"Done at last," Yona gasped, sitting down by the campfire. Her body ached at every movement. Sen glanced at her with sympathy and ladled her a bowl of soup, choosing the best bits of the hare meat in the cauldron for the princess.
"Maybe you should play with the children tomorrow," she suggested, offering Yona the bowl. "You deserve a bit of rest."
"You can barely call rest, whatever you did today," Yona laughed before digging in. Although the bowl was large, she finished off its contents in just a few gulps. "I've never seen you run around so much."
"Ah." Sen looked away in embarrassment. "I, uh, had a lot of siblings growing up. Guess I got caught up in memories... Would you like another serving?"
"I couldn't," Yona replied. "Has Ki-ja even had any?"
"The scaly snake gulped it down and went right back to Granny Mi-rae," Hak chimed in. "She's right, princess. Eat some more."
"If you insist," Yona said with a smile. She ate more slowly this time, savoring each spoonful. "It's almost as good as Yun's."
"Tell Zeno, not us," Hak said, nodding in the direction of the snoring Yellow Dragon. "Though maybe later."
"Poor Zeno," Yona laughed, lying down on her back. The cool grass felt good against her sun-burnt neck. A wistful feeling welled in her heart as she stared at the stars above. She sighed.
"I wonder if these are the same stars I saw in the palace?"
"Of course they are, princess," Hak replied quickly. Something about his nervous tone squeezed Yona's heart.
"Of course." She sighed again, then closed her eyes. "But they feel so much farther..."
A long silence followed her words, and she regretted speaking. Her words only served to hurt Hak, and what did Sen care? She was of the people too, the same people hurt by her father's uselessness.
"Sen, were you-" she began, but was interrupted by a loud cry, seemingly calling her name.
"Ki-ja?" Hak asked, sitting up. "What's wrong with that lizard?"
Yona pushed herself up too, squinting into the dark. She saw two familiar figures rushing towards the fire.
"Princess," Ki-ja spluttered, "Shin-ah... Shin-ah saw..."
"Armed men," Shin-ah interrupted. "And horses."
"Bandits?" Yona asked, narrowing her eyes. "Alright, then. Let's give them a warm welcome."
...
Though the night was dark and not one window carried light in Katan, the men entered the village with a confidence suggesting great familiarity. Forming five groups of four to six, they spread across Katan, knocking on doors as though they were coming home.
"Open up!" their leader shouted, not even deigning to get off his horse. "We're staying here for the night."
Several flustered women appeared, followed by crying children. Sen-doh hobbled to the leader to greet him.
"Officer Dol-bal," he said, bowing his head. "To what do we owe-"
"Yes, I'm sure it's a pleasure," said Dol-bal, leaping off his horse and handing the reigns to the village chief. "Feed and water him, and have your women prepare us food and bed."
"Sir, it's not possible," Sen-doh said softly. "We barely have enough rice for ourselves, and not a single bed fit for such fine soldiers."
"Don't worry about it."
Dol-bal grinned, his eyes gleaming like an oily rat.
"If anything is unsatisfactory, we'll take what we're owed in other form."
He reached out and tugged a small boy's ear playfully. Startled, the child ran to hide behind his mother, staring at the officer with big, round eyes. Though Dol-bal's gesture could be seen as innocent, Sen-doh turned red with anger.
"He's only seven!" he shouted. Dol-bal shrugged.
"Then you'd better treat us like royalty, old man. I'd hate to take anything that isn't offered."
"Nothing here is yours, you old rat!"
Dol-bal grew very red. The voice was of a young woman, the likes he particularly hated being insulted by. And what did she mean by rat? Him?
"That's it, I tried to be nice," he cried, drawing his sword. "Guess I'll have to show you-"
But he could never finish his sentence. He was struck by a force so great, he could've sworn it was superhuman. Dol-bal flew through the air and crashed into a house, forever denting the wall. His head rung with a thousand questions as he forced himself to look up with great difficulty. A young man with fair hair glowered at him from where he had previously stood, his clawed hand gleaming threateningly in the torchlight.
"Shin-ah, now!" cried the voice from earlier, and a strange man clad in a mask jumped down from Sen-doh's roof, wielding dual blades at great speed. His men, greatly unprepared for any attack, ran from his swings in disarray. Just as they thought they'd gotten away, their path was blocked by one of the tallest men wielding a glaive-like weapon, pushing them back.
"I've never thought Kan Su-jin's men were so weak," he laughed, sending soldiers swinging with each hit. Then the clawed man attacked too, leaving destruction in the wake of each swipe of his hand.
"Only five down?" he asked, tauntingly, to which his companion sneered.
"You only took out one, snake man."
Dol-bal stood up with great difficulty. Despite these newcomers' strength, there was only three of them, and thirty of his soldiers. As long as they didn't lose their heads...
An arrow landed at the tip of his toes and he screamed. Looking up, he saw a small, cloaked figure standing on the walls of a roofless house, aiming straight at him.
"Don't shoot," he cried. "Don't shoot, I promise we'll leave!"
"You better keep off our land, you snot-nosed brats," the girl shouted. "If you ever show your face in these parts again, the Happy Hungry Bunch will have your heads!"
The what now?
Though confused, Dol-bal was too terrified to stick around any longer. Turning around, he shouted to his men, "Retreat!"
And within minutes, there was no trace of the soldiers in Katan, save for scattered weapons and a single chestnut horse.