Taeyeon couldn’t move. The mere presence of Seohyun standing there made her brain go overdrive.

What she was doing there? Why was she still in Stoneguard? Hasn't Lady Hwang left the village yet? Why not? What happened to them? Did those horsemen hold them hostage? Is Lady Hwang in danger? What was just going on?

Taeyeon clenched her jaw, unable to process anything further in her brain. It was already late at night and if Seohyun was still there, then it meant the others could still be in that village as well! God Dammit. Why? Why didn’t they leave? Why did they have to make everything so difficult?

Taeyeon gulped, trying to calm her nerves down, as any outburst movement could make Seohyun’s disguise go down to the drain. She couldn’t really show to those people she was acquaintances with Seohyun or the poor servant would get into a huge trouble. And getting Seohyun into trouble could get Lady Hwang into trouble. And Taeyeon didn’t really want that to happen. Ever.

So Taeyeon stood silent and immobile on her spot, just staring at Seohyun’s back while she was walking beside that man. What was his name again? Taeyeon couldn’t really remember. The only thing she did remember was that the man was from a wealthy family as he was the son of the lord of Yellowstone.

What was he doing there? Wasn’t on his way to Midsummar? Did Master Shin send him here to make sure Taeyeon was the man he was looking for and not an impostor?

There were so many questions buzzing in her head, it was making her anxious and nervous.

“Time to go back to your cell, boy.” The tallest guard commanded, breaking Taeyeon’s thoughts and calling her back to reality.

She didn’t dare to respond and just nodded her head. “Yes, sir.” She gulped, lowering her head and moving back to her captive cell.

God Dammit. If she could have at least one minute to talk to Seohyun alone, she would understand what the hell was going on. But it was already late at night, and Master Shin is on his way to Stoneguard. If that man finds Lady Hwang somehow, everything they’ve fought for, would’ve been just in vain! But how could Taeyeon stop Master Shin and Lady Hwang to meet if she was held captive by those men somehow? There was no way she could help Lady Hwang while in captive!

“Seems like your fate is sealed, boy.” The guard spoke up when he locked her inside bars. “Shouldn’t have messed up with Master Shin or Kim Chang-Min.”

Kim Chang-Min! That’s right. That was his name, wasn’t it? The one who visited her just now. “What was he doing here?” She asked the man.

“He came to us telling he met you before and could point if you were the right man Master Shin is looking for.”

“Was he sent by Master Shim himself?”

“I can’t tell that. He just ordered us to see you.”

Hmm. Weird. And why the hell was he with Seohyun at his side? And why did he call her as if she was the owner of a tavern? That made no sense.

“So, can I have my money now?” Hae-Sun, the man whom Taeyeon was sharing the cell with, spoke up. “Now that is confirmed that I caught the boy, I shall receive my prize. So, where is my money?” He asked the guard, standing up from the corner of the cell and coming forward.

“It ain’t me giving you the money, old man. It’s Master Shin. So you either wait till Lord Master Shin arrives or you give up on the money and get back to your house!”

“I won’t give up on the money. It’s 100 gold!”

The guard didn’t move from his position. “Then just wait till tomorrow and you shall receive your gold.”

“Why must I stay locked down with him till then? I’m not a criminal!”

“As if I were a criminal as well!” Taeyeon retorted it, bitterly. “I didn’t do anything remotely illegal!”

“Just be quiet, boy!” The guard stood tall. “There is a reason Master Shin put 100 gold on your head!”

“How can you all believe him and the words he says when he is such a piece of to your own city?”

“Enough!” His voice raised up. “Master Shin is the Lord Master of this land and we all serve him!”

“That doesn’t mean you have to eat all the crap he is giving you!”

“You are not from this land, you don’t know how things work around here!”

“Yes, I do. He s the bed and you all clean up his !”

His face became as red as tomatoes as those words were spoken. The guard, ever so furious, caught up his sword in hands pointing it to her. “You dare to speak such dirty words at me, boy? If you weren’t behind those bars, I would have murdered you already!”

