Swoosh—a slick, terrorizing, deadly arrow traveled freely in space. It seemed that it had been looking for its target for quite a time. Finally, it had found its prey, something to be devoured with its toxic unknown elements.

There was Lady Min. Upon hearing the Prime Minister's deadly words, she felt paralyzed, as if something fiendish had stabbed her heart. She felt like her blood pump ceased a beat like something was pounding and squeezing it so desperately. She could not believe what she just heard. If her Lord was willing to let Chil Yook and Lady Jang, who had been his puppets for years, die, what could even secure her future in the palace? Any day, any hour, any minute from now, she could possibly hear her name to be the next one to be killed. She was trapped in the hands of a mentally unstable nobleman who was willing to do everything for his sake. The worst thing: she was powerless.

"Wh-wh-what did you say, My Lord? Chil Yook and Lady Jang?" the nervous matron asked.

"Yes! I am quite impressed that you still have a good sense of hearing even if you are already at the dawns of your life." the Prime Minister chuckled.

Jung Ho's face changed, back to its serious visage. "Ah, before I forget, do you have it?"

Lady Min nodded, getting something from the pocket of her turquoise skirt. "Is this what you are looking for?"

"Yes. Good," Jung Ho commended, glancing to Lady Min as she showed a small purse half-filled with unknown herbs with a mint scent. He stood and walked to the door. "Let us go back to my chambers. Pain is attacking my dislocated arm again."

~~•~~

The entire day passed by easily as if no one would be prosecuted tomorrow. There was no fiasco, or any rushed times about the preparation because everything was arranged discreetly, from the venue, the posters, the equipment—everything. When all things had been settled, and as the fangs of the nighttime started consuming the remaining light of the blue skies, Jung Ho invited Dae Wong for a small tea meeting at his balcony unexpectedly. This time, the King was not around.

"Your Excellency, Minister Dae Wong is here," announced by a lady-in-waiting, sliding the balcony door.

The young minister's lavender cloak danced gracefully in the cold breeze of the twilight as he ambled down the balcony. Jung Ho had waited patiently at a small table while sipping his green tea.

"I appreciate your presence here, Minister Dae Wong," Jung Ho greeted, smiling.

Upon reaching the table, Dae Wong bowed. "Consider this as an ample amount of courtesy since I am a civilized person of this nation."

"Have a seat... Of course, I know you are. I mean, you do not yank somebody's collar when you are furious, I guess." the mischievous prime minister tittered.

Dae Wong's brows scrunched, trying to have a gasp of the Prime Minister's statements. He cleared his throat and asked, "I actually do not understand this invitation out of the blue. May we please proceed with the whole point... because I have other things to do?"

Jung Ho grinned in response. "I admire you for being blunt regarding what you really feel. As a matter of fact, you and I have a lot in common... which reminds me of what just happened regarding the council meeting the other day, when the King was deep asleep. It is about my investiture as the new Head of the Ceremonial Rites."

Sipping his tea, Dae Wong already sensed where the conversation would eventually go. Not me, you sly fox. Not me.

Jung Ho asked, "It has been baffling me until now. Why did you take side with me? Why did you cast a vote for me to become the Head of the Ceremonial Rites, replacing the King? You do know how the council works. It is always unanimous. One 'no' vote from you and that position will remain as an unreachable dream."

"Do not be full of yourself, Prime Minister. I think you know the answer since you have been always one-step ahead of us. You even predicted the eclipse. That means that you must already have predicted an obvious answer to your question," Dae Wong answered sarcastically.

"It just amuses me that you are not realizing the severity of what you have done. Being the Head of the Ceremonial Rites would make me the de facto ruler of this kingdom. With just one word from the Heavens..." Jung Ho paused and chuckled.

"Oh, the Heavens... I could dethrone your king... and even you." Jung Ho's lips pursed into a thin line, his eyes teasing Dae Wong.

The minister smiled and answered, "My apologies, for I would be out of line. Is that a threat? Would you really go that low?"

Jung Ho was quite stunned at what he had heard. He could not imagine that he would actually hear those impudent words from a council member. The renowned Jung Ho, the iron prime minister certainly had met his match in an argument play.

Twitching his eyes, Jung Ho responded, "Of course, not. I only care about the people."

"So does the King and so do I. That was why we did it. We did it for the people. We do not want a rebellion to happen. That was why the Hwabaek agreed with the people's petition: to make you the Head of the Ceremonial Rites." Dae Wong stood and bowed to the Prime Minister.

