Five Broken Blades

Royo is growing impatient with Aeri, who has not stopped talking since they boarded the boat. When she asks him about “Lora” after hearing him speak the name in his sleep, Royo isolates himself on the balcony. Aeri apologizes, and he confirms that Lora is a friend. Privately, he reflects on the fact that Lora had been his lover even though she was from a wealthy merchant family and he was only a street thug. Now, he tells Aeri that Lora was killed by a local gang in Umbria, but he does not say that he and Lora were having sex at the time, nor does he admit that he quickly escaped, believing that the intruder was Lora’s father. Despite hearing someone scream, he continued walking away, assuming that someone else was being attacked in the rough-and-tumble city of Umbria. In the aftermath, Lora’s father, Hwan, was found guilty of her murder. Now, Royo doesn’t tell Aeri that he is attempting to make amends by freeing Hwan from prison before his scheduled execution in two months. As Royo questions Aeri over the loss of her mother, they spot several approaching pirate ships.

Sora and Tiyung speak of his purpose on the trip—which is allegedly to burn the records of her indenture after the king’s death; however, Tiyung is not aware that Sora herself is meant to kill the king. He tells her of the time when the Count of Umbria attempted to kill the king but failed miserably and incurred heavy tariffs as a result. That night, they stay at a nobleman’s villa. At dinner, Sora is impressed by the fact that Tiyung isn’t as wasteful with food or as demeaning of women as most nobles have proven to be. However, when he asks to be friends with Sora, she refuses and leaves the dining room.

Royo quickly determines that he and Aeri must jump ship, but Aeri does not want to leave her things behind and wants to use one of the lifeboats instead. She eventually concedes and retrieves a velvet bag from her things, but by this time, the pirates have already boarded their ship. Royo fights off five of them single-handedly while protecting Aeri. As they are cornered on the balcony, Aeri takes Royo’s hand and tugs them both over the edge.

When Royo awakens, he finds himself in one of the lifeboats, which he thinks is logistically impossible because the boat was too far from their balcony. Aeri evades his questions by making him row the boat.

Mikail battles the aftereffects of the laoli as he and Euyn buy a donkey for the journey over the mountain pass. As they start the long trip through the pass, Mikail recalls that Euyn’s interest in hunting humans instead of game began when a nobleman made a joke and asked why Euyn spared the life of Chul, a man he hunted. Euyn tried to justify himself by the fact that the people he hunted were prisoners. He claimed that the hunt was legal because if the prisoners managed to escape, they would earn their freedom from their binding contract. Eventually, Euyn explains that he only allowed Chul to survive because the man had been incarcerated for killing a magistrate who sold Chul’s daughters to pleasure houses.

Mikail considers Euyn’s search for a father figure and reflects that he himself found a father figure of his own in the soldier who took him from his homeland of Gaya when Joon decimated it. Overhead, shrieks echo, and Mikail readies his sword.

Aeri is impressed by Royo’s strength as he rows them to a nearby isle for the night. She debates the merits of going ashore with him, but Royo convinces her to stay on the isle to hail the next scheduled riverboat the following day. She offers to share her only cloak with him because the night is cold, but Royo prefers to remain alone. When it becomes clear that Aeri will freeze without his body heat, Royo relents and takes her into his arms. Aeri falls asleep.

Eleven hours—or bells—into their trip through the pass, Euyn and Mikail have yet to be attacked by samrocs, but Euyn still feels hunted and begins reflecting on his past, questioning himself for hunting the prisoners. In the past, Joon charged Euyn with killing prisoners for his own amusement and violating Yusan laws, and the king sentenced Euyn to death by exile. Mikail supported Joon’s decision at the time, and now, Euyn asks him why. Mikail reminds Euyn that his position as a commoner would not have influenced the king’s decision; had Mikail spoken against the king, he would have been killed violently. He reveals, however, that Euyn did not survive his exile by accident, for all his good fortune was orchestrated by Mikail. As the sun sinks below the horizon, Mikail and Euyn silently agree to stop speaking to avoid attracting the samrocs, but a cry suddenly echoes through the pass.

Tiyung is aware Sora wants to kill him. She suspects him of darker motivations when he is kind to servants and beggar children, but he reminds her that he is not his father. Tiyung has had to learn how to navigate his father’s cruelty from a young age; his tactic is to seem to be just as callous as Seok, especially when interacting with those he loves—including Sora. She questions him on his father’s reasons for engaging in the assassination plot, but Seok rarely explains his reasons, even to his son. Unbeknownst to Sora, Seok has tasked Tiyung with killing Sora after she assassinates the king.

The cry that Euyn and Mikail heard comes from a frightened child named Kito. As Mikail attends to Kito, Euyn finds an overturned wagon and the nearby bodies of a man and woman—presumably Kito’s parents. Euyn is suspicious and adamantly requests that they leave, but Mikail forms an immediate attachment to the boy, who claims that he and his family were attacked on their way to Fallow. Mikail promises to bring Kito to a relative, despite Euyn’s protests. As they pass the carnage of the wagon, Kito urges them to run.

When he wakes up, Royo is unsettled to find Aeri in his arms and wonders again how they made it to the rowboat. Aeri wakes up, and when they see a riverboat, they row to it. They are given rooms on the boat after Aeri tells an altered version of their encounter with the pirates. This makes Royo suspicious of her. Their subsequent conversation turns to their parents, and the narrative reveals that Aeri’s mother was a courtesan and that Royo has no connection with his father. He also reminds Aeri that if she double-crosses him, he will kill her.

