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kaen-ace-of-diamonds · 1 year

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The Emperor

Word Count: 1500+ (oneshot)

[AO3]

Genre: Family/Angst

Characters: Su-won, Yu-hon

Summary: Eventually, Su-won had had to accept that he was never going to be his father’s son.

Written for @akayonatarotzine

~0~

The first memory that Su-won can recall is being taught sternly not to introduce himself to people with a friendly, “Hello! My name is Su-won!”

Such an open and casual address was unbecoming for someone of his blood, he had been informed. The proper thing for him to say was, “I am Su-won, son of Prince Yu-hon.”

Not “Prince Su-won” either, mind. He was of the noblest blood in all Kouka, true, and would always be called by a title of honor and respect. But only a son of the king and a potential heir to the throne would be permitted to call himself a prince. For anyone else to do so would be as presumptuous and insulting as a commoner who brazenly crowned himself king.

“Never mind it, son,” his father would mutter. “How meaningful it is to be called Prince ebbs and flows like the ocean. I hold the title of General with far greater pride, for it is one I earned and kept for myself. What I gained from it came from my own blood, sweat, and strength, and not by anyone else’s favor.”

His father had delivered this speech many times before his death; to no one but his son would Yu-hon speak this much or this baldly. Su-won was four the first time he had been audience to it, sitting on the short stone wall of the royal training court as night darkened around them.

“So you don’t mind that Grandpa Ju-nam didn’t name you king?”

Yu-hon stopped in mid-swing of his sword, turning to look at his son with a spark of irritation in his eyes. “What? Who told you that?”

Su-won glanced to the side, idly kicking his small legs, precise voices and faces floating through his mind. “People. They spread rumors, when things don’t go the way they think they’re supposed to.”

After another moment of unimpressed glaring, Yu-hon returned to his drills. “People like that know nothing. Let their words roll off your back, son, they’re unworthy of your consideration. And Su-won?”

“Yes, Father?”

“To you, it’s His Majesty or King Ju-nam. Show respect. Now...pay attention.” Yu-hon paused. “I have come to terms with the fact that my only son and heir will never be king. But that does not mean you will be passed over, or forgotten. No country lives and dies by its king alone. You will become a warrior, and the pride of Kouka, just like your father before you.”

Yu-hon was not a particularly clever or thoughtful person. He was like a mountain turned into a man, stern and cold and unmoved. As far as his feelings went, Su-won was no different than the rest of Kouka: he admired Yu-hon to distraction, loved him with every inch of his heart, and wished to share in the blessing that the gods must certainly have given him, to become such a powerful hero.

However, Su-won had what nobody else would ever gain: Yu-hon’s blood, and his attention. Yong-hi had made clear that she wished to have no more children, very soon after Su-won’s birth; he had not learned this from either of his parents and he often wondered whether he had somehow been the cause. Yu-hon could never seem to deny his wife her wishes, and hadn’t said a word of his own thoughts on the matter of siring more sons. He made up for it by resting all of his hopes and dreams on Su-won’s shoulders, and Su-won was more than willing to accept the burden.

To that end, he was willing to follow his father anywhere, in anything. The first real sword he held had been Yu-hon’s, at his age, and he learned its art quickly. (It never quite felt as home in his hand as his father said it should, but he figured that that didn’t matter.) He was permitted to sit on the sidelines at some of the war meetings, provided he promised only to listen. He learned to ride at his side, on the colt of his prized war stallion, no less.

“Look well on our kingdom, Su-won,” Yu-hon said. The bluffs around Kuuto were his favorite place to take his son riding, for the views they could appreciate from their edges. “It will never be yours to rule over. But it will be yours to protect, with everything you have.”

Su-won nodded. His love for other people so easily blended together with love for his kingdom. “Yes, Father.”

“I understand you’ve already made some connections within Kuuto?” Yu-hon turned to his son with a smirk. “Ju-do told me about that little adventure you had in its underbelly, with Mun-deok’s boy and little Yona.”

