- Li Xun -

He swore his heart almost dropped.

It didn't make sense.

This wasn't the first time he felt that Long'Er was strange. The last time, the boy had behaved rather peculiarly towards Li Xun in the bathroom, almost as if he was a fair maiden witnessing a naked man in the bathroom. But Li Xun had dismissed his behaviour then, thinking that he was simply a boy who had spent far too much time in the mountains and away from people.

And now, this happened.

Unlike what the boy told him, there were no burn marks marring his skin.

Li Xun moved towards the sleeping boy, wondering how he should get Long'Er to rest on his other cheek so that he could check the left side of his face. He wanted to quell that burning curiosity, to know whether he was being lied to by the very person whom he thought was his friend.

Unless Long'Er had a good reason for doing so.

His eyes landed on the knot that held the black mask to the boy's face. He leaned closer, his fingers reaching out to attempt to loosen it–

–until a sudden movement startled him.

He leaped backwards, watching as Long'Er roused from his sleep. Stretching his hands and limbs. Through bleary eyes, he glanced around, finally noticing Li Xun standing behind him.

His irises expanded marginally. His hands flew up to adjust his mask quickly and, which Li Xun noted, rather nervously.

"Your Highness? What are you doing?"

He straightened his back and cleared his throat, but he couldn't tear his attention away from the mask. Knowing that he had lost his opportunity to rip it off without alerting Long'Er. "You've yet to return, and so I decided to come to check on you," he answered. "Did you find what you were looking for?"

Long'Er shook his head. "Not yet."

"You don't need my help?"

"Thank you for asking, but no. This is something which I have to deal with on my own."

He got to his feet and hurriedly cleared away the books by returning them to their rightful place. Instead of watching, Li Xun provided his assistance. He shoved a book back into a shelf, sneaking glances at his bodyguard every few seconds. Several questions ran through his mind but he couldn't bring himself to ask any of them.

He realised that till this day, he still didn't know Long'Er that well.

Everything about him still remained a mystery.

Li Xun's stare didn't go unnoticed. Long'Er froze, turning his head slightly. The glow from the burning, red candles reflected the anxiety in his gaze.

"Your Highness, what's the matter?"

Li Xun shook his head at him. "It's nothing. I was just wondering if you're hungry. You missed dinner."

"It's fine. I'll grab something from the kitchen later."

He nodded. They exited the Office of Administration and Long'Er escorted him back to his bedchamber. They barely exchanged any words, not when Li Xun's mind was preoccupied with troubling thoughts.

He desperately wanted to see what was beneath that mask.

A peek was all he needed.

***

The next time he saw his bodyguard, he was certain he had been overthinking the entire situation.

In the training grounds, he was practising his swordsmanship on straw dolls, cutting them neatly in halves. Eventually, he called out Ling Yao to be his opponent, who agreed easily. They were childhood friends, which meant that this wasn't their first time sparring with each other.

They exchanged blows without mercy, but never once endangering one another's lives. From the sideline, their crowd grew considerably, consisting of the guards and palace maids who watched them in excitement.

The match eventually ended in a draw; both of them pointing their swords mere inches away from their fatal points.

Sweat coated Li Xun's forehead. He lowered his blade and was about to leave when a voice belonging to his sister surprised him. He hadn't realised she had joined the crowd as well.

"That was impressive, Brother!" she exclaimed while clapping. "But it can't simply end here, can it? How about a fight with one of your guards?"

He arched a brow at her in disbelief, but accepted the challenge nonetheless. "Well then, who do you suggest?"

Excitement sparkled in her eyes. She swept her gaze across the group of guards – many of whom gulped in fear – until her focus rested on her favourite person.

With a delightful smile, she pointed at Long'Er. "How about him?"

Murmurs of surprise resonated among the crowd. Some men were genuinely relieved to hear that they weren't going up against the Crown Prince. Others were betting on who would win the match.

On the other hand, Long'Er was rooted to the ground. His eyes quivered with shock and anxiety.

"Y-your Highness, I can't possibly–"

"Nonsense." Li Xue dismissed his concern. "Do not fear my brother. I'm confident you'll perform well."

