Riri changed into the maid outfit that Hisui had brought for her and walked until she was close to the hall.
It was night time, but torches were lit in the garden facing the hall, so it was reasonably bright.
She hid behind a bush in the garden and peeked at the hall.
“There’s quite a lot of soldiers here. I can’t go in there.”
Seeing more than a dozen soldiers searching the hall, she knew that even if she was disguised as a maid, they would notice her. After some thought, she sat behind the bush and took out her incense burner.
“I’ll try to make the sleeping incense again. I only failed when I was in jail because I was in a rush. It’s alright, it should go well this time… probably?”
She noticed the questioning tone in her voice rising, but she pretended that she hadn’t noticed.
“The only way to silence that many soldiers at once is to put them to sleep, and this time…!”
It would be easier to get them out of there, even if she did fail and made them excited.
She finely adjusted the blend of the incense and put it into the incense burner. In the darkness of the night, she took the burner to the bush to the right of the hall and lit it. She calculated that if she lit the incense burner here then the smoke would go into the hall from the direction of the wind. Then, she quickly moved to the shade of a tree in the corner of the garden to avoid smelling the smoke.
“Please, please succeed this time! … Huh?”
The sleeping incense was supposed to be odourless, but a faint smell wafted through the air.
Her sense of smell directly told her brain that this scent was ‘dangerous’.
“Oh no…!”
She quickly clutched her head. The area around the incense burner began to lit up brightly as if it was midday as soon as she crouched down.
Boom!
The earth tremored, and the bush where the incense burner was located exploded.
“What the hell was that explosion?”
“It came from the bush over there!”
The soldiers in the hall were in an uproar, and even Riri, who was hiding, couldn’t believe what she was seeing.
“Why? Why did the incense explode? I was just trying to make a sleeping incense…!”
The incense was made from fragrant wood, but when she lit it on fire, it smelled like gunpowder.
“… What should I do? I was trying to get them to quieten down, but I caused an uproar instead… Hmm?”
She put her hands on the ground and looked down, but then she noticed that the soldiers had gathered at the bush where the explosion had occurred and were making a ruckus.
“It might still go off. Look around to see if there’s anyone in the garden!”
The soldiers scattered and began to search the area. The hall was empty thanks to that.
“This wasn’t how it was supposed to turn out… I was going to use the sleeping incense to put the soldiers to sleep and then quickly search the hall. It’s true that the hall is empty now, so I can check it out, but…!”
There was a huge difference between her idea and reality. She couldn’t accept this, but she didn’t have time to not accept it.
“I can feel down about this after. The soldiers will come back if I don’t hurry. This is good for now.”
She told herself before rushing to the hall. She got up from the floor and stepped onto the platform where the Emperor was sitting. A red curtain was hanging around the platform and finely craft frames radiated subtle beauty.
In the centre of the platform was a golden throne where the Emperor sat during the perfumers meeting.
“It’s a gorgeous throne. I’m almost afraid to touch it.”
She timidly approached the throne. Behind the throne was a gold folding screen with a rising dragon on it. She suddenly noticed a certain scent and sniffed a few times.
“Where is this scent coming from…?”
It was a scent that she had never smelled before, and it was so faint that it seemed like it would disappear at any moment.
“It seems to be coming from the armrest. Why is it coming from this place…? Ah!”
She touched the armrest, and the top came off with a clunk.
“Oh no, did I break it?”
She panicked, but soon realised that it was deliberately designed to come off to make a glove compartment.
“This is a crafted chair, isn’t it? Father’s chair was like this too. He used to put sweets in the compartment and ate them while he was working.”
Some people use it to store cigarette ashes and others used it to store precious stones. She realised that the scent that had been wafting in the air earlier was coming from here as she was about to put the lid back on. She looked closer and saw that there was something in the compartment.
“This is…!”
There was a white incense container with a wisteria flower painted on it in the compartment. She took it out and raised her eyebrow since she recognised the container.
“I’m pretty sure that Kousho-sama’s first love gave this incense container to him. Why is it here?”
When she opened the container, she could smell the scent that had been bothering her a while ago. The faint scent lingering in the container came from two different fragrances. The first scent made her feel sick to her stomach. She knew instinctively that it was a dangerous scent. The other scent was there to erase the presence of the first scent. She put her nose close to the container to check the smell, but it made her feel so sick that she closed the lid of the incense container.
“I wonder if this is the leftovers of the poisonous incense…”
It was probably harmless since some time had passed, but she didn’t want to smell it anymore.
