Father, don't cry.

A young Yona stood in the snow, staring at the hail with a single tear rolling down her face.

"What happened? Why were Yona and her father sad?" Lili asks. She can't bear the sight of the princess wallowing in sorrow.

"I remember…" Soowon murmurs, as though he's talking to himself. "Lady Kashi had just passed away, right?"

"Lady Kashi?" Yoon inquires. He has read a plethora of books on medicine, bomb making, herbs, clothes mending, survival in the wild… but the lives of the nobility are not his forte.

"The princess's mother," Hak divulges. He sighs. "She was absolutely devastated by her death, but hid her pain from her father, who was also grieving."

"Ahh…" Lili remarks. She suddenly misses her own mother terribly.

(A/N: According to the YOTD fanbook, Lili's mother is Nene, who is Joongi's concubine. If anyone has more information, please share!)

You're not alone, Father. Plus… Soowon is with me.

"Terrible a person you may be, I'm glad that someone was there for the princess when she was going through such a tough time," Jaeha says bluntly.

Soowon smiles sadly. "So am I."

A part of him wishes that he can return to the days of their childhood. But even back then he already knew that their time together was limited the instant his father died. That their moments of bliss were never eternal. That they would come back to bite him one day… Like now.

Snow fell from the sky, blanketing the landscape.

"Look! It's snow!" A young Soowon said happily.

"Look, I made a snowball!" He tried to cheer Yona up. "I made something strange!" He held a weird creature made out of snow in his hand.

"This is too cute!" Lili squeals.

Kyesook coughs pointedly at her use of the word "cute", but Lili can't be bothered.

"Your Majesty was adorable when you were young," she says, gushing over Yona and Soowon's adorableness.

The others are watching the scene fondly as well. No one can hate on a six-year-old Soowon, even though they know he would go on to become a murderer… and not even Hak himself is immune to the charm of a young Soowon.

He begrudgingly admits that he can't hate the Soowon from before.

A crestfallen Yona tried to say that she's alright, and as she attempted to cheer herself up, she ended up stomping onto someone.

"You're heavy." Hak lay on the ground, staring at the sky.

Hak recalls that day. He was trying to make a snow angel when the princess stepped on him. He smiles faintly.

"Hak is so cool!" Soowon clutched his face in his hands, staring at Hak with adoration.

"Your Majesty really admired Hak when you were younger, huh?" Geuntae comments, warmed by the sight of the three children getting along so well.

"Yes, I was…" Soowon confesses ruefully. He hesitates, and glances at Hak briefly. "It wasn't all lies," he whispers. Even Soowon himself could not possibly be lying every second, every moment, every breath of his life.

Hak does not meet his gaze. But after a beat of silence, he gruffly says, "yeah, I know."

His voice is still tinged with hatred and anger and resentment and all things painful and raw. But it's a start. Them speaking to each other is progress, if nothing else.

Whomp.

"You make a great target for my snowballs!" Yona grinned mischievously.

This escalated into a full-blown snowball fight between the two, with Soowon joining in.

"Pfft. Children will be children." Geuntae laughs.

"That… looks… fun…" Shinah mumbles somewhat enviously.

"Oh? Is Seiryuu interested in this snowball fight? Zeno will play it with you someday then!" Zeno declares with his usual grin.

Shinah's eyes light up beneath his mask. "I will look forward… to that day…"

Zeno holds out his pinky finger. Shinah tilts his head quizzically. "It's a pinky promise! Once you sign it, you can't go back on your words."

He takes Shinah's hand and hooks their pinkies together. "Now we sign it!" Zeno presses his thumb against Shinah.

"You sure learned a lot in your two thousand years of wandering," Jaeha comments.

Zeno just beams at him. "Zeno is still a baby chick, a baby chick."

"If you're a baby chick then I must be an unborn fetus…" Jaeha mutters.

"But Ryokuryuu is a pervert," Zeno points out plainly. "Not an unborn fetus."

Jaeha's face twitches. "Not you too, Zeno…"

The others unaware of Zeno's true identity are more than a little befuddled. They just chalk it up to an inside joke. Never in their wildest dreams would they expect Zeno to be the first Ouryuu, who has lived for over two thousand years.

The next day arrived.

"Huff… Huff…" Yona lay on her futon, panting.

"I knew it. She fell sick, didn't she?" Yoon facepalms. "Playing in the winter with such thin clothes is a recipe for catching a cold!"

