The harbor district had fallen into uneasy silence, its stone streets glistening from the afternoon drizzle that had since faded into a haze. The last of the fishermen had pulled in their nets, and the creaking of anchored ships was now the only sign of life. The ocean beyond was a black expanse, interrupted only by the faint flickering lanterns of foreign vessels some welcome, others not.
Jian pulled the hood of his cloak lower as he followed Giselle along a narrow alleyway that curved behind a storage yard for salted fish. The stench was oppressive, but it ensured privacy. They walked without speaking.
Finally, Giselle stopped near a rusted iron gate that led to a forgotten warehouse. She looked over her shoulder, eyes sharp beneath her veil of wind tossed blonde hair.
"We're clear. For now."
Jian said nothing, but his eyes scanned the surroundings. A shadow had moved near the crates earlier he was sure of it but it had vanished just as quickly.
Inside, the warehouse was abandoned save for the scent of salt and old rope. Crates were stacked like forgotten relics, and a shattered lantern lay in a corner. Giselle pulled out a rolled map from beneath her cloak and spread it across a dusty barrel.
"Look here," she said, tapping the parchment with a gloved finger. "This is not a common merchant route. It's an old smuggling lane used only by those who wish to move unseen. Last month, three ships followed this exact path. None were on the port registry. All bore no colors."
Jian leaned in, eyes narrowing. The route curved around the eastern cliffs, bypassing the usual checkposts. "And what did they carry?"
"Supplies. Weapons. Vials sealed in lead boxes." Her voice lowered. "And passengers chained below deck."
Jian's jaw tensed. "Slaves?"
"Maybe. Maybe not. Some of them were too well dressed. Nobles, even. Or spies."
He looked up at her. "And you're giving this to me because…?"
"Because you're the only one inside the court who might still have a conscience." Giselle's smile was slight, not mocking but tired. "You still think truth matters. That makes you dangerous to them. And useful to me."
A beat of silence passed between them.
"I'm not sure I trust you," Jian said evenly. "Your motives shift like sea mist."
"You shouldn't trust me," she replied. "Trust the pattern. The truth has been stitched in plain sight you just need to follow the thread."
She reached into her satchel and pulled out a small square of blood stained fabric. Upon it was a sigil: a black serpent coiled around a lotus blossom.
"This was found on a corpse that washed up outside the lower canals yesterday. They say he died of the sickness, but I checked the body myself. There were ligature marks on his wrists. He didn't die from disease he died trying to escape."
Jian took the fabric, heart thudding. The sigil was unfamiliar.
"A new faction?"
"An old one," she corrected, voice hushed. "From the southern coasts. They call themselves the Red Lantern Syndicate. Officially, they're smugglers. Unofficially… they deal in alchemy, forbidden poisons, even biological experiments."
His mind flashed to the recent outbreak the corpses with discolored tongues, the swift spread, the inexplicable mutations in later victims. Could it be?
"You're suggesting the plague is man made?"
"I'm saying someone is experimenting with nature. And they're using your people as their test subjects."
Jian's stomach turned. It was too cruel to imagine. And yet… too plausible to ignore.
He stepped away from the barrel, pacing. "But who would allow such a thing? The Council would never "
"Would never know," Giselle interrupted. "Or if they do… perhaps they've chosen silence in exchange for leverage."
Her words were venomous in their calm delivery.
Outside, a gull cried overhead. Somewhere in the distance, a ship's bell tolled.
Jian rubbed his temples. "This this is too vast. If what you're saying is true, then "
"Then it's not a mystery anymore," Giselle said. "It's a war. And you, little prince, are standing in the middle of the battlefield, unarmed."
He turned sharply. "Why help me at all? What does your faction gain?"
Giselle's expression shifted. "My faction?" she said carefully. "I'm not here on their behalf. In fact, they'd flay me alive if they knew I was speaking to you."
"Then who are you?"
She smiled faintly, not answering. Instead, she reached into her cloak again and tossed something to him. It clinked a small bronze coin, worn at the edges.
"Take that to the shopkeeper at the Lantern Quarter. Say you're looking for jasmine in winter. He'll understand."
"What will he give me?"
"Something better than maps." She stepped back toward the doorway. "A name."
Before he could press further, she froze her eyes darted to a broken window above them.
"Get down!"
Jian ducked just as a dart flew past, lodging itself into a wooden beam behind him. He drew his dagger, instincts sharp.
From the shadows above, a masked figure leapt down, clad in black robes with no insignia. Silent. Precise. Deadly.
Giselle reached into her sleeve and flung a blade that missed by an inch. Jian lunged, dodging the assassin's first strike and slashing upward. The blade met fabric but no blood. The figure was fast.
Another strike Giselle kicked the attacker's knee, giving Jian the opening to slam him against the crate. The mask cracked, and for a brief moment, Jian saw the attacker's eyes.
Empty. Almost lifeless.
A trained puppet.
The figure hissed, bit something beneath his tongue, and convulsed. Within seconds, foam spilled from his lips. His body twitched… then went still.
Jian stepped back, shaken.
"Who sends assassins that swallow poison?" he muttered.
Giselle knelt, inspecting the body. "Someone who doesn't want questions."
She found no insignia. But in his sleeve, a scrap of parchment: a crude drawing of a man in royal robes.
Jian.
"They know you're looking."
Jian's blood ran cold. "Then I don't have much time."
"No," Giselle said, rising. "You have just enough."
Outside, the harbor wind howled louder now, and the mists thickened. From the ships beyond the wall, faint lanterns swayed red and gold.
The storm was coming. And Jian had finally taken his first step into its heart.