HIM THEY CALL THE CRUEL KING (Completed)

04

The next day, Da Won finds D staring at her phone screen.

"Is it not working? Did I break it?" Da Won asks worryingly.

"No, you haven't. It's working fine."

Da Won interrogates further. "If so, then you must be expecting someone to call you? You are missing your parents?"

D sadly replies. "I don't have anyone to miss me. Not even a single person. I  don't have a family or friends."

Da Won doesn't want to ask about how she had lost her family or why she doesn't have any friends. Instead she remains silent until D speaks up.

"I have only 3 person in my city who knows where I am. I don't have much expectations on them calling me, but even if they did, the call wouldn't be connected. There is no network here." D sadly slides her phone back into her backpack.

Da Won consoles her. " It's alright. You are safe under this roof and you will be safe outside as well. Me and my brother will protect you from all harms." She lets out a warm smile at the end and continues again. "Anyways, you look good with hanbok. And a beautiful girl like you shouldn't be seated at home like this. Do you mind walking out on the street with me?" I shall take you to the market and also let you know about this place."

D agrees and walks out with Da Won and her brother Ho Seok.

The three of us went out to the market. The market was crowded like yesterday and the people looked at us strangely as if all the three of us are aliens. This must be because of me again.

"Ho Seok ah, do you work? Do you own a shop of yourself?" I asked, for which he nodded.

"I work in that way" pointing at the path that separated one side of the market from other.

We walked in that path for few minutes and then it was awful to see the scene. There's meat stall, where they openly cut off the meat and the blood that ooze out was dark. I shut my eyes tightly and groaned.

"What's wrong with that? Haven't you seen a stall like this before?" Ho Seok asked.

"Never" I replied, my eyes still shut. Patting my back, Ho Seok walks me out from there. The people on this side of the market sell things like, potteries, iron articles and others. Ho Seok owned a sword shop. There were many of swords of different length and designs and some little knifes that looked not less sharp than the swords.

"Who do you sell swords to?" I asked.

"The king. He has a collection of swords with him and all the swords I sold to him are very unique and spiritual. He is good in swordsmanship. The reason why he buys the sword with me because he loves punishing people with their heads." He said.

It sounded horrible to me. The King must be mad to do this. There are other ways of punishing people, but why only with heads?"

"If King buys swords from you, then he visits your shop often. Don't he?" I asked.

"Yeah, he does."

"Aren't you afraid of him?" I asked further.

"Why should we fear him when we haven't done anything wrong?" Da Won asked.

"You both, I mean, everyone keeps saying that the king is evil and he punishes people with their heads off. What if you commit a mistake in front of him? Aren't you scared of being beheaded?" I asked. My questions made them feel disturbed but then, Ho Seok said this.

"Nobody can predict the King's decision. Sometimes he is just mad but other times he's evil."

"So when did he even do anything good?" I asked curiously.