**mature content warning**
Jiritsu Capital Fortress, Jiritsu
"You smell like sex." Setsu said with a sly grin the moment he saw Takumi at breakfast.
Takumi refused to make eye contact with his mentor and after some unsuccessful probing and questioning, Setsu then told him that today he had planned something special for them. Something fun.
Hours later, Takumi still felt awkward and vaguely violated. He had not expected after his first night of passion with Tomomi, that Setsu would somehow be able to tell something was different. Somehow it made sense that he would pick up on it.
Hormones, or something.
Before lunch was served it seemed like everyone in Nisshoku knew and he felt utterly mortified. Not just for himself, but for Tomomi if they had figured out he had been with her that night. He had made such a firm decision not to kiss and tell about his first time, but it had left his control already.
Now, slightly dizzy with nerves, he was sitting in the smoky brothel down the hill in town with the others, surrounded by more bare breasts and buttocks than he had ever seen in his life. His face burned, but there was nowhere he could look that was safe.
Takumi took solace in knowing that at least Chikuroshi was unhappy to be there too, even when he had a gorgeous Jiritsu woman in a tiny thong literally sitting in his lap asking him about his swords.
Oh no, Takumi thought to himself. That's a euphemism, isn't it?
"You're perfect for him." Shirono smirked, clearly sniggering at Chikuroshi's expense. "And you." he added, looking back to the perky breasts of the petite young woman straddling his legs. "You're for me."
The girls lead them away to the same suite, the swordsman walking as slowly and stiffly as any man could. The same suite? Shirono really seemed to relish torturing him in new and creative ways, making Takumi shudder.
"Takumi." Setsu said, pulling his attention back to the room. "Pick someone already, before all the best ones are gone."
"I'm fine." Takumi said immediately.
"Would you rather go next door?" his mentor asked.
"What's next door?"
"Men. And all those in between. I'll go with you."
"Oh. No thank you. I'm fine, really."
Two women walked passed them, jingling from the fine chains arranged like lace draped around their hips. They took in the room and one whispered something that made the other giggle girlishly. He wondered if they were looking at the coins he had in his pocket.
Someone must have told the women in the brothel who they were, because it seemed that every worker there was being sure to make themselves seen. Perhaps it was their jackets.
Women of all shapes, sizes and ages floated around, smoking pipes and eating fruit. Some had piercings and tattoos. All of them were cooing invitations softly, saccharine sweet.
A lady in her twenties sat down on the plush chaise lounge next to Takumi, making the move to stretch her legs out and tussle her hair in front of him. She was very pretty, with long black hair reaching her curvaceous hips. Her eyes were painted dark and smoky with black and navy blue. The glint of jewellery drew his eyes to her ample breasts and he pulled his gaze away so hard it almost hurt his neck.
"It doesn't cost anything to look, sweetheart." she said with a sly smile. She pushed her chest together to emphasise her assets. "Seen anyone you like yet?"
"I, uh..."
"First timer?" she asked.
Takumi's face must have betrayed him.
"Come with me. I love first timers."
Setsu raised his eyebrows at him and before he knew it, the woman had taken his hand and was leading him away. He looked back, feeling genuine panic now, and could only see the remaining Nisshoku members getting 'acquainted' with their girls. Setsu shot him a quick thumbs up before disappearing after a bustle skirt.
The young woman closed the door with a sultry bump of her hip. Takumi stepped backwards until the bed frame was against the back of his legs. It was a low frame, a number of boxes tucked neatly underneath. The sheets were crisp and clean, a sunny yellow linen.
"So," she said in a silky low voice. "Tell me what you're into."
"I don't know." Takumi said honestly. "I don't really know why I'm here, to be honest."
She seemed to be a little confused, then sighed, putting her hands on her hips.
"Did you friends drag you here?" she asked.
"More or less. They all found out I like a girl who works at the castle, so I think they're trying to 'coax me into manhood' by bringing me here."
He involuntarily sighed.
"That's pretty mean of them." the woman said after a moment. "How old are you?"
"Still seventeen."
She shook her head.
"Peer pressure is harder to handle when you're young. I'm sorry they're trying to coerce you into your first time."
