Reiji came out of the meeting with heavy troubled thoughts. He'd known for days that the Sulunese were sailing to Daracka. It was his doing, after all. But the Keepers had been alarmed at the information, leaving them in disarray.

Many questions, concerns, and vicious reactions were raised about the situation. The Keepers were not pleased, and the Kahani had not looked her best when she frowned upon them for doubting her decisions.

Reiji wondered if any of the members would side with him against the Kahani when the time came. Master Hatari certainly would not. Master Rieta and Master Irdu's loyalties were difficult to read. Kapitan Huckana had always been loyal to whoever was seated on the throne, and right now, that was not Reiji. But Gat Garim might be an ally as he had been the first to warn Reiji of the secrecies that were in play in the palace. Heneral Arkan and Zamira, on the other hand, were still guilty of hiding something from Reiji, and he could not trust them the way he used to.

"Are we off to the training grounds now, My Matu?" Gat Kiyo asked beside Reiji as they walked along the corridors.

"Not today," Reiji answered. "I need to think." He quickened his pace, moving toward his quarters in the Ozaro Palace.

They had reached a stairwell at the far end of the corridor when Heneral Arkan called behind him.

"My Matu!"

Reiji turned and saw the general and Zamira striding toward him. The swing of their arms matched as they walked—perfectly timed and practiced.

They stopped a few steps away from Reiji and Gat Kiyo. Their faces were unreadable.

"What is it?" Reiji asked, inclining his head in a curious manner.

"We need to speak, My Matu," Heneral Arkan said. "Please." He gestured for him to enter a door to their left.

Reiji glanced at the guards posted in the corridor, making sure that the general would not dare to do anything to harm him. He walked without hesitation as Zamira opened the door, and the four of them stepped inside.

Reiji, Gat Kiyo, and Heneral Arkan came to the center of the room while Zamira stayed by the closed door as if to guard it.

The chamber was a small preparation room for Ministros and Ministras for the weekly commemoration service for the faith of the old kings. A rack of white robes made of pineapple fabric lined one wall, and on the opposite wall were partitioned rooms for changing clothes.

Heneral Arkan pushed aside all the dark curtains of the changing areas to make sure they were empty before he faced him.

The general stepped close. "Reiji," he said, and Reiji flinched at his own name, unexpecting to be addressed informally though the general had always been that way in casual settings.

He took a deep breath and set his jaw to show no reaction. "What did you want to speak about?" he asked.

"This fleet that is coming here is a threat." Grave concern grew in the general's eyes, causing the age lines on his forehead to deepen.

Reiji raised a brow. How could the general speak of threats when he was one himself? "I know," was all he said.

Heneral Arkan placed his hands on his hips as if he had difficulty finding the right words. "The throne is weak without the proper heir sitting on it."

Now both of Reiji's brows shot up. Did the general mean that he wanted Reiji to be seated on the throne? And wouldn't the throne or Daracka be weaker with Reiji as its ruler? He admitted that he may be the true heir, but their governing body had survived because of the Kahani after the late Kaharaza's death. "I don't understand."

The general shook his head. Sweat started forming on his forehead, and Reiji had never seen the man sweat before, even on the hottest days, while wearing a long-sleeved barong.

"I want to put you on the throne," the general said.

It was almost the same as the message from the Kaharaza of Suluna, Let's get you seated.

"What did you say?" Reiji thought that maybe the person who had been sending him secret notes was not the Kaharaza of Suluna after all.

"I want to put you on the throne," the general repeated.

It had the same thought, but it was not the same words.

Reiji didn't know how to answer that. What exactly was the general proposing? "I don't understand," he said again.

"We cannot wait for you to turn into your proper age to become Kaharaza. You must take the throne soon before the Sulunese arrives in Kazima. Daracka will only rally behind the true heir, not for the Kahani. If we are to defend the kingdom, it should be you who will lead us." The general gestured his hand at him. "Let me put you on the throne."

"And how do you plan to do that?" Reiji asked, cautious of his words.

Heneral Arkan grinned, and his shoulders relaxed for the first time since they entered the room. "I grew the army. They will serve you to protect Daracka. And I have a handful of trusted soldiers. They will serve you to take the throne."

Take? By force?

"You're planning to overthrow the Kahani?" The question was immediate. Reiji's eyes widened at the realization that the general and Zamira were scheming to depose the Kahani.

"For you, My Matu." The general pressed a hand over his heart to show his words were genuine.

Reiji glanced at Zamira, and she did the same thing—hand over her heart and slightly bowing her head.

When Reiji looked back to the general, he tried to read the secrets behind the smile plastered to the man's face. "Where did you get the funds to build this operation?"

The general's beard tilted higher with his grin, but he didn't speak.

