(This drama is based on historical events,)
(but some details may be different from historical facts.)
(Production guidelines were strictly followed when filming with animals.)
Attack the heart of Goryeo right away.
Move now.
Charge!
(Tongdeokmun)
(Geondeokjeon)
Hurry up and find the King of Goryeo.
Yes, Commander.
(Episode 12)
- Search every nook and cranny! - Yes, sir.
Where is your king?
I do not know. I truly know nothing.
Giddyap!
There he is!
He went east on a horse.
- Giddyap! - Go!
- Giddyap! - Giddyap!
Go. Faster!
- That little... - You!
Giddyap! Go!
- Faster. - Giddyap!
That envoy from Goryeo. Was it you again?
I will be sure to catch you with my own two hands!
I will do whatever it takes...
to make you pay for this!
Come along.
- Giddyap! - Let us go.
Move it!
Get away from her, you rat!
- Hand it over. - No!
- No, my child! - Please...
Back off!
Father!
No! Father!
Do not move!
Be quiet!
- No! - No!
I found a good house to loot!
- Hurry up and grab everything. - Hey, not that.
Let us go!
Darn you.
- Oh, my. - Hey, get that too.
Grab everything you see!
Check that room too.
We are taking this too. These too!
Hey, do not forget these.
Nice!
We are taking everything here.
Hey, come on!
(Kang Gam Chan's wife)
Gosh.
- Move it! - Go!
Hey!
I bet he went south.
Hurry up and chase him.
You must capture him at all costs. Do you understand?
Yes, Commander!
No, please...
Go!
Giddyap!
Does that mean he remained in Gaegyeong on purpose?
Yes, Your Majesty.
Deputy Minister Kang said he would try to buy some time.
It was all planned when we began plotting...
Your Majesty's escape from the palace.
However, they will track you down soon.
You must keep on going.
You should all find shelter now.
No, Your Majesty.
We will follow Your Majesty.
The Emperor and chancellors cannot get caught together.
Your Majesty.
Take a different route and find shelter.
Leave now.
(Choi Hang, Chancellory Scholar)
Lord Chae, please take good care of His Majesty.
Your Majesty.
Please be safe.
We will reach Gwakju Fortress soon. Put out the torches.
Yes, sir.
- Put out the torches. - Put out the torches.
I do not see the moon in the sky.
Right, it seems like the sky is helping us.
On a night like this, they would not know even if...
we were right outside the fortress walls.
(Gwakju Fortress Prisoner Labor House)
Hey! Here is some water.
- Water! - Drink up!
What is this? Do they never feed us?
(Kim Sook Heung, Seventh Rank Officer of Kwiju)
I have only had water since I was dragged here two days ago.
You will get a bowl of porridge tomorrow.
They feed us once every three days.
Darn it.
Even if we are prisoners,
a meal every three days is ridiculous.
Only then will we be submissive.
I will have no strength to do anything,
even if my wife gets violated.
Eat as much as you can when porridge is served.
The men here are too sick to eat.
My newborn baby was thrown into a well.
And my old mother was ripped apart to death by the Khitan.
What could I possibly swallow?
That man over there is the cruelest.
He kills people for fun.
After making the unhelpful old prisoners run free,
he shoots them with arrows.
(West Gate of Gwakju Fortress)
Do not miss any of them.
(Yang Kyu, Northwest Temporary Government Officer)
The Khitans must not know that...
only 1,700 Goryeo soldiers...
are attacking this fortress.
Annihilate them no matter what.
Only then can we settle the people's grudges...
and make the Khitan soldiers fear the Goryeo soldiers.
- Yes, sir. - Yes, sir.
- Let us begin. - Understood.
Follow me.
It is a whistling arrow.
(An arrow that makes a sound as a signal)
(East Gate of Gwakju Fortress)
Hurry! Duck down, everyone!
Where are they? Which side is it?
We cannot see anything.
Shoot at them.
Shoot the fire arrows at the front line!
Keep shooting so that they cannot shoot those fire arrows.
