Book 3

character you need for book 3:

officer Woo Dohwan (Mad Dog, Master, My Country)

Minister Seo of Baekje focus

The ruckus in the palace was as unexpected as a strike of lighting on a sunny day. All the ministers and special guests were drinking and eating the birthday dishes, dedicating their toasts to the young king, when a bloody guard burst through the door of the celebration hall, collapsing before he had even uttered one word.

The silence that followed this horrible entrance revealed the sounds from outside and sent shivers down everyone's back. It was the sound of war. Blades were colliding, men screaming in agony, shouted commands. The palace was under attack.

"Protect the king!" some guard in the hall shouted and a wall of soldiers gathered in front of the doors, giving the anxious mood in the room a hint of panic.

"What is going on?" king Hwon demanded to know and rose from his throne at the end of the hall. "How can someone break into my palace?"

No one answered him. The ministers were too busy with being scared for their lives, and the guards had better things to do.

The doors were pushed open.

"Who is that?!" king Hwon shouted angrily.

It was hard to see what happened in front of the wall of soldiers, so everyone was stretching their necks to get a better view. It turned out to be unnecessary. In the next moment, blades clinked and the wall dispersed, revealing a handful of young men with blood-covered faces and bright eyes.

"Officer Woo," one of the minister's said shocked, and the name echoed through the hall.

"Officer Heo," another realized.

"It is a military rebellion!" someone shouted.

Hwon looked trapped between anger and fear.

It was no wonder. His palace guards fell like ants under the boot of a man, until the only people standing were the five young men in war armor.

One walked forward and minister Seo had the strange notion that the face was somewhat familiar to him. He looked back at the king and it hit him. This stranger looked almost like their ruler. How was that possible?

"Hello brother," the demon covered in blood said with a dark grin. "Why aren't you happy to see me? Is a family reunion not the perfect birthday present?"

The soldier stepper further into the hall, followed by the officers of Baekje army. What was going on here?

"What are you babbling?" the king spat at the rude intruder.

"Hwon Hye," a small voice said into the silence. The grand princess rose from her seat. "Hye, is that you?" she asked a little louder.

The man who was supposed to be Hwon Hye laughed coldly, then he turned to the guests. "As you all can hear, my mother recognizes me," he said loud and clear, causing whispers to rise in the hall. "Yes! I am Hwon Hye, younger brother of that garbage king you follow so pliantly." He pointed a finger at their ruler.

Then he turned back at the confused crowd. "I was raised by my uncle Heo Joonho, brother of the grand princess. When everyone said he went missing, he was carrying me to Goguryeo to hide me away from the world. But here I am. Are you happy, mother?"

The grand empress shook her head behind her sleeve, stepping back a few steps.

With a bang, the door flew open once again and a whole horde of bloody soldier spilled into the hall.

"The palace is under control," one reported.

As if that was the call, the officers nodded at each other and marched forward to step behind the seats of the royal family members.

The man called Hye followed them. "Let's see. Whom in the palace of Silla did you kill first?" His look grazed over the grand princess who had been forced to sit down again, the standing king, and his wife and son on the other side.

"No," was all their ruler said before he pulled his sword and charged against his offender. "You worthless peasant can die today!" he roared.

His sword was caught by two daggers. And before anyone understood what was happening, his weapon was broken in half with a swish of the twin blades.

But after the initial shock, it did not stop Hwon from throwing blows at his opponent, his brother as it appeared. But everyone understood that he was at a disadvantage. The savage move of the Hye brother had shortened his blade, so that he had to come into the striking range of the twin blades.

Silver was gleaming and clinking while the whole hall watched in silent horror. No one moved, no one spoke, everyone was stricken by the suddenness of this invasion. The bloody soldier was wielding his weapons like an extension of his arms. Wherever he saw a weakness, he struck, systematically taking down their king until one of his blades caught a hand and the fight ended with a toenail-curling scream.

Silence settled over the hall once again while everyone tried to believe what they were looking at. Their king was on his knees in front of a rebellion leader.

"Mother should have kept uncle Heo at the palace. Maybe then you would have stood a chance," the soldier said quietly, but it seemed to boom through the hall like a shout.

With a shove, Hwon was seated back into his throne, and with a thump the dagger that had struck through his hand was plunged into the wooden armrest, nailing his arm into place. Some guests looked away, unable to stand the barbaric sight. When the second dagger fixed the other hand in place, the queen was screaming with her husband.

"I think it was the king you killed first," Hye said when he straightened his back to look down on his brother. "But since father is already dead, why don't we go for..." He looked around until his gaze fell onto the six-year-old prince who was pressed against his mother's side. "Oh, and who're you?" he asked while crouching down in front of their table.

"No, no," the queen cried. "Not Yung-ah, not my boy," she begged.

"Yung?" the brute asked. "Well, emperor Kim was poisoned..." He pulled something from his sleeve and poured it into the cup of the prince.

The queen cried loud and heartbreakingly when the officer's pulled her off her son, and the minister finally woke up from their stupor, shouting and rising to stop the slaughter that was about to happen. But everyone was held back by the rebels.

"Yung-ah, don't worry. I'm uncle Jeon," their leader told the boy and caressed his small head. "Let's drink together, shall we?"

The small boy wanted to look at his mother, seemingly helpless at what to do, but the Jeon guy stopped his head from turning and handed him the cup. "Drink."

The cries and shouts were deafening when the small child put the cup to his lips and did as he was told. Less than a breath later, he collapsed.

