The remaining soldiers from the war lead by the General traveled back to the capital as soon as they had finished their tasks. But when they reached midway, the weather became worse making it almost impossible to travel back. Knowing that his men were all drained from the previous fights, he decided to camp and find shelter somewhere safe. He had just finished assigning some men to distribute food and supplies when he decided to head out to find a retainer. "Is there no news yet?" He asked impatiently.

"Still none, sir. I'm afraid even messenger pigeons won't make it."

The General understood. How could those birds fly under such huge deluge pouring down from the sky? As for the messengers from the palace, they would have to wait until midnight before they receive one from them since it was still a long way ahead.

He wondered if it was a good idea to allow Young to travel earlier without him. Was there something wrong? Judging at the state of the storm, it was definitely not normal. Is this a bad omen? Or did something bad already happen? But he made sure not to let the King know about Young's transformation during the battle. He even instructed his troop leaders to kill anyone who spreads words about what they had witnessed in the battlefield. Fortunately, he had trained his men well and these soldiers only followed what the general says.

The general couldn't stay still yet he had the whole army in his hands. What kind of general leaves his troops? He looked back and watch his men eat like there was no tomorrow. The medics still tended the wounds of those injured while a division was still left at the borders to keep watch. These men also had their families to go home to after the long battle. With so much responsibility in his hands, the general could only wait until the weather gets better while praying to the heavens that whatever situation Young was in, he would keep calm and think straight.

Back in the capital, it had been raining for hours now yet Young noticed the worsening of the whether as time went on. Still, he balled his fists and braved the cold as he continued to beg his brother for an audience. He prayed to the heavens that his brother would heed his plea.

Finally, as if his prayers were heard, the huge gates were opened revealing the chief eunuch. The man bowed before him then ushered him into the gates but before he could pass by the guards, his sword was seized, the soldiers who were with him, arrested.

"Insolence! How could you do this to His Highness Second Prince! He was the war commander! He should be honored and rewarded and not be treated as if he was a criminal!" The soldier who was leading Young's angrily snarled as he was being held back by the palace guards. After the soldiers had seen what Young really was during the battle, they had all pledged to serve only one master. The Chosen One. "Let go this instant! If General Choi knows this, with the whole army in his hands—"

"What treacherous words," The chief eunuch averted his gaze from the soldier as if guilty with his actions, before ordering the palace guards to drag them away. "Take them in for interrogation for the crime of treason!"

Young was alarmed by the sudden announcement. What treason? Why are they being treated like criminals? "Chief Eunuch, let my men go!" Young ordered but the Eunuch just bowed, seemed apologetic but Young could clearly see through the man's worried expression. "Is this His Majesty's order? Chief Eunuch, you know this is wrong!"

"This servant could only follow His Majesty's order. Forgive me, Your Highness."

"Chief Eunuch! What is the meaning of this? Where is His Majesty? How could this thing happen?" Another soldier reacted, but before he could even react, a palace guard immediately draw a sword against them.

"Ask no questions further and come with us!"

"Don't do them any harm or I will make you pay for every wound you'd cause in their body!" Young warned, gritting his teeth as his nails dug into his palms in anger. They were clearly provoking him and his men but Young knew better than to bite the bait. He faced his men and told them, "Go with them peacefully. I will come for you after I speak with His Majesty."

His escorts helplessly followed his orders with their hearts in their boots. They worried for the prince but to anger the King was the least they had to do at the moment. When they looked back, the prince was still standing tall and as unmoved as he watched them being taken away by the palace guards. A surge of admiration rushed through them when the prince slightly nodded at them, as if assuring them everything will be alright. Despite being younger and inexperienced, this prince definitely has more heart for the people than the King. When the soldiers arrived in prison, their leader immediately whistled and called for a messenger pigeon. He tied a black ribbon on its leg, a sign that things had become unfavorable for them. The General knew this sign and if he sees this, he'd definitely rush back to the capital no matter what. The messenger pigeon had already flown away when the young jail guard noticed they were up to something. Honestly, he had noticed this earlier but turned a blind eye! He carefully glanced at the men who were superior to him in terms of rank. He somehow felt sorry for them yet he had no choice but to obey the order in the palace. He silently bowed at them and resumed guarding.

