"Anfey, don’t you think it’s getting a bit late?" Suzanna asked.
Anfey jumped off the bed and walked over to the window. He opened the shutters and peered out. "You’re right," he said, nodding. "It is late." Then he walked back and sat down next to Suzanna again.
Suzanna sighed and shook her head. She didn’t just want to ask Anfey to look at the time. She was implying that he should leave her room now because it was getting late.
Suzanna rolled her eyes and pushed him away from her. "Quit being annoying," she said.
"Annoying?" Anfey asked, sitting up straighter. "Are you annoyed by me already?"
"You know what I mean."
Anfey smiled. He lied down on the bed. There was no indication that he would leave her alone. He turned to stare at Suzanna and suddenly spotted suspicious movements behind her. "Stay where you are!" he bellowed as he sat up.
The unicorn jumped. Then it whimpered and ducked behind the bed.
"What are you doing?" Suzanna scolded. "Don’t scare it."
Anfey did not say anything to Suzanna. Instead, he pointed at the unicorn and said, "Don’t come any nearer." Whenever he was with Suzanna, he would completely let his guard down. It was in those moments that he was the most playful.
"So what?" Suzanna asked, frowning. "Come here. Don’t be afraid."
The unicorn looked at Suzanna then back to Anfey, its eyes filled with fear and doubt.
"I don’t care if that thing’s closer to you, but I won’t let anyone touch you," Anfey said seriously.
Suzanna blushed. "You idiot," she blurted out, punching Anfey on the shoulder. Normally, she would just roll her eyes when Anfey made a joke. This showed how truly embarrassed she was.
"It’s not me, it’s Bruzuryano," Anfey muttered. Suzanna’s clothes were washed with silkvanilla infused water. The scent of the plant had made the unicorn mad, and so it was constantly trying to cuddle with Suzanna. This made Anfey jealous, even though he knew that he had no reason to be and that the emotion was irrational and stupid.
Of course, Anfey wouldn’t let jealousy cloud his judgement. He was afraid that the unicorn would be lured away by a stranger using silkvanilla and so had done some experiments. He discovered that unicorn would only follow a few people even if they had the plant. It would not follow men. It would follow women, but only women it knew. He had a maid wear a dress washed with silkvanilla water, but it would not go with her. It would not let Doris hold it either, even though it had known Doris for a while. In the end, the only people the unicorn would approach were Niya, Shally, and Suzanna.
Suzanna kept her eyes on the floor and did not want to look at Anfey. She was a very traditional person, and she did not like Anfey making lewd jokes about her. She did not like initiating any intimate gestures, either.
The unicorn didn’t know what Anfey and Suzanna were arguing about, but it could tell who was winning. It saw Suzanna rolling her eyes and turning away, and knew that Anfey had won the argument.
Anfey felt bad and needed to distract Suzanna. He sighed and waved his hand at the unicorn. "Come here," he said.
The unicorn sprang up and bounced over to Suzanna, then plopped itself down between Suzanna and Anfey. It turned and kicked Anfey a few times on the leg, as if it was angry that Anfey had scolded it earlier. Yesterday the unicorn had rammed into him and left him with a large bruise. Anfey knew that the unicorn’s strength would only grow over time. If he kept allowing the unicorn to kick him, who knew what would happen. Anfey decided that he would start training the unicorn so it would know how to deal with other people.
Suddenly, the two heard a soft tapping.
"Who is it?"
"It’s me," Christian said.
"Christian?" Anfey asked, frowning. He got up and opened the window. "I see you’re ready to be a thief," he joked.
"I know," Christian said as he came into the room. "I need both your help."
Anfey nodded. He turned to Suzanna and said, "Can you take the unicorn to Shally’s room?"
Suzanna nodded. She could tell Christian had ran into trouble and he could not solve it by himself.
After Suzanna took the unicorn to Shally’s room, she met Anfey and Christian in the garden. Christian glanced around nervously to make sure they were alone, then released a soundproof magic spell that covered the three of them.
"What happened?" Anfey asked. "Why are you so nervous?"
"I have a mission," Christian said with a sigh. "I need to complete it today."
"What mission?"
"I need to kill someone," Christian said briskly.
"Who?"
"Rodhart. The fake one, at least."
"So that’s the mission His Majesty gave you?" Anfey asked, shocked.
Christian nodded, his eyes downcast.
Anfey could not understand what Yolanthe was thinking. He did not know whether the fake Rodhart had to die, but he knew that if Yolanthe wanted him dead, he did not need to ask Christian to do it.
"Father told me that he had done too much for me already," Christian said, shaking his head. "He told me that I should be responsible for planning my future from now on. The first thing I have to do is to kill the fake Rodhart." Christian paused for a second, as if waiting for his words to sink in. "I understand Father’s intentions. If I become a murderer, I have to accept the consequences."
"His Majesty is mad," Suzanna said incredulously. "He told you to kill, yet he wants you to take responsibility for it?"
"He has to kill the fake Rodhart, but he doesn’t have to be a murderer," Anfey said quietly with a frown.
"He’s right," Christian said. "Father told me that I can hire people to do it. He wouldn’t care if I bring the entirety of Sacred City with me, as long as it gets done. The point is, I cannot be accused of the murders."
"He’s testing your abilities, then?"
"Yes."
"Wait," Anfey said. "Hold up. You know how Hui Wei found out you’re the prince? We overheard a conversation between two students at the academy. If they know, the rest of the city will soon know, as well. It’s not hard to put two and two together, you know. The fake Rodhart had to go. I think His Majesty orchestrated this entire thing."
Christian frowned. "You may be right," he said. "He spread the rumor so I would have to kill the fake Rodhart."
Anfey frowned and began formulating a plan. Due to the difference in status, he knew far less than Christian did. It was hard to create a big picture with the limited resources he had. After a few minutes, he realized he was not getting anywhere and gave up.
"How long does it take to get to Swordbury from here?" Anfey asked.
"The fake Rodhart is in a palace near the city. He is coming here tomorrow."
"His Majesty summoned him?"
"Yes."
"So our only target is Rodhart, right?"
"The palace is guarded by the palace guards, but they will not try to stop us. Everyone else must be killed," Christian said. "It’s mostly his servants and personal guards. There is a priest of light with him as well."
Anfey frowned. If the palace guards were cooperating with Christian, they didn’t need to hide.
"What do you think?" Christian asked.
"You’re saying this is a plan laid out by His Majesty?"
"Not exactly," Christian said. "I took a guess. It’s hard talking with my father, you know. Everything he says sounds like it’s implying something else."
"Pity," Suzanna said. "The life of a prince sounds no better than that of a peasant."
"A prince with a mission forced upon him is even more pitiful," Anfey said. "Christian, tell me everything about the conversation you had with His Majesty."
"It’s too long for that," Christian said, shaking his head. "It involves some secrets about the court that I cannot tell you. But the last thing he said to me was perhaps the reason he gave me this mission."
"What did he say?"
"He said there is not a single ruler with a clean history. Every monarch must bloody their hands. If I wanted peace of mind, I might as well give up my claim."