Morning came softly.
Mist lingered between the trees, pale and hushed, clinging to bark and breath alike, as though the forest itself wished to forget what had been bled into its soil years ago.
Inside the cabin, Bella stirred before the sun fully claimed the sky. She stretched beneath her cloak and released a quiet sigh, already awake, already thinking. Across the small room, Ji-ho sat rigid on a low stool, spine straight as a spear, eyes fixed very deliberately on the far wall.
The silence between them was thick, heavy with things said, and things carefully avoided.
Bella noticed first.
She glanced at him, lips twitching, then shook her head with a small, almost fond laugh.
"Relax," she said lightly. "You know you can look at me, right? You look like you're about to face an execution."
Ji-ho flinched, shoulders tightening. "About last night-"
She cut him off at once, waving a dismissive hand. "It was a joke. A bad one, maybe. I shouldn't have startled you like that." She rose, pulling her cloak around her shoulders.
"You clean up. I'll step outside."
At the door, she paused, then added casually, as though it mattered less than it truly did, "And for the record? You didn't do anything wrong."
The door closed behind her.
Ji-ho exhaled shakily, shoulders sagging as if a weight had been lifted, though not entirely gone. Shame still clung to him, quiet and stubborn.
When they set out later that morning, the awkwardness followed like lingering fog. Ji-ho walked half a step behind Bella, head bowed, hands clasped too tightly at his sides.
Bella noticed. Again.
"You know," she said without turning, "where I'm from, no one would make such a big deal out of that."He stiffened.
"It's stress," she continued calmly. "Fear. Relief. Your body trying to survive. That doesn't make you weak. Or dishonorable."
Ji-ho swallowed. "In the palace… even desire feels like a crime."
She stopped walking and turned to face him.
"Then maybe the palace is wrong about a lot of things."
Their eyes met. Something fragile, but not broken, settled between them.
The rebels returned before noon.
Han Dae-su emerged from the trees with several scouts, his expression grave. "We'll guide you out quietly," he said. "But first, someone wishes to meet you."
They traveled deeper into the forest, far beyond hunting trails and trade paths, until the trees parted to reveal a hidden encampment.
Low tents were arranged in careful order, smoke rising faintly from concealed fires. Armed men and women watched silently, hands never straying far from their weapons.
At the center stood a worn pavilion.
Beneath it waited an older man with iron-gray hair tied back in a warrior's knot, his posture straight despite the years carved into his face. He wore no crown, no insignia; yet authority clung to him like a second skin.
The moment his eyes fell on Ji-ho, the man went utterly still.
Bella felt it, the shift in the air, sharp and electric.
"…Your Highness," the man said hoarsely.
Ji-ho froze.
The man dropped to one knee. "I am Kang Mu-yeol," he said, voice rough with memory.
"Former Captain of the Royal Guard. Servant to the rightful king."
Ji-ho's breath caught. "My father's brother," he whispered.
Kang Mu-yeol rose slowly, his gaze flicking briefly; sharply, to Bella.
The look was not unkind, but it was wary. Measuring.
Ji-ho followed the glance and understood at once.
"She stays," Ji-ho said firmly. "Anything you say, you say before her. She is my right hand. I trust her with my life."
Bella met Kang Mu-yeol's stare without flinching, calm and unyielding.
After a long moment, Kang inclined his head. "Very well."
He turned back to Ji-ho, and the past finally broke free.
"The coup began at dusk," Kang said, his voice lowering. "The Prime Minister moved faster than we expected. He poisoned the court with lies, turned commanders with gold and threats. By the time we realized what was happening, the palace gates were already sealed."
Kang's eyes darkened as memory took hold.
"The rightful king, your uncle, ordered me to take his family and flee through the western passage. He gave me a name that night," Kang said, his voice breaking just slightly. "He said, 'Live, Mu-yeol. Live, so the truth survives.'"
Bella saw it then, the flashback etched across his face.
Torches burning against palace stone. Screams echoing through marble halls. Steel ringing against steel as loyal guards clashed with men they had once called brothers.
"We reached the forest," Kang continued. "Thought we had escaped. But the Prime Minister anticipated us. He sent your father's guards, men sworn not to the crown, but to him."
His hands curled into fists.
"They slaughtered them in the brush. The queen. The children. Cut down like animals."
Ji-ho's knees nearly gave way.
"I fought," Kang said. "Gods help me, I fought.
Took a blade through the side. Another through the shoulder. I only lived because I fell into a ditch, blood and mud hiding me while they passed."
Silence reigned, broken only by the wind in the trees.
"And the king?" Ji-ho asked quietly.
Kang closed his eyes. "Cornered against his throne. Refused to kneel. They killed him there, beneath the banners he raised."
When Kang opened his eyes again, fire burned within them. "Your father was crowned over corpses. A king in name only. The Prime Minister holds the leash."
Ji-ho straightened, grief hardening into resolve. "Then that leash will be cut."
Kang studied him long and carefully… then nodded. "Then you are not your father."
Plans were discussed in low voices, evidence gathered, allies named, movements whispered like prayers. Bella listened, finally understanding how deep the rot ran.
They parted by dusk.
As Bella and Ji-ho made their way back toward the capital road, the forest grew unnaturally quiet.
Bella's hand went to her weapon.
"Someone's following us," she murmured.
Hooves thundered suddenly from the trees.
Bella spun, ready to strike, until a familiar voice rang out.
"Your Highness!"
Captain Poong Yeon burst into view, reins pulled hard, eyes wide with relief. "You're safe. By the heavens, you're safe."
Ji-ho stepped forward at once, gripping his arm. "I'm alive because of her."
Poong Yeon dismounted and bowed deeply to Bella. "Then I owe you my life as well."
For the first time in days, Ji-ho felt something steady take root in his chest.
The road ahead remained dangerous.
But he was no longer walking it blind.
And beside him, Bella walked on, unchanged, unafraid, and still choosing to stay.
But the battle was yet to be won, and I intend to win it.