1. Daichi Takeuchi

"Road to Empress" is a famous novel written by my sister. The story is about the life of the first princess of an Emperor of an Empire which is similar to feudal Japan. It is a tragic and adventurous story that the Emperor loses control of his vassals and has to sell his daughter, which is the main character of the story for a foreign country to gain military support for the sake of putting down the Rebellions. Mistreated by her husband as well as experiencing violence frequently, her life is a living hell from the day she arrive in that kingdom; after several years, her scheme of killing her husband and inherits all his lands, armies, and titles. From that day, she begins her journey to claim back the power that once belonged to her family and bring peace and prosperity to the realm.

The story is a long series with many characters and different stories, some are tragic while others are glorious. Among the tragic, the life of Shugo Daichi Takeuchi stands out the most. Appointed to be the Shugo of Raion Castle which is the choke point to the East of the Capital and Eiko Province. In the first rebellion, the Castle is ripped open by the rebels. Daichi is captured and imprisoned by the Nakamura clan for more than 20 years as a hostage to threaten his father, Daimyo Akechi Takeuchi of Eiko Province.

After 20 years, the Nakamura clan is defeated and he is released back to his family. He is about to inherit his father's titles after many years of imprisonment when his brother, Atsushi Takeuchi forces him to perform seppuku so that he can gain the position of the head of the clan. 20 years tortured and when he is finally to gain back freedom, he is killed. I cried very much when my sister gave me the chapter that Daichi is killed and even argued with my sister about the outcome of the story.

However, the question I'm concerned with right now is why I'm inside Daichi's body? I fell asleep while reading the final book of the series while traveling by train with my sister. The last thing I remember is the loud noise of something crashing. And now, I'm laying in a Japanese-style room with the sigil of a lion on the wall and through the mirror, I can see the face of Daichi Takeuchi looking back at me. I've seen this face many times in the illustrations of the novel since although being imprisoned, Daichi writes hundreds of poems that have a huge impact on the Empress' life that she even destroys the Takeuchi Clan to dust when she hears about the betrayal. Thus, he is still a famous character and is portrayed as well as discussed frequently during the fan meetings.

Slender body, black hair, and eyes with the skin of a guy who rarely steps out of his house, the body of Daichi Takeuchi is the typical one of a scholar. As I read in the book, Daichi never touches any type of weapons and learns nothing about warfare. That's why there are none of his father's retainers that side with him when he is killed, the samurais choose to bow to his brother who is known to be a bold and skillful fighter instead.

I have to accept the truth that I'm Daichi after scratching myself many times to confirm whether I'm dreaming or not. Sighing and sitting down, I start calculating about my future. These are my current situation:

Now I'm Daichi Takeuchi, the heir to the Takeuchi clan.

2. I have to know what year it is? How much time is left until the first rebellion begins?

3. I must note down the details of the novel that I can remember. Knowledge of the future will help me survive and will not have the pitiful end as the real Daichi.

While I'm chilling myself, the door is opened and a girl with the appearance of around 12 years old gets inside, seiza and bows to me.

"Daichi-sama, Mitsuhide-dono requests your presence in his office"

I know this girl. She is Ayaka, a daughter of my father's retainer who is trained to serve Daichi from the day she was born. According to the book, I will fall in love with her 2 years after I become the Shugo of Raion Castle and have a daughter with her. Unfortunately, Ayaka and her daughter die from fire when the Nakamura Clan besieges the castle.

Her sentence has answered my question about time and date. The only time Mitsuhide Takeuchi calls his son to his office is when Daichi is appointed to become Shugo of the Raion Castle by the Imperial Emperor to gain Takeuchi Clan's favor in the race of expanding influence with the Tsukumo Shogunate.

So, it means that now I'm 16 years old and the first rebellion will happen in 5 years, following the event that the Emperor chops the head of Ikaru Tsukumo, the Shogun and head of Tsukumo Clan.

I nod to Ayaka and follow her to my father's office. 5 years, not too long but not too short to avoid the tragic life of Daichi Takeuchi.

In another Japanese-style room, I bow to the man with a bold look and several scars on his face. There are 4 samurais who act as my father's bodyguards in the room as well. I can see they are always alerted as their hands are being tightened on the handle of the taichi swords. At this time, katana hasn't been invented yet so taichi is still the dominant sword used by the samurais.

"Mitsuhide-dono, I'm present"

Although being Mitsuhide's first-born son, the relationship between us is not very good, if not say bad. Due to Daichi's laziness practicing martial skills, a Daimyo who respects people with high poweress like Mitsuhide is not fond of his son. He nods to me and then speak:

"I have a letter from the Emperor, he appoints you as the Shugo of Raion Castle, you will have to go to the capital to be recognized yourself before departing to Raion. I'll prepare a carriage for you"

"I understand, I'll go and prepare to depart as soon as possible"

I'm about to stand up and leave when my father speaks:

"You do not seem to be surprised"

"I think this appointment is reasonable since we are the closest Clan to the capital. I hear that the Emperor is falling behind in the race of power with the Shogunate. Trying to gain our favour is a must-do job as we are the largest clan that is still staying neutral"

I see a slight smile on his face before Mitsuhide continues:

"You're right, this move is nothing more than an effort to attract us to his side. Nonetheless, the Emperor has no son and his daughter is still too small. He is nearly 60 years old now, it's risky to join his side"

"But Raion Castle is a strategic location and will be beneficial for us in the long run, Mitsuhide-dono, you know without it, the hostile Nakamura Clan will roam through our land a long time ago. It'll be the best to accept this appointment since if I hold it, the Takeuchi Clan will be safer than leaving it to other men"

Looking deep at my eyes for a while, my father nods.

"You can leave, I'll give you 30 samurais and 200 ashigaru as your guards on your way to the capital; however, you'll need to recruit your own men when you go to Raion Castle"

"Thanks for your care, Mitsuhide-dono" I bow my head again before leaving. Just a few hours after replacing Daichi Takeuchi, one of my first challenges has fallen on my shoulders. However, this is the chance for me to change the fate of my favorite character and live to my fullest.