Dynasty: The Glorious Strategist (Dynasty Saga Book 3) (28 page)

“We had known for some time that the Empress’ will was not of her own mind,” the woman continued. “But we had no clue that spirit manipulation was involved. That was our failing as Royal Guards. We were tasked in protecting the Empress and we failed. We deserve to die for our crimes. And we can think of no one better to do so then the Glorious Strategist, who managed to free our Empress and kill the one controlling her.”

With that all of them dropped to their knee as they awkwardly placed a fist in their hand, still encumbered by the shackles, and lowered their chin to their chest.

Lymee had not been expecting this. She had planned to ask them to train others to take their place as the new Royal Guards and had been expecting them to spit in her face for simply asking but this was something else entirely.

“Empress if I may?” Gea whispered. Lymee nodded and the woman leaned in close lowering her voice so only Lymee could hear. “Empress when I fought with them in front of the Throne Room I could see even then their utter devotion to the former Empress. Not to mention their impressive skills in combat. Had they been trying to kill General Chee and me instead of trying to stop you, I highly doubt we could have won. Though I think General Chee may speak differently on that last matter.” Gea added with a bit of a snarky smile.

“What are you saying?” Lymee asked returning the whisper using the palm of her hand to cover the side of her face.

“I think that if they were to serve you with even half of the devotion they showed to the former Empress I doubt our Empress could do much better,” Gea stated. “But it is true that the former Empress was slain while under their guard. Thy failed in their duty and that cannot go without punishment.”

“Thank you,” Lymee said and Gea backed away respectively, returning to her original position.

Lymee looked over the women still kneeling and bowing their heads to Lymee as they waited for Lymee to dish out the punishment that they felt they so rightly deserved. Lymee took a deep breath as she tried to think of what she should do in this situation.

It would be best if they were able to return to being the Royal Guard. That save Lymee from having to not only train their replacements but Lymee also agreed this kind of devotion was certainly hard to come by. But could she really just let them off with no formal punishment? They needed to give some kind of display of devotion that would prove to everyone that they were serious in wanting to serve Lymee.

“Yubitsume.” Lymee had not meant to say the word out loud but it had slipped out as soon as it came to her. Her mother had made off hand comments about it every once and awhile whenever she joked about letting everyone down, mostly stating it was far better way of atoning than Seppuku.

“My Empress?” Keo asked looking down at Lymee hearing her speak.

“Chief Military Commander,” Lymee said ignoring Keo and turning to Gea. “Could you please prepare your sharpest dagger, some rice wine and a clean cloth for me?”

Gea frowned in confusion but she nodded anyway as she stepped back and headed off to retrieve the items.

Lymee stood up from her throne and slowly started walking down the steps towards the women. “I do not believe in taking one’s life if they wish to atone for their mistakes,” Lymee stated. “If you are dead then there is no way for you to make up for what you have done. That can only been done so long as you are alive.”

“Even if we lived for a thousand years we could never make up for the shame that we have brought,” the woman declared bowing her head deeper as Lymee neared.

“So you should just give up and die without even trying then?” Lymee asked with a bit of bite in her tone. “Is that not the cowards way out?”

“No Empress,” the woman assured. “That is not it, I assure you.”

Gea returned then holding a dagger in her hand and the cloth and a small bottle of rice wine in the other. She presented it to Lymee with a bow of her head and Lymee nodded as she took the items from her. She then set them down in front of the women and took a step back.

“There is a tradition where I am from called Seppuku,” Lymee said. “It is for when a warrior who has failed their lord and wished to die with honor. They would take a blade such as this and gut themselves.” Lymee ran her fist along her stomach and up her chest like she was holding a blade. “It is a very slow and very painful death. They say to do so is to show great courage.”

There was some slight murmuring from the people gathered around them. Lymee paid them no attention as she stared down at the women before her.

“If you truly think that taking your lives is the only way to make up for the wrong that you have done then take that dagger and end your life right here and now,” Lymee declared. “But if you wish to not only atone for your mistakes but also honor the life that you failed to save, then I ask that you live and spend the rest of your lives trying to do so.” Lymee let her words sink in for a moment before continuing. “You may never make up for your failures but devoting your life to trying is truly the courageous thing to do.”

The women seemed hesitant not sure what they should do. While they had no doubt accepted that their lives were forfeit they probably did not expect that they would be the ones to take their own lives and definitely not in such a painful manner. They probably thought this a test of some kind, and feared that if they did not take their own lives they would be labeled as cowards or some other such humiliation.

“There is another tradition where I am from,” Lymee said. “It is called Yubitsume. It is where you slice off your left pinky.” Lymee stuck out her left pinky pinching the middle joint. “This shows not only your lord your devotion but all others as well. Forever you will be shamed by your failure and this mark will drive you to never forget and make you strive to be better.”

There were even more murmurs now but this time Lymee did not ignore them. She held up her hand signaling for absolute silence and the Throne Room grew quiet.

“If you wish to do this,” Lymee continued. “Then I ask that you take that blade and perform Yubitsume. Then I want you to serve me just as faithfully and diligently as you did the previous Empress. And I in turn will welcome you without reservations or regrets.”

There was a very long pause as everyone in the Throne Room stood motionless as they waited in anticipation for what happened next. And Lymee was one of them. Her heart was racing inside of her chest as she wondered what they would do. She had come up with this mostly on the fly and had not fully thought it through and as such had not really thought much of the ramifications of all of this.

While to her it was obvious which choice she would take in this situation she was also the kind of person who would never take her own life for any reason. Sacrifice herself for another maybe. But straight up suicide? Definitely not.

