“A warrior’s loyalty lies first with the lady and second to the clan.”

Book of Lunar Eclipse, 764, a.n.

(5)

We had thirty minutes lunch break that day, and Taeyong and I sat in the empty classroom when everyone else had gone to the cafeteria to buy food. We decided not to eat, hungry as we were, just to talk – as he simply put it.

“Kyungsoo said you were engaged to that teacher,” He spoke carefully in a hushed tone so that nobody but us two could hear what he said. He didn’t have the nonchalant pretense he usually put on and instead stared straight into my eyes very seriously.

“Yes.”

“What made you do that?” Taeyong questioned, and for the first time, he wasn’t really talking like an Elite, but more of a friend. There was a hint of concern showing at the tip of his voice, without being sugarcoated by anything else. My heart was tickled. “Did anyone pressure you to do so?”

His fists were clenched under the table, and I couldn’t tell whether he was angry, disappointed, or just put-off. I kept my eyes at his face, but not anywhere near his sharp, clear eyes, “It is a decision I’ve made after careful consideration. Kim Joonmyun and I have a marriage deal, and that was that.”

“Just that?” He quirked his eyebrows, irritated. “So someone did pressure you to it.”

I was aghast at his quick assumption, though I neither denied nor confirmed it. “Taeyong,” I said in a voice that bordered very close between loving and caring, “I should introduce you to Kim Joonmyun. He is my best friend, and a great guy. I believe that if you know him, you would like him, too.”

“That’s not the problem, Sena,” Taeyong sighed and talked like he was the only sane person in the room. “I have no intention to get to know my teacher better, however great he is. I am concerned about how this arrangement of yours might break the clans apart. The Elders already hate you as they are, surely you won’t add on another problem to the list?”

It was sweet how concerned he was of me, though he would never admit to such. “The Elders will hate me no matter what I do. What they want is a puppet leader they can control, but I am no weakling. I will not bow down to them, and trust me, the clan won’t dare do anything foolish, or else I will take away everything they have, since their licenses are under our family’s name.” I wasn’t as powerless as everyone thought I was. After all I was a Yoon, and the dragon hid gold under their lair.

“I am not worried about that,” Taeyong scratched the nape of his neck and stuttered a bit. His cheeks were a bit flushed under the sunlight, and this was one of the few rare days we got where the sun actually came up and shone so brightly. There was a definite glow on his face – or his skin, I couldn’t be sure – that made him looked almost ethereal. “I have never doubt your ability,” like you have never doubted mine, he added on mentally, “It’s just… your safety…”

“I’d hate to ruin this moment for you, but… I’m alright,” I gave him a thumb-up and a grin. He rolled his eyes at me, though I could tell that he wasn’t as tense as before. My heart warmed up at the thought of him worrying about this engagement matter as the others were. “I can take care of myself better than any girls out there, and if I can’t, I still have you guys. I can count on you, right?”

Taeyong gave me a glance – almost shy – then averted his eyes. Leaning onto the window frame, bathing in the light, he said quickly with a hint of mischief, “Well… If you’d ask nicely, of course. Isn’t that why we’re here?”

(6)

Kim Joonmyun was sitting on the office, accompanied by some of his co-workers. He didn’t bother to eat lunch because he didn’t have any appetite. In fact, he was just waiting for a very important phone call, and at that moment – it came. He fled the room and quickly picked it up.

“Yes?” He sounded breathless from the expectation – not from all the running he’d done. The other party went quiet for a while, and for a few seconds, they only heard silence, and nothing more. Joonmyun then respectfully addressed the caller with honorific, “Father.”

His father, the current Priest, and soon-to-retire, Kim Yong Ha, was a man in his sixty. All of his sons were born when he was in his forty, with a one-year gap between each. His wife was so much younger than him. She was only twenty when she gave birth to their first son. It was an arranged marriage, and there was no love between them, but Kim Yong Ha was a man of words; he never had an extramarital affair like the other clan leaders.

Out of his three sons, the eldest Kim Minseok was the only one who resembled his father, which explained the favoritism in comparison to his other sons who bore close resemblance to their mother, especially Kim Joonmyun, whom he’d grown to fear and despise since he turned into a bright, young adolescent.

“How are you, Son?” He asked very politely, and added on without waiting for the reply, “Congratulations on your engagement to Yoon Sena.”

Joonmyun leaned back and stifled his laughter, but part of it was heard in the phone, “I am fine, Father. Better than ever now that I’m in Seoul.” It was an indirect jab to his ignorant father who had avoided going home for months now. “We aren’t officially engaged yet, but thank you. I hope everything is going well with you in Singapore.”

Kim Yong Ha wouldn’t and couldn’t miss the sarcasm in Joonmyun’s sentences. His son had always been particularly interested in politic more so than the others. He would’ve known first if anything happened within the clan. But he couldn’t let Joonmyun have the last word, “Everything is well. Minseok will be coronated in October and I was wondering whether I should put you in the guest list now that you are no longer a part of us.”

Joonmyun didn’t feel an ounce of pride or regret when he heard his father’s hateful tone. Instead he felt pity. And perhaps even a little bit of revulsion. “I would follow whatever you see fit, Father. But should you invite me, I would gladly come to the coronation with Sena to congratulate Minseok-hyung.”

