Sulong's query hung in the air, a silken cord tightening around Kenji’s neck. The old man’s smile remained fixed, but his eyes, two chips of obsidian, bored into Kenji, stripping away the thin veneer of composure. Kenji pressed his palms flat against his thighs to hide their tremor, picturing the ledger tucked inside the hidden wall hollow. He swallowed, the sound dry and loud in his own ears.
“Old household secrets?” Kenji managed, forcing a laugh that sounded more like a choke. He gestured vaguely at the stacks of ancient scrolls on the study’s central table. “Only the dusty kind, Great-Uncle. Mostly forgotten clan rites and agricultural treatises. My father seemed to have a penchant for obscure botany, it seems.”
Sulong’s gaze shifted, taking in the carefully replaced portrait. A faint, almost imperceptible twitch at the corner of his left eye was the only tell. “Ah, yes, your father always did have an… eclectic range of interests. A true scholar of the clan’s legacy.” He took a step further into the room, his walking stick tapping softly on the polished wood floor. “Well, I’m glad you’re finding comfort amidst the old tomes. Do try not to strain your eyes. We wouldn’t want our new patriarch to be found squinting at crucial documents, would we?”
Sulong knew. Or at least, he suspected enough to test the waters. Kenji offered a weak smile. “Of course, Great-Uncle. I shall be mindful.”
Sulong merely nodded, his smile finally softening into something genuinely paternal, though Kenji now saw only the viper beneath the velvet. “Excellent. Now, I must attend to the preparations for tonight’s harvest banquet. It is a significant occasion, Kenji. An opportunity to show the clan your leadership.” With a final, lingering look that felt like a physical touch, Sulong turned and left, his footsteps receding down the corridor.
Kenji waited until the sound faded completely, then sagged against the desk, exhaling a long, shuddering breath. Nara stepped away from the doorframe, her shoulders rigid. “He almost caught you,” she stated, her voice low. “He knew you were looking for something more than ‘botany’.”
Kenji ran a hand through his hair, dislodging a stray ink smudge. “He knows something is wrong, but not the specifics.” Kenji retrieved the volume, thumbing straight to the ledgers of exorbitant mystic advisement retainers paid out to shell fronts. “Tonight. At the banquet. I have to expose him. Before the Ascension Rite.”
Nara’s brow furrowed. “Expose him? How? You cannot simply accuse the grand patriarch in front of everyone. He will twist your words, turning the entire assembly against you.”
“He’s already doing that,” Kenji muttered, tapping a finger on a line item for ‘Mystic Orb Polishing’ that cost more than a small freighter. “This ledger maps his siphon. I cannot levy direct charges, but I can probe the anomalies publicly. Let the cousins and captains trace the shortfall.” Kenji straightened his spine. “Sowing financial suspicion will make them scrutinize the Rite before it happens. If they see theft, they will doubt the ritual's necessity.”
Nara observed him, a flicker of something unreadable in her gaze. “It is a risk. A great one. But… it is a path.” She gave a curt nod. “I will be nearby.”
The Sky-Jade Pavilion’s grand dining hall, the ‘Jade Blossom Atrium’, was transformed for the harvest banquet. Cascading silk banners, embroidered with gilded plum blossoms and soaring cranes, draped from the high, vaulted ceilings. Tables groaned under platters of roasted wildfowl, glistening freshwater fish, and pyramids of exotic fruits. The air hummed with polite chatter, the clinking of jade wine goblets, and the scent of spiced incense. Dignitaries, robed in ceremonial brocade, mingled around the tables with measured smiles and watchful eyes. Kenji, clad in quiet indigo silk, kept his back straight against his chair.
He watched Sulong, who held court at the head table, his laughter echoing, his every gesture radiating benevolent authority. Beside him, Kenji’s cousin Kai, sleek and predatory, watched Kenji with a smirk that promised trouble. Kenji felt his anxiety coiling, threatening to seize him, but he clenched his fists under the table, remembering Nara’s steady presence, his father’s final letter. He would not freeze. Not tonight.
After the main course, as the rice wine flowed more freely and the senior councilors raised their porcelain cups, Kenji stood. A hush fell over his immediate vicinity, a few heads turning. Kenji cleared his throat, his voice cracking slightly at first, then gaining strength. “Esteemed kin, venerable councilors,” he began, projecting his voice across the hall. “As the new patriarch, I’ve spent considerable time familiarizing myself with the clan’s historical documents and, naturally, its financial records. It has been an… illuminating experience.”
