Through Fire and Water

Chapter 21 - Complications

Izumi pov:

"Your Highness, Prince Taheji wishes for an audience with you." An attendant said as he kneeled in front of me with his head down and eyes closed in respect.

"Oh?" I mused with a raised brow. "Where does he want us to have a chat?"

"He wishes that you would join him in the Royal Tea Courtyard. And, um..." The attendant paused, hesitant to continue.

"What is it?" I coaxed.

"He wishes that you would come alone, without any guards or handmaids. He said he has something of utmost importance and secrecy to discuss with you."

My lips twitched, threatening to break out into a smirk. So, Prince Taheji had finally decided to approach me directly and alone. And he wanted to discuss something of 'utmost importance' with me. I had a feeling that this wasn't going to be a friendly meeting – he was up to something and as much as I knew that I was probably stepping right into a trap, I couldn't refuse meeting him. After all, it was another chance for me to find out a possible weakness of his.

I was silent for a moment and I dropped one hand to my side to feel the dagger I had hidden in my kimono. I also had a knife strapped to my ankle and I was sure they would come in handy if Taheji decided not to be friendly with me. Reassured by the weapons I had, I told the attendant to lead me to Taheji without any protection.

A week had passed since the Elite Division went out into the Capital's streets and since Ryuusei and I visited the warehouse. The Elite Division was close to cornering and confronting the enemy – it would be just a few days before the Capital was cleared of them and their nuisance. Ryuusei had spoken to Taheji's men in the warehouse while disguising himself as one of them and he had found out the extent to which Taheji had spread his influence in Nihon as well as a hint on what was happening on Yokobu Shore. Well, even the guards weren't fully aware of what was happening in the fort on Yokobu Shore but they did know that it was related to strange appearances of objects and people there.

Having got the information required, Ryuusei sent out his assassin samurai as well as another team of men I didn't know that worked for him – an elite team much stronger than assassin samurai called and 'The Golden Dragon'. I happened to meet a few of them when Ryuusei had summoned them to give them orders and I was not just really impressed but also a little intimidated by them. They were men with the most vicious eyes I had ever seen – cold, concentrated and almost lifeless – and the air around them was sinister and death-like. They ignored my very existence and had all of their attention on Ryuusei. However, they were very alert of my presence as well and would most definitely strike if I made one threatening move against Ryuusei.

It was another instance where I had got a better understanding of Ryuusei – if he was commanding such people, his level was definitely off the charts by leaps and bounds. How on earth did I end up falling for a guy who's so powerful when I had probably seen just half of what he was on the inside?? Well, I suppose I had seen enough of his heart to trust him and know that falling for him was a good thing....

I snapped out of my train of thought when my escort and I entered the denser gardens of the palace. I glanced around with narrow eyes, a little curious and cautious. I couldn't see any guards and the garden was a bit too quiet for my liking. I looked at the man walking ahead of me but he showed no sign of being a threat. I exhaled deeply and straightened my posture, deciding to just go with this till the end anyway – I was armed so I'm sure I could hold out long enough to escape in case some unexpected trouble started.

The Royal Tea Courtyard was one of places of the palace compound I hadn't visited before. It was a beautiful gazebo that extended onto the large inner palace's lake and had a variety of flowering trees growing around it. There were also creepers that grew on the roof and added to the natural tranquillity of the place. In the center of the gazebo was what looked like an Edo Period picnic table and four chairs around it. Seated on one chair with a tea tray in front of him was Taheji. He looked just as sinister as he did on our first meeting and it somehow made uneasiness settle in the pit of my stomach. Nonetheless, after my arrival was announced and I received a bow from Taheji, I joined him at the table, taking the seat right opposite to him.