Royal Princess of Blood

Miyako arrived at her little office, although it was really not that little. It was, though, compared to her father’s. As the lord’s daughter, she was given ample space to do her work. As for what her work would be, it was mostly mixed, from minor matters to significant ones passed onto her. Although, none that were national matters. It was not her place.

Her job ranged from managing the city to authorizing hunting down criminals or cracking down on criminal activities. As the lord’s daughter, though, she rarely gets directly involved. At most, just sending her personal guard, Satomi, as her representative. It was not proper to constantly put Miyako in a dangerous position, after all.

She had multiple assistants for her job. Her close servants, and her close friends. The moment she entered her office, the three servants in the room cleaning things up shot up in excitement the moment they saw it was her.

“Milady!” A young woman in her early twenties lit up, loudly expressing her joy. Her name was Aeko, the more conserved one among them. She merely approached a little and greeted Miyako with a wide smile, bowing her head.

“You’re finally back!” A young woman who appeared to be around the same age as Miyako, and the most energetic and enthusiastic among them, rushed at Miyako and grasped her hand tightly. She was Isaki, the friendliest and most casual among them. Too casual towards Miyako, in fact, that it was borderline rude considering her position, but Miyako didn’t mind.

“We’ve been waiting ever since we heard of your arrival. What took you so long to come here, Lady Miyako?” A young man in his late teens stepped up, wearing a casual smile. Shijo, he was the most diligent among them — all due to his great ambition. The ambition to quickly climb ‌the ranks. A man born into poverty, eager to bring up his family from hardship.

Miyako briefly giggled, she patted Isaki’s hand on hers. “It’s been a while, you guys. Sorry, I had matters to attend to yesterday, so I couldn't meet you.”

“We heard what happened,” Isaki said with a concerned expression. “It must have been so scary.”

“We heard you had a close call, Lady Miyako,” Aeko said. “To think that sort of thing would happen despite being on official business.”

Miyako directed a reassuring glance at Isaki. “It did have a lot of surprises. I lost the soldiers that came with me.” It warmed her heart to see her close servants and friends care for her. “But what’s important is that I survived. So there’s nothing to worry about anymore.”

Miyako walked further into the room, staring at the pages of paper on her table. She was not feeling like working on those yet. She was not in the mood. Might be because she currently had more important matters to attend to. Which she felt was not good, to be honest. Some of those might be for the benefit of the city.

She resisted the urge to sigh.

“How is Hokunoa, milady?” Isaki asked with eyes full of curiosity. “You know, aside from the terrible things that happened to you.”

Miyako placed a hand on her chin. “Not much is too different. But perhaps things are much more dangerous out there, human-wise.”

“Human-wise?” Shijo asked, puzzled.

“The humans, the people. But I’m not too comfortable sharing about that part.”

The assistants traded glances.

Miyako forced a smile. “Don’t stress over it.” She sat down on her chair behind the desk, and she let out a relieved sigh. “I must say, it’s good to be back… I hope the work I left behind is not too important.”

“The lord handled the more important matters,” answered Aeko. “While the rest, we took care of it.”

“We were allowed to make decisions on small matters!” Isaki puffed out her chest, proudly grinning. “Don’t worry, milady, we did well. We had oversight anyway.”

“The ones here on the table are the recent issues and reports,” Shijo said.

Miyako nodded. “We didn’t have any major problems then?”

Shijo shook his head. “No, everything’s fine.”

“Excellent, I’m glad I have people I can rely on.” She smiled widely. “These don’t need my immediate attention, right?”

“No,” Shijo answered. “Most of it is on the lord’s table.”

“I sure hope he’s not overdoing it. Did he?”

“Your father oversaw all essential matters while you were gone,” Aeko responded with a troubled smile. “Despite his health. But there were people closely helping him.”

“... I told him to take it easy…” Miyako sighed. It didn’t surprise her, though. Despite how weak he was, he was still some sort of tough guy. There was no way he would let himself succumb to his ill health that easily. If he could do something, he would.

“By the way, milady, I heard there were guests that came along with you,” Isaki leaned close. “Are they trustworthy? We didn’t get to see them.”

“Of course, Isaki. They’re the ones that saved me and helped me while I was in Hokunoa.”

Isaki slightly tilted her head. “Saved you?”

“Yes, they saved me from the ambush. That's why I’m still alive.” Her smile widened. “I suspect you’ll get to meet them soon. But if you do, please address them as you would me. To avoid any rudeness.” Especially towards Estelia, she was a princess. But it would be a bit too complicated to explain that now to them.

“O-Of course. I’m looking forward to making new friends.” Isaki energetically nodded.

Miyako was quite amused; Isaki was always quite friendly. She could easily make friends with just about anyone.

“Anyway, I won’t be looking into these just yet. I have a job that I need your help with.”

“What could it be?” Shijo moved closer, seemingly eager to hear about the job. Well, he had always been eager for a job well done.

“I’m planning on having an assembly for everyone here in the palace.”

“Assembly?”

“I’m conducting a test, an important one.”

“What sort of test is it?” Aeko asked.

“That I will not say, it is a confidential matter. I need you to compile a list of names of all staff here in the palace. Organize them by hierarchy. And then, I want you to spread the word that they are to gather in the throne room.” The throne room should be big enough if the staff are put in by category. “Make a schedule per category. Those at the highest position shall be the first batch.”

Her assistants were flabbergasted.

“Isn’t that a big deal?” Shijo’s brow furrowed. “What is it about, milady? Those high-ranking officials won’t easily listen to what we say.”

“If they are absent, they will be held in contempt by me. Tell them that.”

