FIB Ch 17 part 1

PR by neji

Swords slashed at the enemy troops, and blood sprayed in the air, drenching faces and bodies.

When one soldier collapsed, another would take his place and charge at Heon. He barely had any time to pull his sword out of the dead soldier before thrusting it at the other.

“Get through!”

From close by, the Chief General’s roar rang through the air.

Although he was in charge of the northern troops of SeoMoon, he wasn’t someone who had been in this position for a long time. Actually, he was someone that JaeHoon had personally picked.

He had never been in a war before, and he wasn’t a reputable warrior. He was merely the first general to have come over to JaeHoon’s side, and he had merely given more money to JaeHoon as well.

And due to this alone, he had been chosen to be Heon’s superior.

“If you do not get through, you will all die!”

Although he shouted orders, he himself did not step out to fight. There was no way the soldiers would follow a man like that. Heon pulled out his sword from the enemy soldier’s chest and quickly glanced around the battlefield.

He still didn’t see any soldiers from Ju. The soldiers they were fighting now were those from Ju’s subject states and allies.

Although SeoMoon had been the first one to declare war, they were unable to make an effective attack in any situation.

“Park Yoon!”

Yoon turned around at Heon’s roar. Meanwhile, Heon aimed his sword at him.

Nothing more needed to be said. They both moved at the same time, and Heon brandished his sword at the soldiers who were attacking Yoon.

Yoon and Heon switched places, and Heon began to move towards the most vulnerable point of the enemy’s camp.

“Ugh!”

He needed to live.

The most important point of this war was not whether they won or lost. MoonWon had gone to the Palace in order to save Heon on her own. He needed to end this war before something happened to her.

“Aim for the Chief General!”

The enemy had analyzed the weakness of SeoMoon’s troops in one breath.

This man hid behind his troops and merely shouted out orders. He didn’t know how to do anything, and yet he had become the head of SeoMoon’s army.

“Stop them!”

This was the chance to turn things around. In the midst of the enemy soldiers who began to target the Chief General, Heon’s soldiers began to move. However, as if this had been foreseen, half of the enemy troops began to block Heon’s advance.

“How dare you!”

Whenever Heon’s sword moved, sprays of blood followed. Before Heon’s sword swung down three times, the enemy troops collapsed. The soldiers that JaeHoon had personally deployed were no match for the speed of Heon’s troops. Very soon, a path opened up for Heon.

“R-Retreat…”

Completely terrified, the Chief General began to hesitate. Meanwhile, an enemy general raised his sword. To think that the head of the SeoMoon army was stepping back in fear. It was so ridiculous that no one could muster the strength to laugh.

As long as they slit this man’s throat, it would all be over. With victory in mind, the enemy general swung his sword.

“Huh?”

He was sure that he had swung his sword, but his sword was gone. Not only that, but his arm that had been holding the sword had disappeared as well. The moment the general realized his arm was gone, Heon slit his throat.

Heon grabbed the soldier’s head before it fell to the ground and held it up.

When everyone saw that the enemy troop’s general had fallen, everything changed. The soldiers who had been making great advances on SeoMoon’s troops lost their morale and began to falter. SeoMoon’s soldiers began to oppress them.

“Wipe them all out!”

Although Heon had just saved his life, the Chief General raised his own sword and began to yell orders as if nothing had happened.

“Charge! We must annihilate all of them!”

“Further advancement is impossible! We must stop.”

They had beheaded the enemy general, but they needed to pause and wait for reinforcement.

SeoMoon’s true enemy was Ju, not Ju’s allies.

“Fall back! Return to base!”

“Chief Commander! This is insubordination!”

“If we make a wrong move now, we will all be massacred. Are you willing to take on that responsibility?”

“H-How dare you!”

“Everyone return to camp!”

Those who hesitated due to the Chief General began to move in perfect order once they heard Heon’s command. After the enemy troops retreated, the rest of them began to repair their ragged camp.

