The Dream-Weaver's Grave: Arai Tsuruki's Hidden Heart - Chosen role

No, he thought. Something had been lodged in his chest all this time, refusing to budge. Arata looked out the window of the inn. The sky over the imperial capital of Miyabi had cleared for the first time in three days. Thin clouds drifted on the wind, and the spring sunlight bathed the streets in a soft glow. (What am I even doing?) Arata stared at the white gloves lying on the desk. His fingertips trembled faintly. Three days had passed since Kiyoka woke. Arata remained under order of expulsion from the Ministry of the Imperial Household, forbidden from setting foot in the Kudou estate. He had also refused to obey the command to leave the capital. (What can a man who's lost his standing possibly do?) Outside the window, a streetcar rattled slowly past. The voices of market merchants drifted in from the distance. It was an ordinary morning in the capital—unchanged. But Arata's heart alone had never cleared since that rainy night. Amami Naoshi's words echoed again and again in the back of his ears. *As long as the Usuba code binds you.* That rainy night, Amami had said exactly that. He knew Arata's true identity. He knew Arata was of the Usuba family—and still he was after Miyo. (If I get close, Miyo is put in danger.) But staying away was even more dangerous. Amami's obsession far exceeded anything Arata had imagined. That man would stop at nothing to possess Miyo. Arata exhaled deeply. That was when it happened. A heavy knock landed on the inn's door. His body went rigid. He killed his footsteps and approached the door, peering through the gap. The person standing there was not a ministry official in a black coat. Light brown hair curled in loose waves—a modern-girl style. Bright, lively brown eyes. A striking beauty with a canine tooth that peeked out when she smiled. A thin silver bracelet glinted on her left wrist. Kudou Hazuki. Kiyoka's elder sister, a healer with a supernatural gift. Arata had never met her in person, but he knew her face from ministry records. He opened the door. " Lady Kudou Hazuki... what brings you here?" Hazuki smiled brightly. " You're Tsuruki Arata, aren't you? Miyo-chan told me all about you." Her voice was cheerful and crisp. Arata kept his guard up but bowed politely. " I'm honored by your courtesy. I am a man under order of expulsion from the Ministry of the Imperial Household. I have no right to meet with you." Hazuki tilted her head. " Oh, don't be so stiff. I came to thank you. For saving Kiyoka—truly, thank you." " I've done nothing deserving of thanks. It was only possible because of Miyo's power." At his words, Hazuki studied his face intently. Behind the surface cheer, her eyes held a sharp, probing intelligence. " Hey. What are you really afraid of?" Arata's heart gave a hard thump. (She saw through me?) A stranger—someone he'd spoken to for only a few minutes—had glimpsed what lay beneath his mask. For a moment, Arata was at a loss for words. " ...What do you mean?" He manufactured a smile. A perfect smile, one that betrayed nothing. But Hazuki looked straight back at it. " You've been smiling this whole time, but your eyes aren't. And your answers just now—they were too perfect. Like a mask you built to hide something." His smile froze, just slightly. Hazuki went on. " See, I've been through a divorce. So I know. People smile the most when things hurt the most. You're carrying something, aren't you? Something heavy. Something you can't tell anyone." Arata couldn't say a word. (This person is different.) She wasn't a ministry official, wasn't of the Usuba family. She genuinely worried for Miyo, loved Kiyoka as her little brother. And she had seen through Arata's mask at their very first meeting. Hazuki gently extended her hand. " I want to protect Miyo-chan too. Let me help. You don't have to carry it all alone." Arata stared at that hand. (Do I even have the right to lean on anyone?) The Usuba code. The ministry's secret orders. Amami Naoshi's threat. He had resolved to bear it all alone. But the hand Hazuki offered was so warm, so utterly direct. Slowly, Arata took it. " ...I'm grateful for your kindness." Hazuki's face broke into a beaming smile. " Good, then it's settled! Now, come to the Kudou estate. I've prepared the detached annex—stay there for a while." " But I'm forbidden from entering. I would only cause trouble for Lord Kiyoka and the ministry—" " I'll talk to Kiyoka myself. Besides, Miyo-chan's been dying to see you. She calls you 'Arata-sama' and worries about you constantly." Deep in Arata's chest, something made a small sound. (Miyo... for me?) He pulled his white gloves back on. " ...Understood. I'll take you up on your offer." When they reached the Kudou estate, Miyo was standing before the gate. She wore a sakura-pink kimono, her soft black hair loosely tied back. Her clear, pale-brown eyes narrowed with relief the moment they found Arata. " Arata-sama... it's been so long." Miyo folded both hands before her chest and bowed deeply. It was a habit of hers—the way she bowed when apologizing. Watching her, Arata felt his chest tighten. " Miyo. It's been a while. I'm glad to see you looking well." She lifted her head. Her cheeks were faintly flushed. " Um... Lord Kiyoka has woken. It's all thanks to you, Arata-sama. Truly, thank you." Her voice was small and trembling. But those words held a firm resolve—not the mere self-deprecation of before. " It wasn't my power alone. Without your dream-weaving, we could never have called Lord Kiyoka back." Miyo looked at him with a startled expression. " My... my power was actually of use?" " Yes. Your power saved Lord Kiyoka. Have confidence in yourself." Tears welled in Miyo's eyes. But they were not tears of sorrow. " I... for the first time in my life, I was able to help someone with my own strength. Because you needed my power, Arata-sama..." Wiping her tears, she smiled. Something warm spread gently through Arata's chest. (Ah. I want to protect