Palace Meidi – Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The innermost inner palace

In this chapter, we find out the consequences of Misono’s actions in Chapter 3. His relationship with Akiko is tested. This chapter ends volume 1.

This translation is intended to be read along with the ebook or paper volumes, so it isn’t a scanlation, just a translation.

136: Miya: The position of the chamberlain attendants should be abolished./
Those people shouldn’t be so close to Her Majesty.
sfx: hah hah
Doctor: To prevent pnemonia,/ he must rest.
Otomi: Young Master! Be strong.
137: Miya: Did you hear me, Grand Chamberlain?
Chamberlain: With all due respect, Rokuouin-no-Miya-sama,/
The attendant boys play an important role as intermediaries between the inner and outer palaces./
Even if you command it…
sfx: flustered
Miya: Is it such an impossible thing to request?/ I’ll allow it then, Grand Chamberlain.
sfx: smile
Miya: The attendant who announced me. His name was–
sfx: sigh [of relief]
Chamberlain: It’s Misono, Sir.
Miya: So, he’s called Misono./ He’s seems a bit too old to be called a boy.
138: Otomi: Young Master/ Your friends have come to visit you.
Kuga: Misono, are you still alive?
Misono: Totsuji-san, Kuga-san…/ Otomi, these two are my sempai as attendants.
Otomi: Well, take a seat.
139: Kuga?: It’s bad get to pnemonia from a cold and be sick for two months.
Misono: Yes, I have to build up my strength or I won’t be able to go back to school/ or to the Palace!
Kuga: To the Palace?
Misono: Ever since you two resigned, I’ve been the oldest attendant.
Small text: I’ve been entrusted with the guidance of my juniors…
sfx: Ah-
Toutsuji: Misono./ Didn’t you resign as an attendant?
sfx: falls
140: Misono: Brother!!!
Brother: Oh, Kimiyori. It’s great to see you looking so well.
Misono: What happened…?/ Why…?
Small text: I couldn’t speak when I was ill.
sfx: haa…
Brother: Congratulations, Kimiyori!/ The entire debt of the Misono family has been cleared!!
sfx: sparkle
Small text: Wow, amazing.
sfx: clap clap
Otomi: The Master declared bankrupcy.
141: sfx: moo
Otomi: The farm the master invested in was a fraud.
In that situation, he was only able to avoid selling the estate.
Brother: The industrialist Torada family has taken care of everything.
Misono: Wasn’t Torada the same nouveau riche man who offered to marry Shizuko?/
She would never… she hated him.
Brother: I thought so too.
sfx: hmm
Brother: She agreed when he offered to buy her the kimono of her choice…
Shizuko: Kimi-chan, look! It’s the most beautiful wedding dress.
Small text: I got fur too ~ <3/ Are they really his brother and sister?/
Yes, it’s strange/ that they would be related to him.
142: Brother: So, Kimiyori, it’s no longer necessary for you to go to the Palace.
sfx: pat
Small text: You can rest easy now.
Brother: While you were sick, a messenger came from the Palace and asked about you./
“He’s resigning,” I replied.
Small text: hahaha We’re much obliged to you~/ huh…
{My sixteenth autumn/ was the first time I wanted to hit my brother.}
143: sign: Head Chamberlain’s Office
Misono: My brother’s words are not my words./ I’m perfectly healthy now./
Please let me continue my job!!
sfx: step
Chamberlain: How old are you now?
Misono: I will be seventeen next year, on January 4th.
Chamberlain: The chamberlain’s attendants are allowed to leave and enter the inner palace where the palace ladies live. Only boys are suitable for this job./
Seventeen is close to the age of retirement for an attendant.
Misono: That’s… right…
Chamberlain: …There’s a certain person you should be wary of.
Misono: A certain person?
144: Chamberlain: How could a young man serve beside Her Majesty along with the women?
Akiko: It was probably suggested by Rokuouin-no-Miya-sama./
What a foolish thing! Without a word of explaination.
Matsuba: Don’t say that, Your Majesty!
145: Akiko: Matsuba-no-Suke/ Miya wanted revenge for being shut out of the cedar doors.
