This guy's name is Bojji. He can't speak, and he can't hear.
On top of that, he's an unbelievably good-natured idiot.
But he wears some pretty expensive clothes,
so before I knew it, I became intrigued by him,
but ran out of luck after following him.
It was found out that I'm a member of the shadow clan,
who used to make their living as assassins.
I had already been put through the wringer by society as it was.
So, I should have just run away.
And yet, when I heard that he was sparring with Daida,
his skilled younger brother,
I got curious for some reason and went back.
Face dewy with tears and sweat
With your own unique beauty
Smile for me
Panting with exertion, you shine brighter than anyone
"Ranking of Kings"
You melted into these almost listless days
Energy faded like soda gone flat
As a duckling you spread your wings
And dream of flying as a swan
If you have to wander, then enjoy it as much as you can
Nothing fun about just taking shortcuts, right?
You took your time, took the hard road
But you couldn't get there
You keep chasing the sunset as many times as it takes
Now run far
Your dirty shoes and footprints will head steadily into the future
Panting with exertion, you shine brighter than anyone
"Episode 2: The Prince and Kage"
Hide!
Hiding will do you no good. Hey!
Someone from the light clan.
Kage, I want you to run away from here by yourself.
Huh? What about you, Mommy?
Mommy will go take care of all of them.
I'll be too concerned about you to fight them if you're around,
so run on ahead without me.
We'll meet up again in the toxic forest up ahead. Okay? Got it?
M-Mm-hmm.
Kage, you're so precious to me. Truly precious.
Okay, go, now.
Hurry and get out of here!
Come soon, okay?
I'll take care of them!
White!
There you are.
One got away! After it!
You're not going anywhere!
You're all-powerful when hiding in the darkness,
but once you've been seen, you're at your weakest. How bold of you.
Geslan, you said something to the king, didn't you?
Hey, now, let's not be impolite.
Look around you.
I will make your death painless as well, so just hold still.
Where's the toxic forest?
Still that far away?
M-Mommy!
Oh, you're a stubborn one.
Kage, did you get away? It looks like it's over for Mommy.
I don't know if you're buying time or whatever,
but I believe the kid has been caught by another patrol.
Why, if it isn't the little countess, Poise.
Did you see a shadow clan child come by here?
What a creepy little girl.
So it went toward the forest after all. Thank you very much.
Did you finish it?
No, sir, it appears to have fled into the toxic forest.
Hurry and get after it.
M-Mommy!
Wh-What's the matter?
Please, hurry and get out of here!
You're scaring the young lady!
Please excuse us.
Lord Geslan, let's be off.
We are in the service of King Bo. This is all the help we can give you.
If you keep heading that way, you'll reach another kingdom.
You should be safe there.
Th-Thank you very much.
Good luck.
Will that little guy be okay?
He's still a shadow clan, fallen though they may be. He'll land on his feet.
Come, we need to get going as well.
Kage! Here's your birthday present!
Really?
Hooray!
Yay! Thanks, Mommy!
Please trade me an apple for this.
Huh? I don't need you window-shopping.
I'll take four of these.
You bet!
Stop! Thief!
What?!
What are you looking at?! I'm feeding you for nothing, you know!
You got some kind of problem with that?!
No, none.
Better still...
I need to get you to earn some money.
Get inside and unlock the door. You can do that, can't you?
Y-Yes.
Nice work.
Awesome!
You really did it, shadow dude!
Good, good, well done.
Here you go.
Damn it, I lost again. I won't stand for this.
Mommy, you all are some super-powerful assassins, right?
Tell me, what kind of bad guys have you gotten rid of?
Let's see...
If ordered to, we'll kill anyone, even if they're women, children, sick, or old.
Y-You're kidding.
No, it's true.
That's why we have no right to say anything if someone else kills us.
Why do you do that stuff?
Maybe because we were born with the perfect forms for doing bad things.
But listen to me.
We do whatever we can to serve the interests of the people who need us.
That's what our light is.
Oh, no. They're coming! Kage, wake up!
There it is! It went outside!
After it! After it!
It's no use. It's using the darkness for cover.
Who's there?! It's too early for this!
You?! You idiot, don't come back here!
I'm done with you! Go somewhere else!
Shoo! Shoo!
N-No, stop!
You're the one who hit me first, remember?!
Hey...
Aww, he's done for.
Scram! Leave!
Heh-heh, another big haul today. After stealing this much,
I won't have to worry about going hungry for a while.
Who the heck are you?
Hey, wait!
I haven't seen you around before.
Why did I come back here for a kid like him?
Begin!
Damn it!
Not bad, Bojji!
I never knew Prince Bojji had this kind of talent.
However...
I-Impossible!
That's it, Bojji! Your eyes and insight are sharp enough
to read a person's words just by watching their lips move!
Your pupil, Prince Daida, looks like he's going to lose, doesn't he?
Is that how it looks?
Well, he's powerless to stop him, isn't he?
Prince Bojji shows absolutely no sign of beating him.
And if by some miracle he does win,
he'll lose whatever regal qualities he has.
Hey, the way Prince Bojji fights seems kind of dirty, huh?
Yeah. You might even say it's cowardly.
It's underhanded.
It's sickening.
It's sneaky.
Bojji! That's it, that's it!
He'll turn them all against him at this rate.
It looks like he's making fun of someone who's desperately fighting.
But it's the only way someone as powerless as Prince Bojji can fight.
So, what will it be, Prince Bojji?
Damn it! This isn't fair, Brother!
What? What did he say?
Domas, what a cruel thing to say to him.
All the same, it was a wise decision.
Hey, why aren't you dodging?!
Why don't they stop him?!
B-Bojji...
S-Stop!
Apeas...
That's the match! Prince Daida is the winner!
Prince Bojji!
Someone get a doctor, now!
Aw, Bojji...
Apeas, I know what you're saying.
I'm sorry, but you must understand.
Brother was fighting dirty.
Hmph, I made sure he'll never recover from that.
Hey, what did Domas tell Brother to do?
Your Highness, he said "That is not the swordsmanship of a king;
you must exchange blows with him."
Everything is proceeding exactly as predicted.
Welcome back.
Yeah.
It looks like I'll be the next king, just as you said I would be.
However superb he is at dodging,
if he doesn't have the strength to wield even a short sword,
he cannot defeat his foes.
I feel so sorry for him.
He was born under a star that keeps him from growing stronger.
I will be right back.
This Domas guy...
From my experience, there is nothing trustworthy about him at all.
That's dirty swordplay!
You coward!
That is not the swordsmanship of a king.
Hey, where are you going? You have to stay in bed, you know.
Bojji...
There's really nothing to be embarrassed about.
I watched your match,
and you looked so cool. You won that fight. Take pride in it.
No matter what anyone else says, I think your style is just fine as it is.
No, I'm not taking anything from you anymore.
You may not know how to take this, coming out of the blue...
...but I...
I want to be in your corner from now on, no matter what happens.
I mean what I'm saying.
I mean it, Bojji.