The next morning, the four samurai leave the guest house, ready to enact the plans they came up with the night before. They are met by Lady Flute, who informs them that Daidoji Dae would like to speak to the two Scorpion. Minoru says he won’t go without all of his team, and so Lady Flute brings the four of them by boat to the edge of the marsh, where it begins to meet the river. Dae is collecting marsh flowers, and happily calls Minoru over for a quick chat – he doesn’t want to keep them long, as they should be going into the swamps to look for the missing Hiruma boy, after all.
Dae shows Minoru a debris-ridden elevation in the marshlands, and talks about the Iron Turtle ships that the Crab have been sailing up and down the River of Gold. He advises that the Crab aren’t going to stop at ‘just visiting’ Hirosaka, or anywhere else along the river, given that they’ve brought warships with them. Then, gesturing back at the elevation, he says that that’s where one of the Iron Turtles will end up if the Crab try to come anywhere near his lands. The two speak as though this is due to the Crab being unable to navigate the terrain, both knowing that this isn’t the case at all, and that Dae is making a clear threat. He reaffirms that he will not involve himself in anyone else’s business so long as he is patriarch, in a way that makes it clear he wants no meddling.
Before the group takes their leave, Minoru asks Dae about Lananh, claiming he needs a scout to help them find Peschay and is interesting her specifically because he wants to expand his staff of yoriki. Lady Flute pales at this, clearly stressed at the mention of Lananh, but Dae is happy to talk about his daughter’s skill, agreeing that no one could give a better recommendation for a yoriki than her. However, he warns Minoru that Lananh is devoted to the defence of the marshes, often vanishing from the keep for weeks or months at a time. She will be able to help them find Peschay, but Minoru and his team will have to find her first, perhaps having to speak to someone close to her.
Yuzume ponders aloud if Lananh might seek to reset a recently set off trap, dressing the question up so as not to accuse Dae of such tactics, since this might put Lananh somewhere near where she was almost injured the day before. Dae implies that it’s a possibility, but that his daughter would have other, more deadly priorities.
As the group leaves Dae, they go back to Lady Flute, whose perfume they catch a hint of as the wind blows down toward them – she wears the same blend of lilac and ginger that scented the letter they found with the cache of crab cakes. She invites them back into her boat for another journey through the swamp, and Eiko tries to put the plan back in motion again by suggesting he shadow her for the day, so as to learn how to run such a tight ship as she does. He also asks if she might know anything that could help his companions find Lananh, using cadence to let her know that he is aware the answer is yes. She says that her discretion is one of her duties, and Eiko once again uses cadence to ask if her duties include keeping Lananh out of sight of the magistrate – as a fellow Crane, this may determine his next actions. She tells him about hot winds coming from the west, and that it may be better if he doesn’t know, lest he regret becoming involved.
Eiko pulls out the symbols he showed the others last night in a bid to win Lady Flute’s trust, which initially does nothing, much to his frustration – his position is one he earned and does not like to use lightly, but to have it thrown back in his face is something else. However, after a moment Lady Flute changes her mind, and uses cadence to inform Eiko that no matter what happens in the swamp, he must make sure that Doji Hotaru hears only the most positive version of events. She informs him that Lananh hasn’t been the same since she returned from the Wall, and that she thinks it would be best for her to stay in the marshes so long as Dae still serves as daimyo, even though she acknowledges that she can’t remain out here forever. Eiko asks aloud if the two sons would be such bad alternatives, to which he is told no, that they would simply be different.
Later on in their journey, as the boat passes through some of the scenery from their journey yesterday, Eiko subtly fills the others in on the fact that Lananh has been to the Wall, choosing not to mention any other points from his cadence-chat with Lady Flute. Minoru is concerned that the experience may have done something to Lananh, or that they may be walking into an ambush, while Hajime has become hyper-tense and hyper-focused, much like he was after Yuzume fell into the spike trap yesterday. Yuzume is concerned about what may have happened at the Wall to drive Lananh to spend such long stretches of time out here, having heard awful stories about what one can experience there, and is hoping their meeting will be a peaceful one. Eiko concludes, to himself, that Lei’s puppet show was intended to tell Daiyun to kill Lananh for being a disgrace and a liability to the family, particularly with Dae wanting to retire, so that the process of choosing an heir will be less complicated.
