Five years later

Ying Yue scaled the walls of the palace undetected, it was the middle of the night and the moon had been shy tonight. It was dark, the clouds are thick and the wind howled a little louder than usual. It was the perfect night to carry out a royal murder.

She meandered quietly in between the buildings disappearing in the shadows. She knew where the prince is at and her objective was to get to him.

She stopped and leaned her back on the wall. She made it near enough as she scanned the area for any guards.

It had been a quiet night so far, and the imperial guards had not suspected any assassin breaking in tonight.

It's her lucky night perhaps.

That's when she saw a lantern danced and flickered in the prince's room, Prince Wang Jian is still awake, and he's probably with his most trusted subject, Lord Chua Chansin. A very skilled master in the palace.

Ying Yue watched the dancing light while she waited and lurked in the darkness.

With her gritted teeth, she stalked forward, eyes glazed with murderous hunger.

She leaped up the corridors and stalked nimbly until she stood right at the door.

A mere wooden screen separated her from her husband.

Ying Yue breathed, her heart slammed with unrelenting madness on her chest.

She slammed the door wide open.

The prince sat on his cushioned seat, eyes darting at her, his mouth partly open, without a reaction, not as much as a surprise.

It is as if he had expected her to come and kill him tonight.

His gaze drifted over to another man, Ying Yue was right to expect Lord Chua to be around.

The Prince remained still, insultingly still that it made Ying Yue mad.

Prince Wang Jian's lack of expression only caused her anger to explode, entertaining the room with her feet nimble and quiet on the floor.

"Take care of the roach, Lord Chua Chansin." Ordered the prince.

Ying Yue drew her sword from its sheath, arms strong and steady. She sucked a breath in her lungs and lunged herself forward.

Lord Chua's focus was entirely on her when he surged forward, sword drawn on his hand. Strong and powerful. He met her blade and sent her staggering back a few steps, He's far more powerful, stronger than the battle inexperienced princess.

She whirled around, eyes firm holding his. Lord Chua dare not break away his stare. The way he is, is so intimidating, that no wonder the emperor made him in charge of the security at a very young age.

Lord Chua is at least two years younger than the prince, and yet, he already matched the prince's skills.

They circled each other for a while before hurling herself into a powerful swing, only for him to dodge it.

Ying Yue whirled back in place swinging her blade for his head. He met it with his sword again, throwing it out, sending her staggering a few more steps backward.

"Who sent you here?" He pried.

"No one!" She spat.

"Do you realized an attempt on the prince's life is punishable by hanging?"

She smirked, as though her intelligence was insulted. "I wouldn't have come here if I wasn't prepared to die. I sold my soul to the devil for this!"

"You're foolish! You could have made better use of yourself."

Ying Yue sucked a sharp inhale and swung again. His blade swung to counter, sliding just underneath hers. There was a swoosh, and Lord Chua lunged, a little too fast for  Ying Yue to keep up with.

She only had space to dodge when a hand slammed her back against the wall and knocked the sword out of her grip. Her blade fell with a clang on the floor and she was held helpless by her childhood friend who doesn't recognize her at the moment.

Her breath left her and she gasped winded.

His hand was on her throat squeezing it. "Who sent you here?!" 

"No one." She gasped, wincing at the pain on her throat and the fist digging on her chest.

Lord Chua pushed, hard enough where it felt like he's going to break her ribs.

"That's enough." Said the prince, watching the whole thing unfold from his seat like it was a damn play for him to enjoy. His voice was silent, and yet, there's feral deadliness in it that made her shudder.

Lord Chua clenched his jaws and pressed his lips but he did not loosen his grip.

The prince rose and walked evenly, casually.

He paused just behind Lord Chua. "Leave us."

Lord Chua glanced back with uncertainty.

"It's alright, Lord Chua, I can take it from here. She's spent, there's not much she can do from here."

Lord Chua's eyebrows furrowed, it was not the prince's best interest to be left alone with an assassin. "But your highness!"

His hand landed on Lord Chua's shoulder and gave an impatient tug. "Leave."

Lord Chua let go of his tight grip, he released her neck and stepped back, sending Ying Yue falling to the floor choking and gasping for breaths.

She winced at the pain on her side and sucked air behind the thin layer of her black mask that concealed her identity.

The prince bent over, there's a casual calmness in the way he moved and grasped her arm, a little too gentle for handling his assassin.

He pulled her back to her feet and leaned her against the wall. He looked at her, his eyes bright and shining. He recognized her caramel eyes, the only thing visible to him.

His gaze was gentle, and it was confusing. The prince hated her, and she hated him just the same.

His hand reached for her mask, sliding it off her mouth. The prince leaned in for a kiss.