“A-Are you sure we three should handle something like that?” Aeko warily asked.

“You’re the only ones I can trust with this.”

“Does the lord know about this?”

“No. But I will tell him later. I want you to get working on it immediately, we’ll conduct the test tomorrow.”

“T-Tomorrow? Why is it immediate? Can you not tell us what the test is for, milady?” Isaki asked.

“I can’t just yet. You’ll know when it happens.”

“Surely it’s not something dangerous.”

“... It could get dangerous…”

“Do high-ranking positions also include those in the army?” Shijo asked.

“Yes. Everyone who works on the palace grounds. None is an exception.”

The assistants looked at each other.

“We’ll get on it, milady,” Shijo said.

Miyako stood up. “Thanks. I’ll go talk to Father.”

***

“You’re holding an assembly?”

Miyako was in her father’s office with both her parents. She had just told them what she was planning. They sat opposite ‌her.

“Yes, and I will have my test, one way or another.”

Her father directed a sharp look at her. “You’re getting too stubborn, Miyako. What is this test for?”

“A cleanup, to get rid of demons hiding among us.”

“Demons? That again.”

Miyako felt he was making light of the situation, making light of demons. That was because they had not actually fought demons before, nor even faced one directly. Nor did they ever discover one hiding among them or discover how wicked they could actually be. But she had seen what could happen if the demons had their way with the island. She had seen what happened to Minainoa’s ruler.

“Father, the demon threat is very real. And I will not have even one to stand near us and manipulate us.”

Her mother lowered her gaze with obvious worry. “How are you going to do that?”

“... With holy magic. I will have to test each person. I will start with those with the highest authority.”

Her father groaned in frustration. “And if you find a demon, what will happen then?”

“A demon might not surrender peacefully. So there could be a battle. But execution is my goal.”

“In my throne room? Even if a battle happens, our men have never fought a demon before.”

“... All of our soldiers are useless against demons,” Haru said. “It would be pointless sending them to fight.”

Miyako nodded. “Yes. That is why Satomi and I will be taking care of any demon.”

Her father frowned. “Are you insane? Do you think I’ll just put you in danger like that?”

“There’s no other choice. I have to do it, I must.”

“Do you even have the means to succeed?”

“Yes.”

Her father let out a long sigh, but remained silent.

“... Please, Father. I need your full support on this. Be there and watch. Let me show you the threat they possess. Bear witness to the monsters influencing our lands.”

Her father pondered for a moment… “Fine... Do what you want.”

Miyako smiled happily. “Thank you, Father!”

“... I have to ask, why must it be you? I can use the blood art as well. Even your mother.”

“Because yours are imperfect.”

“What…?”

“I told you, I faced a demon, and my blood art was useless. I learned it from you, so it will be the same result. However, I learned the proper way to do it, and I shall put it to the test. I must do this and succeed. Otherwise I can’t move forward.”

“... Move forward. You’re not stopping your endeavor, are you?”

“Slaying a demon… is the first essential step forward for me.”

***

Miyako was walking back to her office, feeling relieved that her father agreed. Her shoulders felt a little lighter. It would have made things a bit harder and more complicated if he hadn’t agreed to it. She didn’t want to be forceful towards her own family.

On the way, she encountered Estelia and Velar.

“Estelia?”

Estelia raised an eyebrow. “You look drained already. You okay?”

“Y-Yeah, I’m fine. Just got done with a big obstacle. Got over it.”

“Is that so? That’s good.”

“... It’s hard to deal with family regarding this kind of situation. Especially if they disagree with you.”

“Is it about the test?”

“Yes.”

“I hope you didn’t tell anyone else about what’s going to happen. Don’t forget what I said.”

“I know… Don’t trust anyone, even our closest friends.” She sighed. “But I must admit, it’s hard… Not trusting the allies you’ve been with for years.”

“... We had a servant once, a close assistant of my older brother. He had been in our service ever since I was little. He had been loyal… But it turned out he was not our ally, ever since the beginning.”

“... What happened?”

“He was an enemy, always been one. He sought to kill me in my own home.”

Miyako quietly gasped. “He’s been with you… since you were little?” She was astonished that someone could do something so insane.

“He deceived us all. We trusted him after the years of his good service. But in the end, he was an infiltrator. That is why, Miyako, be wary of those close to you until you have proven their loyalty and true allegiance. You’ll be surprised how far your enemies will go to have your trust.”

“... I-I understand.”

To think someone would go that far to infiltrate someone’s home. To even get so close to someone. For several years. Pretend to be someone they aren’t.

“Thanks for the advice, Estelia… By the way, what are you two doing out here? Going around?”

“Yeah, just looking around. I met Satomi’s teacher.”

“Ah, he asked you for a match, didn’t he?”

“I assumed that was his intention, but of course I refused.”

“Of course,” Miyako chuckled. “Do you have any place you plan to go?”

“No, not really.”

“Then, want to hang around my office? My assistants expressed their interest in meeting you.”

“... Well, I have nowhere else to go, anyway.”

With that, they made their way to Miyako’s office. Two of her servants remained in the office, writing on sheets of paper. Aeko was missing, she must have left to do something.

“Hello, everyone,” Miyako said. “I have told my father about the plan, and he agreed.”

“That’s great!” Shijo pumped his fist. “Should make things easy now.”

“Indeed!”

Miyako nodded with a smile. “By the way, I brought a friend. Come in, Estelia.”

Estelia stepped inside. The moment she did, Shijo dropped the papers in his hand on the table involuntarily, while Isaki froze in place, her eyes wide as they stared in surprise at the guest.