How amusing it would be to see the second prince sprawled on the dirt.
That’s what people expected. Only a handful in the crowd hoped for anything else.
“If His Majesty says he’ll win…” Heo Seokkyeok began.
Yu Geung replied hesitantly, “Do you really think so?”
“Do I look like I’m joking?” Heo Seokkyeok shot back.
Yu Geung had rarely seen Heo Seokkyeok jest. This wasn’t a joke either—Heo Seokkyeok clearly disliked the wastrel prince. So why the sudden change in attitude? Yu Geung couldn’t figure it out.
Still, Yu Geung didn’t think the prince was a bad person. He’d spotted a lost child on the road, not only stopping to help but saving a commoner in danger. That was Grand Prince Ikwon. Heo Seokkyeok was the same kind of person. Surely, he’d realized the prince wasn’t bad either. Yu Geung felt a quiet pride swell within him.
“I, too, hope His Highness wins,” Yu Geung said.
Heo Seokkyeok nodded, shifting his gaze from Grand Prince Ikwon, whom he’d been staring at, to Yehwi.
He didn’t think ill of Yehwi. There were unsavory rumors about Yehwi’s connection to the Deposed Queen, his birth mother’s rival. Having served in the Geumowi for years, Heo Seokkyeok didn’t believe Yehwi was purely kind or innocent. People in high positions often hid darker sides.
So, it wasn’t strange that the brothers glared at each other with disdain. Still, he wished Yehwi, with his scant power, wouldn’t act so arrogantly toward his elder brother.
Even if Yehwi’s maternal clan had driven the Deposed Queen to her death, Yehwi, young at the time, wasn’t involved.
With a relaxed smile, Heo Seokkyeok looked at Yehwi’s escort.
“Don’t we need more time, my lord?” the escort asked Yehwi, his face tense.
Likewise, the prince’s aide—Hanseon, an old eunuch—looked equally nervous.
Heo Seokkyeok thought Grand Prince Ikwon needed an escort too. He knew why the prince had none. The first escort couldn’t handle his debauchery and left. The second was beaten and dismissed for offering counsel. The third was stripped of rank for failing to stop the drunken prince from injuring himself.
Such was the wastrel prince’s reputation.
But if—perhaps—the prince had truly changed, he might soon have an escort again. It wasn’t Heo Seokkyeok’s place to decide, and he didn’t want Yu Geung in that role either. Yet, watching the prince, Yu Geung seemed the likely candidate.
What if the heavens favored him?
Heo Seokkyeok hoped the prince had changed.
He’d only crossed swords with him once, but even then, he was certain the prince had remarkable potential.
If honed, he’d become a great figure. That brief encounter convinced him. If the prince were his junior, he’d nurture that talent without hesitation.
“No, listen, man!” Yu Geung interrupted his thoughts. “Why?”
“You should aim higher. If we both bet on Grand Prince Jean’s escort, the wager’s pointless!”
“Are you serious? Then you bet on Grand Prince Ikwon, and I’ll bet on Jean’s escort!”
“Fine, let’s call it off!”
Everyone but Heo Seokkyeok assumed Grand Prince Ikwon would lose to Yehwi’s escort.
His appearance didn’t inspire confidence. Long, thin limbs lacked strength; pale skin screamed a lack of sunlight; unbound hair hung loosely. His posture was lax, devoid of tension. If he were Heo Seokkyeok’s subordinate, such an attitude in a duel would be childish, barely worth a glance.
But betting on a prince’s duel? Those insolent fools. Heo Seokkyeok clicked his tongue and turned back to the training ground.
The wastrel prince had drawn his sword, facing Yehwi.
Yehwi, as the duel’s host, spoke for both. “Begin.”
Grand Prince Ikwon sprang forward like a loosed arrow. A prince never refused the first strike. This time, too, he took it. Yehwi’s escort gripped his sword with both hands, waiting to close the distance.
A flash of steel aimed for the escort’s waist. The escort dodged, half a step too late. The prince’s blade caught the hem of his robe, tearing a long gash. If it were a real fight, blood would have poured.
