Chapter 14
“What brings you here? The time for attending the Imperial Academy has long since passed.”
The children of the Khan usually began lessons at the Imperial Academy around the age of three or four, according to their talents, and completed their education around the age of twenty.
But Argana had started before her third birthday and finished everything by twelve.
That was why even the venerable Taebus could not raise their heads before her.
After mastering every subject the Academy had to offer, she had gone on to study far more difficult material on her own, reaching a level no ordinary scholar could ever hope to attain.
“I had something to ask the Taebus.”
“You? About what? If it’s something the Taebus can tell you, I could have done it too.”
Kartak teased with a cocky grin.
The only person who knew he wasn’t joking was Argana herself.
“It’s not that. I came to ask about Yoshmut.”
“About Prince Yoshmut? The Taebus probably know nothing more than the fact his eyes, nose, and mouth are still attached to his face.”
It was a mocking jab at Yoshmut’s habit of skipping lessons as easily as breathing.
Argana burst into laughter again and nodded.
“Right. And they also know how much of an idiot he is.”
“Why the sudden interest in Yoshmut’s studies?”
“I was thinking of provoking that wastrel into losing his temper and lashing out at someone.”
To the bewildered Kartak, Argana carefully laid out her plan.
“…So, I’m planning to suggest to Father that all the siblings gather for a meal soon.”
“And then His Majesty will ask Yoshmut how his studies are going?”
“Exactly. Right now, the only princes still attending the Academy are Yoshmut, Tirsalan, and Brother Anya.”
“Brother Anya… you mean Prince Yetekerid?”
“That’s right. He doesn’t attend classes faithfully either, but I think he studies on his own. I’ve never heard the Taebus grumble about him. Brother Ayur already graduated at twenty, so there’s nothing to worry about with him.”
“There’s also Prince Isuder. What about him?”
At Kartak’s question, Argana’s lips twisted in an expression close to anger.
“He finished his studies too. At eighteen, I heard. And he never stops bragging about it.”
Normally, students completed their education around twenty, sometimes taking an extra year or two.
Even Yoshmut, already twenty-three, hadn’t graduated yet.
So the fact that Isuder had finished by eighteen was unheard of.
Even before Astrahan Khan had ascended the throne—when Dar was still a kingdom—there had been an institution similar to the Imperial Academy, yet not even the most brilliant princes of the past had graduated so early. That was why the Taebus and Isuder’s supporters constantly showered him with praise.
Argana found it intolerable. Her relationship with Isuder was anything but good.
“…Anyway, he doesn’t matter. What matters this time is needling Yoshmut.”
“Do Prince Tirsalan or Empress Sorkate know about this plan?”
“No, not yet. I’ll give Tirsalan a hint. He’s a bit timid, and it would be ridiculous if he got so nervous he couldn’t show his true ability.”
Kartak nodded a few times in understanding.
Argana wasn’t the type to take delight in setting traps for others—but if she ever chose to, she never failed.
“By the way, Argana. I looked into that poison you asked about. I tracked down everyone in the capital said to be famous for their knowledge, but… all of them insisted there’s no such thing as a colorless, odorless, tasteless poison.”
The result was disappointing. Argana frowned and bit her lip.
“But what I drank that day truly had no smell, no color, no strange taste.”
“I know. I, of all people, know you wouldn’t lie. But Argana, you must have been exhausted then. Maybe you just missed some subtle flavor?”
It was possible, but Argana shook her head.
“If it had been added so subtly as to be unnoticeable, I wouldn’t have felt that kind of…”
—Pain.
Argana swallowed dryly as the memory resurfaced.
That searing agony, as though her throat and innards were burning to ash.
“…I didn’t die right away, and you know the reason why.”
Kartak’s expression grew grave.
He had sent people throughout the capital, tracking down every dealer in medicine and poison alike. No matter how secretive, none could escape his men’s eyes.
Yet all of them said the same thing—that the so-called “Three-None” poison was nothing but an old myth.
No color, no taste, no smell—it did not exist.
And if it were a poison deadly enough to kill instantly, its properties would surely be obvious.
Then perhaps it came from outside the capital… or was even imported from another land. Things are getting complicated.
Though Kartak had come to the Empire as a child, he had broader knowledge and deeper studies than most. He knew much about the lands across the sea, where strange climates nurtured flora and fauna utterly unlike those of the Empire.
Poisons came from nature.
If it could not be found here, it might well have come from beyond the sea.
“We’ll have to widen the search.”
“Do that. I also asked Tuhua to look into it. The Jindan kingdom is famous for its snake venom, after all. I asked him to see if such a poison exists there.”
Kartak nodded slowly.
“Oh, Kartak. Did you also find out about the imperial treasures Yoshmut supposedly smuggled out? What did Tatasi say?”
“I was just about to tell you. I asked the treasurer to check whether anything was missing from the imperial vault. He said nothing was gone from there.”
“Really? Then it was just a rumor?”
“No, listen. The central treasury His Majesty oversees personally showed no signs of tampering. But the inner palace treasury was another matter.”
“The inner palace…?”
Argana’s eyes widened.
She knew Yoshmut wasn’t in his right mind, but to be this bold?
The inner palace referred to the Khan’s wives, concubines, and their attendants. By tradition, it was the First Consort who oversaw everything.
Since Argana’s own mother, the First Consort Ayulwiran, had passed away, that role now fell to the First Empress, Ayulsiran.
Whenever the empresses’ or concubines’ maids took supplies from the treasury, they had to report exactly what was used, and with the empress’s permission.
Without her approval, no one—not even her children—could lay hands on that property.
“High-quality leather, jewels, and foreign tributes kept in the inner palace treasury disappeared without any record. The treasurer couldn’t list everything, but he remembered enough to write some down. Here.”
Kartak pulled a neatly folded sheet of paper from his robes and handed it to her.
He waited in silence while Argana read.
Her eyes moved down the list, then froze. Rage flashed in them.
“How dare he.”
The wealth Yoshmut had smuggled out was considerable. Even if sold at a loss, it amounted to an enormous sum.
“There’s no way Yoshmut went into the inner palace treasury himself. Someone else had the audacity to do it for him, and we need to find out who.”
“There should be records of who entered the treasury. We can start by investigating those names.”
“Anyone allowed inside would be either close maids of the consorts or the attendants. I doubt the servants of other consorts would risk such a crime for Yoshmut’s cheap bribes. We’ll have to press Turegen Consort’s people first.”
