From Silver Lining:In the midst of the desert there's an oasis city called Afdal, ruled by the Raun family. n5856

1. A young foreigner named Johan finds himself friendless and penniless in this city, only to be picked up by the head of the Raun family, Asad, as a servant. And after being tormented for his foreign looks, he finds himself in the position of personal servant for the seemingly unfriendly Asad.

2. Matal and Shams are both sons of branch families of the ruling family. They promised to forget the incident that occurred at an oasis when they were young, but when Shams becomes engaged both find that they can no longer pretend that it never happened.

3. Sakul is the second son of the first wife of the head of the Raun family making him second in line to the throne. However he has no confidence in his own abilities and is frequently belittled by his half-brothers. Fortunately he has his servant, Fahad, who is always by his side and taking care of him...

4-5) In the past in Japan the young lord of the Minister of the Center lived with his servant, Masasuke. As children they were close friends but once they reached adulthood Masasuke distanced himself from his lord. The young lord doesn't understand why and it frustrates him, causing him to lash out at the source of his frustrations.