Shoot!
It is an ambush. The East Gate is under attack.
Even the South and North Gates are getting attacked by arrows.
How many enemies are there?
We do not know.
Judging by the attacks coming from many sides,
there must be quite a lot.
The number must be over tens of thousands.
Tens of thousands are needed to attack such a fortress.
Defend the fortress walls.
Have all the soldiers move to the top of the walls.
- Understood. - Understood.
Enemies!
Station yourself at the top of the walls!
- What? - What is going on?
Let us go!
- What is happening? - I do not know.
They are only shooting arrows from the shadows.
That is the case for all three East, South, and North Gates.
None of the enemies are charging at the fortress walls.
What on earth are they plotting?
Why are they not attacking the West Gate?
How many soldiers are at the West Gate?
Not many.
Most are where the attacks are coming from.
Let us go!
(Inside the West Gate of Gwakju Fortress)
Go down there and stop them!
Do not let them open the fortress gate!
Hurry up and kill them!
- It is the Goryeo soldiers! - Goryeo...
- Goryeo soldiers!
The Goryeo...
Open the fortress gate!
- Yes, sir. - Yes, sir.
Let us go!
Attack!
Kill every single one of them!
- What? - Who is it?
- I will carry them! - Go!
Make haste! Come on!
General!
All the gates have been opened.
The Goryeo soldiers have rushed inside the fortress!
Come at me!
Officer Yang! Over there!
Did you lose them?
- My goodness. - He is dead.
Here you go!
- Hurrah for Officer Yang! - Hurrah for Officer Yang!
- Hurrah for the Goryeo soldiers! - Hurrah for the Goryeo soldiers!
- Hurrah! - Hurrah!
- Hurrah for Officer Yang! - Hurrah!
(Yelu Longxu, 6th Emperor of the Khitan)
Where is the King of Goryeo?
Why is there no answer?
Where is he right now?
The King of Goryeo has fled.
"Fled?"
He is the king of a nation.
And yet, he has cast aside his people and run away?
How is that even possible?
While he was making his escape,
what were you doing, Commander?
My apologies.
We have sent men in pursuit.
They will bring him back soon.
Urgent news, Your Majesty.
Gwakju Fortress has fallen at the hands of the Goryeo army.
Gwakju Fortress?
Yes, Your Majesty.
They took over the fortress overnight,
and all the soldiers there have been wiped out.
Take the troops and have the people move to Tongju Fortress.
Yes, Officer Yang.
Go and break down the fortress gates and burn all the houses.
Even if the Khitan soldiers come back, there ought to be nothing left.
But we worked so hard to take control of the fortress.
Now, we are to burn it down?
We did not come here to take control of the fortress.
We came to get rid of our enemy's foothold.
- However... - Right now...
is not the time to hold on to this place.
From now on, we must gather our remaining forces...
and prepare to strike back.
Now,
it is the Goryeo army's turn.
Your Majesty, this is a critical situation.
Gwakju is our army's only foothold.
The fact that we have lost Gwakju...
means that our way back has been cut off.
The soldiers are shaken up.
We must turn back now before it is too late...
and recapture Seogyeong.
Why do you already worry about the way back?
The soldiers are getting shaken up...
because the court officials are thinking of such things.
What did you say?
Spearhead Commander, do not mislead the court officials.
Withdrawing the troops is much more important than advancing them.
I only say so because now is not the time to talk about withdrawing the troops.
This is the first time His Majesty has led the war in person.
The Song Dynasty, as well as all of the other feudal states,
have their eyes on this war.
And yet you talk of withdrawing the troops?
Before His Majesty brings Goryeo to its knees,
he can never withdraw his troops. Is that not right?
So,
what do you think, Spearhead Commander?
We must take the whole army...
and advance southward.
We shall sweep the entire nation of Goryeo...
and capture their king.
Your Majesty, that will not be possible.
Advancing any farther south will be dangerous.
Even now, we are too deep into Goryeo territory.
That is right, Your Majesty.
