At least I've got their attention now.
"What is all this commotion?" said an authoritative voice from behind the crowd.
The men parted and a pair of warriors strolled to the front. They wore painted masks in the shape of Yokai. The larger of the two men had a thick waist straining against his sash and his mask was red and decked with black hair made to look like an overlarge mustache. The second man had a blue mask with large horns on the brow and a pair of sharp teeth on each side. Suzume took a step back. The two of them were rather gruesome looking, and considering the things she had seen as of late, she was more than a little wary.
The first man stopped in front of her. He looked her up and down. Something about him seemed familiar.
"Speak, girl," he said.
I know that voice. Could it be? "General Tsubaki?"
"How dare you address the general directly, peasant!" the man to his left snarled. From the way the men moved out of his way, she had to assume this was his lieutenant.
Suzume glowered at the lieutenant. "I am not a peasant. I am Princess Suzume, eighth daughter to the emperor by his second wife, Izuki."
"The emperor set aside his second wife and their children were declared illegitimate," the lieutenant snapped back. "If you were Suzume daughter of Izuki, you would know that."
I did, but I did not know every foot soldier in the palace did as well...
"Seize this liar. Perhaps if she loses a finger, she will learn some manners," the lieutenant commanded with a sharp wave of his arm towards Suzume. She held her ground, but inside she was devising a plot to get away with her limbs intact. Running away seemed the most viable option and she took a few steps back as men approached her, hands outstretched.
Now would be a good time for Kaito to jump in and save me. She took another step and a spear poked her in the back. While she had been talking, the other soldiers had surrounded her. She yelped and rubbed the spot where the metal had pierced her clothes.
"Hey, watch that thing."
Well, running away is out of the question. She fell to her knees at General Tsubaki's feet. She bowed low to the ground, her face nearly in the dirt. It killed her to grovel, but she knew she could not hope to outrun them, and her powers had disappeared. Perhaps they didn't work on humans.
"Please, you must believe me. I am no liar. I was sent to the mountain temple when my father set aside my mother. A dragon awoke and killed all the priestesses. I barely managed to escape with my life!"
She looked up at General Tsubaki with pleading eyes, or at least she hoped it was him behind that disturbing mask. "Please, Daiki. We were to be wed. I was planning on going to you. I still want to be your bride, if you will have me." She peered up at him through her lashes and hoped the general could see beyond the dirt and grime and remember her.
He held up his hand and the soldiers who had been chattering amongst themselves fell silent. "Bring her back to my tent," he said.
"Sir," the lieutenant interjected.
"That is an order," General Tsubaki growled.
He bowed to the general. Then with a stiff bow he motioned for Suzume to follow him. When Suzume passed by the general, she nodded her head at him with a coy smile. It shocked her how easily she slipped back into her role from the palace, sly trickster and manipulator of men. The lieutenant led her through the aisles of the tents. Cook fires rose into the sky in serpentine shapes. I wonder what the Dragon will do when he realizes I have gone missing. I hope Daiki's army is enough to defeat a dragon.
They reached the largest tent in the encampment. Three times the size o
f the smaller soldier tents, this tent was decorated with all the opulence she expected of a palace dweller. Red and gold silk decorated the door, which the lieutenant pulled back to allow her to enter. The lieutenant held open the flap, and when Suzume passed him by, she felt his glare on the back of her head. Inside, bamboo mats covered the ground. One side held a sleeping area full of plush goose-feather-filled pillows and a proper futon. The cushioned sleeping mat made Suzume's own traveling mat look like a strip of fabric. In the center of the room sat a low table with cushions arranged around it. This is the right way to travel.
"Wait here. The general will come to you when he is ready," the lieutenant said before leaving her alone.
Suzume just scowled after him. Then she stood in the center of the room. Even after bathing in the hot spring, she felt too dirty to touch anything. After a few minutes of indecision, she sat down on the cushion nearest to her. She relished the touch of silk on the pillows. She ran her hands over the expert weave. She admired the soft futon where the general slept, wondering if she had time for a quick nap. At the back of the tent she found a small shrine with incense burning in it.
This is nearly a luxury after all the camping and swamp adventures.
Soldiers shouted and she thought she heard a voice calling her name. She got up to investigate, but as she did, a servant entered through the flap, carrying a tray with a kettle and a cup. She knelt down beside the table and poured the tea into the cup, and the tendrils of steam wafted towards her, bringing with it an earthy aroma. The soldiers will handle it, I'm sure, Suzume thought as she settled in.
Alongside the tea were pastries made of soft dough and filled with a red bean paste that Suzume had adored back at the palace. She grabbed one of the pastries and bit into it. The creamy, sweet taste filled her mouth. Suzume devoured it then licked her fingers clean after she was done.
Hours later, after Suzume poked around the tent, glanced over maps and skimmed a few letters with boring topics about strategy, General Tsubaki returned. The sun had started to set and the orange light pushed through the walls of the tent, casting the tent in a diffused warm light. Suzume sat at the table, reading an old novel that she found among the general's things. It was a scandalous tell-all about court life. She was rather surprised the general would read such a thing.
He stood in the entryway, not speaking for a long time. He had removed his mask and helmet and held them under his arm. She stood up to greet him, but when she did, he turned his head away.
"Thank you for saving me," Suzume said to end the silence.
"This is not right. I should not be able to look upon your regal face," General Tsubaki said.
Suzume wanted to laugh. She could be vain, but she did not think she was much to look at, at the moment. She had managed to braid her hair and the servant had washed her clothes, but a few of the stains would never come out. She wore none of her usual makeup that accentuated her best features, like her lips and eyes.
"I am no longer royalty," she said in a small voice--that was not entirely playacting.
