Secret of the Two Kings (89 CHAPTERS - ON HOLD)

제 51 부

Amidst the diplomatic conversations of the King and the Tang envoys, the teen royals also had their own petty issues to settle. Petty, solely because of Xiao Ji who still bitterly recollected the memories in Dokdo Island. His brain could not accept the fact that he was tricked by a Prince lower than him in any way, excluding height.

He dragged Sae Joo into the corner of a pavilion, and they talked face to face. Heart to heart. No more hiding, just pretentious, chagrined smiles. The Silla Prince, being also a bit childish, shove his hand away from clinging to his arm.

"What is this?" snapped Sae Joo.

"You bastard! You fooled me! Now, where is that boy you had presented as the Prince?"

Xiao Ji's face was flaring in anger. A furious fire under the chimneys. The blaze danced higher and higher in the humid air as more charcoal of ego fueled the fireplace. Sae Joo was the resident of the house, enjoying the warmth of the fire—unbothered.

"Do you seriously think that I would introduce him to you? Forget it. Just accept the fact that not everyone would be scared of you. Just so you know, the world does not revolve on you. You are not the smartest among all of us."

"Shut up."

"No, you shut up. Your attitude needs to be modified." a word dagger finally came out from Sae Joo's mouth. Xiao Ji could not dodge its sharp edges, it buried straight to his skin, twisting its way into his soul. "I admit—you may be intelligent and powerful, but you if you do not change the way you treat people, you will be a trash, Heaven-crapped leader."

"How dare you say that? What do you know about leadership?" Xiao Ji meandered around Sae Joo, scanning him from crown to boots. "... you could not even face me when I demanded a Prince. You faked your identity and passed the responsibility to another person. You are a coward. Your ancestors are weeping in their graves for birthing a Prince like you."

"That is not being a coward. I was just being smart. I choose my battles to save others. I think. I process. I care— you will never learn unless you open your heart, destroy that towering ego away."

The Tang Prince flinched as his eyes twitched. The word dagger seemed to had penetrated the core of his existence. He moved his eyes away from the Silla Prince, keeping his distance. Wild cubs like him were trained to never falter or back down, be it by experience or by people around him. Sae Joo was like a wildlife doctor; he tried to analyze and tame the wounded cub, but he did not know where the wounds had come from. He was trying his luck, giving his best shots, unsure about the upcoming outcome.

"Prince Xiao Ji, I seriously believe that no people are born evil. They become evil because of their life choices. You still have a lot of time. You are still young. You could change if you would desire."

"You have no right to tell me that. You do not know me."

"Then, tell me who you are! I still believe that you are a good person. If not, you would not release us from being your captives... You know what, I have always been wondering, why did you decide to set us free?"

Strangely, underneath the sweltering heat of the sun, a cold gust of wind blew from the east, tingling their skins, swaying their royal robes. Xiao Ji's face turned blue, his frigid eyes reflecting on Sae Joo's. The Silla Prince tried to break the intangible barrier, knowing finally his nemesis's hidden world behind the strong facade, like a lone traveler peeping through the misty windows of an unknown cabin in the cold winter night.

The much-awaited response did not come out easily. It took a pure struggling moment of destroying a continuously growing iron-tower of pride. Xiao Ji was at the top, wobbling at the ball-point tip. Sae Joo climbed up. Higher and higher. His words of blandishment were sticking pads on his boots to keep him from falling. He reached the top and pushed the Prince all the way down to the navel of his pure, innocent, fragile subconscious. (Phew! Plak!)