The leader of the prince's troop stood up to talk to him.

"You have a choice. You still do." He told the guard who still kept his back at him. "If I die tonight, it'd definitely be a happy death because the prince, His Highness, had allowed me to walk side by side with him. He fought with us in the battleground. He ate and drank with us. He was with us for days and nights. And I'd be proudly tell those in the underworld about how such as high as the Chosen One treated us as equal."

The troop leader smiled faintly before going back to sit in the corner. The prince told them to wait for him, and so they would.

Back at the grand palace, Young had just entered the premises leaving traces of rainwater on his trail. He was cold to the bones, his lips were purplish, his face pale, but though his eyes lacked its usual spark, it was replaced with strong determination. When he saw the Hyuk sitting lazily on the throne, he knelt down the wooden floor and the door closed behind him immediately. Water trickled down his face as he bowed lower and opened his lips to greet the King.

"Greetings to the new King! This humble prince had come home from war with a news of victory! May the King live for thousands and thousands of years!"

Young remained bowing while Hyuk, the King, just yawned and shifted from his throne. He spared a glance down to where Young was and looked away once more, his lips curved to a devious smile.

"You've arrived earlier than I expected. You did well in protecting the Northern borders. The Kingdom is grateful for your achievement."

Young decided to go straight to the point. "My men had been taken in for interrogation for the crime of treason all of us have no idea about. Please release them! I have only returned to ask Your Majesty to fulfill your part of our agreement—,"

"Agreement?" Hyuk finally paid attention and leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees while still looking down at him. "Ah... I remember now." He said after it seemed like he had given it much thought. "Too bad, The Great King, our father, left us too early. I'd like to fulfill my part but unfortunately, our agreement actually had become useless!"

"Your Majesty!" Young raised his voice, alarmed at where the talk was going.

"Why I was just telling the truth! Didn't you only ask to meet father so you could ask for his permission to leave the capital and get married? Are you trying to imply that I was wrong and stupid not to remember?"

Young was dumbfounded. Truth be told, it was really all he asked from his brother— to meet their father and ask approval! But he didn't even know until lately that their father had passed away. Things had become like this too suddenly. And at the moment, he had no choice but to persuade his older brother to let him go.

"I wouldn't dare!" Young disregarded his own anger and tried to persuade his brother. "Please contain your anger, Your Majesty! This prince... No! This humble servant shall ask for one thing! Please let me marry Park Ara and I promise to leave the capital with her this instant!"

The King's lips curved to an evil smirk, as if he had expected to hear such words from Young. He rose from his throne and strode towards his brother who was still kneeling before him. In his eyes, Young would be forever the lowly human's son, a pathetic halfblood who didn't deserve any privilege of being a true-blooded dragon. He crouched down and pushed Young's chin up so that their eyes met and he gave him a smirk before his expression turned fakely sympathetic.

"Look at how this dear brother have suffered from the war. If Father was here, he'd surely be heartbroken." He told Young before his gaze became wicked once more. "As much as I'd love to grant you something in return, I'm afraid it won't be the one you're wishing for. You need to think of another one. Your request was something this older brother couldn't give you."

Young was about to ask what Hyuk meant when a sudden commotion outside interrupted him. The Chief Eunuch seemed to be suppressing someone from entering but the presence itself was someone with a high authority to be stopped by a mere servant.

"Envoy Dong has arrived!" The eunuch could only announce to alert the King, but it was the exact moment that the man had barged in.

With a scroll in his hands, he marched into the room, and though he looked delicate, he was not intimidated a bit by the King's presence. This is Envoy Dong, an elder kin, almost the same age as the deceased King. Though the past King didn't look his age of sixty, in fact, he only looked half of of it, Envoy Dong even looked younger. He had a calm and benevolent aura, as bright as the sun and as pure as the driven snow. He was a good political adviser to the King, yet rarely speaks and meddles in personal affairs.

And today, was his first time showing up after his visit to the other elders from Tang.

"Your Majesty, forgive this official for interrupting, but I have an urg