"Young lord! This is a letter from the family head. He instructed that only you may read it!..."
"Ah! A letter from Father, Lord Nobuhiro... Good! I have received it..."
With the arrival of the second contingent, the mountain camp was already bursting at the seams, packed with a full two hundred samurai, three hundred peasant soldiers, and more than a hundred young men and craftsmen. Kakizaki Mitsuhiro deliberately divided the reinforcements into two groups. The three hundred peasant soldiers sent in support continued fortifying the outer campworks, not allowed to sit idle or run about. As for the hundred-plus young men and craftsmen, they were placed under the separate watch of a squad of samurai. They were supplied with enough food each day, but they were not allowed any contact with the outside.
Only after Kakizaki Mitsuhiro had arranged all this did he take out his father Takeda Nobuhiro's letter with some nervousness and break it open, as if he had received a written judgment.
"My son, there is no need to be afraid! The inheritance of the Kakizaki Clan, after my death, will ultimately be placed in your hands..."
Takeda Nobuhiro seemed to have seen through his son's thoughts. In the very first line of the family letter, he made it clear that the right of inheritance would not change. Kakizaki Mitsuhiro's whole body loosened, and he instantly let out a long breath. Only then did he swallow again and continue reading.
Takeda Nobuhiro's letter was very short, and there was not much content afterward. The key points were only four arrangements, yet every sentence cut straight to the vital spot. It was clear that he had not been dazzled by the "gold" his son had brought back, but had instead set his eyes on the overall situation