TW: attempted SA
The referee blew his horn, and the final match of the tournament began.
Everyone in the stands watched with bated breath as the two finalists drew their weapons, this time with Shoya having traded in his bamboo flute for a proper sword. At least he decided to have some common sense today, Yuehwa thought to herself. The sword in his hand wasn't the one that they had found in the underground cavern though; it appeared to be an ordinary sword with a hilt wrapped in maroon leather, not the crystal hilt that she remembered.
Standing beside her, Princess Naying was anxiously biting at her fingernails, her heart rising up to her throat as she watched the fight ensue.
"It's so close," Naying whispered as she watched the two men fly across the courtyard, swords clashing in the air. Each time one of them jabbed their sword outwards, it would come almost within a centimetre of the other. It was almost a miracle that not a single drop of blood had been spilt since the start of this match.
Yuehwa was studying the match very carefully.
Over the past few days, she had been watching Baixun's moves, trying to figure out the pattern behind how his body and his sword moved in tandem. Based on what she was seeing of Shoya and Baixun's styles of combat right now, it just so happened that both of them seemed to be each other's natural adversary—every defensive move that Baixun made served to counter Shoya's offensive, and vice versa. So the match remained in a deadlock.
An hour later, the sun had risen high in the skies and spectators were beginning to bear the brunt of the sweltering heat. Still, there seemed to be no end to this fight. People were getting restless, shuffling about in their seats trying to stop their legs from getting numb.
"What's going on?" Naying leaned over and asked. "Is this ever going to end?" If there was someone who would know the answer, it would be the Phoenix, because if she were to enter the arena there was no saying who might emerge victorious.
Yuehwa frowned. Based on her assessment, this match was no longer about skill; it was about stamina and endurance. If the two of them were immortal and could never tire then it could well go on forever, but they weren't and that meant that whoever had the ability to hang on the longest would eventually win. That automatically put Baixun at the advantage.
To be honest Yuehwa didn't mind Baixun winning. After all, she didn't want the princess to have to marry the crown prince of Feng, who seemed to be an arrogant arsehole in her shallow opinion, on top of being the princess's first cousin. Still, that didn't stop her from sucking in her breath several times when she saw the tip of Baixun's sword get dangerously close to Shoya.
"That idiot is going to get himself killed. Does he need to go this far?" she muttered under her breath.
"Look at the both of them, they're so evenly matched!" Lady Kang's voice called out, clapping her hands together in delight. "Who do you think will win, Your Majesty?"
The king chuckled, looking pleased with how things were unfolding. "It doesn't matter. Whoever wins, Naying will still get herself a fine husband! With men as brave as these under their wing, both Feng and Gi are in good hands."
"At the rate they're going, what if one of them injures the other?" the king's concubine asked, feigning a worried expression. "It wouldn't be good if either one of the princes' representatives were injured by the other, would it?"
"Don't worry about it, my lady," the prince of Feng replied dismissively. "If my representative gets wounded then he only has himself to blame for being incompetent, but I don't think that will happen." He tossed Maroo a confident smirk, his glee only increasing even further when he saw how pale and worried the latter seemed to be.
Yuehwa hated this idle chatter that was going on around her. Nobody here truly meant a thing that they were saying, their voices all dripping with hypocrisy. It reminded her of why she hated the royal courts, because it was almost impossible to hear a genuine voice amidst the noise. Picking up a winter melon seed from the bowl that was on the side table, she flicked it hard in the direction of the prince of Feng, snorting when she saw him wince in surprise as it hit him right on the knee.
Serves him right, arrogant jerk.
Now that she had the opportunity to observe him up close, she thought she could see the slightest trace of family resemblance between him and Shoya. They had the same broad shoulders and ridiculously sharp nose bridges, but beyond that there was little else. Temperament-wise, she could hardly believe that they could be brothers.
While all the guests continued with their small talk, the two men carried on with their clash of swords. Neither could find a way to break through the other's defenses, and with every move it was becoming evident that Shoya's strength was gradually fading. Even the once confident smirk on the face of the prince of Feng had faded away, replaced instead by a frown of displeasure.
From behind her mask, Yuehwa's gaze momentarily met Shoya's, and in that instant when Shoya's concentration wavered, Baixun seized the opportunity to strike. The tip of his sword aimed straight for Shoya's chest. Yuehwa's eyes widened as she watched the sword continue inching closer towards Shoya's heart, knowing that he wouldn't be able to dodge in time. In that split second, she caught the ever subtle twitch of his left hand.
"Stop!" she suddenly shouted, her voice ringing out across the entire arena. At that very same moment, something small struck Shoya against his left wrist. He immediately stopped what he was about to do, looking down at the inconspicuous winter melon seed lying on the ground.
Everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to look at her, perplexed by the sudden command. Baixun instinctively withdrew his hand, just in time stop his blade barely millimetres away from Shoya's chest. All eyes were on her, waiting for what she would say next.
