Not all people attended the ceremony. Some chose to stay in their homes, while some continued on their daily jobs, like some men who stayed in the empty, silent market. As the blue royal palanquin of the Prime Minister's son passed by the capital market, Lady Seo, Young Lord Jung Min's personal matron opened the palanquin windows. She noticed that the once noisy, busy market was now as bleak as a cold desert. She asked a random seller on the side, who was folding and sorting some colored silk cloths.

"Excuse me, Ahjussi, why is the market very silent? Where are the people?"

"Ahjumeoni, were you not informed? It is the day where the King will announce the mandate of Heavens about the solar eclipse. A lot of people went to the palace to witness it."

Lady Seo's face turned crimson in embarrassment, "I see... But why are you here?"

"I am not interested. I would rather stay here than go to that ceremony. It has no point. The news would still spread anyways. Those people just went there for the food and some gaily talk." he scoffed.

Realizing the seller's point, Lady Seo chuckled and agreed with what the seller said. For common people, it was their time to know the mandate of the Heavens and certainly to receive even a drizzle of food which they could not afford. However, for the nobility, this was one of the perfect times to socialize and talk about political issues, conspiracies, and more. Shaking her head to get those thoughts out of her head, she closed the window and talked to her Young Lord.

"Young Lord, it is just a matter of time before we reach the palace. Are you not excited?" she asked.

The young boy did not respond. His face was as long as the tracks they had traveled.

"Cheer up, please."

The boy was still silent but his lips gave a faint smile to the old matron.

"There you go!"

~~•~~

Compared to a silent, faint smile the boy had given, it was no match to the beams and the cheers of the people in the palace grounds when they had heard the King's announcement regarding the solar eclipse. Their uncontainable happiness and hope spread quickly in the palace, like a wildfire.

"Long live, our King!"

"Long live, Silla!"

"Long live!"

Every word that the King said transcended to their senses, hoping that only blessings would be bestowed to the kingdom. There was a feast. A very sacred event suddenly turned into a very festive one. The courtesans assembled at the middle and danced. Royal maids served food to everyone. The King went back to the dais and sat on his throne after lifting the Holy Egg from the Najeong Well.

"My eyes cannot believe this surreal occasion. It was true. The sun is bright, and there is no eclipse," Lady Min uttered in amusement.

The Prime Minister turned his head to Lady Min, his eyes narrowed and lips pursed into a thin line, signaling her to shut her mouth completely. He cleared his throat and spoke, "So did I. This is the first time that I have witnessed this. I guess Lady Jang was right all along. There is no eclipse."

He gazed at the King on his left, "Congratulations, Sire. You made it. Look at those people. They were extremely happy and hopeful as well. My heart melts with this amusing sight. After all, it is for the people, is it not?"

Anchoring his eyes to the feasting people instead of looking to his brother, the King responded, "Yes, you were right. It is for the people, my people, the kingdom's people. Everything went good, according to plan."

Jung Ho smiled. You did it, Sire. You won. I lost.

After a few uncomfortable seconds, Chil Yook brought his face near the Prime Minister's ear and whispered, "My Lord, you have said that you have a plan, just in case things go wrong."

Grinning, Jung Ho raised his eyebrows and stood. Jae Joong looked askance at him, confused with his demeanor. He chose to ignore him, thinking there was nothing he could do to ruin the celebration. The eclipse did not happen. People were celebrating. If he truly cared for the people, he would not do anything stupid to ruin their festive moment.

The Prime Minister walked out, striding down at the back of the dais.

"Where is he going?" Lady Min asked.

Chil Yook shook his head, "I have no idea."

~~•~~

Almost an hour had passed. In the middle of the celebration, the music that once floated in the air halted. Everyone was left flabbergasted. It felt like the hands of the time stopped running.

"What is happening?"

"What are all of these?"

Out of nowhere, the wooden bars were removed and the main gate was opened. Everyone saw a group of hwarangs—the red, purple, and green groups lining up and suddenly marched at the center of the palace grounds. As the buckled boots stomped on the ground and the iron-vest accessories clanked, everyone was left wondering. They did not know what were they for, and who was behind it.

As the people stretched their necks out, wondering who was the strange man on the end of the line, the Prime Minister suddenly emerged at the end of the line wearing a plain white robe and his hair undone. He totally looked like a hermit living on the dark sides of Mount Taebaek. He walked straight down the carpet, barefooted. It sent shivers down each people's spine as the piercing sound of nothingness fell, accompanied by a strong gust of cold wind.

The Prime Minister stopped at the center, turned around and looked at the people, "I congratulate each one of you!" the Prime Minister exclaimed.

