天帝　[てんてい]　"Tentei," the Lord God Creator
宗王　[そうおう]　Royal Sou (essence)
黄姑　[こうこ]　Kouko (golden mother-in-law); Shinshi's azana or nickname

In the Twelve Kingdoms, a monarch can't simply abdicate and retire. As the Royal En tells Youko in chapter 59 of Shadow of the Moon,

Becoming a king or empress means dying as a human and being reborn as a god. When you are no longer a monarch, you cannot continue to live. So the Late Empress Yo climbed Mount Hou and there renounced the throne. Heaven accepted her abdication and Keiki was emancipated.

Otherwise, as in the case of the Royal Kou, once struck down by the shitsudou, the Taiho would die first, and after the kirin died the king would inevitably succumb.

Labels: 12 kingdoms, kasho