Night falls.
Kim Seon-a had just returned to her tent and sat down.
Then came the sound of horses' hooves outside.
"Princess, Princess, something terrible has happened!"
Park Roejang dismounted, and before he could even see the King of Goryeo, he was back.
He knelt outside the tent, his knees slamming against the blue brick floor with dull thuds that echoed into the tent.
Kim Seon-a was flipping through a map when she heard the noise and looked up.
Park Roejang's face was covered in ash, his robes were torn in several places, and he was clutching a roll of blood-stained silk tightly in his hand.
Her brow twitched, and she put down the map and stood up.
Park Roejang raised his hands above his head, his voice trembling. "Princess, this is the last letter that the royal city's garrison commander risked his life to deliver."
He paused, his Adam's apple bobbing. "The scout who delivered the message... didn't survive."
Kim Seon-a took the roll of silk.
It felt damp and cold to the touch.
She unfolded the blood-written letter; the paper was covered with tiny, neat characters, and there were several dark brown fingerprints along the edges, as if the writer had bled.
She stared at the sealing wax stamp at the end of the letter.
That was a death warrant that was only used when the capital had completely fallen and the royal family was prepared to die for their country.
Kim Seon-a trembled all over, feeling as if something was stuck in her throat, preventing her from swallowing.
She flattened the paper and scanned it down from the first word.
My father has led the royal family to Ganghwa Island.
Fewer than three thousand defenders remained in the inner city.
The city was full of elderly and infirm people who couldn't be evacuated.
The commander of the Japanese navy was Inukami Jusaburo, a man well-versed in military strategy, who was using Gaegyeong as bait to lure the remnants of the Goryeo army back to their aid.
Kim Seon-a stared at the last line of text, her fingers repeatedly tracing the edge of the paper.
My fingertips are all rubbed red.
Park Roejang knelt on the ground and added, "Princess, the Japanese army has set up three encirclements around Hanseong. If the main force of Goryeo returns to reinforce, they will be trapped. At that time... at that time..."
He lowered his head before he could finish speaking.
Kim Seon-a closed her eyes, crumpling the paper in her hand.
She stood still.
After a while, she turned to Park Roejang and said, "Go and invite Prince Yi for a meeting. Tell him there is an urgent report from Goryeo."
Park Roejang acknowledged and withdrew.
Kim Seon-a stood alone inside the tent, staring at Gaegyeong on the map.
She grew up in that city.
The ancestral temple is there, the mausoleum is there, and the foundation laid by our ancestors for three hundred years is there.
Now only an empty shell remains.
Not long after, Gu Moran brought Zhen Meili into the tent.
Kim Seon-a handed over the blood-written letter, her voice low. "The Japanese army has breached the outer city, and the inner city's garrison is less than three Inukami Jusaburo. Inugami Jusaburo has set up an encirclement around the perimeter, waiting for our army to return to reinforce."
Gu Moran took the blood-written letter, glanced at it, and said nothing. Instead, he spread out a map and repeatedly traced the map between Hanseong, Gaegyeong, and Ganghwa Island with his finger.
Zhen Meili leaned closer to examine the map, frowning. "If the Japanese army sets up three encirclements around Hanseong, their supply lines will be extremely long, and logistics will be their Achilles' heel."
Gu Moran nodded, pointing to several passes marked on the map. " Inukami Jusaburo is betting that the remnants of the Goryeo army will definitely save Gaegyeong. As long as the remnants enter the encirclement, he can destroy the country in one battle."
Kim Seon-a suddenly looked up. "Then what should we do now? Just sit Gaegyeong be massacred?"
Gu Moran looked up at her, his tone as calm as if they were discussing what to have for dinner. "Abandon the city, preserve the race, defend Ganghwa Island and Incheon Port, and launch a counterattack when my navy arrives."
Kim Seon-a's eyes widened, her voice rising. "You want me to give up Gaegyeong? That's the capital of Goryeo! It's where the ancestral temples of our ancestors are located!"
Gu Moran put down the map and walked up to her. " Gaegyeong is now an empty city, with less than three thousand soldiers. The city is full of elderly and weak people who can't leave. How do you plan to defend it?"
Kim Seon-a gritted her teeth. "Then I'll lead the remnants of my army back! Even if we're completely wiped out, we can't let the Japanese pirates trample us!"
"You taking the remnants of the army back is exactly Inukami Jusaburo wanted."
Gu Moran interrupted her, "He'd love for you to go and die, then Goryeo won't even have a seed left for restoration."
