Hiiro (49)
"Do you know what this is about?"
Summoned to Akemi's office, a letter of resignation was tossed onto the desk. Such fine penmanship.
"Who is it from?"
"Ichinose Murashige."
"Ah, he did request to be Naruhito’s exclusive guard."
It was just this morning.
I told him I'd think about it, but he said something about not needing a salary and just wanting to guard of his own accord. So, does this mean he's resigning to take care of Naruhito...? Did he win over someone again?
"Can you call Muramasa?"
Akemi called out to the servant standing by the wall, who quickly bowed and left. He, too, barely made a sound with his footsteps.
Before long, the servant returned with Ichinose Muramasa and Akari in tow.
Were they in the middle of a guard duty?
"Muramasa, explain this."
Akemi immediately had Muramasa stand up from his quick kneel and clasped fist salute, waving the resignation letter in front of him.
Muramasa lifted his head and began speaking without changing his expression.
"Yes. My father is so worried about Naruhito that he can't focus on any other work. So, a bit earlier than planned, he decided to pass the family headship to me, retire, and devote himself to guarding Naruhito. We have already completed the headship succession ceremony. Hence, I will live next to the detached villa as the head, and the guard duties for Lady Akari will be transferred to our kin, Shigemori."
"I haven't accepted this resignation yet, you know?"
"Whether or not you accept it is up to Your Highness. The headship succession is a matter within the Ichinose family, so this is merely a report."
"You mean to say you’re moving to the detached villa?"
"Yes, recently, that detached villa has become our base of operations."
Muramasa answered nonchalantly.
"What?"
It's only natural that I couldn't help but raise my voice.
That detached villa, isn't that my house...?
What do you think about this chapter?