“There’s no way that Kousho-sama put this here, right…?”
She recalled Kousho. He hadn’t said anything when everyone suspected that she had poisoned the Emperor. If he was the culprit, then she suspected that he kept quiet at that time in order to frame her for the crime.
Her suspicions brought a tightening pain in her chest.
“Who’s there?”
A voice from behind her startled her. Riri quickly hid the incense container in her sleeve and turned around. Kousho was standing at the entrance of the hall. Her heart skipped a beat when he had appeared since she was suspicious of him.
“Riri! Why are you here?”
Kousho approached her with a stern look on his face. She didn’t know what to say and her mind was in chaos.
(Calm down. Just because the incense container is here doesn’t mean that Kousho-sama is the culprit. But it does mean that he’s the most suspicious person. I need to carefully find out the truth.)
She took a deep breath and tried to keep her voice as quiet as possible.
“I escaped prison to find the culprit.”
“What?! Quickly go back to your cell.”
“But I’ll be guilty of trying to assassinate His Majesty and will be sentenced to death if I don’t do this. I didn’t try to kill him!”
“I know you didn’t.”
Her eyes widened at the words that had been said so easily to her.
“Excuse me…?”
“I said I know you didn’t. I know you’re not the culprit. The real culprit is someone else. But they want to frame you. If you wander around outside, the real criminal might kill you. It’s safer for you inside your cell.”
She blinked her eyes several times at Kousho’s surprising words.
“Is that why you put me in jail?”
“Yeah. But you escaped. It’s dangerous out here!”
His expression and tone showed that he was genuinely worried about her.
Just having him believe in her made her feel warm and fuzzy inside and gave her a sense of security.
(Thank god. It hurt to think he didn’t believe in me… Huh? Why did it hurt? He’s arrogant and selfish, and I don’t want to be close to him, so I don’t care if he believes me…”
She pondered but regained her composure since it wasn’t the time to be thinking about this.
(The incense container in the chair belongs to Kousho-sama. So, is he the culprit…? But I have a feeling that he’s not a bad person regardless of what he says. I could feel how much he cares for his kingdom when I talked to him before. I also think that his respect for His Majesty is genuine. More importantly, would he use the incense container that he had received from his first love for assassination…?)
He may actually be a very loving person since he still cherishes his first love from childhood.
She didn’t believe that he would go out of his way to choose a precious incense container as a tool to assassinate his father.
She pondered if there was a way she could confirm this.
“… Kousho-sama. When His Majesty collapsed, I think I smelled the same fragrance that was wafting from the incense container you showed me before. Could you show me the container so that I can make sure? It might give us a clue about the culprit.”
She tried to remain as calm as possible and focused her attention on her nose. Then, she could smell the slight scent of sweet that came out when someone was panicking coming from Kousho.
“… I put that in my room. You probably imagined it when you thought it smelled the same as the container. The soldiers will be back soon. I’ll hold them off, so go back to your cell. Alright?”
Kousho strode away towards the garden. A normal person wouldn’t notice that he was upset.
“But you can’t fool my nose.”
She muttered as she peeked at the incense container in her sleeve.
Riri left the hall and headed towards the Department of Incense.
“I’ll talk to Mokuren about this. I’m sure the Incense Palace has tools to find out the ingredients for a fragrance. I’ll ask them to check if the poisonous incense that was lit for His Majesty is the same as the scent that remains in this incense container.”
She was afraid to move around the palace at night, but she managed to avoid the guards and came close to the Department of Incense.
“I’m almost there… Kyah!”
Someone grabbed her shoulder from behind. She was so surprised that her heart almost stopped.
“W-who is it?!”
She was so scared that she turned around and raised my right arm to hit the person, but they managed to dodge her hand.
“Open your eyes. It’s me.”
“Garan… Ah, you scared me! I’m sorry. I tried to hit you.”
Riri was relieved when she was Garan standing in front of her. When she lowered her head, she saw him cross his arms.
“I don’t mind. But why did you escape from prison? I found the guard sleeping when I went to check on you. How on earth did you defeat the guard?”
“Hmm, I was trying to make him sleep with a sleeping incense…”
She tried to make a sleeping incense but failed and made stimulant incense instead. The guard who smelled it went on a rampage, then fainted, and she luckily got her hands on the key. She was embarrassed to let Garan know of such a shameful story. She mumbled and Garan widened his eyes in surprise.