The Chief General ground his teeth after having been suppressed by Heon’s aura. However, as if he could not let this go, he brought the blade of his sword up to Heon’s neck. Even though they were currently in the middle of a bloody battlefield, the general’s sword remained spotless.

He was their leader, but he did not step foot into battle.

“His Majesty wants results!”

“Not ‘His Majesty’ but ‘His Highness’. And if we are all killed, he will not get his results.”

The Chief General was Heon’s superior, but Heon was dominating this conversation. When faced with life and death, one’s rank did not matter. In every conceivable way, SeoMoon was at a disadvantage.

Ultimately, the Chief General trembled and lowered his sword.

“I’ll let this go for now, but not again. You should be careful.”

The Chief General withdrew, and Heon let out a sigh. He hadn’t expected JaeHoon to go easy on him, but Heon was already exhausted before they had begun a proper battle.

“Are you alright, sir?”

“Mm.”

Heon nodded to Yoon’s question. Yoon’s eyes glanced at Heon’s wound.

“We better treat your wound.”

“Treat the soldiers first. I’ll take care of myself.”

Yoon could see that Heon was not worried about the war. He was feeling some other type of emotion. Since Heon didn’t usually show his emotions, Yoon’s eyes softened.

“Are you worried?”

“I’m not the only one worried, am I?”

Heon wasn’t the only one having a difficult time with the current situation.

Not only Yoon but every soldier that had been drafted into this war had family that had been taken hostage by administrators sent out from the Palace. Although they were not officially called ‘hostages’, they were still being held captive. Heon could not focus only on MoonWon in such a situation.

Even though he knew this, he couldn’t help but go insane with worry.

“She will be with my wife, so please do not worry, sir.”

“First and foremost, we need to survive in order to return.”

Yoon gasped. It wasn’t easy to say that they were going to die during a war. Additionally, Heon had never brought up death in all the years they had fought in battle.

Yoon excused himself and left. Heon placed his hand on his chest.

There was a sapphire ring hanging on a leather strap around his neck. He wasn’t the type to trust in an object or be superstitious, but this was something MoonWon had personally picked out for him.

“Huu.”

This was only the beginning.

Their fate would be determined on this battlefield. However, Ju’s troops were nowhere to be seen.

Heon grasped the ring and composed himself.

* * *

“How is the morning sickness?”

A woman who looked a bit younger than MoonWon gazed at her with worried eyes. MoonWon covered her nose and mouth with a cotton cloth and nodded her head at the woman.

She wanted to say she was fine, but for the past few days, she had been so sick that it brought tears to her eyes. They said she needed to eat something, but even if she took a sip of water, it would all come right back up.

“I’m sorry. Because I’m like this… Ugh.”

As soon as she pulled the cloth away from her lips, she began to heave. MoonWon took a deep breath.

The families of the nobles who had been deployed generally stayed at the western palace. Because MoonWon was not far along in her pregnancy, she wasn’t showing, but she did look exhausted.

Thankfully, Yusun and Yeori were with her. Yoon’s wife, Junghwa, was also with them, so MoonWon felt some sense of relief. The problem was JaeHoon.

When she got word that JaeHoon was asking for her, MoonWon claimed she had caught a horrible flu and did her best to avoid him.

“I know nothing can be done, but I wish it would go away soon.”

“It will go away soon, Mistress. My morning sickness was the worst when I was pregnant with my first child, and my husband was very nervous.”

“How can I get through this?”

Although Junghwa had two children, she was younger than MoonWon by two years.

Because this was the first time they had met, it had been a bit awkward. However, Junghwa would begin talking about her children, and MoonWon grew interested in her stories. Like this, they grew close.

“You just need to endure it for a little longer.”

“Really?”

“It’s because this is your first child, so it’ll feel a lot more difficult. It was the same for me.”

Although she believed the child would be beautiful and precious to her, MoonWon wondered why she had to suffer this much.

