The sun had barely risen when Ruhan came in to wake Xiao Zhi from her slumber. Her body was arched awkwardly on the seat of the caravan. Xiao Zhi groaned as Ruhan gently shook her hand to wake her. She snapped it away, half grudgingly, and Ruhan smiled.
"Morning has come, Princess. Time for us to continue our journey," he said gently.
Xiao Zhi grunted but finally opened her eyes. Startled by how close Ruhan's face was, she jerked back, almost knocking her head against the carriage wall.
Ruhan chuckled.
Xiao Zhi straightened and repositioned herself to sit properly. Ruhan then signaled Duran to start moving the carriage.
Xiao Zhi's guard loosened. She was no longer stiff. They started talking casually, not too talkative yet, but words were exchanged here and there.
A few hours later, the small caravan arrived at the edge of Hua's border.
Duran halted the horse and told Ruhan they had reached the border. The Hua soldiers dismounted and bowed deeply toward the carriage.
"May the Princess's journey be safe," one of them said.
Xiao Zhi lowered her gaze. Safe, she thought bitterly. There's no safety in a story that's already written.
She sat still inside the carriage, hands tightly gripping her lap. Through the half-drawn curtain, she watched the soldiers prepare to turn back.
This is it, she thought. Once she stepped past that border, she would no longer belong to Hua.
Duran flicked the reins of the horse, and the wheels started to roll forward. Behind them, the Hua soldiers bowed one last time before turning back, their figures shrinking into the haze until they disappeared completely.
Xiao Zhi peeked once more toward the distant horizon, where the faint outline of Hua's palace roofs shimmered like a mirage.
By midday, the dunes stretched endlessly in every direction. The horizon melted under the shimmering heat. Even the wind felt like a hot breath.
Inside the carriage, the air was suffocating. Xiao Zhi fanned herself with her sleeve, but the heat clung to her like a second skin. Her lips were starting to parch. The water jar beside her sat half-empty. Every jolt of the wheels felt like being shaken inside a box.
Is this what hell feels like?
Finally, when the sun reached its cruelest height, the caravan stopped near a jagged stone formation that offered a bit of shade.
Ruhan dismounted first. "We'll rest here until dusk," he said, voice calm but firm. "The horses can't last under this heat."
Duran spread a thick cloth over the top of the carriage to block the sun. Ruhan approached the door and glanced inside. "Princess, step out. The air is better outside."
"I'm fine," Xiao Zhi muttered, refusing to move.
"You'll roast yourself in there," he said, tilting his head slightly.
"I said I'm fine," she repeated stubbornly.
He sighed and walked away.
For a few moments, her pride won. She stayed inside, sweating and dizzy, clutching the small bun her mother had given her. But eventually, the heat got the better of her. She parted the curtain, and the desert sun hit her like a wave. Her hair stuck to her neck, and the sand shimmered like molten gold under her feet.
Ruhan knelt by the horses, refilling water sacks. He looked up and gave a faint smile. "Ah, so the desert queen finally decided to greet us."
"Don't mock me," she snapped, shielding her eyes.
"Wouldn't dare," he replied, grin still there.
She sat on a nearby rock, glaring at the hot sand. For a long while, no one spoke. Only the rhythmic snorts of the horses and the sound of the hot, dusty wind.
By late afternoon, the air finally cooled down. Ruhan decided they should move again. Xiao Zhi watched through the carriage window as the world shifted from gold to blood-orange, then violet. She felt impossibly small beneath the vast sky.
When the first stars appeared, she looked out the window. This view isn't so bad, she thought. For a moment, she forgot her worries. The failed escape attempts, the anxiety about the doomed country where she would meet her fate.
She didn't know how long they had been traveling, but the desert was cruel. Midday was scorching hot, but by night, it became freezing cold. The horses began to snort and stomp restlessly.
Ruhan called a halt. "Here," he said, pointing to a hollow between the dunes. "We camp."
Duran built a small fire while Ruhan unpacked food. He took out some dried meat, a few vegetables, and a jug of water. Xiao Zhi stayed inside the carriage, hugging her knees. Even inside, it was freezing.
"Dinner is ready," Ruhan called from outside.
"Coming," came her muffled reply. She ignored her pride this time. It hadn't done her any good before. She stepped out and saw plates of grilled meat and soup that made her mouth water. It didn't feel like camping, it felt like a small feast.
Ruhan was sitting next to Duran, who was biting into the meat vigorously. He signaled for her to sit across from them and handed her a plate of meat, already shredded for her.
She muttered a quiet thank you and started eating. They ate in silence.
When they were done, Ruhan and Duran cleaned up.
"We'll sleep outside beside the fire," Ruhan said. "And I suggest you do the same. Inside the carriage, you'll freeze to death."
This time, Xiao Zhi didn't argue. She just nodded.
Ruhan laid out a blanket for her to sleep on. She thanked him softly, and he moved back beside Duran to settle down in his own spot.
Her exhaustion won, and she fell asleep almost instantly.
She was half-dreaming when she heard something. Faint at first, then clearer. A rhythmic thud, like horseteps, too many to be from their camp alone.
Her eyes snapped open. Her breath caught. "Ruhan—"
Before she could finish, Ruhan was already awake. "Duran?"
The warrior sprang up, putting out the fire with sand. The camp was plunged into darkness.
"What is it?" Xiao Zhi whispered, her voice trembling.
"Not our patrol," Duran said grimly. "Too many. Bandits. Maybe worse."