The Four Kingdoms

Disclaimer: I don't own Shaman King

Chapter XLIX: The Duchess' Secret

Prince Yoh rapped on the door of a huge white mansion. He and Faust had been patiently waiting outside for someone to acknowledge their presence yet nobody came. It felt odd because he thought he saw someone look out of the window when they were approaching the front lawn of the Duchess of Mont St. Michel's house. He was warned that the lady of the mansion was elusive but he never thought she would completely ignore visitors.

"We are emissaries from Kasai kingdom. We wish to speak with the Duchess," Faust called out. His patience was running low. The medicine man pounded on the wood until his knuckles were red and sore.

"Maybe nobody's home, Faust. Should we come back tomorrow?" The prince stepped back from the door.

They were prepared to leave when the door creaked open and a man wearing glasses who was of the same age as Faust appeared by the entrance. He gave them an irate look but when his gaze fell on Prince Yoh, his facial expression transitioned from annoyance to rage.

"You!!!" The man grabbed the prince by the collar of his shirt. "-- have the nerve to come back here?!?"

"Get your hands off him!" Faust grabbed the man's arm to pry his grip off the Kasai royal. "It's the first time we have seen you, you lunatic!"

The man knocked the blond doctor unconscious with a punch in the face. His furious eyes were the last thing Faust saw before waking up in a dark dungeon.

"How's your cheek?" Prince Yoh inquired when he saw his companion propped himself up from the cold floor.

"I must have broken a tooth or two..." Faust expelled a bloody spit. He wandered his eyes around the dank prison. "I think I'm having a deja vu.. What I can remember though is that you're the only one who's inside a cell."

The prince would have laughed if their situation was different.

"Whatever did we do to that crazy strong guy?" The medicine man scratched his head. "I guess when your brother said that he is hated here, he meant he will be killed here if he had shown his face."

"I will definitely strangle him to death," the man who had thrown them into the dungeon appeared out of the shadows. He unlocked their prison cell and ushered them out. "The Duchess will meet you at the dining table. I'm sorry for the mild altercation we had earlier."

"Mild? My cheek is swollen like a chipmunk's!" Faust grumbled.

At the dining hall of the Mont St. Michel mansion...

Prince Yoh's mouth watered when he saw the food brought out from the kitchen by a couple of servants. It was already lunch time and they were famished. They had spent their breakfast budget on ale last night so thay had not yet eaten anything since morning. The Kasai prince smiled at his blond companion from across the table. Faust was trying to stop himself from pinching the roasted chicken in front of him. They were still waiting for their hostess.

Maybe she wouldn't even notice a missing skin... The medicine man thought.

"Please help yourselves," A gentle voice said as a very comely girl entered the dining hall. The man who had greeted them with a punch by the door followed the beautiful duchess dutifully.

"I am sorry for the unpleasant welcome from my butler, Marco." She gave her right hand man a stern look. "I am Jeanne, Duchess of Mont St. Michel."

The two guests stood up and bowed as their hostess positioned herself by the head of the table. "I am aware of your king's request. I had just been informed quite recently that he had sent out a number of telegrams to me. Someone had misplaced them so I wasn't able to give a prompt reply." She peered at her butler who was pouring her some peppermint tea.

"I thought I would return him the favor after he ran off and left you while you're grieving for your father." Marco avoided his mistress' gaze and glared at Prince Yoh instead.

"I apologize for the pain my brother had caused." The Kasai prince bowed his head.

"Forgiveness had been granted a long time ago..." Jeanne assured him.

"And I wonder if he had the slightest idea what he had left behind?" Marco muttered under his breath.

"Hao went home with his father," the Duchess reminded her butler. "A good decision if you would ask me after knowing he was able to spend his last days with him."

The butler's eyes softened. "I am deeply saddened by King Mikihisa's passing. He was a good man and a dear friend to the late duke." The banter between the two stopped and Marco remained stoic during the entire meal.

"Thank you for your generosity, My Lady," Faust and Prince Yoh bowed down at the Duchess after lunch was over. Jeanne stood up to leave the table and it was then that they noticed a bump in her belly. It was more obvious when she was facing them sideways.

"The head servant will show you to your rooms. Please freshen yourselves up. May I invite the Kasai prince for an afternoon tea alone once he's ready? I know you have some important matters to discuss."

"I'm more than delighted, My Lady," Prince Yoh smiled at her.

Faust gave the Kasai royal a knowing look while they were being led by a plump woman down the hallway towards the guest rooms.

"Do you think it's your brother's?" the blond doctor whispered. "He would be pissed off, you know... because he hates kids but on the other hand, Kasai would have an heir."

"I don't know... Hao doesn't seem to be interested in Jeanne at all. He rarely mentioned anything about her." Prince Yoh said in a hushed tone.

"Indeed... Your brother is picky on everything. I think the only girl who had caught his eye is the queen of Kouku. He had also been pestering Ryuu about reports on Anna's daily activities right before we left. Are you aware that he had also been sending her roses from the royal garden since the new peace treaty signing ceremony? Come to think of it... you're twins so it makes perfect sense that you would like the same type of woman... Maybe he sent you away so he can make his move on her... But the Kaminari king was faster."

The Kasai prince dropped his jaw and looked incredulously at his blond companion.

