The Emperor felt his breath catch in his throat.
Because Nok-gi had rebelled against him?
No.
He had already anticipated that Nok-gi would resist. Given what he had been doing all this time, even a child could have predicted that he would have built up his own faction within the Imperial Palace.
However, what shocked the Emperor now was that Nok-gi's influence had penetrated even above his own head.
He was the Emperor.
And emperors always faced the threat of assassination. That's why his surroundings were always guarded by Imperial Palace warriors. Even now, weren't twelve invisible swords protecting him?
Yet Nok-gi's blades had been hidden in the ceiling of the Great Hall he had entered. This meant one of two things: either the blades Nok-gi had hidden were so skilled that even those guarding him couldn't detect them, or else…
It was at that moment.
"Kuk!"
"Kkeueuk!"
Low groans began to flow from around him. The Emperor knew what those sounds meant. The sounds of those secretly guarding him having their breath cut off.
Then who were the ones wielding swords against them?
The Emperor glared at Nok-gi with an angry face.
"…Did you even reach into the guard corps?"
"Your Majesty."
Nok-gi answered with a smirk.
"Who was it that blinded Your Majesty's eyes? Was it this Nok-gi, or was it Prince Yi?"
Nok-gi didn't wait for the Emperor's answer.
"No. The one who blinded Your Majesty's eyes was neither myself nor Prince Yi, but Your Majesty yourself. Your Majesty must have thought this: if only your body had been intact, you could have been greater than Prince Yi, greater than this Nok-gi… that you could manipulate this world at will whenever you set your mind to it. But that was merely an illusion. Talent that is not honed and polished cannot shine. How could Your Majesty, who wasted decades of years like that, dare to recognize the caliber of this Nok-gi and the Prince?"
"No, Nok-gi, you bastard!"
The Emperor shot up from his seat.
"What are the Golden Guards doing! What are the Imperial Palace warriors doing! Cut off this bastard's head immediately! Immediately!"
With those words, the doors of the Great Hall shattered and soldiers poured in. As the soldiers in golden robes entered the Great Hall, it seemed to brighten momentarily.
But that was all.
The soldiers who poured in didn't move immediately but formed ranks and lined up in formation. Given the Emperor's urgent voice, this was something that could never happen.
Just as the Emperor was about to shout at that sight, the one who had entered first knelt on one knee and saluted.
"Grand Eunuch! We have completely sealed off the exterior!"
"Well done."
Nok-gi answered calmly and looked at the Emperor.
For the first time.
A groan flowed from the Emperor's mouth.
"…Even the Golden Guards."
Nok-gi smiled.
"Your Majesty recognized me the most, but Your Majesty also underestimated me the most. Did you think I had stuck out my neck relying only on Your Majesty's favor? With the Censorate's hands and feet bound, there is no one in this Imperial Palace who will take Your Majesty's side."
The Emperor's eyes wavered.
It was he who had disarmed the Censorate and confined them to their homes, anticipating their possible rebellion when imprisoning Prince Yi. But now, at this moment, all those orders were strangling his own neck.
At least if Prince Lee had been intact and the Censorate could move, they wouldn't have been able to seize the Imperial Palace so simply.
Should he praise Nok-gi for being remarkable – filling the area around the Great Hall with his own people without letting his guard down until the very end, even in a situation where he could be said to have everything in his hands? Or should he curse himself for being naive, believing that everything would be resolved just by getting rid of Nok-gi?
Either way, the result wouldn't change.
"I hoped this day would come, Your Majesty. But I also hoped this day would never come. If Your Majesty had not abandoned me until the end, you could have enjoyed a natural lifespan…"
Nok-gi clicked his tongue lowly.
"At least I will ensure you remain as a wise ruler in history. Please understand that this is the last loyalty I can offer. Now then, Your Majesty, rest in peace…"
At that moment, Prince Lee opened his mouth.
"Your Majesty."
It was a low voice.
But the strange resonance contained in that voice instantly seized control of the Great Hall.
Even Nok-gi stopped speaking.
The Emperor's gaze reached the Prince.
"Why do you have such a face? A sovereign is the father of all people. When a father is lost in worry, the household shakes, and when a sovereign is trapped in anxiety, the world shakes."
"But… Brother."
The Emperor looked at the Prince with melancholy eyes.
"My foolishness is beyond measure, and the situation has reached this point – how can I cast aside my worries?"
"Have you forgotten, Your Majesty? Your Majesty is the father of all things and the master of the world."
The Emperor's eyes trembled slightly.
Prince Lee was not someone who would ramble about unrealistic things in such a situation. He was surely saying this because he had another plan.
"If Your Majesty commands, is there not one here who can restore everything? Just give the order."
"You said there is one who can restore things?"
"That is correct, Your Majesty."
At Prince Lee's words, the Emperor turned his head. Then those who received his gaze looked back at the center with awkward expressions.
"…Huh?"
Wei Yan-ho looked around as if bewildered.
"It seems like something I don't know about is happening right now… I have no intention of doing anything here, you know?"
"Yan-ho!"
The Prince looked at Wei Yan-ho with fire in his eyes.
"As you can see, the situation has become like this."
"…It doesn't seem like a situation I created."
"Even if I could just call the Censorate, we could easily sweep away bastards like those, but the current situation doesn't allow for that."
"That doesn't seem to be my fault either."
"I never said it was your fault. I'm saying you're the only one who can resolve this."
"Huh?"
Wei Yan-ho spoke as if he couldn't believe it.
"But this is the Imperial Palace, and that person is the Emperor. If His Majesty says one word, shouldn't countless warriors guarding the Imperial Palace all rise up like clouds?"
"That's right."
"Then why me?"
Prince Lee spoke as if it were regrettable.
