Dynasty: The Glorious Strategist (Dynasty Saga Book 3) Read Free

followed by a soft thud of an arrow hitting a target and Lymee let out a sigh of relief.
    Being nearly assassinated by an arrow four months prior had given her a bit of PTSD. Not to mention a bit of an existential crisis on life considering how close to death she had actually come. Now she would tense up whenever she heard the sound of an arrow if she was not ready for it.
    Lymee looked over the training grounds trying to find the source of the sound. Archery practice had become commonplace in Hu Palace after they had established an advanced archery training regiment, but that was supposed to be held on the other side of the Palace, closer to the barracks. Not here in the noble’s wing of the Palace.
    So who was the one practicing?
    “Good,” a woman’s voice praised. “Though you still seem to flinch your wrist every time you shoot, and it is throwing off your aim ever so slightly. How many times have you been snapped by a bow string?”
    “Too many to count,” a man laughed notching another arrow in his bow. He was tall and well-toned with short black hair, his face ruggedly handsome in a sort of soft innocent kind of way. “About a year ago, Lord Lymee once started a fight in a tea house we were staying in. I didn’t have time to put a wrist guard on and was only wearing my undershirt, which didn’t have long sleeves. By the time the fighting was done my wrist was so red and numb I couldn’t use my left hand for the better part of a day.”
    Lymee snorted as she listened to the man talking across the training grounds. Voss was being a little flavorful with his telling but considering the company he was keeping Lymee would let it slide. Lymee looked over at the woman Voss was talking too. She was short and thin. She had long black hair that fell down to her hips. The ends of her hair were tied together so it did not flail around as she practiced. She was fairly plain looking but there was nothing particularly unattractive about her either.
    The woman’s name was Shan. Lymee had first been introduced to her by her common name, Omie and she was the aforementioned assassin that had nearly killed Lymee during her birthday celebration four months back. Shan had been forced to do it by someone from the imperial capital who had kidnapped her daughter, Ling, and had threatened to kill her if Shan did not obey.
    Lymee had been able to save Ling and reunite her with her mother but it turned out that the arrow that had only grazed Lymee’s shoulder had also been coated in a very deadly poison. The only reason Lymee was still alive was because Shan turned herself in to the guard and gave them the poison so they could make an antivenin from it.
    “Here. Try holding it like this instead,” Shan suggested, moving in behind Voss and resting her hands on top of his as she pressed her chest into his back.
    Lymee perked up when she noticed the way that Voss stiffened as Shan touched him.
    “Clever little devil,” Lymee mumbled shaking her head in disbelief. “And here I thought he had no game.”
    “He can be quite charming when he wishes to be,” the sound of Yoni’s voice suddenly behind Lymee made her jump in fright. “Sorry my lord. I didn’t mean to startle you.” 
    “Yes you did,” Lymee gasped placing her hand over her racing heart. Yoni just smiled as she took up a spot beside Lymee where she could watch her older brother practice.
    “So how long has this been going on?” Lymee gestured with her chin at Voss and Shan as the two continued to practice their archery together.
    “Every morning without fail since we arrived here from Su Province two months ago,” Yoni said.
    Upon noticing Yoni, Kitsune rose from Lymee’s shoulders and jumped into Yoni’s arms. Yoni caught the fox as if she was expecting this, cradling her to her chest.
    “Traitor,” Lymee sneered at the fox as Kitsune snuggled into Yoni’s embrace looking very pleased with herself.
    “I tend to give her food,” Yoni stated, running her