The morning sun glistened on the water of the river which bounded Teishang, the capital of Seniwa. It was a planned city, built from the center out, with a particularly large and opulent palace a few stories tall. Fenced-off gardens surrounded the path approaching the palace's entrance, which was being knocked on by a man wearing a white admiral's uniform. He was greeted and let in by security guards who escorted him to a door to the palace's highest room.

"Come in," was the answer he received when he knocked. He knew who was on the other side, and when he entered, he found him standing in front of a full-length mirror and in the middle of fastening his tie.

"Good morning, Admiral Yu-Ha," was the greeting he received from Mishoto Kuramitsu. He was the "Premier" of Seniwa, somewhere in-between a king, generalissimo, and a president-for-life, but the admiral knew the precise definition wasn't important. All he needed to know was that Mishoto was the most powerful man in the country and being summoned by him meant that the occasion must've been very important.

"Premier Mishoto," Yu-Ha began. "You wanted to see me."

"Yes, I did," Mishoto said. "I'm inviting you to join my motorcade this morning. Today is going to be important, very important, and there's something you're going to help me with."

"Important? How so?"

There was a file of papers laying on a nearby desk which he handed to the admiral for him to look at. "One of our warships named Shushi was attacked by Jurai near the border?" he asked. "Why wasn't I informed of this?"

"Apologies, but I wanted to keep a tight lid on what happened because I wanted the announcement to be made by my younger cousin Mihoshi. Mihoshi. You've met her before, haven't you?"

"Oh...yes, when I was at her eighteen birthday a few months ago."

Mishoto nodded as he finished with his tie and moved on to combing his blond hair. "Right. She's about to have her graduation ceremony at Nankai Academy, and given the timing, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to break the ice for her. You know, introduce her to politics and responsibilities our family bears. And I must tell you, my cousin is so intelligent, so brilliant for her age, it amazes me. Sometimes, I even think about making her my successor, but I'm getting ahead of myself!"

"Right, and I heard Mihoshi passed her academy exams with flying colors. Oh, but isn't she… um… distracted by… certain things?"

Mishoto turned to him with such swiftness that Yu-Ha's heart skipped a beat, afraid that he had said something he shouldn't have. "I mean, that's just what I've heard! I-I wouldn't know myself!"

The Premier sighed. "She has so much potential, but she preoocupies herself with her petty hobbies like acting and art and pottery. What a waste! She is a Kuramitsu, destined to be a woman of action, a hero of our people, our country. As Premier, it's my responsibility to mold her into that person, and you are going to play a big part in that."

"How?"

"You already know Mihoshi better than most outside my family, and you're still a bachelor, so I was thinking... maybe, but that will come later. Today, I wanted to have you accompany me with Mihoshi ."

Yu-Ha saluted. "I will do my very best to… be friends with Mihoshi! Thank you for letting me marry into your family!"

"You're welcome," Mishoto replied. "Now, let's get to the motorcade already. You'll accompany me for Mihoshi'sspeech. Oh, I can already imagine how the people will love her! Follow me."

Mishoto and Yu-Ha reached the limousine at the center of the motorcade. Entering, they found that Mihoshi was absent.

"This is something you might need to get used to," Mishoto casually told Yu-Ha. "Always needs a little extra sleep! She'll be here in a minute."

Ten minutes of idle sitting and thumb-twiddling passed until Mishoto lost his patience. "Okay, where is that girl?" He stepped out of the limousine and called out to some nearby guards. "Where is Mihoshi? She should've been here by now!"

One of the guards sped-walked to a nearby telephone station and made a call. "Put me through with Nankai Academy. I want to speak with security… yes… sir, Ms. Mihoshi was supposed to arrive at the Kuramitsu palace by now. Where is she?"

On the other side, a Nankai campus security officer glanced at two of his co-workers continually knocking on Mihoshi's dorm room. "Well, we've been trying to wake her up for the past minutes, but the door's locked and she hasn't answered yet!"

"The Premier has personally requested Mihoshi's presence. Get her here as soon as you can, no excuses."

The campus guard sighed. "Understood, just hold for a moment." He called out to the other personnel. "Okay, just punch the code in, we need her out!"

He saw his fellow security guards open the door with a special code but was disappointed when they didn't bring out Mihoshi with them. Instead, they handed him a handwritten note they found inside.

"Tell Mishoto I'm sorry!" it read.

The man on the phone grunted in annoyance. "Sorry to tell you, but she's done it again!"

