FIB Ch 10 part 2

PR by neji

She was lying down, but sleep eluded her.

MoonWon turned her eyes to the empty spot next to her. Heon had received a summons from the Palace, so he was currently in the capital.

MoonWon climbed out of bed and put on a thick cloak before heading outside.

“Ah!”

“If you plan on screaming, then just let me say one thing. I had a very difficult time getting here.”

Despite his claims, Doyoon didn’t seem like he had had much of a difficult time. His lips stretched into a smile as he gazed at MoonWon. For a man who had intruded into the inner residence where a woman was alone, Doyoon didn’t seem fazed by his improper behavior at all. 

“My husband is not here.”

“I know that. That’s why I came. Lately, the hardest person to see is not Heon. It is you.”

“Pardon?”

“Heon has hidden you so well that the Consort, Crown Prince, and even the Emperor are having a difficult time trying to meet with you.”

MoonWon tilted her head at the strange piece of information. While she was inside the inner residence, she hadn’t met anyone else. Yusun and none of the servants had let it show that she was being kept hidden away.

Doyoon glanced at MoonWon and furrowed his brow.

“I wanted to tell you the truth, but it seems that you’ve already caught on.”

When MoonWon did not deny it, Doyoon let out a sigh.

Although he did want Heon as his subordinate, now was not the time to take him back to Ju. At least, not yet. Although the matter of his succession was still in question, the old emperor was still in good health. The foundation of SeoMoon still held firm.

Half of SeoMoon’s imperial forces consisted of private soldiers owned by the nobility. Because of the peaceful times of prosperity, the power had begun to fracture internally. Within a few years’ time, the nation of SeoMoon would be worth attacking.

That was why Doyoon had a slight desire to take what he wanted. However, before his efforts could bear fruit, a great scandal had exploded within SeoMoon.

“You are Heon’s weakness.”

“……”

“Even if Heon’s authority increases, it will never be able to defeat the imperial bloodline. The recent events might have only served to be an ignition to something bigger. However, burning everything to the ground doesn’t seem to be a wise idea.”

“What do you mean?”

“I definitely handed the evidence of your father’s misplaced guilt and the Consort’s hand in all of it to SeoMoon’s emperor. But that old fart is doing his best to bury it. Isn’t his love amazing?”

“……”

“Had that old man acted differently, I would not have personally come to meet you like this. Either way, the time has come. Don’t you think it’s time for you to make a decision?”

MoonWon felt that the way he said ‘decision’ sounded like a command.

However, she couldn’t tell him she didn’t want to.

“I like men like Heon who do not cherry-pick their words. I like people like you who are not afraid to contradict me. That’s why I had no other choice but to speak with you like this. Rather than the both of you breaking apart, isn’t it better that only one of you breaks instead?”

“Are you telling me to break down even more than I have already?”

“No. I am merely asking you to make a sacrifice. Once he turns the Consort and the Crown Prince into his enemies, the one who will be in danger is Heon.”

When MoonWon’s expression showed no change, Doyoon felt apprehensive.

He knew how cruel his words to MoonWon sounded. If Heon had been here, he might have raised his sword and threatened to slit Doyoon’s throat, regardless of his imperial position.

But it still needed to be done.

“I won’t ask you to make all the sacrifices on your own. If you’d like, I’ll make my move as well.”

In Doyoon’s big picture, he needed Heon. And if the only way to grab onto Heon was to use MoonWon, then he’d always intervene in the inner workings of SeoMoon as the Emperor of Ju.

“For the sake of my own nation, I want to save both of you.”

MoonWon had no choice but to marry Heon.

Because the only way to save her family was to cling onto him.

Wasn’t this the first opportunity she had to make a decision all by herself?

Drip, drip.

“Ah…”

Tears burst out of her eyes and trickled down her cheeks.

MoonWon did her best to swallow the cries that threatened to leave her lips and covered her mouth with her hands.

The end was drawing near.

* * *

As soon as Heon arrived, the door firmly shut closed.

Those who had been waiting for him on the other side of the door called out to him, but Heon did not even turn to give them a glance.

As soon as he arrived, he changed his clothes and made his way to the inner residence where MoonWon dwelled.

He didn’t ask what had happened or what he should do. Instead, Heon buried his face deep into MoonWon’s embrace and let out a sigh.

“Did you have a difficult time?”

“No.”

Despite his answer, Heon continued to keep his face buried in her embrace and said no more. MoonWon’s hand stroked his hair before traveling down to his face. Heon flinched at her sudden approach, but he quickly suppressed his thirst and pulled her into his arms.

“Haa.”

