Chapter 1023: Divergent
The lobby fell silent.
Even the patrons at the bar counter set down their drinks.
May absorbed the words carefully. From Kajen, right? That’s exactly why he won’t see you. Lord Kajen is very disappointed in you, Miss May. The manager’s voice had been low, but everyone beside her had heard it clearly — Irene’s hand found hers and squeezed hard.
Those words would have destroyed her, three years ago. Coming from a man of Kajen’s standing, disappointed struck harder than any open accusation. She might have sobbed. She might have gone rigid and hollow in the way she sometimes did when something truly landed.
But she didn’t think of herself first anymore.
She was the backbone of this troupe. Irene was beside her. Tina and Rosia and Swallow — and Swallow especially, that girl of vast talent and fragile confidence — were all listening. Whatever hit May next, it would hit them too.
She found she was calm.
She exhaled, let it settle, and met the manager’s eyes.
“I believe there must be a misunderstanding,” she said. “I’d prefer to explain it to him directly — but if that’s not possible, please give him my apologies.” She paused. “In any case, I wish Mr. Kajen great success in the ceremony. Much more progress in his work.” She turned toward the door. “We’ll take our leave.”
Then, over her shoulder: “By the way — please don’t call me Miss May. I’m Mrs. Lannis now.”
The manager hadn’t recovered his composure by the time the door closed behind her.
The walk back was quiet. The joy of the morning had evaporated. No one said anything.
Finally, as they neared the point where they’d go their separate ways home, Gait spoke up. “Lady May — did you really have a falling-out with Master Kajen?”
“Idiot!” Rosia fixed him with a withering look. “If there’d been a grudge, why would she have gone to visit him? She’d only be asking to be insulted — which is exactly what happened. You call that a falling-out? He’s the one who’s jealous.”
A silence that contained several sharp intakes of breath.
“You’re talking about the greatest dramatist in Graycastle.”
“Exactly!” Rosia’s voice rose. “Now that Neverwinter is the capital and Star Flower is more popular than any troupe in the Western Region, his people aren’t getting the attention they used to. Of course they’d be unfriendly. And May hasn’t been in contact with the Kajen Troupe since she came back from the old king’s city — so claiming she’s disappointed him makes no sense. What they mean is: you’re new, your history is short, you haven’t earned our respect through the right channels.”
“Oh,” said Irene slowly, as though something had just made sense.
Rosia’s boldness had done something to the group. Spines had straightened.
“That would explain why the manager couldn’t quite look May in the eyes —”
“So it was jealousy that made Master Kajen refuse to see her?”
“No,” May said. She rolled her eyes. “How could he, of all people, be jealous of me? Outside the Western Region, hardly anyone has heard my name. His name is known across all of Graycastle and parts of the Kingdom of Dawn. That’s not jealousy. Don’t flatter me.”
Everyone shrank slightly.
“That’s enough.” May clapped her hands together once. “It’s over. Understood? Go home — we have a full shooting schedule tomorrow.”
Carter asked over dinner that evening. She told him the summary: one visit, one refusal, no drama. She kept her tone light.
She didn’t want him involved. It was a quarrel within the theater world — the kind of thing that resolved itself or didn’t, but either way didn’t require a knight’s intervention. That would only make things worse.
The following days of shooting were unexpectedly good. May had been quietly watching for damage in the troupe’s performance — a flattening of energy, a brittleness that sometimes followed humiliation. It didn’t come. In the final act, shot inside the castle with the full weight of the story behind it, everyone played beyond themselves. Gait, who usually needed several takes, refused to rest until every movement was right. Even the newer members of the troupe, who hadn’t been at the Whistle Inn and didn’t know exactly what had happened, felt the current running through their seniors and rose to meet it.
They think Master Kajen gave us a lesson, May noticed, half amused, half moved.
The incident had become something else entirely in the retelling.
She was beginning to think it was settled — and then, at the close of a long shooting day, as the last of the crew was still sweeping the set, a man appeared at the edge of the Castle District. He’d been waiting in the snow long enough for a thin layer to accumulate on his hat. She recognized him: the manager from the Whistle Inn.
