There were various ways to make a person uncomfortable.
There was beating them up, and there was torturing them. But Wei Yan-ho had just learned of a new method.
This method was much more moderate than any method he had known thus far, but in other respects, it made a person subtly more irritated than any method he had ever experienced.
"…Why are you looking at me with those eyes?"
There wouldn't be many people who could remain indifferent to nearly ten people simultaneously pressuring them with their gazes. Wei Yan-ho thought of himself as a very indifferent person, but right now, those gazes made even Wei Yan-ho flinch.
"So why are you looking at me with those eyes? I'm asking."
Jang-il, who had been glaring at Wei Yan-ho wordlessly for a long time, opened his mouth.
"I'm not blaming you."
"Huh?"
"You don't blame a chicken for not being able to fly in the sky. You don't curse at a raccoon for digging burrows, asking why it digs burrows."
"What are you talking about?"
"I knew you would naturally cause trouble if you entered the Imperial Palace, but it was our fault for having even a sliver of faith and not running away. We should have fled without looking back."
"Is that a compliment?"
"It's an insult! You damned bastard!"
Jang-il sprang up like lightning and pressed himself against the bars, thunk thunk, hitting them with his head.
"How is it that you have no sense of unpredictability! How is it that you don't deviate from expectations by even a single inch!"
"People die if they do things they've never done before."
"Then just die! You damned bastard!"
"Wow, I'm hurt."
"Grrrrrgh!"
Wei Jeong-han comforted Jang-il, who was making groaning sounds.
"Calm down. I know it's hard to be rational given the situation, but they say that even if you're dragged into a tiger's den, you just need to keep your wits about you…"
"This isn't a tiger's den, it's the Imperial Palace prison, Grand Hero! If you keep your wits about you here, your head flies off!"
"Is, is that so?"
Wei Jeong-han glared at Wei Yan-ho with murderous eyes.
"Damned son!"
"I'm telling you I'm innocent."
"Innocent? Innocent?"
Wei Jeong-han took off his shoe and threw it at Wei Yan-ho.
"You crazy bastard! I could tolerate rebelling over most things. But you hit the Crown Prince? The Crown Prince? You should have rather hit the Emperor, you crazy bastard!"
"Ah, I told you I didn't know he was the Crown Prince!"
"Then why do you keep your eyes open! Why! You should rather walk around with your eyes closed! What kind of wind blew for a guy who usually stays holed up in his room corner and never goes anywhere, to come out of his room and create this disaster!"
Wei Jeong-han could understand exactly what it meant when they said your insides burn up. Looking at Wei Yan-ho, from his esophagus to his stomach, everything was literally burning as if he had swallowed a lump of coal.
"I thought that someday our family would face ruin because of you, but I never thought it would be like this! High treason, you crazy bastard!"
"Then why did you get captured so obediently! You should have come and rescued me!"
"If we spirit away someone imprisoned in the palace prison for high treason, it's as good as admitting guilt beyond any doubt, so you're telling us to do that! Do you want to live as fugitives for life! How would we face our ancestors when we die!"
"Well, our ancestors would probably prefer us to survive by running away rather than dying like this. They say even rolling around in a dung field is better than dying."
"Kraaaagh!"
Wei Jeong-han, who could no longer endure it, smashed the door of his cell and rushed toward the one where Wei Yan-ho was.
"Guard! Guarrrrd! A prisoner is escaping!"
"Come out! Won't you come out?"
As Wei Jeong-han began pounding on the prison where Wei Yan-ho was, guards came running and began calming Wei Jeong-han down.
"P-please calm down."
"You can't do this here."
"You can't come out of the prison. You can't break the prison door either."
Wei Jeong-han roared.
"I know! I know that! I'll just beat up that bastard son and then go back, so move aside. It'll just take a moment! Ah, geez, I'm not going to run away! I'll just take care of my business and go back in, so let me out for a moment! Won't you come out?"
"Guard! Guard! A prisoner is escaping! A prisoner!"
The head guard watched that scene quietly and smiled contentedly.
"What a mess."
What a mess indeed.
***
"It was an unfortunate accident."
Cold sweat flowed down Lee Wang-ya's forehead.
'This stupid fool.'
He knows. He knows it.
This is Nok-gi's scheme.
There was no reason for a prince to frequent that place without wearing imperial robes and in ordinary clothes. Surely Nok-gi had lured the prince there, saying there was something interesting. Then Wei Yan-ho played right into Nok-gi's scripted scenario.
If there had been even the slightest possibility, he should have warned Wei Yan-ho in advance. But he too had never imagined that Nok-gi would scheme in such a way.
'Cunning bastard.'
Though Nok-gi was bowing his head across from him, Lee Wang-ya didn't miss the subtle smile on Nok-gi's face. He was showing his smile only to him, invisible to the Emperor sitting on the throne.
Suppressing his rising fury, Lee Wang-ya bowed his head even deeper.
"Wei Yan-ho is a person of Jianghu. People of Jianghu cannot help but be ignorant of the Imperial Court's protocols. So…" [TL/N: Jianghu refers to the hidden world of martial artists, wanderers, and secret factions that exist outside official society in Chinese martial arts fiction, in this context it is derogatory]
"Is Your Highness trying to slight His Majesty?"
When Nok-gi opened his mouth, Lee Wang-ya's face contorted.
"Slight!"
"Then how can you say such words?"
"What is wrong with what I said?"
