"Silver prince!"
Rui heared a voice call out to him while he slept.
The next morning, the golden light of the sun shone so bright, that even the dark gloomy cave they had retreated to lit up.The cave was narrow and damp, barely tall enough for a man to stand. Moss clung to the stones, and every drip of water echoed like thunder. They planned to stay hidden there for two nights, surrounded by the dense veil of the Southern Gorge.
Li Yuan crouched by the entrance, sword across his knees, eyes burning with sleepless fury.
Rui lay farther inside, wrapped in a tattered cloak. His silver hair was dull with dust, his skin pale with exhaustion. A deep gash marked his shoulder, bound hastily with cloth. Even in pain, he had refused to cry out.
Li Yuan turned. "Let me see it."
Rui shifted but didn't move closer. "It's fine."
"It's not."
"I said—" Rui's voice cracked, and then softened, "—I'll manage."
Li Yuan crossed to him anyway, kneeling. "You don't have to manage alone."
Rui flinched slightly as Li Yuan unwrapped the bandage. The wound was clean but red, angry at the edges. Li Yuan rewrapped it carefully, his fingers gentle.
The silence between them was thicker than the cave air.
"They won't stop," Rui finally said. "Not after this. They're afraid."
Li Yuan met his gaze. "They should be."
But Rui shook his head. "No. Not of me. Of us. Of what we might become."
Hunted
The ministers' men had tracked them as far as the river's edge, but Rui had thrown them off course. Still, they lingered, scouts combing the gorge, whispering of the witch-bride and the cursed union.
Each night, Rui dreamt of blood and smoke—of temples crumbling and thunder echoing across the skies. He didn't tell Li Yuan. Not yet.
They had no food left.
On the second night, Rui tried to rise but staggered. Li Yuan caught him.
"You're burning up."
"I said I'll manage," Rui murmured, breathless.
Li Yuan set him down, frustration curling in his chest. "You always push me away."
"Because if I don't," Rui whispered, "I'll fall too far."
Li Yuan stared at him. "Then fall."
Rui's eyes shimmered, but he turned away. "You don't understand."
"I do." Li Yuan's voice was low, aching. "Because every time you pull back, I want to chase you more. And it's not just obsession anymore, Rui. It's you. All of you."
Rui's hands trembled.
But still, he said nothing.
Back at the Capital
In the grand hall of the Vermilion Court, silence followed Minister Yu Lian's report. Then, laughter.
Bitter. Mocking.
Minister Jiao sneered, folding his arms. "So the great Conqueror Emperor was nearly killed chasing after his little bride?"
Another minister snorted. "And by bandits no less. Or so the story goes."
"They weren't bandits," Yu Lian said calmly. "They were men with names. Trained soldiers. Some from the Western Reaches. Others... foreign."
"And yet he lived," Minister Xue muttered. "Which means the witch still stands beside him."
Yu Lian bowed slightly. "They escaped into the Southern Gorge. Our trackers have not yet found them."
Minister Zhao, elder and thin as a reed, tapped his staff. "This union is dangerous. The boy is marked by heaven. The old prophecies speak of a silver star falling, and with it, the breaking of empires."
Jiao laughed again. "And yet our emperor is blinded by pretty lips and moonlit eyes. Love has made him a fool."
"Worse," Minister Xue added. "It has made him weak."
Silence fell.
And that silence was heavy with intent.
In the Dark
The third morning came with a break in the clouds.
Li Yuan crouched at the mouth of the cave, scouting. The valley below shimmered under sunlight. No movement. No banners. Perhaps they were safe.
Behind him, Rui stirred.
Li Yuan returned to him quietly. "The scouts may have left. We'll move at dusk."
Rui nodded.
His fever had broken in the night. His breath was steadier. Yet his eyes were distant.
"You saw something," Li Yuan said.
Rui hesitated. Then: "In my dreams."
Li Yuan sat beside him. "Tell me."
Rui's fingers curled against the cave floor. "A figure stood in a field of broken stars. His face was a mirror, and when I looked into it—I saw myself. But older. Alone. Crowned in fire."
He turned his head. "It felt real."
Li Yuan took his hand.
"You won't be alone."
"You don't know that."
"I do."
Rui didn't pull away this time.
But he didn't speak either.
Buried Things
That night, they emerged from the cave.
They followed the river deeper into the southern wilds, toward a region marked only in forgotten scrolls—where ancient temples lay buried beneath vines and time. Rui felt drawn southward, the same way he felt the wind pull when he called it.
Li Yuan stayed close, always watching. Rui noticed.
When Rui stumbled, Li Yuan caught him.
When Rui turned, Li Yuan was already there.
And when Rui finally stopped and looked at him beneath the moon, words hovering on his lips, Li Yuan said nothing. Only waited.
Because he knew Rui needed time.
But the time they had was running out.
"This was meant to be journey to discover the truth about all the unrest in my kingdom" Li Yuan said with a low tone as he held unto Rui.