Into the Array C3
Hi, Dinogirl, thank you for the encouraging review. No worries, I am not overworking myself, but thank you very much for the concern. This story is actually written way ahead and I was just pretty lazy to proof read it, so I am taking my time to proofread sections of it before putting up.
Two - three more chapters and I can assure you that Yao would make an appearance.
As always, please enjoy
The tablet in his hands seems to weigh even more. Or perhaps he is just tired. Ivan doesn't know, and so he let out a sigh instead. Looking out to the street, Ivan noticed that there are much more eastern descent people walking around than the previous city. So much more that Ivan is beginning to feel the tiny anxiety of being the minority.
'I wonder how the legendary young princes and princesses will look like.' Ivan unwittingly speaks out his thoughts, as he tried imagine a face from the features of the passerby.
One of the soldiers overheard Ivan's words and leaned in for a gossip.
'Well, you could always ask us about it. We may be just palace guards now, but we are all rotated from different divisions. For example, Wu sitting over there was one of the escort soldiers guarding Princess Vamp to her wedding.' the man sitting beside Ivan commented, everyone calls him Man Man because he was pretty big and burly for their people and moved slower, and Man Man apparently means slow in their language.
'Wedding? More like Weddings.' the man named Wu ridiculed. 'One rotation in the military is only 5 to 7 years, and yet within those years, I have to escort her wedding twice. Tell me which lady gets married off as often as her. She's like the pail of water that the Wang Royal family cannot pour away.' he continued, shaking his head.
Gossip have a way of loosen any tight lipped mouth and pretty soon, the other soldiers began to chimed in their frustration over the individual royal members they have served before.
'Did you manage see her face? Is she really as pretty as the legends claim?' another guy asked, a guy Ivan heard them call Shui.
'Well, by right we are not supposed to. But I did catch glimpses of her when the wind blows her veil up, and my god yes, she's as beautiful as the legends, if not more.' Wu exclaimed, as though he was describing a deadly treasure that he had a chance to peek.
'Beautiful? Pretty? Do you know why the 5th princess is called Mu (慕)* ?' the man that was quiet since the gossip begins finally voice out. His name is Da Lao, or so he was called. He look significantly older than the others, and honestly, Ivan don't even know why was he chosen to escort him, he looks like a person even Ivan can easily overcome, not to say bandits.
'No' all the other soldiers muttered and shook their head one after another.
'No answers?'
'I thought that their name was specifically chosen by the Emperor at the advice of the palace's fortune teller?' someone voiced out, but Ivan didn't care who, he was just very interested in the reason why.
Da Lao laughed and replied 'That's not it.'
'OH! Is it something to do with the God of War.' Shui blurted out in excitement. 'I recalled! you're rotated here from the army, aren't you?'
'You're right.'
His answer seems to created a buzz from the rest of the soldiers, and Ivan look at all of them in wonder, feeling their excitement for the gossips that will be spilled for the infamous man.
'If your ears are sharp, you must have heard of people saying this before; Princess 5th from the top, with beauty that put flowers to shame and allure that shut out the moon, can only admire (慕)* from afar the ravishing God of War. For a glance from Prince 5th from the bottom is enough to bring Kings to their knees, and a second glance is enough to bring the downfall of empires.' Da Lao said, ending the speech with a secretive look, as though he expect an enormous reaction from his audience .
'Such exaggeration. I don't know about how he looks, but I did heard that he was a really bloodthirsty man. And the truth is that, there are much more war campaigns going on ever since he became the 3rd general.' Wu retorted.
'You saw him, didn't you, Da Lao?' Shui commented, lifting his head from the headrest. 'How does he looked like?'
'Yeah! Tell us about it.' Man Man urged as well.
The mood in the whole carriage changed. Everyone is interested in this mysterious child of the Emperor of Han. Ivan stared at Da Lao, and even he can't resist asking.
'Come on, don't keep it to yourself, tell us about it. How does he look like?'
'I only saw him once, when he was choosing men to lead a night battle during sunset. We are all in position, and he was sitting on a horse. It must have been the setting sun, but at that moment when he passed by in front of me, I can't resist but secretly stole a glance at his face and for that brief moment alone, it's as though the time stopped. The twilight seem to bring us to another dimension, and its soft glowing lights radiated his entire outline, even his face. And for that split second, I really felt as though I was in the presence of a God.'
'That's not really helping.' Ivan scowled, he was expecting a better description for the man his country people called Demon.
'Well, does it help if I tell you that the ones who got chosen by him that evening never made it back. He's an eccentric man despite his beauty, that mission was suicidal but still he brought his men to their death. Some people calls it an inevitable mission, others calls it unnecessary. I, myself belong to the latter group, and that's why I requested to rotate out from the army. '
The carriage have fallen into silence, and Ivan knew that doubts, hatred and even resentment is stirring in their hearts, because Ivan felt it too. He will be meeting with a man like him, to understand him and to paint for him.
Ivan can hear the driver hushing the horses to a stop. They must have reached the designated inn to rest for the night, and as the carriage slow to a stop, the soldiers began to liven up again at the prospect of food. Yet as they are walking near the entrance, Shui suddenly held Ivan back and pulled him to the side.
'You will be painting for the Royal family right?' he whispered.
'Yeah.'
'Be careful. The God of War is not the only one you should look out for.'
'Why are you telling me, a foreigner whose country once fought yours, this?'
Shui gave out a short laugh.
'That palace is a tiger's den, and you, a big fat piece of meat is walking proudly into it.' he smirked. 'The Kingdom of Han have no fear of its enemies, but we are tired of war. The 9th son once openly assault our neighbour's emissary, and we go to war for that. The commander from the North fell in love with him on the battlefield, now he is seeking war from us, and he will not stop until Han have fallen and the God of War in his bed. A beauty like him is a jinx to our country no matter how good a general he is.'
His voice is desperate and angry and he sound so much different than when he was at the carriage with the other soldiers. Perhaps something bad used to happened to him, but Ivan decided not to probe.
'I've heard. ' Ivan gave a light smile. 'But I'll take note of your words.' he continued, hastily retreating to his designated room soon after.
'You'll see that I'm not wrong, foreigner.' he muttered under his breath as he eyed Ivan in.
慕 - means admire, in Chinese.
Da Lao is actually making fun of her name as Wang Mu, implying that she was given this name to be eternally jealous of Wang Yao's beauty.