"It's not my first time." Takumi answered before thinking. He had to change the subject. "How am I going to get them off my back without being unfaithful to the girl I like?"
"You don't have to do anything you don't want to." she said earnestly. She started to think, frowning in concentration. Soon she had a plan.
She leaned in so not to be overheard.
"Bounce on the bed with me." she said quietly.
"What for?" he whispered back.
"We have to make some noise, or it'll be obvious." she explained.
"Right. Got it."
The two of them stood on the bed, the soft mattress forcing them to hold the bed posts for support. Takumi took the initiative to jump first. He felt ridiculous, but thankfully, so did she. They clutched their hands over their mouths as they jumped on the bed like children, trying to restrain their laughter.
"So you like someone?" she asked, just loud enough to be heard over the creaking bed.
"Yeah."
"Who?"
"She's a maid."
"Aw, that's cute."
"I'm so sorry about all this."
"Don't worry. It's my job to make sure you leave happy."
"I really appreciate it."
After a little while they decided to stop bouncing. She went to the mirror and wiped off her peach colour lipstick to only leave a light stain. She ruffled his hair and clothes a little, redoing the knot of his black belt. She looked him over, deciding if she was satisfied with their illusion.
"Um... what do I owe you?" Takumi asked awkwardly, not sure where this arrangement had left him.
"Just pay me half. I'll say you were so good I gave you a discount."
Takumi laughed a little, handing over the coins. She led him out to the waiting room, then placed a big kiss on his cheek.
"For being a gentleman." she said, before taking her leave to the washing room that leaked wisps of steam under the door.
Tomomi's family arrived early the next day with the other families hoping to take on castle roles. The sister was the spitting image of her, easily related. The mother and father were practically dressed in rags. Their cotton robes looked like they had once been quite smart, but were easily as old as their daughters. They needed a better life.
Much to Takumi's delight, he saw her family of four pass through the selection process.They stole a glance in the early morning light and Takumi's heart swelled. He was so happy things were working out.
Takumi stood awkwardly next to Setsu as the other families came into the courtyard to be processed, wishing he could slip away to see Tomomi. He recognised the houndmaster and the falconer, and soon learned that the stable master was a brother of theirs too.
The woman who headed the family was a lively older lady who was hunched and weathered like an ancient tree. She had a birth certificate for each child and a paper for each marriage, including those of any grandchildren. She was playing the game to her advantage. The spouses and children were not in line with her, no doubt waiting somewhere in the line up outside to be told they were clear to go.
Setsu was armed with a notebook, wax and seal, and the patience of a saint. He was somehow remaining his composure as streams of people stacked their paperwork on his table. He turned away plenty of families for not meeting Taisho's criteria.
Not surprisingly, no one caused very much of a fuss while Hanto was in view. He was not cut out for paperwork at all, as Hanto could neither read nor write any language the local populus could understand. He and Shirono stood to the side to confront anyone who became rowdy, talking quietly but crudely judging by their frequent outbursts of raucous laughter.
No doubt Shirono was educated enough to man a desk, but Takumi got the feeling he had foisted the responsibility off onto Chikuroshi. The swordsman was working swiftly and silently at his own work station.
Orojidai sat at the last remaining table there in the courtyard. Akiraoni was nowhere to be seen, probably for the best. Between the three of their stations, they were making slow progress. Perhaps Taisho was in no hurry.
"All my children." said the old woman in a proud, croaky voice. She gestured to a line of eleven, four sons and seven daughters. "All mine."
"And you're a Collector?" Setsu asked, brush pen hovering over his record.
"Yes, yes." she said, waving her hand as if it were obvious.
She gestured to one of her daughters who produced a wooden box. She opened it to reveal rows of wooden frames, each housing dozens of wriggly silkworms sitting atop mulberry leaves. When the lid was off, the worms stopped eating and rose up on their hind legs to stare at her.
"I control silkworms." the old lady said. "They make the best silk, very fast, even in winter! My sons here control dogs, horses, falcons. My twin daughters,"
She pointed to two of them in the line.
"They control bees. We always have good honey, flowers and crops. My blood is strong!"
