RC 03

Chapter 3

Though age had bent his back, rounded his shoulders, and made him smaller, the force and dignity surrounding the Emperor had not easily faded.

The Emperor welcomed Seon with a weary expression. At ninety, he still looked younger than his age, but the deep wrinkles carved by the pain of losing two children could not be hidden.

Twenty years ago, he had already lost his third son. That, too, had been called a traffic accident. After two decades—enough time for mountains and rivers to change twice—he had now lost his eldest son in another accident of the same kind. Seon could not even begin to comprehend the depth of his grief.

“Grandfather.”

Seon barely managed to speak. It was difficult to force words past the weight of the Emperor’s thoughts.

But the Emperor did not answer right away. Instead, he slowly raised one hand, asking her to wait. He often took deep breaths as though trying to gather his thoughts. The sorrow mixed into those sighs shook Seon’s previously calm heart.

After taking a moment to choose his words, he finally spoke.

“Seon.”

There was deep anguish in his voice.

The Emperor had always done his best to remain calm in any situation and behave like an Imperial family member above all else. But this time, even he was shaken.

“The Crown Prince… will soon be transferred to Suhakwon Hospital. The Crown Princess Consort went straight to Suwon, so she’ll come up with him once everything there is settled.”

“I heard he hasn’t passed away yet.”

At Seon’s question, the Emperor let out another deep sigh.

“When the paramedics arrived, his heart had already stopped. They barely managed to revive him. Then his heart stopped again while he was being transported, and they could only keep him barely breathing.”

The situation the Emperor described was even worse than what Seon had heard. The meaning hidden behind the brief words that there was no chance of recovery was far greater than she had imagined.

“Those who are still alive must do what is expected of them. That is what it means to be Imperial family, isn’t it?”

The Emperor continued with difficulty.

“The State Funeral Preparatory Office will be established soon, and preparations for the funeral will begin. Your father will serve as the Chief Commissioner and oversee the funeral, so you should know that.”

“My father?”

Seon asked again, her expression troubled. Since the constitutional monarchy had been established, the Chief Commissioner for a state funeral had traditionally been the person next in succession after the Crown Prince.

At the state funeral of the previous Emperor and Empress, it had been Prince Yeonchin, the eldest son. At the state funeral of the Grand Empress Dowager, it had been Grand Prince Uigu. By that precedent, the current funeral should naturally be overseen by Grand Prince Uigu, who held the highest rank.

Hearing her father’s name brought an uneasiness to Seon’s heart. No matter how much she disliked Grand Prince Uigu and Prince Gyeongan, their positions directly below the Crown Prince were something she could not simply disregard.

The same applied to her father, Prince Uijeong. He was fifth in the line of succession. Even if the line of succession were rearranged after the Crown Prince’s death, wouldn’t he become fourth?

“Why would you give Father such an important responsibility? There will surely be opposition, considering the precedent.”

Grand Prince Uigu was a man overflowing with ambition. Seon could not understand whom he had inherited that trait from. Once he decided he wanted something, he would pursue it relentlessly. Yet at the same time, he was more sensitive than anyone when something he considered his own was taken from him.

Seon knew him well, having always been treated coldly by Grand Prince Uigu. The only way to deal with him was to ignore him as much as possible until the right solution could be found, while avoiding openly turning one’s back on him.

“Grand Prince Uigu cannot do it.”

Despite Seon’s concern, the Emperor answered firmly.

Under normal circumstances, Seon might have backed down at this point. She was a good granddaughter who knew how seriously she should take the Emperor’s orders as a member of the Imperial family.

But she was a person, too. The balance of power was about to shift. No matter how unwelcome the thought of him becoming Crown Prince was, there was nothing Seon could do to stop it with her current power.

Grand Prince Uigu was a cruel man. Especially toward those who turned their backs on him. How many Imperial family members had already been pushed aside after saying something he disliked?

If all the weights on the scales had already tipped, was there anything Seon could do except keep her head down? Throwing herself at an enemy while powerless was something only a moth flying into a flame would do.

“I cannot understand Your Majesty’s intentions.”

Seon voiced her objection indirectly.

“Grand Prince Uigu has already served as Chief Commissioner before.”

“Seon.”

The Emperor shook his head again and called her name. Seon’s anxious eyes met his.

The Emperor’s eyes, which must once have shone brilliantly in his youth, were now dark and clouded.

The depth of sorrow held within them could not be fully expressed in words. The anxiety and instinct for survival that had risen in Seon with her eldest uncle’s death suddenly seemed pitiful and insignificant before him.

“I cannot tell you everything yet, my granddaughter.”

The Emperor spoke in a weary voice. Listening closely, Seon noticed that the end of his voice was trembling. It seemed that he, too, had been crying before she arrived.

He might be the Emperor, but in the end, he was still a father.

A father to the Crown Prince, to Grand Prince Uigu, to Prince Uijeong, and even to Prince Uiyeong, who had died twenty years ago.