“Sleeping incense? Wow, you can make an incense like that?!”
She felt conflicted when he complimented her. She laughed vaguely and Garan put his hands on his hips.
“But you shouldn’t have escaped from your cell. I’m pretending that I let you out of your cell so that I can question you, but we can’t keep this up for long. I know you slipped out because you wanted to investigate the incident but get back in there right now.”
“But I really wanted to check the hall… I found something in the hall, Garan.”
She wasn’t sure if she should tell him, but she knew that she could trust him.
The problem was too big for her to hand alone. She needed someone else’s opinion.
She showed Garan the incense container and told him that she had found it in the hall, and that it belonged to Kousho. She told him that she could smell the lingering scent of something that smelled poisonous coming from the container. Garan looked surprised, but he listened to her.
“… So, I decided to have the incense container examined by the Department of Incense. This definitely belongs to Kousho-sama, but I don’t believe he was the culprit. There’s no reason for him to kill the Emperor.”
It was decided that Kousho will become the Emperor in a year’s time. Even now, he’s in charge of most of the political matters. He didn’t need to assassinate the Emperor since he will become the Emperor.
They might have other reasons to hate each other since they are father and son.
However, it was unlikely that Kousho would assassinate his father for personal reasons.
“… No, it’s not like he doesn’t have a reason.”
Garan said while looking stern. Riri looked at him in surprise and sighed.
“You can’t tell anyone what I’m about to tell you. I’m telling you my personal opinion because I trust you.”
She nodded. Garan hushed his voice.
“Kousho-sama will certainly ascend the throne in a year’s time. But all the important decisions must be approved by His Majesty even after Kousho-sama has ascended the throne.”
“He has to ask the former Emperor for permission before making important decisions even after he’s become the Emperor? Why?”
“His Majesty is the only Emperor in the history of this Kingdom who has not fought in a war, and his subjects trust him. It’s also unheard of for an Emperor to give up the throne while he is still alive. Many nobles have suggested that he should still retain the power and decision-making authority of an Emperor even if he hands over the throne.”
Garan carefully chose his words while continuing.
“Kousho-sama is brilliant and smart, but he’s still young. Many are worried about this. Even so, he will be the Emperor because of His Majesty’s physical condition. The whole court seems to think that His Majesty should remain as regent, holding the power and decision-making authority of the Emperor.”
“A regent is someone who takes over for the monarch when the monarch is sick or is a child, right? If His Majesty will still have the power and decision-making authority of the Emperor even if he abdicates the throne, then isn’t it alright for him to remain the Emperor? I don’t think there’s any point in giving the throne to Kousho-sama.”
“There is. It’s to keep the neighbouring kingdom in check. His Majesty’s health isn’t very good. Our neighbouring Kingdom, Koran, also knows this. They’re watching us vigilantly, waiting for the opportunity to attack. That’s why the young and healthy Kousho-sama will become the Emperor to keep them in check.”
The Emperor is the symbol of the kingdom, so it might be inevitable that the people around him would want a young and healthy Emperor.
“But that gives the impression that Kousho-sama is being used.”
“Yeah. Kousho-sama has the ability to be an Emperor. That’s why I’m secretly worried that he might be frustrated with his situation and lose his patience.”
She met Garan’s eyes. She thought she understood what he meant.
“Do you suspect that Kousho-sama wants to assassinate His Majesty, so that he can conduct politics the way he wishes to?”
Garan looked as if he was in pain and clenched his fist.
“… Somewhere at the back of my mind, there’s a part of me that suspects that. That man has the wisdom, power and mentality to assassinate His Majesty. I can’t get rid of the suspicion that this whole thing was orchestrated to look like the work of a Dark Perfumer.”
Garan frowned.
“But Kousho-sama respects His Majesty a lot. I don’t want to believe that he’s the culprit. I knew him since we were young, and despite his arrogance, he’s someone who I would give my life to serve. But as the general who is in charge of the palace’s security, a part of me is whispering that I should doubt him.”
Riri could feel a mixture of emotions coming from every word he was saying. Garan seemed to be wavering between wanting to look at the situation calmly and wanting to believe in Kousho. She gently placed a hand on his shoulder.
“I think it’s highly likely that he’s not the culprit.”
Her voice was so clear that even she was surprised. Garan looked at Riri in surprise.
“I could tell that Kousho-sama cares a lot for his kingdom and His Majesty when I talked to him before. I don’t know if he meant everything he said since his personality is like that, but it sounded like he was telling the truth.”
