"Sae Yoo?" Yeol leaned back, eyes blinking fast.

The Prince nodded and repeated, "Yes, Sae Yoo. Does that name sound familiar to you?" he waited for the old man's response, scrutinizing the wrinkled face in front of him.

"Your Highness..."

"Yes, grandfather?"

Yeol looked down for a bit, then affixed his eyes into the Prince's fervent gaze—eyes hungry for truth. "You deserve to be happy because not only you are a good person, but also a good Prince and son."

"Grandfather, why are you saying these things to me?"

The old man clasped Sae Joo's hands harder, eyes begging the Prince not to cross the line—an indirect gesture of help, a signal to help the Prince escape something threatening. The intensity of his grip was dead give away: Stop digging. Go back and live your life as a Prince. You did not hear anything, you shall not know anything. But instead of hitting the bull's eye, Yeol sugar-coated his weapon of sentences and morphed the sharp tip into something soft and cottony. "You will only achieve your true happiness if you don't look back at anything and continue moving forward. Set your life ahead of you, and don't ever look back." he stood and walked beside his grandson. He wrapped his arms around his shoulders in an unexpected yet warm embrace.

The surprised Prince's fingers ran along the old man's back, caressing him as he hugged in return. "Grandfather..."

When the two let go from their embraces, Yeol cupped the Prince's face—a small smile formed from his prune-like lips. "You... truly remind me of your mother. Those soft brown eyes that speak only of innocence. Fragile, yet welcoming and warm. Can I look at your face a little longer?"

Sae Joo took down his shield of doubts; the turbulent river of thoughts flowed smoothly and quietly for the meantime, meandering down the rocky dazed mountains. As time ticked slowly, he felt sadness in his grandfather's eyes. He knew that his grandfather wanted to say something—that could either make or break him. Appreciating the old man's intention to protect him was more than enough. He would not ask more questions and would just enjoy their moments together as a family.

Yeol smiled into him, but deep inside his heart, the flower of memories from the good old days had wilted. As his fingers ran along the Prince's face, a dewdrop of tear dripped down his cheeks. He wiped it and shook his head. "Forgive me, Prince. I am just extremely happy."

"It's alright, Harabeoji." he cast a glance at Shun and turned back to his grandfather. "I hate to say this, but we have to go. His Majesty must have been worried by now."

The old man sniffed and rubbed his eyes as he nodded. "Right. I understand. Can I ask for a favor?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Can I have a hug before you leave?"

Sae Joo's heart melted, and without any hesitation, he gave the old man his simple request. Yeol placed his lips near the Prince's ear as he whispered. "I'm sorry, Sae Joo. I'm sorry."

At that moment, the Prince had a sudden realization. Even though a large piece of the puzzle was not resolved, he had finally confirmed something about the long-growing doubts that has been bugging his mind. This person, named Sae Yoo, was a part of their lives that no one would want to mention anymore. No matter how much he tried to uncover the truth from those he trusted the most, no one gave him a straight answer. No one looked into his eyes with full sincerity and conviction.

It was inevitable for him to think that Sae Yoo might the hidden gem of Silla. Ever since that prediction happened when he was fifteen, that person who was destined to be the kingdom's savior has not vanished from his mind. Certainly, Jae Joong had lured him into the reality that he wanted for the Prince, but despite giving hopes and words and encouragement to the Prince, that person—that glorious man was never erased from Sae Joo's memory.

He wanted to find him or even know his identity. A face-to-face and heart-to-heart talk. An agreement. He would be willing to renounce his position if this said person was truly the hope of Silla. His age would not be a problem, nor the personal background. If the Heavens had decided for this person to be Silla's savior, it would be a heinous crime to hide this person's identity. The whole nation must know him at all costs, and let him rule the kingdom like what he should do. A blessing and sacred responsibility. For years, Sae Joo believed that the whole kingdom would surely be saved if he would not be King, and if his family had finally decided not to tell him the truth, then they left him with no choice but to search for the truth on his own.

The most heroic thing that he could do was to bring this person to the palace and make him King.

Firm with his decision, Sae Joo held his grandfather's hands for the last time before leaving.

