KATANAGATARI 3

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At Mansion Negative.

In one of its many chambers─

Togame the Schemer and Shichika Yasuri.

Took audience─with Princess Negative.

“Hmh…”

Thus.

Following a period of silence─

“Heh, heheh…hah, haha ha!”

Princess Negative─laughed.

At first, she seemed to stifle herself, but there was no stifling this laughter─the whole room filled with her uproarious guffaws.

“Looks─looks great on you.”

“…”

It would seem─she was referring to Togame’s haircut.

Up until last month, Togame the Schemer had let her white hair grow so long it almost interfered with her mobility, but now it was cropped short at the shoulders. She suffered this dear loss2 at Gokenji Temple in Tosa, in the leadup to the fight against Nanami Yasuri; it would appear her hair had never been this short since entering the bakufu, as Princess Negative was quite enthused by how girlish it made her look.

Understandable.

It suited her absurdly well.

Just after it was snipped off, Shichika had felt a little weird about the way it looked, but the white bob matched her face so perfectly it made it hard for him to remember what she looked like with long hair.

Though he knew better not to say as much.

Princess Negative, however, had come right out and said it.

─Princess Negative.

Togame had done her best to conceal Shichika from Princess Negative─but just as Princess Negative had insisted that Shichika join her, so that she could size him up, Shichika was dying to learn more about the Princess, his owner’s mortal enemy─

He studied the woman who was pompously occupying the seat of honor3 and holding her stomach and cracking up.

─I can’t just watch and learn like sis.

But he watched nevertheless─for information.

Focused.

On her eye-catching appearance.

Eye-catching─yet her clothing was not overly embellished like the brash and brilliant finery of Togame, or bespoke like the suit of Emonzaemon Soda. The fact is her kimono, though fine enough for someone of her class and status, was a little on the plain side.

What caught the eye was not her clothing─but herself.

Long hair of gold.

Blue eyes.

Clear, white skin─

“…”

She was─not Japanese.4

Shichika had seen a person like this only once, when they were down in Kyushu fixing to capture Zokuto the Armor─someone from a foreign land, across the sea.

Princess Negative.

Blond hair and dazzling blue eyes.

What made her striking was her presence in Japan, whose isolationist policy all but banned relations with the outside world. If she returned to where she came from, she would have disappeared into the crowd.

In that sense, perhaps there was no cause for alarm─but one thing was for sure. In all that Shichika had learned about the world in his eight months away from home, the idea of a foreigner being installed so close to the heart of the bakufu made no sense.

─Don’t foreigners speak other languages?

But the Princess spoke Japanese─impeccably.5

Full of questions, Shichika shot a look at Togame, seated beside him─but she would not look at him. Her eyes were locked on Princess Negative, and her face was flushed red with shame at being laughed at.

Eventually it seemed the Princess had laughed as much as she could laugh.6

“First and foremost,” Togame began. “You must have known that the word ‘Cheerio’─comes from another language.”

Yikes, that’s foremost?

Shichika was appalled. Togame had spoken with the utmost seriousness, which made it all the more absurd.

The Princess must have felt the same, and had herself another laugh.

“What, cat’s out of the bag?”7

So─she had known.

“…”

Speechless─Togame stood.