#princess hiryuu

[stardvstbby]

Critique ahead, read at your own discretion.

Am I understanding this correctly? Because of Hiryuu’s selfish wish to have more time on Earth, Yona was created, thus their soul did not return to the heavens to be with the other dragon gods. As a consequence hundreds of humans were damned with the dragon powers and short lifespans. If Hiryuu had accepted his own death as a natural course of life as a human and went back to the heavens then all of this could’ve been avoided. But it seems both he and Yona have trouble reconciling with loss. They’d curse strangers if it meant having more time with their loved ones. How is this not viewed as corrupt? Their resolve is painted as this heartwarming thing - that they’d bend reality if it led to the safety of those they care about. But what about everyone else? The world isn’t comprised only of those dear to your heart. They say Hiryuu loved humans but the more I examine his actions it seems he simply wanted control over them.

I want to love this manga, I have loved this manga, for many years. It was amazing seeing Yona’s growth and getting to know all the characters. Soo-Won, Shin-Ah, Zeno, and (earlier chapters) Yona will always have a special place in my heart. But the way the themes are being developed leaves a sour taste in my mouth. Idk, if anyone has some positivity to share about how things are progressing please feel free to do so, because at this point I’m disillusioned with YOTD.

[alterigo06]

“The red dragon will return at dawn.”

[audaellom]

❤️💛Hiryuu and Zeno

(Ft Gu-en, Abi and Shu-ten)

"When I came to the Earth, the Four Dragons gave this to me. Zeno, I now give it to you. It is a sign that I will always be with you"

"And what about us?"ಠಿ⁠_⁠ಠಿ

"There was only one"(⁠ ⁠╹⁠▽⁠╹⁠ ⁠)ㄏ

I literally cried so much when I watched this scene😭

[jesuistrefatugie]

Rewatching the first episode after the current chapter of Akatsuki no Yona is a hell of an experience.

[realclever]

Akatsuki No Yona Manga Page Coloring Ch 260

****** Spoilers*******

[sorasan000]

There's a difference between how Zeno saw and remembers Hiryuu vs. how Yona sees him in her visions, which provides two sides to him:

Zeno: Leader and master

Yona: The baby of the family

[matcha-chai-latte]

I just had a thought about Hiryuu and the Dragon Gods’ “love” for him. Was that really love?

I was surprised that Hiryuu, one of the five dragon gods, did not know ANYTHING about this prophecy and its meaning. AND he did not know why they gave him the sword and the “shield”. Who if not him should know all that? Isn’t it strange?

It was said that the four dragon gods wanted Hiryuu to come back to the skies. But he denied, since he didn’t want to be a god, but a person. What if it angered them? This would mean, they never blessed him or “gifted” him with anything. Instead, they cursed him and his whole bloodline, leaving them to suffer with short lives and painful deaths. Not only that, they also cursed the four special people they chose to become the dragon warriors.

Throughout the manga, multiple characters stated that the dragon powers seem more like a curse than a blessing. Maybe that’s in fact what it is. None of the four dragons or their ancestors had a happy life. Should anything even be said about Soowon, his mother and their blood relatives?

But! The Dragon Gods still love Hiryuu and want him to return to the skies. So this riddle of a prophecy, the chalice, sword, shield and Yona, Hiryuu’s reincarnation, are the key elements to lift it. The last part of the prophecy “and the Crimson Dragon shall return at dawn” might be about Hiryuu’s soul finally returning to the skies.

[under-my-pillow]

A character that has always intrigued me Elder Mundeok.

He is the one adult that has had a close relationship with all the three characters - Hak, Soo-won & Yona.

And while other characters more or less we have an idea of their actions, and behaviour, Mundeok is slightly baffling.

We know he is Hak's grandfather. He was the former general of the Wind tribe, and notably he was a very loyal supporter of Il— But, why?

Il despised weapons, conflicts, forbid war, but incredibly his most loyal supporter raised the best warriors in the country.

Perhaps he was more tolerant of the wind tribe due to their easy going nature, not prone to aggression like the fire tribe or the earth tribe.