When things felt a bit better, MoonWon lowered the cloth once again. She finally let out a sigh. When her stomach settled, MoonWon slowly looked around at her surroundings.

Although the claim had been that they were being protected from the dangers of war, it was only an excuse. They were all being watched so that no one could escape.

‘How can they call this ‘protection’?’

There were people watching them from inside, and on the other side of the doors, there were people posted as well. It was possible that she was only sensitive because of the child, but seeing all the eyes watching them made her nervous. She needed to hide the existence of her child.

“How can he expect a victory like this?”

“I heard that he is telling everyone to call him ‘His Majesty’ despite the fact that there hasn’t been a coronation.”

MoonWon’s eyes narrowed at the ridiculous piece of news.

There were rumors that the Emperor had regained consciousness after he first fell ill. There were also rumors that the Emperor was perfectly fine now but was being held captive by the Crown Prince.

MoonWon didn’t know what was true and what wasn’t, but either way, it wasn’t good.

As if the endless worries began to affect her physically, she felt her stomach twinge once again.

“I’ll return to my room, so you should go and get some rest as well.”

MoonWon smiled at Junghwa. However, the smile disappeared when she saw a eunuch approach them.

“My lady.”

It was the same eunuch that JaeHoon had sent last time. Using her morning sickness as an excuse for the flu, she had managed to avoid obeying the call. However, the eunuch had come back for her a few days later.

“His Majesty is calling for you.”

“I have still not recovered, so I don’t think I’ll be able to go today.”

“His Majesty said that if you refuse, he will personally come to you.”

MoonWon grew pale at the thought of JaeHoon coming here. The eunuch was warning her that she could no longer avoid this. MoonWon closed her eyes and lowered her head.

Without realizing it, MoonWon placed her hand on her stomach.

“Mistress, I’ll…”

Yusun approached her from behind and began to follow her, but MoonWon shook her head. Even if she came with her, Yusun wouldn’t be able to enter JaeHoon’s presence.

The group of eunuchs were already moving to stop Yusun from coming with MoonWon.

“Stop. I’ll go.”

“Mistress.”

Junghwa called out to MoonWon. MoonWon shook her head.

Heon was risking his life and fighting in the battlefield. While he was away, MoonWon and their child needed to wait and stay safe.

Even hearing JaeHoon’s name caused her to tremble in fear, but if she continued to avoid him, she didn’t know what would happen as a result.

“Lead the way.”

* * *

The eunuch gestured to a room, and MoonWon entered. She bit her lips nervously. She thought she was taken to the office, but she found out that she had entered JaeHoon’s bedchamber.

She wasn’t sure where it was coming from, but the room was full of the fragrance of a woman’s powder as well as a nauseating incense.

“Greetings, Your Highness.”

The JaeHoon of the past was nowhere to be seen. Additionally, the JaeHoon she had last seen and the JaeHoon before her now were also completely different. Because of his haphazardly rumpled clothing as well as his half-lidded eyes, she was afraid to approach him.

“MoonWon.”

Her nausea completely disappeared.

MoonWon clasped her trembling hands.

“Come closer.”

“There are many eyes watching us here, Your Highness. How can we act so recklessly?”

“They all belong to me¹. How could they dare speak about what goes on in this room?”

Although he was still the Crown Prince, he shamelessly used the royal ‘me’ when speaking about himself.

MoonWon felt her legs grow weak, but she grit her teeth and tried to hold on.

She thought of her mother and YongUn, then Heon, and finally her child.

“Why do you look so gaunt?”

JaeHoon got up from his bed and approached her. MoonWon quickly stood up as well. Seeing MoonWon flinch, JaeHoon swallowed the bile that rose from his throat.

He knew MoonWon did not want him. He knew now that there was no place for him inside her heart.

“Do you hate me that much?”

When she heard him ask the same question once again, MoonWon made up her mind.

She crouched into a bow in front of JaeHoon.

“Your Highness, I am not Consort Yu, and I do not plan on becoming like her.”

