Jiangshi woke up with a shock at the sound of a rough sneeze, and started darting left and right to see what happened, particularly angry that she had been awoken from her sweet dreams. But, unfortunately, the only other occupant of the room they were in was a particularly old man, who was at this moment preparing to sneeze one more time. As he let our another loud sneeze, Jiangshi felt her eye twitch. As much as she wished, the young lady would not, could not, shush the man and command him to stay quiet, for he was the only person that stood above the social hierachy compared to her within a thousand miles, her great-grandfather and official guardian, Xi Yinghou, the Taishang Huangdi of the Tianxia Jinguo, the retired emperor of the "All Under Heaven Silver Empire". Well. Not like it mattered to him. Yinghou had always humble-bragged that even if he had not been the emperor that he would still command the respect and charisma that he did nowadays, due to his own discipline and merits. It was natural, he said, that someone as outstanding as him would reach the heights that he had. Funny. Very funny. The capricious, childish, and eccentric old man would probably have been executed or assassinated by the marquis or a duke or whatever powerful courtier was in the imperial palace, even if he had the favour of the emperor.
"Your eyes tell me a thousand words, my young student. You need to train harder to conceal your emotions." The old man said sagely, exaggerating his every word and spicing them with exotic exuberance. It fit with his costume. In addition to his horribly-fitting purple and yellow shirt, brown leather belt, and the Uaktrian Pakol Hat, he had dozens of rings and jewelry on, all of the Khosro design. Motifs of horses, elephants, lions, and man-faced manticores decorated them. To add to the travesty that was her great-grandfather, he was wearing heavy makeup, with lipstick, eyeliner, white face powder, and even a fake unibrow and beard. She wasn't even sure what it was made of. Was it human hair or animal hair? Either way, she did not want to touch it. At. All.
"I truly do look amazing, don't I?" The old man said loudly, obviously messing with his young pupil. Without waiting for his ward's approval or sycophantic approval, he flipped the window of their carriage open, he turned to their champion, a gruff one-eyed man named Qing Yoo-Shun. "I look grand, don't I, Yoo-shun? My child is loath to give me a proper answer, and so I must turn to you."
The champion bowed, his head low as if he was trying to kowtow on a horse, a feat which was by all rights impossible, yet, the champion seemed to pull it off perfectly. "Yes, your grave Majesty. You set the standard of all grandiosity in the world." Well. That held true if what was grandiose included the piles of shit left in the latrines, the young princess lamented, turning her head away in shame and of second hand embarassment. Come to think of it, some animals did find shit grandoise. Dung bettles amongst them, though they would probably vomit their guts out if they saw Yinghou right now. He seemed so comical. With his slanted eyes, gaunt cheeks, thin eyebrows, thin lips, and long, horselike nose, he looked like a caricature of an old sage as those old illustrations tried to potray them as. Only difference was, here, he was caked in comical makeup and adorned with more jewellry than even the young princess had. She looked down on her intricately designed silver and jade bracelets, comparing them to the significantly more spiritual, yet at the same time, simpler designs of the Khosro bracelets. Well. She couldn't blame Khosro craftsmanship. They were simple, brutal, and forward, representative of the people themselves. Compared to the infinitely more byzantine culture of the Tianxia, the Khosro were a simple and honest people, honouring their heritage and 3000 year-long history with the grandest, yet, simplest of joys. Now, if only that damned old man would stop making a mockery of that culture with that damned outfit...
"Come on, Yoo-shun, be honest! If I look terrible, just tell me! I did the makeup myself, you know, and I'm not an eunuch who specializes in such arts. It's my first... third time!" The old retired emperor asked, his head still faced towards his subordinate. Of course. No wonder he looked like a caricature...
