ELLIOTT

Chapter One. At the birth of the Joseon dynasty, the issue of who would become king arose among the nobles. Cheonsu and Hyeonjo were two brothers who were both fit to ascend the throne and who had both led the founding of the dynasty. Cheonsu, the eldest, was blessed with gifts and immense strength. Hyeonjo, the youngest, possessed wisdom as well as strength. The two brothers did not want war between themselves, so they divided authority into two parts. Cheonsu knew his brother had the intellectual ability to handle politics, something he himself had no knack for, so he gave up the throne to him. However, a mighty temple was built for Cheonsu, where people with gifts were trained. Though they were both leaders, Hyeonjo sat on the throne, which placed him a step higher in authority. The temple was responsible for protecting the throne and palace at all costs. Their reign was smooth, peaceful, and blessed. Cheonsu stood at the edge of his mountain with his hands clasped behind his back. The wind left his hanbok, long grey hair, and beard swaying in the air. His eyes were shut as he enjoyed the twilight rays brushing against his skin. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and slowly turned around to meet an arrow howling through the air just before his face. With a deep breath, the arrow turned to dust. Four people in distinctively coloured Yungbok (martial arts attire), their noses veiled, stood before him with their swords drawn. Blue, White, Black, and Red. The fighter in black, Nari, lunged at Cheonsu with her sword. She was skilful, striking hard and fast, but Cheonsu acted as though she was hardly an opponent. With both hands still behind his back, he avoided all of Nari's strikes. He kicked her leg, causing her to fall forward, but she pinned her sword to the ground and flipped back onto her feet. Nari used her energy to strike Cheonsu, but he merely raised two fingers, redirecting the attack back at her. The blast sent Nari flying before she crashed heavily to the ground. The fighter in blue, Yul, and the one in red, Min, threw their swords aside and charged at Cheonsu together. Knowing their plan, Cheonsu formed a spherical shield around himself. The two struck the shield repeatedly with their energy, attempting to break through it. On Yul's seventh strike, his hand passed through the barrier. Cheonsu turned to his hand in shock. He grabbed Yul's arm and bent it, breaking the bone. Yul groaned in pain. With a wave of his hand, Cheonsu sent Yul flying into the air before he crashed to the ground. Min became distracted after seeing his brother defeated. He looked at Cheonsu, who simply pointed at him, and Min was hurled away as well, crashing beside Yul. The three groaned in pain. But there was still one left standing—Yeonhwa, the fighter in the white Yungbok. She took a stance and began making fluid arm movements in the air. The three fighters on the ground suddenly cried out in extreme pain. Yeonhwa was drawing their energy. She formed a massive ball of energy between her hands and thrust it toward Cheonsu. The sphere surged forward, carrying the sand beneath it along its path. She reached for an arrow from the quiver on her back. As she pulled the bowstring, the arrow turned silver from bottom to top. She fired. The arrow shot forward at an insane speed, catching up to the energy sphere and piercing through it. Cheonsu strengthened his shield again. Yeonhwa's energy crashed against the barrier and scattered violently, but the arrow passed through, carrying a flicker of the energy with it. It sliced across Cheonsu's face, cutting his skin. Blood seeped from the wound. Yeonhwa stretched out her hand, and the arrow returned to her, reverting to its original form as it landed in her grip. She placed it back into her quiver. Cheonsu stepped out of his shield, and it melted away. Yeonhwa lunged at him immediately. She struck with both hands, each blow infused with energy. Cheonsu blocked with one arm, deflecting her strikes with his wrist. But Yeonhwa was too fast. She knew exactly where to strike, and Cheonsu realized he could no longer keep up with her speed. He flew into the air, and Yeonhwa leapt up to meet him midair. They exchanged heavy blows of energy. The impact sent both of them hurtling back to the ground, though they landed firmly on their feet. For a brief moment, Cheonsu staggered backward to steady his stance. Seeing the opening, Yeonhwa dashed forward with incredible speed. In a split second, she stood before him. She thrust her energy into his chest. The impact pushed him backward, though his feet never left the ground. Cheonsu dropped to one knee and spat out blood, clutching tightly at his chest. Yeonhwa panicked. She immediately removed her mask and rushed toward Cheonsu, grabbing him by the shoulders. The others, who had been watching, hurried over as well. "Teacher," they chorused anxiously. Cheonsu wiped his mouth and stood with Yeonhwa's support. The four fighters immediately stood before Cheonsu and bowed, pressing their right fists into the centres of their left palms. Yul winced in pain because of his broken arm, but he maintained proper courtesy as he had been trained. "You all performed wonderfully well. Yul, I was stunned by your ability to break my shield. Nari, your swordsmanship deserves praise. However, you used your powers out of pressure rather than technique. It is important to remain calm in combat. Min..." Cheonsu sucked his teeth in disappointment and shook his head. Min struggled to suppress his laughter, his goofy nature shining through. "I was worried about my brother. I couldn't help it," he murmured like a child. "And that is why you'll be the first to die in battle!" Nari tried to stifle her laughter at her master's remark. "You should look after one another in combat, but you must never lose focus. That was the very technique Yeonhwa leveraged against you all. You grow more impressive every day. I suppose I truly am growing old. You broke through my shield using distraction, the energy attack drew my attention while the arrow followed behind it. Excellent." "You are not growing old, teacher. You are only fifty!" Nari exclaimed as they relaxed from their formal stances and followed him back toward