~The Reward~

With the attention of the ministers no longer fixed on her, Oris was left shivering. The wind had let up long ago but it had left the hall chilly. The dress Oris wore didn't little to retain the warmth bubbling beneath her skin. Being made of silk and lace, it was meant to be beautiful not cosy.

She resisted the urge to hug herself and rub her arms until the flesh there smoothened under the heat of her palms. The cold had given her gooseflesh and she was just minutes away from having her teeth start chattering.

Observant as ever, Andrea stepped closer until their bodies nearly touched and the chill Oris felt was pushed to the back of her mind, but she had little time to dwell on what had happened or thank the thoughtful girl.

"A wish," Hermes said at last. He held his hand under his chin then nodded, as though agreeing with himself. "The Lady Of Inqa can ask for anything and I will do all in my power to grant it."

The effect of his words had on the court was instant: chaos.

A wish wasn't a simple thing, after all. Even Wei Wei seemed to have turned pale after hearing her son's announcement though most of her expression was hidden behind her wide sleeves.

Hermes had managed to turn the situation around with a single sentence and shift his ministers' eyes back to Oris.

She didn't like it, not one bit. It sounded like the beginnings of another excuse to get her killed—and she was beyond understanding how she kept falling into pits like this one when she wanted nothing more than to be invisible.

She had just had a brush with Death, and now here she was, back where she started. The way things were going, the game Fate played with the Ones After was going to get her killed before she could fulfill whatever destiny was intended for her.

She could only imagine what must have been going through the ministers' minds at this very moment. They were the most troubled in the hall after all.

The ones who had daughters, or candidates they supported, in the Selection were probably afraid that she would wish to be Empress. That was most likely what the Empress Dowager feared too.

The ones who supported Wei Wei would fear that she wanted their backer deposed, or worse, killed, since it was now common knowledge that Oris and the Empress Dowager were far from being on good terms.

In fact, it was safe to say that the woman was the only enemy Oris had at the moment, and that put the Empress Dowager in a most perilous situation where a simple wish could be her undoing.

But if they only knew... Oris ignored the whispers from the men around her and stared up at Hermes in an attempt to guess his thoughts.

He didn't seem to care about the tension his words had caused, and he acted as though any eventuality was alright with with him.

He looked at her intently, watching her as she had watched him just a few minutes ago, and she couldn't help but feel that they were the same.

The sameness that linked her to Bren, Eve and Mikeal, somehow linked her to him, and she didn't understand it.

She didn't want to understand it, either.

She curtsied and thanked him, this time without any prompting from Faeradaigh who was too stunned to do so.

"Have you thought of your wish?" Hermes asked when she had finished relaying her gratitude.

My wish... She bowed her head and pretended to think. The truth was, she already knew what she wanted. Only if I could open my mouth and ask for Orse. Only if it was that easy.

The scroll in her hands was almost hot on her skin as she thought of all she that could ask. A wish. . .

Hermes would be dutybound to fulfil it even if he killed her in anger once she said it.

Still, it was a trap. A trap his ministers had set for him that he had skillfully substituted her into.

Now, she was faced with a dilemma identical to his, only she was asking, not giving.

He had answered his own riddle cleverly but also dragged her into it as though to say, "If I go down, you are going down with me."

If she could not ask for money, nor power, nor the death of his mother, nor the revival of her State, what remained for her to wish for?

Just like how Hermes couldn't gift her with something that didn't hold the same value as his life. She couldn't ask for something that wasn't equivalent without mocking him.

In the same way, she couldn't ask for something grand without looking greedy, and she couldn't ask for an inexpensive gift without seeming ungrateful.

As it was, she barely had any options. She could imagine the ministers ripping into her requests like starved dogs pouncing on an elephant's bone, and just like that what had been a day for her to be rewarded would inevitably turn into her last day on Mother Earth.

They would say that she belonged in the harem. What did she need that couldn't be provided by the Emperor?

Power and money are things meant to influence the court. Did she want to influence the court? Did she come to the palace to buy the Emperor's ministers?

What did she mean by nothing? Was the Emperor's life worth nothing at all? He is the most powerful man in all the land! Everything as far as the eye could see belonged to him.

Asking for Wei Wei's death was also out of the question. A mother gives life to her son and should be respected.

A son using his mother's life in exchange for his was the height of being unfilial and sort of reputation wouldn't be forgotten, even in death.

That particular wish would have the entire fief of Inqa massacred, not by Hermes' orders alone but by 'heroes' who felt as though they were purging the world of evil.

There were few rules when it came to making paradise, but filial piety was the first. And who didn't want to be rewarded after death?

This is really difficult. She couldn't even sigh. She supposed that someone else would have been panicking over the situation. Or worse, answer thoughtlessly and die without ever knowing why.

Wei Wei herself was starting to look pleased, as though she was sure that she was going to be rid of the biggest thorn in her side today.

Oris almost felt bad for getting the Empress Dowager's hopes up. If she could, she would have chosen not to say a thing, just to keep the woman's hopes alive, but in the end she still had to give a reply.

