As the chaos of the ambush faded, Ka Ryo Ten's sharp eyes caught sight of something glinting on the ground near where Muta had fallen: his blowpipe. 'This could be useful,' she thought, her fingers tracing its smooth, dark wood. 'Perfect weapon for surprise attacks.' She picked it up, testing its weight, but then a frown creased her brow. "No ammunition, though," she muttered, realizing its immediate uselessness. Her gaze drifted to Muta's prone form. Akame's kick had sent him skidding, but perhaps… 'Maybe he has darts on him?'
She approached cautiously, a morbid curiosity pulling her closer. To her surprise, Muta wasn't dead. He lay still, but a shallow, ragged breath hitched in his chest, a testament to his impossible resilience. He couldn't move, clearly broken, yet clung to life by a thread.
Just then, Olivia approached, her footsteps light. She'd been checking on the perimeter and noticed Ka Ryo Ten alone, near the body. "Is everything alright, Ten?" she asked, her voice hushed. But as she drew closer, she heard a faint, rasping voice. Muta. Olivia paused, deciding not to interfere, sensing a conversation of profound importance in Muta's dying moments.
"Girl... you should run," Muta rasped, his eyes, barely open slits, fixed on Ka Ryo Ten. His voice was a dry whisper. "Run away from him... from Ei Sei." He coughed, a wet, rattling sound, blood seeping from the corner of his lips. "The king... he has no allies. He will... eventually die. You will too, if you stay." With a final, weak tremor, he managed to push a small pouch towards her with one trembling finger. "Take these... tranquilizer darts. They might... buy you time."
Ka Ryo Ten picked up the pouch, her mind reeling. "Don't be ridiculous," she scoffed, though a seed of doubt had been planted. "The Prime Minister, Ryo Fui, supports him! Ei Sei has the support of the most powerful man in Qin!"
Muta's lips curled into a macabre grin, revealing bloodied teeth. "You are... deadly mistaken," he rasped, a chilling certainty in his voice. "Ryo Fui... is not their ally. He waits... to consume you all..." His eyes unfocused, and with a final, shuddering breath, the life left him.
Olivia watched as Ka Ryo Ten quickly pocketed the darts and then turned away from the dead assassin, her face a mask of shock. The words hung in the air, a poisonous vapor.
Far away, in the harsh, windswept border state of Wei, a soldier knelt before the imposing figure of Ryo Fui. "Prime Minister," the soldier reported, his voice tinged with urgency, "a messenger from Ei Sei has arrived. He bears a sealed message."
Ryo Fui, a man whose ambition was as vast as the Qin plains, merely smiled, a cold, calculating curve of his lips. "A messenger from the child king? How quaint." He raised a hand, a single, decisive gesture. "Capture him. And then… brand him as a spy from an enemy country. Execute him. Let his fate be a warning to any who would believe in that boy's desperate pleas." The soldier saluted, his expression grim, and departed. Ryo Fui's eyes, devoid of warmth, gazed towards the distant capital. 'The pieces are moving. Soon, the board will be mine.'
Back in the cavern, a grim strategic meeting was underway. Olivia, her expression solemn, stepped into the circle. "Your Majesty, Shou Bun Kun," she began, her gaze meeting Ei Sei's, "is it true? Is Ryo Fui truly on the side of Sei Kyou?"
Ei Sei's face was devoid of surprise, only a deep weariness. "Ryo Fui has been waiting for this moment," he revealed, his voice quiet but firm. "He desires to become the King of Qin himself. He always has." His gaze hardened. "He expects Ketsu Shi and himself to clash in the capital, a battle for supreme power. This uprising... it's a calculated chess move for him." Ei Sei swept his gaze over his small, embattled group. "It will be very hard to find allies. We must all prepare for a fight to the death very soon. I need to return to the capital, not just to reclaim my throne, but to prevent all-out war in Qin. If Ryo Fui and Sei Kyou turn the capital into a bloody battlefield, Qin will tear itself apart."
Shin, listening intently, noticed Ka Ryo Ten's hand instinctively clench around the blowpipe she now carried. 'Huh. She's got Muta's pipe now,' he thought, a mischievous glint in his eye. 'I want that thing. Could be useful.'
Heki, still reeling from the news of Ryo Fui's blatant treachery, spoke up. "Ka Ryo Ten, if I may ask... who exactly are you? And why do you know so much about the mountain people?"
Ka Ryo Ten merely shrugged, a hint of mystery in her eyes. "Oh, the mountain people? They're just… people. From the mountains." She left it at that, a slight smile playing on her lips.
A moment later, Shou Bun Kun cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention. "Your Majesty," he announced, his voice gaining a newfound hope, "I believe I've found a way to get us allies. Allies who could turn the tide against Ryo Fui and Sei Kyou." His gaze drifted towards the cavern entrance, towards the mountains beyond.
