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Mitsuko was a Princess.

The only ones who knew this information was the High Priestess herself and the senior Priestesses—a number of them were her attendants. And it was for that very reason that Mitsuko had several advantages in her stay here, and was even held possessively by the High Priestess. The Kingdom of Kaeli was a distant one from Nakazato\'s lands, but it was a rich one.

And so the words of the High Priestess made perfect sense to Mitsuko herself.

"Very well, I expect that you\'ll behave this time around and stay in your room for a couple of days. Think of it as a chance to recover rather than a punishment in any way—you worry your Lady." Rhelea motioned to Setsuko and smiled. "It\'s better if you comfort her than playing sword fights with Priestess Mitsuko."

But even if the High Priestess said that, it didn\'t mean that Mitsuko herself agreed with it.

.

"Yes, I\'ll do just as you say." Li Yang nodded.

Mitsuko blinked. 

If a record scratch was present then it would have stopped. Somehow, logic and reason didn\'t work together in her mind right now. The man agreed to the conditions set to him? Did he think that it was easy to cast her away like this? Had he thought that he already knew more than enough to not train with her?

Or did the man think that she was an untrustworthy woman?

Her fingernails dug into her palm but she refused to meet his gaze.

Mitsuko didn\'t wish to betray the man and yet she couldn\'t get away by reporting nothing to the High Priestess. The woman had made her come to this very place last night and demanded for answers. 

The High Priestess had clutched her face back then and asked with a honeyed smile. "What happened during your search for him? What of the woman that I allowed to escape the temple and chase after you and your group? Did her bloodline burst during the event?"

Mitsuko squeezed her eyes shut. 

Maybe it was just the compulsion of the blood contract that allowed her to fight the effects of the High Priestess\' own power. Somehow like a rag doll grabbed by both arms, the compulsion to say an answer and also keep the man protected tugged at her back then.

She had spoken a mixture of truths and lies. 

Mitsuko revealed that Li Yang himself was not a resident of this country—something she and the others had gotten during their attack on the Jin Hunters… She neglected to mention Setsuko\'s transformation. The number of tails that had appeared when they were nearly about to fall and the strange sights in the mountain.

Otherwise, the High Priestess would have done something drastic.

The High Priestess Rhelea enjoyed collecting powerful young women and taking them underneath her wing. It wouldn\'t do well if she realized that Setsuko was capable of tapping into her bloodline. 

"—I\'ll dismiss the two of you now." The High Priestess said, but then pursed her lips. "But, I just remembered. Setsuko I have heard that you\'ve been doing well in your studies according to Kei."

Setsuko half-bowed, her expression controlled. "Thank you, I have been working hard."

"Because of the beast cores, am I right?" Rhelea tapped the corner of her lips. 

"A-ah, yes." 

"You know that they\'re not that necessary for someone like you. The innate Ao that\'s present in your body is unimaginable to many." A sultry smile crossed on Rhelea\'s lips. "It is something to be envied for already, but I suppose you might be experiencing some case of wanting to keep absorbing beast cores?"

"... perhaps?" Setsuko scratched the back of her head. 

Mitsuko\'s nerves sparked at that moment. That was the wrong answer and yet she couldn\'t even say a word—!

The High Priestess finally said it. "Maybe there is an Ao-related condition that\'s afflicting your body."

"I\'m fine! I\'m fine, High Priestess," Setsuko said. She had now finally realized where the conversation was going. "There is nothing for you to worry about at all."

"As the High Priestess it is up to me to check on it. We do not wish to see your Ao\'s core experience an atrophy or degradation. Perhaps later once your studies are finished, I\'ll ask for you to come here in the evening. I will see you by then."

"High Priestess—she hasn\'t actually consumed them at all. That was a lie," Li Yang said. 

The High Priestess\' gaze narrowed at him. "Oh, how come?"

He glanced at Setsuko and had an unreadable expression on his face. Mitsuko thought she understood what was about to happen—

Li Yang straightened up and addressed her. "The reason for it is because the two of us wish to redistribute it among the Kin Hunters. As you may already know, High Priestess, the living conditions and the rate of death is high among Hunters and it is for that reason that we wish to give them a better life."

"And you wish to help them with the resources of the Mashiro Temple Sect?"

"Yes."