Wind tribe was favoured, Mun-deok was an elder. He was in the best position to advise Il on several poor decisions he made, yet he did not. I have never understood, why?

Did he advise, but Il did not listen?

Then why did he support Il despite the poor decisions that were made? Was it because it was not Fuga's problem? It does not make sense though. What was not Fuga's problem would eventually become Fuga's problem once the tribes and the people one by one started to revolt.

Then was it because of Yona being Hiryuu's incarnation?

Still, why did he never advise Il to give his daughter proper lessons as the next heir to the throne.

Did they expect her to magically earn governing prowess?

I doubt he's that dumb, but then Mundeok revered the priests. He believed in Hiryuu. Then was everything pre-planned? Il doing nothing, letting his people rot for ten years knowing Soo-won would kill him— was this all to trigger another Hiryuu reign of Il's dreams? To make Yona reunite with the dragons and regain her throne like in the legends? Is that what these two were going for?

Of course I understand, if Yona had never gone to reunite the dragons we would never have this story, but then it makes you think the characters who hardly appear seem to have made the greatest impacts aside from Yona and funnily enough all these decisions lead to tragedy.

[murasaki-cha]

OH MY GOD!!!!!!! THEY FREAKING MET!!!!

[dandelionbeforesnow]

Yes, perhaps the prophecy shouldn’t be fulfilled.

Ik-soo pretty much just told Yona to gather the Four Dragons because it’s her destiny (or something). Right up until Zeno pulled his shit, there wasn’t a peep about the other parts of the prophecy.

And thanks to Zeno, we also learned that Yona wasn’t even the original recipient of the prophecy!

Hiryuu was given the prophecy directly by the Dragon Gods themselves.

Please remember, these gods are not the nice sort. The gods don’t care about the mortal realm or humans. They only cared for Hiryuu. And they want him to come home.

Yona dying and returning to the heavens is a distinct possibility, and is pretty much in line with what the gods want!

The prophecy doesn’t even guarantee peace or a happily ever after.

What is the prophecy even about? And why should we want it fulfilled?

The Final Arc

Are people really surprised that Akatsuki no Yona will come to an end soon? What more is for Yona to do than resolving the issue that continued for about 2000 years? She know is aware of the feelings and secrets of most of her friends (Zeno, the dragon warriors, Hak) and opponents (Soo Won, his followers, Keishuk ect...)...The countries around Kouka are not that much of a problem anymore...

Still....the first image, where Yona is already the Queen of Kouka....the dragon warriors seem to have vanished and I do not see Hak either. Is Soo Won already dead in that time? Is it a definite future or something Yona can still change?...The way how it appeared that this Yona who is already queen seemed to tell the story...

Maybe the prophecy was not supposed to come true...

[acertaincritic]

The cherry to add on top of the "Yona Is Selfish" discourse is that the dragons aren't even her real friends.

THEY WERE LITERALLY MAGICALLY COMPELLED TO FOLLOW HER.

Kija wouldn't have left his village if Yona just a girl had asked him. Or even Yona the princess, if her hair hadn't been red and the sight of her hadn't moved the dragon blood in him.

The three of them are magically bespelled to follow Yona and bond with her, and Zeno has to tag along because she's possibly the only person who can end his misery.

So Yona convinces the Hiryuu of the past to condemn hundreds of generations of dragons to early death just so she could meet her "friends"... Who are really her slaves. Who would've had a potentially happy and fulfilling life if not for her. Whom she had searched out just so she can have "power" and not put Hak in danger. Not only they wouldn't have cared for her, but she wouldn't have cared for them either.

I swear if the genders were reversed and it was a red-haired prince with three dragon women who are magically bound to protect him and serve him, and they fall in love with him in a perfect exemplification of the Stockholm Syndrome - no one would've had any doubt how yuck it is. But the MC is a woman and therefore it's progressive and feminist, and go girl!

LMAO.

At least the original dragons had a choice whether or not to drink dragon blood. None of their descendants had any choice.