They traveled back to the palace in the cold, late-autumn night. The silver light from the crescent moon flourished above the night skies, their main guide into the dark and tricky forests. When they were about a few kilometers away from the palace gates, after about four hours of additional travel, Sae Joo felt his numb muscles screaming for freedom. He ordered Shun to descend from their brown muscled horse and take a walk down the evergreen sanctuary.

The sound of the crickets harmonized with their crispy steps as they stroll down the forest ground full of fallen leaves and dead twigs. Gentle, cool air nipped their pink faces down to their spines, but they just ignored it as they enjoyed the beauty of nature.

Sae Joo led the way as Shun was pulling their horse behind the Prince.

"Isn't this nice?" the Prince inhaled and raised his head into the sky, seeing the smiling moon from the gaps of the canopy leaves.

"What, Your Highness?"

"This!" he spread his arms wide and beamed.

"Oh, this forest? Of course! As long as there are no wild animals to attack us."

"Don't worry. They're probably asleep, preparing for the winter. That's why this forest is quiet. Everyone's asleep. Everyone... They can sleep all winter long, and wake up when all the snow and the cold drift away, starting a new beginning."

Shun cleared his throat and tried to veer the topic before his master could get more emotional. "Your Highness, what's your plan now? None of your relatives has answered you. Do you think it's about time to focus on more important things in your life, rather than searching for this Sae Yoo? No one ever proved his existence, aside from that simple baby wrapper... Come to think of it, all you have are just instincts and baseless inferences."

Sae Joo paused and looked back, his eyebrows scrunched in annoyance. "Baseless? Let me remind you a story. When I was fifteen, the Head Priestess predicted my future as the leader of this nation. I was destined to be Silla's destroyer..."

"I know, Your Highness. We are here to support you for that not to happen."

"Shh," he raised his index finger and stopped Shun from talking. "It's not just as simple as that. There's someone out there, someone we don't know, who is destined to be Silla's greatest ruler. Lady Seol Ji hasn't seen his face. Everything was clear on her prediction, but not the mysterious man's face. All she could say was that it was a male who shares the same age as mine."

"So do you think that this person might be the real owner of the baby wrapper? The one named Sae Yoo?"

The Prince anchored an intense gaze to his bodyguard as he exclaimed. "Yes! I believe that this person is connected to me in some ways. In Tang beliefs, it was called the Yin and the Yang. A symbol that represents duality. One is a dark swirl with a small light portion, while the other one is a light swirl with a dark portion. I am the former! The dark one."

Dumbfounded by the Prince's explanation about Tang beliefs, Shun scratched his head—his dry lips were out of sensible words. "I... I am amazed at your hasty conclusion. Talk about self-empowerment, huh Your Highness? Take it easy. Whoever he is, wherever he is, we will come at the right time. You don't need to find him. He will come to you in the most unexpected way, and he will help you in ruling Silla. Together, you can make our nation the best among the rest. So liven yourself up. Don't think of him as a threat."

Sae Joo bit his lips and acknowledged Shun's interpretation of the Head Priestess's prediction. How he wished the nangdo was right. A trusted ally rather than a competitive threat.

"But, uh, Your Highness, why do you think that he is somehow related to you? What if that Sae Yoo is different from the person in the prophecy?"

"Isn't it obvious? Their reactions tell it all. They keep on denying it as if I would never find out. They didn't know that it would just make me more eager to find out who Sae Yoo is... Fine, let's just say that Sae Yoo is not the one from the prophecy. Still, I want to know who he is no matter what his true identity is. The voice from the heart is not a baseless inference."

Shun sighed, tired of arguing. He just shook his head while staring at his master. "Whatever your decision is, as long as you'll be safe and no one would get harmed, I'll support you. But don't say that I didn't give you advice."

Sae Joo grinned and poke Shun's arm, "I know... let's go."

The two continued ambling down the forest as if they had all the time in the world. As another bone-chilling wind blew, a loud hiss torpedoed. At first, they thought it was nothing until a loud thud from a tall conifer, a few paces in front, finally alerted them.

"What was that?" Sae Joo almost tripped into the ground in shock.

