It seemed that every time Kangnam closed his eyes, he would return to the forest and watched the baby boy being killed. Never once did he get close enough to see who the murderer was. The constant nightmare had begun to take a toll on the prince, who was gradually becoming a stranger to both sleep and peace. When he was in bed, he would dream of the murder. Awake, he would incessantly ponder on who the mysterious man was. Sometimes, however, he would feel a sense of familiarity with the way the killer moved, the way he carried himself. Kangnam felt he knew who he was, yet couldn't place his finger on just who. If only he could get a glimpse of his face. At least with that, he could begin a city-wide search for whoever got away with this gruesome crime.

But for today, he was spending time with his best friend again. Hangil always made him feel sane and clear. After the last incident, Hangil's mother didn't have a shocking fit again, but every time she looked at the prince, her smile would carry a faint trace of insincerity, like she was desperately trying to hide something. Kangnam recalled her strange shock, and was now certain she knew about the murder of the child. There was, however, no way of confirming such suspicions without directly confronting her.

"Please have a peppermint candy, Your Highness," Hangil's mother came into her son's room with a small bowl of her treats. "There is no way we can finish these by ourselves."

"Thank you," Kangnam smiled. "I always enjoy them."

As usual, Kangnam could see the faint traces of her happy mask. Hangil was oblivious to the whole deal, but he wouldn't understand anyway. After putting the sweets on top of Hangil's drawer, Mrs. Kim left. Kangnam looked at his friend with an obvious question in his eyes.

"What's wrong?" Hangil frowned in confusion.

Kangnam sighed. "This murder," he whispered, "I think your mother knows something about it."

"My mother?" Hangil laughed. "That's crazy."

"Put the pieces together, Hangil. On that day she had that strange shock, she was standing right outside, and I think she heard me telling you about the murder dream for the first time. I don't know if you see it, but she also seems to force herself to be polite to me after that. She may know an important part of this mystery, and I really want to find it out."

Through Kangnam's analysis of the situation, Hangil just sat surprised. It made sense, yet was completely absurd. Who would keep a secret like that for so long, especially a woman like Mrs. Kim? If she really did know something, the two wouldn't feel right straight out asking about it. Unless...

"You thinking what I'm thinking?" Hangil smiled as the idea hit him.

"We can't just use that potion," Kangnam shook his head. "What would we even say to the vendors?"

"You're the prince, you just need to say it's for a case."

Prince Kangnam pondered over the idea for a while, wondering whether it would be safe to buy and slip such a potion into Mrs. Kim. They would have to be careful not to let anyone see it, and make sure the container was disposed of discreetly. He looked up at Hangil and saw the determination of the other's eyes. That was all it took for Kangnam to nod his head and get start their planning.

This was going to be good.

The week after their plans hatched, Kangnam strode into the Kims' household again, greeting Mr. and Mrs. Kim right when he went in. He walked over to Hangil's room, making sure to completely hide the bottle in his pocket. As soon as he went in, Hangil smiled and the mischievous glint in his eye sparked. Just to make themselves less suspicious, the friends took out a board of Pakma Battle as they always did. Even as they dominated each other's countries, they shuffled in nervousness, knowing what they were doing was wrong.

After discussing their plans all the week before, Kangnam snuck out of the castle in the dead of night. Successfully evading the numerous guards, Kangnam walked out of Dankik to a place he had only once visited. He explained to Jiyong, the Dragon, that the King requested a Jippatsu-yaku with a Shin'gen-yaku added in, a mix that would put the drinker to sleep, and make him or her tell the truth. Since it was a Royal Order, the Dragon didn't even think to question the rather young boy requesting and taking the expensive, and not to mention forbidden to the public, potion. It had been quick and easy for Kangnam to get his hands on it.

Midway through the game, the friends heard the door opening. It was time. Kangnam made sure the potion was still in his pocket as he and Hangil raced downstairs into the kitchen. Mrs. Kim was sitting on the couch, having just swept the floor. She was reading a book on the history of the Pandoran religion starting from the box she herself opened. It was a rare moment for her to relax, and her son knew that as he was stirring a saucepan of milk. The two friends' stomachs began to twist in anxiety, but they ignored it and poured the milk into a mug. Prince Kangnam lifted the cork off of the vial and poured the potion into the mug, mixing it with a spoon afterwards.

Mrs. Kim could never suspect what her own son and the Prince of all Pakma were planning, so she gladly accepted the warm milk offered to her. Her first sips were comforting, but Kangnam and Hangil watched uncomfortably close for what was to happen. The mother questioned the boys why they were standing there intently, but the two shrugged it off. Kangnam and Hangil left her to drink in peace, but they stayed by the door to continue to watch her.

After what seemed like a half a day's worth of waiting, Mrs. Kim finally set her mug down, strangely drowsy and unable to think straight. The feeling hit her extremely hard and she thought she'd close her eyes for just a moment. As soon as she put her head down, she fell straight to sleep, and the two conniving friends seized their opportunity. Kangnam came up to Mrs. Kim and stood next to her, Hangil looking at him expectantly.

"Well?" Hangil prodded. "Are you going to ask her or not?"

With a sigh, Kangnam turned to his friend's mother.

"Tell me," the prince began, "who was the child that was murdered?"

"Child," Mrs. Kim mumbled, "he was so young."

"Who was he?"

"The...the Shadow Child...he had to be disposed of..."

Kangnam looked up at Hangil with shock, and Hangil shook his head in confusion.

"Mom," Hangil came close to her, "what was his name?"

"No one knows," Mrs. Kim answered. "But we called him Sims. The child borne of the Shadows' race."

"What's going on here?" a stern and commanding voice bellowed from behind the two boys, making them jump in shock. They looked back in absolute fear at Mr. Kim standing in the door to the living room.

"Dad," Hangil's eyes widened, "what are you doing here?"

"I forgot to take my money," Mr. Kim curtly answered. "But the real question is, what are you two up to? Tell me you didn't give your mother a potion."

The two friends looked down in guilt and Mr. Kim sighed. He was usually a lenient father, but that didn't mean that he knew how to act when his son went out of line. And this time, Hangil went way too far, even dragging the Prince of Pakma on it.

"Who's idea was this?" Mr. Kim frowned.

"Mine," Hangil answered.

"But sir," Kangnam looked up, "I'm the one who carried it out."

"Your Highness," Mr. Kim sighed, "I'll take you to the palace and speak with your father. I'm very disappointed in you two. Why would you feed your mother that potion anyway?"

"Sir," Kangnam decided to ask. "Who was Sims?"

At the mention of that name, Mr. Kim was utterly stunned, and was left gaping. It was the same reaction his wife had had, and the boys recognized it.

"How--" Mr. Kim began.

"I've been Dreaming," Kangnam began to cry. "It haunts me every day and night, and I believe I was given this power so that I could stand and do something about it. A child was murdered - a Shadow - and I have to rise up to bring the boy to justice."

"Prince Kangnam," Mr. Kim was still shocked. "You have no idea what you're--"

"I shall return home," Kangnam started to walk toward the door. "I'm very sorry for having done this, but please know it was not without reason."

That night, Kangnam told the truth about his scheming to his father and was put under more scutinous watch.

Also, Mr. Kim explained to his son the mystery of this Shadow child. Hangil was too young to learn the horrible secret of this murder, but he was mature enough to understand. It was only under the condition that he never reveal it to Kangnam, but even without that promise, Hangil would never have had the heart to tell the truth to the prince.

He knew that Kangnam would have to find the truth himself.