Later that day, the group went to their journey inside their own carriages. Kise is located north of Shinka and west of Yukonami. Hiroshi has already heard about Kise long before his reign, known as the "Golden Coast of the South", Kise is a province that isn't blessed with resources but managed to triumph over everyone else due to their extraordinary ability in trade and commerce.
The Daigo clan wasn't the first lordship family of the province. In truth, they have taken it from the previous family of dictators from the Shouri clan when Kise used to still be called as Tadai. And the reason for the friendly relations between the Kusanagi and Daigo clan is because the former has supplied the army and provisions for the Daigo clan to overthrow the despots and usurp the leadership in the land.
Thus, from the very start, an alliance with the Daigo clan is a very possible thing.
A distance away from the city's walls, Kyoko asked Hiroshi to get out of his carriage and ride a horse as they enter the city. Hiroshi knew the reason and complied. He wore his military uniform of a black hybrid of a haori-trench coat over white buttoned shirt and black trousers.
"Well then, let's go in."
"Mm."
As the city's huge defensive gates opened, they trotted in and their arrival was met with cheers and flower petals.
"Welcome to Kingo, Kusanagi-sama!!!"
"Welcome to Kingo, Iwasawa-sama!!!"
The people were on the streets, throwing flower petals all around and shouting cheers while wearing joyful expressions.
"They seem so welcoming…"
"That's only because we're important people."
"Huh?"
"Don't you get it? This is a mercantile city. This is a place doesn't have any true cheer to it. This is all a show."
With those words, Hiroshi looked around and his view changed. He sharpened his senses and he saw that there are some people in the crowd, whispering orders to the people to either cheer more or throw the petals.
"Buying favors using praises…"
"The oldest trick in the book, huh?"
Before long, they finally arrived at Kingo castle and was formally welcomed by the castle's chamberlain and prime minister.
""Welcome to Kingo castle, Kusanagi-sama, Iwasawa-sama.""
""We are honored to receive the greeting.""
They waited for a while for their companions to arrive and they finally entered the luxurious palace in the mountain castle.
"Gold… gold… gold again… They really know how to look affluent, don't they?"
When Hiroshi said that expression, he wasn't exaggerating. From the furnishings on the walls to the lining of the ceiling, everything was plated in pure gold that reflected the dim sunset outside.
"They've been a rich family since antiquity. This formal palace isn't the real deal, their personal villas are more luxurious than this receiving area."
"Figures… I should've known."
They walked up to the third floor of the palace and they noticed something when they looked out of the huge windows outside.
"Clouds… this place is…"
"Yes, Kingo castle is built atop Mt. Akami. The highest mountain in the south. From the third floor of the castle, the lowest hanging clouds can already be seen and sometimes even touched."
"Wonderful…"
Chiyo and Hisako looked bewildered with the place which made Hiroshi smile inadvertedly.
"Chiyo, Hisako… The preliminary meeting will take a while so feel free to play around a little for now."
"R-really?"
"Mm! Just don't be too loud, alright?"
Seeing Hisako's cheerful expression, Hiroshi giggled and nodded to Chiyo to take care of her for a while.
"Iwasawa Hiroshi, 1st generation Daimyo of Kiko's Iwasawa clan. Raised by the Kiko Three. It is a pleasure to be seated in this gathering."
"Kusanagi Kyoko, 74th generation Daimyo of Shinka's Kusanagi clan. Daughter of Kusanagi Kenji and Akiko. It is a pleasure to be seated in this gathering."
The daimyos were the first to present themselves and after them were their subordinates.
"Shimura Nobisuke, 39th generation Samurai of Kiko's Aoyama clan. Nephew of Aoyama Takeshi. It is an honor to be seated in your presence."
"Nagisa Masami, 104th generation Samurai of Kiko's Nagisa clan. Daughter of Nagisa Goda and Ayumi. It is an honor to be seated in your presence."
"Ishigawa Gojo, 12th generation Samurai of Shinka's Ishigawa-Itsuki clan. Son of Ishigawa Goen and Itsuki Akari, it is an honor to be seated in your presence."
When the guests turn was over, it was time for the host to speak her own introduction.