“You know how many times you’ve rejected me, and yet you can say such a thing? Do you truly not know how many chances I’ve already given you?!”

“Your Highness.”

“It’s ‘Your Majesty’! And I did not call you here to listen to your rejection!”

When she heard JaeHoon say this, MoonWon looked up. She realized the meaning behind the nauseating fragrance. At the same time, JaeHoon grabbed her arm.

The look on JaeHoon’s face was the same as the one Heon showed her. His grasp on her arm tightened, and she could see the burning desire in his eyes. As soon as she saw this, her trembling body tensed up.

JaeHoon tried to drag her to the bed, and MoonWon bit down on his hand with all her might.

“Agh!”

JaeHoon cried out and let go. Meanwhile, MoonWon quickly put distance between herself and him. Her blood ran cold, and her teeth began to chatter. Realizing that JaeHoon had planned on taking her by force despite her protests, MoonWon felt like she was going to vomit.

JaeHoon looked down at the wound on his hand. Then he began to approach MoonWon once again.

“I’m pregnant with the Chief Commander’s child!”

MoonWon’s declaration caused JaeHoon to freeze in his spot. His wide eyes seemed to deny it, but MoonWon made sure to squash any doubts he had.

Time seemed to stand still, and neither of them took a breath.

Why did Heon always get everything in the end?

What had he done so wrong to be given such a painful life?

“Mmph.”

JaeHoon took a large step towards MoonWon and pulled her into his arms before crashing his lips against hers. When MoonWon did not open her mouth, JaeHoon grabbed her hair and pulled her head back. When MoonWon cried out in pain, JaeHoon quickly forced his tongue into her mouth.

Even if she ripped at his clothes or scratched his arms, he didn’t want to stop. As he sucked in her breaths, the damp flavor of her mouth was something he had never tasted with other women. It couldn’t even compare.

So what if she had Heon’s child? What would change? The woman in his arms was MoonWon, the person he had yearned for so long.

From the moment he saw her for the very first time as she circled around the tower, she had captured his heart. And now she was in his grasp.

“No… Haagh.”

Just as MoonWon managed to escape his arms, JaeHoon grabbed her shoulders and pulled her back. He did not notice her frantic struggles to escape. As MoonWon tried to push him away, JaeHoon buried his head against her neck.

He felt insanely happy as he enjoyed her sweet scent and melting warmth.

As JaeHoon’s hand slid in between the folds of her clothing, something flashed.

“Ugh!”

A long knife wound had formed on the back of his hand. He wasn’t sure how she had managed to smuggle this in despite the court maids’ search, but MoonWon was currently holding a sharp dagger in her hands. Her body was trembling as if she were on the verge of fainting, but as if to erase any trace of JaeHoon, she vigorously rubbed her lips with her sleeve.

Seeing MoonWon trying so desperately to escape him, JaeHoon found it so absurd.

“What are you going to do with that? Were you planning on taking your own life to preserve your chastity?”

MoonWon let out a deep breath when she heard JaeHoon’s taunt. When she finally calmed down, her eyes gleamed.

“Why would I kill myself?”

“What?”

“This child is precious and irreplaceable to me. I will not do as you wish.”

JaeHoon snorted when he heard MoonWon’s reply.

“Do you think you can go against me?”

“I’m sure you can harm me or my child. However, you must prepare to lose your own life if you do.”

She might die without landing a blow on JaeHoon’s face. However, if she could not keep her promise to Heon and return safely, she’d rather take JaeHoon to the afterlife with her.

“You…”

She was merely a powerless brat.

He had placed her in his heart, but this mere brat was baring her teeth at him.

He could see Heon in her. He saw that nasty, disgraceful man’s eyes in hers.

In that moment, his sense of inferiority he had been trying to suppress broke loose and overtook him.

“You were the first one to cut off our relationship, Your Highness.”

“You! You dare!”

“I was not the person to let go of your hand. It was you.”

