Hwan sat pensively in his chair, letting the warmth of the wine from the cup in his hand seep into his veins, momentarily easing the tension. The plans for the return of the villagers to Byeokcheon occupied his mind, and he found comfort in Sung On's capable hands. His young friend had proven his loyalty and strategic acumen time and again, and Hwan trusted his capabilities implicitly.

There was one matter that Hwan would handle personally—the prisoners. His fingers tightened around the cup as he contemplated the fate of those who had betrayed their King and country.

The Prisoners were to be taken to Hanyang in three different phases. The first batch of prisoners were being carted the following day. They consisted of low-ranking soldiers from the overlords who unwittingly sided with the traitors, unaware they were fighting against their King. The second batch would take the leaders who commanded those men.

The third would be Won Bo and his clique of corrupt men whose greed almost destroyed everything Hwan held dear.

Hwan's fingers curled around the cup as he felt a wave of hatred sour his gut. His eyes narrowed, the flames of his fury flickering within them. Hwan desired to personally accompany Won Bo's cage to witness the downfall of the man who had nearly ruined Joseon. Seeing justice served brought a twisted satisfaction, and his grip on the cup tightened further.

The flap of his tent rose, momentarily flooding the interior with a burst of light before falling back to let the shadows settle down on the dust again.

"Your Highness, you wanted to see me?" Sung On bowed his greeting.

Hwan motioned the servants to leave the tent.

"Have you decided on how you want to plan the return of the villagers to Byeokcheon?" Hwan asked.

"Yes, I have given it some thought, Your Highness." Sung On explained the return of the villagers to Byeokcheon would be gradual. Clearing up the roads would take some time for safer transit. He planned to call a few tactical transport units to Gaeseong from Hanyang in the next few weeks. They would start building immediate dwelling units in Byeokcheon. The settlement could be done in two phases. He planned to have adequate temporary dwellings in Gaeseong until everyone comfortably settled in Byeokcheon. He estimated it would take about six months to complete the project.

Hwan nodded in approval. He sat quietly for several minutes, looking down, deep in thought.

"Write a rough plan to discuss it with the court and incorporate amendments as needed." Hwan paused, contemplating. "Select fifteen able-bodied men already versed in warfare and send them for a two-week military camp in Hanyang. I will personally oversee their training."

Sung On nodded, "I will do that, Your Highness."

"Also, prepare to leave for Hanyang in six moon days." Hwan tossed the remains of the cup down his throat. "Have you sent word to the Office of Imperial Orders? They must immediately dispatch Min Jay Yi's exoneration letter."

"Someone should be here with it by tomorrow, Your Highness," Sung On informed him.

Hwan handed Sung On an envelope. "Send this letter to release all the jewellery, gold and valuables that the Royal Investigation Bureau confiscated from my Master's house and hand them to Min Jay Yi. See that she is adequately compensated for losing her reputation and the hardship she endured."

Sung On nodded as he took the letter.

"That will be all," Hwan said. He poured himself another cup.

Sung On hesitated, looking undecided on something.

Hwan's hand stilled for a moment. "Do you have something else in mind?"

"Your Highness, I also have a question if you allow me." Sung On said.

Hwan looked at him, dreading what his friend wanted to ask. He had not missed the longing in Sung On's gaze whenever he looked at Jay Yi. Feeling like an interloper, Hwan realized he could not ignore it forever.

Sung On cleared his throat. "What do you plan to do with Maiden Jay Yi?"

"Would you like to share a drink with me?" Hwan asked.

Sung On was more than a little surprised at the invitation. It was contrary to Hwan's nature to drink by himself, especially when he was outdoors. But then, Hwan had also been surprising him a lot lately.

Hwan poured him a cup.

Hwan swirled the wine in his hand before taking a small sip. Had this question come from anyone else, Hwan would have taken a sword to his throat for daring to ask about the woman he loved. How the tables had turned. Hwan had stepped in where he did not belong. Yet there was no turning back.

"It's a choice I have never regretted as a woman, Your Highness. If I were to go back and do it all over again, I still would have come to you."

Jay Yi's determined words haunted him. Would he have been able to make a different choice if he went back? He almost laughed. Who was he deceiving?

"She wants to live by herself," Hwan replied, his tone neutral.

Sung On's hand arrested in midair, the liquid in his cup sloshed. "What are you saying, Your Majesty? How can a noblewoman live by herself? How can you allow it?"

Hwan looked at his friend contemplatively. "Why not? She is more capable than many men I know."

