Less than a month later, Magojirō Motonaga passed the leadership of the Awa Miyoshi clan to his heir, Chikumamaru.

At first, the entire province of Awa could talk about nothing else.

Of course, the transition did not proceed without complications.

Hosokawa Rokurō Harumoto, who wished to regain his influence, strongly opposed the decision.

However, once Motonaga firmly stated that health issues were the reason, Harumoto could do little more.

The family headship was transferred to Chikumamaru.

At the same time, Chikumamaru’s formal affiliation was changed from Harumoto’s faction to that of Ujiyuki.

Motonaga also changed his name to Kaiun and became Chikumamaru’s guardian.

Before the leadership was formally handed over to Chikumamaru, several meetings were held to explain the situation to the various branches of the Awa Miyoshi clan and secure their approval.

At first, most of them opposed the idea.

That was only natural.

Health concerns had been given as the official reason, but in reality, it was merely a convenient excuse.

Then they were shown the mountain of picture scrolls Chikumamaru had been producing.

At the same time, portions of the “Butterfly Dream” Chikumamaru had spoken of were shared with them.

Some initially suggested that a spirit or supernatural being might have possessed him.

However, after seeing the many devices and inventions drawn in the scrolls—each designed to improve daily life—they eventually concluded that such concerns were insignificant.

The more important question became how to protect this “Treasure of the Miyoshi.”

A clan that often struggled to unite found itself completely united over the protection of a single three-year-old child.

The wisdom he possessed would be kept secret.

Officially, the adults, including his guardian, would act on his behalf.

To outsiders, Chikumamaru would appear to be nothing more than a slow-witted puppet ruler.

The existence of the “Treasure” would be concealed from both the Hosokawa and Ashikaga families.

Distance would be maintained.

Nothing would be spoken publicly.

Nothing would be recorded in official documents.

Those were the broad agreements they reached.

And to protect the “Treasure,” each branch of the clan assigned attendants who would serve as Chikumamaru’s personal guards.

A month had passed since Chikumamaru inherited the family headship.

Between formal greetings and endless travel that left me exhausted, I began working on projects that seemed immediately achievable, along with preparations for future plans.

My father and guardian, Kaiun—formerly Motonaga—never left my side.

I met all sorts of people.

Historical figures.

Even Ashikaga Yoshikata, who would later be known as the Sakai Kubō and the Awa Kubō.

And, of course, the infamous “Rokurō” himself—Hosokawa Harumoto.

Personally, my reaction was more along the lines of, ‘So this is the famous Hosokawa Harumoto?’

But for Uncle Nagayoshi, merely seeing him was enough to make his blood boil with rage.

Honestly, I was surprised by just how much resentment he carried.

Even so, I never let it show on my face and continued playing the role of a three-year-old child.

At times like these, Uncle Nagayoshi and I viewed things very differently.

Perhaps it was because I was really a middle-aged woman inside.

Or perhaps because thinking about my sons brought back old memories.

After all, Harumoto was still a boy at this point.

Visually, he looked about the age of an upper elementary school student.

Given the poor diet of the era, he seemed even smaller than that.

When I considered how a child like him had been forced into the political quagmire by the ambitions of adults, I couldn’t help feeling a little sorry for him.

That was how I viewed him.

Harumoto, perhaps because he constantly had to monitor the intentions of the adults around him, seemed to sense the conflicting emotions within me—the feelings of the middle-aged woman I was and the hatred carried by Uncle Nagayoshi.

He wanted to get closer.

Yet he couldn’t.

Even the behavior of my father, Motonaga, had changed completely after passing the family headship to his son.

Harumoto seemed deeply confused by that change.

Until then, Motonaga had been someone who always stood by Harumoto’s side and placed him first.

But now things were different.

By passing the leadership to his son, Motonaga had publicly declared that the person he now had to protect above all else was Chikumamaru, the heir under his guardianship.

In that sense, Kaiun’s decision to draw a clear line between himself and Harumoto was remarkably decisive.

I noticed the resentful looks young Harumoto occasionally directed at Kaiun.

But…

I was the one who had engineered things this way in the first place.

Well, how this choice would affect young Harumoto, and what consequences it would ultimately produce, was impossible to know.

That said, I already had far too many things that needed to be done.

At that moment, I simply didn’t have the time to worry about it.