E4 - An Imperial Council

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(Please feel free to edit the speaker names if incomplete or inaccurate. Names are handled on a best-effort basis depending on the info on the source file. Dialogue is left as is.)
[00:02] Nazukihiko
    An Imperial Council is the most
    powerful gathering in Yamauchi,
[00:06] Nazukihiko
    limited to royalty and
    select members of the Four Houses.
[00:10] Nazukihiko
    Only the Kin'u can convene one.
[00:13] Nazukihiko
    Meaning someone has
    put His Majesty up to this...
SIGN    Purple Hall
[00:17] Nazukihiko
    ...in an attempt to disinherit me.
[00:21] Genya
    So in short, the selection of
    the crown prince 10 years ago was flawed?
[00:27] Genya
    Is that what you're getting at, Shoin?
[00:31] Shoin
    Just so.
[00:32] Genya
    And you hope to prove that now,
    with His Highness absent?
[00:38] Shoin
    The former kin'u and the priests
    named His Highness heir to the throne.
[00:44] Shoin
    But immediately afterward, His Highness
    left Yamauchi on the pretext of study.
[00:49] Shoin
    Thus, neither the Four Houses nor
    even His Majesty, the present kin'u,
[00:55] Shoin
    ever ratified the decision.
[01:01] Akira
    Nonsense!
[01:02] Akira
    His Highness is a true kin'u.
    What more does he need?
[01:06] Toru
    Some say the birth of a kin'u
    heralds troubled times.
[01:11] Akira
    Watch your tongue, Lord of the South!
[01:13] Haruhito
    Now, now.
[01:14] Haruhito
    I have heard that old saying,
[01:17] Haruhito
    but such disagreements
    may portend worse to come.
[01:23] Shoin
    Then, perhaps we should
    revisit the choice of heir.
[01:27] Akira
    So that's your game.
[01:29] Akira
    I wonder whose interests it serves.
[01:32] Shoin
    Still your beak!
[01:34] Shoin
    As Imperial secretary,
    my words are His Majesty's.
[01:39] Rokon
    Why, Your Highness.
[01:42] Rokon
    You seem to have arrived a bit late.
[01:46] Nazukihiko
    Rokon.
[01:47] Nazukihiko
    Were you ordered to stop me?
[01:50] Rokon
    Surely you jest?
SIGN    Natsuka's bodyguard
    Rokon
[01:52] Rokon
    Lord Natsuka would never
    command such a thing.
[01:55] Rokon
    Not that he would need to. This door
    has already been locked from the inside.
[02:07] Nazukihiko
    Open.
[02:09] Shoin
    Now, let us vote on—
[02:18] Shoin
    What is this?
SIGN    YATAGARASU
SIGN    The Raven
    Does Not
    Choose
    Its Master
[04:14] Empress
    The prince has not yet visited
    the Cherry Blossom Palace?
[04:17] Shoin
    Indeed.
[04:18] Empress
    I see he has keen instincts.
[04:21] Empress
    But no fool can serve as kin'u.
[04:25] Empress
    Do you not agree?
[04:28] Shoin
    Yes, Majesty.
[04:28] Empress
    I mean to recall Natsuka to worldly life
     and ensconce him as crown prince.
[04:34] Empress
    To that end, we must disinherit
    the Prince at any cost.
[04:40] Empress
    For the Southern House.
[04:50] Yukiya
    What was that about just now?
[04:53] Yukiya
    This is creeping me out.
[04:56] Yukiya
    There's Lord Natsuka.
[04:58] Yukiya
    And behind the screen...
[05:00] Yukiya
    Is that the current Kin'u?
[05:04] Nazukihiko
    Scheming behind my back.
[05:07] Nazukihiko
    Shoin, everyone knows
     who lurks behind you.
[05:12] Nazukihiko
    That saves me some trouble.
[05:19] Nazukihiko
    Your Majesty, you must realize
    after what just happened.
[05:23] Nazukihiko
    Two kin'u bring disaster to Yamauchi.
[05:27] Nazukihiko
    You were a stopgap, so to speak.
[05:29] Nazukihiko
    Now I have returned,
    and you have served your purpose.
[05:34] Nazukihiko
    Vacate that seat.
[05:47] Emperor
    How...
[05:48] Emperor
    How dare you?!
[05:50] Emperor
    How dare you speak
    to your own father like...
