An uncle comforting his worn-out nephew could be one of the most picturesque images in regards to family affairs. The old man stroking the hair of the crying nephew, while the latter tucks his head on the former's chest. This could be a perfect scenario in an ideal family-but not in Silla's Royal Family.

Jung Ho observes the Prince plodding closer to him. He pouted his lips and censured, "Your Highness, what did I tell you? This would just hurt you. We shouldn't have done this."

Sae Joo leaned his arms on the table, beside Jung Ho and shook his head. Tracks of salty tears had dried out from his bloodshot eyes, "No. This was the right thing to do." His butt fell slow on the chair, his knees quivering. "At least now, everything is clear to me."

"Are you okay?"

"No. But at least, I am now in the right frame of mind. I already know exactly what to do."

The Prime Minister grabbed the Prince's shoulder as he moved his face closer to the Prince's. "You must be thinking that I am an evil person, don't you? I killed a lot of people just to protect everything that I have-just to safeguard this family. Aren't you scared of me?"

"No, Uncle. It has come to my realization that you and I are basically the same. We are mere casualties of our fate. I completely understand why you had to keep that secret for a long time. There is a grain of gold in that mountain of gravel, isn't it? You're not a demon, Prime Minister. You are just a simple child, victimized by your unfortunate circumstances." Sae Joo held Jung Ho's hand and shove it away from his body.

"You're right, Your Highness. Do you know what should we do right now? Victims, like us, should redeem ourselves together. We should beat our destinies and show them what we're truly capable of. Show everyone that you're not a spare piece of equipment, ready to be stashed when your purpose has run out. Do you want me to help you? I see something in you, Your Highness, that your father probably didn't see. The fire. The passion. The desire to be better each day. An overflowing pure love that yearns to help the people."

"Please spare me this flattery, Uncle. So, what would you do to help me?"

"There's only one way for you to be truly free from all their doubts and reservations. You need to be the sole heir of your Father King."

Sae Joo's eyebrows scrunched in suspicion, "Do you want me to find Sae Yoo and kill him?"

Like watching a funny punchline from a theater play, Jung Ho's lips wiggled in a suppressed laughter. After some time, he finally let go of his class and elegance and burst a wicked guffaw. The sound produced from his diaphragm punched the walls of the library and back. "Haha. I am sorry, Your Highness. That was a bit funny. Kill someone? Oh, for Heaven's sake."

"Do you think I can't do it?" Sae Joo's lips thinned out, his face as tight as an asphalted road.

"Can you? Come on. Who are you kidding? I know you can't. He's your twin brother after all."

"So what? I've never met him. I don't have any affectionate connections with him. Practically, he's a stranger to me."

Jung Ho pointed his index finger near Sae Joo's lips, stopping him from continuing his blabber. "Don't. Seriously, don't. You'll never know. They say twins have this special bond, unlike regular siblings. An invisible cord chaining your hearts no matter where you are. A bit cheesy, isn't it? You might regret it later in your life if you killed him with your hands. Look, we still don't know what kind of person he is. What if he grew up as a hired killer, a warrior...?" He paused for a breath and continued, "-or a nangdo?" the stress on the last word made Sae Joo's neck hairs stood at their maximum.

"A nangdo?"

"Didn't you hear all my confessions, Prince?"

"Just parts of it. Only the highlights. You're right; it was too much for me! For some parts, all I heard were the sound of my cries."

Disappointed, Jung Ho sucked his teeth and rolled his eyes. "Alright. That's acceptable."

"What should I do? If I didn't do it, he might kill me."

"Relax. That's not going to happen if just hold hands with me. Let's assume that right now, he still doesn't know who he truly is. If he had known, we would've come back here in the palace and claimed his place. So chill, alright? Anyway, you know what I mean, Prince. Let's not cross out the possibility that he might be under our noses. Jung Min wouldn't have torn the Hwarang master list for no reason. One of our hwarangs could be related to Chil Yook. One of them could be Sae Yoo. This is going to be a tough search, Prince. I am passing the torch to you. You can start your search using this master list. When you found Sae Yoo, hand him over to me, and I will kill him."

