"It is entirely possible for the sky to fall again. Once, the All Mother had held up the sky with her own body, but she's dead. Should the High Demons be freed, they will lay waste to all Three Realms. The Nine Heavens would fall. Lo and Behold, the world shall witness the most beautiful chaos in the history of All."

Fall of the Nine Heavens—The Tome of Evil

CHAPTER NINETEEN

The following few days followed a similar pattern. Wanru woke me before the sun climbed into the sky, then busied herself in the kitchens while I took lessons from Miya, my new personal maid. Miya was a Golden Bell, slender in figure, with big eyes that gleamed with life, and a smile that lit up the room.

I learned everything from Imperial dining etiquettes to folding the Emperor's dragon robe. At night, I joined Wulin for dinner. Sometimes it was just the two of us, most of the time it was with his generals and courtiers. His courtiers no longer displayed outward hostility toward me. Perhaps it was honest respect, or maybe it was out of fear that Wulin would behead them. Either way, I was glad I no longer felt like an outsider.

Every sliver of trust I earned was a step closer to cleaving off Wulin's head.

Step by slow step.

That night, Wulin dismissed me early, saying he had personal affairs to attend to. Wanru was still working, and Miya had retired to bed, so I had no one to converse with. I walked out of Wulin's residential hall to look at the moon. The night was still early, and the moon was a silver sickle in the sky, sharp enough to reap souls. I was dressed in a white dress with a silver cape as light as gossamer. Wulin liked it when I wore light colors. Standing next to the crown prince who was forever clad in dark colors, I stood out like a flame in a dark chamber, gaining attention wherever I went.

Walking down the path that led to the lake in the middle of the garden, I saw Bowen sitting cross-legged by the stone table, immersed in a game of chess.

Oh no, not again. I turned to walk away, but he drawled out.

"It's rude to turn your back on a prince, you know."

Oh, High Immortals damn him. I spun around and smiled. "Yes, my prince?"

"Come over here," he ordered. "I've got something interesting to show you."

"I don't take orders from you anymore."

Bowen looked up. "You may no longer be my slave, but I am still the second prince. Disobey me and I shall punish you, no matter your affiliation with my brother."

Threats. So typical. I hitched up my dress and approached him as slowly as I could.

Upon approaching him, I noticed he looked different. He was dressed in a heavy silk robe, the color of a fully-bloomed lotus. His hair was loose, falling down to his waist. For once, his crown sat upright on his head, and a heavy jade pendant hung from his side, one I had never seen before. It bore the image of a green dragon flying above coils of undulating waves.

SeaDragon. Gui had a similar pendant.

I froze. The assassin was one of Gui's.

All along, I had thought Gui belonged to the Emperor's Court, but now, it was clear that he was playing double-agent. The Emperor was extremely fond of Bowen, and it was no surprise he would send his own eunuch to serve his favorite son.

Wulin could be right. Maybe Bowen was trying to usurp the Emperor and kill Wulin before he had the chance to be crowned Emperor. But why? Bowen already had the throne in his grasp.

I didn't pay Bowen much attention as he drawled on.

"Before you question my intentions for trespassing my brother's court, I came here to invite him to a game of chess. We used to play chess a lot when we were children. But being the stick n the mud, he dismissed me ever so ungraciously. I was almost bored to death, and then you sauntered along, and I thought, here's something that could amuse my princely self."

"Your ego can fill the entire garden and there wouldn't be a single crack to spare," I said flatly.

"I'm very flattered, Qara of the Tenth Province," Bowen said. "I'm surprised a lady of an esteemed House was sold to the black market, then managed to sidle her way up to the crown prince's side. How brilliant of her. Many women have attempted cozying up to the Imperials, but so far, only you've succeeded at capturing my brother. It's ironic, really. He was always the predator, but now he has fallen prey to the most unsusceptible hunter."

My scalpel seemed to press against my chest, begging to be freed, yearning for the taste of blood.

If Gui was indeed working for Bowen, the blood of my friends was on his hands.

This was his doing. His fault. But I shouldn't trust Wulin either. Neither of them could be trusted. If Bowen was indeed the one who sent the assassin, I swear to the High Immortals, he was the next person I'd kill after I'd crossed Wulin off my list.

First, I needed proof.

"I'm not sure what you mean, your Highness."

Bowen's grin was unnerving.

"Do you play chess?" he asked nonchalantly, as though the previous conversation never took place.

"No. It's boring."

He jerked his head and gasped.