The charisma on this septuagenarian was amazing.
"You're damn right it is." Setsu said, eyeing the three Collector brothers again. The highlight of his day was that there was an additional brother. "Do you have their birth papers?"
Onto the desk went eleven birth certificates, the related marriage certificates and her own three marriage certificates were stacked. Setsu checked over each one, making sure each was authentic. He wrote down the names of the married children and their partners in his notebook, then tore out the page.
Takumi watched him, feeling a little unnecessary in the whole process. This elderly lady shone with confidence and pride.
"My children work very hard." the old lady was saying. "I raised them right. You'll see!"
"I'm sure I will." Setsu replied, handing the stack of paper back, each with a beautiful wax insignia pressed into it. He put the note page on top. "Since you all live here now. Someone will show you to your new homes, just head back outside and show someone in uniform the seal of approval. You can pick up your children's partners too."
"Thank you, thank you!" the old lady said, bowing as much as her hunched frame would let her. They bustled out, looking for their spouses and in-laws.
"How long do we have to do this for?" Takumi asked Setsu.
"Until it's dark or the line ends." Setsu muttered.
"Where will the new staff's families live?" he asked.
"The new heads of staff are going to move into the old concubine quarters, since there are no more concubines. The maids and cooks are staying put in the building by the back gates. The rest are down the hill in a hamlet. We're going to be moving too, into the old royal heirs' building and their gardens."
The old royal heirs' building. Where Taisho may have grown up.
As the day wore on Takumi thanked the gods the snow was melting. Now they were turning away half of the families that came to plead for entry with them. Every blood relative who could get there was trying their best to find a reason to work at the castle.
He wondered how many people were hurriedly getting traditional marriages in their hometowns to grant their common law partners permission to stay. Families with Collector heritage were coming from all over Jiritsu, and some even across the waters, to find a better life under a fairer ruler.
The day was dragging on now, the shadows growing longer. The more he thought about the situation, the more questions Takumi had that he could not ask. Maybe the true Collector families were first in line in their haste to leave their old lives behind, because now he and Setsu were turning away most of the people who came. They could either not prove their powers or their paperwork was inconclusive. There had to be a Collector mother or grandmother with you if you were just a plain old human.
Children with powers were able to sway the lines, Setsu said to him, because they were either spontaneously born a Collector or they must have inherited it from a deceased grandmother. Their parents and siblings could stay, but no one else.
The day only became interesting when a message carrier came to the gate carrying a gold rimmed scroll sheath. Orojidai addressed him, reading the scroll. He said something to the messenger and then approached Takumi.
"Run inside and tell Taisho that our neighbours to the south have requested an audience with him."
"Al- alright." Takumi stuttered, hopping up from the table.
He rushed through the fortress, up to the palace in the heart of the structure. He went up the stairs, passed the library and up to Taisho's quarters. Akiraoni's shoes were still outside his door. Taisho's sliding door was open an inch or so. Takumi knocked on the door gently.
"Yes, Takumi?" Taisho said. "Come in."
"Taisho, sir." he said, pushing the door open.
Amakaya and Taisho were sitting at a mirrored dressing table. He was sliding a comb with deep red gemstones into her hair as she painted her lips like a pale pink blossom. She looked extremely tired, so tired she did not even acknowledge Takumi.
"There's a messenger from the south here asking to see you. Orojidai sent me to tell you."
Taisho stroked Amakaya's hair before answering.
"I'll be down shortly." he said. "Thank you, Takumi. You may go."
Takumi headed back more slowly, not eager to go back to the desk. He told Orojidai that Taisho was on his way and within the next few minutes, Taisho appeared in the doorway of the courtyard.
"Let them in." he commanded.
Hanto opened the main gates single handedly. There were six ornate carriages and a dozen armoured men on horseback waiting to be let in. They looked confused at the lineup of peasant families and rode right passed them, right up to the steps leading to the palace door.
"Honourable lord," the herald said. "May I present the chosen envoys of the southern nations of Tsugaru, Saikaido, and Futana."
Six men disembarked their carriages, each with distinct royal insignias on their clothes. Aside from the colours of their silks, their dress was very similar all around.