Though Sung On could not refute that, he could not believe Hwan considered that an option.

"I am not unaware of that. However, things will be different for Maiden Jay Yi now," Sung On disagreed. "She should have the protection of a family name."

Hwan didn't answer.

"Is that what you want for her too?" Sung On demanded.

"What I want amounts to nothing," Hwan gritted his teeth.

"Are you going to leave her alone then?" Sung On was incredulous. "You are the Crown Prince. You can have any woman in all of Joseon. If this is how it had to be, why did it have to be Min Jay Yi?" Sung On's tone stung.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Hwan looked at him, feeling every inch of the trespasser that Sung On was accusing him of being. "I don't regret my feelings for her, but it was never meant to be this way. I tried to stop myself many times," he said, his voice barely more than a whisper.

Sung On lowered his eyes. "Did you? Did you really try to stop, Your Highness?" Sung On asked; this time, he could not suppress the resentment that coated his voice.

"Are you accusing me of lying?" Hwan came back coldly.

Sung On raised his head, meeting Hwan's icy gaze. "I care about you, Your Highness. I have been by your side since we were children and have seen the burdens you bear as the Crown Prince. I understand the weight of duty and responsibility that rests upon your shoulders. But I also know you can make choices to shape your destiny and those around you."

"Can I really, Sung On? Do I really have a choice in how I want to live my life?"

Sung On looked away, aware he was being unjust in his accusations. The Crown Prince was as much a prisoner to the mores of Joseon as he was, if not more so.

Hwan felt little men with hammers sitting at his temples. He did not want to let her go. She was the centre of his universe. How else could he explain the invisible clamp crushing his heart at the thought of her leaving?

"You think I wanted to fall in love with someone who cannot be by my side?"

Sung On winced at the anguish Hwan's voice carried.

"She is a determined woman, and that is what she desires. I have made arrangements for her to live independently, so you do not have to worry," Hwan said, steadying his voice and recovering his composure.

"But that is against the natural order of things." Sung On was not ready to give up. "Without a family to return to, how can you leave her be?" Sung On beseeched Hwan. "I will lay my life for you and Maiden Min Jay Yi," Sung On was passionate. "Your friendship and trust mean way more than any woman ever would, Your Highness. But as a man who promised to protect her, I cannot just sit by and let something like this happen. Please take her back to the Palace."

Hwan's gaze hardened. He took a deep breath, struggling to find the right words. "Joseon needs a Crown Prince who can completely devote himself to the task of bringing peace it is craving for. I cannot indulge in my frivolous needs."

Sung On's voice softened, his loyalty unwavering. "I understand, Your Highness. Is it not possible to find a balance between duty and love? To protect the woman who means the world to you without jeopardizing the kingdom?"

Hwan fell silent, the weight of his choices bearing heavily on him. Hwan's default instinct was to prioritize the greater good and to make sacrifices for the betterment of the people. Yet, he couldn't deny the ache in his heart, the deep longing for a future that seemed impossible.

But he would never settle for less. Not with Min Jay Yi.

Hwan's mouth tightened, and he shook his head, saying what Sung On had in mind but did not dare to voice. "I will not have her as my concubine. I will not diminish her stature nor crush her spirit and independence in that desolate, lonely Palace by keeping her there for pleasure. I will do what is necessary to ensure her happiness, even if it means letting her go." Hwan looked at Sung On, his eyes filled with longing and resignation. "I must return and marry as soon as the mourning ends." He looked at Sung On and smiled self-depreciatingly. "We did not even mourn your cousin properly, and I already have to think of getting another Crown Princess." He investigated his cup as if trying to find a way out of the mess his life as a Crown Prince was. "I cannot give Min Jay Yi what she deserves."

Understanding dawned on Sung On's eyes. "But I can," Sung On said softly. "If it's a marriage you want for her, Maiden Jay Yi and I are still bound to marriage by the letter, Your Highness."

Hwan felt like someone suddenly squeezed his heart, making it difficult to beat. Something shook inside him. "I will not allow you to force her into a marriage she does not want," he gritted furiously.

Sung On met Hwan's blazing gaze with his resolute one. "I have never sought to challenge or undermine your authority, Your Highness. But I ask you to consider this: love and happiness are not always necessary to a marriage. You know that more than anyone else. If you send her to me, Maiden Jay Yi and I can find contentment while fulfilling our duties."