[stardvstbby]

Maybe I’m being too harsh on Yona, but this is such a cop-out. Who is she to say what Zeno’s true feelings are? She’s basically saying: “I know I’m important to you. You wouldn’t want to cause me pain, would you?”. Like Yona, love, that’s completely beside the point. No he doesn’t want to hurt you! Of course not! But she’s deflecting, avoiding confronting a difficult choice that would lead to her friend finally finding rest after many lifetimes of suffering.

I understand why she needs to enter the chalice and speak directly with the gods. The cycle itself is the issue and she could prevent further people from being burdened with dragon power, and killing Zeno would only end his suffering.

But the way she completely dismisses his wishes irks me. She could’ve said something like: “Hold on. Before we commit to anything concrete, let me try speaking with the gods. Allow me a second option. And if that doesn’t work at least we know I can end this pain for you,” but no. Instead she like…gaslights him? “No, this is what you’re actually feeling.” “You’re in too much despair to make this choice, you’re not in your right frame of mind.” Even if it’s true that he doesn’t want to hurt her she’s still assuming she knows his thoughts and emotions better than he does. This is pure Sheltered Princess behavior.

Yona is robbing Zeno of his autonomy over his choice to die here, which ironically is exactly what the dragon powers are doing to him. When will he be awarded agency of his own life? His feelings and desires?

[fuyu-mayoi]

Chapter 262, the title

"Disheveled castle visitors". It's rather an interesting choice of words to open a chapter.

Suwon is the King, the head of the house, but he is referred to as "a visitor", someone who is an outsider. As if to emphasize that the more he gets closer to the end of his life, the more he's turning into someone else (to be precise, his true self).

Hak is obviously not a newcomer. Yet he feels like he's a stranger. He doesn't possess Hiryuu's blood, he cannot comprehend the mysterious forces that abducted Yona, he can't even tell if his beloved one is dead or alive.

Both Hak and Suwon are gradually being removed from their respectively roles and labels to become "individuals". 

They're not the "Princess' bodyguard" and "the King".

They're just Hak and Suwon.

[dandelionbeforesnow]

Did Hiryuu only grant flames to people of Kouka? Maybe the mess with people capturing and trying to executing him back then was due to him being the cause of these weird flames. And people are Freaking Out.

In this vein, the view on flames modern-day would vary by tribe. With the fire tribe's..deep fanaticism, they would definitely see flames as a gift from God.

While some people *cough Yuhon* might just see Hiryuu and the dragon warriors as particularly powerful flame users.

I would like a dragon warriors to be stronger though. With everyone given access to flames (and subsequent superpowers), they would need more of a edge, really.

The dragon warriors are bonded with Hiryuu's soul. Though his body was human, that doesn't necessarily apply to his soul.

As for Yona, she did have a kidnapping incident when she was a little kid. They got her back before anything serious happened, but it would be quite a scare for a sheltered kid.

Akatsuki no Yona KHR au !!

(as in, akatsuki no yona cast with flames, not KHR cast in a akatsuki no yona universe)

(althought Hayato would totally be Hakuryuu, right?)

(oh and also spoilers for chapter 100 and beyond of the manga? I really liked this reveal so I don't want to ruin it for anyone else)

Anyway. Moving on. Our favorite kids and one multi-centennial kid with flames!

Yona is quite obviously the sky. Both because she's almost the textbook description of it and because she's the main character. She's also a little bit of a storm too! Not enough to be like Xanxus but. Still a little bit of a storm.

Hak is a Storm! With, like, a big chunk of cloud thrown in there. He's Yona's storm!

(Su-won is a mist. And a sky, too. Hak was his cloud and Yona was his storm and Su-won was Yona's mist and the betrayal torn them up inside they've lost their sky they've lost their mist it hurts it hurts it hurts)

Yun is a sun! Took quite a while to bond with Yona (he didn't experiment Fated Instant Bonding like the dragons did hahaha) but he's definitely Yona's sun now! (and may regret it sometimes. All those idiots he has to look after!)