MoonWon’s hand trembled for a moment as it touched the scar behind his neck. With soft hands, she pulled him to her as well.

They didn’t know who had initiated it, but they soon began leaving traces of themselves on each others’ bodies. Their ragged breaths tangled in the air, and they left red marks along the other’s skin.

“Hnng.”

A gasp flowed out of her lips as Heon buried himself within her. When Heon saw that she was having a difficult time adjusting, he stopped moving. However, MoonWon shook her head. When her soft touch drew him in, Heon reached his limit.

As if they were the only ones in the world. Their pathetically frantic movements brought each other to the peak.

As ecstasy coursed through their bodies, they finally reached the climax of this play. Heon let himself burst within MoonWon’s body.

As the remnants of their intercourse began to fade away, MoonWon sat up. Heon laid his head down on her lap.

MoonWon’s hand slowly stroked his sweat-drenched hair and then the scar on his neck.

“Time will pass by like a dream, and all the pain and memories will disappear.”

Having left his body in the care of her hands, Heon opened his eyes when he heard her words. After MoonWon decided to live, he knew what her next decision would be. But he could never accept it.

“I don’t plan on sending you away.”

“I don’t think we were fated to be.”

“We can just create the fate between us.”

“You want to protect me, right? I want to do the same for you.”

JaeHoon, who was trying to take MoonWon away. Consort Yu, who treated MoonWon like a thorn in her eye. And Heon, the man who was trying to protect MoonWon.

Her very existence was isolating Heon and putting him in danger.

“I still don’t plan on sending you away. That will never happen.”

Even if he was acting blindly and dangerously, he didn’t care.

A life without MoonWon no longer held any meaning for him. Heon lifted his body away from hers. The raging anger in his gaze settled down.

He pulled her slender arm and felt her warmth in his hands.

“It can get better.”

MoonWon remained silent as she burrowed into his embrace. As he comforted MoonWon, Heon’s breaths grew steady in sleep. MoonWon opened her closed eyes.

She gazed down at Heon and carefully encased his face in her hand. Even though he was in a deep sleep, when Heon felt her touch, he covered her hand with his.

‘If your weakness is me…’

If she was why all of his enemies were approaching him…

Her eyes lingered on his face as if she were trying to engrave his image into her memories. She watched him for a while longer before she placed a short kiss on his lips.

‘I don’t hate you.’

MoonWon and Heon had merely done the best they could do in their positions.

And all that hard work had led them here. That was all. She did not hate him.

‘If the reason for all this is me…’

The only way for Heon and MoonWon to survive this dangerous situation…

‘It will all get better now.’

She did not want to watch as the man she loved got hurt or died before her eyes.

* * *

The few drops of rain had turned into a complete torrent when Heon reached the promised location where he was to meet Lee Moon. Heon brushed the raindrops off of his clothes and sat down across from Lee Moon.

“Sorry I’m late.”

“I requested to meet with you one-sidedly, so it’s not a problem. Thank you for coming out like this.”

Despite the man’s gentle words, Heon’s expression did not change.

Watching Heon’s stiff face, Lee Moon let out a sigh.

“It seems that you did not come here looking for a compromise.”

“Consort Yu will leave the Palace just as you wish.”

“And I’m sure His Highness the Crown Prince will step down from his position as well.”

When Lee Moon saw that Heon did not deny this, he shook his head. Many voices called out for the Consort to step down, but the same amount of people began to wonder whether JaeHoon was suitable as the Crown Prince. Not only was the Crown Prince indecisive but he had also begun to covet the wife of a subordinate, and this was slowly strangling him.

“No matter how much His Majesty favors you, there are things that cannot be done. The sword you are brandishing at the Consort and the Crown Prince may end up piercing your own neck instead.”

“Since when have you been so worried about me?”

“Chief Commander!”

Instead of apologizing for something that had already begun, Lee Moon’s hoarse voice rang in the air.

Heon had fallen for their foolish trick and pushed MoonWon away as he wounded her. He didn’t think they’d realize their culpability in all this.

Whenever he saw how MoonWon was preparing to leave at any moment, Heon felt anxious.

She claimed that he was being isolated because of her, but Heon had never planned on allying himself with these people from the very start. 

If the problem lied with the royal blood, if the Palace was the issue, he was more than willing to become an evil demon and destroy them all.

“M-Master!”

When Heon heard Junghwan’s voice, he turned his head.

He was overcome by an ominous feeling, but he quickly brushed it off.

“Those who were trying to enter the inner residence were stopped. But the Mistress is…”

Heon pushed Junghwan away as he hurriedly got on top of his horse.