Grand Prince Ikwon was ferocious. Watching from a distance revealed his style better than clashing blades up close. His swordplay was practical, if you spoke kindly—or ruthless, if you didn’t.
“Die!” he roared.
Was that his true nature?
To make such a mistake without hesitation?
Was he truly a wastrel?
He was venomous, ferocious.
Their swords clashed twice, sparks flying. Yet the prince’s eyes gleamed sharper than the blade’s flash.
Heo Seokkyeok shivered.
The prince laughed, a chilling sound.
Was he mad? Heo Seokkyeok wondered if everything he’d thought about the prince was wrong.
No, no, too soon. Watch a bit longer.
“Raaargh!” the prince roared like a beast, his sword soaring high before crashing toward the escort’s head. A lethal strike—if it landed, the escort was dead. Gasps echoed from the crowd.
But the move was too big, too readable. The escort dodged, stepping back. The prince’s sword struck the ground instead, sending sand flying. Some maids screamed, startled by the sudden dust.
Why? Why act like that?
Heo Seokkyeok’s mind raced. Wastrel or not, a prince was a prince. He wasn’t noble, but he was human—barely. Now, he seemed utterly unhinged.
Yet, despite his wild actions, he lacked a predator’s ferocity. It felt deliberate.
So, it was like—
“Die!” the prince bellowed.
A thunderous shout. Heo Seokkyeok snapped his head up. The prince’s foot was planted on the escort’s face, pinning him down as he brandished his sword.
What was this?
He looked every bit the wastrel. Anyone seeing this would call him that, even without knowing the rumors. He was the epitome of his nickname.
Heo Seokkyeok realized something.
The prince was acting the part deliberately.
Why? For what? For whom?
The escort, battered by the prince’s onslaught, collapsed onto the sandy training ground. He twitched a few times before lying still.
Some in the crowd screamed in shock.
“Physician!” they called.
The spectators summoned a physician.
Heo Seokkyeok watched as the physician shook the escort awake, assuring Yehwi he was fine. Yehwi seemed less concerned for his subordinate than stunned by his own humiliation.
“My escort lost,” Yehwi said with a hollow laugh.
“Brother won!”
It wasn’t a gracious victory. If Grand Prince Ikwon were more skilled or crueler, the escort might be dead. Shouldn’t Yehwi feel relieved to have escaped disaster? Heo Seokkyeok felt disappointed in him.
He was disappointed in Grand Prince Ikwon too, but in a different way.
He looked for Yu Geung, who’d vanished earlier. Spotting him, Yu Geung seemed unperturbed, rubbing the prince’s shoulders.
As expected, Yu Nangjam will be the prince’s escort.
It was a chilling scene. The duel was over, and as Heo Seokkyeok predicted, Grand Prince Ikwon won. The process was bizarre, but there was no reason to linger. He decided to return to his duties.
Then a louder shout rang out.
“His Majesty arrives!”
An old eunuch’s booming voice drew all eyes. But their gazes didn’t linger on him—King Bonhyeon stood beside him.
The crowd quieted instantly. Who’d dare make noise before the king?
“I observed Grand Prince Ikwon’s prowess from afar,” King Bonhyeon said, approaching Grand Prince Ikwon.
“I’m impressed by your swordsmanship.”
His gaze didn’t touch Yehwi or his escort.
“I heard the two princes made a bet. If Grand Prince Ikwon won, Grand Prince Jean would grant one request. If Jean’s escort won, Ikwon would grant one.”
At that, he glanced at Yehwi.
“Grand Prince Jean, a prince’s word is weighty. Keep your promise.”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Yehwi replied.
Heo Seokkyeok wondered if that was humiliating.
But the king’s words didn’t end there.
“For the eldest’s achievement, I shall grant Grand Prince Ikwon’s request.”
That was explosive.
If word spread beyond the training ground, it’d be a wildfire.
All eyes turned to Grand Prince Ikwon.
What would the wastrel prince say?
Heo Seokkyeok instinctively sensed something shifting, but he couldn’t yet grasp what.