Jongho crossed his arms as he listened to the conversation to his right. He leaned against the tunnel wall opposite Yunho, and their gazes fixed mostly on the path uphill, but they also kept an eye on the shadow that the king had hidden in. The cold earth and atmosphere that announced the impending doom of a kingdom wrapped around them tensely and reached even the arrogant king. Yet, he didn't dare to show himself and face his son but preferred to stay in the corner that he had chosen for himself.

Like a crawler. Like the vermin he despised so much that crept and festered in the dark.

This time, there was no escape for him. They had the time to talk to him and get answers for all of their questions before they would leave him to die here in this hole he had dug to become his own grave. After him, no other person would have to die. The king ended the era of tyranny with his own exit.

"I didn't expect you to use such brusque methods... I always assumed you to be too peaceful and passive to succeed. Maybe you would make a good king, after all." The Undying's praise carried barely any affection. If anything, he sounded sarcastic even in his dying moments.

"If a king is required to attack and show no mercy, then I would rather not be a king." Seonghwa stood on the other side of the wagon with his eyes directed at the flat wall up ahead. Next to him, Hongjoong loosely held his gun in one hand to be able to shoot the second that the king dared to move.

"You take the high ground now, but you won't be able to do that later. Don't you think that the population will thirst for your life, too? You are part of me; you share my blood. You and your bastard brother-"

"Do not refer to him as such." Seonghwa's powerful voice boomed over that of his father. Gone were all respect and decency that Seonghwa usually carried. This time, Jongho saw no reason to act even if his anger bubbled over at the mention of the king's vile opinion on Yeosang resurfaced once more.

"If the folk chooses to treat my case like yours, then I will leave this place. I will not stay to subject them to another century of suffering and hatred."

"You should. And if you can't, then your brother should. This is your chance to seize. The chance to play the hero that aided the city in the moment of a crisis. Just like I once did. Your brother should take this over from you right now and win this fight. I did the same."

Seonghwa's face fell.

Indeed, so far, the brothers had been following their father's footsteps. While Seonghwa's motivations weren't the same as his, and he didn't seek power and dominance, the act of him stepping up for the people in need was just the same as two hundred years ago. And at the same time, Yeosang being greedy and supposedly wanting to take the throne from him perfectly mirrored his father, too. The people of Asorazey wouldn't trust this family a second time.

Bitter at the path that the king had chosen for them, Jongho closed his eyes to rest them for a moment as he channelled his anger.

Why wait? They should kill the man once and for all before he damaged them any more and continued to poison their thoughts.

"The folk elects their ruler, and after you, they will choose wisely. I wouldn't be surprised if they appointed a Zey man as their new leader so they can restore the cities." No matter the taunting, Seonghwa kept his chin up and retorted anyway. Not as if his snorting father minded.

"Restore the cities," the king repeated disbelievingly. "Do you not see how rotten the westsiders are? How distrustful and hateful? Theirs are man's true colours. And they won't lose them just because you allow them to go ahead and kill whoever they please freely."

"I think you were a good enough example of that to the point that they won't want to associate themselves with it." The answer was so frosty that a chill ran down Jongho's spine. He crossed his arms defensively.

From how well Seonghwa was handling the conversation, nobody else felt the need to interrupt. The power had shifted from the almighty king to his intelligent son, and the group observed full of amazement how Seonghwa handled the traitor as a true king would.

"You lost your senses, Seonghwa. Next, you tell me is that you will develop a love for those creatures, just like your brother did." Disgust laced his voice as if he had stuck his hand in a disgusting swamp. Instantly, Yeosang stepped over to hold onto Jongho's arm protectively. Not Jongho needed the reassurance, though. Yeosang needed it. Jongho pulled him in to lean against his body and rested his cheek against his hair. Yeosang felt cold in his grip, but his body relaxed against Jongho's as if that was where he was meant to be.

"Oh, I do. A Zey man, as vile as you could imagine him to be. A dirty airship pilot that, by the way, introduced the end of your life. I hope the pain of him crashing into you still resonates in the piece of you that is still human," Seonghwa bit out as an answer. Hongjoong grinned roguishly at the official introduction to Seonghwa's family. As if the whole situation barely included him, he lounged against the wagon with his weapon turning in his hands as he twisted it without pause.

The king had a coughing fit. Heavy and agonising, every breath broke from his body.

"A king shouldn't love."

"I am no king. And I stopped being a prince the minute you tried to kill me. You stripped me of any title I had. Now, I am just a rebel. One of many who want to see you rot in hell."

"Oh, Seonghwa... I wish that my death would fulfil your hatred and that of the many others. But it won't. I will die, and you will die once my Bishops lay their eyes on you once you emerge. Our joy will be short-lived. The people who control the Bishops, aside from me, hate Zey just as much. You and your supposed rebels and all of Zey, including your little lover, will turn to ashes within a few hours. And also, your brother. I never asked a thing of him, never forced him through hard times. And yet, he thinks that he is important enough to have a say in our matters."

