The Twelve Kingdoms: Shadow of the Moon

put at the end of an address when you mail a letter. An area code is the number your dial when you call somebody on the telephone outside your local calling area."
    "Telephone?"
    "Um, it's a gizmo that transmits your voice a long distance so you can talk to people."
    "To think they have such things in Japan. But why would he ask about it?" Rakushun quivered his whiskers.
    "Probably because someone who wasn't Japanese wouldn't know such a thing. Makes it easy to tell who is a kaikyaku and who's not. Otherwise, you'd have people pretending to be kaikyaku all over the place." Youko grinned and showed him her card.
    "Yeah, that must be it."
    This card was proof of her bona fides, but it was good for only three years. In three years it was expected that she would find a livelihood, at which time she would settle on a permanent place of residency and be officially recorded on the census. In exchange, during her three years as a ward of the state, she would have free access to the local community colleges and hospitals. Not only that, if she took her identification card to a kind of bank called a trade credit union, she could collect a stipend to cover your living expenses.
    "What a country!"
    "Yes, indeed."
    Kou was so much poorer, En so much richer. If nothing else, that's what the card taught them.

    The Royal En should by no means prove to be an unapproachable individual. Rakushun said she should ask him for help. She still had her doubts about the likelihood of that ever happening. She had her doubts about a lot of things, but felt more confident that she wouldn't be rejected out of hand or summarily punished for making the attempt.

Chapter 50
    A s Rakushun had predicted, many beasts mingled in with the crowds on the streets. Amidst the hustle and bustle, there was something unbearably cute about these animals walking about on their two hind legs. Some were even dressed like people, and Youko had to try hard not to giggle.
    While he was waiting for her, Rakushun had gotten work at the harbor doing maintenance on the ships coming into port. He told her enthusiastically all about it.
    Still, he took the occasion of meeting up with Youko to quit his first job ever. When she insisted that it was all right with her to stay a while longer in Ugou while he gave his notice, Rakushun said that when he signed up, he had told the foreman that he only wanted to work until the person he was waiting for arrived, so it was no big deal.

    The day after Youko arrived, they set forth for Kankyuu. Though her stipend couldn't be called exceedingly generous, it was by no means a miserly amount, and they could afford to take things easy. They walked along the highway during the day, and at night stopped in at a city and found an inn. All of the cities in En were big, and for the same fee you got that much more than a comparable inn in Kou. They'd arrive at dusk, arrange for lodgings, and then go sightseeing. Rakushun particularly liked checking out what the shops had on display.
    It was an uneventful trip. Nobody came chasing after her, though it took her some time to train herself not to recoil every time she saw a guard or constable. They never left the cities at night so she couldn't confirm this for herself, but from what she gathered from conversations with people, even if you traveled at night, you hardly ever ran into a youma.
    It was in the midst of their journey, eleven days out from Ugou and about a third of the way to Kankyuu, that Rakushun went out for a stroll while Youko was taking a bath, and heard talk about another kaikyaku.

    Though Rakushun had pointed out that because they were in En, it'd be okay to show herself off a bit more, as always, Youko preferred men's clothing, specifically a jacket or tunic called a hou. It was more comfortable, and having gotten used to it, she had no desire to put on a woman's long kimono.
    So, of course, everybody took her for a boy. This made using public baths a pain. The inns in En often had a furo, but they were more like a communal sauna, so she made do by bathing in their room. Because they had money to spare, even after taking care of their travel expenses, they always got a room. Still, it seemed a bit pointless since they settled for one room, and whenever she took a bath she kicked Rakushun out. Rakushun no doubt found it annoying.
    She filled a basin with hot water and washed her hair. She hadn't been in this world very long when Takki dyed her hair. As the days and months