Episode 6
Shadow of the Moon, the Sea of Shadow, Chapter Six
Kei
Fight the rebels!
Defeat the pretender!
Take them down!
They are just civilians!
Bastard!
This is our Queen right here!
Let us praise Queen Jyoei!
Who would've thought that Jyoei's militia would overpower the royal army?
As long as Jyoei has Keiki by her side, people will think she's the queen...
They'd do anything for her.
Shall we take the Kei Taiho?
We can't.
It would mean Shouryuu has interfered with another kingdom.
Besides, only the true ruler of Kei could break the spell.
Where are you headed?
I'm going to Kou.
I need to check out the Kaikyaku.
How dare they put the Kirin in the middle of a battle?
Those fools!
Kei
Kou
Why didn't you allow her to finish the girl off?
We do not need to waste time on such a worthless girl.
I cannot let her live.
At least, please spare Sugimoto's life.
Your Majesty!
I saved your kingdom.
No Kaikyaku will bring trouble anymore.
I...
Sugimoto.
His Majesty will give you your lands.
You will be allowed to live there for the rest of your life.
But Your Majesty...
I don't understand, I'm the one who saved this kingdom!
Why can't I stay here?
Why?
Are you awake?
How are you feeling?
I brought you medicine, here.
See? It's just medicine.
It's a little bitter, but it's good for you.
Well, okay then.
What kind of stuff can you eat?
How about rice porridge?
You've been sleeping for three days...
If I wanted to do something to you, I would've.
I could've hid that sword, too...
...so considering all that, can't you trust me a little?
I want some water.
Thank God, you can talk.
I'll bring you water right away.
Can I trust him?
You're going to trust him because he's not human?
Is that why you're going to trust that rat?
No, I don't trust him.
I'm just pretending to trust him until I get my strength back.
He may talk like a person but he's just a rat.
I thought you believed that somebody kind would help you someday.
Now I know, I am alone.
I have nowhere to go or return to.
That's right.
Everyone you know wishes that you were dead...
...or rather, you are already dead to them.
That's why I'm going to survive.
If nobody cares if I'm alive or not, then at least I will value my life.
That Rat is going to betray you.
If I don't trust him, he can't betray me.
May I come in?
Here, I thought you could eat this.
It's a peach soaked in alcohol, and boiled with sugar.
Don't worry, the alcohol is just for fragrance.
It's sweet...
My name is Rakushun.
What's yours?
"Raku" means easy...
...and "Shun" means nimble.
But my life isn't easy, and I'm not nimble.
I don't know why Mom named me that.
Do you have parents?
I live here with my mom, but she is out right now.
Do you know a man named Keiki?
Is he from around here?
It's okay if you don't know him.
So, what's your name?
Youko.
How do you write it?
It must be Mom.
Hello, Officer.
Yes, I received the bulletin earlier.
There were three of them, but it seems they split up.
The woman we're looking for could be with a man, or traveling alone.
She is about 17 years old.
She has red hair and controls Youma.
You can take them both.
King Kou himself is offering a large reward.
A Hanjyuu like you would never get a decent job, so I thought you'd be interested.
Indeed.
Thank you for your kindness.
If I wanted the reward, I would've reported you while you were asleep.
What do you want from me?
I can't let them take you to be killed.
But I didn't do anything.
Everyone here thinks that you're the evil Kaikyaku.
The officials are trying to kill you.
Shut up!
King Kou believes that Kaikyaku ruin the kingdom, but...
...I think it's a superstition.
They can't kill you for what you are.
Youko, you should go to En.
En, is that a town?
You really don't know anything about this place, do you?
In the middle of the world is the Gozan...
...surrounded by a wasteland called the Koukai.
The island is enclosed by the Kongou Mountains.
And there are eight kingdoms beyond the mountains.
Han.
Kyou.
Ryu.
En.
Kei.
Kou.
Sou.
Sai.
And further out are...
Shun.
Ren.
Hou.
Tai.
Those are the twelve kingdoms.
We're in Kou, so if we walk this way, we'll get to En, right?
No, that's a bay right there.
So you'll have to go to a port, and take a ship to En.
What's outside the islands?
It's the Kyokai.
People say there's an island called Hourai somewhere beyond the Kyokai.
That's where Kaikyaku come from.
I know, and the Kaikyaku bring the Shoku...
That's not true, when Shoku happens, it brings Kaikyaku.
And sometimes things get blown to this world...
...and also things get sent to the other world.
I thought I couldn't go back to Japan from here.
I'm talking about Taika.
Taika are people who are supposed to be born in this world...
...but accidentally born in Hourai, or some place called China over the Gozan.
The King of En and the En Taiho are both Taika.
I hear everything is like Hourai in En.
Even a Kaikyaku can lead a normal life there.
The Tai Taiho was a Taika too, but people say he's dead...
...so En is where you want to go.
Do you really believe what that rat says?
No, I'm just pretending, so I can get information.
Even if you go to En, you'll end up dead anyway.
Besides, you're the monster that ruins this world.
You think the people of En would help out a monster like you?
This is your...
...real face!
You're evil...
You are the monster...
You're tormenting me, trying to make me kill myself.
I know what you're doing, I won't give you the satisfaction.
Rakushun.
Mom, you're back.
That's your mother?
My goodness, you collapsed in the woods?
Did you take good care of this young lady?
Of course I did.
I wonder.
Please forgive my son, it looks like you haven't had a chance to take a bath.
I'll start boiling water.
Is she your real mother?
That's right, she's the one who plucked me.
Plucked you?
Yeah, she plucked me from the Riboku.
Is it true that children come from women's stomachs in your world?
