In the days that followed, the Prince's Manor operated as usual, but in Huo Xi's eyes, the once-grand estate grew colder by the inch.
The figure that used to silently appear at the end of corridors or in the shadows of the roof ridges was gone. Huo Xi stopped searching for him, and she no longer purposefully slowed her pace when delivering late-night snacks. Those flutters of excitement that once made her heart leap were now, under Shadow Blade's silent avoidance, sealed away by her own hand in the coldest corners of her heart.
Early morning, by the well in the backyard. Huo Xi emptied the last bucket of water into the dry flowerbed, watching the murky liquid seep rapidly into the soil. Her expression was unnervingly quiet. After a long silence, she whispered the truth she had hidden for so long to the empty courtyard:
"Perhaps... Master Shadow simply has no feelings for me."
She let out a small laugh, a sound as faint as the morning mist in autumn—one breath and it would vanish. "It was my own wishful thinking, dreaming of feelings I shouldn't have."
Her fingertips unconsciously brushed the sky-blue pouch at her waist. Once her most precious treasure, it now hung there like a lead weight, the most ironic witness to this unrequited love.
"Those moments of care before... they were probably just because of the Prince and Princess. He was merely looking out for a servant of the General's Manor."
She turned and did not look back. Her retreating figure carried a finality, as if she were bidding farewell to her past self.
That afternoon, Huo Xi found the manor's head steward, Manager Xu.
"You're leaving the manor?" Manager Xu looked up, somewhat surprised.
Huo Xi nodded. "Yes. I'd like to take a walk and buy some medicinal herbs." Her tone was steady, as if making a routine request.
Manager Xu didn't ask further and handed her an entry/exit wooden plaque. "Be back early. Don't go looking for trouble."
"Yes," Huo Xi replied softly.
Throughout the interaction, she never felt the gaze from behind that was almost burning her. Far off on the roof ridge, Shadow Blade stood silently in the shadows. He saw her coldness when requesting the plaque; he saw her detachment when receiving it. He stood there, watching her slowly drift away from the protection of the manor.
His instinct as a Shadow Guard screamed at him to stop her. He knew the undercurrents in Zhanchuan City were surging lately. If he said just one word—"It's not safe outside"—she would stay.
But he didn't. He clenched his fists until his nails bit into his palms. He felt he had no right to keep her. The only thing he could give her now was this deathly silence.
He watched that slender figure disappear through the manor's grand gates, unaware that this look would almost be his last.
The market was bustling, the crowds weaving like a tapestry. Huo Xi walked aimlessly through the throng. The shouts of street vendors reached her ears as if through a thick layer of gauze. She wasn't truly there for herbs; she just wanted to escape that cage where every corner made her look for a shadow.
Suddenly, Huo Xi's pace faltered. A hair-raising shiver ran up her spine. She spun around. Pedestrians passed, vendors called out, and the sunlight was blindingly bright.
There was nothing.
"What are you still thinking about..." She shook her head mockingly and turned to continue forward.
In the next heartbeat, disaster struck!
A dark figure lunged from the shadows of an alleyway like a specter. A damp cloth, soaked in a strangely fragrant chemical, was slammed over her mouth and nose from behind!
"Mmph—!"
Huo Xi's pupils dilated violently as her hands struggled frantically. But the drug was potent. Within a second, the world before her eyes blurred into ink. The wooden plaque she had been clutching fell to the bluestone pavement with a sharp clack, a sound completely drowned out by the noise of the market.
Deep in the dark alley, three men in black quickly hoisted the unconscious Huo Xi.
"Is this her?"
"Yes. It wasn't easy waiting for someone from the inner court to leave the manor alone." The speaker's voice was low and cold.
Another man let out a sinister sneer, his eyes dark. "The Fourth Prince has been waiting for this opportunity for a long time."
He narrowed his eyes and barked a low order: "Take her away. Move cleanly—don't alert the manor's Shadow Guards."
The shadows retreated into the darkness. The alley fell silent once more. Only the wooden plaque representing her identity lay abandoned in the dust and sewage, one of its corners chipped away.
At that moment, Shadow Blade was standing at the manor's highest lookout point, staring restlessly at the busy street. He thought letting go was an act of fulfillment for her; he never imagined his self-righteous restraint would become the blade that sent her into the wolf's den.
[Prince Zhan's Manor • The Study]
Inside the study, the scent of ambergris mixed with ink. Shadow Blade sat behind the large desk, wearing the purple-gold python robes reserved for Prince Xiao Zhan. To ensure stability while Xiao Zhan was away, he wore an exquisite disguise mask, mimicking the Prince's dignified aura to perfection.
Opposite him, Chu Yuning pointed at several passes on a map. "The troop movements for the Nine Fortresses must be completed before winter, or else..."
Knock! Knock! Knock!
A series of urgent, chaotic, and undisciplined knocks shattered the calm of the study. Shadow Blade's fingertips froze. The knocking carried an abnormal panic.
"Third Young Master, this old servant needs you to make a decision!" Auntie Mei's trembling voice pierced through the door.
Chu Yuning frowned, glanced at Shadow Blade, and rose to crack the door open.
The moment it opened, Auntie Mei ignored all etiquette and stumbled inside. Her eyes were red and swollen, and she wrung the hem of her apron nervously. "Third Young Master, please, send someone to find Little Xi... The girl took a plaque to go shopping this afternoon, and look at the time! It's almost dark, and she hasn't returned!"
Auntie Mei sobbed hoarsely. "That girl is always the most disciplined; she'd never miss her return time. I just asked at the gate—the guards said they haven't seen her come back at all!"
Boom—
It felt as though something had exploded in Shadow Blade's mind. He maintained his posture as "Prince Zhan," unmoving, but beneath the mask, every drop of blood had drained from his face.
He had watched her walk out with his own eyes.
"Auntie Mei, don't panic yet." Chu Yuning's expression darkened. He looked back at the "Prince" behind the desk, his tone grave. "Shadow Blade, I'm afraid this isn't simple."
Tinnitus drowned out everything else. Shadow Blade could no longer hear what Chu Yuning was saying. His mind was filled with her—the girl with the crescent-moon eyes who always called him "Master Shadow."
"Shadow Blade?" Chu Yuning, seeing no response, prompted him again with a hint of a warning. "We need to send people to find her immediately..."
Rip—
A faint sound of tearing silk echoed. Shadow Blade had instinctively clawed a hole through the expensive Xuan paper map. He stood up slowly, his movements as rigid as a puppet's.
Under Auntie Mei's shocked gaze, the "Prince" didn't issue an order or speak. He stepped over the desk and strode toward the door.
Shadow Blade's eyes, visible through the mask's holes, were now webbed with terrifying blood vessels. Missions, disguises, the Nine Fortresses plan—at the news of Huo Xi's disappearance, they all turned to ash.
"Shadow Blade!" Chu Yuning grabbed his arm firmly.
Shadow Blade swung his arm back with such force that Chu Yuning was thrown back several steps. Without looking at anyone, he kicked off the ground and vaulted directly out of the study window. Cloaked in the purple-gold robes, he vanished into the thick night like a wounded, lone wolf.