Volume 2 - CH 1.1

The vermillion sun was shining upon the garden.

The yet-to-turn-red maple trees glowed, but on the other hand, the shadows of the old pine trees with their crooked branches and the shadows of the stone lanterns standing nearby were intertwined upon the damp soil.

The sun soon grew dim, and the area became shrouded in pale blue darkness.

A moist wind ruffled the tops of the pine trees. A shadow stood in front of a stone lantern. It looked like an old man. His head, lacking even in grey hairs, was hanging down, and the crested haori and hakama he was wearing were worn out and faded.

The evening darkness became even darker. The man’s figure had moved to the outer corridor in the blink of an eye. The yukimi shoji doors1 opened vigorously.

A scream echoed through the mansion.

A thin line of smoke rose from the old porcelain censer. Immediately, an aroma filled the air. The fragrance was clean, deep, but somewhat forlorn.

The name of the fragrant wood was “Shio no Tsuki.” After marrying into the Hanabishi family, it was Suzuko’s role to burn it every morning.

Suzuko’s maiden name was Takigawa, and she was the youngest daughter of a marquis family that was once very distinguished. She had recently married Baron Hanabishi Takafuyu and became Baroness Hanabishi. She was seventeen, and was beautiful with her rich, glossy black hair, a white face with sharp, strong-willed eyes, and a straight back. She had a beautiful face that made one think of the breeze in early summer.

“Suzuko-san, the fire tongs.”

Prompted by Takafuyu, Suzuko handed him the fire tongs that she had been using. Takafuyu was currently accompanying her, stating that she mustn’t get burned while she wasn’t used to the process of burning incense.

It was a night at the end of April 1920, about a month and a half ago, when Suzuko met Takafuyu. Suzuko had witnessed Takafuyu feeding a ghost that appeared at a certain viscount’s mansion to a vengeful spirit in juunihitoe. Takafuyu proposed to her right after that—that was the start of their romance. However, Suzuko immediately refused, saying, “No,” with a definitiveness that was unbefitting of a young lady. Still, after many twists and turns, Suzuko married Takafuyu. They had just returned from their honeymoon last week.

After their honeymoon, Suzuko began living at the Hanabishi estate in Kojimachi. The Hanabishi family were originally the chief priests of a shrine on Awaji Island, and after the Meiji Restoration, they were created barons. They were so called shinshoku nobles. Takafuyu himself was the second son and had been adopted out, but after the death of the eldest son, he returned home and took over as head. The mansion was an elegant red-brick Western-style building entwined with ivy. Suzuko and Takafuyu were lighting the incense in one of the rooms.

Suzuko gazed at the thinly lingering smoke.

It hadn’t been long since she started to burn incense every morning. Perhaps that was why her body always stiffened with nervousness when she smelled the incense. Even now, it felt like the jourou vengeful spirit was about to reveal itself——

This fragrant wood was possessed by the vengeful spirit of “Awaji no Kimi,” a beautiful woman clad in juunihitoe. Apparently, she was an ancestor of the Hanabishi family. For generations, the head of the Hanabishi family had given ghosts to Awaji no Kimi to feed on. Otherwise, it is said that they would be haunted to death.

Suzuko was terrified of Awaji no Kimi. Those cavernous black eyes and red, chapped lips when she saw her up close. That fear of being engulfed, of feeling like you were being eaten, seeped into her skin. Suzuko was chosen by Awaji no Kimi. That was why she was to marry Takafuyu. The smell of incense now permeated Suzuko’s body, and she couldn’t escape from it.

“Suzuko-san.”

Takafuyu placed his hand on her back. A faint warmth spread through it.

“Don’t worry. Awaji no Kimi won’t appear when you light the incense in the morning.”

More than the words, it was the warmth she felt on her back made Suzuko’s tension melt away. The strength slipped out of her shoulders. It was a strange thing. When she first met Takafuyu, she thought that he was a very shady person.