"Is something the matter, my dear?" the king frowned and asked.
Clearing her throat to buy herself some time to think of what to say next, Yuehwa tried her best to imitate the princess's voice, saying, "I think this match is over. It's already clear who the winner is, isn't it? There's no need to fight till the end, everyone is tired and the heat is getting unbearable."
The prince of Feng immediately burst out in indignation, "But the match isn't over. The rules of the tournament state that the match is only over when one party is unable to continue fighting, but that hasn't happened yet."
"I don't see the point in continuing," Yuehwa replied coldly. "Gi has won. This tournament is being held in my name, and I do not wish to have it tainted by bloodshed."
The king laughed, standing up from his seat and announcing loudly, "The princess is right, everyone can see that Gi has emerged victorious! Even if we continued, the outcome would still be the same, so instead of putting everyone through this unbearable heat, I declare that the annual sparring championships has come to a close. This year's champion is the representative from Gi!" Turning to the prince of Feng, the king said, "Your champion fought valiantly, but alas there can only be one winner."
In turn, he said to Maroo, "With such promising talent under your charge, I am convinced that Gi will continue to flourish. We will see to the arrangements for the royal wedding immediately. Send word to your father that I am most pleased to have his son as part of my family."
Yuehwa shook her head. It was obvious what the king's agenda was from his choice of words. To him, he wasn't intending to marry off a daughter—he was planning to gain a son and a valuable ally. Between Dahai and Gi, he had already made it quite clear who called the shots in this soon-to-be partnership.
To everyone's surprise, Maroo stood up and bowed deferentially to the king, saying, "Your Majesty, I thank you for your compliments on behalf of my prince."
"On behalf of your prince?"
Maroo descended down the steps from the grandstand onto the courtyard, kneeling down in front of Baixun. "Your Highness," he said, bowing his head down.
"Your Majesty," Baixun looked up and smiled, "I offer my sincere apologies for this, but my father would hear nothing of me participating in the tournament personally and so I had no choice but to masquerade under a different identity in order to do so. I hope you will not hold it against me."
"You are the crown prince of Gi?" the king arched his eyebrows, studying the young man carefully from head to toe. For a moment, everyone wondered what would happen to this insolent prince for having dared deceive the king. It wasn't until the king threw his head back and laughed that everyone heaved a sigh of relief. "Of course not, why would I? I couldn't be more pleased to have you as a son! Dahai and Gi will have nothing to fear with you leading the charge."
Baixun turned his gaze towards Yuehwa, that warm and radiant smile still stretching across his face. "Your Highness," he said, bowing politely.
Yuehwa was perhaps the only person in the entire arena who wasn't surprised at the sudden turn of events. Beside her, the real Princess Naying was beyond herself with excitement. Sensing that the princess was about to act out of character, Yuehwa leaned sideways and hissed, "Could you please keep your excitement to yourself? Remember that we're still playing different roles. If you reveal yourself now, you're going to get the both of us into deep trouble. I take it you don't want me to poison the fellow anymore?"
Princess Naying nodded her head, then shook her head, smiling from ear to ear beneath the veil. Yuehwa groaned. There was no talking sense with the smitten girl right now.
She got up to her feet and made her way slowly down towards Baixun, completing the congratulatory toast with the vial of poison tucked safely up her sleeve.
Lucky you, she thought as she held the golden chalice up to him. It was mildly disappointing though, not being able to see him writhe on the floor with red spots littering his face.
Her gaze slipped past his shoulder and landed upon Shoya, who had quietly retreated to the side. It looked like it was taking great effort for him to even remain on his feet.
You brought this upon yourself, she scolded silently.
"I'm tired, I'll head back to my chambers now," Yuehwa declared, turning to take her leave.
"Indeed!" the king replied. "You should get some rest before tonight's feast. Tonight we will celebrate your impending union with Prince Baixun of Gi!"
Yuehwa didn't even bother to reply. After all, it was not her union that the king was referring to. Lifting the hem of her heavy skirt, she started to walk away. She had come to Dahai to partake in the festivities of the annual sparring championships and she had already done that and a lot more. Now, she was bored, tired and annoyed.
#
Palace maids typically walked alongside the palanquins of royalty or nobility, but Princess Naying couldn't possibly be allowed to walk all the way back to her chambers under the scorching sun, whether or not she was dressed like a palace maid. Instead, she was escorted by her trusted attendants somewhere inconspicuous where she could step on board a separate palanquin and be carried back to her quarters.
To keep up with appearances, Yuehwa continued to ride ahead in her own palanquin, wondering to herself how anyone could wear such thick layers of clothing in this humid weather. Liquid gold or not, these clothes were absolutely unbearable.
