The court is a treacherous place, and a once-glorious young lord falls from grace to become a hostage in another country. For reasons he cannot understand, those six years in captivity turn out to be the most peaceful years of his life.
Poisoning, assassination, bribery, revenge, and repaying favors: the struggle for imperial power never stops just because he has left. What interests are the merchant magnates, foreign princesses, and high-ranking court officials pursuing behind their masks?
Can the bonds of youth still be trusted? Can true love withstand betrayal? Beneath layer upon layer of intrigue, how will he uncover the truth and protect the realm and its people?