The carriage hit a rough bump, and Jiangshi bounced slightly, only to see that the effect had a comical result on Yinghou, where his unibrow had been displaced. She stifled a giggle, but the young princess was still pretty sure the old man had still noticed it. He was as sharp and as shrewd as they came, and despite his eccentricity, he had been emperor for 50 years before he finally retired. One would not curvive that long by being ignorant of the people around you. Thankfully, it seemed like he was in a good mood. A better mood than she had seen in him for years. While he was not slothful by any means, she had never seen him be this... active, in preparing for something. Not during the new year celebrations, or the autumn festivals, or even the sun & moon festivals which were his favourites, where he would gorge himself on extreme amounts of sweet candies and tasty mooncakes. It was like a part of him that she had never seen before, and it surprised her.
No... maybe it wasn't vigor and impatience that she had seen, like that of a child who was eagerly awaiting his red packets. No. It was more panic, like a student in an exam hall, or a child awaiting punishment. Despite the cold winds that constantly blew in from the open window, the old man, who rarely broke a sweat, had sweat running down the sides of his face, his eyes seemed more panicked than anything... No... maybe it was both. Joy and panic at the same time... ? Was that it? What was he thinking about?
The old emperor was as enigmatic as ever. Despite years of study under the best orators and diplomats the Silver Empire could offer, it seemed that none of them held a candle to the theatricality and duality of Xi Yinghou, for it seemed like no one had him figured out. Even she didn't. He had too many different faces for her to hit a mark on what he actually was. Sometimes she felt like even he had lost track of who he actually was.
"Your divine Majesty. The Earth has deigned to tarnish your grandiosity. If you were to fix it, I would have absolutely no problems." Obviously, diplomacy and pleasing an eccentric old man like Yinghou wasn't the specialty of a mere bodyguard, though the interaction still made Jiangshi smile slightly, underneath her veil. "Ah, yes, yes. The unibrow. You know, the Khosro do love their unibrows. I never understood why, but it has always stood out to me amazingly so. They put it on their most beautiful women too! Personally, I believe it destroys their beauty, but to every culture their own..." Before he begun a rant, Jiangshi decided to stop him.
"How far are we to Livi-Uaktria, Guardian of the Spectre." The young princess asked, in a feminine and soft voice, which, despite all appearances, still manages to express great arrogance and dominance with every word. Jiangshi had perfected this art over the years. After all, she had learned from the best, she thought, as she took a quick look at her guardian, who had not turned his gaze towards her, as he continued fixing his unibrow. It was essential to maintain this arrogance infront of courtiers and inferiors, to show them the majesty of the Tianxia, and to impress and cow them into submission before their divine lord and master.
"We are about to arrive soon, your gracefulness." Yoo-shun pointed off into the distance to somewhere where Jiangshi could not see. "The walls are over there, and we can clearly see Mt Arethanes in the distance."
"Ohh? We're already here? We are much faster than my calculations had predicted!" Yinghou started, and with a jump, he was on his feet. He changed his voice, from that of an eccentric old man to that of an arrogant and fierce commander. "Open the canopy. I desire to look at that mountain with my own two eyes."
The roof of the carriage split open, and Jiangshi heard the cracking and turning of wooden gears. Gusts of cold wind blew in, and the young princess tucked her hands under her numerous layers of clothing. A cold chill ran down the length of her spine, and she shivered at the sudden drop in temperature. Nothing could match the scenery though. Tall mountains dominated her view, and she noticed that there were in a valley. Green grass and alpine trees dotted the landscape, and she spotted dozens of rock houses and blocks dotting the landscape. Off in the distance, there were the tall towers and thick walls of Livi-Uaktria, the gateway to the east. It was an old and ancient city, built by the Zeuskoi hundreds of years ago when Phillipos the Conquerer had torn his way through the Khosroshar, bringing the shroud of death to 4 million people. It was a rich and powerful city, and was used as the capital of the Andhvarid Realm by the Shahanshah, Khosrow VI. Beyond that, she didn't know much. She had never been to the Khosroshar, and her only knowledge of the realm came from the books and from various tutors, who talked of the empire as an equal of the Tianxia, but which had collapsed under its own weight and existed as a rump state on its eastern hinderlands.
