Chapter 4: If It’s Ha Eun-gyo

He kept his gaze lowered and didn’t raise his head.

He thought that even if the enraged Crown Prince struck him down right there, there was nothing he could do about it.

He usually tried not to think negatively, but in this situation, there was truly no way out.

You have to have some escape route to even attempt something.

“A male dancer?”

The Crown Prince murmured, as if confirming the fact.

“Who brought you into the palace?”

Eun-gyo hadn’t expected the question to turn in that direction.

Startled, he raised his head and met the Crown Prince’s eyes.

Those glossy black eyes were like a beast’s.

They looked as if they would tear apart the prey before him at any moment.

“All dancers entering the palace are inspected until not a speck of dust remains on their bodies.

How did you pass that inspection?

If you weren’t inspected, then there must be someone who brought you into the palace.

Tell me who it is.”

This was serious.

If he wasn’t careful, he might endanger King Seongrim as well.

Eun-gyo quickly knelt and prostrated himself.

“I did it to survive.”

“To survive?” the Crown Prince repeated, as if unable to comprehend.

“As you have noticed, I am not from Sinhye Kingdom.

To survive here, I had no choice but to become a dancer.

The only thing I knew how to do was the sword dance you saw.

I heard that attending an imperial banquet could earn gold and treasures, so I begged to be included in the troupe, just to prolong this wretched life.”

“It’s not as if just anyone who begs would be allowed in.”

The Crown Prince’s words were correct.

There weren’t many people willing to help others without any gain.

In that regard, King Seongrim was truly an unusual person.

“What did you give in return?”

The sword tip was again aimed at Eun-gyo’s throat.

With the tip of the sword, he warned that nonsense would not be forgiven.

What could he say he’d given to make it believable?

“My…”

Money?

He’d just claimed he had no money and became a dancer to survive, so that wouldn’t make sense.

His body?

Forget it.

Now that his being a man was revealed, that would be laughable.

Then what was there?

What…

His neck stung.

The sword tip had been pressed closer and pierced his skin.

He had to come up with something quickly.

“I gave him an item from my country.”

“What item from your country?”

“There is something like a brush called a pen, with which you can write without grinding ink.”

There was no way they would understand even if he explained.

Sure enough, the Crown Prince frowned.

Since it was something unheard of, the question was whether he would believe it.

Silence fell between Eun-gyo and the Crown Prince.

It seemed the Crown Prince was deliberating whether Eun-gyo’s words were true.

“Your Highness.”

Just then, a eunuch’s voice came from outside.

Since he had ordered everyone to withdraw fifty paces away, the Crown Prince’s expression grew even fiercer.

“Did I not command everyone to withdraw!”

The Crown Prince’s sudden shout made Eun-gyo flinch and stiffen.

“However, King Seongrim requests an audience with Your Highness.”

The name King Seongrim felt like a savior.

But could he appear at this timing?

He worried it might only complicate things further.

“Tell him to come again tomorrow.”

“He says he has something to tell you regarding the dancer you brought in.”

Ugh.

Eun-gyo swallowed a groan inwardly.

Now that his being a man had already been discovered, if King Seongrim said he had something to discuss about him, the sparks would fly.

The timing was terrible.

“Do you know King Seongrim?”

The Crown Prince asked, looking at Eun-gyo.

He didn’t know whether the right answer was no or yes.

While he hesitated, the Crown Prince let out a hollow laugh.

He seemed certain that it was King Seongrim who had placed Eun-gyo in the palace.

“Get up.”

He commanded Eun-gyo and told the eunuch waiting outside that he would not meet King Seongrim and to send him away.

It seemed that being saved by him was indeed impossible after all.

Slowly rising from his spot, Eun-gyo stood upright, looking directly at the Crown Prince.

Now that things had come to this, what was the point of avoiding his gaze?

When their eyes met, the Crown Prince let out an incredulous laugh.

Well, what can you do?

It seems like this is the end of my life anyway.

Without cowering, Eun-gyo held the Crown Prince’s gaze to the very end.

As he moved his arm, the sword was raised high. Shwiiik! At the sound of the blade cutting through the air, Eun-gyo squeezed his eyes shut.

Fifty paces from the Crown Prince’s residence, the eunuch who had hurried back to the entrance knelt before King Seongrim and bowed his head.

“His Highness the Crown Prince says to return for now.”

“And the dancer who entered with him?”

The eunuch shook his head, meaning he couldn’t know that far.

King Seongrim replied that he understood and turned away.

If the Crown Prince did not permit it, no one could enter inside anyway.

Eun-gyo…

He took a few steps away and looked back at the residence.

Did the silence mean there was no trouble, or that something had already happened?

Either way, the situation was not good.

Even if the worst was avoided and nothing had happened, there was no way Eun-gyo’s being a man hadn’t been discovered.

Of all people, why had he chosen that child?

Even if the sword dance was unique, he had thought it would win the Emperor’s favor, not the Crown Prince’s.

Out of nowhere, he took an interest in the sword dance, and then announced he would spend the night with that child, leaving the Crown Princess behind.

If he had been there, he would have stopped it somehow.

Even if opposing the Crown Prince was dangerous, he would have stirred up the ministers’ opinion, saying it was proper for him to go to the Crown Princess’s chambers according to imperial etiquette and law.