That's how people usually have babies.
If it grows inside a stomach, how do you pluck it?
Pluck what?
The Ranka, it's like fruit about this big...
...there's a baby inside of it and it grows on the Riboku.
Thank you.
Don't worry about it.
The Shoku in Hairou was a pretty big one, I heard.
You poor thing, just because you're a Kaikyaku...
I see, you had your hair dyed.
Do all Kaikyaku have red hair?
No, it turned to red when I came to this world, and my face changed too...
Do you know if this happens to all Kaikyaku?
I don't know, I've never heard of anything like that.
I've never heard of anything like that, either.
Youko, maybe you aren't an ordinary Kaikyaku.
Why don't you tell me what happened?
How did you come to this world?
It doesn't matter...
But don't you want to know who you really are?
I know who I am.
I'm an ordinary high school student...
I'm just a useless Kaikyaku.
I'm not worth taking an interest in.
Hold on, Youko.
What's the matter?
Mom, I'm going to take Youko to En.
To En?
You mean...
It'll take three months to get Kankyuu.
She needs somebody who knows the area, who can guide her there.
If she pretends to be my brother, we can pass the checkpoints.
I'm the brother of a rat?
Right.
Mom, you know that I've always wanted to go to Kankyuu...
All right, go.
Hold on, I'll fix something for the road.
Mom, you don't have to worry about me.
She will go to the police as soon as you leave.
I won't let it happen.
I have the rat, and he's my hostage.
If she tells anyone about me...
...I'll kill the rat.
You're learning, aren't you?
You take care, Mom.
Hey wait!
No!
There're many children there, is it a school?
That's right, it's a school.
I was the top student there, and even qualified for Shougaku.
If you graduate Shougaku, you can even become a local administrator.
If I got a job like that, then Mom could retire.
I don't mean to brag, but I'm the smartest one around here.
But I couldn't go to Shougaku.
Why not?
Because I'm a Hanjyuu.
Hanjyuu?
It means "half-beast."
Mom just happened to pluck a Hanjyuu Ranka, that's all.
But Hanjyuu are unusual, and so are Kaikyaku.
King Kou doesn't like anything out of the ordinary.
Then that king is wrong!
He may be, but the King is chosen by the Heavens...
...and the Heavens made me as I am.
It's not something I can control.
That's why I don't like it when Kaikyaku get killed just because they're Kaikyaku.
In En, nobody discriminates against Hanjyuu or Kaikyaku...
...and I could even go to Daigaku there.
So that's the real reason you wanted to go to En with me.
I've always wanted to go to En...
You don't owe me any explanations.
I was just...
I feel better that you are doing this for yourself.
How far are we going?
What is this place?
His Majesty has given me an estate!
This is your land.
You'll be living here from now on.
No, it must be some kind of mistake!
You are not allowed to leave here.
What do you mean?
Wait!
I'm the chosen one!
I'm the one who saved this world!
People say calamities reflect trouble in the kingdom...
How much is it for me and my brother?
Fifty for two, up front.
Can't you go any lower?
No, be thankful that I'm letting you stay at all.
Pray to Tentei?
Don't you pray when you're in trouble?
Why would I do that?
I guess if a married couple wants a child, they pray to Tentei.
People say Gyoutei is the god of harvest...
...and Koutei protects people from Youma.
But if the weather is good and you take care of the field well...
...you'll have a good crop.
The weather is up to the skies, praying isn't going to change anything.
But people in this world believe that gods exist, right?
To be honest, I don't really believe they exist.
Even if they do exist, I don't think they have time to listen to our little prayers.
So you don't pray for good grades before exams...
...or pray to make a lot of money?
That kind of stuff depends on how much effort the person puts in.
What do gods have to do with it?
If you study hard, you'll pass your exams, if you work hard, you'll have money.
Why pray to gods?
That's true.
You're here, aren't you?
Are you starting to understand it?
Yes, I am.
This is the world where gods and Youma exist...
So people know that praying doesn't solve their problems.
They don't rely on anything and just live for themselves.
If they see a chance to sell out a Kaikyaku, they'll take it.
We're staying at Goryou tonight.
It's a big town.
Fine, I don't care.
Whoa!
Youko!
It's a Youma.
That's a Kijyuu.
Some Youma in the Koukai can be tamed.
Besides, Youma rarely come down to a populated area.
That's not true, they've been chasing after me!
It can't be, Youma don't attack a specific target.
But they were always after me, even in my world...
Youma in Hourai?
It was a monster of a bird, called Kochou...
But...
Wait a minute, Youko.
It's a serious matter if a Youma like a Kochou shows up.
And it was after you?
Youko, I think you're involved in something really big.
I don't want to know.
But if you can figure out what's going on, you may be able to return home.
I don't have a place to go back to.
Youko...
Nobody is waiting for me to come back.
Then why do you want to go to En?
Why else?
To stay alive.
I just don't want to die.
It's a Shusei troupe.
Maybe we can catch a play tonight.
Let's hurry!
They're closing the gate, let's go.
They're Kochou!
Why on earth are they here?
Youko!
Don't go, Youko!
Don't worry about me, just run!
Youko!
Shadow of the moon reflects over the Sea of Emptiness.
Let's sleep in the soft silver luster for now.
In my memory, I kept looking for...
...warmth in the lonely rain.
Even if my body dies, I will keep running...
...until I reach the rainbow at the end of the world.
Is there nothing that matters as long as you survive?
Even if you are reduced to a pitiful creature...
...does it not matter as long as you live?
The Twelve Kingdoms, Episode 7
Episode 7
Shadow of the Moon, the Sea of Shadow, Chapter Seven