Without a care for JaeHoon’s consideration or mercy, MoonWon continued to speak her piercing words. Did this mean that all this was a result of his wrongdoing? What had he done so wrong? What did he do to deserve this?!

MoonWon was the one who had thrown away all the opportunities he had given her. If she had obediently entered his embrace, this would all be over. She had acted so arrogantly and was now telling JaeHoon that it was all his fault.

“A girl like you. How dare a girl like you…”

“Aagh!”

JaeHoon’s hand struck MoonWon’s cheek. She collapsed to the ground, and JaeHoon began to kick her. Blood burst from her forehead, and she screamed as JaeHoon continued to kick her. However, instead of running away, MoonWon curled up to protect her stomach.

“Dirty bitch! Wicked bitch! Do you know how much I treasured you?! I did!”

JaeHoon was now completely insane as he swung his fists at MoonWon’s crumpled body. Dazed from all the blows, MoonWon continued to endure.

If she fainted now, it would be dangerous for the child.

“You dirty bitch! You don’t even know how merciful I was with you!”

JaeHoon panted from the exertion and grit his teeth.

There was no longer any love left in his heart. He had given her his unchanging heart, but this impudent brat had used his love.

“Evil bitch.”

JaeHoon spit out the curse along with his harsh breaths. MoonWon barely managed to open her eyes.

The paralyzing terror had disappeared. She could see Heon and the child that would be with them.

Compared to the future that was ahead of them, this momentary pain was nothing.

A smile stretched across MoonWon’s lips. Seeing this, JaeHoon angrily grabbed his sword that had been laying on the floor and unsheathed it.

“How dare you!”

Her eyes could see the sword through the blood flowing from her forehead. She needed to escape no matter what, but she couldn’t move.

She didn’t want to die like this.

“Your Majesty!”

His sword froze in midair. Before he told the voice to enter, a eunuch burst into the room. JaeHoon ground his teeth.

“How dare you come in without permission!”

“Y-Your Majesty, th-this is…”

The eunuch bowed and held up a report. JaeHoon frowned. He glanced down at MoonWon, who had fainted as she covered her stomach, and a light gleamed in his eyes.

Living a life where he had not earned MoonWon’s love or SeoMoon’s faith was hell.

“It’s wrong for me to feel this pain by myself. Don’t you think, MoonWon?”

Even though she was on the other end of a one-sided beating, MoonWon continued to protect her stomach.

Seeing this, JaeHoon smirked.

“You should feel this pain, too.”

“Cough, cough.”

“That precious child of yours… I will make you lose it by your own hand. I will personally slit the throat of your beloved Chief Commander right before your eyes.”

“……”

“I’ll make it so that life isn’t worth living anymore. I must witness you losing your mind.”

MoonWon struggled to get up as JaeHoon continued to spew his violent thoughts.

He would not be shaken by a woman like her any longer.

“Drag her away!”

Eunuchs entered the room at JaeHoon’s command and grabbed MoonWon. Watching MoonWon be dragged out of the room, JaeHoon spit in her direction.

Once MoonWon had been completely taken away, JaeHoon wiped his sweat with a handkerchief that a eunuch handed him.

The violently raging anger did not go away.

“Is there anyone there?”

The door opened at JaeHoon’s shout, and a eunuch frantically entered.

JaeHoon glared into the distance and smiled.

“I will go out to the battlefield myself. Prepare all the hostages within the Palace.”

“Y-Your Majesty?”

“They don’t matter anymore. They are people of SeoMoon, so it’s only right for them to sacrifice themselves for SeoMoon. I will take all of them and go into battle myself.”

He couldn’t be the only one to suffer like this.

His SeoMoon did not need MoonWon nor Heon.

“Those who are against my SeoMoon… I’ll put all of them to death.”

* * *

“Take it!”

Yusun looked at the meal that they were given and frowned.

Although they allowed her to continue to attend to MoonWon, monitoring the meals was left in other people’s hands.

