Silence.

Kin stared at Majeed warily, his heart beating faster and his already hyperactive brain at full speed. Jamila walked up to her seat after greeting her parents and brothers. Kin kept his eyes on Majeed, who seemed to be strong, fit, and free from injuries. Kin stared at the arm he had cut off, and then again at Majeed.

"Something's wrong," he finally said.

"It is," Ashell replied. "The person you are staring at is obviously not Majeed; it's not even human. It's a doll," Ashell stated.

"A doll?" Kin asked in confusion.

"Yes, a doll. They are creations of the god of mischief himself."

"Oh, so there seems to be someone who possesses a blessing that can turn whatever that is into someone? That's dangerous," Kin said.

"It is," Ashell replied. "Although I don't know the limits of this particular curse, the god of mischief is one of the most troublesome gods to deal with and probably the hardest to fight. His ability to play with one's perceptions is not trivial."

"So do you know the person that uses the blessing?"

"No, I can't sense the human that possesses it nearby. The user might not even be in this country," Ashell said.

"And yet, their blessing is here in Bintan. That's insane. It must be Meliesse; it's like she doesn't want anyone to think anything strange is going on, so she used this thing to replace Majeed. Their plans are indeed going down today."

"So, when are you leaving?" Ashell asked.

Kin kept quiet for a while. He had no real reason to stay in a doomed place like this, not that he was hesitating or anything; he was just probably getting used to the small peace he found here. Sure, a lot of scheming and lying were going on around the place, but it was nothing compared to the palace. Kin sighed deeply. He steeled his resolve, his mind now resolute and ready to take the next step. Meeting up with Farouk is his primary goal now. Everything else, except for saving Jamila, comes third.

The Jasim family had their breakfast in silence; no one said anything. It was as if they knew Bintan was not going to be standing for long. Or maybe they felt no words could describe what was happening, or even what would happen next, so they opted for silence instead.

Kin waited until they finished their breakfast before walking up to Rashid.

"My Lord," he greeted.

Rashid stared at him for a while. There was turmoil in his heart about the kid; he felt there was something he was not seeing, and the message he got some days back only gave him more reasons to suspect that the boy was not who he says he is. On one hand, he might be a spy, assassin, or something else. But, what if he's the prince? That would change everything, but it won't save Bintan though. Maybe it was all my fault. I should have chosen a side. Rashid quickly shook his head and dismissed the thought. Although Bintan was isolated from the rest of Wize, it didn't mean he would be able to freely choose to side with anyone without repercussions. Bintan had more resources than most of the other states and was the only place where white crystals could be found. There was no way he could choose a side without any blowback. If he chose Jai, Hadia would march their army to his doorstep via Lyokis, since it was the closest to him. Although it would take time, which was why he had blocked their passage, the Sultan of Hadia was smarter than he thought. They had sent a small force to infiltrate Bintan without his knowing, and they had nearly taken his daughter. If he had chosen Hadia, Jai would have sent an extermination force to Bintan and destroyed the city. The god-sword was not one to give his enemies an advantage, not when he could help it. He was stuck between a rock and a hard place; there was no other real option than to stay neutral. No regrets, I guess.

He looked at Jamila. He felt leaving Jamila with Kin wasn't a good idea, but he didn't have a choice at this point. Maybe he did, but he didn't trust his other choices either.

"Ashin, you look horrible," Rashid said. "I heard you got back late yesterday after running errands all day for Jamila. Can you do your job properly without rest?" Rashid asked.

"I can manage, my lord," Kin replied.

"I wanted to speak—"

"There's nothing important that we need to speak about," Rashid cut him off. "You have your orders, you have everything you need; carry it out any way you see fit. You don't need to tell me anything or ask me anything. Is that clear?"

Kin stared at Rashid for a while. It seems he's not entirely clueless about what's going on, he thought.

"Yes, my Lord," Kin replied.

Rashid came closer to Kin and whispered something in his ear. After which, he spoke to Ramon.

"Ramon," Rashid called out. "It's time." He said, and Ramon Rashid left the room, both of them followed by some men.

The rest of the Jasim family left the table quietly, but something told them things were not going to be the same for them and Bintan again, not after today.

"We are leaving today, aren't we?" Jamila asked Kin, having sensed the tension in the room.

"Yes, my Lady. It's time to leave. Your father asked me to take you."

"Oh," Jamila said as she tightened her fist.

"You don't have to worry, my Lady. I'll not let anything happen to you," Kin said, reassuring Jamila.

Both of them were the last to leave the dining hall. The fall of Bintan was at hand.

Somewhere in the city of Bintan, a woman was in an abandoned building, washing her bloodied hands before wiping them with a cloth. Behind her were three lifeless figures tied by their hands to the roof of the building, each of them covered in blood. After washing her hands, the woman spoke.

"You know, you would have saved me a lot of trouble if you had spoken earlier. But they just have to train you assassins not to break easily," she complained.

The woman was the same person who had watched as three assassins, who were currently tied up, killed the man from the bar last night. She had followed them to their hideout before attacking them as they slept. She captured them alive and decided to get the needed information from them. It took a while, but after several hours, one of them finally broke. The assassin named both their employer, who happened to be one of the Sultans under Jai, and the information the man they killed the previous night gave them.

"I can't believe they sent someone to kill the prince. Have they all forgotten their duty to this country, to the King?" she said in anger. "King Jai, all the sultans, Omi, Eru, they are all harbingers of disorderliness." She was certain her father would restore the prince to his rightful place as King of Wize, unlike those traitors.

"They all need to learn their place," Fatima said. "But for now, let's go and find the prince."