Through the window of the eastern chamber, moonlight drifted in with a quiet, patient grace. It pooled on the tatami mats in pale silver, touching nothing, asking nothing. Saya sat upon her bedding, knees drawn close to her chest. *Soichiro's words...* What he had told her in daylight. The truth behind the broken engagement. The secrets buried within these castle walls. And the way Nobuhiro had called her name. "Saya." That single word echoed through her chest again and again, each repetition leaving a tremor in its wake. She pressed her palm against her heart. Thump. Thump. The beating of her own pulse, audible and insistent. *Why am I... like this?* When she thought of Nobuhiro, her chest grew restless. Anxiety and something else—something unnamed—twisted together inside her. A cold-blooded warlord of the Warring States. A man who opened his heart to no one. Yet he had spoken to her. He had called her by name. However small that gesture might seem to others, to Saya it held immense weight. She turned toward the window. The moon emerged from behind a cloud, its white light spilling across the castle gardens. The cherry tree below swayed in the wind—a soft, whispering sound. *Saa, saa.* Then. A figure appeared beneath the tree. Saya's eyes narrowed. Someone stood in the moonlight. *Who...?* She rose and moved closer to the window. The figure sank down, settling at the base of the cherry tree. The moonlight caught his profile. Aotaro. Saya's breath caught. Aotaro, alone. In the depths of night. A bottle of sake rested in his grip. He drank. His profile was different from the stern mask he wore by day. There was something else there—a loneliness that clung to him like shadow. *Aotaro...* Saya could not look away. Aotaro gazed upward at the cherry tree. Leaves trembled in the moonlight, dancing with each gust of wind. He murmured something—words too distant to hear, yet carrying with them a weight of sorrow so profound that Saya felt it in her own chest. What was he saying? She could not know. But she understood, somehow, that his whispered words belonged to Nobuhiro. They held the days they had fought together, the worry a loyal retainer carries for his lord, perhaps the weight of some long-held feeling—all of it compressed into this solitary midnight utterance. Saya's chest tightened. *This man is also... alone.* Aotaro—the warlord's vice-commander, sworn to Nobuhiro's service, forever at his lord's side. Yet here he sat, drinking sake in secret. Where no one could see. Where no one would know. Aotaro's gaze turned toward the main keep. Toward where Nobuhiro lay. His hand clenched into a fist. As if holding back something. As if caging some deep conflict within himself. Saya sensed it then—something she could not name. *An attachment to Nobuhiro...* Aotaro's feeling was not mere loyalty. There was something deeper. Something far more complicated. Love? Obsession? Or something else entirely? Saya did not yet understand. But one truth was certain. Aotaro was lonely. A man who lived only for his lord, carrying that heavy burden alone, speaking it to no one, drinking beneath the moon in solitude. Saya's fingers pressed against the window frame. *I am the same.* In the modern world, no one had relied on her. She had no friends. Her family did not understand her. But here, it was different. The servant girls depended on her. Nobuhiro called her by name. These small things had begun to fill the hollow places in her heart. Yet Aotaro had nothing. Only his devotion to his lord. Only that sustained him. A strange kinship bloomed in Saya's chest toward this man. The moonlight continued to illuminate his profile with gentle persistence. That face seemed both more noble and more fragile than any she had ever seen. ―― The next morning. As Saya walked the inner corridor, Otake rushed toward her. "Saya-sama!" Otake's complexion was even worse than yesterday. "What is it?" Saya asked. Otake lowered her voice. "Last night, Nobuhiro-sama collapsed in the main keep." Saya's heart leaped. "Collapsed...?" Nobuhiro? Why? Otake continued, "The lady Zuigetsuin called for the physician Keishiro. But no one will speak of the details." Saya's mind went white. *Nobuhiro-sama... collapsed?* His poor health had troubled her before. That day, his face had been so weary. *To think it was this serious...* Saya bowed to Otake. "Thank you for telling me." Otake watched her with concern. "Saya-sama, are you well? Your face..." Saya forced a smile. "I am fine. Merely surprised." But her mind churned with confusion. Worry for Nobuhiro consumed her. ―― That afternoon. As Saya walked the inner corridor, Aotaro appeared before her. He stood silent, blocking her path. His gaze was sharp. Those amber eyes pierced through her. "Saya-dono." His voice was low, filled with wariness. Saya held her breath. "Yes." Aotaro continued, "I have questions about our lord." His eyes were deadly serious. Saya braced herself. "Since you came to this castle, our lord has changed. Whether that change brings fortune or calamity, I cannot yet discern." Aotaro's gaze grew even sharper. "But now that our lord has fallen, if you know anything, speak." Saya's heart pounded violently. Aotaro stood close. So close. Those amber eyes held her fixed. The distance between them was suffocating. *This proximity...* Aotaro's presence consumed her awareness entirely. The depth of his gaze. The desperate sincerity in his eyes. Saya felt heat rise to her face. She answered, her voice trembling, "I... know nothing. But I wish to be of help." For a moment, Aotaro's expression softened. "...I see." In that instant, a fragile understanding passed between them. Saya's heart raced. *This man worries for Nobuhiro-sama just as I do.