Chapter 113 - Sleep Well, Dear Villain

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The little boy snuck out of his room undetected by the servants. He passed through the large halls of the palace, eager to meet his friend who was waiting for him. Looking around to make sure no one saw him, he quietly stepped out of the large palatial door and scurried towards the outhouse.

Is she there yet? He wondered. They had promised to meet near the pond so he ran straight towards it. Soon, his eyes fell on the little girl who was waiting by the pond's stairway. She was watching the koi fish which were swimming merrily.

There were all kinds of koi fish in the pond. Big ones, small ones. Orange ones and also silver ones. All of them swam in unison, eating the little nibbles of food she was throwing at them. The fish gathered around the spot she sat, greedily munching on the tiny food balls which they loved.

"You guys really are hungry," Sunye sighed. Her father would scold her if he found out she was feeding the fish again. He always forbade her from going near the pond because she might fall and drown but she secretly visited it almost everyday to play with the fish.

"Sunye!"

She looked around to see a dark haired youth running towards her. Kim San was smiling at her as he sat next to her.

"Have you been waiting for long?" he asked brightly.

She slowly shook her head. "I had the koi fish with me to keep company," she gently said, throwing more food into the water.

"You shouldn't feed them more than once a day, you know!"

"How can a creature eat only once a day?" Sunye asked. "And there are so many of them here. How do we know all of them got to eat?"

He shook his head in dismay. There was no way to explain to Sunye about the rules. She lived in her own world, free from any rules or orders. Just her and her thoughts.

"Did you enjoy the party last night?" he asked.

"Yes, it was fun," she commented. "Did you have fun?"

"Loads!" he exclaimed. "I had so much food! I was looking for you but I couldn't find you anywhere. Where were you?"

It was true. The Emperor had held a banquet for some foreign guests and everyone living in the palace was there. Even Sunye's father, Daewhi, was there. He prepared a delicious ten course meal for the guests who could not stop praising his skills.

"What did you do at the party?" Sunye asked.

"I talked to all the children of the guests," he stated, feeling smug. "I even got to talk to some of the diplomats. Father introduced me as the Crown Prince to them. Mother was so proud! The guests bowed in front of me and treated me with importance."

There was a pride in his tone, his eyes beaming. He was truly happy that the Emperor had given him the chance to interact with the guests.

"Where were you?" he demanded. "Why didn't you talk to me at the party?"

"I went to the party for a while but got bored and returned home," she shrugged. "After a while, San came to play with me and we were up all night, playing or talking."

Kim San froze. Sunye spoke in a matter-of-fact manner, not noticing that the boy next to her had gone cold.

"What are you-"

"I wonder where he is?" she asked out loud. "He promised me that he'd come here today. Maybe he's stuck in his lessons with Teacher Gwi."

"What are you talking about?" Kim San demanded. "I am Kim San! Your friend."

"You are," Sunye agreed. "But so is he. I know there's two of you. I thought everyone inside this palace knew."

Yes, only the habitants of the core palace knew that there were two Crown Princes. One would become heir while the other was a spare. All Emperors in the Kim clan were required to produce multiple sons who were raised the same way. They were kept to have similar appearances for the public so that if one died, the other one would take his place without anyone noticing. The post of a Crown Prince was held by different shadows who would eventually battle amongst themselves to gain the throne after the Emperor died. Only one would emerge victorious while the others were killed. It was a tradition which was followed to the T.

If the Emperor failed to produce any mail heir, the throne passed on to the next male in line. No woman had been given the throne. In the past, if a princess was born, they were sent away to live with commoners, never to know their true lineage. This was done to prevent any outsider from taking over the throne and kept the lineage to thrive on the male line. If required, multiple concubines were brought in for the Emperor's pleasure until sons were born.

Even though no one told Sunye about the two Kim San's living in the palace nor did she ever see them together, she was able to deduce the truth on her own. Both of them looked very similar to the point they could have been twins. There were only slight differences like one Kim San had a smaller nose and the other had a sharp jawline. The palace officials groomed them to have hairstyle, daily clothes, weight, size and even talking style. Eventually, they would grow up one day and their appearances would begin to change but as long as they were children, their lives were shared between them.

"I am here," he insisted. "I am Kim San."

"I know," she sighed. But she did not look at him and kept on feeding the fish. She was aware that the boy sitting next to her was hurt.

