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Yun was missing Jungkook.  He’d been gone for two weeks now.  Thankfully, he was coming back next week.  He’d sent her a brief letter telling her he was excited to return.  It had no return address.  She couldn’t help but wonder why he was being so secretive.  He was just visiting his family, right?  Jungkook wouldn’t lie to her, would he?

——————–

“Yun.”

“Yes, Ahseong?” Yun had to get used to calling her that.  It was so odd to call Ahseong by her given name.

“We need a plan.  Kimun can’t be roaming around in the open anymore.”

“You need to talk to His Majesty.  He knows Kimun better than both of us do.”

Ahseong looked around the courtyard.  The only person here was a guard standing watch who appeared to be out of earshot.  She turned back to Yun. “I can’t tell him about the baby just yet.  I won’t be showing for another couple months.  We have to keep it a secret.”

Yun sighed. “I know.  This place is full of secrets…” she mumbled the last part.

“What?”

“Mmm nothing.”

“When’s Jungkook coming back, do you know?”

“He returns next week.”

“You don’t sound too excited about that.”

Yun sighed again. “It’s just…he sent me a letter.  But it had no return address.  I’m confused.  Does he not trust me enough to let me know where he is?”

“Well…” Ahseong paused. “Maybe he just didn’t think to address it?  Or maybe he had another reason.  I don’t think it’s something to fret over.”

Yun pursed her lips. “I don’t know, it just seemed out of character for him.”

Ahseong shrugged. “Maybe you’ll find out when he gets back?”

“Maybe…”

——————–

Ahseong was rummaging through the drawers in Taehyung’s office.  There were a lot of documents in here.  Had he even gone through all of them?

She was digging through the bottom drawer when she unearthed an envelope.  It was addressed simply ‘Taehyung’.

It wasn’t sealed, so she made a bold move and slid her hand inside the envelope.  She pulled out two pieces of paper.  It was a letter.  It was dated four years earlier.

Taehyung,

My son, you are going to make a great king someday.  I hope you find this letter after you have proven me right.  I know I was never a good father to you.  I am sorry for that.  You must understand being king was a great responsibility that should never have been mine.

I pray God saves you from your cousin’s evil hand.  He is so young, yet his father has implanted in him a great hatred for you.  You know your uncle.  He always thought it was unfair that I had the throne.  He believed he should have had it.  I haven’t a clue why.  He knew I was the older twin.  Maybe he thought if only he had been born first, he would’ve had the throne.  But he was insane since childhood.  He believed the world should belong to him.  Now, since he cannot have it, he is insistent on his son having it.

The one piece of wisdom I can give you is to never let anyone slip past your defenses.  I hope you find a wife you can trust.  She will be your only confidant.  Don’t take her for granted, even if you don’t truly love her.  Your mother is my greatest support now.

There is one thing I failed to tell you from the time you were young.  You have a sister.  I would have told you, but she was with you from a child, so I thought it best to keep it to myself.  Little Yun.

I am no novelist, but I think it will be of great interest for you to hear the story, so I will tell it.  You remember Yun’s mother, surely.  She was your mother’s personal assistant.  But before she was that, she was my lover.  We met when we were very young.

Ireun was beautiful even at the tender age of thirteen.  But my parents held me back from seeing her.  That didn’t matter.  I’d sneak off to see her.  She was quite clumsy.  Many times when I saw her she was getting into some trouble by accident.

She was the reason I refused to have concubines.  I couldn’t drag another young girl into my crazy life.  Ireun experienced a horrible life being dragged around after me.  But she enjoyed it.  She was a wild one.

Yun was created on our last night together.  You were to be born within the next few days, so I had told myself I would leave Ireun after that night.  I couldn’t bring myself to fully remove her from my life, so I let her keep her job as your mother’s personal assistant.

Your mother was the only one who knew about us.  She knew it was in her best interest to keep the secret.  And she knew what it was like to be denied her first lover.

Forgive me for not telling you sooner.  I recognize now how infatuated she is with you.  She believes she is in love with you, I wager.  It would be too odd for you to marry your own sister, so I advise you try your best to divert her from such thoughts.  For now I think it is unwise to inform her of her true status with Kimun going around plotting evil.  Protect her with your life.  I have nothing else to give her.

You may share this knowledge with Yun if you see it fit, but I will leave that decision up to you.  You are the king, after all.

Appa              

Ahseong read the letter with wide eyes.  She quickly folded it up and returned it to its envelope before shoving it back in the drawer.  Was this why Taehyung had been so reserved around Yun?  It wasn’t because he hated her, it was because he knew his father’s secret could not get out!  This was good news, though.  They had proof of a second heir being present should anything happen to Taehyung.