Susha Unhuor might have said that he would go and pack his things but actually, there was not much to pack. He went to his room, opened the wardrobe, and looked at the three robes lying inside with a blank expression.
He had traveled for four years before he finally settled down in the Sundang temple. Since then, another three years had gone by. He had thought he found his place here but considering how easy it was to grab his things and just leave, maybe that wasn’t the case. While he had never been someone that cared much about worldly possessions, he had still been carrying more with him back when he actively did his duty as a zhireng. Maybe this was a sign.
Susha Unhuor sighed, grabbed the old cloth bag he had thrown at the back of the wardrobe, and stuffed the robes in there. Then, he grabbed the weapon that was standing in the corner of the room, had a look around, and left the room.
He had hardly stepped outside when he saw the old abbot of the temple walk toward him, one of the younger apprentices supporting his arm and watching every little step worriedly.
Susha Unhuor could understand his worry. The old monk looked as if he wouldn’t be able to keep walking by himself, his hands slightly shaking while he moved at the pace of a snail even with the apprentice’s help. Still, he was walking toward him, obviously having some goal in mind.
Susha Unhuor glanced toward the path behind the two monks and the staircase leading down the mountain that could be seen in the distance. The young king had already waited for several hours. To let him wait again … Still, he had spent three years in this temple. He could hardly ignore the abbot at this point.
He walked over, meeting the old man halfway. "Anqeng."
The old monk smiled kindly. "Zhireng Susha, have you finished your meeting with your guest? Should we prepare a room so he can stay here as well?"
Susha Unhuor glanced at the bag he had slung over his shoulder and shook his head. "That won’t be necessary. Instead, I am afraid that I will have to leave with him."
The abbot slightly furrowed his brows. "Is that for certain? I know this is not my matter to get involved in but you were trying to find peace of mind when you came here. I don’t know whether you have found it yet or not but leaving might put that goal in jeopardy. Are you sure you can’t stay?"
Susha Unhuor’s gaze slowly traveled over the winding paths, the temple in the distance, and the other buildings. This was indeed a peaceful place but if he was honest with himself, then maybe it wasn’t a place to achieve peace of mind. Instead, he could not help but question himself inwardly.
Had he made the right decision back then? Had he not? What alternatives had there been? Had his decision changed anything? He didn’t know the answer to any of these questions. But he did know that if he didn’t listen to the dan’s plight and followed him back to En, he would forever regret that decision. Since he already knew that, there was nothing more to think about, was there?
Susha Unhuor turned back to the old monk. "Anqeng, I am grateful that you are looking out for me. But … I am a zhireng. We are born with the blessing of the gods and we die with it. This power … it has been given for a certain reason. In this case, it is to give the people the ability to resist the darkness and vanquish the demons. If I did not go, then would I not betray that reason? As a priest, you probably feel that the gods’ will should not be ignored."
The old monk’s expression was a little difficult when he looked at Susha Unhuor. "While you are not wrong in general, it is difficult to say what the gods’ plan is for a single person. Maybe your path is supposed to diverge from what the zhireng usually do."
Susha Unhuor nodded. "Maybe. I guess I will find out in due time." He lightly grabbed the spear, his gaze softening. "I have been hiding from this for a long time. Maybe it is time to return. At the very least, I will give it a try." He gave the old monk a bow. "Farewell." With that, he left and instead went back toward the waiting hall.
When he reached the entrance, nothing could be seen of the young dan and his two guards. Susha Unhuor raised his brows and looked around, finally spotting them a little further away, each of them holding the reins of a horse. Obviously, they were already waiting for him.
Susha Unhuor made his way over and nodded at the king before glancing at the horses. Well, this was awkward.
Jusha Lale looked from him to the temple and back again before slowly raising his brows as well. "Zhireng Susha does not have a horse?"
Susha Unhuor gave him a noncommittal smile in return. "I haven’t had one in a long time. There was no need to here in the temple and not much of a need to while traveling before that."