Suzuko looked up at Takafuyu. If she wanted to see his face, she had to turn her chin up to look at him. Takafuyu had a finely chiseled, handsome face. His sharp features were mellow with a somewhat mature air for a man of twenty-six. His dark reddish-brown eyes were like the darkness deep in a quiet forest. There was a shadow in them, but the gaze he directed at Suzuko was soft. There was no longer the sense of unreadability and unknowability that existed in the beginning. It wasn’t so much that Takafuyu had changed, but rather that Suzuko had changed the way she looked at him.

“Are you feeling alright?”

“Yes.”

This was a conversation that was repeated every morning when they lit the incense. Takafuyu’s attitude towards Suzuko was overly polite, almost like that of a servant towards his princess.

From the very beginning, it’s as though I’m serving you on hand and foot.

Suzuko recalled that Takafuyu had said that before. They were words whose meaning she didn’t quite understand.

Takafuyu had said at the time that he would follow Suzuko, who had declared, “I want to eradicate Awaji no Kimi.”

Suzuko had decided to exorcise Awaji no Kimi instead of feeding ghosts to her.

Awaji no Kimi was a “demon.” Now that she had decided to remove her from this world, she couldn’t be afraid of her.

Suzuko calmed herself down and looked at the smoke rising from the censer.

“Now then, I shall be heading out,” Takafuyu said as he quickly headed for the door after leaving the “Shiotsuki Room.” Suzuko was surprised.

“You’re not going to eat breakfast?”

“I have to go to Yokohama now. I’m sorry. I think I can join you for breakfast tomorrow.”

Takafuyu walked as he talked. He received a suit jacket from his steward Yura, who was waiting in the corridor, and quickly put it on. Today, he was wearing a white linen three-piece suit, suited the tall Takafuyu well. The cufflinks and tiepin were amethyst, and the tie was a dove feather grey. All of these accessories were chosen by Suzuko. She had been choosing his accessories every day recently because he asked her to choose them.

With a Panama hat in hand, Takafuyu dashingly climbed into the back of the car and smiled at Suzuko before leaving. He was in a hurry. It was understandable, though.

Takafuyu oversaw an incense company called “Kuneidou.” The head office was in Yokohama, there was a branch office in Tokyo, and the factory was on Awaji Island. The business was originally run by Takafuyu’s adoptive parents’ family on Awaji Island for generations. After the Restoration, the company was headquartered in Yokohama, where Takafuyu was taken in as an adopted child. Even after taking over the baron title, Takafuyu assisted his adoptive parents in their business, and after they retired, he took charge of the company himself. Takafuyu was a very busy man, traveling back and forth between Yokohama and Tokyo. Before he got married, it seemed that there were times when he didn’t come home, but now he came home no matter how late at night. This was in order to light the incense with Suzuko in the morning.

As expected, after two or three times, Suzuko could light the incense on her own. However, Takafuyu didn’t let her do it by herself. Was it because he was worried about her burning herself? Or was it because she was afraid of Awaji no Kimi? She tried to put on a nonchalant face so as to not show fear, but she was sure that Takafuyu saw right through her.

Suzuko stood in the doorway for a short while, then took a breath and turned around. She was startled when she saw Yura standing by the door. After Suzuko went back into the house, he silently closed the door. He bowed, then left. Yura seemed to be a little younger than Takafuyu, but his calm demeanour made him seem older. He was a handsome young man with cool eyes and firm features, but he was always expressionless and didn’t speak much. More than that, she had never heard him say anything more than what was necessary for his job, such as “As you wish.” It probably wasn’t just her imagination that he felt somewhat cold. Because he wasn’t the only servant who seemed cold and indifferent.

There were about ten servants at the Hanabishi estate. It seemed to be a small number, but she heard that some noble families only had one or two servants, so perhaps it wasn’t so few after all. Suzuko had been surprised, though, because there were always fifty to sixty people at her old home, the Takigawa estate, at any time.

As This mansion isn’t so big, and I’m the only one who lives here, Takafuyu explained.

