Journey Into the Knight

Chapter Twenty-Eight

YongSun's heart was in her throat. She was being led down a long corridor, the same grey brick on the outside of the castle made up the inside walls as well. She tried to look at everything she could, taking in all her surroundings, like Byul would have, like TaeOh should be doing if his legs and arms were not bound, being dragged by two of the guards, his face was stuck looking at the white marble floors. They were still surrounded by the same guards who rushed them at the front gate, one even held a blade in his hand at YongSun's side.

The halls were lined with paintings, she assumed of the past royals, they had something similar in her castle.

For a castle, it was not very impressive. It was old, and that should have given it character, it should have given it life with the history in its walls, much like her own, where you could see the impression of the kings that had come before. But it was as if Henry had stripped all the history from his castle, replacing it with modern furniture and artworks, making it seem very out of place. She already knew she was not going to be comfortable here, not that she thought she ever would, but it was even more unsettling than she originally thought. She tried looking for places to escape but it was hard to see anything through the guard wall that surrounded her. She did however see the servants rushing about, acting as if them being walked down this hall at sword point was completely normal. That also unsettled YongSun.

Finally, she and TaeOh were led to a large set of double doors made of oak. Iron decorations were inlaid within the wood, making a very beautiful design around the perimeter of the door, hiding the ugly thing that sat on the other side.

The throne room was vast. It had to be at least double the size of her father's. Everything was carved out of white marble, even the throne itself, with golden accents attached to the intricate design. King Henry of Kedoeron sat on the throne placed on a platform four feet off the ground. A large gold crown sat upon his head, looking too heavy with all those jewels on it.

If YongSun had met Henry for the first time with his current expression, she would have cowered away from him. Feeling the blade Byul gave her, hot against her thigh, it felt as if she was standing next to her, giving her strength to face him like the high royal she was. He wore a purple cape that draped dramatically over the side of his throne and clashed with his red robes. His eyes narrowed on them as they entered.

TaeOh was thrown to the ground, head smacking against the floor so hard that it made YongSun's teeth clench. He remained on his knees, head down, submitting to his king. YongSun wanted to tell him, very badly, to stand and face this man with dignity, but she knew this was all part of his plan, this was what had to be done.

The King clicked his tongue. "Well, what do we have here?." His voice was venomous but his face stayed neutral. "Princess, I did not think we would be seeing you again." His almost black eyes bore into hers but she took a breath and remained calm.

She squared her shoulders and took a quick curtsy for him. "My King, I hope you would be so gracious as to hear our tale." She tried to sound as propper as she could.

Henry took his time thinking it over. Then, ever so slightly, he moved one of his fingers. The guards moved back slightly but no one undid TaeOh's binds. "You may speak, I am sure it will be a tale indeed."

YongSun swallowed her fear. She had to succeed or TaeOh would be taken from her and be hurt, she could not let that happen. "The night my father was murdered." She mustered as much emotion she could, it wasn't hard when she was speaking about her father. "We found him after the assassin left while he was bleeding out." She didn't need to fake the waver in her voice or the tears threatening to spill from her eyes. "His final words to us were to flee the castle, not knowing if the assassin was still in the castle. We heeded his words." She looked toward TaeOh, still submissive on the floor. "That night, the two warriors sworn to keep me safe and proceeded to help me escape the castle knowing very well that they were pinning his murder on themselves."