The Only Candidate

It's literally just one day away before the Third Prince is crowned the next King of Koryo but up till now, the governors still won't stop asking the King to make the Third Prince get a new wife.

No matter how many times the King denied their plea, all the governors had teamed up and would find a way to persuade him to do so.

Outraged with the non-stop pleas of his governors, the King had decided that he had enough of it and called the Third Prince in for a discussion over tea.

"Greetings to you, Your Majesty. Your son, the Third Prince, has come to meet you as you have requested." Joo Won bowed to the king, as a sign of respect.

"Lift up your head. You don't have to be too formal with me today. Sit here and drink tea with me. I have something to talk about with you."

Honestly, Joo Won already knows what his father wanted to talk about with him. It's not that hard to figure when people have been chasing him day and night for the same damn reason.

"I'm sorry to say this, but I can't and I won't do whatever you ask of me, father. Not this time. Anything but asking me to marry another. I will not accept and agree with anyone being my Queen except Yuna. You know that right?"

The King just looks at his son and smiles before nodding his head. He had already expected this reaction from him.

"My son. I understand but others won't. They never will be able to understand us because they're not the same as us. So, no matter what your decision is, you still have to marry someone else. And that's final."

Joo Won clench his fist and gritted his teeth in anger at his father's decision. He couldn't believe that the only person he hoped would understand him would side with all those useless beings.

Just why must his father make him the next King? He clearly had told him that he wasn't interested and just wanted to spend the rest of his life with Yuna by his side. That was enough for him.

He didn't need a throne, people worshipping him, and all this power that comes with it. Hell, he didn't even want a title of a prince at all. All he wanted was Yuna.

The girl that would carelessly sacrifice her life for him without even knowing what he was or who he was. Above all, she didn't even ask anything in return for it. How humble and kind-hearted she was.

To him, the world is such a cruel and dirty place for someone like Yuna. Someone like her who was pure and sweet deserves to be in a better place and should be given everything that was deserving of her.

But that wasn't how the world works. Here, it's all about the hierarchy and status. Without it, one would be worthless and considered trash.

And that is exactly what those worthless beings see her as. That's why they couldn't accept someone like her as their Queen and condemn her of every little thing so as to make her give up.

But of course, Joo Won knows that his father's words are absolute and he must abide by them, even if it's against his will.

"Fine. If that is what you insist, there's nothing I can do. But please, promise me that you would not interfere with whatever happens after the marriage. And leave Yuna alone because whatever that will happen is not going to be her doing, but mine."

The King looks at his son and nod his head in amusement. He didn't expect his son would agree on this fast. But what he was sure of is that he's agreeing to all this because of that girl and for the sake of her safety.

The length his son would go just for that girl shows that their 'link' is stronger than he thought they were. But surprisingly, he couldn't sense anything from them as if there weren't any 'link' between them to begin with.

"So father, who is this person daring enough to marry me just for mere sake of a title? Doesn't she value her life? I guess the title and status are more important to her. I can't believe they agree to make someone greedy like her as their new Queen."

"Well, her name is Kim Hye In and she's the only daughter of Chief Commander Kim. Since he returned victorious from the latest war, he requested to make his daughter a candidate. Little did he know that she was the only candidate we've got."

Joo Won looks at his father suspiciously as if reading him. He knows how much his father hates Chief Kim. So why would he wanted him to marry his daughter if he doesn't already have a plan?

"Okay... So why Chief Kim's daughter? Are you trying to restrain him or to hold his daughter as hostage? What are you planning father?"

The King laugh for a moment before taking a sip of his tea.

"This is why I like you most. You know exactly what I'm thinking. Since you already have an inkling as to what I want to do, might as well I tell you everything."

"You know how I'm currently keeping an eye on Chief Kim right? I found that he has a lot of illegal dealings and he took almost eighty percent of the military's funding that I recently gave out to prep for the war."

The look on Joo Won's face turn serious as he heard what his father had said. How dare someone like him takes advantage of the military's funding for his own benefit. A greedy guy like him deserves to be boiled alive.

"And now that he supposedly won the war, he decided that he wants to make his daughter the next Queen and gain more power for himself. Well, that might be a good thing for us since he doesn't realize that by doing so, his daughter will be in a venerable situation where we could use as leverage against him one day."

"Currently, I have sent someone to gather all the evidence of Chief Kim's illegal dealings and frauds that he has done. Once I've got hold of them, I want you to present it to him and get rid of him for good. I don't need a greedy pig as my minister in my palace."

Hearing the plan his father had for Chief Kim, Joo Won smile in satisfaction. Oh, how he can't wait to see the look on his face when he slaughters his whole family in front of him.