Chapter 3 — Teishang's Beautiful Star

Outside the elite Nankai Academy, a woman tossed away the oversized hat she was wearing to cover her face and reached the academy's bicycle lot. Finding hers, she quickly hopped on and sped away from the people looking for her.

Based on experience, she had some faint idea that Mishoto wanted her to be with him today, but she had another place on her mind this morning. It was the Yinshi Theatre & Dance, a cozy, semi-professional artistic center that she frequented while attending Nankai. Despite not studying for the arts, Mihoshi loved going there because it gave her a glimpse into something different, a different way of living than what she was accustomed to.

Along the way, she forgot to look before crossing a side street, but before she could get hit by an unsuspecting aircar, a loose stone tripped her bicycle and made her fall forward out of harm's way.

"You goddamn idiot!" roared the driver, but upon seeing who he almost hit, he quickly changed his tone. "Oh my God! Ms. Mihoshi, are you okay? You're not hurt, are you?"

Mihoshi got up and dusted her clothes off. "I'm alright! Um, could you back up so I can get my bike?"

"Right! Right! So sorry, I hope I didn't break it!"

Luckily for both of them, the bicycle was perfectly unharmed, and Mihoshi quickly scooped it up off the ground and rode off. "Goodbye!" she said behind her.

She was now halfway to her destination, but she had forgotten that she didn't have time to both evade campus security and eat breakfast, and she chose the former. Luckily, she was attracted by the tasty aroma of freshly-baked bread coming from a nearby café and stopped to have breakfast. After all, you can't dance or do much of anything on an empty stomach!

But shortly after entering, a tinge of disappointment washed over Mihoshi as she realized that the people here, as in most places in Teishang, treated her the wrong way. Not that they treated her badly, far from it, but it was different from everyone else, and it started the line to the cashier at the front of house who took orders—a line that soon disintegrated as everyone made way for Mihoshi to order before them.

"What can I serve you today, M-M-Ms. Mihoshi?" the cashier at the front desk asked timidly asked her.

"I just need a quick breakfast," she told him as she glanced at the menu above his head. "Um…."

"Oh, we'll get you the best breakfast we have!" he interrupted. "Just you wait."

"Wow, okay!" Mihoshi said with delight. She reached for her back pocket and took out her trusty check-card, filled with probably enough money to buy the entire establishment if she wanted to. "How much will it be?"

"N-no don't worry about paying!"

"But I have to, don't I?"

"Just don't worry about it, Ms. Mihoshi!"

She couldn't argue with him as the order was already finalized in the register at exactly zero Jiao, and in a few minutes, she picked a seat at the café's wide window sill with her breakfast—more than she was expecting. Even without eyes in the back of her head, she knew most everyone inside was silently staring at her, unable to make words out of seeing a Kuramitsu having breakfast in the same space as them.

She hated it, more than anything because it wasn't her choice. She didn't ask to be special, people decided that for her. Ever since she could speak she was told that she was different, special, better even, but she didn't feel any of that. Right now, she wanted so desperately to feel like an ordinary Seniwan having an ordinary breakfast in an ordinary café, but as long as she was a Kuramitsu, she could never have the luxury of doing something as simple as eating inconspicuously in public.

So it was even more important that she went to the Yinshi. That was the one place which was different she could pretend that was ordinary. Finishing her breakfast, she cleaned up after herself and hopped right back on her bicycle outside to continue on her journey. From where she was, her destination required her to cross through central Teishang's main drag, a single, mile-long walking boulevard built for the express purpose of displaying the greatness of the Seniwan nation. Lining the ends of the street on both sides. displaying statues of the country's greatest heroes of the past, but also the heroes of today. Those men and women, of course, include members of Seniwa's ruling party, the Seniwan Action Party, or SAP.

While Mihoshi didn't know much about politics, she was aware that Seniwa was currently was in an election cycle, and the members of SAP took pride in reminding the people about the rewards of making what they believed were the "correct" choices based on the large and colorful banners on all the large buildings in the vicinity with slogans written on them.

'Thank the SAP for your new public park down the block!" one of them read.

"Vote early for SAP and renew your sales tax coupon today! Limited time offer!"

"SAP has always looked out for you—time to look out for them!"

"Not enough change to pay the fare? Use your SAP card and travel for free!"

"Ask your halved medical bill: "Do you think SAP cares about me?"

Mihoshi felt perplexed by politics. Everyone said that Seniwa was a democracy, but the Kuramitsu family has always been in control, even before the time of her grandfather's grandfather. Asking how that makes sense was a question nobody Mihoshi knew seemed prepared to answer, but taken as a fact that just was and something they were supposed to take pride in. Talking about it blurred the lines between narrative and reality too much, and it made Mihoshi's head spin until she passed out, something she wasn't a fan of.

