(Soondeok wakes up in the middle of one night as a sharp pain pierced right through her, it’s a miracle she didn’t scream, yet after that single shot of pain, it ceased, then nothing happened. Soondeok breathed deeply and slowly, trying to recover from what she’s just experienced, but to her surprise, she’s not the only one awake. Someone’s crying, a soft muffling and sniffing sound reached her ears as she laid there in silence, it was her husband who’s crying beside her – his face to the wall)

‘Darling…are you alright?’

(Soondeok whispers, touching her husband’s quivering back. Silence. Obviously Eun is trying to pretend he’s asleep, but Soondeok knows he’s faking it, she’s been living with him for 3 years, how can she not know?)

‘Oppa, my darling Oppa, what upset you so that made you cry in the middle of the night? You can tell me, we may not live the way we used to, but we still have each other don’t we? You can share with me your feelings, your thoughts, I’m still here.’

(Slowly, Eun turns to face Soondeok, the room isn’t bright enough for them to see each other’s face clearly, but they don’t need any light really, they know each other so well they can ‘see’ each other’s face even in the dark. Soondeok can sense her husband on the edge of breaking into a full sob, so she embraces him and let him cry – not out loud of course.)

‘Oh Deok ah…I’m scared…I’m really really scared…’

‘It’s normal to be scared. Aigoo, there there…everything’s going to be fine.’

‘Mother…and aunt…I know hyung must’ve killed my family by now…I know…and I should’ve joined them, I shouldn’t have left them all behind. If hyung caught me instead of them, he might’ve let them live.’

‘My dear husband, don’t say such a thing, it’s not your fault, they didn’t die because you ran away, they were going to be killed by the king anyway.’

‘No, hyung just wanted me dead, if I let him kill me…who knows…maybe if I begged him, he’d let them live.’

‘There’s no way of knowing what could’ve happened if we had taken another path, Oppa, things just are as they are now and we must do our best to survive. Just a few more days, we mustn’t give up.’

‘Deok ah…they won’t take you too right?’

‘Oppa…’

‘Promise me you won’t die…no matter what…I can’t let them take you as well…I won’t be able to bear it.’

‘Shhh, darling, I’m going to get you to safety. You will leave Goryeo, safe and sound, this you have my promise.’

‘Deok ah…’

(Eun holds her hand, not thinking of letting it go – she’s the only one he has now)

‘I love you, Soondeok ah, I really do, you know that right?’

(Soondeok smiles in reassurance)

‘Of course, my prince, I know you love me, the way I love you.’

(She kisses his hand)

‘Now, let’s go back to sleep. There there, stop crying okay? Sleep now, go to sleep.’

‘Deok ah, let’s chat a bit longer while it’s still dark, before the maids start coming here in the morning…we barely talked to each other in the day when they’re here.’

‘Sure, my dear husband…what do you want to talk about?’

‘Oh I don’t know…just…stuff…’

(Eun pulls her close to himself, hugging her tightly, yet the feeling seem different to Eun, like there’s something in between them)

‘Deok ah…did you…grow?’

‘Hmm? What do you mean- Ya~ Oppa! You mad? Watch where you’re putting your hand! Now is not the time for you to run your hands all over me-’

(Half-teasing, Eun whispers)

‘Wife, are you hitting another phase of puberty or what?’

‘If so I hope that means I can grow taller. Heck, of course not! Besides, what’s that have to do with you? It’s not like I’ll let you enjoy them here.’

(Soondeok snuggles closer to her husband, rubbing her cheek on his chest)

‘Urgh, you do know how to kill your husband with your teasing. But seriously, how did it happen?’

‘Heck how should I know? Now let’s change subject, or are you planning to talk about my size for the rest of the night?’

‘Now there, I’m not that kind of man. By the way, why did you wake up? I hardly made a sound when I cried just then, that couldn’t have woken you up.’

