“Maybe he did die of natural causes, then,” Sora says on a soft breath.
We all turn and look at her. Aeri skews her face, Royo’s eyebrows come together, and Euyn blinks. Sora isn’t naive, though. She believes in goodness, which is incomprehensible with what she’s been through.
“Never mind.” She looks away.
“Something tells me we can’t just find one of these eggs at the marketplace in Quu, right?” Royo asks.
“The nearest known amarth nest is in the Light Mountains, five days north of here.” I look around at everyone. “So who wants to do what?”
The only noise is the rustle of parchment as the priest cleans the scrolls.
No one wants to get either of these items, of course. That is why they are the only exceptions to the Rule of Distance and why they come with tremendous rewards. No one in their right mind would try. But we have no choice now.
“The good news is that so long as we succeed at one, it will be enough for a private audience,” I say.
No one finds this to be very comforting. Probably because it’s not. With no volunteers, I make the decision for them.
“Royo and Aeri, you go to the Light Mountains to steal the egg,” I say. “Sora, come with Euyn and me. We will get the head of Staraheli—it should be somewhere by the ice caves of the Marnans about four days west of here. After we succeed, all of us will meet in Vashney. There’s an inn called The Revelry in the center of the old city. We’ll reconnect there ten days from now and proceed to Quu together. If either party doesn’t return, wait for up to a sunsae from now, but then go alone. There’s no reason for all of us to fail.”
Everyone starts talking at once, no doubt to disagree.
I sigh and hit the table with my palm. They all quiet down. “The reason I divided us this way is because I need Sora to kill the guards quietly and Euyn to protect me while I cut off the head. It’s best to use stealth to take the egg and do it quickly, which makes Aeri best suited for that task. She needs someone to protect her on the way and to fight off the amarth if it goes wrong, which means Royo. I suppose Royo and Euyn can change places, but all of you have unique talents, and neither mission benefits from additional people.”
The second the words are out of my mouth, I realize why we were sent to Khitan.
“That’s why we’re here,” I say.
The others turn to me as I stand and puzzle it out.
“Since the throne room, I’ve wondered,why us? Why would Joon go through all the trouble and risk his daughter? Why the ruse to capture us and the effort to keep us alive? And now I have an answer.”
I pause, and they all stare at me.
“The Temples of Knowledge contain written histories of all four original realms. Joon must have read about the Rule of Distance and the exceptions in the temple in Yusan. He knew we had the skills needed to give the head of Staraheli to Quilimar. Shoot, poison, plan.” I point to Euyn, Sora, and myself. “And with Aeri, we can steal the black egg. Once we are within a few feet of Quilimar, Sora could poison her.”
It’s not an answer to everything, but one mystery is solved. However, I know I’m missing something because none of that explains why he’d try to kill Quilimar before we reached Khitan.
“Does that mean King Joon killed the priests?” Sora asks.
“It might. The murders could also be unrelated to us,” Euyn says. “Someone was obviously searching for something—the question is what.”
We turn to the priest, who pales and sways.
“Luhk, do you know?” I ask. “What did your brothers and sisters die to keep in the temple? Was it this?” I wave at the information on the table.
He shakes his head and shyly walks over. He doesn’t entirely trust us, and I don’t blame him. But he puts his hand in his pocket and pulls out a tiny scroll.
I read it and then read it again. I look at the priest, raising my eyebrows to see if it’s true, and he nods. This is exactly what Quilimar would kill to prevent people from knowing. I run my hand down my face.
“What is it?” Euyn asks.
I hand the scroll back to Luhk and exhale. “Your sister cannot wield the Golden Ring of the Dragon Lord.”
Euyn closes his eyes slowly. Sora covers her mouth. Aeri gasps. And Royo just looks confused. I am, too. I’m not sure why Quilimar can’t use the ring, but I am certain she wouldn’t want the other realms to find out. Without the ring, she is weaker, and weakness will always get you killed. To keep it a secret, she faked the assassin’s gilded shirt during piteua and sent soldiers to destroy the information and kill the priests. It’s a shame the ring can’t turn an imposter to ash—it would be one less worry.
But now, we know her secret.
We have to get out before her soldiers come back.
