The Hwarangs retreated to their territory after the king's summoning.
"We invade the Baekje kingdom tomorrow night, everyone get organized." Master Zhang stated in his usual blank manner before disappearing from their sight and the assassins dispersed to different directions.
"I thought we were going to war, didn't think it was an invasion." Joonho said with a breathy chuckle.
"What does it matter? Invasion or war, it ends the same way." Hwarang said nonchalantly as he tied his loose black hair in a ponytail.
"We're getting rid of the King only, its no fun." Joonho said with a glum look on his face as he hinged a dagger between his fingers.
"You like the feeling of taking the life of an innocent?" Hwarang queried.
"Innocent.." Joonho muttered beneath his breath and then looked up to meet the raven black eyes of Hwarang.
"Isn't that what monsters do? Derive pleasure from snuffing out the life from people, innocent or not? We lost our humanity the day we were born." Joonho said with a dark grin tearing through his face.
"I don't derive pleasure when I kill an innocent but I don't feel guilty either." Hwarang said with a stoic expression on his face.
"It doesn't matter, we're all going to hell if one exists." Joonho said with a short chuckle.
Hwarang didn't respond anymore and instead looked up at the bright skies.
"Hell... I don't believe in heaven or hell. I believe in reincarnation." Hwarang muttered lowly.
"It's been embedded in us since we were children that a fragment of Maitreya reincarnated inside of us, so of course you do." Joonho remarked as he watched the assassins a few meters away from them train rigorously.
"Was Maitreya a cold murderer too?" Hwarang queried rhetorically.
"Hell if I know."
"I bet he didn't serve a kingdom or take orders from a sadistic king." Hwarang implied and Joonho averted his gaze from the assassins to stop at his face with brown eyes peering into his as if trying to scrutinize his enigmatic nature.
"You're not serving the king, he serves you. He serves us, they all do. They worship us as gods because that is what we are." Joonho said with a hint of pride lingering heavily in his voice.
"Then why do we take orders from him? Shouldn't he be the one taking orders from us?" Hwarang questioned.
"Standing loyal by the king doesn't imply that you serve him. We are sworn to loyalty, and it seems like you're confused about where your loyalty lies." Joonho remarked with lifted brows questioningly at Hwarang.
"I'm not confused about anything, just curious." Hwarang said as he let out a dragged sigh.
"Don't forget that the penalty for treason comes with your head in a guillotine." Joonho stated with a lopsided smirk playing on his lips.
"Shut the fuck up Joonho. No one's committing treason here." Hwarang snapped as he glared at him.
"Why did you refuse to marry Princess Yeonhwa and become king?" Joonho blurted out.
"That's an outlandish question coming from you. We can't get married ever and even though somehow, it worked I would never approve still. She's below my standards as well as the title of the King." Hwarang noted as he scoffed in disbelief.
"Princess Nari from Baekje kingdom isn't below your standards then." Joonho commented with a sarcastic smirk curving up on the corner of his lips and Hwarang whipped his head to meet him with a puzzled look on his face.
"What are you spewing now? Seen something?" Hwarang queried, his raven black eyes encompassing a brewing storm of darkness underneath the rings of his black eyes as he retained his hardened gaze on him.
"Earlier in the throne room, I saw the way you were staring at her, lost." Joonho replied with a smugly smirk tearing through his lips.
"I'm not having this conversation with you." Hwarang stated firmly before veering around to leave.
"I won't judge." Joonho said but Hwarang proceeded to leave.
"Then don't talk about it." Hwarang said in a clipped tone.
"Fine, lets spar instead." Joonho suggested and Hwarang halted. He slowly veered around to face Joonho.
"Sure." He replied with a twisted smile.
------------------
The assassins set for the invasion that would be employed on the Goryeo kingdom where the mages resided.
They mounted on their horses and galloped away from the palace. The people paved way for them and bowed their heads as their horses galloped through the street and into the forest leading to the mountain which acted as a boundary from the Goryeo kingdom.
The forest was darker than the rest of the place as they galloped into it. The thick trees with broad leaves staved off the rays of sun from enacting its light through.
They galloped through the forest for hours until they emerged out of it to arrive at the mountain side. They crossed over the mountain until they arrived at Baekje.
They arrived during nighttime, the skies had rapidly gone dark with a veil of darkness cloaking over the land and the crescent moon revealed to their view, pouring its dim moonlight on them.
The assassins tied their horses to the trees in the woodland and now used foot to cover the remaining distance to the palace.
They moved with stealth movements towards the fortress protecting the kingdom from foreign attacks and they smoothly dispersed to the four cardinal points blending with the darkness as they moved.
Hwarang and about seven others of the assassins took the North of the fortress and scrutinized their surroundings calculatingly with approximately six guards at the gate, and four at the watch tower above the gate.
The assassins unsheathed their swords glinting under the moonlight reflecting on them before leaping midair to land softly in front of the guards at the gate.
The guards caught sight of them and panic etched on their faces as they identified the figures who looked nothing less than the epitome of melancholy as the Hwarang assassins.
"Invaders!!" The guards clamoured as they unsheathed their swords, the warning bells resounded through out the towering fortress alarming the rest of the guards situated at the different cardinal points of the perilous dangers.
The assassins reeled their swords effortlessly with swift movements towards the guards. The faint sound of blades slicing through flesh could be heard and within a short moment, heads rolled with blood jetting out of their dissected necks and blood flowed on the ground like a rivulet of crimson river.
A red mist engulfed their hands as they outstretched it toward the gate and the red mist erupted from their hands to collide into the iron gate and blasted through it with a loud thud after taking care of the guards below.
Hwarang levitated midair towards the guards in the watch tower above them supported with wooden beams and his black hair danced with the wind as he did.
He clasped on a wooden pole and lifted himself up to occupy the watch tower with effortless movements. The guards swung their sword towards him from different directions set to slash his abdomen and take off his head.
He parried their attacks with swift movements that transpired too fast to notice by the ordinary eyes as he intercepted and blocked their attacks with brute leverage, clashing his sword against theirs and the force made their swords drop from their hold.
His sword swayed horizontally across their necks with rapid movement. Their heads dissected from their necks and dropped on the wooden floor with blood spraying out of it like crimson diamonds under the dim light.
He inhaled the mixture of death and blood flowing with the wind deeply and his black raven eyes glinted with dark thrill as the smell of blood wafting into his nose drew him like a poultice.