What is the meaning of this? The King stood in awe, wondering why the Prime Minister was there. His heart slammed his chest like a prisoner slamming the cell doors, desperately wanting to escape.

Jae Joong shook his head. No. Why is he doing this? What are you planning, Jung Ho?

His curiosity and frustration to figure out Jung Ho's little schemes were killing him. Even the Prime Minister's minions did not know what was happening. Standing still on behind the Prime Minister's seat, the two were bombarded with confusion.

"Do you know anything about this?" Lady Min asked.

"No... I guess this is what our Lord's next plan is," Chil Yook replied.

"I sense something reprehensible, Chil Yook."

People felt a heavy ambiance with what was currently happening, like a huge boulder standing at their chests. Anxiety and fear started to consume their joyful and hopeful hearts. Denial of the sudden emergence of the eclipse filled the small minds of the people.

Jung Ho smirked, and he cleared his throat to speak, "Everyone, as the King's dear brother, I also want to give you a gift."

"What is it? Go straight to the point!" a random merchant shouted.

The Prime Minister went to the Najeong well, where the Head Priestess did the rite of the ceremony. He imitated what she did. Raising the Holy Egg in the skies, he closed his eyes and mouthed an unknown chant, only audible to his ears. Everyone was outraged with what he just did.

"How dare you ridicule the ceremony?" a random peasant shouted.

When the Prime Minister opened his eyes, he dropped the Holy Egg slowly on the top of the well. As the winds blew his long, messy hair, he unleashed a declaration that quivered the entire palace.

"People of Silla! Witness!... Witness the real mandate of the Heavens!"

He raised his two arms and lifted his head up to the skies. Like a roaring tiger, the Prime Minister's voice resonated on all the four corners of the palace walls. Everyone looked at the skies with mixed emotions. Some were confused, while others were terrified that the eclipse might occur.

When they stared at the skies for a minute, they noticed that nothing happened. The sun was still there, and the moon seemed to be afraid of making a step to devour Heaven's ball of fire.

"Now what? What was in the sky?" a peasant yelled, his eyes ridiculing the Prime Minister.

"Everyone, the eclipse will not happen! It has been declared by the King," a farmer butted in. He shot a roasting glare to the Prime Minister who just caused a senseless ruckus in the palace. Indistinct chatters resounded on the entire palace grounds. Even the governors who were sitting below the dais felt extremely ashamed for what the Prime Minister did. That particular scene did not even cross their minds. Ironically, he wanted more hwarangs to guard the whole palace against someone who shall cause a ruckus, but eventually, he was the one who made a very unpleasant scene.

The Prime Minister knelt down, closed his eyes, and spread his arm sideward like a man getting ready to be sacrificed. A sinister grin formed from his mouth. All the people were already talking about the act that he staged.

"What is the Prime Minister doing?" Chil Yook asked.

"I do not know. I have a bad feeling for this. Whatever that is, I trust his skills. We would not act hastily without thinking about it," Lady Min responded.

"Is this how he copes up with his defeat or is this the beginning of something terrifying? I am really uneasy right now," Chil Yook added.

Everyone mocked the Prime Minister. A huge wave of the rabble was shouting at him. If the hwarangs and guards were not around, the Prime Minister could have been unimaginably hurt.

"Get out of there! You are just ruining the celebration!

The King finally decided to take action. He ordered the yellow group hwarangs to escort the Prime Minister, to save him from humiliation. The yellow group hwarangs rushed to the center to assist the Prime Minister, but the Prime Minister's hwarangs stopped them and pointed their swords towards them. The crowd's eyes widened and their jaws dropped in shock.

When the King's last thread of patience ran out, his eyes narrowed in an intense fury, his hands were shaking out of anger. He stomped quickly towards the center courtyard to talk to the kneeling Prime Minister.

"Stand up and get back to your seat, Prime Minister or else this act will be considered as an act of treason!" he yelled, his last string of composure vanished entirely in the thin air.

After a while, the people noticed the gradual alteration in the colors of the surroundings. The cape of faint shadows ran in the air, cloaking the entire atmosphere. People panicked as the thin layers of gloomy stratus clouds merged with isolated pieces of cirrus clouds, wrapping the whole kingdom with a blanket of pale darkness.

"Look at the skies, everyone!"

As the crowd briefly tilted their heads up to the skies, their eyes grew wide, and their jaws gaped in tremendous shock and bareness. Their eyes were hypnotized by the mischievous shadow of the moon, engulfing the helpless ball of an inferno.

__________

NOTES:

Ahjussi (아주씨) - Korean honorific term for, "Mister."

Ahjumeoni (아주머니) - Korean honorific term for, "Old Lady."

Mount Taebaek (태백) - a long mountain range on the eastern part of Korea.