Those of Us Alone

Chapter 52: Festivities Ended

Midori's POV

It is the day after the festival.

To say that General Geun-tae's team got annihilated after his plate was broken would probably be the understatement of the year. But, of course, we couldn't have let Geun-tae lose completely, so when points were tallied, the General pulled out the win against Soo-won's team.

It wasn't really all that exciting for me - I did help plan everything out, after all - but it was fun to see how the teams differed in battle strategies.

But as of right now, I am sitting next to the king and drinking more tea.

"Well~~" speaking of the king, "It was a fun festival, wasn't it?"

Geun-tae had this look of disbelief written across his face, but Chul was the one to respond to Soo-won, "It really was! I started to learn martial arts after that match!" Chul was still outspoken around all of us, "I'm still not very good at it, though. . ."

A kind aura was being exuded from Soo-won, "That's nice."

"IT'S NOT NICE!" The general slammed his fists down onto the table - rattling the cups that were on top of it. He must have been finally reaching his limit on how much crap he'd allow the king to do with very-little-to-no explanation.

But being who he is, Soo-won faked innocence, "What's the matter, General Geun-tae?"

"What are you angry for?" Even Chul was on Geun-tae's case, but then again, Chul wasn't quite aware of the king's ability to manipulate.

I take a sip of tea, but stay out of the conversation as the earth general speaks again, "What did you come here for, Your Majesty?" Glancing between the two, I sigh as Geun-tae continues, "You come to the castle, you wander around it aimlessly, you have tea with my wife, you make a racket at the festival - aren't you just fooling around?!" 

Oh, if only you knew what the point of this trip was.

Though the comments were highly disrespectful, Soo-won brushed them off without a second thought, "General Geun-tae, you've become similar to General Joo-doh."

"I don't want to be lumped together with him!"

"Lord Geun-tae! Lord Geun-tae!" Yun-ho came running around the corner.

Though the Lady of the Earth Tribe had become a good friend of mine over the past few days, Soo-won spoke softly to me, distracting myself from Yun-ho's news, "Sounds like your plan worked."

I scoffed quietly, "As if you thought it wouldn't have."

His shoulders shook from silent laughter, but rather than continue our conversation, Soo-won was apparently multi-tasking and spoke up to answer Yun-ho's question, "It's okay as long as it grows little by little." Regardless of the fact that Yun-ho was seven years mine and Soo-won's senior, he Kindly lectured her on how to run a business, "Don't sell it in large quantities. If you sell it as a special high grade tea of Chi'shin, people will flock to Capital Chi'shin."

"If you use souvenirs and special packaging," I say, offering some advise of my own, "you could really get the word out about the tea."

Soo-won nodded - as if to agree with everything I just said, "And besides, people are beings who desperately covet things that are hard to get."

Yun-ho smiled gleefully, "Yes, Your Majesty." 

"Lord Geun-tae! Lord Geun-tae!" It was the old man from earlier this week, Hee-dae. "The mines! The Udo Mines are in trouble!"

I smile softly, gazing at the two's exchange, you make it sound like it's a bad thing.

Just as the thought crossed my mind, Geun-tae spoke with concern, "Old Man Hee-dae. Was there another cave in?!"

The old man shook his head as he began to explain that there weren't enough workers. It seems that the jewelry was a good touch, as anyone who lived within the walls of Chi'shin wanted a jewel that their General wore when he won the battle.

I sipped on what remained of my tea, but I caught a knowing glance shot my way by the king.

Before any of the Earth Tribesmen could stop us, Soo-won and I set down our cups and stood - making a silent exit. Only when we passed by the Tribesmen guarding the gate did we announce that we had stayed long enough.

~~~~~

"Seriously, you . . ." Joo-doh accusingly spoke at Soo-won, "Just how far did you calculate?"

Traveling arrangements hadn't changed any, so I was still riding with the king. I guess it was somewhat less awkward, since we did spend most of the time we were in Chi'shin together. 

Therefore, I could feel his laughter - as I was leaning back on his chest - as he spoke, "But don't you think it was constrictive?" I played with the little blue necklace - that I hadn't taken off since the day of the mock battle - as he continued, "Without knowing how much influence he has over the people . . . He's been idling by day by day."

As General Joo-doh has shown, he seems to like arguing, "I'm really unsure about the Earth Tribe." I snicker, but other than that, I don't interrupt, "What's so good about that ill-mannered man?"

"General," I say in a sing-song voice, "it's not nice to question the sanity of the Earth Tribe based on its leader."

More laughter comes from the king, "I like General Geun-tae, and that makes me want him even more." He pulled the horse to a stop, as well as accidentally - I assume - dropping his hands (and the reins) on top of my own, which were resting in my lap, "If . . . We'll have to take measures to fight for real sometime in the future . . ."

I slightly stiffen, sure Kouka had lost some land under King Il, but I hadn't realized we were so close to a war - of sorts. Though, with a coup like the one Soo-won pulled . . . the shift in the monarchy could cause enough unrest for an enemy to swoop in and take the Kingdom. . .

Soo-won's right hand grasped my own as he continued, "The morale of the Earth Tribe Soldiers he will command will probably be the strongest among the five tribes. That power will become Kouka's strength, without a doubt."

________________________________________________________________________________

HELLO, EVERYONE!!!!

I know it's been a while, and this really isn't much more than the chapter that is in the manga, but I thought that I needed to update.

I know I said I'd do Hak's POV, but . . . I couldn't figure it out. I'll leave it to a later date.

. . . It's not like I'm ending this book soon anyway. . .

ALSO! I should warn y'all that I am about to start another semester of college, so like normal, updates will probably be sparse. . . sorry :(

Anyway . . . I hope you enjoy the chapter!

~Ashley