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(This drama is set in the times of King Jinheung.)
(But all characters and events are fiction.)
There is no need. I am the one they are after!
Nonsense. They came in here, so they are attacking us!
Dog-Bird!
Protect Sun Woo.
(Episode 17)
Make a sound and this will pierce your throat.
- Who are you? - Me?
The true owner of the bracelet.
The man you sought so dearly.
The faceless King.
I thought...
Master Ahn Ji's son was the King.
No. It is I.
I am your King...
Jinheung.
Next time,
I will come to kill you for real.
No.
No!
I will not avoid it any longer.
What do you mean?
Now,
I must become the true King of Silla.
Do you even know what a king is?
I have been protecting Silla.
I hung onto the wavering authority of the Royal Family.
It is because I persisted through the cruel times...
that Silla still belongs to Sacred Bone.
You have never spilled blood.
You do not know what it takes to protect the throne.
The true king of Silla?
I know.
You have protected Silla.
However, your name will not remain anywhere.
Because I, Jinheung,
am the King of Silla.
I am the reason you still live.
It is because I killed those who tried to kill you...
that you are alive.
You used me as an excuse to feed your greed for power.
If you want to blame me and resent me, go ahead.
All you will have at the end...
are that resentment and regrets.
It is my Silla.
The country which I should be ruling over.
This is my Silla.
Mo Young.
Mo Young!
Yes, Your Highness.
Master Ahn Ji...
Call Master Ahn Ji.
Your Highness, Master Ahn Ji is out of the capital...
to treat patients suffering the plague.
Shall I bring you some tea?
Yes.
Bring me some tea.
I will bring it to you right away.
The man you sought so dearly. The faceless King.
I am your King...
Jinheung.
Are you all right?
It does not look like he was injured,
then why is he still unconscious?
I looked all over him,
and there is not an inch where he is well.
However, there were no critical injuries.
Then why is he not waking up?
I have been thinking it was strange...
that he faints from time to time.
He faints?
Did you not know about his fainting suddenly?
Help me!
Gosh. What am I going to do?
Help!
Help.
Is there any news from Wolseong Palace?
Darn it.
Doctor. Doctor.
Please save my child.
- Please help. - Calm down.
Hold on. You should lie down first.
I am fine.
Please help my child.
Please save him.
Hang in there. You'll be okay.
That plant is poisonous.
I have no choice.
No, no!
I have to.
I cannot just sit and watch.
Here.
Chew on this.
If you withstand the poison, you will live.
Chew.
Mom...
- No! - Mom.
Do you have ginseng or white woodland peony?
Those medicinal ingredients are hard to find nowadays.
I do not have any.
If you cannot get the medicine,
what happens to those people?
We must save them somehow.
What was that?
Star anise is nearly impossible to find in the capital.
What is that cart?
Why is it going so slowly?
Master Ahn Ji...
is trying to save people in Makmang Village.
The plague is not spreading as fast.
That annoying man does only annoying deeds.
Should we put them out on the market now?
Do you know how we can change this into gold?
If these medicinal ingredients rot in this storage,
it will become this.
The fear of catching the plague...
and the desperate need for the lacking medicine...
will turn them into gold.
People like Master Ahn Ji...
are making my gold rot.
Why are you...
trying to make Wonhwa again?
Do you not know...
what happened to Nam Mo and Joon Jung?
Joon Jung was jealous of Nam Mo and killed her.
Then Nam Mo's disciples killed Joon Jung.
You must know it differently from that.
What are you talking about?
Please stop here.
Then I will stop as well.
Stop?
Step down from the throne...
and demise of the crown.
Also, do not touch Hwarang.
Then nothing will happen.
Why do you sound like a conspiring rebel?
How dare you speak of demising the crown?
They are my Hwarang!
You are nothing more than a ghost.
This is not something you can meddle with.
Had you left it the way it was,
I would not have wanted anything.
I would have left him to live as if...
he was never born at all.
- Whom are you... - Everything...
started because of you.
Ji So! You started it!
Master...
What? What is it now?
There is something I must tell you.
All right. Tell me later.
This is very important. Many lives depend on it.
My life is on the line right now as well.
Let us talk later.
Then I will wait for you inside.
All right.
One, two.
This is the best for watery poop.
Yes, our talented physician.
What do you want to talk about? Lives depend on what?
There is an epidemic going around in Makmang Village.
People die from the disease every day.
However, there is no medicine. They cannot be treated.
Gosh.
Whenever there is an epidemic, the peasants die first.
And?
Is this not a star anise which is good for...
endemics and colds?
It is impossible to find these days.
Where did you find it?
There is none in the capital,
so you cannot get it even with a premium.
However, they are rotting in one place.
Where is that?
Master Young Shil's storage.
Help me, Chief Instructor.
We have to save them.
Please.