that smile.) He meant it from the bottom of his heart. Through Hazuki's arrangements, Arata took up residence in the detached annex of the Kudou estate. The annex was a small Japanese-style building set a little apart from the main house. Two tatami rooms and a narrow veranda. When he slid open the shoji facing the garden, a single plum tree swayed in the breeze. Arata sat down on the veranda. (Is it really all right for me to be here?) A man under order of expulsion, staying at the Kudou estate. If the ministry found out, it would cause trouble not only for Arata but for the Kudou family as well. But Hazuki had only laughed and said, "It'll be fine." " Arata-san, I brought tea." Hazuki came over with a tea set on a tray. " Thank you. I'm sorry for the trouble." " Don't worry about it. More importantly, Miyo-chan says she wants to talk to you alone. She's on her way now." Arata's heart beat a little faster. (Just the two of us.) Hazuki flashed a grin and left the annex. After a while, Miyo appeared at the entrance. " Pardon me." She knelt softly on the tatami. The distance between them was about a meter. Her hands were clasped tightly in her lap. " Please, make yourself comfortable." Arata spoke in a gentle voice. Miyo gave a small nod, but her body was stiff with tension. Silence fell. Only the sound of the plum tree swaying in the wind could be heard. " Um... Arata-sama." Miyo opened her mouth as if she had made up her mind. " I want to be able to tell Lord Kiyoka my feelings, little by little. Until now, I couldn't even understand what I was thinking myself. But ever since you asked me 'What do you want to do?', I've been able to face my own heart, bit by bit." Her voice trembled. But her eyes looked straight at Arata. " So there's something I'd like to ask you. Tsuruki-sama, why do you go to such lengths for me?" Arata was momentarily lost for words. (Why, she asks.) The Usuba code. The ministry's secret orders. His duty as a watcher. When all of that is stripped away—what remains? " Because you are someone who deserves to be needed." That was how Arata answered. (...Was that the truth?) Even he didn't know. The desire to protect Miyo was genuine. But was it love? Atonement? Or a sense of duty bound up in Usuba blood? Miyo tilted her head slightly at his words. " Someone who deserves to be needed...?" " Yes. You were born to be needed by someone. That's what I believe." Her cheeks flushed red again. " I... I want to know more about you, Arata-sama. You're always helping me, but you never tell me anything about yourself." She said it with a smile. The instant he saw that smile, something inside Arata's chest pulsed violently. (Stop. Don't get any closer to her.) An alarm rang in his head. The Usuba code bound his heart fast. But Miyo's smile was melting him. " ...I'm nothing but a watcher. There's nothing about me worth knowing." " That isn't true. You've helped me so many times. In my dreams, and in reality. I will never forget that you saved me, Arata-sama." Her words pierced deep into his chest. (I'm not the one who saved you. If anything, I'm the one who put you in danger.) The ministry's official view was that Arata's illusion arts had stimulated Miyo's nightmare. Whatever the truth, the fact remained that his closeness to her had driven her into a corner. Arata put on a smile. " Thank you. But I'm not the man you think I am." Miyo gazed at him steadily. " You always make yourself seem smaller than you are. But I can tell. You are kinder than anyone." Arata couldn't reply. (Why is she so utterly direct?) Miyo's pure gaze peeled his mask away, layer by layer. That afternoon, a man appeared before the gate of the Kudou estate. Long platinum hair loosely tied back, the bearing of a Shinto priest. Pale violet eyes carrying an eerie light. An old scar on the back of his left hand. Amami Naoshi. The founder of the Gifted Heart Sect stood before the gate of the Kudou estate. A servant at the gate ran in panic toward the main house. " S-sir! A man from the Gifted Heart Sect named Amami is at the gate!" Kiyoka rose quietly. " I'll handle it." Kiyoka's silver-gray eyes held a cold light. His long black hair was tied back with a braided cord Miyo had woven, and the same cord was wrapped around the ring finger of his left hand. Arata, too, watched the scene at the gate from the annex. When Amami saw Kiyoka, he wore a serene smile. " It's been a long time, Lord Kudou Kiyoka. I'm so glad you've recovered." Kiyoka glared at him from inside the gate. " What do you want. There's no place for you in this house." Amami tilted his head. " How cold of you. I merely came to pay my respects. When I heard you'd woken, I simply couldn't stay away." " As if you'd be glad of my recovery." Kiyoka's voice was ice. Amami's smile never wavered. " No, I am truly glad. Your waking has proven just how much potential Miyo's dream-weaving holds." Kiyoka's brow twitched. " You intend to use Miyo's power for your scheme." " Scheme? I only wish to properly bring Miyo's innate power into bloom. She is meant to stand at the pinnacle of this nation. I am merely helping her realize that." Amami's voice was calm, as though steeped in benevolence. But his eyes were not smiling. Kiyoka stepped forward. " Never come near this house again. I won't allow you near Miyo. My word is absolute." The air around Kiyoka trembled. His lightning gift stirred faintly—small sparks crackled and scattered. Amami did not move. " My, my. How frightening. But I cannot afford to back down either. Miyo's power is absolutely essential to fulfilling my dearest wish." His voice grew slowly lower. " That was a splendid gamble this time. To save you, Miyo and Tsuruki Arata joined forces. That, too, was a highly beneficial outcome for my plans. The fusion of dream-weaving and illusion ar

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Episode 7

Name: The Dream-Weaver's Grave: Arai Tsuruki's Hidden Heart
Author: Novelia

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