"Daigo Reika, 14th generation Daimyo of Kise's Daigo Clan. Chief Priestess of Kingo no Shiseijo. Daughter of Daigo Yutaka and Shina. It is an honor to be seated in your presence."
The princess lord of Kise was someone whose beauty and elegance is renown throughout the lands. Further accentuated by the high-quality clothes, expensive jewelry and clean make up, no one in the hall was left unaware of her exquisiteness.
Yet, something in it felt off to Hiroshi…
"?"
"…"
Something about this woman feels a bit… strange to him.
The talks moved on between each sides' bureaucrats. For the Daigo clan, their ministers and officers changed seats in order to be able to talk to Nagisa and Ishigawa who wrote down their conversations and settled the dealings and future plans between the states.
"Lastly, we will now move on to the formal signing of the alliance agreement. For this, I humbly request the following people to please take their seats in front of the negotiation table… Lord Iwasawa Hiroshi of Kiko province…"
Hiroshi stood and sat down on the floor pillow in front of the gold-lined table made of ivory and ebony wood.
"Princess Kusanagi Kyoko of Shinka province…"
Kyoko stood up and fluidly sat down in front of the table beside Hiroshi.
"And Princess Daigo Reika of Kise Province…"
The lady lord stood up from her special seat and walked slowly to the other side of the ornate table with two servants following her with the Daimyo's seal and Chief Priestess' seal on their hands.
"…To our new friends and comrades in arms, I present this gift…"
After signing the scroll using her own blood as the ink for the signature and seals, the Daigo lord spoke and turned it around to let it face her guests.
"I humbly accept and look forward to our future. In the name of my country, I pledge loyalty and fairness to this contract. If there will come a time when I have to break this promise, may I suffer the wrath of the rock of heavens."
Hiroshi spoke and cut thumb and made it bleed which Nagisa caught using a saucer. He then wrote his name on where it should be and took his seal from Nagisa, pressed it on his blood puddle and firmly stamped it on the paper.
"I humbly accept and look forward to our future. In the name of my country, I pledge loyalty and fairness to this contract. If there will come a time when I have to break this promise, may I suffer the wrath of the rock of heavens."
Kyoko did the same albeit in a different manner. Instead of the thumb, which is where Hiroshi cut himself to take his blood, Kyoko instead pricked her ring finger with a needle and drop by drop, made it fall on her own saucer before signing and stamping the scroll.
The reason behind this is simple. Noble women are usually attributed for flawless hands that are a sign of their high-born status. Thus, having a scar on their hands and fingers are a flaw that most feel wary about.
Regardless, the alliance signing was finished, and the formal talks has ceased. It was already sunset when they left the meeting chamber so Hiroshi asked to be left alone with Chiyo in his room for… the usual lover's tryst.
"I-Iwasawa-sama… This is…"
"I'm not letting you leave me here alone."
"Muu… you're acting like a spoiled child again…"
"Don't you like me more when I act spoiled and sweet…? Look at your face, you're actually happy, aren't you?"
"T-that… Muu… you're so unfair."
Watching the billowing orange clouds outside of the room's balcony, the couple basked not only on the soft sunbeam of the gentle spring sunset but also the warmth of each other as Hiroshi rested his head on her lap and Chiyo softly combed her fingers through his soft and long hair.
"I am serious now, Iwasawa-sama. It's almost dinnertime, so we have to leave now."
"Okay… Itadakimasu…"
"Eh? E-Ehhh?!"
Teasing her for one last time, Hiroshi sat up and clasped his hands together before inching towards Chiyo's shoulder and motioned to bite down on it.
"I-I-Iwasawa-sama!"
"Ehehe… Just kidding, we'll have the right time for that in the future."
"Muu… you're not supposed to tease me like this…"
The two returned to their normal behaviors and walked together to the dining hall where a luxurious banquet was held in their honor.
From local delicacies to oriental dishes from the mainland, Kingo castle's chefs showed the best of their culinary abilities to their guests. Hiroshi and his group was amazed with it that they ate a bit more than their usual intake. At some point, the usually calm and serious Kiko general, Shimura Nobisuke, even had a friendly drinking competition with the Daigo clan's castle commander, toppling the more experienced and elderly man after 41 cups of Sake before falling asleep as well on his next sip.
