Jung Min waited outside the grand pavilion, standing awkwardly beside one pillar as everybody walked out to do their own business. Still, he could not lay off what the King had ordered him. Traveling to Balhae would take a week or so. In that period, he should have collected even shreds of evidence and clues to find Chil Yook. He called his personal nangdos, who were standing attentively behind him. "Kang Shun. Yellow Tiger nangdo. Kyeongpong Village, Sangju Province. Find his house and his parents, especially the father. Come back tomorrow when the sun rises."

With the quick grasp of confidential information, the two nangdos bowed their heads and left. Finally, Jung Ho came out from the hall. He noticed the two nangdos moving out, so he asked his son. "Where are they going?"

"Somewhere."

The father frowned and strolled out, "Don't tell me I didn't warn you. You're just wasting their time."

Jung Min sucked his teeth and turned away. Suddenly, his eyebrows folded as a strange thought dashed into his mind. He followed the Prime Minister to the courtyard, his steps rushing to catch up. "What do you mean a waste of time?"

"You're sauteing yourself with your own frozen lard."

"You know where he is, don't you? You're just hiding him somewhere."

Jung Ho continued walking straight, eyes not even stealing a sideward glance to his son. "You don't know what you're saying. You don't know anything."

"Maybe now. But I swear, I won't stay ignorant."

"Why do you think I'm hiding the man who betrayed me? The one who nearly sold me out? I'm not yet senile. I despise repeating myself. If you don't want to take my advice, fine. Do whatever you want then. Just know that it's almost impossible to find someone who doesn't want to be found. I had the same vigor as yours, same drive to find and kill Chil Yook. But I realized, through the years, it's not worth it anymore. Move on and set another goal."

Jung Min paused and stared boldly at his father, digesting what he said. But no matter how touching those words were, he could not feel at ease. He was afraid to put his shield down, to be carried away by the Prime Minister's sweet-coated lips. Nothing from Jung Ho's mouth should be taken literally. A subliminal message hiding cautiously under the mount of lies.

Jung Ho stopped, his feet ceased from moving forward. He turned and gazed at his son. "We have a new mission to accomplish. Matter of fact, this is more of yours. Investigating is actually not my field of expertise," he smirked.

"Now, let's go back to our pavilions, do our jobs, and wait for the King's final orders. Another goal, you get it?" he let go of his gaze and continued walking.

~~•~~

Under the growing heat of the sun, Jae Joong summoned his son to have an urgent private meeting. Something that needed to be discussed right away. Upon receiving the message, Sae Joo went straight to their meeting place—the loving memories of his late mother. The gazebo near her gardens, filled with bloomed marigold flowers. Fig trees started losing their foliage, but their branches spread out like jolly men, cheering for their men's success. The winds murmured, sending a loving message to the diligent caretakers. With this mini-paradise, the sight alone could mollify even the most desolate warrior.

Teas were served, and Jae Joong stated his concern, Sae Joo listening attentively. "Son, I have something important to say."

"All ears, Father."

"I don't even know how to start."

"I think I know, Father. Don't worry about me. I'm not a teen anymore. I've learned to handle harsh words—judgment and criticism, especially if it's about my fate as the ruler of this nation. Please say it, Your Majesty. I'll manage."

Jae Joong sighed and smiled a radiant orange smile, but his eyes were blue. "Alright. So Lady Seol Ji had a premonition that the upcoming Hangawi Festival would not be as festive as before. She has seen bad luck, written in the stars. The second and the fourth stars align."

Sae Joo leaned back from his seat. "What does that mean, Father?"

"Well, the second star represents females, and the fourth is for male. Alignment means union."

"A marriage?"

"I didn't agree with them because I thought Jung Ho was just using his powers to take advantage again. So we had a wager. Three to five days without major ruckus, he retires. Otherwise, there will be a marriage."

"Hmm. The iron ore scarcity. But uh, what if he had something to do with this?"

"That's what we're going to know. That's why I entrusted this mission to Minister Dae Wong. We'll know soon enough."

"But father, do you think he's involved?"

Jae Joong's eyes blinked a couple of times; he shook his head. "No. Actually, no. I have this gut feeling that he isn't involved."

"So, it's Heaven's will then." Sae Joo took a deep breath and pinched his palm, thinking about the right response. "A marriage between royals? I mean... as long she's well-mannered, kind, and most importantly loves you, I don't mind having a step-mother."

