Chapter 5

Fiery claws unfurled and grasped at the walls, lighting them an otherworldly pink and orange. Everything was muffled under an ugly gray. The skin on Yin's eyelids were taut against its fiery sting and flakes of dust.

When the smoke cleared, she saw two figures. A woman kneeled on the top of a hill next to a man holding an ax.

Yin's breath caught in her throat at the familiarity of the scene. The woman's once neatly styled hair was in tangles after weeks spent in the palace dungeons. The skin around her eyes was red, swelling with hot tears that ran down her porcelain colored cheeks. Shredded patches in her robes revealed patches of bruised skin along her arms and legs.

"MingYue." It was a name she hadn't called in a while. The syllables weighed on her tongue, stumbling over each other awkwardly.

"Traitor." MingYue glared back at her.

She repeated the phrase in increasing volume until her voice was hoarse from screaming.

The man next to her picked up his ax, swinging it back and aiming for her neck.

"No!" Yin tried to sprint towards the pair, but her legs were frozen in place.

MingYue let out a shrieking cry as her face contorted with anguish, promptly cut off by the metallic scrape of the ax completing its motion.

Her severed head rolled onto the grass with a thump.

Yin looked down, her eyes widening with horror as she realized when she saw her hands that had, without notice, become slick with newly splattered blood.

The man had disappeared, leaving her alone with MingYue. She was holding the ax now, her knuckles white against the maplewood handle.

Red filled her vision as she sank to the ground. She dropped the weapon and stared at the lifeless body in front of her, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Dirty traitor." MingYue's voice echoed in her ears.

Yin awoke with a start, her forehead slick with sweat. For a moment, she lay still in the remnants of the nightmare. She hadn't dreamed of the former Zhao empress in weeks, mistakenly believing that her insomnia had been somewhat cured. She should've known better.

She rose from her bed and slipped into a thin robe. Moonlight spilled into her chamber, coloring blotches of her room a tranquil gray.

She made her way to the west courtyard, the stone path cool against her feet. The moon was in full view now, its silvery glow turning the waters into a tapestry of brightness shrouded by the shadows of neary vegetation.

Yin sighed, undoing her hair ribbon and allowing her hair to fall to her waist. The subtle aroma of blooming jasmine flowers from the gardens comforted her as she trained her eyes on the landscape.

It had been three years, but the memory of her own betrayal haunted her since. She had befriended MingYue in the early days of the coup, using their relationship to siphon off information on the previous dynasty. While her execution had been inevitable, it was a sight she would give anything to forget.

The night air could only provide temporary comfort for her mental anguish. However, temporary was all she could afford right now. No matter what pain she felt for MingYue, Kai's throne came first, and all would be in vain should a war with the Li ensue.

This worry was partially why she was in the West palace. Of course, she had her own courtyard. But it wouldn't hurt to walk a few moments more to the one near the Li envoy's chambers. If they were doing anything suspicious, it would be good for her to be closeby.

It wasn't spying per se, simply well intended surveillance.

The Li emperor was friendly enough, but something seemed...off. Doubt settled in her stomach. Friendliness and insincerity could, and did, exist in the court. On the other hand, his brother Prince Li was anything but friendly. With an air of detachment and icy composure, he didn't seem to want anything to do with the diplomatic trip he had come to attend. She felt the inexplicable urge to irritate him, or at least prod at him.

He ate the fish though.

She smiled. She didn't know why, but she was proud of the small gesture. He might have eaten it only to clear his plate, but she was happy to tell herself that it wasn't insignificant, even if it meant living in delusion.

Suddenly, her senses latched onto a shuffle on the opposite side of the bridge.

Yin unsheathed her sword as a shadow flickered by. The cool summer breeze teased against the skin on her back when she turned around to face her opponent. Her sword slashed through the fabric of his robe, exposing a section of rippled muscle on his abdomen.

She raised her sword again but caught herself when the man's face came into view.

"Prince Li." Her eyes widened.

Prince Li arched an eyebrow. Like Yin, he was also underdressed, with only his night robe and a pair of slippers on. The light fabric of his robe cascaded down to the floor and draped over his pale shoulders. Blue and purple bags hung under his eyes as his lips downturned in an obvious frown. However weary he was, there was still a regal air about him. Perhaps it was how annoyingly shiny his hair was.

"We should really stop meeting–" She said, securing her sword back at her side.

"I agree." He said, cutting her off as he clutched the two severed pieces of his robe together.

"...under such violent circumstances." Yin finished her sentence in mild annoyance.

"Regardless," She changed the subject. "Why are you out and about so late?"

"I heard something while sleeping." He stared her straight in the eye. "I came out to see if there was a Jiang spy outside my door."

"I hope you're not accusing me of spying on you." Yin scoffed. "I'm hardly dressed for the part."

"Something tells me that attire wouldn't matter for you." Prince Li said dryly.

"Well it does." She frowned. "I'm offended you would think such things of me."

"So what were you doing then, Princess?"

"I needed some air."

"I'm sure the air in the East palace is just as adequate." Prince Li said, revealing his suspicions.

Yin had hoped that he wouldn't notice the small but obvious distance between their chambers. Unfortunately, it seemed his prior disinterest didn't mean a lack of observation skills. She made a mental note to be more wary of him from now on.

"I like walking mindlessly." Yin replied. "Just like you that day at Beilan market."

Prince Li paused, the silence between them almost palpable. A small breeze whistled past, lifting up tiny strands of his hair, illuminating them under the silver moonlight.

"I'll ask you again." She folded her arms while breaking the silence. "You pretend that we haven't met before. Why is that?"

"I suppose," He slowly tilted his head to the side. "It's the same reason why you pretend not to know how to wield a sword."

A smile tugged at the corners of her lips. The Prince managed to both annoy and entertain her at the same time—quite a rare combination.

"It seems neither of us will get the answers we want tonight." He added.

"We should part ways." She said, deciding it was simply not worth it to sacrifice more sleep to bicker with the irritating man before her.

"Indeed."

"Let me know if you need anything in the future." Yin smiled pointedly, the fabric of her robe dipping as she bowed. "You're welcome in the East palace anytime."

Their eyes locked in a tense, unyielding gaze. Tree branches bristled as the wind brushed past them, leaves lightly scraping against one another as crickets chirped in the distance. Yin studied his features, briefly tracing her eyes along the contours of his face before returning to his eyes.

His expression was unreadable as he looked back at her.

"Noted." He finally replied. "Goodnight, Princess."