While the Shak’s chambers had a space set aside to take tea privately, it was never intended to accommodate a crowd of youths. The chaise lounges were designed as a spot for the Shak to sit while coaxing one of his women into bed, or discussing delicate matters with a treasured adviser. Five young men with no untoward ideas towards each other? It wasn’t ideal.

With a storm raging outside, the courtyard and tea garden were out of the question, so the interior of Rae’s private rooms was pushed to the limits.

Rae sat on his bed, with Gaori next to him. Of all the men in his chambers that day, Gaori was the least likely to be put out by such a position. Nor would he use the opportunity to tease Rae.

Ven Ashem had taken the chaise lounge across from the fire, draping himself over it like he was at a brothel and not at the centre of the greatest of all the camps. He had offered to share the seat with a few of the others in the room, but they could sense his wicked intentions and neither agreed.

The first was Rae, and the second had gone to retrieve the chair from the office. This was Sebi Bejuk.

“There’s only one here, so Young Master Zott will have to share with young master Ven,” he said, placing the chair beside the bed and primly sat. Rae had invited Sebi after he had come to check on his injuries, and Rae had realised that someone who knew his way around medicinal herbs and toxic plants might be of use.

“Young master Zott-“ Ven sneered, “can stand,”

Rae made a face. It was true that Ven had been nothing but gentle with him if not a little too playful, but the venomous way he spoke of Zott… It was starting to unsettle him.

Speaking of Zott, he cared little for whatever jabs were being sent his way and leaned against the mantle.

“Shall we begin?” he said, setting his golden eyes on Rae.

Rae cleared his throat and reiterated his wish to receive their help in investigating the poisoning.

“You all have knowledge and skills which I lack and are more familiar with the Shak’s camp than I. It is my hope that with your help, the matter will be swiftly put to rest and everyone’s minds can be at ease,”

With that said, the discussion soon turned serious.

“You say it’s likely the true target was my sister’s unborn child?” Ven said.

Rae looked at Sebi, who said, “I’ve studied the tainted food, the poison is a plant native to this area, known to be harmful if taken by pregnant women. Since the Shana is already so far along, I don’t think it is likely to have killed the child, but I suspect that’s what the culprit intended,”

“Why do you think that?” Ven asked.

“The bun had enough of the poison to cause a miscarriage if ingested, but the taste was so foul, and the poison so irritating to the throat… Even if the bun made its way to its intended target, it’s unlikely that the Shana would have eaten more than one mouthful. Such a small dose would be enough to make an adult unwell for a day, a child a bit more, but otherwise wouldn’t cause any harm,”

“What are you suggesting?”

At this moment, Rae chimed in.

“The culprit intended to harm the Shana’s baby. And they chose now to act, which suggests they were waiting for me to return to the camp. Either they think they are acting on my behalf, or they are trying to frame me,

“The culprit was able to enter the Bejuk residence and tamper with the food undetected. Either it is someone of supreme skill or someone who had ample reason to be in a Duke’s residence-”

“-I’d say the former. If they were such a skilled assassin, they wouldn’t have gotten the dosage so wrong,” Zott interrupted, earning a glare from Ven.

“So the former. Someone who often has business in the ducal residence, but isn’t from camp Bejuk… So, one of the servants from within the camp…

“That might be the one who did the deed, but there might be another who gave the order. That’s where all of you come in: Sebi, you will be my eyes inside the Bejuk residence. Investigate the events of the last few days, and search for any evidence of strange comings and goings.

“Zott, please keep watch over the Shana and Shali, in case such an attempt happens again.

“Gaori, I know you’ve been wanting to get close to a certain serving girl. You and she will gather information on the servants within the palace, and see if any have strange connections to Duke Ashem’s enemies.

“Young master Ven and I-“ Rae’s voice stumbled upon the intense look he received from the man in question, “-Ven and I. We’ll do the same thing from the other side. We’ll become ingratiated with the local powerful families, and investigate any that have quarrels with the Ashem,”

After his four companions had agreed, Rae could only spare a few minutes to discuss their plans any further. He had been in and out of meetings with the Dukes all week. Ashem wanted permission to bring more of his men inside the camp, to ensure his family’s safety. While Duke Bejuk had taken on much of the funeral arrangements, he still required Rae’s input on vital matters. They had at last settled on a date for the final ceremony, a thought that made Rae’s stomach churn.

This was the first day since the incident that Rae had some free time set aside, and now Rae had discussed his plans with his trusted people, he was ready to go to a long-awaited meeting.

Gaori had helped him arrange the meeting, so he assisted in batting off Ven Ashem’s insistence he stay and have tea.

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Then, Rae left the Shak’s chambers and headed for the meeting place.

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His mother’s grave. In the days Rae had been at the Shak’s camp, he had cleared the moss from the headstone and trimmed back the flowers where they had grown particularly aggressively. The altar for offerings had been cleared of debris. Each day, prayers and flowers had been offered.

When Rae arrived, the rain was just letting up and the stone path to the backwoods glistened. The person he had been hoping to meet was already there.

“My child!” Nana cried when she saw him, “I’ve caught glimpses of you a few times, but you were with the Dukes and I feared my greetings would be seen as presumptuous,”

Her appearance had changed greatly over the years. Her hair, which had once been a dark, ruddy brown, had all turned grey. If not for that voice, which had soothed him to sleep on the worst nights of his life, Rae might not have recognised her.