Lady Flute takes them deep into the marshes, and when the boat has stopped, plays a tune on her flute. After a moment, she stops and tells them that while she plays, Lananh will know she’s coming, and will not attack immediately, but that if Lananh sees them before they see her, the music will not help. Minoru decides that he should go first, since he is the ‘least visible’ of the group, and switches into a simple fabric mask rather than his mempo so as not to look so threatening. Yuzume offers him a shroud of invisibility, which he turns down in case it startles Lananh. Still certain she can assist here, Yuzume offers some pebbles from the temple she used to tend in Pokau – a piece of her home – to the earth kami, asking them to clear a safe route for Minoru’s journey. She also asks where Lananh might be, and is told that ‘the territorial one’ can be found to the east. She passes on this information, warning him to be careful, and Minoru goes ahead. The others follow a short distance behind, enough that he should still maintain the element of surprise. Hajime takes up the rear, alternating his focus between Yuzume and the terrain ahead of Minoru, so that no one falls into things or gets ambushed.
A stressed Minoru, familiar with ambush tactics and the horrors of dangerous terrain, has to pass through a cluster of trees consumed by mold and mushrooms to keep on the path. Coughing and spluttering as he inhales their spores, he finds himself face to face with human figures fused within the trees. One is that of his twin brother, silent, while the other is a reflection of Minoru’s own face, mask and all. In front of him, back turned, is a shade wearing Scorpion colours, who Minoru immediately recognises as his other brother – the one who was never born. He taunts Minoru, claiming that he would’ve been a better Emerald Magistrate, and that he would’ve solved ‘it’ by now. Minoru tells himself that the spirit isn’t here, trying to ignore him, but it instead goes to draw its sword. As it does, instead of hearing the sound of metal, it’s just the chiming of bells. The spirit asks if Minoru has figured it out yet, and mocks him again for not having figured out who was behind the sabotage behind the bell tower in winter. He asks Minoru who would benefit from the local clans and vassal families not being aware of the flood, and who jumped on the chance to capitalize on the situation. Laughing, he vanishes, leaving a shaken and sweating Minoru standing alone in the trees, shouting ‘who is it?’ over and over until he turns to see the others have at some point caught up with him. Hajime asks if he’s alright, but he tries to shake it off and insists they press on.
Continuing through the marsh, the group freeze as they hear the sound of a boar making its way through the undergrowth toward them. Both bushi draw their swords, but the attack doesn’t come. They carry on, even though they can still hear the creature moving around, aware that this means they’ve lost the element of surprise. Angry at this, Minoru snaps at Yuzume and Eiko, even glaring at Hajime, then tries to resume his stealthier movements from before seeing his brother’s shade. They soon discover that the boar isn’t real – they are surrounded by elaborate mechanisms that use the wind, wood, and other features of the marsh to recreate the noises they’ve been hearing. They also discover that this was set off by some sort of trigger, and that Lananh will be here to check on her trap soon. Minoru and Yuzume run off to intercept her, finding a nearby campsite with a small, grinning woman putting on her armor by the fire. She looks at them, and then at her spear.
Yuzume speaks up before she can do anything, speaking calmly while Lady Flute’s song fills the air, explaining that they’re here to talk to her. Minoru shows his magistrate’s seal and explains that they’ve been staying with the Hiramori to back her up, though Yuzume remains worried that something will go wrong. Lananh throws her spear to the ground and sits hugging her knees, the grin still wide on her face and her gaze distant, barely acknowledging them, nor Hajime and Eiko when they finally arrive.
