Ruhan sat alone in the narrow chamber assigned to him, a room fit for a eunuch, not a Khan. Days had passed since he returned from the desert, yet sleep still eluded him. Too much scheming in the palace, too many uncertainties, and thinking about a certain princess of Hua certainly didn't help.
Here, though, in this cramped space, he was simply Ruhan.Not the Khan.Not the ruler suffocating beneath a crown.
Whenever the weight of power became too heavy, he returned to this room. To shed the weight of the throne, even if only for a moment, and breathe as a normal man.
A soft knock sounded at the door.
"Enter," Ruhan said.
Arkan stepped inside, plain clothes disguising the sharp discipline in his posture. He closed the door quietly and bowed.
"Your Majesty. I'm bringing you a report."
Ruhan motioned him to the seat across from him. "Go ahead."
Arkan placed a bundle on the low table: folded notes, a broken wax seal, and a piece of parchment covered in unfamiliar symbols.
"Our men confirmed the Chancellor's envoys met with the foreigners again," Arkan reported. "This time, outside the western border post. They traveled disguised as Hua merchants. Something was exchanged, goods or possibly weapons. We could not confirm."
Ruhan leaned forward slightly. His voice remained calm, but his eyes sharpened. "Weapons disguised as trade, through Hua caravans. Clever, but reckless." He smiled in amusement at how predictable the chancellor's move was.
"The foreigners arrived by ship," Arkan continued. "No one knows how they reached the inland border. It seems Hua traders carried their cargo across land and passed it to Tughril merchants. And this was found among their goods."
He unfolded the parchment.
Ruhan studied it under the lamplight. The writing struck a memory, he recognised the letters.
"Roman letters," he murmured. "People from across the far western seas."
Arkan blinked. "You recognize it?"
"Enough to understand the intent," Ruhan replied. "Trade on the surface, threats beneath. Interesting."
He set the parchment down and folded his hands.
"Good work. Continue watching the Chancellor. Do not interfere yet. It is better if he believes he is unseen."
Arkan bowed. "Yes, Majesty."
"Go now. No one should see you here."
Arkan slipped out, and silence returned. Ruhan rested his fingertips on the parchment and shut his eyes.
Foreign ships. Hidden cargo. A Chancellor reaching too far. A stepmother and stepbrother sharpening blades and ready to aim them at his neck. How long must he endure this nonsense?
He allowed himself a brief rest on the narrow bed before rising to resume the role of the Great Khan of Tughril.
Later that morning, he entered the Great Hall. The plain robes of a eunuch were gone. The Great Khan walked in clad in ceremonial black and gold. A gleaming mask hid his face, and the weight of the crown settled over his shoulders once more.
Ruhan, the eunuch, vanished.
Kazrail, the Great Khan, entered.
Ministers bowed low beneath the weight of his presence.
"Long live the Great Khan," they chanted, voices thundering through the hall.
For a few hours, routine followed. Petitions, commands, faces pretending loyalty, petty bickering between left and right ministers, basically everything he despised about ruling a kingdom. When the session finally ended, much to the Khan's relief, a messenger approached.
"Your Majesty, the Khatun Dowager requests your presence for tea in the garden."
Ruhan inclined his head. "Very well."
He wondered what she wanted this time? Their cold war never thawed. Not with her, nor with her precious son, the Grand Prince. He knew they were behind his parents' deaths. He knew they wanted his head next. But everything is not unpredictable. All he had to do was just be smarter than them and be one step ahead. Something that he mastered already.
The garden in the Dowager's quarters was quiet. She sat beneath a silk canopy with her posture regal and her gaze sharp.
"Mother," he greeted her.
"Kazrail," she said softly, using his true name. "You have not visited me for tea in quite some time."
"I have been occupied with court matters," he replied, pretending that was the reason and not because he simply didn't care for her.
She poured tea with steady grace. Steam curled into the cool air as Kazrail observed her every move. He looked at the cup that was offered to him, but did not touch it.
A pause. The Dowager's eyes narrowed just slightly.
"You refuse my tea?" Her tone was gentle, but the threat beneath it settled like frost.
"The last time a Khan trusted a cup poured by another," Kazrail said evenly, "he died."
A heartbeat of stillness. The Dowager's face remained serene, but cold steel flickered beneath her calm.
"You dare speak to me like this?" She pretended to be offended.
"Do not pretend innocence," he said quietly. "We both know this table has held more schemes than tea."
A normal person might have overturned the tray with the cruel remarks. Not the Dowager. Her posture stayed perfect, calm, and a thin smile touched her lips.
"Very well. I won't pretend sweetness anymore." She lifted her cup and drank gracefully, gaze never leaving him, as if to prove the tea harmless, and to enjoy the silent duel.
"I speak to you as a mother," she said after finishing her tea. "Even if you never acknowledge me as one. I still have my duty."
She set the cup down.
"The ministers are pressuring me to select a Khatun for you. Kabil will soon take his consort, and he already has countless concubines. Yet the Great Khan remains alone. It is absurd."
Kazrail smiled, unamused. "They have suggested this before. Why the sudden urgency?"
The Dowager returned his smile. "I simply worry for the throne. If you do not marry soon and produce an heir, who will continue the line?"
He chuckled. "Oh please, Mother. We both know you want the throne for your son. You should be pleased if I have no heir, it makes your path easier."
"Kazrail, my son, your words wound me deeper than any blade."
He laughed softly. "If you wish to play a game, I will play. Choose me a Khatun. The finest you can find. We shall see if your choice pleases me."
He stood and walked away.
He was not concerned. Whoever she chose would be another pawn, her pawn. But he welcomed the challenge. He wanted to see what card she and her father, the chancellor, would play next.