“You are asking me to sign this proposal as an official endorser, to be presented in the next court session?” Crown Prince Yi-Joon questioned, his eyes scanning the dense columns of ink on the scrolls prepared by the twins. They were sequestered in a quiet, sun-drenched gathering wing of the palace, where the twins sat with eyes sparkling in desperate anticipation.

  Prince Yi-Joon’s brow furrowed as he looked up from the parchment. “The Inspector General and the Ministers will oppose this vehemently. Honestly, allowing you to manage your own personal budgets was already considered a massive, borderline scandalous compromise for them. They will never agree to let children manage a formal office.”

  “But we will be the ones funding every yang of it from our own private budget!” Gi-Reu argued, his lower lip jutting out in a characteristic pout. “We aren't even asking the Royal Treasury for a single coin of yang in support!”

  Mi-Reu leaned forward, adding her voice to the plea. “Exactly. Our only intention is to create a channel to help the people directly with practical solutions!”

  “Regardless of your intentions, I simply cannot endorse this,” Prince Yi-Joon stated, standing up and smoothing the silk of his robes. “I cannot afford to ignite a fresh conflict with the ministers right now, especially over a project that looks, to them, like a royal playhouse.”

  He began to turn away, but Mi-Reu was faster. She reached out, her small hand catching his sleeve to stop him in his tracks.

  “Lady Shin Soo-In will be visiting the capital soon for the memorial rites of the ancestors,” she said, her voice dropping into a conspiratorial tone as a knowing smirk played on her lips. “If you refuse us, Gi-Reu and I will absolutely refuse to act as your mediators.”

  Crown Prince Yi-Joon froze. He looked back at his younger sister with an expression of profound annoyance. Lady Shin Soo-In, of the prestigious Shin Clan of the Joseon Dynasty, was his fiancée. For the past few years, whenever she visited for official court occasions, the twins had served as his indispensable secret bridge. According to strict royal customs, it was considered highly improper for the Crown Prince and his future bride to engage in private conversation hence the twins provided the only social "buffer" that allowed them any semblance of a real relationship.

  “That’s right,” Gi-Reu added, matching Mi-Reu’s smirk with one of his own. “We will not deliver a single one of your love letters, nor will we help you arrange any 'accidental' meetings in the palace gardens!”

  Prince Yi-Joon let out a long, weary sigh, his shoulders slumping. “You two are truly resorting to blackmailing your own brother now? How terrifying.” He looked at them with defeated eyes before relenting. “Fine. I will provide my signature as an endorsement to give the proposal weight, but I will not be the one to present it to the Royal Court, nor will I debate the ministers on your behalf. You must stand on your own.”

  “Yay!” The twins celebrated in unison, their plan moving one step closer to reality.

  “However,” Prince Yi-Joon interjected, his voice firm as he added his own condition, “you two must invite her to observe your horseback riding outside the palace walls. I want the opportunity to travel around the city outskirts with her for a full day, away from the prying eyes of the court ladies and eunuchs.”

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  Gi-Reu paused, considering the risk of such a bold outing. Mi-Reu, however, didn't hesitate. “If you get caught, that’s your problem, not ours.”

  Prince Yi-Joon gave a sharp, decisive nod. “Deal.”

  “Deal!” the twins replied, their faces beaming with the thrill of a successful negotiation.

  King Jin-Ho and Queen Myeong-Hwa sat upon their thrones, their postures betraying a deep, bone-weary exhaustion as the court session stretched far longer than usual. The air in the Great Hall was thick with the heat of a hundred bodies and the sharper sting of unresolved conflict. Even the guards stationed beyond the heavy doors could hear the chaotic noise of the ministers’ bickering, which had reached a fever pitch.

  “Even with the grain relief, it is becoming impossible to manage the mountain lords, Your Majesty! They grow bolder by the day!” the Minister of War shouted, his face flushed with heated frustration. “We must launch a raid against their strongholds immediately, a decisive show of power to remind them of their place!”

  “And risk igniting a full-scale civil war?!” a senior scholar retorted, stepping forward with a trembling finger pointed toward the rafters. “Your Majesty, with the famine barely stabilized and the plague still in full swing, such aggression will be the death of our kingdom! Please, heed our words and choose the path of peace!”

  Tap!

  King Jin-Ho tapped his armrest: a single, sharp sound that reverberated through the hall like a thunderclap. Silence fell instantly. The ministers, caught mid-shout, bowed their heads in a flurry of silk and official caps.

  “Must we argue like a pack of starving animals?” King Jin-Ho asked, his voice low and dangerous. “Aren’t you the same men who preach daily about the dignity and decorum of the Royal Court?” He turned his gaze toward the Minister of War. “A show of force during these troubled times will only sow further pain in the hearts of our people. I suggest the ministers discuss this properly and come up with a diplomatic solution by the next session. Do not bring me steel when I ask for wisdom.”

  “We heed His Majesty’s words,” the officials replied in a somber, practiced unison.

  “Eunuch, what is the final subject on today’s agenda? Present it forth,” Queen Myeong-Hwa said, her voice a calm balm intended to soothe the room’s frayed nerves. She offered a small, weary smile to the assembly.

  The Royal Eunuch approached the center of the floor, holding a scroll with the Crown Prince's seal. He hesitated, his eyes darting across the text as he remained silent for several agonizing seconds. King Jin-Ho let out a heavy sigh. “What is it now? A new trouble? Have the pirates launched another attack on the coast?”

  “No, Your Majesty,” the Eunuch replied, bowing with an intensely apologetic expression.

  “Then why do you hesitate? Speak,” King Jin-Ho commanded, his curiosity finally piqued through his frustration.

  “It is... it is a petition proposal, Your Majesty,” the Eunuch stammered, his voice strained.

  “A petition? Who has the audacity to submit a proposal at such an hour? Why are you so troubled by a simple document?” King Jin-Ho’s patience was visibly thinning.

  “It is... a proposal for the establishment of a new formal office,” the Eunuch finally declared, his voice ringing out for everyone to hear. “To be called the ‘Advisory Office for Practical Affairs.’ It was submitted by the Royal Twins... and it bears the official endorsement of the Crown Prince!”

  The room, which had just been hushed by the King's authority, erupted into a new kind of silence, one of absolute, gobsmacked disbelief.