The Witch Bone

He had flipped through many books and scrolls but there had not been much about Wimbledex other than what he had found before. It was like nobody had visited that place. There was just a paragraph or so in some ancient scroll. And that was all. He didn't glean much information from it.

There wasn't anything about his past history as well. It was as if he had not existed at all and had lived only in the tales and legends of the kingdom. It seemed Imsong had really remained detached from the world just looking after the initiation once every generation.

Bai Hua had never been religious and so he was not aware of any gods. He just knew that gods resided on the top of Kunlun mountain. And that mortals could achieve immortal-hood through cultivation. There were some immortals who had been lucky enough to meet a god even if it was only a minor god. They felt fortunate enough to have met a Divine One.

He searched for the Moon Goddess, but again there was no information on her. He was starting to think that the library of the palace was really lacking. Or were the gods really inaccessible like he thought?

For the first time, he felt that he was inept in the subject that he was the most expert in. He felt like he was dealing with prehistory.

Feeling helpless, he left the library. He had spent more than a week inside the library searching for information that eluded him and was as slippery as an eel.

His father had been becoming more withdrawn after Imsong had told him that Bai Hua would be leaving for school. It was like he was reluctant to let go of Bai Hua but powerless to stop it. There was just only a week left before he left for school. So he decided to take a look around town before he left.

He wanted to see with his own eyes how people lived in his kingdom.

A lot of people didn't know him or had not even seen him. He had avoided people most of his life.

He knew he won't be recognised but just in case he wore the plainest set of clothes from his wardrobe. And a worn-out pair of leather boots that he usually wore for combat training. He tied his hair and wore a straw hat that hid his eyes. With this disguise, he left for the imperial town.

He entered the city square and walked about looking at the shops, buildings and the display of various items.

As he was walking by, he came across a teenage boy no older than him who was selling books that were laid out on the roadside. They were thin books with attractive covers.

Feeling Bai Hua's gaze, the boy said,

"Are you interested in buying them? These are novels written by famous novelists. Here this one," picking one up, "it's about a young master who has been pampered his whole life and is finally married to a ruthless wife. He started washing even her clothes after that. Hahaha. That's just the gist though. You'll have to read to find out more. There are spicy things inside this novel," and he winked.

"I am not interested in that," saying this he moved away.

"Wait, wait, young master! I have another book you might be interested in."

Seeing that Bai Hua had retreated and was listening, he continued, " This book here was only published yesterday. Limited copy. It's about the events that happened during our young Lord Bai Hua's initiation celebration. It says that a duel occurred inside the palace and this book has recorded everything. Don't listen to what people tell you. This book is written by an eye-witness."

"Hmmm... Is it really like you said?"

"Yes, young master, look I'll give you a good price for this?"

He held up 5 fingers.

"5 gold coins?"

"Pffffft... Are you kidding me? Who would buy a book for that price! It's just 5 silver coins. There also some ill.u.s.trations inside that is why the price is high. And like I said it's limited edition."

The boy had thought that Bai Hua was just pulling his leg and was trying to make him reduce the price by saying such an impossible price.

Bai Hua had never bought anything in this world, he never had the need to. after all, he was the Young Lord of this kingdom.

He fished out 5 silver coins from a pouch. He didn't want to haggle. He completed the transaction and left with the book.

He was curious about the content of the book and decided to take a look. He scanned for the nearest restaurant and entered one that looked expensive. In his previous life, he had been poor, so he had decided to live a lavish life of a Young Lord. But old habits die hard. He had dressed plainly and had not even worn any jewellery besides a black silk ribbon to tie his hair.

He looked around and looked for some corner where he would not be disturbed.

Someone had seen him entering and rushed to kick him out of the restaurant. Only nobles came to eat there. It was the imperial city after all and it was among the top 5 best restaurants in the city.

"Hey, you there! Go to another restaurant. This isn't for your class of people," the waiter said looking at his clothes.

Bai Hua really didn't like to haggle with people. If possible he didn't want to talk at all. But he just wanted to look around and enjoy his time out in the city.

He didn't say anything and threw a coin at the waiter. The waiter caught it reflexively and to his surprise, it was a gold coin!

If this young master has a gold coin that he can freely throw it around, it must mean he must have more with him, the waiter thought.

He quickly became suppliant, "Young Master, where do you want to sit? Somewhere private? We have private cubicles. Please follow me, young master," he said with honeyed words.

The waiter led him to the first floor of the restaurant and gave him a table that was walled off from the next one with light wooden walls.

"What would you like to have, young master?"

"Just give me a pot of tea. That will do."

"Anything else, young master?"

"Just that."

"I will get your order as soon as possible, young master," saying this he bowed and left.

He took out the book and there was nothing on the cover. He opened the book and there it was on the first page: a doodle of him standing with a foolish smile on the stage of the training grounds. Something told him that this book was going to be bad news the moment he saw the doodle.

He flipped the next page and it read:

"The Young Lord of Soaring Dragons was too afraid to show up on his own initiation celebration." And on the other page, it was another doodle where everyone was standing awkwardly at the party while his seat was empty. And there was a worried looking man standing near the empty seat which was supposed to be his father. He could tell that it was the Palace Hall. The description was not totally accurate but it was not inaccurate either.

Someone was out there with something against him. That was clear.

Then he heard a loud noise from the other cubicle.

"Have you heard about the duel in the royal training grounds?"

"Shhh... Keep it down, you're being too loud," chided another voice.

They lowered their voice but Bai Hua was not an ordinary kid. He was considered a prodigy even by his father. That meant his cultivation was high. He could hear them even when they had lowered their voice.

"Young Lord Bai Hua is really shameless. That prince from Surya was really powerful. But he let Bai Hua win just to give face to the Lord."

"I heard like that as well. My cousin who had visited the palace had told me about the duel."

"My father is right, the Lord pampers him too much. I bet Bai Hua can't even kill an ant. All those nonsense about him being a prodigy must be lies told by the royal family to keep face."

"You're right. Look at our kingdom. It's so weak because the royal family is weak."

The waiter appeared with a set of teapot and a cup in Bai Hua's cubicle. He poured the tea for him and bowed and left when Bai Hua indicated with his hand to leave him alone.

Bai Hua picked up the cup and sipped his tea calmly. He wanted to know more. He realised that he had been cooped up for too long.