Kahn had not expected their second operation to come so soon after their first fruitless search for clues to Yin Shu's disappearance.
"Mother's room has clearly been tidied up. If Father didn't throw those things away, he must have stored them somewhere."
Azula sounded certain. Judging by Ozai's personality, he would definitely have kept some of the crucial information.
"Aren't we rushing things? It hasn't been that long since our last operation."
Kahn worried that acting like this might attract Ozai's attention. After all, they were making moves too frequently.
Azula, however, seemed perfectly relaxed.
"Don't worry. This is just a normal adventure. I'll invite Mai and Ty Lee along."
Kahn frowned at that.
"There's no need to drag them into this, is there? It's too dangerous."
"Ha! What are you thinking?"
Azula laughed and spread her hands.
"Relax. It really is just a 'normal' adventure."
As playmates who had grown up with her, Mai and Ty Lee were certainly not goody-two-shoes like Zuko.
In fact, the two had been exploring the Royal Palace with her since they were little. They had even sneaked into the Council Chamber. When it came to the layout of the entire Royal Palace, they definitely knew far more than Zuko, the actual prince.
"Well, you guys are seriously badass."
Once again, Kahn bowed in admiration. How could people this badass exist in the world? They were so formidable that he had nothing to say.
So the plan for this operation was simple. They would go on a normal adventure, during which he and Azula would "happen to" check for anything suspicious.
But with that settled, Kahn had some ideas of his own and asked:
"What about Zuko? Aren't we inviting him?"
Ever since his last conversation with Zuko, he had been considering how to bring him into the fold. This seemed like a good opportunity. Besides, Zuko wanted to find Yin Shu too. With their goals aligned, the chances of success should be high.
"Invite him? Sure, if you can manage it. But he's a good little boy. He never joins us for dangerous activities like this."
Azula shrugged indifferently, slipping in a subtle jab at Zuko along the way.
Not only did Zuko refuse to explore with them, he often tattled on her too. That was one source of the conflict between them.
Of course, things were much better now.
He no longer reported her for climbing over the wall to leave the Royal Palace and visit Kahn, so their relationship had eased considerably lately, though they still did not particularly like each other.
Hearing Azula say that, Kahn finally unrolled the map to reveal the dagger.
"Say, should we tell Zuko about our plan?"
"Huh? Have you lost your mind?!"
But Azula resisted far more strongly than he had expected, speaking in disbelief.
"Are you still half asleep? Or is your brain broken? Are you trying to ruin our plan? Or do you not want to keep going, so you're doing this on purpose? Do you have some problem with me?"
"Stop!"
Azula's barrage of questions hit Kahn like cannonballs, leaving him a little dazed. After taking a moment to recover, he said, speechless:
"Is it really that bad? Do you really dislike Zuko that much?"
"Heh. What do you think?"
Azula gave a contemptuous laugh.
"He can't fight, he can't think, and he can't even act. We'd be lucky if he didn't hold us back. Still, if he's willing to obey my orders unconditionally, I could give it a little consideration."
"Uh..."
For a moment, Kahn could not even refute her. After all, this was Azula speaking, and Zuko really was "a tiny bit" behind her in every respect.
Well, uh...
But having made up his mind, he was not about to give up easily. He tried another angle to salvage Zuko's dignity.
"He really can't compare to you in terms of ability, but he's certainly not bad either. You should know that too. Bringing him into the fold would actually help us quite a bit. At the very least, we wouldn't have to worry about avoiding him during future operations, which would give us more room to maneuver with our timing."
"Besides, Zuko actually has the same idea as you..."
Kahn recounted his conversation with Zuko that day, along with his own concerns. After listening, Azula folded her arms and scoffed.
"After all that talk, you're really just worried about his safety and planning to look after him like a baby?"
Kahn corrected her.
"It's helping a friend. If you were in danger, I'd help you the same way."
Azula paused, her attitude softening slightly, though her words remained unyielding.
"Say whatever you like. I still don't agree. I don't trust him."
Now Kahn really had no way forward. He had not expected Azula to be so adamant.
It looked like he would have to find a way through Iroh instead.
"All right."
Kahn could only accept it helplessly, but he sighed and said:
"Aren't you a little too prejudiced against him? People grow. Zuko doesn't tattle on you anymore, does he? Besides, you're brother and sister."
At Kahn's words, Azula suddenly froze. He was right. Thinking back carefully, Zuko really did seem less annoying than before.
Brother and sister... Mother...
For some reason, Azula suddenly thought of Yin Shu. When Mother was still around, she had always hoped the siblings would get along...
And so, just as Kahn had given up, Azula suddenly changed her tune.
"Still, if you really want him to join, it's not entirely out of the question."
"Huh?"
Azula's sudden reversal left Kahn unable to react for a moment. Then he perked up and said happily:
"Really?"
Seeing him like that, Azula could not help smiling a little too. Suddenly, she felt that this might not be so bad.
"Mm-hmm. As long as he can meet my requirements..."
"Of course! Just tell me what they are, and I'll talk to him!"
Kahn thumped his chest and gave his solemn assurance.
"You and Azula have been secretly searching for clues to Mother's disappearance all this time?!"
After Kahn told Zuko the truth, Zuko's eyes widened in shock. He could hardly believe it and did not know what to say for a long while.
"I know it's surprising, but there were all sorts of reasons..."
Kahn looked rueful. After all, he had initially been "threatened" into joining, but there was no need to explain that part to Zuko.
Zuko came back to his senses and said with a complicated expression:
"It really is surprising. What surprises me even more is that Azula cares so much about Mother."
"True, but don't say that in front of her."
A prickly girl like Azula could not bear hearing that sort of thing.
Zuko understood that very well too. "I know."
"So, do you want to join? Even at the risk of defying your father's orders. If you don't want to, just pretend you never heard any of this."
Kahn gazed at him as he asked.
The propriety his mother had taught him since childhood, his fear of Ozai, and his longing to learn his mother's whereabouts tangled together in his mind, leaving him deeply conflicted. But in the end, Zuko steeled himself and said through gritted teeth:
"I'm in!"
"Good!"
Kahn smiled and patted Zuko's shoulder in relief.
Soon, however, a hint of mischief crept into his smile, inexplicably reminding Zuko of Azula.
"Before you join us, you'll have to meet a few requirements..."
At those words, Zuko shuddered for no apparent reason.
Before you continue