As Mihoshi passed the boulevard, she stopped to watch the news on the televisions displayed at the front of an electronics store. "This just in," began a woman on the government-fun news program Seniwan Central. "Reports have been released from the government that the frigate Shushi was just attacked by Juraian forces near the border region. This has prompted a harsh response from Premier Mishoto, who says he will make a public announcement regarding the incident later today, supposedly accompanied by his younger cousin Mihoshi."

So is that why Mishoto wanted her, just to use her for cheap political points? She was glad she managed to get away from him, for now, but she was afraid things would change now that she was an adult, that Mishoto would try even harder to make her do what he wants. And she realized she was right about that as she neared the front of the Yinshi. Staying out of sight, she could see a few of Mishoto's men standing outside and talking to people passing by, probably asking if they'd seen her.

Being so close to her goal overcame her instinct to run away, so she snuck around to the rear of the building and saw that, thankfully, no one had thought to patrol the rear fire exit. Mihoshi walked through several rooms and hallways of people trying on makeup and moving boxes of costumes and props around before she reached backstage and found the man she was looking for, a balding, middle-aged director who was arguing with someone from what looked like a maintenance company.

"I had instructed your employer to come in yesterday, but they told me… well, it's too late to fix it now! You'll have to wait until later today." He turned to Mihoshi, who was in the corner of his eye and shooed away the worker. "Mihoshi! Why, I knew you said you'd make it, but I didn't think you were telling the truth!"

"But I never lie, it's bad for you!" Mihoshi said. "Besides, we've all been preparing for this for a month and I couldn't just not show up. This is as important for me as it is for you."

"But you're not supposed to be here!" he said in a panicked tone. "You must've seen those men out there. They're looking for you! If they catch you in here, who knows what'll happen? They might even shut our production down permanently!"

Mihoshi shook her head. "That's what they'll say, but Iwant to be here."

Another actor approached the director and whispered something in his ear.

"He's here!?" the director repeated. "But we can't refund all those tickets, the show's about to start!"

"Mishoto isn't it?" Mihoshi asked. "I should've guessed he'd come, but that's not a problem. I'll… improvise!"

Mihoshi to one of the costume storage rooms in the back and came back after a minute. To the director's surprise, she was wearing an ornate porcelain and silver mask that covered her face.

"If I wear this, he won't have any idea it's me! Now we can do the show!"

The director clasped his hands in approval. "So typical of you, Mihoshi: simple yet brilliant! Alright, we can do it!"

Today's morning show at the Yinshi was advertised as "short yet succulent". It was to be a ten-minute dance sequence between two partners, a man, and a woman. Instead of dialogue, a story would be told via physical actions alone. To dissuade anyone wondering why Mihoshi was wearing a mask, the partner would wear a matching one.

There was a thought going through Mihoshi's mind just as the curtains rose. These would be the greatest ten minutes of her life, so far.

Ten minutes felt congested into one. The dance began slow, with Mihoshi and her partner matching the somber music by moving slowly yet precisely across the stage and back again. Then, a dramatic vyrm of the instruments signaled an increase in tempo, and the dancing sped up and became more dramatic. For Mihoshi, it wasn't just dancing, but an acrobatic exercise, as she boldly leaped and spun around in her partner's arms, remaining completely synchronized. As the music faded, it picked up for one more high note to end the sequence, where Mihoshi slid across the floor in front of her partner.

The audience roared with applause from the incredible display that they saw, and Mihoshi and her partner stood up and bowed to them in appreciation. However, unbeknownst to them, a rusted, unrepaired lock keeping a light fixture hooked up to the catwalk above the stage suddenly shattered. A near sixth sense alerted Mihoshi to the fixture that was about to fall on them, and she pushed herself and her partner out of harm's way right as it struck the laminated floor with enough force to break it.

After the audience recovered from the shock of the impact, they were again surprised by the woman without her mask on. Mihoshi had rubbed her face against the body of the man she had pushed, and the strain against the flimsy strings holding the mask on her head had ripped apart.

Mihoshi helped her partner to her feet, and, satisfied that he was unharmed, announced something to the audience. "Yes, I am Mihoshi Kuramitsu, and I hoped you liked our performance!"