Besides, our army has...
no information on what lies south of Gaegyeong.
We do not even know how much farther south...
Goryeo's territory goes.
Your Majesty, how much farther could it go?
If you leave it to our cavalry,
they will reach the ends of Goryeo's territory within days.
Please give the command to advance the troops this instant.
Your Majesty, that is a rash statement that must not even be considered.
Simply advancing without any strategy...
is a surefire way to be wiped out.
Even if you leave an army to a 15-year-old boy,
he would not have the troops advance in such a way.
Commander.
What did you just say?
Enough!
In whose presence are you raising your voices?
Do not make such a fuss.
We have only lost a single small fortress.
It will all be over when we catch the King of Goryeo.
Then,
our way back home will open up on its own.
Understood?
- Yes, Your Majesty. - Yes, Your Majesty.
How could such a thing happen?
The fortress was being guarded by 6,000 soldiers.
How did the Goryeo army take it down overnight?
In order to take down a fortress that is guarded by 6,000 men,
one would need at least 60,000 men.
Then, does that mean the Goryeo army is strong enough to move...
sixty thousand soldiers in a single night?
We will have to look into how many men they mobilized.
However,
I believe it is true that the Goryeo army is standing strong.
We underestimated the Goryeo army too much.
You must be more cautious from now on.
You are currently deep in enemy territory, Your Majesty.
We will send more men in pursuit...
of the King of Goryeo and capture him.
Be sure to capture him.
If we fail to capture him until the end,
we will advance south.
- Your Majesty. - As the Spearhead Commander said,
I can never...
leave Goryeo just like this.
That kind of humiliation...
will never be allowed.
You shall go yourself.
No matter what it takes,
you must capture the King of Goryeo.
Yes, Commander.
(Lee Hyun Woon)
Excuse me, Commander. I have something to tell you.
Even if we cannot capture the King of Goryeo,
there is a way...
to bring the Goryeo army to its knees.
Do you think that will work?
Gaegyeong has fallen.
There is not a single Goryeo soldier who will not falter at this news.
But the King of Goryeo is still alive.
How will the commanders of Goryeo in the north know...
whether he is alive or dead?
Even if they hear a rumor that he is dead,
they will believe it.
- Giddyap. - Giddyap.
Commander Yang, it is urgent news.
- What is it? - Gaegyeong...
- has fallen. - What?
The Khitan army that was surrounding Seogyeong...
suddenly advanced on Gaegyeong.
And they apparently already took down Gaegyeong last night.
Then, what about His Majesty?
It is not certain,
but there are rumors that he has passed away.
Send word to all of the fortresses in the northwest this instant.
Tell the defense commanders of each fortress to gather in Seogyeong.
Yes, sir.
Giddyap.
Officer Yang.
Let us go. Giddyap!
Then, what happened to the court officials?
They all ran away overnight, along with His Majesty.
Goodness.
How is it that you are still here?
Did the Deputy Minister of Rites not even tell you to evacuate?
Then, did he run away by himself?
I would be relieved if he actually ran away.
What?
Who knows if he was off doing something nobody told him to...
and ended up dead somewhere?
Goodness.
I am sorry.
I was wondering who it was. It was you, Lord Kang.
And you are?
I am Ha Gong Jin, former Left Director of State Affairs.
I was in exile, but I received orders that His Majesty would pardon my crimes.
I have rushed back upon getting word.
Yes, I see.
Is it true...
that Gaegyeong has fallen?
That is what I heard on my way here.
This is bad.
Then, where must I go now?
What did you just say?
I told you to do as you please.
We have done as much as we could.
We no longer have any more sons to sacrifice.
So, do as you see fit, Supervising Commander.
If you need more soldiers,
you should go from village to village...
and take them as you please.
If you need military provisions,
you should go into any house,
open up their storeroom, and take their rice.
These are His Majesty's orders.
Conscript more soldiers this instant.
I told you to do it yourself.
Gaegyeong started this war.
So why is it that we must sacrifice our lives?
