Shui placed a steaming cup of tea in front of me while I stared blankly at the table. It felt too early to be awake, yet it was precisely the time I was meant to be having breakfast. My body ached from the exertion against the Blighted from the previous night.

“What are our plans for today?” I inquired, glancing toward Shui when he sat across from me. He looked much more awake than I felt.

“We should see to your training, then perhaps review what you recall of how the world works for talents such as us,” Shui offered with a smile. “You must have some knowledge, even if perhaps latent, otherwise you wouldn’t be able to control your abilities. You seem quite lucky in this regard, my lady.”

“Ah, and you were going to tell me more about Yahui.” I tilted my head in consideration.

“Yes…you wanted to know more of his arts and their effect on his well-being, yes?” Shui frowned, his gaze dropping slightly while he thought. When he met my eyes again, he looked determined. “My lady, I must ask that you do not attempt to pull him away from the darkness. There is no need to ‘rescue’ him.”

“You misunderstand,” I began, shaking my head, “I have no interest in ‘rescuing’ him. I’m curious as to how he became such a pure son of darkness. Furthermore, it seems prudent to learn more about the man who seems intent on keeping me confined to the palace.”

“His Imperial Majesty was not born into nobility, nor to darkness.” Shui swirled his tea cup in one hand. “Quite the contrary. His parents were peasants, and they were all light dragons. When Yahui was a child, a war broke out and the kingdom ruling this territory slew everyone in his village to make an example, and under the pretense of being ‘guided by the gods of light’ to commit this massacre.

“His Imperial Majesty barely survived. He swore vengeance and gave in to darkness that day. He felt that if light would commit such crimes against innocents, he wanted no affiliation with it. Thankfully for him, he had talent for dark arts. Far greater talent than he had for light.”

“A massacre…” I shook my head slowly. “In the name of light? When do people’s massacres or conquests ever come at the order of someone of the light? They’re just looking for false justification for their greed.”

“His Imperial Majesty never got his revenge against the ones who killed his village, as the culprits were humans,” Shui continued with a small sigh. “However, once he had grown enough and made allies while studying with his teacher, he wiped out the human kingdom and sent every remaining citizen to the surface. He claimed the emptied kingdom as his own and razed it to rebuild. As time passed and tensions throughout the continent grew, he took it upon himself to unite the nations.

“In a way, His Imperial Majesty is ‘holier’ than most disciples of light we have encountered. However, the same would be true if comparing him to disciples of darkness. His aptitude is unique. The sect he founded was with the hopes of nurturing and guiding those who share his affinity, so they are not harmed or corrupted by the arts they wield.”

“The darkness didn’t have to corrupt or twist him to gain him as an ally,” I murmured, resting back in my seat. “Instead, it found a kindred spirit—one formerly of light. I’m sure it was delighted to find company.”

Shui shot me an odd frown, but any inquiry was interrupted by the doors to my rooms slamming open. An unreadable Yahui stalked in and strode directly over to me.

“Mingzhu, finish your breakfast and get dressed. You are coming hunting with me.” Yahui turned to look at the bowing Shui next. “I want you to stay here and guard her rooms. Do not let anyone in.”

“Your Imperial Majesty…” Shui sighed but bowed deeper. “As you wish. I will make certain no one intrudes.”

“Hunting?” I asked, baffled. “I haven’t the faintest idea what sort of attire—”

“I will see to it, my lady.” Shui bowed to me next, then rose to his feet.

“Did you rest?” Yahui questioned.

“I did.” I began piling food onto my plate. “What are we hunting, and how will my presence not be a burden?”

“If you are a poor huntress there are other ways you can make yourself useful to me.” Yahui made a dismissive gesture. “Meet me in the courtyard when you are finished.”

With that, the emperor was gone as suddenly as he had arrived. I shifted to shoot Shui a baffled look. “What was all of that about?”

“Perhaps His Imperial Majesty means to test you…” Shui sighed and shook his head. “I do not know. His Imperial Majesty prefers to hunt alone. He must have some other reason for demanding your presence.

“Where he hunts is dangerous. Either he wishes to see how much training you need…or perhaps your experience last night made him curious. If your powers work well together, then he will wish to gauge your usefulness. His Imperial Majesty rarely finds people whom he can fight with in tandem. Those he can are already serving important roles in the empire and its territories.”

“Useful?” I rolled my eyes.

