Part 15 (1/2)

”Please, Uncle, it is imperative that I speak with Sunim.” She spoke while still bowing, her eyes trained on the tips of Eojin's black boots.

”Would you allow me a few moments with your niece, Your Majesty?” Brother Boyuk asked.

As Kira straightened, she caught sight of her uncle's scowl.

”This is an inopportune time. Especially when we are on the eve of going to war,” Eojin replied, waving her away. ”Kira, you and your brother will refrain from bothering Brother Boyuk. That is an order.”

Kira bowed to hide her frustration and her anxiety. She was tired of waiting. She was tired of playing it safe.

Regardless of what the king said, Kira couldn't sit and do nothing.

She would find a way to save her mother, even if it meant taking on the Demon Lord himself.

27.

Two more nights found Kira dreaming of the same large room where she'd met the shadow of her mother. But no one was there. Anxious and scared, Kira felt her resentment against the king growing. She needed to do something, anything, to help her mother.

”Oppa!” Kira found her brother out in a small courtyard, taekkyon training alone.

”I think I should return to Dragon Springs Temple and speak directly with Master Ros.h.i.+,” Kira said.

”Don't be ridiculous,” he cut her off. ”It's too dangerous.”

”It doesn't matter, I have to go see him,” she said.

”Eventually we'll be able to meet with Brother Boyuk,” he said. ”Just be patient.”

”We don't have time!” Kira sighed and explained her dream to him.

Kwan was quiet. ”Why didn't you tell me this before?” he asked.

”I didn't want to grieve you more.”

”Don't do that again,” he said. His response was mild, but Kira knew he was upset.

”I'm sorry.”

He wiped his sweaty face on a small towel. ”Let's wait a little longer, and if nothing changes, then we'll all leave,” he said.

Before she could respond, a guard arrived and informed them that the king required their presence immediately. Outside the king's quarters, they found Taejo waiting for them.

Eojin sat on luxurious silk cus.h.i.+ons on the ondol-heated floor, surrounded by a few of his closest advisers.

”Young clansmen!” Eojin said. ”Come before me. We must talk.”

The three of them bowed and moved to kneel in front of the king.

”The army you have brought to our gates has grown greater in size since your arrival. Now there are approximately three thousand men. Those that came from different kingdoms have given fealty to me and accepted me as their king. But your Hansong men claim they serve only you, Prince Taejo! They pledge their swords, they pledge their support and their service, but their loyalty lies with you,” Eojin said.

Kira felt a surge of pride for the prince and their soldiers.

”I admire loyalty,” Eojin continued. ”However, your men are already running out of supplies and getting soft without proper training. So I ask you, young cousin, a very difficult question. I know you may hope for the return of your lands and to be king one day, but in these times we must put individual desires aside to focus on the good of the people. What we need is a unified army, strong in mind and body, united under one cause and one king. I ask you, will you pledge your men to me and accept me as your king?”

Even though his request was reasonable, Kira could feel her hackles rise. He was asking Taejo to give up his men and to give up all chances of recapturing his kingdom and throne. If they were able to drive the Yamatos out of his homeland, Taejo could never be king. Hansong would be no more. They faced the same troubling dilemma that the Tongey diplomat, Lord Yu, was so upset about.

But Hansong was lost already. Perhaps there was no choice. Taejo looked young and unsure about making a decision that would change the course of his life. Her father's voice slid into her head: Advise him, guide him. Help him grow into a great king.

She faced Eojin once again. ”Your Majesty, you have no heirs, and Prince Taejo has lost his father. Will you make him your heir?”

Kira ignored the outraged disapproval of the king's advisers. General Kim rose up to his knees and raised his arm, preparing to strike her. The king caught his arm. He regarded Kira with a look of respect and approval.

”Kira, your loyalty to the young prince and Hansong is truly admirable. I will consider your request.”

Kira bowed and gave Taejo a slight nod. There was no real choice here. Taejo's refusal would cause irreparable harm in his relations.h.i.+p with the Guru king.

Casting one last sidelong glance at Kira, Taejo faced Eojin.

”I pledge my loyalty and that of my men to you, my king,” he said. He bowed, his forehead touching the firm matting of the floor. Kira and Kwan quickly followed suit. Kira said a quick prayer to the heavens, asking that all would work out favorably. The three cousins rose in unison to face the king.

”Excellent,” he said. ”Now, let's prepare for war!”

Later that same afternoon, Kira stood outside the city walls with Kwan and Taejo. The army of displaced soldiers that Captain Pak commanded stood at attention, joined by the Guru cavalry and the divisions of the Guru army currently stationed within the city.

Walking around the perimeter of the crowd, her nambawi pulled low over her face, Kira searched for Jaewon and Seung. She found them following three shamans who patrolled the area. Seung's face lit up when he saw her, while Jaewon greeted her quietly. With all that had transpired, she'd nearly forgotten about the altercation in the baduk tent, but it didn't matter. In her heart she knew that Jaewon was not a murderer.

”Young mistress, what are the shamans carrying?” Seung asked.

The shamans held bra.s.s bowls filled with a milky substance in their left hands and chains of bells draped around their right. They sprinkled the area with the milk, the bells ringing with the movements of their arms. From a tree, Kira saw the flash of several silvery-gray imps fleeing into the woods. She whistled under her breath. The power of the three shamans together made for strong magic.

”They call it earth's milk, and it is a secret substance that only shamans know how to create. But it is the basis for all their power,” she said. ”They use it to commune with the spirit world, exorcise ghosts, find treasures, raise the dead-”

Seung gasped. ”They can't really raise the dead, can they?”

Kira smiled. ”No, but unscrupulous ones have been known to raise demons who masquerade as the recently departed in order to gouge their families of money.”

”That's terrible!” Seung looked scandalized at the revelation. ”I've always revered our shaman. He would never do anything like that.”

Kira shrugged. ”Shamans are good and bad just like all other humans. But the reason I don't completely trust them is because their magic is too closely tied to demon magic. Even that earth's milk they use-I can smell a slight demon stink to it.”

”Young mistress, you are frightening me,” Seung said with a shudder. ”I may never be able to face our village shaman again.”

At that moment, the city gates began to open. King Eojin had arrived, mounted on a beautiful white stallion with an elaborate golden bridle that matched his gold armor. As the sun forced its rays through the overcast sky, it shone down on Eojin as if the G.o.ds themselves were blessing him. Kira rolled her eyes at the awed whispers of the crowd.

She made her way to the front where her brother and Taejo stood next to Captain Pak.