Reina of Hanneau (English)

SOU KAYOMI

Mitsuei sighs in frustration because he failed to recognize Kayomi's worries himself. He stares at his daughter who is now gently blowing on the neckerchief that Reina lent her. It never occurred to him that she is being troubled by such thoughts. He should have talked to her first before coming to Reina.

He then glances at Reina. She is incredible for considering Kayomi. Something he had failed miserably. Her experience with kids is what probably gave her an insight into their emotions and way of thinking. 

“Kayomi, I apologize if it hurt you. I won’t give any excuses since I absolutely forgot to consider your feelings on this. All I ever wanted is to help resolve the problem which your uncle started.” Mitsuei explains, staring directly at his daughter. Then, his eyes turn in Reina’s direction. “Thank you so much for understanding my daughter.”

Reina nods in response. She panicked earlier when Kayomi started crying. She expected her to be boisterous as always. She had always been the type to speak out her mind. 

And so, after Kayomi regains her composure, Reina fixes her a plate of rice cake and a cup of tea. It is probably too late now for a snack since it is almost sundown. Any moment Kiyoko might come in with the family's meal.

Reina clears her throat. She wants to get this over with. Her father might cause another ruckus if she isn’t home by night. She didn’t have a horse with her now, so it may take her some time to walk home. It will probably be dark by then, and she will be late for dinner. Though, she did tell Maya where she would be heading today.

“Kayomi.” Reina turns to the young girl beside her, holding her hand tightly. For some reason, she is getting nervous. “Since you don’t hate the idea, will it be alright with you if I accept Mister Mitsuei’s help?”

Reina held her breath as she waited for the girl’s answer. The young lady looks back at her with weird eyes. After a moment, to her surprise, Kayomi starts laughing uncontrollably. 

“Oh my. If you are marrying my father, then you should probably drop the formality. People might get suspicious if you keep calling him mister.”

How can she start addressing a man by his first name when she has always formally addressed him? She thinks it would sound rude since he was older than her.

However, Kayomi is correct. If people overhear them addressing each other mister and miss, it will only raise suspicions. 

She turns her head in Mitsuei’s direction. Her eyes met his, a look of anticipation on his face. He just sat there casually listening to their exchange. But then, staring straight at him proves to be the wrong choice. Her heart thumps in uneasiness, her consciousness growing by the minute.

“Well? I am saying that I agree already, you know.” Kayomi smiles, tilting her head to one side encouraging Reina to say the name. “Or I should probably have father call you by name first. What do you think?”

Mitsuei straightens on his seat with his eyes suddenly roaming around the room. Reina still looks flustered with her gaze locked in one direction. Observing them only encourages Kayomi to tease them more. 

Now, she wonders how on earth would the marriage work out? The two involved people seem to be shy around each other.

Kayomi clicks her tongue and shakes her head. “Then how are we all going to convince everyone that you are going to be married for love? Or that we are a real family? ”

Kayomi giggles enjoying herself from the short entertainment. By the looks of it, their lives together will be fun.

Mitsuei snaps and reprimands Kayomi for her doings, to which she only shrugs. It's a good thing Mitsuei decided to break the awkward atmosphere. Reina is also getting shy of the situation. Looking at how the two interacted before her, she is suddenly hit by thoughts of their future. She is envisioning how they all be in one home, especially when the baby is born. 

Kayomi will be a great big sister. She is cheerful and charming, a definite magnet for kids. But Mitsuei, Reina can’t help but wonder what kind of a father he will be. Though looking at Kayomi, he seems to have done a good job with his upbringing. 

Reina clears her throat once more calling their attention. Now that the concern with Kayomi is settled, she needs to be on her way home now. 

“I can’t thank you both enough for helping my child and me. And since we have all come to a conclusion, please do excuse me. I’ll be on my way now. My father is probably getting worried. He’ll give me another earful if I am not home by dark.”

“Eh? Why? Just stay over for dinner,” Kayomi exclaims, clearly against the idea. 

“But Kayomi, I’d get in trouble again. And this time, both of you might get tangled with it,” Reina insists, refusing profusely. 