“Finding someone useful is as close to liking someone as you will see His Imperial Majesty display,” Shui remarked dryly as he returned to the table with a jeweled armlet in hand. “I’ve stored things for your trip inside here. When you’re done with breakfast, I will help you dress.

“Do you have additional orders for me while you’re away, my lady?”

“Try to enjoy yourself. You’ve been trying to read those books over there, right?” I glanced in the direction of his bed and then back at him. “I’m confident you can protect my rooms while also seeing to your own interests. You can’t do the latter as well when I’m here.”

With that, I put my plate down and rose to my feet. Shui quickly recovered and hurried after me as I slid my night clothes off my shoulders.

“My lady is too generous with her praise.” Shui bowed slightly before helping me dress in the surprisingly plain clothes. He noticed my confusion. “Your hunting party will be disguised so that no one knows the emperor is among you. Simpler clothes are both easier to put on and draw less attention.”

“What are we even going to hunt?” I murmured. “People as powerful as us wouldn’t require a party to hunt mere animals…”

“Monsters, Blighted, people, or divine beasts—it’s hard to say what His Imperial Majesty has set his sights on this time.” Shui stepped away from me and bowed. “The guards will escort you to the courtyard, my lady. I am to remain here and await your return. Please be safe, Lady Mingzhu.”

“You as well.” I shot him a sideways glance as I passed him. “I don’t trust these visitors in the palace…and given your demeanor and Yahui’s orders I have to assume you don’t either.”

“My lady is perceptive.” Shui bowed lower. “I will take care as well.”

“Good.” I nodded before stepping out of.my rooms and closing the doors behind me. The guards outside promptly bowed then fell into formation around me. “Let’s not keep His Imperial Majesty waiting any longer.”

When I arrived in the courtyard, I surveyed the mostly empty area with a small frown. A large, scaled qilin with antler-like horns stood near the central pond. Beside it, a man with almost floor-length hair stroked the creature’s scales. It took me a moment to realize the man was Yahui. He wore a simple, yet elegant, hanfu in black. His usual trinkets were missing, including the various pieces I had always seen in his hair.

“No guards?” I murmured, mostly to myself, when the men who had escorted me retreated into the palace.

Yahui turned, seeming surprised by my presence, but his expression soon became unreadable again. “We will not be needing them. My disciples and their masters have gone on ahead to secure the road and make camp.

“I will be too easily recognized if I ride out with an escort… What?”

“How are you not already too easy to recognize?” I strode over to him, flabbergasted. “I’ve not seen anyone in the Obsidian Terraces who resembles you—especially your eyes!”

“It hasn’t been a problem yet.” Yahui made a dismissive motion before pulling himself onto the qilin.

It was then that I realized there was something very wrong with the situation. “Am I walking?”

“Hardly.” Yahui offered me his hand. When I just stared at him, he chuckled and gave the qilin a command to sidestep closer to me. “Mingzhu, do you know how to ride a qilin? Even if you do, I don’t yet trust you enough to give you such a valuable creature. You will ride with me.”

“I…I don’t know if I know how to ride a qilin. Let’s assume I don’t,” I relented and took Yahui’s hand. “Am I riding in the front or the back?”

“Front. I would prefer you did not ride on my tail.” Yahui shifted his foot out of the stirrup and helped pull me into the saddle. Once I was comfortably seated in front of him, he picked up the reins and nudged the qilin into a casual walk. “You’re not going to play coy?”

“Hmmm?” I glanced back at him. “Coy about what?”

“Most women would be in a fit of giggles because they would find this romantic.” Yahui arched an eyebrow at me. “I assumed you would either be one of those, or you would react violently due to my…affinities.”

“No, your darkness is pleasant.” I shook my head slightly and focused my gaze forward again. In truth, his dark power felt as if it should have reminded me something. Whatever it was evaded my grasp. All I knew was that it wasn’t something for me to be scared of or to sear from existence. “As for romantic…we don’t trust each other, you’ve been rather violent with me, and you demanded I come hunt with you without giving me any information. In what realm would that be considered romantic?”

“Good. You are more level-headed than most.” Yahui laughed, resting a forearm across my left thigh, his hand gripping the saddle. “We received reports of disturbances in one of the provinces. There is good hunting there, and we will also be investigating. I will fill you in once we are beyond the city.”

“Very well. I can accept that.” I sighed, starting to relax back against his chest, but I stopped myself. Getting cozy didn’t seem like a good idea.