~~~

The Palace of the Storm Dragon is wrong.

Most would not think so. Despite the state of the country, the palace still looks like a place fit for royalty. Lushly decorated rooms with priceless antiques. Long marble halls with black banners lined with gold hanging from the walls. Multiple floors and several adjacent buildings for court officials and servants. It is not as well kept as it should be due to a lack of personnel, but that is ultimately of little consequence. This is not a place that receives many visitors, and trying to maintain the palace grounds in any way is a fool’s errand.

The Grand Storm outside makes sure of that.

The palace is under a never-ending storm that stretches for several miles. The flash of lightning and the roar of thunder are constant companions to the people living here. Many would find it nerve-wracking, but that is not the case for her. The Grand Storm is merely an oddity. Its manifestation should happen only during emergencies as opposed to being constantly present, but it does belong here.

The Grand Storm is not what is wrong.

The Palace of the Storm Dragon is wrong at a fundamental level. It is not simply a matter of the palace having deteriorated since the Black Storm Dragon vanished (or so they tell her). Rather, the palace, down to its very foundations, should be larger and more majestic than the one she currently inhabits.

Su Daji does not know how she knows this, yet the certainty with which she feels it cannot be denied.

A frown mars her beautiful face. A passing-by servant, likely having heard the stories, quickly moves out of her way and rushes down the hallway.

What a stupid girl.

If Su Daji were in the mood for it, she could consider that an insult. However, she merely keeps walking, her steps echoing across the empty halls. She is not in the mood for that type of fun. She rarely is nowadays.

Her frown deepens.

It is all the transfer’s fault.

She was too eager. That much, she can admit. This body is compatible with her, but it is not natural compatibility. Not through bloodline and talent but rather through-

Boss!

… other means. Still, is there anyone who can blame her for seizing the opportunity presented to her? Who knows how much more she’d have to wait for someone else to appear? That had been her thinking, but...

Who even is she now?

Su Daji.

The name comes naturally to her. She is Su Daji. She can be no one else.

She is unsure if Su Daji is a name she has ever used before.

Su Daji knows things. She understands things. However, her actual memories are like water constantly slipping through her fingers. Nothing but flashes, sounds, and blurred images. There will be times when she can see them clearly only to forget them in mere seconds.

It is maddening.

With all her memories, she’d have already regained her glory. She is sure of it. Even in her diminished state, she has gained access to the Storm Dragon Palace. This is where she needs to be because… because…

She is Su Daji.

She will rise again.

“Lady Su, I did not expect to see you in this part of the palace.”

The voice roots her to the spot. A single breath passes before she turns around.

“Good Morning, General He,” she says. Her bow is without flaw as it rightly should be.

Shouldn’t it?

“This little miss was merely taking a walk. Should she not have?” She asks, well aware there are not many people in this wing of the palace. The one servant who crossed her path is doubtlessly far away now. She might have even warned the other servants to stay away.

It is only her and General He here.

General He is a man with pale skin and green eyes that match the color of his hair. His face is rugged but not overly so. His build is properly heroic. Many of the women at court swoon over him, and not just for his looks. The black and gold armor he wears marks him as one of the Three Heavenly Generals of the Storm Dragon Empire.

“It is not forbidden,” the general replies. “However, Lady Su may lose her way exploring this area on her own.” He sighs with sadness. “I am afraid the palace is not what it once was. These halls were once filled with life, but many areas now go unused.”

It is amazing.

His tone. His posture. Even his Qi. All of them are perfectly chosen to make him seem trustworthy. To make her forget this man is in the Emperor Realm.

The loyal general, they call General He. He is a hero in the eyes of the Emperor’s court. However, something about him has always unsettled Su Daji. From the moment she first laid eyes on him, she knew she couldn’t trust him no matter what.

The scent lingering on him is disgustingly familiar.

“How sad,” she says with the right amount of sorrow in her voice. “Still, this little miss has no need to worry about getting lost now that General He is here. A lady could hardly ask for a better bodyguard.”

He laughs. “You flatter me, Lady Su.”

“However,” she adds at just the right time, “this little miss is surprised. I thought for sure General He would still be out pacifying the border territories. What is he doing here instead?”

Border territories. A misleading name for an unfortunate problem. The term refers not to the Storm Dragon Empire’s borders with other countries but to the areas in between the territories controlled by the Three Heavenly Generals. They are lawless zones where bandits roam. When a bandit group grows too powerful, the generals take time out of their constant fighting to pacify them.

General He frowns. A lesser lady would have thought he looked handsome like that as well. The perfect image of a hero burdened by duty.

“Unfortunately, it seems that wild beast got there before us.”