“You can’t hurt me.” Taeyeon recalled.

“What?”

“You can’t hurt me. Master Shin gave orders to not let anyone other than him to hurt me.”

The guard clenched his jaw, seemingly angry for that outcome somehow. “You are an annoying little brat, aren’t you? Maybe that is the reason why Master Shin wants you dead! So you can learn how to hold your tongue and not respond to your elders!”

Taeyeon didn’t say a word. Maybe it was for the best if she didn’t enrage him any longer.

He snuffed and kept his sword back to its guard. “Now, enjoy your night, as it will be your last one! Tomorrow, Master Shin shall send you his regards!” He grinned, leaving the cell behind and begone by the door.

Taeyeon clenched her jaw. “.”

“You talk too much, lit’le fella.” Hae-Sun suddenly spoke up, Taeyeon had even forgotten he was there beside her. “You want advice?” He offered.

“Not coming from you.”

“Talk less.”

“What?”

“Smile more. Don’t let them know what you are against or what you’re for.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“You wanna get ahead?”

“Yes.”

“Fools who run their mouths off wind up dead.”

“I’m not gonna stay quiet when Master Shin plays with people around like he plays with toys!”

“What can you even do to stop him? You are just a bastard kid from no man’s land, lit’le fella! You have no titles, no power, no army, nothing! What do you think you can do against Master Shin?”

“I don’t wanna do anything against him! He incriminated me for something I hadn’t done! And I’m paying the price for it because I’m just a bastard kid with no name!”

“Master Shin wouldn’t put a bounty on you if you hadn’t stepped on his toes!” Taeyeon clenched her fists. “So, a bastard with no name suddenly became too burdensome to Master Shin for some reason. You should have held your tongue. Probably you wouldn’t have ended up here if you had.” The man said.

“I wouldn’t have ended up being here if you hadn’t betrayed me and drugged my tea!”

“You can’t blame me for wanting your price tag, boy!Hunters would be looking for you by the minute you stepped outside my tavern. My best shot was with you at my bar on your own.”

“You didn’t even try to fight me. Just cowardly poisoned me to sleep.”

“An old fox has to have his tricks if he wants to keep living. I have no shame in what I have done. I’ve been through a hard life. It’s enough for me. I can get the money, close the tavern and go live somewhere else other than this hole!”

“No one was stopping you from doing that before! Why didn’t you save up your money decently throughout the years so you could leave Stoneguard and live somewhere else with your dignity intact? You somehow prefer to dishonour your family by being a traitor!”

“Don’t you dare to call me a traitor, boy!” He spoke up angrily. “I thought for Joseon in the war! I fought against the Japanese in the name of King Jaeyong so this nation wouldn’t fall to that Japanese Emperor! If you are here speaking to me in our native tongue, it is because of me! So don’t you dare call me a traitor!”

Taeyeon swallowed her pride and just leaned her head to the side, her chest almost ready to explode. She was really angry with that man. But she also couldn’t refute his words. He did fight in the war. And he lost his family while serving. Taeyeon didn’t really need to go that far.

“I don’t care what you did or did not to Master Shin.” Hae-Sun continued. “Whatever happened at Midsummar, it is already done. But he put a bounty on you. And I took the chance to collect it. That’s what it is. Nothing personal against you, kid. I just need the money!”

Taeyeon twisted her lips.

“And I understand you are angry by sharing this cell with me. The person who turned you in. But, don’t worry. You’ll get rid of me tomorrow when I receive my gold!” The older man shrugged off, coming back to his corner.

“Or when Master Shin puts me down.” She thought to yourself. Her head now falling against the wall of the cell. She looked up, trying to calm herself down.

And now what was going to happen to her? Would that really be her end?

“What do I do, Master Kim?” She asked him, wishing for a word of wisdom.

But got no answer.

No ideas.

Nothing.

And for the first time in forever, Taeyeon was afraid of what would happen to her.

For the first time in forever, she was completely out of ideas to save herself.

