The Accidental Monarch

Surrendering

True to his word, Jeong-hyeok respects her decision and avoids any type of contact with her. Days after their phone call, Seri catches the news about him back in service. The segment shows him waving to the reporters and answering their questions, handsome in his military fatigues. The image of his fake smile before he disappears into the army base burns into her memory.

Seri goes on a temporary hiatus from work and settles into a new routine. She completes her pilates and TRX certification seminars. She waters the plants in her garden. She cooks more food than she can eat and shares them with her friends. She rearranges her furniture around the house. She reads the untouched books in her study. And she thinks about adopting a puppy.

But before her life goes back to normal, the news drops, and everything screeches into a halt.

Her ears pick up the familiar sound of his name in the evening news that was set on a low volume on her television screen. There's a picture of the prince beside the news anchor and a video showing an explosion on the back screen, and the combination makes her heart drop.

She rushes into the living area and uses the remote control to turn the volume up.

The terrorist group pulled off the impossible last night by storming into the army base, a sprawling twenty square mile concrete fortress. Their target was the airfield where the prince's Apache helicopter was parked. Its explosion was the start of the ambush, and the prince was reportedly only a few meters away from the aircraft when it happened.

His Royal Highness reportedly wanted to fight back, but the Royal Guard intervened and whisked him away to a safe room the moment the attack began.

The terrorist group was able to do reconnaissance posing as farmers and watching how the Marines worked. The weapons that they used were reportedly buried outside the base. They blew a hole through the outer wall and stormed inside with automatic rifles, suicide vests, and grenade launchers. The firefight lasted for hours, leaving three Marines dead and six personnel wounded.

Now the dilemma remains. If South Korea decides to pull the prince out because of the attack, the terrorists will claim it as a victory. And if they leave the prince deployed there, he will continue to put himself and those around him at greater risk.

Her smartphone and her landline simultaneously ring and add to her skyrocketing anxiety. She declines a video conference from her manager, hangs up the landline receiver to avoid any incoming calls, and ignores the numerous text messages flooding in. There is only one person she wants to hear from, but why would he call her when she told him not to?

She remembers the card the king gave her. She pushes away the idea before she even finishes the thought, recalling how the last time turned out, but she also knows that he is the only other person who can put her mind at ease. She needs to know that he is okay. She needs to know where he is. The only person who can answer than apart from Jeong-hyeok is his older brother.

Her hand shakes as she dials the number. She wonders if it is because of the threat on the prince's safety or the fear of hearing his mother's voice on the other end again. With a colorful expletive, she hangs up, the receiver clattering in her haste, and drops her head into her hands.

Did she hear it right? Was he only a few meters away from the explosion? That is way too close for comfort. Did the terrorists attack knowing that he was stationed there? Did they proceed with the intention of harming him, even killing him? The thought of him lying inside a casket feels like someone stabbed her in the chest, and she wipes away the tears that spilled over her cheeks.

An idea pops into her head. Every citizen has the right to know if the monarchy is at stake. Given that the prince is the first person in line for the throne, his safety compromised suggests the possibility of the whole institution being compromised. And the Queen Dowager herself said that she can go through the operator the next time she decides to call.