The audience gave another standing ovation, but Mihoshi could see the disapproving face of Mishoto in the back row staring right at her as he made his way to the exit. She knew that she had to follow him outside, but she was glad that she could do what she wanted just one last time. But then, at the last moment, she glanced at the edge of the stage and noticed a woman happily waxing the floor, and suddenly, she realized that she didn't have to end things here.

The midday sun nearly blinded Mishoto as he exited the Yinshi with Mihoshi in tow and flanked by security guards. Their limousine was parked right in front of the theatre, ready to go as soon as they entered. When they both sat down and the driver began moving, Mishoto gave Mihoshi a contemptuous gaze, making her instinctively fidget in her seat.

"You've disappointed me, Mihoshi, again," Mishoto began started as they began driving. "I just want to know: why?"

"I just want to do what I want. What's wrong with that?"

"You're a Kuramitsu, part of the family that rules Seniwa. Now that you're an adult, you have certain responsibilities that you have an obligation to fulfill. You know that, you've always known that. Why are you fighting it?"

She glanced outside as she answered. "Because nobody ever asked me to be a Kuramitsu."

"What?" Mishoto asked with disbelief.

"I never asked!" she repeated. "This is just what everyone expects me to be, but nobody asked me first! It's not fair!"

"It's not a question of what's fair and what's right, it's a question of accepting one's duty. Duty to your country, your people. We're so fortunate to be in charge, but I know that once you are caught up to speed, you too can…"

Mishoto stopped his impromptu speech as he noticed something odd about Mihoshi. He knew well that she wore ribbons on the back of her head to keep her hair, but of all the times he's seen it, it was always red. But now, it was blue. He racked his head for an answer and immediately realized what was wrong.

"Mitoto!" he roared at her. "What're you doing here!"

Mihoshi's mother bore a striking resemblance to her daughter, and just about the only thing that's required to make them identical is for her to forego her red lipstick, which she decided to apply now that the jig was up. "Well, I was helping to clean the Yinshi when Mihoshi asked me to help her leave Seniwa!" She took out a small booklet with handwritten notes inside. "She even gave me a list of things to say to you!"

Mishoto punched the roof of the limousine in frustration. "Turn around! We have to get back to the Yinshi and establish a perimeter. I want my cousin!"

Mihoshi knew her older cousin was smart and probably figured out her deception by now, but she had hoped that five minutes of riding on her bicycle was enough to throw him off her tail for the rest of the day, provided that she lay low and avoid attracting attention to herself. Of course, that was easier said than done; she was a Kuramitsu, after all.

It all came back to her family, didn't it? That's all she's ever been defined by, the Kuramitsu family she never chose to be a part of but has to be "responsible" for. She rejected that; she wanted to choose something different, something impossible, even. She wanted to choose…"

"The Galaxy Police?" Mihoshi asked herself as she stumbled upon a three-story building with a distinctive "GP" logo above the front doors, or at least she thought it spelled that because it was defaced with a large splotch of white paint. She continued inspecting and found several more points of vandalism on the building, including a boarded-up window and several words like "Death to Spies!", "Juraians go home!", and "We're watching you!".

Inside, she nearly bumped into an officer who couldn't see past the three boxes he was carrying to a nearby air truck, and inside, she found more officers—all of them Juraians and Wau—frantically haphazardly stuffing and shredding whatever they could find.

"Come on, guys, pick up the pace and lift like you mean it!" yelled a Wau officer, probably their superior. "We're already half an hour behind schedule! Move like you're trying to arrest someone!"

"Um, excuse me," Mihoshi said as she tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hm? Oh, how can I help you, ma'am?"

"Is this a Galaxy Police station?"

He scoffed. "Not after today. No idea what it is with you Seniwans all of a sudden, but based on the reception we've been getting lately, it's obvious we've overstayed our welcome. Now, if you're looking for services, I'm sorry, we're not exactly in a position to do much of anything," he finished with a chuckle. "I mean… unless you're looking to join the force."

"Um… actually, I am."

"Oh, no kidding! That's about the last thing I expected today. Alright, one more for the road! Follow me, I made sure to shred the paperwork for recruitment last, just in case.

Leading her through the station, they sat inside the commander's office and got down to business. He pulled out an application form from his desk and began with the questions.

"Alright, ma'am, name?"

"Mihoshi…Kuramitsu," she answered hesitantly.

He looked up. "Are you serious? Kuramitsu?"

Mihoshi nodded. "Is that a problem?"

He threw his hands up, unable to retort. "Nope, just not something I'd have expected. Your family doesn't exactly like us, but I digress. Age?"

"Eighteen?"

