Chapter 130: Desperation and Avoidance

  Three days had passed since Yukari woke up.

  Seven since Raito vanished into the desert.

  Kah-Kamun had returned to its routines in the way great cities always did—quietly, inexorably, and without mercy for individual tragedy. Servants walked the halls. Scholars debated in shaded courtyards. The palace breathed as if nothing had broken.

  But inside one guest room, nothing had moved forward at all.

  Zhu Lihua walked through the sandstone hallway of the Kah-Kamun palace, her footsteps silent against the smooth floor.

  She was heading toward the guest room, carrying a tray of medicinal tea. Her expression was drawn, the weight of a missing boy and a broken girl heavy on her shoulders.

  CLATTER.

  A loud, jarring sound of objects crashing to the floor echoed from down the hall.

  It came from Yukari’s room.

  Zhu’s eyes narrowed. She dropped the tray, not caring about the spill, and dashed forward.

  "Lin! What is going on?!"

  She slammed the heavy wooden door open.

  The sight that greeted her stopped her dead in her tracks.

  Yukari was standing in the middle of the room, barefoot. Scattered around her on the floor was a chaotic array of survival gear: an opened rucksack, a dented water container, a compass, rolled-up maps, and thick desert cloaks.

  It was clearly an expedition kit. Or rather, a failed attempt at packing one.

  "I told you to stay, didn't I?" Zhu said, her voice stern but laced with exhaustion.

  "I... I know, but..." Yukari stammered, looking away. She tried to nudge a water flask with her foot.

  "No buts."

  Zhu walked into the room, leaning down to pick up the scattered objects. It felt painfully akin to a mother cleaning up her daughter's messy bedroom, except the context was tragedy, not rebellion.

  "What are you trying to do with these?" Zhu asked, holding up the compass. "And why are you barefoot?"

  "Uh... nothing," Yukari tried to say, her eyes darting around the room.

  Zhu glared at her. It wasn't an angry glare, but one that demanded the truth.

  "Fine," Yukari sighed, her shoulders slumping. "You know... what else would I be doing?"

  Zhu sighed, placing the items on the desk. "Trying to find him... still."

  She turned, her gaze scanning Yukari’s figure. She focused intently on Yukari's arms, which hung limp and useless at her sides, heavily bandaged from shoulder to fingertip.

  "With those conditions..." Zhu shook her head. "Let me guess. You were trying to use your feet to..."

  "Pick up my stuff. Yes," Yukari finished the sentence for her, a bite of defiance in her tone. "But it should not be a concern to you since you are not going to help me anyway."

  Yukari finally sat down on the edge of the bed, her breath coming in short huffs of frustration.

  "Look, Lin," Zhu said, pulling up a chair and sitting opposite her. "I get your frustrations. I really do. But face the reality. He is gone. Who knows where, in that vast desert? It's looking for a needle in a haystack during a sandstorm."

  Zhu gestured to Yukari's bandages. "Then, you... your arms.”

  “Crippled? Yeah, I know, not an issue, not in the slightest.” Yukari protested.

  “You needed me to feed you yesterday." Zhu rebuked.

  "That was only because I still haven't mastered using my feet," Yukari shot back, her cheeks flushing slightly.

  "Okay," Zhu conceded. "If by any chance you became as adept at using your toes as your fingers... then how about that?"

  Zhu pointed to Yukari’s left hand.

  On her limp finger, the Sakura-shaped ring pulsed. Blink. Blink. Blink. But the light was very faint, struggling against the ambient light of the room.

  "Do you know what that means?" Zhu asked.

  "Yes," Yukari said instantly, her eyes locking onto the faint light. "Raito is still alive. This will lead me to him. Just like it did last time."

  "Are you sure that is the function?" Zhu asked skeptically. "It's never done that before. Or that fainlty before."

  "Yes, I am sure, this is probably because of the distance." Yukari insisted. "So just leave me alone and let me do my thing."

  Zhu watched her for a long moment. She saw the desperation, the raw need to do something other than wait.

  "Okay," Zhu said finally. “Fine. Go."

  Yukari looked up, surprised. "Really?"

  "But..." Zhu raised a finger. "Only if you can make a single ice cube in front of me. Right now."

  "Easy," Yukari scoffed.

  She closed her eyes. She focused. She reached for that deep, cold well of power inside her that she had tapped into a thousand times.

  Silence stretched in the room.

  "Urgh..." Yukari grunted, her brow furrowing in concentration.

  Nothing happened.

  There was just awkward silence and the sound of her strained breathing. Not even a speck of elemental energy manifested. The air didn't cool by a single degree.

  Yukari opened her eyes, panic flickering in their depths. "Why..."