The next day, under the watchful gaze of the rising sun, Ei Sei led them up the treacherous mountains. The air grew thinner, the incline steeper, and the path became a cruel test of endurance. Many of the soldiers, already worn from days of running, struggled to keep pace, their heavy breathing echoing in the quiet morning. Shin, whose own boundless energy often masked his exhaustion, noticed their marching line growing longer and longer. Even the seasoned Shou Bun Kun, though stoic, began to lag behind. Ei Sei, observing their plight, eventually sent orders for a rest break.
Shin, impatient, couldn't resist. He swaggered among the winded soldiers, his voice mocking. "What's wrong, you slowpokes?! If you keep going at this pace, Sei Kyou will be crowned the new king before we even reach the first peak!" A few grumbled, but his taunts, rather than truly angering them, seemed to light a small fire under their tired feet.
As they resumed their climb, Ei Sei turned to Shou Bun Kun, his expression serious. "The path ahead will become even more treacherous, Shou Bun Kun. We must be prepared." Ei Sei continued to lead, his lithe figure moving with surprising grace as they ascended higher and higher into the rugged peaks.
Ka Ryo Ten, panting slightly, looked around at the towering mountains. "Your Majesty," she asked, "how does the hierarchy of these mountain people work? Are they just one big clan?"
Ei Sei, though focused on the path, replied calmly. "There are innumerable mountain clans, Ten. They forge many alliances, sometimes shifting, but all of those alliances ultimately elect the King of the Mountains. It is a system built on strength and respect."
Shin, peering ahead, squinted. "How do you even know where we're going, Sei? It all looks the same!"
Ei Sei offered a rare, small smile. "I vaguely know which way to go, Shin. But more importantly," he pointed to barely discernible carvings in the distant rock faces, ancient idols that served as hidden waymarkers, "those are our true guides."
The ascent continued, unforgiving. The soldiers lagged further behind, becoming more and more fatigued. Many collapsed, their bodies giving out against the relentless climb. Shou Bun Kun, seeing their plight, made a hard decision. "Anyone who falls behind is to descend the mountain and wait to regroup back at Boku Kou's retreat!" he ordered, his voice echoing through the thin air. He looked at Shin. "You're right, Shin. We're taking too long. We cannot afford to have stragglers now."
Heki was shocked. "But Lord Shou Bun Kun! We need as many men as possible to protect the king from the mountain tribes! We'll be exposed!"
Shou Bun Kun's gaze was grim. "No, Heki. If we bring those who are too exhausted, they will only slow us down. And if we encounter mountain warriors who mean us harm, this exhausted lot... the mountain warriors would annihilate them all anyway. We must move with speed and strength."
Alex, seeing the tactical necessity, approached Shou Bun Kun. "He's right. It's too dangerous to have weak links. I've instructed Tsunade, and Erza to stay with these men. They, along with all of our warriors, will ensure their safety and begin Page rank training for our men and you guys immediately. We'll fortify Boku Kou's retreat. It will also serve as a vital fallback point."
Shin, however, still couldn't fully grasp the fear he saw in the eyes of the regular soldiers. "Heki," he asked, his voice low, "why is everyone so afraid? Why do they speak of the mountain tribes like demons?"
Heki sighed, looking out at the vast, imposing mountains. "There's a story, Shin. A dark one. It happened long after King Boku Kou's time. The previous Qin King, in a gesture of goodwill, sent food to Jin, a desperate neighboring state, during a terrible famine. Even though they had been enemies, Qin helped them. But Jin… they betrayed us. Once their strength returned, they came and attacked Qin while we suffered a famine of our own." Heki's voice grew somber. "Surrounded on all sides, Boku Kou's descendants had no allies left. Qin was on the brink."
"Until," Heki continued, his eyes wide with the legend, "three hundred mountain warriors appeared from nowhere. They descended from these very peaks, silent as ghosts. They turned the battlefield of thousands into a crimson mess. They fought with a ferocity no plains dweller had ever seen, a raw, untamed power. They annihilated Jin's army, saving Qin." Heki finished his story, then added, his voice dropping to a whisper, "But there are rumors, Shin. Rumors that the hate for the plains dwellers has been growing ever since King Boku Kou passed away. That the mountain tribes have not forgotten the betrayal and disrespect they've faced from the Qin of today."
Shin looked ahead. Ei Sei had already continued on, his slender figure silhouetted against the rising sun, pushing relentlessly towards their mountain allies. Behind them, high atop a distant cliff, a number of masked figures watched silently. Their forms were indistinct against the vastness of the mountains, but their presence was undeniable, silent sentinels guarding the secrets of the peaks.