Morning dawned upon him and with a hand to rub his eyelids, Wallyung found himself the most rested he had ever been in such a long time. He stretched his arms over his head and let out a loud groan, bones cracking as he turned his head to gaze at the beautiful open sky, but a familiar, grinning face blocked his view. He grimaced.
"Good morning," Baeksul chirped. "Did you sleep well?"
Wallyung quickly wrapped himself with the blanket, the cold air tickling his exposed skin. He must have changed some time during the night.
Baeksul gasped softly. "Oh my, I had no idea that you," he paused, a blush creeping over his cheeks, "slept like that."
"What are you talking about?" Wallyung's jaw clenched slightly.
"That you sleep as bare as the day of your birth and with a window open for the world to see."
Wallyung quickly rose to his feet, blanket slipping onto the floor to reveal his large penis.
Baeksul's hand immediately flew to cover his reddened face. "Oh my! I-I, w-wow!"
Overwhelmed with embarrassment, Wallyung's fingers snatched the blanket from the floor, eyes dropping to where the other man was no longer in his line of sight. This bastard truly is crazy, he thought.
He narrowed his eyes at Baeksul, muttering to himself, "What a pervert."
"No, but how lucky you are to have such a big-"
The window closed shut before the other man could finish, and Wallyung took this moment of peace to change into his clothes, face still warm from the recent interactions. But the boy was relentless, having now appeared in front of his bedroom.
"Please, do not be so embarrassed," Baeksul tried to comfort him in the awkward space between them. "Being a man of your size is not one to shy from."
Wallyung frowned once more at the crude comment, his voice now dripping with an irritation he no longer had the patience to mask.
"You- you are absolutely ridiculous!"
Wallyung tried to move past him, but Baeksul's body blocked his path. "What is the problem? I, too, am a man, you know."
Snickering, Wallyung stepped around him and managed to escape into the garden, squinting at the glare of sunlight on his face as a voice continued to ramble at his back. With a big breath, Wallyung went to gather as much wood as he could- leaving and returning back inside the house several times that day, and with every step, a shadow followed close behind him. Eventually, Wallyung grew tiresome and when his patience had run its course he whipped his head around to glare at the figure at his back. He threw the piles of wood onto the ground. "Why must you trail me like a lost puppy? Are you not needed elsewhere?"
Baeksul stood still, unsure of how to properly answer, in fear of upsetting him further. Gaze to the floor, he spoke under his breath, "What are you doing?"
"Before night comes, I collect piles of firewood to keep warm."
"May I help you?"
"Refrain from using such informal language when speaking to me."
A short silence fell upon them, until Baeksul swallowed the lump in his throat and simply answered with a timid nod.
Wallyung released a deep breath. "The day keeps me busy now, so hurry and go. I shall see you when night falls." He gave a curt nod before disappearing into the house once more, only this time there was no one in tow.
Baeksul sulked the moment the door closed on his face, heart weighed by a sadness he didn't understand himself.
"Yes," he mumbled, "until tonight."
The pain of rejection felt as if a knife had gone through his heart, leaving him to bleed as his feet dragged on the way back home. Once he entered his room, he collapsed into bed and relief washed over him as the soft embrace of the blanket encased him. But it wasn't enough to fight against the emotion that came from the way Wallyung treated him. He was forced to wonder what it was that angered him so much- set him on the edge every time they shared words. Baeksul merely only wanted to be friends. What was so wrong with that?
Footsteps neared his door, and Baeksul sat up to greet his father.
"Is something the matter?" his father asked.
He stared at him for a moment before speaking. "I… have no one to call a friend here, father. It is rather… lonely."
His father sat next to him, eyes lit with a loving glow. "Son... I told you not to worry, did I not? As time goes on, you will eventually come to love it here."
***
Back in the palace, Ok-jung sat before her mirror, brush running along the length of her silky hair. A knock arose from the door behind her, and the empress only bothered to turn her head slightly as the maid entered at her given permission.
"Come in, but do keep from looking like such a sad child. What seems to be the matter?"
She stood from the mirror and slowly approached the maid, lips curled into a smirk when she caught sight of the obvious fear in the woman's form. The maid's eyes flicked back and forth from the floor, the walls, then back to the Empress. To stare for too long would be dangerous- a wish for death. In her hands was a wooden tray containing the Empress' cosmetics and tea cups.
"I shall ask you again. What is the matter, maid?"
The maid's eyebrows knitted together, hands trembling on her lap. If she didn't speak quickly, she feared death would come quicker. Mustering her courage to finally respond, she said, "Queen M-M-Mother wanted to know the Emperor's whereabouts."
A loud slap rang out as the maid's body flung to the floor, hand grasping her throbbing head. Around her were bits of broken tea cups and scattered powder of the Empress' makeup. Tears dripped from her eyes, but she didn't dare to look up to meet those hateful eyes.
The Empress crouched to the floor, forcing the maid now to meet her scowl. She clicked her tongue.
"What did you say?"
The maid's breathing picked up. "Rumors of the disappearance of the Emperor are spreading across the nation, Your Majesty."
The Empress' hands suddenly grabbed the maid by the collar and forced her up.
"Your Ma-ma-majesty, I cannot… breathe..."
"How dare you come into my room and speak of him!"
