The Poppy War

Jiang doesn’t show up for class again, and he runs from Rin if she tries to approach him elsewhere. Rin knows she should try to make up with him, but it seems less important as the Trials approach. Five subjects’ tests are mandatory oral exams conducted in front of the faculty, and the Combat exam is a two-day tournament. Losers aren’t automatically expelled, but winning, of course, helps. The first-years spend most of their time worrying about which subject they hope to pledge. The apprentices, meanwhile, start taking bets on who will win the Tournament. Nezha is the favorite, but Rin and Kitay have plenty of support. Students become secretive about their martial arts training, and the apprentices sell study aids of varying efficacy to the first-years. Rin identifies a “magical” herb Niang bought as simple ginger, and some students try to buy exam questions.

One day, when Rin opens the garden gate so she can train in private, she discovers Altan practicing with a three-pronged trident. She’s entranced watching him with it. Though he remains cool and collected, they have a supremely awkward conversation in which they discuss training alone in the garden and Jiang’s unusual teaching methods. Rin privately wonders if Altan is still upset that Jiang withdrew his bid for Altan to study Lore. She finally excuses herself and leaves, embarrassed.

Finally, exams arrive. Rin correctly answers all seven of Irjah’s questions, and then Yim asks why Nikan won the Second Poppy War. Rin knows this is a logical fallacy—they didn’t win, they were just allied with Hesperia, the actual winner. But she tells the masters that they won because they “gave up Speer.” This leads her into an argument with Jun, who insists he was at Speer, but Rin has delved into historical records and doesn’t believe his unit could’ve been there. Jiang comes to Rin’s rescue, brushing the question off as “pretty old.” He then asks Rin who’s imprisoned in the Chuluu Korikh. Rin has never heard this term, though she thinks it translates to “stone mountain.” She guess that “unnatural criminals [...] who have committed unnatural crimes” are held there. Jiang shrugs.

The Tournament begins on the afternoon of the third exam day. Rin fights Han first. She can tell he’s nervous and even afraid of her, and she uses this to her advantage. He fights predictably until Rin manages to break his nose. Kitay is the only one to clap for Rin. Rin’s next two matches go similarly, and she realizes that all her classmates—all trained by Jun—fight the exact same way. She, along with Kitay, Nezha, and Venka, advance to elimination rounds the next day. Rin fights Venka first, and she gets the upper hand quickly, as she learns from Kitay that Venka has never fought with an injury. Predictably, after Rin breaks Venka’s nose, Venka can’t concentrate, and she loses. Few people applaud for Rin.

On the other side of the bracket, Kitay is the only one of Nezha’s opponents who surrenders before being knocked out. The final fight will be between Rin and Nezha; though some think Nezha should be disqualified for his overly cruel fighting techniques, Rin knows someone as important as him won’t be punished. Raban even approaches Rin at dinner to beg her to just surrender; one of Nezha’s opponents might not walk again, and Nezha hates Rin. Rin insists on fighting anyway. So, later, she climbs into the ring and faces off with Nezha. She immediately attacks him, as she knows that he wins by gaining the upper hand early. By four minutes in, Nezha is clearly getting tired and is angry and out for blood.

Rin allows Nezha to kick her to the ground, and then she kicks him in the chest. They continue scrabbling, pulling each other to the floor—and then Nezha slaps Rin. Rin feels something inside herself break, and her vision goes black and then red. She finally pins Nezha to the ground and holds him there until Sonnen drags Rin off. Rin is hot and sweating, and her rational mind is fighting with something inside her that wants to destroy everything and everyone. She runs from the rings and finds Jiang in the Lore garden. Suddenly feeling like she must attack him, she rushes him. He’s shocked to feel that she’s burning, and Rin begs for help. He whispers a few words and touches Rin’s forehead; it feels like ice running down her body until she passes out.

When Rin wakes up in the infirmary later, Jiang is by her bedside. With no enthusiasm, he tells her she won the Tournament and that he never should’ve taught her to fight. Rin doesn’t know what happened, but she knows she felt powerful—and she wants to feel that kind of power again. She implores Jiang to take her on as an apprentice. He insists she’s too much like Altan: they feel the same kind of anger. Rin asks if this is why Jiang withdrew his bid for Altan, but Jiang reveals that he actually insisted he get to train Altan. But the Empress got involved and insisted Altan apprentice to Irjah, as he’d then be a better military asset. But Jiang reasons that the Empress doesn’t know about Rin, so he can keep her safe. When Rin receives bids from Irjah and Jiang a few days later, she pledges Lore.