Chapter Text
"You want to... turn Xing into a vassal nation of Kouka?", Yona wondered aloud, confused as well. Tao kept a neutral expression, as if ashamed.
"Th-That's...", Yoon started.
"That's a rather audacious statement, coming from a Princess of Xing", Jae-Ha said. He looked more amused than anything. He seemed unbothered by this turn of events.
"Kouka Kingdom's King Soo-Won...", Princess Tao started, lowering her head. "He claimed victory at the battle with Sei Kingdom the other day. And before that, he reclaimed control over Kin Province from South Kai. And also drestroyed North Kai's Li Hazara's forces. Where do you supposed King Soo-Won will target next?", it wasn't difficult to guess at what Princess Tao had understood long ago. Only Hak could voice it out.
"This country..."
"...And that's why Princess Kouren wished to raise an enemy to fight against Kouka Kingdom", Yona guessed.
"Kouren takes great pride as a Princess of Xing Kingdom", the Princess explained. "Any situation in which Xing is subjugated is a situation which my elder sister would never accept. Thus, she would launch an offensive. She would likely choose to preserve this country's honor, even if that meant a fight to the death", from the corner of my eyes, I could see the cats climbing all over Zeno and Ao had attacked Shin-Ha to run away from another kitty. As for I, as Jae-Ha kept beside me, the same familiar cat that had been in my arms earlier came back to me. I smiled as I saw it approach. He was purring ; a relaxing and comforting sound. He took a seat in my lap. "However...", she continued, bringing my attention up to her again. "Xing Kingdom's current military strength is a far cry from Kouka's. No matter how unyielding Kouren's will is, no matter how noble her ideals are, that is the sheer truth. Surrounded as we are by Kouka and Sei, if a war were to start, Xing Kingdom would be - Xing's people would be - undoubtedly destroyed. And so, to avoid a war with so many people as victims, I believe handing this country over to Kouka Kingdom is our only possible course of action"
"So that's why your men surrendered as soon as they found us", Jae-Ha pointed out.
"But why are you telling this to us (more or less) average citizens of Kouka", Yoon suddenly asked. It was indeed a relevant question.
"Eh?", Tao let out, surprised. "Are you not of King Soo-Won's subordinates?"
"Why did you think so?", Yona asked.
"I had heard that you all fought alongside King Soo-Won at Hotsuma and Kushibi's forts", Princess Tao shared.
"We didn't fight alongside each other", Hak corrected. "Our objectives just happened to be the same"
"...I see", Princess Tao let out after a few seconds of thinking. "But still, are you not acquainted with King Soo-Won? Do you know him personally? I would like to know..."
"What the hell that King is thinking is beyond me", Hak responded harshly once again, his arms crossed over his chest, his head turned away, his gaze dark.
"I think it would be best not to mention him", I added and when Princess Tao looked in my direction, she didn't say anything else.
"Hey, Princess Tao", Algira called after a few seconds of awkwardness. "The kitties tell me they're hungry. Should we eat?", he asked and a smile appeared on Tao's face then. What a wonderful way to change the mood.
"You're right. I'm sorry. I've just been standing around talking with our guests. I'll have some food prepared"
"Ah, no need to worry about u-", Yoon called out.
"I'll take something tasty!", Zeno shouted, cutting Yoon off.
"Hey!"
There was rice, seafood, meat, vegetables. Everything was combined in different ways that couldn't stop me from salivating. It all looked so good. The other guys looked impressed by the work of art displayed at their feet.
"No need to hold back, please eat!", Princess Tao urged us.
"Thank you for the meal", Ki-Ja murmured, clapping his hands together. I watched, amused, as Algira curiously approached Shin-Ha and watched him for a few minutes. After it became obvious it would be boring, I turned my attention to Yona. Jae-Ha was still sitting by my side, but by now, I stopped caring. My eyes landed on her face and I lost the smile. She seemed upset, or worried. Her face was distorted by something I could not quite put my finger on. When she stood up, my eyes dragged to a streak of red going down her leg. My eyes widened in realization. She fell down to the ground again, pulling her dress over her legs. She looked deeply embarassed and shocked, like she wasn't expecting this.