Almost all of the servants were from Awaji Island, the hometown of the Hanabishi family, and when they needed people for major cleanups and the like, they also brought in people from the island. The same was true for the Takigawa family, which often hired people from their hometown. The reason for this was because they were more trustworthy. The Takigawa family, in particular, was once a great and prominent family, and even now they were still “feudal lords” to the local people. Even if there was a scandal within the family, they would never do anything disloyal like spreading rumors about it. It would be best if there weren’t any scandals, but Suzuko’s father, the current head of the family, was a libertine, so there was no shortage of such stories. Suzuko was the daughter of a maid who her father seduced.

The Hanabishis were a complicated family, so they probably carefully selected people who could keep secrets. None of them were very talkative. That was fine, but they were almost too curt. First of all, they didn’t seem to have any intention to exchange words with Suzuko. For example, if she tried to make conversation by saying things like, “I wonder if the rainy season will start soon,” they would simply reply, “I’m not sure…,” which wasn’t even an answer. There was a solemn wall between servants and masters, and they weren’t supposed to be friendly with each other. However, their attitude wasn’t necessarily distant and cold for those reasons. Rather, it could be described as outright disrespectful. Did they not acknowledge her as the bride of the Hanabishi family and their mistress? The only exception was Mikoshiba, the family butler, who wasn’t cold like the others, but he wasn’t affectionate either. He probably wouldn’t want to hear such words from someone like Suzuko, who didn’t have an ounce of charm, though.

Suzuko didn’t want to be bosom friends with the servants, nor did she earnestly desire to be recognized as a mistress. She was simply concerned about their relationship with Takafuyu.

When she observed the relationship between him and them, she found that Takafuyu didn’t speak to them except to tell them what to do, and there was a strange tension between them during those times. Suzuko sensed a coldness and contempt in their gazes towards him and at the edges of their Noh-mask-like expressions.

Suzuko recalled a conversation Takafuyu had with a boy he was acquainted with on their honeymoon in Hayama. The boy was worried about him living at the Hanabishi estate.

Takafuyu, are you being bullied at your mansion in Tokyo? Are you doing okay?

Takafuyu had laughed at that. No servant could bully the head of the family. That was true. However…

Takafuyu’s grandfather doted on him with the intention to make him his heir, and tried to exclude his father and older brother. When his grandfather died, Takafuyu was sent away and adopted out to another family. Among the servants, there were probably some who sympathized with Takafuyu’s father and brother and didn’t think kindly of him. Besides… Suzuko’s face clouded over. Did the servants know that Takafuyu was the biological son of his grandfather and not his father? About the secret of his birth, which still tormented him…

For Takafuyu, this mansion was a place of abominable memories, and it was by no means a comfortable or restful place.

“…”

He never looks angry or displeased, but…

“Breakfast is ready, madam.” As Suzuko stood alone in the entrance hall with a complicated look on her face, Yura came to call her.

Breakfast at the Hanabishi estate was Western-style. The warm, fluffy bread and thickly fried eggs were delicious, but the dining room was so spacious that it was chilly for one person to eat alone.

“Miss—Madam, shall we choose this haori?”

Her attendant maid, Taka, asked, holding a gauze haori in her hand. Taka was once a maid of the Takigawa family, but she came here with Suzuko when she got married. This was very reassuring to Suzuko, who was still clueless about how to navigate her marriage home. Although Taka still wasn’t used to calling her “Madam,” and tended to call her “Miss.”

Taka was holding a gauze haori with hydrangeas on a pale red-wisteria background. On the clothes rack, there was a dove grey silk crepe robe with gradations of white and a similar hydrangea pattern, and a gauze ivory-white summer obi with kanzemizu2 embroidered in silver thread.

The rainy season might begin as early as tomorrow, and the weather in mid-June could be hot and humid or suddenly cool, making it difficult to decide what to wear.

“I hope it won’t be too cold.”

“The sun is out today, and the temperature will be much warmer by noon.”

