Release Schedule: Once per week.
With no recollection of her past or even her own name, our heroine has merely been existing since waking in a place known as the Obsidian Terraces. Uncertain how to fend for herself or earn coin, she turned to protec...
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"Xiuying, wake up!" A hand struck me across the face, accompanied by the shrill, grating yells of a woman. "I have been looking everywhere for you! How dare you stay behind in the Obsidian Terraces?! Your place is—"
I shied away from the next strike, huddling back against the wall. My pulse pounded in my throat as I wiped the sleep from my eyes and looked at the group of well-dressed women in front of me. With them, were a few men who looked worse for wear. Crude collars hung around their too-thin throats, their eyes dull and broken.
Whoever these women were, I wanted nothing to do with them. I wished they had let me continue sleeping.
"My lady!" Another woman grabbed the first by her sleeve. "This...this doesn't look like Xiuying."
The first, a fat woman, fell silent and scrutinized me as I cowered away from her. I quickly scanned my surroundings, trying to find something familiar or a route of escape. I didn't want to draw further attention to myself. If I could escape without a fight, I would.
"Her clothes match the description you gave us," a bored man spoke. He wore the same kind of armor I saw others in the Terraces wearing—black with silver and purple accents. "We let you back into the city so you could fetch your princess. Now you're saying this isn't her?"
Princess? What are these people on about? I studied the group of women again. They looked to be human, unlike the people living in the Obsidian Terraces. The women must have been confused, or perhaps mad, to think I was related to them in some way.
"Silence, man!" The fat woman snapped, raising a hand. "Learn your place and keep your mouth shut when women are talking.
"Xiuying, surely you remember your own mother? These disgusting men couldn't have traumatized you so badly in so few months!"
I scrambled away from the woman, fleeing the little pile of blankets that had been my home since waking in the city a few days prior. The two women and their small party of servants frowned at me.
"I-I have no idea who you are, or what you want with me..." I stuttered, choosing to adopt a more innocent and unassuming facade. It was simpler than giving away my true position to them—if they'd even believe me.
The woman stopped, her face twisting when she heard my voice. She squinted at me, remaining silent for a few moments. "Xiuying, come back home. Your slaves miss you dearly and your younger sisters don't want them."
"We won't force her to leave if she doesn't want to." The guard shrugged.
Within seconds, the fat woman attempted to slap him next. "She is coming with us, and away from this city of slaves!"
"What is all this racket?" The annoyed voice came from somewhere behind me, sliding over my skin like the most luxurious silk and so deep I felt the rumble of his voice in my bones. My instincts told me this new person was dangerous. I immediately grew still, watching as the woman grew pale and the guard bowed deeply.
