The kin'u, also known as the Golden Raven, leads the Yatagarasu race. When his son, the future kin'u, is ready to take a bride, noblewomen from the Four Houses are sent to the Cherry Blossom Palace to compete for his hand in marriage.

A clash with other young noblemen plucks 13-year-old Yukiya out of the backwater village of Taruhi and into royal service; the Northern House wants an agent in the Prince's household.

The Prince immediately buries Yukiya under a mountain of chores; the blockhead has to keep up with a workload that crushed all his predecessors; the Prince seems so intent on avoiding his potential brides.

The lords of the land meet to reconsider the succession; the Prince crashes the council, but his brash approach may do more harm than good.

The Prince loses a fortune at dice and leaves Yukiya as collateral; while working as a drudge in the criminal underworld, the boy witnesses a deadly meeting; the ladies of the Cherry Blossom Palace prepare for Tanabata.

The ladies of Cherry Blossom Palace eagerly expect the prince for Tanabata, a celebration too important to miss; the Princess calls on Asebi to perform, giving her a chance to prove herself or add to her string of public embarrassments.