The Spies from Kasai

Prince Ren looked intently at the floating leaves in his cup of tea. It had been a long time since he last enjoyed his favorite drink in his magnificent room. He wanted to savor this moment but his train of thoughts on the recent events had been preventing him from doing so. The Kaminari palace was peaceful again since the guests have already returned to their respective homes.

"You seemed preoccupied," King Yuan entered his chamber and waved at all the young maids attending his son to leave them alone.

"Father," he stood up and bowed his head before him.

His father motioned him to take his seat while he settled himself comfortably in another chair across him. "Did you like my homecoming gift for you?" he asked.

"It was truly…unexpected," Prince Ren held on to his cup tightly. "… but I couldn't stop wondering why Anna and I, of all people, were not properly informed beforehand that we are to attend our own engagement ball."

"That's the beauty of surprises, my boy. You've been away for three years. We wanted to make your short vacation here memorable. Nonetheless, I'm certain that you are very pleased with it, are you not?" the king looked amused.

"Even if I was, I can sense that Anna still did not seem to like the idea."

"Why not? You are a good-looking man, intelligent, skillful, and the heir to the most powerful kingdom in our land. Kouku can rest on a formidable wall for the rest of its existence once it formally seals its allegiance to Kaminari through your marriage."

"Now, I'm beginning to think that this is a political move after all. I know you father, you won't enter into a deal unless you would gain more from it. Have you forgotten the terms of the peace treaty?"

"No two kingdoms should merge. Is that what you are pertaining to? I assure you, my son, Kouku will maintain its political independence. The Kyouyamas are a strong clan. I'm absolutely positive they will not allow anyone to tamper with their authority."

The prince fixed his gaze on his father while sipping the now cold tea. Doubt was painted all over his face.

The king let out an audible sigh, "I'm serving you your happiness in a silver platter yet you do not want to accept it without questions. I am confused. I thought you wanted the girl since you were a young lad."

The prince nearly spat out the liquid in his mouth. "You knew about my feelings for the Princess of Kouku?" His cheeks had a tinge of pink.

"Of course, I am your father."

Somewhere between the boundary of Kouku and Kaminari...

The forest seemed to come alive every night yet he did not shiver while he trudge his way through the eerie darkness and haunting sounds coming from its inhabitants. In fact, he was used to it. It had been his home for more than three months. He smiled to himself as he patted his bag containing the loot from his mission that night. He and his men would once again enjoy good food, a luxury they had been craving for since they stationed themselves in Kaminari. A faint crackle of bonfire signaled him that he was nearing his destination. He made his way through the thick bushes and finally found their camp.

"Welcome back, Prince Yoh," a tall guy who had been feeding the fire with twigs greeted him enthusiastically. "I see you have brought us something."

He grinned sheepishly and threw the bag to him. "It's from the gathering in Kaminari. Please help yourself, Ryuu." The tall guy began distributing the food to the other members of the band.

"How was it?" inquired a very short boy with blond hair who hungrily munched on an apple given to him.

"It was err… surprising, Manta," the prince answered and sat down by the bonfire.

"Why so, young master?" This time a serious-looking man with long white hair asked.

"It was just an engagement ball - far from what father had expected."

"Oh, I smell a wedding!" Ryuu clasped his hands together in excitement. "Who are getting married?"

"The heir of Kaminari and the princess of Kouku," Prince Yoh removed the string that was holding his black hair up in a ponytail.

"Now that is something to worry about," the white-haired man rubbed his chin.

"You should relax, Amidamaru. A wedding's supposed to be a happy and peaceful event." The prince lied down on the cold earth as he was tired from the physical labor he rendered all evening. "You can start unwinding by removing that war suit of yours. I bet you attracted unwarranted attention when you went on spying in town."

"Don't be too laidback, young master. The joining of these two kingdoms is a threat to Kasai," the warrior scolded him. "You need not reprimand me for wearing this armored suit for I blended well with the townspeople earlier."

Ryuu scoffed. You were wearing a brown full body cloak to hide that armor, you fool. So much for being discrete.

Manta came to the defense of the prince. "We were here for three months yet we found no evidence that the other two kingdoms are plotting against us. Kaminari and Kouku have formed their alliance since time immemorial. It's the same thing as Kasai and Kouri's sworn friendship. If they wanted to threaten Kasai they should have done so a century ago when the wounds of war were still fresh."

"I agree with Manta. Perhaps King Mikihisa's conspiracy theories were nothing but hunches," Ryuu supported his little friend.

"So it's three out of four, it's settled then." Prince Yoh chuckled. "As ordered by my father, tomorrow you three will go back to Kasai to report everything. Have a safe journey!"

"What?" his three companions shouted in disbelief.

"You are not coming with us?" Manta wanted to know if he heard him right.

"I'm not through with my adventures yet. Besides, if I go back to the palace, they would resume my boring royal training," the prince yawned.

"It's dangerous to be wandering off, young master. At least, take me with you so that you'll have someone reliable," Amidamaru presented himself to the annoyance of the other two.

"Did you just say we're not strong enough to protect the prince?" grumbled Ryuu.

The white-haired warrior ignored him. "Young master, the king will be extremely displeased with your frequent absence from the palace. BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH. If you would be caught trespassing in Kaminari, you'll be executed. It's a violation of the peace treaty of the four kingdoms. BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH."

The prince covered his ears to block off his bodyguard's nagging.

"BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH . Do you know the implication of this? They will suspect you of spying. BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH . Your mistake will lead us all to war. BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH . You are the heir to the throne, Prince Yoh. BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH . You should be thankful the right was given to you and not to your twin brother who is as irresponsible as you are!"

"I understand," he whispered before dozing off.

"Did he really listen to everything I said?" Amidamaru was exasperated.

"Quit it already. For one of Kasai's fiercest warriors, you talk a lot Amidamaru," Ryuu positioned himself on his makeshift bed.

"I guess he was really tired. We should sleep now, too." Manta smiled and curled up into a ball.

The next day…

Ryuu happily stretched out his arms and took a huge breath of fresh morning air. Excitement was in his blood for they will be coming back to their beloved kingdom today. They will be enjoying the comforts of the grand palace again.

No more spying around town and being mistaken for a pervert.

He kicked of the pile of leaves which served as his bed for several nights in Kaminari.

No more dirty ground to sleep on.

He threw soil over the dying flame of the bonfire.

No more cold lonely nights.

He snickered at the hilarious forms of the sleeping Manta and Amidamaru. The former's face was almost kissing the latter's foot.

No more loud-snoring, funny-looking men.

He explored the camp for the last time using his eyes. Maybe he would miss it, too. Then a thought suddenly struck him. There was something unusual in the camp that he couldn't put his finger on. He roamed his eyes around for the second time to find the peculiarity.

No more pi-pri….

An earsplitting scream reverberated through the whole forest.

Manta woke up in alarm.

Amidamaru jumped up from his bed of dried leaves and swung out his steel sword which only missed Manta by an inch. "What happened Ryuu?"

"Prince Yoh's gone…"