Kija is... Also a storm hahaha and a little bit of a rain but! Mainly a storm ! It uh didn't help when he met Hak...... Because Kija thought he was going to be his master's storm except oof here comes Yona and she already has a storm........ Who's really really strong...... In the end they're both Yona's storm but Kija still has some insecurities about his place in this harmony :(

Shin-ha is the rain of the group! Also a little bit of a sun..... But 90% a rain. His father predecessor Ao was a cloud, they had a element-to-element bond, no sky involved. Ao the squirrel is actually a flame animal ! :) even if Shin-ha never allows him to help in battles..... He worries......

Jae-ha is a Mist! And also a cloud. The mist part wins out by a narrow margin. He also has some lightning flames but not much. Mists aren't the most trusted of individuals so he pretends to be a lightning most of the time (the hair color helps). Yona and Hak and the group thought he was actually a lightning until he bonded with Yona as her Mist guardian and uuuuh there is some baggage here (having another mist guardian so soon after Su-won's betrayal was... Maybe too soon). They work it out together (Jae-ha is actually relieved Yona is also having trouble with the bond. It feels like they're more equal that way).

Zeno is.... Actually a cloud hahaha. Also a rain and a lightning! He's got some flames attached to him that aren't actually his, too his Kaya was a sun-sky and his Abi was a cloud and his Shuten was a storm and his Guen was a lightning and his Hiryuu was their sky and he was their rain and they're all there with him but yeah it's pretty surprising that he's the cloud guardian but... It fits.

His incredible regeneration is partly because of his cloud flames : he's immortal because of the dragon's blood, not because of his cloud side but he heals much faster if he uses his flames. He can also activate his dragon abilities faster by propagating his injuries and making them worse so the scales can appear sooner (the happy hungry bunch doesn't likes to think about it, but Zeno has definitely used this ability for self-harm). Before, he was a rain first and then a cloud and then a lightning. Now he's a cloud and then a rain and then a lightning. Having to defend his his sky's whole territory all by himself for a while definitely brought out the cloud tendencies. Also. He's lived an overall pretty traumatic life, that can change people.

People often mistake Hak for Yona's cloud guardian but really who would think that this little ball of sunshine if the cloud in this harmony?

Snippets :

Yona doesn't have a lightning yet so Zeno and Jae-ha kind of fill in that role? Sorta. They feed their lightning flames into their harmony so it can be more stable.

Shin-ha is the rain in this harmony but Zeno was a rain in a much rowdier harmony before so he gives out advice about how to deal with the flame bond and how to use his flames sometimes (Shin-ha doesn't minds and often seeks out the advice. Zeno is, in fact, the first other rain he really talked to. And Shin-ha sort of.... Never really used his flames a lot. So he doesn't really knows what he's doing. But Zeno is probably the person who's been dealing with flames the longest. His advice is good)

(Shin-ha has never seen a broken element before. Zeno was a rain and now he's a cloud and he's a bit broken. He's sewed back together. But he will never be a rain again, not fully. Shin-ha thinks it's sad)

Zeno's rain flames are, despite everything, still pretty damn powerful. When he's with Shin-ha, they tend to kind of leak out and it's genuinely impossible to stay pissed off within a 50m perimeter of these two. They just fucking radiate contentment and quiet happiness. Many a conflict has been solved by having the upset person sit between Zeno and Shin-ha.

Hak, being also a cloud, or at least basically one, is pretty damn possessive (just like in canon honestly) so the fact that Yona had another storm like.... Right fucking after he lost his second sky and fellow element felt. Hmmm. Nope. There was a very real hostility towards Kija for a while, and then he realized that resentment was pointless and clearly teasing Kija was funnier than being pissed at him (this realization also maybe involved a long conversation with Yona).

Three clouds (or, well one cloud and two sorta-clouds) in one group sound like nightmare material but Zeno, Hak and Jae-ha make it work. Hak and Jae-ha are different kinds of clouds : Hak is the possessive kind while Jae-ha is the freedom-obsessed kind. Zeno's just weird. Despite having been a primary cloud for a while, he retains a lot of rain mannerisms and he's never been that agressive anyway. He actually ends up meditating arguments a lot. And anyway he just wants to protect his people.