Now that the princess is going to marry the man of her dreams, I suppose my job here is done, she thought to herself. If she hadn't intervened earlier, the princess's future husband might have been someone else altogether. She didn't know what Shoya had up his left sleeve, but she knew that it whatever it was, it would probably have ended in Baixun being stretchered away from the courtyard. The White Scorpion evidently had no qualms about playing dirty.
Where shall I go next?
Her thoughts drifted back to Shoya and what his intentions were in being here. She was curious about whether her speculations about his identity were correct, and about what the sword with the crystal hilt represented. There were so many questions in her mind, yet she somehow knew that she wasn't about to get any answers from Shoya anytime soon.
Lost in her own thoughts, she let the palanquin bearers continue plodding along their way, the steady rhythm of their footsteps pounding the stone pavement as they walked. It was a good thing she didn't need to walk, because she didn't think she would be capable of doing so while wearing such a tedious dress.
Perhaps it was the heat, or the sheer weight of the thoughts circling her mind, but her eyelids started to feel increasingly heavy until they slowly fluttered shut altogether.
When she awoke, Yuehwa found herself lying on a bed with her hands and feet bound by silk cords, her eyes blindfolded by a strip of black cloth. Alarmed, she tried struggling to free herself, but the knots were done up too tightly.
What the hell is going on?
The last thing she remembered was contemplating about her next steps in the palanquin, and the next she was here in this room. Her head felt exceedingly heavy, as if someone had pounded at it with a hammer, and the rest of her body felt incredibly weak.
She had fallen into someone's trap.
"Hello? Is anyone there? Let me go!" she called out, but all she could managed was a feeble whisper. "Ember? Are you there?" Whoever it was who had her kidnapped and brought here, he or she must have been out of their mind. They must have mistaken her for the princess, but once they found out that she was the Phoenix, none of them would live to see another day.
Minutes later, Yuehwa heard the door to the room creak open and the sound of footsteps enter the room.
"Who's there?"
The person walked over to the beside and sat down beside her, the bedframe creaking under the weight. She felt a hand caress her cheek, followed by someone's hot breath against her left ear. "Well this is an unexpected surprise. Don't worry, Princess, I'm not going to hurt you," a deep voice said. The voice felt awfully familiar, and she quickly searched through her mind to figure out who it was. "After today, you'll be mine. I won't let some other man have you."
"Let me go," she warned, although she could barely muster enough strength to speak. She could smell the subtle scent of some sort of frangipani fragrance in the air, and knew immediately that it was the reason why she felt so weak from head to toe.
"I'll be gentle," the voice said, and as he spoke, Yuehwa could feel his lips against her cheek. Her heart was racing in her chest, fearful for what was about to happen, yet she couldn't do anything to stop it. In all her life travelling the kingdoms, she had never been caught in such a helpless, vulnerable state before. This time, she had been a little too careless.
The next minute, she felt the man's hands untying the silk sash around her waist, a cold draught tickling her skin as he slowly undid the layers of her dress, leaving her shoulders bare. "Stop!" she tried to say, but the words were getting caught at the back of her throat. She could already feel the hot tears welling up in her eyes.
Help me, somebody, anybody...
Just then, it was as if the gods above answered her prayers. The door to the room was violently kicked open with a loud bang and her captor immediately shot upright, putting some much desired distance between them.
"What are you doing here!" she heard the man shout angrily. "Get out right now."
"You bastard," a familiar voice replied. He sounded perfectly calm, yet she could detect a tinge of anger in his cold tone. When she heard him speak, her heart leapt up with joy. She was saved.
Although she couldn't see what was going on, she could vaguely guess what was happening in the room with the sound of furniture being violently knocked around. The man who had tried to take advantage of her was shouting relentlessly, hurling abuse at the intruder, but there was never any chance of him winning to begin with. A while later, Yuehwa heard the sound of the doors swing shut, followed by her arms and legs being untied and the dreaded blindfold removed from her eyes.
"What took you so long!" she cried, throwing her arms around him and burying her head against his shoulder.
Shoya pulled her dress back up to her shoulders, wrapping it tightly around her so that she was no longer exposed. "I'm sorry, I should have gotten here sooner," he said softly. "I came as fast as I could when I saw Ember, but it still wasn't fast enough."
Perched up on the ceiling beams, Ember chirped sadly in response. When he saw that the palanquin was not following the path that it was supposed to, he immediately realised that something was wrong. The only problem was that Yuehwa was out cold as a result of the incense, so the only thing he could do was to search for help in the form of Shoya. He could only thank his lucky stars that they managed to get here in the nick of time, before any lasting damage could be done.
Shoya placed one arm round her shoulders, patting her back gently to soothe her nerves. He opened his mouth to say something, but then he closed it again. Instead, he sat there quietly by her side, letting her cry all the tears that she wanted to cry.
When she was done and her nerves had finally calmed down, she suddenly looked up with a fire blazing in her eyes as if she wanted to burn someone alive.
"Who was he?" she asked.
Because whoever he was, she was going to personally see to it that he regretted ever being born.