Before breakfast, a guard’s call carries through the castle entrance hall. The King and Queen accompany Ai from the dining chamber, while the servants remain behind to prepare the meal.
The Guard Captain
Your Majesties, King Hikaru Oshino of Minamoto has arrived. He bears his seal and requests audience with the royal family.
The doors open. Hikaru, a tall, muscular young man with dark hair and a severe expression, enters in a black traveling coat marked by Minamoto’s crest. Two Oshinoko guards, young men in matching charcoal armor with red sashes, close-cropped hair, and guarded faces, flank him.
Hikaru Oshino
King, Queen, Princess Ai. I ask to speak before you send any formal response to my proposal.
the King
You have been admitted under watch, Hikaru. State why this cannot wait for a written exchange.
Hikaru Oshino
Because the danger I warned of is approaching Oshinoko, and your court is measuring marriage terms while its first steps may already be near.
the Queen
Then explain the authority behind your seal, and tell us what you know without expecting trust merely because you came in person.
✓ Quest Accepted
Establish what danger is approaching Oshinoko