Jaeha nods. "Indeed he's our mother, fretting over Yona darling…"

Yoon glares at him. "I do not recall giving birth to perverts like you."

"Ouch, I am wounded. My mother disowned me!" Jaeha clutches his chest.

Yoon rolls his eyes. "Be very, very wounded."

Hak and Soowon were downcasted because Yona had fallen sick from playing in the snow.

"Where's Father?" Yona asked. A servant replied that her father was busy right now because he had just ascended.

Kyesook clenches his fists. Lord Yuhon should have been the rightful heir, not King Il. But that is no matter; he will guide his savior's son and Kouka to prosperity.

Soowon told her that King Il would rush over once he found out that she was sick, so it would be fine. When Yona persuaded them to go home in case they fell sick too, Soowon said brightly that his body felt hot and Hak remarked that he was starting to see illusions of snowballs.

"Ha!" Geuntae guffaws. "You all caught a cold in the end."

Soowon chuckles sheepishly. "Yes, it was counter-effective to our goal of making Yona happier."

Hak finds himself agreeing with Soowon, albeit very begrudgingly; it had been a little embarrassing to fall sick immediately after Yona did when they were trying to cheer her up.

"I don't know about that. The princess seemed pretty happy earlier, and even now," Geuntae muses.

"Doctor! You have patients!" Yona called out fervently.

The others smile. Watching Yona flap her hands trying to call the doctor is quite adorable.

In the end, all three caught a cold. They decided to quarantine themselves together so the illness wouldn't spread.

When Soowon said that he had been holding Yona's hand while sleeping, Hak replied that he was going home then.

"Eh? Hak? Let's hold hands, the three of us!" Soowon suggested.

"Your Majesty was oblivious even when you were young." Joodoh sighs. "Why did you think that was a good idea?"

Soowon cringes. "Maybe because I was eight and not thinking much at all?"

"Somehow, I doubt it. You were a prodigy even at that tender age."

That was true; Soowon excelled in both academics and swordsmanship from a young age, despite his klutzy exterior.

"You're kidding me…" Hak muttered.

Chuckles resound; Hak's exasperation when dealing with Soowon is understandable.

"HAK!" Mundok charged into the room with a bam!

"Ahhh!" Hak shrieked in surprise. "Grandpa?" He squeaked out.

"Grandpa?" Kija prods Hak with one claw. His eyes are shining with familial love. "So you guys are one big happy family!"

"I was just taken aback," Hak says nonchalantly, shaking off Kija's claw. "And the flu was making my mind weird. That must have been why I called the old man grandpa."

"You little brat," Mundok says. "You were cuter when you were younger."

"And you were never cute at all."

Mundok glared at him menacingly. "Young man, I heard you threw snowballs at the princess and she fell ill."

Despite Hak's attempt to defend himself, Mundok roared at him to come over so he could give him a good whipping.

"You care a lot for the princess," Joongi comments.

Mundok exhales. "Of course. She is like my own granddaughter… and I have always thought of her as my future master, after King Il."

Coming from Mundok, that's a very high praise. They can see how overprotective of Yona with his demeanor.

Eventually, Mundok left angrily, and Hak chose to stay to preserve his life.

Soowon was gushing over Mundok. "They say General Mundok is the strongest of the five generals. I really look up to him. To think he's Hak's grandfather…"

Joodoh coughs, but can't deny that Mundok is really strong, despite his age. Or maybe it's because of his age that he's so formidable – strength honed from decades of training and experience.

"Your Majesty really admired Lord Mundok when you were younger, didn't you?" Lili murmurs.

"Yes," Soowon replies softly. "I was envious of Hak for being his grandson."

Mundok doesn't say anything, but inwardly his heart constricts almost painfully. He did think of Soowon as his grandson. He was someone as dear to Mundok as Yona or Hak.

Yoon can't believe he has something in common with Soowon, in that both of them admire Mundok. He huffs inwardly. But this pretty boy will prove himself to be Mundok's best and truest fan!

Hak refuted him, saying he was adopted, and that was why the Wind Tribe was taking care of him.

"But… Mundok came. He must love you, right?" Yona smiled.

This time it's Mundok's turn to cough. He even clears his throat as he stares at Hak.

Zeno twists Hak's ear. "Ow! What was that for?" Hak pries away from Zeno's surprisingly painful grip, rubbing his ear.

