Page 7 of Empire's Curse

The man clucked his tongue. “Well, perhaps I wouldn’t understand, but I must ask, how do you plan on doing such a thing? Sneaking inside the palace? Saving your sister? It all seems a bit ridiculous. And impossible, especially for a farm girl like yourself.”

Daiyu frowned, not liking his tone. “I’m more than just a farm—wait. How do you know I’m a farm girl?”

“I can smell it on you. The manure. The pig shit.” He shrugged. “I’m fairly certain everyone in the vicinity can smell?—”

Daiyu gasped, a blush staining her cheeks. “You’re joking! I donotsmell.”

“You’re likely accustomed to the smell?—”

“I amnotsmelly.”

The man laughed softly. “Yes, I jest. I can tell you belong on a farm because your skin is tanned, your hands tell a life of hard work, and well, the most apparent indicator: I have magic, miss. The air around you tells me you work on a farm.”

Daiyu gave him a strange look; was that truly the work of magic, or was he messing with her again?

“Anyway, miss, you’re in luck.” The man held his hand out to her. “If you’d like, I can take you inside the palace.”

“Excuse me? Why would you help me?”

“I can’t turn away from a woman in distress.” Something twinkled in his black eyes. “I’m also very curious to see how you plan on rescuing your sister.”

Daiyu eyed his hand suspiciously. His reasoning wasn’t good enough for her to trust him so blindly, but he was the only sliver of hope she had of breaking into the place, so she nodded slowly. “I don’t understand why you want to help me, but I can’t say no to that.”

She placed her hand in his, and all at once, their surroundings blurred and the colors seemed to stretch out and wane in a split second. Before Daiyu could open her mouth to scream or shout or say something, everything snapped into place. She blinked and the city’s smells—briny fish, greasyfood, and sweaty bodies—disappeared altogether. In its place was the potent scent of incense and jasmine. And instead of the tall buildings and shops, wooden, paneled walls and jade-speckled pillars surrounded them.

Daiyu inhaled sharply—breathlessly—and turned to the room. Through the window, she could make out the capital streets she had just been on. She rushed to the windowsill and leaned over, her mouth dropping at the sprawling city and the guarded palace walls.

Sure enough, she was inside the palace.

3

“How?”Daiyu couldn’t tear her eyes off the city beneath her. She had been standing on that street just a few seconds ago, and now she was … She looked around the room once more, her mouth still gaping wide. How was any of this possible?

“Magic.” The masked man watched her and she couldn’t tell if he was grinning at her lack of knowledge and newness to magic, or if he was annoyed. Oranything, really. But the tone of his voice appeared … neutral, perhaps?

“We werejustthere.” She pointed to the street with wide eyes.

He came to stand beside her by the windowsill. He pointed to another street in a different direction. “Actually, we were closer to there.”

Daiyu frowned. “You know what I mean. We were just?—”

“I’m aware.” He spread his hands out. “Magic, miss. That’s the answer.”

“It’s just so fascinating.” She turned to gawp at the streets once more. She had never warped before and hadn’t even thought it was actually possible. Sure, she had heard rumors or stories of mages warping, but nobody she knew had actually seen it before. And not just seen it—been warped themselves.

“Don’t you have a sister to save?”

Daiyu turned to the man sharply, her awe-filled moment shattering. “Of course I do.”

“Then perhaps …?” He waved to the doorway.

“You want me to get to it?” She sighed and placed a hand on her hip. “You can’t fault a girl for being surprised and interested in magic, sir. Yes, I do have to save my sister, but she won’t disappear if I don’t go thisexactsecond.”

“But theevilemperor might snatch her away right as we speak.”

Daiyu couldn’t help but laugh, the tightness in her chest uncoiling. “Yes, yes, I can’t forget about that.” She headed toward the end of the room. “Thank you, sir, for allowing me inside.”

“How do you plan on leaving?”

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