I do not have any power.
I do not have a house, land, or even a silver.
But...
you cannot just sit and watch!
- You startled me. - You should...
look for a way.
Why are you doing this to me?
Chief Instructor. No!
By the way, have you gone...
to see your brother?
What about my brother?
Last night, assassins came in Hwarang House...
and he got a little...
Assassins?
Gosh. There is not a single peaceful day for him.
He better not be hurt.
Who...
did you think I was?
I do not think that is important.
I have a suitor.
I do not plan on becoming a half-breed's bride.
(Husband)
However,
I must know what this is.
Why am I so confused when I see you?
What is this...
I am feeling?
It sounds like I am confusing you.
There is no need.
I have already forgotten what you just did.
I do not care about what you think.
I am curious about my feelings.
This is an order from Silla's Princess.
Until my curiosity is satisfied,
do not run away.
Until I am no longer curious,
you must stay still.
I plan to use her to get the best out of you.
I know that she has the power to move you.
If you pretended to be the King,
keep on acting like one.
If you do not want to lose your sister.
I heard assassins snuck into Hwarang House.
Did you get hurt?
I am fine.
- Let me take a look. - Well...
I am fine.
If you are done, I will go.
Wait.
The weather is really nice today.
It is.
He is at it again.
Why is he playing so hard to get?
I already went through it before,
but it still hurts.
What brings you here?
You were right.
My brother is in this Hwarang House.
Master Ji Dwi.
- How did you know? - I told you.
It is not right for only you to know.
Did other people find out as well?
You are far too greedy.
- Greedy? - Your brother was mistaken for the King...
and was attacked by assassins.
Yet you still want to look after my brother as well.
- That is... - Is Master Sun Woo...
even your brother?
I know you think of him not as your brother.
I can tell from your eyes.
What is it that you want to say?
I am asking if you are playing...
with both my brother and Master Sun Woo.
You are the one who is greedy.
Wanting to have someone...
who is not interested is being greedy.
That is not the case for me.
My situation is different from yours.
Now, I can see why...
the Queen chose you.
You...
irritate me.
What do you mean she chose me?
What are you talking about?
Ban Ryu is sitting over there.
Does it metaphorically mean it went back to old times?
Metaphorically? He is just being straightforward.
Where were you last night?
Mind your own business.
There were assassins. Sun Woo almost got killed.
And we could not find you all night.
Could this be a coincidence?
I do not care what you are imagining.
However, move aside.
I am losing my appetite with the Queen's dog around.
Are you running away again? To be the bad guy?
I am warning you. Do not act like you are my friend.
You better not be involved in the incident.
If you are involved by any chance,
you are a complete jerk.
Thus, I will kill you.
Here.
Eat this.
All right. Thank you.
What is it?
Since the assassins came last night,
everyone believes that you are the King now.
You do not need to care about it.
Are you okay, Your...
Are you okay?
You know it is weird too, right?
I do.
Eat this.
This tastes good.
Since we are on the topic,
are you really His Majesty?
You can tell just us, can you not?
What?
I have no appetite.
What brings you here?
What brings you here, Your Majesty?
Sit down.
Your nephew should be the one standing.
Furthermore, you are my teacher.
If you say it is your order,
it will make me more at ease.
It is my order.
In that case.
You said if I want to be the real king,
I must endure it.
Yes, that is what I said.
If I endure it?
What more must I do?
You should gain people.
If I were a faceless king,
I would gain a person who is strong.
A person who is strong.
Like Park Young Shil?
Yes.
If you can get him, you should.
Then all of the power that he possesses...
will be yours.
Get him if I can?
And if I cannot?
Must I kill him?
Do I have...
you?
You have gained justification.
Justification.
As in, if I lacked justification,
would you have chosen someone else?
At times, your choice can be...
not something that is better,
but something that is less bad.
How long will you run?
Do you not have something to say to me?
How does it feel to pretend to be the King?
You must know how it feels.
I never pretended to be a king.
You have never been the real King either.
Do not think you know everything.
I am trying me best too.
I am...
fighting too.
Fighting?
Is that what you call a fight?
Fleeing, hiding,
and avoiding it?
It is a fight...
hoping Silla will improve.
A fight hoping people of Silla...
will not die anymore because of Silla's rules.
A fight...
to protect the subjects so that they will never...
become thieves again.
There is an epidemic spreading outside of the capital.
We must quickly provide medicine,
but even the capital has run out of the medicine.
We have many important matters to discuss.
Are you telling us to waste time for mere peasants?
That is correct.
Baekje and Goguryeo are too strong.
Will you sit back and watch?
We never know when the epidemic will enter the capital.
Are you not afraid?
If we cannot collect any more taxes,
we must all donate to provide for them.
We can just open the storage shed of the palace.
If you give out the foods in the storage shed,
you could save those peasants.