"You are to me. What your father did to you--" He hesitated. "I advised him against it, but he swore I had been beguiled by your charms."
Suzume smiled to herself. That's probably true. "You must believe I never gave up hope that you would come for me and that we could be together."
He did turn around then. His face flushed and his squashed nose was bright red. She looked at his receding hairline and gut that nearly burst out of his clothes. He is not handsome like Kaito, but he could give me a secure home, a place back at court. I should count myself fortunate I got away. The Dragon would kill me if he had half the chance.
"Princess--" He stopped and twisted his hands in front of him, not looking at her but looking at the bamboo mat beneath their feet.
Say something, she wanted to scream. Why will you not look at me, see me? Kaito saw me, all of me, and he never cared. The general cannot even look upon me clothed without breaking into a sweat. Is it because he is a mortal?
Suzume turned her head away. She could not stand to look at the general any longer. She kept comparing him to Kaito's broad shoulders, trim physique, his long hair and dark eyes.
"Princess, if your father knew that I had you here, alone in my tent, he would have my head."
"What does my father care for me? I was sent to the temple and out of his sight forever," Suzume said.
"He is an honorable man. He is the son of the Eight; his judgment is divine."
Suzume resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Her father was no more god than she.
"Then I am to be left here to die?" She looked up at the general. Sweat rolled down to his jowls and pooled in his sideburns.
He fell to his knees beside Suzume. A sticky sweet perfume wafted off him and his foul breath made her stomach churn.
"No, I would not allow it. Never. I will take care of you. I plan to have some men escort you back to my estate."
She searched his face. He's serious. He's willing to risk my father's wrath for me. "What, as your concubine?"
His eyes darted around, looking anywhere but at her. "Well... I..."
Suzume held up her hand. "I may have been dishonored, but I have not sunk that low, even for you, Daiki."
"I meant no offense, that is to say..."
She strode away from him and crossed her arms over her chest. "I think I would like to retire for the night. Do you have a suitable place where I may rest?"
He jumped up and swayed on his feet as he did so. "Please, use my tent. I will use my lieutenant's."
He did not move to leave but instead came closer to Suzume and took her hand in his chubby and sweaty one. A shiver of revulsion swept over her and she had to look away to avoid showing it on her face.
"Princess... no. Suzume, I want you to be my bride. I will send you to my estate, and once I win this battle, I will go to your father and beg for him to allow us to marry."
She looked up into his eyes. He squinted and his gaze, shadowed by his heavy eyelids, made him look like he struggled to see. His proposal was everything she had hoped for, it was what she had been plotting from the start, yet now that it was here... she didn't want it. But this was her last chance to return to the palace.
"Yes, Daiki!" she said with all the fake sweetness she could manage without retching.
Chapter Sixteen
He arrived at the camp to find it empty, the priestess' vacant sleeping roll the only clue that she had been there at all. The fire had died down to embers and a thin trail of smoke curled up from the ashes. He stretched out his spiritual energy, looking for the priestess. He felt her in the distance like a flickering flame. Whoever had taken her, they did not have the power to cloak spiritual energy the way the fake farmer had. He could only assume the stranger's intention had been to distract him while his accomplices took his priestess. Well, whoever had taken his pet would soon meet a gruesome end.
He followed her spiritual energy like a dog following a scent; all around their campsite was evidence of humans. Hoofprints in the ground, and everywhere the stench of sweat and horseflesh. Broken branches and tamped down grass made an obvious enough path to follow. Still weak after the Aryūru, he was forced to walk on foot. As much as he hated to admit it, if he were to face this many humans in this form, he would not be in the best position to defend himself.
He put the thought aside and followed the path they left behind and found their encampment down the road. Going on foot, it took him nearly a half hour and the sun was beginning to rise in earnest. The camp had started to stir, and from his vantage point on a hill overlooking the encampment, he could see the soldiers going about their business, carrying buckets and armor on their way to one task or another. The energy of hundreds of humans muddled his ability to track. He probed them all, searching for Suzume, but found it difficult to untangle the energy from one human to another; they were all so similar. After a few moments of this, he gave up and decided a more direct approach was in order.
"Humans!" he bellowed, and the sound of his voice rolled over the encampment. Horses whinnied and humans shouted, dropping armor, and buckets of water splashed on their toes.
Tent flaps opened as late risers stumbled out half dressed. Kaito waited, hands on hips, surveying the humans. The rising sun fell on his face, illuminating him, giving him an unearthly glow that would be sure to impress the humans.
They gathered along the edge of the camp, speaking amongst themselves. None dared come closer. He kept his expression impassive, it had been too long since he had masses of humans at his command. He thought of his army of Yokai and wondered how hard it would be to recall his subjects to his side. That was a thought for another time.
When a sizable crowd had gathered, he spoke. "You have taken what is mine! Bring me the priestess and I will spare you."
The men looked to one another in confusion. And then at the back of the group, he saw a man pressing forward. Not young or handsome, with a round pink face and hair that was pulled too tight on top of his head. But when he strode through the crowd, the men parted, letting him through. It was their leader, he assumed.
The man stopped at the foot of the hill. He wore a sword at his hip, but made no move to draw it. "We have no priestess," the man shouted up to Kaito.
Kaito blew out an icy breath, which rolled down the hill and created icicles on the men's hair and mustaches. They shivered, pulling their arms around their bodies. He could turn them all into solid ice if the mood struck him. But he might freeze the priestess by accident and that would not be a satisfying way to fulfill his need for revenge.
"You lie to me, human, I know she is among you. Bring her to me and you shall be spared."
The round pink man puffed out his chest. "I will never give her to you."
Kaito shrugged. Humans were too easy to manipulate; he should never have admitted to having her. Not that he wouldn't have razed their camp anyway. "Wrong answer."
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