Year of the Boar, Tenth Month, Day 6.

Seira says she will manage the delegation from the Sixth. Quite how she thinks she will do that, I have no idea although when I told her all the reasons she could not possibly do it she actually laughed at me. She has no concept of the rules governing Dying Crane Hospitality; I cannot even remember most of them myself. Itsuki was the expert in all of those things and she is gone. I slept little during the night; my dreams were haunted by images of Ituski prowling the House seeking revenge. Perhaps this delegation is her revenge. Perhaps she has done this so that I am sent over the edge with the worry of it. I do not know what to do.

A worse thought occurs to me as write which is that Shigeru has done this. Perhaps he plans his incursion while my attention is taken up by the visitors. Oh gods... that is it... that is exactly it. He has not invaded yet because he is biding his time; he is waiting until my attention is thoroughly taken up by the visitors and then he will strike. While my troops are stretched thin protecting the delegates, he will sneak over the borders and gradually occupy my Lands. I would pay a small fortune to know how he has arranged this although I suppose it matters only that he has. Such a cunning plan, I cannot possibly defend the delegates and the whole of Dying Crane; Shigeru knows that, that is why his end of the tribute was to provide troops for my borders... Clearly he is far cleverer than I have ever given him credit for... Oh gods... 

I must cancel the delegation. I cannot see any other way out of this. Princess Rani will have to cross over the border into Purple Lightning instead of Dying Crane. No doubt Seira will try to insist otherwise but I cannot have them here, I cannot. If only Broken Rampart were still here; he would know what to do... If I could have just a small pipe, I know it would soothe the writhing in my belly and I could sleep...