Takumi knew there were three islands south of Jiritsu. The nations had united generations ago, but Jiritsu had stubbornly held onto their autonomy. With a new ruler, it was obviously time yet again for them to propose unity with their inflexible neighbours to the north.
"Good day to you, Esteemed Lord." said the man who clearly was the most important, as he had the largest and most elaborate fur hat Takumi had ever seen. "We bring before you the most beautiful, eligible daughters from the royal families of the three nations. We present them to you for your consideration as concubines and future wives, as is our shared custom."
The carriage doors reopened and their precious cargo floated down the steps. The girls were lined up silently, their powdered white faces and dark lined eyes cast down and on bended knees so that their beautiful robes pooled around their feet like rainbow waterfalls into an oasis below.
For some of the women, all from one region, the expansive lapels of their pastel wrap-around skirts coiled around their bodies three times, cutting across their waists where it was tied off with braided silk ropes and jade ornaments. Red details were painted on the high points of their faces and they all had a matching white comb in their hair amongst their individual ornaments.
Another group wore a similar silhouette, though it was clearly a two-piece affair with a muted colour skirt and jewel-tone blouse, contrasting geometric patterns on one garment to the natural themes of the other. Their faces had soft black contours in the hollows of their cheeks and bold scarlet lips.
The last style was more similar to Jiritsu dress and makeup, boxier seams with more straight lines, all held together with sashes over their breasts rather than under. All of those women had embroidered silver cranes on their almost floor length, rectangular sleeves and on the decorations nestled into their hair. They looked a lot like Tomomi, if she had been rolled in precious metals and jewels.
Takumi felt his stomach twist a little, doing some mental mathematics. These ladies had to be around the same age as him, though with their mask-like makeup he could be wrong. The young women could be anywhere between fifteen and twenty five.
Taisho said he had left his family almost fifty years ago, and he could hardly have been an infant when he left. If he was as confident in the past as he was today, he might have left home around fifteen. That still made him around sixty five years old. He was old enough to be their fathers. Such an arrangement had to be morally wrong.
Taisho's face moved uncomfortably, looking up and down the line of bowing daughters. Their eyes remained down.
"I have no need for concubines." he said in a low voice.
The noblemen regarded him with obvious confusion.
Perhaps this usually worked, Takumi thought. Maybe this was the first time anyone had rejected their rulers' peace offerings. The conversation had ended before it even started.
"Great Lord Taisho," one man spoke up. He had the second or third most fancy hat, in Takumi's opinion. "A powerful man simply must have concubines to assure his lineage. The women before you are not only exceptionally well bred, but they are skilled in conversation, performance arts, languages, politics, history, and etiquette. Their families, as well as ours, will be powerful allies. The exchange of concubines is a time-honoured peace treaty."
"I have a wife." Taisho said plainly. "I have never had a need for concubines."
"Have you any children?" the man asked.
"Come, sit in my dining hall." Taisho said, ignoring the intrusive question and gesturing towards the private dining room. "Let us discuss our relations."
The envoys agreed, their women following silently behind. Taisho sat at the head of the table, Amakaya to his side looking as delicate and as beautiful as always.
She looked especially pale and wintery today, swathed in white and champagne traditional Jiritsu silks. Dark garnet and creamy pearl jewellery studded her ashy brown hair, which was pinned up in imitation of the local style adapted for her wavy locks. The look of dread on her face was palpable as she sat in the head wife's chair at the table.
She was looking at the young noblewomen, fear in her eyes.
The rest of Nisshoku took their seats, each pair sitting opposite their partner. Shirono was facing Chikuroshi, Hanto faced Kizana, and so on. Setsu took his chair opposite Takumi, his pretty face inquisitive to see where this would go next. Orojidai and Akiraoni sat closest to Taisho, though no one was facing Amakaya. The chair was empty. Takumi still had not heard anything about that final member who was supposed to be joining them.
One Taisho was clearly intent on keeping close.
"Now," Taisho said, interlocking his fingers on the table. "You have come here under the impression that I am following in the footsteps of my father. He had many concubines and wives. I have no interest in imitating the old man. As lovely as your princesses are, I prefer true quality over quantity."
