6: SAD ENDING

          Sena would never forget her sister’s sacrifice. She knew that the palace was a terrible place with sinister people that schemed to survive. Majority of the royal family and their concubines had their days filled with plans on how to eliminate one another. Sena wasn’t stupid enough to think Yuna would be happy. She knew that Yuna was willing to live that kind of life in order for her to gain happiness.

          Sena felt inadequate and small. She wasn’t capable of achieving anything. She didn’t have enough power or strength to fight for her love. She forced her own sister into a horrible life because of her selfishness. Her guilt overwhelmed her when she knew of Yuna’s sacrifice.

 Sena was hoping that both Yuna and her could get married to nice husbands be happy together for the rest of their lives. None of that seemed possible at this point. Living in the palace was a constant war between the royals and concubines. Sena couldn’t fathom what Yuna was going through in that sort of place.

          The moment that Yuna spoke of her end of the deal, the Emperor was stunned by her proposal. The Emperor had only met this girl once. She was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen during his lifetime. She was unlike all the concubines in his residence and he could tell just by her demeanor. She was wise beyond her years and the smallest movements she made revealed the movements of an experienced martial artist.

          The only reason that he refrained from proposing or approaching her was for various reasons. One of the reasons was because of his age. He was almost as old as her father. He was always particular with keeping his image as clean as possible, but this girl was the exception. He had never expected that she would propose to him on her own.

          The Emperor was extremely observant and could tell that Yuna wasn’t proposing to him because of her love for him. This marriage was only possible because of Yuna’s sister. He still didn’t want to lose this chance to be with her and decided to marry her.

          The Emperor already had an Empress that ruled the harem. It was common for men in this generation to have multiple wives, but the Emperor could only have one Empress. He could only welcome Yuna into his residence as a concubine. Yuna still chose to marry him regardless of these obstacles. He wouldn’t miss this chance.

          The Emperor was enamored with Yuna, but that was not a good thing in the palace. The Empress and the Concubines all despised her for taking all of the Emperor's favor. Her life in the palace was constantly threatened by people that targeted her for various reasons. Yuna wasn’t worried about the Concubines or the Emperor. Especially when her martial arts surpassed most of the guards.

          She secretly practiced the sword and her martial arts in order to protect her and her little sister. Sena was special to her and she would even give up her own life just for Yuna to be happy. Even if her father hated them both, she still had her one and only sister.

          While living in the palace, Yuna survived multiple assassination attempts and made a name for herself as the ruthless concubine. The Empress was always on the losing end when it came to schemes. None of her assassination attempts were successful and the Emperor grew more and more in love with this concubine. She couldn’t stand the look on his face.

          Day by day, the Emperor spent time pampering Yuna. He would never spend time with her or any of the concubines. They grew anxious and worried of their positions. The only way to get rid of her became obvious after gaining information on the Yoon Family.

          Yuna spent her days avoiding the Concubines and the Emperor. She could never love the emperor. She just didn’t find love to be real after watching her mother’s death. That memory stuck to her stubbornly. The Emperor constantly pampered her even when she didn’t want anything from him.

          She found her escape in a part of the palace that had been abandoned. Many people avoided this place because it was known for its ghost stories. Yuna didn’t really mind ghosts because she didn’t believe in them anyway. She never once encountered a ghost while being there. She would leisurely spend her time there reading. At least she didn’t have to deal with the annoying Emperor or his stupid wives.

          While reading in that place, she felt a presence approaching the room she was in. She quickly laid her body flat against the wall to keep from being noticed. She listened closely to the footsteps approaching the room. There was only one person, so it was unlikely for it to be an attack. Yuna didn’t relax just yet.

          The door slid open and someone walked in stealthily. Yuna kept her body plastered to the wall to stay hidden. The man noticed her presence and turned around. The man that stood before her was her father, Yoon Beom-soo.

