kscans

Chapter 185 - A Fairy Tale Nobody Knows

"...Sakura."

A man sat on the veranda of a magnificent Japanese-style house, gazing up at the night sky. In the sky were a few clouds and a splendid waning moon. As he watched the night sky, where even the stars were dimmed by the moonlight, the man enjoyed an evening drink.

Ah, this is a life I don't deserve.

Twisting his lips into a self-deprecating smile, he tipped his sake cup.

"Husband? It is still chilly. Here, a padded jacket..."

A woman with a plump face rushed over to the man, holding a long hanten.

"Don't bother me. Leave me alone."

As he grumbled in annoyance, he slipped his arms into the offered jacket. His body, which had been clad in only a single kimono, seemed to have been colder than he thought, and his eyes widened at the gentle warmth that enveloped him.

"...Sorry. Thanks."

"You are too kind. Shall I refill your drink?"

"Yeah, please."

Waving a hand at the smiling woman, the man looked up at the sky again. She was his second wife. Her name was Kogiku. And her husband's name was Shibata Uzuki. Born in the Showa era, thirty-eight years old.

As he watched his diligent wife patter away, he remembered the time he first came here.

One day, after an accident, Uzuki found himself in a deep forest. And before him, the Twin Gods descended and invited him to be transferred to another world. Return to the circle of reincarnation or start a new life in another world. Flustered by the sudden choice presented to him, he chose to be transferred to another world.

Perhaps that was a mistake.

Now, Uzuki trembled in fear of the creeping presence of death. According to what the gods had told him when he was transferred, there was a time limit on his life. The new lifespan he was given was about twenty years. At first, he hadn't paid it much mind. In fact, Uzuki thought he was lucky to have his life extended. But now, as his remaining years dwindled, he finally realized his own folly. What a foolish choice he had made. He had never imagined that seeing his own lifespan would be so terrifying. How would he die? By illness? An accident? Wasting away? He hoped it wouldn't be painful. The delusion of gradually weakening and withering away like a skeleton stuck in his head and wouldn't leave. Like rust constantly forming on a galvanized iron sheet, the thought surfaced in his mind no matter how much he tried to shake it off, tormenting him terribly. The shadow of death crawled up his spine, creating a bloodthirsty atmosphere around him, as if he were screaming with his hair in disarray.

It was at that time that he learned a certain fact.

"I have a child?"

It was a bolt from the blue.

Uzuki had been invited by the gods to the otherworld of Arcadia. The land he arrived in was an empire called Kilfan, and from what he heard, it was a country founded by Japanese transmigrators.

Well, well, well.

A country of Japanese people, formed by generations of transmigrators and locals born from Earthlings. He didn't know the gods' intentions, but Uzuki was relieved by the familiar culture and, as the gods had asked, he taught modern knowledge to Kilfan. To be honest, much of his knowledge was vague, but that part was supplemented by magical tools. Hearing that it was technology from a neighboring country, Uzuki's eyes suddenly sparkled.

Is there magic power and magic?

It was a staple of otherworld stories. Those gods hadn't granted him any power, but this was another world. An adventure different from Earth must be waiting.

Uzuki was excited, but his expectations were mercilessly shattered.

Apparently, only one country was capable of using magic. Other countries could only create pseudo-supernatural phenomena using magic stones and magical tools imported from there; they couldn't use magic themselves.

...Give me a break, what a letdown.

His expectations betrayed, Uzuki became visibly dissolute. He indulged in pleasure, answering when asked, but never took the initiative to do anything himself. It was then that a high-ranking official of the Kilfan Imperial Castle spoke to him in a hushed voice.

"How about enjoying the flowers in the rear palace for a change of pace? There is a special princess there."

"The rear palace... that's where the royal consorts live, right?"

An old man smiled quietly at the suspicious Uzuki.

"It is in a separate, hidden rear palace. Princesses prepared especially for the Visitor-sama."

Specially for me?

Swallowing hard, Uzuki followed where he was led, invited to the hidden rear palace.

As a result, he was assigned two princesses of marriageable age and spent many nights of blissful union. In addition to them, he took several other wives, and while becoming self-destructive, he grew accustomed to Kilfan. All the women in the imperial castle fawned over him, flocking to him for his favors. For a man, it was a dream of debauchery. Uzuki was not self-restrained enough to not drown in it. He laid hands on dozens of women, and several of them bore his children. He heard they were all sons, but Uzuki had never seen them. The children of the imperial family were all raised by wet nurses. As a Visitor, he was a quasi-royal. All of Uzuki's children also became royalty and lived in a separate Infant's Palace with the other children.

The only difference was if a princess was born.