"Mister's grandfather is waiting for you to say you love him too!" Zeno says in a tone that's almost chiding.

"Well he can go and wait an eternity." Hak kicks out his feet, reclining in his seat.

Mundok turns away, just a bit disappointed.

"… Because simple words can't express how I feel towards him," Hak mutters, his cheeks warming slightly at the admission.

The others grin, wanting to tease him but his ferocious gaze is enough to deter them. For now.

Mundok clears his throat again, but everyone can see him hiding a smile.

Stomp stomp stomp.

"Did someone else come?"

Yuhon appeared at the doorway, his intimidating aura overwhelming Hak and Yona. His powerful gaze swept across the room. Yona pulled up her covers, scared.

Soowon blinks. Again and again. He takes in the sight of his father, memorizing his powerful build, his harsh features, his unwavering gaze. Something hot and painful sting his eyes, so he keeps blinking and blinking until that searing sensation is gone.

"Lord Yuhon…" Murmurs run through the room.

Kyesook's breaths quicken when he sees the one who saved him and his true master. If he could not serve Yuhon, then he would serve his son, was what he had vowed.

"F–father!" Soowon was overjoyed to see him.

Yuhon was here to check on Soowon, but when Soowon said he didn't want him to get sick, Yuhon only replied roughly, "You think I'd lose to the likes of your illness?"

"Ha, I forgot how intense Lord Yuhon could be," Geuntae says. He has always looked up to the deceased lord, and sparring with him only a handful of times will always be something Geuntae regrets. Yuhon was like a mentor to him, and he wishes that they had spent more time together when he was still alive.

Joongi is less impressed. "I would rather not be reminded of how uncouth his vernacular was, especially in the presence of children." Still, he admits that he has always viewed Yuhon as a better candidate to the throne than Il.

Yona cowered beneath her blanket. Uncle Yuhon! He's so strong and strict. But he's different around Soowon.

Hak agrees, recalling how despite Yuhon's intimidating appearance, the man had always carried a soft spot for his son.

Yuhon then revealed that Yonhi, Soowon's mother, wanted to come, but he told her not to as it would be bad for if she were to fall sick.

No one notices the momentary flash of pain on Soowon's face when he hears his mother's name.

The Crimson Illness is the only thing he ever inherited from her. With her sickly disposition, he left Hiryuu Castle with her and watched as she descended slowly into madness after his father's death.

He watched and watched, waiting for his young self to grow up, but time didn't wait for him. No, it took his mother away from him as silently, as suddenly, as sadistically as it had taken his father from him. By the time he grew up and took his revenge, only the ashes of his parents were left by his side.

And when he glanced around him, he found that he, too, was alone. Well and utterly alone.

When Yuhon addressed Hak and Yona, saying that he'll give them get-well gifts later, the two flinched. Afterwards, he took his leave.

Hak muttered about how it was intense as usual, Yona was sniveling at how scary it was and Soowon teared up, ecstatic that his father showed up.

"Looking back, Lord Yuhon wasn't as scary as he seemed," Hak says, a bit surprised. The glimpse into his childhood made him realize how much things had changed.

For instance, Yuhon back then positively towered over him, but now he is taller than Yuhon's height at the time of his demise.

"That is why retrospection is important. When we reflect on our past, we often find that many aspects of ourselves have changed, some good, some bad, but all a consequence of our growth," Joongi says sagaciously.

Lili resists the urge to roll her eyes. Her father's boring I-am-so-wise lectures have been ingrained inside her poor mind.

Father, it hurts! Yona thought bitterly. Why didn't you come? Don't leave me all alone.

Kija's heart goes out to the princess.

When he was sick as a child, he also yearned for his father, who could never visit him. He longed for the embrace of his father, for words of assurance and comfort, to have a solid presence that he could always count on. His grandmother more than made up for his parents' absence in his life, but he often found himself pining for them nonetheless.

Later, despite the spread in front of her, Yona had no appetite. Soowon and Hak failed to convince her to take a bite. Yona's mood was worsened by the gossiping of servants outside her door, whispering that the king dared not visit Yona in fear of falling sick.

Yoon sighs deeply. "Were these servants courting death or what? Did they not realize they were very loudly whispering about their monarch, which could count as defamation? The penalty of which, at the highest degree, amounts to execution, and the lowest of which results in their tongue being cut off?"

Shinah gazes at Yoon, not for the first time impressed with his arsenal of knowledge.

