Meanwhile, the three returned to the city. On their way back to the Clear Essence Pavilion, they saw Kang Shi still pretending to lounge in the dirt, his two disciples having brought him an umbrella to shield him from the sun. The Golden Witch stared at them like she just ate something sour, and seemed glad to hide away from them in the inn.
They convened in one of their rented rooms to discuss the day's events.
"Master, should we really remain in this town? Aren't you worried that Tao Geming might come after us?" Bai Guo asked.
"I'll know if he's coming. He'll never catch us unless I want him to." The Golden Witch said, completely unconcerned. "But in any case, it's not as if I wish to avoid him. I want to finish our match."
"Well, master, in that case, why exactly did we retreat...?" Bai Guo meekly asked, though he had already suspected what the answer was.
His master gave him a long look, and then said, "I want to fight him without any distractions. Those Royal School swordsmen would have gotten in our way and made a mess of things. It wasn't worth dealing with."
Bai Guo thought she was only being half-truthful; it wasn't the Royal School she was worried about. He apologetically lowered his head.
If the Golden Witch noticed his gesture, she hadn't let it show. She brought up another matter. "Do any of you know where Yiqin is? He had traveling papers to that place."
Cui Shen spoke up. "I know where it is. I traveled these parts twice over, and this is one of the few regions that haven't changed significantly during both of my trips. Though I must warn you, that city happens to be the capital, where the primary branch of the Royal School makes its base."
"Then we shall be making our way there tomorrow to settle this matter." She decided, getting up to her feet. "Bai Guo, let's go play around in the city some more."
The young man's mind was in turmoil. He reacted with delay. "Ah, yes, ma'am."
As he ventured out of the room, his thoughts continued to dwell. "I keep putting my master into these awkward positions... Even just today, she had to save me on three separate occasions. I take but do not give, and even worse, I almost stooped to deceiving her for the sake of some beggar. After everything we went through in Wuyi, how could I doubt her morality and convictions? I need to reevaluate my mindset, and I need to figure out a way to contribute. But... how? Even sir Cui Shen struggles to keep pace with her, let alone me, someone who's not even half the man he is. And at the pace I'm going, maybe I never will be..."
After Bai Guo set off with a heavy heart, the Golden Witch lingered in the doorway, her head half-turned back to Cui Shen.
Cui Shen voiced his intentions to stay behind. "I'll join you later."
But she remained for a time longer, and as the seconds dragged, Cui Shen's eyes filled with torment. When the woman finally took her leave without a word, she shut the door behind her, a gesture that filled the pale man with gratitude.
Cui Shen erupted into a violent cough, staining the carpets black with ill blood that seeped past his fingers.
As master and disciple wandered the city streets, their minds seemed elsewhere. But when a golden eye caught glimpse of a particular item through the window of a store, she found herself suddenly reenergized.
"Bai Guo." She urged the young man to follow her inside. She pointed at what she desired. "Buy me that."
Bai Guo couldn't stifle his smile at the childish manner in which she had made her request, or rather, issued her demand.
"Another mask, master? I remember that other mask you... picked up," he stumbled over his words, narrowly avoiding accusing her of theft, "back in that village, back when we first met. Not that I've ever seen you wear it, though..."
The Golden Witch gawked at herself in the mirror from several different angles as she pressed the white fox mask against her face, like she was trying on any regular item of clothing. She soon stowed it into her robe without ever having properly put it on.
She seemed quite pleased.
"Is it like a hobby, collecting those?" Bai Guo asked.
"Hmmm." Her satisfied smile turned a little embarrassed. "No, it's not just about collecting. I do like to wear them, but only in private."
Though Bai Guo remained oblivious to the meaning behind her words, he, too, felt pleased, having learned something new about his enigmatic master.
...
A week later, they had all arrived at Yiqin.
Late in evening, when the summer sun had nearly set, as Cui Shen was quietly suffering through another bout of his disease, a voice emerged from the door.
"May I come in?"
It was the Golden Witch. She had the fortunate timing to arrive when the fit was at its weakest, so he had permitted her to enter and rose to greet her.
Only a single candle lit the room.
They both kneeled on the floor. Cui Shen waited for her to speak, his eyes only half open, absent-mindedly staring off at nothing in particular. He was relishing his few moments free of pain.
"I would like to apologize." She suddenly said.
Cui Shen sluggishly raised his eyes to meet hers. In the candlelight, her unforgettable features seemed ethereal.
She explained. "I dragged you around on unnecessary diversions for far longer than necessary. I failed to take your well-being into consideration."
Cui Shen closed his eyes and, for a time, pondered her words before replying. "When we set out on this journey, we both agreed that you'll dedicate some time to training Bai Guo. The boy is already almost too old to build a proper foundation, and the fact of the matter is, his aptitude for martial arts is unremarkable. But that is what makes it all the more important to remedy his issues as soon as possible. The boy's time is simply far more valuable than mine. I've committed enough mistakes in my life. I won't jeopardize Bai Guo's future as well."
"The impression I have of Bai Guo could, perhaps, be wrong, but he seems to me like the sort who would resent you if he knew about our agreement. And resent me, as well." She said.
A rare chuckle escaped his lips. "I see you're finally catching on to the kind of person your disciple is."
"Still, I should not have let it get to this point..."
Cui Shen shook his head. "You have nothing to worry about. I'll survive long enough to deliver you to your destination. I am not even yet so far gone that I'm unable to fight."
"You say that... but I can tell just how bad it has gotten. I may not know much about medicine or poison, but I can feel what it's doing to your meridians. If you fought in that state..."
Cui Shen closed his eyes again. "I see nothing eludes your divine senses."
The Golden Witch continued. "...And besides, this is not about your task. I get that it's, perhaps, inevitable... but there are better ways for you to be dealing with this than the rigors of the road."
"I understand the sentiment. But there is nothing for you to apologize for. I was always prepared for the consequences."
The room descended into an uneasy silence.
"...How am I going to train him without you?" She suddenly asked.
"You've always known everything you need." He stared idly at the flickering candle, on the verge of burning out.
"That's not true. Half of what I put him through were your ideas." She rested her chin on her sleeved hand.
"My input was never necessary. You simply lacked confidence. You're ready to take on the world at the drop of a hat, yet a boy intimidates you so."
"Why is it so, I wonder...?" She cocked her head.
"Martial arts teach us how to take lives, but not how to nurture them."
"What will Bai Guo do without you around? He seems to rely on you even more than he does on me."
"I began to excuse myself from your training sessions so he could get used to it." Cui Shen either coughed or chuckled again. "And haven't you realized? He relies on me in an effort to lessen the burden on you."
His words set her heart aflutter. She found herself glad that Cui Shen wasn't looking her way.
The Golden Witch suddenly stood up. "Even so... Even so, I stand by what I said."
Cui Shen looked up. High above, he found those golden eyes staring down at him with pity and determination in equal measure.
"There will be no more delays. I'm ending this tonight."
She left just as the candle had gone out.
Inside her room, she sat by the window and ran her long finger along the edges of the fox mask. She stared at it as though mesmerized, anticipating the night that lied ahead.
Finally, she put it on.
...