Sae Joo squinted and thought about what the Prime Minister has proposed. He scrutinized his facial features and noticed something beyond a normal person's arch of understanding. There was fear bridging his eyes and lips. It reflected from his uncle's pupils to his irises. At some point, he also anticipated the fact that the old man has also read his expressions. What did he find out? What expression lay across Sae Joo's face? Careful. One thing was for certain: as they exchanged gazes in that short period, one has already increased leverage of advantage towards the other.

The Prince blinked, breaking the chain of telepathy. "Sure, Uncle. I will bring him to you with my own hands, and you handle him."

With bliss embossed on his eyes, Jung Ho cupped Sae Joo's face and smiled, "Good choice, Your Highness. Good choice."

"Before that, we have an important matter that needs to be taken care of. Shall we go, father-in-law?"

Jung Ho winked as he grasped the message. "Yes, son-in-law. I will summon the council. Let's talk about it-"

"-Later," Sae Joo continued. "I should get going."

"But of course, Your Highness." Jung Ho stood and bowed his head, his vision from the floor following the feet of the Prince as he walked towards the door. When he was certain that Sae Joo was completely out of the library premises, he called a guard outside.

"Your Excellency, you asked for me?" asked the guard, with a body as sturdy as a palace pillar.

"Summon the Red Dragon Nangdos... now," the Prime Minister ordered with a grin across his lips.

~~•~~

After lunchtime in a cold afternoon, the King called for an assembly with the council members. This time, it would not be presided by Jung Ho. It was Sae Joo's time. When all the men had seated, he paced around the round table and stated the agenda of the emergency meeting.

"Royal marriages follow a sacred routine, a ceremony that we've been doing since then. However, I think this is the time to put new flavors while staying true to the sanctity of our traditions."

Dae Wong raised his hand and asked, "I quite don't follow, Your Highness. What do you want to do in your wedding ceremony?"

Sae Joo smiled at the council and served the main dish in a sparkling platter, "A prenuptial celebration."

The laughs and the mockery on everyone's faces was a bit intense to the point that Sae Joo almost hammered the table. Take note: almost. "Hear me out on this first, will you?"

"What is this prenuptial celebration for, Your Highness?" inquired Jung Min.

"Minister Yoo Min?" called Sae Joo, and the young council member stood and explained, "Council, the Prince wishes to do the wedding next week, which coincides with the Art Appreciation Week. An event that happens annually, a week full of color, vibrancy, and life. Something to lighten up the blank, cold canvass of the winter season."

"So?" cut in Jung Ho.

Sae Joo responded, "So, I want the prenuptial celebration to be a day of art. Concerning that, I want a specific theme for this said event."

"And what is that?" Jae Joong butted in, curious about where the whole proposition was going.

The Prince glanced at the King, bowed slightly, and faced the council back as he spilled the answer. "A masquerade party. All visitors should wear their hand-made masks. Anything under the sun. A chance to showcase their hidden creative skills."

Jung Ho scoffed with the seemingly non-sense idea. But then at the back of his mind, he thought that the clever prince was planning something different. Just like the title of the party, masquerade, there would be a different story under the grandeur and the artistry of the masks. What are you thinking, Sae Joo? he thought. "That would be fun, Your Highness. I'm just afraid that I won't be as creative as my younger fellows."

Even though the joke was as lame as the seductive dance of the courtesans, the laughter of different volumes echoed inside the council room. Sae Joo contradicted the claim and encouraged the Prime Minister. "I don't think so, Your Excellency. Who knows what you might be thinking as of the moment? Something explosive, perhaps?" he cackled.

"I don't intend to be someone way above my limitation, but I'll try," Jung Ho snickered.

"Good! Should we close this meeting?"

"Wait, Your Highness, how are we going to proceed with the formal wedding ceremony? Is the party before or after the wedding?"

Circling the table, tapping the chairs, Sae Joo confirmed, "It's going to be before the wedding ceremony. The party shall happen for three hours maximum. I shall discuss the specifics once I have finalized the program. I wish to invite even the common people, just like what you did during the solar eclipse ceremony. Furthermore, I would like to have the wedding in private, and as much as possible, do it late at night. I want it to be as solemn as possible, feel the energy and the ambiance. I believe that it would only happen in the wee hours of the night."