She stopped talking and pursed her lips.
“But it’s true that Kousho-sama’s incense container was in His Majesty’s crafted chair, and it’s true that that incense container has the lingering scent of poison. So, I’m going to have Mokuren examine that container. Then, I’ll think about what to do after that.”
“You want Mokuren to? I don’t like him. He’s foolish and elusive. Can you trust him?”
Garan raised his eyebrow. The military and Department of Incenses have always been on bad terms. That was probably the reason for Garan’s disgust.
“I trust Mokuren. Father was forced out of the palace, and died in an accident, so Mother and I moved out of the mansion and lived downtown. But Mother was too weak to work, and I was still a child. We had a hard time finding food to eat every day.”
She didn’t remember much about those days. But she vividly remembered that she was hungry every day.
“It was then that Mokuren came to visit us. He told us that Father took care of him, and he gave us some money to buy food and medicine for Mother. He also taught me how to make incenses.”
She had a good nose, but she didn’t know how to make incenses, so Mokuren took time to teach her.
“When I was able to make my own money by making incenses, I used my first salary to buy fragrances and mixed an incense to give to Mokuren. It’s safe to say that most of the incenses that I make on my own fail, but I really wanted to succeed at that particular incense, so I made it over and over again until I finally made it.”
She still remembered the expression Mokuren made when she had presented him with the incense.
“Riri, you made an incense on your own? It’s going to rain spears tomorrow,” he said while laughing happily.
“Mokuren still asks me to make the incense for him because he likes it so much. So, when he runs out, I mix up some more and give it to him… If it weren’t for Mokuren, then Mother and I would have starved to death. He saved my life and is my incense master.”
Garan finally relaxed as she finished talking about her fond memories.
“I didn’t know he was that kind. I’m sorry. I spoke ill of someone who is dear to you.”
“It’s alright. The thoughts of many people are mixed up in the palace, so it’s difficult to see a person’s true nature. However, there are always people in the palace who can be trusted. Just like you, Garan.”
She smiled and Garan widened his eyes in surprise for a second. Then, his face turned red, and he looked away.
“I’m cooperating with you because I want to find the culprit as the general in charge of the palace… I’ll wait a bit more before returning to your cell. It’s not safe for you to go alone, so I’ll go with you to Mokuren’s room.”
Him blushing with his huge body made Riri think he was kind of cute.
“Thanks! Then, let’s go. Let’s go catch the real culprit!”
They nodded at each other, then she ran after Garan who had turned his back towards her.
Riri quietly opened the door to Mokuren’s room in the Incense Palace. She gambled whether he would be in the incense palace or not.
She heard that he slept in the mixing room almost every day, so she thought it was highly likely that he was here and was relieved to see that he was actually at his desk. Mokuren turned towards her, having noticed that the door had opened.
“Riri! I’ve been worried. I’m glad to see you’re okay.”
She looked at the relieved Mokuren and couldn’t help but smile. She looked at Garan who was standing outside to guard the door. They both nodded, then she stepped into the room and closed the door behind her.
“You’re alright as well Mokuren. I was worried that you might have been caught since you’re my guarantor.”
“I was interrogated, but I’m also the head of the Department of Incenses, so I have quite a high status in the palace and that’s why I wasn’t thrown into jail. I tried to get Kousho-sama to release you from prison, but he said he won’t do so until he has finished investigating the incident. You’re here now, so does that mean that you’ve been set free? Are you free of suspicion?”
Mokuren ran up to her and she couldn’t look straight at him, so she dropped her gaze to the floor.
“No. Actually… I escaped.”
“What did you say!? That’s not good.”
“I know. But I really wanted to check the hall where His Majesty was almost assassinated. I was just at the hall and found this in the crafted chair that His Majesty was sitting on.”
She took out the incense container that she had hidden in her sleeve and held it out.
“There’s a chance that the poisonous incense was inside here. The culprit might have used this. So, I wanted to find out if there was a poisonous incense inside of this container.”
“A poisonous incense was put in here…? Give that to me.”
When she handed him the incense container, Mokuren opened the lid and fanned it with his hand to smell the fragrance inside of the container.
“I can’t smell anything, but did your olfaction pick up a poisonous scent from here?”
“Yes, but it was really faint. I wish I could have found it sooner.”