Jusha Lale looked at him for a moment longer and then turned to one of the guards. "Shunche." He motioned for him to give Susha Unhuor his horse and ride with him instead. Only then did he turn back to the warrior. "I am afraid you will have to ride though. It is still a long way until En and we do not have the leisure to just walk there. The sooner we get back, the better." He made a small pause and lowered his gaze. "Well, I certainly don’t need to tell you that."
Susha Unhuor nodded. This was indeed the truth. With demons, it was best to take care of the matter as soon as possible. Otherwise, one would only give them time to grow and the consequences would be dire.
He didn’t know how long the king had traveled but if he had gone to see other zhireng before him, it should be quite some time. Also, En was not just a few hours away. At the very least, a week or two should have passed by now for traveling here alone. Add that onto the fact that demons were not always discovered immediately … It was hard to say what would await him when they reached the capital city.
Thinking of this, Susha Unhuor’s gaze turned grim. Yes, they could lose no time. He got onto the horse, nodding for them to move.
The two guards looked at their king and then started to move as soon as they saw him nod as well. Even though they had come to ask this zhireng for help, he was not the one who could command them. No, no matter what happened, they would only ever listen to their king.
The group silently left the temple in the direction of the capital city En.
They would need several days at the very least, maybe even up to two weeks if the weather was bad or if the darkness had spread past the city’s walls already. There was nothing that they could currently do so Susha Unhuor did not ask any further questions. He did intend to do so but only when he felt that it was about time to get the answers.
The dan was not one for mindless chatter either. He sat on the horse in front of his guard, keeping his gaze on the road in front. En … he had grown up in that city. When he had been crowned king, he had sworn to protect the whole kingdom and its people, and he had especially thought of this place that was so close to him.
Now, after reigning for not even a decade, he met with his first crisis and there was nothing that he could do. Over and over again, he could only ask others, beg them, and offer whatever they wanted in return, only to be helpless if they refused.
It was not a good feeling. It made him realize just how inadequate he really was. When it truly mattered, he couldn’t do anything. His people … did they not deserve better? But alas, there was nothing he could do. By now, he could only hope that this zhireng would keep his word and indeed try to eliminate the demon.
The two people were occupied by their own thoughts, not interacting with each other at all. For the next half a week, the group continued on in this very same manner: While following the path toward En, they would keep quiet. The only ones speaking up were usually the two guards that were fussing over whether their king needed a rest, whether he was hungry, whether he would rather stop in a town that night instead of camping outside.
Jusha Lale dealt with them patiently, always denying whatever good thing they were trying to push onto them, reminding them that they needed to make haste and reach En in the shortest amount of time possible to ensure that the demon would not get the opportunity to grow even stronger.
The guards looked especially unwilling to accept this but since their dan had spoken, they also did not dare to contradict him, and could only hang their heads. Then, a few hours later, they would start the same thing again. It was a bit funny to watch.
Jusha Lale only spoke up on his own accord when he felt that there was something to communicate like ending their travels for the day or continuing on their journey the next morning.
Five days went by before this pattern was finally broken. They had stopped at the edge of a forest for the night. The two guards, Shunche and Chomong, had hurriedly set up a makeshift camp with a small fireplace and one of them had gone to catch some fish in a nearby stream. The other one handed the dan a blanket while once again fussing about him. Jusha Lale just nodded though, not entertaining him for too long.
Susha Unhuor had been sitting a little further away, watching their interaction unfold. The longer he observed these three, the more he felt that Jusha Lale’s standing among his people should be very good. A guard was there to, well, guard somebody. But these two gave the impression that they were constantly worried about their dan and his well-being, going far and beyond what should be expected of them. Clearly, their own feelings regarding this man played a big part in that.
When Chomong returned with several fish a few minutes later and put them on sticks to fry, Susha Unhuor used the opportunity to go over and sit down next to Jusha Lale at the fire. Immediately, the two guards turned to stare at him, obviously suspicious about his intentions. The zhireng did not bother about them though and instead looked at Jusha Lale.
