CHAPTER 35: THE AZURE PRINCE

Ayame had no other choice. She had to keep crawling, had to move forward.

Unfortunately for her, it had started to rain. Her clothes grew heavy and smeared with mud.

Despite what Hayate had done to her, at least now Ayame could finally hear her own thoughts.

They were louder than the chaos of the world’s past constantly echoing in her mind.

Please, someone... I have to stop him. I can’t let my brother’s marriage be destroyed... my god, what have I done?

Then she heard the distant sound of wagon wheels rolling along a nearby path, half-hidden behind a wall of trees.

"Please! Help!" she cried, forcing her cursed tongue to form a few understandable words

She didn’t think anyone would hear her desperate scream.

After a moment of silence, she began crawling again.

She didn’t even notice the sound of wagon stopping, nor the footsteps approaching – until a few voices reached her ears, speaking in a language she didn’t recognize.

"My lord, wait! You can’t rush to help just because someone calls out. It could be a trap."

"Don’t worry. Whatever happens, we have Yan Mo with us."

Moments later, they found her – a woman dragging herself through the mud.

She didn’t notice them until their boots blocked her path.

Ayame looked up.

Before her stood three men: two human, one humanoid.

The first was clearly the prince, dressed in silk robes of azure blue.

He was slender and pale, with long straight black hair, a slim, delicate face, and calm black eyes.

The man who had warned him was an older official, around forty, wearing green robes. His face was deeply lined for his age, with bushy eyebrows, a long mustache, and an even longer beard. He held an umbrella above them.

The third was the tallest and most muscular. He wore black wide pants and a matching sleeveless vest with a high collar and golden clasps.

His skin had a gradient hue, from pale violet to weak white. Short gray hair and a beard framed his strong face, and from his forehead protruded two solid horns. A massive club rested across his back.

"Who are you, woman, and why were you calling for help?" the official asked in her tongue.

"I... need to find my brother... his marriage... the palace... I must go to the palace..."

"My lord, this woman seems out of her mind," the official said coldly.

"Shu An, your role is to translate what she said, not to give me your opinion," he prince replied softly, though with a hint of firmness in his tone.

Yan Mo said nothing. He kept his eyes on Ayame – something about her unsettled him, though he hid it well.

Shu An bowed low in apology, then translated Ayame’s broken words faithfully.

"Ask her who she is."

Shu An spoke with her again. From her unclear sentences, he learned only that she knew of something terrible about to happen at the Hoshigane palace – the very same place they were headed.

"If that’s true, we must go there even faster," the prince said, then he knelt slightly to pick her up.

"My lord, allow me to carry her. You’ll get your robes dirty," Yan Mo suggested.

"There’s no need," the prince replied softly. "I can’t ask others to act on my behalf when I wish to do good myself. Otherwise, I would be a false ruler."

Ayame glanced uncertainly toward Shu An, ready to defend herself, but the official quickly explained they were also on their way to the palace, and would help her about the thing she warned them.

When the prince lifted the mud-covered woman into his arms, their eyes met. His pale cheeks flushed faintly, and his heart gave a quick, unfamiliar beat.

Shu An watched his lord silently, but understood at once — whoever this insane woman was, the prince had fallen for her at first sight.

Hopelessly so. Shu An had once been the young prince’s teacher; he could read his emotions like an open book.

"You poor soul... who could have done such cruelty to you?" the prince whispered, then sighed. "Let’s return to the carriage."

"My lord, if your arms grow tired, please allow me to take her," Yan Mo offered again.

"Thank you for your concern, but as I said earlier, there’s no need. She’s quite light."

They returned to the wagon within minutes. The prince gently seated Ayame beside him and looked down at her stumps instead of legs, his eyes filled with sorrow and sympathy.

"Her wounds have just sealed. Likely through magic, someone or something must have done this to her shortly before we arrived", Shu An guessed correctly what had happened.

"I swear, I’ll avenge what was done to you," said the prince. Shu An translated his words for Ayame.

"Thank you... my brother... king..." she murmured weakly.

Shu An’s brows lifted in surprise. His lord’s eyes brightened with intrigue.

"Oh, Heavens above! As the old teachings say, the gods reward kindness."

"Explain, Shu An."

"My lord, you may have just saved the king’s sister. If that’s true, the name Lan Yue will be remembered for generations! We came here to seek an alliance with Hoshigane’s kingdom –saving his sister will give us a valuable advantage."

"How do you know it wasn’t the king who did this to her?" asked Yan Mo.

"Because she wanted to return to the palace," Lan Yue answered calmly. "From what Shu An translated, she’s trying to save someone, perhaps her brother, or someone else. If the king had harmed her, I doubt she’d wish to go back."

"As always, a sharp observation, my lord," Shu An said, nodding. "Though, I must admit, both our robes are quite muddy now. And I still don’t understand why you ordered that we arrive at Hoshigane’s palace unannounced."

"Don’t see it as dirt, Shu An, but as proof of a good deed," Lan Yue replied serenely. "Unannounced humility is always better than announced grandeur."

"Let’s hope you’ve made the right choice, my lord. Only the heavens can judge your virtue."

Lan Yue smiled faintly and nodded. After that, silence fell between them.

Ayame looked at them quietly, wondering where they had come from, and what they hoped to gain by visiting Shion.

Even without knowing their true intentions, she felt thankful for their help.

She sensed no malice in them.

In silence, they rode toward Shion’s palace.