Page 9 of King Foretold
“I can’t.” I stare at her, narrowing my eyes. “It’s not working.”
Then I rear back, blinking rapidly against the brightness. I see her gi. She’s a radiant silver, which doesn’t come as a surprise. She’s a seonnyeo, a being of Sky. Of course, her life force is—
“I see red gi threaded through your silver gi,” I whisper, and Minju gasps, pressing her hand to her chest. The red threads of her gi flicker, then flare, burning as brightly as the silver. The twin flames of her life force are ... beautiful. “You’re part Underworld?”
My mother told me beings of the Shingae are drawn to those of the same life source because their gi calls to one another.Like calls to like.I had taken her words literally and assumed beings of different life sources couldn’t be together. I honestly hadn’t thought too hard on it since I was never drawn to anyone.
In all my years, I’d never met any beings of the Shingae who contradicted my assumption ... until Ethan. He was the first person I was ever drawn to, and he was also the one who proved my assumption wrong.
His mother’s jade necklace—which bore the last of the Queen of Mountains’s love, tears, and magic—bound his powers and kept him hidden from his father for twenty-four years. When he broke the stone of tears, it unleashed his magic and imbued him with his mother’s memories, revealing his past and his destiny.
His magic burns with the silver gi of Sky and the green gi of Mountains. He is living proof that beings of different life sourcescanbe together. Minju is proof of that as well. Then why aren’t there more beings with dual life forces? Ethan and Minju can’t be the only ones.
“You must tell no one,” she says, reclaiming her seat next to me.
“Why?” I shake my head. None of this makes sense. I’m so tired of being clueless. “And how is it even a secret?”
“Which question should I answer first?” A mischievous smile curves the historian’s lips. She must have learned something new from our little exercise. Knowledge is her addiction, her aphrodisiac. It’s nerdy but strangely endearing. “You mustn’t tell anyone because it is forbidden.Iam forbidden under the Code of the Realm.”
“What?” I sputter. “That’s total bullshit.”
“I agree, but marrying someone outside of one’s own kingdom has been prohibited for hundreds of years—partly because of the feud between the four kingdoms and partly because it is close to impossible for beings of different life forces to have a child together,” Minju explains matter-of-factly. “It is hard enough for the Shinbiin to procreate as is, so the rulers of the four kingdoms decided not to risk the population dwindling even more. It was one of the few things they all agreed on.”
“Then how ...” I trace Minju’s outline in the air with both hands.
“My parents married in secret, accepting they would never have a child together.” She shrugs delicately. “But here I am. A statistical anomaly.”
“You’re a miracle,” I correct her.Just like Ethan.
Minju nods shyly, then asks, “Do you want to know the answer to your second question?”
“My second question?” I scrunch up my nose. “I forgot I had one.”
“How is my parentage even a secret?” She practically bounces on her chair.
“Okay. I’ll bite.” My lips quirk into a grin, her enthusiasm contagious. “How?”
“Because no one can see the colors of my gi.” Minju grabs my hands and swings them between us. “When I actively use my magic, I draw solely from the life force of Sky, so people only see silver fire burning in my eyes.”
“Wait.” I snatch my hands back, needing to concentrate. “Why can’t anyone see your gi when you’renotusing magic?”
“Because no one has that power. No one in the history of the Shingae haseverhad the ability toseegi.” Minju grips my face between her hands. “Butyoudo. Do you realize what that means?”
“No clue,” I say through puckered lips. I dislodge her hands from my face with an exasperated shake of my head. “You are making zero sense.”
“It makes perfect sense. Don’t you see, Sunny?” A triumphant smile spreads across the historian’s face.
Idosee, but I wish I didn’t. This power is another reason I’m different from everyone else. It only makes me feel more alone. But Minju stares at me expectantly, so I give her the answer like a good student.
“I’m the only one who can see gi because I’m the only one with the Yeoiju,” I say in a monotone. “I’m somehow harnessing its powers to perceive the life forces around me.”
“This is a good thing,” she says softly, squeezing my hand. The understanding in her eyes makes my throat tighten.
“If you say so.” I look down at our hands. After the briefest hesitation, I flip mine over and squeeze hers back.
“I asked Captain Song not to share this with you because I didn’t want you to be distracted from your lessons. But ...” Minju hesitates, and I raise my head. “Daeseong disappeared from Heaven Lake.”
“I ...” A shiver runs through me, and I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to block out the memory of that terrifying battle. “I th ... thought he was t ... too hurt to leave the lake.”
