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In hindsight, Su-won should have known that something was wrong as soon as Keishuk proposed a trip into the city. The adviser had always disapproved of Su-won’s incognito missions, or even of things as simple as going out to meet with Ogi, so why should he suddenly change his mind? Even if it was supposedly due to some urgent business that Ogi needed to discuss face-to-face.
“But I will accompany Your Majesty,” Keishuk had said. “This way, at least I will not have to wait in the palace and fret, and also I’ll keep an eye on you.”
Su-won had no objections, and so, two hours later, it occurred to him he really had been careless. Keishuk had questionable methods and liked to act on his own, but other than that, he was fiercely loyal, so Su-won had not expected treason from him. And yet, as soon as they entered one of the most frequented inns in Kuuto, three men whose faces Su-won vaguely recognized as Ogi’s subordinates surrounded him.
“What is this about?” Su-won asked. The men didn’t attempt to lay a finger on him, and yet their aura was threatening. He looked each of them in the eye, and while they shuffled uncomfortably, they didn’t back off.
Keishuk cleared his throat. “I’ve had a chat with Mr. Ogi, and it turned out that we have similar concerns,” he said. “About your love life, or rather, about the lack of thereof.”
Perhaps it wasn’t treason in the legal sense of the word, but still Su-won felt betrayed. Why would the two of them gossip about him behind his back?
“And?” Su-won asked.
“And,” Keishuk said, “we decided that perhaps you lack certain skills. Hence, today you will not leave here until you have picked up a girl.”
The three men all flexed their muscles in agreement. Looking between them, Su-won had a sense of drowning. The situation was so bizarre, it didn’t even feel real.
“What does it matter if I have the skill or not?” he asked, irritated. “My marriage will be strictly political, I don’t have to have any dating skills for that.”
Keishuk raised his eyebrows. “And what about after the marriage? Knowing you, I’d not be surprised if you treated your wife like a friend!”
Su-won frowned. How else was he supposed to treat another person?
“If we let things continue as they are,” Keishuk’s tone had a sense of finality, “You likely won’t get an heir even
after
you marry, and that, Kouka cannot accept!”
Looking at his resolute expression, Su-won decided that arguing any further wouldn’t be of any use. But he didn’t intent to pick up a girl – just thinking about such an indecent thing already made his cheeks burn – so he had to find another way out. Somehow.
For now, he let out a sigh that was supposed to sound like an admission of defeat. “I see you are all dedicated,” he said. “I suppose I have no choice but to order a drink.”
Keishuk’s brow furrowed; perhaps he was surprised that Su-won gave up so quickly.
“But, I’ll be lonely if I go by myself,” Su-won added. “How about you join me, Keishuk?”
After all, he only had to deal with four men to get out of here – nothing more and nothing less. Getting one of them drunk would make his task easier.
“I’ll watch from a distance,” Keishuk said dryly. “If you want company, there’s plenty of pretty women to choose from.”
Su-won stifled a sigh. Clearly Keishuk kept his guard up, but then, the evening was just beginning. Many things could happen.
He put up a smile. “I understand.”
Instigating a brawl would probably be easy. The inn was crowded, nearly all the tables occupied, and while many of the customers were women, there were equally as many young men. In such an environment, a spark would be enough to cause an explosion; an accidental elbow to someone’s back, a wrong word or a dismissive laugh. Su-won had a dozen of ideas on how to do it without getting himself directly involved in the fight, and once the chaos started, he certainly would be able to slip out of Keishuk’s trap. However, a brawl could cause real harm, not only to the room but also to the people inside, and that made it an unacceptable solution. Situation wasn’t nearly as bad as to put the lives of others in danger.
For now, Su-won simply strolled across the room. There was no smoke, only liquor and music, but still the air was stuffy, suffocating. Or was that the atmosphere? It was one thing to visit such a place at an earlier hour when he had a clear purpose, like meeting with Ogi or gathering information, and something else entirely when it was evening and he could only wander, watching the crowd.
He saw clearly which pairs were chatting eagerly, and where one or both the people searched for an excuse to leave – it was written in their postures, in where their eyes lingered, in how they titled their heads. A couple of people have had too much wine, so they lay on the tables unmoving. The abundance of signals made Su-won’s head spin, so he tore his eyes away from the people and focused on the floor. Damn Keishuk.
Walking like this, he nearly tripped over a chair. He had to grab the person’s arm to steady himself.
“I’m sorry,” he said, smiling sheepishly. “I wasn’t looking where–”
He dropped his voice, stunned, because the person sitting in the chair was very,
very
much familiar. “Lady Lili!”
“Shh.” The young woman glared at him. “Or should I call you by your title, too?”
“No, no, no.” Su-won raised his hands. “My mistake.”