"How dare you! How can you say something so terrible?"

"It's just hours of sitting down and staring at chiseled wooden pieces," I said. "That's the brutal truth."

"Sit down," he ordered. "Let me show you how entertaining I can be."

"What if I refuse?"

"I'll have you killed for defying the second prince's orders."

There it was again—the threat of death. I wondered what he would do should he be stripped of his title. What would he threaten me with? His sarcasm and his wit?

None of them was effective against a Nerithim scalpel.

"The game is simple." He picked up a round wooden piece and showed it to me. The letter "Pawn" was painted in red on the surface. "Needless to say, this is a pawn. There are ten pawn pieces in this game. Five for each player. The Pawns occupy the frontline, and they can only move one step at a time. They cannot move diagonally but can be moved horizontally and vertically. Pawns can only step forward. If you move backward, you will be penalized. However, there's a catch."

Bowen then tracked the red line dividing the paper into two equal portions. "This broad line is the Chu River. If a pawn crosses the Chu River, they are allowed to move one step in any direction, except diagonally. If any ally pawn is one step apart from the enemy, the ally pawn knocks the enemy piece out of the game.

He then introduced me to the other pieces. I wasn't sure why I was even humoring him, but I pushed a Pawn forward.

Bowen nudged one of his Pawns forward too.

We played for a quick ten minutes. Then, Bowen flicked my King off the chessboard with a most triumphant grin on his face. "Checkmate."

"You're having fun, aren't you?" I said, annoyed.

"Plenty." He rearranged the pieces. "Again?"

"I do not appreciate you asserting your dominance over me," I said.

"I did nothing of that sort," Bowen said. "Now, if you would start?"

I flicked my Carriage forward, a bit harder than I intended. It bounced off a Pawn, and I had to readjust it.

"That's a very bold move," he commented. "I approve."

He commenced moving his left Elephant.

I lost another two rounds. It wasn't the loss that irked me, but the ridiculous grin on his face every time he knocked out one of my pieces.

Frustrated, I leaped to my feet. "I don't want to play anymore."

Bowen leaned back and smirked. "I didn't expect a noble lady like you to give up so easily."

"I'm tired," I snapped. "I've spent my entire day training and being ordered around by Wulin, and now I'm forced to play chess with the narcissistic second prince."

"Training?" Bowen gazed at me, like a cat who'd caught a mouse. "What training?"

If he was expecting me to tell him what Wulin was training me for, he wasn't going to get any answers.

"Wulin is training me to brew tea the Imperial way," I said.

Bowen's voice grew chilly. He put down his chess piece. "Is that so?"

"Yes," I said with confidence. "The crown prince wishes that I become the best tea brewer in his court."

Bowen swept the wooden chess pieces into a velvet bag and drew the cords. "I never took my brother for one who is so obsessed with tea, he would make off with one of my slaves and then teach her to brew tea."

Wulin's voice was clear in my head. Bowen is not to be trusted.

"Maybe you don't know him at all," I said.

Bowen stood up.

"Or maybe I know him too well."

The second prince left the table without another word.

He'd left one of his chess pieces on the table, bottom side up. I picked it up and turned it over. The harsh red of a Pawn stared back at me.

I tightened my fingers around the rounded wooden piece. Whatever game the two princes were playing, it was insidious. Bowen was lurking around Wulin's court at all times, seemingly to pop up whenever convenient. Wulin was extremely wary of his brother. Both wanted the throne, and each for their own reasons.

But what worried me more was that Bowen had never worn that pendant. He was always in his bedclothes, and I couldn't shake the image of him teetering side to side, then pinning me against the wall. It was as if all the care in the world had fled him and all that was left was pure human gluttony. Was the pendant a move of aggression, to show me the power of Zhennan Court and the glory of his sigil?

My feet found their way toward the bank of the pond. I watched the breeze prise the water apart, rippling its once mirror-smooth surface. I drew back my hand and threw the Pawn into the water. There was a soft plop as the wood contacted the water, then it sank.

"What are you doing here?"

I jumped, startled as Wulin appeared next to me. He was still decked in his midnight-blue dinner robes, the wind rippling the soft fabric.

"I'm just thinking."

"Thinking?" Wulin mused. "About what?"

"The meaning of life," I dished out random things. "Why is the moon silver, and why are there no lotuses in this pond?"

"I don't like lotuses," Wulin said.

But I loved lotuses. "Why?"

