How stupid am I?

Yujo didn’t wipe away the tears that were welling up in her eyes. She couldn’t stop them anymore. She didn’t even have the energy to do so. Right now, she only focused on walking.

Every time she took a step, something pierced the deepest part of her heart. The haphazardly draped clothes on her body looked like rags, and her hair was an absolute mess. Anyone who saw her would think she was crazy. But it didn’t matter. She felt like she was a crazy woman at heart.

She made all the palace maids faint when they came to attend to her bath. Then she disguised herself as a palace maid and escaped the Red King’s palace. The whole while, her body was trembling uncontrollably.

How could he be the Red King? Why did he have to be the Red King?!

She was going to go back. She was going to go back to Yeha. She didn’t want to stay in the disgusting Silver Nation for one more second. Yujo stole a horse and led the horse northward. She wanted to see her brother.

She missed Yeha. She was going to throw away all this suffering and pain. With her brother and her people, she was going to overcome the fate that lied before them.

The horse raced down the road for a long while. She could see the lotus gates that led northward. Yujo lowered her head. Suddenly, an arrow flew towards her from far away.

By the time she realized that her horse had been hit, the horse had already reared up on its hind legs as it wailed. The earth and sky flipped.

Everything was a mess. Her body was flung up into the air before her head slammed onto the ground. A black darkness swallowed her up.

“Find her.”

Garan ordered with a pale face. His gaze was cold as he looked around the bathing room. All the palace maids who had entered to assist Yujo with her bath were unconscious. That woman had easily escaped the Red King’s residence!

“Your Highness.”

YulMok, Garan’s subordinate, approached him from behind as he spoke in a low voice.

“A horse has gone missing from the residence.”

Boom!

Garan rammed his fist into the wall. YulMok stepped back in surprise. He had never seen his master so enraged before.

“Don’t leave a single blade of grass in YeonSung unturned and bring her to me.”

Now that he thought about it, he didn’t even know her name. She never told him anything about herself. Why did she disappear like this?

He didn’t want to answer his question. He didn’t want to believe the answer that was forming inside his heart. But he was quick enough to deduce why she had left.

She left because he was the ‘Red King’. The moment his identity was revealed, he felt how stiff her body had become. At the time, he thought it was only because she was surprised. Or was there another reason?

The warmth and the softness that had surrounded him last night had disappeared. The desolate disappointment and betrayal shook him to his core.

“Your Highness.”

Another subordinate entered the room and called out to him.

“The secret room in YeonSung has burned to the ground.”

Garan turned around.

“What did you say?”

He had only shown that room to one other person, and it was her. That was where the bamboo slip shards and the texts about black magic and the icy-fire stone were stored.

A thick shadow fell over his dark blue eyes.

Splash!

Cold water was sprayed over Yujo’s body. Yujo gasped in shock as she woke up. When she opened her eyes, all she saw was the cold, stone floor. Her whole body was drenched, and the water droplets dripped onto the floor.

“Get up!”

A hand grabbed her hair and brought her to her knees. When she looked up, she could finally see the man in front of her.

He was a burly man who exuded a greasy aura. His fierce face was covered in a coarse beard. His appearance was so hideous and vulgar that it made Yujo feel like throwing up.

Yujo knew who he was. The leader of the troops that had first invaded Yeha as well as the weak head of the military forces that Yeha’s soldiers had defeated twice… the Crown Prince.

“Haa……Haa……”

White vapors puffed out of Yujo’s mouth as she panted for breath. Although it was the middle of summer, she was locked up in a basement prison cell. It was so cold in here that her whole body was shivering. The man didn’t move and continued to stare at her.

Because his face was hidden by a shadow, she couldn’t see the look in his eyes. However, Yujo remembered this feeling. It felt as if she were standing in front of a gigantic snake. Her whole body became clammy and cold as shivers ran down her spine.

“All right, so have you found the Heukra?”

Underneath the bluish shadow, she could see the Crown Prince’s lips stretch into a smile. Yujo remained silent. Suddenly, the hand holding her hair tightened, and a large palm struck her across the cheek. The force made her cheek go numb, but the pain soon followed.

“Oh dear, oh dear. Don’t do that. She’s Duke MoonYeo’s wife. She’s still a member of the imperial family.”

The Crown Prince spoke bitterly before walking over to a chair in front of her. He sat his obese body down. With much difficulty, he crossed his legs and leaned back on the chair. Then he chuckled as he continued speaking.

“She’s Duke MoonYeo’s wife. The daughter of a savage tribe has found great success. So… Does your husband treat you kindly?”

Yujo didn’t say anything. The large man next to her began to raise his hand. However, when the Crown Prince held up his hand, he backed away.

The Crown Prince got up from his seat and crouched down in front of Yujo as he looked at her. Yujo’s head was turned to the side as she continued to pant.

Yujo glared at him. The man continued to drag his eyes all over her body. After a while, he whispered.

“Do you know?”

Yujo raised her eyes and looked back at him. His eyes were like shiny, black beads. They pierced into her.

“My cousin has honest feelings for you. When I told him that I’d annihilate Yeha, he begged me not to do it. He told me that if I only let him have you, he’d do anything I asked. And I’m sure he’s upstairs right now, begging me to save you. Tsk, men are so stupid. But you were chatting and giggling with another man and even shared your clues regarding the Heukra with him. And you even saved his life and spent the night with him.”

Yujo finally opened her mouth.

“I didn’t know he was the Red King.”

“Aha, so that’s why you told him about the Heukra, saved his life, and spent the night with him?”

The Crown Prince snickered.

“You crazy brat. You’re quite brave for a woman who’s married and has a husband.”

“I’m not legally married.”