“I see… The reason why the scent is faint is because time had passed since it was used, and also because only a little amount had been used. Kousho-sama and General Garan were also on the platform. If there was a poisonous incense in the crafted chair, then they must have smelled it too. But only His Majesty fainted. In other words, the amount of poisonous incense must have been adjusted so that it would only work on His Majesty who is physically weak.”
As expected of the head of the Department of Incenses, he was good at guessing. Mokuren brought out a small bottle from his desk.
“It’s impossible to find out what kind of fragrance was used. But if we want to find out if it was poisonous or not, then I might be able to.”
Mokuren placed a brush in the bottle and dripped the liquid on the brush into the incense container.
“This changes colour when it mixes with poison. It’s originally clear, but…”
The liquid quickly turned red inside of the incense container. It looked like blood and it made Riri shiver.
She looked up with her eyes wide open and Mokuren nodded slightly.
“It looks like there are traces of poison in this. It seems like this belongs to the culprit. Whose is it?”
She hesitated to speak. She was afraid to say this belongs to Kousho even if she was speaking to Mokuren.
She had all the evidence she needed, but she wanted to hear the truth directly from Kousho’s mouth.
(I’ll talk to Kousho-sama directly after all. I’ll ask him about this incense container this time. It might be difficult for the two of us to meet, but I might be able to see him if Garan helped me somehow.)
Mokuren took a step closer to her as she pondered about this.
“You look like you’re thinking about something, but you should return to your cell for now. It’s not good if they find out that you’ve escaped from your cell. I’ll do whatever I can to prove your innocence.”
“No, there’s someone I really need to talk to. Please give me back the incense container.”
“No. You shouldn’t get involved in anything more dangerous.”
She knew that he was worried about her, but she couldn’t back down now. She took the incense container from Mokuren in her haste. She lost her balance and was going to fall.
“Watch out!”
She was able to avoid falling to the floor thanks to Mokuren’s quick reaction.
(Mokuren is holding me in his arms. I’m so embarrassed…! Huh, this smell…?)
She smelled a nice aroma coming from Mokuren. It was quite subtle and mixed with the scent of magnolia((meaning of Mokuren’s name)) itself, so she couldn’t recognise it for a moment, but it smelled like the incense she had given to him before.
Something bothered her when she smelled the scent, but she didn’t know what it was so she wanted to smell it again, but Mokuren let her go.
“Are you alright, Riri?”
“… Yes. I’m sorry. Thank you for checking the incense container.”
She wanted to check the scent, but if she stayed here any longer then Mokuren would tell her to return to her cell.
She had no choice but to turn her back and run out of the room.
“Wait, Riri!”
He called for her to stop, but she ran to Garan who was waiting outside.
Garan took Riri to Kousho’s room.
Garan looked reluctant when she told him that she wanted to talk to Kousho. But he also wanted to find out the truth, so after some persuasion, he promised to help her meet Kousho.
“Excuse me, Kousho-sama. I would like to talk to you about the attempted assassination of His Majesty.”
Garan said in front of Kousho’s room, and a voice came from within.
“Enter.”
His voice was low, and it almost made Riri shiver. He was the Crown Prince of this kingdom, who until a month or so ago was someone unreachable for her. She hadn’t expected to learn so much about him.
As she followed Gran into the room, she noticed the golden lattice that filled the walls.
The large, candle-lit room was neat and clean, without much in the way of furnishings.
Kousho was sitting on an upholstered chair, reading something and he looked surprised when he looked at Garan and Riri.
“… When did you cosy up to Garan?”
Kousho fixed his gaze on Garan who was standing next to Riri. The expression on his face was the same as usual, but in this enclosed room, she could clearly smell from his sweat that he was angry.
(In the past, I could hardly smell the sweat scent that comes out when one is panicking, angry or sad coming from him. So, I thought he was someone who didn’t have many emotional surges, but he’s quite angry right now. It’s unusual for him to show so much emotion.)
She thought he was a strong-willed person who could control his emotions, but it seemed like he wasn't.
“I’m not getting cosy with him. We’re just helping each other find the real culprit. I had him bring me here because I really wanted to talk to you about something, Kousho-sama.”
She looked next to her and saw Garan bowing deeply.
“I apologise. I was ordered to put Riri in jail and not let anyone near her, but I concluded that she isn’t the culprit, and we are working together to catch the real culprit. It’s true that I disobeyed your orders, no matter the reason. I’m prepared to be punished.”
“No way…! It’s not his fault, Kousho-sama. He took me here because I asked him to. Please don’t punish him.”
