A Moment of Silence

*****

Having taken the emperor's leave, Zhixian walked briskly through the halls. Said halls stretched before him, illuminated by lanterns casting golden pools of light against polished marble floors. 

A gathering of officials, generals, and ministers waited along his path. Their silken robes rustled as they turned toward him with eager smiles and calculating eyes.

He was not in the mood.

"Your Highness, a moment?" Minister Huang, a wiry man with sharp features, stepped forward, bowing low. "I hope you will attend the next council meeting. There are matters of the border that—"

"Border matters." Always the borders. Kai En's jaw tightened. He had spent the last six years drowning in battlefields, and the first thing these men wanted was to pull him back into war.

"Minister Huang," Kai En interrupted, his voice cool. "The war has not been won in courtrooms." He didn't slow his pace, forcing the man to step aside or risk being left behind.

"Excuse me."

He left them in the hall, whispers rising in his wake.

The doors shut behind him with a quiet thud.

******

The first thing Kai En did upon entering his chambers was exhale.It was the first moment of solitude he had been granted since stepping foot inside the palace gates.

His chambers were dimly lit, the familiar scent of sandalwood and aged parchment wrapping around him.

Another slow exhale left his lips. It had been six years since he had last stood here, yet nothing had changed.

Except him.

He began undoing the clasps, metal plates falling away to reveal the truth beneath—dark bruises, fading scars, fresh wounds hidden beneath the armour.

A soft gasp pulled him from his thoughts. "Your Highness!"

Kai En turned sharply, his fingers still gripping his shoulder guard. Standing at the door was a woman in modest palace attire, her eyes wide with relief and disbelief.

"You're still here," he murmured.

The woman—Sira, his attendant before he left for war—stepped forward, her hands trembling before she clasped them together.

"Yes, my lord! I thought I'd never see you again, Your Highness. The Empress... she made sure I stayed, for when you returned."

"Is that so?" He mumbled as he continued to take off his armour.

"Yes, my prince!" She stepped closer. "Let me help you."

For the first time that evening, Kai En felt something soften in his chest.

*****

Steam curled through the air as Kai En eased into the bath, the water scalding against his raw skin. He exhaled sharply as the heat licked at his wounds, his muscles tightening before finally, reluctantly, beginning to loosen.

His hands, calloused and stiff from months on the road, rested on the edge of the tub. He had endured worse, far worse, yet here, in the stillness of his chambers, the pain felt more personal. He let his head fall back against the smooth stone edge of the tub, his steel-grey eyes slipping shut.

For a brief moment, he allowed himself the luxury of fatigue. 

For the first time in years, no battlefield awaited him in the morning.

A quiet shuffle brought him back.

Kai En cracked his eyes open.

Sira.

She knelt beside the tub, a damp cloth in her grasp. "Your Highness, let me..."

He did not stop her.

Her hands were careful, pressing lightly against his ribs where the bruises were deepest. The water barely rippled around him, the silence thick except for the occasional drip from her cloth.

His steel-grey eyes fluttered closed again. In the silence, something tugged at the edges of his thoughts. That moment during the celebrations. A pair of dark, unreadable eyes in the crowd. A strange pull at the nape of his neck. A feeling that unsettled him.

Who was that person? Why had his body reacted?

"Your Highness?" Kai En opened his eyes.

Sira set the cloth aside and bowed slightly. "Your Highness, the water is cooling. You should step out now."

Kai En exhaled through his nose. The idea of moving felt exhausting, but he inclined his head. "Fine."

Sira turned away as he rose from the water. She retrieved a thick robe and draped it over his shoulders the moment he stepped onto the warm stone floor.

"Come, sit," she urged, guiding him toward the cushioned seat near the bathing area.

Kai En moved without argument, lowering himself onto the seat slowly. His body ached more outside the water, the warmth no longer numbing the bruises or the deeper wounds beneath the skin.

Sira knelt before him, unrolling fresh bandages. She worked quietly, her fingers gentle as she wrapped the clean linen around his ribs.

"You should see a physician," she murmured as she secured the last knot.

"Later," he said, tone unreadable.

She sighed but did not argue. Instead, she placed a small vial in his palm.

"Your medicine."