"Sae Joo."

"Father, it's fine. I'll try to get along with her. Who is she anyway?"

"You're missing the point, son. The Hangawi is for the harvest. A start of a new beginning."

The Prince's eyes enlarged, realizing the entire message. There would be no stepmother, nor a new queen. A lucky woman would turn into a Crown Princess. Sae Joo's breaths became tensed, his fingers became numb, and so his lips.

"Son," called Jae Joong.

"W-wa-wait, Father." the pale Prince took a measly sip of his cooled tea and exhaled heavily. The push expressed it all. "I'm the one who's going to marry?"

"I talk to you in advance before announcing it to the council members. Are there any woman that dazzles you, that you find interesting?"

Trying to recollect his memories about random women he had mingled, Sae Joo firmly shook his head. No one! His mindset of ideals and interest was unheard of compared to, say, a regular man. He was nice, sweet, and warm to all, not just women. He could appreciate natural beauty, talent, wit, and flawless attitude and behavior, but it all ended there. Just mere admiration, no more. Like politics before, Sae Joo never fully understood the concept of 'romance'. Two-faced, ambiguous: the words he used to describe the term. If you love someone, was it not enough? Some people have told him that love transforms into different sub-emotions depending on people whom you give it. Love for parents was different from love for a special someone. Well, for the latter, never had a special moment in his life where he felt electrocuted by what people called, romantic love. Maybe the arrow of painful yet sweet love has missed him or intentionally skipped him. His virgin lips could tell all.

Romantic and sexual attachment to the opposite sex or to anybody never crossed his mind. He thought that it was sinful and vile to have a perception and imagination like that. It was like objectifying a creation of the Heavens when it should not be. Perhaps, not having a mother figure shaped his mind the way it was. He had never observed a mother, a queen, and a wife image. He did not know what it was like to be genuinely loved by a woman. Because of that, he actually preferred to be single, as long as he lives. Like his father, who remained unmarried, he thought that maybe it would not hurt not to have a companion in life. He was born alone; he would die alone.

But everything suddenly changed. It was not the question of intimacy, commitment, and passion for someone, just like how romantic people should feel. The main issue here was a different form of love—love for the nation. He had no choice. If he dared to break the Heaven's will, the kingdom might suffer. Everyone would blame him and his father. Even if he was not ready, even if he did not want to, he just subtly agreed. An unfortunate prince destined to ruin the kingdom later had no right to refuse the Heaven's will.

Sae Joo then answered, "Interesting? All girls are beautiful. Even the meanest has her own beautiful characteristics exclusive to her."

"Son, I just want to tell you that if you can't select on your own, the council will do it for you."

"And who do you think will they choose? Is there any other female royal here in the palace?"

"A Jingol woman can rise up to royalty by marriage." Jae Joong just gazed at his son, leaving him hanging in the dry moment. With that non-verbal gesture, Sae Joo had a hint who it would be. He did not wish to hear the name, nor anything about the 'lucky' woman—background, age, family history. None of those!

"Don't say it, Father," declined Sae Joo. He stood, bowed his head, and respectfully left.

~~•~~

The rest of the day turned out to be so much occupied by various political problems. Dae Wong's team discussed their plans cautiously. With the help of the blacksmith and Minister Yoo Min's impeccable caricature skills, they were able to come up with a very comprehensive map of the Goryeong Mountain. The terrain details, the shortest routes, the distance of the mining sites from each other, the possible danger zones where assassins lurk, the blind spot where it would be perfectly safe to gather and reconvene, even the estimated time of every action. All these crucial information—plotted!

But aside from that, they needed to plan the possible repercussions as well. The downside of each stage of the plan. A buy-bust operation like this would not be just a stroll in the park. Nangdos could die, they could die. They wanted to avoid any casualty so they also asked advice from the higher hwarangs: on the different formation styles depending on the situation. What would they do if they were surrounded by hundreds? How would they fight? How would they escape if there was a surprise attack? A fusillade of fire arrows? What weapons should they use? With the help of three palace Pungwoljus, all those possible questions were answered.