A ripple of curiosity went through the room. Sulong’s smile remained fixed, but his eyes, for a fleeting instant, narrowed. Kenji continued, “I’ve noticed certain… inconsistencies. For example, the records show a significant annual expenditure towards ‘Esoteric Spiritual Counsel’ and ‘Lunar Alignment Reagents’ over the past two decades. Sums that are quite substantial, nearly a quarter of our annual off-shore revenue. Yet, I find no tangible records of these services or materials benefiting our clan’s operations or prosperity. Could any of the senior council present clarify the nature of these particular disbursements?”
Murmurs erupted, louder this time. Guests traded unsettled looks across their cups. None had tracked such drains, and glances drifted toward Sulong as whispers broke across the long tables. He had planted the seed.
Sulong, however, was prepared. He rose slowly, a serene smile gracing his lips. “A most astute observation, young Kenji,” he boomed, his voice resonating with practiced warmth. “It warms my heart to see your diligence. However, your youth, while admirable in its zeal, sometimes lacks the nuanced understanding of our clan’s ancient ways. These ancestral rites are vital. They are offerings to unseen guardians, safeguarding our worldly enterprise with blessings from our lineage. They avoid standard accounting because their worth is sacred, not commercial.” He paused, letting his words sink in, then turned his gaze to Kenji, his smile hardening. “To challenge these sacred customs before the entire hall betrays troubling ignorance, perhaps even outright irreverence for our lineage. It borders on undermining our historic foundation, a reckless path toward division.”
Several patriarchs and captains nodded, settling into stern disapproval. Kenji felt a cold knot form in his stomach. Sulong was twisting it, masterfully. “But Great-Uncle,” Kenji interjected, trying to regain control. “The sheer volume of these funds, year after year, seems disproportionate for mere offerings. And the ‘Lunar Alignment Reagents’ – they are listed as purchased from a ‘Zenith Trading Co.’ which, according to my research, is a newly formed shell corporation with no verifiable history of providing such…”
Sulong’s smile vanished. “Enough!” he thundered, his voice cracking like a whip. The sudden shift in tone silenced the hall instantly. “Your ceaseless badgering, Kenji, your transparent attempts to discredit our historic practices, reveal a deeper rot. One I have observed since your arrival.” Sulong swept his gaze over the assembled relatives, delivering an icy warning. “We all recall your… unconventional handling of the Crimson Fang lieutenant. Your act of mercy, as some called it. But perhaps it was not mercy at all.”
A collective gasp went through the hall. Kenji felt a chilling premonition. He opened his mouth to protest, but Sulong was not finished. “Some have suggested that your actions, your strange defiance, your sudden interest in destabilizing our finances, point to a far more insidious agenda. One orchestrated by our enemies.”
Suddenly, Kai stepped forward, a triumphant, hateful sneer twisting his features. “He speaks the truth, Great-Uncle!” Kai’s voice was sharp, cutting through the stunned quiet. He gestured towards the main entrance. “For weeks, Kenji has sowed discord, undermining loyalties. And now we have proof of his treachery!”
The heavy doors to the Atrium creaked open. Two Kadek enforcers marched a prisoner through the threshold. It was the Crimson Fang lieutenant Kenji had freed. He looked haggard, his face bruised, but his eyes were clear, focused on Kenji. Kenji froze, his throat locking tight.
“The traitor has been recaptured!” Kai announced, his voice ringing with malicious glee. “And under interrogation, he has confessed everything! Tell them, scum! Tell them how the esteemed Kenji Lim, our new patriarch, freed you, how he conspired with you, how he paid you to stage the attack on the archives to create chaos and weaken the clan, all so he could seize power!”
The lieutenant raised his head, his gaze meeting Kenji’s. Kenji saw no recognition, no gratitude, only a cold, practiced malice. The man’s voice, rough and strained, cut through the oppressive silence. “He did. He freed me. Gave me a pouch of gold and told me to return with my men. To hit the archives hard. Said it would make the old guard look weak, clearing his path to total dominance.”
Betrayal, sharp and agonizing, twisted in Kenji’s gut. The lie hung heavy, suffocating him. He opened his mouth, but no words came. Nara, beside him, stiffened, her hand instinctively going to the hidden dagger at her waist. But it was too late. The room erupted in shouted insults, fists slamming into polished rosewood tables.
Sulong’s eyes, devoid of any warmth, fixed on Kenji. “You heard him,” Sulong declared, his voice cold and absolute, each word a stone hitting Kenji’s soul. “This ‘lamb’ has shown his true colors. A viper, colluding with our enemies to tear the Kadek Clan apart from within.” He raised a hand, his gaze sweeping the now-hostile faces of the clan. “For his perfidy, for his treachery against the family and the ancestors, Kenji Lim shall be immediately confined. He will await the Ascension Rite – to purify his spirit.”