Past Promises

THE FALL (PART II)

Plans from both sides.

Later when he saw Servant Choi left the room, the Royal Advisor's spy went and tell the guard that his duty was successfully executed.

I ran along the guard to the Royal Advisor's residence and saw the rotten laugh came out of him.

"Let's see if he'd play along with us," he said.

I stayed longer to see what was his plan and wish I could tell everything to the 'King'.

The next day...

Lieutenant Han wakes up groggily and soon composed himself when he realised that he had slept on the General's bed.

"Your Highness! No, I mean, General!" He stood so fast that he's almost blacked out again.

"Hold on there, Han. Bad hungover, huh?" The General let out a small laugh.

"Apologies, General. I took your bed last night. No wonder it felt so good." He laughed awkwardly.

"No worries but, I'll need you to be sober soon. We have tonnes of things to discuss today," the General's face turns serious and his jaw tightens.

Lieutenant Han tries to stand straight but I guess his world is still spinning because I swear his eyes all white for a second.

"I'll return to my residence now and will be right back before noon!" He said and swayed right across the room. I saw him running without his shoes and one of the General's servant runs after him bringing his shoes. 

The General shakes his head and let out a short sigh. His face, one that showed no hint of emotions before has turned gray and full of worries.

"I hope I can tell you everything, my dear grandson. That evil old man has no right to do this to both of you." Another clear difference between me and human is that, even when I cry, my tears are just like a fog, like me. I could feel like I'm crying but no tears oozed out from my eyes.

Later in the afternoon, the Lieutenant comes with a better version of himself and looks sharp as always.

They climbed out through the South Border Gate, ran past through the flower field and at the end of the field, there's a small cabin. It hides out in a plain sight, with large bushes of a few flowers left at the end of the field and some dead trees surrounded the area.

When I came in, there were a few other familiar faces inside. When the General explained the situation, some of them have turned pale and some were in raged.

"General Lee, this is all absurd. We could go to his residence now and kill that traitor!" One soldier speaks and a few others agree with him.

"I know how all of this feels and I'm certainly is feeling the same thing as you are. But brothers, we are dealing with someone that knows how to trick other people, knows well how to trick our mind. I'm so concerned that all this information we have are the ones we got or something that he gave, something that he intentionally let us know." The General falls into deep thinking again.

"Do you mean, he wants us to know this thing and let us think that he is planning a revolt?" Lieutenant Han interjected the General's thoughts.

The General sigh and says, " That man holds a lot of information in this Palace. Ones that we wouldn't even know where his sources came from. I'm bringing all of you here because believe it or not, there is someone around us is working with him too. I don't know what he promises those who are working for him but that man, that man can easily turns everything we know now to lies to His Majesty. I don't want my brother to deal with this now so let us move under shadow and once we are sure of everything, I will go and face him"

I sit there and listening to all his plans and I swear my heart drop to every single plans he laid out as exactly like things the Royal Advisor said last night. Everything is falling to exactly what the rotten man has planned!

Once the meeting had finished, I followed one person among soldiers whom attended the meeting just now.

I know him, he was there in the Royal Advisor's residence. Even though he was always standing in the shadow, I would not forget his face.

His steps rather meticulous. I thought he will climb the wall and head straight to the Royal Advisor's residence but instead, he hopped on to his horse and rode out from the Palace.

My ghost ability had helped me to fly fast enough to catch up to his horse. Good Lord, that is one hella fast horse!

When we arrived at the flee market, I had almost lost him. He tied his horse in one of the barns and paid someone to look after it. Then he ran past along people that filled the road. I've no time to feel uncomfortable so I just ran past through everyone and people started to say, "Cold!"

We arrived at a 'Tea House'. I know this place, it pretends to be a decent place in the outside but all indecencies start here. Old men with unsatisfied lust and young men who been heartbroken, all comes here with a purpose. To feel loved even for a day, by a stranger.

He didn't walk in straight from the front door but walk in from the back of the house. Inside, there's tonnes of rooms with a very unpleasant noises and I just felt nauseous by being inside. I gather up my strength and pretend I'm just in an animals cage.

The soldier pushed open a door to a room and swiftly closes it back. There  they are, the Royal Advisor and the Commander, sitting while being attended by 4 women each.

'Disgusting.'

The Royal Advisor asks the women to leave the room and stare at the soldier without asking questions.

The soldier speaks soon, the General had planned their moves, My Lord. Just as according to your plan." He gritted his teeth as he says this, as if he is forced to do so.

"Good. You are one clever man aren't you. Betrayed the weak one and follows the one that can gives you better lives after all this."

The soldier's jaw tightens, "My Lord, I have done the thing you asked. May I ask, where are the money you promised?"

The Royal Advisor laughs as soon as he heard it, "I like your attitude, young man. Do the work, take the money. Well done." He signals another guard who's standing at the end of the room. He gives him a 3 sachets that looks heavy with coins.

Then the Royal Advisor turned serious, "As expected of the General, he will not rashly go to His Majesty and blurt everything out, well, that was part of the plan too. When he tries to make me look like a traitor, I would have everything sorted out with His Majesty even earlier. Yet, another thing we should admit that he is too cautious with the soldiers as if he knows we have half of them under our palms but I bet he didn't know we have almost all of them under our palms. He thought I will be fleeing after I executed my plans. My oh my, wouldn't that be a waste to leave this place after all of those suffering. I plan to stay here and ruin this Nation to the point that no one should ever know it's name anymore."