With nails almost as sharp as daggers, the Empress dug her fingers deep into the maid's neck, burying her deathly grip into the flesh as she stared in rage at the woman in her absolute mercy.
But then, all of a sudden the Empress' hand loosened and the maid squirmed out of clutches. She gasped for air, coughing fits of it back into her lungs.
The Empress' hard stare remained locked on the maid. Disgust filled her gut, accompanied by the feeling of nausea. Her whole plan seemed to be crumbling. If the Queen Mother sent a search party, it'd be over.
"Out of my quarters. Your help is not needed today."
She dismissed all the servants in her quarters and placed herself on the edge of her bed.
With each passing second gone, it was as if control slipped away from her, falling into the hands of the Queen Mother and her wretched, pathetic excuse of a husband; like the world she worked so hard to create was coming apart at the seams.
And all she could do was watch.
A thought came to her.
She muttered to herself, "Perhaps if I look for the royal family tree, I can start to plan, no?"
The empress rushed out of her room, silk, sleeping gown billowing behind her. A maid from the end of the hall observed the Empress for a brief moment before leaving her station and following.
***
There sat Baeksul, both sullen and emitting a melconcloy vibe, saw Wallyung appear, his focus clear on cleaning the yard. 'Why the hell would you show up in front of me?' He thought, throwing a broom with a look of disgust on his face before trying to get inside. Wallyung, quickly grabbed his left hand, halting his haste away from the yard.
"I'm sorry...for being irritable."
Baeksul, jerked his hand away from his grip and turned to him, the look of heartache written on his face.
"You have already hurt me..."
"I know, and I am sorry... I hurt you for no reason."
"You did..."
Wallyung got closer, before changing his demeanor and reaching for a handshake from Baeksul.
"Let us start again! Nice to meet you. My name is Lee Jin Hyuk."
With a strange look on his face, Baeksul just stayed silent. He had no idea whether he was joking or being serious, but either way, he didn't know how to answer. The answer that Wallyung wanted to hear was: "Let us start again," but the response that came out was
"I will think about it."
"What?"
"I will think about it!"
He was taken aback by this. "No, no... I apologized earlier, and you will not accept my apology?"
"Tzu... what! Do you think I am that easy of a guy? You Arang men are truly amazing."
Baeksul said sarcastically, slightly offended by his density.
"What are you talking about?"
"If you do not understand, figure it out! If you really want to start over, you have to be nice to me."
Wallyung's eyes looked up again into his, as he bowed his head in agreement to his conditions.
Baeksul turned his head away from Wallyung, so he wouldn't see his attempt of holding back laughter before eventually bursting out in a fit of it.
'Such a fool…!' He thought to himself as another giggle came out of him.
Baeksul, which was heard by the vain Wallyung, continued to feign annoyance.
"And! Um, I do not have any friends, so…you have to stick with me everyday!"
"Well, I do not have any either. I think it would be more fun to live here if I had you as a friend."
Baeksul finally took Wallyung's hand to shake, and they evidently reconciled.
As the two faced each other, they released a hearty laugh.
"Nice to meet you, I am Jang Baeksull."
"Nice to meet you too. My name is Lee Jin Hyuk."
With a content expression, he wrapped his arm around Wallyung's shoulder, as they both entered the house together.
"Oh, and do not keep using honorifics. It is uncomfortable for me."
"What?"
"Let us not use honorifics."
"Oh, alright, that is fine."
***
Okjeong gathered her sleeping robe in her hand, carrying a candle in the other down to the basement of the palace.
At the same time as she descended, she turned her head one more time to ensure no one was following behind her.
After arriving at the basement, she entered a small reading room.
'Oh... where is it?' she said to herself.
While looking for the item in question, the candle light wasn't enough to illuminate the dim room.
"Oh, my God. It is all in fucking Arang writing, so how am I supposed to find it?!'
Full of anger, Okjeong wanted to find the royal record book containing the family tree, darkness was preventing her from identifying the book.
She sighed heavily out of frustration, the door opening and she heard someone holding their foot in the door.
She quickly hid behind the bookcase, crouching quietly on the floor and peered through the cracks to see who just entered.
"Come on out, Okjung."
Okjeong's eyes widened in shock, as she realized that the Queen Mother was the one who emerged from the darkness.
She slowly stood from behind the bookcase..
'Is she suspicious of me?' Okjeong wondered
Her lips were sealed, as if the lock were visible and the key had been thrown.
"What are you doing here?"
The Queen Mother asked in a suspicious tone.
The nervousness trickled in Okjeong's voice, as she muttered out an answer for her.
"I... I am down here looking for something."
"What the hell are you looking for in this dark place? This is not where an Empress should be ."
It was inevitable for her to bow down at her words. She exited the basement, and headed back to her room, thinking that the longer she stayed idle there, the more suspicious the Queen Mother would become.
As soon as she left, the Queen Mother asked another question.
"Do you know where the Emperor is?"
She shook her head. "No, I do not know," and ascended up the stairs to the hallway.
Okjeong was unable to find the record of the dynasty, but she was sure there would be another chance to search for it later. Her smile painted upon her lips was sly as a fox, as she was entranced with such thought. It is not only the end of the Arang Empire's royal family, but the time has come for the unification of Joseon.
"I must tell my father that the Emperor of the Arang Empire has fled."