There had to be a reason why such a father had deliberately chosen his youngest son, even though he knew the ambitions of his second son.

Seon felt the fog in her mind begin to clear. Even at this terrible moment, having just lost his eldest son, he was still making the best choice he could as Emperor.

“But I can tell you that there are suspicious aspects to the Crown Prince’s accident.”

“What do you mean?”

For an instant, a hazy image flashed through Seon’s mind.

A limousine completely overturned by the impact.

A little child barely gasping for breath.

A girl bleeding after being struck by fragments of the wreckage as she shielded the child in her arms.

And a man with an indistinct face, lightly tapping at a half-shattered window with his foot as though checking for something.

“We’ll have to investigate the details.”

The Emperor murmured and exhaled before beckoning Seon over. She had been standing by the door, but now she stepped forward.

She came close enough that she could reach him simply by extending her hand. The Emperor slowly reached out and took her hand. Despite his age, his firm, wrinkled hand closed around hers with surprising strength.

“There will be many things I need you to do, my child.”

“For me?”

When Seon hesitated, his grip tightened even more. It was hard to believe that such strength belonged to a ninety-year-old man. He held on as though he had no intention of letting go and spoke.

“Whatever comes your way from now on, do not be afraid, Cheongyang Hyeonju.”

“Grandfather?”

“You are a member of the Imperial family. More than anyone else, you are the child who best embodies what it means to be Imperial family. Do you understand what I mean?”

The Emperor’s voice suddenly became heavy. Seon unconsciously swallowed.

Whenever her grandfather adopted this grave tone and emphasized her status, she felt as though she could not move an inch. The heavy status and obligations of being Imperial family wrapped around her under the name of responsibility.

“…Yes, Your Majesty.”

“You are a clever child.”

The Emperor murmured something she could not understand, then looked straight into Seon’s eyes. His gaze was sharper than ever.

“Your father will be coming up to Seoul soon, so you should stay at a detached palace for the time being. It may be troublesome, but I need you to keep watch over the Imperial family members.”

Watching over the Imperial family was something she was occasionally asked to do. In fact, the reason Seon had been repeatedly elected to the position of a member of the Imperial Clan Council for seven consecutive years, despite not being particularly popular among the Imperial family, was because of the Emperor’s pressure.

“We will hold a meeting of the Imperial Clan Council within a few days. Any Imperial family member of some standing will attend out of curiosity alone. At times like this, it is better to keep everyone where we can see them, so keep a close eye on them.”

“I will.”

“And one more thing.”

The Emperor slowly released her hand. Without the pressure of his grip, her hand suddenly felt strangely empty.

As Seon opened and closed her fist, the Emperor pressed his fingertips firmly against his eyelids. Fatigue seemed to be overtaking him.

“As you can see, I am no longer what I used to be. I am an old man now. Do you think the Imperial family will still fear me? That is why I need your help even more.”

“Can I really be of help to you, Grandfather?”

“Of course. You will be a great help.”

The Emperor smiled faintly. Perhaps his throat was dry, because he picked up the glass of water beside him and drank. Through the transparent glass, the water slowly—very slowly—disappeared.

“As you know, when a member of the Imperial family dies, a basic investigation is required. Officially, the Crown Prince has not died yet, but it was a major accident, so a Special Investigation Team for the Imperial Family will be formed this time as well. The Imperial Censorate will also participate.”

Imperial family members were special, unlike ordinary people. Even when one died from illness, an investigation was carried out as a precaution. That did not usually mean an autopsy or an extensive investigation. Most of the time, it merely served to establish what had happened.

But there seemed to be a reason the Emperor was bringing up the investigation this time. There was a clear determination in his words that this would not end as a mere investigation for appearances.

“I will recommend you. Join the investigation together with the Imperial Censorate.”

“What?”

Seon touched her ear for a moment before asking again. She was certain she had heard him wrong.

The Imperial Censorate specialized in inspections and enforcement, so it could certainly fulfill its role as part of an investigative team. But Seon was different. She was an ordinary citizen—or rather, an ordinary Imperial family member—who was content to carry out her assigned duties and live by the responsibilities given to her.

There were plenty of attention seekers in the Imperial family who would welcome such a massive assignment, but Seon was not one of them. At heart, she believed in being content with one’s place. People should know their limits and live within them.

But the Emperor drove the point home again.

“I said you are to participate in the investigation.”

“Grandfather!”

“There are certainly things that someone like you, who is not an expert, may be able to see.”

The Emperor spoke with a strange certainty.

“Perhaps you may even find the answer to the mystery you have been searching for all these years.”

A chill ran down Seon’s spine.

Had her grandfather known about the feelings she had kept hidden from everyone?

Yet when she finally met the Emperor’s eyes, there was no reproach in them.

Still unable to make sense of what he meant, Seon watched as dawn broke on the day after the Crown Prince’s accident.