“Eunae! I need you for something important, quickly!”

Seong Eunae carefully schooled her expression as Jia barged in on her meeting with a college representative. They had been discussing the possibility of a student exchange and explicit recognition by the Goryeon Magical Research Society of Jiaguo’s academy as a guild member.

“Good afternoon Lady High Arbiter. Is there an emergency?”

Jia winced at the title, apparently noticing the magus across from Eunae for the first time.

“Um, yes. Sorry for interrupting.”

The old mage bowed graciously.

“Not at all. I’d be happy to continue this at a later date, your highness.”

Eunae returned the bow, smiling serenely.

“You’re too kind, Magus.”

She excused herself properly while Jia fidgeted anxiously by the door. Once they were safely out of sight or earshot, Eunae dropped the serene facade and glared fiercely at her best friend.

“Jia, what in the ancestors’ name was that?! It’s not like you to just interrupt like that, much less forget about an important visitor!”

“Sorry! I know that was important, but this is even bigger. Uh...probably. What was he here for again?”

Eunae shook her head. Yoshika—and Jia in particular—could simultaneously be one of the most considerate and observant people she’d ever met, and also a complete scatterbrain.

“The student exchange program, Jia. The one you cheated my aunt out of?”

“Oh, right! Well this is...I didn’t ruin things, did I?”

“No, our conversation was mostly finished, and he’s quite amenable to the idea, especially after you secured the queen’s support.”

“Okay good, then this is way more important...”

Jia went on to explain what was happening in Goryeo, and Eunae had to laugh.

“That’s your big emergency? They threw you a party?”

“Oh come on, you know full well it’s a bigger deal than that!”

“Well, sure. And it was cruel of her to spring it on you like that, but I’m not sure what you expect me to do about it. I suppose I can coach you on any etiquette questions.”

Jia bit her lip and scuffed the ground with her foot.

“I was hoping for some more...direct assistance.”

Eunae sighed.

“Like the trick you pulled on my family? There are going to be any number of xiantian mages attending that party, I don’t think bringing me to the party as an illusion is going to earn you any favors.”

“Right, yes, exactly, which is why I’d like you to join us in person.”

She paused, looking askance at Jia.

“How? The teleportation formation? I thought Dae said that only you could use it for long distances.”

“What? No, I meant joint cultivation.”

Eunae pursed her lips. She’d worried that was what Jia meant, but had foolishly hoped that she was just being uncharitable.

“You don’t think that’s a bit drastic?”

“What? We’ve done it before.”

“In times of great need, yes. To help you heal the greater shadow spirit, or to repair the damage to Zheng Long’s soul is one thing, but resorting to joint cultivation because you’re bad at parties is more than a little cavalier.”

Jia pouted and stared down at her feet. It was absolutely criminal that the leader of the nation could look so adorable.

“So you’re not going to help?”

“I didn’t say that. I just want you to appreciate the gravity of what you’re asking. It may be an everyday part of your life, but for the rest of us joint cultivation is an enormous act of trust. You can’t take that so lightly.”

Jia’s ears drooped and her tail went still.

“You’re right, I’m sorry. I got too excited. For me this isn’t something that’s happening hundreds of miles away to someone else. It’s happening to me, right here, right now. As we speak I’m buying time by entertaining some guy complaining that his tax revenue is down because of an unseasonal frost.”

Eunae snorted.

“How terrible for you. Alright, let’s go. As long as you understand that this isn’t something to make a habit of.”

“I understand! And sorry again for being so pushy.”

----------------------------------------

As always, there was an odd sensation of both novelty and familiarity as a new aspect appeared within Yoshika’s soul. Eunae hadn’t been Yoshika a moment ago, but the moment she joined it felt as though she had been all along.

“...and then my advisor tells me that raising the taxes will only reduce yearly revenue due to the squeeze it puts on the farmers. How is that supposed to make any sense?”

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Yoshika schooled her expression, adjusting the strained smile she’d been giving the noble to a more natural and graceful one. Jia and Eui were too honest with their feelings, and while Kaede’s stoicism served her well in Yamato, Goryeon society demanded a gentler touch.

Internally, however, she cringed. How clueless could this idiot be? A starving farmer can’t work, the unworked farm produces fewer goods, and then there are no taxes to be collected. A ten year old could figure out that much, and she was quite certain that if she quizzed her younger sisters on it, they would.

Who left him in charge of an entire city?

She didn’t say any of that, naturally. Instead, she waited for him to finish rambling before slipping into an opening to deliver her retort.

“Many of the solutions to life’s problems can be unintuitive, Young Master Seok. It’s impossible for a ruler to know everything about his demesne, and such puzzles are the very reason why we have the greatest minds on the continent studying in the colleges to solve such problems.”

“Please, call me Magus Seok Daeho. I may only be a second son, but I’m still a proud member of the Seok clan, and a college graduate myself!”

Of course he was.

“Of course you are, and your intellect speaks for itself. But the minutiae of farming and accounting are beneath you. Your specialties lie elsewhere, which is precisely why you have an economic advisor to handle such trivialities for you. Have faith in your subordinates. It’s through their hard work and dedication that you are able to focus on the things that truly matter.”

“Hmm. There is wisdom in your words, Lady Yoshika. I can see now why you’ve earned the support of the queen in your little...experiment. But I’m afraid I’ve dallied too long. Enjoy the party.”

One down. Of course there was practically a line forming for her attention now—various nobles seeking to test her, or gossip, or to simply harass her out of some sense of petty superiority. She didn’t have enough time to handle them one by one, and she was already calculating which ones she could afford to snub, which ones she could get away with token acknowledgements, and the few important figures that she’d need to address seriously.

