Ha Noon's
Chapter 15: General Moon
Not until half an hour, the soldiers brought a coachman employed by Juragan Min after asking many residents and finally managed to find him hiding in his house in the lower circles. The old man confessed in a trembling voice that he was afraid Juragan Min would accuse him of stealing the merchandise and ask him to take responsibility, therefore he hid all day inside the house.
“Your Majesty! You hear not what he said? He's hiding because he doesn't want to take responsibility, Your Majesty! It was clear that he had stolen my merchandise, Your Majesty!”
Ha Gungi narrowed his eyes looking at Juragan Min with an unfriendly look, he hated the high tone Juragan Min put out when talking to him.
“It seems like there is nothing to investigate anymore, Your Majesty. Everything is clear, that this man has stolen all of Mr. Min's merchandise. You,” call the judge to the coachman.
Ha Noon narrowed his eyes unhappily at the call. They easily believed the accusations that were not clear just because the man was from the lower classes. In fact, ever since the man set foot in the main hall, no one had bothered to ask what his name was and directly asked him to give an explanation.
“Where did you give all of Juragan Min's merchandise?”
The man did not reply, his head kept bowing with droplets of flowing sweat and quivering lips.
“You scared him, Mr. Judge.” Ha Noon advanced his body slightly, “Excuse me, Mr.”
Hearing this gentle call, made the old man straighten his head, looking at Ha Noon who was smiling gently at him.
“I hope you can be invited to work here. Juragan Min asked you to bring 30 white gold watches to his shop, right? You know that you're committing a crime right now, don't you? So tell us where did you give us those 30 white gold watches?”
No one noticed the 30 words Ha Noon mentioned many times. However, just with those two figures made the old man's self-esteem somehow feel slammed. Without him noticing, the inner voice he had stored within his mind surged out, “30.?”
“Hmm? What's up?” Although it was only a small whisper, the Crown Prince was able to catch it.
The old man was surprised, he panicked and nobly shook his head, “Not..
“Hmm? What's up Your Majesty?” Ha Noon clearly heard the old man's whisper, but he did not want Ha Jungi to let go of this just because the old man was afraid to speak up just because he was afraid of Juragan Min and his bandits.
“Ah...” Ha Jungi is frankly unusual with that formal call from Ha Noon. Although he was a Crown Prince, but there was something that made him not dare to surpass Ha Noon. This was so obvious among the nobles that it was what made everyone convinced that Ha Noon's standing in the palace was higher than that of the Crown Prince. Ha Jungi swallowed a mouthful of saliva, “I think I heard this man say something earlier.”
“Really? What's up, Mister?”
The old man raised his eyelashes, and started talking stammeringly, “Not a big deal, Princess, it's just that.” with concern the man glanced at Juragan Min who was kneeling beside him. Juragan Min who was beginning to realize this also glanced at the man with a threatening look, making him no longer dare to speak.
Ha Noon noticed this and clucked in annoyance. If he doesn't manage to lure her, then he will be the one to go to jail and his whole plan will fail. “Master, Master has the right to say anything if Sir wants to say something.”
The old man thought of a few sentences in his head and swallowed a mouthful of saliva, “I, just wondered if I had misheard that the Princess said that there were 30 pieces of white gold watches stolen.”
Ha Noon frowned, pretending to be confused, “Hmm? What the hell does that mean? As I recall Mr. Min said that his merchandise was very rare and there were only 30 pieces. Did I hear wrong?”
The Crown Prince sighed heavily, “No, Princess is not wrong. I also heard that there are only 30 pieces of white gold watches. Sir, what does it mean you heard wrong?”
“I... That... because as I recall, I brought more than one bag of goods, so...”.
“That!” suddenly, Juragan Min cut off the courier's words and began to shout with a panicked expression, “True, you are not mistaken, Princess, Your Highness the Crown Prince, is, the white gold watch had only 30 pieces. However, not only was the golden watch on the wagon, but other types of jewelry were also present, Princess, Her Royal Highness the Crown Prince!”