In the eyes of court officials,
do the people of the south all look like human shields?
Why, you...
His Majesty caused this war.
If you need someone to fight in the war,
tell His Majesty to go there and fight himself!
What did you say?
Commander!
Commander Choi, we have a problem.
What is the matter?
(Kim Jong Hyun, Assistant Secretary to Governor of Chungju)
Is that true?
The Deputy Minister of Rites sent a messenger to inform us.
His Majesty is on his way here now.
We have been ordered to guard His Majesty with the soldiers.
How many soldiers do we have left at the moment?
Fifteen, including myself.
- Assemble them all. - Yes, Commander.
I cannot believe this.
Gaegyeong has fallen? Gaegyeong too?
Is that true?
Yes, it is true.
My wife had left for Gaegyeong...
but came back hurriedly.
The people who evacuated Gaegyeong are all headed south.
Rumor has it that even the Emperor...
has fled and left Gaegyeong.
Then where is he now?
(Gaegyeong, Imjin River)
(Hyeonjong and his retinue, Jeokseong-hyeon)
(Jeokseong-hyeon)
Is this the place?
- Hello, welcome. - Welcome.
- Oh, boy. - Here, have some water. You too.
Have some water. Yes.
- My goodness. - Here, I got it.
We made it here.
Where did the government officials go?
It has been a few days...
since all of them fled.
We, servants, are the only ones remaining in the village at the moment.
Do you have food to eat?
We have rice,
but that is all we have.
I apologize, Your Majesty. Please forgive us.
You need not worry.
Hurry up and cook some rice for yourselves too.
Yes, Your Majesty.
(Empress Wonjeong)
Your Majesty.
You need to eat.
I cannot bring myself to eat.
I failed my people.
How dare I bring myself to eat this?
You must eat.
You ought to hold out and survive.
Only then can you have the chance to make up for failing the people.
I see that you are surprised to see me speak of the people.
You had decided to take your own life...
to save your people,
so I will no longer tell you...
to only think of your safety.
Empress.
Have some food so that you can regain your energy.
And do not...
contemplate the idea of leaving me behind all alone...
ever again.
I am sorry.
And thank you.
Hurry up and have some food.
I will eat too.
I must say, who would have thought?
Lord Chae, who knew we would be having...
rice and radish soup together, sitting face-to-face?
Right?
The war is a humbling experience for all of us.
Deputy General, why are you not eating?
I cannot swallow anything.
What is the matter? Do you have cold sores?
Enjoy your meal, all of you.
Goodness. What a waste.
Here.
Force yourself to have some food.
I do not deserve to eat.
Had I managed to defeat them in Jeollyeong,
His Majesty would not have had to flee like this.
- We were greatly outnumbered. - No.
(Jungwabujeok: One cannot win when outnumbered.)
I know I could have defeated them had I fought with all my might.
It is all my fault.
This happened because the great general, Ji Chae Moon,
put his own life first.
(Hwangbo Yu Eui, Assistant Field Legislator)
Had you died there,
you would not have been able to escort His Majesty like this.
You see, I had run away several times too,
and I was very ashamed of it.
But I thought about it...
and realized that I was able to fight again because I had survived.
That is how you should see it too.
The great general, Ji Chae Moon, should not die after just one battle.
You must survive to the end...
even after fighting countless battles.
Here, have some rice.
Deputy General!
The Khitan army is here.
- Where are they? - They are about to enter the village.
They have just crossed the pass.
- His Majesty. - His Majesty.
Where are you going?
Come back this instant!
We must get going.
Your Majesty, they will catch us at this rate.
We must get off this main road.
Please make haste!
Your Majesty, we must make haste. It is this way.
Pick up the pace!
There they are!
Are you all right?
- Let us keep moving. - Yes, Your Majesty.
They are not scouts.
One is holding a white flag,
so they must be Khitan's envoys.
- Envoys? - Yes.
It looks like they are headed to Seogyeong.
Where in the world are we?
Were we not here earlier?
This place is new to us.
