Min Yun's POV
Frightened. Scared. That's what I felt when I saw I-jun full of blood. I ran as fast as I could to get near her, to save her. She was covered in blood. It was terrifying to behold.
Before I was able to reach her, she lost consciousness.
"I-jun!" I shouted. I hurriedly untied the rope on her hands and feet. My hands were trembling as I removed the ropes. Tears started to flow from my eyes. How many times has the queen suffered?
"If only you listened to me..." I wanted to say it to her, but it was not the right time. She was injured. She was in critical condition.
I carried her in my arms, like a husband carrying his bride, and without hesitation, I ran as fast as I could. I repeatedly cursed because the royal clinic was far from where we were. I didn't know what was happening to me now. All I could think about was reaching my destination.
As I opened the door, the royal physician was shocked to see us like that.
"Your Highness!" the royal physician spoke in horror when he saw the blood. I placed I-jun on the bed, and the physician hurriedly attended to the queen.
"Min Yun!"
I looked at the door to see who had called me. It was the king. He was looking at me in horror.
"What happened to you? Why is there so much blood?" he asked, then looked at the bed.
I heard him gasp in horror. He called her name and rushed to the bed.
"Min Yun... what happened? Did... did the ninjas see her?" his voice was trembling like he had seen something terrifying. Even I would have reacted the same.
"I don't know what happened to her or who did this. But I am sure it was the villain," I spoke in a broken voice. I wanted to cry and shout my heart out. Rage consumed me—I swore I'd kill whoever did this.
The king knelt on the ground, crying. "It wasn't just once. There were multiple assassination attempts on the queen. I was a fool and a useless king." He cried, not caring that the physician was there.
I wanted to comfort him. But I had no strength to do so. Even I felt weak, trembling, scared. It was as if I were experiencing every negative emotion today.
The king remained like that for minutes. He didn't mind his appearance. He didn't care what people might say about him.
When the head eunuch entered the clinic and saw the king, he hurriedly went to him and helped him stand.
"Your Highness, what are you doing?" he asked. When the head eunuch saw the queen lying on the bed covered in blood, he gasped in horror too.
"Your Highness," he couldn't even say a word.
"Escort the king to his chamber," I said. The head eunuch glanced at me, his eyes widening as he noticed the blood on my clothes.
"Are you hurt too, Captain?" he asked, and just like us, his voice was trembling.
I shook my head to answer his question.
"Please don't let anybody know about this. Make sure that the king is in his chamber, safe and sound," I reminded him.
He nodded and escorted the king. But the king refused to go back to his chamber.
"I will stay," he said firmly.
"But, Your Highness," the head eunuch said and looked at me.
"Who would sleep peacefully tonight, knowing that someone you love was in danger?" the king uttered.
"Captain Min Yun..." the head eunuch called me. He didn't know what to do.
"Just get some tea for us," I said calmly, though deep inside, I wanted to burst out.
The head eunuch bowed and exited the clinic. I helped the king to his feet, and he followed without protest.
The royal physician called our attention.
"Captain Min Yun, Your Highness, I am sorry to interrupt, but you need to stay outside. I will be performing some tests on the queen."
We both nodded and didn't argue. I still assisted the king. We sat on the cement block outside the clinic. If someone saw us, it would look like we were grieving because someone had just died. My eyes were red. I wanted to be alone to cry, but I couldn't leave the king.
"It happened again," the king said while sobbing. This was the third time I once heard him sob after his parents passed away.
I gently tapped his shoulder. I couldn't offer any advice—because I wasn't okay either.
"I failed to save her again," he murmured, though I heard it.
I failed to save her too, I told myself. If only we hadn't argued. If only I hadn't left her. This wouldn't have happened.
"They wanted me to suffer by killing the queen. They wanted me to die in pain."
"Your Highness..."
"I promised you, didn't I? But I still failed to fulfill my promise."
"What happened today is not your fault. The villain invaded us. Even you were not safe."
"Why not just kill me right away? Why are they trying to pursue the queen?"
That was the question I wanted to ask, too. Why her? The person who came back just to help the king solve his case. The person who fought with her best friend just to return to our world. She even chose us, yet this is what happened to her.
