Sea of the Wind, Shore of the Maze, Chapter 7

that Taiki probably shared feelings similar to him as well.
    Gyousou could hardly even believe the things he had seen. He began to hold in astonishment the  child in front of him.

    "Thank you for saving my life."
    "No..." Taiki shook his head. If it were not for Gyousou supporting him from behind, he probably  would have been very quickly swallowed by Gouran's ambition.
    If Taiki had been dejected at that time, Gyousou would probably have lost even his life. However, in  order to obtain the state of mind not to escape and to stay where he was, it required a courage and wisdom  that surpassed those of other people.
    "I should be the one thanking you... Sir Gyousou...you are amazing..."
    "Please save that talk for yourself." Gyousou smiled. He combed Taiki's sweat-drenched hair with his  hand. "Really incredible...that Tai Kingdom is protected by so great a kirin."
    Taiki looked at the man in front of him, whose eyes were emanating a warmth.
    (It is absolutely true; I really am a kirin...)
    The hands that were holding Taiki tightly were really very gentle, but deep inside his heart, he was  unable to cheer up.
    (I am certain... Gyousou is not the king...)
    "Ah! Just what was going on?" Teiei bit her hard fingernails and Youka's face was pale as she stood  at one side.
    "Has Madam Risai woken up?"
    The faces on Risai's attendants were all helpless.
    At daybreak, the nin'you had brought back an unconscious Risai, whose wounds on her entire body  were horrible to look at. After the nin'you had set Risai down, she didn't explain anything at all, immediately  disappearing without a trace.
    This kind of situation was hard to deal with even without the all the noise the nyosen were making.
    Risai, who had originally been entrusted with a great responsibility, was now sinking into a coma. By dusk,  she had still not awakened.
    "It was because we believed in Madam Risai, so we agreed to Taiki accompanying her. Now, Risai  has come back, but we have not seen heads or tails of Taiki. What has happened?"
    No matter how much they grumbled, Risai still did not move and did not respond.
    "If by chance something unfortunate did happen, neither Risai nor us nyosen could live on so  shamefully in this world." Just as the nyosen were reproaching themselves, they suddenly heard a loud noise.
    "What was that?" Teiei looked around. Amongst the nyosen one of them pointed to the distance.
    "Teiei! Look, a sugu is coming!"
    "...Sir Gyousou!"
    Under the light of the sun, they could only see a white light on top of the sugu, which was flying  slowly towards them. Following the sugu was a tenba. One of Risai's attendants cried out. "Hien!"
    They only saw Hien and a beast with a tail that was long like a whip flying past a nearby tent, and  stopping soundlessly next to a group of people. The crowd saw Gyousou sitting on top of the sugu and the  figure of a child laying in his arms, and all of them sent out sounds of welcome without exception.
    "Gyousou!" Teiei parted the crowd as she ran to the sugu's side. "What has happened?"

    Teiei shouted. Gyousou faced her wordlessly.
    "Taiki..."
    "He's asleep. He is perfectly all right, not a wound on him."
    At hearing Gyousou say this, Teiei silently leaned forward. She saw the child in Gyousou's arms  presently sleeping soundly, without any injuries on his body that were cause to worry, and there were  certainly far from any signs of suffering in his appearance. With great difficulty, Teiei breathed a sigh of  relief. "As long as he's all right..."
    Gyousou carried Taiki down from his mount. "If it's convenient, I'll just take him like this into the  palace to rest."
    "Before that, I would like you to give me an explanation of what happened. We'll see if you can,  depending on that."
    Gyousou smiled and said, "The Kou is very tired. He probably fell asleep during the ride back on the  sugu."
    "You have been away until this late... I requested that you bring Taiki back before the afternoon. This  could cause resentment!"
    "I'm very sorry, but we should take him back to the palace first. I don't think that you could bear to  wake him. Then shortly thereafter, I will give you an explanation." It seemed as though there were other  implications in Gyousou's words. Teiei looked all around her and discovered that the people surrounding  them all carried lively expressions. She had no choice but to nod.
    "...All right. Then, please." Teiei urged the nyosen to depart and walked in the