May 31. Fourteen going on fifteen years old. Saishuu Riku.

I spent the next few days scouring the books I’d got from Daisuke. Some were heavy tomes, with ink smudges and the blemishes of a thousand hands. Others were little hard-backs with polished white pages. Where the newer ones spoke of the witches and their artefacts as myths and legends, the tattered old books regarded them a science. Whether I could physically do them or not, I now knew how to make fire with runes, grind stones to dust with words and cut gemstones with a wave.

But I couldn’t find one darn reference to a fire stone.

I leaned my head back with a sigh. My neck stiffened at the motion, sending shooting pains to my shoulders. Besides a few breaks in the middle, I’d been sitting here all day and all night. Papers full of diagrams and notes littered my study desk.

As far as I could tell, the only stones that held intrinsic value to witches were those they enchanted. Stones for protection from unseen assailants, or those that acted as bombs. But the way the kidnappers and witch spoke of the stones was as though they wanted to collect them. A certain amount, in the case of the witch, or type, for the kidnappers.

What could it be? I groaned as the question swam in circles around my head like it had for the last few hours.

Beep! Beep!

My watch pulled me out of my musings. Twelve o’clock already, huh? I scrambled up from the chair, stretching my limbs, then winced as a shock of pain ran up my arm. Gotta be careful with that hand.

Time to meditate.

***

June 1. Fourteen going on fifteen years old. Japan.

I clicked the Blade Fables icon, a picture of Tsubasa chasing Tayo, and choose the newest chapter.

Daylight shifted through bright orange curtains, giving the office a sunset-like glow. A man with a cyan ponytail longed on the chair, his feet propped up on his desk. He hummed as he perused a file.

My mouth grew dry. Minister Fuyu. Perhaps this was my lucky day when he’d spill all the beans.

Someone knocked on the door.

‘Come in!’ said the Minister, placing his feet back on the ground and his file on his desk. He straightened his collar and patted down his changshan, a smile working it’s way up his cheeks.

‘Fuyu, it’s been a while.’ A short-haired man entered, sporting a smile that rivalled Minister Fuyu’s. A cape wrapped around his changshan, Heikisato’s sigil in its centre.

‘Hope you’ll be staying for lunch, Banji.’ Minister Fuyu gestured at the chair opposite his and offered him a box of candies.

Minister Banji waved it away and dropped onto his chair with a groan. ‘I’m afraid I can’t. The girl-- Kaede’s mother-- has gone missing. It’s been a nightmare, organising search parties and the like.’

‘What happened?’ Minister Fuyu leant forward with a frown.

‘My swordsmen went over to speak to her family the day after the kidnapping. While we filled her father and sister in on the details, the mother was nowhere to be found.’ He massaged his forehead. ‘We searched everywhere, the hospital, the library. None of her co-workers had seen her that day.’

‘What about her family?’

Minister Banji closed his eyes. ‘That’s the funny thing, they didn’t seem one bit shocked. Scared yes, but not shocked. Not even when they heard about Kaede.’ He looked back at Minister Fuyu with a frown. ‘That’s another funny thing. Kaede’s squadmates are nowhere to be found either.’

Minister Fuyu whistled and sat back. ‘You think the squad told her mother? And now they’re all looking for Kaede?’

‘That’s what I’m afraid of.’ Minister Banji paused, pursing his lips. ‘Saeru mentioned he’s missing one of his knives. I think I know who has it. One of the kids, Ahio Sora, comes from a wealthy merchant family who trade with several clients from Genkoushi. It’s possible that he’s heard of the seer.’

‘Oh dear. If they get into Genkoushi territory…’

I huffed at the sentence. What would Genkoushi do? There weren’t enough pieces to complete this puzzle.

Minister Banji clutched the arms of his chair tight. ‘Yeah. We’re trying to get them before that, but it’s no easy task. The mother used to be a member of my special squads.’

‘Good luck to you then. And even if you don’t catch them, I hope they don’t ruin our plans.’ Twirling a candy in his fingers, Minister Fuyu studied it, then popped it into his mouth. ‘Speaking of Genkoushi, my swordsmen uncovered something. They’re looking for twenty-one to twenty-two stones.’

So the men Ameko was talking to, they were from Genkoushi! I placed all the facts I had so far in order. The witch wanted the stones, and Genkoushi was helping her get it. They had some kind of deal with her and based on what I’d heard at the real Minister Fuyu’s office, Kou Ta could be in on it too. There was also some kind of enmity with Genkoushi and Kou Ta. Ministers Fuyu and Banji are trying to get the stones before them using the kidnappers. But the kidnappers are looking for specific stones.

So the Ministers Fuyu and Banji must be trying to stop the deal. Whether the type of stone had anything to do with it or whether it was for the kidnappers own agenda, I didn’t know.

I swiped to the next page.

‘Twenty-one stones, huh?’ With a growl, Minister Banji slammed his fist on the table. The box of candy flipped to the side but managed not to spill its contents. ‘Just twenty-one stones until the Sakashi incident repeats itself.’

That might be the clue I needed! Sakashi was a village, I believed, in Mori Chuo’s territory. But as much as I tried, I couldn’t recall anything special about it.

‘All the more reason to speed things along.’ Minister Fuyu pushed the file he’d been reading across the table to the other man. ‘The information you gave me was correct. After some searching, I found the boy you were looking for. His ancestors come from a village in the mountains far east. He might have a stone.’

Minister Banji flipped open the document, skimming the material. ‘A fisherman’s boy from your jurisdiction. How convenient. Now it’s your turn to find out more about the child. Do you know if he has any heirlooms?’

‘Not yet, but my swordsmen are on it as we speak.’ Minister Fuyu grinned.

The two Ministers stayed in silence for a while, Minister Fuyu righting the candy box and Minister Banji looking over the file.

The bright-haired Minister leaned forward, opening his mouth but saying nothing. After a few more tries, he said. ‘I realize our business is concluded, but I did make a nice dinner. Shrimp soup, you know?’

Minister Banji stood up, lips quirking in a smile. ‘As much as I love your shrimp soup, I really can’t stay. I have errant swordsmen to catch and a document to pass on to Saeru. Make sure to eat twice as much for me.’

Standing up, Minister Fuyu laughed. ‘Of course, I will! That soup is delicious.’ He walked over to the other Minister, his grin fading. ‘If only one of us had another job. Then we wouldn’t be stuck in two different villages.’

‘Or better yet, if only a single village could have two different Ministers.’ Minister Banji embraced the other man. Before too long, they broke off and Minister Banji exited the office. Minister Fuyu stood where he was, staring at the door with a half-smile.

I closed the tab with a groan. Hope it isn’t another romance.