His heart raced faster than the fiercely falling rain.

The warmth of her skin under his hands, the feel of her slender finger on his lips, her warm breaths against his chest as he stroked her in his embrace, reassuring her that everything was alright. All of these memories were still clearly embedded on his skin.

“Haa.”

Strained breaths burst out of his lips.

His mind was wiped completely blank, and the only person who remained was MoonWon.

He had definitely checked many times over and made sure. With no family left, where could MoonWon go?!

He entered the bamboo grove and opened the first door. Panting from the exertion, Heon ran towards the inner residence. Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks.

The sight of the men who were tied up did not even enter his eyes. Instead, he barely managed to open the door he did not want to open.

‘I like this place. And it’s a bit difficult, but I feel that living a life with you isn’t so bad. Of course, this may just be my one-sided wish.’

Her wish had at some point become his own.

Even though he had pushed her away, unable to accept her, she continued to smile at him despite being hurt by his behavior. 

“I told you I’d help you. But you just left in the end.”

Heon gazed at the empty room. He turned his head when he heard the murmurs next to him. Doyoon let out a heavy sigh when he saw Heon’s eyes.

Doyoon had wanted to have MoonWon’s support as he pacified Heon.

“It looks like your wife was a lot stronger than I thought.”

She realized that her existence was not only being utilized by the Consort and the Crown Prince to manipulate Heon but could also be used by Doyoon as well. 

If Doyoon had MoonWon in Ju and used her as a way to get Heon to come over to his side, Heon was the type of person who would not hesitate to do so. Doyoon never planned on doing something like this, but having been deceived by numerous people before, MoonWon would not have taken that chance.

‘It isn’t right to desire something that cannot be obtained. The despair that comes with the disappointment is something that can break you.’

Was MoonWon someone Heon could not have from the very beginning?

No, that wasn’t true.

MoonWon was the one who had always approached him first. MoonWon had been by his side from the very beginning.

‘Why are you so unwilling to listen to me at all?’

“What is going on here?! This is…!”

Lee Moon had followed after Heon and entered inside. What he saw caused his breath to catch.

He didn’t pay any heed to the empty room, but he recognized the person standing in front of Heon. It was Yeon Doyoon, the Emperor of Ju.

He glanced at all the men who were crouched on their knees. Then he closed his eyes.

Why was the Crown Prince of SeoMoon unable to give up on one woman?! Even if he couldn’t forget her, JaeHoon should have learned the virtue of patience.

Lee Moon had tried to curb the impulsive prince, but paranoia and jealousy had continued to eat at his heart.

“I should never have fallen in love.”

What was it that he was trying to protect? What was he going to return to?! In the end, the decision he had made so arrogantly had led to MoonWon’s absence.

As a man who was unable to take care of the mess around him, what right did he have to fall in love?!

“Ahahaha…”

Heon burst into laughter as the rain fiercely pummeled down on him from above.

He couldn’t tell if the tears coming out of his eyes were from laughter or from despair.

MoonWon had left.

And his love had come to a screeching halt.

* * *

After MoonWon disappeared, there were rumors going around that the Chief Commander had confined himself within the bamboo grove.

While Heon was at home, Lee Moon and JaeHoon had managed to return things to the way they were. When public opinion had settled, the Emperor ignored the incident and buried it under the rug.

“Do they think I’ll allow myself to die alone like this?”

The only thing that had changed was Consort Yu’s circumstances. She managed to avoid being deposed thanks to the authority of the duke.

However, because there was talk that Consort Yu had pushed her own crimes onto YongUn, she wasn’t able to make any moves.

“Your Highness Consort, the Chief Commander has arrived.”

Consort Yu straightened up when she heard of Heon’s unexpected visit.

Instead of dreading this unexpected visit, she got excited. She had a strange feeling that he would fix everything for her. Her sharp intuition that had only grown sharper in the Palace was telling her that this was an opportunity.

“Hurry up and let him in.”

Consort Yu stood up and began to tidy up her appearance.

When the door opened and Heon walked in, Consort Yu hurried over to him. Heon had lost some weight, but his eyes were as cold as ever as he looked down at her.

“I heard that the child left.”

Heon didn’t make any movement when she brought up ‘the child’.

A light returned to Consort Yu’s eyes as she gazed at Heon. She grabbed onto his cold hand.

“She did it for your sake. I know it may be difficult right now, but this is for the best. Both for you and her. Yes, you must think of it that way…”

“I will do as you ask.”

“What?”

Consort Yu glanced up at Heon in surprise.

MoonWon was right.

