Rena Moon

Throughout the whole journey from the forest to her room, she could hear and see glimpses of what was happening. She felt herself being lifted up by Namjoo, but at some point, she felt the person had changed. She could tell that it was Eunho.

There was a scent of honey and pine that came from him. The scent carried with it a calming sensation. It made her feel warm and sweet inside. She felt protected and safe. She unintentionally sniffed him.

Eunho felt his heart thump loudly in his chest when he felt her light body against him. He blushed harder when he noticed her smelling him. Her body was light, and it was fairly easy for him to carry her on his back. He could sense that she was awake, but he didn’t want to embarrass her. He acted like he didn’t notice.

Yuna wanted to stay awake, but her eyes kept shutting on their own. She eventually fell asleep while smelling the nice honey and pine scent. Eunho could tell that she had fallen asleep when he noticed the slight changes in her breathing.

When Eunho got to her room, it was silent. He frowned when he noticed that she wasn’t like most nobles. It was normal for the courtyard to be bustling with activity. He didn’t see a single soul in her courtyard. Weren’t noble households supposed to be surrounded with servants? Was Yuna being mistreated by the servants in her own home?

He could feel the rage inside him burn into a volcano when he thought of them bullying Yuna. She was still just a young girl. He would have to figure out what was going on.

He gently placed Yuna on her bed. Once she was on her bed, she curled up into a ball and hugged her pillow tightly. She was so cute, he wanted to replace her pillow. He wondered what it would feel like to be hugged by Yuna.

His face turned red, and he felt his heart causing mayhem in his chest, THUMP THUMP THUMP. He quickly shook the thoughts out of his head. What was he thinking? They were still kids, okay? He decided that it would be best if he avoided her altogether. He had no confidence in himself. Although he was in his 13-year-old body, he had the mind of an adult.

Eunho turned away from Yuna’s sleeping figure. He was getting ready to leave the room when he heard Yuna mumble in her sleep. Yuna mumbled, “Stop it. It’s not my fault.” Eunho drew closer to her. He could barely hear her words.

Yuna had droplets of sweat rolling down her face. Her forehead was scrunched up and her expression darkened. Eunho had no clue what she was dreaming about, but he wanted to comfort her. He sat down on the bed next to her. Her hands were clenched tightly onto the sheets. He loosened her grip and held her hands.

It seemed that she noticed his presence. Her expression softened significantly, and her breath evened out. Eunho watched as she fell into a deep sleep. He whispered, “No matter what troubles you’ll face, I’ll make sure to be there to protect you. I won’t let anything bad happen.”






Yuna kept waking up to people coming in and out of her room. At one point, both of her parents came to visit, and Sun was also there. There were servants that frequently came to wipe the sweat off her face and body. The servants brought in bitter medicine that made her want to vomit. If only there was modern medicine, she wouldn’t have to drink this bitter and disgusting brown water.

She was weak from the fever, and everything seemed to be like a dream. She had a difficult time telling if anything was real or if it was just a dream.

When her fever was at its highest, she found herself soaked in her own sweat and her mind was in a flurry. Her speech was slurred, and she couldn’t think straight. The only thing that calmed her down was the light scent of honey and pine. She felt someone hold her hand while she struggled through the fever.

She was used to hiding her sickness from her parents in both of her lifetimes, but oddly, she found herself enjoying the sense of being taken care of. She felt the warmth of love from the people around her. She let herself be taken care of like a normal kid. She never thought she would experience this. She was reluctant to be taken care of, but it was surprisingly nice.

After she was fully recovered, her stress-free relaxed time was cut short. News from the royal palace traveled to the Kim Household. Unluckily for Yuna, there was another set of stress-inducing information awaiting her. Yuna’s family gathered in the main courtyard to discuss the news. Junho said, “It seems that the emperor was displeased with the methods that Yuna spoke of during the princess’ birthday party. Things haven’t gone the way he wanted.”

Yuna asked, “What happened? I’m sure that there shouldn’t have been any problems. If they followed the procedures and implemented a system, there shouldn’t have been any problems. I’m confident that this will allow the corrupt officials to be found.”

Junho sighed, “Although your idea may have been the correct solution to the problem, it may not necessarily be appropriate for our society. From what I heard during morning court; it seems that most of these officials are against having their personal finances revealed to the public. Another thing that was discussed was that the peasants are illiterate, and they are incapable of recording their finances. We also do not have enough people educated in the finance department to allow for auditors to keep track.”

Yuna never expected this turn of events. She knew that things in the modern world worked out, but it was difficult to get people in this timeline to agree with new ideas. She didn’t expect it to be this hard to convince them. She wondered what the problems were. If only she had a little power, she’d be able to change what needed to be changed. There was no way of changing things without having the power to do so. Yuna felt defeated after hearing that her solution wasn’t helpful.

Junho patted his daughter’s back to comfort her. He didn’t like seeing her defeated expression. If only he was more capable, he could’ve helped his daughter. Although he was powerful on the battlefield, he didn’t have the same power in politics. Sadly, he wasn’t able to do much to help her.

He felt angry at himself for not being able to find out the culprits behind her attempted assassination and kidnapping. He only wanted for her to live life safely and he wanted to see her smile. It made him feel inadequate for not being able to protect her from the harshness of this world. She was only 12 years old. It seemed that Yuna was experiencing the things an adult would face; it was too soon.

Yuna sighed, “I’m sorry father. I disappointed you. I only wanted to help the emperor. Who knew things would turn out like this?” Yuna habitually looked down at the floor. Junho noticed her behavior instantly. Whenever Yuna was depressed, she would look down at the floor and soon she would hide away in her room. Every time it happened; he would feel like an awful father. He didn’t want her to feel this way.

Junho lifted her chin up, “Look up. I’m not disappointed in you. You shouldn’t be feeling sorry for yourself. This happened because people aren’t capable enough. Our society isn’t educated well enough and there are forces out there that don’t want their finances to revealed. Those people only want you to feel defeated because they have something to hide. They’re not good people.”

Yuna smiled when she heard her father’s words. Junho continued, “No matter what type of people are out there in this world, I know that you aren’t like them. You’re capable enough to make the changes happen. I know you can. Look at all the inventions you’ve created. There’s a ripple effect of change that can be seen in the people’s hearts. I can see the changes that are slowly affecting everyone around you. You may not see it, but I can.”

Her father’s words lifted her up. She no longer felt defeated and lost. She never imagined that these words would be coming out of her father’s mouth. He never encouraged her, and she never expected him to view her in this light. What did she do to change his view of her?

Yuna smiled, “Dad, I never thought you would say this. Thank you.” He gently patted her head, “Don’t worry about it. This shouldn’t be a big issue. I’m sure we’ll get this sorted out during morning court.” Yuna asked, “Was there anything that we need to be worried about? Do I need to attend court with you?” Junho shook his head, “No, you need your rest. Your father will figure everything out. So just rest at home, okay?”

Yuna had no choice but to listen to her father. Regardless of how worried she was, there was nothing she could do. At this point in time, she was too powerless to do anything. If only she could find another backer; one that’s involved in the center of politics. The emperor and empress were out of the question. Maybe she could befriend one of the princes or princesses?