The Assassin and the Emperor

Chapter 2 : Two

"Can you prove that you'll let me live after the birth of a child?" the assassin made a dying attempt, "How do you guarantee?"

"I can't guarantee that all you can believe is the emperor's credibility." The emperor gave him a deep look. "But even if you regret it, at least you can tell them that the 'Great Conqueror' is a male and female monster. And that you fucked him."

This was the last straw, blood rushed to his head, and then rushed down. Before the assassin could make a decision, his hand had already went forward. The emperor's skin was more delicate than any other woman he had touched, like a piece of condensed milk, and the assassin's rough hands slid all the way from his chest to his lower abdomen, as if stroking silk. Once he got closer to the emperor, the assassin smelled the emperor's faint scent, not powdery, but a mixture of ink and incense. He felt that his teeth and hands were itching, and a destructive desire was burning in his heart, making him want to crush something.

The nightgown fell to the ground, the assassin's tightened fingers almost left a bruise on the emperor's shoulder, and his other hand came in-between the emperor's legs. There was indeed something there, you could touch the hot and tender entrance by opening the seam guarded by soft lips and pressing down with your thumb. The thighs under the palm of his hand abruptly tensed, and the emperor suddenly said something.

The assassin was immersed in desire and lust, and only after the emperor repeated it once more did his head finally register the meaning of the noise: "Go to bathe".

"Go take a bath." The emperor said, "You don't need to call someone, there's a bathroom inside and I'll go in with you. It's next to the dark shelf on the right of the door, which can be opened by just pulling the handle. The bathroom provides hot water all day long. The room is fully equipped, and there's also a small refrigerator and some snacks. If you like the wine we just drank, there's also..."

The emperor didn't look at him while he was speaking, but looked straight ahead, his expression blank as if he was wearing a mask- now he looked more like that majestic portrait. His tense muscles haven't relaxed, and a layer of goosebumps formed on his skin. Just now, the assassin didn't respond, his movements kept on and the emperor kept talking.

Was there something in the bathroom? In this moment, it would be too abrupt to not be a trap. Who'd be fooled? The assassin thought reflexively.

After a while, he realised.

Even if he always claimed to be a "dying man", the emperor never really planned to die. He wanted to live, probably more than anyone else. He wasn't as calm as it seemed, and what he was willing to pay for survival, what he was surrendering, his body and the secret of his body, wasn't a bargaining chip that could be simply thrown out. Even for the emperor, it was precious.

This realization allowed the assassin's evil desires to cool slightly, and a little pity vaguely formed.

He nodded, and the emperor immediately stood up, walking over to the shelf and opening the door. There was a short corridor there and at the end of the corridor was another door. The emperor instructed him to hang his clothes on a hanger outside the door. Steam wafted from the second door and the assassin followed him in, almost thinking that he had come to a hot spring.

"A group of servants boil water to serve you at all times," was already the limit to a civilians' imagination of luxury bathhouses but there was actually no one in the royal bathhouse. The bath was as big as a swimming pool, and water flowed from the mouth of the stone griffon carving constantly, injecting a steady stream of hot water into the pool. He didn't know what spice exuded the pleasant smell, there must've been a secret vent somewhere which served as a distraction to not make people feel dull while keeping warm. The bathroom was misty and it was hard to imagine that this was still inside the palace.