The Foreigner 외국인

Chapter 18

18.

The devastation the king felt as he sat, alone in his dark chamber, still bloodied from the battle, was unlike anything he had been through before. Is this what my father suffered after losing my mother? he wondered, looking at Lee Ara's knife in his hand. Eunuch Dal and a court lady carrying a basin of water walked in, wanting to wash the blood from the king's body, but he chased them away. "Get out!" he yelled. The court lady put the basin down on the floor and retreated, her head down.

After returning to the palace, Eun Yang had made his way to his office. He closed the doors behind him and slowly collapsed to the floor, weeping. He wept and hit his chest with his fist until the tears ran dry. His eyes still red, he got up with difficulty and made his way to the king's quarters. When he reached Yi Jin's chamber, he was met by a worried Eunuch Dal.

"He is still refusing to get changed or cleaned," he reported to the officer.

"He doesn't want to wash her blood away," Eun Yang replied, before climbing the stairs and entering the king's chamber. He kneeled in front of Yi Jin and pleaded, "Your majesty, Lee Ara gave her life so you could live. Please do not waste it."

The king closed his eyes, tears rolling down his face and collecting dried blood and dust. "The weight on my chest is so heavy, I can barely breathe," he said, almost inaudibly.

"Your highness!" Her court lady burst into her chamber, startling the queen, who dropped the cup of tea that she had been holding up to her lips. "Your highness, please forgive my impetuosity, I have news," the servant said while bowing down on the floor.

"What is it? Talk!" The queen raised her voice, annoyed that the hot water had stained her dress and almost burnt her fair skin through the silk.

"His majesty is back, victorious."

The queen forgot her discomfort and stood up, smiling widely.

"I must go and congratulate him."

"However..." the court lady continued, her head still down, "the foreigner died while protecting the king." The smile quickly faded from the queen's face.

"What?"

The court lady knew better than to repeat herself. The queen slowly sat back down, and tears started to gather in her eyes. "Oh, no..."

She thought of the king and put her hand over her mouth to cover a cry. Then she swallowed her tears and ran to her husband's chamber. She found him with his eyes closed, still wearing his armor. Officer Yang was kneeling in front of him. She approached slowly, and a tear finally escaped her eye and ran down her face as she saw the king covered in blood.

"Are you hurt anywhere?" she asked softly. He did not respond, but he opened his eyes and looked at her. Another tear ran down her cheek as she felt the deep emptiness and distress in Yi Jin's eyes. She grabbed the basin on the floor and dipped a cloth in the water before gently rubbing the king's hands. When they were clean, she moved on to his face. She cried freely as she wiped the dried blood from his skin. Through the cloth she could feel that he was burning up with fever, and soon he tipped forward and collapsed.

Officer Yang jumped to his feet and ran out to call for the royal physician. The queen held the king's hand and sobbed quietly.

"I am sorry. I am sorry that you had to stay alive and couldn't leave with her," she whispered.

Officer Yang and the queen remained by the king's side through the night as he fell into a deep sleep. Incense burned slowly, and the candles' flames remained perfectly still in the stuffy room.