Chang Feng was attending a banquet the emperor had thrown for his pet bear. He stood silently in a corner of the hall, observing the nobles inside, but his thoughts had drifted elsewhere.
The Earth King always found all sorts of excuses to hold countless banquets, and this time was no exception.
Although Chang Feng had no interest in banquets, he was happy to see them happen. The more deeply the Earth King immersed himself in such things, the more secure Chang Feng's rule over Omashu became.
At the moment, however, he cared more about the Avatar's group's movements than about the banquet. Those people currently posed the greatest threat to him.
Judy had reported that they had spent the past few days merely sightseeing in the city, and the men he had assigned to watch them had confirmed it, as though they seemed prepared to obediently wait for the emperor to summon them.
If that really was the case, they could forget about seeing the emperor for the rest of their lives. But his intuition told him that things did not seem so simple.
Most importantly, neither of the two men responsible for watching the Avatar had returned to report to him yet.
That was unusual.
An inexplicable unease came over him, so he hurriedly ordered the Dai Li to discreetly tighten security. Under no circumstances could they be allowed to meet the emperor.
Chang Feng warily scanned everyone in the hall, trying to find any unfamiliar face.
Time passed, and the emperor slowly entered in a palanquin. As the banquet's atmosphere reached its peak, Chang Feng's vigilance also reached its highest point.
"Today's banquet is being held for my pet Bosco. Everyone-"
The emperor began his speech. Minute by minute, time passed, and the banquet continued smoothly. Chang