Chapter 131
“Get in, now!”
“Ugh—!”
Rough hands shoved Danseol down onto the cold dirt floor. The soldier who had dragged her here slammed the prison door shut and secured it tightly with a lock. Then, without a second glance, he disappeared toward the exit.
Once the soldier left with his torch, thick darkness settled over the cell.
It’s so dark…
Danseol stretched out her hands, groping blindly around her. All she felt were pebbles, sand, and damp earth.
There wasn’t a hint of airflow, nor even a sliver of light. Judging by that alone, this had to be an underground prison. Such dungeons were typically reserved for violent criminals or those guilty of grave crimes—
Treason. Regicide.
“Deceiving His Majesty by concealing your identity.”
Danseol’s charge—insulting the imperial family—was likewise considered a serious offense.
What is… this?
As her hand brushed against something unfamiliar, Danseol flinched and stumbled backward. Once her eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, she could faintly make out a dark shape curled up in one corner of the cell.
She gathered her courage and reached toward it again.
…A person?
The soft texture beneath her fingertips was unmistakably human skin. The person—whether asleep or unconscious—remained curled up, breathing shallowly.
“H-Hello? Can you hear me?”
The realization that someone else was here brought Danseol both relief and fear. Fear that the person beside her might already be dying from torture. Fear that she might soon share the same fate.
“Please—wake up!”
“Ugh…”
After she called out several times, the person finally stirred with a low groan. Even so, the darkness was too thick to make out his face.
All she could tell was that he was a man.
“Where… am I?”
“This is the underground prison.”
His voice echoed unnaturally, as if the dungeon connected to deeper caverns. The air smelled damp, tinged with moss.
“An underground… prison? Damn it.”
The man cursed, apparently unaware he’d even been taken. And yet—
That voice sounded familiar.
“…Brother?”
“Danseol? Is that you?”
It was him. Danho. At his question, Danseol nodded instinctively—then remembered he couldn’t see her.
“Yes. It’s me.”
“Hah…”
Upon confirming her identity, Danho let out a heavy sigh and ran a frustrated hand through his hair.
“To think they’d attack so openly inside the palace… This is my fault.”
He clearly blamed himself, believing Danseol’s capture was his failure as her bodyguard.
“What happened?” she asked.
Danho stopped muttering and sighed again.
“I was waiting outside the Office of Royal Physicians when a palace maid came up and asked me something.”
She’d looked young and harmless. He hadn’t suspected a thing.
“It was a trap. While I was answering her, someone struck me from behind. She was bait—meant to distract me.”
Whoever planned this knew exactly how skilled Danho was—and prepared accordingly.
“If they dared imprison a concubine like you, the mastermind must be someone of very high status.”
And this was the imperial palace. Even in the emperor’s absence, few would dare treat his favored concubine so roughly.
“The one behind it… is the Empress.”
“What?!”
Danho shouted in shock, then cursed again.
“How do you know that?”
“She ordered my arrest personally.”
“For what crime? Even the Empress can’t just imprison a concubine on a whim.”
If the emperor found out, even she wouldn’t escape punishment. Yet Tian Yihwa had taken the risk.
“Insulting the imperial family.”
“What on earth did you—”
“She knew. That I’m the princess of Seolhwa.”
Danho let out a hollow laugh.
“Then she must also know… that I’m the Crown Prince of Seolhwa.”
“She does. That’s why you’re here too.”
“Hah…”
Danho collapsed onto the floor, staring into nothingness.
“How did the information leak? No—how did she even find out?”
Danseol’s expression darkened as well.
“I don’t know.”
No one in Hwangseon knew her true identity. Not even Gyeom.
“Princess Baek Danseol of Seolhwa. How long did you think you could hide who you are?”
Yet Yihwa had known—not only her identity, but her real name.
“…Could it be—”
Danho’s thoughts turned grim as one name crossed his mind.
Seonghyeon.
The only person who knew everything—and who now served the Empress.
If Seonghyeon had betrayed them…
Danho clenched his fist.
“What do we do now? If they locked us up like this, they don’t plan to let it go.”
Danho’s voice was tense. His instincts, honed on countless battlefields, screamed danger.
“For now, we wait. Even the Empress can’t act without His Majesty’s approval.”
“Still… something feels wrong. I think something happened to the Emperor.”
Tian Yihwa was cautious by nature. For her to act this boldly meant she had confidence—leverage.
And Danho had a sinking feeling it involved Emperor Gyeom.
“His Majesty… will be fine.”
Danseol hugged her knees tightly.
“He wouldn’t die and leave you alone,” Danho said quietly.
Gyeom had promised her—he would return.
He always kept his promises.
And yet, the unease wouldn’t fade.
“I can’t shake the feeling that something has gone terribly wrong.”
Danseol lifted her head.
“Seoju.”
“…What?”
“The courier from Seoju. They said a rebellion broke out. That’s why His Majesty rushed out of the palace.”
Danho nodded. He knew.
“But think about it. If the uprising was serious enough to demand reinforcements, the palace should be in chaos.”
Yet it was eerily calm.
Danho’s face hardened.
“If that rebellion was a trap—to lure the Emperor out…”
They stared at each other in silence.
“…Then this is a coup.”
Danho sprang to his feet and began pacing the cell.
“And the Empress arrested us because she knew.”
Everything fell into place.
Which meant Gyeom couldn’t return to the palace.
“This is my fault…”
Danseol buried her face in her knees. She remembered Gyeom holding her, promising to come back safely.
Tears welled up.
She was only a concubine—but he was the Emperor.
If Cheon Taesu rebelled, Gyeom would be his first target.
Just then—
Step. Step.
Footsteps echoed faintly in the distance, growing louder alongside the glow of a torch.
“Shh. Someone’s coming.”
Danho stepped in front of Danseol protectively.
The footsteps drew closer.
Then a man holding a torch appeared.
“…Seonghyeon?”
It was Wi Seonghyeon—now serving as the Empress’s guard.