“Riri…”
Riri looked at Garan’s eyes as he whispered her name. She folded her arms like she was praying and nodded at him.
“… Don’t stare at each other.”
It was a low voice that she had never heard from Kousho before. She quickly turned her head and saw that he was in a bad mood. He stared at Garan.
“If you want to talk to me, then I’ll listen. Garan, you get out.”
“But…”
“I told you to get out. Did you not hear me?”
It was a voice that was clearly used to giving orders. Garan clenched both of his fists tightly.
“I understand… Riri, I’ll be waiting for you outside.”
Garan looked worried, but she nodded slightly and smiled.
Garan walked out of the room and closed the door. Silence reigned in the room for a while.
“Now then, what is it you want to talk about? No matter what you have to say to me, coming to a man’s room in the middle of the night like this isn’t a good idea. You’re a talented person from my inner palace. You can’t complain no matter what I do to you.”
She could smell the angry scent of sweat getting strong as Kousho walked up to her. However, he had a sweet smile on his face. She tilted her head in confusion since Kousho had said something that he wouldn’t normally say.
“Is there something wrong with you for you to say something like that to me? I’m just a little girl who doesn’t have any sex appeal.”
She repeated the words that she had heard from him before right back at him and Kousho smiled wryly.
“You’re not cute at all. But you don’t know that men will want to conquer that part of you.”
Kousho’s hand touched her cheek. She was surprised and tried to back away, but there was a wall right behind her.
His hands were pressed against the wall, sandwiching her face between them.
In front of her was Kousho’s face, and his hands were on either side of her face. She couldn’t escape.
“… You’re joking, right?”
She did think that she was in a dangerous situation, but she also thought that there was no way that the Crown Prince of this kingdom would be interested in her. Besides, he never told her that he viewed her as a woman. But she could smell that he was ‘serious’.
(Eh?! Why?! There are more beautiful women in his inner palace than me! Why are you so interested in me when you’ve been running away from your inner palace?!)
Her head was full of questions. While she was confused, Kousho drew his face so close that she could almost breathe on him.
“Do you think I’m joking in this situation?”
The Crown Prince of Shinzui, Kousho, is a man of unparalleled beauty, not only in Shinzui, but also in neighbouring kingdoms.
She had heard this before. She had thought that the rumours were exaggerated, but he was actually far more handsome than the rumours said he is. Not only did he have a well-shaped handsome face, but he also had a beautiful low voice that made her legs want to give way.
He looked tall and slender, but his body was actually well-trained. He was the embodiment of the beauty that God had extravagantly created. Her heart felt like it was going to jump out of her chest as he stared at her closely.
(What should I do! My heart’s beating so much that it hurts! Kya!)
She was screaming in her mind because she was being hugged by strong arms.
“… I won’t give you to anyone.”
His sweet whispers made her heart throb and she frowned.
“I don’t think you like me enough to say that…?”
She couldn’t help but wonder why he was whispering loving words that sounded as if he was proclaiming his love to a long-time lover.
Kousho’s body shivered as they hugged each other.
“You’re teasing me, aren’t you? Please let me go. I have something important to talk to you about.”
She tried to push his body away, but he didn’t budge. She panicked while wandering what she should do, and he put more strength into his arms. He hugged her so tightly that it made it difficult for her to breathe.
She never imagined that she would be hugged by the Crown Prince of this kingdom.
Kousho’s arms suddenly loosened as she struggled, and she tried to take this opportunity to escape, but he wouldn’t let her. He easily picked her up and quickly put her on the bed.
“What are you doing?!”
“What do you think?”
She thought this was a bad joke, but she felt as if her body was in danger since she realised that it might not be a joke. Kousho stayed on top of her.
“Stay here forever if you’re not going to go back to your cell. Being by my side is the safest place in the world. Don’t get involved with this anymore.”
His voice sounded gentle. A normal woman might be spellbound by his voice, but Riri was different.
She remembered why she had come here because of those words.
“I can’t do that~!”
She shouted and managed to push Kousho away. Something rolled out of her sleeve as she got up. Kousho stopped moving when he saw what had rolled onto the bed. It was the incense container that his first love had given to him.
“Where did… you get this?”
“I came here to talk to you about this. Please listen to me!”
She raised her voice and Kousho reluctantly got up. She sighed in relief now that she could finally have a real conversation with him. She got out of bed and rearranged her clothes. Then, she turned to Kousho.
