Chapter Text
Truth comes to power,
With a life freely given
And freely taken.
Noh Oknam silently slid the wooden panels open and stepped into Prince Buyeong's study.
The interior was set in shades of blues, matching the wooden furniture and flooring perfectly. Against the walls hung several scrolls of ancient teachings, and the windows were covered with white translucent blinds, allowing both privacy and natural light. Classical music played quietly through hidden speakers in the background.
The room was comforting and peaceful.
Just like him.
Oknam took a deep, steadying breath before walking across the parquet flooring. "Your Highness," she greeted him, bowing respectfully.
The silver man haired looked up from his notebook to acknowledge her presence and smiled. He capped his fountain pen and gestured at the empty seat in front of him.
"It's been awhile, High Priestess Noh."
Lee Jongin took off his reading glasses to observe the woman in front of him. He had not seen her in thirty years, after she left the palace to search for the King's aide.
"Have you been well?" He asked, as he allowed his eyes to wander across her face and take in her apperance.
The High Priestess' skin had folded gently with time, and her hair had faded to a light grey. Her frame was even slighter than before and her back had started to stoop slightly to her right, favouring her dominant side.
Like him, she had aged.
Yet her shoulders held straight, ever dignified. And her dark eyes, now framed by cobwebs of smiling lines, still gleamed with the same, perceptive light.
She nodded, giving him a small smile.
He was thankful that the years were kind to her.
"Why didn't you return to the palace?" He asked gently.
He could vividly remember the day she left, as if it was only yesterday. For his cousin, the late king, had died earlier on the very same day.
Prince Imperial Geum, Lee Rim, had slain the late King in a bid to seize the Manpasikjeok, an ancient flute that was prophesised by the Old Practice to bestow its master with absolute powers.
What Rim did not know, was that the King's aide had been lying in wait to stop him.
According to the Old Practice, all destined monarchs of the kingdom were blessed with a complement for their reign - the King's aide. The late King's aide was the captain of the royal guard, and had been prophesised to be the man to stop an act of treason.
Alas, the crown was saved, but the King and his aide had died saving it.
This treasonous act had sparked public outcry. In his bid to stabilise the Kingdom, Prince Buyeong had advised the young King to make the controversial move to outlaw the Old Practice in the name of the late King, who was well known as a man of Science.
And the High Priestess was entrusted with the sacred task of searching for the young King's aide.
"I just couldn't." She replied simply, sighing.
The High Priestess and her ways were no longer a welcome presence in the palace. And it was his doing.
"I apologise, it is my fault." The Prince bowed his head sincerely.
"You did what you had to, at that time. I do not blame you, Your Highness." she responded lightly, brushing it away. "And our young King had grown up well, under your care."
He chuckled, shaking his head at the sudden change in subject. As if that was enough to make up for the exile from the one place she used to call home.
"I'm not sure about well. He is physically healthy and alive, that's all I can say. But Gon..." He sighed, suddenly feeling all of his eighty years.
"The treason and death of his father left an indelible mark on him. Gon, he has his demons."
Jongin's not even sure if Gon trusted him.
"Don't we all, your Highness?"
"I hope you've finally found his aide, High Priestess. I was getting a little worried with the radio silence," he added teasingly.
He had been waiting for her phonecall ever since she left the palace.
The duty of the High Priestess was to find and groom the King's aide, and once they were ready, to present them to the King to support his reign.
Every aide is different for each monarch, and Jongin must admit, he was curious to learn more about Gon's aide and how they would help him.
He leaned forward and clasped his hands in front of him, ready to listen.
Yes. Oknam did find her.
"Her name is Jeong Taeeul, Your Highness." She watched as a flicker of recognition crossed the Prince's eyes.
What Oknam never anticipated was that she would fall in love with the child.
Taeeul, with her michievous and bright nature, easily endeared herself to her Halmi Noh.
Her gift of Truth and the corresponding pain meant that the poor girl had to keep everyone at a literal arm's length. Yet, Taeeul had never allowed that to stop her from developing strong relationships with her family members.