No matter how much Heon tried to run them into a corner, nothing would change. JaeHoon would always have authority as the Crown Prince, and Consort Yu planned on living her life without taking responsibility for her actions.

‘It was a mistake to drag her into my world.’

Heon had brought MoonWon into his home in order to stab at the Consort’s weakness. He had never planned on giving her his heart.

No matter how much he raged within a residence without a mistress, no matter how much he writhed and shouted, nothing would change.

“Power and authority does not have to go to the Crown Prince.”

“What?”

“The Emperor has other princes than the Crown Prince. Isn’t that right?”

Because everyone believed that the Crown Prince was the definite successor of the Emperor, no one had bothered to raise up another prince as the future leader. MoonWon had left him, but nothing had changed.

That was why Heon could not forgive SeoMoon.

“Heon?”

“But in exchange, you must act accordingly. If you try to stop me, your situation will be a lot worse than mere confinement.”

He was afraid to think about what kind of heart MoonWon had when she made the decision to leave him. The wound on the back of his neck began to throb.

“If you get too greedy, you will find out how different your position can become.”

He couldn’t give up on MoonWon.

It wasn’t for her sake but for his own. He could not live without her.

‘Try hiding from me.’

Even if she left his side, she was still somewhere within this damned world. He would bring her back when he found her, and if she resisted, he’d do it by force.

Heon’s eyes grew cold as he looked past Consort Yu.

“Let us change SeoMoon.”

* * *

“Mistress, be careful.”

Hong-yeom had taken the lead and was walking down the middle of the road as he kicked the rocks away with his feet. The sound of the rolling rocks rang in his ears, and he watched the rocks disappear. He glanced back at MoonWon as she followed behind him.

“I’ve walked much more dangerous roads than this before.”

“That was then, and this is now. There are some dips in the road here.”

“I don’t think you should have followed me out.”

When Heon found out that she was planning on leaving, he had taken all the measures he could to keep her in the bamboo grove. However, the grove was a large place, so he couldn’t block every single exit. Therefore, it hadn’t been that difficult to sneak out.

However, because Hong-yeom knew MoonWon very well and anticipated her attempt to leave alone, he had been waiting for her at the exit he believed she would take.

And just as he expected, MoonWon came to him as she made her escape. However, she tried to keep him from leaving with her.

“I didn’t follow you out because you told me to. I followed you because I wanted to. It’s too late anyway. I’m sure the bamboo grove has been turned upside-down by now.”

MoonWon lowered her eyes when she heard his calm reply.

Her father had given up his precious life for her. Because of this, she managed to survive, but she did not want to become a stumbling block for Heon as well.

He told her he was fine, but could she be fine as she watched him enter into more danger?

The answer was ‘no’.

“Where are you going to go?”

“I’m not sure. I think I’ll wander around for now. I’m sure we’ll find a suitable place to live at some point.”

She didn’t plan on doing anything just yet. Hadn’t she survived just fine during the times when she had nothing?

Of course, back then, she had SoYoon, Yuhwa, and YongUn. But now she had Hong-yeom.

“How dare you follow us here?!”

MoonWon was thrust out of her thoughts when she heard Hong-yeom’s sharp voice. When MoonWon turned around, she saw Yeori limping towards them.

The human heart could be so fickle. Although she hated Yeori very much, she couldn’t help but feel sorry for her as she limped towards them, unable to meet their eyes.

“Get lost!”

“Hong-yeom, that’s enough!”

“Mistress! Do you know what that wretch has done?! We’re in this situation because of her…!”

MoonWon stroked Hong-yeom’s angry head.

Hong-yeom shut his mouth at her silent action, but he continued to glare at Yeori. When Hong-yeom settled down, MoonWon turned her gaze back to Yeori.

“I haven’t forgiven you.”

“I-I know, Mistress.”

“It’ll be difficult for you to follow us with that leg. This will be different from the work you’re used to doing at the residence. Do you still want to follow us?”

“Mistress!”

Having lost her elderly mother, Yeori was also alone.

She felt that this was another way YongUn was encouraging MoonWon to live on after having lost everything.

When Yeori nodded, MoonWon looked at Hong-yeom and spoke.

“Then let’s go together.”

When MoonWon gave her permission, the tears in Yeori’s eyes dripped onto the ground.

When MoonWon gestured to Yeori with her hand, Yeori immediately went to her. Hong-yeom straightened up and refused to leave MoonWon’s side, almost as if he were warning Yeori.

Glancing at the two of them, MoonWon let out a tense breath.

Although she was covered in wounds, she was going to try and live on. Although each step forward filled her with dread, all her present worries would fade into memories as time marched on.