Empire’s Curse (Drakkon #1)

Chapter 26

Going back to the palace was as lackluster as the first time she had been cooped up inside her fancy, jade towered room. The servants treated her as though she hadn’t left in the first place—coldly, stoically, and without emotion—and she didn’t recognize the guards patrolling her hallway, other than Nikator, who would stay outside her door until Vita, her true personal guard, arrived. And there was no telling when that would be.

Daiyu was just another unimportant face in the palace. Nobody came rushing to her or offered her sympathies for everything she had gone through—not that she expected it—but she hadn’t thought the court would be this cold toward her. It probably had to do with the fact that she wasn’t the emperor’s wife yet, so she was seen as replaceable.

She certainly felt that way.

She fished out the one-jade bracelet Feiyu had given her and placed it atop her tea table, sat on her couch, and called out, “Feiyu! I know you can hear me.”

Tapping her fingers against the armrest of the couch, she waited. Out of everyone who she expected to visit her, Feiyu was definitely one of them. And he was, sadly, the only one. Yet the masked mage hadn’t made an appearance at all. Not yesterday when she first arrived, and certainly not today.

The air shifted and Daiyu heard his boots click against the polished floors. She turned just in time to find the green-robed mage a few feet away from her doorway, a red and black dragon mask covering his face. Upon seeing her, he gave a small bow.

“You’ve returned,” he said without a hint of surprise.

“I’m sure you realized it yesterday.”

“I did.” He waltzed toward the couch and plopped himself on the one adjacent to hers. He unceremoniously, and impolitely, propped his feet on the table and sighed as he reclined into the many plush crane-embroidered pillows adorning the velvet couch. “Is it me or do you sound disappointed that I didn’t visit you immediately? I thought you’d like to rest.”

“I’m not disappointed. Not at all.” She crinkled her nose at how close his feet were to the platter of assorted nuts acting as a centerpiece on the tea table. “I just figured you would visit at some point to see how I was doing. I did get kidnapped, you know. Right from under your nose.”

He steepled his fingers together and bobbed his head. “Yes, I’m aware, and I did visit you earlier, remember?”

“In my dreams? That doesn’t count.”

Shrugging, he leaned forward and grabbed a handful of caramelized cashews, salted almonds, and candied pecans and lifted the edge of his mask. Daiyu inched closer to him, trying to peek at his face. But he was quick as he chomped down on the nuts and all she could make out were three scars on the side of his jaw. “I figured you were fine,” he said between mouthfuls, “and I wasn’t wrong.”

“Yes, but you can pretend to be diplomatic.”

Feiyu motioned toward the colorless bracelet. “I see that came in handy.”

“It did.” She plucked the empty piece of jewelry and shook it in the air for emphasis. “Why didn’t you tell me it would summon His Majesty if I used it?”

He paused in his chewing and pinned her with an unreadable stare—one that was hard to make out anyway due to the shadows of the mask—and then stuffed another handful of sweet and salty nuts into his mouth. “Huh. So that’s who you summoned?”

“You make it sound like I had a choice.” She quirked an eyebrow and dropped the bracelet with a clank on the glass-top of the table.

“It basically only has enough magic to summon the one person you think can protect you. It’s a very powerful magicked item that, unfortunately, does cause some damage to the summoned party.”

“Damage? What do you mean by that?”

“Well, perhaps damage isn’t the right word.” He dusted off the salt and sugar clinging to his fingers. “More like … it consumes the magic of the summoned party. You see, magic comes at a price. Someone has to use up their energy for the summon, and part of it is stored in the bracelet, and the other part comes from the summoned party. Make sense?”

“Oh.” Daiyu did remember Muyang being winded after he had finished fighting off the group of rebel soldiers, but she thought it had to do with his own magic being low, like he had mentioned. Perhaps that was the case, but maybe it also had to do with the bracelet? In that case … “So you’re telling me that I caused His Majesty’s magic to be drained?”

“Yes. I’m surprised he didn’t blight you on the spot.” There was a joking, teasing quality to his voice, but she barely paid it any heed.

Her face flushed with unexpected warmth. Why hadn’t Muyang told her any of that? “Oh.”

“I’m a bit disappointed you didn’t think I was the best candidate for your rescue, but I’m glad to see you’re healthy and well.”

She rolled her eyes, unable to help herself. “I was panicking and I didn’t realize what was happening. And anyway, how did you know I needed rescuing?”

