"Hey, why are you following me?"
Back at the palace entrance, Sarah jabbed the elevator button, clearly annoyed at the silver-haired boy trailing behind her.
"Well~," Kakashi drawled, hands in his pockets, "I just received a new mission. I'm supposed to protect you now."
He smiled lazily. "So, from now on, I'll be by your side."
Chi~
The energy device atop the palace buzzed with purple light, and the elevator doors slid open.
Sarah stepped inside, waited for Kakashi to enter, then pressed the floor button. With her hands behind her back, she leaned against the glass and turned her face away from him.
"Hmph. You don't even understand An Lushan, yet you act like you know everything."
Kakashi shrugged and stayed silent.
Ding Dong~
The elevator arrived with a soft chime. The sense of weightlessness faded, and the doors opened.
Sarah stomped out, head down and clearly fuming.
"Just wait and see! I'll prove that An Lushan is innocent!"
"Ah!"
Suddenly, as she passed the corridor, a hand reached out from the shadows and yanked her into a room!
"Huh?" Kakashi reacted immediately, darting after her.
Inside the dimly lit room were a dozen slender, masked figures—women and children—armed with rakes, hoes, and crude farming tools. At the center stood a masked woman gripping Sarah's arm.
"Let me go!"
Sarah broke free and rushed to Kakashi's side.
"So it's you!" she snapped, trembling with anger. "You're the ones trying to kill me! You pushed me from the balcony, didn't you?"
Her voice was filled with a mix of fury and triumph. She believed she'd finally unmasked the real culprits. An Lushan must be innocent—this was proof!
But then, the masked leader stepped forward, hands on her hips, eyes scanning Sarah from head to toe.
"Are you really Queen Sarah?" she asked coldly.
"Yes, I am!" Sarah stood tall despite the danger. "If you want my life, then do it openly!"
Despite her fear, she spoke with the dignity of a queen.
"Give it back to us!" the masked woman demanded sharply.
Sarah blinked. "Give what back?"
"You know what we mean!" the woman growled. "Or else—we don't know what we might do!"
"Give it back to us!"
"Give it back to us!"
The others echoed, raising their tools menacingly.
"Um, pardon me for interrupting," Kakashi said calmly, raising a hand with an easy smile.
The masked group turned to him, startled.
"Who's that?"
"Queen Sarah's bodyguard?"
"Never seen him before."
The whispers buzzed around the room. If one listened closely, all the voices were from women and children.
"I think there's a misunderstanding," Kakashi said gently. "Queen Sarah was kept in the dark by An Lushan. She doesn't know the truth."
As he spoke, he casually flipped on the light switch.
The leader eyed him carefully. Though slender and young, he seemed entirely unshaken—even surrounded by armed people. His calm demeanor contrasted sharply with Sarah's obvious tension.
Was it possible that he didn't see them as a threat at all?
After a brief pause, the leader pulled off her mask, revealing a haggard yet beautiful face.
The others followed her lead, dropping their disguises.
"I'm terribly sorry," the woman said, bowing politely. "My name is Masako. We're not here to harm Queen Sarah. We only want to speak with her."
A chubby child stepped forward, scratching his head. "Yeah… we just want something back."
Sarah's anger dimmed, replaced by confusion.
"What exactly do you want me to give back?"
Masako glanced at the others and said, "Why don't we talk while we walk?"
She opened the door and led them out.
---
The night square was radiant with light and filled with cheer.
A seemingly endless crowd paraded through, celebrating with joy and festivity. The energy felt like a holiday, full of dancing, music, and colors.
In a quiet corner outside the square, a manhole cover slid open, and Masako led them up from the underground tunnel one by one.
"So beautiful…"
Sarah's eyes sparkled as she took in the parade. The lights, the costumes, the laughter—it reminded her of happier times before her mother's death. Times when she could only watch from the palace balcony.
"This whole festival… it was organized by An Lushan," Sarah said, her hands clasped in front of her chest. "He planned it to cheer me up after my mother died. It meant so much to me."
"Huh? That's weird," Sarai—the chubby child—said, tilting his head.
Sarah turned to him sharply. "What's so weird about that?"
"Well… everyone's been calling you a string puppet," he said plainly.
"…What did you say?"
Sarah froze, stunned by the words.
"Idiot!" Masako scolded. "I'm sorry, Your Majesty."
She bowed deeply.
"But Sarai isn't entirely wrong. One morning, all our families were taken away. We were told it was by your command."
"That's a lie!" Sarah shouted, furious. "I never gave such an order!"
Masako's eyes dimmed with sadness. "My father and brother were among those taken. We heard they were imprisoned, forced to build weapons for war."
"That's why we had to take the risk and come see you ourselves," Masako explained.
"I can confirm it," Kakashi spoke up. "I saw them when I was exploring the underground."
Sarah's eyes narrowed. "Traveling underground? That's ridiculous. Who would even do that?"
"And if any of this were true," she added bitterly, "why do so many of my people still love and celebrate me?"
She gestured at the grand scene in front of them. "Look at that. A festival! Joy! Smiles! How could any of that be a lie?"
Kakashi sighed. "Actually, it's quite simple."
In a blink, he vanished—and returned instantly, holding two human-sized figures under his arms.
"What are you—?"
He tossed them at Sarah's feet. They hit the ground with a dull thud.
Puppets.
Ceremonial costumes.
Creepy, mechanical smiles.
"What… what is this?" Sarah murmured in disbelief.
Kakashi pointed toward the main square. "This is your 'joyful crowd.' All of them—puppets."
"No… No, that can't be…" Sarah whispered.
As if on cue, a majestic fanfare erupted from the palace balcony. A female puppet stepped into view, adorned in royal regalia—the same outfit Sarah wore.
She gasped. "That's… me?"
The puppet's eerie likeness and the crowd's robotic cheer of "Queen! Queen!" shattered her last sliver of hope.
Tears welled up.
"It's not true… An Lushan wouldn't do this… he wouldn't lie to me like this…"
Her voice broke.
She turned and fled, tears trailing behind her like raindrops in the wind.
"Sarah, wait!"
Kakashi ran after her.
He knew this truth was cruel—crueler than anything he'd had to say before.
But being manipulated by the one who murdered your mother?
That was far crueler.
Only by facing the truth could Sarah take her destiny into her own hands.