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ORIGINAL STORY BY NATSU HYUUGA
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{\an8}About today's plans,
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{\an8}we'll have the Mid Festival
in the afternoon.
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Sure.
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I have a general idea
of what you're thinking about,
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but don't forget about work.
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I know.
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Sir Lihaku. What's wrong?
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Something bad has happened.
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Something bad?
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Remember the fire in the warehouse?
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-Yes.
-On the same day, also this.
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There was a theft
at a different warehouse.
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They must've taken advantage of
all the commotion that night.
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A looter at a fire, huh?
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What was stolen?
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I guess this is
a behind-closed-doors discussion.
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We lost some ritual items.
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Multiples of them, in fact.
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Were they stored that carelessly?
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I'm not entirely sure myself, but...
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We don't have any knowledgeable managers
at the moment.
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We had one that passed away last year.
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What about the current manager?
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I'm sure he has general knowledge.
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Apparently, he got food poisoning
a while back.
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Food poisoning?
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He got it from his favorite type
of seaweed.
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He's unconscious,
and can't go back to work.
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So we're in a bind.
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This sounds familiar.
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Could that be the bureaucrat
who loves delicacies?
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How do you know?
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It's a long story.
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A theft that occurred
at the same time as a fire.
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The manager of the warehouse,
who was absent due to food poisoning.
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It's too strange to be a coincidence.
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What kind of person was the manager
who passed away last year?
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I know he was famous
for being straight-laced.
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I can't think of the name.
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I know that he loved sweets.
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Could it be Sir Kounen?
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Right, that's it!
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Hey, how do you know these things?
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It's a long story.
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This must be
the sweet-toothed high official
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that I heard about from Sir Jinshi,
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who died from overconsumption of salt.
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Could this all be just coincidence?
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Each incident looks like an accident,
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but what if they were all orchestrated
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by someone with some kind of purpose?
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So, did you need me for something?
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Oh, right!
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This thing that you gave me...
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Oh, from the fire.
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I tried to return it,
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but the owner returned it to me,
saying he didn't want it.
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I thought it was precious,
since it's a high-quality item.
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Apparently, he got it
from some court lady.
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A court lady?
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Isn't it strange?
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Why would someone give
a warehouse guard something like this?
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Apparently,
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this guard escorted a court lady
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outside the palace since she was
walking alone in the dark.
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This smoking pipe was given to him then
to thank him.
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If you received something this nice,
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you'd want to use it right away.
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Start a fire, and sneak
into a different warehouse
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when the security is sparse.
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If the court lady
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gifted the guard with the smoking pipe
to accomplish this...
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Sir Lihaku, who was this court lady?
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I asked for details,
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but she was wearing a scarf,
so her face was hidden.
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Perhaps she was
hiding her face on purpose.
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Could be.
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Apparently, she was tall for a woman,
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and smelled of medicine.
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You're not tall, so I know it wasn't you.
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But do you have any ideas?
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The scent of medicine,
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a tall court lady...
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Don't speak on speculation alone.
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Other than the incidents
and accidents you listed,
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did anything else strange happen?
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That's easy for you to say, but...
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Would looking into that dig anything up?
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Maybe.
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-Maybe not.
-Which is it?
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Two coincidences could happen at once.
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Maybe even three.
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But if these coincidences keep adding up,
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making it not so coincidental,
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and if the tall court lady was
at the center of all this,
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what would that mean?
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Even if the court lady named Suirei
becomes the central figure,
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it has nothing to do with me.
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I see! You're smarter than you look!
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You're as strong as you look, Sir Lihaku.
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Please go easy on me.
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You look like you're having fun.
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You look like you're having fun.
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We're not having fun.
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I'll be on my way then.
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You seem very close to that
military officer.
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Do I?
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Some things were bothering him
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so he wanted to ask me
some questions about it.
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These incidents
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could possibly be related to Sir Jinshi.
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Could I bother you with the details?
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Those are some
strange connections, indeed.
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Yes.
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So, what do you think it means?
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I don't know.