He looked to Amakaya at his side.
"Amakaya. Stand."
She rose stiffly from her chair on command. The layers of the Jiritsu royal court dress were heavy and cumbersome, but they were designed to be beautiful, not practical. The pristine white and champagne colours of her chrysanthemum patterned layers emphasised her separation from anything that might dirty her hands.
"Remove your clothes." Taisho said. Though his voice was soft, it was an illusion. This was a command. "Walk down the table."
Takumi half expected her to refuse. Was he serious?
Could she actually say no?
But then she reached for her silk bow. After several pulls of the fabric, her sash fell away, followed by the hidden ties underneath. Her finery drifted open down the middle revealing her burgundy undergarments, a sleeveless slip tied under her bust with a ribbon. Amakaya stepped out of her lacquered wood shoes. She shifted off her robes and they fell into her chair heavily. Then she reached for the bow of her slip.
Takumi looked down at the table cloth. He had no idea what to do. He saw Setsu was watching the noblemen with a sly smirk on his pretty face.
Shirono was looking right at her. He looked as pleased as he did in the brothel, knowing someone else was uncomfortable. Then, Takumi looked at Chikuroshi. The swordsman was staring at his master, his brows furrowed ever so slightly. Enough to convey a deep rage from an otherwise stoic person.
Takumi looked back down, focusing extremely hard on the patterns in the table cloth. He heard the slip fall to the floor in the deafeningly quiet dining room. He stared into the table cloth even harder.
He heard her step up onto the table from her chair. He prayed to any higher power who might be listening that someone would intervene. That she would not have to do this. He even prayed to the Old ones with negative sounding names.
No one answered his call.
With a defiant look on her face, Amakaya walked down the table in front of the sea of gawking eyes. Takumi saw her bare feet walk passed him.
His eyes flickered upwards, a morbid, curious impulse bypassing his rational senses. Before he averted his eyes again, he saw the smooth curves of her pale thighs, the roundness of her buttocks and hips. Her hourglass figure burned into his mind, something he should never have seen. She was so beautiful, like a sacred statue. Something no mortal should stare at.
Takumi berated himself for looking, for becoming another leering face in the crowd consuming her nakedness.
"Tell me, gentlemen," Taisho said from the far end of the table. "Why would I need consorts or concubines when I have this image of perfection all to myself?"
Glancing to his side, Takumi saw even the elaborately adorned young women brought to the palace were staring at Amakaya, some of them dumbstruck by her jaw dropping beauty.
The noblemen did not speak, dumbstruck between Taisho's audacity and the nude woman standing on the end of the table.
"While I understand your concerns for a man's lineage," Taisho continued. "I assure you, things far greater than your mortal concerns are afoot. I will let you leave this time. However, if you dare compare your chattel to the most beautiful woman in the world ever again, you will not be so fortunate. Now leave."
The nobles and their women left the castle as fast as they could in silence. No one dared evoke Taisho's wrath, regardless of how mistreated they felt. Their bribes had failed. They were not dealing with an ordinary man.
Taisho wrapped the topmost layer of her robes back around Amakaya. She was either shivering from the cold or shaking with emotion, biting back tears from having been paraded like a carnal trophy. He marched her back to their quarters, still barefoot and quivering.
Later in the library selecting some books before going to bed, Takumi heard the unmistakable sound of a bed creaking, just like back at the brothel.
Then, the thudding started. Then... crying? Or moaning?
"Someone's having a good time." Setsu said, curled up under a throw blanket in a pillowy chair and hardly looking up from his book of erotic tales.
Takumi was unsure if that was what a good time sounded like. Tomomi did not sound like that.
A cracking noise drew his attention to Chikuroshi. The swordsman was stone faced, but his knuckles were bone white in clenched rage.
Takumi lay awake that night, totally unaware of how to process what he had heard. How to read the swordsman's reaction. He felt naive and dreaded the thought of upsetting their leader by asking inappropriate questions. He would be overstepping himself. He tried to justify it.
Amakaya was Taisho's wife. If she did not love him, she would not be married to him. Just like Chikuroshi would not serve Shirono if he did not respect him.
Right?