And as her Halmi, Oknam was reluctant to send her to danger.
As the years passed her by, Oknam found herself avoiding all possible interactions with the Royal family, hoping to keep Taeeul away from the prophesised path. She also went no contact with Prince Buyeong, and he did not come looking for her either.
Until today.
Despite Oknam's interference, Taeeul ended up on the same path anyway.
She recited the prophecy to Prince Buyeong.
"The first half of the prophecy has come true, Your Highness. Taeeul had sacrificed her life to save the King."
If there's one thing that Oknam learnt, it was that there really was no fighting destiny.
Doesn't mean I can't try to do something for our Taeeul.
"I will bring her to the palace, Your Highness. But I have one request."
The High Priestess now chose to work on the best possible outcome, rather than the impossible feat of going against Taeeul's fate.
When Taeeul told her that the King's touch was different, bringing her pleasure instead of truth and pain, the High Priestess knew that this was the path that they needed to take.
A life freely taken.
Oknam paused, looking at Prince Buyeong intently.
Even though she had not met the elderly royal in thirty years, instinct told her that he was an ally, not a foe.
The Priestess took a sip of the barley tea set in front of her, it tasted warm and earthy against her tongue. The Prince mirrored her movements.
She tried to keep her voice firm.
"Make her the Queen."
Prince Buyeong's almost choked on his tea, coughing loudly, his peppered eyebrows raised to his hairline.
She held his gaze unflinchingly.
"The King needs to take Taeeul as his Queen. This is the only way."
The air in the King's study was thick with tension.
"No." Lee Gon declared firmly.
Yet, his actions betrayed him. The steadiness that rang clearly in his words was undermined by his restless pacing across the length of his cavernous room.
Prince Buyeong sighed, rubbing his greying brows tiredly with gnarled fingers.
"I know you do not believe in the Old Practice, Your Majesty. You are a product of your upbringing, and your time."
"Then why are you even bringing this up?" Gon demanded, gazing straight into his uncle's eyes, incredulous.
Despite Gon's difficulties with trusting Prince Buyeong fully, he had always believed his uncle to be a reasonable man. Or at the very least, a man of Science.
"I can understand if you want to discuss marriage for power or even to negotiate peace. But an arranged marriage because of a prophecy of the Old Practice?" Gon scoffed loudly, raising his voice. "This is ridiculous! Are we still living in the Joseon era?"
Gon could hear himself rant, he was losing his cool. He knew that he should pause for a moment to breathe.
But he couldn't.
His internal states were warring.
"A prophecy of the Old Practice - the same thing that we outlawed, the same thing that had failed to save my father, no less?" Gon added bitterly, his eyes filled with disdain as they narrowed.
As a child, Gon was raised in an environment that believed in the scientific method, advocated by his late father. After his death, Gon had thrown himself into his studies fully. He had found much solace there.
Gon knew he could trust in the Sciences completely. It would never betray him and its logic would always make sense.
"The crown was saved, Your Majesty." Prince Buyeong had responded objectively.
The thing that exacerbated Gon's irritation, was that there was a miniscule part of him that was curious.
That part of Gon seemed to be yearning to believe in the importance of Jeong Taeeul in his life. It was strange for a person like him who had everything. Gon was never a man who desired things.
If the prophecy was true, then that would explain why he was so unusually drawn to the woman who saved his life.
When he closed his eyes, Gon could still see the curve of her smile and the twinkle in her eyes. No matter how hard he tried, he just could not seem to dislodge her from the depths of his mind.
Gon had hypothesised that this was due to the shock of the entire situation - strong emotions leave deep memories, right? It could not have been due to some prophecy, could it?
Gon flopped heavily down on the velvet couch, running his hands agitatedly up and down the arm rests. He tried to focus his attention on the soft and sleek sensations against his palms and fingertips, to calm himself down and grab hold of his senses.
Gon took a deep breath, taking care to remember to exhale.
Think, Lee Gon.
Think.
What woul be the simplest way to deal with this?
"You're saying that she can tell when someone is lying or telling the truth? Well, let's prove it."