Then slowly one of the women reached out and grabbed the knife on the floor. Her hands were still bound but they did not seem to hamper her as she slowly drew the dagger from its sheath. Lymee held her breath as she tried to guess what she was about to do and did not release it when the woman placed her fist against the floor her pinky finger sticking out.

Lymee swallowed as she watched the woman line the blade up with her knuckle. Lymee wanted to look away not wanting to see this but she knew it would be a disservice to all of them if she did so. She needed them to know that she respected what they were doing and appreciated the sacrifice they were making.

With a crunching sound the blade sliced through the finger but the woman did not cry out in pain. Instead she simply kneeled there breathing heavily as she held it in, cradling her bloody hand.

Without a word Lymee kneeled down in front of the woman and took the knife away from her. Then taking the cloth she wiped off the blade then poured the Sake over it rinsing it off before ceremoniously handing it to the next woman.

The next woman took the blade and in much the same way placed her hand on the floor. Like before the woman did not cry out as the blade sliced through her finger and Lymee once again took the blade and cleaned it off before handing it to the next woman.

This woman was a bit more hesitant as she took the blade. “Our Empress is most merciful and generous,” she said as she held the dagger in her hand. “But I fear the shame of my failure cannot be washed away with a single finger. My only hope is that my life is indeed enough.”

Lymee’s heart stuck in her throat as she watched the woman aim the blade at her abdomen. Lymee nearly reached out to stop her but she managed to stop herself clenching her fist instead. This was her choice. If she stopped the woman now it would not only make what Lymee had said all the less meaningful but also cheapen the sacrifices that had already been made. Instead Lymee placed a comforting hand on the woman’s shoulder and gave it a firm squeeze.

“Do not do this for my sake,” Lymee whispered hoping to still talk her out of it. “Your death does not bring me joy, only sorrow.”

“I know,” the woman actually smiled. “That is why you are worthy of receiving it.” The woman looked up at Lymee for the first time as she drove the blade into her stomach. She repeated the motions that Lymee had shown them, slowly dragging the blade across her stomach then driving it up through her chest before yanking it out again. Lymee watched as the life slowly drained from the woman’s eyes until her body finally slumped forward lifeless.

Trying her best to keep it together Lymee retrieved the blade once more and with now shaking hands cleaned it off and handed it to the next woman. Lymee could feel the tears running down her cheeks as she did so but she did her best to ignore them as she secretly prayed that she never had to witness that ever again.

***

Lymee took a calming breath before rapping her knuckles on the back of the door she was standing in front of. The knock was just a courtesy as she immediately slid the door open and stepped inside the small living space that was located in the servant’s wing of the Palace.

“Empress?” Haru stood up from the table she had been sitting at in the center of the room thudding her knee against the bottom in the process but ignored it. Haru pressed her hands to her sides bowing respectfully as Lymee entered.

“Sorry to disturb you so late,” Lymee said as she walked forward. “It has been a very long day and I just now got away.” She let out a deep labored breath as she sat down on the floor across the table from Haru.

“I understand, Empress,” Haru said taking a seat as well. “I am sure that what you went through today would take a toll on anyone.”

“None of them were actually supposed to take their own lives,” Lymee said shaking her head still unable to get the image out of her mind. “Much less three of them.”

“For some, death is preferable then living with the shame of failure,” Haru stated.

“Well that’s just stupid,” she said. “So long as you are alive there is hope for something better.”

“As well as dread that things will become worse,” Haru pointed out. “Do not discount their deaths as cowardice. I am sure for every single one of them who took their lives they wished to live but honestly thought it better for you if they died.”

“But I gave them the choice,” Lymee mumbled bitterly. “Why would they not take it?”

“The choice was always theirs,” Haru stated with a bit of a smug look on her face. “I believe it was you who said that it is simply a matter of picking the choice that we are willing to live with. Only in this case there was no choice they were able to live with. So they chose not to live at all.”

“Haru, I do not appreciate you using my own words against me,” Lymee mumbled resting her head on her fist. “Especially when you use them so appropriately.”

Haru let out a snort of amusement, a smile creeping up in the corners of her mouth.

Knowing that she would be shifting around a lot while she talked Lymee stretched out her arm giving Kitsune a path to run down so she could curl up on the floor next to where Lymee was sitting. Once Kitsune was situated Lymee rested a comforting hand on the fox’s rump giving her fur a few scratches with her finger.

“Where is the little one?” Lymee asked lifting her head up and looking around the room for the little girl that should be there.

“She is sleeping, Empress. Finally,” Keo added with a very exhausted sigh, her shoulders slouching as if burdened by a heavy weight.

“Having trouble?” Lymee teased.

“I just don’t understand that child,” Haru leaned back with a sigh. “Sleep is something we all need and naturally desire. It is something we do every night at roughly the same time. So why is it so hard to get Syung to do it every single night? And then in the morning she refuses to wake up.” Haru clinched her knee in frustration as she vented.

“Thermodynamics,” Lymee stated enjoying the flustered look on Haru’s face.

“What?” Haru frowned.

“An object in motion stays in motion,” Lymee stated. “An object at rest stays at rest.”

“Do you even listen to yourself speak?” Haru asked with a curious eyebrow.

“I drift in and out,” Lymee shrugged.

Lymee reached over the table and grabbed an empty cup and the teapot that was set out at the center of the table. She slid them across the top of the table in front of her and poured herself a glass. The tea did not have much steam to it but Lymee did not mind drinking lukewarm tea. “So her name is Syung?” Lymee asked taking a sip of tea. She realized that she had never actually gotten the Empress’ name, common name or otherwise.