Night Hunters

Chapter Nine: Welcome Back

It is written in an untidy scrawl—so unlike Midorima's usual neat and calligraphy-like handwriting in all his notes to her—even the notes that he'd often slipped into her locker during their Academy days. The words seemed to be written in a foreign language to anyone, but Tamaki knew better. She knew that it is written in code. In a type of code that only Midorima and Tamaki knew, as they've created that code during their days in the Academy.

Tamaki managed to decipher the code almost instantly the moment that she'd seen what Midorima had written. Her heart clenched in grief, and she closed her eyes briefly. Tamaki tried to push away her grief; she knows that there is time to grieve for the dead later.

Only two sentences are written on the note in code. And apparently, Midorima had scribbled it in a hurry.

Rakuzan Villa. Save the Prince.

XXXXXX

It was just a little after daybreak when Tamaki arrived at the edge of the forest where Rakuzan Villa is located.

Not many actually knew that this place even existed, let alone the villa. The late king and queen have actually built this place years ago as a place to 'hold' the Red King as a child. Tamaki knew about it because her father had mentioned it to her in passing years ago, and had even pointed it out to her on a map when she was young.

Tamaki's father had been an excellent soldier—one of the best in all of the Royal Guard. And like most of the members from Tamaki's clan, her father had been a brilliant strategist and an even better fighter. He had taught his daughter everything that he knew, even the fighting techniques of their clan, even learning how to plot and plan out strategies and tactics of every kind possible.

Tamaki's parents are probably one of the few that actually knew about the existence of the Red King—the legitimate Crown Prince. At least until it had been proven that he is unfit to take the throne.

Tamaki's father had never agreed with the decision to imprison the Red King after the public announcement of the Crown Prince when the royal twins have turned five. But at least they've never tried to kill him. Instead, they've just placed him in a place near the borders of the Teiko Kingdom that no one even knew existed, trying to ignore his existence.

Tamaki is probably the only child at that time apart from her cousin that even knew of the Red King's existence. Her father had taught her everything that she had ever known, and everything that he had known, even leaving behind a stack of journals just before he'd gone to war in case he never returned. And in one of those journals, Tamaki's father had written that he had been one of the two soldiers sent to 'escort' the Red King to the Rakuzan Villa.

The other soldier had been someone whom the late royal couple had trusted with their lives, and he had been assigned to guard the Red King until the end of his life, making sure that he never leaves the Rakuzan Villa, and that no one stumbles across him. Food and necessities were sent to Rakuzan Villa under the cover of night throughout all these years for the Red King—a duty that had been undertaken by Tamaki's father.

In one of his journals that held a vivid description of the Red King's growing up years, Tamaki's father had expressed regret that he had to see a child grow up as a prisoner through no fault of his own. However, he had agreed with the royal couple as much that the Red King is in no way suitable to take the throne.

And honestly, Tamaki had agreed with her father. If there is anyone to blame for the Red King having turned out the way he is today, it is with the older generation—the late royal couple. It might have actually been a kinder fate to kill him when he was a child.