"Forgive me, for I must go." he walked towards the exit.

However, as Dae Wong was about to open the door, he paused, turned his head to the right, and said, "This is what being a Hwabaek member is all about: serving the people of Silla. My gratitude for the tea, and may you please have a pleasant night."

Carving a derisive smile, Jung Ho's fingers danced along his lips, and he uttered, "Dae Wong. Impressive audacity. I do not desire you to be an enemy."

The entire night passed unnoticeable. With a cold, numbing breeze of the spring winds, filled with the fragrance of the spring asters, and the gibbous moon above the vast sky, everyone was lulled into a great sleep, preparing for another groundbreaking event for tomorrow.

~~•~~

When the sun smiled in the eastern skies of the kingdom, people in the palace got ready. The necessary officers had re-checked and prepared everything. The hwarangs, in their training grounds, did their morning fighting exercises. Then, they were assigned to their specific positions.

At the underground prison, the hwarangs assigned released Chil Yook, who was looking like a scruffy hermit residing in the navel of the forest. The only thing that made him recognizable as a high-ranking official was his red headband, with the infamous dragon insignia. 

Walking down the palace courtyard, going out of to the public market where the trial would be held, his entire torso was tied with red nylon ropes, his hands were also handcuffed by chains. Guards and hwarangs escorted him, front and back. Lady Jang, on the other hand, was tied as well. Wearing a full white robe and her hair tied simply by a hairpin, her face was blank as a bleak desert. She was also escorted by some hwarangs.

Upon reaching the palace eastern gate, the two crossed paths. They threw short glances with each other before they continued walking towards the public market. Outside the palace, people were whispering on the sidewalks as the entourage of the convicted palace traitors paraded. Mixtures of opinions were heard. Some could not believe that those two high-ranking officials were actually traitors of the nation. Some even prayed to the Heavens for mercy, believing that their damned kingdom must be cleansed from evil.

After an hour, the convicted had reached the eastern market, which was the largest marketplace in Seorabeol, with the largest public square. There were countless people thronging in a pile of crowd, blocking the way and exchanging loud chats with each other.

"Give way!" a hwarangdo at the front shouted.

Everyone moved to the sides, giving way to the marching entourage. When the people unclogged the path, the entourage continued parading to the center of the public square. There was a wide, hexagonal stony platform with two chairs in the middle. The platform was guarded by hwarangs on its perimeter. On the front of it was an average-sized maroon dais—where the King was seated on his throne, the Prime Minister on his right, Dae Wong on his left, and the rest of the council members sat on the sides. Court ladies and personal hwarangs stood below, lining in attendance. A huge drum assembled on the right side of the dais, waiting to be rolled. Moreover, below the dais in front of the square, Minister Hoon, who was the Head of the Prosecution Department, patiently sat on his separate yellow-covered table, with some piles of scrolls, a sound block, and a gavel.

Lady Jang and Chil Yook were assisted to sit on the two chairs in the platform, waiting for the commencement of the trial. When the drums had thundered on the sides, Hoon stood and announced, "The trial of two palace traitors, Grand Marshal Chil Yook and Head Priestess Lady Jang shall commence."

There was ear-piercing silence.

Hoon sat down, picked a red scroll from a pile, and read the contents aloud, "Grand Marshal Chil Yook was arrested on the night of the eclipse, time of Hwasi at a small farmhouse in the woods near the district of Daeya. He was reported to have murdered several hwarangs in an instant. We have witnesses who could testify to the incident. Bring them in!

A group of yellow, blue, and green nangdos emerged from the crowd. They marched into the platform, walked past the two convicted, and bowed to Hoon. They turned around and bowed to the crowd as well.

A yellow group nangdo spoke, "We were on our way to a house near Daeya because one of the Queen's cook is set to deliver a baby. The Queen offered her palanquin since the cook's hometown is too far from here, and it would be a problem if she would give birth in the palace as well since the Queen was also set to give birth that night."

Hearing the nangdo's statements, Chil Yook scoffed from his seat, knowing the complete farcicality of his testimonies. He stared at the Prime Minister, but he avoided his eyes.

Another nangdo reported, "When the cook was about to give birth inside, the Grand Marshal attacked. We were the ones at the back of the house so before he could kill us, we had managed to escape. Our apologies for escaping, instead of helping our fellow hwarangs." the nangdo bowed his head, teary-eyed.

