The Empror's Trap

Kenji had always felt that his personal guard might have some kind of mental issue.

Whenever he spent time with her, he sometimes sensed a bit of danger. Not the kind of danger where she'd chop his head off, but a different kind altogether.

"Let's talk business." Realizing he couldn't win against his own guard in a game of back-and-forth, Kenji quickly changed the subject. "Her Majesty gave me a small warning this time, but it's nothing serious. We're still safe."

"There's no need to tell me," Lina said. "I don't understand these things anyway."

"You need to learn, you know? You can't just spend your days dreaming of killing people. Even if you come from a demonic sect, you're still from some sort of cultivation school, not an assassin group. Why do you keep thinking about killing?!" Kenji shot a displeased look at her. "Have you read the books I gave you?"

"Huh? Those books are for reading?"

"What else would they be for?"

"I thought they were for starting a fire. I already used a few as kindling..."

"..." Kenji was speechless. Then he whacked Lina squarely on the head.

"Ouch! That hurt!"

"Tell me the truth, did you really burn them?"

"No, no! I wouldn't dare burn your precious library," Lina said with a fawning. "I kept them safe."

"So you haven't read them at all."

Kenji could only shake his head. But after some thought, he decided it was no use forcing her to be an avid reader. She never had anything close to a normal childhood, and even her cultivation was taught verbally. Getting her to write more fluently and learn some social etiquette was already an achievement. Expecting her to read books every day might be too much.

"Master, reading isn't my strength. But if you really want me to, I can try."

"Forget it. I won't push you. Still, read a bit of easy stuff like history or biographies—just treat them like storybooks." Kenji paused, then got back on topic. "Oh right, earlier I asked you to contact the Northern King. Did you do it?"

The Northern King was the emperor's older brother. Once he realized he wasn't cut out to be emperor, he candidly let go of any claim to the throne and decided to be a nice guy instead. That made Emperor Pluvia treat him fairly well. Although the Northern King technically only ruled over a few cities, he was the emperor's closest family member in the north. He had enough authority to manage considerable territory along the northern border.

"Yeah, I contacted him, and he gave a pretty polite reply."

"What did he say? Let me see."

"No need, I remember it perfectly." Lina cleared her throat, clasped her hands behind her back, and struck a pose like a poet: "He said, 'I appreciate the Duke's kind invitation, and I wish I could attend. However, the north has too many pressing affairs, and I can't leave at the moment. Her Majesty is eager to recruit talented individuals. Perhaps you can help her gather worthy people.'"

Kenji nodded.

It was a fancy way of saying one thing: He wasn't coming.

He had his reasons for staying put. The north really was busy. As the emperor's brother, the Northern King had the right to keep a personal army within limits. From his perspective, Kenji was someone the emperor practically wanted to get rid of. If the Northern King suddenly came back to work with Kenji, how would it look to Her Majesty? He'd probably be invited in for tea—and not in a friendly way.

"Forget it. If he's not coming, he's not coming. Either way, we do need to reform the imperial military."

By the time Kenji finished speaking, their carriage had arrived at Anos duchy's estate.

Lina helped him step down from the carriage, and the two walked straight through the front gate.

The Duchy of Anos estate housed a few more people than the homes of other imperial officials—about thirty more high-level fighters, to be exact.

Don't get the wrong idea. Kenji wasn't some shady minister raising a private army behind the emperor's back. These fighters were originally part of the previous Duke's personal guard. Kenji couldn't think of a good reason to dismiss them, so he kept them around.

On one hand, he didn't trust Her Majesty not to send someone to quietly kill him in a fit of anger, so these forces protected his safety. On the other hand, since they were all highly trained and had cost a lot to train, maybe they'd be really useful someday, assuming Kenji managed to get on better terms with the emperor.

Aside from those fighters, the estate employed about a dozen servants of both genders. As for Kenji's family... well, he only had a younger sister now.

"How's Siyue doing today?"

As soon as the old butler came forward to greet him, Kenji asked about his sister.

"She's the same as ever, Master Kenji," the butler said. "But..."

"But what?"

"She was talking nonsense again this morning. Right after you left, she started muttering something about wanting a tablet." The elderly butler sounded helpless. "Master Kenji, about the young lady's condition..."

"Yeah, I get it. She's not doing too great, but at least she's calm today."

Kenji's eye twitched a little before he quickly headed to his study.

"When will she get better? Even Her Majesty brought royal physicians from the palace..." Lina's voice sounded strangely soft and sympathetic.

"Lina, That's enough. Go tidy up my room first. I'll be working there later. I need to have a chat with Siyue."

"All right."

…

Kenji walked into the study.

In one corner, a small girl was sitting cross-legged. She wore a lightweight white shirt imported from the western kingdoms. Her long silver-gray hair draped down her back, and she was angrily scribbling on a sheet of expensive paper with a brush. She was so petite he almost wanted to scoop her up in his arms.

But seeing her gritting her teeth like that...

Well, she did look pretty cute.

"Siyue, drawing again?"

"Yeah," Siyue said, raking her fingers through her silvery hair. "This damned era doesn't even have drawing tablets. I just want to sketch an erotic pic, but I have to use a brush. It's driving me crazy!"