The Twelve Kingdoms: Shadow of the Moon

arises the hard part. It is the Divine Will of Heaven that a king rules righteously. Heaven's desire is that the kingdom be governed with justice and mercy. Heaven's proxy in this regard is the kirin. However, as I said, a kingdom cannot be governed by justice and mercy, alone. There are times when you must be unjust, must act without mercy. But only to a certain degree will Heaven turn a blind eye."
    Youko simply looked at him.
    "You may act ruthlessly for the good of the kingdom, but only to a point. Go past that point and the king will lose the right to rule. After all, the throne was given him by Heaven. And when a king strays too far and loses the Mandate of Heaven, the kirin falls ill. This illness is called shitsudou, or the Loss of the Way."
    The En wrote the characters in the air. "When the king strays from the Way, the kirin will suffer. At that point, the wise king mends his ways. If he does not, the kirin will not recover. But it is not enough for the kirin to simply persevere. The problem is one of character, the same as with all those people who promise to change their ways and do not. There are few cases of kings who were able to remedy the situation after a kirin was struck down with the shitsudou."
    "And what happens if he can't?"
    "Then the kirin will die. And if the kirin dies, so will the king."
    "Dies . . . . "
    "Human life is short. The king does not age, does not die, because his name is recorded in the Census of Heaven. Kings are immortal because they are gods. But it is the kirin that makes the king a god. So if the kirin dies, so does the king."
    Youko nodded.
    "Aside from the king returning to the Way, there is one other way for the kirin to be cured of the shitsudou."
    "And that is?"
    "That is, for the king to release the kirin from the covenant. The simplest method is for the king to end his own life. If the king dies first, the kirin will not."
    "And so the kirin will be spared?"
    "Indeed. Keiki being a case in point." The En took a breath. "The Late Empress Yo was by nature human, and human beings are by no means perfect. She became romantically attached to Keiki. She would not allow any women to associate with Keiki. She paraded herself around as his wife, grew insanely jealous. In the end, she went too far, expelled all women from the palace and tried to drive all women from the kingdom. With Keiki covering for her, she only grew more extreme, and tried to have those who remained killed. At that point, Keiki fell ill."
    "And . . . ?"
    "The late Empress parted from the Way because of her romantic attachment to Keiki. The prospect of being the cause of his death could not be pleasing to her. In some small way, she had not fallen so far as to be beyond reason. So the Late Empress Yo climbed Mount Hou and there renounced the throne. Heaven accepted her abdication and Keiki was emancipated from her."
    "What happened to her?"
    "Becoming a king or empress means dying as a human and being reborn as a god. When you are no longer a monarch, you cannot continue to live."
    And so the Empress Jokaku of the Kingdom of Kei had passed away.
    "You have already been chosen by Keiki as the next king. To accede to the throne, you must ascend Mount Hou and accept the Divine Decree. However, no significant distinction should be made between the convenant and accession to the throne. The Mandate of Heaven has descended. You are the Empress of Kei. Nothing you can do will change it. Do you understand?"
    Youko nodded.
    "The king has the responsibility to govern the kingdom. You may, if you wish, cast your kingdom aside and return to Japan. A kingdom abandoned by its monarch will fall into chaos. When that happens, make no mistake, Heaven will cast you aside as well."
    "And Keiki will be struck down with the shitsudou and die."
    "Most likely, yes. But it is not so simple as that. Think about the subjects of your kingdom as well. A king does not only rule. He also bears the responsibility of reigning in the natural forces and the youma. The youma run rampant. Tempests storm. There are droughts and floods and epidemics. The hearts of men are confused. When the realm falls to ruin, there are no words on the lips of the people but those of suffering."
    "Falls to ruin?"
    "Yes. It took Keiki a long time to find the Late Empress Yo, and the throne was vacant for an extended period. In that time, the kingdom was left in turmoil and the people were impoverished. An empress was finally placed upon the throne, but her