"King Il hated violence and weapons, so servants got away with those kinds of things all the time," Geuntae explains, though his expression is thunderous. The impudence of those servants! How could they lack self-discipline?

"Hold your tongue!" Soowon shouted angrily.

Hak pointed out that King Il was probably working, adding, "I respect that old man."

"If you held the king in high regard even before you were appointed as Yona's personal guard," Jaeha begins, "why did you refuse him at first?"

Hak rolls back his shoulders. "I didn't want to be involved with the politics of the five tribes, nor was I keen on associating myself with the royal family," he explains.

Meanwhile, Soowon's throat was hurting from screaming.

"Heh," Geuntae chuckles.

"Pfft," Lili giggles. "That's what you get for trying to act suave."

Soowon is mostly embarrassed.

A smile bloomed on Yona's face at Hak and Soowon defending her father.

I'm sorry… I'm sorry I thought you abandoned me.

Me too, Kija thinks, once again resonating with Yona's thoughts. I'm sorry, Father, that I blamed and resented you for something that wasn't your choice. I'm sorry that I thought you had cast me aside and forgotten all about me.

Sometimes, circumstances are to be blamed for the cruelties of life.

Later that night, Yona's stomach was growling. Soowon rang the bell to have the servants bring her some food. A steaming bowl of chicken soup, Yona's favorite, was soon delivered.

She took one spoonful of it eagerly.

"Surprisingly…" Her face contorted. "It tastes awful."

"Eh?" Kija expresses, confused. "Were the kitchen servants harassing the princess too? Suddenly, my right hand is itchy…"

"Just wait and see," Hak says hastily before Kija can stir up trouble again. "There's a reason for this."

"I see, it's awful, huh?" King Il suddenly appeared in the doorway. He waddled in and sat in front of Yona. "I made it," he revealed.

"Oh!" Kija says in understanding, which morphs into puzzlement again. "Do kings usually cook food themselves?" he asks no one in particular.

"Of course not," Kyesook snaps instinctively. "That was a very unkingly act," he sniffs in a derisive fashion typical of him.

"But a very fatherly and caring act," Lili shoots back. Her expression softens. "I'm glad that King Il came to visit Yona."

"And to cook the food himself was a touching move… Though clearly he wasn't a very good chef," Mundok comments.

After hearing Yona was sick and craved a midnight snack, King Il made the soup as an apology gift, though he didn't follow the recipe.

"That explains why the soup tasted terrible." Yoon nods his head. "Following recipes is very important. Putting in an extra pinch of salt or forgetting to stir one more time can completely and utterly alter the taste of the final dish…" he catches himself before he starts babbling.

"Say, you know a lot about things," Geuntae remarks.

Yoon flicks his hair. "Of course. I am a genius pretty boy who is well versed in everything and anything. Medicine, cooking, even making explosives… I am rather versatile, if I do say so myself."

The Happy Hungry Bunch nods, agreeing with Yoon's unabashed description of himself. Geuntae finds himself being awed by the young lad's skills, as do the others, and he now has one more thing to look forward to – whether Yoon can back up his words with his actions (which of course he can).

Nom, nom.

"Oh? Didn't you say it was awful?" A perplexed King Il asked as Yona dug in heartily.

"It's really awful," she said with a smile as a tear streaked down her face.

"His Majesty was a good father," Lili says, her heart melting at the such of the father-and-daughter scene. "Despite his busy schedule, he made time for her when she was sick."

The generals present largely agree. They may have qualms about King Il's reign and his methods, but he was indisputably a caring father.

Joongi thinks about how adamant King Il was in not allowing Yona to get engaged to Soowon. Perhaps it was a father's sixth sense since he did stop her from wedding the man who plotted her father's downfall.

If only he knew how on the mark he was, since Kashi's foresight was involved in the king's decision…

"Ah, we got better!" Yona said with Hak and Soowon sitting next to her. They were outside and enjoying the fresh air, a nice change from being coped up in a room all day.

"I regret it," Soowon said.

"What happened to Mr 'I Have No Regrets'?" Lili asks, quoting Soowon's words from last time.

"He became a murderer," Jaeha answers dryly.

"Right, that was what happened," Lili mutters.

Soowon swallows, but can't refute their words.

"Because you can't sleep by the princess's side?" Hak asked.

"No, I always sleep by Yona's side."

"EH?!" Yona yelped.

