-– In the year 1370, Shilla Country (Mortal Realm) –
The bleak winter has passed, spring has finally arrived! Parsley green fields seemed to be covered in bright sheen. Flowers blooming sweetly and petals rain scattered. However, when the day began to dawn. Wind blowing strongly, heavy rain pouring down and thunderstorm roared in the dark sky.
At the Longevity Palace, the residence of Prince Liam. Courtiers are running around up and down in panic with their lantern, desperately looking for an imperial physician.
At the Imperial hospital, courtiers are knocking on the door and screaming for help. An Imperial physician opened the door after he heard loud knocking on the door. He stared at the courtiers in front of him, they had worried look on their face. "What is it all about?"
The courtiers explained. "Urgent! Prince Liam had coughed out thick out solid white fluid." Without wasting anymore time, they dragged the physician out from the hospital and giving him no chance to say a word.
Just a few step away from the imperial hospital, the imperial physician yelled in annoyance. "Wait! I need to grab my medical kit!" He ran back to the Imperial palace to get his vintage medical chest.
They heading straight to the Longevity Palace in a hasten pace. When they arrived, the imperial physician quickly examine Prince Liam's pulse. He gulped when he found out it was an absent pulse and the prince was not breathing too.
With a glance, he knew Prince Liam was poisoned. In Shilla Empire, Queen Aliyah is the only one who has the gut to assassin the prince. He imagined the queen would kill him if he saved the prince. On the other hand, he knew the king dotted Prince Liam. He imagined the king would bury him alive if he failed to cure the prince. He began to regret working in the Imperial palace. He turned his head to look at the courtiers, frowned and shook his head, "The prince is dead."
All the courtiers in the chamber knelt before Prince Liam. After so many years they had spent with the prince, they had establish a good rapport with the prince. They burst into tears and bitterly lamented the departure of the young prince.
The senior eunuch instructed his junior eunuch to inform Royal Consort Mariot about the death of her son. He found this task is onerous, wondered why he is the chosen one to break the bad news to the mother.
Left with no choice, he plucked up his courage and ran towards Loyalty Palace, the residence of Royal Consort Mariot. Knocking on the door and screaming out from his lung, "Your highness! Please wake up! Your highness!"
She woke up from the noises, sat on her bed in curiosity. "What is going on? What is the big deal in this early morning?" Royal Consort Mariot instructed to come in.
The eunuch entered her chamber with a wet robe, drenched by the rain. He stood still, panting, "Your highness! Prince Liam just collapsed! He seems like he is not breathing!"
Hearing that, Royal Consort Mariot gasped in shock. She jumped out from her bed, put on her gown, and rushed to the Longevity Palace with a palanquin.
Her body trembled, and she prayed in the palanquin, "My son is still young! Punish me instead."
The servants rattled down the palanquin to drop her at the entrance of Longevity Palace. She barged into the chamber of the prince, bare-footed.
The Imperial Physician looked at Royal Consort Marriott, shook his head and announced him dead.
Royal Consort Mariot ran to her son, Prince Liam. She gently stroked the cold, stiff, and lifeless body.
Her eyes brimmed with tears. "Dear God, how can you take away my only son?" She held the hand of Prince Liam and shed rivers of tears.
At the Celestial Palace, the residence of the queen.
In the chamber, her servants help her put on her gown and accessories. She is preparing to meet the guests.
While the servant is helping her to cinch the belt, her attendant appears. He bowed at Queen Aliyah to give his respect.
"Your majesty, Prince Liam just passed away."
Queen Aliyah smiled. The news seemed to be beautiful music to her ears.
Somehow, she worried Royal Consort Mariot will not attend the banquet later. She instructed the attendant.
Many noble young ladies will visit the Imperial Palace later in the afternoon. The queen invited them to attend a banquet. She wants to select consorts for her only son, Crown Prince Noel.
The queen took a high pride in herself, and she wanted to present to the noble families that the royal family members are harmonious and supportive of each other. She declared to the king and his consorts that it is mandatory to attend this banquet.
The attendant has taken note. He ran to meet Royal Consort Mariot.
In Prince Liam's chamber, he saw Royal Consort Mariot. She sat frozen next to the lifeless body of Prince Liam. He bowed at her and conveyed the message from Queen Aliyah.
"Please convey my heartfelt condolences to Royal Consort Mariot and remind her to attend the banquet. If she refuses to attend, she will have more funerals. Maybe her father, mother, uncle or auntie? I'll figure out later." She laughed bitterly.
"Your highness, I am here to pass a message from Queen Aliyah. She sent her heartfelt condolences. She insisted you must attend the banquet later. If you refuse to attend, she might kill your entire family and bury them alongside Prince Liam."
Royal Consort Mariot glared at him with her teary eyes. At this moment, she had to say goodbye to her only child. How can she enjoy a banquet?
The male servants must go for a castration before they start their job in the palace. This is a rule of the Imperial Palace. She knew the attendant had castrated. He doesn't have any children and probably will not understand the pain of losing a child. A widow is a wife who loses a husband, An orphan is a child who loses his parents, but there is no word to describe a parent who loses a child.
In terms of humanity, they should at least be considerate when someone is grieving. Anyway, he is just taking instruction from the queen.
Royal Consort Mariot requested the servants to fill the tub with water boiled with birch wood and rice water. She wanted to clean his body.
While they prepared the water to fill the tub, she cut his fingernails and toenails. Tears are rolling to her cheeks. She sang a song for him while she gently cut his nails. It was out of tune. Her voices are cracking and breaking because she got emotional.
She looked at his fingernails. She sees a black nail line. Wondered why the nail had a black line, She pressed his chest. Fluids are pouring out from his mouth. She turned her head to look at the courtiers. "What did you all serve the prince these few days?" Royal Consort Mariot asked them.
The courtiers informed the royal consort about the food that the prince had consumed. They informed her that the queen has requested for a new physician to attend to the prince. Ever since the new imperial physician came to visit the prince, his health deteriorated.
The wet mother of Prince Liam took the herbs that she brewed for the prince. She gave the royal consort a stack of the prescriptions issued by the imperial physician.
Royal Consort Mariot quickly took them to glance through. She believes the queen is the culprit that harms her son. Her son is not the only prince that died. In the past few years, many princes had died. Now, the only son the king has is the crown prince. She understood the queen trying to get rid of all the princes just to ensure her son secure the throne seat. It's too late for her to realize now that she shares the same fate with other consorts.
Prince Liam's soul stood behind his mother, but his mother could not see him. He tried to hug his mother, but his hand passed through her body. His heart sank to his boot when he saw his mother cried so much.
He goes down on his bended knee, resented for failing to protect himself. He blamed himself for not being filial to his mother. She had showered him with an abundance of love ever since he was born, but he could not return a favour. While he was kneeling, he touched the ground with his forehead and cried.
The grim reaper looked. He got emotional and wiped off the tears from his eyes.
The eunuch brought a geomancy expert to meet Royal Consort Mariot. The Geomancy expert greeted her and gave his heartfelt condolences. He recommended the consort as an ideal burial site. "Fern Mountain, the folk believe the existence of immortality in the mountain."
She nodded her head to agree. The eunuch has been attending to the Prince for many years. She trusts his advice.