Wolf's Den ✓

Chapter Forty-Four

"What do you mean?" asked the king in outright challenge and disbelief. He rose himself, his brows creased. "He's gone?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so," acknowledged the warden, out of breath. "I had come to his office to convey instruction, but the room was empty of his presence and his accouterments — and I truly do not know of the cause of his hasty absence."

"How about Chul, his right-hand man, then?" questioned the queen, her back straight, the woman very much attentive and heedful. "Truly, I suppose he grasps knowledge as to where Lee has gone off to — he is the chief's closest manservant, after all."

"I deeply apologise, Your Highness," conceded the man, his head bent low. He gazed at the floor beneath him, seeking for the proper statement to speak. "But — I believe he had gone off with the chief himself, too."

"What?!" exclaimed the king, his hand on top of his head. He walked around, pausing in front of the gigantic windows inside the chamber. "What should we do, then?"

"He must have acknowledged the fact that we were apt to disclose what we know of to both the king and queen," murmured Y/N, her hands shaking in anxiety and fear. She faced back, gazing at the prince behind her.

"I truly am sorry, Jeongguk," apologized the girl, her hands reaching towards the young man's. "If I had gone sooner, we could have had caught the chief — and we could have had disclosed all his crimes and malpractices. If we had grasped that chance, we could have had won against that man and all his dirty acts."

Jeongguk looked front in confusion, his hands leaving the Y/N's as they found their way towards her cheeks, then cradling them. He gazed deeply into the young woman's eyes in comfort — a small, sincere smile then forming on his face. He then murmured, "It's not your fault, Y/N. It never was, truly."

"That boorish man," condemned the king, his fists on top of a table. "What could he have thought — that he thinks it's alright to leave all of a sudden? Had he truly lost his mind?"

After a few moments of utter silence, with no knowledge of efficient plans whatsoever, the door, once again, had been pushed open, several soldiers then walking inside the chamber. They stopped, bowing as they gazed at the royalties in the room.

"I truly apologise, Your Highnesses," sighed one of them, his back slumped. He held his sword, his eyes filled with regret and worry. "But as we checked the palace, we had lost quite a number of soldiers."

"What?! We lost a number of soldiers?! How is that possible?!" exclaimed the king once again, his fists slamming onto the table. "Not only did we lose the chief himself and his right-hand man, but we had lost soldiers, too?!"

"I'm afraid so, My King," answered one of the soldiers once again, his head bent low. "We do not know of the cause, Your Highness — but we had come to the conclusion that they had left along with the chief."

"Why would they?" asked the queen, her brows furrowed. She tapped her finger, seeking for the rightful answer. She truly did not expect these events to happen — Jeongguk, her very own son, admitting to have set his belief on Y/N, the abrupt disappearance of the chief, and the utter loss of their soldiers. All of these — did they share a common cause?

Y/N had accused the chief — that he was the reason why all this mess had happened, that he was not to be trusted no more, and that he held unfavourable outcomes in his hand. After she had done this, the warden had announcd him lost, that he was nowhere to be found, and that his office did not grasp any trace of him. And lastly, along with his flee, the soldiers had disappeared, too. Truly, all these events come forthwith to one, main cause — and that was Lee Mal-chin himself.

"Could it be..?" mumbled the queen, her eyes lighting up in realisation and understanding.

"What is it, dear?" inquired the king, facing back at his wife, his eyes full of anguish and curiosity.

"Lee Mal-chin," murmured the queen, her face filled with shock and surprise. "I now know for a fact that the chief had caused all this."

"But why, exactly?" asked the king, tilting his head as he waited for the answer. "He had served us all these years, why would he suddenly wish to do all this?"

"Well," started Jeongguk, walking towards both his parents. With his back straight, and his head up, he then bellowed, "If your kingdom had been destroyed, and your father had killed himself because of a certain individual, would you not want to avenge them? If your future had seemed so clear, so seemingly bright and trustworthy — and if this future of yours had been destroyed by the same person and of the same reason, would you not grasp the wish to crush him, too?"

"He had kept all his chagrin and displeasure inside him throughout the years he had served us — and as he did so, he walked one step closer to his success, our end," affirmed Jeongguk, his gaze dark and sincere.

As he said this, loud rings had enclaved the room, the soldiers inside frantically running out the chamber. The four looked outside the gigantic windows, pausing before taking in what was happening outside. The warden ran out, screaming in agony and nervousness. The servants, too, sprinted around the place in fear.

Y/N gazed at the individuals around her, acknowledging the fact that each of their eyes had turned gold. What was the sounds from the bells telling them, you ask? It was quite easy to know, for the next thing the young woman knew, Jeongguk had had his hands stretched out, veins visible. For a moment, she had forgotten that she was in a room full of beasts, creatures that held the power to tear an individual apart in a short amount of time.

Y/N looked front, her palms sweating. She heard screams outside, along with the clamor of weapons. A war was about to happen, and she was sure of it.

Author's Note:

The people when they realise that the chief was behind everything:

And to everyone out there:

Okay bye