Kai En tipped the liquid past his lips without hesitation, swallowing the bitter remedy in one motion.

Sira watched him with quiet sadness. "You rely too much on that."

He did not answer as he settled to work on some files. There was no real rest for him. He had no choice but to rely on it if he wanted to survive.

A knock at the door pulled him from his thoughts.

"Enter." The doors slid open, revealing Lian. Dressed in his customary black, hair tied back in a tight warrior's knot, Lian stepped inside and—paused.

Kai En, fresh from his bath, sat by the lacquered table, his long hair unbound, his silk robe loose at the collar, revealing the sharp lines of his collarbones.

His long, unbound hair shimmered in the candlelight, falling in gentle waves over his shoulders, framing the delicate curve of his jaw and the high arch of his cheekbones. His lips, full and faintly pink, were pressed into a contemplative line, making him look—"Beautiful."

It wasn't meant to leave his lips.

Kai En's gaze flicked up. Lian froze.

A heartbeat stretched between them. Kai En tilted his head ever so slightly, his steel-grey eyes sharp and unreadable.

Lian quickly lowered his gaze, bowing. "Your Highness."

Kai En gestured for him to rise. "Sit."

Lian hesitated. "I should not disturb your rest."

Kai En arched a brow. "Must you always be worried about my health?"

"The battlefield never let you rest. But here, at least, you should."

Kai En smirked faintly, though it did not reach his eyes. "If I rest too long, someone will try to take my head."

Lian's jaw tightened, but he said nothing. Instead, he glanced at the reports spread before the prince. "Already thinking of the next war?"

Kai En picked up a brush, dipping it into ink. "It never ends."

Lian's gaze lingered, watching the prince—not the commander, not the warlord—but the man.

For a moment, there was only silence between them.

Then Lian exhaled. "At least tonight, Kai, let it."

Kai En stilled. The candlelight flickered.

But neither of them spoke of the war again.

The clink of porcelain against lacquered wood filled the quiet space between them. 

"The banquet tomorrow," Lian finally said, breaking the silence. "The ministers will be expecting a speech from you."

Kai En let out a slow exhale, rubbing his temple. "I have no interest in entertaining old men who want nothing but to test my patience."

Lian's lips curled slightly. "You are their war hero, their shining general. They expect you to say something that will reassure them."

Kai En scoffed. "Reassure them of what? That I will keep fighting? That I will spill more blood on their behalf?" He leaned back against his chair, tension coiled tight in his shoulders. "I only just returned, and they already seek to pull me into another war."

"I understand your displeasure but it will be the first time you're presented officially since your return. Speeches. Reassurances. And the noble families—"

"Will try to tie their daughters to my name," Kai En finished flatly.

Lian smirked. "As always."

Kai En exhaled, running a thumb along the rim of his teacup. "I hate these things."

"They are necessary."

He shot Lian a dry look. "You sound like the emperor."

Lian only shrugged, pouring more tea into Kai En's cup. "There will be rumors, of course. Speculation about your time at the front, questions about your health." His gaze flickered, barely noticeable, but Kai En caught it.

Kai En's grip on his cup tightened, though he willed himself to relax. "They can speculate all they want," he said coolly. "It changes nothing."

Lian said nothing, but his expression softened, his gaze flickering briefly to Kai En's hand resting on the table. Almost unconsciously, he reached across, the tips of his fingers brushing against the smooth wood as if testing his own boldness. He hesitated for only a moment before attempting to close the distance.

But before his fingers could reach, the doors slid open.

"Your Highness," a servant bowed deeply at the threshold. "The Empress requests your presence."

Lian's hand withdrew swiftly, his fingers curling into his palm as he straightened in his seat. The flicker of hesitation in his eyes was gone in an instant, replaced with his usual calm.

Kai En did not miss the movement.

Lian rose to his feet first, inclining his head. "Then I will take my leave."

Kai En followed suit, rolling his shoulders back as he stood. "We will speak again tomorrow."

Lian's gaze lingered just a second longer than necessary before he bowed once more and departed, his steps steady and measured.

Kai En watched him go before turning to the servant.

"The Empress," he murmured, adjusting the folds of his robe. "Let's not keep her waiting."

And with that, he strode forward, leaving the warmth of the chamber behind.