"{\3cHFFFFFF\4cH808080\cH23373D\3aHFF\4aHFF\fnPoor Richard\pos(188,180)}Sai" "In Suibi Cavern on Mt." "Ha in the Kingdom of Sai Suzu had angered the Mistress of the Cavern of Suibi, Riyou and was sent to collect an herb called Kankin, which only grows on a remote cliff." "{\3cHFFFFFF\4cH808080\cH23373D\3aHFF\4aHFF\fnPoor Richard\move(194,175,194,175,42,1212)}Hou" "Shoukei was living in Shindou in the Kingdom of Hou." "However, the children around her found out that she was the daughter of the late, despised king, and she was captured by the townspeople." "{\3cHFFFFFF\4cH808080\cH23373D\3aHFF\4aHFF\fnPoor Richard\pos(191,179)}Kei" "As the Queen of the Kingdom of Kei, Youko, was being patronized by her cabinet..." "She found herself the victim of an assassination attempt by her closest aides, the Court Minister and the Sankou." "Let go of me!" "She's a traitor!" "Shoot!" "Episode 26" "{\3cHFFFFFF\4aHFF\fnPoor Richard\b1\bord1.5\pos(191,176)\cH010AF8}A Great Distance in The Wind, The Sky at Dawn, Chapter Four." "Your Majesty..." "A large cache of weapons was found in the house of the Court Minister." "This evening we arrested the Court Minister and others and at the same time, we also took the remaining two of the Sankou the Taifu and the Tyho, into custody for attempting an uprising against the Queen." "But why the Court Minster and the Sankou?" "Isn't the Court Minister the one who's responsible for the security of the palace?" "It is possible that the Lord of Baku Province, Koukan, is pulling the strings." "Last night, the patrol wagon that was escorting Koukan was attacked." "Koukan is now missing." "The Court Minister was planning to lure Your Majesty outside Kinpa Palace and assassinate you." "They planned to take control of the Royal Palace and capture the throne by force." "The Court Minister was entrusted with the entire court..." "Your Majesty, I don't know if I should tell you this, but..." "I have heard that Kaki, the Court Minister, and Koukan went to the same academy." "Is that why the Court Minister was protecting Koukan?" "He resented my decision because of such a petty reason?" "We cannot say if it's true without proof." "Anyway, I would like to ask him about it in person." "H-How did this happen?" "What's going on?" "How could this be?" "Your Majesty!" "The Court Minister is dead!" "What?" "Your Majesty..." "Was the Court Minister..." "It's believed to be a suicide." "It means that he has admitted his guilt." "I wish you would inform me about these things sooner." "Are you saying it's my fault that the Court Minister and the Sankou revolted?" "The Court Minister might have not been happy with my decision since he and Koukan grew up together." "But it's true that many people believed Koukan was after the throne." "Koukan feared that his crime would be revealed if he was brought here." "So he ordered the Court Minister and the Sankou to obtain weapons and they tried to kill me." "With Koukan still at large, there is no other way to think about this." "Your Majesty, Koukan is..." "Are you saying we should've executed Koukan at the very beginning as the Minister of Law and the others suggested?" "Your Majesty..." "But who asked me not to kill him?" "Your Majesty, that is not what I meant." "I don't think you understand, however..." "Of course I don't understand!" "And I suppose you think it's also my fault, don't you?" "Because I'm a female ruler!" "Because I'm a Taika!" "Everything is my fault because I don't know anything!" "Your Majesty, I think no such thing..." "Those who've always had complaints against the Court Minister will probably demand strict punishment for Koukan and the Sankou." "What am I supposed to tell them, then?" "Perhaps I will ban sighing as my first proclamation." "Your Majesty..." "You're dismissed!" "I'd like to rest until the morning conference." "You've got all this scenery, why don't you paint something bigger?" "{\3cHFFFFFF\4cH808080\cH23373D\3aHFF\4aHFF\fnPoor Richard\move(150,129,139,155,27,3071)}Hou" "I'd rather freeze to death than be pitied by you." "Pity you?" "I am just doing my duty to the Lord of Kei." "To Gekkei?" "He's an usurper!" "Shut up!" "What else would you call taking the throne without being chosen by the Heavens?" "He not only killed my father, but also my mother right before my eyes..." "He even slew Hourin and took the throne!" "I see." "So he executed your mother before your eyes..." "Yes, that's because he's a traitor." "Don't you understand?" "I understand very well." "Now I know you are rotten to the bone." "Just because you are shameless, that doesn't mean other people are too." "The Lord of Kei refuses to move to Youshuu Palace, in spite of everyone's request and still remains in Kei Castle." "He has no desire