The young dan also glanced at him but then continued to poke the fire in front of him with a stick he had found on the ground. Clearly, he still had nothing to say.
Susha Unhuor watched him for a while longer before finally speaking up. "A dan that would tend to his own fire. I never thought I would get to see something like this."
Jusha Lale glanced at him once more, the corners of his mouth raising slightly. "Has zhireng Susha seen many dans in his life?"
Susha Unhuor smiled as well. "A few. They were … quite different from you though. My idea of what a dan is supposed to be like was definitely a different one as well."
Jusha Lale put down the stick in his hands, dusted off his hands, and leaned back, folding his hands on his knee before he turned to face Susha Unhuor again. "Then in your mind, how is a dan supposed to be?"
Susha Unhuor raised his brows, feeling that he had offended him a little just now. Well, he probably should have expected that. What he had said just now could likely be interpreted as telling him that he was not how a dan should be, that he was lacking. Especially in the current situation, that would sting. After all, leaving the capital city himself and searching for a zhireng willing to defeat the demon was no easy feat. Thinking back to the dans he had met before, he couldn’t imagine a single one doing something like this. Obviously, he had inadvertently mocked a good person just now.
Susha Unhuor lightly rubbed his neck, trying to think of words to diffuse the situation. If his explanation was good, the dan would not fault him any longer. He generally seemed to be quite even-tempered, after all.
He cleared his throat and gave it his best shot. "What they are supposed to be … is a good leader for their people. That is all that they need to be in my eyes. But as for what I thought they would be … I always imagined a man that was a little older maybe, somebody with a lot of experience, who has seen the world and the things happening in it.
"I would’ve thought that that is what makes a dan steadfast no matter what crisis occurs. I also thought …" He looked at Jusha Lale, noticing that the dan’s expression had softened again. Sure enough, he was not one to hold a grudge. He was forgiving, something that was definitely an important quality in a king. The longer he thought about it, the more Susha Unhuor felt that this Jusha Lale was actually an excellent dan. His gaze turned complicated at that. "Your looks are a little deceiving."
Jusha Lale smiled and turned away. "Are they? They are what I was born with. In any case, I do not think that they are what makes or doesn’t make a good dan."
Susha Unhuor nodded. "They certainly aren’t. Just from the fact that you came to visit the Sundang Temple, I can see that you care about your people a great deal. So in my eyes, that already makes you a good dan. No matter how much you diverge from the mental image I had before."
Jusha Lale lowered his eyelids, the same smile playing at his lips. "And yet … you’ve come to see me. That means there is something on your mind that you feel the need to talk about. Judging from the way you have behaved up until now, I guess that this will be about the demon and most likely, you want to ask about my uncle."
Susha Unhuor raised his brows at that, giving the dan a lingering look. "Not only do you care about your people, but you are also quite well-equipped to handle this kind of discussion." Obviously, he shouldn’t have judged him by how he looked. This man … he was not as simple as he seemed. In fact, he might be better suited to be a dan because of his looks. He couldn’t fool anyone if he did not have the capabilities. He should have thought of that before. "You’re exactly right. I would like to know more about the situation."
Jusha Lale sighed. "To be honest, I do not know what to tell you. My father was the previous dan. My mother — my uncle’s older sister — was a beautiful woman, one who was able to catch my father’s eye when they first met. She was also lovely enough to have him stay with her for his whole life. Unfortunately, she died early. He never married a second wife so I am his only child. When my father followed her some years later, I was still young."
Susha Unhuor nodded slowly. From what he had heard, this dan of Alo had not been reigning for long. Maybe it had only been half a decade, maybe a little more, maybe a little less. But it should have been around that amount of time.
"When I acceded to the throne, there was talk about whether I would be able to handle it. There were some people that were sounding me out, trying to see if there wasn’t a chance to take advantage of the situation. Thankfully, since my father never intended to have another child, he made sure that I was prepared for this kind of situation. So no matter how hard they tried, not one of them succeed. Maybe there were one or two that were not quite happy with that and were biding their time to find a better opportunity."
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