  "Just as I thought. You lost your powers," Zhu said, her look turning stern, almost pitying. "There is absolutely no elemental energy radiating from you, nor your ring. A Core user like yourself should not be devoid of any elemental energy. So... any explanation?"

  Yukari opened her mouth to argue, to claim she was just tired, but the lie died on her tongue. She slumped.

  "No," she whispered, defeated. "This time... no."

  "Then it's final. You must stay," Zhu ordered, standing up as if the matter was settled.

  "No! Absolutely not!" Yukari protested, shooting up from the bed, though she swayed dangerously. "If what you said was correct, then it would be a week since Raito ran away! In the desert! Alone! No supplies! Why are you so adamant to not get help? A search party? Anything?"

  Zhu exhaled sharply.

  "Because of you. Why else?" Zhu shot back. "I am not letting a daughter of mine do some suicide mission in this condition, in a harsh environment, with little chance of success, and in a destructive mindset!"

  "Step-" Yukari whispered.

  Zhu paused. "What?"

  "Step-mother," Yukari clarified, her voice cold. "You are my step-mother. Not my real mother. You have no right to stop me like this."

  Zhu flinched as if slapped. Her eyes narrowed dangerously. "Don't try me right now, Lin. Or..."

  "Or what?" Yukari challenged, stepping closer despite her useless arms. "Cage me? Mold me? Influence me? Like what you did back in Jinlun? Like when you told me living like a noble was the 'right path' for me?"

  She laughed, a dry, humorless sound. "Why are you even acting like my mother right now anyway? You used to not care about those things. You were just the General."

  "Enough!"

  Zhu shouted, the sound echoing off the stone walls. "That's it! We are done! And my words are final! You will stay here whether you like it or not!"

  She turned on her heel, marching to the door. She walked out, slamming the heavy wood behind her with a force that shook the frame. BANG.

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  Silence rushed back into the room, heavier than before.

  Yukari slumped back onto the bed, staring at the closed door. She wondered where everything went wrong. Where the lines had blurred and broken.

  She turned her head slowly, looking at her left hand.

  The Sakura ring pulsed. Blink. Blink. Faint. Weak. But there.

  "Raito..." she whispered to the empty room.

  Zhu walked down the long, empty hallway. Her footsteps were heavy, echoing rhythmically against the stone.

  Step. Step. Step.

  She stopped.

  She leaned her back against the cool sandstone wall, closing her eyes. Her strength, usually so boundless, seemed to drain out of her feet. She slumped, her body slowly drooping down until she was sitting on the floor, her legs drawn up, her head resting on her knees.

  "What should I do?" she whispered to the silence, her voice weak and trembling.

  A shadow fell over her.

  Bob approached quietly—surprisingly quiet for a man of his size. He didn't say anything at first. He simply leaned against the wall next to her, sliding down until he was sitting beside the General.

  "Tired?" he asked softly.

  "Very," Zhu admitted, not lifting her head. "This whole mother thing... I don't know. I am a Lord. All I know is how to brute force things. How to break enemies."

  She looked at her hands, the hands that had struck her daughter without thinking.

  "But lately... even that is not working," she said. "I only wanted the best for her. Especially after I promised her mother, Lei, to take care of her."

  Zhu looked up at the ceiling, blinking back moisture. "I genuinely think of Lin as my own. Not at first, perhaps. It was a duty then. But somewhere down the line... she became my daughter. I thought I had gotten better at it recently. We were talking. We were bonding."

  She exhaled, a shaky breath. "But somehow, the cracks formed again."

  She turned her head to look at Bob. "I don't know why I am saying this to you."

  "You probably need someone to listen. Hohoho," Bob chuckled gently, though the sound was subdued.

  He shifted, getting comfortable on the hard floor.

  "Look. What you are doing is fine. You don't need to be perfect," Bob said, his voice warm. "But right now... the reason why Yukari is like that... is because she lost her half."

  Bob gestured vaguely in the direction of the desert. "Those two lovebirds are inseparable. They function as a unit. That kind of separation can't be healed with logic or protection. She feels amputated. This is not easy."

  He paused. "Have you told her that Tanvir is on it? That he is trying to find Raito."

  Zhu shook her head. "She didn't let me. She started shouting before I could get to that part."

  "Then give her time," Bob advised. "Let her cool down. Let her grieve a little. And then, explain it properly to her. She is smart. She will understand."

  Zhu nodded slowly, absorbing his words. "Yeah. You're right. I will do that."

  She offered him a small, tired smile. "Thank you, Bob."

  "No problem," Bob grinned, giving her a thumbs-up. "And hey... Lord or not, I think you are an amazing mother."

  Zhu let a small smile back, the first genuine expression she had worn all day.

  Back in the desert, right next to the metallic structure, the heat was unrelenting.