“My lord wishes to see you, Mrs. Lannis.”
May stared at him.
“Can my companions come with me?”
“Lord Kajen made no such provision.”
“May —” Irene stepped forward, concern sharpening her voice.
May gave her a look: I’m all right. She took a breath. She’d been telling herself all week that she didn’t particularly want an explanation. She found, now that one was being offered, that she did.
“Lead the way.”
The Whistling Hotel again.
Up the stairs, across a landing, into a large study where the familiar smell of old paper and lamp oil settled around her. And there they were: Roentgen, the Princess of the Stage, standing against the bookcase; Egrepo, the Minstrel, beside her; Bernis, the Flying Cloud. She’d performed alongside all three of them in Memoir of a Prince’s Search for Love — that long, careful production that felt like it belonged to another life. She’d expected awkwardness. She hadn’t expected the cold hostility that greeted her from every face in the room, naked and unashamed.
They never do this, she thought. Famous actors never let their real feelings show to colleagues — not even to rivals they despise. It’s unprofessional. It’s a kind of theater, the performance of indifference. Even the worst troublemakers in the Longsong Theatre were more careful than this.
Which meant whatever these people believed she’d done, they believed it completely. The resentment was genuine enough to override every professional instinct.
She turned her attention to the gray-haired man behind the desk. Kajen had aged. But no one in the room forgot he was there; when he was present, everything oriented toward him, silently.
He closed his script and rose.
What he said next stopped her completely.
“Mrs. Lannis — could you please stop your troupe’s next show?”
Chapter 1023: Divergent
Translator: TransN Editor: TransN
For a moment, the noisy tavern fell into silence, and even the patrons seated at the bar counter stopped drinking and turned to look at them.
May was a little shocked. “When I was in the old king’s city, I once sought guidance—”
“From Kajen, right? That’s exactly why he won’t see you.” The manager lowered his voice. “Lord Kajen is very disappointed in you, Miss May.”
Even though the voice was very quiet, the girls next to May could easily catch every word. May felt her hand be suddenly squeezed by Irene.
Those words struck them harder than any accusation would, especially when it came from a distinguished dramatist. It was fine for him to criticize or encourage his juniors for their sakes, but it was harsh to tell his juniors that they were disappointments. She would be completely discombobulated or even sob on the spot if she heard those words three years ago.
But she didn’t think of herself first anymore.
After so many years as the Star of the Western Region, she, the backbone of the Star Flower Troupe, was confident about her acting ability. If the blame had hurt her so much, what about Irene, Tina, and the other members of the troupe? Not to mention Swallow, such a talented girl who only lacked confidence.
Therefore, May found herself unexpectedly calm at the moment.
May let out a soft breath, composed herself, and replied, “Really? I believe there must be a mistake. It’ll be better if I’m allowed to explain it to him
personally, but if not I can only give him my apologies.”
This took the manager by surprise, for he had never expected she would accept it so mildly. He frowned. “You…”
“Anyway, I hope that Mr. Kajen makes more progress in drama and makes a breakthrough in the ceremony. We’ll take our leave.” She turned and walked towards the door, and then spoke over her shoulder, “By the way, please don’t call me Miss May. I’m Mrs. Lannis now.”
The weather was still the same on their way back, but May felt like the sky looked more gloomy. No one spoke a word. The joy and excitement they had when they started from their home was all gone.
It was not until they were about to go home separately that Gait asked, “Lady May, did you really fall out with Master Kajen?”
“Idiot. What nonsense!” Rosia shot him a stern glance. “How could Sister May pay a visit to him if they had grudges against each other? That’s no better than asking to be ignored! How could he say that he was disappointed in her? I reckon he’s jealous.”
Everyone gasped and looked at Rosia in disbelief.
“Hey… the man you’re talking about is the great dramatist of Graycastle.”