Ha Noon smiled obliquely seeing that his poor fish had already managed to bite the bait. “Hooh, really? Mr Min, are you playing around in this court?”
“No, Princess. I'm telling the truth!”
“Min,” This time, Ha Jungi's voice is a little heavy, “Since the beginning this is really strange. You hired some young men to watch over the merchandise, and how could this old man kill them all? Then, you never mentioned that there was anything other than a white gold watch in the first place. Why did you mention it now?”
“Yang Mulia... The..”.
“Master,” Ha Noon's voice becomes sweeter when talking to the old man. “Tell me the truth, did you really steal that merchandise?”
The old man did not make a sound, he did not dare to answer.
“Master, do you intend to hide the truth in front of His Majesty the King?”
Instantly, his heart stopped beating.
“Master, we are in the midst of a great court. Lies are not allowed in this place unless they want to die. If the Master respects His Majesty the King as the leader of this kingdom, then say the truth.”
The old man clenched the head of his hand, ‘No, Princess. Not me the culprit.”
Juragan Min was furious with this old man. Without warning, he grabbed the old man's collar violently and started shouting, “Basic impostor! What other lies do you want to tell damn!?”
Quickly, the soldiers pulled Juragan Min and restrained him. The old man began to get annoyed with all the accusations that Juragan Min had leveled at him, so confidently he began to defend himself, “Your Majesty! I swear by the Anthropon Kingdom that it wasn't me who stole the item! There was a group of black-clothed thieves who attacked the bandits and took the merchandise!”
“Damn it! Who are you calling bandits! Don't lie to me! Then how can you explain about the poor people who have my white gold watch!?”
“I really don't know anything about it, Your Majesty! But, when I returned to my house, I found out the entire population had that white gold watch. In fact, the homeless also have it, Your Majesty.”
“All residents and homeless have it?” Ha Jungi frowned. “Mr Judge,”
“Ya, Your Majesty?”
“Isn't there more than 30 people living in that neighborhood?”
“Be, right, Your Highness.”
“Not so, Your Highness!” Juragan Min was still trying to defend himself.
“Gim Jun.”
Gym Jun take a step forward, “Ya, Princess?”
“Gather all those white gold watches from the residents,” Ha Noon smiled obliquely, looking down at the kneeling Juragan Min pleading with his face filled with salty sweat grains, he said, “We see how many white gold watches it is.”
Ha Jungi stared at a paper she was holding under the dim light of the candle. The large door that was across the room rang, without glancing at it, Ha Jungi said, “Come in.”
The sound of the door opening, a man with silk cloth entered the room carrying several other heaps of files in his hands. Slowly, Bun Yungji walked towards Ha Jungi's desk, then placed the pile of files on the table. “The border conditions have been more peaceful after the war began, Your Majesty. We managed to defend the border, Your Highness.” he explained.
Ha Jungi nodded in understanding, “That's good.”
“The soldiers, including General Agung Ring will be back in a few days.”
“How about General Moon?”
“Grand General Ring insists on bringing back General Moon. You know how stubborn the man's head is, Your Majesty. We cannot refuse his request. Inevitably, we should allow General Moon to return to the palace and allow him to deal with internal matters. We will send another general who will replace him take care of the border.”
Ha Gungi heaved a heavy sigh, “Alright, do that.”
“One more, Your Grace. It seems like the nobles did not accept the decision of Lord Judge who only imprisoned Juragan Min.”
“Hah... those foolish nobles, still only magnified the problem just because of some jewelry. Did you catch the real thief?”
“No, Your Majesty, this will not be easy.”
Ha Gungi stopped reading, his pupils lifted up and looked at Bun Yungji, “It looks like they have started moving.”
Bun Yungji smiled knot, “True, Your Majesty. The rebels have already started moving.”