All of the court was waiting, and the Emperor had finally showed interest in something. There was intent sprinkled in his gaze, and even he was leaning forward slightly in his throne.

"Your Majesty," Oris smiled then looked at her feet, "there is nothing I would want more. . ."

Pain flared in her chest and she reached up just in time to muffled the cough with her hand.

She cleared her throat and ignored the pressure of the gazes now levelled on her. Perhaps the ministers were convincing themselves that she would die even if they didn't intervene, and so an early execution would not be cruel in the slightest.

It mattered not. She had her answer.

"There is nothing I would want more than to spend time with you, Your Majesty." She held her hands to her left side and curtsied, ignoring the slickness of the spittle and blood trickling down her fingers. "If you could only spare an hour from you busy schedule for us to be. . .to spend together, I could die today with no worries."

Especially if I somehow kill you before I do, she added in her mind, not willing to let the lie pass so easily.

Still, it was just wishful thinking. Hermes didn't trust her enough to give her the opportunity to even graze his skin the slightest bit, and that was something that needed to change if she was actually going to get Orse back.

She needed to either win his trust, kill him and cause chaos, or win his trust and make him free both her and her State.

As it was now, the latter seemed more doable but Oris' thoughts on it were scattered the moment Hermes grinned. Grinned.

She stared at him as he smiled at her, confused but unspeakably proud to have wiped the bored expression off his face. The corner of her lips inched up slightly at the accomplishment.

"Granted," he said.

"As the Emperor decrees," the rest of the court chanted, out of sync for the first time since Oris had heard them.

Minister Varehir turned to her and nodded slightly, a strange glint in his eye—a mix of surprise and pride.

Oris considered it a pat on the back, and immediately took him as an ally. Her answer had been the right one, it seemed. . .and the only one she could think of.

What wish could be traded for an Emperor's life? An Emperor's time.

Life was created by rivers time, and she had blocked Death for Hermes for just an instant, so she had only asked for a mere fraction of his life.

It was the perfect wish. It kept her alive and turned this death trap into a warning to the women who thought it wise to make an enemy out of her.

She had no doubt that word spread after she had spent time with Hermes, and without doing anything she would be thrust into the limelight.

Whispers would go around that she was the most favored of all the candidates, that her imprisonment in the dungeons was unjust and affected her standing in no way, and those whispers would protect her until she could use her own abilities to show her fellow candidates that they were no match for her.

Oris was done acting meek. She couldn't afford to be underestimated any longer. There had been three attempts to poison her already, but only the last one could be directly linked to the Empress Dowager.

She still wasn't sure where the poison in her ointment had came from, but it was safe to assume that more than one person wanted her dead. Why, however, was the big question.

"Let us end this here then," Hermes said, his cool voice disrupting her thoughts once more.

He ran his fingers down the creases in his robe and got up from his throne. Even at a distance, he looked imposing.

"Your Majesty," Minister Rehcai said, bowing his waist slightly, "there are still other issues to be addressed."

"Noon passed hours ago. There is a break to be had and wishes to fulfil," he replied after he paid obeisance to his mother.

Faeradaigh didn't even wait for a signal before announcing at the top of his lungs that the court was adjourned till later in the evening.

The ministers clasped their hands, bowed and chanted half-hearted praise to the Emperor before slowly filing out of the room.

The physician hurried to join them but Oris remained standing. She was not part of the court.

She had not been asked to leave.

She watched Hermes walk down the steps of the dais. He made each movement deliberate and it only served to amplify his presence. He did not need armor and a sword to look formidable, he was terrifying enough on his own.

Somewhere out of the corner of her eye, Oris noticed Wei Wei leave the Great Hall through a side door beside the thrones, but most of attention was on the man that now stood before her.

This was the first time she had been so close to him, and as she stared into his soft brown irises she wondered if her sister had been able to see the gold that flecked them before she was killed.

Oris bowed her head, more concerned about the fact that her emotions would show through her eyes than appearing shy.

"Leave us," Hermes said, in innoish, to Andrea.

Andrea glanced at her mistress in worry then curtsied and moved to stand beside Faeradaigh.

Hermes turned in their direction, and immediately the eunuch led Andrea out of the hall through the front door.

"You," he said, and Oris looked up, "come with me."

She curtsied and obeyed.

~

Ahhh. It's finally happening! Oris and Hermes are going to talk. I thought this would happen chapters ago. Sigh. But other things had to happen first.

There's one chapter left. But I haven't finished it, not to talk of editing all its glaring errors. So it's coming later today!

Anticipate it <3

Thank you all for reading!

Oh and Filial means: Respectful of the duties and attitudes of a son or daughter toward their parents.

Unfilial: Not befitting or proper for a son.

Filial Piety is: The virtue of showing respect and doing good deeds for one's parents, elders and ancestors.

Hermes killed his father, so... Yeah, he can't screw up with his mother or else he'll be deemed cruel and all that.... giving the ministers an excuse to start rebelling.