[05:53] Emperor
    What do you know of me?!
[05:56] Emperor
    Well?
[05:58] Emperor
    What do you—
[06:03] Nazukihiko
    Enough.
[06:07] Nazukihiko
    I appreciate your service.
[06:15] Nazukihiko
    See him out.
[06:17] Page
    Your Majesty!
[06:23] Nazukihiko
    Well, that's one problem solved.
[06:27] Nazukihiko
    Next is—
[06:28] Natsuka
    Don't you think...
[06:29] Natsuka
    that was needlessly cruel of you?
[06:33] Nazukihiko
    Brother.
[06:34] Natsuka
    His Majesty has, after all,
    governed Yamauchi for 20 long years.
[06:40] Natsuka
    Surely you could have dealt
    with him more peaceably?
[06:44] Nazukihiko
    Really, Brother, you think of everything.
[06:48] Nazukihiko
    Doesn't it frustrate you,
    watching your foolish little brother?
[06:53] Nazukihiko
    You must be imagining
    what you'd do as crown prince.
[06:56] Natsuka
    Perish the thought.
[06:58] Natsuka
    I came here only out of concern for Yamauchi
     as a member of the Royal House.
[07:05] Natsuka
    If Your Highness will bring peace
    and harmony as a true Golden Raven,
[07:12] Natsuka
    then the likes of me
    could never take your place.
[07:17] Nazukihiko
    Will you swear it, then?
[07:20] Nazukihiko
    Here and now, will you kneel,
    bow your head, and pledge fealty to me?
[07:27] Crowd
    What?
[07:29] Crowd
    Lord Natsuka...
[07:30] Yukiya
    What's going on now*?
[07:33] Yukiya
    Aw, man. I want to go home to Taruhi.
[07:36] Atsufusa
    Please wait.
[07:39] Nazukihiko
    Ah, Atsufusa of the Minami-omiya family.
[07:42] Nazukihiko
    What is it?
SIGN    Natsuka's aide
    Atsufusa
[07:43] Atsufusa
    With all due respect, Lord Natsuka
    could never practice duplicity.
[07:48] Atsufusa
    He thinks always of Yamauchi.
[07:51] Atsufusa
    And for Your Highness, he feels only—
[07:52] Natsuka
    Enough, Atsufusa.
[08:06] Natsuka
    I hereby pledge my life in service
    to his beloved Majesty, the true Kin'u.
[08:17] Nazukihiko
    That will do.
[08:24] Shoin
    Please wait!
[08:25] Shoin
    I do not believe anyone can claim
    the Four Houses have given their assent yet!
[08:30] Akira
    I've been telling you all along.
[08:32] Akira
    He's a true kin'u. What more does he need?
[08:37] Haruhito
    I see nothing particularly objectionable.
[08:42] Toru
    Lord Natsuka pledged his fealty.
    Why should the Southern House protest?
[08:49] Toru
    Let His Highness ascend
    to the throne without qualms.
[08:53] Genya
    I wish to raise one question.
[08:56] Nazukihiko
    Lord Genya of the North. What is it?
[08:59] Genya
    A consort customarily
     joins in enthronement.
[09:03] Genya
    But though Your Highness
    visits the pleasure quarter,
[09:07] Genya
    you avoid the Cherry Blossom Palace.
[09:10] Genya
    Do you truly intend to take a wife?
[09:13] Genya
    My assent depends on your answer.
[09:17] Nazukihiko
    Of course.
[09:18] Nazukihiko
    I will ascend to the throne
     in one year's time.
[09:21] Nazukihiko
    I swear I will take a lady
    to be my wife before then.
[09:31] Nazukihiko
    We're leaving, Yukiya.
[09:43] Atsufusa
    Lord Natsuka!
[09:46] Natsuka
    One year.
[09:47] Natsuka
    Until then, no matter what...
SIGN    Central Pleasure Quarter
[09:54] Yukiya
    Uh...
[09:56] Yukiya
    Excuse me, but...
[10:00] Yukiya
    What do you think you're doing?
[10:03] Nazukihiko
    Hm?
[10:04] Nazukihiko
    Just what it looks like:
    hiring every courtesan here.
[10:06] Nazukihiko
    This party is in your honor.
    Drink as much as you like.
[10:11] Courtesan 1
    Don't act so nervous.
[10:13] Courtesan 1
    We're all here to welcome you.