What if the epidemic strikes the capital?
The palace is final protection.
How can we prepare for the epidemic without medicine?
Everyone is in the same position.
If you care so much about the peasants,
just give out what you have.
What?
Even if that peasant town disappears completely,
it will not affect us one bit.
They know peasants who enter the capital are killed,
so they will not enter the capital anyway.
When will you step down?
Did you not tell me...
that the Hwarang is the King?
Step down!
Come down.
Get down now!
Step down!
It is time for you to stop!
Step down! It is time.
Step down!
Your Highness, do you feel all right?
We asked if we should send an envoy to Goguryeo.
As I told you before,
unless they apologize for their mistakes...
and swear never to do it again,
no trades will be possible.
It is a fight...
hoping Silla will improve.
A fight hoping people of Silla...
will not die anymore because of Silla's rules.
A fight...
to protect the subjects so that they will never...
become thieves again.
Sun Woo.
Master We Hwa wants you.
Ji Dwi, you too.
Do not ask why.
I do not know either.
I asked the two of you to come...
to ask you a question.
Come in.
Come to me now.
I will live as your man...
and not anyone's king.
Are you trying to use me...
as an excuse to run away?
You can tell in their eyes...
if someone has given up.
You have...
never once given up.
She is my hired help.
She is the physician in Hwarang House,
but she does all sorts of jobs on the outside.
I am sure you do not need an introduction.
Anyway, my hired help says...
she found out something interesting.
Brief them.
The thing is...
we are out of medicine to treat...
an epidemic that struck the capital and all of Silla.
The epidemic has swept Makmang Village...
and people are dying, but we cannot do anything.
I found out where the medicinal ingredients are...
by chance,
and they are in Master Young Shil's storage shed.
He has enough to make medicine for everyone in Silla...
to be cured in that shed,
but he will not share or sell them even if they rot.
Rather,
if he hears that there is any available,
he buys them all and stores them in his shed.
Thus, no one can buy the medicine...
no matter how much they pay.
Master Young Shil must be waiting for the epidemic...
to worsen so that he can sell the medicine...
for more than its weight in gold.
But people in peasant towns like Makmang Village...
will all die before then.
This is the problem.
How must this problem be solved?
Solve the problem?
As you heard,
the more we delay, the lives of the people...
of Makmang Village will be in danger.
What will you do?
This problem...
must be solved by the two of you together.
Why? Because I assume that the two of you...
have been contemplating the most about...
how to be king.
If not, whatever.
Regardless, I gave you a problem,
so you must solve it.
This problem...
is not about getting a pass or fail.
You may solve it or not.
You may walk out of here and pretend...
you did not hear anything.
The decision...
is for you to make yourselves.
What do you want to do?
Why did you do that?
Do you not know their tempers?
They will cause trouble.
That is why I called them in.
If you do not cause trouble, the world will not change.
What happens...
depends on their decision.
Their awakening...
may be...
able to change Silla at least a little.
You cannot solve it.
Why do you think I cannot?
Because you do not know.
You do not know how they live, what they are like,
how beautiful that place is,
and why it is valuable and must be protected.
I do know that storing medicine and making money...
at the expense of people's lives deserve death.
It is not just you.
I get angry when I see injustice too.
But I cannot know how strong that determination is.
As long as the result is the same.
I can solve it too.
- I have one answer. - So do I.
Dog-Bird!
Protect Sun Woo.
You better not be involved in the incident.
If you are involved by any chance,
you are a complete jerk.
Thus,
I will kill you.
How have you been?
I have missed you.
I tried not to,
but I missed you too much.
That is why I came.
It is fine even if you had a change of heart.
It is fine...
if you do not think I am pretty anymore.
Regardless, I am very grateful...
to you.
I thought all men were like my brother,
but you taught me that there are men...
as good as you.
So...
I am grateful to you.
I wanted to see you just one more time.
I did not think...
I could let you go like this.
But...
seeing you like this,
I miss you even more.
I want...
to hurt you.
So that when you think of me, you will remember...
that pain first and get over me.
I want to hurt you. I should...
but I can't think when I look at you.
So run away.
I am a bad man.
So...
run as far away as possible...
from me before you get hurt.
You are not a bad man.
I know.
You are a good man, Ban Ryu.
Do what?
No way. Really?
Will you join us or not?
I do not know.
I must do it, but you have no reason to.
I can be responsible for nothing, so think hard.
I will do it.
I am doing it for me because I feel like I should.
I will not be able to sleep otherwise.
Fine. Sure.
Although Master Young Shil may be my father.
You have too many fathers in the capital.
What about Ban Ryu?
Not Ban Ryu.
Of course not. We are robbing Master Young Shil's shed.
He would tattle on us.
Not that.
It may hurt him. We cannot let that happen.
Anyway, we cannot let him find out.