Stunned, Long'Er stepped forward until he was facing Li Xun. There was clear hesitation in his eyes, but nothing he said was going to get him out of this match. The cheers coming from the crowd only intensified the fear in his eyes.

He swallowed hard. "Your Highness, please forgive my imprudence."

Li Xun gave a light shrug. "Don't mind it."

They wielded wooden swords this time, their eyes focused on each other's movements. Dark clouds hung over them, the wind ruffling their clothes and tossing their hair. Several pairs of eyes clung to them, watching in silent anticipation.

Li Xun took the first move, swiping his sword diagonally down to the left. In a swift move, Long'Er sidestepped and deflected his attack. He slid his sword away, launching into his next few moves with more power and determination, but Li Xun dodged easily each time. His years of training instilled great reflexes in him. His body moved faster than what he saw, his mind anticipating his enemy's moves faster than anyone expected.

The back-and-forth attacks never ceased. When he decided he had enough, he spun around and dropped to his left knee, sweeping the boy off his feet with his extended right leg.

Landing hard on his back, the fall drove the air from Long'Er's lungs. Using his elbows, he pushed himself up into a sitting position. His forehead etched with deep lines from pain.

Cheers and applause erupted for Li Xun's victory, but he could not rejoice with them. Not when he hurt his friend. Shock came over him and he scurried over to Long'Er's side.

"I'm sorry!" he apologised quickly. "I overdid it. It was not my intention to hurt you. Are you alright?"

Long'Er winced. "I'm fine. It's not that bad."

"I'm sorry–"

Halfway through his sentence, rain came pelting down on them. Apart from Li Xun's guards, the rest of the crowd, including the princess, scattered for shelter. Leaving the pair alone.

Rain streamed down their faces. "Can you stand?" Li Xun asked worriedly. He took Long'Er's arm, pulling him up to his feet gently but the silence only spoke how much pain the boy was in.

Even with Li Xun's help, he limped on his left foot, moving at a slow pace. In a matter of seconds, they were drenched from head to toe. The rain slashed at them relentlessly, the cold seeping into their clothes and skin.

Without much of choice, Li Xun bent and grabbed the back of the boy's knees. He lifted him into his arms easily and ignored the gasp of surprise coming from beside him.

"Y-your Highness?! You don't have to carry me. I can walk on my own."

"That would take forever and you'll fall sick by then," Li Xun answered. "This is much faster."

He brought him back to the guards' sleeping quarters. The weight in his arms was lighter than he expected and it startled him, wondering how a man could possibly be this thin. Was he not growing enough muscles?

Once they were in Long'Er's bedroom, he placed him on the bed. He dropped to his knees and proceeded to remove the boy's boots, but a hand grabbed his arm to stop him.

When he glanced up, he was met with a pair of frightened eyes.

"What're you doing, Your Highness?"

Li Xun was confused. "Removing your shoes. Your ankle hurts, doesn't it?"

"No, no! You don't need to. I can do it myself—"

Despite the sound of protests, he removed the boots and white socks quickly, rolling up the cuffs of Long'Er's pants by a few inches. It revealed an angry-looking bruise on the ankle.

At the same time, Li Xun couldn't help but notice how small those feet were and hairless the skin above was.

Masking his look of surprise, he pressed his fingers to the bruise, Long'Er let out a harsh groan. "You need ice to wrap around your ankle," he said." Stay here and get some rest. I'll get the servants to bring the necessary items."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

He nodded. After having a word with the servant, he settled by the window's edge to watch the rain. His mind was in shambles, and he was trying to pick up the pieces and connect them together.

All the strange signs pointed him in a certain direction. The mask, the scene in the bathroom, the boy's slender build and the anatomical differences between them...

This was absurd.

Long'Er couldn't possibly be what he thought he was, right? He could fight exceptionally well for his age, but that didn't mean Li Xun should have ruled out the possibility of females being capable of fighting professionally. Yes, they were few in number, but they did exist.

If his hunch was correct, he might be staring at one right now.