RIVALS INCARNATE

Chapter Forty: The Most Important... The Thing That Mattered

432 AD, 9th Century of Japan (Kyoto)

***Emperor Shin was already beginning his reign as the new and youngest ruler of ancient Japan during the new era and he was twenty-four years old then. Whereas his wife, Empress Aoi, was twenty-two years old during this time when they got married and lived on as husband and wife***

It was the night of the consummation of their marriage.

For decades, there was a unique tradition practiced for generations by the Fujibutso's descent (Emperor Shin's clan) where the consummation rites of the married couple in their family had always been arranged two weeks after the very day of the matrimony. However, this all changed in the case of Empress Aoi and Emperor Shin, when Empress Aoi had tried to meet the Emperor unguarded.

It went against the entire tradition, in a way. And because the royal family was very conservative and strict with their rules, the first night of the royal couple had been unexpectedly pushed forward two days earlier than usual and it was all because the Empress did not wait for the right time... The ritual actually required the wife to never meet her husband until the consummation night to which should have gone on for two weeks first before the day.

 Now, facing the consequences, Empress Aoi, failing to understand the strict values and norms of the royal family, was eventually forced to prepare herself for the sacred rite. It was a nerve-breaking experience for her too, unfortunately. She did not even expect the density of her actions and the circumstances. On the very morning of that day, she had been woken up so early, almost as if she had been in a dream. It was way before even sunrise came and was told to start and groom herself immediately to complete the process of the woman's beautification and purification for her man before the consummation night. 

Beautification and purification? Did it really have to be that way?

She did not really think much of how important that was. But it turned out to be very crucial and later on, she found herself bathing in flowers and rose petals, water dripped with different oils and fragrant herbs while a scented block was used to scrub all the parts of her body. She had spent hours until noon trying to follow the things that her ladies-in-waiting were doing for her. Detoxifying her skin, combing her hair until it was so smooth and soft, cleaning her nails, and dressing her in clothes that felt heavier than the normal ones she usually wore. It was a very long and tiring morning for her, and by the time she was finally allowed to take a break and eat at least enough that she could just have something to fill her stomach, she was more than famished. Yet the meal was not even entirely satisfying, but she had no choice but to abide.

She could only take a few bites before she was then moved to another room to wait.

By the afternoon, Empress Aoi was already worn out as she sat properly under customary standards at the receiving quarters of the royal palace. She was informed that she needed to wait until the Emperor's servant calls for her to proceed to another private room. It should have been all too easy by then if she had not only been wearing such a very heavy hair ornament placed over her head as a required accessory. Her kimono was even so big and extravagant that she had to keep her arms raised up at a certain angle so the sleeves will not get creased and to also keep her posture right. Her back was already aching, and some parts of her body were itching but she can not move. Not if she ever wanted to, and she certainly could not even do so since her dress was too precious that she was worried it might tear if she did.

So Empress Aoi had to endure those hours of waiting while she sat there, dreading the night as she thought about it. There were no other things to think about apart from the fact that it was going to happen... She will have to sleep with the Emperor. She did not even know him that much, aside from the part that he was charming when he was with her and he had this charismatic aura that she could not really resist no matter how hard she had closed her heart from him.

He was attractive, that was it. And now her heart was pounding, just thinking about him. Will he be as good as he seemed to be? She was beginning to get more nervous as she thought about more and more of what will happen tonight. 

And when it felt like hours had gone too far and too long while she occupied herself in her own thoughts, a sudden call from the other side of the closed-door from where she was waiting had snapped her out of the trance. Empress Aoi's head abruptly turned in its direction and she watched as the entryway quickly opened and showed a man wearing a servant's attire waiting outside. He bowed at her gently and spoke in a singsong voice, "Your Highness, the Emperor is now ready for your arrival. I will be your guide to bring you where you shall meet his Highness."

Empress Aoi gulped and slowly nodded. Her ladies-in-waiting approached her right at that instant and everyone helped her to stand up from the floor. But as she straightened herself, she felt her whole body deflating down brought by either the long hours of sitting there on her knees on the floor or by the sudden reminder that she was about to spend a night with the Emperor. Empress Aoi's legs uncontrollably shook on their won and she almost buckled down if she had not been assisted by the women around her. She simply tried to smile away from the embarrassment and endure the stinging pain in her muscles and she bit the inside of her cheek, trying to look unfazed and voided with any sign of discomfort. 