The months long trek through hundreds of miles of mountains and great, long steppes seemed to have paid off for this sight. It was beyond anything she could describe. With the tall conifers, the distant white, and the grassy green valley floor, it felt like a paradise to her. At the corner of her eye, she noted a tall, domineering presence. It was the Lonely God, or so that was what the Khosro called it. Supposedly the final destination of their god, Urava, it rose into the heavens like a tower, reaching out into the distant heavens, where the four stars rotated in perfect equilibrum. The orange light over the world seemed to only further the beauty. She took a deep breath of the fresh mountain air, and smiled. Yes. This was good. It would be a pity to step into the city proper though, they tended to smell bad.
A large troop of soldiers begun descending from the sky, about 60 of them. Their winged mounts leapt down, and with a twist of their hind lights, they were now infront of the entourage of Jiangshi and her guardian. The animals infront of her were large and ferocious, winged beasts. With the head of an eagle, the body of a lion, two, large, white wings, and the talons of a ferocious eagle, Jiangshi stared in awe at the magnificent steeds. She had never seen something like this, only having heard of them in books. Words could not describe their beauty, she thought. Their prideful and arrogant eyes, their straight, confident postures. They seemed to act like they were the kings of all animals, which, maybe, they were. Jiangshi had heard tales of griffons, of how they were birthed from rock and how they ruled over the animals with their iron-hard talons, their indomitable ensuring none could dominate over them. Apparently, a griffon would only accept a rider who had been with it at birth, or one who saw it as their child or kin, and they could live for maybe 40 to 50 years, or so the Khosro claimed.
Their riders seemed no less extravagent. Their griffon warmasks seemed to glitter in the early morning sun, and their thoroughly polished armour practically shined. Wearing a decorated steel chestplate over a chainmail hauberk offered great protection, and alongside their fur capes, their steel vambraces, gorget and chausses and pauldrons, they seemed like heroes from an old book. Their left shoulders had a larger pauldron than that on the right, with a large protective cover that seemed to be trying to increase the armour of their left side. In their right hands, they held long, 3 metre long spears, and in their left, they held large, sharp steels of hard metal. The man infront of her seemed even more extreme. Standing at almost a metre and 90 centimetres, he seemed like a giant compared to everyone else around him. He did not wear a griffon warmask, but instead wore one in the likeness of the Andhvarid Kings, or Shahanshahs, as they were called. His armour was the most elaborate of them all, with a large carving of a Yazata, surrounding by thunder dominating the centre of the chestplate. And to add to it, he wore a great, long, lion cloak that seemed to hang off his steed. In addition, he had a red crown, with dozens of pearls and embers studded, it had a large diamond studded in the centre of the fabulously extravagent creation, obviously the centerpiece of a master craftsman's magnum opus. To add to it, there were a large number of white and brown feathers stapled to the top of his crown, fluttering in the chilly air, making him look even larger. The weirdest features were his eyes though. With one ring around the pupil, it seemed to be bright and deep, yet at the same time, empty and shrewd. They had enchanted her. Were they lenses or were they real? She didn't know. Her eyes were unique too. Red eyes. The sign of a long life. Lucky for her...
"Gra-His Majesty is awaiting you, Taishang Huangdi. He has sent me and my Grivpanvar as guards to ensure you do not lose your way. Your army may make camp here, where we will supply them with anything they wish, within reasonable boundary. The city is at your service." The tall man exclaimed loudly in their language, his mask seemingly deepening and broadening his already imposing voice, making his accent ever more noticeable, while at the same time, leaving a deep impression of confidence and ferocity on them. He did not bow as he spoke. That meant he was royalty. Funnily enough, he seemed to have been just staring at the hilarity that was her guardian, and Jiangshi wondered what the man was thinking.
An eunuch ran up to the old statesman's ear, and upon hearing his commands, he immediately transformed into the spokesperson of the retired emperor, his shrill and woman-like voice doing a disrespect to his master's own. "The Taishang Huangdi, his divine majesty, praise be upon his name, has conferred his respects upon you, and thanks you sincerely for your hospitality. He has brought numerous gifts for the intelligent and shrewd Shahanshah Khosrow, and he desires to bring them to him in person."
