The sun had not yet woken, but I had.
The sky still wore sleep like a thin veil, dull and undecided. My heart hammered as if it already knew where I was going. My stomach twisted with it.
Victoria was sprawled across the bed, peaceful in the violent way only she could manage—arms and thighs wrapped around a pillow like she was choking the life out of an invisible opponent. I watched her for a second, then left before the stillness convinced me to stay.
I slipped into the corridor, gathering my hair over one shoulder, and went for Miss Lakshmi's door.
"Come in," she said, voice already awake.
She was still beneath the covers, blanket pulled high, while Miss Halle sat beside the lamp with a book open in her hands, the first break of dawn ghosting along the page.
"You know the government complex won't be open until much later," Miss Lakshmi said through a small yawn.
I froze for half a breath. "Good morning, Miss Lakshmi. Miss Halle," I added with a short bow.
Miss Halle lifted two fingers in greeting, eyes never leaving the page.
"It was… alright," I answered, though impatience pressed against my ribs. I knew nothing could be done yet. I knew that. But their calm felt wrong in my chest—like watching people nap beside a rising fire.
After a while, Miss Lakshmi patted the space beside her. "Sit. Let's pass the time properly. Have you ever heard of the Prisoner's Dilemma?"
"No."
"Hm." She shifted upright. "Two accomplices. Caught. Separated. Each offered a deal. Betray the other and walk free. Stay silent and risk being crushed alone."
She watched me now.
"If both betray, both lose. If both stay loyal, both suffer less."
She smiled faintly. "Yet most people betray. Every time."
The air felt heavier after she said it.
In that same heavy breath, the door knocked.
Victoria stepped in with a small, easy smile, thin as the first blade of sunrise. "So this is where you vanished to," she said, closing the door behind her. "Good morning, Miss Lakshmi. Miss Halle—Heiwa."
Daybreak spilled in like wildfire.
"Miss Heiwa," Miss Lakshmi said, chewing thoughtfully on a piece of beef, "it would be better if you went to the government complex alone."
She swallowed, then added calmly, "Any more companions and you would drown in red tape."
"I can't go with you anyway," Victoria said between bites. "I'm visiting Miss Mary."
The steam from the soup rose to stain the air, but the room felt heavier for it.
"Halle will escort you there," Miss Lakshmi said, "but you will enter alone."
---
The government complex rose like carved snow—white, regal, untouchable. Beautiful in the way mountains are beautiful: distant, indifferent. Crossing toward it through the river of morning crowds felt unreal, like stepping into a painting that would not remember my name.
At the desk, I learned I needed an appointment.
I did not have one.
After giving my name and surname, I was told to wait.
The people here walked with purpose—beautiful parts in a vast, indifferent machine.
"He is handsome and all, but he's from the Southern region—Fúlì Zhōu—and I do not want issues I can avoid," one woman murmured to another.
They had been talking about me before. I realized that now.
Minutes stretched into something that felt like an hour. Then a door opened.
Inside waited a man in his fifties, gray-brown hair thinning at the temples. His exhaustion clung to him despite the early hour. Papers were stacked like fallen battalions on his desk.
I explained my reason for coming.
His face changed in small ways—tightening here, softening there—but he did not stop me.
"It is not so simple to move soldiers," he said at last, adjusting his glasses. "Discussions must be held. Permissions granted."
He exhaled. "We are doing all that can be done. My hands are tied."
"Your Excellency—people are dying," I said, too loud.
The room stiffened.
"Minister, the Zhōngchéng Zhōu—the Loyal Heart Province—is north of Twin Spirit," I pressed on. "Reinforcements can come from there. This can be stopped."
"Miss Liúlóng," he said, his voice cracking under the strain, "control yourself."
The pause that followed felt colder than reprimand.
"The matter will be discussed," he said at last. "We will see what more can be done."
---