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Sam left the Yun family estate.
He simply stepped into the air and vanished.
He travelled straight to the Demon Imperial Hall.
He walked right past the heavy gates.
He walked past the royal guards.
No one saw him. No one heard a single sound.
He slipped right into the main throne room.
Huan Caiyi was still sitting there.
The large room was dark and cold. She was resting her head on her hand, looking completely drained.
Sam stepped out of the shadows.
"It is a heavy burden to carry alone,"
Sam spoke into the quiet room.
Huan Caiyi jumped to her feet. Grey fire instantly burst from both of her hands.
"Who are you?"
She demanded.
"How did you get past my guards?"
Sam stopped walking.
He kept his hands by his sides to show he was not a threat.
"Your guards are still standing at their posts,"
Sam answered.
"Put the fire away. I am not here to hurt you."
She did not lower her hands.
Her eyes stayed sharp and defensive.
"Did Duke Ming send you to finish the job early?"
She asked.
"If I were an assassin, you would not have seen me coming,"
Sam said.
"I am a friend."
Huan Caiyi gave a bitter, short laugh.
"I have no friends left in this city,"
She said,
"Everyone is waiting for me to die."
"Not everyone,"
Sam corrected her.
"Yun Canghai is waiting to fight for you."
The grey fire in her hands flickered and instantly died out. She froze completely.
"Do not say that name,"
She whispered. Her voice began to shake.
"He vanished a hundred years ago. He is dead."
"He was a prisoner for a hundred years,"
Sam told her.
"I brought him back to this realm. He is with his family right now."
Huan Caiyi stared at him.
She wanted to believe his words more than anything, but she had been lied to and betrayed too many times.
"Why should I believe a stranger?"
She asked, taking a step back.
"You do not have to trust me yet,"
Sam said.
"But I wanted to see you before the ceremony. I wanted to tell you to keep your head up."
Sam looked right into her tired eyes.
"In three days, Duke Ming will try to take your throne,"
Sam promised her.
"But when those doors open, Yun Canghai will walk through them. He will stand by your side. You just have to hold on until then. You are not alone anymore."
Huan Caiyi felt a strange tightness in her chest.
For the first time in a century, a tiny spark of hope lit up in her heart.
"Who are you really?"
She asked softly.
"My name is Sam,"
He answered.
He did not leave into the shadows.
Instead, he walked over to the steps of the throne and sat down.
He patted the cold stone next to him.
"Sit with me for a minute,"
Sam offered.
Huan Caiyi hesitated.
She watched him closely.
But something about his calm nature made her relax.
She slowly walked down the steps and sat a few feet away from him.
"You don't act like a killer,"
She admitted.
"Because I am not one,"
Sam replied.
"I came from a very distant place. Yun Canghai told me about your struggles. I decided to step in and help."
She looked at his hands.
They were empty and relaxed.
There was no killing intent in his eyes.
"Duke Ming would never work with someone like you,"
She said, finally lowering her shoulders.
"He only hires people who crave power or money. You look like you already have everything you need."
Sam smiled lightly.
"I have enough,"
Sam agreed.
"I am just here to fix a broken fate."
They sat together in the quiet hall.
They talked about her city, her people, and the heavy weight of the crown.
Sam listened patiently.
He did not judge her. He just let her speak.
For the first time in a century, Huan Caiyi did not feel like a target.
She felt like a person.
"For a hundred years, I thought my family's legacy was over,"
Huan Caiyi whispered, looking down at her hands.
"I thought I would die on this throne."
"You will live,"
Sam told her firmly.
"The Yun family is whole again. Yun Qinghong is healed. Yun Canghai is stronger than ever. They are ready to protect you. Duke Ming's reign ends in three days."
She looked up at the vast, dark hall.
The shadows did not feel so heavy anymore.
"Thank you,"
She said softly.
The fierce, angry fire in her eyes finally faded.
It changed into a warm, steady light.
She finally saw a real future.
Sam looked at her hands. He remembered the grey fire she had used earlier.
He thought about the Golden Crow.
It was the ancient divine beast that gave her family their power.
He knew the secret about her bloodline. It was incomplete.
"There is one more thing we must talk about,"
Sam said.
Huan Caiyi looked at him.
"What is it?"
She asked.
"The Golden Crow,"
Sam answered.
"I know your grey fire is broken. Every time you fight, you burn your own life away. Your power is slowly killing you."
Huan Caiyi narrowed her eyes in shock.
"Only my royal family knows that secret,"
She whispered.
"It is our curse. My father tried to fix it, but he failed."
"You need the complete inheritance,"
Sam told her.
"You need to see the spirit of the Golden Crow."
She looked down at the stone floor.
"That is impossible,"
She said sadly.
"The Golden Crow lives inside the Lightning Flame Valley. The gate to the valley can only be opened with the Demon Emperor's Seal. That seal vanished a hundred years ago."
Sam smiled.
"Do you remember what I told you?"
Sam asked.
"Yun Canghai is back."
Huan Caiyi gasped. Her eyes went completely wide.
"He brought the seal back?"
She asked, her voice trembling.
"He protected it with his life,"
Sam nodded.
"He never let it go."
She covered her mouth.
Tears finally formed in the corners of her eyes.
The missing piece of her family's legacy was finally home.
"After Duke Ming is dead, Yun Canghai will give the seal back to you,"
Sam promised her.
"We will go to the valley. You will meet the Golden Crow, and you will get your true power back."
"I don't trust people,"
Huan Caiyi said.
Her voice was very quiet but firm.
"Everyone I loved was murdered. Everyone who smiled at me held a knife behind their back. I have spent a century waiting for the next betrayal."
Sam listened. He did not interrupt her.
"I am not a fool,"
She continued, looking right at his face.
"I do not give my trust away blindly. I know nothing about you."
"That is true,"
Sam agreed.
"But for some reason,"
She whispered, stepping a little closer to him.
"I want to trust you. I am so tired of fighting alone. I want someone I can finally lean on."
Her eyes were completely open and desperate.
She was begging for a safe place.
"Tell me the absolute truth,"
Huan Caiyi asked directly.
"Can I trust you? If I put my faith in you, will you catch me when I fall?"
Sam looked into her eyes.
He saw the heavy weight she carried.
"I will not just catch you,"
Sam promised her.
"I will make sure you never fall again. You have my word."
She stared at him for a long time.
She looked for any sign of a lie, but she found none.
His voice was steady and real.
Then, she slowly nodded.
"Okay,"
She said softly.
"I will trust you, Sam."