  Tanvir was meditating, floating cross-legged a few feet above the scorching sands. His brow was furrowed, beads of sweat tracking through the dust on his face. Veins bulged on his forehead as he pushed his sensory perception to its absolute limit, sending vibrations deep into the earth and far across the dunes.

  "Where are you, kid?" he whispered, his mind straining against the vastness.

  "Bah!"

  He let go of the connection with a frustrated grunt, landing softly on the sand.

  "No luck?" Malik asked, looking up from a pile of ancient schematics he had spread out on a folding table.

  "No," Tanvir shook his head, wiping his face. "The desert is too big. My current power is too limited to cover this much ground. I just hope he is not someone's lunch."

  He looked at the scholar. "How about yours?"

  Malik shook his head, looking equally defeated. "No luck here as well."

  "The structure is sealed shut," Queen Aleena said, entering the conversation from the shade of a canopy. She looked regal despite the environment, her presence commanding order in the chaos. "We haven't been able to find any entrance, or even a seam."

  "Yeah," Malik sighed. "It's like a solid block of metal. But the hum... it's still there."

  "Sir Tanvir," Varessh approached, his heavy hooves sinking into the sand. He offered a respectful bow. "Report."

  "Go ahead," Tanvir gestured.

  "It is safe," Varessh said, his brow furrowed. "Too safe. There are no signs of any mechanical beasts. At all. No tracks, No sightings by my scouts for miles."

  Tanvir frowned. "They were so adamant about destroying this structure. They threw everything they had at it. So why the sudden change of heart? Why is there no second assault?"

  "Everything became more and more convoluted," the Queen added, looking at the silent silver monolith.

  She clapped her hands, drawing the attention of the small leadership circle.

  "Everyone," she announced. "It seems our decision to return here from Kah-Kamun four days ago was correct. We haven't been attacked, which gives us a golden opportunity. We now have time to properly examine the structure without being shot at."

  She looked at each of them in turn—the Lord, the Scholar, the Guildmaster.

  "And I hope," she added softly, "we can also find Raito while we are here. I know it is tiring. The heat is oppressive, and morale is fragile. But I want the best from all of you. Understood?"

  "Yes, Your Majesty," Malik, Varessh, and Tanvir bowed in unison.

  They returned to their posts with renewed, albeit weary, determination. The expedition team had returned to this location four days ago, resuming their examination of the mysterious box while simultaneously acting as a pseudo-search party for the boy.

  Night rolled into the city of Kah-Kamun, draping the sandstone walls in cool, velvety shadows. Most of its denizens were already fast asleep, exhausted by the heat of the day.

  Except for her.

  Yukari was still wide awake, sitting on the edge of her bed, staring at her pulsing ring as if frozen in time. The faint blink... blink... was the only clock she needed.

  "I can't stay here," she whispered to the darkness.

  She stood up, her body protesting with aches that felt bone-deep. She walked over to the desk where Zhu had piled her "confiscated" gear.

  She lifted her leg, grimacing as she slowly slammed her foot onto the tabletop.

  "Okay. I can do this." She exhaled, centering herself.

  She wiggled her toes, trying to get a grip on the canvas strap of her rucksack. It was slippery and awkward. She grunted, her brow furrowing in concentration as she pinched the strap between her big toe and the second digit.

  "Slowly... slowly..." she whispered.

  She lifted. The rucksack hovered a few centimeters away from the table's edge. Triumph flared in her chest.

  "Yes, I got it—"

  THUD.

  The rucksack was heavier than she anticipated. Her grip slipped, and the bag crashed to the floor with a sound that seemed deafening in the quiet room.

  "Drats," she hissed.

  Knock. Knock.

  Yukari froze. Panic surged through her. She scrambled, jumping back onto the bed, rustling around until the covers up to her chin, trying to look like she had been sleeping for hours.

  The door handle turned.

  Yukari braced herself. She expected her stepmother, coming to scold her for the noise, ready with another lecture about safety and patience.

  "Yukari?"

  The voice calling out was soft, hesitant.

  "Are you awake?"

  Yukari blinked. That clearly wasn't her mother.

  "Samira?" Yukari asked, sitting up.

  The door opened fully, revealing the Princess. She slipped inside, closing the door quietly behind her.

  "Yes. It's been a while," Samira smiled, though the expression didn't quite reach her eyes. She looked tired, the sparkling glow from the wedding replaced by a somber worry.

  "What are you doing here?" Yukari asked, confused. "Shouldn't you be helping ruling the city?"

  "I... I heard what happened during the expedition," Samira said, walking closer to the bed. "What happened to Raito..."

  Her gaze dropped to Yukari's arms, resting limp and bandaged on the blanket.

  "And what happened to your arms."

  Samira rushed forward, wrapping her arms around Yukari in a gentle, enveloping hug.