Although their stay in JaeHoon’s palace didn’t seem like it was going to end anytime soon, the palace staff claimed that there wasn’t enough food to feed all the hostages and the soldiers, so they were given a few rice balls half-mixed with rocks. 

Yusun silently received the meal and took a piece of rice ball and put it in her own mouth.

“Huu.”

She didn’t even have time to register the rocks in the rice. As she rolled the rice on her tongue, she shook her head and spit it out.

She could definitely taste the faint flavor of the medicine that the women in brothels took to abort pregnancies. After giving birth to Heon, Consort Yu did not want to have another child, so she had secretly taken the same medicine several times.

Yusun resisted the urge to throw the food away and quietly hugged the food to her chest. As she made her way to MoonWon, she found Hong-yeom nearby and stopped in her tracks. Hong-yeom approached her nonchalantly and switched the food in Yusun’s arms with his.

“Are you eating these days?”

Due to the insistence that a man could not be by MoonWon’s side, Hong-yeom had been taken away by soldiers. Unable to give the tainted food to MoonWon, Yusun was grasping at straws. Finally, she went to Hong-yeom to ask him for a favor, and thankfully, Hong-yeom offered his own food to her every time.

“I’m eating fine, so don’t worry about me. And don’t tell the Mistress. She’ll end up needlessly worrying about me again.”

After finishing what he had to say, Hong-yeom walked away in another direction as if nothing had happened. Yusun tasted the food that Hong-yeom had given her and nodded.

After walking for a long while, she finally came across MoonWon, who had managed to sit up thanks to Yeori’s support. The day MoonWon had returned from meeting with the Crown Prince in a state of bloody pulp, Yusun thought her world had collapsed.

“Mistress.”

When MoonWon heard Yusun’s voice, she barely managed to lift her head.

No one was sure if MoonWon, let alone the child, would survive, but after the long night had passed, they had barely begun to treat MoonWon’s wounds when JaeHoon announced that they would all be leaving for the battlefield. Before several people could finish protesting, they lost their lives to the soldiers who came to slit their throats. In a situation where any normal person would faint from exhaustion and give up, MoonWon clung on with great tenacity.

“Mistress, please eat, even a little.”

Leaning against Yeori, MoonWon received the rice balls. As she gazed at the pathetic excuse for food, MoonWon let out a heavy sigh.

“Has Hong-yeom managed to eat a little?”

“He’s not the type to answer such a question, right? He only asked us not to worry about him and left.”

“He must be enduring it in case I do get worried.”

After he had promised to show her hell, JaeHoon continued to drive MoonWon to her limit. The clan’s doctor managed to secretly watch over her health, but before her wounds had healed, she was ordered to march as they made their way to the battlefield. Even for her, this was an incredibly difficult ordeal.

“Now that we’re all here like this, it reminds me of the past. Back then, we had such a hard time finding something to eat, so I’m grateful we at least have this.”

“Mistress, back then…”

“I’m glad I no longer have morning sickness.”

One never knew when bad or good would visit them, but everything still came to pass. And like before, this would pass them as well.

“We’re going to start moving again! Get going!”

Although they hadn’t gotten much rest, the soldiers ordered them to start moving again. The moment a few nobles begged the soldiers for some more time to rest, the soldiers began to beat them with clubs.

These people didn’t even have the energy to scream and fell to the ground, a puddle of blood forming around them. Nowadays, no one screamed or burst into tears whenever they saw a corpse. The soldiers dragged away the corpses, and the people who had been sitting got up.

“Mistress.”

Yeori turned MoonWon’s head away from the corpse. At a time when she should only be hearing and seeing pleasant things, MoonWon was enduring so much suffering.

“I’m okay. I’m still… I’m still okay.”

As MoonWon had read the worry on Yeori’s face, she grabbed Yeori’s arm.

When she saw that Yeori was on the verge of tears, she smiled and braced herself. Despite her claims, she could barely handle it. She was scared. Every single day, she resisted the urge to collapse. She continued marching on for Heon and their child.