“Come on, stay over. They won’t get mad. You’re going to be my mother anyway!”

Reina gasps after hearing the word mother from Kayomi. It’s a little embarrassing to hear it coming from her mouth. Especially when she is only half of her age. Still, she can’t deny the tingly feeling in her heart. She will have two kids calling her mother eventually and the thought made her heart swell with warmth.

“Kayomi,” Mitsuei says firmly getting both of the ladies’ attention. “But she’s right, Miss - ehem -. She’s right, Reina. Stay over for dinner since we still have a lot of things to discuss, like letting your family know.”

Kayomi’s eyes lit up when she heard her father calling Reina by her name. Not only that, he is convincing her to stay longer with them. 

Honestly, Kayomi gets lonely sometimes since it has always been just the two of them at home. Sometimes, Kiyoko’s son comes over to play but she didn’t have any friends to spend time with. They don’t have neighbors and the kids at school are not exactly friendlies.

Reina stills for a moment before sighing as she returned to her seat. Mitsuei has a point. So many things need to be done first. Especially a story that will convince anyone that their marriage is not for convenience. Lots of things are still left uncovered.

“But ---.”

“To put you at ease, I’ll send some to relay the message to your family. Then, later on, we can all send you home together. Will that suffice?” Mitsuei cuts her off and gives a suggestion. 

Reina grunts with conflicted feelings. She nods in agreement, but she can already imagine a night full of scolding. If not her father, then her older brother Haru would probably be his stand-in for chewing her out. 

Just when Reina starts drowning with her own thoughts, Mitsuei stands up and walks away going somewhere she isn’t sure of. He will probably go to the inn next door to ask someone to be their messenger. 

He returns a few minutes later with a tray of food in hand, followed by Kiyoko, who is carrying the same thing. 

This time, they have battered chicken with a tangy sauce on the side on top of the steamed rice. There are also some steamed vegetables like broccoli and water spinach. 

Reina feels her stomach rumble. After getting the worries out of her body, she suddenly feels hungry. The nice smell of the food is really appetizing. She will need to train with that person cooking their meals. 

It’s not like she can’t cook at all. But then, she can’t confidently say she makes the best meals. If she is to get married and start a family, she needs to be knowledgeable about such things. Nutrition and balanced meals.

“So, when would you be ready for us to visit your family?” Mitsuei questions as they are still in the middle of dinner.

“Tomorrow?” Kayomi excitedly suggests.

Reina grimaces at the idea of tomorrow. She isn't completely ready and she needs time to prepare herself for what's coming.

“Not yet. And you still have school tomorrow, right?”

“Would dinner time be alright?” Mitsuei asks.

Reina thinks hard for a moment. It is the best actually since it’s the time where people are usually home. But then, everyone in Haran will hear about the owner of Hanneau coming over asking the Asai’s daughter's hand for marriage. It will definitely be a big commotion.

“No, please. Let's go with a much earlier time. And please at least give me a week so I can slowly instill the idea in my family. And it would be great if we can agree on weekends since everybody is mostly free by then.”

Mitsuei acknowledges her response with a nod. They continued their meals while still discussing their next step. 

They decided to break the marriage on the fourth, a week and a day from now. Reina will slowly tell her family about her supposed relationship with Mitsuei so they won’t be shocked on an intended day. 

As for the story of how they both fell in love, they settled it with a cliche opposite attract. And since Reina is both close to Kayomi and Tomohisa, she has grown attracted to Mitsuei. To which she discovered eventually that he was also feeling the same. 

Meanwhile, despite reaching a conclusion, Mitsuei’s mind still wanders off. He can’t bring himself to tell Reina about Tomohisa. The business that he attended earlier isn’t about Hanneau. Rather, it was about Tomohisa being sent to jail for causing a rumble in Moulen. Not only that, he was found with a gun. A gun that is strictly prohibited in the country. 

He didn't even try to bail him out. He wants him to be educated. He'd had enough of his self-centeredness. 

Suddenly, offering marriage to Reina sounded a much better decision. The timing also seemed perfect. Tomohisa can no longer disturb her. 

‘I probably should not bring up about Tomohisa.’