Jade Gold closed the door after her, trying not to be daunted by the pounding in her chest. This man she claimed to detest so much turned out to have that impact on her. But why him?
Sitting cross-legged on her wooden bed, she calmed herself and attempted to sift through the confusing emotions in her mind. She was Jade Gold, future Imperial Advisor and currently the only female Imperial Guard.She couldn’t allow her emotions to take over her like that! He was that boorish mercenary Roc Chadwick! Even when Jade encountered colleagues of the opposite sex daily, to the extent that she went through some accidental touching, she hadn’t reacted like that!The problem probably lay in Roc Chadwick. And after the mission, she had to get him out of her life, or he would mess it up! ‘Jade, don’t fret. You have your engagement with Levi Stanson,’ she reminded herself. This Levi was indeed a mystery. She hoped he was how she had imagined him to be: sexy, muscular and appetising to the eye. They would be married soon enough, as Jade had already passed her eighteenth birthday. They had delayed their engagement as she was in another city on the island doing her further education and had returned recently. Levi was away from home right now as he was visiting his grandparents.It would all fall together nicely. Jade brushed the thoughts from her mind of her in Roc Chadwick’s arms and visualised herself in a red bridal gown, carried in Levi’s strong arms into their sacred chamber. Although she was inexperienced and knew nothing about how it felt for the first time, she was looking forward to that moment.It would just be the two of them, alone in that room, her lips brushing against his as they became one. She sensed the redness come over her cheeks, accompanied by heat in her chest. While it was ordinary for women to have needs, it was taboo for unmarried women to talk about their desire to pleasure themselves. She had told no one, but her needs were getting out of hand. She had just turned nineteen. It had started some weeks after she returned home about three months ago from a task. She couldn’t remember what had happened, but she learned she was apprehending a villain and had suffered some injuries in the meantime.She had encountered a hard blow to her head and some trivial wounds, but nothing too serious. During that time, she underwent medication, and they put her on a brief break from her duties. Yet, why had she felt something wiped her memories of the incident? She couldn’t be suffering from amnesia like Sky Yale, could she?When she returned from the mission, she decided she would pay a trip to the Mystic Physician and the shaman. Since she was ten, she had experienced some wild dreams, of which she had never received an explanation before.And now, her heightened sensuality would be big trouble down the road. She didn’t remember Levi Stanson, only that she had seen him once as a child. Even that memory of him was fuzzy. The thought of whether he would do good in bed plagued her.Despite being a girl, Jade had never adhered tightly to the rules and silently broke them. She read adult books black market traders secretly sold in a corner on the city outskirts where illegal traders sold various items, from aphrodisiacs to sexy underclothes and even pills to prevent pregnancy. In her mind, some rules were meant to be broken.What if Levi judged her for her wildest thoughts and her sexuality? Jade felt deterred. In that case, was she going to divorce him? But contemplating that, given her and their families had decided on their union, she knew it would only bring her family a bad name. Maybe they could work on a consensus. After all, lust was not uncommon among women. Her married female neighbour back home would often make loud irritating noises in the depth of night but act innocent when she saw her later.After some thought, Jade decided it wasn’t worth her time poring over whether Levi would accept her for who she was. She headed to her bed and stripped off her outer layers of clothing, leaving only her undergarments. That burning sensation in her body often remained close to an hour, and she didn’t want to overheat in her thick clothing. Instead of a chilly night, it was scorching hot to her.That night was going to be arduous for her to get to sleep. After twisting and turning for hours, she sneaked out for a bath to cool herself. By now, everyone would be asleep and she would have her chance. Instead of putting on all the layers covering her body, she pulled her cloak over a thin robe and hurried to the shared bath chamber with her clothes slung over her arm. As the daredevil she was, it barely mattered if anyone saw her; she would take risks. But she knew she was swift enough to make her escape if anything happened.The bath chamber was a separate structure of its own and consisted of a large room equipped with showering materials and a gigantic square tub. It was far from her chamber and just passer the mercenaries’ quarters and overlooking the barracks. If she slipped up, the worst case was that silly junior with a crush on her, catching sight of her assets. She knew he was the one who was often staying up to burn