I turn toward him and glare. “If that is the toll, I have no want of it. If the woman I loved needed me, I would gladly let the kingdom burn.”
Father blinks up at me in confusion, as though he can’t bringhimself to understand something so simple. “You do not wish to rule?”
“I never wanted to rule, Father,” I mutter. “All I ever wanted was your…” Attention. Approval. Acceptance.
I leave him without those final words. There is no point in speaking to a man who will never hear me.
15Yue
Hunting Log #380:
Other cultures have their own names for the nine-tailed fox, as well as their own tales.
The main similarity between them is that they are signs of ill-boding.
Just as they did withSooah and Wen, the illusions before us vanish into little more than dust. It makes sense that a man so stubborn and steadfast wouldn’t fall for such a trick. Sonam turns and blinks at us incredulously.
“I’m glad to see you’re well,” he says evenly.
“You think a maze would get the better of me?” I reply.
Sonam sneers as he walks past, shoving my shoulder with his own. “I wasn’t talking to you.”
Ha. I should have known better.
Sooah signs something with her hands, frantic and quick. Wen wears a similar look of worry. Sonam is the only one with an air of calm—though I can detect his expertly veiled nerves from at least a li away. That maddeningly sweet mango scent he carries with him is noticeably sour now.
“I’m unharmed, Sooah, there’s no need to worry,” Sonam says,his tone firm, but not unkind. It’s certainly a far cry from the bluntness he normally reserves for me. “How did you two fare? I assume you both met your own temptations.”
“And succeeded,” Wen boasts. “Getting through Hell is going to be a cinch if these’re the sort of obstacles we’re looking at.”
Sooah puts her hands on her hips. EvenIknow what she means:Curb your overconfidence.
They speak to one another in hushed whispers, making no effort to check on me. Not that I expect them to. I take the opportunity to investigate our surroundings more thoroughly. Surely there has to be an easier way to get through this maze to the next Court of Hell. If we wander for too long, I fear the hedges may claim us as it’s done to all the unfortunate souls who’ve come before. The humans have passed their test—so why is the way through not yet clear?
“The demon didn’t give you any trouble, did it?” Sonam asks his guards, loud enough for me to hear. On purpose, no doubt.
“Said it’d eaten you,” Wen grumbles. “Let me kill it. It’ll save us all the trouble.”
I glare at them over my shoulder, every muscle in my body tense. To lash out now would be a guaranteed death sentence, but I can’t stand idly by and listen to Wen plot my murder—and all within earshot, no less.
Hate churns in the pit of my stomach. These humans will likely keep me alive only so long as I prove useful to them. I’m going to have to play along until an opportunity to escape presents itself. Then I’ll flee and leave these wretches behind.
I sniff the air. “The exit is this way.”
Wen glares at me. “It’s lying. Mark my words, it’s going to eat us when we least expect.”
“If I wanted to eat you, I would have done it while you were busy writhing in that pit of sirens,” I snap. Much to my delight,Wen’s face turns bright scarlet. “The air smells different down this way. Fresher. If it isn’t the way out, I’ll let you strike me down where I—”
The sound of a young woman’s giggle interrupts us. It’s soft and sweet like a springtime morning, radiating an almost welcoming sort of warmth. Sonam and I look ahead and find not just one woman, but eight. Sisters. They share the same pointed noses and alluring foxlike eyes, dressed in pretty white robes adorned with silky bits of silver ribbon. There’s something familiar about them. I’m not sure how I hadn’t noticed them before. It isn’t until I take a few steps forward and look upon them that I realize why my heart aches so.
Qin, Mihan, Ahn, Lu, Nuying, Chunhua, Jiayi, and Su.
My most beloved sisters, here in the flesh.
This is my trial. I thought myself above it all. Without a soul to tempt, I was convinced that the Court of Temptation would have no sway over me.
Su spots me first. “Yue!”