Zeno has the finest of all controls. Both on his cloud temper and on his flames. He has had a lot of time to hone his fine motor skills. He's not that practiced at devastating attacks because with the amount of flames he has he would have wiped out part of the country if he tried to release all his flames at once. He's cautious okay! He does have cloud rages but those are usually turned inwards... Or at the environment. Tearing himself apart is not exactly pleasant but..... It's not like he'll die (oh sweetie no). Him being "chained" to earth, unable to follow his loved ones to heaven, is also part of what made him into a cloud ; his cloud flames rebelled so much against this perceived offense that they ended up outgrowing his rain flames.

Zeno is just really damn good at fine control and ends up teaching this kind of stuff to almost everyone in the group (Yun was already pretty good at that, you gotta be precise to heal!) because not gonna lie they were all pretty much kinda just shoving their flames at the enemies and yeah that works but come on be imaginative there are so many possibilities

Ironically, the one who gets the most out of these lessons is Jae-ha. It's ironic because Mist is pretty much the only element Zeno has never experimented firsthand or by proxy, but somehow he still gives excellent advice.

Zeno uses his flames to make pretty fireworks and it's a fucking revelation for everyone who thought flames were only for practical uses (Zeno's had a lot of time to think up ways to entertain himself).

Money's much less of an issue than in canon (not that I remember it being a big issue, but they can certainly buy what they need now) because they have three people with cloud flames in the group and they can just multiply their money. Same with their food, actually (once Zeno duplicated enough food to feed an entire village).

Shin-ha's better with his flames than he is with his dragon power. His flames are just so much less scary.... They slow up people..... Calm them.... It's nice..... (also his flames are significantly less haunted than his power).

Jae-ha is actually not that good at using his mist flames. He just never really practiced? But he's getting better.

Jae-ha's predecessor Garou was a broken cloud. Completely shattered. A lot of Ryokuryuus are clouds because of their desire for freedom, so being chained up is an actual nightmare. Jae-ha never really forgot the horror of being too broken to fight for his freedom, and he's really scared that Zeno, who already broke once, may break again and not recover this time. He's amazed Zeno managed to recover so well from breaking, but man he's actually scared shitless of Zeno breaking again when they're all dead and just having to live with this absolute suffering, unable to die. It quite literally keeps him up at night.

Zeno has already lost two skies (Hiryuu and Kaya) and one set of elements and he's really trying very fucking hard not to think about what losing all these new people will do to him.

Kaya was also a sun. This helped her live longer, and Zeno used his cloud flames to propagate her healing and his rain flames to calm her pain and his lightning flames to make her body sturdier and all in all, they had a few more decades together than they had in canon.

Please feel free to add!

[gugug4g4]

Indulge me, for Soo-Won can't let Lily go.

Kai Kingdom has retreated. The four dragons' sacrifice in the war led to Kouka's victory. With Princess Yona and the newly titled General Hak of Sky Tribe, out looking for the dragon heroes of Kouka; King Soo-Won is headed back to protect what is left of the heart of Kouka: the Hiryuu castle. The dragons' disappearance has mystifyingly coincided with the lifting of the crimson curse. The crimson disease that once wrapped around his majesty Soo Won like a shroud seemingly untightened its bounds. Letting him stand without every inch of his body fighting to fall beneath him. Who knows how long this peace shall last?