"Forgive me, My Matu," Gat Kiyo said. He had been quiet since they entered the chamber, and Reiji hadn't even questioned why the general had allowed him to be in the room while proposing a coup.

Reiji had memorized Gat Kiyo's features from years of spending each day together. Every crease at the edge of his Dakawa eyes, one golden brown and the other deep green. Every shade and tone of dark skin. Every strand of the red and black zarok of his bandana that he had always worn. He knew this man, but the one standing before him now was a stranger.

"My mother and father did not disown me," Gat Kiyo explained. "You are aware that I come from one of the richest families in Daracka on my father's side."

Gat Kiyo's mother was a Maharlika, but his father was a Maginoo, a Dakawa from Kazima who owned one of the mining operations in the northern mountains of Kataro.

Yes, Reiji was aware that Gat Kiyo's family was wealthy.

Reiji's jaw fell, and he could not speak for a long while. All this time, Gat Kiyo had been conspiring with the general. He had never doubted his attendant, and he had even confided in him about the assassination attempts by the Kahani.

How could he not see that Gat Kiyo was cunning? He was always giving Reiji advice, and how he spoke so politically sometimes made him seem more than just an attendant—too good to be just an attendant.

"You—" Reiji started, confusion and anger boiling inside him. "I told you about the Kahani."

"And I wanted to tell you our plans as soon as you did, but I had to consult with Heneral Arkan. We could not just spring this on you, but we must act quickly now as things are getting out of hand," Gat Kiyo tried to explain.

"The Kahani tried to divert your attention by giving you this role, but she has kept you on a leash. She has kept you from learning more of her true plans," the general added. "She is planning to wage war on Suluna with the weapon. She's not funding it to be Daracka's defense. She plans to sail to the southern kingdom to destroy their capital and avenge the late Kaharaza. She did not want you to know this, for you have the power to stop it."

He remembered Gat Garim's warning. It was the same, telling him that his new role would occupy much of his time, keeping him from what was truly important.

"But only when you are on the throne," Gat Kiyo said.

"And she's trying to kill me," Reiji looked at both of the men in front of him, but he could not see them truly. His eyes darted over their faces, and visions of the paper—the note to kill him—flashed in his eyes.

"She is, but we have stopped her, except that night we allowed an assassin to get into the palace," the general said.

"What?" Reiji focused his eyes on him. "You let her try to kill me?"

"No, My Matu. We planned to capture and interrogate the assassin to expose the Kahani's plans. We were successful in capturing the assassin, but the Kahani insisted on interrogating the man herself. I was not in the room when she tortured and killed him," Heneral Arkan explained. "She did not attempt another assassination since then." When he finished speaking, his lips set into a grim line as if the blood on the floor that day gleamed in his mind.

Reiji took a deep breath, but he choked, tasting bile in his mouth. He released the air from his lungs and looked down at the floor, wanting to vomit.

"My Matu? You asked me before if I trusted you. Now, I ask you, do you trust me?" Gat Kiyo asked.

Reiji forced himself to look up and study his attendant, letting the thoughts sink in. If Gat Kiyo had wanted him to be dead, he could have already killed him. There were so many opportunities for him to do that—all those mornings when he waited for him to wake in his bed and all those times he stood behind his seat while he ate.

Yet here he was, stunned but still alive.

But what if this was a ploy to control Reiji? To remove the Kahani from the throne and put him there only to be their puppet?

He could not trust them. He could not trust anyone right now, not even his own judgment.

Why had he not known that Gat Kiyo was hiding something like this from him?

And what if he was wrong about the Kaharaza of Suluna too? What if he had just given the Sulunese permission to conquer Daracka?

He swallowed. If the general was traitorous and the Sulunese were his true allies, he could turn to the Kaharaza for support. If the Sulunese were traitorous and the general and Ga Kiyo were true to their word, he could turn to them. Either way, this was going to be a war. It was only a matter of time before he could find out who was indeed on his side.

But what if both sides were traitorous?

"We plan to overthrow the Kahani for you. But we need to know if you are willing to do what it takes to gain the throne," Gat Kiyo said, but Reiji did not answer.

What did Gat Kiyo mean by 'whatever it took'? And what will happen to the Kahani?

"What is your decision, My Matu?" The general prodded.

Reiji couldn't trust anyone now. Not the Kahani. Not the general. Not the Kaharaza of Suluna.

He needed a plan—one that involved playing the field that was set by these men and women who tried to control his life.

He glanced at Zamira, who still stood by the door, relaxed but hand readied on the hilt of her weapon, sheathed on her side.

"Go on, Jiji," Zamira said with a nod, encouraging him.

He turned back to Heneral Arkan and Gat Kiyo. "Alright," he said, his back straightening and chest rising. His jaw tightened with eagerness and caution. "Get me on the throne."