The day had been cold, gray, and wet. It had poured all morning, and even when the rain stopped that afternoon, the clouds refused to part. They never saw the sun.
In front of the Great An leader, An Ruo lowered his head with his knees sunk into the ground. A hush fell over the torch-lit pen.
"Tell me the truth…did you not say you were informed that An Sun planned to defy my orders?"
"Yes, father. That is what my scouts informed me."
An Hongyu's stern expression did not flicker. Instead, it worsened. It was clear from An Ruo's words he was settling the blame on his scouts. However, didn't he choose whether or not to tell him?
"I see…" An Hongyu shifted his gaze to the side, his expression oddly cold. "Then do you mind explaining this to me?"
Seeing a bag was thrown in front of him, An Ruo raised his gaze before looking at his father. An Hongyu was staring at him with a cold and hard expression.
"Open it."
An Ruo lowered his gaze back to the brown bag and suddenly sensed an ominous premonition. When he opened the inside of the bag, a genuine expression of shock reflected on his face.
"Father, this is…"
"The head of Governor Duyi Zhong." An Hongyu said, seeing the look of shock on his son's face. "Killed by your brother, An Sun."
An Ruo got quiet. He looked back down at the head and stared at it with a complicated gaze.
"How did father receive this?" He couldn't help but ask.
"Does it matter?" An Hongyu snarled, in a voice thick with malice "Do you not realize your words have caused me to mistrust one of my own sons? Even if it were an accident, the lack of thought in your actions led to a nearly irreversible mistake."
An Ruo did not expect to be rebuked by his father – someone who hardly showed dissatisfaction toward him. Lifting his gaze, An Ruo saw his father's eyes were dark as they looked straight at him. His father's cold gaze and even colder tone surprised him.
The fists by his side clenched.
"I admit to my mistakes father. To compensate for tarnishing brother's trust to the clan, I will establish a proper ceremony in honor of him."
For a moment, An Hongyu looked pleased with his words before reverting to his stern expression. He grunted in approval.
"Good. Commence that tonight. We shall have a feast to celebrate. Gather enough wine and meat for everyone."
An Ruo cupped his fist and bowed his head. But when he rose, his father told him, "To act without thought, especially regarding the trust of our own members is something I do not accept in this clan. Perhaps you need more time to reflect."
Secretly gritting his teeth, An Ruo nodded his head, then turned to leave the tent under his father's dismissal. Stepping outside, An Ruo didn't even bother to conceal the displeasure on his face. His eyes flickered to a few Tuhan soldiers passing by, revealing a storm behind calmness. Meeting his stare, they flinched and quickly scurried away.
Walking through the camp, he delivered a few orders to troops on tonight's plans.
"Gather the wine and start preparing the meat for tonight. We'll be celebrating my brother's death." An Ruo ordered.
The solider looked slightly confused and couldn't help but ask, "Again? Is there a particular reason?"
Everyone knew within the clan that An Sun was the least favored member. To celebrate his death yet again caused him to be surprised.
Before he could respond, An Ruo noticed from the corner of his vision a familiar figure. Instantly his eyes dimmed.
"I'm about to find that out myself…" His voice darkened a little bit.
An Ruo issued a few more orders to the soldier then walked in long strides toward the figure.
Chewing on a piece of dried meat with a bored gaze, Manchu sensed a pair of footsteps moving in his direction. Turning, he saw An Ruo walking toward him with no emotion in his face. But from the coldness seeping from his eyes, it was apparent how he felt.
Manchu revealed a crooked smile as he approached him.
"I take it from your expression you want to talk in private?"
An Ruo returned to him a smile and laughed coldly.
"Lead the way."
The two men walked toward Manchu's pen. The moment they entered, Manchu felt a hand grip tightly around his neck and squeeze, his head ramming against the wooden pillar in the pen. He closed his eyes from the harsh impact before opening them to meet An Ruo's dark, malicious glare.
At this point, his expression showed clearly that he was very angry from the vein on his next bulging to the deep frown on his face. The look caused no change of reaction to Manchu, only amusement.
"Do you think I don't understand what you're trying to do?" An Ruo sneered.
Manchu placidly gazed back at him and smiled stiffly.
"I…" He coughed from the tightness of An Ruo's grip. "I don't know what you mean."
An Ruo scoffed and pushed Manchu away, releasing his hand from his throat.
"It's no use trying. Your duties as a dog were removed the moment your owner died."
