The last sliver of the sun vanished behind the towering walls of the Western Empire's palace. Moonlight painted the leaves in shades of bone and silver as two figures drifted among them.
Imperial soldiers stood in the front with burning torches and spears in their hands. When two figures on a horse came to view, the officers raised their weapons.
"Who goes there?" One of the soldiers commanded in a cold voice.
A middle-aged man with a long scrawny beard and dark hair dismounted from the horse. Staying on the horse was a youth dressed in white robes and a bamboo hat concealing their features. When the man approached, he stepped a few feet in front of the soldiers, his features composed.
"My master and I come bearing important information to your Emperor."
The officers shifted their eyes from the man to the figure on the horse, then back. "The Emperor is not expecting nor seeing anyone at the moment. Take your so-called master and leave."
Following those words, the figure sitting on the horse moved. Their white robes fluttered like soft rose petals as they landed gently on the ground. Stepping a few inches in front of the middle-aged man, they lowered their head.
The youth wore a bamboo hat, tan and nondescript. The night and pale moonlight made it hard to make out the face beneath.
"My subordinate and I understand we are coming during difficult times. Even if we can not see the Emperor, please relay a message to him. I assure you; it will be valuable information to the Emperor."
Studying the youth under a scrutinizing gaze, the officer's eyes narrowed. From the youth's form and way of speaking, he was no normal commoner. This made him even more suspicious.
"What's your message?" The soldier couldn't help but ask.
The youth's head tilted up a little. A faint smile could be seen twisting on their lips.
...
In the Western Empire's imperial palace study, a eunuch knocked on the door, only entering when he heard a man's grunt.
Entering, the eunuch found the Emperor hunched over a table by a window, surrounded by parchment scrolls that might have come from men in the frontlines and heavy leather-bound books with bronze and-iron hasps. Beeswax candles as thick and tall as a man's arm burned on either side of where he sat, on ornate iron holders.
"What is it?" The Emperor's tired but authoritative voice sounded through the room.
"Your Majesty, I apologize for seeking you while you're busy, but two men at the gates request an introduction." The eunuch closed the door behind him.
Emperor Guan Hong never looked up from his scrolls, dark circles beneath his eyes.
He sighed heavily. "Tell the guards to have them sent away. I do not have time for unwelcomed guests."
While nodding his head, the eunuch suddenly appeared hesitant for a moment before he spoke up again.
"Your Majesty, one of the men also asked that I relay a message to you."
At this, the Emperor finally elevated his head to stare at the eunuch across from him. Chin propped on his palm, he stared at him with a slight frown.
"And what is it he wishes to tell me?" He asked in a flat voice.
The eunuch stared at him uncertainly. "He says he's a strategist from the Northern Empire."
The moment the Emperor heard the words 'Northern Empire', the depths of his eyes darkened and a scowl bore on his clean-shaven face.
