The Four Kingdoms

Disclaimer: I don't own Shaman King

Chapter XLVI: An Era of Peace

"Someone's been missing from the throne room for several weeks..." Faust remarked as he closed the door of the Kasai mini library. He found the new king, Hao Asakura poring over some scrolls by his desk. His brows were furrowed as he read through the papers.

"Well, nobody's seeking audience with the king and there's no table there." He dipped his quill into the ink and affixed his signature in each page.

"Are those what I think they are?" The blond medicine man asked with great interest.

"Yes," the king softly blew on the wet ink so it could dry faster.

"So we are finally doing it, huh? It took more than a hundred years before we could abolish the peace treaty."

"Yes, people can cross borders, live and work wherever, and marry whoever they want in this land. All thanks to my father's efforts and the failed plan of some lunatic king-wannabe." King Hao rolled up the scrolls as soon as the ink had dried up.

"That's some good news especially for your twin brother."

"Yoh has to contend with the King of Kaminari first. A marriage promise is a contract with the Great Spirit."

"And there's Tamao..." Faust reminded him.

"Tamao was bethroted to the heir of Kasai. Apparently, my twin brother is not heir anymore. I'm the king now and I have no heir until my child is born which is highly unlikely cause I hate babies. Anyway, if the Kaminari and Kouku royals decided not to honor their fathers' agreement and break their engagement off, good for Yoh but Anna has to pay for the wedding. The war left us broke..."

King Hao took out the Douji heirloom from a drawer. "How much do you think this jewelry would cost in the black market?"

"I would advise against selling that. It's one of the oldest artifact in Kasai."

"Shame. It's pretty useless now." The king placed the heirloom back in its place. "So are you back to giving the ruler some unsolicited advice?"

"That is what I'm actually here for... As I'm really a citizen of Kouku, I'm planning to return to my birth place and offer my services to the new queen."

King Hao chuckled. "Anna doesn't listen to anyone, you know."

"Still someone needs to protect her. She's alone there."

"I had arranged for that. We don't need spies anymore so there are a few names in the roster that have lost their jobs and have no other livelihood to go back to. I recommended someone to be Anna's bodyguard as General Tori may have sympathizers within the Kouku army. "

"Are you referring to Ryuu? I saw him left in a horse earlier... "

"I'm always one step ahead of you." The king smirked at him.

"Well, it makes sense. He also liked drinking there. He has probably grown accustomed to Kouku with the numerous missions he had carried out in that part of the land. "

"Nah.. I just want his ugly face out of Kasai."

"How very charming of you, Your Highness."

The new ruler stood up from his seat and stared out of the window. "Why did you give the crown to me, Faust? My father is dead. He's not there to oppose if you appointed Yoh to be the next king."

"Your father wanted you to succeed him from the very start. I just honored his wish."

"And why did he want me? I've done terrible things..."

"Because he believed that you can change..."

The Kasai monarch grew silent. "On their march towards the palace, the Kouku and Kaminari armies had laid waste to a number of towns. Our remaining funds were allocated to rebuilding the damaged homes but a lot of people were left without any livelihood. The war drove away affluent families whose businesses provided income to our citizens for a long time. I know those rich folks were friends with my father even before he became king. I was hoping they would come back to a more peaceful Kasai."

King Hao turned around to face him. "I have asked Yoh to help me convince them as I cannot leave the kingdom in this state and woo them myself."

"And he agreed?" Faust eyed him.

"Of course. Our father had instructed us to help each other out."

"I'm positive your brother would do it even without Mikihisa's request."

"I know... But he can't do it alone. He needed someone to accompany him, someone whom my father and his circle trust, someone who can protect him... "

"Someone like me?" Faust pointed at himself.

The king shrugged. "Yes, why not? If you're willing to accept your first mission under my rule..." He waited for his reply.

The medicine man thought for a while. "As you wish, Your Grace." Faust bowed down at him and left his presence.

Three days later...

A number of high profile guests from all over the land had gathered in the Kouku palace to mark a significant date in the history of the Four Kingdoms. The throne room was filled with royal bloods and commoners alike to witness this historic moment.

Lyserg, his father, Duke Liam, and to Ren's dismay, Chocolove were standing next to the Kouri delegation composing of Princess Pirika, her father, Lycan Usui, and her brother's bodyguard, Tona. The former king was flashing dagger looks at Lyserg who was holding his daughter's hand. The two had started dating after the princess returned to the academy.

