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

front, leading the way  to the big gate. She called Gyousou to enter Houro Palace.
    "Now then, what happened exactly?" asked Teiei as she walking upon the winding paths.
    "The taming took quite a while..."
    Teiei opened her eyes wide, and from Youka to all the nyosen that followed behind, there rose a  commotion after they heard these words.
    "Tame? Are you referring to Taiki?"
    "I know about the Kou not having his own shirei."
    "Yes... That's right. But this matter..."
    "You need not worry. I will not divulge this information. Moreover, this matter is not a disgrace for  Tai, but one worthy of pride, because the Kou already has a shirei."
    Teiei glanced at the smiling Gyousou and then looked at Taiki. "So..."
    "He has very successfully subdued a shirei. He confronted his opposition all the way from daybreak  until just a short while ago."
    Teiei released a deep sigh, as if she had just put down a heavy burden. "So that's how it was... I  blamed you for this, even before I understood the circumstances. I'm very sorry. Please forgive me."
    "That's not necessary." Gyousou laughed and looked down at the child in his arms. He didn't know if  it was because Taiki was so tired, but as he was sleeping, his color looked a bit unhealthy. However, this  would not have too big an impact. He simply needed to get some rest, and he will have recovered after he  woke up.

    Since Taiki could already subdue youma, then transformation shouldn't be any problem for him. The  Mt. Hou Kou was not injured and there wasn't anything to be worried about, so words of comfort were  unnecessary here.
    "I suppose it is a good thing..."
    "He is a worthy black kirin... Unexpectedly, he has tamed a toutetsu."
    Teiei immediately turned back to look at Gyousou. "What did you just say?"
    "I said that he has subdued a toutetsu to become his shirei."
    "How can that be...?"
    From within the nyosen came sounds of surprise.
    This was simply impossible. Because there was no way for toutetsu to become shirei, and they were  even much less a youma that could be tamed by a kirin.
    "I am also very surprised." Gyousou's line of sight fell upon the child in his arms. Taiki was sleeping  very deeply; even his eyelashes didn't move.
    "This time, it was by chance that he was able to open his eyes. At the very least, he is letting us know  that he is not an ordinary kirin. Gradually, he will let us all see his abilities."
    "Excuse me?"
    "If you feel that what I say is disagreeable, then I ask that you forgive me. I have no secret intentions.
    It is just that he possesses such a great power, but is unaware of it. It's a little worrisome."
    Teiei wrinkled her brow again.
    "To take advantage of this situation to help him cultivate self-confidence would not necessarily be a  bad thing. He put his life on the line to protect me. Had I not been there for him to protect, he might not have  put in as much energy as he did. This could be very dangerous for him."
    "Yes..."
    "He has such strength, but not the slightest ambition. Is there some other reason for his lack of  confidence? But regardless, his development in the future will cause both happiness and sorrow."
    "Thank you for caring so much about him."
    "This is as it should be... Perhaps I am only a person of Tai Kingdom who should not be saying such  things, but I really think that if it is possible, it may be best for the Kou to live on Mt. Hou for a while  longer. That would do him good."
    Teiei looked unwaveringly at Gyousou. He understood the situation very well. It was a pity that a  revelation did not accompany this sort of person.
    Gyousou looked at the child in his arms. "He is a remarkable kirin... It really is regrettable."

Chapter 10
    "Madam Risai, are you feeling better?" Taiki poked his head into the tent and saw Risai sit up.
    "...Kou."
    Because it was long distance travel, there was a limit to the number of attendants one could bring.
    Thus, they had to think about how many of their belongings they could take along with them, and their tents  could not be prepared too comfortably. The equipment in the tents were very simple, and most of the things  that are brought out would probably be daily living necessities. However, the weather on Mt. Hou was pretty  good, so the tents were pitched with a thinner cloth material. Though this was the case, the interior did feel  very spacious, and there were no worries about those from the outside seeing inside of the tent.
    Originally lying