To the northwest of the palace of the emperor of Miedai, there is a vast mansion. Despite the great uprising that split the country in two, the mansion was relatively undamaged, and its appearance has retained its old-fashioned charm. Needless to say, this is the residence of the Kwang Pak family, the Prime Minister of Midaiguni, where Ozin and Satsuki also live.
They were ordered by the emperor to close the gate, and were immediately put under house arrest in their room upon returning to the mansion. In this country, closing the gate is one of the heaviest punishments. They are free to spend their time in their room, but they are forbidden to go outside. A small pail is brought inside, and they are expected to do their business inside the room. Although the waste is disposed of when the food is brought in, the room is still filled with a foul odor, making it a poor environment. Baths are limited to twice a week, and even then they are carried into the room in a small basin, as if to bathe. In other words, the women are forced to live almost as if they were in prison, even though they are in their own homes.
Ausin was noisy after only a few hours in this environment. Having grown up as a princess with no problems, the stress of not being able to eat what she wanted, drink what she wanted, or go where she wanted was unimaginable to her. In addition, Satsuki and the other women who had always been by her side, her guards, were also kept away, and she could no longer bear the loneliness she was experiencing for the first time. She was so terrified and anxious that she banged on the door of her room violently and cried out in a loud, uncontrollable voice.
"I had to get you out of here! I was letting you out! Let me out of here! Please! Let me out, let me out, let me out! Aaaaahhhhhhhhh!"
She did not eat or drink water and continued to scream like a mad woman. Her extraordinary loud voice echoed through the vast house, and even Satsuki, who was locked in a separate room, could hear it well enough. Being originally from a lowly aristocratic family, she could manage to endure such an inconvenient life, but the sound of her lord, Aujin, who was like a sister or daughter to her and who had taken care of her since she was born, crying and screaming broke Satsuki's heart. She wondered if she could at least pardon Hi-sama, but there was nothing she could do, since only the minimum number of people came and went, and the "magic sucking stones," the treasures of the Kwanpak family, were placed in the four corners of the room to seal her magic. As the name implies, the "Magic Sucking Stone" sucks out a person's magic power. The stones placed at the four corners of the room were adjusted by the Owaras, who were in charge of guarding the palace, so that they would absorb Satsuki's magic power until the very last minute before she fainted.
Auzin became quiet as soon as the second day arrived. Still, when it was time to bring in the food, he would loudly call out to them to get him out of here, but by the third day, we could not hear his voice at all. After a week of the gate being closed, Satsuki's own mental state was finally reaching its limit.
Originally, she was born in the lowest class of the lower nobility. Normally, she would not have been allowed to be seen by the emperor or even by Aujin. It was common for her to marry into one of the lower nobility and spend the rest of her life without ever seeing the light of day, or to become a concubine or second wife of one of the nobles.
At the age of five, Satsuki was sent as an apprentice to the Kwanpak family, where her life took a turn for the better.
An apprenticeship ...... sounds good, but in reality it was just a way to cut her lip, and in reality it was just a wench's apprenticeship. On her first day of service, when she was dressed in a servant's kimono and taken to the maid's room with her few belongings, she accidentally ran out in front of the mistress of the house. Moreover, she did not know the wife's face. So she grabbed a beautiful kimono of the woman who appeared in front of her and said, "Auntie, I love you. The people around her paled, but the mistress, perhaps thinking Satsuki was cute, was delighted and instead of scolding her, gave her various gifts and sent her on her way. It was an unprecedented case for a servant girl to be invited by the mistress. From this time on, Satsuki was looked up to by her fellow servants, who said, "Satsuki is a lucky woman.
A few years later, when the wife gave birth to a son, Satsuki was ordered to be his caretaker and playmate. It was an unexpected promotion for a mere servant girl to be a caretaker of a princess. To live up to her wife's expectations, Satsuki worked hard at her studies while taking care of Aujin. She is the woman she is today only because of her intense study at that time.
However, when his wife passed away two years later, the criticism against Satsuki became more and more severe day by day. Now, in the dimly lit room, she vividly recalled many sad and frustrating memories of being bullied and teased as a child. The expressions, lines, scenery, and even the smell of the wind of her colleagues who abused her, and the housemates of this house. ....... As she remembered these things, she mumbled to herself, "I never want to feel like that again, I never want to go back to those days, I never want to go back to those days, I never want to go back to those days, I never want to go back to those days.
Thinking about the future, she feels a horrible feeling that makes her hair stand on end. I will lose the position I have built up over the years. Then, I would be driven back into a corner by those who had been arrogant and mocked me. I can no longer borrow the authority of Master Aujin. ....... She was plunged into the depths of despair.
I admit that I have been an arrogant and irreverent woman for a long time now. But it was the only way to protect herself. I would look for the failures of others, and I would make fun of them, and I would make myself look like I was capable of it. By doing so, they have protected themselves from all kinds of criticism by being superior to others. It was the only way to survive.
Her methods are violently wrong, but there is no way that Satsuki could face it, much less change her way of thinking. But there were two people in her life whom she could trust. One was, needless to say, Aujin, and the other was Octa, a healing magician in the service of the Kwanpak family.
He was like the family doctor, and although he was still young, he was very skilled and visited Aujin frequently. He was soft-spoken and courteous to everyone in the house, and everyone in the house was very much at ease with him.
He was especially open with Satsuki about his problems. About the relationships in the house, about his skills ....... For some reason, a man who should have more knowledge and popularity than Satsuki opens up to him, even though he is disliked by everyone in the house. For Satsuki, this was the first time to meet such a man. She wondered why, and when she asked Okta why, she received a surprising answer.
I come from a lowly family. My master took an interest in me and trained me to become a full-fledged healing sorcerer. However, he envied me, spoke ill of me, and was mean to me. ....... I have endured such treatment for a long time. I thought that Satsuki-sama would understand my frustration."
After this, Satsuki began to see Okta as a fellow human being, and their relationship gradually grew closer. It was only the other day that he proposed to Satsuki. Okta sneaked into Satsuki's room at night, looked Satsuki straight in the eye, and slowly opened his mouth in a calm voice.
"Lady Satsuki, will you become my husband and wife?"
"What a ...... concubine to ....... But I can't leave you, Hi-Sama ......
"Then come with Master Hee to my homeland, the Kingdom of Thana."
"What?"
This country has no future now. The Prime Minister is in his villa in the mountains. The people are suffering in poverty, but no one will lend a helping hand. Even the emperor is being fed by the confectioners on the street. And ...... this is only for you, Satsuki, but ...... my home kingdom of Thana has decided to stop trade with the Midei nation."
"Hey! The Kingdom of Tana is ......"
"Yes. If that happens, our country will soon be in ruins. That's why I want to save you, my dear. I want you to become my wife and come with me to the Kingdom of Tana. If you are worried, I will take you with me. I have connections with the royal family. I will make arrangements so that you and Satsuki can always be together. How would you like that?"
"So ...... that's what ...... Hee-sama said ...... Oh?"
Satsuki found herself in Okta's thick chest. Her heart beat faster. Satsuki stiffens, not knowing what to do. Okta grabs her by both shoulders and gently pulls her away from him.
"Don't worry......, trust me......."
Immediately afterwards, Okta's lips brushed Satsuki's lips. Something like an electric current rushes through her body ....... Before dawn the next day, Okta secretly left Satsuki's room. Satsuki was left alone in her room, her hair wet with tears, staring at the ceiling.
At this moment, she lost her body and her heart to Okuta.