Hwan looked at his friend incredulously. Was Sung On truly considering marrying a woman who was in love with someone else, that too, his best friend?

Hwan got up, a muscle in his jaw working. He looked out of the tent window, taking in the lush green foliage that mocked the barren land of his heart. He shook his head.

"Min Jay Yi has already declined that kind of marriage." Hwan was firm. He paused, carefully choosing the words he would say next. "But if you can make her agree to your proposal," Hwan forced the words out of his throat, "I would do everything in my power to make it happen."

Sung On's eyes widened. "Make her agree? What are you saying, Your Highness?"

Hwan's shoulders slumped slightly. "Get her consent for the marriage, not through the family letter of consent you carry, but by giving her a chance to know you. And you try to know her. Do things for her that she likes."

"What do you mean?" Sung On was perplexed.

Hwan was not sure either. He knew he sounded like an idiot, but he had to try. The memory of Jay Yi's preposterous suggestions of men and women meeting and getting to know each other before marriage flashed by. He knew what it was like. He had experienced it first-hand.

Hwan took a deep breath, his resolve firming. "Try to know her as a person; become her friend."

"That's preposterous, Your Highness!" Sung On gaped at him. The Crown Prince of Joseon seemed to have lost his mind.

"I will allow it and make it possible. I will ensure that neither your dignity nor Min Jay Yi's is harmed in the process." Hwan's voice softened. "It would make her happy if you tried to know her a little more before asking about marriage. Do you know that she loves fruits? Tangerines are her favourite. Sweets, too, especially anything made with honey." Hwan's voice softened. "She loves to read but falls asleep on the books easily, too," he smiled. "But if it's a case file? She will stay up all night and be groggy the next morning at work."

"Your Highness," Sung On tried to get in a word. "How can I be so improper around a woman before marriage?" He shook his head at the preposterous thing Hwan was proposing; Sung On gulped at his drink. He needed it to process what Hwan was saying.

Hwan was far from done.

"Oh, and by the way, she does not like to mend socks," he looked Sung On in the eye.

"Your Highness, I don't need to know - "Sung On struggled.

"- and," after a dramatic pause, Hwan continued unfazed, "she also likes alcohol."

Sung On choked, spluttering on the liquid he had not yet finished forcing down his throat.

Hwan's eyes clouded with the memory of her calling him out in the storeroom when they first met. How vulnerable, angry, and beautiful she had looked. How he regretted being so vile to her.

"She drinks? How did she…." Sung On looked astonished.

It was almost as if Hwan had not heard. He was lost in his thoughts. "She does not share her pain easily either. When she is upset, she shuts down. She thinks she can do everything by herself," Hwan complained. "I do not understand why I always need to pry it out of her. It's annoying." Hwan huffed, looking rather ruffled.

Sung On looked at his friend thoughtfully. The slip from 'you' to 'I' had not missed him. "Looks like she has changed in ways we could not have imagined."

Hwan beamed, "She hasn't, but she has grown wiser."

And wilder. And she is mine. His heart cried out in despair. What would he do without her by his side, without her spirit, spontaneity, and ability to bring joy into his life? Hwan clenched the cup until it hurt, trampling the unwelcome thought.

Sung On harboured no misconception. Only a man desiring death would even think of doing what Hwan suggested. More so to the woman who technically belonged to the Crown Prince, whether he recognized the fact or not. Yet he also could not entirely dismiss the ray of opportunity that had suddenly brightened his way, the possibility of spending his life with his former betrothed.

"Your Highness, I cannot deny that I have feelings for Maiden Jay Yi," Sung On confessed. "But I also know my place and the boundaries that should not be crossed." Sung On said emphatically.

Hwan shook his head at the impossibility of this situation. He had indeed lost his mind. His eyes softened as he regarded his loyal friend. "Sung On, I understand. Forget what I said. I am not thinking straight. Just know I am grateful to have you by my side."

Sung On bowed respectfully. "Thank you, Your Highness. I will always be there to support you and protect those you hold dear. I will be honoured to have Min Jay Yi as my wife. I will care for her more than my life."

Hwan raised his cup, a silent toast to their unbreakable bond. Sung On mirrored the gesture, and they drank together, savouring the bittersweet taste of the moment.

"Let me think about this a little more." Hwan finally said. "But you do understand that Jay Yi must agree," the words fell like crushing boulders on his heart, but perhaps this was the right thing to do.

Or was it?

"The man who resides in my heart is you, Your Highness." Jay Yi's passionate voice filled his head.