  "I'm so sorry," she whispered into Yukari's hair.

  Yukari smiled, a faint, sad thing. She wanted to hug back, but her shoulders simply twitched uselessly.

  "It's alright," Yukari said softly. "Don't be sorry."

  "But... but I wasn't there," Samira pulled back, tears shining in her eyes. "When everything happened. I was safe here while you were fighting monsters."

  "You wouldn't be much help anyways," Yukari smirked, her old sass flickering to life for a second.

  "Hey! Rude!" Samira protested, pouting.

  Yukari chuckled. It was a rusty, quiet sound, the first time she had laughed since everything fell apart.

  "Sorry, sorry," Yukari exhaled, feeling a knot in her chest loosen slightly. "Thank you, Samira. I'm feeling less tense now."

  Samira smiled, wiping her eyes. "Here," she said, reaching into her pocket. "Excuse me."

  She moved to Yukari's neck, unclasping a chain and fastening it around Yukari.

  Yukari looked down.

  Resting against her chest, heavy and cool, was Raito's necklace with the Core locket. And threaded onto the chain next to it was the simple silver wedding band.

  "This is..." Yukari’s voice caught.

  "I thought," Samira said gently, adjusting the chain, "it would be better if you held onto this. Not the cold storage room."

  Yukari touched the ring with her chin, since she couldn't use her hands. A single tear escaped, tracking down her cheek.

  "Thanks," she whispered, looking up at the Princess. "Thank you."

  The two girls shared a quiet moment, a laugh bubbling up between them that tasted of salt and relief.

  Samira scanned the room, her eyes landing on the rucksack on the floor, the maps, the water flask.

  "Quite a mess," she commented dryly.

  "Yeah," Yukari simply said.

  "Are you trying to run away?" Samira asked, her tone casual.

  "No, of course not," Yukari lied smoothly. "Just... reorganizing. With my feet."

  "Good then," Samira nodded, her expression suddenly turning serious.

  She reached into the folds of her dress and pulled out a small, ornate perfume bottle.

  "Because I am here to kidnap you," she said.

  "Wait, what?" Yukari blinked, confused.

  PSSSHH.

  Samira sprayed a cloud of sweet-smelling mist directly into Yukari's face.

  "Wha—"

  Yukari’s eyes rolled back. The world tilted, spun, and went black as she slumped onto the pillows, knocked out cold.

  "Huh... wha—"

  Raito woke up with a gasp, his body jerking instinctively.

  He expected the blinding sun. He expected the searing heat of the sand against his face.

  Instead, above him stretched the vast, twinkling canvas of the night sky, a billion stars staring down with cold indifference. He was lying on something soft—a rough, musky blanket of fur? Cloth? He couldn’t tell. To his right, a familiar orange light crackled cheerfully, its warmth fighting back the desert chill. A campfire. Above him, a jagged rock formation jutted out like a natural canopy, shielding the small campsite from the wind.

  "Good. You're awake."

  A voice called out to him from across the fire. It was scratchy, like dry leaves skittering over stone.

  Raito blinked, trying to focus his gritty eyes.

  Sitting in front of him, cross-legged next to the fire, was a figure. They were swaddled in multiple layers of rags that had been bleached almost white by the sun. Their face was completely obscured by a heavy hood and a scarf wrapped tight around the lower jaw.

  "Who?" Raito asked weakly, his voice a croak.

  The person shrugged, a loose, disjointed motion. "Just someone who found you, I guess," they said.

  The figure reached up and tugged at the scarf. "Wait."

  They pulled the fabric down and threw the hood back.

  "Ahh, better. Can't breathe in those," the stranger exhaled.

  Underneath the rags was a man. But he looked less like a human and more like a scarecrow made of skin and bone. His face was gaunt, so skinny that his cheekbones threatened to tear through the paper-thin skin. His eyes were sunk deep into their sockets.

  His beard was long, bushy, and wildly unkempt, a tangled bird's nest that matched the long, matted blonde hair cascading down his shoulders.

  "Almost died, son," the man said, leaning forward and poking the fire with a stick. "You there... there in there somewhere."

  His sentence structure was weird, the words tumbling out in a jumbled, rhythmic cadence that barely understandable.

  Raito stared at him, trying to process the surreal situation.

  "Who are you again?" Raito asked once more, pushing himself up on one elbow.

  The man paused. He looked at the fire, then at the stars, then back at Raito. He shrugged again.

  "I don't know," he simply said.

  Raito slumped back against the rock. He stared at the firelight dancing on the cave walls.

  "Great," he muttered to the ceiling. "I didn't die. And now I'm stuck with some crazy homeless... no, desert-less person."

  He let out a long, suffering sigh. "Just my luck. Can someone please end me already."