“Who told you that? Who told you it wasn’t legal? If it wasn’t legal, I would have killed you by now and thrown your body out for the animals to eat. Didn’t I tell you just now? My cousin’s heart for you rings true. Because of him, you’re still in one piece.”

He glared at her as if she were disgusting and stood up.

“Anyways, what I need is the guibin. We almost caught her last night, but thanks to you, we lost her. Tell me. What are you going to do about this?”

What was he talking about? Yujo looked up at him in confusion.

The guibin? The guibin was dead.

“What are you talking about? There was only Princess Muyeo and her husband last night.”

“Tsk, you still don’t know that the guibin is alive?”

What?

What was he talking about?

The guibin was alive?

The mother of the Red King who allegedly had multiple affairs was alive? What did this mean?

Did that mean that the Nine Families secretly extracted the guibin behind the emperor’s back?

The shock struck her across the head.

The guibin was alive. The mother of the Red King and Princess Muyeo was alive.

But that was treason.

A conspiracy that would send everyone involved to their deaths for deceiving the emperor! A conspiracy that would definitely demote her son and daughter to live as commoners!

Yujo was unable to hide the shock from her face.

“Thanks to you, the guibin escaped from my clutches back at CheongRyu Hall. I was told that she would crawl out and try to obtain some help from her daughter there. But because of you, I lost her. All you had to do was act as Duke MoonYeo’s wife, but how could you run wild like that?”

The Crown Prince’s lips went crooked.

“Now what are you going to do about this?”

What was she going to do? What was she supposed to do? Whether he found the guibin, whether he killed the guibin again, whether the Red King or Muyeo died… It was none of Yujo’s business. What she had promised him was the Heukra. And the Heukra was that damned Jewol!

“The deal you made with the chief of Yeha was to find the Heukra. According to that contract, I now know the Heukra’s identity, so give me the peace treaty you promised.”

Yujo glared daggers at the Crown Prince.

“Ha! How can that even come out of your mouth after making a mess of my plans? I should rip apart a bitch like you to death. I wanted to kill you immediately, but I held back because of what I promised Jewol. However, I can’t just let you off this easily. Treaty? Fine. But what should I do? As you said, you found the Heukra. But what if the chief of Yeha, with whom I made this deal, suddenly disappeared?”

“What?”

Yujo glared at him in bewilderment.

What was this heartless man talking about?

The Crown Prince smiled wickedly as he raised his hand. Suddenly, a door in her prison cell opened, and she heard the sound of jangling chains.

Yujo turned her head in surprise. Two large men dragged in a man into the prison cell as if they were dragging in a beast.

At first, Yujo didn’t recognize the bloody and disheveled man. However, her mouth soon opened in shock.

“B-Brother Yuha?”

It was Yuha. Yeha’s chief, Yuha!

Yujo stood up in shock. She cried out and ran over to Yuha. Rough hands grabbed her and pressed her down onto the floor. While this commotion was unfolding, the Crown Prince was splayed out in his chair as if he were watching a boring play.

He cheerfully waited until Yujo stopped struggling and screaming. Yujo’s eyes were filled with tears and anger as she glared up at him. The Crown Prince finally began to speak.

“Yes, of course you’re happy to see your brother after such a long time.”

“What do you think you’re doing?”

“What am I doing? Weren’t we talking about the person I made this deal with?”

“You definitely told us that you’d let us go.”

“When did I ever say that I’d let you go?”

He chuckled shamelessly before continuing.

“Take him out.”

“Brother! Brother! Brother Yuha!”

Yujo cried out as she struggled towards Yuha, whose unconscious body was now being dragged out. But she was already exhausted from struggling thus far, and these large men had a strong hold on her. The Crown Prince watched as she struggled and crooked his finger. The hands grabbing her suddenly dragged her in front of him.

“How about this, wife of Duke MoonYeo.”

He gazed at Yujo’s face, which was now covered in tears. He continued speaking in a soft voice.

“You’re already doing very well in YeonSung. You deserve to be praised for finding out the Heukra’s identity so quickly. Thanks to you, I was able to step on the guibin’s tail. And you even formed a special relationship with the Red King. You also won his younger sister Muyeo’s favor. Those two are also probably very eager to find the Heukra.”

Yujo grit her teeth as she glared at him. She couldn’t bear it. It was like facing a demon. Her head was only filled with thoughts of Brother Yuha.

Did her eyes make a mistake? How could Brother Yuha, who was supposed to be back at Yeha, be here? The people of Yeha had probably settled in the eastern grasslands to avoid the rainy season. Not a lot of people knew how to navigate through that terrain. Only the tribes of Yeha knew……

That’s when Yujo realized…

Jewol.

Jewol knew.

He lived in Yeha for a few years and wandered around with them. That man knew a lot about the tribes of Yeha. The routes within the grasslands, the secret fortress on Mount Paran, and even the various traps hidden throughout.

It doesn’t make any sense.

A fresh wave of tears dripped down Yujo’s cheeks.

She thought Jewol only killed people as the Heukra. But he also deceived her and Yuha?

“Continue to play your role as a lady of YeonSung. You can even continue to meet the Red King. But please be careful and make sure no one finds out who you really are. And more importantly, you must find more clues about the guibin. From what I can tell, I don’t think your brother will be able to endure it for much longer……”

How good would it feel to kill this man right here, right now?

Yujo’s eyes were filled with a murderous rage. The Crown Prince saw those eyes and grinned back at her.

“Those are good eyes. Make sure Jewol doesn’t find out about your lover. Do you think he’ll just sit still if he finds out? Love is a form of lunacy. Once it begins to twist, nothing can stop it.”

He got up from his seat. Yujo screamed as she ran after him, but she was promptly struck on the back of the neck and collapsed to the floor.