[10:15] Courtesan 2
    That's right.
[10:16] Courtesan 2
    The Young Master's paying for
    everything today, so let's drink up.
[10:20] Yukiya
    I haven't come of age yet.
[10:24] Nazukihiko
    I hear northern warriors dip their
    newborns in sake instead of bathwater.
[10:29] Courtesan 1
    Come, young sir.
[10:31] Courtesan 2
    Let's have some fun.
[10:32] Yukiya
    I... I need to use the lavatory.
[10:35] Courtesans
    Oh, he's adorable!
[10:39] Townsman 1
    Looks like a busy night
    at the Watchful Moon.
[10:42] Townsman 1
    That "Young Master" again?
[10:44] Townsman 2
    He rented out the whole place.
    Wish I had that kind of money.
[10:59] Nazukihiko
    The lavatory is that way.
[11:02] Yukiya
    Listen—
[11:06] Nazukihiko
    Have four today.
[11:11] Yukiya
    Your Highness—
[11:11] Nazukihiko
    Call me "Young Master" here.
[11:14] Yukiya
    Young Master, I can't believe you.
[11:18] Nazukihiko
    Really?
[11:19] Yukiya
    Just think about it.
[11:21] Yukiya
    You have assassins after you,
[11:23] Yukiya
    but here you are, living it up in this
    rowdy place without so much as a guard.
[11:27] Yukiya
    And that council, too.
[11:29] Yukiya
    What did you do there,
    except make enemies?
[11:39] Nazukihiko
    Are you worried for me?
[11:45] Yukiya
    Were you listening?
[11:48] Yukiya
    Oh, fine. Suit yourself.
[11:59] Yukiya
    The red light district looks like
    a different place in the morning, huh?
[12:19] Yukiya
    Young Master, um...
[12:32] Ruffian 1
    Hand over that sword.
[12:36] Nazukihiko
    What do you want? Money?
[12:40] Ruffian 2
    Quit yapping and do what we say!
[12:43] Yukiya
    Y-Young Mas—
[12:44] Nazukihiko
    Very well. We'll obey.
[12:55] Yukiya
    Lord Sumio?!
[12:57] Sumio
    Get back!
[13:05] Ruffian 4
    Die!
[13:14] Ruffian 2
    We're out of luck. Retreat!
[13:21] Sumio
    What are you after?
[13:23] Sumio
    Tell me!
[13:25] Sumio
    Or else you'll lose more than an arm or two!
[13:29] Ruffian 1
    I... I was just following orders.
[13:32] Sumio
    Whose? Speak!
[13:34] Bandit 1
    I-It was...
[13:39] Sumio
    Damn.
[13:48] Sumio
    Poison.
[13:49] Sumio
    They must have planned
    to silence him from the start.
[13:53] Sumio
    By now, the others must also be...
[13:56] Nazukihiko
    I see.
[13:58] Nazukihiko
    Whoever arranged this takes no chances.
[14:01] Sumio
    If kidnapping had been their goal, such
    fast-acting poison wouldn't have been used.
[14:05] Sumio
    They wanted only one thing.
[14:07] Nazukihiko
    My life?
[14:13] Nazukihiko
    Yukiya?
[14:26] Yukiya
    Your Highness.
[14:28] Nazukihiko
    Feeling a little better now?
[14:30] Yukiya
    I beg your pardon. I disgraced myself—
[14:36] Nazukihiko
    Don't push yourself.
[14:38] Yukiya
    Right.
[14:47] Yukiya
    You know who attacked you,
    don't you, Your Highness?
[14:55] Nazukihiko
    Have you heard that Natsuka has backers?
[15:01] (Flashback) Kiei
    Even so, court ravens who hated
    to lose his wisdom organized in secret.
[15:06] (Flashback) Kiei
    Rumor has it Lord Natsuka's mother,
    the Empress, is plotting something.
[15:13] Yukiya
    Yes.
[15:14] Nazukihiko
    The faction has its roots in the
    Southern House, the Empress's birth family.
[15:19] Nazukihiko
    But you must have realized
    when you saw the council.
[15:21] Nazukihiko
    No one wants to take my side.
[15:26] Nazukihiko
    Most court ravens would find it
     more convenient if I died.
[15:32] Yukiya
    That can't be.
[15:34] Nazukihiko
    I have faced attempts
    on my life since childhood.
[15:38] Nazukihiko
    They claimed other victims.