"How lewd, Your Majesty," Geuntae says teasingly.

Soowon chokes on empty air, flailing. "I didn't – that's not what I – it was –" His face begins to grow hotter by the second.

"There, there, we get it. Embrace the inner pervert inside of you," Jaeha drawls.

Kyesook glares at him. "His Majesty does not – he is not like you! He does not partake in such lascivious acts!"

"That you know of."

Kyesook continues scowling at Jaeha, who remains unperturbed.

"I want to… always and forever…" Soowon's gaze softened as he stared at the sky. " … rest like we did when we had our colds."

That was before, Soowon realizes. It was before his father's death, before he found out about the chain of deaths that ensued, the bloodbath that was impossible to avoid.

He was still naive, not knowing that he would stain his hands with the blood of his uncle to avenge his father.

The trio leaned back on their hands, almost as if they were leaning into each other's warmth.

"No, even if we don't catch colds… It can be simple. So long as we are together."

"The three of you were adorable together. I wouldn't mind seeing more of that," Geuntae says, receiving several nods in return.

With how perilous and complicated real life is, a dose of cuteness can go a long way in curing their bitter and frigid hearts.

Yona smiled at the sky, brimming with clouds and the chirping of birds.

"That's right," she said happily. "Soowon, Hak, come over to play tomorrow, too."

Forever and always, come over.

And then as she looked at the beautiful sky, it suddenly darkened, spiraling into inky blackness.

Hak blinks. He knows what happened after that – the three of them went to eat gyoza dipped in soy sauce, and the sky certainly did not become menacing and black.

The others are similarly taken aback at this new development.

Is this some alternate reality?

Huh? Yona was on her knees on the floor. Nobody's here.

"Ah!" Yoon snaps his fingers, the first to figure out what's going on. "This must be Yona's dream."

A few other "ah" resound.

"If you ask me it seems more like a nightmare," Taejun says, shivering at the unpleasant vibe he is getting from what's happening on screen.

She saw the back of a familiar figure.

"Father! Father!" she exclaimed joyfully.

Then he staggered.

"Oh no," Lili whispers. "Is she reliving the death of His Majesty all over again?"

This stirs up a few cringes. None of them want to rewatch King Il dying.

Suddenly, Yona grew older, becoming her sixteen-year-old self in a heartbeat. Her father collapsed on the ground, and she stared with vacant eyes as an older Soowon loomed before her, his gaze cold.

"That moment must have been absolutely traumatic to the princess," Kyoga murmurs in spite of himself. He has nightmares of his father committing treason and being killed, and he didn't even watch it happen before his eyes.

Wait. A somber thought hits him. At the rate they're going, he may really find himself watching the scene of his father's death.

He doesn't know how to feel about that.

He doesn't even want to think about that.

Yona's eyes snap open.

She's in the forest, her back against a tree, and reality hits her like a ton of bricks. There is no more azure sky, no more fluffy clouds, no more tweeting of birds. She glances around wildly.

The contrast between what was on screen a few moments prior and what is happening right now is starking.

All of them hold their breaths, stunned and unnerved by how surreal everything feels. One moment the three children were laughing and smiling happily, and the next… they became friends torn asunder, enemies formed without warning.

The silence is almost deafening, and they feel as if they were there with Yona, experiencing the moment as it unfolded.

Crunch.

Yona jumps as Hak appears before her. He apologizes for going to find water that they could drink, but trails off as Yona's eyes begin to glisten.

Hak's heart is thumping so wildly he can hear it ringing in his ears.

So that was why the princess cried that day. Because of the nightmare she just had. No, because she had recalled the day where they were still friends and realized things would never be the same again.

That she could only accept it but not change it.

Then tears spill from those eyes, streaming down her cheeks in twin rivers.

That sky… the three of us looked up at together… doesn't exist anymore.

There is an emptiness in Soowon that weighs on him viscerally. It is the sort of emptiness that numbs his senses and fills his heart with an aching pain.

Ah. Was this what Yona felt?

He remembers that sky. He remembers that day, so full of hopes and dreams.

And he knows that everything has changed since then.

Back then, none of them ever knew that a simple cold would end up being a memory that was forever imprinted in their minds, a reminder of what they had been – and could have been.

Soowon wants to claw at his chest and gouge out that suffocating, burning agony, as though the pain from the Crimson Illness has migrated from his mind to his heart. But he does nothing.

He merely watches with his eyes now dim and blank.

