Sun came to a stop at the gate. “Do you think that they’d purposefully led him away?”
“Perhaps.” Cheol reached for the door handle. “I’d keep an eye out for that Ha-jun fellow from now on. I doubt his intentions are entirely innocent.”
“Indeed, he struck up a conversation as soon as we arrived,” Sun said. “He seems interested in His Highness.”
“Interested?” Cheol repeated. He turned around to face Sun, something like anger in the pit of his stomach, though he managed to keep his voice level. “Interested in what way?”
With an arc of an eyebrow, Sun relented. “I dare say he might be a little too friendly.” His eyes widened as he looked at the chrysanthemums near Cheol’s feet. “Cheol, you’re killing the flowers.”
Ah, he only used his name when he wanted to scold him for something. Cheol glanced down at the chrysanthemums, now somewhere between burnt orange and a sickly brown. He knelt and reached out his hand to the chrysanthemums, but they only shrunk back. The image of the scholar running away with Cheol’s consort returned to the forefront of his mind. The petals of the chrysanthemums slowly began to fall away.
“Been a while since I’ve seen that,” Sun muttered, drawing closer to Cheol. “You okay?”
Cheol stared at the plants for a while longer, willing his anger to lessen. A moment later the stems of the flowers straightened and stood tall once more, their bright orange petals blooming once again.
“I’m fine,” Cheol replied. He stood, and placed a hand on Sun’s shoulder. “I should be going. Take care of him for me?”
“Of course.”
. . .
The prison was quiet as Cheol arrived in the courtyard. Branches creaked mournfully in the wind, now barren of leaves. Beneath his feet, said leaves crinkled and announced his arrival. The two guards bowed as he approached. They were Cheol’s own soldiers, ones he could be certain wouldn’t leak the information to his enemies.
“Speak. How has the interrogation been so far?”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
The guards straightened from their bows, following his commands as seamlessly as the earth itself. The one on the right, a man probably several years older than Cheol, spoke first.
“Tbeg Zjpfras,” tf rjlv. “Obgv Al-kbc tjr kbgxfv bc atfw rlcmf atfs jgglnfv jcv –”
C mtffgoei nblmf lcafggeqafv tlw, “Ktfs mgjmxfv lc ecvfg jc tbeg.” Ycf bo atf mfii vbbgr bqfcfv. Al-kbc raemx tlr tfjv bea, pblcfv ys Gbmabg Zsfbcu-rex jcv tlr jrrlrajca, ktb tjv j yemxfa bo yibbvs kjafg jcv yjcvjufr lc tlr jgwr.
Ji-won jumped down from the cell, and his companions followed suit. He hopped over to Cheol with a skip in his step, joyful as ever. He wore a colorful hanbok, his hair tied up in a neat topknot, hidden by a gat. Somehow he always managed to walk away from these scenes without a single drop of blood on himself. “They were no trouble at all. You oughta give me tougher nuts to crack, Cheol.”
“Don’t worry,” Cheol said. “You can have as much fun with them as you’d like after we’re done here.” Cheol peered into the cell. There lay four of the men, bloodied and bruised, their legs mangled from the leg-twisting. They all seemed to be unconscious, their breathing laborious and their sleep fitful.
“Tell me what they know,” Cheol ordered, walking away from the sight. Ji-won followed him. Sun and he probably haven’t seen each other in weeks.
“They’re from a small cartel syndicate that’s recently gotten its hands on Hanseong,” said Ji-won, placing a whip back into his seemingly bottomless box of torture devices. “God knows what gave them the courage to be so close to the Palace. They say they’ve been selling their goods to local nobles. Drugs, weapons, the works. Though they mostly deal in apyeon and a new drug on the market, ah, gimi. Came from up north apparently.”
“North,” said Cheol. So they’ve finally managed to break in. It was inevitable, he supposed. The Northern Emperor had only ever been an ally on paper. That he would attack now instead of when Cheol first took the throne was a wonder in itself. Perhaps he thought Cheol’s court was unstable, what with all the controversy surrounding Min-jun. “Did they say where their base was?”
“They’ve got a couple,” replied Ji-won. “This bunch only knew where their own base was. Whoever’s leading them is one smart cookie.” Cheol had long since given up on trying to understand Ji-won’s strange phrases. He glanced back at the men.
“Did they mention who sent them after Min-jun?”