Open the gate!
- Who are you? - My apologies.
Tell him that the chief instructor of Hwarang...
came to drink the 30-year-old wine.
- Please tell him. - Sorry?
Master! We Hwa has come!
We Hwa is here!
Please draw out Master Young Shil's men...
and distract them.
Why are you asking me to do that?
Because I do not want to fail.
Because...
I must save those people.
I see.
You are finally being respectful to me.
Dog-Bird, how dare you ask me to do this?
Goodness. Where is the outhouse?
Where is the outhouse?
- You cannot go back there. - Goodness.
Please let me go.
I am about to go.
This is not an outhouse.
Do you want me to go here?
Let go of me!
I am the chief instructor!
- Get him! - Gosh!
Wait. Let go of me.
I'm the chief instructor!
Look who this is. Hello.
Master Young Shil is waiting for you. Take him.
I see.
But this is urgent.
- Bring him in. - Yes, Master.
Hey! Do not...
Hey, you people.
Hey. Do not touch me.
Are you inside?
Who are you?
We came from the palace.
Why would you...
Escort her out.
What are you doing?
At least tell me the reason!
What are you doing?
What brings you here in this late hour?
Well,
I was having a drink,
and I was reminded of that wine...
that you mentioned before.
You were suddenly reminded of my wine?
Yes.
I also heard...
you have many men who are good with the sword...
working for you here.
Send just a few of them to Hwarang House, please.
You see,
assassins broke into Hwarang House...
and attacked the Hwarangs recently.
What is it?
Did you send them already?
Father!
Where is my father?
Father.
Hey. I need to talk to my father.
Hey. Escort him before he starts a fire.
Tell my father to come out!
Hey. Let go. Let go of me.
Escort him quietly.
Let go. Let go.
Father, it is I, Ban Ryu.
Ban Ryu?
What are you doing?
Please kill me.
Were you drinking?
Yes, I was.
It was painful...
So painful that I had a drink.
You adopted me at an early age...
and had great plans for me,
but all I ever did was disappoint you.
It is unbearable.
Even the assassins who came to Hwarang House...
Shut your mouth.
I have seen many crazy deeds,
but this tops them all.
To think, he has several sheds like this...
He has more gold and medicine than the Royal Family.
And he is the highest official of Silla.
Is this the rule of this land?
No.
This is not.
We do not have time. Hurry.
I will...
die right here.
Imagine how terrible he must have felt.
Drag him out of here.
Do not come closer, or I will kill you.
I am Park Ban Ryu.
I am the future king of Silla!
Move. Get away from me.
- That great plan must have been... - Don't touch me.
becoming the king of Silla.
Move.
- I am Park Ban Ryu. - Hold him.
Let go.
Do not come any closer.
I am Park Ban Ryu. Park Ban Ryu!
Look who this is.
I am so happy to see you,
- Dog-Bird. - Do Go.
They are the guys from the butcher shop.
Thanks to you, the arrow wound...
hurts a lot when the weather gets bad.
Me first.
I have a bigger gripe to take up with them.
I was hung for no reason although I did not know them.
Stop it.
Let go.
Do not come closer.
Let us go.
Master Ahn Ji.
What is that?
"Drink and laugh out loud."
It could not be.
The dice.
It is that kid.
I have never seen so much gold before.
Why do you think Ban Ryu caused that scene earlier?
It was too big...
of a coincidence.
Thanks.
At times,
I wonder how it would have been if you had...
taken the throne.
If you had,
I would not have had to give up so much.
I would not have had to endure...
such cruel times.
Everything...
started because of you.
Ji So!
You started it!
(20 years ago, Wolseong Palace)
I must kill you.
Your Highness.
You will continue to cause calamity.
Please spare me.
We were each other's sole comrades.
Wonhwa that hinders strengthening the Royal Family...
must be eliminated.
Like Nam Mo died, you must not live either.
You must take all the blame.
I must kill you...
for my son.
- What is it? - Ah Ro.
Ah Ro was taken to the palace.
- When? - Did you know?
I asked, when?
Sam Mek Jong said he will take the throne.
He was not like that in the past.
He was a good king who was waiting for me...
to hand him Silla.
Did you make him that way?
Did you...
confuse Sam Mek Jong?
Just as your mom did to your dad!
No.
I never did that.
It does not matter.
I will make you a Wonhwa.
And I will make you meet the fate of a Wonhwa.
(Hwarang The Poet Warrior Youth)
Wonhwa all died.
That is why I am asking you. What must I do?
They are not Hwarang that you think.
I will walk with you.
Yes!
It things go badly,
Han Sung will kill himself.
Are you worrying about me?
Your son...
will never sit on that throne.
If you are the nameless Dog-Bird from Makmang Village,
Moo Myung...
That child...
has the right to sit on the throne of Silla.