“The bracelet would only work if you were in a life-and-death situation.”

“Ah.”

“And seeing as how it’s drained”—he shrugged—“I would say you were in need of rescuing.”

Daiyu reached forward, plucked a caramel-coated pecan from the platter, and nibbled on one end of it whilst keeping a careful eye on Feiyu. She didn’t appreciate how mysterious the mage had been about the properties of the magicked bracelet, and all of this seemed a bit too convenient for her liking. Did he know she would have summoned Muyang in the first place?

She didn’t want to ask—not because she didn’t want to know the answer, but she had to be careful around Feiyu. He was her only ally in this palace, and it wouldn’t do good for him to realize she was casting suspicion on him.

“Anyway, have you learned anything about the person who poisoned me? Or who kidnapped me? Do you think the two incidents are related?”

Before he could answer, there was a steady knock on the door—in quick succession. “Everything all right in there?” Nikator called out, his tone level and nothing like the cheerful young man she had spent over two weeks traveling with. “I heard a male voice, so just wanted to check in to see if you’re fine.”

Daiyu froze, her mind reeling. She waved at Feiyu to leave and opened her mouth to lie and say there was no one in here with her, but Feiyu raised his hand and halted her mid-stride.

“It’s just me, Nikator,” he called out, fixing his mask in place. “You can come in if you want.”

There was a pause. “Feiyu?”

“The one and only.”

Daiyu raised an incredulous eyebrow at Feiyu—was it really wise to let Nikator inside? Wasn’t it bad if Muyang heard wind that Feiyu was interacting with her? But the mage didn’t seem to mind and the door swung open. Nikator strode inside and closed the door behind himself, his expression cautious as he stared at them both.

“Nik, so good to see you.” Feiyu motioned to the couches. “Have a seat.”

“What are you doing here?” Nikator gingerly took a seat beside the mage and looked between Daiyu and Feiyu. “How do you know each other?”

“We became acquainted a few months ago.” Daiyu popped the rest of the sweet pecan in her mouth and chewed before motioning the platter to Nikator. “Have some, please.”

Nikator picked at the salt-coated nuts and collected a few in the palm of his hand, all the while staring at the dragon-masked mage, who was leaning back on the couch with his hands folded across his abdomen casually. “I just find your pairing very strange and unexpected.”

“There’s been stranger allies,” Daiyu said in what she hoped was a jovial tone, but came out slightly strained. She cleared her throat when Nikator gave her another strange look. It was true that it might have been weird that she was acquainted with Feiyu, and that he was likely her only friend in the palace, but surely it couldn’t be that strange? “He’s the head mage of the royal palace, so of course we were going to cross paths at some point.”

“I … suppose.” Nikator chewed and swallowed. “But Feiyu rarely, if ever, shows his face anywhere.”

“Do you mean that literally or metaphorically?” Daiyu eyed the dragon-mask Feiyu currently donned.

The mage chuckled, and his whole chest shook from the small movement. “I think he means it in both senses. No one has seen my face in years, and I intend to keep it that way. But yes, in a way, I do keep to myself. I don’t like involving myself in the politics and drama of royal court life, so I avoid it as much as I can. So long as I do everything His Majesty wants, I hardly see why it matters where I am.” He waved a dismissive hand. “Anyhow, let’s talk about something other than me, shall we? Nik, I wanted to get your input on a few things, since this also pertains to you.”

Nikator bobbed his head. “Sure, what is it?”

“We were just discussing Lady Daiyu’s safety—or lack thereof.” Feiyu wove his fingers together and nodded his masked chin in Daiyu’s direction. “Maybe you can explain the rest?”

She frowned at the mage. There wasn’t much to talk about since she just broached the subject. “Well, I had just asked you whether you had any information about who poisoned me and if it’s related to the kidnapping a few weeks ago.” She then turned to Nikator. “I was poisoned early on in my stay here and Feiyu was actually the one who saved me.”

“I, regretfully, haven’t been able to find out much of what happened,” Feiyu answered. “I was actually going to suggest that you ask around yourself. There are some suspicious people in the palace who might know something. Or might be involved.”

“Who?” Daiyu asked quietly, not liking the turn of the conversation. She didn’t want to personally be snooping around in other people’s business, but if that’s what it took to keep herself safe, she would do just that. “And I’m assuming it’s something you can’t do? Even though you’re a powerful mage?”