    My mother, for one.
[15:42] Yukiya
    What?
[15:43] Nazukihiko
    Like those ladies you saw
    in the Cherry Blossom Palace,
[15:48] Nazukihiko
    my mother came as a lady of the
    Western House, her heart full of hopes.
[15:53] Nazukihiko
    She didn't become consort,
    but she was admitted as a concubine.
[15:57] Nazukihiko
    After giving birth to
    my sister, Fujinami, and myself,
[16:00] Nazukihiko
    she became a casualty
    of political scheming.
[16:05] Nazukihiko
    To escape the assassins, I went to live
    with my mother's family, the Western House.
[16:10] Nazukihiko
    But they only used me.
    I had no allies there.
[16:15] Yukiya
    So you went abroad?
[16:17] Nazukihiko
    Yes.
[16:18] Nazukihiko
    The person who wrote to warn me
    against the Cherry Blossom Palace
[16:22] Nazukihiko
    must know of my history and sympathize.
[16:26] Nazukihiko
    At this age, I've finally returned to
    Yamauchi with the means to fight back.
[16:33] Nazukihiko
    But it would be no exaggeration to call
    999 out of 1000 court ravens my enemies.
[16:41] Nazukihiko
    So tell me, Yukiya...
[16:46] Nazukihiko
    Will you be that one in 1000?
[16:50] Yukiya
    Huh?
[16:52] Nazukihiko
    Become my aide.
[16:55] Yukiya
    Your aide?
[16:58] Yukiya
    What?!
[16:59] Yukiya
    You mean an aide aide?
[17:02] Yukiya
    Your future confidant,
    on the fast track to success?
[17:05] Nazukihiko
    Indeed.
[17:06] Nazukihiko
    When I become kin'u,
    I want you to be my right-hand man.
[17:11] Yukiya
    Wait, slow down.
[17:13] Yukiya
    Why would you want that?
[17:14] Yukiya
    I'm just the blockhead second son
    of a lord from the backwaters.
[17:18] Yukiya
    Central nobles must have sons
    who can think rings around me.
[17:23] Nazukihiko
    Only you completed every task
    I assigned you in the allotted time.
[17:28] Yukiya
    Well, sure, but people in
    the Center don't shift shape much,
[17:32] Yukiya
    so I bet they borrowed horses
     to fetch the water.
[17:35] Nazukihiko
    You left the flowers you watered alone,
     even when they withered.
[17:40] Yukiya
    I mean, I figured you were comparing
    water from the well and the falls.
[17:46] Nazukihiko
    You didn't do my poetry assignments, either.
[17:48] Yukiya
    I didn't think you needed me to.
[17:51] Nazukihiko
    Correct on all counts.
[17:53] Nazukihiko
    But the others panicked when the
    flowers died or lost sleep writing verses.
[18:00] Nazukihiko
    Some even hired people
    to work for them in secret.
[18:04] Yukiya
    Your Highness is no saint,
    either, if you ask me.
[18:08] Nazukihiko
    You are no blockhead.
[18:10] Nazukihiko
    I assume you had your reasons for
    that fuss at the Northern House, too.
[18:15] Yukiya
    How else could I keep Taruhi
    safe from tyrannical nobles?
[18:21] Yukiya
    You're not a fool like
    everyone says, either, are you?
[18:26] Nazukihiko
    I don't care how others choose to see me.
[18:32] Yukiya
    Anyway, I respectfully decline.
[18:35] Yukiya
    Although I'm honored by the offer.
[18:38] Nazukihiko
    Is that so?
[18:40] Nazukihiko
    Won't you go to Unbending Reed Monastery
    if I send you home in under a year?
[18:46] Yukiya
    Huh?
[18:47] Yukiya
    What, so you're threatening me now?
[18:50] Nazukihiko
    Not threatening. Just reflecting.
[18:54] Yukiya
    Now, hang on!
[18:55] Yukiya
    How do you even know that?
    You weren't at the Northern House's party!
[18:59] Nazukihiko
    Well, I am a true kin'u.
[19:03] Yukiya
    That doesn't explain anything.
[19:05] Nazukihiko
    Yukiya, I plan to finish things
     in under a year.
[19:10] Nazukihiko
    I shall take a bride from the Cherry
    Blossom Palace and ascend to the throne.
[19:15] Nazukihiko
    But I cannot marry before
    I capture those who want me dead.