He knows if the three of them look at the sky together now, they will no longer see eye to eye. They won't see the same constellations the others do, nor will they see the same animals in clouds or the same hue of blue that the other two register.

When Yona looks at the sky, she will see the soft glow of dawn spilling over the horizon, while Hak will take in the fall of the moon in the wake of the sunrise and Soowon… Soowon will watch as the morning swallows the last remnants of darkness, every day a reminder of his doomed future.

They have each gone too far, have become too different, to ever attain concurrence.

A soldier informs Soowon that Hak and Yona could not be found in the surrounding area, and that they would increase pursuit immediately. Soowon deflects that idea.

"Let them go."

"Eh? You're letting them… live?" The soldier clarifies in shock.

The others are similarly shocked, even Hak.

Then Hak feels a burst of rage ignite within him. So what if Soowon didn't pursue them? The damage had already been done.

"The princess and Lord Hak were in the wrong place at the wrong time," Joongi begins slowly. "It would have been most… disgraceful if Your Majesty had continued to chase after them with the intention of harming them."

Even he has to be careful with his words when it concerns the king.

Soowon gets what he's trying to say, and replies simply, "I avoid unnecessary deaths. My only goal is to reform Kouka into the great kingdom it once was."

Essentially he saw King Il as a major obstruction to Kouka's prosperity, and removed him. But there was no need to do that to Hak and Yona, whom he deemed as powerless, which would prove to be a fatal miscalculation.

Not for the first time Kyesook laments over Soowon's decision. If only they had killed Yona and Hak… By letting them go free, Soowon was allowing his greatest threat time to grow in power and number.

"Outside the castle, they can do nothing. Besides… we have something more urgent to do." Soowon's gaze hardens as he stares at the sky.

End of Chapter 4: Beneath The Sky

"That was a nice insight into Your Majesty's thoughts," Geuntae says, rubbing his chin. "I wonder if we'll see more of it."

Soowon hopes not. He can't handle being in his own mind these days, let alone having his thoughts and feelings broadcasted for everyone to watch. No, as much as he won't admit it, he would rather watch Yona and Hak's adventures, allowing himself this opportunity – his only opportunity – to catch up on what the pair has been up to.

"What was the more urgent thing you needed to attend to?" Lili asks, curious.

"The five tribes meeting, ascending the throne, making preparations to visit each general, resolving Kouka's most pressing problem… The list went on," Soowon explains. It wasn't easy unifying the five tribes, that was for sure.

All this reminiscing about the past is making Hak feel oddly nostalgic. He wishes they can hurry it up and go back to the present… or well, the past, but still the present version of themselves. It's confusing.

With everyone's feelings all over the place, which seems to happen in every chapter, the next one begins.

Aren't you going to eat?

A/N:

Okay, I thiiiink I'm getting the hang of writing from Soowon's POV. I hope? And on the whole parents era thing, I'm actually still not completely sold that Yuhon killed Kashi. I'm letting the newest chapters (I think the last chapter I read was somewhere after Hyoori died) accumulate so I have no idea if the author went back to address it, but I saw an interesting reddit theory about how Kyesook might have been the one behind the whole thing.

The major supporting points were how Yuhon had a weak reason to kill Yona (whoever targeted them thought both Kashi and Yona would be present) whereas Kyesook might have wanted Soowon to become the crown prince with Yona and Il's wife out of the way. Yuhon also denied killing Kashi even when he was on the verge of death, and Kyesook claimed that Yuhon didn't kill Kashi in some chapter (which he would know if he was the instigator). Furthermore, Hyoori was shown to listen to Kyesook's commands which might mean that Kyesook told him to kill Kashi while disguised as a bandit (this kind of underhanded method seems more like Kyesook's style than Yuhon).

Hopefully we get a clear conclusion on that before I reach that chapter because it'll be rather jarring and discordant if the cast's thoughts/reactions don't sync with what they are supposed to know but what we readers don't know yet, if that makes sense?

*PLEASE READ THIS* Also I skimmed ahead and chapters 6/7 (when Hak and Yona went to the Wind Tribe) are very dialogue-and-thought-heavy chapters, which may mean that I'll be summing up panels and not really going in-depth into what each character is saying/thinking. If you have any specific panel/thought/dialogue you want the cast to react to in these two chapters, please tell me!

Thank you for all the kudos/comments! I enjoyed reading every single one of your comments.