As everyone in the dais was left hanging with Chil Yook's statement, the King cut in the suspense and asked him directly, "Speak!"

Chil Yook raised a brow and breathed deeply. The Prime Minister looked at him in the eyes, telling him on his mind to shut his mouth and say nothing. He had trust in his henchman. However, there was a strange aura in Chil Yook's stare, which made him rattled deep inside—a bit.

The former Grand Marshal spoke, "I would gladly accept my punishment. I would accept if I should be stripped of my position. But I do have one request."

"What is it?" the King asked, his eyes narrowed curiously.

"This headband, which represents my pride. This would be the last piece of my honor as a Gukseon. Please let me take my headband, Your Majesty," the former Grand Marshal requested, looking skyward.

The King did not expect what he just said. He thought that it would be a confession about the Prime Minister's orders—even though that would unlikely to happen. As a response, he just sneered into him, and he turned his head to Jung Ho, in an eagle-like stare. "Prime Minister, what do you think?"

The irked prime minister arched a brow and gazed at the King shortly. He bit his lower lip, chewing his teeth. What is this drama, Chil Yook?

He squinted before he spoke, "Well, I-I mean, there would be nothing wrong with that. He will be exiled so that means there would be no way in which he can roam freely on the island and flaunt his status."

Dae Wong butted in, with his counterargument. "No, Your Majesty. Do not allow it. It would be a great insult to the Hwarangs!"

Jung Ho defended, "Minister Dae Wong. I got your point. However, we cannot deny the fact that he did a good job of being a Gukseon in the past years. He had facilitated crucial training to our military, shared some of his war tactics, and motivated weak nangdos. My only point is that, even though he had done a gruesome crime, it would not be a big deal if we will let him keep his headband for memories. Sending him into an exile is enough."

Jae Joong snickered. "Enough, you two," he stopped the two from arguing.

He resumed, looking at the former Grand Marshal. "All right. Take that headband with you... Guards? What are you doing? Assist the two of them, go back to the palace and prepare everything for their exile."

The escort guards bowed their heads and grabbed the arms of the two criminals. They started parading down the market square, clearing the crowd. Chil Yook turned his head back as they walked, fixing his eyes to the Prime Minister.

The minutes passed by quickly. The vivid panorama of the crowd started dissipating until the square was decongested. The hwarangs and other palace officials removed the dais, the drums, the flags—everything until the entire square returned to its normal, daily appearance—a regular stony courtyard surrounded by different booths of diverse sellers. The King and the council members went back already to the palace. Some, for instance, in a forest trail almost a few kilometers away from the palace, the Prime Minister's palanquin stood still as his personal hwarangs guarded the vicinity. He discussed important matters with Lady Min.

"How is everything?" Jung Ho asked.

"Perfectly ready, My Lord," Lady Min answered.

"Good job. Make sure that it will be executed perfectly according to my instructions."

~~•~~

In the palace, while the King was walking down the courtyard going back to his chambers, he saw Jung Min, with Lady Seo, walking towards his direction. The little boy and his personal matron bowed their heads and paused.

"My nephew, where are you going?" Jae Joong asked.

"Your Majesty, if your schedule is not occupied, I would humbly request for your time to spare me an answer to my question."

The King's eyes narrowed in his nephew's strange tone. "Err, what is it?"

"The red headband with the dragon insignia. Why was it too important for the Grand Marshal?"

Jae Joong's eyes rolled in surprise upon hearing the boy's question. He threw a quick glance at Lady Seo, but the matron avoided his gaze. He bent forward and spoke to his nephew in a soft tone. "What did just say? Have... have you been to the square? Does your father know that you were out?"

The boy bit his lips and grimaced. "No. He does not know a word. I escaped from my guards. I am not going to elaborate the details, but yes, Your Majesty. I saw the trial."

Shaking a finger at his nephew, the King shook his head gently and straightened. "You sly boy. Anyways, this would be our little secret. Now for your question, let us just say that the headband that you have seen was the representation of a hwarang's thread of life—as a hwarang grows with experience and skills, the thread goes longer, their lives become more meaningful. It is their crowning glory, which represents their valor and honor. No amount of gem could come close to the value of blood and sweat that that headband had witnessed...When you grow up, you will understand."

Jung Min's eyes flashed sideways, sucking his teeth. He looked at the King and nodded. "I think I am getting it, Sire. I would like to apologize for taking too much of your time."

"No. It is totally fine. Anytime, my dear nephew."

The boy bowed his head and continued walking. Just as when he was a few paces away from the King, the King cut him off and asked a question. "Jung Min, would you like to visit your cousin, Sae Joo?"

The boy turned back and smiled. "Sae Joo? I think I can do that some other time, Your Majesty. I have to go back to my room before my father sees me." He continued walking, his head down, with a sudden change in his visage. His eyes were gloomy, his face long, as blue emotions started draining out his orange energy.