Matsuba: Even so, he wouldn’t do that!
Akiko: Then why is Misono gone!?
Matsuba: I’ve been wondering,/ why are you trying to protect Misono?/
Your Majesty,/ what do you think of Misono?
146: Akiko: I love him./ I love Misono./ He works diligently/
and he had the courage to keep Miya out of the cedar doors./
He has sympathy for my problems whenever he sees me./
That is what I love about him.
Matsuba: So, you favor him.
147: Akiko: I favor you a lot, Matsuba.
sfx: hahaha
Matsuba: Don’t favor anyone too much!/ Your Majesty likes everyone. You favor them./
You bestow your favor on those close beside you, even keeping me in mind.
Akiko: So, I should make the people I favor work beside me my whole life?
Matsuba: Yes, that kind of thing.
Akiko: Stealing away their freedom?
Matsuba: For Your Majesty’s spirit.
148: Akiko: I do not think those things./
I think I am no more than a caged bird./
They are also locked up beside me.
Misono: I understand, Grand Chamberlain.
149: Misono: But until I turn seventeen,/ couldn’t I work in some other job in the palace!? Even a servant’s job would be okay.
Chamberlain: Do you understand how difficult the job of a servant is?
Misono: Yes sir.
Chamberlain: And you won’t be allowed to pry into the matters of the inner place or be beside Her Majesty.
Misono: Yes sir.
Chamberlain: I won’t be able to presuade you./ So, you’ll be allowed to stay until next January 4th.
{After three months/ I’ll be able to ask Her Majesty directly/ to allow me to return to my job as an attendant.}
150: {Because she had given me the ring/ I had become overconfident.}
sfx: grip
Misono: Umm…
{I had heard about Kashiwagi, who did servant’s work./
He was an old servant who had worked in the palace since the previous emperor’s reign./
He’s around here, probably hiding behind this folding screen.}
Small text: Hiding… Like a pillbug…
sfx: Waah [pillbug] / wobble…
151: sfx: small and quiet/ scuttle [hiding]
Misono: Eh?/ Ehh!?
Small text: It’s true!
Misono: Excuse me…/ From today, I’ll be working as a servant./
My name is Misono. Please give me your guidance./ Venerable Kashiwagi
152: Kashiwagi: Just call me/ Kashiwagi, Young sir.
Misono: Y-Yes sir!
Kashiwagi: A servant’s job does not include free time to rest./ We begin by cleaning inside the palace.
sfx: flap flap
Decorating the furnishings,/ making a catalog of imperial gifts,/ then, more cleaning.
sfx: hah hah/ shwoom
153: sfx: twitch [surprise]/ scuttle [hide]/ hahaha/ bow
Small text: The Minister of the Interior and the Grand Chamberlain…l
sfx: ahahaha
Misono: Are you still hiding from a demon?
Kashiwagi: My family’s position wasn’t the same as yours or the chamberlains’./
We were only commoners./ I cannot appear before the nobles in the palace and pollute their eyes.
154: Misono: Is that so…/ I’m sorry for laughing about it.
Kashiwagi: Why did you want to continue working as a servant in the palace?
sfx: scuttle
Kashiwagi: When I was your age, I admired the generals and ministers./
Why are you working alongside an old man like me?
155: Misono: That’s…
Kashiwagi: Ahh, no, no! This should be put in the small pot.
sfx: rustle
Small text: Oh, I’m sorry.
Kashiwagi: Once it withers, it will finally flower in that pot./
I want Her Majesty to see it./ Her Majesty might find it diverting while taking a leasurely stroll.
Misono: I’m the same.
Kashiwagi: Huh?
Small text: What is he saying?
Misono: I am here because I want to see her smiling face.
156: Small text: Ah, there are flowers…
Miya: …Majesty/ Your Majesty./ Your mind is elsewhere./
I came to the palace to tell you the stories of my travels studying abroad.
Akiko: Rokuouin-no-Miya…
157: Miya: When you first became emperor, your eyes would light up when you heard my stories of the outside world.
Akiko: That was a long time ago.
