Futile Love

Chapter 82: Chapter 82

Kyosul said, “Well, when I think about your childhood, I assume you might have enjoyed taking a walk at best.”

“Hahaha,” Ruhae burst into laughter when she showed surprise.

He continued, “Can’t you really believe that I was quite a naughty child?”

He whispered into her ear while pushing the side door. The door had been closed for a very long time while he grew into an adult. Its rusty hinge squawked as he pushed it.

“I can’t believe my ears, but your childhood memories are interesting and marvelous to me.”

She still couldn’t believe that he was a naughty boy. Rather she went through the side door after him, while laughing it away.

Crossing through the side door alone, they left the stuffy palace into the wooded Mt. Mokak. Looking back, it was unbelievable to get out of the palace so easily and simply like this. The imperial palace was located at the southern foot of Mt. Mokak. The scenic beauty of the mountain put the flower garden or back garden of the imperial palace in the shade.

At first, Ruhae seemed to be confused in the mountain but soon revived his memory of it and escorted her. They climbed the mountain for some time and arrived at a broad and flat rock to the south. As they sat on the rock, a cool breeze blew, and they had a fine view of the imperial palace and the castle town.

“Wow!”

Kyosul was amazed at the fantastic scene. She felt as if she had gotten free of the stuffy, overwhelming atmosphere of the palace now that she was on the rock. She opened her hands and took a deep breath, facing the palace.

“How do you feel about overlooking the palace?”

“I feel so refreshed!”

She answered cheerfully and turned around as he opened the snack bag.

“This rice ball tastes much better when we enjoy a magnificent view like this.”

“Wow! This is terrific! I’ve never known our palace was so wonderful.”

While enjoying the rice balls right next to him, she couldn’t take her eyes off the magnificent landscape before her eyes.

“I wish I had taken you here much sooner since you like it so much. Of course, I forgot about this until recently.” With a satisfied look, he continued, “There are many temporary places and royal villas in the imperial palace. They are great places to enjoy the scenic beauty and regain one’s vigor. When you feel sick and tired of your palace life, you had better come over here for refreshment.”

“Can I come with you, Ruhae?”

She expected him to say yes but was soon disappointed.

“Well, official parade here is kind of an official royal event, so it’s hard for me to come with you here.”

She got sullen instantly, and said, “Then, I don’t feel like coming over here. I can’t see you while I visit a royal villa on my own, right?”

“Well, you can still enjoy the great scenic beauty and breathe in the fresh air, which I think will be very good for your health.”

“No, I don’t want to come alone. I don’t want to go far without Ruhae.”

She threw a tantrum, but he found even her tantrum cute.

Ruhae and Kyosul had a relaxed time for a change. Even though they did nothing, they just felt good because they were together. Sitting on the broad rock, they touched shoulders. Even that gentle touch made their hearts beat quickly. Her hands holding on the rock gently touched his. His fingers were placed on hers gently with their little fingers folded together.

That was it. With their little fingers crossed, they enjoyed their subtle thrill and excitement fully.

The cool breeze was good, the warm sunlight was good and the day was good.

In fact, they felt good about everything now. As long as they were together all the time, everyday was the best to them.

“I think we have to go back now.”

Their brief outing passed so fast. The blush of the setting sun stretched across the sky. Looking at the setting sun with regret, he extended his hand to her. Holding his hand tightly, she stood up. While climbing down the mountain, she continued to hold his hand. Once they arrived, there would be no occasion she could his hand freely. As she liked the outing so much, she really didn’t want to go back.

In the end, they arrived at the high wall. He pushed the side door. This time the gate didn’t move. He pushed it harder. As he had to part with Kyosul once they went inside the wall, his face hardened a bit.

Now, he put down the wooden lunch bag and let go of her hand then he pushed the side door with both hands strongly, but he couldn’t open it.

Embarrassed, he looked at her and said, “I can’t open it.”

The rusty side door, hidden under the endless high wall, wouldn’t open no matter how hard he pushed it.

***

The Dongbi Palace, where Kyosul resided, was shrouded in a tense atmosphere. None of the court ladies opened their mouths. Their gloomy look and actions reflected a very heavy atmosphere in the palace.

Lady Yuon, Kyosul’s nanny, was pacing up and down in front of the door of her room. She kept sticking her head out to check whether Kyosul had come back, while walking past the door. She nibbled her fingernails out of nervousness.

“Your Highness, when are you coming back?”

She looked up at the sky. The sun had already set and reddened the sky. Looking at a red sky, she narrowed her eyes. It was not a good sign. The sun was high up in the sky when Kyosul left the Dongbi Palace.

“She has never been outside so long.”

Kyosul would go out of the palace, not accompanied by anybody, including the nanny. It was her secret outing.

On such occasions, the nanny didn’t ask about her destination. Though Kyosul had never told her about it, the nanny was well aware of why she went out. It was kind of a tacit promise between Kyosul and the nanny.

“Nanny, let me go out for a walk alone.”

“Please come back before 7 PM at the latest.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t be late. I’ve never come back late, right?”

Today she went out of the Dongbi Palace with that promise, but 7 PM had passed and she still wasn’t back.

The nanny grew more and more worried while waiting for Kyosul.

Typically she went out for two reasons.

For example, she went to the back garden of the outer palace in the afternoon when she felt lonely. On this occasion, there was no specific rule on the curfew, but she would come back before it got dark. Sometimes she ran into someone there or she would spend time alone.

On other occasions she went out when the nanny conveyed Ruhae’s message to her as a messenger between the two, visiting the Dongbi Palace and the South Palace secretly. In this case, she usually met him early in the morning or late at night, which lasted between 15 minutes and an hour.

This time she went out after the nanny conveyed his message to her around noon. She always avoided the time when there were many people moving around in the palace, but today she ignored it. The nanny felt it strange but didn’t stop her. Kyosul didn’t come back even after the sunset.

“Your Highness, I’m just worried if anything happened to you.”

Holding her hands tightly, she murmured to herself nervously, looking at the street corner. So, everybody in the Dongbi Palace earnestly waited for her return.

After all, it was after 7 PM.

And it was slowly getting dark as it was late summer when the days were getting shorter. The nanny couldn’t wait any longer.

“I know she ran amok around the palace when she was in the Hwa kingdom, but she never broke the promise.”

She was consumed by the thinking that something wrong had happened to her. She went out of the Dongbi Palace to search for Kyosul. Though she didn’t know where Kyosul had gone, she had to find her by checking out every nook and corner of the palace.

She went to the back garden of the outer palace fist because it was Kyosul’s favorite place, but she couldn’t find any trace of Kyosul even after she walked around the garden twice.

“What should I do now?”

She was in the thick of wandering here and there in the palace when she was stopped by somebody.

“You must be Lady Yuon, right?”

The moment she heard that familiar voice, she got cold feet. It was the voice that she didn’t want to hear in a situation like this.

With a pale face, she slowly turned and exclaimed, “Long live the Crown Prince! I’m honored to see you!”

The man standing before her was none other than Bipaan.