FIVE

KINGDOM OF SLOSALIA 1505

"Your worship, it is Xisuthra," the man at the other side of the door said.

"Come in," Emperor Asalan Enlim said.

"Kill me your Worship," Xisuthra said, bowing to the ground as he entered.

"What have you done that deserves death?" Asalan asked.

"I dare to bring bad news to you; I dare to bring bad news to the court of the king," the man replied.

Xisuthra was the right-hand man of the Emperor and was the only one fit to deliver news and come close to the Emperor when he was working.

"Bad news?" Asalan asked.

What could the bad news be? Since Asalan took over from his father when he died, things have been relatively peaceful. The stronger neighbourhood country, Iduivacan, had stopped surprise attacks on them since he promised his daughter Ninsab Enlim as a wife to the prince of the neighbouring kingdom.

"The princess is dead," Xisuthra said, bowed to the ground repeatedly.

"What?" Asalan said the train of thoughts in her mind snapped back to reality.

"Which princess?" he added.

Although he loved all his children, he desperately wished it was not Ninsab, for she was the key to his peaceful reign.

"Was it Ninduk?" he asked, hoping she was the one. It would be painful to lose her, but at least the people and court would not point fingers at him and call him a disgraceful and incompetent leader like his father.

"I am afraid, not your Highness," Xisuthra answered.

More than anybody, Xisuthra knew the hard time that the Emperor went through before he decided to sign a peace treaty using his daughter. To deliver such a piece of news to him at this time when the wedding drew near felt very wrong.

"Then is it Ninla?" the Emperor asked.

He was willing to mention all the princesses' names and hoped that when he got to a name, Xisuthra would say yes and that would be it. Losing a child was no walk in the park, but it better not be Ninsab. 

"Also not her, your lordship. For it is the first princess of the kingdom. Princess Ninsab," Xisuthra said, and bowed his head multiple times, almost causing a serious head injury for himself. 

Asalan stood up and started walking towards his right-hand man. He pulled him up from the ground and searched his eyes. He knew that no one dared prank the monarch, but he hoped that it was a prank.

"What do you mean?" He screamed at him.

"Forgive me your worship," Xisuthra said, staying calm.

He knew this meant war, but he needed to be calm.

"Lead the way," he said, and Xisuthra moved with the Emperor on his tail.

They reached the quarters of the princess, and there was a silent wailing there. Only the princess's maid and Xisuthra knew of the situation. Both of them knew how grave the situation was.

Xisuthra pushed open the door and let the Emperor come in before he closed the door behind him.

The Emperor took slow, staggering steps towards the bed where the princess lay. He saw his beautiful daughter lying lifeless and pale.

"What happened?" he asked the maid, who had tears falling down her cheeks.

"She just ate her lunch, and she began to vomit," Irkal said with his head bowed.

"Poison," Xisuthra uttered without thinking.

The Emperor threw a glance at him.

"How can you think that?" he shouted.

"Forgive me your worship," Xisuthra said, bowing his head.

"Until I think of what to do, no one must hear of it," Asalan said in a warning tone. "Lock off her quarters and tell everyone she is resting from being sick," he added.

As Asalan turned to leave, he noticed a body blocking the entrance. There was no way the body was there when they entered; they would have noticed it.

"What is that?" Asalan asked, startled.

"A strange body from nowhere," Xisuthra replied, going to check the body up front. He pushed the body to see the face and gasped at the breathing body. He staggered backwards in fear and said,

"It's the Princess” he gasped, unable to believe what he saw and the words that came from his mouth. 

It was certainly impossible that the body was there when they got inside the room, and there was no way that the body could have been dropped in by anybody.

Xisuthra looked back at the bed where the princess lay and the strange body on the ground beside him. It was impossible that the princess was in two places at once and that one was living and the other dead.

"What do you mean, the princess?" Asalan asked, taking careful steps forward.

To be honest, he had prayed earnestly that his daughter would come back to life. He knew he was a weak leader who could not stand up for his people, but he loved his life and wished to live. He never asked to be the leader. The responsibility fell on him for just being the crown prince.

"Your Worship, please stand back until I can confirm the identity of the body," Xisuthra said, coming to use his body to block the emperor.

Xisuthra's life work was to protect the emperor no matter what it might be. His family had the opportunity to be in charge of protecting the bloodline of the throne. His son was already protecting the current crown prince, Aranar Enlim.

"My order is that you move right this instant, Asalan commanded.

If the words of Xisuthra were right, then he had to see for himself. His daughter was dying out of nowhere, and the strange woman on the floor was not making any sense at all, but he just knew he needed to find the right way to fix the mess immediately before words got out.

Reluctantly, Xisuthra moves his body and allows Asalan to move closer to see the woman on the floor. He sees the striking resemblance of his daughter to the woman on the floor. His shock overwhelms him, as he can't comprehend what is going on.

"Wait till nighttime, then take the dead princess to the secondary palace, place this woman on the bed, and quietly investigate where she came from. In the meantime, seal off the princess's quarters." Asalan commanded and began to walk towards the door.

He was going to find out who killed his daughter, but after he had secured the future of the nation. Xisuthra nodded.

"Forgive me for asking your grace. Can I ask the bodyguard of the princess to help me?" Xisuthra asked.

There was no possible way for him to carry out all those tasks himself.

Asalan turned back. If the princess was truly poisoned, then it meant that the royal bloodline was in danger and that anyone could be after him. He trusted Xisuthra because of their family affiliation, but he did not think he could trust another person.

"Trust no one," Asalan responded, turning back. Irkal kneeled as the Emperor exited. Irkal had served the princess for all her life since the princess was born. She was also convinced that the princess was poisoned. She was going to help the Emperor uncover the truth about her death, she vowed to herself.