Miya: I saw that attendant Misono a little while ago./ For some reason he was trimming the garden with an old servant./
Is he now working in a low position because he heard from the Grand Chamberlain that he could no longer be beside you? / How very devoted.
sfx: smile smile/ glare
Akiko: He wanted to thank you for your suggestion, but the Grand Chamberlain could not find a chance to meet you.
{Because I didn’t want to meet him.}
Miya: Why don’t we/ call him in here now?
Akiko: In here?
158: Miya: I would like to meet him as well.
sfx: grin
Misono: Her Majesty?/ I-I’ll come right away!!
sfx: running
{I’ll be reinstated as an attendent./ No, I’ll/ get to see Her Majesty after such a long time!!}
sfx: thump thump [heartbeat]
159: {But my childish thoughts were crushed.}
Misono: I have arrived.
Akiko: Why is the blind lowered?
Miya: He is no longer an attendant boy./ Should an ordinary servant see your royal face?
Isn’t that a rule in the palace?/ Even I wasn’t allowed to ender the cedar doors.
160: Miya: Well, Misono, / I heard you were sick in bed before. You’re already better now.
Misono: When I last met Miya-sama, I was very rude…
sfx: smile
Miya: Don’t worry about it. You were working as an attendant boy./
Now you should try to gain discretion as an adult.
Misono: Yes
{“An adult”…}
161: {Because I’m an adult,/ the blind will not be raised./
To think I could see Her Majesty’s face…/ How conceited.}
sfx: gulp
{As Miya-sama said,/ I wasd allowed to be beside her because I was a child./ Now I’m}
162: {Far from her.}
Akiko: Misono/ I enjoyed having you beside me./
If you had continued serving me for a long time in the palace as I had wished/
You would have become a bird in a cage.
{Her face…}
Akiko: And that is not something I wanted.
163: {I want to see/ her face!}
Akiko: Thank you for what you’ve done until now./ I’m fond of you.
164: Misono: Your Majesty! I…
Miya: A direct answer is rude, Misono!!
sfx: jolt
Akiko: Be well.
165: Misono: Yes…
sfx: clatter clatter
Misono: Kashiwagi/ I’ve come back to help you!
Kashiwagi: Has your meeting with Her Majesty already finished?
sfx: clatter
Misono:…Yes sir.
166: sfx: clatter
Misono: She honored me with words of gratitude…/ She still remembered me!/ Even recently, she thought I had been doing well with my work.
sfx: whoosh
{December’s wind began to blow./ Everyone in the palace was busy with preparations for the upcoming new year./
My regretful heart was smothered by the hectic preparations, and I worked silently.
sfx: hah
167: sfx: step step
Akiko: Tokutaiji, who will be one who will hold my skirt train at tomorrow’s New Year celebration?
Tokutaiji: Yes, ma’am.
Akiko: I want to know right now.
sfx: Ahh [wahh]
Small text: Go, go
sfx: whoosh
Tokutaiji: I’ll ask the Grand Chamberlain!!
Akiko: Kashiwagi
168: You’re there, aren’t you, Kashiwagi./ Since you’re there, listen./
You’ve been a loyal servant since my father’s reign./
When I was young, I thought you were a hidden monster. I bothered you by pulling down the screen.
Small text: I’ve found you!
sfx: chuckle
Akiko: The Meidi Emperor was pleased with you.
Since then, you’ve always offered yourself to this palace. I want to listen to you./
Are you really happy?
169: Kashiwagi: If you will allow this old man to say one thing directly to you./
I’ve worked to provide for my family, yet you call me a selflessly loyal person./
You overestimate me./ I merely/ admired Meidi-sama.
{This hollyhock was arranged by Kashiwagi.}
170: {I like the color.}
Kashiwagi: I only miss His Majesty.
Akiko: Is that so?/ I’m relieved./ Thank you for this year as well.
171: Kashiwagi[?]: From now on, that will be my role.