This time, Yunho chuckled. Deep and ominous as he admitted his presence to the king. No doubt, he had heard multiple feet coming closer and could guess that they were the same group as last time. However, he hadn't recognised Yunho in all the time he had wandered the palace. His disinterest and arrogance towards those in the shadows had been his ultimate downfall.

"Is that what you think? Your men have long since been replaced or chose a different side. Don't think that anyone will mourn your loss or that you have any power left."

Flabbergasted, the king gasped in his corner.

"You fool! I have no idea who you are, but your lies cloud your mind! I built countless war machines; I'm the greatest inventor of my time! You may have found a way to kill me, but you won't kill my legacy!"

"But they are machines. Machines that obey anybody who holds them in their hands at the moment. You didn't build your own army. You built an army free for anybody to use."

Silence wrapped around the assembly as sinister and foreboding as the dark promise Yunho had implied. Nobody could deny the truth, and given the past incident where the automatons had turned against him, the understanding dawned upon the king finally.

"Seonghwa. Who is this imbecile? Is he the lover that you mentioned? I want to remember him to curse and laugh about once I die."

He grasped at straws. The king either knew he had lost or was delusional enough to be too sure of his success that he overlooked the truth. Seeing his defences grumble was the greatest joy Jongho could imagine.

"He's the brother of Yeosang's lover. A man that you tried to kill in the war three years ago when you sacrificed Zey's people in a kamikaze mission. A man who lived and who swore revenge. A man who lived among the shadows of your own palace for more than a year." Without batting an eyelash, Seonghwa motioned Wooyoung over to help him. The two of them stepped behind the wagon to push with all of their might until it slid further back. Hongjoong moved the wooden block that served as a break simultaneously. Once it was out of the way, the shine of Yunho's lamp wedged in the metal filling the container palely lit the grotesque form of the king behind it.

Fallen in like a formless glob of flesh, he laid against the wall. Blood stained the ground around him in a dark glinting puddle. His lower half was entirely gone, and the king was no more but a torso who pulled himself by his arms. The tendrils once connected to his head hung behind him lifelessly, and a few had ripped out from his skull to leave gaping holes in the machinery. Some of the wires connected into his face had gone awry, and one had bored into his eye that was shut and clotted with blood and grease.

His pale face looked more dead than alive and like a ghost in the dark tunnel.

"Get to know the people who came to kill you and stop your plans. So that you can curse them until all eternity once you found a beautiful place in hell to stay in." Seonghwa gestured towards them all. Yet, the king stubbornly looked only at Seonghwa, not caring for the rest.

"You mean to remember those whom I know made a foolish attempt at my life and succeeded only by using an airship. Those who will be executed later for their misdeeds." The king grinned humourlessly. As he did, another one of the wires pierced the flesh of his cheek to enter his mouth like a fishing hook. Disgusted, Jongho grimaced beneath his mask.

The king's spine made of metal scraped against the rocks as he attempted to push his shoulder and heads up with the arms that remained on him. His backbone protruded from the flesh of his chest, covered with blood and loose bits of skin. A deep wound had ripped in one of his flanks, but the other one seemed to have been made of metal for a long while. That was also the side he put his weight on as he settled against the stone wall behind him. Cold and lovelessly, his eyes swiped through their rows.

"Not too many familiar faces. That's a surprise. I expected to see my every advisor here."

He chuckled at them with a winning smile as if he had any right to joke with them. Chilly stares and defensive stances answered him.

"Then you will be alleviated to hear that the one who inspired this whole mission is Bang Yongguk."

Acknowledgement flashed in the Undying's eyes, and Jongho curiously tilted his head. Was it time to unveil the story of the hermit and just how he had known so much about the palace and its intrigues?

"Bang... I see. I didn't expect him to plan in the shadows behind me. I always thought he wouldn't have the guts."

"He started the rebel initiative, and he was the one supplying us with all the evidence we needed to strike. Remember to mention his name in your curses. It will send another blessing of the gods our way."

"Do you even know him? You might remember him, Seonghwa, if you weren't too busy with your teenage dreams of flying the skies at the time."

"Tell us his story," Seonghwa replied curtly. Distracted by some wind travelling their way, Jongho glanced up the path at the same time as Yunho. The foreboding dread of this being a trap had yet to settle with him. Frankly, he would rather finish things up quickly and cleanly and return to Mingi and San. But it seemed as if the two princes needed their closure. And since this was their story, Jongho was wise enough not to complain.

"He's a traitor, just like you people. He fits you perfectly. A man who was too weak-hearted for war. He didn't see that we could only protect our city - both of them - by waging war with our neighbouring countries. Like a scared kid, he ditched his position as a royal advisor by my side and disappeared. I had assumed that he went overseas, but you seem to have met him." The king tried to spit on the ground in distaste, but only a bloody glob fell from his trembling lips. The nethicite core that glowed under the ripped flesh of his torso flickered like a dying candle.

"So a good man indeed. Now. I feel like my friends are getting impatient. Joong." Seonghwa opened his hand without ever letting his eyes stray from the monster that his father was. When Hongjoong handed the pistol over with no questions asked, Yeosang stiffened in Jongho's arm.

As if Seonghwa had handled guns for all of his life, he pointed it at his father.

"Time's over."