Not long after the accession of Young-hwan to the throne, all the allies that his father had created were terminated. Young-hwan had created a plan of mass murder and war. He did not want to cooperate, he wanted to be the only one in power, the only one standing at the end of the war. It started with the merchant who had helped the previous King and given riches for his work and help to the King. He was the first one murdered by Young-hwan, and so the list began. The opposition who lived in harmony with the previous king, their whole family was killed on the order of the king. No descendant, no relative left behind. The murders became harsher with time. Each time, it was the entirety of the family that was killed and their heads, gifted to the king as rewards. To make matters worse, rumours in the palace had spread that the king hung the heads in a temple outside the palace. You decided to go to Queen Dowager.
You had given your greetings in a rush. You didn't know where to begin. "Your highness, the king, he might be keeping an eye on one of us. You have to restrain from mentioning anything against the king to anyone but me. I am not sure, but there is a spy amongst us," you started there but Queen Dowager only laughed. "Y/n, I've known that for long, my child. It's not just one of us, both of us have a spy in our midst. I knew I could trust you because I have known you for long." You didn't understand what she meant until she cleared your confusion herself, "I go to our sacred lands to pray for our ancestors, Prince Young-hwan has never been one to participate in those. In between, I always stop by an infirmary to buy herbs. They seem to have the best workers in town." So, she not only knew Yoongi was alive and well, but she had talked to him and she knew who you were. Now you knew what Yoongi had meant by his statement, his grandmother, Queen Dowager, was the one who was keeping you safe at the palace. She was the one who ensured you did not become part of the concubine. You nodded at her clarification, but did not want to say much, for you did not know where and who the spy was. Instead you said, "I've heard of a rumour around the palace. There is a temple in town—," Queen Dowager cut you off and asked you to lean in before whispering, "I'm aware of this temple. It exists, we need to make sure of its reality. How, though is up to you, Queen y/n." You nodded, knowing what she meant.
In the few weeks you had spent in the palace, you had acquainted one of your court ladies. She was the same age as you, so it was easier to talk to her, in the times when you felt alone. One day, when you were talking to her she had told you on how to get close to the king, for she was concerned of the strained relationship of her king and queen. You had laughed at the thought, but taken her advice with some consideration, for it could help you save Yoongi some more time. Like any other day you were talking to her again, when the guards outside announced the arrival of the King. Yol-shin got up and stepped aside to leave as the King entered but he told her to stop. "My Queen, have you found yourself a new play thing?" He had said with so much spite and you looked at him in confusion, and questioned him. "Oh, don't try to veneer the truth now, Queen. Are you using this girl to contact him? Is that why you keep her close. You seem to like her a lot, since you spend so much time with her," he laughed, sinisterly. You shivered in fear. You did not know what he was thinking or what he was going to do, but you could feel the fear in your bones as he got closer to Yol-shin and pulled her towards him and then, he drew his sword. You panicked, "Your Majesty! No, sh-she hasn't done anything. I didn't try contacting anyone! I promise, please spare her life. We can move her to another division where she wouldn't be close to me anymore, please." You were scared for her life. He laughed, "You take me for a fool? She won't be working in this palace ever again." You nodded, "Okay, then we can have her leave the palace. She'll go. Right, Yol-shinah?" She nodded but there was a knowing smile on her face that you didn't understand. Young-hwan gave you a smirk and said, "That's right, she will leave the palace and I'll make sure of that." With that he drew his sword closer to her and slashed her neck. You heard a scream, not realising it was your own. You ran to her as the King dropped her body and she fell right in your lap. "Yol-shinah, I'm so sorry this happened to you, I'm sorry." She smiled, and blood poured out of her mouth, but she continued to say, "I'm okay, my Queen. I have had the opportunity of dying in the arms of the Queen of this country. I must have done something— good in my past life." She coughed as finished her sentence, and then— nothing. She passed away in your arms. You cried as you held on to her. The palace guards came in to retrieve her body. They took her away from you, so you lurched and went straight to Youngh-hwan. He was still outside, so you yelled, "Young-hwan! I will never forgive you for killing an innocent girl. Have you no shame? You may be a King and above everyone else but God is still watching—," you were cut-off by Young-hwan striding toward you and pulling you close, "Don't you dare utter words like this ever again or I will try you for treason. You understand, my Queen?" You shuddered at his words and he let you go. He walked away and you fell to your knees. The King did not know when to stop. Your husband was too cold.
As the evening fell, you decided to take one of Yol-shin's advice and get close to the king. You walked towards the King's chambers. The guards were shocked to see you but announced your arrival before letting you in. Young-hwan looked at you, and for the first time you noticed curiosity in his eyes, "Yes, y/n?" You were doubting this decision but you were already in now, so you took in a deep breath and said, "I-I couldn't sleep in my room. C-can I?" He narrowed his eyes, but nodded eventually. "I do have one thing to ask," you said. Again, he gave you a nod to go on. So you said, "I would really appreciate if you let me go to Yol-shin's home tomorrow. I would like to pay my respects to her parents. She truly didn't do anything. I promise she wasn't helping me with anything and if you don't trust me, you can send your most trusted guard with me." Once finished, you looked for any signs of rejection on Young-hwan's face, but all you could see was contemplation. He was actually considering it. The he finally said, "You may go. But you are not allowed to talk to anyone but the girl's parents and the guard I will send with you." You smiled and nodded. This was the first time he had done anything close to kindness for you.
YOU ARE READING
THE ETERNAL KING
Fanfiction"I told you you'll be Queen soon. You can go to your room to get changed to your mourning robes now. The mourning period will start soon." "We can't let our country perish at the hands of the King."
