As the execution grounds was in the southernmost tip of the city, it took almost a quarter and a half hours to arrive there by foot. When my palanquin stopped moving and Kaname personally helped me out of it, I felt the heavy aura of death that covered the entire piece of land at once.The maids brought us chairs to sit on and parasols to shield us from the midday sun. Our chairs were placed on the right side of the shogun"s personal seat and was arranged in the order we married him. Ayaka, who looked very uncomfortable, sat between Mami and I.
"The most important virtues for a samurai are adherence to the code of bushido and fulfillment of the obligations of giri[1]," Kaname spoke as soon as he saw that everyone that needed to be there has arrived in the area. "Bushido is the ethical code of the samurai, it is composed of many elements: loyalty, honor, courage, refinement, and excellence. Of course, those who were born to live this way of life know this but not everyone of us adhere to it."
"For betraying the trust of the shogun, death shall await the traitor, his clan, and all his close a.s.sociates," he stood and walked towards Taneyuki-san who was holding a scroll of paper. "Take over the doc.u.mentation of today"s execution and give the scroll to Mugi. I want him to read the report to everyone."
"As you wish, my lord," the old man bowed before doing as he instructed.
Mugi took the scroll with shaking hands. He then unrolled the scroll and cleared his throat, "At the second hour of the snake on the fifteenth day of the fifth month of the year, six middle rank swordsmen of the Hasekura clan of the south entered the shogun"s estate disguised as regular attendees of the Kanda Matsuri. When the procession ended and the shogun was requested to head to the ooku to attend to his second wife Lady Ayaka, who was going through labor, the armed men infiltrated the restricted areas of the castle grounds. They were given access by two administrative staff members who were distantly related to the highest ranking daimyo of the south, Hasekura Yorimoto. The men immediately sought the third wife, Lady Hinata, with the intention of abducting and eventually getting rid of her and the unborn children in her womb. The reason being that Hasekura Yorimoto was greatly displeased by news that his daughter, Lady Ayaka, was less favored by the shogun due to Lady Hinata"s presence in the inner palace."
The crowd began to whisper and discuss what they just heard both in disbelief and surprise.
"Go on," Kaname said when the adolescent boy stopped reading. "I want everyone to hear what happened next."
"My lord, what is this all about?" Ayaka stood up from her seat, beads of sweat formed on her fair forehead.
"Let us listen to the report," he replied. "You will find out soon."
"But, my lo—"
"Silence!" Kaname admonished her, his eyes glinted with a fury that would have effectively shut her up even if he didn"t say a word. "Mugi, I believe I told you to continue."
"Y-yes, m-my l-lord," the young man stammered. "F-fortunately, the men were unsuccessful all thanks to the official wife"s intervention. Lady Mami lead the guards that were escorting them in fighting the members of the Hasekura clan. However, the fight cost seven of the ten female guards" lives who were escorting the shogun"s wives and also left Lady Mami seriously injured."
"Further investigation also disclosed that if the abduction failed, which did, Hasekura Yorimoto planned to take matters into his hands and wreak havoc in the estate on the next time the shogun leaves for a regional visit. Hasekura Yorimoto intended to make it seem like fire broke out from the inner palace by accident, much like how he did it during the previous shogun"s return from war. He has planted several distant relatives both in the administrative and inner palaces to be able to successfully carry out his plans."
Kaname raised his hand and three men were suddenly brought forward. Their robes were covered in filth and blood, their skins showed obvious signs of ruthless beatings, and their top knots were cut off.
"It"s Hasekura Yorimoto!" one of the officials said. "No wonder he"s not around, he"s been caught by the shogun!"
Ayaka stood up again and ran towards the man in the middle. "Father!" she cried as she wiped the dirt from the man"s face.
"My lady, please don"t," Hasekura Yorimoto said while trying to push her away. "You are the shogun"s wife, you shouldn"t show mercy on someone who committed something treasonous."
"But father, I cannot just sit back and watch you fall in disgrace!"
"I said don"t touch me!" he pushed Ayaka with whatever strength he had left, making her lose balance. I realized that he was protecting her daughter and was preventing her from being involved.
Ayaka slowly stood up to beg Kaname, "My lord, there must be some misunderstanding. My father is innocent! He would not do such a thing! He"s been framed… That"s right! Several daimyos have been eyeing his position ever since he took charge of the south, they must have framed him!"
The officials who heard her hissed and grunted in disgust at her baseless accusations. They looked at her unhappily but said nothing.
Kaname looked at his pet.i.te young wife coldly and said, "Are you implying that the information my men have gathered are false?"
Her eyes widened in shock. She shook her head vigorously and said, "No, that"s not what I meant…"
"Then what are you trying to say if that"s not what you mean?" he asked mockingly.
"My father is innocent…"
"Is that so?" he lifted one brow, a smirk tugged at his lips. When she didn"t reply, he pointed at Mugi. "Continue reading the report!"
"The following servants and members of the administrative staff were found to be spies from the southern clan," Mugi began reading the names. I watched as he grew increasingly pale as he did so. "And l-lastly, S-sato M-mugi."
"Your name is there, too?" Kaname asked, obviously feigning surprise. "Mugi, you are one of them?"
"M-my l-lord, I"m not…" he was shaking so hard he looked like he was being electrocuted.
"But I heard you read your name..."
Mugi suddenly fell on his knees and positioned himself in a dogeza. He bowed and cried and apologized nonstop.
I looked to my left to see Mami staring at the men with a murderous gaze. Her hands were shaking and I swear I saw her eyes linger on the sword of one of the nearby guards. I, on the other hand, felt like I was watching a period drama. I know I was involved in this matter but I felt like I was not. However…
"My lord, as your second wife, I implore you to conduct another round of investigation," Ayaka spoke, she looked like she was wronged and was the actual victim. "Please don"t let your affection for Lady Hinata blind you. My father is innocent! We would never dare go against you for selfish reasons!"
Kaname smiled a smile that didn"t reach his eyes. "My lady, I hope you"ll be able to say the same thing once my number one witness has finished talking."
"W-witness? Who?" she looked around in panic.
He turned to the guards and ordered, "Bring her forward!"
When I saw the familiar face of the woman who just joined us, I knew right then and there that this was no simple case of a father trying to ensure his daughter"s position in the palace. There was something more to this crime and it looked like I was going to be the most affected person in the end when this witness finishes her testimony. I took a deep breath and braced myself.
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[1] To serve one"s superiors with a self-sacrificing devotion. (Wikipedia.org)