News

Seeing Mokou in such a state, Miketsu no longer wished to speak with her. Bound by her agreement with Princess Kaguya, she hadn't offered any specific advice. After conveying the relevant information, she intended to take her leave, but then Mokou suddenly called out to her.

"Hey, don't go yet! Since we've been friends for so long, help me persuade Princess Kaguya. Tell her not to hold a public selection for a husband. Can she really find someone who truly loves her this way?" With a hint of urgency, Mokou spoke to Miketsu. Miketsu gave her a playful look, then said lightly.

"Are you scared?"

"Scared? What am I scared of! If it's a public selection, do I fear any family in this world could compete with my Fujiwara clan?!" Provoked by Miketsu, Mokou retorted loudly and as a matter of course. Miketsu smiled meaningfully at Mokou's reaction.

"Then there's no problem, is there? Since your Fujiwara clan is the foremost noble clan in the land, what family could possibly compete with you? And if you ask me, Princess Kaguya choosing a public selection isn't necessarily a bad thing for you."

"Not a bad thing?" Mokou looked at Miketsu in confusion. She thought, This girl I've doted on for over a decade, I thought she already had one foot in our door, but now she might just fly away entirely. How could this be good news?

"Heh heh, listen to me. Your goal is to create a new Princess Kaguya, to use her legend to overshadow the previous one, and to successfully marry her into the Fujiwara clan, to avenge your father's humiliation, right?" Raising a finger, Miketsu spoke slowly to Mokou.

"That's right. Is there a problem with that?"

"While I haven't met the original Bamboo Princess, I am confident that the current Princess Kaguya is already perfect in terms of beauty, temperament, character, and so on. But do you think that even if the current Princess Kaguya marries into the Fujiwara clan, the legend she leaves behind will truly be able to overshadow that past Bamboo Princess?" Miketsu posed the question to Mokou. After a moment of thought, Mokou scratched her head and said.

"It seems... not yet..."

"Exactly, not yet. In truth, how beautiful or how elegant the former Bamboo Princess truly was, we people of today cannot truly grasp. The reason the story of the Bamboo Princess spread so widely wasn't the princess in the story, but the story itself—its inherent intrigue. If your Fujiwara clan were to simply marry Princess Kaguya off in a dull manner, the story would lose all its appeal..." Miketsu spoke earnestly to Mokou, who nodded, finding some truth in her words.

"Hmm... it does seem that way. But that alone wouldn't be enough to suppress the legend of that wretched girl..."

"Precisely. To overshadow the original Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, you need a new Tale of the Bamboo Cutter. The new princess must have a more captivating story than the original. Similarly, if you truly wish to cleanse the Fujiwara clan's shame and rewrite the ending of the Tale of the Bamboo Cutter by marrying the princess, you must also go through a series of competitions." Miketsu finished speaking, then watched Mokou with a smile. After hesitating for a few seconds, Mokou finally gritted her teeth and declared with determination.

"Alright, then let's compete. I refuse to believe that with the current strength of my Fujiwara clan, the outcome would be the same as it was centuries ago!"

Watching Mokou, who had suddenly become filled with confidence, Miketsu, clad in white, smiled as she unfurled her folding fan, gently fanning herself by the pond.

...

Asakura Hao—this name, to the nobles of Heian-kyo, represented both power and mystery. She was a genius Onmyoji, an Onmyo Taiyu on par with Abe no Seimei and Ashiya Doman. She had exorcised countless yokai, suppressed vengeful spirits, and performed miracles to save Heian-kyo. Her unique Asakura Style Onmyojutsu was never taught to outsiders, and her whereabouts were elusive, like an immortal drifting through the mortal world.

Asakura Hao was not only a powerful Onmyoji but also a hereditary court noble with the qualifications of a courtier, and she had an extremely close relationship with the Fujiwara clan, the foremost noble clan in the land. Many nobles had long sought to align themselves with her, but as she rarely involved herself in the political affairs of Heian-kyo, their efforts were fruitless. To the numerous nobles of Heian-kyo, Asakura Hao and her Asakura family, though highly renowned, always felt ethereal, almost unreal.

And now, this very Asakura family suddenly announced a monumental piece of news to all of Heian-kyo overnight: Asakura Hao declared that her adopted daughter, Asakura Kaguya, had reached a suitable age, and a husband would be chosen for her to establish an engagement, with marriage to follow.

This news immediately shook the entire noble circle of Heian-kyo. The name Asakura Kaguya was known to almost all noble youths; she was a young beauty with the name Kaguya, possessing a temperament akin to the legendary Bamboo Princess. Although Asakura Hao rarely appeared in noble circles, each time she did, she brought along her only adopted daughter from the Asakura family. From an early age, Asakura Kaguya had made a name for herself among noble youths with her charming appearance and elegant demeanor.

In recent years, as Princess Kaguya grew older, she began to attend various important ceremonies and banquets, such as the Inari Festival, alone, substituting for the often-absent Hao. This led to her appearing more frequently among the great nobles. As her body matured, her increasingly beautiful appearance was noted by a multitude of noble youths. Anyone with discerning eyes knew that in a few more years, this Princess Kaguya would blossom into a beauty capable of toppling nations and ruining people—a beauty perhaps only comparable to the legendary Bamboo Princess. Titles such as "Heian-kyo's Princess Kaguya" and "Heian-kyo's Bamboo Princess" were already bestowed upon her.

Upon hearing that Asakura Kaguya was seeking a future husband, a large number of noble scions in Heian-kyo immediately became restless. This was not solely due to Princess Kaguya's beauty.

Since Asakura Hao was a woman and seemed to have no intention of marrying, Asakura Kaguya, as her only daughter, was naturally the sole heir to the entire Asakura family. Marrying Asakura Kaguya could even lead to freely gaining the Asakura family's assets, official positions, and land in the future. The Asakura Style Onmyojutsu, never taught to outsiders, would also be within reach. With the support of Asakura Hao, a mother-in-law closely connected to the Fujiwara clan and holding a high position herself, rising swiftly through the ranks in Heian-kyo would be a natural progression.

Considering all these reasons, Princess Kaguya's influence over the many noble youths in Heian-kyo was unparalleled. On the very night Asakura Hao announced the news, many noble residences in Heian-kyo were brightly lit. By the next morning, gifts prepared overnight were already piled high in the front courtyard of the Asakura Residence.

"Hmm... the effect seems quite good..."

Looking at the mountain of precious introductory gifts being transported by countless servants, Miketsu nodded with satisfaction. If she hadn't stipulated beforehand that only gifts would be accepted for now and no visitors, the entire residence would have been impassable.

"So, Princess Kaguya, since there are so many suitors this time, how many do you plan to shortlist?" Miketsu asked the Princess Kaguya beside her. Princess Kaguya smiled and extended an open palm.

"Since the legendary Bamboo Princess had five most sincere and noble suitors, then I shall also choose that number—five..."