for the throne." "Why didn't the Lord of Kei chop off her head?" "That's because I have done nothing wrong!" "Stop it!" "Please stop it!" "This was your father's favorite killing method." "Stop it!" "I beg you!" "Let me go!" "No!" "My wife was killed the same way just for going out into town with a comb in her hair!" "I'm not happy about killing you in the same way my wife was killed but we couldn't think of a more horrible way to do it." "N-No, Please..." "This can't be happening!" "Please, someone stop this!" "No, I don't want to die!" "Please, stop..." "It's the provincial soldiers..." "The soldiers of the Lord of Kei..." "I understand the grudge you are holding but she has already been judged by the lords of the provinces and officials." "Three years ago..." "Three hundred thousand people were killed in just that year!" "How is it that the daughter of the King is allowed to live?" "You may not be satisfied with the decision, however, this Kingdom will fall into chaos if the people begin taking the law into their own hands." "We must protect the Kingdom, so that we can be proud to pass it to a new ruler." "If you killed someone out of anger..." "What kind of ruler would want to take over such a place?" "The Lord of Kei understands your plight, that is why he executed Chuutatsu himself so that he alone would bear the guilt." "Meanwhile... {\3cHFFFFFF\4cH808080\cH23373D\3aHFF\4aHFF\fnPoor Richard\pos(188,180)}Sai ...Suzu was also standing at death's door in the Kingdom of Sai." "...death's door in the Kingdom of Sai." "O-Okay, I'm going." "Let me go!" "Why?" "Why does your master make me do such things?" "I've had it!" "I can't take it anymore!" "Throw me off and kill me!" "I'm going to get out of here..." "I'll escape and I'll tell Queen Kei about her." "I will ask her to punish your master!" "That's right!" "You're going to take me to Yuunei!" "To the Royal Palace!" "Take me to Choukan Palace!" "Come on!" "Go!" "I said go!" "Please save me!" "I beg you!" "I come from Suibi Cavern on Mt." "Ha." "The Mistress of the Cavern is going to kill me!" "{\3cHFFFFFF\4cH808080\cH23373D\3aHFF\4aHFF\fnPoor Richard\pos(190,176)}Kei" "She always fulfills my expectations just the way I like it!" "I know..." "It's time for the morning conference." "It was not enough to just remove Koukan from his post." "The Chousai suggested Koukan be executed right away." "And he was right." "I would like Your Majesty to take the Chousai's opinion more seriously." "I must disagree." "He may have been angered by the dismissal even if he was innocent." "Are you implying that Her Majesty has made a mistake?" "No, I am saying no such thing!" "Daisouhaku, if Koukan was innocent, why would he run away?" "How do you explain that?" "Well..." "I think..." "I am still the same as before..." "She always fulfills my expectations..." "I'm worried about what others will say..." "I'm afraid to hear the sighs from Keiki, and the ministers so I look for the answer that will please everyone." "I am just flattering everyone." "This is exactly the same as before..." "Very well." "The Sankou are dismissed from their post." "The Taifu and Tyho are banished from the Kingdom." "As soon as Koukan is apprehended, he shall be banished from the Kingdom as well." "Your Majesty, these punishments are too lenient for such treasonous crimes." "Chousai, it is your duty to oversee the six administrations thus, for allowing this conspiracy to occur I hereby demote you to the Taisai, to serve as the Court Minister!" "Minister of Ceremonies, Minister of Law, and Minister of the Interior..." "You all are removed from your ministerial posts, and will receive posts as the Sankou." "Please wait!" "Why must I be punished?" "The remaining ministers may choose the rest of the cabinet." "Keiki will hold the additional post of Chousai!" "Your Majesty!" "This is my decree!" "How could I be so bold?" "Your Majesty!" "What have you done?" "The Chousai faction and the opposition have all been demoted to the Sankou." "They have no political authority." "I wonder what's going to happen." "I am not concerned about that." "You have given the Saiho real power." "It's unheard of." "Keiki..." "I'm thinking about going outside the Royal Palace." "Your Majesty..." "{\3cHFFFFFF\4cH808080\cH23373D\3aHFF\4aHFF\fnPoor Richard\pos(188,180)}Sai" "This is like a dream..." "This room is far more gorgeous than Lady Riyou's room!" "Are you hurt anywhere?" "Um, no..." "Good." "Come with me." "She is awfully young, isn't she?" "Have a seat." "You may also have seat with us, Taiho." "Taiho?" "She's the Kirin?" "T-Then she is Queen Sai?" "Are you the queen of Sai?" "Yes, that is correct." "You may raise your head now." "Everything was just a dream..." "That's right, Father and