“If you say so, then it must be true.”

Taka, who was over forty, was never wrong at times like these, perhaps because of the wisdom of age. If Taka said it would be hot, then it would be hot enough to sweat, and if she said the temperature would be low, it would be cold enough to shiver.

“The hydrangeas have green leaves, so the obi sash should be this heathered grey. And the obijime should also be—no, shall we match the obijime to the obi? The obi fastener will be jade…then the haori sash should be crystal…”

Taka mumbled to herself as she opened a drawer in the chest of drawers and grabbed the obijime and haori cord. Today, she was even more enthusiastic about choosing Suzuko’s outfit. This was because she was heading out today for a dinner with her half-sisters. They were going to a restaurant in Nihonbashi. Taka was excited because they were going to meet with her half-sisters, who were both kimono enthusiasts.

“I hope my sisters are doing well.”

“I’m sure they are, since they invited you to dinner. I’d imagine that they are more worried about you, Miss…Madam.”

“I sent them postcards from Hayama.”

Her half-sisters were Yukiko and Asako, and her half-brothers were Yoshitada and Yoshimi. She had also sent a postcard to Chizu, the mother of Yukiko, Asako, and Yoshimi. She didn’t send one to her father. He wouldn’t read it anyway, or rather, he spent all his time jaunting around in the courtesan district and never came home, so there was no point in sending him one.

“Don’t you find yourself wanting to see them even more because of that? After all, they’ve never been very good at detaching themselves from their younger sister.”

“Detaching…”

“Now then, Madam, shall we go with crystal for the haori cord?”

“I have a amethyst one, don’t I? That would do.”

“The purple one? That would be fine as well, but—oh, the master’s cufflinks and tiepin today are amethyst, aren’t they?”

Taka’s eyes crinkled into crescent shapes.

“I’m not trying to match him. It isn’t as though we’re going out together…”

“So, you’re implying that it would be fine if you were together?”

Taka quickly took out the amethyst haori cord. She looked happy. Taka had distinct features, particularly her large and sharp eyes, thick eyebrows, and a stout build with square shoulders, giving her an oddly imposing presence. When Suzuko first met her as a child, she had been afraid of her. But when she smiled, her face would crinkle up, and she would instantly look friendly.

Taka placed the haori card with the string of amethyst beads on the chest, and next to it, an obi fastener of jade and silver worked into a pattern of waves. Her change of clothes was ready. Suzuko took off the regular kimono she had been wearing and put on the under-robe. The collar of the under-robe was beautifully embroidered with hydrangeas, and the crepe neckpiece was sewn on. Taka helped her into the gauze haori from behind. Suzuko left the rest of the dressing to her and turned her attention to the room.

Suzuko’s private room was a brightly lit room with an eggshell-colored wallpaper with floral and vine patterns. The room was probably the private room of Takafuyu’s grandmother, mother, and the successive mistresses of the house. The furnishings, including a chest of drawers, a dressing table, and a table, were all elegantly designed with curved lines and decorated with floral carvings. The carpet was wisteria grey with a floral pattern, and the fireplace was white stone with fine embossed carvings of ivy. Overall, the room was decorated with elegance and delicacy. Takafuyu told her that he could replace the wallpaper and furnishings if she didn’t like it, but Suzuko told him that she was fine with them as they were. She truly did like them.

After fastening the obi and tying the white sanbu-himo3 string that passed through the fastener, Taka sat Suzuko down in front of the mirror. She untied her hair that had been loosely tied up and combed it again. Before her marriage, she braided her hair and wrapped it into a knot at the nape of her neck before tying it with a ribbon. However, she couldn’t wear her hair like a schoolgirl anymore. The braid was the same as before, but her hair was gathered at the back of her head and pinned up.

“Shall we use lilies for the hair ornament?”

Taka took out the hair ornaments with artificial flowers from a drawer of the dresser. In addition to lilies, there were also ornaments in the form of roses and a bouquet of forget-me-nots. When the large lily was placed next to her face, it brightened her face. Suzuko’s eyes, which had once been described by Takafuyu as “eyes like dead fish,” seemed to glow with a youthful radiance.