          Her voice trembled, “What are you doing here?” Her father’s sinister grin brought back memories of that day. She was traumatized by his lust for blood and could feel the dark energy that surrounded him. She would never call this man her father. He was nothing but a psychopath that enjoyed murdering her mother. At first, he looked sad about her and then it changed into a grin of a crazy psychopath.

          He spoke, “I should be asking you that. I found out that you seduced the Emperor. You’re a stupid wh**e that only knows how to seduce men. You should’ve listened when I asked you to marry Jang Sejoon. Now the Emperor has most of our assets. I have no choice but to get rid of you to get it all back. You know that what the father says goes, right?” Yuna hurriedly stepped back when his fist came flying towards her face. “Seems like you’re not too stupid for a woman. I shouldn’t have underestimated your ability to fight me like this. I am your father after all.”

          Yuna denied, “No, you aren’t my father. I’ve never had a father like you.” He called, “Come to papa. I won’t hurt you.” Yuna kicked him in the stomach and successfully tripped him. While groaning on the floor, her father changed into the evil psychopath that killed her mother. His mask fell instantly.

They began fist fighting each other and he was a lot stronger and faster than her. He had multiple experiences during the war and had defeated many enemy generals. She was nothing compared to him. He finished their fight by laying a deadly blow to her heart. She began coughing up blood.

Her father’s cruel gaze landed on her. She could hear her heartbeat slowing down. She closed her eyes and focused. Her father was lost in thought and became distracted for a second. She could sense his change in breathing and the movement in the air. He was slowly becoming relaxed after he hit a vital spot in her heart.

She gathered the last strength that remained and swiftly grabbed a dagger from her boot and successfully threw it at his neck.  He immediately pulled out the dagger and roared with laughter, “You think this puny little dagger could kill me?”

While coughing up blood, she spoke, “I didn’t just throw any ordinary dagger. Why don’t you look at the blade and see what’s different from any dagger?” He observed the dagger in his right hand. It was covered in a purple liquid that resembled poison. She laced the weapon with unknown poison. He’s never seen anything like it.  

He yelled with fury, “Is this poison? What type of poison?” She laughed, “It doesn’t matter. No antidote exists in this world. I’m glad I got to use it on you. I’ve hated you ever since I saw you kill mother.” For once in his life he felt terrible after discovering his daughter’s hatred.

His neck began to grow itchy and scaly like a snake. The lumps that rapidly spread through his body eventually reached his hands. He stared at his abnormally purple hands that looked charred. His hands looked like it had been burned horribly. In all his life, he had never came across a poison that was like this.

He felt like his whole body was burning and blood came out from his eyes, nose and mouth. He eventually died from pain.

She died a lot slower than her father did. She closed her eyes and reminisced her time with her sister. She would rather die remembering her sister than think about her killer. She felt her life slip away.

          She was soon discovered after the Emperor sent the guards out to find the concubine that suddenly disappeared. They discovered General Beom-soo’s and Yuna’s bodies. The guards reported to the Emperor immediately.

          After several days, the Emperor announced Concubine Yuna’s death. Everyone in the capital knew of Yuna’s death, except Sena. Junho could not tell Sena of this because she became pregnant soon after their marriage. He did not want to upset her during her pregnancy. He kept it from her for as long as possible.

          When she was 8 months into pregnancy, she discovered her sister’s death. She had constantly tried to get a hold of her sister to let her know about her pregnancy. She was ignored for several months. She decided to head to the palace. While heading to the palace, she overheard some citizens discussing her sister’s death.

          She was so shaken by the news that she felt her body become faint. Something was odd about her body today. She felt the water beneath her and the painful contractions that ripped at her belly. She couldn’t believe it. It was only 8 months in, and she was giving birth prematurely. Sena’s maids immediately found an inn and called for a midwife to assist in giving birth.

          Even after giving birth to a beautiful daughter, Sena still couldn’t forget how Junho kept this from her. She grieved endlessly in bed for several days while Junho tried to comfort her. She pushed him away and they grew distant. Sena held her daughter lovingly and named her Yuna after her sister.