The Unknown History

44

Heejin stayed in her office, reading all the documents and papers. She put down her brush pen and let out a tired exhale. She averted her gaze at the clock, seeing that it had already passed midnight.

Her body jumped in surprise at the sudden noise outside her office. She had told the guards to stay away from the room since she wanted some privacy. There were sounds of people running outside the room, giving her goosebumps.

She gulped down her saliva nervously before grabbing a sword near her. She had kept it near a sculpture given by her father as a wedding gift. She took a few steps slowly towards the door and stood next to the doorway, listening to the noises outside attentively.

The door slammed open, revealing three men in black attire. They had their faces hidden underneath black masks. She swung her sword and watched as it stabbed one of them.

The tallest man took out his small knife and was about to stab her. Fortunately, she managed to dodge it and instantly slit him in the throat. One thing she was thankful for was how her dad had taught her sword fighting ever since she was a teenager.

Yeonseo!

She cut the last man's head off before running out of the office. She wanted to head to the princess's bedroom but stopped at the sight of assassins crowding the hallway.

They had broken into the palace through the windows and were sprinting towards her to kill her. She took a deep breath and prayed to God for her sister-in-law to be safe.

🌷

Yeonseo gulped in fear as she tightened her grip around the sword she was holding. The sound of footsteps was coming closer and closer to her bedroom door. She could feel goosebumps around her skin. Her breathing started to tremble as well as her hands.

Yeongwon started whimpering before he started crying. She slowly held him closer and whispered lullabies into his ears to calm him down.

I don't know how to sword fight, she thought to herself. Kim Yeonseo, please give me your skills and knowledge.

The sounds were finally gone, followed by an eerie type of silent after. She quietly opened the door and saw no one in the hallway. She sprinted out of the room and searched for an empty room to hide in.

She went to the infirmary and saw Mr Bae and the physician hiding behind the desk. "Your Highness!" They both called for her in unison.

"What the hell is going on?" She asked before handing them her child. Mr Bae slowly calmed Yeongwon down before he started to cry.

"Assassins are invading the palace, Your Highness. We hid here for almost an hour, Your Highness. I thought you were safe with Her Majesty, the Queen."

"Wait, you're saying Heejin is alone?"

"She's not with you?" The physician asked out of worry. Yeonseo groaned frustratedly and gave one last glance at her son, "Please take care of Yeongwon. He hasn't seen his father yet."

Mr Bae bowed, "We will obey your orders, Your Highness."

She nodded and approached the doors slowly. The doors opened aggressively out of the blue. A man walked in with a sword in his hand before letting out a chuckle.

He took off his mask and smirked. Sunghoon took a closer look at Yeongwon, "Is that my nephew?"

Yeonseo blocked him with the sword, preventing him from taking a step any closer to her son. "I can't believe you're doing this, Sunghoon. Why?"

"Well, let's see. First, I'm going to kill Heejin. And then, you. Then, I'll kill your damn husband and Sunoo. And I'll rule the East Kingdom. There. Easy."

Hearing him say such heartless things made her blood boil out of anger. She swung the sword and tried to stab him but he stopped it with his hand. He groaned in pain as red liquid started oozing out from his palms.

He swung his sword back to kill her but failed when the physician crashed a vase against his head. He winced in pain as he sat on the ground, feeling his ears ring.

"Your Highness! Hurry!" The physician motioned for her and Mr Bae to escape. They all ran through the hallway and out of the palace, searching for the gates to escape.

"Wait! What about the Queen?" Yeonseo asked and looked back at the palace.

"Kim Yeonseo!" A familiar voice called her. Her heart felt relieved at the sound as it made her turn around. Sunoo and Jungwon stood at the gate with guards around them.

Sunoo instantly ran to his sister before pulling her into a tight embrace, "I'm so glad you're okay!"

Jungwon's heart dropped at the sight of his son in Mr Bae's arms. The male servant grinned softly, "It's your son, Lord Yang."

Yeongwon had woken up from his short slumber and blinked his eyes at his father. The child stared at his father for a while before flashing him a cute smile. Jungwon giggled at his son's toothless gums.

Sunoo cleared his throat and faced the guards, "Kill all the assassins now! And save my wife."

Yeonseo tried to suppress her tears at the sight of her husband talking to his son. Jungwon averted his attention to her before pulling her into his embrace. She longed for his warmth and comfort and her eyes slowly shed tears.

The nobleman patted her back gently, "I'm right here, love."

"You're safe," she breathed out.