Chapter 44

As for Achil? He remained silent, as if he hadn't existed. Thirty servants carrying a royal white dove stood in a line. The emperor picked up the first one and bent down so low that you could barely see what he was carrying. It was a comical scene, one that even the crown prince and the other princes didn't understand. Why was this old man seriously trying to make things difficult for a young girl?

The emperor began to raise his body. I didn't know. I didn't know what I should do! Should I miss them all? Or should I try after a few attempts? Or on the first try? But I didn't have the right to choose; my body moved willingly in a second, and I struck the white dove just as the emperor threw it into the sky.

I felt like I was hearing the melody of the end. I had done something I hadn't thought of for the first time. I looked directly at Achil, wondering if he would hate this violent girl as he cursed his family's violence every night.

Achil was smiling, amazed at the arrow fixed on the theater's wall and the splattering blood. That reassured me, and I smiled. Even if all of Hyan's people hated me, Achil shouldn't hate me.

I didn't have the privilege of reassurance, and quickly my gaze caught everyone's attention, starting with the emperor. He seemed shocked, but I didn't know what kind of shock he held. I couldn't see the crown prince, as he wasn't in his seat. So I didn't care about anyone else and just waited for the emperor's shock to subside.