"He is a nice slave," said the princess. "I like him."
"If you are certain; my daughter . . ." the High Moo said vaguely. "But I fear he will not be able to help us. For he is very old and his limbs look as if a fever has withered them."
The High Moo turned to the Master of Sinanju. He forced himself to smile. In his heart he felt sick. The Master of Sinanju had been his last hope.
"I bid you welcome to Moo," he said. "And in honor of your landfall, we have prepared a feast. We have all the foods that in ancient times Masters of Sinanju enjoyed. There is roast pig, turtle, fresh eggs, and we have butchered a Korean delicacy-dog."
"No way, Chiun," Remo whispered in English. "I don't care what taboo it violates. I draw the line at dog."
"Hush, Remo." To the High Moo the Master of Sinanju said, "We are grateful for your thoughtfulness, O High Moo, but times have changed. Masters of Sinanju no longer eat meat."
"No meat?"
"Have you fish?"
"Yes, of course."
"We still eat fish. And rice."
"We have rice. But fish is peasant food." Chiun winced at the implication.
"Here, perhaps," he said, "but in Sinanju it is considered a delicacy."
"Fish and rice are a delicacy nowhere on earth, Little Father," Remo whispered in English.
"What did your slave say?" the High Moo asked.
"He asked if you have lemons," Chiun replied.
"Yes."
"Good, he will have egg-lemon soup. But it must be prepared under my supervision."
"Very well," said the High Moo slowly.
"Thanks a lot, Chiun," Remo said sourly.
"I knew you would appreciate my suggesting it," Chiun replied.
"I don't mean the soup. I meant the fact that you didn't disabuse him of the notion that I'm your slave."
"This bothers you?"
"Slightly," Remo growled, looking at the Low Moo, who stared at him with a wild eager light in the depths of her black eyes.
Chiun suddenly shook his spindly arms free of his sleeves. He raised them to the heavens, and in a loud voice proclaimed, "In honor of this historic occasion, and knowing that the wicked practice of slavery has been long abolished by the enlightened rulers of Moo, I hereby set free my unworthy slave, Remo."
"Oh, you're a thrill," Remo hissed.
"He does not look happy," said the High Moo, taking note of Remo's expression.
"It is the shock," Chiun assured him. "He has been in my family for years. But he will get used to being free."
"And in honor of this meeting, joining the House of Sinanchu with the House of Moo," proclaimed the High Moo, "my royal priest, Teihotu, will bless you both so that no harm will come to you during your sojourn with us." The priest padded out of the crowd. His dark robes rustled like serpents slipping through dry leaves.
"Please kneel," he intoned. Chiun dropped to his knees. Remo did likewise. But only after Chiun pulled him down.
The royal priest laid his bony, long-fingered hands on their heads. Remo noticed that his hands smelled fishy. He held his breath until the man was through muttering incantations to the sky. Then he withdrew and they found their feet.
"Now, quickly, darkness comes," said the High Moo. "We must hurry to light the fires. For when darkness comes, they walk."
Chiun marched in the High Moo's wake. Remo stepped up alongside him.
"Moo looks pretty small, Little Father," he remarked casually.
"You have not seen the whole of it yet," Chiun sniffed.
"You spoke about an empire."
"I told you. Moo sank. This is all that is left."
"Where are the jeweled clothes, the golden shields? And that crown on the High Moo's head looks like an oversize wedding ring with feathers."
"It is his summer crown. I am certain that his winter crown is more impressive."
"I don't think they have winters in the South Pacific."
"And how would you know, O well-traveled one?"
"I remember my geography lessons."
"And did these geography lessons include a history of Moo?"
"No," Remo admitted.
"Then you have been taught by the ignorant and should not be surprised at your own lack of knowledge," Chiun said haughtily.
"Where are the women, by the way?"
"You did not see them because your back was turned as you rowed. They were here smoothing the sand for us. Then they left."
"Yeah? Were they bare-breasted?"
"I did not notice," Chiun said distantly.
"How could you not notice an important thing like that?"