As the kefala of the king returned, they were greeted with the sight of the burnt castle. It lay bare with its bones howling in the wind surrounded by white disaster relief tents instead of the bustling tribe dwellings that stood in its place before the fire. Before the war. The smell of arson stretched out for miles in any direction as if the heartland itself was struck by the wrath of war. The only sense of relief came from the people hobbling across the white tents, providing heroic aid to all who needed it. As King Soo Won scanned the devastation, he noticed among them the midnight blue headed Lady Lilly, scurrying across his burnt home to distribute blankets to a fire-struck family. He had given her a fleeting thought when the news of the Hiryuu castle fire reached him at the battlefield. However, to him, his attachment to another had to be subsided to fulfill his duty as the king. The necessity to remain at the border of Kai and lead the whole of Kouka to victory outweighed his personal attachments. He had left his own bodyguard Hyu-Ri behind for a reason. Unadmittedly, her presence at the burning castle worried him so seeing her not only unharmed but leading relief efforts brought him a sense of solace he couldn't really explain. The ends of his lips curled into a slight smile as he watched her shout for her assistants to hurry along with the rest of the aid to the grief-stricken family. It is not unexpected, for the brash and naive lady Lilly to jump into any situation without a second thought if she believed she'd be helping another. Watching her scurry through the desolation, he couldn't help but acknowledge her kind of bravado as a useful tool to inspire hope among the people at home.

At the Sky tribe border, The few remaining guards announced his majesty's arrival. The ordinary people that gathered were all masked with darkened faces, looking up for any sense of hope from their king. Despite the sight, King Soo Won's face showed fortitude "My people, you are strong." he began. "For I return to you with the news, that we have won against the treacherous Kingdom of Kai. They have tried in the battlefield but the warriors of Kouka stuck down their attack! They then tried to furtively burn the heart of Kouka and yet again, our people stood their place and have driven them out." as he paused, hope began to rise in the people's hearts, their faces softening to murmur out cheers. " War though has a price and I have no doubt we lost a lot to it. Every man who died gave their life for a better Kouka. Every living being in front of me is a hero. Among you, the people who took it upon themselves to provide aid to one another are shining emblems of what it is to be the hero of Kouka. Every board, brick, and nail will be put back where it once stood and be commemorated with a ceremony. We will build Kouka back from the spoils of war!" His majesty ended. No sooner, the dispersed crowd broke out in cheers. His words were just the beginning, his majesty will indeed build back peace and security like a king should.

Upon his entrance into the remanent of the castle, Lily is the first to greet them running towards their fire-damaged living quarters. " Won you returned! You're alive!" She exclaimed. "Sorry... I mean Your Majesty" she stammered correcting herself. Soo-Won turns to face her, his mouth breaking out into a short laugh "I am sure some are glad to see you alive as well. I see the recovery efforts are ongoing". "yes ..., we have set up shelters for people affected by the fire. We have no time to waste, help is still going around ". His Majesty looks at Kye Sook and says "What are we waiting for, let us go see"

After touring the devastation with Lilly and helping the people" they come around to Ogis shop home "My king, devasted by the fire, There's no vacancy at inns" Lily torts, as they exhume exhaustion. lily suggests they can rest for the night.

As they rest for the night on the floor, letting the injured be on the bed. Jeda takes the first shift to guard. Soowon prepares to lay on the floor mat next to Kye Sook and catches in the corner of his eye as Lilly is slumped on one side overcome by exhaustion beside kye sook. Ignoring his tired body, he lays her on the floor mat. Looking for a while, he slowly shifts her to the side, making space and laying himself in between his advisor and herself. "she will be better protected this way" he thinks to himself. "The water tribe leader is coming out of war after fighting by his side, keeping his daughter safe would be important. "

As the morning sun crawls up the horizon Lily wakes up. She is greeted by Soowon "Lady Lily it's good to see you this morning" "Good morning Your Majesty." she grumbles. As Lily got ready for the day, she casually remarked "I'm glad to see you are well Won. Your skin has color now". He replies"I didn't know you took such particular interest in my health, much less my skin. But not to worry lady Lilly, there are always new things to take my color away." She snorts "You just won a war, what would possible drain your color any further?" Soowon turns to look at her "For one the will of the people has to be unified after the war and it would be in the benefit of the nation for the king to marry"

"oh a queen for you? who is on that sorry list?" lily jokes

After a moment's pause, Soo Won studies Lili's face and asks "Would you marry me and be the queen of Kouka?"

