"Mom, I'm home," Shou called out, his voice filled with joy and excitement as he ran into the house and into his mother's arms. The woman smiled softly, her arms wrapped around her son in a gentle embrace, her head nestled into his shaggy hair.
"Welcome back, dear," she murmured, raising her head to see Mirai by the door once again, her look of unmistakable happiness masked slightly by one of uncertainty and weariness.
"Oh, it's you again…" she muttered, not particularly thrilled to see him.
"I'd like to have a word," Mirai requested, his gaze looking down on the woman as she still embraced her child before him.
"What could that be about?" Confusion riddled the woman's face as her eyes looked into his for any sign of bloodlust or malicious intent. When she was satisfied, she nodded. "Okay…"
Mirai pulled Shou's mother aside, away from her son's earshot. The young samurai explained everything the masked figure had told him, his hand gripping his sword all the while as he prepared himself for the night ahead.
"Oh my–" Her hands covered her mouth, shocked by the news. Both of them were on their knees on the mat spread under them.
"That's tonight, so I'd humbly ask for you and every other villager to stay indoors," Mirai murmured, bowing before the woman at his request. She looked at him, confused, a hint of fear in her voice as she answered.
"R-right…" She watched as Mirai slowly raised his head, his voice low as if uncertain.
"Also, when you came out that night, you came… to help that man escape, didn't you?" he muttered, waiting for a response.
"What do you mean…" She asked, feigning ignorance. Her heart seemed to leap out of her chest at the thought of being accused of such, her hand cupped in her other.
"The man in the mask, the one I fought that night—why else would you run out on your own?" he pondered, looking the woman in the eyes as if reading her thoughts. "He also asked if I was protecting the two of you…"
"I need you to tell me, just who exactly is that man—" He straightened his posture once more, his hand reaching for the hilt of his blade. "You're not working with them… are you?"
A moment of silence befell them as the woman looked at the floor and shook her head slightly, denying the claim.
"I don't have any association with the Akai Kiba–" The woman flinched as she heard the sound of Mirai's grasp on his blade growing tighter at her words. She knew he didn't believe her, but…
"I met him long ago–" she started, her words catching the young samurai off guard as he listened in.
"We met in a brothel… he was a wandering samurai, and I just happened to catch his eye…" She murmured, clearly conflicted on sharing this information, her hands reaching to cup her sides as she spoke. "He would always stare at me through the window; he would never come to buy but…"
"When he did… he wouldn't lay a hand on me, just start small conversations." Her eyes welled up with tears as she remembered, recalling the events as though they were recent memories. "He would bring me gifts, tell me about his travels… soon I grew a liking to him and– well…"
"'Let's get out of here, together!'" She remembered his words as clear as day, the feeling she had that day still lingering within her chest.
"And not too long ago, we ran away… we've had Shou… and gotten married." Her tears finally spilled, a soft, shaky breath leaving her lips. "But they chased after us, just as I thought."
"Where're you going?" Yuri pondered, her hand over her chest as she looked at the back of her husband in the past. His hand rested idly on his blade and his other on the doorknob.
"I told you I'd get rid of them, right?" he murmured, a soft smile escaping his lips.
"Yeah, but it's fine, I can–" she tried to say, but was instantly cut off, the man's voice raising slightly to get his point across.
"Whether you can or not, I made a promise!" His sudden words caught her off guard, the woman flinching at his resolve, his voice growing calmer and more reassuring. "And I promised that I would never, ever let them hurt you again…"
"And you wouldn't waste your life away in a brothel. If I'm not a man of my word, then what kind of man am I?" The woman could do nothing but stare, her mouth opening to speak, but no words would spill forth. She could only watch as he left her behind.
"Then the next day… I heard he had died…" Shou's mother muttered, wiping her tears as she was brought back from her memories.
"But what happened is, he's gotten the protection of a third party— and they spread misinformation about our deaths so no one will bother us again– but…" She bit her lower lip, her eyes watering again. "In turn, he sold his allegiance to a loan shark."
The grip on her kimono tightened as she practically screamed, sobbing uncontrollably at the situation that she was in.
"He sold his freedom for mine— our son doesn't even know he's alive! He told me not to say, he told me to keep it all a secret! Because… because he doesn't know if he'll ever be back in his lifetime…."
There was a moment of silence, a calm after the storm. Mirai nodded, satisfied with Yuri's answer, and stood to his feet.
"I'll free him for you," he declared, his words causing her head to raise, a look of hope and disbelief within her gaze.
"R-really?" she murmured, scanning his eyes for deceit. She soon let out a soft nod once she was satisfied. Without any other words shared, Mirai left the room, his eyes watching as Shou was already out in the garden, practicing the same things he had taught him.
He smiled fondly at his dedicated pupil before he slipped away.