"Princess?", Hak wondered, worried. "What's wrong?"
And when she didn't answer, because she looked obviously panicked, Hak approached his face to hers.
"Your face is looking a little pale, you know?", I could already see the heat coming off her cheeks. I let the plate fall off my hands as I stood up and approached the end of the sheet of cloth covering the ground, as well as taking hold of every one of our plates of food.
"Lone?", Jae-Ha called but I ignored him.
"Don't come near me!", Yona shouted as she slapped him in the face.
"...My apologies for coming so close", Hak looked disturbed, not comprehending anything of the situation.
"N-no, that's not", Yona tried to explain, waving her hands before her. I noticed then her face becoming quite distorted with pain. I wanted to pull on the cloth so bad, but I hesitated. Why was I hesitating? This was my freaking bestfriend, damnit. Help her!
"Yona? Lone?", Jae-Ha called out.
"Yona, what's wrong? Are you all right?", Yoon asked.
I lifted my head, hoping to meet with Princess Tao's eyes, but she was already grabbing the other corner of the cloth. So I knew to pull when her eyes met mine. Everyone started to scream at us, to shout their concern and their shock. Together, we wrapped the cloth around her shoulders, surrounding the top of her head.
"Miss Yona is feeling sleepy, so she's going to rest!", Princess Tao shouted, turning Yona away. "Everyone, please continue eating!"
We ran away, and I followed where Princess Tao's steps led. After we were far enough, I spoke up. "Ingenious"
"You had an incredible idea, too, dear", she said, which made me smile.
*
I had helped Tao with making Yona comfortable. Now, my bestfriend was laying belly down against a bed, her face still deformed by pain. "Miss Yona, are you all right?", the Princess asked after a while.
"...Yeah"
"It hurts, doesn't it?", Tao asked. "Don't push yourself. Please, sleep until you feel better"
"...Thank you...", Yona muttered out. I watched Yona's face, realized maybe she had been thinking, before she raised her attention toward our host again. "Princess Tao, thank you so much. I even ended up borrowing some clothes"
"That's all right. Think of them as a present. Such times are rough for girls", I nodded, my eyes closed as a smile formed on my lips. She was right.
"Usually, I don't feel any pain. So I thought I would be fine. But I guess, I let my guard down. I'm embarassed", Yona said and I turned my head in her direction again, confused, my brows furrowed.
"There's nothing for you to be ashamed of", Princess Tao assured. "I am glad I was able to be of some help"
"...There doesn't seem to be very many servants around here", Yona said after a few seconds of silence.
"This is something like my secret home", Princess Tao explained. "It's close to Kouka Kingdom. And information is more easily gathered here"
"Is it all right to have brought citizens of Kouka Kingdom to a place like this?", Yona wondered, sitting up.
"I'm sure I can trust you all", she reassured, offering a bright smile. She lost it a few seconds later as she thought. Finally, she voiced it. "Did you know that some of my country's people were also taken as slaves to work on building Sei Kingdom's forts?"
"Yes", I answered at the same time Yona did.
"Well, a court lady was also taken there. She was abducted while she set out for the city. The environment at the fort was terrible, and just when she had lost all hope, a "White Monster" appeared. He saved her. He left soon after, but he had a white beautiful figure the likes of which she had never seen before. She thought that he might have been an angel"
"That was Ki-Ja, wasn't it?", Yona exclaimed. And her excitement made me smile. "Ki-Ja is cool, isn't he? And pretty!"
"Yes! That was him, wasn't it? I knew from the moment I saw him!", Tao exclaimed as well. It made me smile, their affinity. Their sudden bond. Yona had not been the kind to make friends with any other female subjects. She had been stuck with us from the beginning. It was heart-warming to see them interact so easily. "When I think that he actually exists, I feel glad. So, the greatest reason I wanted to meet you all was to thank you all on behalf of that girl. And as I believed that you were acting on King Soo-Won's orders, I felt that perhaps King Soo-Won would not be the one to tread upon the people's dignity... Or so I hoped. I thought, before my sister puts her plans into motion, if I could just somehow speak with King Soo-Won", I let my head droop, thinking about how Soo-Won would react, what he would do. I couldn't bring myself to think far. It was too painful.