Since the three assassins declined to be their assets, the nangdos would do the most dangerous task. Four of them would be. Each one would act as noblemen and buy iron ores from the miners. Shun was assigned at the main mining site—the largest one. The one with the most number of guards. The plan was simple: they enter the mining site with a grand caravan, full of carts (three to seven). The acting noblemen buy and hoard iron ores, then they require the guards to escort them to safety. And by safety, means escorting them to the assassins. A place in the woods only the miner guards know. After the turnover, they lure these assassins to their death spot. The gist of the plan was to divide the forces of the mining guards and the assassins. Few guards would be left on the mining site, few assassins would be assigned watching in the dark. The smaller their numbers, the easier for the Silla warriors to kill or capture them.

Of course, they needed to be convincing, for the miners to trust them. As if it was just a normal trade where anyone could buy whenever they please. Thankfully, the fat nobleman from Balhae spilled all the information needed (out of fear and also Silla's promise to spare his life). A password was needed to trade. Only those who knew would be entertained. A matter of trade or die. Say the magic word 'Mansae Haemosu', and you could get a handful.

Not tonight. Dae Wong believed that the rest of the assassins might have already received the news about some of their dead men. They had to cool down to allow themselves to plan more so that when they attacked, victory would surely be on their side. They were pretty much aware that the master of the organization already knew what had happened. Whoever he was, for sure he would raise his armors three times more, just to continue their operation. They had to do their best to outwit them. No room for mistakes!

~~•~~

Night came. On the other side of the palace, another plan was happening. It started with a meditation. A way to clean one's mind. Red Tang candles surrounded Jung Ho as he was cleansing his mind. Eyes closed, legs crossed while sitting on a dark red carpet. The slow wind from the windows swaying his pure white robe and long charcoal-black hair.

Moments later, he heard a court lady's voice by the door. "Your Excellency, Hwarangdo Suk Ji and Nangdo Byung Pum are here to report something.

Jung Ho opened his eyes, blew the candles, changed the lighting from dim to light, and announced. "Let them in."

He sat at his table as the two hwarangs entered. "So? Where did my son's nangdos go?"

The hwarangdo mouthed his man to report, the nangdo fidgeting as he stood. Suddenly, the poor nangdo dropped on the floor and started apologizing, his hands rubbing fast it could even produce fire. "We're sorry, Your Excellency! Please punish us. We are not worthy!"

"I'm not going to punish you... not yet. Now speak."

Suk Ji finally took the blame and confessed, "My Lord, we were detected by the Prosecution Head's nangdos. They misled us to their exact destination. But fortunately, we've managed to follow them to Sangju Province."

"Sangju?"

"Yes, My Lord. When we were in a market, they stopped by a tavern for a couple of drinks. I heard that they were looking for a nangdo who lives in Sangju. I just didn't catch up exactly where."

"A nangdo in Sangju?" Jung Ho stared blankly by his wall, ignoring the presence of the two hwarangs. Why is he looking for a nangdo in Sangju?

He processed the reports thoroughly, stitching the details of the root of Jung Min's actions and decisions. His mind meshed up rapidly like reflexes, quick and precise. Another test for a sound conclusion. "Get out."

As the two hwarangs exited his chambers, he changed into his council uniform and put a purple cloak on. In the middle of the night when everyone was about to lay in their beds for their well-deserved rest, Jung Ho's restless body still stormed outside the grand courtyard and made his way into the Royal Library.

He picked the Hwarang Registry book and sat a table to review it. With a blank scroll and quill, he wrote down the names of the nangdos living in Sangju. Every piece of information written. Although none of them had sparked his interest yet, he kept going. He could not afford to miss a single name on the list. He had this strong feeling that one of them could be the one he was looking for. One of them could be Sae Yoo. The child that he was desperately searching could be under his nose all this time. His hypothesis reeked like a pile of garbage. He just needed proof to dispose it finally. His decision was right all along—discouraging Jung Min would push him more to find Chil Yook for him.

Guess that was the most probable reason why Jung Min was searching for that nangdo. Maybe he discovered something about that mystery boy that could be affiliated to Chil Yook. A piece of the former Grand Marshal's valuables perhaps? Well, Jung Ho cared less. What was important for him was to find that kid—the kid that will lead him to his former henchman. 

While turning the book, one page triggered the beast inside him. It was missing—ripped! Remnants of it were stuck on the book hinges. Jung Ho stood and pummeled the table, hot smoke steaming out from his nostrils.

"Fine. You want to play it this way? You'll see." 

__________

NOTES:

Haemosu (해모수) - Ancient Korean deity of the sun, the founder of Buyeo, and the father of Jumong, the founder of Goguryeo.