"Are you familiar with the story of the Lotus Lantern?"

I'd heard the story about a million times. It was my favorite.

"It is High Immortal Yangtan's magical artifact," I said. "The Lotus Lantern is powerful enough to split a mountain into two, and it was given to her son as keepsake. Ever since he started roaming the earth, no one has heard of him or the lantern ever since."

"Yes," said Wulin. "The power of the Lotus Lantern was too alluring. Many humans and High Immortals tried to claim it as their own, and every attempt ended in a blood bath. Power is corruption, regardless of the intention. I don't want anything to do with the Lotus and Lantern and its dark history."

He held my hand. "Do you believe in the High Immortals, my dearest escort?"

"I do," I said.

"Then, do you believe in the High Demons?"

"The bane of the High Immortals, destructors of the world," I replied. "Yes, I do."

"Have you ever wondered who wrote the Immoralist Lores?"

"The High Immortals whispered their stories into the ears of storytellers. Then, every story was compiled into one great tome."

Wulin's face was grim. "All stories are written by the victors. The High Demons fought to be the High Immortals' equal, as they were indeed their counterpart. There would be no day without night, and no night without day. Yet, the High Immortals suppressed the High Demons."

He flung out his arms, seeming to embrace the entire scenery, letting go of my hand.

"You of all people should know the struggle for equality. The powerful get more powerful, and the weak grow weaker. The world has been unbalanced for too long."

"And you will be the one to restore that balance?" I asked. "You are the second most powerful man in Erden. Would you give up that power for the sake of others?"

"I was almost stabbed in the heart because someone else wanted my power. Power is a double-edged sword. It can kill others, and it can kill you."

"Yet, you require my service to win the throne," I said. "Is that what balance looks like in your view, my prince? One gets the authority, and the rest crumble under that very power?"

"Hand a master swordsman a double-edge sword and he will tame the blade. Hand a fool a double-edged sword, and he will impale himself. Who would you help, my dear escort? The master swordsman or the fool?"

I tilted my head back and met his eyes. "Who do you think I will help?"

A small smile tugged Wulin's lips. "You're starting to think and speak like an Imperial."

"I learned from the best."

"Indeed," Wulin said. "However, my dear escort. I'm not here to speak riddles. There's a public execution tomorrow. I want you present with me."

My blood ran cold. "A public execution?"

"My suspected assassin broke free from the Imperial dungeon. You know the law—escapees must be executed publicly as a warning to the other prisoners not to attempt such foolishness."

Just like the little boy when I returned to the Jade City.

No. No.

I clenched my hands to hide the trembling.

"Who is it?" My voice was barely a whisper as I tried to suppress the bile rushing up to my mouth.

"A boy. I don't remember what he looked like. I only saw him once when he was performing."

Wulin's words were violent slaps to my face.

Not Biyu. Anyone but Biyu.

"Dress your finest tomorrow," Wulin said. "I'll see you at eight rays bells in the morning."

Wulin escorted me back to my chambers. Along the way, I kept silent.

There must be a way I could save him. I couldn't kill Wulin now, it would be too obvious. I needed that perfect moment where Wulin was unarmed, his guard lowered, and his entire trust in my palm before I could kill him. The only time Wulin was unarmed and not surrounded by Imperials and his guards was when he retired to bed. There was no way I could break Biyu out of the Imperial dungeons as well. If I so much as expose any link between me and Zichuan Theater, Wulin would arrest me.

"Have a good rest." He kissed me on the forehead before he left.

I paced about my chamber. I had to see Biyu. Everyone in the Palace knew me as Wulin's escort, they wouldn't dare stop me if I wanted to see a prisoner. However, they could speak. Soldiers may seem loyal, but they were all mercenaries, just like the ones Gui bribed but later killed. Given enough gold, they would do anything.

I grabbed a handful of gold pins from my dresser, threw my cloak around my shoulders, drew the hood, and sneaked out of the court.

A guard was stationed at the court gate. He was a big man. His thick mustache was menacing enough to make anyone think twice before crossing him.

I crouched, picked up a rock from a vase, and chucked it across the gravel path.

The rock clattered and came to a standstill.

The guard's head shot up and drew his sword. "Who's there?"

I held my breath as he peered right and left.

Come on, move!

I threw another rock. This time, the guard blundered off in the opposite direction.

I drew to my feet and ran out of the gate. The Imperial dungeons were at the outskirts of the Jade Palace, as no architect in their right minds would build a place of criminals near the Imperials. I took several turns, ducked behind pillars as maids and guards walked past, grumbling about their shifts before I reached the iron grills of the Imperial dungeons.

