Accompanied song: Scramble (Hey! Say! BEST)

The worst happened. Prepare to put the jewel to its right place. Bring your strength before winter.

Ryutaro rolled the parchment back. It had been three days since he received the message from the First Aid. He had immediately prepared Kurofune army once the news of Okamoto’s rebellion reached his ears. Being close enough to the capital and led by a Morimoto, one of the royal family’s allies, Kurofune might be the next target to be wiped out. Thus he decided he should move fast while the Okamoto was drowning in euphoria of their victory. He assumed Kurofune would be spared when they realized he had no longer been there. So, here he was, on the first day of the journey to the secret base with his five hundred soldiers followed behind.

Meawhile, in the far east of Hakumei, perched on the mountain of Matsudera, the head of Nakayama Family was reading the same kind of parchment with slightly different message. After he finished reading, he summoned his first son.

“What is it, Father?” his son stood before him.

“The worst happened. We should prepare for the jewel arrival, Yuma.”

“I understand. Should I send a scouting squad for them?” Yuma proposed.

He smiled in agreement, “Ah, that’s a good idea. They must be not familiar with the route after all.”

“Then, please excuse me, Father. I’m going to prepare.” Yuma bowed and left the room.

**********

Ryosuke splashed a handful of water to his face, washing the dirt. He had separated himself from his companions when they took a break a moment ago. He needed time alone to sort his thoughts out. Waiting for his shirt to dry, he took a sit on the river bank. Now, he was watching his own reflection on the surface of the stream, contemplative.

They had been travelling for ten days straight now, entering and exiting forests and back-roads to avoid running into their pursuer. They almost rode days and nights with hardly sleeps and breaks. Yuto insisted they should reach far-east region in two weeks most. He didn’t know where they exactly were heading to as Yuto only said they would meet the noble clan resided in that region, named Nakayama Family.

Nakayama Family was his family loyalists since the first generation of royal family Yamada. They lived on the highland of Matsudera, governing the region with farming as their main source of income. But, as he recalled, Nakayama had strangely not attended Keito’s coronation, thus did not swear fealty to his brother too. They sent excuse that harvesting crops became tougher this season that they should focus on it to be able to finish it before the winter arrived. They never missed a coronation before no matter the circumstances; even the history told him that they attended his grandfather’s coronation despite the danger they should go through for travelling down the mountain in a freezing winter. That’s why it was strange. Yet, Keito shrugged it off when he voiced his concern out.

As always, when he thought about something related to Keito, Keito’s image would appeared in his mind.

“Aniki…,” he muttered softly while gazing upward at the bright blue sky.

Returning his gaze to the stream before him, he spooned the water with his right hand. The water escaped through the gap between his fingers as he recalled his latest dream… or should he call it nightmare.

The scene in which he was drowning into a pool resurfaced when he was taking a catnap last night, but it did not stop as it used to do at the moment he saw Keito’s laughing face. Last night, after Keito appeared in the nightmare, suddenly everything turned black and he heard a faint sound of someone crying and calling his name.

Ryo-chan…Ryo-chan… please, wake up… Ryo-chan…

Then the view started to shift again, blurry at first but gradually became clearer. When the view had reached its perfect sight, he saw Keito was crying hard with the tears like an unstoppable stream. Was Keito crying over him? He did not know, but he wished he would have a chance to ask Keito about it. No! He reprimanded his pessimistic side. I will definitely have a chance. He should be alright!

He jumped to his feet when he heard a noise of someone stepped on twigs, grip ready on his sword hilt. When he faced the intruder, he only saw a familiar face at a distance away: Mirai. She looked surprised and he caught a sight of light blush on her face. Assessing the circumstance, he realized she might look for him as it was the time to change his bandage just like she told him a while ago. After shaking her head slightly, she walked to his direction, a bit tentative.

“I’m sorry for disturbing you, but I need to change your bandage,” she said when she arrived in front of him, keeping several steps away between them.

“Fine,” He walked then sat below the shade of the tree where he hung his shirt to dry.

She followed to sit beside him. While waiting her rummaging through her first-aid kid, he recalled that she was quite skillful in tending his wound. He assumed she had taken the basic medical course, an obligated subject for nobles studying at Royal Academy, well enough. And he had let her did as she wished because he did not need any dispute with anyone to add on his crowded mind right now.

“May I?” she asked for his permission to unwrap the bandage on his right arm and he stretched it out a little.

“You heal fast. It should be fine to remove the stitch in three or five days most.”

It had always been like this. She was talking while working and he kept silent while listening to her.

“We still have some clean shirts and pants, you should just change while waiting or you may catch a cold. It’s getting colder since the winter will come soon.”

He took a note at her advice to change into the other clean clothes.

“Yuri-kun has returned with foods. When you’re done here, please get some. You haven’t eaten properly since we departed from the palace.”

He did not need to tell her he could not really eat while he knew nothing about Keito. He ate only because his body needed him to, just to make sure he would not die because of lack of foods.

“Yuto-kun said we will trespass Matsudera’s border soon, and it will be hard to move at night because of its nature. We’re going to depart in a couple hours or so. That way he predicted we will reach the mountain-feet before dusk and use the night to rest, then start crossing the valley tomorrow morning.”

He started to think that she could be a reliable messenger if she wanted.

“There, it’s done.” She gave a light pressure to check the knot of the bandage then put her kits back to its place.

“Thank you.”

He always said that after she finished because that’s what his mother taught him: Never forget to appreciate anyone’s kindness even it’s just trivial thing.

“You’re welcome.”

And she always replied while smiling then immediately left.