the midnight oil to study, while the others needed many hours of sleep to function. And as for the mercenaries, she didn’t expect them to be daring enough to roam the facilities late at night since King Greyson would arrive the next day and had expected their presence.She opened the door to the bath chamber and surveyed the premises. It seemed vacant so far, but it wasn’t a bright place to begin with, which created a calming and peaceful ambience for anyone who wished to have a soak. The water had rejuvenating properties.Anyone would seek healing by taking a bath or dunking their nude bodies inside the water to alleviate injuries incurred during their daily tasks or training.In addition, there were some invigorating herbs that Jade would add to the water when taking her dip. Closing the doors noiselessly behind her, she bolted the doors shut. Then Jade hung her clothes on a bench nearby and quickly slipped off her gown. Her floral silk undergarments followed until she was stark naked in the dimness of the hall.A large tub filled with magical water appeared inviting to her eyes. She dropped the herbs and a blade of lavender grass into the water and crept inside the tub.Such a heavenly combination. Jade took in a whiff of the aroma, closing her eyes and allowing herself to sink fully into the water, paddling towards the centre of the tub. She visualised herself swimming in a lake and felt tension lift from her stiff body. The resulting magic eliminated any aches that lingered around her.Suddenly, she saw a vision right before her eyes. She witnessed people running around and screaming, followed by several green-coloured creatures of about a third of an adult’s height. They had short reddish tongues that jutted out from their mouths. Pursued by these monsters, they met with untimely deaths. Blood painted the scene a horrid red.She screamed, panicking at what she had just seen. Preposterously, she had moved too fast and reached the far end of the tub. The worst was the bottom of the tub inclined downwards in a manner that made it increase in depth towards the end. It was far too late to realise she was about to drown, and she hollered madly for help.But there was no use. The bath hall was far from the other structures, and even if someone heard her screams, they wouldn’t be able to rescue her because she had locked the doors. Water gushed down her throat, and her vision gradually faltered.No, she yelled in her mind. She couldn’t meet with her doom just yet, for she was just nineteen! She still had a lot to achieve in her life, and she couldn’t die just like that. ‘Please, almighty goddess Miyu, please, let me escape this,’ she prayed silently.In answer to her prayers, two hands appeared in front of her eyes, and Jade thought she was seeing things. She sensed someone lifting her to safety and passed out, dazed. Unlike anyone else, Jade didn’t fall into a deep slumber even when she was out cold. She saw images that were part of her life or her so-called past life. Visions even came to her out of the blue, sometimes at night, when she was supposedly sleeping, or randomly, like how she had just seen when she was drifting in the water earlier.This was a part of her that nobody else could fathom, so she quit telling anyone else, lest it frightened them like how it petrified that maid in her home during her childhood days. The maid had even fled the night after that. Sh
The morning was there before they knew it. Chad dressed in the mercenary robes that the Guard had presented them with, a splendidly tailored outer robe of the darkest brocade. Sky’s robe was no inferior: he wore a suit of dark blue, looking just as magnificent. Compared to the farmhand he was before, he appeared to shine.Chad washed his face with a basin of hot water as he contemplated what had happened the night before. As a prince with many consorts and a concubine he had never met, he had many women at his service, a different one in his bed every night, but he had heeded none of them any special attention like he did with Jade Gold.He couldn’t forget the fragrance on her slim body, nor her petite waist as he held her that night, almost having her for himself. He had been so close.What had happened to her for her to forget him? Had he never had that big an impression on her? He was sure she would have at least remembered his face when they spent a night of intimacy at the rapist
The rest of the day passed smoothly, and the two friends listened to an account of the island’s history directly from King Greyson, most of which Chad was not oblivious to, and Sky was finding difficulty understanding because of his dense nature. Jade involuntarily stared towards Chad’s way, but inhibited herself from further stares when Chad became aware.It didn’t occur to her why Chad’s eyes were a little downcast, though he appeared normal this morning when he arrived at the meeting hall. Jade decided it wasn’t her concern, and she had more worries on her mind to fret about. Greyson had cleared those doubts in her mind and, like he said, it was up to her to decide about her marriage and her discomfort about going on the mission.Other than her, Greyson had nobody he could trust and was capable enough to go on the mission. Because Xima’s eyes and ears were all over the island, he had no choice but to entrust such a severe task to his old friend, and he believed in her. Greyson also