"Of course that's how it should be. That's how it is, but… those who should rise up like clouds are far away, and Nok-gi's close associates are near, so there's nothing we can do about it."
"…Hell."
Wei Yan-ho roared.
"But still, that person is the Emperor!"
Puk!
The blade of words began to stab the Emperor's chest.
"Even if his body was sick, he's still the Emperor! He's the Emperor, you know! The Emperor!"
Puuk!
"But that Emperor can't manage even one subordinate beneath him – does that make sense? Is the Emperor not the Emperor? Is Nok-gi the Emperor?"
Puuuk!
As the Emperor clutched his solar plexus and bent over, the court attendants rushed around him to support him.
"Keu, keuung."
Never mind Nok-gi and whatever – if he died, the Emperor thought it would be from high blood pressure because of that bastard. Even though his body had recovered, it was this bad – if he had heard these words yesterday, he would have coughed up blood.
"No matter what, that person is the Emperor… How can they ignore the Emperor and listen to Nok-gi instead? How great is the Emperor…"
"That's enough, you bastard! That's enough!"
Wei Jeong-han rushed over and covered Wei Yan-ho's mouth. If the words that would follow came out, forget achievements or anything – it would be complete extermination of the clan.
Prince Lee glanced at the Emperor's reaction.
The Emperor closed his eyes tightly and nodded. He too agreed that Wei Yan-ho was the only one who could resolve this situation.
"So please do something about it."
"…Wait a minute."
Wei Yan-ho, who had gently pushed Wei Jeong-han aside, looked around.
"So the current situation is that five of those terrifying gentlemen who were guarding His Majesty survived and are on Nok-gi's side…"
"…Five survived?"
"Yes."
"Then that makes sense."
"And all those Golden Guards are on Nok-gi's side too."
"That's how it turned out."
"And all those black-clad gentlemen and those obviously skilled red-clad gentlemen are all on Nok-gi's side, right?"
"That's how it turned out."
"Ah, so… you're telling me to face all those people?"
"We'll naturally help too, won't we?"
Wei Yan-ho grinned.
Then he straightened his back and stepped forward, glaring at Nok-gi.
"Hooh?"
Nok-gi was impressed seeing Wei Yan-ho's confident appearance.
'Though I don't want to admit it, he does have the bearing of a hero.'
Some people confuse the strong with heroes, but they are clearly different concepts. One can become strong just by possessing personal martial prowess, but a hero is not made by force alone.
One must have an indomitable spirit that never retreats even knowing disadvantage, and composure that doesn't waver even in crisis. In Wei Yan-ho, who was smiling at him, Nok-gi saw exactly that heroic temperament.
Though Nok-gi had thought of Wei Yan-ho as their greatest obstacle, his evaluation of Wei Yan-ho was now being revised in his mind.
'He's not just an obstacle.'
If this person survived here, he would become their greatest enemy. For the great cause, he must be killed here without fail.
"Blood Shadow."
"…"
"The Emperor and Wei Yan-ho must die without fail. Even at the cost of some sacrifice, without fail!"
"Understood."
The red-robed man called Blood Shadow's eyes gleamed.
Receiving the murderous gaze directed at him, Wei Yan-ho shrugged his shoulders.
"I have something to say to you."
"To me?"
"Yes."
"I don't think we're in a position to have a conversation?"
"There's no such thing as people who can't talk to each other in this world. People can always talk to each other, can't they? Even mortal enemies, when they meet, usually first argue about 'who was right, who was wrong' about their grievances. What kind of grudge do Grand Eunuch and I have that we can't even exchange words? Right?"
"…Sometimes I wonder what it would have been like if you had entered the palace. You really have the temperament of a high official."
"Academically?"
"Your skill at playing with people is already at the third rank level."
"Hehe, thank you for the compliment."
That's not a compliment, you bastard.
Nok-gi cleared his throat and said.
"So what do you want to say?"
"Rather than something to say, I have something to ask."
"If you're thinking of buying time, it's a meaningless act."
"No. I really have something to ask."
"…Speak."
At that moment, Prince Yi, who had quietly approached the Emperor, opened his mouth.
"Watch carefully, Your Majesty."
"…"
"That fellow is Wei Yan-ho. At a young age, he stands shoulder to shoulder with the world's masters and has already earned the trust of Grand Scholar Moon Yu-hwan."
"Hmm…"
"You've already met him, but he lives in a different world from us. However, within those seemingly frivolous actions lies great righteousness."
"Great righteousness? You said great righteousness?"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Prince Lee spoke with a tone full of conviction.
"When Moon Yu-hwan tried to recommend him to Your Majesty, I too could not guess his intention. But now I can understand. In that small child resides both the chivalry received from his father and the righteous path received from his master."
"Chivalry and the righteous path…"
"Look. Though both his father's chivalry and his master's righteous path were too upright and unconventional to receive the world's recognition, that fellow has embraced them both to achieve great righteousness. If you observe one who holds such great righteousness, you will gain something."
The Emperor and Prince Lee looked at Wei Yan-ho with eyes full of expectation.
"Ooh…"
The Emperor also exclaimed in admiration.
He had thought he had just a bit of skill and was lucky enough to resolve this situation, but hearing Prince Lee's words and looking at his back again, he certainly seemed different.
His appearance of standing confidently and facing Nok-gi with shoulders squared before a Great Hall filled with sword blades – wasn't that exactly the bearing of the great general he had dreamed of even in his sleep?
"Indeed, that's…"
At that moment, Wei Yan-ho opened his mouth.
"How do I get into the Eastern Palace?"
"…"
No one could speak.
Even Nok-gi stared blankly at Wei Yan-ho with a dumbfounded expression he had never made in his life.
In the Great Hall filled with silence, Wei Jeong-han's voice, like a lament, slowly flowed out.
"Great righteousness can freeze to death…"