“This incense container was found in the container in the chair that His Majesty was sitting on. I’ll get straight to the point. This incense container smells like poison. When the Department of Incenses examined this container, they found traces of poison. What is the meaning of this, Kousho-sama?”
“… I see. So, you suspect I did it. Of course, you would. That belongs to me. And if that had poison in it, then it could belong to the culprit. In other words, that is proof that I’m the criminal.”
“That’s right. But I don’t think you did it.”
She looked down and Kousho seemed surprised.
“What makes you think I didn’t when you have the evidence with you?”
“I don’t think you’re as bad as you make yourself out to be. You may be arrogant, but you’re actually a good Crown Prince who wants peace for his kingdom. You also respect your father, His Majesty, a lot…”
“But that may be a lie. I may have just acted that way and was secretly planning to assassinate my father so that I can have full power over this kingdom… Garan seems to think this way.”
He seemed relaxed even though he was under suspicion.
“Garan is a good person, but he’s serious and inflexible. The situation indicates that I’m the culprit. But he also wants to believe me. I’m sure he’s having an internal struggle… Hmm. Interesting.”
“Please don’t be amused by this. He’s conflicted because he trusts you.”
Kousho looked as if he was sulking.
“I’ve been wondering this since a while ago. You call Garan by his name, but you add honorifics to my name. I didn’t know that you’ve gotten that close to him. How did this happen?”
She blinked her eyes as he drew closer to her.
(Huh?! You’re the suspect of an assassination and that’s what you’re curious about?!)
“Hey, tell me. When did you and Garan get that close? He hates perfumers.”
“Can’t we talk about that later?”
“No. You’re…!”
He tried to say something but closed his mouth. He looked down as if he was thinking about something, then opened his mouth again.
“You’re a talented person from my inner palace. You won’t be able to complain if I dismiss you for getting close to another man.”
“Maybe, but I entered your inner palace, so that I can create the treasured incense. It’s not like you want to make me your Queen, or your concubine.”
She remembered every word he had said to her. She had never heard him tell her that he thought of her as a woman. He seemed to be pondering again, but then he suddenly sighed.
“Forget it. I’ll ask Garan later.”
She was fed up with his persistence and chose her next words carefully since she wanted to get back to the topic at hand.
“I don’t believe you’re lying to me. Your personality is bad, but you don’t seem like a liar.”
Kousho tilted his head curiously when she looked up at him.
“I don’t remember doing anything to make you trust me that much.”
“You’re right. I only remember you saying unpleasant things to me, but that’s just how I feel… Everyone suspected me of mixing a poisonous incense when His Majesty collapsed. But for some reason, I strongly believed that you were the only person who would believe me innocent.”
The first time she had met him was about a month ago at the downtown clinic. After that, she had several opportunities to talk with him alone, but she never felt as if they were close enough for her to trust him.
“It’s weird. I don’t know how to put this, but my heart screaming… that you didn’t try to assassinate His Majesty. The screaming won’t stop, no matter how much evidence I gather, or how bad of a person you are.”
Kousho suddenly looked down and his shoulders shook as he began laughing.
“Fufuhaha. You’re really interesting.”
The first sincere smile she saw from him looked very gentle. It was as if he was a completely different person from the person who usually looks mean.
She was fascinated by his smile.
“I’ll tell you the truth since you trust me that much. I lost that incense container. No, it was stolen from me.”
“What?! When?!”
“Last night. I happened to have it with me when I showed it to you, but I usually keep it in my room.”
Kousho brought a box from the desk by his bed that was large enough to hold in the palm of his hand.
The golden box gleamed and didn’t have a scratch on it.
“I usually keep it in this box, but the incense container was gone when I opened this box last night. It was there the day before yesterday, so someone must have stolen it yesterday. I wanted to find the thief and get it back straight away, but the palace has been so busy with the perfumer’s meeting, so I thought I wouldn’t be able to find the thief until after the meeting was over.”
She realised something as she looked at the golden box and listened to his story.
“I really don’t think you’re the culprit after all. You kept the incense container in such a beautiful box. You must have looked at it everyday since you knew that it wasn’t there last night but was there the day before yesterday. It’s that important to you, so I don’t think you would use it as a tool for assassination.”
Riri smiled and Kousho looked embarrassed.
“Don’t tell anyone about this. You’re the only person who I’ve shown this incense container to.”
He did have a pure heart. She even thought that it was cute that he stared at the box.
