Over the following months, something unexpected developed between Ji-won and Beto.
It started with training sessions. Beto was teaching her advanced combat techniques, and during one session, their eyes met and held for longer than necessary.
Then came the night patrol when they encountered assassins together. Fighting side by side, moving in perfect sync, trusting each other completely.
And then the moment when Ji-won, exhausted from political maneuvering, broke down in front of Beto and he held her while she cried—the first time she'd allowed herself that vulnerability since her mother's death.
They became lovers in secret. In a life full of lies and deception, their relationship was the one genuine thing Ji-won had.
"When this is over," Beto told her one night, "we'll leave this place. Go somewhere no one knows us."
"I'd like that," Ji-won whispered. But she knew it was a dream. People like her didn't get happy endings.
Still, she allowed herself to hope.
With Itachi and Beto at her side, Ji-won began planning her revenge.
"My father cursed me from the moment I was born," she told them. "He tried to have me killed as an infant. He succeeded in killing my brother. I want him to pay for what he's done."
"We'll make it happen," Itachi promised. "But on one condition."
"Name it."
Itachi leaned forward, his voice dropping to barely above a whisper. The scene showed his mouth moving, explaining his condition, but no words were audible—a secret between them alone.
When he finished, Ji-won considered for a long moment, then nodded. "Agreed."
The plan was complex. Ji-won couldn't simply kill her father—that would make her a traitor and a fugitive, hunted by the entire kingdom. She needed the power to protect herself and Yi Seong-ryu after the deed was done.
She needed the enchanted sword.
The sword held by a guardian in the Forest of Ten Thousand Shadows, said to grant its wielder power beyond mortal comprehension.
But she couldn't just go take it. The court would never allow the Crown Prince to abandon the palace for such a quest. She needed a legitimate reason.
So she manipulated the court's most influential advisor, planting ideas in his mind until he believed they were his own. A tournament. A competition among the princes to prove their worth. Whoever retrieved the enchanted sword would be named the new Crown Prince.
The king, aging and worried about succession, approved the plan.
As the tournament approached, Ji-won refined her strategy.
"After I kill the King, I'll be a criminal," she told Itachi and Beto. "The court will never accept me as the next ruler. Which means Yi Seong-ryu is in danger—the nobles will fight over who becomes his regent, and he could easily be assassinated in the chaos."
"So what's the solution?" Beto asked.
"I fake my death in the forest. Let everyone believe I died during the competition. Then the throne passes to Yi Seong-ryu without question—he's young enough that they'll establish a regency council. And I eliminate the other threats before I 'die.'"
"Yi Hyeon-seong is the biggest problem," Itachi noted. "He has the Queen Dowager's backing. Even if Yi Seong-ryu is named Crown Prince, Hyeon-seong could stage a coup."
"Then he dies in the forest," Ji-won said coldly.
"And Yi Kang-mu?"
"He's the strongest, most disciplined, most respected. The court loves him. If he survives, they'll pressure Yi Seong-ryu to abdicate in his favor." Ji-won's expression was grim. "He has to die too. But I'll let someone else handle that."
The pieces were in place. Itachi would track Yi Hyeon-seong while Ji-won and Beto went after the sword. After securing the sword and eliminating Hyeon-seong, they would fake their deaths. Ji-won would return to the palace, kill her father, and disappear—leaving Yi Seong-ryu as the only remaining prince and uncontested heir.
While Laurel fought Yi Kang-mu, Ji-won and Beto executed their plan.
They found the Guardian, and Beto's overwhelming power—regeneration and fire—made the battle brief. Ji-won took the enchanted sword.
Then they eliminated Yi Hyeon-seong and his entire camp. Itachi created dummy bodies of Ji-won, Beto, and himself using his abilities, staging a scene of mutual destruction.
When Yi Kang-mu found the site, he believed both princes were dead.
Ji-won and Beto left for the palace while Itachi observed from the shadows, ensuring the deception held.
Beto attacked the palace from the front gate—a one-man assault that drew every soldier and guard to stop the unkillable, burning warrior.