“Unfortunately, with the emperor’s recent expedition to the north for war, I’ve been stretched very, very thinly here. So as much as I would love to help you get to the bottom of this, I haven’t had the time.” His voice lowered an octave and he sounded genuinely concerned for her, but then he clapped his hands together and said cheerily, “So I think it’s best if you got to the bottom of it since you have so much time. I’ll provide assistance from time to time, but I’m a bit too busy to help out.”

“I should have expected as much,” she grumbled. “But all right, I can’t expect you to do everything, anyway. Do you have any leads on who might know a thing or two about what happened?”

“You could ask the princesses.”

Nikator stilled and one of the nuts slipped from his hand and disappeared underneath the couch. Daiyu hesitated as well, gaze flicking to where the almond had skittered off to, and then to the painted mask Feiyu wore. “The princesses,” she said slowly. “Who are currently locked away here? What do they know?”

“I’m not sure if they know anything.” He lifted his shoulders. “But it’s worth a try, isn’t it? They’re allowed afternoon walks in the garden once a week on Tuesdays. You can try to catch them during that time to see if they know anything. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were plotting against His Majesty and everyone related to him—including you.”

“We can go this week,” Nikator offered, lounging back in his seat with a thoughtful frown. His sapphire blue eyes narrowed and he seemed lost in thought for a moment. “The two princesses are a bit suspicious, but do you really think they know something? It wouldn’t benefit them to have Lady Daiyu killed, would it?”

“I’m not sure, but it would be unwise to rule them out simply because we don’t know.” Feiyu drummed his fingers on the armrest. “You can also ask a noble lady or two if they know anything or have heard anything? Make a list of people of who might be jealous of you.”

“I don’t know any—” The words died on Daiyu’s tongue just as she was saying them. “Wait, I do know one noble lady. Have either of you heard of Lady Jia? I don’t remember her family name?—”

Feiyu tilted his head. “General Liang Fang’s wife? Li Jia?”

“I … would assume so?” The first time she had met Jia, she had been with General Liang Fang, and the second time she had mentioned that her husband had a meeting with Muyang. It should have been clear to Daiyu who her husband was, but she hadn’t connected the dots. And quite frankly, she had been too concerned about escaping to care too much during that time. It was embarrassing to think that she had met the wife of a general but hadn’t even realized it. “Is there any way I can arrange a meeting with her? Like for tea or something small.”

Nikator nodded. “I can arrange it. I know her pretty well since I’m well acquainted with General Fang.”

“Perfect.” Daiyu clasped her hands together. At least this way, she’d be able to find more information and hopefully, more allies. And it gave her something to do while Muyang was away. Or at least, that’s what she told herself. It wasn’t like she cared whether Muyang came back early or not—her priority was on surviving his court. She only needed to marry him to secure her family’s futures. That was it.

“Do you think someone might still be after my family?” She blurted the words without thinking too carefully about what she was saying, but once they were out, she couldn’t hold back the flood of nightmarish anxiety that came with those thoughts. “I mean, His Majesty won’t be able to protect them until we’re married, right? His protection won’t really be sufficient enough until?—”

“His Majesty has already sent word to your family that you were chosen as his bride,” Feiyu interrupted, his hand hovering over the platter of nuts, but then resting back on his lap. “But I’ll be sure to put a spell in the area that will inform me if anything goes awry. Your family should be fine, though. I doubt anyone would actively try to kill them—especially not with magic, which can be traced depending on the type.”

“Why are you so sure?”

“Because I’m the head mage at this palace, and I know more than most people.”

“But then why can’t you trace who burned our rice fields?”

“Well, that’s a bit more complicated, since fire magic is so basic. But any spells that will kill someone does leave a trace, and I’d be able to track that. And, of course, if someone did try to murder your whole family, with or without magic, that would be highly suspicious and His Majesty would definitely open an investigation. I don’t think any noble family would want to be under the emperor’s ire. They probably just wanted to scare you enough to get you to back away from all of this.”

“I hope you’re right.” She squeezed her hands together until her fingers blanched pale. If something happened to her family, she wouldn’t be able to forgive herself for such a miscalculation because at the end of the day, she had two choices she could have made: run with her family and start a new life, or marry Muyang for a better life for her family. She prayed she was making the right decision.