When Peony Blooms #AMBW

Chapter 52

The queen, sensing the heavy tension in the air, knew it was not safe for her or Seo-jin to linger any longer. With a pleading look, she urged Minister Kim and Seo-jin to leave, fearing the king's unpredictable temperament. " I'll meet with you two later." she announced."

But Seo-jin, ever the protector, firmly grasped her wrist, shaking his head. He wasn't willing to leave her alone the king. With a final glance at the king, Seo-jin gently guided the queen away, leaving the king standing alone in the corridor.

Once they were out of sight, the king's hardened facade crumbled. A particular instance echoed in his mind: the dreadful day he had confronted the queen dowager over the queen's second child. He had found himself in an intense argument with his mother, her words brimming with disdain and scorn for him and the queen. She had deemed him a disgrace for fathering another child with the queen, that now walked about as a constant reminder, a woman she saw as the enemy.

" He's ensufferable and he's a sickness to this palace. He will be your end!" she began.

" HE IS A CHILD!" The king yelled in protest but his mother didn't stop. " Do you not care that we already lost one!" He asked.

The queen dowager was relentless in her verbal onslaught, her sharp words repeating throughout the room, "I did you a favor ridding you of that child! She's a serpent! A seductress who has lured you into her trap, bearing another child to sink her feet deeper into this kingdom!"

His mother's words ignited a flame within the king, a rage he had held back for too long. " what.. what do you mean a favor?!? What do you mean!" He yelled at his mother walking closer.

" You are useless!" She ranted

"Enough!" he yelled, slamming his fist onto the nearby table, causing the tea set on it to clatter. "She is my wife! And he is my child!"

The queen dowager staggered, taken aback by his outburst. "You disgrace! For all you know it could be that bastard's child!" she spat, clutching her chest. "You...you..."

Suddenly, her words trailed off into a choking gasp, her face paled, her eyes wide with shock and fear. The king watched, his heart pounding, as his mother gasped for breath. His rage was still seething, but the sight of his mother in distress stirred a conflicting turmoil within him.

"Eom—," he stammered in a whisper, rooted in place. He could have called for help. He should have. But instead, resentment held him back, frozen in place as he watched the woman who had manipulated his life gasp her last breaths.

Leaving the room, he closed the door quietly behind him, though he could've called for help. leaving his mother to her fate. When he returned the next day, he found her lifeless, and performed surprise. "Eomamama!" he cried out, the pain in his voice a strange mixture of genuine grief and the burden of his terrible secret, more so a sense of relief.

His mother's death was mourned by the kingdom, but the king bore his guilt silently, a secret that would follow him to his grave.

Elsewhere for Seo-jin, upon leaving the queen  and Minister Kim to their quiet conversation, Seo-jin embarked on his search for So-ra. He navigated through the palace's. Eventually finding her near the royal gardens.
Her face already looked like that of a guilty person that was avoiding confrontation. As she adjusted herself to appear more confident than she was.

He approached her with a stern expression, masking his inner turmoil. "You really disturb me, you know" he called out to her, his voice painting itself in the cold winter air. She turned, her eyes widening slightly upon seeing him. His tone already displaying his tiredness towards her, he was disconnected it was evident.