"I'm kidding of course. You said you want to get over Anna but clearly you couldn't." Faust messed up the prince's dark hair. "Anyway, I trust that you will get the duchess' good side with your charms. Let me know if it is indeed Hao's baby. I can't wait to send him a telegram! He will get the biggest shock of his life! Too bad we won't be there to witness it." The medicine man chuckled as he entered the room that was assigned to him.

At the Duchess' tea room...

"Yoh Asakura, please make yourself comfortable," Jeanne greeted the Kasai prince as he took the seat across her.

"Thank you for taking time to consider our kingdom's offer, My Lady."

"Hao maybe the most obnoxious person I've ever known but he made a smart decision by sending his brother. I can see that the resemblance is uncanny but you've got a kinder face..."

The Kasai prince blushed while the Duchess gazed at him with her soulful eyes. Jeanne of Mont St. Michel was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in that part of the land.

"My brother isn't the best of character but I assure you he would always prioritize what's best for the kingdom." Prince Yoh's eyes fell on Jeanne's belly which was more pronounced now that they were near each other. "By creating a trade relationship with us, he would ensure the success of your partnership with Kasai as long as he seats on the throne. The king would--"

"Is there something you wish to ask, Your Highness?" Jeanne interrupted him before sipping her tea.

"I--" The prince hesitated. "I am sorry for my boldness and my lack of sensitivity to ask you this... But it's important for the continuity of the Asakura lineage... Is that my brother's child?"

"No." The Duchess told him outright.

Prince Yoh felt guilty for being nosy. "Apologies, My Lady... I should not have inquired about your private life..."

"No offense taken... I knew that it would cross your mind. Hao and I were never lovers nor friends. He was just a guest of this house who my father picked to be my future husband. He eventually chose to take a different path."

"I'm happy that you're freed from an unwanted engagement. You can be with the father of your child." The prince grinned at her although deep down he was a bit saddened. A royal baby could bring back joy to the dismal Kasai palace.

"Unfortunately, the father of my child is getting married to someone else..."

"Ohh... Did you tell him that you're carrying his offspring?"

"I couldn't... He wasn't in the right state when we did it.. I... took advantage of the situation..." The pregnant girl grew red with embarrassment.

"Still... He deserves to know... It's his child after all.."

Jeanne responded with downcast eyes. "I just couldn't take away his happiness... He had searched hard for his fiancée whom people thought was dead. Now that he had found her, I refuse to become the catalyst for breaking them apart. His heart was already broken over his father's involvement in the murder of his fiancée's family... I don't want to be the cause of another heartache..."

The Kasai prince grew silent as realization dawned on him. "Is Ren Tao the father of your child?"

"Yes..." Jeanne covered her mouth as hot tears fell down her cheeks. She had been keeping this secret for months even to people who were close to her. She felt relieved that someone else knew of her predicament.

The Kasai royal reached out to hold her other hand in order to comfort her. He sat in silence until the Duchess had cried her eyes out.

"Lyserg told me that Ren thought Anna was going to break the engagement off... because she was in love with you..."

Prince Yoh was stunned by this revelation. The Kouku queen had never said anything of that sort to him especially when they last saw each other. She did not say those three words back after his confession.

"If you were Ren, what will you do? Will you give up the girl that you love for some responsibility that you never wanted?" Jeanne asked between sniffles.

The Kasai royal sighed. "I already did... My parents, my friends, Anna... They all taught me to man up and accept my responsibilities but in the end, it was me who made the choice. I'm sure the king of Kaminari will gladly face the consequences of his actions."

Prince Yoh handed her a white napkin. "Jeanne... Maybe I'm not the right person to give you advice. My decision was based on me being bound by my duty to the kingdom but this... This is different... Please give your child a chance to know his father. Ren is a good man. Anna wouldn't be friends with him if he wasn't..."

The Duchess wailed even more. The prince handed over his napkin in case hers wasn't enough. Beads of sweat started to form on his forehead as guilt filled him. He was supposed to be closing a trade deal not making a pregnant woman cry.

"My Lady... I have no right to tell you what you should do and I will respect whatever your decision will be. I do have one request though... Smile, Jeanne... You will have your little bundle of joy soon..." Prince Yoh squeezed her hand.

"I will try..." The girl wiped her eyes dry. "Please don't tell Marco. He doesn't know who the real father of my child is... I have told him countless of times that it isn't your brother's but he doesn't want to believe."

"I won't tell. Faust would be so disappointed though. I think he's drafting his message to my brother at this very moment." The prince scratched his cheek.

"I couldn't even imagine Hao cuddling a baby..." Jeanne chuckled.

"Yeah... He would throw him out of the window straight away..."

"Achooo! Achooo!"

King Hao scratched his nose. He should be calling it a day soon. He had to summon the servants in a few minutes since the mini library might need a bit of dusting. He finished off the letter he was writing to send along with the freshly picked red roses to Kouku. He read it once more while waiting for the ink to dry up.

"My lovely Anna,

I do apologize for Yoh's incompetence. Clearly he is still an amateur when it comes to negotiation. He should have convinced you to wait for him. Please don't make the biggest mistake of your life by marrying the Tao king. That man had such a bad taste in hairstyle. As before, I'm sending you these roses to remind you of my weak-hearted brother. I know you've got a strong will but mine is stronger. I will do for now what he can't do for you. Do remember that our clan has a track record of producing better-looking offsprings. Just look at yours truly.

Your future brother-in-law,

Hao Asakura."

End of Chapter 49