Chapter 5: Guzo / Betrothed

“Man, teleporting is the fucking best. Hey, Alze. What’s going on?” Evan said, poofing into Alzes room.

“Gack!!! Oh. Evan. They haven’t arrived yet. And, as you can see, Gold is asleep on the couch.” Alze said.

“Where do Gold and her siblings live, anyway?” Evan asked.

Alze shifted her gaze sideways.

“Please tell me they have somewhere to stay.” Evan said.

“Uhm. Nnnoooo. They do not…. sorry. They can stay here for now.” Alze said.

“Well, great. Anyway, thanks for watching over Gold, Alze. You want gold?” Evan asked, a stupid idea forming in his head.

“She's on the couch.” Alze said.

“No, I meant actual gold.” Evan said.

“Of course I would. I could sell it for repair fees. This place is breaking down a little bit. Oh! I could use it to establish connections with new suppliers….hm. We don’t owe debts to anyone… I guess we could loan it. Why?” Alze asked.

“How much is gold worth around here?” Evan asked.

“Depending on the size…. . A gold bar could probably be worth over ten times this entire building. I know I said it needs repairs, but it's pretty damn pricey, so that's saying a lot.” Alze said.

“I see. Imma just trust you to hold on to this. You can have half.” Evan said, starting to type in the console.

“Do what-oh... You said…. half of this? For me? Guzo, are you going to keep quiet, or say hi? You wanted to say hello and ask him something, didn’t you? Pretty sure I won’t be able to think straight for a while.” Alze said, clutching her head, trying to process what she was seeing.

“Who?” Evan asked.

“Me.” Guzo said.

“Oh. Hello new person who I do not know.” Evan said monotonously.

“Hello god who I only partially know.” Guzo said, mimicking Evans speech pattern.

“I like this dude. It’s nice to meet you. What’s a guy like you doing in China, though?” Evan asked.

“In what? Oh, do you mean the country?” Guzo asked.

“Yeah, I haven’t seen anyone else like you around here. Everyone basically looks the same. You just look like…..huh….how do I describe you?” Evan asked.

“Um. I have no idea what you’re saying.” Guzo said.

“No, now that Evan mentions it, something about you does look a little different. I can’t put my finger on it, though.” Alze said, confused.

“Is it the giant pink hat that I’m wearing because I lost a bet against Chen?” Guzo asked, sighing.

“Ah. Yup, that’s what it was.” Evan said.

“Ohhhh. Thaaat’s what it was. Okay, it makes a lot more sense, now.” Alze said.

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“Seriously?” Guzo asked, squinting at them to make sure they weren’t idiots.

“Alright, well, I’m going back to the palace to find that bad dude.” Evan said suddenly.

“Hey wai-“ Guzo said, grabbing Evans shoulder.

Evan appeared in front of the pond again.

This time, however, Guzo had come with.

“-t. I have something to ask.” Guzo finished

“Huh? Oh. You dropped your giant pink hat.” Evan said.

“Forget the hat! Oh my god that was nauseating!” Guzo said, head spinning.

“Yes, well, this is the emperor's palace.” Evan said, dragging a very disoriented Guzo behind him.

“I know where we are, you don’t have to tell me. Jeez. Just let me rest.” Guzo said.

“There’s nowhere to rest.” Evan said.

“There’s a pagoda over that way.” Guzo said, pointing.

“Pointing is a very bad idea when you’re super dizzy.” Said Evan.

Guzos finger pointed in so many different directions that he really wasn’t pointing to anything specifically.

“Why would you even know where stuff is here?” Evan asked.

“Ah…. my family…..powerful. My betrothed lives here. The woman I love….” Guzo said.

“Oh? Who would that be?” Evan asked.

“Very nice girl. Sweet girl. Kind. Beautiful. A bit sad, but I’m going to work on making her happy as soon as I can. I don’t think it’s possible, though. You can do pretty much anything, right?” Guzo asked.

“Yes.” Evan replied.

“Are you…. are you able to heal people? I was going to ask you for help, earlier.” Guzo asked.

“I can't treat mental illnesses or afflictions like sadness or depression.” Evan said, shaking his head.

“No….she’s paralyzed. If you can help her, I’ll give you anything. If I become emperor, I’ll even give you that….please.” Guzo begged, almost drunkenly.

“Wait, are you talking about Yumi? If so, I actually helped her already.” Evan said, surprised.

“You…. did? I want to see her. Please...To make sure she’s fine.” Guzo said, steadying himself.

“Well, her lower body is healed, but she doesn’t know how to walk yet. In addition to that, her legs are still incredibly weak and sensitive. Ah! She’s going to need someone to be with her, to help her learn. Maybe you could help her with that.” Evan said, smiling.

“Gotcha. I'll end everything I’m working on within a few days. Then I can come help.” Guzo said, leaning on Evan’s shoulder.

“End? Wait, if you have work, then you should do it. That sounds important.” Evan said.

“And Yumi isn’t? A person far outweighs those pitiful jobs.” Guzo said.

“Well, if that’s what you want…. as long as everyone else is okay with it.” Evan said.

They reached the emperor's garden, and the family was sitting together, still talking happily.

“Hey, Yumi! Do you know Guzo?” Evan called, waving.

“Guzo? Where is he?! Oh! Is he okay? He looks…fine...ish? Why are you dragging him?” Yumi asked, heading towards them.

“Oh! Is that Guzo? I haven’t seen him in ages! How’s the boy doing? Guzo! Are you still working hard for my daughter?” The emperor asked.

“Yes… sir…” Guzo said.

Evan sat him down on a bench.

“Is the little guy going to be alright? It’s been a long time. How are you? Is your work going well?” The queen asked.

“Gonna be….ending it all soon.” Guzo said.

“What? Why?” The queen asked, startled.

Guzo pointed.

“To….help.” Guzo said, swaying.

He tried to point at Yumi, but couldn’t.

“Evan, are you sure he’s alright?” The emperor asked.

“Yes, he’s just a bit dizzy.” Evan said.

“Guzo, you’re guaranteed to smoothly ascend the throne and become emperor if you just finish your work. You can marry my daughter without any issues then.” The emperor said.

“Don’t… Carr about…. power. Just about Yumi…..” Guzo said.

“That…. Yumi, it’s up to you.” The emperor said.

“I…..have no idea what difference it would make. Can’t I marry him, regardless?” Yumi asked.

“Wait…. you don’t mind not being the empress? If that’s really the case, I see no issues. But…. are you sure? If you do choose that, you guys might have trouble with the officials. People like Flint. She has a high enough position to probably overturn any decided outcome of succession.” The emperor said.

“I think Guzo would be a fine emperor. The aura around him definitely says that.” Flint said.

“Woah! Oh, hey Flint.” The emperor said.

“Hey Guzo, hey Evan.” Flint said.

“Hey. Flint, I have a question.” Evan said.