The heavily armoured knight infront of her seemed to stare at the entourage of men infront of him, seemingly trying to judge their intentions, especially that of the eunuch, who he seemed to have conferred his disgust towards. It would be no use. If Jiangshi couldn't break through the intentions of the elderly statesman, no one could. After a while, he relented, and turned towards a similarly dressed guard next to him, like he was awaiting a signal for approval. The tall soldier turned back, and nodded. "Welcome to Livi-Uaktria, Taishang Huangdi. May Urava confer his joy upon you. Please. Follow me and my men, we will bring you to the meeting ground."
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Xi Yinghou called a general forward with a wave of the hand, and gave him a command to settle the retinue that was with them. Nodding, the officer rushed back, and begun to shout out numerous orders to unpack and rest. Meanwhile, the two royalty, along with a select personal guard, begun following the 60 man large guard, as they took a semi-circle formation around them, with the prince in the lead.
After a short trot, about a few hundred metres, Jiangshi saw that they had now arrived at a large green field, at the base of a mountain. Guards seemed posted at every angle, and a large crowd had gathered around to see the exotic foreigners, guided by a prince and his guard. They might be wondering who they were. Well. It did not matter. They most likely would never see her again. The pikemen infront of her, Phalangatai, they were apparently called, blocked the entrance, and with a wave of his hand and a loud command from the princeling, they parted ways, and Jiangshi saw that, in the middle of the large field there stood a pavillion. The field was large, a few hundred square metres large. Off in the distance, a large bronze gate stood in place, the main entrance to the city of Livi-Uaktria
Nearing the large, blue coloured pavilion, the princeling called his men to a halt, and called forward a number of slaves to be used as mounting blocks. As the carriage came to a stop, Arsaces leapt off his horse, ignoring his on slave, and moved to guide his patrons off, giving his hand to Yinghou, and then, Jiangshi. As the princess grabbed his hand, she felt him vibrating slightly. Was he nervous? She looked up at him, seeing nothing but an iron mask. He seemed like a giant compared to her, and even though she stood up well above the average woman at 165cm, the monstrously large man in her made her seem ever so small. It wasn't just his size, it was his aura. Commanding, arrogant, uncaring, like that of a dragon's. As the guards moved forward, the Taishang Huangdi halted them, and commanded them to stay in place.
Bringing them to the pavilion, he begun to shed his weapons, passing them over to an attendant, and then asking the two to shed their own weapons as well, to which Yinghou obliged. He unsheathed his sword, passing it to the servant, and then pulled out a hidden dagger and blowdart, which he passed to the servant as well. The soldier's eyebrows piqued for a moment, before he stifled a sigh, and guided them into the pavilion.
The tall prince moved to the ground, and with one knee down, and his right arm pressed against the floor in a fist, he bowed. "Your terrible majesty, may you be immortal. The guests have arrived."
Infront of them, Jiangshi spotted two people. A man and a woman, both older than 60. The woman did not seem much like anything, looking much like one of the elderly maidens that served as the master of the concubines in the royal palaces. She had an arrogant sneer in her eyes, and was dressed in expensive silks. The man had a hunchback and was slowly sipping at his drink. He seemed regal and royal, yet, tired and exhausted of it all. But despite that, Jiangshi noted that his tired eyes seemed to regain vigor at the sight of the guests His lips parted into a large smile, and standing up from his chair, he moved over to the chair opposing his, and pulled it open for Yinghou. Jiangshi widened her mouth slightly at the shock. Who was this man that was so casual with her regal great-grandfather.
"You look like a mess, Yinghou." The old man, who Jiangshi now recognized as Khosrow VI, exclaimed. Her shoulders spiked, and despite all her instincts telling her that this was reality, she herself felt as if she was in a dreamscape. Her own guardian begun to laugh. "I am, aren't I, Khosrow! You aren't looking any better though. Atleast with my unibrow, I look like your beautiful wife." He gave an exaggerated bow to the old woman next to Khosrow, who stared at the two men incredulously. She seemed like she wanted to say something... maybe start a fight, but she didn't dare to, even when Yinghou begun to openly pick at her, unibrow and all. Why did the Khosro even like those unibrows? They were so gaudy and ugly and... weird. Well. Weird to her, but still.