“Who sent them?” Ji-won asked. “I thought they just chased after them because they looked rich and pretty.”
“That’s how it appears,” Cheol said. “But do you not find it strange that they happened to chase them all the way to the flower shop Lady Ok-jeong had taken me to?”
Ji-won nodded. “I see your point.”
“You didn’t ask them, did you?” Cheol said.
Ji-won shrugged, smiling sheepishly. “Guess it just didn’t come up in conversation.”
Cheol sighed, and then turned to the guards who stood behind him. He couldn’t just let a potential threat to Min-jun run around freely. Especially if Min-jun returned to the Academy tomorrow. Yes, he’d have to deal with this now. “Wake them up.”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
Ji-won perked up. “Another round so soon?”
“I doubt it’ll take that much,” Cheol said, feeling quite disappointed. He saw Doctor Myeong-suk grimace at them, fearing yet another long session of patching up the wounds of the tortured.
The guards walked into the cell and began to kick the thieves awake. Upon waking, each of them scrambled to the edges of the cells, as far from Cheol and Ji-won as possible. They begged for mercy, muttering prayers underneath their breath as they sobbed.
The one in the middle was the leader, was he not?
“You,” Cheol addressed him. “Do you remember why you’re here?”
“Yes, Y-your Majesty,” said the man, kneeling on his hands and knees as he crawled forth. His face was covered in blood and grime mixed with the stains of tears, his hair matted, his filthy clothes ripped in some places. Cheol couldn’t help but feel some satisfaction at the sight. “F-for endangering the life o-of His H-highness, R-royal No-noble Consort Hui.”
“Good,” Cheol said, looming over the man. “Did someone ask you to commit such a heinous crime, or did you do so of your own choosing?”
The man raised his head slightly, his mouth hanging open, revealing the remnants of Ji-won’s work. His eyes flitted wildly, as he desperately searched for a solution. Would it be better to tell the truth or to lie? Foolish man. Cheol would be able to tell either way.
“It was a man,” said the thief. “He had his face covered with a veil. Was tall and wore black noble’s clothes. He said he’d buy our entire stock if we chased them down and . . .” He trailed off and swallowed thickly, feeling the full weight of a King’s gaze on him. “I would’ve never done it had I known, Your Majesty. Please believe me.” He broke into sobs once more. Cheol watched, unsympathetic.
“Oh, you would have no remorse had you attacked an innocent civilian?” Cheol asked, kneeling down to the man’s eye level. That fearful gaze met Cheol’s own. “Do you think I have no love for my people, filth?”
“No, no! Of course not.” He bowed again, nearly banging his head against the floor. “You are magnanimous, Your Majesty. There is no person as kind or as merciful.”
“Stop your chatter,” Cheol said, leaning his chin on his hand. “Where did you meet this man?”
“H-he approached us at the Kisaeng house. N-near the lake.” More sobbing. “P-please don’t let that man hurt us anymore.”
A Kisaeng house?
“What did the man’s voice sound like?”
“He spoke fancy, educated. Never raised his voice above a whisper, not once.”
Interesting. Was he the mastermind, or the middleman? Cheol tilted his head to the side. The thief didn’t seem to be lying.
“Very well. Those are all my questions,” Cheol said. “For your cooperation, I’ll be moving your execution up.” The thief whimpered, lip trembling, and Cheol sighed. “Believe me, this is mercy.” The only mercy he had any intention of showing them. The man passed out on the floor, drooling a bit at the mouth. Useless.
“Ji-won, you have until tomorrow evening.”
“Understood.”
A/N: Cheol said #nomercy. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter! If you did, please leave a comment down below with your thoughts! We’re almost at 100 episodes! That’s so crazy to me lol. Thank you to everyone who has stuck around so long. I hope you continue to enjoy the story!
Hahaha Cheol vinegar pot overflows. Ha Jun better wary
Which member of court so bold to plot against Min Jun?
Thank you for Cheol Vinegar it’s extra tasty
Cheol thinks he’s above being a vinegar jar but he really isn’t lol. Thank you for commenting! Hopefully your questions will be answered soon 😊
#nomercy +1
#nomercy unless Min-jun comes to save you in that case it’s 50/50.
Thank you for commenting, Clozed!
Some people really really love their jobs 😂. And some people really love their consorts, whether they want to or not!
Yes 😂. Cheol might love his consort a little too much.
Thank you for commenting!