The Twelve Kingdoms: A Thousand Leagues of Wind

party was a group of three men. They looked across the wide boulevard, the confusion evident on their faces. "Is this Meikaku?"
    "Supposedly."
    "I've never seen a capital city this empty. You two from here?"
    Youko shook her head. The men gave the street another puzzled examination. "No shops. No people."
    "Something bad went on here?"
    "If there'd been a disaster, they'd be flying a white flag."
    When disaster befell a city, white flags were flown from the ramparts. With this forlorn sight in front of their eyes, travelers would know something had happened. But that didn't seem to be the case here.
    They watched the men start guardedly down the street. Next to her, Keiki said, "I smell death."
    "Keiki?"
    An unpleasant expression briefly clouded his pale complexion. "This city is a swamp of human malice."
    Youko spun around. "We're leaving."
    "Your Highness?" he replied.
    Youko glanced back over her shoulder. "There's a road through the countryside. The cities are to the north and east, right? There should be access from the outside. I'm not chancing going through the city and stressing you out."

Part XIII
    e don't have a name for ourselves," Koshou said, drawing water from the well. Next to him, Suzu rinsed out the buckets and jugs. "We number no more than a thousand. Most of us are in Shisui Prefecture."
    "Oh."
    "If you need something in the city, search out a person wearing this ring. Ask him where he's from. Guaranteed, he'll acknowledge you with an eshaku. "
    "An eshaku?"
    "Like this." He had Suzu hold out her hands and clench her left hand--but not tightly--and then cover the left hand with the right. She then raised her hands together and bowed. This was how people of stature greeted each other. To properly perform the eshaku, though, you should be wearing long sleeves. The jacket Suzu was wearing only came to her wrists.
    "It feels funny."
    Koshou smiled. "All that really matters is that you confirm that the person you're looking for is wearing a ring without drawing attention to it. When you ask where he's from, if he answers, Shikin in San County, Baku Province, then he's your man. If he asks your name, you say you're Otsu Etsu of Rou Shou."
    "What's that mean?" Suzu asked with a quizzical expression.
    Koshou chuckled. "Shikin is an old place name. Hundreds of years before, during the reign of King Tatsu, a wizard named Rou Shou showed up in Shikin."
    "Was Shikin the location of his grotto?"
    "No. Rou Shou didn't have a grotto. He was a wizard who gained his powers through the exercise of his own will. So he can be called Rou Shou or Shou Rou. This class of wizard uses the prefix Rou, meaning elder or old man. He's also called Count Shou."
    "Oh, so he's a Senpaku, a self-made wizard who's an earl or count."
    Wizards who had risen to the rank of count, and who had attained that rank by means of their own effort, also served at the Five Sacred Mountains. They were the Senpaku.
    "He had been practicing his craft for the general public when King Tatsu invited him to serve in the Imperial Palace. His full name is Otsu Etsu. Nobody really knows if he existed or not. He shows up in legends and stories a lot."
    "Huh."
    "You may be asked the same things from a complete stranger. If someone else with a ring approaches you with these questions, you answer the same way."
    "Oh, I see."
    "If they're one of us, you can trust them, no matter what. It's guaranteed they'll help you. Our word is our bond. We take pride in it."
    "All this in order to get rid of him? "
    "Of course," Koshou nodded. "The countryside around Takuhou is crowded with graves. The bodies of the dead cover the land. Somebody has to take him down. Somebody has to bring him to justice."
    Suzu stopped what she was doing. By him they mean the governor of Shisui Prefecture, Shoukou. She asked, "Why is someone like him allowed to get away with it?"
    "It's said that there are people in high places who give him a pass."
    "Like in Gyouten?" said Suzu, raising her head.
    Koshou answered with a startled look. He put down the well bucket and sat down on the edge of the well. "Why do you say Gyouten?"
    "A rumor I've heard to that effect. The most important person in Gyouten is protecting Shoukou."
    "I see," Koushou muttered. "That certainly is being rumored about. It's said that none other than the Empress is protecting Shoukou. But I'm not convinced."
    "It's not true?"
    "I couldn't say. The one giving a free rein to Shoukou is Gahou."
    "Gahou?"
    "The Marquis of Wa