A real world example of the machinations described by Ansaku is the quote attributed to Henry II of England, "Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest?" Though not an order, the outburst prompted four knights in the king's retinue to ride to Canterbury and kill Archbishop Thomas Becket.

Later in the chapter we see preference falsification in action.

A taika (胎果) is a person born in China or Japan because of a shoku event that transplanted a ranka (卵果) into the body of a pregnant woman. A child like Youko will genetically resemble her parents until she returns to the Twelve Kingdoms, at which point she "sheds" her outer skin.

Labels: 12 kingdoms, black moon, fantasy, japanese, translations