IX

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" 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 had been relatively peaceful. The stronger neighborhood country Iduivacan had stopped surprise attacks on them since he promise his daughter Ninsab Enlim as a wife to the prince of the neighboring 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 men 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 decide to sign a peace treaty using his daughter. To deliver such a piece of news to him felt very wrong.

"The is is Ninla?" the Emperor asked.

He was willing to mention all the princesses' names and hope that when he got to a name that Xisuthra would say yes.

"Also not her your Lordship. For it is the first princess of the kingdom. Princess Ninsab" Xisuthra said and bowed his head multiple times.

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 laying 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 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 backward in fear and said.

"It's the Princess.