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It seems as if they're trying
to set several traps,
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hoping one might work,
rather than planning for
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one big incident.
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I see. So they might have
set up other traps.
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Though it's hard to say for certain.
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With all of the incidents, it's hard
to say whether they were planned or not.
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It's still entirely possible that
they were all coincidences.
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You're not interested?
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Interested?
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I'm a mere maidservant.
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I only do as I'm told.
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Then, what about this?
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The other day, when I visited
some trading merchants,
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I heard of an interesting item
going around.
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This is what it's called.
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Calculus bovis are cow gallstones,
a type of medicine!
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It's a top quality product that can only
be obtained from one in 1,000 cows!
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Could it be, he would give it to me?
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Is it true? He's not bluffing?
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-Do you want it?
-Please!
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Xiaomao.
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Excuse me, sir.
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Looks like you're all in.
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You'll really give this to me?
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Depends on how well you do.
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I understand.
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As you wish, Sir Jinshi!
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All right then, Gaoshun. Get right to it!
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This is the incident from the other day.
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The official who got food poisoning was
from the Board of Rites.
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If I remember correctly,
the Board of Rites
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manages education and foreign affairs.
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Only if I actually studied to become
a court lady.
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I'll leave these here.
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Thank you.
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Not a problem. Ask me anything
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you don't know.
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What kind of position is this?
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This position works with festivities.
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Festivities, huh?
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Do you have anything to write with?
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Oh, yes.
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Festivities, festivities...
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The food-poisoned official and Sir Kounen
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both worked with festivities.
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And if the smoke pipe incident
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was a way to ensure
that the ritual items were stolen...
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There must be a place where these
"coincidental" events meet
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to create an "inevitable."
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If the ritual items were stolen
with this much planning,
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it means they're used for big festivities.
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Larger than Mid Festival.
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I should look into when that will
take place.
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Now that I think of it, Sir Jinshi did
purification ceremonies often.
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If you're interested in festivities,
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this should be useful.
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Is this a drawing
of where the ritual takes place?
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Yes. It's on the western edge
of the outer court.
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It's called the Altar of the Sapphire Sky.
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It's a very strange design, right?
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There's a large beam hanging
from the roof.
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There's a large drape
over the central ritual altar.
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They lower the beam each time
to add ceremonial texts.
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You're very knowledgeable.
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Yes. I'm not proud of this,
but before working at the archives,
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I had a more proper position
at the Ministry of Rites.
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I said something
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to upset the higher-ups,
and I was sent here.
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At first, I was afraid of its strength
or lack thereof,
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but I'm glad there weren't any problems.
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What do you mean?
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Because they hang the pole
from the ceiling, like this.
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It's a very large pole,
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so I was afraid that
it could potentially fall.
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When I asked about its strength,
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I was demoted to work here.
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That could be very terrifying.
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If the metal fittings
that fix the pole broke,
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and the pole fell from the ceiling,
then the person
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most at risk would be the performer of
the ritual, who would be right underneath.
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Someone of nobility.
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An issue with strength and stability...
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But which ritual item was stolen?
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If such a valuable item was stolen,
surely they'd make a new one...
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Make a new one...
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Excuse me.
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When will they hold a ceremony
in this hall next?
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When?
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Right. That would be today.
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If my speculation is correct,
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this has been planned
for a very long time.
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There's no certainty
that every part will work.
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But by setting several traps,
a few of them will overlap.
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That is how they led up to this moment.
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It's just speculation, nothing more.
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But what if that speculation was right?
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Here it is!
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ALTAR OF THE SAPPHIRE SKY
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Hey! What are you doing?
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Please let me through!
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-I can't allow that.
-It's an emergency!
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A maidservant like you cannot
intervene in festivities!
220
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He's right. I'm just a maid.
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I have no power.
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But once something happens, it's too late.
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That's how irreparable things
always happen!
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Someone's life is at risk.
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Please cancel the festivities!
226
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That's not something for you to decide.
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If you want to say something,
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write a comment in the suggestion box.
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00:14:07,346 --> 00:14:09,848
-It'll be too late then!
-I won't allow it!