"Both of you are my friends," she said. "I think of you like a brother."

"What do you think of him as?"

Kim San was sullen and hurt. A brother? Why would she think of him like that?

"He's important to me," she admitted. Sunye did not elaborate but it was the truth. She only knew how to speak her mind without holding back. Yes, she was partial towards her San but that did not mean that Kim San was not her friend. She just wished he would understand that.

"I hate him," Kim San quietly said. "I hate that bas-"

"Sunye!" 

San was calling for her from a distance. Sunye stood up and saw him lingering around the palace door. 

"San is here!" she smiled.

"Don't go to him!" Kim San begged. "Stay with me! We can play-"

"I promised him that I'll go to him," Sunye reminded him. "I have to go!"

Kim San watched helplessly as she ran towards San. His brother did not see him sitting by the pond but grabbed Sunye's hand and they ran off. Kim San sat there, bitter and angry.

Sunye was right. She did not promise him anything but when she was talking to San about meeting him at the pond, Kim San happened to have overheard it. Their lives were supposed to be shared, right? They were supposed to have the same interests, friends and looks. 

Then why was Sunye leaning towards San and not him? What did San have that he did not have?

San and Sunye walked on, hand in hand, unaware that a venomous spew was brewing in Kim San's heart which would poison their lives for eternity.

….

Sunye awoke with a start. She sat up, frowning as she listened hard. Something had broken her sleep that night and to her surprise, she could hear someone mumbling. SD's room was right next to her separated only by a sliding door. The room she was staying in used to be a study with a spare bed but he turned it into a bedroom for her. 

Even though he teased her about walking in on her anytime, he never did out of respect. No matter how many times he claimed that, Sunye knew he was not that sort of person.

But now, she heard him mumbling loudly. What the hell is he doing? She wondered.

Slowly getting off the bed, she walked towards the door. Sliding it open, she saw him lying on the bed, squirming and writhing. His eyes were closed while his brows were furrowed in anger and confusion.

"I know...what...you did…" he mumbled. "You did it...you…"

Is he dreaming? Sunye wondered. She leaned in closer to wake him up but as soon as she touched him, his hand reached out to grab her throat.

"SD!" she shrieked when his fingers grasped her throat. Her scream woke him up. He was sweating and panting, his hand still throttling her. Sunye wheezed in pain and shock. SD himself was surprised to see her and when he realized he was hurting her, he immediately let go.

"I'm sorry!" he apologized after letting her go. Sunye was still gagging, massaging her neck.

"What happened?" she gasped. "You were mumbling."

SD did not reply to her but turned away from her, unable to answer her questions. He was having that dream again. It was the same nightmare he had been having for years.

"Are you alright?" she asked. 

"You should go back to your room," he sighed. "I was just having a bad dream. I guess, I should try and go back to sleep too. Maybe I'll think of our last makeout session but that won't let me sleep."

He glanced at her and winked. Sunye did not react but simply stared at him. It was obvious that he was still shaken by whatever he saw and yet, tried to change the subject.

"Alright," she said. SD had expected her to leave but to his shock, she lay next to him.

"W-what are you doing?" he stammered when she settled against his back.

"Sleeping," she simply said.

"Eh? Should an unmarried and righteous woman be sleeping with an evil devil like me?" he smirked.

"I'm just afraid you'll see a nightmare again and come screaming into my room," she said. "Besides, I'm only staying here because you look like you need company. But don't you dare do anything funny, otherwise I'll break your bones. I'm getting pretty good at hitting you now."

SD did not respond for a while. Sunye was not sure where this boldness of her was coming from but in his sleep, SD looked...scared. It was something she did not wish to see again and this was a small way to comfort him.

Suddenly, he turned around and wrapped his arms around her. Sunye found herself being embraced by him, his soothing scent engulfing her. He was not trying anything perverted but it felt like a chaste hug as if he was seeking comfort from her, revealing his vulnerability.

"Let's stay like this for a while," he whispered into her ears. "Deluding ourselves that we've comforted each other and have good dreams tonight. Tomorrow's dawn will hit us with reality again. So let the night show us a sweet illusion."

He lightly kissed her cheek and closed his eyes, ready to live in the temporary illusion. Sunye was momentarily dazed by his words, her heart beating fast. Her lips curved into a smile and she hugged him back, settling comfortably in his arms.

"Sleep well, dear villain," she whispered.