Yuzume points out that members of her own clan have joined them, and that all they need is her help with an important task. Eiko, seeing Lananh like this, sympathises with how it seems as though she’s been cast aside and pushes away his earlier thoughts of playing the heirs against one another. Yuzume continues to explain the situation with Peschay, at which Lananh begins to regain some composure. She reveals that she has met Peschay, and told him to go back to his family, even going so far as to threaten him to do so. She asks what they will do if the boy doesn’t listen to them, but Minoru is confident, citing that Peschay saved Yuzume from a trap as his evidence. Lananh seems surprised that she’s alive, and clearly knows something else, but says nothing about it, agreeing to take them to Peschay so long as he does not see her. She fears that if he does, he’ll be reluctant to leave at all.
Minoru talks to Lananh as she guides them through the swamp, complimenting her family on their hospitality. She agrees with his estimation, but mentions that no matter what Lady Flute says, her family do not understand – something Hajime tells her he can relate to. The two talk about how expectations, doing what one does best, and preparing for what comes next can be what causes the divide. Hajime misunderstands some of her meaning, encouraging her to be true to herself and taking opportunities that allow her differences to be seen as a benefit, not a drawback. She seems to take offense at this, and he quickly apologises, claiming to speak only from his own experience, to which she responds that even if her family don’t understand, they will have no reason to complain thanks to her service and protection of the region.
This makes her ask where the group are assigned to, and when she finds out they’re based in Hirosaka her grin returns, indicating her stress as she asks what happened to the Moth Clan. Minoru tries to explain what happened in the winter but her voice keeps rising until she’s screaming, demanding to know about what happened to the clan’s people and teachings before she calms herself, apologising for the outburst and declaring that they have arrived near Peschay’s location. She points out where he’s placed traps and leaves them to it. Hajime stays behind with her as the others go to find the boy.
Peschay lies sleeping, covered in filth, with a scar on one arm and a bandage on the other. He’s awoken by the group and goes to reach for his weapon, and then his eyes widen as he recognises Yuzume, who thanks him for his assistance getting her out of the pit trap. Minoru sits on the ground next to him and asks why he came all the way out here, with Peschay asking sadly if Lananh wants to send him away. He perks up when Minoru stretches the truth about the sheer number of scouts and hours went into finding him, proud of giving a team of Emerald Magistrates and the Hiramori the runaround.
Minoru cuts to the chase and the two talk about Peschay’s reasons for being here. He wants a place to belong, and feels like he can’t find that with the Hiruma, who have no home of their own and are expected to feel shame for the one that they lost, but that current generations never knew. Hearing this, Minoru offers him a position as a yoriki once he’s graduated from his dojo, but Peschay gets upset and tells him he doesn’t get it – he loves Maemikake and its people, and wants that to be the place he belongs, but he’s not supposed to feel that way or show it. He never wanted to leave it, but he couldn’t bear to spend every single day in a place that he was constantly told could never be his home.
Minoru tells Peschay that he and his yoriki understand how he feels, and asks him if he feels any freer living out in the swamps living hand to mouth. Peschay grumbles that he was rejected here, to which he’s told that a true sense of belonging grows over time, and so the boy reluctantly agrees to go with them. Yuzume notices him scratching his bandage and asks if he’s injured himself, but he deflects and talks about wanting to take a hot bath instead. Eiko picks up on it though, and directly asks to see what’s under the fabric. Seeing there’s no way out of this, Peschay turns his head and removes the bandage, revealing that he’s given himself a crude stick-and-poke Daidoji Harrier tattoo – only given to certain graduates of that prestigious school. He says he did it to show to Lananh how determined he was to impress her, but she screamed at him and called him a fool, telling him to go home. Trying to cheer him up, they promise him some warm food and lead him back to Hajime, then to Lady Flute’s boat.
Lady Flute asks them if this has concluded their business, and asks Eiko in cadence about her previous request concerning Lananh. He assures her that there will be no issue, and that he will be complimentary when speaking to Doji Hotaru. With that, she lets them back onto her boat, and brings them back to where they can easily meet up with Amos.
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