Thousand Lives

Chapter 9

"No..."

"Quit shouting, it's ruining my ears." Long Xin spoke up.

"I won't. My head is straight on the path for guillotine and here you are worried for a patty hearing problem." Mika complained back.

"Guillotine? What's that?" Mu Xichan was confushed as he has never heard of this thing before.

"Ah, that, It's just some weird thing imagined by the empress. You must have heared rumors regarding her, so just don't mind everything she says." Han Zhi advised Xichan like an expert.

"A guillotine is...." Mika began to explain but after registering Han Zhi's words, he stopped, turned to him and roared "Who are you calling an idiot, I am a genius, You damn basterd.'

"I never called you that. Don't go aroung putting words in my mouth. Are you trying to defame this prince's reputation." Han Zhi calmly answered.

"What do you take me for, huh, I clearly got your meaning. And what about your reputation, I bet you don't have any to begin with let alone defame." And so they fought nonstop.

"Is she always like this." Xichan asked his neighbour on the table.

"Yeah, she is. Sometime even more crazy." Long Xin answered.

"Then, I am officially joining this party announced Xichan, a wide smile plastered on his face.

While word fighting Han Zhi commented "You wouldn't had to go through all that trouble yesterday. Only showing your face after a good long beauty sleep would have been enough to have your wishes granted."

"What are you talking about? Don't try to change the topic here." Mika said, determind to win.

"You won't understand like that." Han Zhi turned towards Su Mei and ordered "Bring a mirror for empress to be enlightan by her beauty."

"I don't need to look at mirror, I do know how heavenly this face looks. Ahhh...." Mika was self praising but got a lightning strike as Su Mei suddenly put a mirror in front of her, introducing a living horror through it.

"Who was that witch? How did you make her appear on the mirror? Don't tell me you are using witchcraft to annoy me." Mika roared on Han Zhi demanding an answer for showing her a frightening shight.

"That witch ia nonother than her majesty, the empress, Yu Ru Xia. And about how, then ask her yoursalf whether it was witchcraft or some beautytrick." Han Zhi had his lips arched in a smirk.

"No, that can't be. I won't believe you."

"Up to you."

"Su Mei, you tall me, is that me in the mirror." Mika turned to his attendant wanting to hear a positive answer.

Su Mei nodded her head in affermation, telling empress that it is exactly her.

Mika wanted a positive responce but that positive turned out to be quite nagetive to him that he went zone out. Well who wouldn't be after knowing that the person they were calling a witch turned to be they themselvves.

And here Mika was confidnt that it was a witch cause it had white rob, messy heirs that it gave you a felling of nest, eyes red and swellowed that they looked like as if they will fall out any moment. Tear marks with bit of kajal and some drool on face spreading ear to ear marking it , it's terratory. All in it was frightfull sight to witness.

But never in his wildest dreams did Mika saw himself looking as horrible as Annabell. He has always been quite good looking. Though his current face wasn't his own but It was his now. So how can he accept this calmly when he is so afraid of horrors.

He stood still on his place like a statue. Han Zhi came forward and move his hand in front of his face to determin his consciouness. But he got no response. So to get what he desires Han Zhi moved towards empress's ears and suddenly shouted "AAHhhhhhh....."

"Ahhh...." Mika also shouted in horror cause of a voice suddenly came knocking on his senses.

"Ha Ha Ha Ha " Han Zhi laughed rolling on the ground. Pleased with the response he got as it was what he wanted. He laughed more and more, earning a hard kick from Mika on his ass.

"Ahhh. why did you do that." Han Zhi complained at which he got 'You were asking for it' look from Mika as he had received his seances back.

"So you are back." asked Xichan to Mika.

"Where did I go to begin with." Mika questioned back.

"Hell, of course, after getting sharp slap from reality where alse can you go." commented Long Xin entering the conversation.

"You damn brat calling me ugly. You got all your looks from me. Wait I will show you my true beauty and will turn you blind with it's brightness. Just you wait." Mika was filled with anger.

"I look like my father." said Long Xin but was left unheared by Mika as he stormed to his room to do god knows what, without giving anyone a moment to react.

Though it was not Mika's real body nor was he a guy but Lond Xin's mother. But he does got a big fat complax opon his looks on which he was teased by his big brother often. His taste doesn't include makeup or all dressed look. He like massy, grubby clothes and carefree look with good looking image. But today those uncle- nephew successfully triggered his switch as he won't ever allow anyone to lookdown on his looks.

"Where did she go in hurry ?" Han Zhi got up from floor, rubbing the place where he got kicked.

"To become a beauty." Long Xin answered as he sipped his tea.

"Oh." Han Zhi sat beside Long Xin "By the way general Mu, why do you want to join our company?" Han Zhi looked at Xichan.

"You know how boring the palace and court is. I always tried to find something interesting but could never, then I saw you three, it was really amazing so I thought that you would be the people who will chase away my boredom and what I just saw now, made it clear that I should join you guys." Xichan also sipped his tea.

"Don't talk like we are some comedy group." Long Xin glared at Xichan.

"Oh, but you guys are." Xichan smiled at Long Xin "I noticed that you are talking much these days."

"And I noticed that you are becoming more unbearable day by day." Long Xin fired back.

"Now, now let's not fight and wait for our company's face to come. I am excited to see her beauty." Han Zhi was too eager to know how much of goddess will empress look after getting properly dreased.

"I advise you to not to." Long Xin said giving halt to Han Zhi's excitement.

"Why do you say so?" asked Xichan.

"Do you guys really belive that,that idiot would do anything following common sense. I am pretty sure that the view she would present would be quite far from your imagination." Long Xin's explanation pushed them to bring every encounter with Mika on surface only to conclude that none of them was proper or normal.

Even though Xichan only joined their group about three or four hours ago but his previous encounters with her were screming to prove that she was everything but normal.

Same scenario was with Han Zhi. He knew how beautifull his sister-in-law is but all this sadness had ruined her glow. She always looked hollow beauty like a show piece. So when he heared that that idiot has gone to get ready, he thought that he could once again see the goddess like face of his sister-in-law that he had seen before her falling into ocean of misery.

But now he wasn't sure anymore of the horror that the changed empress would bring, would it be even more frightning then her earlier look.

Both Han Zhi and Xichan were having inner conflict and Long Xin was peacefully sitting between two, sipping his tea.

Suddenly door creaked open, a chearfull voice barged into their head seeking their attention as it said.

"I am done, now you guys can take a look at my real beauty." said Mika, coming out of his room after half an hour.

Trio turned their heads to his direction with a thought 'This early' and the sight left them jaw dropped.