Stigma | 낙인

CH 3 PART 3

It was the last day of June, and it was incredibly hot. As the days became humid and damp, the weather was alerting everyone that the rainy season was coming. EunLib was walking through the palace for a different reason today.

He was carrying his resignation letter inside his chest pocket. In his letter, he had written that he would be retiring to the countryside with his family after resigning from his post in the palace as well as his post as an instructor of the training grounds.

He had loyally served the king and the royal family all this time. With his wife's belly about to burst, they had finished their preparations to go down to her family's residence. Worried about sending her off alone, EunLib decided to resign and accompany her.

He was planning on resigning and retiring to his wife's hometown. He'd farm to pass the time and maybe open up a martial arts school and begin teaching the children living there.
Now that he'd made up his mind, he felt a lot better.

Now all that was left to do was to turn in this resignation letter and head out.He was sure there would be many people who would try to change his mind, but he was going to shake them off and move on. Just the thought of doing this put a skip to his step. He looked up at the cloudy sky. It might rain tonight.

'If the rainy season comes, the roads will more difficult to travel...'

He was a bit worried, but monsoon rains weren't usually fierce in the beginning, so he believed that they should be alright. After a few days, the rain would get heavier, and the weather would become unpredictable. It would be best to leave first thing tomorrow.

"I'll ask Sir Heo to take care of EunSeo while I'm gone..."

EunLib called SeoYoon 'Sir Heo'. Even though he was older than SeoYoon, he didn't care about their age difference and wanted to show him respect. SeoYoon and EunSeo were engaged to be married.

SeoYoon only asked to postpone their wedding to a later date, so the wedding was scheduled to take place in the fall. EunLib planned on coming back up to the capital for the wedding before heading back down to the countryside again.

'Everything is good. Everything worked out.'

EunLib smiled to himself, thinking that he could finally face his parents when the time came.

"You."

The man who had promoted EunLib to his post was Prime Minister Chae. Prime Minister Chae was the king's closest ally and known to be the actual leader in the nation's political scene. EunLib wasn't a huge fan of Prime Minister Chae.

Even though he was just a public servant that served the king and the royal family, he crossed the line in everything he did. At least, that's what EunLib thought. The king lacked judgement, so nothing was done through him when it came to the matters of the Royal Court. Instead, everything went through Prime Minister Chae.

Prime Minister Chae was a vicious, greedy man. If he didn't like someone, they would be banished. He often beheaded those that took part in any conspiracy against his power.
Even though the Royal Court was in this state, EunLib continued to protect it, saying that it was his job.

The king was still the king. When the current king's rebellion had taken place, EunLib was temporarily out of the palace.
EunLib was the personal guard of the previous king, so his duty was to protect the king.

However, at that time, EunLib's father-in-law had passed away, so he had gone to his wife's home to pay his respects.
While he was away, the rebellion had struck, and by the time he came back, the king had changed.

Many died. The deposed king's young son had disappeared, and a foolish king had claimed the throne. Prime Minister Chae had seized the Royal Court and wielded his power.
Even though he considered throwing away his duties and leaving the palace altogether, the shaky royal palace and the many leaderless soldiers caused him to stay.