the temple. Cheonsu was not truly old, but he had spent so much of his energy over the years—fighting, healing, and teaching, that he had worn himself down to his limits. He appeared far older than his actual age. Cheonsu shook his head at Nari's comment. The five of them hovered down the mountain and landed at the entrance of the temple. They all walked into the temple as the gate opened to them. The students immediately stopped all they were doing and bowed to the five of them. The students also wore different coloured Yungbok—red, black, and blue, but there was no one in white. The temple was beautiful and filled with countless students. They entered another section where students practiced with wooden mannequins while a monk stood before them, teaching. Seeing them enter, they all stopped and bowed, including the monk himself. The four Knights, as they were called; Nari, Yul, Min, and Yeonhwa—were the top students of the temple. They had been found by Cheonsu himself and worked directly under him, even more closely than the teachers. He categorized them with colours based on their gifts. Yeonhwa was white, the only white ever to be found. She possessed healing abilities and the power to control the energy of others. She was the highest-ranked and the only one in her class. The five of them walked to their living quarters. They all turned to Cheonsu and bowed. "You should take care of your hand, Yul. We will all be going to the palace at dusk, so get ready." He said his piece and walked away while they bowed to him before leaving. The four of them entered their own quarter and bid each other goodbye and entered their separate rooms. Yul shut the door behind him and took a seat before his drawer. He examined his sore hand and shut his eyes tightly, attempting to correct it back into place, when he heard a knock at the door. He walked over and slid the door open slightly to see Yeonhwa standing there. A silent spark flickered in his eyes. He stepped aside and she walked in. "How is your hand?" She shut the door behind her. "How is my hand not?" he replied as he took his seat. Yeonhwa fetched a chair, placed it before Yul's, and sat down. Yul didn't know where to keep his eyes as their chairs were so close together. Yeonhwa looked directly at him, and he almost suddenly forgot how to breathe. Yeonhwa was a beautiful girl. Her silky black hair was packed up, yet still poured over her shoulders almost to her waist. Her eyes carried natural blue streaks because of her healing energy. Her red lips were incredibly alluring. Now Yul sat so close to the girl he had harboured feelings for since the first day he laid eyes on her. He was completely perplexed. Yeonhwa stretched out her hands to him. Yul slowly gave her his hand. The moment her cold, soft fingers touched his skin, he shivered. "I'm sorry," she apologized, thinking she had gripped him too tightly. "It's okay," Yul replied gently. "I will take care of it. It's dangerous to use your healing abilities. You're spending your energy and unintentionally shortening your lifespan, you know that." "It's just your wrist that's broken," she muttered to herself, still examining his hand as though she hadn't heard him. Yul finally looked at Yeonhwa, who carefully inspected his hand. He couldn't take his eyes off her. He knew he wouldn't be able to control himself if he kept looking at her, but he couldn't bring himself to look away. He tried to pull his hand from hers. He didn't want her endangering herself because of him. Spending healing energy had put their leader in his current condition. Yeonhwa tightened her hold on his hand when he tried to pull away, and he winced in pain. "You think I'll be able to watch you suffer in pain?" She looked up at Yul, and their eyes met. Those blue eyes, Yul thought, unable to look away. Yeonhwa lowered her gaze back to his hand while Yul couldn't utter a single word. "It will take only a few seconds." She rested his hand on her thigh so he wouldn't strain himself holding it up. She placed both hands over his wrist, and energy flowed from her palms. The bone physically cracked back into place, and she stopped. Yul rolled his wrist. It was as good as new. "Thanks!" "You're welcome!" She stood up and walked toward the door. "Get ready to meet in the assembly room tonight for the palace visit." "Yeah, you too," he replied as Yeonhwa stepped out and shut the door behind her. Yul stared at his healed hand as though it were pure gold and smiled. Five horses rode through the palace gates. The four Knights rode dark horses while the white horse carried Cheonsu. All the guards halted at their various positions and bowed to them. Fire lamps were already burning at different locations. The second gate was opened for them to enter the courtyard. The queen, Mabel, stood before the courtroom entrance to welcome them. Her train of maids stood behind her, and she wore a bright smile as they dismounted from their horses. The four Knights bowed to Mabel, who returned the gesture lightly. Cheonsu stepped forward to Mabel, and she bowed deeply along with her maids. Cheonsu stretched his hand toward her hair, and a beautiful silver hairpin suddenly appeared there. She straightened and touched her hair, noticing the ornament. She laughed happily. "My Lord, you should visit the palace regularly, or how else will I keep getting beautiful hairpins like this?" Cheonsu laughed, and Mabel joined him. "You haven't even seen what the hairpin looks like yet." "I know your taste is better than the king's. I trust your judgement." Cheonsu laughed again. "Please, let's go in. I prepared the meal with my own hands." "I will surely dig in." They both laughed as they walked side by side with their companions behind them. The doors to the courtroom opened. The maids remained outside while only two followed inside along with the four Knights. The doors shut behind them. Fire lamps flickered at different corners, lighting the entire room. Guards stood at their respective positions, and they all bowed at once before returning to attention. Hyeonjo, who sat upon his throne, sprang to his feet at the sight of his brother. "Brother!" His voice echoed through the courtroom as he descended the flight of stairs leading to his throne.