Reborn: The New Empress

"I"m really okay, Eiji. Shouldn"t you be at the Palace now?" I asked. He has been by my side for more than a day and he doesn"t look like he"ll be leaving anytime soon. After feeding me, he put down the bowl of porridge and looked at me.

"I"m not leaving until I"m sure you"re okay. Now tell me, did you see the face of the one who kidnapped you?" He asked. I decided not to sell out Maeko just yet. I can use this information to my advantage. What I should do for now is to find out that masked man"s ident.i.ty. He may be a vital key to finding out who poisoned the original Princess Sayori.

"No, I didn"t. He was wearing a mask and he wasn"t talking too so I wouldn"t know." I answered. He rubbed his chin while contemplating my answer. Afterwards, he called for one of his men and asked them to investigate the matter further. My father is already on the case but they must really want to find out who did it.

"I"m really okay! You don"t have to do this. I can take care of myself." I said. I got annoyed because I can"t do my own plan because he"s here. I need him to leave so that I can continue doing my own investigation. He looked at me like a sad puppy. He put his hand on the top of my head and smiled.

"Okay, I understand. But if you may, I"ll leave some of my men to act as your bodyguard. I need to keep you safe." He said. I highly doubt he cares for me because he likes me. There must be some other reason he"s doing this. I didn"t answer him. Even if I say no, he"s going to insist it anyway. Or even if I persist, he"s going to ask my father for permission and obviously he"s going to approve of it.

"Okay fine." I answered. He smiled before turning back and leaving my room. After a while, two men came in the room and knelt in front of me. They introduced themselves as my bodyguards under Eiji. I acknowledged their presence. They went back outside and stayed by the door. Sayaka entered carrying a change of clothes for me.

"Princess, let me help you take a bath." She said. I shook my head. I"m injured but not handicapped. I can still do my own stuff. After bathing, I asked Sayaka to bring me a set if paper and writing materials.

"Tomorrow, I want you to go into town and find a craftsman." I said to Sayaka. She didn"t question my intention. I drew up a blueprint for a dagger with a retractable blade. I might need this in the future so I might as well have it made.

"Is this a weapon, my princess?" She asked. I nodded and handed it to her.

"Tell the craftsman to make this for me but to immediately dispose of this drawing when he"s done." Sayaka held the scroll in her hands as I handed her a bag of gold coins to pay for it.

"Princess, what do you plan on doing with this?" She asked.

"It"s just for emergencies. Just in case what happened today happens again." I answered. She nodded and went out of my room. Tomorrow, Sayaka will be able to go into town. The sooner that weapon is done, the better.

Morning came and Sayaka left after breakfast. While waiting for her to come back, I decided to go out to the garden to meditate for a bit. I was walking past the kitchen when I heard voices gossiping.

"I found a weird looking fish in the trash last time I took out it out." One of the servants said. They didn"t seem to notice my presence.

"What fish? No one is allowed to serve fish here." the other answered. It"s because of me that"s why but how did they manage to sneak a fish in here if that"s the case?

"I"m sure of it. It was skinned but I could still make out the tail and the head." She said.

"I heard there was someone who came in the kitchen last time and prepared a dish that poisoned the princess." The other said. The rumors must have been circulating around the palace.

"No there wasn"t. I know that because I was in the kitchen for the whole day when the princess was poisoned. And I think I can remember when something like fish were to be brought here when I see it. Especially something as weird as the one I found." The other said. Huh? Then who circulated the rumor that someone was here? I need to make sure that what these servants are saying are true.

"Maybe you didn"t see the fish being prepared here? I mean, you did see it in the trash, right?" One said. She does make a good point.

"Maybe, but I"m sure that no one in the kitchen was new that time." She defended. Then that proves it then. n.o.body from the kitchen was out of place meaning it couldn"t have been from this kitchen. I walked away from the kitchen when I was sure about my deduction. I wasn"t paying much attention when I arrived at the garden. I didn"t realize I was already by the pond and I almost fell in.

"That was close." I muttered to myself. I took a step back and noticed something in the pond. What is that? I knelt down beside it and took a closer look. Is that a pufferfish? I decided to drop a rock next to it to see if it"ll puff up. Much to my surprise, it did.

"Now I know where they got the fish then." I said. It wasn"t just one pufferfish too. It was like a whole school was in the pond. Well, it"ll be easier for me to get one now that I know there are some here. I went back to my room to plan ahead. I"m not getting anywhere with my investigation and I need some clues. I stayed in the garden for a while before I returned to my room. Sayaka wasn"t back yet and I was getting impatient. I couldn"t try and escape since Eiji"s men are guarding me.

"Princess, I"m back!" Sayaka burst through the door. I quickly got up from my bed and went to her.

"Did you find someone?" I asked. She nodded vigorously.

"He said I"ll be able to get the finished product by next week." Sayaka said. If I could get the weapon in a week then I"ll have to make use of Eiji"s guards" protection. There"s no telling what else Maeko is up to and what she"s capable of. Especially with that masked man"s help.

"Sayaka, I was wondering, where did you hear that rumor about some unknown person in the kitchen preparing fish for me?" I asked. I need to know who was brazen enough to spread a false rumor of my poisoning in the palace.

"I heard it from one of the servants of the general. She was so sure about what she saw that I had to believe her." Sayaka said. I knew my father was somehow involved in this but I didn"t think the rumors would start with him. What"s so important about me?

"Sayaka, I"m not a princess, right? But why do people treat me as a princess?" I asked. I knew it was something about an oracle but I believe it"s not as simple as that. Something about who I really am has something to do with why people try to kill me.