“Who would dare call my Nana presumptuous?” Rae smiled and embraced her. Even with his mother gone, and his father uninterested, Rae had never been starved of affection. Since he left for Camp Kaolin, he had often been hugged and kissed by his auntie. But something about being pressed tightly to his Nana’s chest, having his hair stroked at the perfect balance between firmly and gently… It took him right back to his innocent days, when all was well with his parents and the future looked ever brighter with each new dawn.

“My child… my child… have you been keeping well?” Nana asked.

“Quite well, very well! But what of you? I had never expected to still find you here after all these years,” Rae asked. By this time, the hug had gotten a little stifling, and they parted.

When they did, Nana wiped a tear from her eye.

“I could hardly leave! Even if you weren’t here anymore, I knew you would eventually return. If I couldn’t follow you to camp Kaolin, I would wait here and watch over your mother until you came back,”

“You always knew I would come back? What if another Shakje had been born?”

“Fate has a way of working out right from wrong. Your Highness has suffered some misfortune, but in heaven’s eyes, you were always meant to be Shak,” she said, which Rae thought was a surprisingly whimsical thought.

He was about to comment on this when his eyes fell on his mother’s grave.

“You said you’ve been watching over her and Nukaim, all this time?”

“Forgive me, highness. You must have been heartbroken to find it in such a state. I’ve been worked very hard in recent months and I’m sorry to say I’ve neglected tending to her as a result,”

Ah, with the Shana’s pregnancy, the Shak’s decline, and death, how chaotic the palace must have been!

“Of course, of course! Mother would understand. But you won’t be worked to the bone any longer. I’ll make sure you’ll be taken care of from now on,”

Nana protested for some time until Rae relented that she could continue to serve in the palace. He made a mental note to speak to the palace steward and ensure she wouldn’t be working too hard. After returning to his rooms, they took tea together in the garden. The air was damp and cool, so despite them being warmed by the tea, Rae had the fire lit so Nana could warm herself before returning home.

“There are chambers set aside for my aides and vassals, but I have none but Gaori. I could set you up in some rooms- the very finest of all!” Rae said, but Nana refused.

“Your mother gifted me the place I live now. I can’t bear to leave it, for as long as I live,”

Rae nodded. He too, had little left to remember his mother by. While they had lived in finery, all their possessions were truly the property of the Shak, and little was saved for Rae to keep. Nana was only a servant of the soon-forgotten Shana, how could she ask to be allowed to keep any trinkets?

Rae wished he was generous enough to offer her one of the things he had kept, but couldn’t bear to part with a single thing. Guilt gnawing at him, he offered to walk Nana back to her home.

“A good idea. If you ever need your Nana, you’ll know just where to look,” Nana said. In the time they had talked, the heavy creases on her forehead had softened, and her complexion was peach with warmth.

Nana lived outside the palace. Her rooms were modest, located above the tea rooms across from the guesthouse. When Rae heard this, Rae worried that it might be a rowdy area but seeing the home Nana had built, his heart was softened.

She had a well-maintained hearth, and plenty of fresh wood, with a quaint, warm living space. Thick, hand-sewn drapes obscured a good-sized window. The only other room was a bedchamber, which from the furtive glance caught by Rae as he dropped her off, was equally pleasant.

“Nana, between us, there is no need for formalities. If you need anything at all, you only need to ask. Your little one is now the Shak, and there’s nothing I won’t do for you,”

Rae thought he might have glimpsed tears in Nana’s eyes as she bid him farewell.

“I’m very fortunate to have entered the late Shana’s service, to have met such a kindhearted young man,”

It is because of your kindness that I was able to turn out how I am, Rae thought. He had been struck dumb by the praise and never managed to return it.

Nana pressed some candied almonds into his palm as he was leaving.

“To tide you over on the way home,” she said.

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Rae didn’t return to the palace right away. He had managed to evade the attention of both Dukes and had already achieved his goal of meeting with the people he wanted to see. Now, all there was left to do was satisfy his curiosity and explore the Shak’s camp for the first time.

The people who lived in these mountains did not have photographs or a long artistic tradition. While those who worked in the palace knew what the Shak looked like, even they would not recognise him without regalia or retinue. Rae was free for a few hours to wander as he liked.

In the Shak’s camp, there were more restaurants and teahouses than Rae had ever seen before, but to anyone not from the mountains, the offerings would seem very provincial. A group of weaver girls had come together to sell their wares in the central square: rough outer tunics embroidered with flowers and songbirds. Rae sifted through them for some time, reminded of his auntie.

Rae found a green silk ribbon, decorated with those red wildflowers he felt such affection for. He stroked his thumb across the stitching. It was a little messy, but it was the only one quite like it in the whole pile.

“It would suit you,” a deep, luxurious voice said.

Rae startled and locked his eyes on Ven Ashem. His hair was silky and pristinely styled, dressed in a violet silk overcoat… Rae felt the urge to shrink away from him.

“What are you doing here?” Rae asked, suddenly feeling eyes on him. Did this fool not consider how much attention he drew? How weak the weaver girls would be to the temptation.

“Looking for a way to pass the time, for someone to have tea with. Would you care to join me?”

There was no need to talk of tea so flirtatiously. Just when did this man decide he was free to tease Rae however he pleased?

“Alright, where did you have in mind?”