CHINESE ARYA STARK meets THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA.
*A Wattpad Featured story*
When everyone wears a mask, who do you trust?
In the unforgiving empire of Erden where the Imperials reign supreme, Sarna is a slave. After escaping the brothel where a m...
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"The rat was a sneaky little thing. It whispered sweet nothings into the bull's ear as it ferried the rat across lakes and plains, marshes and bogs, until they reached the finish line. Then, with vigor, the rat hopped off the bull's horn and landed first place. It was crowned the first guardian of the Zodiac."
The Twelve Guardians of the Zodiac—An Erdense folktale
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Duke's Bay only operated at night, when the Imperials had sunk into their soft, feathery beds and the guards had retired to their barracks, singing about handsome damsels in distress and the woes of their jobs. When the night was high, and the brilliant lanterns had burned low, slavers crowded the square where public executions took place. Oftentimes, fights broke out, the floor splatted bloody. The slavers wrecked so much havoc the Imperials sent soldiers for peacekeeping.
Hidden by my muslin hat, I slipped into the converging crowd. Most were men, and they cast me strange looks as I brushed past them and toward the front-most row, getting a clear glimpse of the platform.
Bao was there. A necklace of fat pearls strained around his budging neck, and he was dressed in heavy blue silks with tiger prints. He held a whip made from horsehair as thick as my wrist. Seeing him strut across the platform and lash the whip in empty air made my skin crawl, and the scars underneath Qara's face itched.
I yearned for my scalpel hidden underneath my shirt. I had discarded my leather pouch and bundled the essentials in silk. In retrospect, I was glad it was beyond my reach. Blood would spill if I held my best weapon in a place full of savages.
"What do you have for us?" A man shouted. "Give us something pretty!
Standing next to him was a woman with too much makeup. Her round face was white from multiple coats of powder, and her plump lips were painted red. Her hair was held up in a familiar Jade City fashion—long hair gathered into one thick braid and wound around the head, where it was finished with tens of tasseled pins.
Mama Ruga.
She hadn't changed one bit. Biyu once jokingly told me Mama Ruga looked like a hippotamus which learned to speak. He wasn't wrong. Every inch of Mama Ruga resembled one—from her large nose to her huge teeth to the hairy mole on her chin.
"My clients want something fresh." Mama Ruga drew a feathery fan from her sleeve. "I hope you have something exquisite for me."
Bao laughed. "All in good hands, folks. My scouts have reached Oghul-qaisah, and they've brought in several of their most charming ladies. Your clients are going to love them."
"The second prince wants new whores too," another man added. "Spare some of your Oghul-qaisah treasures for the Imperials as well." He waved his jade pendant in the air, showing everyone, he was from the Jade Palace.