Rosia argued indignantly, “I mean, now that Neverwinter has become the new capital and Star Flower is more popular than any other troupes in the Western Region, they’re not as appreciated as they used to be. Naturally, they wouldn’t be friendly to us. I’ve been with May since she moved from Longsong to Border Town. She has stopped contacting Kajen Troupe ever since she returned from the old king’s city, so their claim that she has disappointed Master Kajen is illogical. To put it plainly, they look down upon us just because of our short history and little reputation among the nobles.”
“Is that so?” Irene said, seeming to be enlightened.
Perhaps because of Rosia’s bold and confident argument, everyone cheered up a little bit.
“I wondered why the manager was afraid to look Lady May in the eyes. Now it appears that he felt guilty…”
“So, is that the reason why Master Kajen didn’t want to see Sister May?”
“Of course not.” May could not help rolling her eyes. “How could he, such a famed master, be jealous of me? Almost no one has ever heard of me outside the Western Region, but his name has spread across the entirety Graycastle, and even people in some regions of the Kingdom of Dawn have heard of him. What you’re saying is far too wrong.”
Everyone cringed at those words.
“Anyway, that’s the end of it. Do you understand?” May said and clapped her hands. “Go home, all of you. We have a tight schedule of shooting tomorrow.”
That night, Carter asked her about the visit over dinner.
She just ran through the thing with him.
Somehow, May did not want her husband to be involved.
After all, this was just a row in the drama circle.
The shooting ran smoothly over the next few days. May had been concerned that everyone would be frustrated by their encounter with the Kajen Troupe, but, on the contrary, in the final act of the movie that was shot in the palace, all of them seemed to have called upon their strength and contributed an extraordinarily brilliant performance. Even Gait performed better than usual and he also insisted on finishing every action perfectly before he took a rest. The passion had not only motivated the entire Star Flower Troupe but also become a revelation to the new members.
Those newcomers, who did not participate in that visit, guessed it was Master Kajen’s guidance that stimulated their seniors to work so hard.
May was slightly relieved.
It seemed that the incident did not have much of an impact on the troupe.
She would have thought that the dust had settled, but something unexpected happened again.
The manager of Kajen Troupe visited her at the end of the day when they had just finished the shooting.
“My lord wanted to see you, Miss May… no, Mrs. Lannis.” The man seemed to have been waiting for a long time outside the Castle District as his hat was covered with a thin layer of snow.
Of course, his lord was Kajen Fels, the great dramatist, who had founded the Kajen Troupe.
May was so confused and even wanted to tell him that she would not come with him, since she had been such a disappointment to Kajen Fels, but she found that she did want to see Kajen… for an explanation for his words.
“Can my companions come with me?” May asked.
“No, Lord Kajen only permit you to visit him.” The man shook his head.
“May…” Irene sounded concerned.
She gave Irene a comforting glance, and then took a deep breath before she answered. “I see. Please lead the way.”
…
Here she was, at the same place once again, Whistling Hotel.
May, following the manager, took the stairs up to the second floor and entered a large study, where she saw some familiar friends standing against the bookcase. “Princess” Roentgen, “Minstrel” Egrepo, “Flying Cloud” Bernis… all of them were top-level performers coming from all over the country. She once worked with them rather well in the “Memoir of a Prince’s
Search for Love”. They should have been happy to see her again after so many years apart, but May could only sense contempt and hostility from their cold faces.
This was something she did not expect.
May had not have looked forward to any warm welcome from these people, but she did not understand why they made their dislike of her so obvious, for, as far as she was concerned, actors would never show their actual feeling to the other actors, even those who they did not get along with. For famous actors, hiding their actual feelings was no more than a cinch, so very few of them would turn against other people openly, even against new actors. Unlike the troublemakers in the Longsong Theatre, the actors would be more cautious as their reputation grew. However, now even they refused to hide any feelings in front of her.
May turned her eyes on the old gray-haired man seated behind the desk. Kajen seemed to have aged a lot in the past few years, but no one within the room would ignore him. They all kept quiet and waited for him to begin.
Kajen, seeming to sense her gaze, closed the script in his hands and stood up.
What he was about to say, however, completely stunned her.
“Mrs. Lannis, can you please stop your troupe’s next show?”