Due to the ill effects of repeated inbreeding, it was difficult for girls to be born into the imperial family, so when a princess was born, she was immediately moved to the rear palace and raised with great care. The princess Uzuki had dallied with in the hidden rear palace was said to have been raised that way. When they reached a suitable age, they were given to the emperor or the crown prince. This time, because Uzuki had visited, she had been given to him. Those around him, who knew the ill effects of inbreeding, understood that it was more prudent to marry her to a Visitor with no close blood ties than to a member of the imperial family.

Because of this complex background, Uzuki only had relations with the women and was not even informed that a child had been born. He knew they existed. He would get after-the-fact reports that his sons had been placed in the Infant's Palace. But Uzuki felt no interest. If they were not girls, they would receive an education befitting their mother's status and be granted a suitable position and territory, he had heard. There was no need to worry about his secure sons. Uzuki savored the good fortune of being able to be intimate with women without any of the hassle.

It was by chance that he learned of the princess's existence.

He happened to visit the rear palace for a diversion and passed a girl. It was a fleeting encounter, but he couldn't help but stare and turn back. The girl also turned back, her brow furrowed in suspicion.

The two of them froze, and an awkward atmosphere hung in the air.

"...Sis?"

"What? You seem to be awake, but are you sleep-talking? Do you think I look older than you?"

Hearing the scathing remark, Uzuki's eyes widened even further. The girl before him was the spitting image of his older sister when she was young, and her sharp tongue was also just like his strong-willed sister. He felt an unconditional blood connection. The girl's eyes, looking up at the dazed Uzuki, were like those looking at a snake. At her sharp gaze, narrowed with disgust, laughter welled up from the pit of Uzuki's stomach.

Ah, that's right. I've slept with so many women, it wouldn't be strange if I had a daughter or two.

And naturally, that daughter would be raised with care in the rear palace. It was stranger that he hadn't met her until now. As Uzuki let out a stifled chuckle, the girl sighed as if exasperated.

"I know you're quite active, but keep it in moderation. At the very least, take care not to let me see it."

It seemed the girl was well aware of Uzuki's relations with women. Perhaps it was her puritanical age, but there was an undisguised contempt in her eyes.

It can't be helped if she's a princess living in the rear palace. How old is she? Which woman is her mother?

"You, what's your name? How old are you?"

Uzuki loosened his kimono even more, revealing his chest, and casually thrust his arm inside. His sloppy appearance, unbearable to look at, also grated on the girl's nerves.

"I do not have a name that I would give to you."

"I'm Shibata Uzuki. And you?"

The girl's throat tightened. Not giving her name to someone who had given his was also impolite. Gritting her teeth and chewing on a bitter pill, the girl answered as if spitting out the words.

"Sakura. My name is Hidori Sakura. But I will not grant you the honor of calling my name. Understood?"

Muttering so, Sakura turned on her heel and hurried down the corridor.

"Sakura... you're my daughter, aren't you? How old are you now?"

Uzuki murmured the girl's name dreamily and asked the lady-in-waiting at his side.

"Princess Sakura is nine years old."

"Nine? That's only a year away! What about her engagement? Who is she promised to?"

Uzuki had already lived in Kilfan for sixteen years. He understood the customs to some extent. In Kilfan, at the age of ten, one left the rear palace and was granted a palace of their own. This was to allow male visitors such as fiancés. Noble women with fiancés would allow their partners to visit and have relations with them on the occasion of their loincloth-tying ceremony at the age of thirteen. It was a unique culture of Kilfan, where the ancient custom of 'three-night rice cakes' remained. The woman's will was not reflected in this. She was at the mercy of the man. Unlike his secure sons, only a future of bitterness was prepared for his daughter, Sakura. Uzuki knew well the fate of high-ranking women in Kilfan. The place was crawling with brutes whose behavior, from the perspective of a modern person, could only be described as barbaric.

I can't throw Sakura into a pack of beasts like that.

A dark light flashed in Uzuki's eyes.

"...Don't mess with me. She's my daughter."

From here, Uzuki's secret maneuvers began. They would be completed before his remaining lifespan ran out.

"Pandæmonium, is it. So this is the brothel that earns foreign currency."

An ancient, elegant building constructed by the Yarman with permission from Frontier. The wilderness depicted in the background was also planned to become farms and pastures in the future. Ignoring the satisfied emperor, Uzuki cast his gaze far into the distance.

"That's right. If we imprison women here and make them work as courtesans, they're sure to earn a lot of foreign currency. A good use for them, wouldn't you say?"

The emperor nodded magnanimously.

Uzuki had persuaded the emperor with his glib tongue, proposing a prison brothel as a simple system to earn foreign currency. A world of suffering that would bring eternal humiliation to high-ranking women. The emperor licked his lips at the concept and went along with Uzuki's proposal.