But he had happened to be away on other business.

If he had known this would happen, he would have stayed until at least the sword dance was over.

He had expected Eun-gyo’s sword dance to captivate people’s attention, and that was precisely why he judged that moment to be the most opportune time to make his move.

And it had indeed been the case.

Moreover, the Crown Prince had caused such an absurd commotion that no one paid any attention to King Seongrim.

What should he do now?

He never imagined the Crown Prince would take an interest not in Eun-gyo’s dance, but in Eun-gyo himself.

Would Eun-gyo truly be able to emerge alive from the Crown Prince’s residence after tonight…

‘His Highness the Crown Prince is terrifying.

He’s like a ghost.

He knew everything I was thinking, from beginning to end.

Even though he only looked at me, he read my mind.’

The first Crown Princess had confided in King Seongrim before her suicide.

Back then, he thought it was nonsense.

The Crown Prince was a perceptive person.

Since childhood, he had been brilliant, someone who understood two or three things when taught one.

He was often praised for possessing excellent qualities as a Crown Prince.

He thought he was simply so clever that he perceived the Crown Princess’s intentions faster than others.

Yet the Crown Princess had taken her own life not long after, as if to prove her words.

The court ladies were tight-lipped, but the chief court lady who served the Crown Princess said she had been endlessly anxious, that the Crown Prince read every one of her intentions and mentally pressured her.

And a few years later, the second Crown Princess also took her own life.

This time, her time as Crown Princess was even shorter.

The second Crown Princess was a daughter of a family recommended by the Empress.

The Empress…

That too was suspicious.

The current Empress was the second Empress.

The late Empress, the Crown Prince’s mother, had died of illness early on.

And the woman carrying the Emperor’s child became the current Empress.

The Empress bore a son, but the kingdom already had a Crown Prince.

It was obvious that the Crown Prince was a thorn in the Empress’s eyes.

If only the Crown Prince didn’t exist, her young son, loved by the Emperor, would have become Crown Prince.

Whether there had been some kind of deal between the second Crown Princess and the Empress, no one knew.

However, after two Crown Princesses had committed suicide in succession, the nobles could not help but be reluctant to send their daughters to become Crown Princess.

Did the Crown Prince truly read people’s minds to the very core?

Was such a thing even possible?

Even if he didn’t believe it, being careful couldn’t hurt.

Whenever King Seongrim faced the Crown Prince, he never entertained any other thoughts.

He focused solely on their conversation, thinking of nothing beyond what he was asked.

Perhaps thanks to that, he had remained unscathed with the Crown Prince all this time.

Never meet the Crown Prince’s eyes.

He had advised Eun-gyo that, but in truth, he should have told him not to have any distracting thoughts in front of the Crown Prince.

Since he himself wasn’t certain, he couldn’t explain it, and he had believed that Eun-gyo, whose thoughts and actions aligned, would be fine without his warning.

The Crown Prince choosing Eun-gyo as his bed partner was truly unexpected.

However, he still hoped that Eun-gyo might somehow get through it.

He averted his gaze from the residence and walked away.

Please let tonight pass without incident.

Ha Eun-gyo must not die here by the Crown Prince’s hand.

He still had something he needed to do.

The sound of the sword cutting through the air passed, but there was no pain.

Slip.

Feeling the cloth covering his lower half fall away, Eun-gyo gasped and opened his eyes.

The sword had cleanly cut only the knot, causing his undergarments to slide down.

Now, only the very last piece covering his center remained.

Unable even to scream, he stared at the Crown Prince, who aimed the sword at his chest.

As the sword drew closer, he unconsciously backed away until his legs hit the bed and he sat down.

“Lie down.”

Did I hear that correctly?

Did he say lie down?

Surely not… he wouldn’t?

Eun-gyo’s eyes widened as he looked up at the Crown Prince.

“I will finish what I intended to do.”

The Crown Prince drove the nail in, just in case.

“But I’m a man.”

Surely this Crown Prince wasn’t so unhinged that he had forgotten he was a man.

“So what?”

He seemed to be fully aware that he was a man.

“This would be a disgrace to Your Highness the Crown Prince—Heeek!”

The Crown Prince touched the remaining underwear with the tip of his sword.

He hadn’t been able to get used to this world’s underwear, so he was wearing his original pair, and now he was about to tear that single flimsy piece with his sword.

“Argh, fine, I’ll take it off myself!

I’ll take it off!”

At his words that he would undress himself, the Crown Prince withdrew his sword and watched.

Damn it.

What am I doing?

Hesitating, he grabbed the waistband of his underwear and pulled it down.

The Crown Prince watched with an unchanged expression as the underwear slid completely off his legs.

Now truly wearing not a single thread, he looked up at the Crown Prince.

Fine.

Let’s think positively—it’s for the best.

Having s*x is better than being charged at to be killed.

And when else would I get to have s*x with someone this handsome?

He’s not exactly my type, but still, whatever.

He tried to think as positively as possible.

However…

“This is my first time dealing with a man, so do not expect any mercy.”

At the Crown Prince’s words, a wave of regret washed over him—thinking that maybe dying would have been better after all, that he’d been wrong to think positively.

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