It was just as well she had her cousin with her. She quickly weaved another spell of silence as she addressed him under her breath.

“Yongsun, do you remember the code we used on my sixteenth birthday?”

He looked askance at her, blinking.

“Miss An, that would have been shortly before—”

“Not mine, ours. Or—Eunae’s. We’ve brought Eunae with us, like we said.”

Her cousin’s eyes widened as he realized what she was saying.

“Oh! Then yes. Green for undesirables—suitors, bullies, and adversaries. Red for tokens, such as gossips and solid allies. Violet for key figures.”

“Good. I’ll handle the violets, you take the greens, we’ll split reds down the middle—though I may have to redirect a few more of those to you if I’m busy with a particularly important conversation.”

“As you wish.”

Yoshika felt a reflexive twinge of guilt at how swiftly Kim Yongsun complied with her command. He’d been one of Eunae’s only friends growing up, and she had ended up ruining it by enthralling him, which had been typical of her back then. For years she had convinced herself that his odd personality quirks were her fault somehow—that she’d broken him.

It turned out that, no, he was just like that. Her geas on him was actually quite weak, and since he had so much experience resisting his own internal compulsions already, he’d been one of the few people to break one of her charms entirely on his own.

He’d just kept following her anyway, with her none the wiser. He was just...like that. A good friend, a loyal ally...family, even if she was forbidden from formally recognizing him as such. The Seong clan was very particular about paternal links—they didn’t exist.

She regretted taking him for granted.

But Yoshika had no time for such bitter reminiscence. She was at war, and the battle was raging on around her—smiles wielded like spears, and each sweet offering laced with the bitter poison of unspoken obligation. It was a battle she was familiar with—and one which Eunae prided herself on never losing.

“Lady Yi, your reputation precedes you! I was just telling Magus Kim how Yangye’s fields are a lovely shade of green this year...”

“Magus Ryeo, is that a spot of red in your scales? It suits you!”

“Lord Seok! I was just speaking to your son—a charming young man. I was practically a shrinking violet.”

And on it went. Some Yoshika didn’t even bother introducing herself, pretending she didn’t notice them as Kim Yongsun stepped in to serve as a distraction. Others she offered a bit of charm and a token greeting, while the major figures warranted a bit of real conversation.

Lord Seok was a high magus, and much smarter than his son. He even thanked her for getting him to shut up about the taxation problem. The Seok clan had always been among the loyalists, but their relationship with Seong had grown strained after the mage colleges had infamously remained neutral during the coup.

They had strong ties to the colleges, which caused a minor rift as they were stretched between their conflicting loyalties.

Yoshika took the time to hear him out, offering a way to bridge the gap by supporting Jiaguo’s academy. The academy, she reasoned, was also building strong ties to both the colleges and the royals, and by supporting it, Seok could demonstrate their loyalty to both parties without actually offending anyone.

He was a shrewd man, and made no promises, but it was enough to plant the seed. Parties like this were always like that—with so many quick interactions there was never enough time to settle anything concrete. Parties were where the seeds of politics were planted—to be harvested later, behind closed doors.

She fell into a familiar pattern, trading smiles, shaking hands, and giving the occasional cold shoulder to those who simply weren’t worth the trouble. Then a face she’d been specifically avoiding managed to corner her.

“Ah, Lady Yeong. It’s good to—”

“You should be ashamed of yourself, An Eui.”

Ancestors damn it. Lady Yeong Mishil was the last person she wanted to confront. If bullies and enemies were green, then Lady Yeong would be pitch black. An absolute catastrophe waiting to happen.

She had a penchant for melodrama at the best of times, but of all the aspects Yoshika could be present as, she was in An Eui’s body. It had been good to face her past and resolve the guilt that had been plaguing her for so long, but in hindsight it had been a terrible idea.

She’d meant it when she said that she didn’t regret killing Yeong Jiwoo, but there was a world of difference between saying that to his former betrothed, and saying it to his mother.

Yoshika began to form another silencing spell, to keep her conversation with Yeong private, but it was shattered by a masterfully precise counterspell before it could even finish forming. She shot her sister an angry glare, but it wasn’t Misun who returned her gaze.

Queen Eunhee smirked and gave her a subtle wink. She wasn’t going to let her take the easy way out of this confrontation.

Returning her attention to the angry noble, Yoshika gave her a conciliatory bow.

“Begging your pardon, my lady, but I have nothing to be ashamed of.”

“How dare you?! After what you did, how dare you strut about, preening and simpering as if anyone could ever forget what you really are?”

By now, Yeong’s hysterics had drawn the entire party’s attention, the clamoring sound of conversation dying down as the crowd instinctively responded to the unfolding drama.

“With respect, Lady Yeong, I have worked extremely hard to grow beyond my past. I came from nothing, and while people like you may think that means I will forever remain nothing, I assure you that I am here to stay.”

“You murdered my son!”

There really wasn’t anything to say to that. There was no logical retort that would save Yoshika’s reputation, no appeal to her official pardon that would sway so much as a single mind. In the world of power and politics, one could only go so far with just one or the other. And when politics failed, power prevailed.

Kaede knew what to do. Eui approved. Jia and Eunae felt a sinking sense of dread at the very thought. It fell to Meili to break the tie, and though she shared the latter pair’s trepidation, ultimately Yoshika’s decision was firm.

She reached into her robes and withdrew a blade. A simple throwing knife—the likes of which Eui kept on herself at all times. She hadn’t known she would be attending a party, after all.

The crowd gasped, and Lady Yeong took a step back in fear, but she needn’t have worried. Yoshika flipped the knife around and offered the handle to her.

“Go on, then. Avenge him.”