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He calmly rose and turned to the man, who now looked scared shitless. "Tomasa, did the Prince ask you to speak?"
Hotaka asked.
"No...Sir,” he replied.
"Good. I suggest you stay quiet and wait for the Prince to address anyone's concerns, and I’ll warn you now. Do not talk poorly about MY daughter, or there will be consequences,” he commanded.
"F...father?" another one of the councilmen questioned, the four of them turning to look at Konashi, who bit his lip and clenched his fists in anger.
"Ah, I was getting to that, but thank you, Sir Jiyuna, because I agree. Do not talk poorly about Crimson Arashi in this room or I can't guarantee you'll leave here unharmed," Yoshi declared.
The room was pin silent, and I felt my cheeks burn hot as I glanced down at my lap. Aki squeezed my hand comfortingly and rubbed his thumb against my palm.
"As I was saying, as far as everyone in this room is concerned, Crimson Arashi is a human who was born to Konashi and Mosuki. However, we recently discovered a medical report from Dr. Omako, as well as a box of medical documents that tracked Mosuki's entire pregnancy," Yoshi announced.
I noticed Konashi's eyes grew wide. "You went to my office?!" he snapped. Yoshi slowly turned to Konashi, who shut right up and lowered his head. Yoshi returned his gaze to look straight. I could see the glowing little specks of gold in those irises, even from this distance.
"Yoshimitsu, explain this,” the Emperor demanded, his expression telling me he was starting to piece things together as he looked from me to Mother, Hotaka, and Konashi.
"As we know, most shifter pregnancies are monitored because shifter babies are very unpredictable. Now, in this day and age where there are many interracial relationships and crossing of breeds, it's recommended for parents to be monitored for the safety of the mother and child," Yoshi began, walking back to the board. He started writing with a blue marker.
When he turned back to face us, Dr. Omako and Dr. Nakomi's names were on the board. I glanced at Konashi, whose face had already begun to turn pale.
"Dr. Omako was originally assigned to monitor Crimson in the womb. In his reports, it was clearly stated that Crimson would be born as a Kitsune shifter," Yoshi announced.
Multiple gasps were heard, and even the guys looked a little shocked. It made me realize I hadn't told them all the details of what I'd discovered in the office. I’d only explained it completely to Aki when he asked one night during my recovery.
"I know. Shocking, right? Even for myself and my fellow guards-men, this seemed rather preposterous because we'd been watching Crimson for over two months at that point, and she was completely human. Not even a pinch of magic inside her," Yoshi stated.
I knew he was disregarding the fact I could use Storm Yuna's magic thanks to the watch.
"Well, in Dr. Omako's reports, Crimson was a healthy Kitsune shifter with cherry blossom magic and an extremely high magic affinity. Some may say it would be even stronger than Storm Yuna's."
This time I was left speechless, having not been told that information. I glanced at Yoshi, who met my gaze. He gave me a reassuring smile, which helped calm my nerves.
He returned to his presentation. "I know this is shocking to many of you, but what was really interesting was to see the blood test done when Mosuki found out she was pregnant. The test revealed that the father of Crimson was not Konashi Arashi, but Hotaka Jiyuna."
"This is nonsense!" one of the Council members shouted.
"Yes, how can Konashi's child now be Hotaka's, who has been away for years?" another Council member stated.
Yoshi raised his hand and this time didn't hide his anger. His eyes turned completely gold. I gawked at him and noticed the other guys looked super nervous. Only Aki seemed calm as he continued to hold my hand.
"Do not interrupt me again! Any of you. Unless you would like my sword to be one with your neck," Yoshi warned, and all five men nodded in agreement.
Yoshi took a calming breath, closing his eyes for a moment.
When he opened them, they were back to their sapphire appearance, and he continued his explanation; the Emperor looked rather pleased by Yoshi's reaction.
"This is where the manipulation of official test results occurred, and the cover-up began. Early into the pregnancy, Dr. Nakomi took over monitoring Mosuki and Crimson’s health.
With that came the process of sealing Crimson's powers," Yoshi announced, putting down the marker he had. Then he stood to the side, so he could look at his father on the screen and back at the table if he needed to.
"Emperor, it was discovered from the detailed evidence of multiple reports that Dr. Nakomi participated in sealing Crimson's powers during examinations. Mosuki had been unaware of this. Dr. Nakomi instructed Konashi to conduct sealing treatments on Mosuki when she napped. As we know, Kitsune shifters when pregnant need a lot more rest compared to other shifter races, and generally are encouraged to nap once or even twice a day until closer to the birth of the child, at which point they are instructed to be on bed rest. Konashi had conducted at least 15 sealing treatments per month, one happening every two days."
"Mosuki Arashi, why did you not report this?" the Emperor asked as if wanting clarification from her point of view.
I looked at Mother who frowned, shaking her head as she tried to keep her composure.
