Chapter 0 - Duty

Gravel crunched underneath black leather boots as a tall figure took short steps along the path. Her build was athletic, her skin a light yellow, her light brown hair flowing to her shoulders. In her left hand was an ornately decorated sheath containing a slightly curved sword. Her right hand was clenched in a fist.

Mitsumi Takehoshu's mind was buzzing, her hands shook slightly from cold. Yet she didn't even think about stopping to rest. She couldn't afford to. Too much was resting on her shoulders for her to stop.

2 years. She'd been tracking her son for 2 years. Ever since he left Nakimuto. Since he betrayed them. It was her fault, and so it was her responsibility to cut his branch from her family tree.

She'd always tried to be a good mother. A good woman. She was raised to be an ideal woman in Nakimuto, as all women were. Married at 16, pregnant with her first child at 18. Over the following years, she raised her first child to adhere to and respect the realm's rules and traditions. Meanwhile, she continued to bear children until she had 7: Rin, Makoto, Aki,, Kenji, Junko, Zakai and Ike.

Kenji was always different. He always wore his older sister's clothes, claiming that they felt more comfortable. Yet he also stole his father's sword and practiced with it in the rear garden. Mitsumi tried to discipline him, but she was always too soft. She regularly made excuses to get him out of trouble, and sometimes took the punishments on his behalf.

Her softness had cost them everything. One day, Kenji cut their list of tradition to ribbons and fled the realm. The clan was heartbroken. Things only got worse from there. Mitsumi and the Takehoshu family were blacklisted-it became a crime to even sell food to them.

The Emperor of Nakimuto's words still rang in Mitsumi's head: that she failed in her motherly duties and allowed a corrupt branch to grow. Now she must cut off that corrupt branch before it becomes a new tree. To redeem her family and reclaim their honour, she must kill Kenji. She had accepted without a second of hesitation. The Emperor put the Takehoshu family under house arrest; the clan was unable to leave their family home, and provided with food and water only through the Emperor's aides. 

Over the next two years, Mitsumi was trained as an assassin and swordswoman by the Emperor's guards. When her training was complete, they let her out into the world to find and kill her son. She'd already failed to kill him once before, and now Kenji knew that she was hunting him. Which meant she had to think as he would.

Her reverie was broken as the location she was looking for came into her view. An lonely inn by the pathside, the name "The Snowdrift Inn" emblazoned on a swinging sign. She entered the inn and headed over to the counter. She hoped that her source's information paid off. The bartender looked up with a warm smile as Mitsumi sat down "Hello, friend. You look like you need something strong."

"I appreciate the offer, but no thank you." The assassin answered formally "I need some information. I am told you keep tabs on anyone who is anyone in this realm."

"In a manner of speaking, yes. Who is it you'd like to meet?" The bartender answered.

"Kenji Takehoshu. A highly skilled swordsman who has been making a name for himself in the arena." Mitsumi told him.

"Ah, you wish to test yourself against him? Why not just wait for him in the arena?" The elf asked, an eyebrow raised.

"I am... not welcome there. I lost my temper during a fight and killed my opponent." Mitsumi lied easily. "I would say he deserved it for calling me... what was it?"

"I can guess what the name was. Bigots like that aren't common in Asmana, luckily. Here's hoping you've got a handle on it by now." The elf told her. "As for Kenji, he was last spotted heading east of Bluegrass, but where he's going from there, who knows?"

Mitusmi's grip on her sword tightened slightly as she got up. "Thank you for your help."

As she walked to the door, a burly and hairy man held a hand out and stood up from his seat. "Hey, leaving so soon? Why not stay a while? I'd like to get to know such a beautiful woman a little better..."

Mitsumi acted faster than blinking: stepping back and drawing her sword. The man shouted in pain, clutching his hand. Mitsumi merely wiped her sword on her sleeve. A great gash had appeared on his palm. "I am spoken for." She informed him coldly, sheathing her blade. "Even if I was not, I would not even consider sleeping with such an unhygenic man."

Without another word, the assassin headed out the door and into the sunset. She supposed that was a little harsh, but she'd learned that one of the only things Asmanans understood was violence and pain. No; she did what she needed to. She had a duty to fulfill, and she could let nobody get in the way of that.