Chapter sixty-seven: Found at last.

The imperial palace undertook a tremendous change. Guards whose origin are questionable were removed and placed on probation. The imperial family were never left on their own even when they sleep.

Prince Song, together with few officials set out on the quest for peace. The guards following him were top grade assassins disguised as foot soldiers trained on the mission of life and death. The life of a royal prince is always top priority even if he's unfavored.

Meanwhile, the spies the prime minister sent to infiltrate the Dajin hinterland has arrived and blended with the people as goodwill passers-by .

Holding unto the sketch of the one they were seeking for, they secretly asked after a certain beauty who moved to live there for at least two years down. The father's portrait was also showed to identify the father of the girl at least.

One shrewd man suspiciously observed the strange man asking after the Kim family and couldn't help but ask why he was looking for them.

"He's my brother". The man replied cautiously and went on to explain that he received information that he was living around there and came to find him.

The man wasn't fully convinced and told him that a series of family go by the name 'Kim' , if he's really looking for his brother then he should go house to house and ask.

The spy wanted to argue with the man when a hand held him firmly on the shoulder and restrained him. He turned around and saw their leader looking at him aggressively.

"Be subtle and gentle when asking for information, don't ruin the mission". The man cupped his hands on his chest and bowed. "Yes Master".

The master looked around and observed the map in the fur bag she was holding. "Hmm, this looks interesting". She folded the map and made a bird call.

The remaining spies gathered around her in the shadows and listened attentively. " We are changing plan, gather by 7 pm at the beach for change of strategy". The shadows heard the instruction and left, blending with the people.

At nightfall, the spies gathered at the designated location and waited for the boss to arrive. Just then, a young girl rushed towards the beach making them hide.

"Where is it... where is it?". She whined while using her feet to search for something in the sandy soil. Crouching down she exclaimed, she seems to have found what she was looking for. She washed the object in the water and ran back home humming.

A silhouette appeared from behind the rock she stood a minute ago and whistled, the men gathered before her expecting an instruction.

"I know that girl, follow her ". She commanded while pointing a finger at the man adjacent to her right hand.

The young lady whistling a soft song suddenly felt that someone was following her, turning around she found no one much to her chagrin. Must be the chilly wind she told herself and went directly to their compound.

The man left after confirming her location.

The boss smiled and asked them to disperse. She will take it from there.

Dressing herself in a full black attire and black mask, she went towards the house and entered through the backdoor. With the aid of the darkness , she concealed herself and went in through an open window to find someone lying still on the bed, probably asleep.

Stealthily, she moved closer to get the face of the person when she noticed a movement. Due to her quick reflex, she blocked the dagger with her sword and fled through the window. The attacker made to chase after her but gave it a second thought, if this person came to kill him then there might be others around.

He quickly shrugged into his outer cloth and drew his long sword while rushing out to make sure no one in the family has been attacked. Heaving a sigh of relief, he watched the outer house for any sign of movement, getting none he still didn't get back to sleep. He stood guard outside the house while watching the whole compound to make sure nobody other than him was outside. A slight movement appeared at the corner of his eyes revealing Seohwa who was grumbling about something.

"Seohwa?"

The girl startled apparently not expecting anyone to be outside, but blushed when she heard that voice. Luckily for her, the darkness served as a cover to hide it.

"... why are you still awake... remember master said we should sleep early for the fishing expedition tomorrow morning". He inquired lovingly.

"Miss said I should get wolfsbane for her. I wonder why she suddenly has an interest in medicine". she complained.

His heart warmed at her sight but remembering the danger, he told her to get in quickly. Confused at his sudden outburst, she asked him what was wrong and he narrated what occurred.

"Oh my gosh! while returning from the beach, I felt a presence behind me but I saw no one when I turned back". She covered her hands with her mouth while expressing her shock. Afraid that something bad might happen, she made to rush back in when Jae joon held her hands, warming her heart.

"No matter what happens, I will protect you... I promise". She became touched with emotions and smiled. "I know you will". She hugged him a goodnight and left.

The next morning, the matter was reported to Mr Kim who dismissed it as a case of burglary. Jae joon argued that the person's reflex was too quick to be a regular thief but his opinion was discarded making him give up.

The expedition was commenced against the disapproval of Jae joon who wanted to stay back and protect the women at home. The spy from last night who was observing their exchange from the tiny hole in the wall smiled when she saw the face of the man they have been looking for. Finally, the rat has been rooted out.

The courier bird that always flew above her perched on her shoulder when she whistled thrice. Removing a tiny piece of paper, she scrawled down the information. "The fledgling has been found".

Taking one last look at the compound, she decided to leave but met face to face with the young girl she met two years ago looking at her suspiciously. "Why are you peeping at my house?".

The female spy reached for her small dagger when something occurred to her. There seems to be confusion here, why is there no sense of familiarity in the girl's eyes and she's not faking it.

"Did you really forget me that fast?". She asked while observing the girl, her hands still holding unto the dagger hidden in her waist sash.

"Am I supposed to know you?". Yoona asked clearly confused. The female spy smiled and shook her head.

"Sorry... mistaken identity". she left abruptly.

Yoona released a withheld breath from her stomach. For some unknown reason, she could swear she got scared. Her intuition screamed danger while facing the lady but in order not to alert the lady, especially as her identity is unknown, she pretended to be oblivious.