Yong Ha sighed and shook his head. Whenever he tried to push Joonmyun to the edge just to see the kind of reaction he showed, his son would patiently, and very subtly push him away. The distant grew with age and time, not that they’d regret it now. “Joonmyun, Son, you have the Seiryuu in your hand now. Even if you can’t have Genbu, at least you own half of Seiryuu’s power.”

Joonmyun chuckled lightly, as if that suggestion didn’t bother him at all. He wasn’t an honorable man who valued justice and mercy above all. Just like Sena and Baekhyun, Kim Joonmyun was ambitious and dirty. And in a way, extremely powerful and cunning.

“Of course, Father.” It was the only thing you had taught me as a child. “What other reason do I have to marry Yoon Sena other than power and position?” He felt disgusted as soon as he finished.

“I know you are smart. If there is nothing else, I will end this call.”

Joonmyun didn’t say anything else because he wasn’t given the chance to. The call ended in less than three minutes, with a few angry sentences and underlying sarcasm. Still, he felt satisfied knowing that his father had picked Minseok instead of Jongdae. Now it was the right time to call that hotheaded younger brother of his, just to check on his situation.

“Yes?” Kim Jongdae sounded so different on the phone, especially when he was cranky. “Are you calling me now to make fun of my loss?”

“How could I?” Joonmyun soothed his angry brother with a melodious, empathic voice. “How are you doing, Jongdae? I hope you are not running away from the country because Sena and I have been worried about your well-being since the news of Minseok’s coronation leaked out to the public.”        

Unlike the Seiryuu clan, Genbu’s family didn’t keep the matter secretive and chose to spread rumors to the media outlets and other parties. Sena and Joonmyun were among the few first to know. Jongdae snorted loudly, and not long after, there was a sound of broken glass. Joonmyun didn’t flinch a bit and kept his composure.

“So I am right. You are here to make fun of me. Who are you to talk about running away when all you did was to escape to your lover’s embrace in Seoul?” Jongdae exploded, “This is all your fault, Kim Joonmyun! It is all your fault! If it weren’t for you giving up the position so easily, Father wouldn’t have relented!”

Joonmyun was quiet for a while. He glanced at his watch and realised that he was almost late for class. “Jongdae, be good and listen to me. If you ever come to Seoul – and I think you should – I will treat you to something good. Think about it as a consolation gift, because sooner or later, Minseok will try to get rid of you as well.”

“You bastard –!” Jongdae was screaming while Joonmyun was laughing silently.

“Think carefully. I’m hanging up.”

He locked his phone and walked back to the entrance gate. He was late by fifteen minutes now. Teaching wasn’t an interest of his, but he was particularly gifted in working around people. Besides, he could get closer to Sena this way, so he wouldn’t complain much.

As his figure disappeared, another person jumped over the two-meters tall wall and sneakily ran away. Taeyong wore a frown on his face as he went home. His sleepiness had disappeared and all that was left on his mind was the conversation he overheard from Joonmyun and his family. If Sena knew Joonmyun as well as she said to be, why would she agree to get married to such a terrifying man?

(7)

I yawned loudly on the dark, quiet street. I had taken a different route because it was the only shortcut I could get to. The moon was the only thing lighting up the sky, as the stars seemed to hide behind the clouds tonight. Silence gave me a sense of peace, and peace gave me space to think.

Only then did I hear subtle noises from the house blocks behind me. I was just thinking about how quiet my life had been lately and now life seemed keen in proving me wrong. I kept walking, steadily increasing the pace until I reached the back road of my house. I could see the towering rooftop among all the other houses and almost sighed in relief.

“Quiet!” It was a man’s voice: deep and old. As soon as he grabbed me, I smelt a familiar stench of vanilla and herbal woods. My mouth was covered so I couldn’t scream. I couldn’t grab the small knife in my bag and was forced to struggle in the stranger’s arms. Biting was useless because he used a thick cloth to cover my lips.

“Hmm-hmm!” I elbowed the man twice and thrice, and realised that his grip was too strong and forceful, so the only way I could fight him without breathing in the drug on the wet cloth was to kick him backward. I rubbed my against his loins, and he grunted in response, giving me enough time and space to kick and elbow him on the stomach and on his bottom half.

“ –!” That man lunged forward but I was already running in fear. The air was rising onto my throat, and I had difficulty breathing after struggling for so long. Tears had started forming in my eyes, and I collapsed on the ground by the time I scanned my fingerprint and ran into my house’s front yard.

Cough. Vomit. Cough. I clawed at the solid cement and squeezed those tears out of my eyes. Because I hadn’t eaten lunch and only had very little for breakfast, the only substance that came out of my mouth was thick liquid and water. It was a horrible sight I would never want to see again.

“Sena?”

Much to my surprise, Jongin was the only one waiting in the front living room. He had a thick bandage on his wrist. It was the first time he called me by my real name, and also the only time I had seen real, genuine concern forming in his round eyes. The sight of my bloodshot eyes and wet tears must have surprised him.

“Princess, what the hell happened…?”