HWARANG Rewritten✅

48. Friends

Chapter 48.
Friends.

Ji-dwi awoke from a nightmare, drenched in a cold sweat. His heart was racing as a few tears slipped past his eyes.

The doors to his chambers burst open as a panicked-looking Sa-do burst in, her sword drawn as he eyes scanned the room for any signs of danger. On finding nothing, she relaxed as she sheathed her sword and muttered, "I heard you scream." When her eyes landed on the teary eyed Ji-dwi she looked panicked again. "What happened?" she demanded as she rushed to his bedside.

Ji-dwi seemed abandoned as he gazed up at her looking completely lost and defeated. "My mother," he whispered and everything made sense to Sa-do. Soo-ho had already told her about how the Queen had been served poison for a long time now and was gravely ill. "Oh Ji-dwi," Sa-do murmured as she sat down beside him and he instinctively leaned against her shoulder.

"I know everything she has done is wrong and I don't agree with her ways most of the time... but she is my mother."

Sa-do took a hold of his hand as she said, "she did everything to protect you. You will be surprised by how far a mother can go for her child." There was no accusation in her words. She understood the Queen's emotions behind her actions. She, herself, had known Ji-dwi for such a short time and already she was ready to swear loyalty to him and kill his enemies.

Queen Ji-so was his mother. It was to be expected that she would be willing to go to all extremities to protect her child from all the plots and schemes going on within and outside the walls of the palace. If what crowned Prince Chang did in South Buyeo, the assassination attempt of Seon-woo and Han-seong's death was a mere indication to the kind of threats Ji-dwi had been facing all his life, then how could the Queen not do what she had done?

Ji-dwi was inconsolable. "She offered her own life to Park Young-shil to save mine," he mumbled between sobs, his voice trembling.

Sa-do was at a loss for what to do. "Listen to me. Your mother did that because she preferred getting hurt herself than to watch others hurting her child. You need to make sure that her efforts don't go in vain. You have to hold my father accountable and make him pay. I think, right now, that's the only thing you can do for her."

...

  

Ji-dwi woke up the following morning to find his head resting on Sa-do's lap. He sat up, careful not to jostle her. She was still fast asleep, leaning against the headboard. He had not forgotten last night's dream and what she had told him.

Fate had a funny way of playing out. On one side, his cold-hearted mother knowingly drank poison and he failed to protect her as a son. On the other hand, the most reputable and powerful man in Silla was pulling so many strings and taking so many lives that even his daughter felt forced to become a warrior so that she could stop her father's misdeeds.

He knew that despite what Sa-do said, a part of her must pain to stand up so boldly against her birth father even if her sense of morality overtook her pride. All he could do to lessen the blow was to be there for her because Park Young-shil's fate was death. There was no escaping it.

After getting dressed, Ji-dwi finally attempted to wake Sa-do up. She stirred as he gently nudged her shoulder before lazily opening her eyes. "Rise and shine my sleepy warrior," the King smiled teasingly as she shoved his hand away in mock annoyance.