{The New Year}
Small text: Hahaha/ Happy New Year
{You would think the New Year in the Palace would be a refined thing.}
Chamberlain: Is the carriage porch congested? Guide the carriages! There’s still time until the guest of honor arrives.
sfx: Wahh/ kyaa
Matsuba: Her Majesty’s court dress decorations are in the wrong places! Fix it quickly before the ceremony begins./
They will be at the ceremony. The skirt train carriers preparations as well…
sfx: yay yay
Small text: Noble middle school students
Large text: Be quiet!!
172: sfx: wahh wahh/ silence…
Misono: Happy New Year, Kashiwagi-san.
Kashiwagi: We are on standby until the celebration ends.
{Will I really leave the Palace in three days?…}
sfx: rustle
{“I’m fond of you.”/ Did those words mean anything?}
sfx: drops/ what? / rolls
Misono: Ah/ huh?
173: sfx: chomp/ rolls
Misono: Ron!?
Small text: What, you’re going in there…
sfx: woof/ good boy, good, good
Misono: Wait/ come back!!!
sfx: patter patter/ slide
174: sfx: hah
{The cedar door with birds./ The inner palace is behind them.}
Misono: Now I can’t go in.
sfx: kyuun/ irritated
Misono: Come back! Ron
sfx: slam
175: Misono: Your Majesty…!
Akiko: What are you doing in here?/ Hurry, come in and close the door.
sfx: clatter
Small text: I came in…
176: Akiko: I’ve wanted to talk to you since you came back./ There has been nothing stopping you from entering.
Small text: Hey, open your mouth Ron.
sfx: yelp
Akiko: Misono/ What was your reply then?/ I said that I am fond of you, so what is your reply?
177: Misono: I/ I also/ admire you greatly.
sfx: blush
Akiko: What?/ Why is he blushing in front of me?/ I already knew that.
178: Misono: St-still!/ You Majesty said I would be a caged bird./
I don’t plan on becoming a caged bird./ Being by Your Majesty’s side/ is enjoyable even if it’s for a little while./
I already decided to become a cage!
179: Akiko: he/ he/ heheheh
Small text: What?
sfx: hahahaha
Akiko: You really/ didn’t think about what you were saying./ A cage? Is that so?
sfx: woof woof/ ahahahaha
180: Akiko: If you’re going to say something like that, come in./
Become an interesting cage forever.
Misono: Yes ma’am
181: sfx: patter patter/ wah wah
Small text: Your Majesty? Where are you…
sfx: woof
Akiko: How did I forget that it was time for the ceremony.
Misono: I’ll get the train carrier for you.
Akiko: It’s fine./ Misono/ You take it.
sfx: flutter
182: Ladies: The Miya family princesses’ court dresses are a grand sight!/ And the student train carriers are cute./
This year, Her Majesty’s train carrier is Rokuouin-no-Miya-sama’s nephew.
Miya: Yes, actually, I wanted to be the train carrier.
Ladies: Miya-sama, you jest.
sfx: Hahaha/ chatter chatter
Ladies: Her Majesty?/ Still…
sfx: slam
183: Akiko: Everyone, wait.
sfx: flutter
Akiko: Happy/ New Year
sfx: smile
184: sfx: whoosh
Matsuba: Wh-what? Why is Misono holding her train!?
Chamberlain: No, I didn’t have anything to do with…
?:  Head Palace Lady!!
{“Did I say that you favored him?”}
Matsuba: Would it be better if she favored the corrupt generals and politicians?
sfx: sigh
Chamberlain: What!?
Matsuba: Look, Miya-sama is also smiling for that…
sfx: smile
185: Chamberlain: That person’s smile is a frightening thing…
sfx: shiver shiver
{Misono/ I might selfishly say I am in a cage/ But I would be able to flap my wings in a spacious cage./
If I wish to go outside of the palace, what should I do?}
186: {Would my attendant be in the cage with me?}
{Like this/ In the middle of Her Majesty’s reign, / every year, I was given the honor of carrying her train.
sfx: wag wag
187: {In addition, Her Majesty also gave me something else.}
sfx: hiroto hirota/ scratch scratch
{No, I should say/ no more than this./ She confided in me the secrets of the innermost inner palace of Her Majesty’s heart./ I won’t tell anyone about it.}

 

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