But he did not know. The secret pact made between Uzuki and Frontier.

'A facility to protect women, you say? But they will be forced to work as prostitutes, correct? Can that be called a salvation?'

Uzuki appealed earnestly to the suspicious Frontier side. In Kilfan, the higher a woman's status, the more roughly she was treated. It was a country where dismemberment was a common punishment. He wanted a sanctuary specifically for such high-status individuals.

'The gruesome lynchings when upper-class women are condemned are beyond words. I beg you, please let me create a place in this country to escape from the worst. And as much as possible, I want you to fend off interference from Kilfan.'

Frontier, worn down by Uzuki's desperate expression, as if he were about to prostrate himself, promised to protect the people of Pandæmonium to the best of their ability. They were a country that valued women to begin with. They did not have gates to close on those who sought help. These matters were kept secret by the current king and a few high-ranking officials, and a strict gag order was put in place. This was the middle ages, a festival of espionage. There was no telling where a leak could spring from. It was better to be safe than sorry. And so, the prison brothel was completed with Frontier's cooperation.

Unaware of Uzuki's intentions, Kilfan began sending its condemned women to Pandæmonium.

And so time flowed, and Uzuki's body rapidly weakened.

"Shibata-sama, you wished to see me?"

Summoned by the dying Uzuki, was Sakura's foster brother, Kaito. Looking at the still young and gallant boy with a dazzling expression, Uzuki whispered in a hoarse voice.

"...You're in love with Sakura, aren't you?"

Kaito was flustered by the unexpected words. Uzuki smiled wryly at him and conveyed the secrets of Pandæmonium.

"Pandæmonium is a brothel on the surface, but in reality, it's a refuge for condemned women. I've asked Frontier to make it so they can fend off Kilfan's tyranny. ...If you think things are getting bad, don't hesitate to flee there. With Sakura."

The boy's face froze in a sullen expression. He was still unreliable, but time would solve that.

Stay safe until then, Sakura. ...My... ah.

In his hazy consciousness, a woman floated in Uzuki's mind. It was the hidden princess. A fleeting woman with a face very similar to Sakura's.

...Kaede. I see, you're...

Uzuki reached out his hand to the gently smiling woman. The moment his hand was taken by Kaede, he lost consciousness.

Kaito, noticing Uzuki's sudden change, hurriedly called for a doctor, but he had already passed away.

Thus, planting a small seed of suspicion in Kaito, Uzuki crossed the rainbow bridge. Together with Kaede, who had come to meet him.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Just as Uzuki had imagined, many hardships befell Sakura. Kaito, who had been shown an escape route in advance, sought help from Frontier without hesitation and succeeded in escaping to Pandæmonium.

And then he hesitated.

Should he tell Sakura the truth about Uzuki? That his death was to protect her. It was only speculation, but Shibata-sama was surely Sakura's father. It was a well-known fact that he, the Visitor, had had relations with many women. In the imperial family where girls were rarely born, the possibility that the emperor was Sakura's father was low.

...But Sakura despises Shibata-sama.

She, who knew of his numerous romantic escapades and his dissolute private life, despised Uzuki from the bottom of her heart. If she learned that he was her real father, she would surely be shocked.

Kaito worried about what to do.

However, his happiness did not last long, and he was murdered by a Kilfan inspector. Kaito, prepared for the worst, tried to tell Sakura about Uzuki's final moments.

"Sakura! Shibata-sama...!"

Sakura's grief-stricken face, distorted as she tried to protect Kaito. It was the spitting image of Uzuki on that day.

Ah, I see...

Sakura's high-pitched scream rent the air. At the same time, the inspector's mad blade tore through Kaito's back. In his final moments, Uzuki floated in Kaito's mind. That man would not have wanted Sakura to know. Otherwise, he wouldn't have gone through the trouble of saving her through him.

Kaito's mouth, which had been about to form words, was drawn into a tight line. A sense of déjà vu that connected the clumsy men. Uzuki's overly roundabout love. At the very end, Kaito understood it.

Seen off by the tears of his beloved wife, Kaito's consciousness dissipated.

All truths remained in the darkness.

But the efforts of the men who stayed true to themselves bore fruit and saved the next generation.

Sakura grasped a new life, and the women's refuge was transformed into a healthy extraterritorial sanctuary.

Having accomplished a great deed that no one knew of, Uzuki's sullied name was never cleared. Frontier, under a new generation, also saw Pandæmonium only from a humanitarian perspective. The former king, as promised to Uzuki, took everything to his grave. But it probably didn't matter to Uzuki. He was likely laughing nonchalantly even in the heavens.

'My daughter...'

That single phrase, filled with a thousand emotions, continues to sway in the night sky of Arcadia.