I wanted her to go back to her world. I wanted her to be free from this mess. When she wakes up, I will tell her to go back with her best friend. Her suffering should end. She should be happy and relaxed in her world. This chaotic world doesn't suit her personality.
After a while, the head eunuch returned with a tray in his hand.
"Captain Min Yun, are you going to drink tea here?"
I knew the place where we were sitting was not appropriate at all for His Highness. But he didn't mind.
I quietly took the teacup and handed it to him. He didn't refuse the tea I offered and drank it like he was parched.
"Your Highness, I know you don't want to go back to your chamber, but you have to. We don't want to attract attention. We don't want our enemies to know what happened to the queen. This must remain a secret. The ministers shouldn't know about this."
The king was silent, maybe contemplating what I had said.
"I'll take care of my cousin. I'll make sure to update you and call you right away when she wakes up," I added.
He looked at me blankly. He had finished crying. His eyes were still swollen from sobbing earlier.
He finished drinking his tea. He stood up and nodded."I trust you, Min Yun," he said, looking me in the eye.
The king loves the queen. Who wouldn't like her? He has power, money, looks—everything a woman could ask for. If ever I-jun chooses him, I have no choice but to accept my fate.
The king left the clinic. I was still sitting there, thinking about what I should do. I didn't know how many hours I stayed there. I just noticed that it was already dawn, and the palace servants had started doing their jobs. I hid my bloodstained clothes. I should have changed them last night, but I didn't think of it.
"Captain Min Yun." Someone called me.
I looked at the door and saw the royal physician standing there. I hurriedly went near him.
He looked at the blood on my clothes.
"You should change your clothes, Captain," he said.
"I forgot about it."
"I can spare you some clothes. Go get them and change inside."
"Is the queen okay now?"
He nodded. "Luckily, she is stable."
I sighed heavily. At least she was not in danger now.
"What really happened, Captain? Why was the queen like that?"
"Ninjas invaded us yesterday."
He gasped. "I heard about it and hid, too. But I didn't know they would hurt the queen."
"They did."
"Do you know their identity?"
I shrugged. I don't even have the evidence.
"Hmmmm..."
The conversation was interrupted when we heard I-jun moaning. I hurriedly went to her and saw her eyes starting to open.
"I-jun..." I mumbled.
I looked at the royal physician, then told him to inform the king about the queen. He nodded, then left the clinic.
"I-jun..." I called again. Her neck was bandaged.
"What happened?"
"You passed out."
"I know who the mastermind is..." she said.
"Who?"
"It's Ji Han. He did this to me."
"Ji Han?" Am I hearing the name right?
"Yes..." Her voice was tired.
"How..."
"They're twins."
Huh? Twins?
I-jun suddenly smiled at me. "It was worth it."
"What do you mean?"
"I already caught the culprit."
"It was not worth it, I-jun. You might have been killed."
"He said that to me. The evil Ji Han said he would kill me."
"What do you mean by twin?"
"Your guard has a twin. He's an accomplice."
"How did that happen?"
"His reason was that it was his brother. The only family he has..."
"I can't believe it."
"And you know? Kim Man Shik knew the culprit. "
Those revelations stunned me. But, as expected of Kim Man Shik, he would do anything just to get what he wanted.
"Min Yun... I'm sorry," she said, her voice hoarse—a sign that she was still weak and tired.
"You don't listen to me. Why?" I asked her in a low tone. I didn't want her to think I was angry. Showing my frustration wouldn't help her heal.
"I only needed to do this to know the answer."
"In exchange for your life?"
She smiled. " It was worth it."
"It will never be worth it. What if you can't go back home? What will happen to your best friend then?"
She didn't respond.
"Choose yourself. Go back home. I can solve the case without your help."
Still no response.
"You've done so much. You can live happily in your world. Didn't you come back because you wanted to know who the culprit was? You know it already. There is no reason for you to stay."
"Min Yun..."
"I like you so much that it hurts me to see you suffering. It's not worth it to give your life just for fictional characters."
"You know, I don't think about that."
"What do you mean?"
The king entered the clinic.