Taeyeon felt her heart drop when she heard the unknown man beside her say the word ‘Executed’. He will have those servants killed? Public executed to control his people as a bunch of sheep? Bastard little .

Taeyeon clenched her fists when golden tunic guards approached the servants. “Shall we kill ‘em, Master Shin?”

Shin Yunsuk had his hand on his cheek, his face on a tedious semblant. “Let’s wait for a couple of minutes more.”

“What’s he waiting for?” Taeyeon heard some people ask in the crowd. As Mi Seohyun tried to get closer to her, as if looking for protection, Taeyeon understood. Shin Yunsuk was waiting for Mi Seohyun. He was counting with her coming back to help her friends. And with that, disposing all four servants at once.

Motherer.

When another horn was blown by a guard, Taeyeon looked at the servants, noticing they’d had been hurt before being put on top of that platform. Their faces had bruises all over and the palest one was with her lips swollen and chipped with blood.

“Juhyun…” Taeyeon heard Mi Seohyun’s lowly voice. Her guts twisted inwards, feeling bad for the poor servant who had to witness such a cruel act happening to her friends.

One guard seemed to have short patience as he grabbed the tallest and tannest servant by the hair and pulled her head backwards. “Oh.” Shin Yunsuk said. “You can kill this one.” His smirk on his face made Taeyeon’s angry.

The soldier grabbed his sword and Taeyeon heard Mi Seohyun gasp. Feeling her chest rising up out of rhythm, before the soldier could slay the life of the servant, Taeyeon hopped up on the platform.

That single movement made the whole crowd turn their gaze to her. Taeyeon gulped, feeling her shoulders heavy somehow. From there she saw the looks of the faces of the crowd staring at her surprised and confused. She even spotted Jonghyun and Minho’s faces in the crowd. They were completely in panic.

“Who are you?” Taeyeon heard a golden guard ask her.

“I’m Taeyeon.” She answered, seriously, turning her face stare at the nobles on that stage.

When she gazed at Shin Yunsuk, the man had no long his hand on his cheek, but it was sitting straight on his throne, with his eyebrows frowned. The taller man beside him, wearing vibrant green colors, looked at her with curiosity.

“Get the outta here, skinny boy!” The guard hissed to her. “We gotta a service to do!”

“Enough!” Taeyeon said, pulling Purpose out of its sheath. That move made the crowd gasp. “You can’t kill those people!” She put herself in front of the servants.

“You are not the one who gives orders to us!”

Shin Yunsuk rose his hand up, gesturing the guard to be silent. The officer obeyed. Shin Yunsuk stood up from his chair, making Taeyeon turned her body to her right, holding the handle of Purpose tighter.

“You are the foreigner.” He said, getting closer to her. “My guards have told me about a foreign boy who defeated them in combat.”

“They were all pretty ty in combat.”

Somewhere Taeyeon could’ve heard Heechul facepalm himself.

“Where is she?” He asked, firmly. Taeyeon did not need to second guess who he was asking for.

“She ran away!” Taeyeon replied, not daring to look at Mi Seohyun. She knew the servant was protected with the red clothes from the brothel house.

Shin Yunsuk clenched his teeth, visibly angry. “Who are you?”

“I’m Taeyeon.”

“Taeyeon who? Who’s your father?”

Taeyeon did not answer, her eyes still gazing at him.

“A southern accent…” He started saying, walking around Taeyeon. “Silver color outfit…” His eyes seemed to turn into fire. “A dark blade…” Taeyeon tightened her grip around her sword. “You’re from Jeolla’s Province...”

“Ironstow, the capital city.” Taeyeon replied, firmly, her eyes never daring to look away from his.

“Ah, yeah...Jeon Eunhyun’s homeland.” He commented, nodding his head. “What are his words again? Heart of Iron, Blades of Steel…isn’t that right?”

Taeyeon did not answer, her eyes still gazing at him.

“What a boy from further south is doing around here in Midsummar?”

“Passing by.”

That answer did not please the man as his eyes became fiery. “I’m not in the mood to buy a war with Jeon Eunhyun, so I suggest you to drop your show, lit’le boy, and get out of the way!”

“Don’t call me lit’le.” She said seriously. “I don’t like when people call me lit’le.”

“Your Lord Father didn’t teach you any manners, did he?”

“My Lord Father?”

“Jeon Eunhyun.”

“I have nothing to do with Jeon Eunhyun.” Taeyeon answered, that made Shin Yunsuk’s blink his eyes.

“You are not his son?”

She wasn’t even a son. “He is not my father.”

“Who is your father?”

“I have no father!” That made his eyes squint harder.

“You are a bastard?”

Taeyeon lifted her face up. “Of the lowest class possible!”

“A bastard boy…” The other noble man spoke up. “Defeated men from Shin Yunsuk’s Golden Army?”

“They are not golden army because of their high skills, they are golden army because of the colors of their outerwear!” Taeyeon replied. “Everything about nobility is about colors and appearance… not values, worth and honour!”

“Honour? What a bastard son of Ironstow knows about honour?” Shin Yunsuk asked, his voice cold and sharp.

“Looking at how you decide to get these servants executed in front of the public when they didn’t do anything wrong, I understand it more than you!”

“Big words for a bastard son to say.”

“Dirty move for a noble lord to do.” She retorted it, seriously. “Considering what you did with the Hwangs.” She thought with herself, not allowing those words to leave . Taeyeon did not want to shock the crowd with that information, nor did she want to make her and the other boys’ lives miserable when they’ve got to stay at that place for weeks to no end. All and all, she was trying to find a compromise. Save the Hwang Family servants, stay out of Master Shin’s way, get money for their rest of the journey and leave Midsummar heading North to Hanyang. She was hoping Master Shin would understand her move and act accordingly.

Shin Yunsuk’s eyes smouldered like fire. “What you’re trying to accomplish stopping this execution, bastard boy?”

“Those servants did nothing wrong!” Taeyeon said, firmly, defending the three servants on their knees behind her. “You can’t forbid them to run from their homes if they don’t like the place of their birth!” Taeyeon said, not saying what Master Shin did to Hwangs in front of all those people. She did not want to start a commotion of such magnitude. “They didn’t commit any crime! You’re trying to execute them because they are trying to get away from this place!” Taeyeon said, loud. “They don’t like here! And they are trying to go south for a better living! That ain’t a crime! You can’t execute people for that!”

“Yeah! He is right!” The crowd echoed.

“You don’t tell how I shall rule my city, bastard boy!” The anger in his voice was evident. “You know nothing! You don’t know what those servants did in the royal palace!” He said angrily. He turned his face towards the crowd. “Those servants are cheaters, traitors! They deserve their ending!”

“Do they though?” Taeyeon cleared. “If they deserve their ending… let the gods decide!”

“The gods?”

“A trial by combat!” Taeyeon declared. That made Shin Yunsuk squint his eyes. “You know how it works, don’t you?”

The other noble man seemed to like the idea. Taeyeon continued. “You pick a champion. A