[19:21] Nazukihiko
    Right now, I need allies
    I can trust without question.
[19:28] Nazukihiko
    I am so inept, I do not blame
    anyone for calling me a fool.
[19:34] Nazukihiko
    But you know, Yukiya...
[19:36] Nazukihiko
    I still consider myself
    a good judge of people.
[19:40] Nazukihiko
    You will never betray me.
[19:46] Nazukihiko
    Why? Because I doubt my enemies
    can offer you anything you would value
[19:52] Nazukihiko
    more than the trust I place in you.
[20:09] Yukiya
    Very well. I'll become your aide.
[20:13] Nazukihiko
    Really? You accept, then?
[20:16] Yukiya
    But like we agreed at first,
    I'll take my leave after one year.
[20:21] Yukiya
    I care about my family
    and my home in Taruhi.
[20:26] Nazukihiko
    All right. I do not mind.
    At least for now.
[20:29] Sumio
    Your Highness, I have returned.
[20:32] Nazukihiko
    Sumio, Yukiya just agreed.
[20:35] Nazukihiko
    He says he'll become my aide.
[20:37] Sumio
    What? Really?
[20:39] Sumio
    That's great!
[20:42] Yukiya
    U-Um...
[20:45] Sumio
    Oh, you see, we've known
    each other since we were kids.
[20:49] Sumio
    But it wouldn't look right if we got
    too chummy in public, you know?
[20:54] Yukiya
    Lord Sumio...
[20:56] Sumio
    Just "Sumio" is fine.
[20:58] Sumio
    Sorry I startled you.
[20:59] Sumio
    But from now on, you're one of us.
[21:03] Sumio
    Try not to get too uptight.
[21:06] Yukiya
    Uh-huh.
[21:07] Sumio
    Anyway, I'm glad that worked out.
[21:10] Sumio
    I thought we were
    cutting it close this time.
[21:13] Nazukihiko
    Yes. The risks we ran paid off.
[21:20] Yukiya
    Um, excuse me.
[21:22] Nazukihiko
    Yes?
[21:23] Yukiya
    Did you just say something
    about "running risks"?
[21:29] Nazukihiko
    You heard me right.
[21:31] Yukiya
    So you did that on purpose,
    knowing they'd attack you?
[21:36] Nazukihiko
    Yes.
[21:37] Yukiya
    "Yes"?!
[21:38] Nazukihiko
    I didn't think I could convince you
    unless you understood my situation.
[21:44] Nazukihiko
    I stirred up trouble at the council,
    so I expected them to make a move soon.
[21:49] Yukiya
    You "expected"...
[21:51] Yukiya
    Then, that whole hullabaloo was...
[21:54] Nazukihiko
    Bait to draw out the traitors, of course.
[21:58] Nazukihiko
    Quite effective, wouldn't you say?
[22:00] Yukiya
    What are you, stupid?!
[22:03] Yukiya
    What do you take your enemies for?
[22:06] Yukiya
    "Bait to draw out the traitors"?
     One of these days, you'll die for real!
[22:09] Sumio
    Now, now. He didn't mean any harm.
[22:12] Yukiya
    Huh? What difference does that make?
[22:15] Yukiya
    He's the crown prince. There's no way
    he should be taking a risk like that.
[22:20] Sumio
    Don't worry. I know what you mean.
[22:23] Sumio
    But he can't get things done any other way.
[22:27] Sumio
    You'll understand sooner or later.
[22:32] Nazukihiko
    And there you have it.
[22:33] Yukiya
    You don't get to say that.
[22:36] Nazukihiko
    Yukiya, you're worth 100 men to me.
[22:40] Nazukihiko
    I'm counting on you.
[22:43] Yukiya
    Jeez. Just for a year, okay? I mean it.
[22:55] Nazukihiko
    Forgive me.
[22:56] Yukiya
    You monster!
[24:31] Narrator
    Having accepted the post of aide*
    for only a single year,
[24:36] Narrator
    Yukiya unwittingly infiltrates the Ravine
    and witnesses a dreadful conference.
[24:45] Narrator
    Who orchestrated
    the assault on the Prince?
[24:49] Narrator
    Next time: "A Purge."
SIGN    A Purge
SIGN    YATAGARASU:
    The Raven
    Does Not
    Choose
    Its Master
SIGN    Illustration: Natsuki