‘I…well…human tend to wake up some time in the middle of the night, some just fall back to sleep right away that they hardly noticed.’

‘So…you woke up by yourself naturally?’

(Clearly Eun can detect a little ‘lie’ tone Soondeok used just then)

‘Of course…why else would I wake up, I sleep like a pig when I sleep.’

‘Hmmm, really?’

‘Really.’

(Eun lets out a sigh, touching his wife’s face as if to remember it by heart)

‘Oppa…what are you doing?’

‘I’m memorizing your face, the touch of it.’

‘Why?’

‘Who knows if hyung will do something worse than killing me…who knows…I mean, if he ends up blinding me, at least I’ll recognize you…without using my eyes.’

‘Oh Oppa, what a terrible thought!’

‘Hyung is more than capable of doing that, though I hope to wish otherwise. If it’s death I must face, then death I shall get – sure and short if I’m lucky.’

‘No, none of that will happen. You won’t get hanged or beheaded, you won’t get shot or disabled, none of that, I won’t allow it. You won’t get caught, not if there’s a breath left in my body.’

‘Still…shouldn’t we prepare ourselves for that moment when it comes? Better be prepared…for anything.’

‘Where did my optimistic husband go? This is not like you, Oppa…’

‘I’m also a human, Deok ah…however bright I can be…there are times a smile can’t push away a haunting thought of reality.’

(Soondeok kisses Eun on the lips, to shut him up, and also, to remind him how much she adores and loves him)

‘We shall talk no more on this subject tonight, okay Oppa? None of that. Now, let’s talk about something happier, what do you plan to do once we leave Goryeo?’

‘Find a place to settle first, a place hyung can’t find us, that’s for sure. Then…maybe we can start thinking about making money, we have to eat after all…and we need clothes…a house…probably a small place where we can stay dry on rainy days and warm in the winter. I don’t ask for a lot now…we can live in a cave for all I care.’

(So they chitchat till dawn then falls back to sleep as the maids begin their daily routine of work there in the teahouse.)

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(Afternoon comes, Eun finally wakes up from his sleep. Looking around the room, he sees the food Haesoo’s left for them, but there’s no Soondeok)

‘Deok ah…’

(Eun rubs his eyes and yawns then looks around again – still no Soondeok. He looks at her pillow and sure enough, there’s a note there)

‘Ah…so she’s gone out…’

(It’s not the first time Soondeok’s left the room, but Eun still hasn’t grown accustomed to it – every time he’s in the room by himself, wild fearful thoughts start filling his mind. What if Soondeok gets recognized by someone outside? What if they tell the king where she is? What if they have already caught Soondeok without him knowing? What if the soldiers will eventually find out where he’s hiding? What if Haesoo gets sentenced to death too for hiding them? What if he’s to never see his wife again? All these thoughts are making Eun restless, he paces around the room in suffocation, wishing he could open that door and go outside to find Soondeok, yet knowing his very action will bring trouble to both of them instantly. He can do nothing, but wait.)

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(Soondeok finished gathering the information she needed for their escape, hastily, she made her way back to their room. Suddenly, a familiar voice halted her.)

‘You there. Do you know where Court Lady Hae is?’

(It’s the 14^th Prince – Prince Jung, Soondeok’s friend, also, the king’s brother. She wants to greet him, but the thought that he might be on his brother’s side is stopping her from doing so. In silence, Soondeok simply shakes her head in response, but that obviously is not how one should respond politely to a royal prince.)

‘How rude of you.’

‘I…I apologize, Your Highness.’

‘Sister-in-law?’

(The prince recognizes her voice, how can he not? They grew up playing and fighting with each other, they could recognize each other’s voice even in a noisy and busy market, let alone here in the dead-quiet teahouse. Looking around, Jung steps forward and looks closer at the lady dressed as a maid in front of her – it’s her, Soondeok, he’s certain now.)

‘It is you, right? Soondeok ah- What on earth are you doing here?’