He looked at the table – beside Lili, there were her two bodyguards who followed her like shadows whenever she was outside. The last, fourth chair was empty, so Su-won invited himself and dropped into it happily.
“I didn’t think that you frequent such places,” he said cheerfully. It was rare for him to get an upper hand against Lili. “What would your father say?”
Lili grabbed her drink – with a straw – and slurped at it aggressively. “I dunno.” She put the glass away. “And you? What would Ju-do say?”
And there his advantage went. Su-won sighed. “Frankly speaking, it’s not my idea. You see the three men lurking by the entrance? They’re here to keep me inside, and I doubt that I can convince them to simply let me go until I do something.”
Lili slurped at the straw again. “Do something, like what?” she mumbled.
“Woo a woman, apparently.”
Lili choked. Her eyes bulged, and she coughed furiously while Ayura pounded at her back.
“Oya,” Tetra said, putting a hand to her cheek. “That was quite surprising indeed.”
“Keishuk’s idea.” Su-won sighed. “He should be sitting around here somewhere as well, keeping an eye on me.”
“So he is.” Ayura said flatly. “Five tables away, in the corner.”
Su-won didn’t look – he trusted the bodyguard. Besides, regardless of where Keishuk was, he wasn’t a direct threat; it was the three men at the entrance that he needed to take care of.
“So what now?” Lili took in a deep breath, her face returning to normal after she had caught her breath. “Do you… need any advice?”
“Oh?” Su-won tilted his head. “Could Lili really offer such advice?”
The young woman snorted. “Of course. I have plenty of experience!”
Ayura coghed. “From novels.”
“It’s better than nothing!” Lili cleared her throat. “Besides. How hard might it be? Basically you should just choose a woman you like and sit down in front of her, and then offer her a drink!”
Su-won raised an eyebrow. “It sounds a tad too simple.”
“Yes, well, you have to do it right.” Lili leaned in, shifting her body a little to her side. “Like, make eye contact with her, and you can touch her hand, and give her a meaningful look, and then she should blush… Yes, just like that!”
I really don’t know how to deal with you
, Su–won thought, looking anywhere but Lili’s face. Also, did the room suddenly get hotter?
All the tension dissipated when Lili bursted into laughter, pounding her fist against her table. “I can’t, ha ha! That… Your face…”
Su-won took in a breath, trying to compose himself.
“And the last part is not what you should do while hitting on a woman,” Tetra said, elbowing Lili who was still laughing.
“I understand,” Su-won said. Lili calmed down eventually, but she was still biting her lip as if not to grin. “And I thank you for advice, however if possible, I’d rather not have to hit on a woman at all.” He glanced at the entrance; Ogi’s men stood there, unmoved. “If you could do something about those three… I’d be indebted to you.”
Lili followed his gaze, too. “You owning me a favor sounds tempting, but it won’t do. They are too young.”
Su-won blinked. Too young? What kind of complaint was that?
“I’m not sure if I understand what you’re getting at,” he said.
Lili responded with a deadpan gaze. “And I’m not sure if I understand what
you
are getting at. What were we supposed to do about those guys?”
Su-won looked at Ayura and Tetra. “Ogi’s men shouldn’t compare to the skill of two trained bodyguards, that’s what I thought.”
“Oh, so that’s what you…” Lili hid her face in her palms, and took in a breath. “Never mind – I have a different idea.”
Su-won tilted his head. “And what idea might it be?”
“Well, even if you leave here today, it’s not like Keishuk will just let you be, right?”
“He probably won’t give up after one try,” Su-won admitted. “But I’ll have my guard up.”
“But still it’ll be hard, right?” Lili pressed.
“I suppose. What else do you propose?”
“Well, you only need to ‘woo’ a woman and he’ll be happy, right?”
“...Yes.”
“And” Lili smiled triumphantly, as if she had just solved a particularly demanding puzzle, “I
am
a woman!”
“...It’s not what I’ve expected.”
“Oh yeah? And what have Your Majesty expected?”
“...Lady Lili,
please
.”
“I’ll stop only when you stop blushing so hard! You just make it too easy to tease you!”
Su-won only sighed and closed his eyes, composing himself. He and Lili sat in one of the many little bedrooms on the second floor of the inn, after conspicuously paying the innkeeper for the key. Lili pulled out a book from somewhere, and she perched on the edge of the wide bed, which was the only furniture in the room. Su-won sat on the other edge in a mirroring position, but since he didn’t have any books, he could only look out the window or try to read over Lili’s shoulder.
“How long do we have to stay here?” he ventured to ask.
“How am I supposed to know?”
“Well, Lady Lili read some books and seems quite knowledgeable about these things…”
“Oh,
you
! Shut up!”