"I"m sorry princess but I can"t tell you about it because I don"t know much about it either. But I can take you to the temple where the oracle is written. Maybe you can understand it better." Sayaka said. I agreed with her suggestion.

"Okay, let"s go to the temple tomorrow." I said. What is this oracle that just about everyone in my family has become so frazzled and disoriented that they"re willing to kill me.

After dinner, I didn"t expect Eiji would come and visit me. I was caught by surprise when he appeared by my door.

"Eiji? What are you doing here?" I asked. He just smiled at me and entered my room.

"How are you feeling? I heard from my guards that you went to the garden today. That"s good! You should walk around more so that your body heals faster." He kept talking even when I wasn"t answering. He"s being really pushy about himself.

"Eiji, this is getting tiring. What is really your intention? Why are you here at this time? Why do you keep pestering me?" I lost control. I didn"t mean to be so uptight about it but he annoys me to no end and I still have that suspicious feeling in the pit of my stomach. I shouldn"t have revealed my cards like this.

"I"m sorry if I"m being annoying, Sayori." He held my hands and looked into my eyes.

"I"m just worried about you, that"s all. What happened to you about the poisoning and now someone"s trying to kidnap you, it"s all got me in a bind. I don"t want you to get hurt." He said. I couldn"t find a hint of doubt in his words. But why don"t I seem to trust him? Eiji pulled me in for a hug and I just let him be. I put my hand on his back and gave him a light tap.

"It"s fine Eiji. I"m just not used to the attention." I said. His expression softened and he placed a soft kiss on my hand.

"Well then, get used to it because from now on, I will shower you with all of my affection." He said without blinking. I immediately shook my head.

"No! I mean you don"t have to." I tried to stop him but it looks like he finally set his mind on it. He pulled me towards him and wrapped me in a tight embrace. I tried pushing him away but he didn"t budge. It"d be hard for me to keep investigating if he"s always on my back. I have to find a way to keep him busy.

"It"s getting late my princess and you need some rest. I"ll leave you be but I"ll come back to visit you tomorrow." He said. I sighed and ushered him to the door. Before leaving, he planted a kiss on my hand. I faked a smile so that he wouldn"t suspect me of anything.

"Goodnight!" I said with a cheerful tone. He waved goodbye as he left. I immediately went back to my room and punched my pillow until I was satisfied. Darn that Eiji! He"s getting in the way of my plans.

The following day, Sayaka and I went to the temple as promised. On the way there, Eiji"s men were following behind us. Eiji"s bound to find out about my visit but what interests me more is his reaction. I wonder what he"ll think of my visit.

"We"re here, Princess." The driver announced. Sayaka helped me down and we entered the temple. It was just a simple temple, much like any other but something about its aura is different. Once I stepped inside it, I had a strange feeling all over my body.

"Welcome." One of the monks came out and welcomed us.

"I a.s.sumed you"re here to take a look at the oracle." He said. Sayaka and I looked at each other. My eyes darted back to the monk.

"Yes, I"m here to see for myself the oracle about me." I said. He didn"t answer. He just motioned for me to follow him.

"Princess, I"ll stay here." Sayaka said. I nodded and followed after the monk. He led me through a hallway that was lit by torches on the wall. The hallway ended up in a room that was isolated from the whole temple. It only had one window and that"s where the light comes in. There wouldn"t be light in here after the sun sets.

"In the altar is where the scroll filled with the G.o.ds proclamation can be found." He said as he pointed to the altar where I can find the scroll that I"m looking for. I made my way in front of it and my eyes immediately darted to the scroll in the hands of the statue of Amaterasu, the G.o.ddess of the sun.

My fingers trembled as I struggled to open the scroll to reveal its secrets. As my eyes laid upon the contents of the scroll, I felt as if I went into a daze. My vision became blurry and I felt my body become light. Flashes of memories popped in and out of my head.

[Flashback]

"On this day, a child would be born to hold the t.i.tle as Princess and will be crowned as such. The people among this child will walk the same fate." The oracle was said to be sent from the heavens. From the day I was born, I"ve been bearing this fate.

"Sayori, always remember that Mom loves you so much. Don"t forget, okay?" I saw my mother"s face as she handed something to me. Mom? Why are you telling me this? You promised you won"t leave me. Why did you break your promise?

"Always remember to trust yourself. Don"t let anyone sow doubt in you." Mom"s voice started to fade. I tried grasping for her but there was only air in between my fingers. I ran out of the room and that"s when I realized I shouldn"t have left because if I didn"t then you wouldn"t have either.

"Sayori, you"ll be moving in my Palace." Father said. It hasn"t even been a day since mother died. I haven"t mourned her death yet and now you want me to leave her?

"No! I won"t go with you." I said. But father slapped my face, carrying his point across. I had no right to decline. Without even having a word in it, I was transferred to the Palace.

"Princess, it"s me, Eiji. From now on, I"ll be the one to take care of you." It"s him again. I could feel my face getting hotter whenever he"s near me. He"s very nice, I hope I could be his friend.

[End of Flashback]

"Princess!" I woke up to the sound of Sayaka"s voice. I didn"t realize that I had fallen unconscious.

"What happened?" I asked. Sayaka looked worried and I could tell I was unconscious for quite a while. She helped me get back up on my feet.

"You collapsed all of a sudden and the monk called me in to help you. I was so worried." Sayaka said. Although, I don"t know what happened but I do know something a little bit more about the oracle. Fragments of Sayori"s memory flashed in my head and it helped me understand the situation a little bit. Even though there weren"t as much clues about my poisoning than I expected, there"s still some information that I can use.