Murakami Estate.

That night was a night of spring. The lilies were in bloom. Moonlight streamed down upon the Sakura trees and the lily fields within the estate. A gentle breeze occasionally whispered through the air. Night birds sometimes called out. Each time the breeze stirred, the branches of the great Sakura tree swayed gracefully, singing a slow, delicate tune.

---

"Ughhh."

"Just a little more! Push harder, my lady."

"Ughhh."

The mistress of the estate was striving to give birth to her firstborn, a precious jewel who would also be the heir to the estate's lineage.

She endured the pain, her arms wrapped tightly around two strips of cloth tied to the rafters. With a final surge of willpower, she squeezed down.

"Waaah! Waaah! Waaah!"

"It's a girl! My lady, a beautiful baby girl!"

The mistress, oblivious to the agony, gazed at the tiny, red-faced infant in the midwife's arms and smiled.

The mistress gently touched her daughter's head, and within moments, her hands relaxed.

---

"My lady! My lady! My lady!"

"My lady! Please, hold on!"

The midwife lifted the mistress's eyelids, then shook her head.

The ever-present attendant sobbed, weeping uncontrollably at her side.

---

"My lord, the mistress has delivered."

Tokihiko, the lord of the estate, was in his room, sipping warm tea and anxiously awaiting news of the delivery. The report from the bodyguard warmed his heart, and his pulse quickened. Though deeply moved, he maintained his composure.

"Is that so? What is it?"

"A daughter, my lord."

The knowledge that it was a daughter filled Tokihiko's heart with warmth.

---

"A daughter, you say? A daughter as lovely as spring?"

"And how is the mistress?"

"That is..."

He disliked the trailing tone in the bodyguard's voice.

---

"Ahem."

"Forgive me, my lord."

The bodyguard prostrated himself on the floor, begging for forgiveness.

---

"The mistress... has passed away."

In spring, he had received a gift as beautiful as a lily, but he had lost the moon in his heart.

---

"The birth of the daughter will be known only among the four of us."

Tokihiko informed the elderly midwife, the female head servant, and the bodyguard standing before him.

"I require your oath for the future safety of my daughter."

---

Among the successive lords of the Murakami lineage, Tokihiko was the most gentle-hearted.

He did not treat his servants as mere subordinates but regarded them as part of his household.

The rules of succession in Japan dictated that even if the head of the lineage took many wives, the heir must be the firstborn son of the first wife.

If there was no son but a daughter was born to the first wife, the second or third son of the first wife would have the right to succeed.

If the first wife bore only daughters, a son from another lineage would have to marry her to become the heir. If the Emperor favored it, he could also be adopted.

Unfortunately, either of these choices could lead their own daughter to become a second wife, a third wife, a secondary concubine, or a tertiary concubine.

These were things he did not desire for his firstborn child, the spitting image of his beloved, his spring blossom.

He also had many enemies. They would bring trouble to his daughter.

Now, Lord Tokihiko gave his orders to his servants. His tone was not harsh, only filled with a warm earnestness.

---

"I have loved the young mistress since the moment of her birth, my lord. This old woman gives her oath."

The midwife prostrated herself on the floor, giving her solemn promise.

Tears welled in the eyes of the head servant, a testament to her affection for the young mistress.

---

"My life belonged to the mistress, my lord. Now, it belongs to the young mistress as well."

"My life was saved by you, my lord. I will obey your every command."

Each of them knelt, their foreheads touching the floor.

"Thank you all."

The lord of the estate thanked his servants for his daughter's sake.

Lord Tokihiko looked at the plump cheeks and the tiny, red lips of his daughter cradled in his arms.

---

"From today onward, her name will be Harusari, meaning 'spring lily.' For a boy's name, it will be Haruto."

"Harusari Murakami."

Granny, I am not a boy, am I?"

The ten-year-old young mistress, resembling her lord, was intelligent.

Even at the age of ten, she could study and memorize the elegant poems of the Kokin Wakash and linguistic literature.

Such a gifted young mistress would surely know her own gender.

"Yes, young mistress... There is a reason for this."

"It's because of me, isn't it... I know."

From that time on, the young mistress lived as a boy.

She learned swordsmanship from the captain of the bodyguard and also from Lord Tokihiko.

As a descendant of the Murakami, the young lord excelled in combat.

When Haruto turned fifteen, he took the officer examinations of Japan. In literary studies, Haruto deliberately placed only second or third.

In combat skills, he excelled.

Haruto's efforts made everyone believe he was a boy.

Haruto had turned sixteen. Soon, he would inherit the lineage.

Under the Murakami lineage were five clans and five territories.

Their lineage consisted of families who had been close since the time of their ancestors' marriage. The subordinate clans accepted the exceptionally skilled swordsman Haruto as the head of the lineage.

In the presence of the Emperor, four ministers knelt respectfully alongside Prime Minister Murakami Tokihiko: Fujiwara Harumi, Tachibana Rokio, Minamoto Toshimitsu, and Kenji Rintarou.

A single decision from the Emperor caused Tokihiko great distress.

Haruto Murakami was to be married.