Chapter Twenty-Five Ethan #2
A second later, I recognize the seonnyeo in the air. “Captain Seo.”
With wind stirring the dirt, she lands in a tight crouch, her hands and one knee braced against the ground. I frown down at her bowed head, then raise my confused eyes to the sky.
It’s empty. My heart sinks. She’s alone.
“Gods, Cheyun.” Jihun reaches her first and helps her to her feet. “They could have shot you down.”
“You think?” She cocks an eyebrow.
“Are you all right?” I rasp, blood pounding in my ears. I’m glad to have her back safely, but I barely manage to hold back my next question. Where is Sunny?
“Yes, Your Majesty.” She bows, then her expression softens. “Sunny is safe.”
The vise around my heart and lungs loosens for the first time in days, but my impatience only grows. “Then where is she?”
“She went to seek help from the Kingdom of Water,” Cheyun says.
“The Kingdom of Water?” Jihun and I chorus.
“I have much to tell you, but it must wait.” She plants her hands at her waist, hunching forward slightly. Christ. We didn’t even give her a moment to catch her breath. “Before she went to the Kingdom of Water, Sunny convinced the King of Underworld to send reinforcements.”
“The King of Underworld?” My royal adviser and I parrot her again.
“I led them through the portal above the Mirror Lake—the secret portal closest to the capital.” After a deep inhale, she straightens to her full height. She is one tough seonnyeo. “The troops from the Kingdom of Underworld are standing by at the western edge of Shinsi.”
“How many soldiers?” I gather my wits.
“Ten thousand,” the captain answers with a sharp smile. Jihun and I meet each other’s round eyes and barely refrain from repeating her words for the third time.
“We can protect Shinsi,” Jihun breathes.
“We can do more than that.” I grip his shoulder with a huff of incredulous laughter. “We can take down the Kingdom of Sky. We can end this war.”
A part of me had believed that I might die without seeing Sunny again. I’d just refused to acknowledge it. But now, there’s a real chance that we can win this war. I will fight with everything in me to see my love again. I will take down an entire army for a chance to hold her in my arms.
“Thank you for bringing the cavalry.” Jihun sweeps Cheyun into his arms, and she emits a tiny squeak. He steps right back, but a rosy blush stains her cheeks.
“Like I said, Sunny is the one who convinced the King of Underworld.” She tucks a loose strand of hair behind her ear, then clears her throat. “I just showed them the way.”
“Then thank you for showing them the way.” I tip my head. “As for Sunny, we’ll thank her when she comes back.”
“Yes.” Captain Seo averts her eyes as a shadow mutes the quiet joy on her face. “You can thank her when you see her again.”
My stomach dips, then ripples with nausea. Something is wrong, but I don’t have the guts to question her about it. Instead, I tell Jihun, “We have to send for the generals.”
“They won’t get here in time,” Jaeseok interjects, coming back to stand next to us. “General Im just ordered our soldiers to cover all the water surfaces inside Shinsi.”
“Why?” My brows pull low. “I thought troops couldn’t moon shift in mass numbers.”
“No, but they can in small clusters.” Jihun crosses his arms. “The longer we hold them off, the more likely General Bak is to risk moon shifting his soldiers into the capital. Even if he’s sending them to their deaths.”
“I’ll go to the generals to bring them up to speed,” Jaeseok offers without hesitation. “I’ll shift from here using a bowl of water, then you can dump it out as soon as I’m through.”
“You won’t be able to come back here until the fighting stops.” I don’t like the idea of splitting up the Sentinels more than we already have.
“Then the generals and I will have to make quick work of it.” The dokkaebi grins incorrigibly.
“If I eavesdropped correctly, the Kingdom of Underworld’s army will strike the enemy forces from the west. General Im will hold them off at the walls, here in the south.
So General Jo and General Hong will have to close in on them from the north and the east.”
“They might not have enough forces to cover that much ground,” Jihun points out.
“Then they should concentrate on hitting hard from the north.” Captain Seo taps her finger to her chin. “Hopefully, the troops from the Kingdom of Water will be here in time to box in the enemy from the east.”
“Sounds like a plan.” Jaeseok turns to leave.
I stop him with a hand on his shoulder. “Be careful.”
“You too.” Then he meets Jihun and Cheyun’s eyes. “All of you.”
“Let’s go find you that bowl of water.” Jihun claps Jaeseok on the back, and they walk away together.
“Lieutenant Cha will be fine,” Captain Seo says in a quiet voice. “He is more competent than he lets on.”
“Yeah, I know.” I rub my forehead with a half smile. “Are Minju and Draco with Sunny in the Kingdom of Water?”
“No.” The captain stares at the ground and breathes a shuddering sigh. “Draco . . .”
When she doesn’t go on, I wrap a hand around her arm and turn her to face me. “What is it, Cheyun?”
She finally meets my gaze, her eyes glassy with tears. “Th-they died.”
“What?” My voice is barely above a whisper, but she flinches. I realize my fingers are digging into her arm, so I drop my hand to my side. “Sorry. But what . . . did you say?”
“Daeseong killed them,” she rasps, her tears spilling over. “They died protecting Sunny.”
“No.” I stumble back a step, then another, like I can run away from her words. “Please no.”
It doesn’t seem possible. Draco dead? The surly teenager with a soft, kind heart? The magnificent azure dragon spirit? They had so much life. How could it have been snuffed out so early? They were just a kid. A good kid.
“I’m so sorry.” She runs the back of her hand across her eyes. “Sunny and Minju laid them to rest at Heaven Lake.”
They are really gone. I lock my knees so they don’t buckle under me. They gave their life to protect Sunny.
Thank you for protecting her, kid.
“Draco will get a kick out of being remembered as the Cheonji Monster.” My chuckle turns into a broken sob, but I press my fist against my mouth and clamp down on my grief. I can’t fall apart in front of my soldiers. I need to lend them my strength, not burden them with my sorrow.
“Yes, they will enjoy that.” Cheyun’s voice breaks.
I clench my hands at my sides. “Sunny avenged the kid, right?”
“Right,” the captain says grimly. “Daeseong is dead.”
“Good.” I take vicious comfort in knowing that the dark mudang will never hurt anyone again. “And Minju? Where is she?”
“She’s at the Kingdom of Underworld, searching for ways to defeat the Amheuk . . .” Captain Seo trails off, her eyes going wide. “Your Majesty, I—”
“The Amheuk?” I feel ice run through my veins.
“Yes, Your Majesty.” She bows her head. “The Amheuk has breached the Realm of Four Kingdoms.”
My lungs seize, and my ears ring like someone struck a gong right next to me.
The Amheuk? I widen my stance to maintain my balance.
As the dizzying shock passes, my blood heats to a simmer.
The eternal darkness is at our doors, and we’re wasting our time and energy on this senseless war?
All will be lost unless the four kingdoms unite.
A volley of arrows strikes the soldiers at the top of the wall before I can form a coherent response, and the night erupts into a hellscape of blood, fire, and screams. I summon my axes with a roar.
This ends now, Grandfather.
But when I take a step toward the wall, Cheyun stops me with a hand on my arm. “I have a message for you. Sunny said to listen for her in the mirrors.”
“What?” I shake my head when more screams tear through the night. “Go alert the Kingdom of Underworld’s troops. Press in from the west, and we’ll hold the wall.”
When Cheyun takes to the sky, I race up the stairs. I can’t make sense of her message, but I know one thing for sure. I will subdue the Kingdom of Sky. I will see Sunny again. Not even the Amheuk can stand in my way.
We will be together in life. And I will love her till the end of days.