Jun-ho rose to his feet.
The weight inside the cabin was suffocating—until his voice cut through it.
"We use the Sandaenori."
The room stilled.
He explained it with cold precision.
If the court formally requested the ritual to "drive away the evil spirits" haunting the King's health, Min would have no choice but to approve it. To refuse would expose him—publicly.
The plan was daring.
Reckless.
Perfect.
Kang-dae and his warriors would enter the palace disguised as masked performers. Hidden beneath ritual and tradition, they would move through the palace unseen—using the secret routes known only to the Bujang.
Murmurs of doubt spread among the elders.
Kang-dae intended to take only his most trusted soldier.
Too few.
Too dangerous.
Then—
"Enough."
Counselor Yi's voice cracked like thunder.
"It will be done as the Bujang decides."
Silence fell instantly.
"We may understand politics," he continued, his gaze sharp, "but he understands war—and the veins of that palace better than any of us."
He stepped closer to Kang-dae.
"Bring back the King."
A pause.
"As quickly as possible."
That night, the conspirators vanished into the forest—each taking a different path, dissolving into shadow to avoid suspicion.
Only Jun-ho and his father remained.
They stood in silence, watching the last figures disappear between the trees.
Then—
Counselor Yi spoke.
Quietly.
"Heavy is the risk we are taking."
Jun-ho turned to him.
"You doubt Kang-dae?"
A slow shake of the head.
"No."
His gaze darkened.
"In politics… power belongs to the one who holds control."
A pause.
"If the King falls into the wrong hands… the world we know will cease to exist."
His voice lowered.
"And our heads will follow."
Jun-ho lifted his eyes to the sky.
The same sky Haneul watched with such devotion.
"Then who," he murmured, "is truly moving the pieces?"
No answer came.
Only the wind.
At dawn, Jun-ho returned to the House of Han.
His body was exhausted.
His mind is as sharp as ever.
But the moment he crossed the threshold—
His breath caught.
Haneul.
She sat outside his chamber.
Curled against the cold floor.
Asleep.
Waiting.
Jun-ho moved instantly, his steps quick with concern.
"What happened?" he demanded.
The momjong bowed deeply.
"My lord… she refused to leave. When she realized you had gone out, she insisted on waiting. She feared something had happened… to your father."
Jun-ho's expression hardened.
He turned to the guards. The eunuch.
"Why was she left here?"
No one answered.
Only apologies.
He said nothing.
Instead—
He knelt.
And gently lifted her into his arms.
As if she were something fragile.
Irreplaceable.
Inside his chamber, he laid her upon the silk bedding, covering her carefully.
Then he dismissed everyone.
Alone, he lit the ondol.
Warmth slowly rose through the floor.
Golden light filtered into the room.
And Jun-ho remained there…
Watching her.
As if the world beyond those walls had ceased to exist.
Hours passed.
When Haneul finally opened her eyes—
The first thing she saw…
Was him.
Jun-ho lay beside the bed, on the floor, overcome by exhaustion.
Even in sleep, fatigue marked his features.
Confusion flickered across her face.
She sat up slowly.
This was his room.
The warmth of the ondol still lingered.
The faint scent of sandalwood wrapped around her like something intimate.
Unfamiliar.
Yet… strangely comforting.
Carefully—so carefully—
She moved.
She removed his shoes.
Set aside his sword.
His hat.
For a moment…
She freed him from the weight of who he was.
Then, taking the silk covers that had warmed her, she draped them gently over him.
Her voice fell to a whisper.
"You've done this twice now…"
A soft breath.
"You're a fool, Jun-ho… Why didn't you wake me? You must have ridden all night."
Suddenly—
He moved.
His arm fell across her.
Haneul froze.
Her heart slammed against her chest.
Carefully, she tried to pull away—
But fate had other plans.
Jun-ho shifted again.
And his head came to rest… on her lap.
Her breath caught.
"Why would he…?" she thought, heat rising to her cheeks. "Is he truly that exhausted?"
She didn't know.
She couldn't know—
That beneath closed eyes…
Jun-ho had awakened for a single heartbeat.
Just enough…
To smile.
He stayed still.
Pretending.
Because in that moment—
He had found something he could not name.
Peace.
Warmth.
Her.
Haneul's gaze softened as she looked down at him.
Tracing the lines of his face.
Feeling something within her begin to crack.
"Now what am I supposed to do…?" she whispered.
Jun-ho did not move.
But inside—
He held onto that moment.
Because for the first time—
She was no longer looking at him as her protector.
But as a man.
One who would give everything…
For her peace.
Cliffhanger —
Outside—
Footsteps.
Fast.
Urgent.
The door slid open without warning.
The eunuch fell to his knees.
"My lord—!"
Jun-ho's eyes opened instantly.
Haneul froze beneath him.
"What is it?" he asked, his voice sharp.
The eunuch hesitated.
Then—
"They've accepted the request."
A pause.
"For the Sandaenori."
Relief flickered—brief, fragile.
But the eunuch's next words shattered it.
"…And Lord Min will be present."
Silence.
Heavy.
Deadly.
Jun-ho slowly lifted his head.
Across from him, Haneul's expression changed.
Because both of them understood—
This was no longer an infiltration.
It was a trap.
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