Chapter 41: First Night

Ōigawa Castle – Isshiki Masataka

1561. Fall

“Was the aji¹It’s a type of mackerel. to your liking?”

“…Is that really the question you should be asking me now?”

That was an understandable reaction, really. Though neither Isshiki nor Matsudaira held a grand ceremony, today, for all intents and purposes, was our wedding day.

The merchants and the townsfolk heard about it, of course, and they flooded us with gifts and caused quite the commotion, so I guess I could call tonight’s dinner a success.

It all started when the merchants belonging to Ōigawa Merchant Guild, led by Kureishiya, came to the castle bringing their own gifts.

Seeing this, the townsfolk asked the merchants what was going on, and when they heard about the merchants’ answers, they immediately came to the castle to offer their congratulations. Well, some came just to get free wine, but tonight was supposed to be a bureikō²Basically a party where you could let loose without minding social status. Like, normally, you’ll be reserved around your boss, right? In a bureikō, you don’t need to., so I didn’t reprimand them.

After that, some unruly, supposedly adults twice my age, forced Ohisa-sama and me to enter the same room. From then on, the so-called ‘first night’ occurred.

And now, after that was over too, I didn’t know what else to do. That was the situation I was in.

It dawned upon me that I had surpassed my previous life in this regard. I had truly become an adult.

“My apologies. I’m not really used to this kind of thing…”

“Is that so? Even though you were quite proactive just now, Dear Husband?”

“…”

About that, I used all the extensive knowledge I gathered from my previous life. Now that I could think clearly about what I’d done, it felt like I might just die of embarrassment first before I could even start my efforts to protect Imagawa.

I could feel the warmth of Ohisa-sama’s skin as we shared the same futon, but that only made me even more nervous than I already was. Seriously, what should I do? Sleep? Even if I were to force myself to, I wouldn’t be able to.

“Then, why don’t we talk about something you are more used to, Dear Husband?”

Ohisa-sama turned around to face me. It was probably a blessing that I could only see her face from here as the rest of her body was covered in a blanket. Speaking of her face, usually she had her hair tied up, and now that it was untied… let’s just say that I had no words to describe it.

“Something I am more used to? But, I don’t believe that will make a good conversation topic, Ohisa-sama.”

“Before everything else, please correct how you address me, Dear Husband. From now on, call me ‘Hisa’, please.”

“But Ohisa-sama—”

Before I could continue, she placed a finger on my lips.

“I’m going to get angry if you mention my age, okay, Dear Husband? That aside, Dear Husband, I wish to remind you to be more mindful of what everyone might think. Keep calling me that, and everyone will think that you’re being extremely mindful of Matsudaira. Sooner or later, you will earn their displeasure as well—especially the Imagawa’s retainers.”

“You have a point. If I want to keep serving Ujizane-sama, I can’t let that happen.”

“Then, please correct your way of speaking, Dear Husband. And also, the way you act around me. There is no need for you to be reserved with me. I am your wife, and you are my husband. Please always keep that in mind.”

I believe Mother said similar words to her. Anyway, she was right. From now on, she was part of my family too—someone I had to protect. If I kept referring to her with honorifics, she’d feel that I was trying to place a wall between us, and that couldn’t happen.

“Got it, I’ll do as you say. Please take care of me from now on, Hisa.”

“Yes, likewise. I’m happy that you’re finally talking to me like you were talking to my brother.”

“Motoyasu?”

“Yes. You talked without minding your social status. Although, it was my brother who was reserved around you, Dear Husband.”

I could only let out a wry smile. Honestly,  if possible, I wanted my relationship with Motoyasu to stay the same as before.

Even though we were no longer on the same side, I didn’t want us to become bitter enemies or something like that. I could still remember the despair I felt when I realized the guy I’ve been playing and studying with was the same guy who’d later become Tokugawa Ieyasu.

Honestly, my marriage with Hisa wouldn’t become a bridge that’d let Imagawa and Matsudaira reconcile or anything like that. Matsudaira would still attack the castles in Mikawa that Imagawa still held, and since I had sworn to serve Imagawa until my dying breath, at some point, I would end up fighting him whether I liked it or not.

The real value of the marriage lay somewhere else—that was something that I knew from the start.

Motoyasu wasn’t so naive that he’d entertain such an idea where he could reconcile with our side with just a single marriage.

“I would’ve preferred him to let loose around me too, but…”

“Let’s talk about him another time, shall we, Dear Husband? I heard that Imagawa-sama sent a messenger earlier? May I know why he did so? Was it because of me, after all?”

I was so surprised at her question to the point that I ended up staring at her face for quite some time. Seeing that, an amused smile appeared on her face.

“Hanahime-sama told me. We noticed a gentleman was leaving the castle in a hurry, so I asked her, ‘Who is that?’ and she told me that he was from Suruga’s Asahina clan. From that, I just connected the dots.”

“Mother, huh? Alright. Ujizane-sama ordered me to bring you to Imagawa Residence.”

“Is it due to my background? I suppose someone is feeling uneasy about my presence.”

“A lot of them, actually. Ujizane-sama has been ignoring them, but that can’t continue. It will sow discord and worsen our position within the clan, so we have to clear this up as soon as we can.”

“Then, I have no choice but to go. It’s perfect. I would love to see the man my Dear Husband is serving.”

This was something I noticed during the pirates’ attack, but Hisa was quite a fearless one. She was clever, so she should understand my worries about this whole thing.

And yet, she still showed her desire to go.

She really was the most reliable wife I could ask for.

“Then, we’ll visit the Imagawa Residence as soon as possible. I’ll introduce you to Ujizane-sama and the other retainers, tell them that you’re my wife, and that we’re members of the Isshiki clan who’ll serve Imagawa whole-heartedly. There is no need for them to be suspicious of us.”

“I’ve sworn to always follow you, Dear Husband. As such, I will also serve Imagawa to the best of my abilities.”

The first night wasn’t filled with as much sugar as I expected—no, it was just me who had a different expectation than most people in this era. I had to keep reminding myself that.