Six Crimson Cranes

Mrs. Dainan, the woman whose boat Shiori tried to steal, forces Shiori to work for her at the Sparrow Inn, where she names the silent princess Lina. Despite Shiori’s desire to escape, the exhausting labor and her lack of resources lead to her working there for two months. Mrs. Dainan is angry and unkind but protects Shiori from the inn’s belligerent patrons. While Kiki spends the two months flying around, searching for news of Shiori’s brothers, Shiori cooks her mother’s fish soup and does other menial tasks at the inn. Shiori cannot use her magic anymore, and often dreams of her brothers. One night, a dream of Raikama ordering the palace guards to shoot her six crane-brothers motivates Shiori to escape.

The next morning, Shiori asks Mrs. Dainan for money, but the latter strikes her and threatens to sell her to a brothel. A sentinel arrives at the inn, recruited to search for the royal children. Despite Shiori’s nosiness, the sentinel is kind and compliments her soup. That evening, Shiori rifles through his belongings, searching for money. She finds her slipper (which she threw at swans in Chapter 8), and an A’landan letter discussing the poison Four Breaths, the missing royal children, and a plan to meet with the Wolf.