I took down my hood and approached the two soldiers at the grill.

"Good evening, gentlemen."

The soldiers immediately knelt and bowed their heads. "Lady Qara."

"I wish to see a prisoner," I said in a calm, steely voice I'd heard Wulin used countless times—the tone of the Imperials.

"I'm afraid visiting hours are over, my lady," the first guard said.

"You dare defy the orders of the crown prince's escort?" I fumed.

"We wouldn't dare!" the guard said, his head still bowed. "The crown prince specifically ordered that no one is allowed into the dungeons after dusk."

"What if I possessed an incentive?" I stretched out my hand. The two gold pins glistened on my palm. "I believe you two have families and mouths that need feeding. The wage of a foot-soldier is hardly enough to feed one, am I not right?"

The soldiers shared a look.

"But the crown prince will execute us if he finds out," the second soldier said in a small voice.

"In that case, if I were you, I wouldn't breathe a word." I smiled and placed the pins in the first soldier's hand.

The first soldier moved aside. "Be quick, my lady."

I went down the dungeons. At once, I was hit in the face by the stench of human feces and rotting bodies. I gagged, then placed a sleeve over my mouth and nose.

I scanned the cells one by one. Grim, dirty faces stared back at me. Bony hands reached for me.

"Save us," an elderly woman pleaded. "My daughter and I are innocent. We were never spies for Oghul-Qaisah."

"Kill me," begged another man. "I don't want to live anymore."

Their cries and pleads tore my heart. I wanted to kneel down and clasp their hands, to tell them that everything was alright. I was the crown prince's escort, I would do anything in my power to ensure their safety. But those were nothing but false hope and empty promises.

"I'm sorry," I whispered. "I'm so sorry."

There was no way these sorry souls behind rusty bars were capable of heinous crimes. The Imperials and the nobles had the authority to incarcerate whoever they deemed to be guilty. Wulin was right. Power corrupted, and it was a blade that hacked and slew everything in its path.

I passed corridor after corridor, counted tens of cells. I sank deeper into the labyrinth of cages, trying to find Biyu.

Finally, I entered a clearing isolated from the other cells.

In the middle of the clearing was a large rectangular cage. Hanging from thick chains in the cage was Biyu. His upper body was bare, bloodied, and mangled. His head hung in a weird angle, covered in bruises and gashes. His long hair was matted and mixed with crusted blood. The sight of my closest friend hanging from the rafters like an animal for slaughter broke my heart.

I threw myself against the cage.

"Biyu, can you hear me?"

Biyu stirred. He lifted his head and stared at me with his bloodshot eyes.

He scoffed. "Using a woman to seduce me into confessing. That's a new low."

"Nobody sent me to seduce you." My voice cracked. "I'm here to see you."

Biyu grabbed his chains and swung around. "Do I know you?"

Yes, you do, silly. I'm Sarna.

"No," I choked out the words. "I want to save you."

Biyu spat. "What if I don't want to be saved?"

"You're about to be executed. What do you mean you don't want to be saved?"

"My only friend is dead," he hissed. "What is there to live for? I escaped for a reason. I wanted to die. Now, leave me be in my misery."

No, no, no! This was all my fault. If I hadn't asked Gui to tell the theater I was dead, he wouldn't have tried to escape. I knew Biyu was a stubborn person, but this was beyond radical.

"You listen to me. I'm going to stop your execution. You're not going to die."

Biyu scoffed again. "As if the crown prince would let that happen."

"The crown prince isn't who you assumed to be," I said. "He's not like the other Imperials. He wants to free us."

Biyu laughed, swinging violently from his chains. "He has poisoned your mind."

"He did not," I said. "I'm his escort."

"This is why you're poisoned," Biyu said. "You've been at his side for so long, you're blind to the world."

I stared at him, shocked. The Biyu I knew was a rock-infatuated, gentle boy who wouldn't even harm a fly. This person in chains was not Biyu.

I did this to him. I had turned him into a walking corpse.

Hot tears cascaded down my cheeks. They burned.

"I'm getting you out of here," I growled. "To the High Immortals I swear it."

"Whatever." Biyu closed his eyes. "I'm tired. You're bothering my beauty sleep. I need to look my best for my execution tomorrow."

I took one last look at his sunken eyes and broken body before I left.

I wished I had never gone to see him.