~~*~~

“Are you absolutely sure about this, sir? You want to talk to the boy in here?”

Taeyeon grunted and opened her eyes when she heard voices nearby. She was at the right corner of the cell, and realized she had fallen asleep right there. Looking around the place, she found Hae-Sun sleeping to his sides, his back facing her, at the left corner. He must have been angry with her. With Taeyeon calling him traitor and all that. Old people cared about their reputation and for a guy who served in the war, being called a traitor, might be the biggest offense of all.

Taeyeon thought for a second if she should apologize to the man beside her. But only for a second. Because in the next moment, the dungeon was bust opened and two guards walked inside. Between those guards, Taeyeon saw the face of Lord Kim Chang-Min once again.

He was much taller than her, and he was wearing formal white wear, made of finest fabrics. In one of his hands, he was carrying a small foldable wooden chair, which seemed to be from Hae-Sun’s tavern. Taeyeon blinked, not sure what the man was doing there again. Didn’t he just say what he had to say before? Why bother coming back to see her? Is he the one who is going to kill her?

“Let me get inside.” He told the guards, making the two men frown their brows.

“Sir?”

“I want to talk privately to Kim Taeyeon. So I would appreciate it if you could unlock the cage and let me go in.”

“But sir-”

“It’s an order.” He said, seriously.

“Yes, sir!” They all bowed down, following up to unlock the cage as he requested.

“You also can leave.” Chang-Min said, moving his hands outwards to gesture the officers to leave them alone.

“Aye, sir!” And yet confused, the guards have left the dungeon.

The man looked around the dungeon, as if looking for something interesting that could call his attention. Taeyeon noticed the noble piece of accessory on his hair, all collected to form a firm bun on top of his scalp.

“You’ve spent the night here, bastard boy, how did it feel?” He asked, just to break the ice and start a small talk. Taeyeon found that unnecessary.

“Why are you here?” She asked, a slight tone of disinterest in her voice. She wasn’t really in the mood to talk to that man. Especially considering that day was the day Master Shin was supposed to arrive at Stoneguard. Taeyeon knew she only had a couple of hours till the final countdown. And he chatting like that was just making her waste time.

He smirked, a little cheeky for her own answer. “I’m not really sure, to be honest. But I think I deserve a little bit of respect, considering I’m here to pay for yours.”

“Is that why you are wearing white? Paying respects to me because I’m about to die?”

He leaned his head to the side, thoughtful. “Clothes from lighter fabrics also help in the summer season. Did you know, boy? In this region and up above until the Hwang Estate, we have summer storms.”

“I’ve heard of it.” Taeyeon said.

“Summer storms happen sparsely around the Red Mountains, and it’s much more prevalent in the north. But we all enjoy the summer storms. To us all, the rain is seen as a sign of good fortune.” With how arid was that terrain and soil, she could see why the rainy season could be a sign of good fortune to them all.

“Makes sense.”

“It rained last night.” It did? “You didn’t see it, did you?”

“No.” She answered, low tune.

“Shame. It was a refreshing rain. Not too strong to be a storm, but not a drizzle either. Just the good amount of rain we all need, you know?”

“Hm, okay. Yet I fail to see where you wanna get at?” She decided to ask, confused by the topic of the conversation.

He chuckled, clicking his tongue in the process. “Pardon my rambling, I’m just trying to have a decent conversation with you.”

“I don’t have the whole day.”

“I see you still have your sharp tongue even on your final day.”

“I told him to hold it.” Hae-Sun suddenly spoke up, turning himself to both of them. “I told him his tongue would put him into trouble.”

“And who are you?” Kim Chang-Min asked him.

“I’m Lee Hae-Sun, sir.” He did a little bow with his head to Kim Chang-Min. “Sorry to interfere with the conversation between you two.”

“You are not his companion.” He said, frowning his brows.

“Excuse-me?” The old man did not understand his conclusion.

“You are not a friend of Kim Taeyeon. I haven’t met you in that desert back then.”

“I don’t know what you ar