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There is a major fault
with the ritual altar.
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Someone could have tampered with it.
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00:14:17,147 --> 00:14:18,857
If you don't let me in right now,
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you'll regret it!
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I'm telling you that there's danger.
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And yet, you refuse to hear of it.
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Right. I see what's going on.
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It makes sense. You intend to
get in my way to make sure
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that the scheme plays out.
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{\an8}Perhaps you're connected to
whoever plotted all this.
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I'm about to lose consciousness...
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It must be infuriating to be talked to
that way by a little girl.
242
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I taunted him on purpose.
This was bound to happen.
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But this incident isn't enough.
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A small fight like this
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couldn't stop the festivities.
246
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I'm all right.
247
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I can't afford to lose consciousness now.
248
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Are you done?
249
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Please let me through.
250
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There's someone of
noble blood inside, correct?
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If something happens, wouldn't it
be all of you who are beheaded?
252
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I'm not asking you
to stop the festivities.
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Just let me go.
254
00:15:52,368 --> 00:15:54,703
Just say a rat sneaked in by accident.
255
00:15:56,205 --> 00:15:59,792
In that case, I'd be the only one
being beheaded!
256
00:16:00,668 --> 00:16:03,796
You're saying I should believe
a little girl like you?
257
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How about my word then?
258
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You are...
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And anyways,
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what are you doing,
beating up a little girl like that?
261
00:16:26,819 --> 00:16:29,613
She's hurt.
262
00:16:32,491 --> 00:16:33,826
Anyways,
263
00:16:33,909 --> 00:16:37,371
what if you listen to the girl
this one time?
264
00:16:37,454 --> 00:16:39,581
I'll take full responsibility for this.
265
00:16:40,666 --> 00:16:43,210
I don't want to see who's behind me.
266
00:16:43,293 --> 00:16:46,088
And he came at such
perfect timing, like he calculated it...
267
00:16:46,171 --> 00:16:49,216
Now's not the time to think
about these things.
268
00:16:50,009 --> 00:16:52,094
I don't care who's behind me.
269
00:16:59,768 --> 00:17:01,687
I probably look terrible.
270
00:17:01,770 --> 00:17:04,106
I'll ask Sir Gaoshun,
271
00:17:04,189 --> 00:17:07,067
and once everything is over,
I'll take a nice, long bath.
272
00:17:08,152 --> 00:17:09,445
I have to make sure
273
00:17:10,404 --> 00:17:12,656
not to get beheaded before that.
274
00:17:58,035 --> 00:17:59,119
I made it...
275
00:18:06,627 --> 00:18:08,003
I should stitch that up.
276
00:18:09,338 --> 00:18:10,380
Hey.
277
00:18:15,719 --> 00:18:18,222
How did this happen?
278
00:18:19,807 --> 00:18:21,266
Sir Jinshi.
279
00:18:23,477 --> 00:18:25,604
Could I have the calculus bovis?
280
00:18:27,689 --> 00:18:29,441
Now's not the time for that.
281
00:18:31,652 --> 00:18:32,486
What happened
282
00:18:33,946 --> 00:18:35,405
to your face?
283
00:18:37,366 --> 00:18:41,411
Why is Sir Jinshi here?
284
00:18:43,580 --> 00:18:47,292
Why does he look so sad?
285
00:18:51,797 --> 00:18:55,467
I'm sorry. Let me stitch up my leg...
286
00:18:57,052 --> 00:18:58,095
Hey!
287
00:18:59,555 --> 00:19:01,723
Hey! Hang in there!
288
00:19:02,307 --> 00:19:03,267
Wake up!
289
00:19:04,226 --> 00:19:07,187
Hey! Hang in there!
290
00:19:07,688 --> 00:19:09,857
Hey!
291
00:22:36,063 --> 00:22:38,982
PREVIEW OF NEXT EPISODE
292
00:22:47,074 --> 00:22:49,701
{\an8}Next episode, "Thornapple."
293
00:22:49,785 --> 00:22:51,703
{\an8}Subtitle translation by: Yukimi Ohashi