Hearing those words, Manchu froze as his face contorted into a constrained expression. Unable to say anything in return, his fists by his side gripped and he averted his eyes. An Ruo sneered and turned to leave the pen. Just before leaving, he shifted his gaze to Manchu and said:
"When the day comes, you will be the first person I kill."
When An Ruo left, Manchu's troubled expression faded. He glanced to the side and let out a heavy sigh.
"I wouldn't be too sure about that…"
…
When the first shaft of sunlight broke through the clouds to the north, Rin had awoken. She stared up at her ceiling in silence, then shifted her gaze to the pale sunlight slanting down through the windows.
'Today was the day An Sun would leave.'
Frowning, she shot herself up in bed. Staring at her palms, she scratched the back of her head.
'She hadn't asked him what time of day he was leaving.'
With this thought in mind, she got out of bed and without ordering the maidservants for help, she got dressed. Since the days had grown warmer, she hadn't put on a cloak or blanket. When Rin stepped outside of her room, she was surprised to see a figure standing in front of her door.
With wide eyes, Rin raised her gaze to encounter a familiar pair of gray eyes looking back at her. He seemed surprised as well.
"An Sun?"
He was still here.
At that moment, Rin's voice happened to return his focus as An Sun cleared his throat and stepped back a little.
"Can we talk?"
Rin nodded and followed behind. When she saw him leading her to the garden, her eyes glanced up at him curiously.
"You're leaving today," Rin said softly.
"Yeah." An Sun replied with his usual deep voice.
They continued walking farther until he suddenly stopped in front of an orchid tree. Turning around, he looked down at her with a serious expression.
"I want you to answer me honestly."
Rin nodded to show him she was listening.
"Leaving behind fate, destiny, and your path, if the time came when you could no longer rely on them...will you come to my side? If you're unwilling to let them go, I won't force you. But if it's out of obligation, I want you to come to my side."
Rin's eyes held surprise. She suddenly became flustered by his words. "You…What are you talking about? What do you mean to come to your side?"
Suddenly, Rin felt his large hand grasp hers. It was warm and firm. When she looked up, she was startled to see such a deep gaze on her.
"I mean when you can no longer rely on your goals; I want you to be with me. I may not have the strength now, but I can promise you that in the future I will be able to protect you and your loved ones. And although a promise is not a guarantee, it is still a promise. Even if you can depend on yourself, I want you to rely on me if you're willing."
"What…" Rin's cheeks flushed.
"It just takes one word to answer." He said firmly.
Rin blinked. Then she blinked again. She was too shocked to speak. With warm cheeks, she lowered her head to stare at their joined hands, her lips tightened. A wind passed through the garden and the orchid tree, delivering a floral scent into the air.
Her head lowered even further. Her voice was as tiny as a mosquito as she said, "All right."
An Sun's brows wrinkled for a bit before he broke out into a sudden smile. Even though her voice was faint, he still could make out her answer.
"All right." His low and deep voice repeated softly.
Too embarrassed to saying anything else, Rin withdrew her hand from the man's grasp, stepped back, and cleared her throat.
"You should say goodbye to everyone else."
An Sun chuckled. "I did, I just wanted to you to be the last I said it to."
Rin's cheeks grew warmer from his words and she looked away with pursed lips.
"Well then, why are you still here? You said your piece already, so you should get going now."
Deepening his smiles, An Sun nodded his head. "Then I'll be going."
Still averting his gaze, Rin listened to his footsteps grow faint. Elevating her head, she looked at his departing figure and gave a little sigh. She gazed down at her hand and it suddenly felt very warm. She clenched it and lowered it to her side.
…
"I heard An Sun left. Were you able to say goodbye?" General Guo entered the girl's study to deliver her tea. When he came in, he saw the girl sitting by the lounge in her windowsill, reading.
Rin withdrew her gaze a little from her book and nodded with a faint hum. She turned toward the window to look out the garden, her eyes serene. General Guo glanced at her expression and sighed.
"He'll be back soon."
With no change in expression, Rin turned back to the pages of her book and nodded. Witnessing her subtle calmness over the matter, General Guo breathed a sigh of relief.
He oddly felt she'd be troubled by his departure. He was glad to see her the same as usual. When General Guo left, Rin's face was lowered, so no one could see the upward curve of her lips that she hadn't been able to hold back.
"I know he will."
THE END OF BOOK 1