~~•~~

Jung Min went back to his chambers. He observed the ladies-in-waiting outside, fidgeting and panicking. Lady Seo asked them what was happening, but the women seemed restless, pointing to each other.

"Young Lord, err, err...," one of the ladies-in-waiting stuttered.

"What is it? Why are you stuttering?" Lady Seo asked.

The ladies-in-waiting, without any further a due, opened the door. As the maroon door squeaked, little by little, a familiar figure of a man was revealed. The young boy gasped in shock. It was his father—the Prime Minister, who was sitting at a table, grinning straight to him.

"I know you have been out," Jung Ho called out. He pursed his lips and beckoned his son. The young boy, who was shaking in fear, shambled towards the table and sat, opposite his father.

"Tell me. Why did you go out, and where have you been?"

Jung Min just bit his lips, head moving side to side, avoiding his father's contemptuous eyes.

Annoyed by his son's gestures, Jung Ho smote the table with his fist, in a thump, which made the young boy jerked in shock. The fearsome prime minister leaned forward, pointed his finger to his son and twitched his left eye before roaring at him.

"Jung Min! I asked you a question. Answer me."

Lady Seo suddenly interrupted and knelt down before the Prime Minister. She rubbed her palms together vigorously, pleading to the vicious man. "My Lord, it is my fault. I have not guarded him properly. Please, punish me instead!"

Jung Ho glowered into her and scoffed. "Ah. Right. Why would I even blame the kid, when I have an adult here to take credits?"

The Prime Minister stood and paced towards his son. "Fine. I will do what you want." Lady Seo landed a gaze with Jung Min, nodding and assuring to her young lord that everything would turn out just fine.

"From now on, you will never be Jung Min's personal matron. You shall be stripped off from your position, and you will leave the palace... I do not need people who do not do their jobs well. I have assigned you one simple job: that is to make sure Jung Min does not get out of his room!"

Tears flooded instantly from the poor boy's hazel eyes. He shook his head countless times, went down to his knees and held his father's right boot. Begging, he looked up straight to his father's eyes, from down below.

"Father, please! I am begging you. Please do not do this." He cried and cried until his voice became gruff and throaty. He rubbed his two palms together intensively, asking for a little grain of mercy. "It was my fault, Father. Lady Seo did nothing wrong. Please, I am begging you. I will not go against your will anymore. I will follow you from now on."

Jung Ho jolted his right leg, making the poor boy stumbled to the floor.

"Guards!" he called. Two nangdos came inside.

Jung Ho continued, "Take this woman out of my sight!"

After a quick bow, the nangdos grabbed the matron's arms, dragging her out of the room. Lady Seo gave her young lord a smile, as two pairs of diamond tears fell down from her eyes. "I will be fine, Young Lord. Take care of yourself, and be healthy."

The boy stood and ran to his personal matron, whom he treated as his second mother. He wrapped her in a tight embrace as if tomorrow would not ever come. Still crying, he sucked his head into the woman's body as he spoke in a muffled voice, shaking his head, "No, please do not leave me. Please."

Jung Ho rolled his eyes, and he signaled the nangdos to remove his son from the matron. A nangdo bowed his head and spoke Jung Min. "My apologies, Young Lord." The nangdo gently pulled the young boy's arms, trying to remove them from locking the matron. Jung Min screamed and snarled at the nangdo.

"Young Lord. Please, do not make this harder for us. Listen to your father," Lady Seo requested. She gazed at the young boy's eyes and smiled. "Please. Please follow your father."

Little by little, Jung Min ceased from crying. He snorted, and looking at his matron's eyes, he felt suddenly enchanted—her soft, silky tone, cooed his heart and melted it. Her voice felt anesthetic, for he did not feel that the nangdos had successfully unlocked him from the matron. Unknowingly, the two men had dragged his matron away—gone!

As the door rustled closed, he fell down on the floor with a thump, reverting back to sad reality. The Prime Minister walked towards him. He crouched and gripped the young boy's shoulders as he spoke, "Jung Min... Jung Min!"

The young boy's swollen, shuttered eyes stared in a seemingly blank space; his vision refused to perceive the figure of his father in front of him. "Listen to me! Do you still not get it why I treat you like this?"

"I want you to be strong! I want you to learn that being overly attached to a person will make you vulnerable—weak. People come and go. Nobody will be loyal to you forever. The only one who could be loyal to you for eternity is yourself!"