Rhelea glanced down at him and shook her head. Her lips curled into a brazen smile. "These resources are meant for the Priestesses living here. There is not much to go around when your men already know how difficult it is to acquire even a single one."

"That is why we\'ve been trying to acquire them through legitimate means," Li Yang said. 

"Legitimate?" The High Priestess asked. "You\'ve only been taking them from the other Priestesses here."

The man did not waver at the woman\'s words. "I do not think Rei and the others from whom we have gotten them disagreed with what we bartered with them. Transactions like those have no problems if you give something of equal value. And when that was not enough, I ventured outside of the Sacred Forest for the sake of acquiring more."

"That\'s—"

"The original matter was your concern about Lady Setsuko\'s conditions, is it not, High Priestess?" Li Yang smiled briefly. "Thus this conversation can be ended now that I\'ve told you the truth. Setsuko has not absorbed or consumed the Beast Cores." 

"Yes, but how will you prove that your testimony is true?" Rhelea rested her fingers underneath her chin. "Unless I were to see the undistributed Beast Cores myself, I do not think one can trust your words."

"Then I will give them once I have arranged them properly," Li Yang said. "If it will appease your already troubled heart at the lack of Beast Cores, I\'ll even return some of them back to their previous owners."

"You\'ll do that?" the High Priestess frowned. "I thought you and Setsuko here were concerned about your former group. But now you choose to return some of them?"

Mitsuko could already feel the tenseness in the air. It was one thing to speak with the High Priestess in a friendly manner, but to talk her down was another thing. Li Yang\'s offer was like a slap in the face, even though it was about what the High Priestess had said. 

He continued. "Yes, after all—that is your second concern, right? Your concern for the Priestesses that have given up their Beast Cores because of our trade. I understand that the state of lacking has made it necessary to hoard them."

The High Priestess smiled at him, albeit it was twitching. "Ah, well—I\'ll just see the Beast Cores and check on them. You did say that a transaction has already occurred between you and the other Priestesses. I\'ll let them deal with the consequences of giving theirs up." 

"If that is what you\'ve decided, High Priestess," Li Yang said. "We\'ll collect them immediately for the inspection."

"Go."

That was all the High Priestess said before both Setsuko and Li Yang departed the great hall. Mitsuko finally watched the man leave with a sense of some begrudged respect. She had almost thought that the Beast Cores that he acquired would be given up to save Setsuko.

The fact that he had been willing to risk it to protect Setsuko was one thing. 

To make an exit from this hall without losing a single Beast Core was another thing entirely. 

.

.

.

When the two of them returned to their room, a  Priestess was waiting for them at their door.  The green haired woman quickly bowed down in front of him. 

Li Yang stared down at Priestess Rei. 

She looked at him with an awkward smile. "My apologies for bringing you to trouble. That was not my intention at all. You know that, Yang."

Setsuko narrowed her eyes at the Priestess, but Li Yang shrugged. "I was the one who asked for the map and a place with better Beast Cores. Whether or not you believe that I\'ll be going there is not relevant to me."

"Still… It\'s not right that you\'ve gotten in trouble because of me." Rei motioned to herself. "I\'d like to make it up to you if I can."

Li Yang thought it was odd that the Priestess was suddenly apologetic. 

Then again, most of the women in the temple seemed to adhere to a strict moral code they honored, so he cleared his throat. "Do not beat yourself over this. I have not been renounced or exiled, I am only expected to stay in my quarters and not meet with the Priestess Mitsuko."

"This is for my sake, Yang. I do not wish to burden myself with the idea that I have done wrong to you," Rei said. She sighed and rubbed the back of her neck. "Tell me, have you managed to collect a good number of beast cores while you were in the mountains?" 

However, another thing Li Yang had figured out was the loyalty of the women to the High Priestess. Even Mitsuko had told the High Priestess about their conversation from last night. While there were some inconsistencies, it still meant that it was difficult to fully rely on anyone here except for himself.

He didn\'t think he should trust her.

—-—-

Author\'s Note: This is it guys! Phew, the last update before my break. Thank you for the support. On another more book note, the revelation of Mitsuko being a Princess was slightly hinted at in Chapter 144. Well, it\'s more of a miniature Chekhov\'s gun than a hint. But yeah, I\'ll see you guys around!