- Lee doryeonnim¹, your wounds are healing very well. - The largely built doctor reassures Sungmin while examining his wounds - You are only bleeding because you have been moving around too much this morning. I would recommend that you stay in bed until your wounds are completely healed.

Sungmin is lying in the bed back in the room at the foot of the mountain. Next to him, the doctor carefully examines his pulse, his temperature as well as his wounds.

- What about the poison, Doctor Shin?

Sungmin turns to look at the source of the question. He still could not believe in his eyes that this person is actually here.

- Yes, the most concerning thing was the poison in the Yangjae fog which has gone into Lee doryeonnim's bloodstream, but with regular intake of the medicine that I have prescribed, it is almost gone now. His pulse has also gone back to normal.

Sungmin wonders when he had taken the medicine. Although he overheard the young girl and little boy discussing the preparation of his medicine this morning, he has no memory of ever taking such medicine.

- I don't remember taking any medicine, Doctor.

The Doctor flashes an understanding smile towards him.

- Of course, you have been unconscious for a month now, Lee doryeonnim.

- One month? - Sungmin almost jumps up again in disbelief.

- Yes, your wounds were quite serious, doryeonnim, and the poison was incredibly strong as well.

One month. Sungmin wonders what could have happened in this one month. To his father. His friends. His servants in the forest. Jang Sugui and Park Bin. And what is going on in the Palace?

- Alright. If there is nothing else, I will go prepare herbs for Lee doryeonnim's medicine.

After Doctor Shin swiftly changes Sungmin's bandages, he gets up to leave the room.

Feeling a set of eyes glued on him, Kyuhyun turns around to look, but finds that the other is already looking in another direction.

Just when he looks away again, Kyuhyun feels those eyes looking at him one more time.

- What, Sungmin!?

- Um, nothing...

Too many things that he wants to say. But that at the moment cannot be said in only one sentence.

- Um, Kyuhyun ah, are you really here?

Sungmin thinks back to his dream on the field of bright pink flowers. One second, Kyuhyun was standing in front of him, eyes full of hope and happiness, but the next second, everything starts fading into nothingness and he is pulled back into reality again.

- I am here.

Kyuhyun's incredibly low and warm voice gives Sungmin some reassurance.

- What is this place? - Sungmin asks.

- This is a sect called "Children of the Mountains". It was founded by government officials disillusioned with the current system. The founders created a base in the heart of Bukhansan², away from all the politics and drama of the Palace. Over the years, people of all ages and classes wanted to join. So the sect was open to all people who wanted to get away from Hanyang's rotten politics. The base has been expanded to the commune that you have seen. Life here is self-sustaining. People eat what they grow and farm. Everyone here enjoys art and practises martial arts as a way of protecting themselves.

Sungmin keeps silent for a while to take all of the information in at once.

- And... you are the Master of this sect? - he speaks up again when the question that he has been juggling in his mind comes back to him.

- I joined three years ago, when I left the Palace... - Kyuhyun's tone has suddenly gotten lower and more hesitant. He turns to look at Sungmin and clears his throat to get rid of any awkwardness that he is feeling - The previous Master put me in the guarding troop to protect the base. When he died one year later, he put me in charge of the place.

- And...you were in Yangjae forest that day? You saved me?

Kyuhyun only nods his head, but that is enough of an answer for Sungmin.

- Thank you, Kyuhyun.

- I was too late... You almost...

- You saved me, Kyuhyun. - Sungmin's smile is brighter than the flowers on the table next to him, his voice soft and reassuring, and Kyuhyun feels like his heart has just skipped a beat.

As if suddenly realising something, Sungmin speaks up again.

- If I have been here for a month, my father must have been worried sick.

- I have sent Lee seonsaengnim a secret letter, telling him briefly about the attack and explaining to him that you are safe here. But just to be sure, he still has to act like he does not know where you are. As far as the Royal Family is concerned, you are still missing.

Sungmin gives Kyuhyun another soft smile. After all these years, Kyuhyun's consideration for his family has not changed one bit.

- What about my five servants, Kyuhyun? Did you find them?

- Yes, they were incapacitated by the poison and were unconscious in the forest. We brought them back here as well. They had more poison in their bloodstream, but they did not suffer any serious wounds, so with Doctor Shin's medicine, they have all fully recovered.

Sungmin is over the moon to hear the news that all of his trusted servants have survived the attack and are here with him. Suddenly, his mind recalls the four strange servants and how their martial arts moves seem to resemble the moves being taught to the children at the school that he had seen this morning.

- I have another question, Kyuhyun. Himchan, Hoseok, Hyunwoo, and Jaesung, my new four servants in the Palace, are they from this sect?

Kyuhyun carefully chooses his words.

- Yes, they are.

- So, what are they doing in the Palace?

Kyuhyun looks at Sungmin as if his eyes can speak for himself. 

Sungmin only smiles at the realisation and quickly changes the subject.

- How about Jang Sugui and Park Bin, Kyuhyun? Did you save them as well?

Kyuhyun raises an eyebrow at Sungmin's question. 

- What do you remember about that day, Sungmin? - Kyuhyun asks suspiciously.