"Residence?"

"Nankai Academy women's dormitory. Room 1413."

"Occupation? Or… never mind; I can guess that much. One more question… do you have permission from the Kuramitsu family to join the Galaxy Police."

"You have my permission, sir," Mihoshi answered authoritatively. "Is that all?"

Sensing the seriousness in her tone, the officer decided against fighting it and took out a large paper with a space to sign below.

"Let me explain how recruitment is going to work. If you sign this paper, you will be vetted and accepted into the Galaxy Police Academy. Think of it like that Nankai Academy you're in, only it's in space. You'll be attending for two years, two semesters. If you pass both, then you'll be given the badge and inducted into the organization."

"What if I fail?"

"Then you'll have to pay back the cost of room-and-board, and trust me when I say you don't how many zeroes there are. Now, joining the Galaxy Police means you have to follow all of the rules we have, and if you break them, then you'll be in trouble."

"What kind of rules?" Mihoshi asked.

"Apart from the obvious no killing, no stealing, no hate crimes, and things like that, you must also follow Galaxy Police policy which is set out by the Superintendent and Galaxy Comiettee."

"Do I get a pamphlet listing all of them so I won't forget?"

"Um… you'd probably have to ask for that, but sure, you could get one," he answered, shortly before being interrupted by another officer. "Oh, don't tell me the shredder broke again, we were almost done with the damn thing!"

"No, it's those soldiers from earlier," the second officer said, jutting his thumb in the direction of the front entrance. They're back again and they said that we've got to get out."

"Tell them to wait another few minutes," the commander said. "I'm in the middle of finalizing an application."

"They said now! If we don't, we're all getting arrested!" he turned his gaze toward Mihoshi and back toward the officer. "What the hell's wrong with you!? If they find out we're trying to recruit Mihoshi Kuramitsu, it'll be life in prison for us!"

"That's so mean of them!" Mihoshi protested. "But I'm not hiding anymore. I'm going to join the Galaxy Police!"

She snatched the pen hanging out of the other officer's shirt pocket and quickly set it to the paper, but it broke instantly upon contact. She reluctantly accepted a second pen and signed her name.

"There, I've signed it. Now we can leave Seniwa, right?"

"That doesn't matter, if they find you with us, none of us will be going home!"

"They won't find me, because I'll improvise, again!" Mihoshi declared confidently. As if the heavens themselves decided to fancy her suggestion, an officer was seen pushing a cart with a very large box across the hall when Mihoshi stopped him.

"What in this box?"

"Uh, some handcuffs, toiletries, random stuff like that."

Mihoshi abruptly pushed the box off the cart, spilling the contents all over the floor. Before the officer could even lash out in fury, she was already crawling inside of the box, which she fitted snug inside.

"I'll be quiet!"

"If they find out we're transporting Mihoshi Kuramitsu in a box, they'll just shoot us, won't they?" the second officer asked.

The commander shook his head. "That girl's not taking no for an answer. Let's just cross our fingers and get out of here already."

Outside, Seniwan soldiers confidently brandished their service blasters in their arms as they watched the Galaxy Police officers exit the building and begin loading the final items into their large storage truck.

"About time you left," one of the soldiers said as he looked at the passing Wau commander. "Go flutter back to your Headquarters, mop-man."

The commander immediately turned his head to him while the others began loading the big box. "Did Mishoto teach you that one, boy? No wonder you people don't want to join anymore, our standards are obviously too high for you."

The soldier clenched his fist as the commander joined his coworkers in the airtruck and drove off. Inside the vehicle, Mihoshi got out of the box and wiggled her way to the front, leaning in from the bed to see out the front with the driver and commander.

"You should be excited," the commander told her. "Think about it, the very last Seniwan to ever join the Galaxy Police, and she's a Kuramitsu! Although I can't help asking, what's someone like you wanting to join the force? I mean, don't you have your whole life lined up already?"

Mihoshi couldn't answer right away, not because she was unsure of her answer; she knew what it was, but because she wanted to say it in a way that would make sense to him and for herself. But before she could answer, the airtruck made an ominous sound and came to an unexpected halt.

"Oh, great…" the driver suddenly said. "The engine lights are on again, I gotta stop it."

"Come on!" the commander complained. "We're only a few minutes away from our ship and now it wants to quit on us? This is the worst rental we've ever used!"