As the two kings, one retired, and one still reigning, shook hands, and then after a brief moment, hugged, and took places on the seats that had been prepared for them both. Jiangshi took her guardian's side, while the man who had brought them in begun to pour 2 cups of wine, and served it to the two men. Jiangshi continued to look at the two old statesmen, trying to judge their relationship. They were obviously close friends, but then, he never had mentioned him to her loudly. Sure, she knew that the relationship between the Andhvarids and the Jinguo was well and all, but she did not know that the two kings had a personal relationship of this magnitude. Royalty didn't have friends. They seemed too close to one another for her comfort.
"My scouts reported to me that you were arriving, and I made haste to make preparations for you, my dear friend." Khosrow said with a large grin. Jiangshi noticed the princeling, who had now moved to his king's side in a military position twitched slightly, before relaxing. Maybe he noted that Khosrow had said a lie? Hm. Didn't matter. "It was a mess. Your entourage was so stealthy. Leaving your army miles behind? That was genius. I had kept my men on guard spying your army, trying to find you. Hell, it was only because of Arsaces here that I even noticed you! Well. Speaking of Arsaces, this is Shahpur Arsaces Andhvarid, my grandson, and third in line to the throne. Hes extremely intelligent, maybe smarter than both you and I, Yinghou. You won't believe how much this kid knows."
"Hmm. Well, Arsaces, let me test you. Do you know who I am?" Yinghou asked.
Arsaces muffled something undecipherable, and Khosrow sighed. "Take off your mask, Arsaces."
The princeling unbuckled his mask, and with a quick movement, took it off. He tucked the mask into some far off compartment of his large cape and gave a sheepish smile. "Thank you, your majesty, may you be immortal."
Turning back towards Yinghou and Jiangshi, she studied his features, which impressed Jiangshi heavily. His eyes were focused, full of power and will. His nose was long and wide, and he had a great winner's smile, studded with two rows of big, white teeth. His nose seemed slightly dented towards the left, and there seemed to be the residue of a few stitch marks. His skin was clean and baked by the warm sun, clear of acne and other such impurities, and he had thick, black eyebrows. His jaw was chiseled, and combined with his other facial features, he seemed like a hero from a story. As far as she could see, this was his natural look, clear of any makeup, like the eyeliners and perfumes and other such cosmetic products that the Khosro allegedly loved. On the other hand, she also noted a few things that seemed off. His hair, long and straight, seemed slightly greasy, as if it had just been washed, and was arranged messily as it flowed down his lion skinned cape onto his chestplate. His eyes, focused as they were, also showed a brutality that did not seem afraid to pick a fight.
The young princess noticed his eyes shining as he answered the question, as if he had been waiting for this moment. "You are Taishang Huang Xu Yinghou of the Tianxia Jinguo, responsible for the completion of the Fajunshoushu, a compilation and recording of a common law that is to be followed. It is nice to meet you, sir. Uh. Your divine majesty?" His eagerness was something new. Jiangshi hadn't seen such raw, uncontrolled emotion in a long time. Was it the difference in cultures? His joy seemed infectious too, and the young princess could barely suppress a smile under her translucent hood, though Yinghou seemed unimpressed. Arsaces seemed like he wanted to hold his hand out for a handshake, but relented. It seemed that her guardian had caught onto this as well. Arsaces was definitely not a master in court etiquette.
"I'm a foreigner. You don't need to address me so formally. Sir will do. I figure that was an easy question." Yinghou seemed slightly displeased. The whitebearded old man pointed towards Jiangshi, as her eyes focused on the fingertip that was inches away from her face. "Who is she." That was an impossible question. For the most part, Jiangshi had rarely ever ventured beyond the palace, and very few people knew about her. Almost all information on her had been suppressed, and the only ones that remained were from... those books.