- I remember the sky immediately got darker as soon as we entered Yangjae forest. Half an hour into the forest, there was a dead silence. There were no longer sounds of birds chirping and wild animals. Then we were surrounded by a fog so thick that I could not even see my hands even though they were raised close to my face. I found the palanquin carriers on the ground, without any pulse. Then the darts came. Jongwoon, Himchan, Hoseok, Hyunwoo, and Jaesung protected me from the darts. That's when the attackers came. No less than 40 of them. Seeing that they had got the situation under control, I went to find Jang Sugui and Park Bin. I found them where the fog was thinner. Then I guess my servants were unconscious from the poison, because the attackers quickly caught up with me. I fought them, but was stabbed in the back. And by that time, the poison has already gotten to my bloodstream. There was a heavily built man among the attackers, who I guessed was the leader of the gang. He stabbed me two more times. Just when I thought he was about to finish me, you came with your aides.

But Kyuhyun's eyebrow is still raised at Sungmin.

- And who was directly behind you when you were stabbed in the back, Sungmin?

Sungmin tries his best to recall everything that had happened that day. So much had happened in such a short amount of time, so Sungmin could not immediately remember the positions of everyone at the scene.

But the answer has always been there, staring him in the face. Sungmin answers Kyuhyun with another question that even he could not believe is being uttered from his mouth.

- You mean... you think Jang Sugui and Park Bin stabbed me?

Kyuhyun nods agreeingly.

- Didn't you say that you never got along with them?

- Yes... - Sungmin is still in disbelief about the revelation. - But not enough for them to do something like this.

- They are the only ones who got out of there without any scratch. Think about it. All of your palanquins were together, then suddenly, yours was in the middle of the poisonous fog, and theirs were at the place where the fog was thinner. And all of the royal guards just suddenly disappeared? Someone must have arranged it. Seeing that they were the ones that stabbed you, it is possible that they were the ones that arranged the attack in the first place.

Sungmin knows that Kyuhyun's logics make perfect sense, but at the moment, he simply could not believe that two concubines in the Royal Palace could collude with a gang of thugs to attack another concubine. This is simply unprecedented. And even if Jang Sugui is the most annoying person that he has ever known, and Park Bin is probably the most secretive and unpredictable person that he has ever met, he simply could not believe that they are capable of murder.

- But..why? Why would they go to these lengths to get rid of me? Because of jealousy?

Kyuhyun himself seems baffled at this question.

- Think carefully about it. Could there be another reason?

Sungmin rummages through his mind for an answer, then suddenly, he recalls a story told to him long ago by Ryeowook. He looks carefully at Kyuhyun, takes a deep breath before telling him everything.

- Three years ago, right before you left, I heard something quite strange in Park Bin's residence. Park Bin got extremely upset at two servants when they were making a joke about the Jun family's innocence. I heard that one of them failed to turn something in to the Office of Internal Affairs, but decided to lie about it. The other servant saw through the lie, and was joking that "If you are innocent, then the Jun family is innocent!". Park Bin was passing by when she heard them. She was so enraged at the joke that she punished them both with 30 strikes each, and banished them to the wash house, never to set foot in her residence again. Ever since then, I have been keeping a close watch of Park Bin and everyone around her. But I have not been able to gather any more evidence since then. Could it be that word got to them that I was investigating them, so they decided to get rid of me?

Kyuhyun remains silent. Sungmin knows if he were Kyuhyun right now, he would certainly be lost in a forest of his own thoughts and emotions.

So despite the pain that Sungmin feels in his bleeding wounds, he tries to sit up and touch Kyuhyun's hand.

- Kyuhyun ah, we will find out the truth one day. Together.

Sungmin wants to say something else to Kyuhyun, but his wounds start hurting again and he winces in pain.

Only then does Kyuhyun get back to reality. He gently helps Sungmin lie back down and change his bandages. Kyuhyun reaches for the clean basin of water nearby and rolls up the sleeves of his shirt, when Sungmin sees it. On Kyuhyun's forearms, two to three long scars are visible, signalling the terrible fights that their owner must have been in. Sungmin could not help staring at the scars until Kyuhyun realises what Sungmin is looking at and quickly rolls down the sleeves of his shirt.

- What are those scars, Kyuhyun? You didn't have those three years ago.

But Kyuhyun does not say anything to Sungmin's inquiry.

- Kyuhyun...

- It's nothing.

After he checks Sungmin's bandages again, Kyuhyun finally turns to Sungmin to speak up again.

- Stay here and rest, Sungmin. I will be back in a few weeks.

Sungmin immediately throws off the blanket that has just been carefully tucked in for him by Kyuhyun.

- Where are you going, Kyuhyun!?

- Back to Yangjae.

Sungmin could only stare at Kyuhyun in surprise.

- Back to Yangjae?

- Yes.

- What for?

- To look for the bandits.

- I'm coming with you!

Sungmin is about to jump up out of his mattress when he sees Kyuhyun's disapproving eyes.

- No way, Sungmin. You are half dead.

- Then wait until when I am fully recovered.

- No. 

- Why not?

- You almost died in that forest. You are not going back there again.

Kyuhyun's voice is stern and for one second, Sungmin can see a tinge of regret in his eyes.

- But I am the one who knows most clearly what happened. You can't go without me. Besides, I have a map of the area that my father had sent me.

- ...

- If you don't take me with you, I will find a way to go with or without you. You know I will, Kyuhyun.

Kyuhyun knows what Sungmin says is true. For the years that Kyuhyun has known him, never has Sungmin's determination not got him what he wanted. It is one of the things that Kyuhyun admires but also worries the most about Sungmin.

And at this very moment, Kyuhyun is again defeated by Sungmin's determination.

Sungmin takes Kyuhyun's silence to be his agreement with Sungmin's offer, and one more time, he gives Kyuhyun a smile brighter than the pinkest flowers in the field outside their window.

***********

1. Doryeonnim: an honorific to address a young master/ employer's son

2. Bukhansan: a range of mountains to the North of Seoul.