The queen cried and finally broke free from the arms of her capturers, falling over her dead son, and the Hye brother, or Jeon, or whatever his name was, turned away disinterested and looked at the king instead. Minster Seo only felt disgust toward that man.

"Does it hurt?" the brute asked the young emperor who had sunken down in his throne with a face twisted in pain. "Your son's death, I mean," the bastard said lightly, as if he was joking with them.

"I WILL KILL YOU!" their ruler shouted, spit flying from his mouth. "I WILL END YOU LIKE I ENDED HIM!"

"Oh, now that you mention it," the rebellion leader said lightly. "The king was not the only one you sent your pawns to kill. There was also the crown princess. Did you know that she was carrying a child?"

"Be gone you monster!" the grand princess interrupted. "I should have killed you the day you were born!"

A cold face turned at her. "Yes, you should have. Stupid woman." Then he turned back as if nothing had been said and walked back in front of the queen who was holding the limp body of her son, crying heartbreakingly.

"You stabbed her," he said flatly. "But I'm not a friend of mutilating women. I'll spare that for you, brother." He took the woman's head between his hands, almost caringly, and after a loud crack, the painfilled sobbing stopped abruptly.

Minister Seo could hear gagging around him and was troubled to compose himself.

"What kind of monster are you?" the minister of personnel on the other side of the hall dared to speak up. His voice was shaking with terror.

"I'm here to take revenge," the rebellion leader replied nonchalantly. "Am I not allowed to revenge the people I love?"

The minister who had asked, opened his mouth for a reply, but no words would follow. He sunk back into his chair.

"And last," the soldier continued with a cold smile. "Mother. I always wondered what I would feel when I see you. I'm a little disappointed." He walked closer to her, making her tremble like a leave in the wind. "I feel nothing."

"No," a pitiful sob slipped from king Hwon's lips. "Stop, please stop," he begged, but was ignored.

"I would never have thought that someone who can mutilate another man's family, can feel love for his own mother," the killer said. "It makes me feel disgusted."

He threw the crying ruler a brief glance, and minister Seo's eyes followed his example. He could not feel pity for their ruler. If the rebellion leader spoke the truth, he was the cause of his family's brutal end. Minister Seo could only feel disdain for him.

"But his sentence has to wait until I'm done with you, mother. Do you know how he killed the grand princess of Silla?" the brute asked, and all the eyes flickered back to the pair of mother and son.

The grand princess shook her head, hands shaking uncontrollably.

"Her heart was stopped by acupuncture," was the answer. Then he sighed as if he was contemplating. "But since I don't know acupuncture, I can only work with my own means." His fingers flew over her chest, so fast that if one blinked, one would have missed it.

"What..." someone next to minister Seo whispered, but his answer came almost immediate.

First it had looked as if nothing had happened, but suddenly the grand princess grabbed her chest and heaved a heavy breath like her throat was constricted. She breathed stertorously, then her breath stopped all together, her eyes bulged from their holes and she collapsed with twitching limbs.

"What did you do!" the king whaled. "What happened to her?"

"She suffocated," the rebellion leader answered flatly, then he turned towards his last victim. "Now about you, brother..." He pulled his sword from his waist and swished at the king's head.

Everyone held their breath, but nothing happened. Then the topknot with the golden sangtugwan slowly slid off their ruler's head and messy short strands fell around his face. He had been humiliated to the core.

"Will you not leave me any dignity?" their defeated emperor asked.

Hye put his sword to his brother's throat. "You lost all when you sent your spies into Daegu palace like a coward." And with a flick of his wrist, the throat of the ruler of Baekje spilled crimson rain over his robes.

The killer turned around to the ministers. "As you've heard, I'm a legal successor to the throne of Baekje, Hwon Hye!" he called. "Does someone disagree? Then he should come forward."

No one moved.

"Who is the minister of war?" the Hwon son asked after he smiled a satisfied and cold smile at their cowardness.

"This one," a soldier answered and pulled up minister Lim. The man was dragged in front of the rebellion leader.

"For allowing the marching against Silla and disturbing the peace of the south, I sentence you to death," the young soldier said self-satisfied and lifted his bloody sword.

His comrades turned the minister around, so that he faced the crowd, and then they let go of him to stand back.

"This is what I'll do to corrupt ministers and to ministers who do bad against the people," the brute announced like he was the symbol of justice and righteousness. Then silver flickered and a head fell to the floor.

Minister Seo could feel his stomach lurch at the sight and suppressed his gagging.

"Now follow me, my ministers," Hwon Hye said and turned toward his brother to pull the daggers out and grab the late king's lapels to drag him out of the hall.

"Move!" the soldiers called and pushed the ministers after their leader.

Like a morbid procession they walked through the palace toward the main gate. Everywhere they passed, they saw bodies on the ground and the looming presence of black-robed soldiers of the Baekje army.

How had one young man been able to gather the whole Daejeon force behind him? What did he say to convince them of this rebellion, to tolerate his slaughter in the celebration hall? Was the name Hwon Hye enough to work this miracle?

They reached the main gate and Hye let his brother's body drop to the street where onlookers stopped and watched in horror.

"See! I am your new king!" he shouted into the street. Then he turned around to the officers. "Send them out. I'll summon whomever I need."

His comrades followed suit and pushed all the ministers onto the street before closing the doors of the palace. The loud bang was like the final blow for everyone to make them understand what had happened.

The royal family was dead. A rebellion leader, an unknown prince of Baekje, had taken over the palace. And they could either bow their heads or lose them.

Minister Seo decided that it was time to visit the temple.

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