Mother cannot be dead." "I will never age and become ugly." "Gekkei!" "Get dressed." "You must thank the matron of the Rike." "She ran all the way here to the Provincial Castle in the snow to inform us about you." "Gobo?" "That hypocrite!" "I never thought I would ever see you again." "Satisfied?" "You must be happy to see me live in misery." "You truly disgust me." "You did this to me!" "You made me dress in rags, and live covered with dirt." "Most of the people wear what you just called rags." "You disgust me because you look down upon them." "What about you?" "In this castle, you dress in silk, abuse your official authority and live a life of immorality!" "Are you enjoying pretending to be King?" "If we keep you in Hou, it might upset the citizens." "I think you should leave the Kingdom." "Are you going to exile me?" "You killed the King, ruined the Kingdom and now you're still after me?" "I've never regretted what I have done." "If I did not stop him then, there would not be anyone left in the Kingdom of Hou." "I just could not wait until the Heavens punished him." "In a few years, the next Taiho will begin to look for a new ruler." "I would like to see you take a Shouzan to find out if you're chosen by the Heavens." "The Heavens might strike you with lightning for murder!" "The truth is you just wanted be King!" "You were jealous of the King!" "Everyone was just jealous of me!" "I couldn't stand it." "Her father killed my son." "When I saw her, I couldn't help taking it out on her." "I couldn't forgive her." "I was infuriated." "And she actually revealed who she was." "That she was the daughter of the King..." "I couldn't take it anymore." "She had some responsibility as the daughter of the King but she didn't care about anything except feeling sorry for herself." "I asked the Princess to leave Hou." "Where is she going?" "I cannot tell you, but I'm certain that she will never return to Hou again." "She thinks she's the only one who knows the pain of witnessing one's own parents killed." "While so many people have experienced the same." "She had no idea that she was smiling in the Royal Palace while it was happening." "Knowing all that you are just banishing her?" "You gain nothing from hatred." "It's about time we forget about Chuutatsu, is it not?" "Yes, sir." "You saved the townspeople from committing a terrible crime." "Thank you." "My pleasure." "Oh my precious doll..." "Oh my precious doll..." "The Seichou has arrived from the Kingdom of Kyou." "Queen Kyou has agreed to take the Princess in." "There are many Youma in the ocean between here and Kyou." "I hope she will get there safely." "Lord Gekkei, will you go back to Youshuu Palace?" "Hou needs a king, even if it is just for the time being." "Chuutatsu, now called Retsu-Ou, couldn't forgive officials who accepted or offered bribes." "Both sides were punished with equal severity." "He despised corruption." "And when crime didn't go away, he would make more laws, one after another." "He believed that if he kept trying, one day people would stop committing crimes." "He never let the Princess out of the palace." "Just as the people should be innocent, so should his daughter." "He tried to keep her as pure as he could." "As if he was trying to have his ideal come true..." "Even I used to love that song of hers." "Here they come!" "They're Kochou!" "Make sure to get her to Soufuu Palace!" "But, General!" "Be well." "The Lord of Kei ordered us to escort the Princess safely!" "We will bring shame upon ourselves if we fail!" "You take her at once while we distract them!" "{\3cHFFFFFF\4cH808080\cH23373D\3aHFF\4aHFF\fnPoor Richard\pos(192,174)}Kyou" "The Kingdom of Kyou is across from Hou." "The Queen of Kyou has been on the throne for about ninety years." "But that was all Shoukei knew about Kyou." "We deeply appreciate you for taking her in." "The Lord of Kei and his men have no words to express our great gratitude for your kindness, Queen Kyou." "It's no trouble." "We are neighbors, aren't we?" "So..." "You must be Sonshou." "Is it Queen Kyou?" "She sounds young." "Her voice sounds a lot younger than mine..." "I accept the custody of Sonshou." "I was counting the sands of time without realizing." "In a false dream I became speechless." "{\3cH000000\cH8A7F78}I would stare into the fire... {\3cH000000\cH8A7F78}...as I swore to be true forever." "Let my prayers be heard, I will overcome hardship and keep my oath until the end of the world." "The girl looks at Shoukei's face, and giggles." "The Twelve Kingdoms, episode 27..." "Episode 27" "{\3cHFFFFFF\4aHFF\fnPoor Richard\b1\bord1.5\pos(191,176)\cH010AF8}A Great Distance in The Wind, The Sky at Dawn, Chapter Five." "A Great Distance in the Wind, the Sky at Dawn, Chapter Five."