Which left the rest of the palace empty for Ji-won.
# Chapter 13: The Failure
Ji-won found her father and cut him down, severing his leg. She chased him through corridors, cutting down any guard who tried to intervene, until he reached a dead end.
Rain fell through the open corridors as she stood over him, sword raised.
But she couldn't do it. She couldn't bring herself to kill him.
"Mother. Brother," she whispered, sinking to her knees. "I failed you. I couldn't bring you peace. I'm a coward."
She fired the signal fireworks anyway—the mission was complete, even if her personal revenge wasn't.
Marvel extracted Beto, and thirty minutes later, Yi Seong-ryu arrived with Carl carrying the wounded Laurel.
The King survived. When he learned the truth about his "son" actually being his daughter, he could have had her executed.
Instead, he exiled her.
Yi Seong-ryu was crowned the new Crown Prince. Ji-won was ordered to leave the kingdom and never return.
Before leaving, Ji-won went to a hidden chamber and retrieved a sealed document—left there by someone whose identity remained a mystery even to her. She had no idea what it contained, only that it was important.
Ji-won found Itachi, Beto, Carl, Laurel, and Marvel in a hidden room.
She handed the sealed document to Itachi without opening it.
"Our deal is complete," she said simply.
Itachi took the document and placed it carefully in his pack without examining it. Whatever was inside would remain a secret for now.
"That was the condition," Ji-won confirmed. "You help me get the sword and fake my death, I give you this document. You've upheld your end. I'm upholding mine."
Carl, who had been listening, suddenly realized the implications.
"Wait—we're not getting the sword?"
"The sword stays with me," Ji-won said.
Carl rushed forward in protest—and Beto burned him to ash without hesitation.
Marvel immediately grabbed Laurel and used Projection to teleport them both out of the room, materializing in the forest outside.
Marvel's hand shot out, grabbing Laurel by the throat.
"Where is she?"
"Who?" Laurel gasped.
"The girl. Lily. Where did you hide her?"
"I don't—"
Marvel's fist caught him in the jaw. Then he teleported into shadow and reappeared behind Laurel, kicking him in the ribs. Again and again, using his Projection ability to attack from impossible angles.
Laurel couldn't defend, couldn't track the attacks, could only endure.
Marvel raised his hand for a killing blow—
His phone rang.
Marvel paused, then answered. "This is Marvel."
"Status report," a female voice said. Alpha.
"The Joseon situation got complicated. I'm currently—"
"I don't care about that right now," Alpha interrupted. "I have a priority assignment for you. Night Wolf operation."
Marvel's expression sharpened. Night Wolf—the name of the criminal organization he belonged to, along with Itachi, Beto, and Alpha herself.
"What's the target?"
"A girl named Lily and anyone traveling with her. Find them. Bring them to base. Alive. All of them."
Marvel looked down at Laurel. The timing was almost perfect.
"Acknowledged."
He ended the call and grabbed Laurel by the collar, teleporting them back to the room.
When they reappeared, Itachi raised an eyebrow. "Problem?"
"Change of plans," Marvel said. "Orders from Alpha. Night Wolf operation: find a girl named Lily and bring her and her companions to base. Alive."
He gestured at Laurel. "This one knows where she is. And he's one of her companions."
Itachi nodded. "Makes sense. Beto, heal everyone. We're all going to base together."
Beto's hands glowed as he moved to Laurel, who flinched away.
"Relax," Beto said. "I can burn you alive or heal you. Your choice."
Laurel allowed the healing, feeling warmth spread through his body as injuries closed.
Ji-won stood by the window with the enchanted sword, looking at the kingdom she could never return to.
Yi Seong-ryu appeared in the doorway. "Where will you go?"
"Wherever they take me," Ji-won replied. "You're the Crown Prince now. You'll be a good king. Better than father ever was."
"You could stay—"
"No. This is how I protect you. By leaving."
She hugged her step-brother one final time, then followed Itachi, Beto, Marvel, and the reluctant Laurel toward whatever waited beyond the palace walls.