It is hard to distinguish the area.
Where are the soldiers?
They must be scattered around.
I told you we should just keep hiding.
Without this man, the pursuit will get harder.
After all, the underlings run away if they lose their general.
Let us go. We must find His Majesty.
Why does he never listen to his superior? Good grief.
Where is the Deputy General?
I do not know, either.
Let us keep walking for now.
We must go as far as we can.
Where are we heading?
We are to go to Mount Samgak in Yangju first,
then to Chungju, where the Provincial Governor is.
The Deputy General knows about it.
We will meet him midway.
Oh, no.
Are you all right?
Can you keep walking?
Yes. Do not worry.
I am much stronger than I look.
(Seogyeong Fortress)
Your Majesty!
- Your Majesty! - Your Majesty!
Do not let the rumor get to you.
We do not know for sure if His Majesty has truly passed away.
The Khitan soldiers are isolated in our camp.
This is our chance to launch a counterattack.
Do not waver. Get ready for battle.
On whose orders should we fight for?
We do not know if our commander, the emperor, is dead or alive.
The soldiers will not follow any orders.
They have no fighting spirit.
(Choi Jil, Deputy General)
Despite hearing the news we have reclaimed Gwakju,
they are not rejoicing.
The people think...
Goryeo has gone down.
(Kang Min Cheom, Commander of Aesoojin)
I have no idea how to bring their spirits up again.
Officer Yang.
An envoy has come from the Khitan.
(Seonhwamun)
I have come to pass on the emperor's order.
(Royal Message)
Listen, generals and the people of Goryeo.
Unfortunately, your King has died.
- Oh, no. - Your Majesty.
Put down your long swords and surrender.
Mourning clothes will be given to all generals.
Hold your King's funeral at once.
- Your Majesty! - Your Majesty!
- I do not believe it. - Your Majesty...
- Our poor Majesty. - Good grief.
- Your Majesty! - Your Majesty!
- Stop! - How could this happen?
- Your Majesty. - Do not cry.
His Majesty...
is alive.
- What? - He is alive?
- Is he truly alive? - I do not know.
- His Majesty is alive. - Goodness.
Deputy Minister Kang.
Officer Yang.
His Majesty is safe.
He has temporarily fled from the palace to avoid the Khitan soldiers.
Deputy General Ji Chae Moon has protected and guided His Majesty...
to the south with his soldiers.
- How dare you! - Stop!
What is going on?
This man is lying to you.
The King of Goryeo has indeed passed away.
Then...
return at once...
and send His Majesty's body to Seogyeong.
We will believe you then.
Or carry my message to the Khitan emperor.
None of the Khitan soldiers...
will return alive.
(Seogyeong Fortress)
You came just in time.
I am truly grateful.
Do not thank me.
You, Officer Yang, have accomplished great work.
To have reclaimed Gwakju.
I am deeply touched.
Your words to the Khitan emperor.
Was it spoken out of your heart?
Yes. I was indeed sincere about it.
Not a single soldier...
will return alive.
It was him.
The Deputy Minister of Rites who had visited...
as an envoy, Kang Gam Chan.
He came just in time as if he knew...
such was going to happen.
In the end, that man...
ruined everything.
Kang Gam Chan.
It was you again.
To think His Majesty would come here voluntarily.
Even the deity must have thrown the emperor aside.
Please stop.
Your subjects are watching us.
It is as if I am the Queen Dowager, not the Empress.
I doubt even the Queen Dowager of Cheonchujeon...
was treated with such care.
Not once...
would she have gone through a hardship like this.
I am sorry.
Please bear with it a bit longer.
- Your Majesty! - Your Majesty!
(Korea-Khitan War)
You will help the troops withdraw?
Does that mean you will secretly communicate with the enemy?
The only Khitan soldier who can change the emperor's mind...
is that man.
Where must I go now?
Where must I go to be welcomed?
From the moment you deceived me, this war started going downhill.
If only you had not gotten in the way...
(Subtitles are provided by KOCOWA.)