"In this world, there is not a single blade of grass or rolling stone that does not belong to the Son of Heaven. Even if he is a person of Jianghu, he is naturally His Majesty's subject! If he entered the Imperial Court, he should naturally learn Imperial Court etiquette. To say that His Majesty should consider that a subject has not learned etiquette is a wicked crime that slights the Imperial Court's protocols established by the sages and, furthermore, damages His Majesty's dignity."
"Ugh…"
Lee Wang-ya let out a groan.
He cannot match that bastard with words.
"Moreover, I heard that criminal is someone Your Highness brought in. Am I wrong?"
"That is so…"
"Someone Your Highness brought in attempted to assassinate His Highness the Crown Prince. There must be a reason why you used irregular means to bring in someone who should naturally follow Imperial Court protocols, mustn't there?"
"That's not it!"
"Then why?"
"…That person was quite lacking in knowledge of etiquette…"
Thunk!
Nok-gi stomped the floor hard.
"If he lacks knowledge of etiquette, then even if it takes a thousand days or ten thousand days, making him learn etiquette before bringing him to the Imperial Palace is the natural duty of one who serves His Majesty! Etiquette is the natural way to express loyalty. I cannot understand bringing someone who cannot properly do even that one thing before His Majesty. How could you do such a thing unless you had other intentions!"
"Other intentions?"
Nok-gi quietly stared at Lee Wang-ya and said.
"If His Highness the Crown Prince had actually lost his life, what would the Imperial Palace be like right now?"
"You insolent wretch!"
Lee Wang-ya shouted with a face flushed red with rage to the very end.
The current Emperor had produced several children, but among them, there was only one male, the Crown Prince. If the Crown Prince died, the one to inherit the throne would be Lee Wang-ya.
"Are you saying now that I orchestrated this to covet imperial power?"
"I never said such a thing. However, you cannot deny that the situation is rolling in that direction."
"You bastard to be killed!"
Lee Wang-ya's beard trembled flutter flutter.
"Of course."
Nok-gi slightly shifted the atmosphere.
"I do not doubt Your Highness's loyalty to His Majesty. Your Highness, who has given up even the authority you possessed to devote your loyalty to the Imperial Court, could not possibly do such a thing."
Suspicion filled Lee Wang-ya's eyes.
What trick is that cunning bastard trying to pull by saying such words?
"However, if you continue to protect that person, I cannot help but be suspicious. Does Your Highness consider your personal friendship with that person more important than the fact that His Highness the Crown Prince was nearly assassinated?"
"That, that is…"
Lee Wang-ya's face darkened.
This is checkmate.
If he continues to protect Wei Yan-ho here, he might avoid responsibility for the assassination attempt, but he cannot avoid criticism for turning against the Crown Prince because of personal friendship. That was a matter of loyalty.
If his loyalty comes to be doubted, all his power will fly away, and having lost power, he will no longer be able to check Nok-gi.
All those who follow him will be marked and eliminated, and the Emperor will become Nok-gi's puppet.
'Such a thing must never happen.'
Right now, Nok-gi is forcing him to choose.
Will he sacrifice Wei Yan-ho and escape with only a small loss of influence, or will he save Wei Yan-ho instead and fall from grace?
'There's nothing to even think about.'
Lee Wang-ya bit his lips firmly.
He had devoted his entire life to the Imperial Court. It had been a life devoted solely to the Imperial Court's peace and the Central Plains' tranquility. But now, to watch the Imperial Court be toyed with in Nok-gi's hands because of a connection with some young man?
That could never happen.
Wei Yan-ho's words seemed to echo in his ears.
"My master said that all those political bastards have black hearts inside, so I should never trust them."
'You were right.'
Lee Wang-ya laughed hollowly.
At the time, those were words that made him angry, but seeing how things had turned out, he too could not escape from being one of those politicians with black hearts inside. Only now did he realize that the saying about sacrificing the small for the great was no different from saying one could trample innocent people for a purpose.
"Will you still continue to protect that person?"
Lee Wang-ya raised his head.
Seeing Nok-gi's confident face made Lee Wang-ya's insides boil.
'I'll step back just this once.'
Even if he abandons Wei Yan-ho, Wei Yan-ho won't die. He was a martial artist with few rivals under heaven. If he set his mind to it, escaping from this place wouldn't be difficult. So for now, he'll give up Wei Yan-ho here and help him escape, then slowly restore him to grace later. He can do anything once he eliminates Nok-gi.
There would be no need to feel guilty. This is Nok-gi's…
At that moment, all the strength drained from Lee Wang-ya's body.
'Is that so.'
Yes, this is what Nok-gi used to do often.
When those who had schemed according to his instructions were discovered and faced the crisis of execution, he would thoroughly cut them off. Hadn't he heard countless times the curses those being dragged to the execution ground hurled at Nok-gi?
They say that those who face monsters become monsters themselves, and while facing Nok-gi, he too had begun to resemble Nok-gi without knowing it.
"Grand Uncle."
Lee Wang-ya suddenly raised his head and looked at the Emperor. His dignified eyes sitting on the dragon throne gazed at Lee Wang-ya.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Answer me. Is your position that the safety of that Jianghu ruffian is more important than the Crown Prince being injured?"
It was a direct question.
And it was a direct statement.
Within those words lay the will that he would never tolerate it if the desired answer did not come out.
How could he not know that intention when he had served the Emperor for more than a year or two?
Lee Wang-ya smiled slightly.
Lee Wang-ya slightly turned his head and saw Moon Yu-hwan looking at him from one corner of the great hall.
'I don't necessarily have to be the leader. Right?'
The moment Moon Yu-hwan noticed something and reached out his hand, Lee Wang-ya's mouth opened.