Jung Min did not respond to his father's sermons. Instead, plenteous tears ran down from his eyes, his mouth open and stiff. The Prime Minister shook him, but it seemed like the boy's mind had chosen to shut down briefly. "Jung Min! Do you think Lady Seo really loves you? Get back to your senses! She is just doing her job! A-an-and the King, do you think he really cares for you? Of course not! Now that he has his son already, Prince Sae Joo. Anytime soon, he will lose interest in you, and who do you think will take care of you? Me! You and I are linked together by the most powerful chain in the world—blood."

The Prime Minister noticed that his son was still not engaged with his monologue, so he promptly gripped his son's face and glared at him. His tone changed from being persuasive to frigid, his voice was as frozen as ice. "You know that I am not a patient man, and yet I am tolerating your blasphemous act towards me. Now, I will not repeat myself. If you want to live and survive in this palace, you follow me. Even if it has to be the rage that should drive you, follow... me."

He loosened his grip, stood and walked out. He ordered the ladies-in-waiting outside to tend to his son. As he walked down the corridor, a sneer escaped from his devious lips. Right, without Lady Seo, it will be just a matter of time before Jung Min follows my will. That boy can be very useful to deal with Prince Sae Joo in the future. Just wait, Sire. Just wait. I will raise a devil that will ravage your son whole.

~~•~~

Later that day, after the prosecution department had already arranged everything needed for Lady Jang and Chil Yook's exile into Tamra Island, the hwarangs, who were supposed to be the escorts of the two criminals, were gathered in the palace courtyard, just in front of the Pavilion of Moral Rights. Horses, flags, and carts, which had all the things that they would need for the travel, were assembled alongside. The King, together with the elderly minister, Hoon led the briefing. After a few minutes, a wooden carriage, which looked like a mobile prison cell, arrived behind the clustering military. The carriage had huge four wheels, thick wooden bars with narrow gaps in between, two horses and two guards, serving as the coachmen. Inside the carriage were Chil Yook and Lady Jang, sitting on their hay beds, their hands were cuffed, and their upper bodies were tied with red nylon ropes.

"There they are, Hwarangs. Do as we have said. Take them to Tamra Island and look for the governor. Show this order from me, and he shall lead you to the prison," Jae Joong said, handling a scroll to a red-group hwarangdo, who would be the leader of the expedition.

"Yes, Sire," the hwarangs answered in unison.

"Additional note: The specifics of their lifestyle, food, and other concerns were there on the scroll, so guard that with your lives. That is all. You may now go."

The hwarangs bowed, turned around, and started parading down the palace courtyard. The carriage started moving as well. As it moved, it also brought a cold, hair-raising ambiance in the air. A deadly silence blanketed the entire courtyard. People in the palace traded whispers, seeing the last moments of the two convicted criminals. The same scenario happened when the carriage reached the outside of the palace. However, as they went a bit far away from the palace gates, people started yelling at them on the sides, while others attempted to throw rotten fruits and stones. Luckily, they were stopped and arrested by some guards posted on the area.

Traveling to Tamra island would take more than a day. They would need to pass through a lot of forests, prairies, rivers, and valleys—then ride a boat, which would probably take six hours to the remote, small island. The hwarangs would need a lot of food and energy in order to survive the changing weather conditions and the long journey. As the hours passed by, and as the claws of the dark began clinging on the vermilion skies, the escorts decided to take a rest and make a camp in the middle of the forest.

The leader raised his sword and signaled, "Halt! We will set up a camp here."

The coachmen pulled the halters, putting the carriage into a full stop. They untied the horse from the carriage and tied them at the trees on the side, letting the animals graze on some grass. The nangdos started unloading the boxes, preparing to set up camps.

Suddenly, there was a loud hiss in the air. With just a split of rapid seconds, everyone was shocked when an arrow from a distance they did not know where struck one of the hwarangs in his neck while unloading the boxes. Blood sprinkled and raspy gurgles and incommodious gasps were heard as the man fell on the ground.

"Hwarang down!" a nangdo shouted.

The rest were alerted. They unsheathed their swords, and formed a big circle, enclosing the carriage, in their striking position. With synchronized footsteps, the hwarangs prowled forward, all senses heightened looking for the enemies who might be lurking on the tall green bushes around them.

Chil Yook and Lady Jang, inside the carriage, were left open-mouthed. "What was that?" Lady Jang asked, fidgeting.

"An attack, obviously," Chil Yook grunted helplessly as the chains clanked as he wiggled. "Hey! Release us!" he yelled.

"Who are they? Are they going to save us or...?" Lady Jang gasped. "... kill us?"

From the bushes, a group of men, probably around a hundred, in black robes—noses and mouths covered with black satin cloths, came out. Standing also in an attack position, the enemies formed a big circle much bigger than the hwarangs', enclosing them and the carriage. 

It was a battle of two forces, one small army, and a big unknown troupe. 

"What do you want?" the hwarangdo leader yelled and asked.

A man from the enemy group growled, and then he raised his sword.

"Slay them!" 

__________