Kousho suddenly became serious.
“I’m not the culprit, and even if I were, I wouldn’t be foolish enough to leave my own incense container in a place where someone would find it. Someone’s setting me up.”
That was what she thought. Kousho is cunning. If he really wanted to assassinate the Emperor, then he would have made a more complete plan. Kousho put his hand over his mouth.
“The real culprit originally planned on framing me for the crime. Think about it. It was only decided then and there that you would burn the incense. No one could have predicted that. The plan was for my father to fall ill from the poisonous incense while he was sitting on the crafted chair, and when people checked the chair, they would have found my incense container and I would have been arrested for the crime.”
That’s right, she thought. The Emperor had told her to burn the incense there, so she did.
And then he collapsed after she had burnt it.
Perhaps the incense that he had smelled while sitting on the crafted chair had slowly worked its way through his system and poisoned him then.
“You just got caught in the middle of it… Anyway, behave yourself… Hey, Garan, come in!”
The door opened and Garan came in as soon as Kousho shouted this. Garan didn’t hide his dissatisfaction.
“Kousho-sama. You can’t touch a woman outside of the inner palace…”
“I was only joking around a little. You knew I was, so you didn’t come in, right?”
“Yes… But Riri entered the inner palace to become a perfumer. I’m not sure that such a joke is appropriate now that I know this.”
Garan was genuinely angry.
His words were polite, but Riri could tell that he was feeling murderous even without smelling his sweat. Kousho frowned a little.
“Garan. Do you like Riri? You sound as if you’re jealous.”
Garan suddenly turned red.
“No way! Riri and I are helping each other catch the real criminal. We’re comrades! I just can’t stand it when I see people treat my comrades lightly!”
Riri was happy to hear his sentiment, and quietly approached him.
“Thanks, Garan. But it’s alright. It’s a bad joke on Kousho-sama’s part as usual. We shouldn’t be arguing right now. Let’s work together to catch the real culprit.”
“No, I won’t be working with you.”
Riri stared at Kousho, startled by his sudden declaration.
“Garan and I will search for the real culprit. You, go back to your cell. I’ll send someone I trust to guard you. You might be targeted if you wander around outside.”
“No! They’re using poisonous incenses. Isn’t it possible that the Dark Perfumers are involved?”
“Why do you know about the Dark Perfumers? … You remember?”
She didn’t know what he was talking about and tilted her head in confusion. Kousho looked surprised.
“What do you mean by remember? I heard that Dark Perfumers use poisonous incenses from Garan.”
After she had said that, she remembered that the words ‘Dark Perfumer’ had popped into her head before she heard about them from Garan. But Kousho spoke before she could tell him about this.
“I see. You heard about them from Garan… It’s nothing, don’t worry about it. I don’t know what he told you, but Dark Perfumers are really dangerous. I obtained information that their associates had infiltrated the palace a long time ago, so I had Garan investigate this. It’s highly likely that they’re involved in this matter as well.”
It was highly likely that they were using a poisonous incense to assassinate His Majesty, but Riri had one question.
“Why do the Dark Perfumers want to assassinate His Majesty?”
Kousho and Garan averted their gaze slightly when she stared at them.
“… It’s none of your business. Riri, this is as dangerous as it gets for you. Leave the rest to us.”
Garan agreed with Kousho.
“That’s right, Riri. You’ve checked the hall and found traces of poison. You’ve also talked with Kousho-sama, so you should be satisfied now, right? Prison is the safest place for you right now.”
Although they were at odds with each other, Garan and Kousho only agreed with each other at times like this.
“But I’m the one who found the incense container that the poisonous incense was in. Please let me help. And…”
She mumbled. Actually, there was something that was bothering her this whole time. She had a feeling that what was bothering her would become a huge clue to finding out the truth if Kousho isn’t the culprit.
She wanted to explain what she had found out to them, but they didn’t seem to want to listen to her.
“No. Garan, take her back.”
Garan nodded in response to Kousho’s order. She instinctively backed away as Garan slowly approached her.
(What should I do? There’s still something I want to confirm, but I’m sure they’ll force me back to the prison if they need to. Even though this is something that only I can confirm…!)
She quickly looked around. Fortunately, the entrance to the room was right behind her.
“I’m sorry you two!”
She deliberately knocked over the chair that was on her right, stopping Garan in his tracks and ran towards the entrance. She left the room and ran down the hallway as fast as she could, trying to shake off Garan who was chasing after her.