***
Four days passed, news of the military forces guarding the border going back to the palace spread quickly. In appreciation of the service of the soldiers, the ministers agreed to conduct a welcoming party. The gates of the capital were opened, over 1000 horses stepped into the capital. All the people waved the royal flag of Anhtrobon while cheering for the soldiers. Great General Ring Gilya led the troops in the vanguard, the side of his face on the left had a sharp long scratch.
As a soldier who had killed over 1000 people on the battlefield, this lively welcome was not something to boast of for him. He was a soldier, his body had been forced to devote his entire life to protecting the kingdom, even if he had to kill even once, he had to fight for his people. To him, the opposing army was no different from him, they were also an officer forced to sacrifice their lives. Every night, the Gilya Ring is haunted by the pool of blood, the cry of despair, and the sad voice that begs for their lives. Guilt permanently occupied his heart, making him fed up with his hand that never let go of the sword. However, his nationalist heart never stopped him from continuing to devote his loyalty to the kingdom. In order to protect the people who welcomed him, he was willing to become a cold-blooded demon that shed a lot of blood.
Ring Gilya noticed the smiles of the people who greeted her with flat faces and dark eyes. Exhaling heavily, Ring Gilya glanced from the tail end of her eyes at the man who was a step behind her. Ever since entering civilisation, the man has always lowered his head with a hood covering his face.
“Hey, who is the soldier behind the Great General? Why did he cover his face?”
Some residents began to whisper in curiosity about the condition of some of the soldiers.
“That guess is General Moon.”
“Didn't General Moon have died in the war 7 years ago?”
“Not General Moon Wan, but General Moon Juha, his only son. I heard he got the title of general when he was 17.”
“Isn't that crazy? Other soldiers usually have to wait 25 years old to become senior soldiers.”
“Hey, he was born and raised on the battlefield, you can't equate him with the soldiers who only play swords inside the palace.”
Ring Gilya realized that the people were very curious about the soldier who was a step behind her. He smiled resignedly, “Juha.”
Moon Juha raised her eyelashes, finding Ring Gilya's pupils staring gently at her.
“No need to be nervous, you are a General, they all respect you.”
Moon Juha again lowered her gaze, she looked doubtful. After a while, he inhaled a deep breath, then exhaled slowly. One of his hands in control came loose, raised to pull his hood, revealing his face to the whole people. At a glance, the entire gaze of the people was focused on him, especially the women who were looking at him with sparkling eyes.
“Wah... very handsome..”.
“Not only talented, but also very handsome, the world feels so unfair.”
With his emerald green eyes, Moon Juha watched the entire populace looking at him. Moon Juha's adam apple slowly rolled, and nervousness slowly re-flowing on her skin. Although he was very famous for his achievements on the battlefield and his 19 years of service at the border, he was born and raised at the border making him very unfamiliar with the hustle and bustle of the capital. He used to play with the sword, go around the forest, joking around with the soldiers, but the unfamiliar crowd made him meet a new situation.
After both of his parents were killed on the battlefield, it was Ring Gilya who guarded and trained him for 7 years at the border. His habit of seeing war made him grow strong with splattered blood, making him surpass even senior soldiers and become a general in just 17 years. During his 7 years of enduring a torturous hell, Ring Gilya takes him back to the capital, asking the King to relinquish the responsibilities of the border to him. The king approved this state in tribute to their devotion, swapping out the more than 2000 warriors who had killed
Ha Noon's brown pupils absorb the sunlight that decorates the window glass, making it glow like spilled brown melts. His long fingers clad in sage-colored gloves knocked slowly, his eyes meticulously watching the Anthropon Kingdom flag fluttering in the sky filling the capital.
“Mr Princess.”
Ha Noon turned around, making the pearl grains surrounding his neck reflect light. Ha Noon looks very elegant in a simple dress. Her body was wrapped in a sleeveless sage dress with a wide skirt made of black satin. Both ends of her lips were pulled looking at Mom Suri.
“Soldiers are almost at the gate of the palace, Princess. We have to get to the main hall.”
Ha Noon sighed subtly, “Sure.”
