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Gogetsu (午月) is a battalion commander in the Palace Guard of the Right. He served Asen under Seikou’s command during Gyousou’s dynasty and served as a part of Nightingale Villa’s guards under Fukushou’s command. Level-headed and practical, he becomes wary of Asen after the coup and, while a part of him still wants his old commander, he is aware that the relationship between Asen and his retainers has drastically changed.

Career[]

During the Gyousou’s dynasty, Gogetsu serves under Seikou in the Palace Guard of the Right, though it is never stated if this promotion takes place after Gyousou’s coronation. A year after Asen’s coup, he joins several other junior retainers as Asen’s bodyguards and then, after Taiki returns to Hakkei Palace, as guards at the Nightingale Villa. However, when Asen reveals that he was aware that Taiki lied about him being the new emperor, Gogetsu and most of his fellow guards who are sympathetic to Taiki are replaced with soldiers loyal to Asen.

Asen's Dynasty[]

Gogetsu was assigned to Asen’s guard five years before Taiki's return. Unlike Boushuku, he feels a mix of delight and worry when he hears about Taiki’s return and that Asen is declared the new emperor. He is aware that the loss of the kingdom’s Taiho—in other words, Taiki—shouldn’t have happened and that that loss wouldn’t have happened if it weren’t for Asen. He also views himself as complicit since he never protested Asen’s actions. Despite this, Gogetsu wants to be proud that he was trusted enough to be a part of Asen’s guard, but since Asen never left and didn’t bother summoning his guard when he did, Gogetsu simply sat around at his post all day, a result he refers to as “a slow death from a thousand cuts.” Like his fellow guards, he resigns himself to this.

When he is assigned to Taiki’s guard under Fukushou but finds out that they wouldn’t be actually guarding Taiki in person, he is similarly resigned—to Boushuku, he says, “Well, that’s the way this job goes.” However, he performs his job with diligence and dedication and shows no interest in wasting his spare time with leisure activities like drinking and gambling. After Keitou is promoted to prime minister of Zui Province, Fukushou asks him which men he would recommend under his command as exemplary guards for Taiki. He also agrees with him when Fukushou acknowledges that even if Taiki never fully trusted them, his safety took priority over any remaining loyalty they might have to Asen.

The Attack on Taiki[]

Gogetsu is the first to notice the intruders sneaking around the eaves of the outer courtyard and points them out to Boushuku. He and Boushuku enter the gatehouse under the guise of Boushuku  helping Gogetsu out, and once there, they sneak into the anteroom and observe the intruders in the gate room. He recognizes them to be the six minor officials recently dispatched by the Imperial government that had been banned from the premises by Keitou on Taiki’s orders, and Gogetsu lets Boushuku know that they for sure aren’t military men in disguise. Gogetsu and Boushuku track them to the courtyard rooms. When it’s apparent that they can’t move deeper into the Villa, Gogetsu asks Boushuku to summon reinforcements.

Boushuku returns to the observation post where Gogetsu is waiting, and they agree that the officials are waiting for nightfall to act and that their target was most likely Taiki. Boushuku, Gogetsu, and fifteen other guards keep an eye on the room through the night and, close to daybreak, Boushuku remembers that Taiki walks the pavilion every morning. After he mentions this to Gogetsu, the officials leave the courtyard room they are hiding in and approach the portico rooms. Boushuku and his fellow guards make their way to the courtyard through the hallway to the right of the portico reserved for servants, then through another utility corridor. Seeing guards posted in the corridors, Boushuku and Gogetsu agree that the intruders wouldn’t use them. They’re proven correct when they sneak into the pavilion via the adjourning property and, seeing this, they realize that failing to post guard there creates a security hole. Gogetsu expresses his disgust at the lack of foresight.

He and Boushuku are startled by Yari, who joins them unseen to basically inform them that she would be working with them to capture the interlocutors. She appears in the pavilion wearing one of Taiki’s hooded robes and, when the intruders attack her, she retaliates with heavy wooden cudgels while Gogetsu and his fellow guards take them into custody.

Gyousou's Rescue[]

Unlike Boushuku, Gogetsu and most of the guards at Nightingale Villa are not stationed within the Hall of Supreme Harmony no doubt due to their loyalty to Taiki. However, this gives him and his colleagues freedom to move, and they work together with Ganchou to free Seirai and cover his escape. No one knows if he survived.

Relationships[]

Boushuku[]

While he finds it hard to relate to Boushuku due to his complicity in Asen’s crimes, Gogetsu finds the younger man’s relatively quick promotion to centurion dazzling and views him as a capable and trusted colleague. He also empathizes with his eagerness to serve in a brand new dynasty. Likewise, Boushuku can’t understand Gogetsu’s seeming pessmism but looks up to him due to his seniority and his unwavering dedication to the job in spite of his slacking colleagues.

Fukushou[]

Being former battalion commanders under Asen, Gogetsu and Fukushou understand each other a lot more than Boushuku understands either of them. Once Fukushou confirms that they see eye to eye on their duty to Taiki, he soften towards Gogetsu a little more. During Gyousou’s rescue, both of them weren’t stationed at the Hall of Supreme Harmony and instead helped Ganchou rescue Seirai.

Ganchou[]

Despite being one of Asen’s retainers, Gogetsu readily welcomes Ganchou’s arrival at Nightingale Villa and accepts him as Taiki’s Daiboku. During Gyousou’s rescue, he helps him rescue Seirai and cover his escape.

Asen[]

When he converses with him for the first time in seven years, he’s both pleased that Asen is speaking to him like normal but pained by the distance between them. However, he is also surprised that he always considered Asen to be worthy of the title of emperor. Asen pities Gogetsu for the conflicting thoughts he’d inflicted on him, but he also still considers him a loyal and capable retainer.

Sources[]

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