Looking at GP officers crowded around the steaming engine from the front cabin, Mihoshi felt slightly guilty about it. She couldn't make sense of it, but for as long as she can remember, she seemed to bring all sorts of wild luck onto herself and those around her. She hoped that the Galaxy Police Academy wouldn't mind that sort of thing, but she first had to get there first. While fixes were being applied, she moved to the back of the airtruck and sat at the rear of its bed, not minding any pedestrians who could see her.

Then, rapidly approaching their vehicle was Mishoto's signature limousine but without its motorcade. As soon as it came to a halt, Mishoto stepped out and approached her. Mihoshi almost wanted to yell, but she realized that Mishoto looked different from her. Usually, her older cousin was a man of absolutes, who projected his clarity with a stalwart, almost intimidating stare, but that was now absent. Instead, he looked curiously at her, confused even.

"You've always known I've had your bicycle bugged, right?" he asked quietly, not wanting to alert the Galaxy Police officers. "You'd never get away on that thing."

"Yeah, I know."

"Mihoshi… cousin, enough tiptoeing around. Mitoto told me a bit, but tell me, do you really want to leave it all? Your country, your family… me? What am I doing wrong? If it's something you need, you can ask me for it."

Mihoshi shook her head. "You still don't understand. It's not about getting something I need, it's letting go of what I don't want. I don't want to be a Kuramitsu, I want to be… Mihoshi ."

"Mihoshi?" Mishoto repeated. Just then, the airtruck's engines came back to life as the Galaxy Police officers in front cheered at their jury-rigged repairs, and soon Mihoshi was moving away from Mishoto.

"Goodbye," she quietly said to him.

"That was the last thing I ever said to Mishoto," Mihoshi said in her ending monologue. "After that, I was quickly transported to the Academy. You know, even after all this time, I still sometimes regret leaving it all behind. Not because I thought it was the wrong decision, but because I knew I let so many people down. Not just my cousin, but most of my family. It keeps me up at night, wondering if selfishness and happiness come hand-in-hand."

Kiyone and Mitsuki stared silently at Mihoshi, surprised at her incredibly thoughtful monologue.

"Mihoshi, I…" Kiyone began. "I don't know what to say."

"But then again," Mihoshi continued. "I don't really regret that much, because joining the Academy allowed me to meet you two, my best friends! So maybe all the good that came from it balances out the bad stuff! Not that I was keeping track or anything, but I'm sure it does!"

Mitsuki nodded. "Sure, but I do have an important question."

"What is it?"

"Why didn't you ever tell us you used to dance?"

Mihoshi pondered the question for a good minute, her hand grabbing at her chin for answers. "Oh yeah, I just forgot that I used to dance at Yinshi until I recalled the story!"

Mitsuki shrugged. "How did I expect anything less from you?"

Preview of Next Chapter

Mitsuki: "Now Kiyone, if you avoid hitting the spot on my head where I almost died, I might be able to tell my story without passing out."

Kiyone: "You're only tempting me more."

Mihoshi: "But wasn't storytelling your idea, Kiyone?"

Mitsuki: "You tell her! Now, I grew up in Kanzaki, in Jurai City.

Mihoshi: "You mean the one on planet Jurai?"

Mitsuki: "Yes, that one. When I was younger, I thought that I had it all, but I realized that inside, I was emptier than the vacuum of space. I needed an answer to it, and fast. The next chapter of Academy Days! , 'Unfulfilled Mitsuki'."

"It unquestionably doesn't have anything to do with personal problems."

Author's Note #3: Let's Be Brief.

The idea that Mihoshi is an estranged member of her own family came from what we know from the existing lore. The Kuramitsu family has ruled Seniwa for a very long time, so it's not too hard to see how Mihoshi may have been pressed to get into politics. Of course, we all know Mihoshi is much too unique for that sort of thing.

Mihoshi herself is very much based on her OVA incarnation rather than her Tenchi Universe incarnation. While in the latter she is a flanderized, useless crybaby of a character, Mihoshi in the OVA has hints of being a woman with a lot of intelligence who is burdened by unfortunate circumstances, including occasional luck (mostly bad luck). This is what I've tried to emulate in this chapter and this story in general; Mihoshi isn't meant to be taken any less seriously as a person, but simply has a different way of going about her goals.

Seniwa as a country, with its militaristic attitude and cult of personality around the Kuramitsu family, has taken inspiration from countries such as North Korea and its Kim family, but unlike that country, it's an economically thriving yet politically stagnant society, reminiscent of Singapore and its eternally dominant "People's Action Party" (PAP). In a future episode of Galaxy Police Complex, I wish to return to Seniwa and better explore the intricacies of this seemingly paradoxical society.