After a long walk, finally, she finds herself at the gates of the palace complex.
Kyouka notes that while the guards at Castle Yokuboo were decent enough looking soldiers, the guards at the main gate of the palace are trained, veteran samurai, clearly all veterans of many battles, and well skilled. Any one of them looks like they could be a good opponent. After checking her invitation carefully, and cross referencing it with a list in which her appearance is described in detail, the massive wooden door opens. As she goes to enter, however, Santo is blocked, as he's not been invited. After claiming to be her manservant, however, he's let in, though he's warned that he will be watched.
Chitsukiko nods. "Yeah, things seem tense."
@majus The procession takes a long time, but eventually, they reach the gates, and are let in.
Through the gates, the party see green and pink, the colours stretching as far as the eye can see, as they travel through a garden almost large enough to be a forest. The palace itself is a large complex, with many buildings and castles inside it. The main palace, where the emperor resides, is not yet in sight.
An immensely fat man, carried in a litter, is brought before the group. "Ah, good day. Those of you selected for the Kushan, go that way." He points a chubby finger towards a castle near the side of the complex. "My lady Fujiwara, and her...escort, you may follow me to the main palace. Your bodyguards and servants are to go to the guest castle, with those chosen for the Kushan, where they will be fed and given a chance to rest."