* They shared the same concern for the same lord. Aotaro looked away from her. "Our lord is... a strong man. But strength always conceals fragility." Saya nodded quietly at his words. "I live for our lord. It is unthinkable that he should fall." His words carried a weight of obsession so profound that Saya felt it settle upon her own shoulders. She studied his profile. In his eyes swirled a tangle of emotions—loyalty, obsession, and something else. Loneliness. As he turned to leave, Aotaro spoke once more. "You too, be careful. The castle is shrouded in an unsettling air." With only those words, he departed. Saya stood alone in the corridor. Within her chest, concern for Nobuhiro and empathy for Aotaro mingled together. Aotaro's amber eyes lingered in her mind still. ―― At dusk. Saya was summoned in secret by Keishiro. A remote corridor on the eastern side of the castle. Where no one ventured. Keishiro waited there. A man in his late forties. The castle's physician. His face was gentle, but his eyes held deep wisdom. "Saya-dono. Forgive me for calling you thus." His voice was kind. Saya bowed. "Not at all. What is it you wish to tell me?" Keishiro glanced around before lowering his voice further. "Regarding our lord's condition, there is something you should know." Saya's heart quickened. "Our lord has reached the limits of his body and spirit through years of arduous duty and psychological burden. The weight of his responsibilities—the governance of his lands, the command of armies, political decisions—these have worn away at him." Saya's breath caught. "But there is more. He carries some deep sorrow. That is what truly consumes him." Saya's heart froze. Nobuhiro's sorrow? What was it? Keishiro continued, "And there is another matter. Soichiro moves with unsettling purpose within these walls." Soichiro. That man with the gentle smile. Outwardly mild, seemingly devoted to his lord, yet... "He may see our lord's collapse as an opportunity. Soichiro has harbored ambitions for years. He may now seek to seize our lord's power, or to elevate his own position. This moment may be precisely what he has been waiting for." Keishiro's gaze was grave. "Saya-dono, please be cautious. You stand now at the center of the castle's whirlpool." Saya nodded, her hands trembling. Keishiro departed. Left alone in the corridor, Saya stood motionless. *Nobuhiro-sama's... sorrow.* What had happened? And what did Soichiro scheme? Everything remained shrouded in mystery. ―― That night. In the garden of the inner chambers, Saya prepared a medicinal bath. Beneath the moon. The garden lay silent. With each gust of wind, the leaves of the trees swayed. Then. Footsteps sounded. Saya turned. Nobuhiro. In the moonlight, his face was ashen. Sweat beaded his brow. Saya rushed toward him. "My lord, your condition—!" Nobuhiro grasped her hand. It trembled. His eyes fixed upon hers with terrible intensity. "Saya..." His voice was weak. Yet it burned with sincerity. "You alone have melted the frozen places of my heart." Saya's chest flooded with heat. Her breath caught. Nobuhiro's hand shook in hers. *Even now, weakened as he is...* "But I carry burdens. I cannot draw you into them." Anguish flickered across his features. Saya felt tears threaten to spill. She held them back. "My lord... I wish to remain at your side. Let me share whatever weight you bear." Her voice trembled with the force of her feeling. For a moment, surprise and relief crossed Nobuhiro's face. But in the next instant, he withdrew his hand. "...Forgive me. I cannot say more now." He turned to leave. Saya watched his retreating back. She could not look away. His figure grew distant. All she could do was watch. Her chest ached with an unbearable pain. The moonlight continued its patient illumination of the garden. ―― The next day. An unsettling atmosphere permeated the castle. Rumors spread that Soichiro held secret meetings with the retainers. Aotaro heightened his vigilance. Saya was summoned to Zuigetsuin. The Shimatsuki chamber. Lavish furnishings. Zuigetsuin sat in their midst. Her eyes were cold. "Saya." Her voice was quiet. Yet beneath it burned suppressed fury. "Perhaps our lord's collapse is your doing." The words struck Saya like a blade. "You have disturbed our lord's heart." Saya opened her mouth to protest. But Zuigetsuin continued. "Say nothing. Obey the castle's laws. Do nothing unnecessary." Her gaze pierced through Saya with lethal precision. Saya could not speak. Zuigetsuin dismissed her with a wave. "Leave." Saya bowed and departed. In the corridor beyond, Aotaro waited. He regarded her and spoke. "Do you truly wish for our lord's welfare?" Without hesitation, Saya answered, "Yes. I would do anything for him." For a moment, Aotaro's expression grew complex. "...Then prepare yourself. The castle's darkness runs deep. Both you and I will be drawn into it." His words tightened around Saya's heart. *Aotaro-sama also fights for Nobuhiro-sama.* They stood in silence, regarding one another. A fragile bond of understanding formed between them. Aotaro departed. Saya remained alone in the corridor. ―― Night. The eastern chamber. Saya sat with her knees drawn close, alone. The day's events swirled through her mind. Nobuhiro's weakened form. Zuigetsuin's cold words. Aotaro's complicated feelings. Soichiro's ominous movements. All of it tangled together, constricting her heart. Yet I will not break. I wish to protect Nobuhiro. And Aotaro too... I wish to ease, even slightly, the loneliness that clings to him. Such thoughts kindled warmth within her chest. The moonlight illuminated the eastern chamber. Saya's resolve hardened. No matter what darkness awaits, I will endure. And someday, I will know the truth of Nobuhiro's heart. Aotaro's amber eyes would not leave her thoughts. That image made her heart race. Love for Nobuhiro. Empathy for Aotaro. Two feelings crossed within her, creating new currents. Anticipation and dread mingled as a fresh determina