"...King Soo-Won is...", she started, hesitating.
"Hm? Miss Yona?"
"It's nothing. I was just thinking that even though you're so young, you're so reliable"
"Fufu!", Princess Tao chuckled lightly. "I may look like this, but I'm actually 19 years old", my eyes widened in surprised. It felt amusing.
"Ehhh?! You're older than me, I'm sorry!"
"Don't be sorry", Tao said. "It's better to look younger!", she said it with such wiseness...
After a few minutes passed of talking, Princess Tao eventually left. It was just us now. When the Princess left, Yona turned toward me immediately.
"You've been so quiet", she pointed out and I smiled lightly.
"I've found I'd rather keep quiet in conversations I have not been formally invited to. I listened, but there was no point in my ever saying anything"
"I wanted to ask you some questions by pure curiosity, but we kept talking"
"It's okay. You can ask them now"
"When we talked earlier, and I said that mine were never painful, before... I wanted to ask, how about yours?"
"Oh. Mine were always so painfully unbearable. But I've learned to grow with it"
"How has it been in the past few months then? Traveling?"
"Actually, not so bad", she seemed relieved. "Because I had become so thin, I lost everything. I only recently retrieved it. Last month"
"Do you feel relieved?"
"That I'm not with child? Yes. That they came back at all? No. But I always had my suspicions about the reasons why they disappeared. I always knew, deep down, that it was just because of my health and trauma. It could not be nothing else", I smiled at her and hated so bad the expression on her face. It resembled pity way too much. "How about we talk about something happier?"
"Sure. Let's talk about Jae-Ha, then!", she exclaimed, completely serious.
"I said something happier!", she chuckled for a few seconds. "Then, how about Hak?", she turned red.
"We're talking about Jae-Ha right now! We'll talk about Hak eventually anyway", my laugh eventually faded and my smile disappeared. I felt tired the more we spoke. It was draining me. "He loves you, doesn't he?", she suddenly asked, which surprised me. My eyes widened, reminding me of the words that had left his mouth a few weeks ago. I had not responded to it. I could not bring myself to.
"I thought we were talking about something happy"
"Is it not happy?", when I didn't respond, and kept fidgeting with my fingers, she kept on. "Do you love him, Lone?", I raised my head then. And I knew she realized the tears bulding up in my eyes. She did not show it, though.
"I don't know. This is the most confused I've ever been", I said, bringing my hands to my face, hiding my pain, my terror, my hatred.
"Why are you confused?"
"Because I do not know if his feelings are real. Or if it's yet another decoy to his real intentions. I don't know what to think. I don't to think of him as the bad person ; I don't want him to be. But what if he is? Then, I'm the dumb one"
"He seemed honest. It looked like it came from his heart", she said, which had me lifting my head once again, taken by surprise.
"You heard?"
"I saw more than I heard. I could guess by the sheer despair in his face, in his eyes and the pain in yours what he'd said. I can also tell by the way he keeps by your side wherever you go"
"What if I told you you were wrong?", I said, feeling suddenly ashamed.
"Then I would take it you're escaping your reality"
"I would very much like to escape it again. I did once. Only once, in Awa. But I can't remember anything of what happened that night, or anything of what I've said. It's torturing me"
"Why?"
"Because I was with Jae-Ha that nigh-"
She kept silent when I realized what I'd just said. "He loves you", she said again, not as a question this time, but as a fact.
"Stop reminding me", I said harshly.
"Why are you so desperate to run away from him? This is your salvation. This is your peace. Why don't you embrace it?"
"Because everyone I love dies or turns against me. I'm tired of fighting pain everywhere I go, everyone I meet"
She didn't say anything else. Instead, she hugged me. And I broke down into her arms.