She then slowly followed the servant, all the way down the hallway and until they took a turn and entered the east wing of the palace. The more they went further, the more Empress Aoi felt anxious and restless. What would she even expect when she sees the Emperor? What would she say to him? Was this supposed to go seamlessly without any rules now? 

And consumed by these thoughts, she did not even realize that they had now reached the doors of the private room. Two royal guards stood straight on the sides as the servant politely pronounced their presence. As his words echoed through the hallway, a voice spoke back permitting their entrance from the inside and Empress Aoi quickly braced herself as she kept her eyes down-casted while trying to keep her heart at bay. It was pounding. 

This was it.

Then the doors slowly slid open, and her eyes followed through the inch-by-inch reveal of the room until she was finally looking up. And there, right at the middle of the huge chambers sitting in front of a low table, was the Emperor. Shin. He was wearing a red robe with golden linings, his sculptured face looking like it was made from porcelain, and his eyes staring right at the entrance that he immediately met her gaze. His entire figure seemed to glow against the light of so many lamps placed all over the room. She felt her heart skipping a beat and the blood immediately rushed to her cheeks. She did not know what to say, and her mind was blank. 

He looked beautiful. He never even blinked back. And eventually, she realized, she was smiling. She was actually smiling at this man. She was smiling at the Emperor himself... who had now become her husband.

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PRESENT, 2020 (Tokyo)

It was a strange place for a simple meeting. 

The private room was like a bachelor's pad, dim-lit with the purple-hued lights illuminating its expanse and a wide flatscreen TV on the center, placed across a wide bed. A sofa and a long couch near the door and a small kitchen counter with a few kitchen appliances behind the seats filled the entire spacious area of it. It was like a hotel room. And inside were Yuko, Ami, and three others: two bodyguards and a server who was now serving them drinks from where they had settled across each other on the couch and the sofa with a long coffee table in the middle.

 Yuko Amazawa tried to make herself comfortable but the entire ambiance of the room made her feel tensed and uneasy. She was not expecting this kind of place but she was glad that she could still distract herself with the margarita served to her by the waiter. She silently took a sip, casually looking around while trying to keep a straight face.

"I hope you don't mind the place," Ami finally spoke after the server finally left the room and her two guards had moved away to stand by the door and she went on, "This was the most private area I could get where we can talk. So many ears in this city so I didn't feel safe anywhere anymore."

That was also true. And Amazawa couldn't agree more. She was also being extremely careful now than she had been in the past few weeks. Osamu had warned her repetitively that she must be cautious. There were many possible enemies around them. It had gotten alarming even, that she was eventually offered by Osamu himself some kind of protection just in case she would go out on her own. However, Yuko had refused any form of help from him for fear that it might just put too much pressure on her and she was not really the type of person to feel afraid of getting harmed. She knew that politics had always been a dangerous world, and she had long prepared for that now.

"As long as we could discuss the important matters," Yuko responded after a moment as she placed her glass down on the table and stared at Ami with steady eyes, "The place didn't matter. I'm here because I wanted to talk about our plan for Kurosaki. I want to make sure everything is clear."

"You're already getting straight to the point, huh?" Ami smirked back, her face breaking into a smile, "No more chitchats? I didn't expect that, frankly. But I have to say, I actually like how serious you are when it meant business, Yuko-san."

"Yes," Yuko said agreeably, not even wasting any second as she said, "I need your connection to the underground society. The black market, mafia, or whatever it is called nowadays. We need to make sure Kurosaki won't be touched by anyone until the election day."

Ami Komatsu's eyes widened, but it had been quite fast before her face eased again. Yuko really meant business as it was.

There was really no more room for circling around for her, and she had decidedly planned to seal the secured spot for Kurosaki right away. Yuko had already set sights on the very goal ever since the beginning, and all she ever really needed to do now was to make sure nothing would come in the way. And at this point, even though she had longed so much for this special day to finally happen where she can have this personal moment with Aoi's reincarnation to redo their history, she pushed that aside and opted for the more rewarding decision.

She can't ignore what was important. And for her, what she really wanted the most was to achieve her goal as quickly as possible: to give that position to Kurosaki... So that eventually, in time, she can finally break all of his dignity (just like what he did to her before) until all that was left of him will be nothing but his mere empty shell, rotting in despair for all the days he robbed off from Shin's past life.

Revenge was her first priority. And it was the only thing that had kept her going until now. It was the only thing that mattered the most... For now.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------next chapter: Chapter Forty-One