As she followed Yeori, she suddenly felt someone’s gaze and turned her head. She didn’t know how long he’d been there, but she saw JaeHoon glaring at her, surrounded by his guards.

‘Father, I ask for one favor.’

If she could see Heon, she’d have so much to tell him. The only reason why she didn’t collapse and continued to endure was because of the hope that she’d see Heon again. She believed that if she just endured a little longer, she’d see him soon.

Although it would never happen and was merely a foolish wish, she wanted to see Heon more than anything.

‘Please protect me and the child.’

She didn’t know how much time had passed. One third of their group was already gone, only a small group of people had finally reached the battlefield.

The spring was almost over. The winds grew cold and the ground hardened.

Not far away, they could see SeoMoon’s flag fluttering in the wind. And not far from them, they could see another flag as well.

Heon was somewhere close.

But she could not go to him.

* * *

“Huu.”

Heon covered his eyes with his hand after returning to his barracks. Not only had JaeHoon arrived, but it was said that he had brought all his hostages with him.

JaeHoon had made camp at a place where neither Heon nor any other soldier in this war could go. Obviously, all the hostages he had brought with him were there as well.

MoonWon was wherever JaeHoon was. That fact alone made his patience waver.

Heon poured himself some tea from the teapot and brought it to his lips when he froze. For some odd reason, Heon’s hand froze in midair as he held the cup.

After pondering something for a while, Heon poured the tea onto a crawling bug. As steam rose from its writhing body, the bug died.

“MoonWon.”

Whenever he grew insane with rage, he called out MoonWon’s name. Even though he knew there wouldn’t be a response, whenever he heard MoonWon’s name, the rage would settle somewhat.

The purpose of this war began to shift and fade away. Although he had been sent out to eliminate Ju as their enemy, his true enemy was not Ju. His true enemy was residing inside SeoMoon.

“Chief Commander, may I enter?”

Before Heon could tell the person to come in, the person who entered the tent placed a tray down in front of Heon. Seeing the bottle of liquor and some cups, Heon frowned.

Before he could ask what was the meaning of this, he raised the bottle and smelled the liquor. There was no smell of alcohol.

“What were you thinking to come all the way here?”

“Shouldn’t you at least trust the water you drink?”

Heon glanced at the grinning Doyoon and shook his head. Doyoon was a different kind of challenge than JaeHoon.

The Emperor of Ju had entered SeoMoon’s camp alone. Any other officer or even JaeHoon would balk at the thought, but the person in question was currently smiling at him.

Heon poured some water into the cup and took a swig.

The cold water washed his throat, and Heon let out a sigh.

“You don’t look too good.”

“There are too many eyes here.”

“There are, but they can’t see. Everyone’s completely engrossed by the fact that their families are not too far away.”

“……”

“Have you finished preparing to strike my army?”

Heon closed his eyes at Doyoon’s question. That day, if MoonWon hadn’t gone to JaeHoon, the soldiers surrounding the bamboo grove would have killed him and his family right then and there.

“It is finished.”

“Do you think you can win?”

“We cannot.”

Hearing Heon’s calm reply, Doyoon frowned. But in the next moment, it disappeared, and a smile stretched across his lips. Just because one endured well did not mean they bore it well. Heon merely did not have the desire for power. However, he craved life more than anyone.

“Why are you being so honest with me?”

“Because it doesn’t matter. You won’t go easy on us just because I am honest with you, are you?”

“Then are you going to die just as the Crown Prince of SeoMoon wishes?”

Would this all end if he died?

If only he disappeared, would MoonWon find peace?

If that was true, he would not have been enduring all this so painfully.

“I am merely doing the best I can.”

Like a chained beast that had gotten its first taste of freedom, Heon looked to be at peace. Doyoon’s eyes sharpened as he tried to figure out what was in Heon’s mind.

He was curious about what this shrewd guy could be thinking.

“I am thinking of becoming a criminal.”