There is no need for him to elaborate. Who else but Murong Bang is worthy of such a name?

“General Murong has been rather successful lately,” Su Daji points out. “Too successful.”

“Lady Su should not worry about such things,” General He reassures her. “Murong Bang is a wild beast and little more. His ambition is of small consequence.”

And yet, Murong Bang is one of the three major powers in the empire.

“Dealing with beasts like him is my duty and that of the army. Lady Su simply has to soothe the court with her music. The prince quite enjoys it. I thought for sure Lady Su would be at his side right now.”

Soothe the court with her music. Something about that strikes her as darkly funny, yet there is no denying she is the court musician of the Storm Dragon Palace.

Su Daji came out of that cave with two goals in mind: power and luxury. She wandered the wilderness for weeks before she came across a populated area. From there, it was all too simple. Men could never deny her anything.

This body was pretty enough before she got a hold of it, but the merge brought it to another level. The plain hair from before is now long, lustrous, and violet. Her eyes are alluring purple orbs that men find themselves helplessly drawn into. Her figure, which was already quite shapely, is now nothing short of divine.

She is Su Daji. A more perfect beauty than her cannot exist. The path she took to the Palace of the Storm Dragon is lined by the bodies of foolish men. Once she gained an audience with the imperial court, her skill with music and dance did the rest. She was made court musician on the spot.

“The prince does not need me by his side all the time,” she replies with ease. “In fact, he wishes to be alone right now.”

A lie. The prince is besotted with her.

The father is too busy jumping at ghosts to risk becoming involved with her, and Su Daji is not so foolish as to try to enthrall him. The son, however, requires no such effort or risk. She can feel his eyes on her while she plays. It would be so easy to become princess. She knows she has done it before, yet she has not even deigned to let him lay a single finger on her.

The prince is wrong too.

The eyes are the wrong shade of red. The hair is not dark enough. His smile is too wide. His brain is not quick enough. His judgment is lacking. His daring is lacking. Everything about him is lacking. It is all wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Wrongwrongwrongwrongwrongwrongwrongwrong-

“Lady Su?”

“Forgive me,” she says. There is no need to fake the affliction in her voice. She turns away and covers her face with one hand. “It seems this part of the palace does not agree with me.”

“Allow me to escort you back to your quarters then. It is no good for a woman to be alone in such an empty place.”

Su Daji is glad she is not looking at him when he says that. It makes it easier to hide her displeased expression.

“There is no need for that.”

A deep and rumbling voice echoes throughout the hallway. Dark clouds full of lightning manifest between them, making Su Daji and General He take a step back. Thunder echoes as the clouds take on the shape of a dragon with long horns and red eyes.

The eyes are the right shade of red.

“Great Old One!” The general immediately drops to his knees. Su Daji does the same. “You grace us with your presence.”

“Stand,” the deep voice says. “General He, you have yet to report to the Emperor. That should be your priority.”

“Of course, Great Old One,” General He says as he stands up. He glances at Su Daji.

The dragon snorts. The sound is the rumbling of a coming storm.

“You believe she could come to harm in my presence?”

“Of course not!” The general bows his head. “Forgive my insolence! I shall do as you command and present myself before the Emperor, Great Old One.”

He gives Su Daji a slight nod before leaving. The girl and the dragon stare at each other until even the echoes of the general’s footsteps have faded away.

“Fox, you wander in where you are not wanted.”

Fox. Su Daj shivers. The name feels right. It feels proper.

It feels Divine.

“I apologize for causing you undue trouble, Great Old One,” she says with reverent submission. In front of this creature, there is nothing else left to do.

Why have the various powers within the empire not deposed the Emperor?

Why does the Grand Storm exist?

Why is it not one of the Three Heavenly Generals who sit on the throne?

The answer to those questions is one and the same. Because the Divine Storm Dragon exists. The shadow of the Divine Progenitor of the Qing Dynasty lingers within the palace. He is the Fist of the Emperor. The Guardian of the Dynasty. So long as he exists, no one without Qing blood can move against the Emperor.

The power of the Divine Storm Dragon is not absolute. It can only act on places covered by the Grand Storm. Outside of that, it is the Three Heavenly Generals who rule. Not that it matters to Su Daji. She lives within the palace.

It is the Divine Storm Dragon who rules over her.

“An apology. From you. How novel.”

Su Daji flinches. From the moment the Divine Storm Dragon first appeared before her, he has made it clear he knows who she is. He knows and is content to hold the knowledge over her head.

“If you find me so objectionable,” she says, “Why not throw me out of the palace?”

The Divine Storm Dragon laughs.

“This is not a henhouse, Fox. To catch a young dragon, bait of a proper sort is required. You shall do.”

~~~