Two days laterJade looked back at the Guard's office as it gradually vanished from sight. She and Chad were in a horse carriage, where Sky, sitting outside on the horse, manoeuvred through the thick woods. The city, also named Tribute, was in the island's heart.Their first destination was Faepool, a village closest to the city. It would take about five days for them to reach Faepool, and in between points of travel, they had to recuperate as much as they could.Before this, Jade had thought of her task as just exterminating evil. But it was her first time encountering these demons which the Shaman had defined as 'hideous creatures of a foreign race, with different colours'. It brought up her memory of the vision she had seen just before she almost drowned in the bath chamber. The Shaman had, like Greyson, kept everything for the last before coming clean to her.A part of her felt betrayed. But she understood they had their reasons for their actions. She had considered Greyson her co
The carriage stopped at an inn located just before the border of Tribute and Faepool, where they stayed for the night, resuming their road trip the next day.It was the first time Jade had stayed at such places even though she had travelled before, but seeing that Chad and Sky had experienced such stays before, she allowed them to make the choice of their rooms.Chad took the lead and selected two spacious rooms on the top floor of the inn. Over the last two days, he took over driving the carriage to allow for some private time between his sworn brother and Jade. He hardened his feelings, recalling the overheard conversation that other day between Jade and the king.It baffled him how she was engaged to someone and had no intention of breaking the arrangement.Her concern that she might not keep herself pure for him, did it mean she had someone on her mind? Was that someone, him or Sky? Although he had that encounter in the bath chamber with her, Jade did also have a heart-to-heart wi
Suddenly, Levi Stanson realised that someone had placed an icy blade to his throat and let out a cold scream. The man hissed, realising the other person present in the room, maddened at how Chad caught him off guard.“Who the hell are you?”Without taking his sword off the man’s throat, Chad smiled handsomely and answered, “I am the Hero of the Night.”Levi Stanson shouted again, but this holler was unique from the one earlier. At his beck and call, Chad could hear footsteps coming from downstairs. A strong tap on Stanson’s shoulder immobilised him. Next, Chad got ready to defend himself from the oncoming party.Chad pulled the covers over Jade to shield her nakedness from further attention. He took on a crouching stance and unsheathed his great sword, unleashing whirlwinds with his melee power. The impact of each whirlwind, released one after another, incapacitated the enemies in no time. One of his martial arts masters assigned to teach him martial arts, Master Jack Wind, had impar
Chad grinned devilishly at her.The words “It’s not a dream” echoed in her mind again and again. She reached for her clothes to realise she was wearing nothing but a sheer outer coat that didn’t belong to her.Her facial expression morphed into that of pure rage.“What… What happened? What am I doing here? And you, why are you in my room?”He just threw his head back and laughed at her.“Do you remember what you just asked of me? Are you saying that you’re going back on your own words?”She felt the heat of her embarrassment creeping across her cheeks. He leered at her. “If you, as a future advisor, can swallow what you just said, then who would take your words seriously in future?”His words made sense, but how could she have even thought she was still dreaming, after waking up from another lusty dream of performing the deed with Chad?She could have slapped herself on the face. She tried to move, but Chad inhibited her movement. Earlier he had distanced himself from her and treated
When she woke up the next morning, Jade's mind was still in turmoil from what had happened the night before. She couldn't explain why she could hear what Chad conversed with the intruder, although she did not know who that person was.She had never heard of a dark inn before and was apprehensive about what kind of drug they had imposed on her to have such an effect on her. It had disabled her ability to defend herself and sent her into a deep sleep and even when Chad had absorbed half of it, she still felt impacted. For one, she almost lost control of her emotions and agreed to the mercenary's terms.Sky was waiting for her outside her room when she emerged. He surprised her with a hug, although what left her apprehensive was the words 'dark inn'.The words 'dark inn' had only emerged in literature for her. But she firmly suspected something was not right. Who in the world could have borne such a grudge against her? It was just after she received the news that her betrothed was dead,