Please, read the AN at the end of this chapter.
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Lu Ten was angry with the person next to him, a woman his age, preventing him from reaching the castle. She wanted to contact him, something he had refused to do before.
Lu Ten was a veteran, and like all veterans, he had certain psychological problems that he had worked out over time. That's why he was a grown man without a wife; how could he take care of a wife and future children if his mind wasn't quite right?
But this woman was disgusting and clinging in his eyes, like all the nobles who wanted to get something out of their family. He could tell, he could see the cunning in this woman's eyes, but rare were the eyes of nobles that were not tainted with emotions like greed or avarice.
He could feel that something was slipping away from him; in a world like this, one quickly learned to trust one's hunches and instincts. So every time he tried to leave the woman's side, she did everything she could to hold him back, which tried his patience.
Still, he did not lose his temper; he had sensed an undercurrent in those days when his grandfather Azulon had fallen ill. Someone was making moves, some nobles were meeting more often, and even the odd rumor was spreading.
As a master swordsman, he had better intuition than most, he sensed that the woman was holding him back and didn't know why, so his guard was constantly up.
Unfortunately, he was not in the palace, otherwise, he might make a fuss that would attract his uncle. Ozai was a man who could not stand the nonsense of the nobles, and more than one had 'disappeared', so they were as afraid of him as they were respectful of his figure.
Lu Ten was attentive enough to refuse everything the woman tried to offer him, he even avoided her touch. he didn't want to have contact with her, who knew? The nation was in a delicate moment right now, and there wasn't a shortage of ambitious people in this world.
He was someone who had watched Shisui grow up, who had a talent for storytelling, so his mind was very open to any kind of possibility, maybe even the woman was somehow provoking him to fulfill some purpose, so he made sure to be on the street at that time where many people could see her.
Although at first, he thought that the woman would be embarrassed by his actions, it turned out that she had, as Shisui says, a 'thick face' that could withstand the murmurs and stares of the surrounding people quite well.
Even the cabbage vendor seemed to mutter a few words of disdain at the noblewoman who insisted on approaching Lu Ten, so the man took more drastic measures, jumping several meters into the air, jumping over the woman, and running at high speed toward the castle.
No one expected this, not the people watching idly nearby, not the officers of the order, and not the noblewoman who, seeing Lu Ten fleeing, saw her false smile disappear and a coldness spread across her golden eyes.
A somewhat careless man spilled a bag next to the noblewoman, and as he bent down to pick up the contents, the two people were engaged in a conversation that was obscured by the noise of the street.
"He's very attentive, he didn't even look at my cleavage," the noblewoman said in an icy tone.
"He is a prince after all, the woman you are imitating may not be as beautiful as we thought. But no matter, these nobles seem to want to create chaos by taking advantage of Azulon's future death, we can take advantage of that," the man said, gathering his things on the floor.
"Are you saying I'm ugly? This noblewoman bears a strong resemblance to me, so I learned her mannerisms and gestures very well before imitating her, and I should be quite convincing. But what can you do with him, we thought Lu Ten would be as horny as many young junk nobles, but no... it seems his bachelorhood is for another reason," the noblewoman said, gritting her teeth.
Lu Ten's actions offended her greatly because although he was supposed to have rejected the woman he was imitating, the resemblance was not that small, so technically, he was rejecting her, a woman who was proud of her beauty.
This annoyed her greatly, and so she raged at Lu Ten, looking where he had run off to with a hint of murderous intent in her eyes. But the man next to her coughed, snapping her out of her stupor.
"Calm down, the boss sent the two of us and a group of underlings to wreak havoc, not to eliminate a prince. We're lucky to run into stupid nobles, but at least they're better than the ones in the Earth Kingdom.
Follow the plan, when Azulon dies, those guys will start their so-called conspiracy, we can use that as a cover for our main purpose... after all, the Red Lotus has bigger goals than a failed coup attempt," the man stood up and briefly showed a piece of Pai Sho with the Red Lotus symbol drawn on it.
The woman nodded and briefly showed the same piece that she had quickly pulled out with flawless sleight of hand. It was true that the Red Lotus had more important tasks and actions than a mere attempt that would undoubtedly fail.
The Red Lotus did not trust these nobles, nor did they have any hope that their plans would come to fruition, for one simple reason: the royalty of the Fire Nation were not incompetent.
Not only did they carefully guard the knowledge of Lightning Bending, so much so that even Iroh, a senior member of the White Lotus, did not share it with his peers. They also had forces at their disposal to help them keep the nation under control without resorting to such brutal means as the Dai Li.
The woman smiled mockingly, did the nobles think that their alleged conspiracy was hidden in Ozai's eyes? If there was something different between Azulon and Ozai, it was that the former was like a cruel tiger, only at the end of his life did he seem to calm down.
While Ozai was a smiling tiger, playful and permissive with his people, he was the cruelest of all the Fire Lords, second only to Sozin, who ordered an ethnic massacre a century ago.
"Come on, we have news of the target's arrival. I just hope everything goes well," the man with deep blue eyes, but whose skin was as pale as the inhabitants of the Earth Kingdom, smiled.
He had no desire to surpass this figure in strength, but sometimes murder did not require confrontation. What he didn't know was that sometimes, when someone is strong enough, the best way to confront them is directly.