Arsaces looked at the princess for some time, then turned back to the Taishang Huang. "She is Xu Jiangshi, my bride. What." He said with a big smile on his face, which started to dissipate as he realized what he had just said. His smile turned upside down, and his eyes seemed to slowly swivel towards her, his finger still in the air, his hand slowly closing into a fist.
"Hes not intelligent, Khosrow, dear old friend. You lied. Again." The Taishang Huang muttered, turning towards the old Shahanshah.
"Normally he is, but it just seems that the shock of having a ball and chain seems to have not yet set itself into him. Only now has his betrothed arrived has he realized the magnitude of his problems. You probably hoped I was joking, yes, boy?" Khosrow said, half-jokingly.
Arsaces absolutely ignored his grandfather and king, turning to pour himself a cup of wine. Khosrow begun to laugh, and Yinghou snickered bitterly as well. Jiangshi herself was extremely shocked. So this was why her guardian had brought her to such a far place. To marry a bumbling, foolish, idiotic, albeit handsome, fool? She closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath. This was disaster.
"Well. I desire some quiet time with my friend, now Arsaces, so please let me and my dear old Yinghou leave you two sweethearts in peace." Khosrow got up, and with the assistance of a guard, guided his friend out of the tent, leaving only Arsaces and Jiangshi in the large, flamboyant tent.
With only the two of them left inside the spacious room, Arsaces took a seat, his eyes haunted as he passed towards Jiangshi a cup of wine. He sat at his grandfather's chair, seemingly overhearing an animated conversation about city walls taking place outside the thin canvas tent as he played with the wine in his cup. Jiangshi started to look about the room, slightly embarassed and unwilling to begin a conversation as the atmosphere in the room took a sour turn, beginning to notice its contents. A beautiful red carpet in the corner, a few paintings of deities and gods, a number of beautiful gold ornaments decorated the room, with a large number of small tables left around, a wine serving complement at one side, and another serving water next to it. It was a beautiful, if complicated room. Everything had intricate, complicated designs, decorated with colourful fractals, motives, and hand-drawn paintings.
"So... Can you speak Khosro?" The prince asked. Jiangshi noted that his goblet of wine had been emptied, and he was refilling it as they were speaking. Apparently, in the time had the young princess had been studying the room, Arsaces had brought a number of snacks as well, and infront of him was a plate of cookies which had not been there formerly.
"Uhm. Yes. Yes I can" Jiangshi said shyly, not sure what to say. It felt too awkward to even try to open up to the prince infront of her. Arsaces begun to eye her, obviously studying her, but quickly gave up and turned out towards the door. Looking at him, she could only see a fool. Jiangshi wished she could cry out of self pity. What had she done to deserve this fool?
"Did you know about this... contract?" Arsaces waved his hand nonsencially in the air, as he slouched towards the side. The young princess felt like screaming. How could someone be this obtuse and incompetent at diplomatic affairs. She wasn't his classmate friend!
Jiangshi shook her head. "His divine majesty gives me information at his will, and I am but a servant of his divine will. Whatever comes, I will accept." She said, mostly to comfort herself and reassure herself that everything would go well. Obviously it wasn't. Deep down, the young princess couldn't help but wonder why her guardian had sold her off to a far off country, and she worried that she would die from an assassin a week in.
"Well." Arsaces took a sip from his glass. "My grandfather told me this a week ago, but I had entirely forgotten about it as I ran around preparing for your damned arrived." He spoke out roughly, giving a condescending, arrogant look. "If it was up to me, this wouldn't even happen. I have no plans of getting married, in maybe. 10 years? I don't know. I've always wanted to explore the world and taste it's delicacies before I settled down."
