Chapter 169: Alternate Worlds

"What?"

Yexue nodded slowly. "The ring only worked for the two of you because you already loved each other." She looked down at her hands. "Maybe love is not the right word. But..."

Qingyue opened her mouth and closed it. She was unable to form a string of thought that made sense to her. "But that’s not..." she tried again. "I’ve come to care about Ru Yi, but that’s all."

Yexue swallowed hard. "It’s fine if you actually love her." The words felt like glass scraping against the inner walls of her throat. "I realized after you left that you matter more than any of this. Compared to sharing Ru Yi, losing you hurts more."

Qingyue didn’t try to interrupt again.

"I just...I don’t want to lose you. Or Lieyin." She raised her head again, not bothering with the tears still rolling down her cheeks. "Most of all, I don’t want to lose Ru Yi."

"You won’t," Qingyue said quietly.

Yexue looked at where Ru Yi was now talking with Kael. "I know Lieyin feels something too. I saw the way she held Ru Yi that night in the wagon, I’ve never seen her that way with someone else."

"Actually, I’ve suspected that for a while."

Yexue sighed again, suddenly feeling exhausted. "Can’t we have the throne and the things we love too?" She exhaled deeply. "I’ve come to realize the only way to protect all the things and people we care about is by having power."

"You get it now," Qingyue said in a quiet voice. "We’ll never be truly free and safe as long as Empress Lihua controls the throne."

Yexue nodded. "Whether it’s making it back to Ashen Fortress or going back to the capital...I will stand by your side."

Qingyue touched the ring. "I think the reason I couldn’t heal with my spiritual energy was because Ru Yi wasn’t with me."

Yexue’s eyebrows drew together in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"After I left Emberfall, there was a certain heaviness in my chest. Like a void that I could never fill." Qingyue touched Yexue’s shoulder. "Whatever magic this ring holds, I think it’s affecting us in more ways that we don’t know of."

"What is going to happen now?"

"Learn more about the ring as we go. As for Lieyin..." Qingyue gestured towards her. "We’ll let her figure out her feelings on her own. But...are you sure you don’t mind—"

"We’ve always operated as one," Yexue cut in. "It’s not all that surprising that we like the same woman. We’ll just figure it out as we go."

-

-

Dry branches snapped easily in the cold air, the faint crackle of kindling filling the silence as Kael worked.

Ru Yi crouched nearby, watching the flames slowly come to life. Orange light flickered across their faces, pushing back the creeping dark.

For a moment, everything felt almost normal.

Almost.

Han Shuying returned not long after, settling near the edge of the firelight.

"The horses are fed and secured," she said. She couldn’t for the life of her understand how she’d fallen into this domestic role with the princesses...and Ru Yi.

Yexue rummaged through their packs, pulling out small bundles wrapped in cloth. "Dried meat," she announced. "And flatbread. That’s all we have."

Lieyin took it. "That’s better than nothing."

All of them ate in silence. No ceremony or conversation. The dried meat was tough, salted heavily to preserve it. Even the flatbread had gone stale, but no one complained.

The fire crackled between them, casting shadows that shifted and stretched across the ground.

Ru Yi barely tasted the food in her hands. Her mind was elsewhere...or rather, on someone. Her gaze drifted.

Kael sat a little apart, staring into the fire like he was trying to find answers in it. Or avoid them. Ru Yi stood up and walked over to him.

She lowered herself beside him, close enough that he noticed but not enough to startle him.

Kael looked at her. "Is something wrong?"

"Not really." She bit into her bread. "About what you said earlier, your role..."

Kael’s eyes narrowed into slits. "What about it?" He kept eating his bread. "What do you want to know?"

"Who gave you that role?" Ru Yi went straight to the heart of the matter. "Can you explain better? I’m just trying to understand."

Kael exhaled slowly, dragging a hand through his hair. "This is going to sound strange. First, you have to promise you don’t think I’m crazy no matter what."

"Try me."

Kael’s gaze shifted back to the flames. "Do you believe," he started, "that there are other alternate worlds out there besides this one?"

Ru Yi’s heart stuttered. Because at that moment she knew her suspicions had been confirmed. "Of course. We can’t be the only ones in the universe."

"You’re the first one to believe that."

Ru Yi shrugged, trying to play it off. "So...you’re from one of these alternate worlds?"

Kael turned to her. "If I say yes, will you believe that too"

Ru Yi nodded. "Anything is possible."

"In the world where I come from," he continued, "this place, everything happening right now it’s just a story. A book I used to read. Actually, my adoptive sister...it’s her all time favorite." There was a tinge of sadness in his voice that Ru Yi didn’t miss.

Of course, she knew they were in a book.

"The exiled princesses, famously known as the wolves of Eastern Palace. Their rise and fall..." Kael looked like he was recalling a bitter memory. "I slept off in a hospital room and woke up here. I need to help the triplets before I can go back to my world."

So...Kael transmigrated her just like her.

"I’m not the main character, thankfully. My fate would’ve been worse if I became a palace maid, or the cannon fodder best friend that’s killed just to move the plot forward."

That made Ru Yi smile a little.

"So, how do you intend to help the princesses?" Ru Yi looked over to where they sat huddled together. "It’s not going to be easy like you’re saying it."

"Actually, there’s only one real obstacle," Kael replied. "The one woman who stands in their way."