"huh? Me?!" lily answers, shocked to her core by that question coming out of his majesty's mouth

"Lady Lily i believe it is a good choice. you are strong-willed though brash. The castle will always know what your intentions are and you hold the capability to keep the heart of Kouka together. Though i fear for your impulsive behavior in the castle but that can be managed."

"Could you possibly make this proposal any more blunt and unromantic?" she wanted to ask but refrained. Instead, she answers "You are joking, right? I thought you never wanted to get married?"

"There was no benefit in marriage until now. It's simply what must be done for the good of our nation" Soowon Replies. It's not like him to lay out his intentions clear as day in any conversation. But with Lily, it is just so much easier to do so rather than face her barrage of questions until she is satisfied with answers. She is so headstrong it's quite... fascinating. As good as he is at remaining stoic, Lily has a way of surprising him.

He gets snapped back to reality as Lily bursts into laughter consequently slapping the table. She is so boisterous and loud as well. The people like her though. No, they love her. Something in him liked her bravado as well. He has not cared much about his own friendships for the betterment of the country. His dad wanted a king and the king could not care about his own interest. After all, Lily would be good for the kingdom of Kouka. She looked after the castle in his absence and the people took a liking to the lady. Right at the clasp of taking over another state, the people's home has to have a strong unison and marriage allows that. There are other candidates though. Maybe the princess of Xing Princess Kouka would allow the advantage of bringing the states together. Hak and Yona have solidified the wind tribe. The fire tribe women of age could be an adequate candidate. Earth tribe has yet to have noble women of age. Yet he wanted the unruly one causing a spectacle right before him. He shook away his desire asking himself "Why is it that my judgment is so clouded by her thought?! "Surely I will marry whoever carries the ideals most benefitting Kouka's Queen. It doesn't have to be Lady Lilly" He convinces himself.

"There are other candidates on the list so no need to worry if you rather not take on the role, Lady Lily" He torts finally

"That's a relief, did my dad put you up to this? Won you don't have to listen to him, and beside I would continue doing all sort of shenanigans to achieve goals I set my eyes on, be it to your liking or not. Wouldn't you rather have a queen who would abide by your customs?"

"The kingdom needs a queen that can be a symbol of strength, not a docile one. When your dad suggested you as queen, the other tribes generally thought of it as a good idea. As you mentioned there are risks involved with you a queen but it was discussed to have outweighed by the benefits"

"wow you are so romantic Soo-Won," Lily remarks sarcastically unable to hold herself back any longer.

"Think about it" is all he replies as he stands up to head out of the room.

lily had been friends with Soowon for a little while now. They have come to spend more time together as her dad suggested the Hiru castle books to be helpful for her volunteer work at the tribe's school center. King Soo-Won was kind to allow access to the library before it burned. However, He is still a peculiar man, often warm and often distant. A slave to his duties. There is this nagging thought of his selflessness. He has betrayed his own for the betterment of this country. She understood the complexity of his role. Not too kind-hearted either. Also, where is this man's beard? He's too young, she preferred a greater age difference. particularly men with stubble. like Gang Tae.. why must the good man be married? Wait a minute, Gung Tae being a general knows of this plan as well? How embarrassing. It doesn't matter though, as long as she gets to exercise her freedom and help her people along the way, she can take on whatever is thrown at her. She has come to like being in the political field and making a difference in the water tribes' areas. Lily never thought she would get married and be couped up in the castle.

"King Soo-Won, your majesty. I am honored but I cannot accept. Thank you for thinking about me "

Soo-Won smirked, politeness doesn't suit her he thought. "You're welcome. Please come to victory festivals in the coming week. The queen candidates will be there. Your presence would be appreciated just at least as a formality.