Kim Seon-a, her eyes red-rimmed, said, "Then what am I supposed to do? Just watch the capital fall? How can I face our ancestors!"
Gu Moran grabbed her shoulders, forcing her to look him in the eye. "Do you want to protect the reputation of an empty city, or the lives of 100,000 people? A temple can be rebuilt, but people are truly gone once they die."
Kim Seon-a was speechless after hearing that.
Tears streamed down her face.
It was as if all the bones in the person had been removed.
Gu Moran released his grip, turned around, and called out to the door, "Someone, bring Park Roejang in."
Park Roejang entered the tent and knelt down.
Gu Moran ordered, "Send a message to Ganghwa Island, instructing the remaining Goryeo troops to defend the port to the death and not to return to reinforce it. I will find a way to provide supplies."
Park Roejang knelt down to accept the order.
Kim Seon-a slumped in her chair, covering her face with her hands, her shoulders twitching, and she remained silent.
Gu Moli handed over a handkerchief.
She initially harbored some animosity towards this woman.
But right now, I feel sorry for her.
Zhen Meili gently comforted her from the side, "Princess, don't worry, the warship will be modified soon, and we can set sail."
Gu Moran stood aside watching her.
Gu Moli stared at the way Gu Moran looked at Kim Seon-a, her fingertips fiddling with her handkerchief.
Kim Seon-a wiped away her tears, raised her head, and said in a hoarse voice, "I'll listen to you, but you must promise me that once the Great Yan navy arrives, you will retake Gaegyeong as soon as possible."
Gu Moran nodded. "I promise you."
Kim Seon-a finally breathed a sigh of relief, leaning back in her chair as if she had fallen apart.
Gu Moran turned to Zhen Meili and instructed, "Go to the workshop and keep an eye on it. The warship modification progress cannot be delayed; it must be completed within two days."
Zhen Meili withdrew in response.
Gu Moli looked at Gu Moran, opened her mouth as if to say something, but ultimately swallowed it back and followed Zhen Meili out of the tent.
Only Gu Moran and Kim Seon-a remained inside the tent.
Kim Seon-a stared at Hanseong on the map, her fingers repeatedly tracing the mark.
Gu Moran sat down opposite her. "You should rest. You have a ton of things to do tomorrow morning."
Kim Seon-a shook her head. "I can't sleep."
Gu Moran didn't try to persuade her any further, and got up to walk out.
He stopped by the tent flap and turned back. "I've heard my second brother talk about Inukami Jusaburo. He's ruthless but not stupid. Since he dared to besiege Hanseong, it means he has some trump cards up his sleeve. You need to prepare for the worst."
Kim Seon-a looked up at him.
His eyes welled up with tears again. "You mean... the ancestral temple can't be saved?"
Gu Moran didn't reply, but lifted the curtain and went out.
Outside the tent, the camp was so quiet in the dead of night that only the sound of the wind could be heard.
Gu Moli stood in front of her tent, looking towards the main tent.
Qingwu, now fully recovered from her injuries, emerged from the shadows. "Princess, should we go and keep an eye on things?"
Gu Moli shook her head. "No need. Keeping a close eye on us will only arouse suspicion."
The Qingwu grass disappeared into the shadows.
Gu Moli turned and went into the tent, then sat down at the table.
On the table was a genealogy book of the Goryeo royal family, which she had someone find during the day.
She turned to Kim Seon-a's page, her fingertip pausing on that line of small print.
Princess Kim Seon-a, whose mother was Queen Sodeok, had no other siblings.
Gu Moli stared at the line of text.
The fingernail scratched at the paper, leaving a shallow mark.
Three miles outside the camp, deep in the woods.
A group of Wa spies hid behind bushes, and the leader was sketching a camp defense map on a rag with a charcoal pencil.
Another man in black crouched beside him, lowering his voice. "Our commander guessed correctly, Prince Yi did indeed take that Goryeo woman as his concubine."
The leader sneered, "Once our commander takes Hanseong and Gaegyeong, this woman won't be able to kneel down and beg for mercy."
He packed up the cloth roll, gave his companions a wink, and the group crouched low and retreated deeper into the woods.
On the other side.
Inside the restaurant.
Xie Linyuan sat cross-legged, fiddling with a newly strung Buddhist rosary in his hand.
He suddenly opened his eyes.
Three beads of the Buddhist prayer beads in my hand snapped with a crack.
The bead rolled down to his knees, then slid down the monk's robe to the ground, bounced twice on the blue brick floor, and rolled to the base of the wall.
He looked down at the broken bead.
His Adam's apple bobbed.