‘Shhh.’

(Soondeok pulls her to a corner)

‘Your Highness, kill me.’

‘What?’

‘Just kill me, I can’t tell you where the prince is, I won’t.’

‘Whoa there, hold on, I’m not going to kill you! Just because the king is my brother doesn’t mean I agree with everything he’s doing now.’

‘Really?’

‘Cross my heart, I swear! Oh thank goodness you’re alright! Seeing you all well, I suppose hyung is too, right?’

‘Yes…we’re fine…just fine.’

‘Don’t tell me you plan to stay here forever, the palace is too dangerous for you two.’

‘I know, we’re going to leave as soon as we can get out of here…and…as soon as our boat’s ready.’

‘That’s not going to be easy…’

‘I tried to count the number of guards at the gates, but I could only go so far…as a maid in disguise that is.’

‘I can do that for you, Soondeok ah.’

‘Really?’

‘Of course! I’ll do that right now, you go back to your room first, I’ll find Haesoo and have her bring me to you after I return with the map.’

‘But wouldn’t that put you in danger too? You know…with you helping us?’

‘Who cares? I doubt my brother would kill me, and if he does, there’s no point of me living under him anyhow.’

(Prince Jung gives her a pat on her shoulder before leaving cautiously, making sure no one overheard their conversation or had seen them talking)

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(Jung, Haesoo, Eun and Soondeok in the room, with a map laid out in front of them – Jung reports his findings and Soondeok crosses the gates one by one.)

Soondeok: ‘We have to leave the palace to get on the boat…’

Eun: ‘Are you playing here? There are not other doors?’

Soondeok: ‘North, south, west or east. There are no easy exits. There are more guards now than when we entered…’

Jung: ‘Hyung probably is afraid people will come and take his life after he’s seized the throne…I feel ashamed to be his brother…what mother’s done also isn’t creditable. I hate them both.’

Eun: ‘So…what can we do now? If we can’t leave the palace, it’s only a matter of time they’ll find us…I wish we could just fly like the bird…or be like a rat…so no one will notice us when we leave. Or maybe a hole in the ground…’

(Haesoo suddenly remembers the cave at the back of the teahouse)

Haesoo: ‘A cave? There is one. There is a way out!’

Eun: ‘Haesoo, really?’

Haesoo: ‘But…the thing is…it got blocked a couple of years back, but I believe it won’t take long to remove all the boulders and rocks there.’

Jung: ‘I’ll do it. How many days do we have, Soondeok ah?’

Soondeok: ‘2.’

Haesoo: ‘There’s no way one person can do it in two days.’

Eun: ‘I’ll help.’

Soondeok: ‘No! Your Highness, you must never leave this room before the day for us to leave for good, understand?’

Eun: ‘Then-’

Soondeok: ‘I’ll do it.’

Haesoo: ‘But My Lady, you can’t.’

Soondeok: ‘Don’t look at me like a girl can’t do a job like carrying heavy stuff, I’m as strong as any other men, Prince Jung here can tell you. Once I carried a wounded soldier back to camp – all the way from the east coast.’

Haesoo: ‘Back then you’re just yourself, My Lady…but now…you’re not.’

Soondeok: ‘What do you mean?’

Haesoo: ‘You’re pregnant, aren’t you, My Lady.’

Jung: ‘Really? Soondeok ah…you’re pregnant?’

(Soondeok and Eun both look at each other)

Haesoo: ‘I heard about the court case…I should’ve sent you my congratulations days ago.’

Soondeok: ‘No worries, carrying heavy stuff won’t do much harm.’

Haesoo: ‘It took you two so long to have a baby, we can’t let anything happen to it.’

Soondeok: ‘Well if we get caught and killed, there’s not much of a point of having a baby now is there? Then it’s settled. Count on us, Jung and I will do the job. Now Haesoo, tell us where it is, we’ll start working right away.’