**********

Once Mirai turned her back to Ryosuke and was sure he would not see her, her blush returned with full force. She needed so much strength to maintain her steps to be normal and steady though in fact she wanted to spring back immediately.  It was not the first time she saw his bare torso, but it was the first time that they were alone in that state. She used to have the others presented during her time tended his wound. That was why she was very embarrassed. And nervous!

She tapped her hands to her cheeks repeatedly, intending to cool it off, but it seemed did not work as she heard Miru asked.

“Why is your face so red, Mirai?”

Awkwardly she looked up, “Eh…nothing.” She shook her head. “Nothing.”

She heard a chuckle and found out that it came from Yuto. “Maybe something good happened between you and Ryosuke?”

She pouted, but was not less embarrassed, “Don’t assume too much, Yuto-kun.”

“By seeing your blush and hearing your stuttered speech, I must say I agree with Yuto.” This time Yuri joined in with his playful smirk.

“Can you all stop teasing me?” She tried to look angry, but apparently failed as her three companions chuckled more.

“We are not teasing you,” Miru said and she had used to anticipate the next words.

“We’re cheering on you!” They said it in sync and made her already red face turned redder, if that even possible.

“Three against one. It’s not fair, you know.” She stomped off, not really annoyed, instead amused by their carefree-like attitude.

She took a seat beside Miru, across the two men, and Miru handed her a slice of bread with meat filling.

While eating she recalled her past ten days. Despite Ryosuke being silent all the time, the other three were much fun to talk to. They had agreed to leave any reverence since they were not in the palace, thus they called each other by their given name. She really felt they were getting along so well. Yet, sometimes she felt annoyed because Miru, Yuto, and Yuri seemed like had ganged up to and Ryosuke. Ryosuke, being impassive as he was, did not respond to any teasing and jokes. On the other hand, she would blush and redden. Yet, despite all, she grew to enjoy her current predicament. It felt like she was getting more freedom and happiness with her new little family.

Just when she felt her cheeks had cooled down, the blush rose up once more as she saw Ryosuke walked toward their direction, still shirtless. Throwing glances toward the other three, she caught them grinned knowingly.

“It’s not like what you think,” she muttered which only earned a shrug from Yuto and more chuckles from Miru and Yuri.

“Chii, hand me a shirt,” she heard Ryosuke said. She dared not to look up from her meal. Soon, she heard a rustle of clothes.

“What do you want for your bread? Meat or cheese?” She heard Yuri asked.

“Just give me water.”

She sighed hearing Ryosuke’s answer. Did he intend not to eat again? When she was sure Ryosuke had worn a shirt, she looked up to observe him briefly. He did look thinner than he usually was. If not for his muscles kept his body toned, she assumed he would have looked like a withering log.

“You should eat,” she was a bit relief when Yuto spoke. “The journey ahead will be tougher than before. At least give your body its right.”

Ryosuke sat beside Yuri. “Fine. Just plain bread, please.”

Yuri smiled and handed Ryosuke a slice of plain bread.

Seeing how Ryosuke interacted with Yuto and Yuri somehow gave her a kind of warm feeling. Through the past days, she came to know that Yuri never left for assisting the defense at the border, instead was staying by Ryosuke’s side as his shadow. She just realized there was such thing in Hakumei: a shadow, the guardian that never left his substance’s side. So, that explained why Yuri knew so much about her and Ryosuke.

“I just figure it out,” Yuto started, “All the occurrences since Seiryoku visit till the Okamoto’s rebellion may be linked to each other.”

Gulping down the water, Ryosuke replied, “I have figured it out for some times.”

As she did not understand what they were talking about, she chose to listen while trying to grasp a comprehension.

“What do you think, Ryosuke?” Yuri joined in the conversation.

“Based on Lady Suzuka’s letter, it was obvious that Okamoto and Seiryoku did work together.”

Hearing Suzuka’s name mentioned, she blurted out, “How is Suzuka related to this?”

Ryosuke seemed reluctant to answer and Yuto was looking sad all of a sudden. That left Yuri to satiate her curiosity. He gave her a wary smile when saying, “Lady Suzuka is Yuto’s lover.”

She gasped in surprised and turned to Yuto to ask for a confirmation.

“Was,” Yuto added. “We are not together anymore.” Yuto looked guilty for a reason she did not know.

Somehow the air getting a little tense until Yuri broke the silence.

“So, how could their plan run unnoticed?”

Ryosuke swallowed the last bit of his bread. “I assume they have started the plan before my wedding. That explain why they were too quiet about it. The commotion around my marriage gave them a perfect disguise. While the council and the king focused their attention on me, they did their maneuver.”

The king? Suddenly she remembered King Shohei’s words, ‘Since his mother passed away he never call me with Father.’

“Seiryoku’s visit and their threat was the next disguise they need to divert our attention.” Ryosuke continued. She swore she never saw Ryosuke in this much seriousness, not even when he decided a verdict in Kurofune during the campaign long time ago.

“We paid too much attention on the external danger from Seiryoku that we failed to notice Okamoto was moving inside. When I recalled the provincial arrangement, I realized that the governments in provinces around the capital most came from Okamoto and Nishiuchi. Maybe that was the reason why even our intelligence failed to notice their moves. Then, they schemed my case to absorb my brother’s attention. And finally, the rebellion. I saw mercenaries with them. Only one kingdom can offer that large amount of mercenaries,” Ryosuke paused.

“Seiryoku!” Yuto and Yuri exclaimed at the same time.

Ryosuke nodded. “Only one thing I can’t figure out until now and it is really bugging me.”

“What is it?” Yuto asked.

Ryosuke leaned his