“If you trust me—”
Wolhwa’s and Yunseo’s gazes languidly intertwined.
“I will make you one promise.”
He let out a meaningful smile.
“Before long, I will show you quite a spectacle at court.”
Wolhwa’s brow twitched visibly.
“…A spectacle?”
Yunseo calmly spoke, holding back a light laugh.
“I will break the Duke’s pride completely.”
In that instant—
“What?”
Wolhwa immediately frowned.
“Have you gone mad?”
Her voice sank low.
“Do you not know what kind of man that old fox is? I have tried to provoke him several times as well, but—”
Wolhwa stopped speaking and lowered her gaze, as if somewhat dispirited.
“He is not an opponent who will collapse easily.”
Yunseo took a step closer as if it were nothing.
And then—
He raised his hand and lightly lifted her chin.
There was no wavering in his eyes.
“Your Majesty.”
His voice flowed in like a whisper.
“You need only watch.”
They were so close their lips might touch.
“The rest—”
His gentle voice suddenly hardened with resolve.
“I will handle all of it. Remember this. Your Majesty need only stand behind me. There is no need to worry about anything.”
Wolhwa’s heart thudded violently for an instant.
This man.
What sort of board is he laying out right now?
She was overwhelmed by the confidence radiating from the man before her, yet at the same time, a trace of unease flashed through her.
“…You.”
Her pupils trembled faintly.
“Do you truly… have a way?”
Yunseo did not answer.
He merely—
Looked at her with eyes filled with certainty.
—
The next day.
Court.
When Yunseo and Wolhwa appeared side by side, holding hands, every gaze poured toward them at once.
Amid them.
The Duke leaned toward the Chancellor.
“Did you see that?”
He muttered in a voice barely audible.
“As expected, there is something suspicious between the two of them.”
The corners of his mouth twisted with blatant displeasure.
“Judging by that, they have clearly done something foul.”
At that moment—
Yunseo let go of Wolhwa’s hand.
And.
Moved in a single breath.
“—!”
Before anyone could react.
Slap—!!
With a tremendous crack, the Duke’s head snapped to the side.
The aged Duke staggered backward from the blow.
The court froze.
Yunseo did not stop.
He immediately twisted the Duke’s arm and seized it.
“A subject, instead of thinking to ease His Majesty’s worries…”
Strength entered his grip.
“How utterly laughable.”
His eyes stabbed down coldly.
“His Majesty is the Son of Heaven.”
A murderous gaze crushed the other man in an instant.
“Whatever the Son of Heaven does is none of your concern.”
“Yuk Yunseo!”
The Duke’s eyes turned bloodshot.
“How dare you—!”
He spat through gritted teeth.
“I have never treated you harshly, and yet how can you humiliate a man to this extent!”
Seated upon the Dragon Throne, Wolhwa felt as if she were sitting on a bed of thorns.
What in the world was going on?
She could not tell what Yunseo was trying to do.
But Yunseo was confident.
As if he had already finished gauging just how far he could push things in this place today.
“I know nothing of such formalities.”
Yunseo spoke calmly.
“But I do know one thing.”
He glared at the Duke without mercy.
“That if one is a subject, one must devote one’s loyalty to His Majesty.”
The entire court held its breath.
“And yet, Duke—”
Yunseo let out an incredulous laugh.
“You were gossiping about His Majesty in court.”
The moment those words fell.
The air overturned.
Wolhwa’s eyes widened in surprise.
She had never imagined he would overturn the board to this extent and seize the initiative.
‘…Just when did he begin setting this up?’
The Duke clenched his teeth.
But—
He could not refute it.
His insides boiled, but he instinctively knew that if he argued now, the matter would become even more tangled.
In the end.
He knelt.
“Your Majesty… this subject was rash.”
Just as Wolhwa was about to speak, Yunseo cut in first.
“If you had not been accustomed to acting however you pleased, you would not have treated the court as though it were your own home.”
“You wretch—!”
Unable to hold back his rage, the Duke shouted.
“You are nothing but a mere seventh-rank censor!”
“So?”
Yunseo replied calmly, without the slightest hesitation.
“Is that a reason one may insult His Majesty?”
In that instant—
The Duke was rendered speechless.
Then.
“That is enough.”
Jang Munyeon hurriedly stepped in.
“Are not both of you His Majesty’s steadfast subjects? It would be best to reconcile here and bury this matter.”
“Did you just say to bury this matter?”
Yunseo’s gaze turned to the Chancellor.
“His Majesty has been insulted.”
He did not yield even an inch.
“And you wish to let this pass? Then the world will see it this way.”
His voice fell heavily.
“That the Empress may be treated lightly.”
“Then what in the world do you want me to do!”
