Page 67 of Empire's Curse

“And how did you summon me whilst in that fray with those scum?”

Holding up her wrist so he could see her bracelet, she shrugged. “I’m not entirely sure, but I think I used this.”

His eyes narrowed, and something flitted across his face—surprise, maybe? “And where did you get that?”

“I …” She licked her lips. “I found it?—”

“Don’t lie to me.” The sharpness of his tone made her flinch.

“It was given to me.”

“By whom?”

She hesitated to answer. He had reacted terribly when she had used Yat-sen’s magic and she doubted he would react better to knowing Feiyu was helping her. She also didn’t want to get the high mage in trouble, not like she did with the poor prince. “One of the mages at the palace. I don’t know who, but he gave it to me and said it could be useful.”

“One of my mages approached you?” He almost stumbled when his foot caught against a slippery, icy, jagged edge of a rock, and he nearly took Daiyu with him. They both scrambled forward, holding on to each other for support.

“Are you o?—”

“One of my mages approached you?” he repeated, standing straighter and pinning her with a displeased scowl. Even weakened, sweaty, and splattered with blood, he appeared as vicious as he had in the fortress hall when he was displaying his monstrous magic.

Daiyu nodded, not trusting herself to speak without giving away her lie.

“You’ll have to point him out to me later,” he said through gritted teeth. “I don’t like the idea of my men acting without my permission, especially when it concernsyou.”

She didn’t know how to take that—as a compliment, or not—so she said nothing.

Their not-so-merry jauntcontinued in silence once more. When the sky darkened and the winds grew stronger, they took a break and huddled against a copse of dense trees, both of them shivering in the wintry temperature. Daiyu’s teeth chattered and she hated that the weather up here in Geru, the northern part of the empire, was so frigid and unlike the rest of the country.

Daiyu’s mouth was parched, her stomach was growling, and the bitter cold didn’t help either. She hugged herself tightly and watched as Muyang sagged against one of the trees, his eyes closed and his expression more tranquil than hers could ever be.

“Why are you so calm?” She leaned against the cool, rough bark of the tree and brought her knees to her chest. Her butt and the back of her thighs were wet from the snow and she hated the combination of stiffness, dampness, and frozenness.

One dark, delicate eyebrow arched. “Do you expect me to be quivering in fear at such a minor inconvenience?”

“Well, youarequivering.”

“Infear?” He scoffed, and she couldn’t help the grin that stretched across her lips. “War is far worse than this could ever be. Besides, my magic will recoup itself in the morning and we can be on our way in no time.”

Daiyu nodded slowly. “So you’re not afraid because you have magic.”

“If you’re trying to say my lack of fear is because of my power, you’re incorrect. I’m not afraid because I have faith in myself to survive. That’s all.”

She rested her head against the tree and felt the ridges across her scalp as she turned her head away from the biting breezes. How nice it must have been to believe in oneself so much, shethought with a frown. She wasn’t sure if she had that same determination.

“It is often the smallest of creatures that have the highest drive for survival,” he murmured as if reading her thoughts. He was sitting only a few inches away from her, their faces close together as they leaned against the same thick tree. His black gaze flicked to her lips, and she resisted the urge to blush as she ripped her attention away from him.

Daiyu placed her chin on her knees and curled into a tighter ball, her face flaming. “Are you suggesting you’re a small animal? Perhaps I should call youlittledragon, then.”

Muyang’s laugh startled her. He raked a hand through his dark hair, his body trembling with chuckles as he peered over at her. There was something otherworldly beautiful about him; like the stars themselves would shine brighter so long as he smiled. It was such a bizarre, poetic, magical feeling that Daiyu had to bury her face deeper against her knees to keep from staring at him like a lovestruck fool.

It was just his outer appearance. Nothing else about him wasgood. At least that’s what she told herself, and a part of her believed it too.

“You shouldn’t strain yourself too much. You’re injured.” Her nerves seemed to fire up all at once, and she toyed with the beaded bracelet to distract herself from her thoughts.

“I’ve been healing myself throughout the day, so you don’t have to worry about me.”

“I wasn’t … I wasn’tworried.”

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