Everyone was silent for quite some time, contemplating Sae Joo's suggestion with strips of piquant remarks. Although it was quite strange to be married at night, they did consider his point. Besides, it was his marriage after all. He should be the major decider. As long as the proper procedure of the wedding would be followed religiously, they could approve it to happen any time of the day despite the weather condition-despite everything.

"Council, I am waiting for your approval. Are there any questions?" Sae Joo scanned the faces of the gentlemen, majority nodding in agreement. They threw their green voting stamps into the center. For the final judgment, Jung Ho stood and made the final announcement, "With a unanimous vote, this council approves Prince Sae Joo's masquerade prenuptial party. So, ordered." he struck the sound block with the gavel, ending the meeting.

~~•~~

Nighttime arrived-just after almost everyone has had dinner, Sae Joo strode outside of the palace alone. No bodyguards, no escorts. Only his leather jackets and cowhide boots to protect him from the unforgiving winds.

Upon reaching his destination, a portion in the woods, a few paces away from the Yellow Tigers barracks, he saw Shun standing and facing the open forest. The nangdo's hands were tucked between his armpits. At an ample distance, Sae Joo picked a dagger from his pocket and unsheathed it. Like a tiger eyeing for a prey, he tiptoed and prowled closer to his bodyguard. When he was an inch away from the nangdo's vest, he wrapped his arms on his shoulder, point him the dagger, and dropped his voice, "Who do you work for?"

Trained like an advanced Hwarang officer, Shun's hands need not listen to his brain. Every part of his body was an automated machine. Faster than a blink of an eye, he quickly twisted the assailant's arm, stepped on his foot and kicked his legs, making the perpetrator fall to the snowy ground in an instant. He turned around, shocked. "Your Highness?"

He offered a hand to Sae Joo, which the Prince coldly refused. The Prince winced in pain, paying the consequence of his ridiculous, hasty movement. His motive was undeniably questionable for Shun. Among all people, he did not expect the Prince doing such a bold move.

"Your Highness, what was that about?"

After he stood, Sae Joo shook the dirt and snow out of his jacket. "I... I was just testing your capability, your alertness. That's all."

"Alright, that's a bit strange."

"Good reflexes. Really, I expected this to happen. You didn't disappoint me, Shun."

The nangdo grimaced and walked closer to the Prince. "Are you alright? That must have hurt you. I'm sorry for twisting your arm like a twig."

"I would be angry if you didn't do that." Sae Joo could not understand why his heart was beating erratically in front of his best friend. Since he had heard Jung Ho's confessions, part of him screamed that Shun could be Sae Yoo. Every male of the same age as him could be Sae Yoo. Moreover, some clues were pointing to him. Bull's eye! The mysterious, familiar headband, the same blue baby cloth... That mere cloud of thought removed the scalp of his sanity.

As he was staring at the nangdo, he was suddenly caught off-guard by the question: Your Highness, why did you ask for me here?

He rocked back to his senses and answered, stammering. "No-nothing. I just want to be outside the palace for a while."

"Oh, is that so? You've been busy the whole day. Was it about the wedding preparation?"

A not-so-smooth veering off the topic. "Shun, when was the last time you saw your father?"

"Hmm." Shun looked up to the bald trees and thought for a moment. "I don't remember the exact day, but I think it was when we discovered the iron syndicate... I am not sure. Heavens, I have a terrible memory nowadays!"

The Prince dipped his head and chortled, "Oh."

"Why do you ask, Your Highness?"

"Uhm, I was just wondering if you have returned the headband to your father."

"Yes, I have. I apologized for taking it. I thought he would be furious... but no!"

"Could you remind me what the headband looked like?"

"Hmm, it was bright red, good quality of cloth... and a falcon insignia. This is a bit random."

Shun laughed.

"Falcon insignia... Alright. I just have one final favor for you."

The nangdo smiled, his perfect set of white teeth dashing. "Anything, Your Highness."

"Could you please bring me to your father?"

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