...
"Sorry, something delayed me..." Lu Ten arrived just as Azulon took his last look at his family, and could see that his eldest grandson was also present. Lu Ten was furious inside for the delay, but he didn't let his emotions ruin the moment.
Not when his grandfather had just breathed his last.
The room was immediately filled with a heavy, sad feeling. The crying started, and Kiyi couldn't resist and just cried into the embrace of her mother, who also had red eyes.
At first, Ursa was very afraid of Azulon; the man was a true leader and did not hesitate at all. Sometimes she was afraid that one of his ruthless orders would be directed at her or Ozai, and she tried not to imagine that possible outcome.
Even the night she met Shisui, she was scared to death, although she didn't show it. Imagine her surprise when he simply ordered her to breastfeed the child in his arms, all because he deserved the treatment of a lord, and a mere wet nurse would not be able to take care of him properly.
But perhaps it was the fact that Shisui grew up under Azulon's tutelage, that the old man turned into a jolly and cantankerous old man and left that terrible attitude behind, that Ursa grew fond of the old man and now mourns his death.
All she could do was stroke her youngest daughter's hair and make sure she did not suffer too much from the grief. On the other hand, Ozai looked at his father's body and stood rigidly, not knowing what to do.
He had never thought to see his father so emaciated and sick, let alone dead. Yes, he had imagined killing him in the past and even had the 'perfect' plan in his mind, but sitting on the throne, he realized why his father was like this, why he even seemed to hold on to his power longer.
Ozai was not one to talk much like Iroh he and his older brother were very opposite, but there was a pain in Ozai's hard heart. He didn't know how, but his once-stone heart seemed to have eroded over time, he didn't know when, but he found himself worrying about his family, something unthinkable in his youth.
He would never deny the fact that in the past, he might have dared to kill his father for power, but now, watching him die a happy old man surrounded by people, even refusing to let Shisui prolong his life, he understood his father.
So, in a gesture he might not have made since his children were born, he approached Zuko and Azula and embraced them at the same time. There was no need for words, no need for further action; they just hugged each other, silently.
Iroh watched as Shisui's body trembled slightly from the moment his father died. He shook his head, knowing that the person suffering the most in this room right now was this boy he had watched grow up, someone who was treated like a lord, even though he was an orphan.
Iroh looked at his father, eyes closed with a smile of peace on his face, and a vague realization came to him, perhaps this was the first and only time he had seen his father rest peacefully.
Azulon was an active man and even time could not stop him, always doing something, always studying, or in the last moments of his life, engaging in outdoor activities or trying to propagate the royal family with one of his personal maids.
The thought made Iroh smile before he patted the shoulder of his son who was now at his side. It was Azulon who had insisted that Lu Ten be discharged from the military after noticing his mental problems; it could be said that Azulon did his best to protect and care for his family until the end.
Shisui was someone who was also protected by Azulon, and knowing that he had received the Sage's forgiveness at the end of his life, he was able to leave in peace. Only now, the one who had no peace was Shisui, as the storm of emotions was still brewing inside of him.
But he didn't cause a drastic change in the world like before, no one felt his anger or sadness, the world didn't tremble at his impulse or experience his burst of power, Shisui simply lowered his head and shed silent tears that fell on Azulon's body, slowly stealing the remaining warmth from his body.
"Old man, looks like you need an umbrella... there are leaks in the castle, looks like it's starting to rain outside," Shisui muttered, not trying to avoid wiping away his tears, and in his reverie, he thought he heard Azulon's laughter along with some mocking words that sounded very distant.
"Looks like it started to rain, boy!"
For some reason, this made Shisui laugh, and he looked up at the people in the room who were trying to deal with the duel in their own way. At that moment, something came to Shisui that everyone knew and had realized except him.
He was part of this family, he was a member of the Fire Nation, he was part of the royal family.
It wasn't until hours later, when Shisui saw several red, black, and gold robes on the bed in his room, that he understood Azulon's concern for him. Now he had to attend the funeral the next day in the clothes that should have belonged to him from the beginning.
The Fire Nation's prince, sage, and enlightened one proudly wore the colors of the royal family, while the rain fell heavily tonight.
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AN: I would really appreciate it if you could picture me as a guy sitting in front of his computer with his left eye closed, because I don't wear glasses when I write these days, and the glare from the computer just makes my eyes hurt. I'm complaining, someone reported my Avatar fanfic and I got the cover removed for alleged pornographic content, even though there are more suggestive covers on this platform than just a rather large cleavage. Fuck you, boy or girl or entity that reported me. On the other hand, I'll give you the cover I have on Royal Road, but I'll have to wait a few days for it, so enjoy the tasteless cover by default.
Other than that I don't want to say anything else, I don't know if you have noticed that I don't post AN anymore or that I barely respond to comments except to like everything you comment or put a "Lol", well there's no reason, I'm just a fucking loner with too much imagination in my head but no one to share it with. The comments are great, keep it up, but it's not like I'm going to make friends here either, although there are several people here who are nice and I'd really like to have as regular contacts.
What else can I say, it wouldn't be funny to tell you to read my original novel, so I won't. Just enjoy the fanfic.