Hoon stood and asked Chil Yook, "Grand Marshal, what is your take on this? Do you acknowledge their statements to be factual?"

Chil Yook, in response, glared to the Head Prosecutor, "Yes. What they have said are true."

Everyone was shocked at what they just heard. The crowd was simply stunned with his temerity. His words sent creeps down to the people's spine, making their nape hairs stood in fright. As the flocking mob continued their indistinct, terrorized chatters, the King gazed at the Prime Minister on his right, thinking. I could not believe what you just did, Jung Ho. I never thought that you could actually abandon your henchman... Manipulate these witnesses' statements just to save yourself? On the other note, at least, Chil Yook would be gone.

Jung Ho, who was looking from afar, recalled what just happened the night before the trial. He remembered that night he went to Chil Yook's cell and personally talked to him. The conversation did not actually last long because he stated his intentions straight to the point.

~~•~~

"Chil Yook. This will be the last order that you will receive from me as a Gukseon."

"What do you mean, My Lord" Chil Yook asked.

"The trial tomorrow, just do it. Admit all of your sins and accept the punishment."

"The King might kill me."

"Then so be it. Your life as a hwarang does not belong to you. It belongs to me as your master. Therefore, I am the one who shall say when you die or when you live... Tomorrow, you die."

~~•~~  

"Silence!" Hoon pummeled his gavel. The hwarangs on the side raised their swords in the air, and the crowd stopped from their conversations.

"Is that all?" Hoon continued asking the witnesses.

"Yes, My Lord," a green group nangdo answered.

The interrogation ended, and the nangdos left. Then, Lady Jang's case was opened. According to the reports, she was apprehended for manipulating and exploiting Science. Instead of telling the truth regarding the coming out of the solar eclipse, she had declared its non-occurrence, causing an extreme chaos in the whole kingdom.

Both of them had actually committed highly punishable sins, one actually executed murder per se, and the other one was believed to had done the same crime indirectly because her wrong prediction was believed to be the one who would kill thousands of people.

When Hoon had announced Lady Jang's case, the Head Priestess, in an instant, groveled and asked for forgiveness, admitting her incompetence. Rubbing her palms together, tears rolled down her face as she met the King's and the people's various eye emotions. "Your Majesty, everyone, please hear me! I would accept my sins. I admit that I am an incompetent Head Priestess. I am a fake. I do not know how to calculate the eclipse, and yet I still told the King about its occurrence. I would accept if I would be stripped of my position, but please do not kill me. Spare my life, please!"

Jae Joong was left in awe after hearing Lady Jang's beseeching. Although he felt the sincerity of the Head Priestess, he ignored his soft emotion, recalling everything that had happened because of her. He stood from his throne and ordered Hoon to proceed with the verdict. Deep inside, he felt a sudden raised in emotion, and he badly wanted the two to be banished from his sight, from his life. "Minister Hoon, what are you doing? No evidence is needed for her because she already confessed her misdeeds. I want you to proceed now with the verdict!" He finished his statements and sat down.

Being slightly humiliated, Hoon looked back to the dais, and he met the Prime Minister's gaze, giving him a short signal by raising a brow. Clearing his throat, the elderly minister sat back and announced the final judgment. "After thorough investigations and ample evidence, Grand Marshal Chil Yook and Head Priestess Lady Jang are proven to be guilty of the allegations. Hence, you two will be stripped off from your positions, and you will be exiled to Tamra Island for life. You shall not step back on the mainland Silla for the rest of your life." 

He hammered the gavel and stood.

Lady Jang and Chil Yook remained silent, accepting their punishment, pondering what their fate in a faraway, unknown island away from the grandeur of the palace, would be. On the good side, being exiled was still a hundred times better than execution. As the crowd continued chatting about the judgment, the King and the council members stood and started leaving. The hwarangs assisted Lady Jang and Chil Yook from their seats, grabbing their arms. However all of a sudden, the brazen former grand marshal wobbled, trying to break free and shouted, "Sire!"

Jae Joong raised a brow, turn around and cast a short glower, confused with what he was scheming. Everyone in the dais got curious as well and paused, staring scornfully at him. Chil Yook landed a gaze at the Prime Minister, who was pursing his lips into a thin line.

Chil Yook continued, "Your Majesty, I still have something to say..." 

__________

NOTES:

Tamra Island (탐라) - Modern day Jeju Island in the south of South Korea.