“A perfect lady.”

Taka had Suzuko stand in front of the large mirror and put on her haori. She looked satisfied. The outfit, in colors of pale purple and purplish gray, resembled a rain-hazed scene in the rainy season. The small jade stones that looked like water droplets on the obi fastener echoed the green of the hydrangea leaves and stood out in the misty landscape. The amethyst haori cord were the raindrops falling on the hydrangeas. The heathered grey obi sash was tucked away so tightly in the obi that it couldn’t be seen from the front, but it peeked out when she bent over or sat down. Taka enjoyed paying attention to such details.

“It’s almost time to leave, isn’t it?”

Taka glanced at the clock above the fireplace and hurriedly began to put away the combs and pins.

“Your workload would be reduced if we could just find a good handmaid…”

In the Takigawa household, there was another maid who took care of Suzuko’s hair and other small details. Taka wasn’t the only one who dressed her. However, since the Hanabishi family had been without a wife or a daughter for a long time, there were no maidservants who could do such work. The maidservants who were available were those who cleaned and did the laundry, said to be too unfit for the task of taking care of a nobleman’s wife. Until a new maid was hired, Taka would be doing everything for now.

“Madam.”

There was a knock at the door. It was the voice of Tazu, the head maid. Taka opened the door. A woman about forty with sloping shoulders, a long neck, and dressed in patterned cotton was standing there. She was Tazu. She had a long face, high cheekbones, and narrow eyes. Tazu gave one look at Taka, then turned to Suzuko and bowed her head expressionlessly.

“Yura is informing you that the car is ready. Please come to the door.”

“Okay.”

Suzuko put on her lace gloves. Because of an old burn scar on the back of her hand, she wore gloves when she went out. These gloves were a gift from Takafuyu.

Accompanied by Taka, she left the room. Tazu kept her head bowed at the room door and didn’t follow them. She never entered Suzuko’s room, nor did she look at her. When they turned down the hallway and she was out of sight, Taka opened her mouth to complain.

“Why is that head maid so disagreeable?”

Taka seemed unable to stomach Tazu and complained about everything.

“To begin with, when I asked her if there were any maids who could assist you…”

The maids here are all unrefined girls from the countryside, and they are not capable of taking care of Madam, who is the daughter of a marquis.

Tazu’s voice was so cutting and dismissive that Taka was apparently offended. They didn’t know if she was telling the truth or she was just being malicious and unwilling to send over a maid. Taka took it as an insult. She thought it was a jab at Suzuko’s upbringing.

Suzuko’s mother was a maid who left the Takigawa house after conceiving Suzuko. After that, she apparently moved from place to place, and died when Suzuko was still very young. Suzuko was eleven when she was taken in by the Takigawa family, and until then she had lived in an Asakusa slum. In other words, Suzuko didn’t have the breeding of a young lady by nature. The fact that she looked like that now was the result of Taka’s diligent education.

Because of this background, Tazu’s way of speaking sounded snide to Taka.

In any case, it was true that she had no handmaids at present, so Suzuko asked Mikoshiba, the butler, to hire a new one.

If there was no one to assist her, Suzuko would simply do everything herself, but Taka wouldn’t allow it, saying that that would be disrespectful. Suzuko was the wife of the family head, and Taka insisted that she had to make that known and that the first step was crucial.

“I suppose some time is needed,” Suzuko said, trying to calm Taka, who was likely to lash out at Tazu if left unchecked. She once thought that since the two of them were close in age, they might feel even more antagonistic to each other, but Taka angrily responded, “She is the one who’s four years older than me!” with her eyes raised, so Suzuko refrained from mentioning it again.

I hope they don’t fight while I’m gone.

While feeling a little worried, Suzuko climbed into the car after being seen off by Taka.

I’m baaack! The mystery deepens in Volume 2!!