Volume 2 Chapter 9

  Kora Zang stretched before launching into one of the Katas that her new fighting instructor had taught her. The man was a mortal, but as far as mortals go he was a master of the sword. Considering Kora’s own lack of martial might, at least in terms of sheer physical prowess, he was an excellent guide to help strengthen her foundation.

  She grinned. He ought to have been, coming recommended by Renton Shen himself.

  The gruff old man was rooming and living with the servants, as was fitting as far as the rest of the cultivators in the Zang family was concerned, but Kora had it under good authority that the man himself wouldn’t have it any other way, considering that he was quite taken with one of the cooks, whom she’d heard rumors of being pregnant.

  Kora was considering what to give them for their engagement present, but didn’t want to jump the gun. She was fairly certain that this was a happy occasion, but on the off chance that it was a source of drama she didn’t want to appear foolish or cruel. She’d wait until the official announcement, then tease him endlessly about it in private.

  She grinned, going slow through the dance. Slow and perfect the first time, then a second time at half speed, then another at three quarter, then faster and faster until she was making mistakes, then slow again.

  It was refreshing and smooth, especially as she cycled her Qi at the same time. While she doubted that she was on the same level as Tan Shen, or the other children who lived on the Shen farm, she was improving. She didn’t want to be weak, but at the same point her dao wasn’t one of martial might, so she didn’t need to be particularly strong either.

  Just enough to defend herself, and not embarrass herself when she returned to the Shen farm for the visit next year.

  She grinned, put pushed the memories aside rather than examine them right then, as she needed to focus on the kata.

  Sixteen repetitions she made, and she was vaguely aware of the old sword master watching on the final six. She strove to do her best while he was watching, even as she moved so fast that she wasn’t certain his mortal eyes could spot any flaws. She could feel the flaws when she moved fast, however, and made note of them.

  Those were the parts of the dance where she would be most conscientious of during the slow repetitions to follow.

  When she came to a stop, sweating and feeling good with herself, her master began to clap.

  “Very good. Very good,” Rukas said, stepping forth and into the courtyard as she checked her sword for moisture before sheathing it. “You are improving the dance. I admit that I cannot follow you during your fast cycles, but you are paying attention to what feels wrong, yes? I saw you emphasizing certain motions during the slow cycles?”

  “Yes, Master Rukas, I am following your advice to the best of my abilities,” She said, bowing to the grizzled old man. “Tell me, have you been to the kitchen? I heard that there is a bun in the oven and I am uncertain whether or not it was yours.”

  She blushed slightly as the words slipped out of her mouth. Then she decided to own them rather than back down, and waited for the response.

  The old man scratched his ear. “Heard about that, did you?”

  “Yes, although I’m not certain the rest of my family knows, or whether they would care if they did,” Kora said. “You’re my master and I’ll defend you if they do, but—”

  “The day I need defending by a seventeen year old lass is the day that I hang up my swordbelt,” the veteran said, huffing. “But if you wouldn’t mind helping me handle some of the social niceties that one follows in this situation?”

  “Such as?” Kora asked.

  “How exactly does one ask a woman to marry them?” the veteran asked.

  “Oh,” Kora said. Then she grinned and began conspiring with the man for a romantic event for the veteran and the cook to share, to culminate in the proposal.

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  It was not so uncommon for weddings to follow pregnancies rather than the other way around, and as long as the wedding was performed before the child began to show it was considered proper. The cook had a frame that would hide the pregnancy a few weeks longer, so they had time to arrange a quiet wedding.

  Kora was quite looking forward to it. The rest of the family was too aloof from the servants quarters to really figure out what was going on, and she doubted that they’d care. But ever since she had become friends with the Shen family she had dedicated an hour every day to interacting with the people who washed her clothes, prepared her food, and cleaned her house.

  So she was considering wheedling the event into a holiday for all of them to celebrate. She’d lay the groundwork for that with her parents later on, but in the mean time, she had sparring practice.

  Swapping out her real sword for one meant for training, she faced off against the grizzled swordmaster for thirty minutes. While she could win in a flash if she used her speed as a cultivator, or if she used magic, that was not the point of these exercises. Eventually she’d need to face off against someone stronger and more experienced than her, but she was still learning significantly from this mortal master.

  She bowed to him once their lesson was complete and they both saw to the swords they had been using before stowing them away. She went to wash off the sweat from her exercise, then change into her evening clothes with the help of a servant. It was the same young woman who had put into Kora’s ear the rumors about the cook’s pregnancy, but while they often gossiped together, Kora knew better than to betray Rukas’s secret to the blabbermouth. While they spoke of the cook’s pregnancy, the conversation with the sword master might as well not have happened.

  “Also, your mother is asking to speak with you before dinner,” the servant informed her.

  “Do you know what it is about?”

  “Cultivator business, I am certain,” the servant said. “I’ve heard no rumors of it being anything else, at least.”

  “Thank you,” Kora said, and went to go eat dinner.

  She stepped up outside her mothers room and flared her Qi for just a second to announce her presence. A moment later, Toh Zang, her mother, opened the door.

  “There’s a letter,” Toh said immediately, pointing to where the envelopes was sitting on the desk still sealed. “Two letters actually, one of them sealed with the imperial seal. They arrived together an hour ago and the meeting will take place after dinner to decide how to address them, but since they are both addressed to you, personally, you should read them and determine what contents to share with the others.”

  Kora nodded and picked up the two envelopes. While she wanted to open the letter from the Shen farm first, the imperial seal was what truly had the family concerned, so she quickly broke the seal and opened the letter.

  She grinned as she read it. “It is a formal invitation to stay at the palace for a stay lasting several weeks this fall,” she said. “I am to arrive at my leisure between the first day of the tenth month and the final day of the tenth month, and I am welcome to stay for as long as I am comfortable. There is mention of an important ball which will be taking place during that time frame, something about a masquerade.”

  Her mother made excited sounds and snatched the paper away from her as soon as she held it out. There was little else to the simple invitation aside from the statement that her guardians would be housed in the outer court, and that further instructions would be provided by the servants of the emperor when she arrived.

  She then quickly opened the letter from the Shen farm and smiled as she began reading it. It took her several minutes, and when she finished her mother was looking at her.

  “It is a personal letter. The only thing of note that I see so far is that Tan will also be attending the ball mentioned in my imperial invitation. As will the other children of the Shen estate, it seems, except for young Safron who has spent most of the letter calling the other kids poopy heads for leaving her behind.”

  Toh laughed, and then relaxed. “It is good news then. The emperor seems to approve of the arrangement to marry the Zang family into the family of his personal vassals. We are well positioned, I think, to rise quickly.”

  “Yes Mother, I think it’s a good thing,” Kora agreed. Although, inside, she was less certain. Had Tan told Renton about their decision to just be friends? Kora had explained to Tan previously the steps that she was employing to keep her family from investigating the Shen estates too closely, but she didn’t exactly know what would happen when they were together in a completely different environment

  Would their friendship survive the ordeal? Or would it shatter as politics came between them?

  She sighed, and then went off to eat with her mother and the rest of the family, where Toh Zang made a big deal of announcing the imperial invitation. The rest of the family was, to say the least, quite ecstatic.

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