As the party was finished and everyone went back to their quarters satisfied and joyful, a man dressed in black woke up at the middle of the night and walked through the hallways of the castle.
"Huh? Oh! Sir!"
"…"
Usually, such a suspicious figure would be immediately cut down by the elite castle guards that are patrolling the area. But as they saw the face of the person, they walked to the side and rose a salute to him.
*Tak! Tak!*
"Come on in…"
"…"
At the door of the special room that overlooks the entire mercantile harbor, the figure knocked and received the approval of a woman's voice. He softly opened the door and entered the room.
"So, you really are one, aren't you? Lord Iwasawa Hiroshi?"
"And what if I am?"
"Hehehe… That is the reason why I asked you to come here tonight. Come on, take a seat."
The room wasn't the one that would be usually seen in these times. Except for his own office, Hiroshi has never seen a lord's receiving area that looks like the office of a modern-day CEO.
"I have heard a lot of things about you from our merchants and clandestine agents, Lord Iwasawa. About how you rose to power one day, how you changed the systems of the backwater province of Kiko and how you overpowered the Yukogahara clan in your war with them."
"Though I don't wish to sound too hostile, allow me to ask this in the most abrupt way, Lady Daigo…"
"Huh?"
"Did you follow me from my old world to bring me back to that hellscape?"
When she heard his question and caught his gaze, even the previously all-smiles princess felt fear well up inside of her and send a spine-tingling shock in her body.
"I am not."
"…Good."
Hiroshi closed his eyes to remove the malice on his gaze and let the other side to recompose herself.
"But I am someone who inherited the will of a person who came from your world…"
"What?"
"Let me speak my one and true title that is dearer to me than anything else… I am Daigo Reika, 113th generation Chief Priestess of Kingo no Shiseijo. Carrying the will of the Phoenix Priestess, I bring an explanation to a Stray Otherworlder on behalf of my ancestors."
Hiroshi heard something that he didn't expect before. The word "Otherworlder" was not unfamiliar for him. And thus, he was able to piece some things together.
"Are you saying that…"
"Along with the Fox Priestess of Inari in Kaiho no Shiseijo, the Dragon Priestess of Ryujin in Kyoga no Shiseijo and the White Tiger Priestess of Raijin in Kurumi no Shiseijo, I am a descendant of one of the four children of Great Priestess Ayaka who were tasked to accommodate and speak with those who has strayed to this world and those that has been taken to serve here."
"Wait, wait, wait! I don't understand! Are you saying that you know where I came from and why I am here?!"
"I am not aware of the exact details, but from the texts and lessons taught to me by my predecessors, I know that this world is not your home and you've been brought here by someone like me or by certain circumstances."
As the questions that he relegated to the back of his mind found the right person to answer it, Hiroshi stood up and took three scrolls on his coat's pocket.
"Then… are you the one who wrote these codes?"
He opened the scrolls that contained morse code and when she saw it, she nodded lightly which gained more of Hiroshi's shock.
"How…? I thought I was the only one who experienced this…"
"From the successful execution of the Kagura dance at Daigo Sanctum 400 years ago until the last one at Kurumi Sanctum that happened four years ago, 72 otherworlders has arrived at this world through the summoning ritual and another 14 by accident. If none of the other priestesses has lied about not summoning another otherworlder since the last one four years ago, then you would be the 15th otherworlder to arrive at this world without a priestess' request…"
"Wait… if that is so, then-"
"That is right… Just like what we should tell those who arrived here from the otherworld, let me be the one to speak this."
The priestess opened a small chest at her table and when Hiroshi saw its contents, he knew that his journey has never even truly started.
"Would these things… be familiar to you?"
"A colored photo, a school ID card, a woman's hair scrunchie and… a recently released smartphone…"
"I see. So, time really didn't move at all over there. As spoken by Lady Ayaka… hundreds of years to us humans would only be a flicker in the other world."
When Hiroshi finally put together everything that he has seen, his foggy memories came back which made his eyes to water and a feeling of intense pain and agony to swirl in his chest and head which made him clutch them tightly with his hands.
"I remember now… everything…"
Will those memories of the broken past change the loving present form of the young man…?
"I… I didn't die out of my own volition… I was killed for everyone's selfish happiness! They... They killed me!!!"