His blunt, vulgar attitude surprised the young princess, who, though knew of such vulgarities, having been around the Taishang Huangdi, still could not help but recoil at how he was debasing himself. A failure. An embarrassment. A walking travesty dressed in a glorious cape. A fool who knew not the subtleties of diplomacy, who insulted her pride infront of her. Jiangshi felt her eye twitch slightly, which was thankfully concealed underneath a thick, translucent veil. If this was to be her husband she would rather die. Thinking to herself such dire thoughts, she rolled her eyes, sighing softly. She said nothing
The princeling infront of her scratched his head, slightly confused as to what to continue on with, looking about awkwardly at her. It was plain that the young prince, who had been so confident and blunt in his conversation earlier, had very little experience speaking with others, or dealing with new experiences. He seemed so confused, so weak. The chinks in his armour were exposed everywhere, and he would a bumbling bufoon of a diplomat, if he ever did come to the throne that was. Looking away, Jiangshi started to wonder just what had made such an idiot. A sheltered childhood? Idiocy? She sighed. He would be the death of her.
"And by the hand of nature, am I endowed with the barest of the world's blessings and curses alike." Jiangshi muttered out softly, quoting an old philosopher.
"And so I will journey on, ever silent in my search for an eternal remedy, to this cursed blessing." Arsaces quoted half-heartedly, and Jiangshi shot up, turning back towards her future husband. He seemed uncaring, slurping away at his cup of wine. "So says Yan Chingkuo..."
It was with this that the black-haired princess' jaw finally dropped. Looking at the prince with a befuddled expression, she stuttered. "You know who Yan Chingkuo is?"
"A poet that walked all the way across Uaktria by foot to study under the great Zeuskoi philosopher Plotenes? Yep. Grandf-his terrible majesty stored a number of his poems in the grand library." Arsaces grinned, obviously in his element. Continuing on smugly, "I'm a literary genius, you know. I've trained under the greatest poets and writers of the Khosroshar."
Jiangshi ignored his exaggeration, entranced by his arrogant smile. His eyes were begging for a fight, and unable to control herself, she took the bait. "Through the eye of the storm and of the pinprick of divinity, I shall obtain the elixir to everything and to nothing."
"And through the hand of Ashoka the Lightning and by the cruel fate of eternity will I burden this gift for none to bear witness to, for this is my fate." Arsaces immediately piqued, and after a moment, his hand morphed into a finger pointing upwards. "Almost easy. Zhong Zhongshan, the court bureaucrat in his famous speech against the alchemist king."
Knashing her teeth together, Jiangshi pushed herself forward, lifting herself off the cushioned chair and onto her seat. " I will soon take off that wreath, called eternity, for he is unworthy of my gift to mankind."
"And so the wreath was taken off, as Kokytis swept him away. Ardeshir Cteisphid of Livi-Uaktria. Easy."
"No, it was written by Alexandros the Cunning of Balkh, you dim witted idiot." Jiangshi fought back, enraged by his arrogance.
"Jinguo propaganda, only to satisfy your own lack of famous poets by creating the fictional Alexandros. He never existed, atleast not the one from Balkh. If he really was Zeuskoi then you would see much more exaggerating features, as opposed to the blunt, straightforward, almost unpoetic, if not inspired narrative that he weaves. Hes Khosro, not Zeuskoi." The handsome prince said bluntly, as if the argument was finished just by his word. Jiangshi felt the anger in her rising, and struggled against the tide of emotions.
"Awards to him who can finish this riddle, the trial that awaits him is an arduous one" Jiangshi forced herself to continue sneering, awaiting Arsaces to fall into her trap.
"Long and hard it shall be, for 50 years, ye prince who art thou thy fool, befall upon your arrogance and may you be rendered broken!" The tall prince finished, a great smile pasted onto his face. Three moments passed, and Arsaces finally realized what had happened. "You're a tricky one." He hissed out, still smiling. "I didn't expect you to be this clever."
"Neither did I." Jiangshi smiled mindlessly as she giggled. "You're not as stupid as I thought."
"You're not as upstuck as I thought either!" Arsaces grinned, and begun to laugh. "I wouldn't mind marrying you now, you know. You seem cool."
Jiangshi blushed and immediately stopped laughing, as her grin fell off. Did she just hear what she had heard?
Watching Arsaces, she looked at him dumbfounded. Was that... a marriage proposal? She blinked multiple times, watching the young prince laugh. She didn't know what to say anymore.
-=0=-