"Stay close, Your Highness." Shun grabbed Sae Joo's arm as they approached the conifer tree. Shun squinted as the cause of the thud finally revealed itself. A long arrow glimmering under the dying moonlight. The crater it has made on the poor trunk left a permanent scar on its bark... alongside a brown paper—a small note of messages intended for the Prince.

Shun's grip tightened as his head turned left and right, up and down, looking for the mystery sender. He pulled the arrow and opened the paper. "Prince, if you wish to know the answer, go to the Myeongsong Valley, near the foot of Ojin Hill, tomorrow, dusk time."

Sae Joo gasped and grabbed the letter to see the message himself. His hands trembled as he clenched his teeth. He crumpled the letter and roared, "Who are you?"

"Come out, now!" he stomped forward, trampling the brown foliage, head spinning like a slow, vigilant top.

"Show yourself!"

"Your Highness, calm down! I don't think they would ever show themselves to you at this moment."

The Prince glared and bit his lips. The only person he could vent out all the anger was the man in front of him. His whole body was quivering in overflowing frustration. It scythed his brittle pride and fragile dignity as a decent human being. He felt like everyone has been deceiving him all along, including this (these?) mystery sender who kept on torturing him with pieces of broken puzzles. What in the world did they know? Why could not they send him all the information that he needed in one blow? What did they want? All those questions rang on his head, mixing and colliding in an uproarious, entropic state.

Sae Joo pounded his chest with his red freezing fist. "This is exhausting! I need answers now! Why are they always treating me like a toy? They always play with me whenever they please!"

Shun gazed at him with sympathy. His blood pressure elevated as well, knowing that there was someone who was playing hide-and-seek with his master. No words could describe how much he despised opportunistic people, masking themselves as superior beasts, but in reality were a bunch of coward worms. Without thinking carefully, he suddenly blurted his opinion, unable to handle the trigger that switched the Prince on. "Can I speak with you candidly? As a friend?"

The Prince froze, unable to think what to respond.

Shun started, "If you truly think that they treat you like their best bet in a gamble game, don't let them! Stand on your own. Set your mind to do meaningful things for your self-improvement. Fine, if you think that Sae Yoo should be found as soon as possible, if you seriously believe that he's the man from the oracle, I will help you find him. The only way to get out of being the oppressed is to take control. You don't even realize how powerful you are and how strong can you become. Those people exploit your weakness, knowing your fragile personality. Turn the tables. Show your power. Gamble!"

It may seem harsh but that was an indigestible reality. Something Sae Joo has known way back time and has wanted to do for himself, but fear, hesitation, and a large boulder of insecurity had always held him back. There were a couple of times where he has shown and expressed his stand and opinion like he was a fully-grown man but those moments were religiously prepared and studied. However if it was something unexpected and complicated (obviously, like this one), his growing tiger inside would tend to retract into a small, innocent cub... again. His mind would tremble, and a huge wave of panic and negative thoughts would roll on his head. He truly loathed that personality of his, but what could he do? It always seemed like a natural response.

Sure—eight years of training with the nangdos and diving into the pool of politics have improved his whole package. He had learned to be cynical and skeptical about people's actions. He thought those were enough, until the large bomb dropped in front of him, shattering his developing character.

He had to admit—he wanted to make sure that this man from the prophecy would be King but deep down his core was a strong quake of fear. He was afraid of being replaced, of being neglected, or worse—being persecuted. A series of wars were happening inside his mind. Finding the balance between his chaotic emotions would surely take some time.

One step at a time, they say. But the main question was: How long? How long would it take for him to learn to be as firm and sturdy as a rock and to be as flexible and malleable as gold?

At that moment, Shun's waves of words splashed straight into his face. Perhaps that was an important link to his dilemma. Gamble! He primped his hair and looked straight into his bodyguard's eyes.

"Fine. Gamble. I will gamble... to win."

"Be careful, Your Highness. Don't give your all. Just like what they're doing, think of your best bet."

"My best bet?" Sae Joo mumbled and had a thought for a few moments.

"Let's go!"

"Where?" asked Shun, confused with another seemingly hasty decision.

"To my first bet."

__________

NOTES:

Myeongsong Valley (명송) - a fictional valley near the foot of Ojin Hill, a few kilometers away from the palace gates.