Days later, as he delved into his book of social development his thoughts ran. He had expected as much from Lily but it was worth asking. It wasn't like him to get stuck on a personal thought. He categorized his thoughts perfectly well into different boxes. He would have never thought of having a queen but a lot has changed recently. To move this country forward he needs a queen. He doesn't particularly want anybody else to be all up in his business. However, that young lady of the water tribe has been one of the few he does not mind sticking around. Born of a noble yet fiercely a force for the people. She does not care to curate her perception. Far Too blunt. That is precisely what caught his attention. He thought of her as naive but during his time away at war he has come to miss that brutally honest tongue of hers. Perhaps the agitating voice telling him that all boxes of thought can not be hyper-compartmentalized and stored away is not wrong. He has been proven wrong a few times lately. He didn't give much thought to Yona the night he killed King II. He wanted revenge for his father and Kouka had to be brought out of its misery. Separate matters he convinced himself. His father taught him to never believe in making mistakes but perhaps he should have. He has made a mistake with how he handled his friends that night and he has been atoning for it. He would not like to make a mistake with Lily. Perhaps she is better off without him by her side.

"It doesn't matter, he has other candidates, he was just going through the list." Soowon thought to himself. lily insisted in vain as Tetra and Ayura prepared Lily's appearance for the festival. As the evening roared with life with the fiery dances and chaos of the townspeople, the delegation began to arrive. Kye Sook presented each one and as he greeted each one, it came the water tribe's turn with lily. "She changed her hair ribbons to a one with spider lilly pattern, It sticks out," he thought to himself. Soo-won smiled as big as the sun, welcoming his allies and their potential ties. Chatters of joy at the victory and mention of the social programs to save the Sky tribe's city have made the people happy. They were eager for their King to choose their Queen.

As the ceremony started, there came a time when the king had to ask his candidate questions. He already knew everything there was to know about these candidates. Humoring the custom was the duty of the king thus he asks the first " Would you consider yourself awfully loud and need months before people take a liking to your personality? ". The question for the next ones went as follows " Do you put yourself at risk and refuse to listen when you have a goal in mind? Do you never take no for an answer? Have you ever sneaked out to catch criminals? Do you habitually ask your friend audacious questions without fear of its consequences? " The Candidates to say the least were unamused. Only one candidate would answer yes to all the questions as silly as they are. It dawns on him he was describing Lilly.

"Perhaps a quick threat to the water tribes about its loyalty to the throne would work to persuade Lady Lily's mind to take my hand." Soo Won calculates. Just as soon, as his other thought box breaks open to negate "She is quite sensitive, She would be hurt by my actions despite the bravado she puts on". How annoying it is to consider individual sentiments when making decisions for the kingdom. Soo-Won stares at her black hair wrapped in spider lily and quips out loud " Getting a queen and lily are separate matters". General Joo Dah nearby teases " Your majesty, is that so? Your stare says otherwise". King politely laughs with a blush spreading over his face.

" Has one of these beautiful ladies caught your fancy?" Kay Sook asked eager to join any conversation pertaining to the thone's lineage. Truth be told, Soo-Won didn't notice anybody else. He researched every candidate beforehand and they would all be suitable with different advantages. However, the one that keeps coming back to his mind is the curious ball of watery spirit decorated with spider lily tonight. Socially adept as he may be he couldn't grasp why Lady Lily stirred such curiosity within him. Why was he so enamored with the idea of Lady Lilly as his Queen? A part of himself, a part he did not wish to show, was scared he might have formed a weakness for the lady's convictions. She has slowly become his only friend ever since he took over the throne, confronting and accepting cold parts of himself even his own mother couldn't bear to speak about. With the debleating crimson disease, he wouldn't dream of entangling anyone in his life much less someone he wished to protect. Now, after the war, circumstances have changed. The time he thought was so limited, unfurled itself to reveal a possibility of a future. Impartial as he was, Soo Won was only human. "Indulge me, for I do not wish to let her go." Soo Won mutters.

" I did not take our king to be so passionate about a lady. Who are we speaking about ?" Kye Sook asks in astonishment. "Lady Lily. She would be best received by our people. That unity is needed to move forward after the war." Soo-Won confirms to Kay Suek.

"So as long as we have heirs," Kay Suek remarks unapologetically.

ORIGINAL WORK. DO NOT COPYRIGHT. Give proper credit to @gugug4g4

[realclever]

Akatsuki No Yona Manga Page Coloring Ch 260 part 2

****Spoilers****

Part 1