The Golden Empress is the Sea Maiden
Near the end of the book the Unceasing Emperor tells Loth about his former lover who he dumped due to her low rank. After that, she swore she would build her own empire. The Golden Empress is the leader of a pirate empire in the East. This would also explain why he calls his lover "Sea Maiden" while talking with Loth. They also seem to have similar personalities (ruthless, bitter and angry). There is a fourth Siden Tree, in the North
...which may or may not still be alive. If there's one in the East, West and South, it only makes sense that there would be a Northern counterpart.- If there is a fourth tree in the North, it will be an apple tree for a couple possible reasons:
- Apples usually have some kind of symbolic importance in fairy tales and myths
- They can also grow well in cold climates.
