After the melancholic rainy day, it was a whole week of sunshine. Also like a ray of sunshine was the energy that Prince Jooyoung radiated and the way he smiled whenever he was with his betrothed, Princess Nongyu. They were originally having a lovely chat as they took a walk around one of the fishponds in the palace. However, their conversation was interrupted by Lord Jongin who came running to them.

“Hey!” Jongin hollered, too elated to be minding his manners in front of the two royals. “Guess who just came back to court!”

He looked so excited that Jooyoung and Nongyu could not help but be curious. While Nongyu was still confused, Jooyoung let out a squeal once they saw the woman who came into sight, a few steps behind Jongin.

“Moonbyul-noona!” Jooyoung exclaimed, running up to her with childlike enthusiasm. “You’re back!”

“I’m back,” Moonbyul announced, grinning at the two boys. “It’s been so long. You two have grown so tall! How have you boys been?”

“Noona, did you hear? I’m getting married!” Jooyoung blurted. “Come and meet my fiancée! She’s a princess from China! Noona, you’ve visited China before, right?”

Whereas everybody else was smiling, Nongyu froze. “You…” she spluttered, glancing back and forth between Jooyoung and Jongin. No longer was she sure which one she was supposed to be engaged to.

“Oh, no…” Jongin uttered under his breath as he and his cousin exchanged panicked glances. “It’s over for us.”

“Kim Jongin!” Joohyun bellowed, the echoes of her voice bouncing off the walls of her study room. Lividly she glowered at her cousin who kept his head bowed. All he could do was gulp and quiver, knowing he was in deep trouble. Both he and Jooyoung were on their knees while Nongyu stood a few steps away from them, covering her face with a handkerchief as she shed tears. Moonbyul was also there — she was the one who brought them to the Queen after all.

“I’m sorry…” he squeaked timidly, not even daring to look the Queen in the eye. “I just thought it’d be fun to mess around…”

“You thought it’d be fun?!” She questioned, smacking her palm onto her desk as she rose to her feet abruptly. The sharp noise sent everyone in the room flinching. “Have you ever thought about how this would make Princess Nongyu feel? Do you think she would find it fun too, to be lied to this whole time? You may be my cousin, but don’t think I’ll let you get away with this. Do you want me to banish you from court so you’ll quit causing trouble?”

“Please don’t!” He pleaded. “I’m sorry! I won’t do it again, I swear!”

“You swear? And how am I supposed to trust you on this? You’ve proven yourself to be a liar,” she scolded. “You will be penalized for this. Both of you.”

“What?!” Jooyoung protested. “It wasn’t even my idea!”

“You sure did play along with it instead of telling the truth. Besides, you still did go and meet Princess Nongyu before you were formally allowed to, and it was improper,” Joohyun insisted. “Rules exist for a reason but you two just didn’t care, huh? How much longer were you boys going to keep this up for? All the way until the wedding day? I can’t imagine the consequences if Moonbyul hadn’t reported this to me.”

Moonbyul cleared . “Originally it wasn’t any of my business. But I just think it’s unfair to Princess Nongyu, so I decided that coming to Your Majesty would be the right thing to do. Actually, Her Highness didn’t even want to expose these two liars at first,” she explained, shooting an apologetic glance at Nongyu. The Princess seemed to have stopped crying now, but still looked very disappointed and very worried. Turning back to Joohyun, Moonbyul added, “I’m sure it’s just because Her Highness didn’t want to offend anyone or make a fuss about this. I suppose, as a newcomer and a foreigner, it would be wise to think twice about making any complaints. But I’m not afraid of anyone or anything, and I believe these boys need to be taught a lesson.”

Joohyun nodded in agreement and glared at the two boys. “You two will not go unpunished. Now, let me think. What kind of a penalty do you deserve?”

“Please, please, have mercy. I promise I won’t do it again!” The boys chorused, but their pleas were ignored.

“Your Majesty, I have an idea,” Moonbyul piped up, and went on only when Joohyun gave her permission. “I don’t believe in beating or whipping disobedient children. It’s much more meaningful to have them do something constructive instead. Make some contributions rather than sit around all day causing trouble. How about sending them to the armory and making them clean the weapons there?”

“That’s a good idea,” Joohyun replied. “Moonbyul, you were the one who took up that post when you worked as a servant there, right? I’ll have you bring these two troublemakers to the armory and see to it that they’re not slacking. Do it after lunch.”

“Yes, Majesty,” she said. The two boys looked up at her pleadingly, but she only arched an eyebrow at them in disapproval. They looked down again and sighed, resigned to accept that their favorite noona was not going to show them any mercy either.

“Jongin, you’re going to do that every day for a month,” Joohyun announced. “Jooyoung, half a month.”

“What?! A month?! A whole month?!” Jongin gasped and looked as if he was about to complain further. But he decided to shut his mouth when he saw just how displeased the Queen looked.

“Yes, I said what I said, and you most definitely heard me correctly. You will clean all the equipment as Moonbyul and Master Kang see fit. I hope this will teach you a firm lesson,” Joohyun stated sternly. “Now, if Princess Nongyu is satisfied with this penalty and is willing to forgive the two of you, we will end this discussion here.”

Nongyu nodded softly. “I’m sure they won’t do it again, Majesty.”

“I’ll make sure they behave themselves,” Moonbyul replied in reassurance.

“Alright,” said Joohyun. “I’ll give you boys an hour to have lunch. After that, I expect the two of you to be cleaning the weapons and reflecting upon your mistakes.”

Defeated, they got up and exited the room. Nongyu also bowed at the Queen and announced that she was going to return to her residence.

“Is there anything else I can do for you?” Joohyun asked. “If you ever need anything, or if the boys ever prank you again, don’t hesitate to come to me. I will put them in their place.”

“Your Majesty has already done enough for me, and I am very thankful for all of it. I’m sure you’re busy enough already, having to deal with state affairs.”

“It isn’t your fault, though,” Moonbyul chimed in. “Those boys have got to understand that this isn’t their playground.”

“Still, I should be the one apologizing for having inconvenienced the Queen,” Nongyu insisted.

“Don’t worry about it,” replied the Queen. “You should go and eat as well.”

Nongyu nodded and bowed once more before taking her leave. That left Moonbyul and Joohyun as the only ones in the room.

“You’re back,” Joohyun started once they made eye contact and broke into giggles. “After how long? 3 years?”

“Last time I was here, you were the youngest Princess in the palace,” Moonbyul replied. “But now you’re the Queen. How unexpected! I’m proud, though.”

“I never expected to be the one sitting on the throne. I’ve lost so many family members within such a short period of time…” Joohyun sighed. “So now I’m the one who wears the crown, but at what cost?”

“I’m sorry,” said Moonbyul solemnly. “For not being able to be there for you when you were mourning.”

“You were travelling the world and having fun. I’d much rather let you be happy than have to mourn with me,” Joohyun admitted melancholically. She also thought to herself that no one was going to be here for her always anyways. But