Despite Kito’s warning, Euyn and Mikail find themselves surrounded by four men and begin to fight; Euyn uses his crossbow and Mikail uses his flaming sword. As Euyn battles the last man, Mikail moves to kill the man. Suddenly, Kito screams and runs to protect the man, whom he calls his father, and is fatally wounded. Shaken, Mikail lets go of his flaming sword, and the man snatches it and runs without a second thought for his dead son. Mikail tracks the man down and kills him mercilessly. Privately, Euyn wonders how many lives will be lost in the process of claiming the throne as his own.

Sora and Tiyung arrive in Rahway, where they plan to meet the Count of the East for dinner. Sora is surprised to find that the counts are working together, given their history of mutual hatred. Sora and Tiyung settle into an inn, and Tiyung is given a sealed letter. Sora knows better than to ask about the letter’s contents and goes to take a bath instead.

When Mikail and Euyn arrive in Gorya, Euyn restitches Mikail’s opened wounds and attempts to ask him about his odd attachment to the boy, but Mikail refuses to explain. Euyn then asks why Quilimar wants Joon dead. Mikail reasons that she partly wishes for revenge because Joon sold her into a marriage with the King of Khitan. With the King of Khitan now dead, Quilimar is now acting as regent and is prepared to make her move. Mikail reasons that she most likely believes she can control Euyn. This idea leaves Euyn distraught by the realization that none of his siblings really know him; only Mikail has ever fully understood him. Euyn tells Mikail that he loves him, and they have sex.

Royo is fitted for a new suit and does not like it. As he and Aeri make their way to the Troubadour Inn, they discuss the delivery time needed for all her purchases, and Royo loudly protests the unnecessary delays. However, Aeri is not cowed, which earns his respect. She goes back to the inn, and Royo follows.

Sora and Tiyung arrive at the Count of Rahway’s estate. When they arrive at the dining room, Sora notes that the table has been set for five people instead of three. When the two extra guests (Mikail and Euyn) arrive, Tiyung and the count bow. This alerts Sora that at least one of the guests is royal.

Groomed and clothed like the royal he used to be, Euyn feels rejuvenated—until he learns Sora’s true name, Athora, and realizes that she is Chul’s daughter. The count (Rune) offers to demonstrate Sora’s abilities to Euyn. He takes her water and gives it to a dog, who promptly dies after ingesting the water. Sora is visibly horrified when Rune explains that he poisoned her water with tabernacle poison without her knowledge. The count and Tiyung explain the poison school that Seok created and state that 20 girls have been forced to attend the school. Rune offers Sora’s services as a gesture of the four counts’ commitment to Euyn’s reign. When the men discuss their plan to have someone steal Joon’s crown, Sora understands that Joon is only a man and not, as she has been led to believe, a god. Humiliated, Sora leaves.

Sora walks until she reaches a stone patio. She contemplates taking her own life because she has finally understood that Daysum’s cryptic message wasn’t “Sora, I think it’s time” but “Sora, I think I’m dying” (195). Rune finds her and explains that the dog was destined to die, so using the poison on it was a mercy. He gives her a perfunctory apology and confesses himself intrigued by the fact that Seok never broke her spirit; his comment unsettles her. He tells her that Seok has ordered Tiyung to kill her, and she feels foolish for believing in Tiyung’s kind behavior during their travels. Rune offers to keep her and her sister alive and entreats her to return to dinner with Euyn and Mikail. When he suggests that Sora kill Tiyung, she feels disturbed, but now that she has confirmation that Joon’s crown makes the wearer immortal, she has a new purpose: to steal Joon’s crown in order to save her dying sister.

Mikail is intrigued by Sora and her abilities. After dinner, he pulls Euyn into a wardrobe to have a private discussion. He announces that they must set their plan in motion during the millennial celebration because this is the only day that Joon will leave the palace and will be less closely attended by guards. When Euyn remains unsure about moving forward with the plan, Mikail offers to have Aeri demonstrate her abilities to reassure him. He draws Euyn to him, and they fall into bed together.

Aeri takes Royo to the amusement district, but he is unimpressed and wants to leave. He relents when she becomes dispirited, and Aeri convinces him to play in a tuhko stall; tuhko is the national sport. She coaches him through winning the game. When he wins with her guidance, he gives her the prize: a stuffed dragon that she names Royo. When they get lost on their way back, they argue, attracting the attention of guards. Royo and Aeri run away, and as they hide in a dark alley, they nearly kiss. When the guards leave, they return to the inn.

The next morning, Royo witnesses Aeri lose her nerve with the tailor. He wonders about the conflicting facets of her personality. The royal spymaster, Mikail, is late to their rendezvous, but Aeri finds a red card underneath her door that tells her to meet Mikail in a different room at the inn. Royo objects to the instructions, but Aeri decides to go to the meeting anyway. When Royo and Aeri arrive, Mikail, Euyn, Sora, and Tiyung are already waiting. Introductions are exchanged, and Mikail requests that Aeri demonstrate her thieving ability to Euyn. She enlists Royo to create a mild distraction while she steals a hat from Euyn and places it on Tiyung’s head. Despite watching her every move, no one saw her do it.