The Wings of Dreams

of the reins. Scrambling for them, she felt Hakuto’s hair standing on end as well, as if ruffled backwards by the wind.
    This was the barrier wall around the Yellow Sea. Beyond that huge wall was a land hostile to human habitation. And in the center was the Gozan, the Five Mountains.
    I’ve made it, she thought. And those are— Even having grown up at the foot of Mt. Ryou’un, the immensity of these mountains were beyond belief.
    Hakuto reached the zenith of his leap and fell in a graceful arc, gradually building up speed. That hazy, blue wall disappeared behind the screen of the nearby hills.
    “The Kongou Mountains!” Shushou exclaimed. She buried her face in the fur of Hakuto’s neck. “Let’s go, Hakuto. Those are the Kongou Mountains!”
    Hakuto kicked off the ground, accelerating so fast he almost bucked Shushou off his back. He climbed the hills, descended the gentle slope to the provincial road, and shot past the Rinken city gate. Shushou did not pull back on the reins.
    Hakuto overran the end of the road, bounded over a knoll thick with shrubs, and there reached the headlands of the promontory. Before them was the blue sea and the silhouette of the Kongou Mountains hovering like a mirage above the far horizon.
    Shushou watched as the purple-banded blue faded to indigo. The ridgelines glittered white from the light of the setting sun before dissolving into the sepia dusk. Before she knew it, she had all but lost track of time.

Chapter 8
    [1-8]  R inken was a port city with a harbor. Ships departed for Ken County once a day. Hakuto couldn’t leap across the broad expanse of the sea. But even a flying kijuu could book passage on a sailing ship, which was certainly a lot easier on the kijuu.
    Filling their faded gray sails with the brisk breeze, a ship could cross the Ken Straits in half a day. Leaving port in the morning, it passed the ship returning to Rinken shortly past noon, and slipped into the harbor on the opposite shore around evening.
    Shushou spent the time on the deck looking at the mountains. On several occasions youma-like creatures swept through the air above them, but none of them attacked the ship and she didn’t have to retreat to her cabin.
    Catching remnants of the joufuu, the ship knifed through the water, leaving a white wake behind. The shadows cast on the deck by the sails shortened, turned toward the east, and lengthened again. Looking beyond the silhouette of the ship returning to the mainland, the Kongou Mountains already filled the entire sky.
    A bell rang out when the ship entered the harbor. The sound reverberated across the waves before being swallowed up by the surf.
    “Looks like we got here in one piece,” Shushou declared with a triumphant air as she descended the gangplank. From here to Ken would take three days on foot, no more than a day riding Hakuto.
    The ship had arrived in the city of North Ken, the gateway to Ken County. Because Ken County was on the frontier, it was not too large and finding lodgings shouldn’t be too taxing.
    Mingling with the other passengers going ashore, they entered the city and turned down the main thoroughfare where the inns should be located.
    Shushou felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around to find a smiling middle-aged man with a round face looking down at her. “Miss, that’s a moukyoku, isn’t it?”
    Shushou had heard the question plenty of times on her journey. She clearly wasn’t alone in her love of kijuu.
    “That’s right.”
    The man crouched down and petted the white fur with soft, childlike hands. “A splendid kijuu and very well trained. What nice eyes. He sure looks well taken care of.” The man smiled and scratched Hakuto behind the ears. He looked up at Shushou and said, “This is the first time I’ve seen such a splendid moukyoku. It is yours?”
    “No. This is my master’s kijuu.”
    The man eyed Shushou’s worn kimono, grinned and nodded. “Really? I suppose so. Are you responsible for his care, or would that be your master?”
    “My master prizes him very highly, just as I care for him a great deal.”
    “Of course, of course.” The man bobbed his head as he got to his feet. “What a fine master you must have. He who cares for his kijuu cares for his servants no less.”
    “I wouldn’t say that was always true.” Shushou glanced up at him. “I need to find an inn.”
    “What, are you in the midst of a journey?”
    “I am. Do you live in this town? Perhaps you could direct me to