The recently-widowed Queen Regent Keiko Asakura attended the event with her parents, her other son, Prince Yoh, her late husband's distant relative, Tamao, the king's hand, Faust, and the former spy, Manta Oyamada who was now running his family business after his father had retired.

On the other side of the room, Queen Ran Tao patiently waited for the ceremony to start with her daughter, Duchess Jun who was happy to have stepped foot on their land once again after years of being away. She was definitely heartbroken after receiving her brother's telegram but when her father showed up at her mansion, she couldn't help but feel pity over him. He would sit by the library all day and ask about Ren from time to time.

The Kouku delegation was the biggest in number since the kingdom was the host. All of the military generals were in attendance. They were engaged in an animated discussion with Ryuu who stood at the center of the group telling stories about his exploits in the kingdom as a spy from Kasai. They seemed to have taken a liking to the queen's new bodyguard.

At the center of the throne room was a small circular table around which the four new rulers stood a few meters away. In the middle of the table was a burning torch and a quill dipped in black ink. Surrounding the torch were four unfurled parchments with a corresponding ruler's signature affixed for each one. The four young monarchs each held a rolled up scroll in his hand.

The noise died down when the king of Kouri began to speak. "I, King Horokeu Usui of Kouri, hereby abolish the old peace treaty and establish a new one from this day on until the end of time." He fed the scroll that he was holding into the fire then proceeded to write on the other three scrolls without his signature yet. He went back to his position after doing so.

He was followed by King Ren Tao of Kaminari, King Hao Asakura of Kasai, and lastly, Queen Anna Kyouyama of Kouku. The only female ruler rolled up the four scrolls lying on the table after the ink had dried up. She handed a scroll to each of her male counterparts.

"I swear to the Great Spirit that I will honor everything in the new peace contract." The four monarchs raised their right hand and promised in unison. Everyone in the throne room cheered.

"It's time to celebrate!!!" King Horo Horo announced to the crowd.

Queen Anna waved at the palace servants to open the throne room doors and lead the guests into the ballroom where the festivities would take place.

While the merrymaking was in progress, the blond queen stealthily slipped into one of the meeting rooms where the royal family portrait was hanging. She was trying to recall why she looked annoyed in that painting.

"Leave me," she commanded when she heard the door creaked open.

"I'm sorry, Anna. Am I disturbing you?" Prince Yoh closed the door behind him.

"Yes." She faced him with a look of annoyance. "What is the matter, Yoh? You've been avoiding me since you came in this morning."

"Anna...There's something that I must tell you but I don't know how..."

"I don't like the sound of that. Come on, spill it out. I hate it when somebody makes me wait."

The Kasai prince avoided her gaze once more. "Anna, I'm leaving for a mission... I don't know when I would be able to return..."

The Kouku queen turned her back on him when tears started to well up in her eyes. She had almost lost him before and now he's going away for an indefinite amount of time. "Your brother's order I presume?"

Prince Yoh nodded, "Kasai needs me..."

"When are you leaving?" She asked as she wiped the tears that had trickled down her cheeks.

"As soon as we return to Kasai..." The prince reluctantly approached her. "I will come visit from time to time but I don't know exactly how long it would take to complete the mission... I know it's just wishful thinking but... Can you please wait for me?" The prince put his hand over her shoulder but she did not turn to face him.

"Like I said. I hate waiting." She pulled his hand off without looking at him. "Go and serve your kingdom like a good royal would."

Prince Yoh ignored her coldness. He took her hand and kissed it long. "I will think about you everyday, Anna..."

He then enclosed her in a tight embrace and kissed her golden locks. "Every time I stare up at the night sky and see the stars, I will always remember the good times we had... I'm wishing for the day that we could be together... forever... " His voice broke and tear drops fell on the girl's neck. "I love you, Anna.. but you don't deserve to be put second to Kasai..."

The queen closed her eyes and inhaled Prince Yoh's scent. She wanted to preserve every memory of him while it lasted. She allowed him to cry on her shoulders yet she lacked the courage to face him. She was too afraid that if they stared at each other's eyes, they might decide to do something stupid like forget about their responsibilities and just go have adventures together.

"Leave me..." she whispered to him as she unlocked his arms around her. "You are free to go as you please..."

He kissed her hand one last time. With a pained expression, the Asakura prince left her alone in the room. As soon as she heard the door shut, Queen Anna broke down on the floor and cried in front of the family portrait.

"You don't deserve to be second to Kouku either, Yoh... I love you so much..."

End of Chapter 46