The Duke, no longer able to preserve his dignity, shouted almost like a scream.
“I, too, merely said a word out of concern for His Majesty! Yuk Yunseo, if you are innocent, why are you reacting so sensitively!”
Yunseo let out a cold laugh.
“This subject merely—”
He tilted his head leisurely and continued.
“Wishes to ease His Majesty’s worries.”
His gaze slowly swept across the court.
“The Imperial Guards who protect His Majesty’s palace. I heard they were all personnel assigned by the ministers.”
A subtle tension drifted through the court.
“Is that protection?”
Yunseo paused briefly, then spoke again.
“Or—is it surveillance?”
With that one sentence, the flow of the court was abruptly severed.
It was a disgrace the entire court knew of, yet no one had dared speak aloud.
The ministers lowered their heads, glancing at one another, unable to readily open their mouths.
Then—
“Yuk Yunseo.”
Wolhwa smiled languidly.
“You speak at length over needless things.”
Her gaze drifted toward the Duke.
“The Duke is an elder statesman who has served three reigns.”
With an unbothered expression, she cunningly fanned the flames.
“So even if he runs rampant through the palace with utter arrogance, who would dare open their mouth?”
“Y-Your Majesty…!”
The Duke’s complexion turned pale.
He immediately prostrated himself on the floor.
Looking down on the Empress in one’s heart and being openly declared to have shattered the relationship between sovereign and subject were matters of entirely different dimensions.
If the Emperor resolved to destroy a subject, the twitch of a single finger would be enough.
For no matter how firmly one held military authority, military action without justification was nothing more than a traitor’s rebellion.
The Duke’s hands trembled.
‘Yuk Yunseo, you son of a bitch…!’
Yunseo turned and sent Wolhwa a determined look.
“Your Majesty.”
And then—
A single sentence.
The words Yunseo tossed out so casually overturned the entire board.
“The personal guards you previously commanded have completed their preparations.”
In that instant.
Every gaze in court snapped up at once.
“An initial force of fifteen hundred.”
His voice did not waver.
“They are now waiting outside the palace gates for Your Majesty’s summons.”
An invisible ripple swept through the court.
The Chancellor.
The Duke.
Both men’s pupils shook violently at the same time.
‘…What?’
This was—
Unexpected.
Completely.
The Empress had built an independent force?
Just where had she procured such men?
Wolhwa rose from her seat and swept a murderous gaze over the ministers.
“Good. This is precisely what I desired.”
Her voice rang out clearly.
“I command.”
Everyone fell silent, frozen in place.
“From this moment on, every guard in the palace is to be replaced.”
Countless gazes trembled at once.
“The existing Imperial Guards are to withdraw, every last one. The fifteen hundred personal guards will directly protect me.”
“Your Majesty! You must not!”
One man sprang forward.
It was the Duke’s son-in-law, I Gyeom.
“Their origins are unclear! If—”
At that moment.
Flash—
Light streaked past.
And.
Thud.
Something fell.
“……?”
I Gyeom’s left arm dropped limply to the floor.
“Urgh—”
He could not even scream properly.
Yunseo sheathed his sword.
All warmth had vanished completely from his eyes.
“His Majesty did not ask you.”
Blood spread across the floor.
His gaze slowly shifted.
Toward the Duke.
“Duke. Are these the men you have raised?”
His voice had hardened coldly.
“In front of His Majesty.”
The tip of his sword moved ever so slightly, yet unmistakably.
“Is it only natural for them to bark as they please?”
Cold sweat soaked the Duke’s back.
He had seen clearly the moment the sword left its scabbard.
That blade had been aimed at I Gyeom’s neck from the very beginning.
Only at the final instant had he intentionally shifted its course slightly.
This was not a mistake.
It was a warning.
‘…Madman.’
Truly.
He moves with the intent to kill.
Wolhwa raised her hand.
“Enough.”
Her eyes turned to I Gyeom.
“Send that man back to the Duke’s estate. From this day forth, he is stripped of all official posts.”
No trace of emotional agitation could be read from Wolhwa.
“Do not allow him to set foot in court again.”
“Your Majesty…!”
The Duke opened his mouth.
But—
“Duke.”
Wolhwa’s voice sank heavily.
“If you say any more.”
She stopped speaking and stared piercingly at the Duke.
“I may have to cut off your head myself.”
The entire court fell into silence.
“One who publicly denies.”
Her eyes narrowed.
“His Majesty’s decision—no matter who they are, there is no reason to let them live, is there?”
The Duke’s Adam’s apple bobbed heavily.
“……Duke.”
Wolhwa’s gaze sank deep into him.
The corner of her mouth twisted subtly.
“Surely—you are not one of them, are you?”