Su-won giggled nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. “We didn’t mean for it to get out of hand. Yona had never seen the castle town before and — ”

“Yes, we must obey the will of our rulers,” Yu-hon cut him off, and Su-won did not pipe back up to correct him. “But I heard Mun-deok’s boy showed you up with his power. I won’t have that, Su-won. You must stand above all other men, in strength and stature. Understand?”

“Yes, Father.”

Su-won did not argue to defend the value of his own contribution; keeping that knowledge quietly to himself felt like enough. But at his age, he was still accepting his father’s word as law, and took it for granted that Yu-hon’s encapsulation of power was the superior one. The mountain was emotionless, and could not be dictated to. Nor could it be moved or defied, or pierced by a sword...

...Or so he had thought.

Until the day he died, Su-won was sure he’d never forget how it sounded when his father’s body was run through, all the breath leaving it in one awful gasp, and collapsed like a stringless puppet to the floor. He didn’t remember what King Il’s face had looked like: blank, like an executioner’s? Angry, like one provoked into abandoning his most closely held principles? Sorrowful, like...well, a man who’d just slaughtered his only brother like an animal? He didn’t know and he didn’t care.

Su-won had been sure he would be next. Not only had he been careless in running and hiding, too panicked to think clearly, but what would be the point of killing a prince and general and not getting rid of his heirs, too? It had been a week of holing up in their manor before he’d realized that the sword really wasn’t coming down on him, too.

Then once he’d got that through his head...what was he to do? The mountain had crumbled before him, everything that his father was destroyed by one quick movement of a blade. Su-won could barely comprehend it. The only thing he had known for sure was that he could not — could never — allow the same to happen to him.

And he knew now how to ensure that.

He was never going to be his father’s son, not in the way that the kingdom and Yu-hon himself had expected him to be. He could not be the mountain, for that was far more fallible than it looked even if it had suited him. He had instead dedicated his life to the opposite approach.

The first time he had seen his uncle Il after the murder, he had thrown on a bright smile and run to give him a hug. He doted on Yona, genuinely; once he killed her father, there was no guarantee she’d never find out about what he’d done, and he wished to enjoy what time with her he had left. With his father and teacher gone, he focused on gleaning as much as he could about strategy and combat from his friendships with Hak and Ju-do. And he flexed his fingers a little more every day on the unseen strings that set Kuuto in motion when he played at them.

Rather than the mountain, Su-won was the water that wore down the stone, the wind that cut through the skin and froze to the bone, the shadow that traveled everywhere so it could see and know all.

Grown now, after ten years of setting everything necessary for his coup in motion, Su-won considered that. He sat alone in his room as the night dragged on, unable to sleep, idly cradling a sword in his hands.

“Father,” he murmured so softly that he barely heard himself. “I’m sorry to tell you that you were wrong. I was never going to be like you. Had you lived...I fear I would have disappointed you with our differences. You truly did wish for the crown, and never got it. I still care nothing for it, for its own sake, and yet...”

In twenty-four hours, Il would be dead, and Su-won would be king. He would rule in his own way, not in any imitation of his father’s one brute-force approach. And he would use every breath of life he had left to forge Kouka into the greatest empire in the world.

#i haven't kept up with akayona since 192 and i don't feel like spoiling myself #so if this doesn't line up with canon don't tell me #akatsuki no yona #su won #yu hon #kaen's fics

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somegirlsnerdywords2 · 2 years

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Updated Manga: July 2022

Destruction Flag Otome: Ch. 49 added July 2nd

Boku no Hero Academia: Ch. 358, 359, 360 & 361 added since July 3rd

Tower of God: Season 3, Ep 126, 127, 128 & 129 added July 3rd

19 Days: Ch. 395, 396 & 397 added since July 4th

Sasaki to Miyano: Ch. 44, 45 & 46 added since July 5th

Owari no Seraph: Ch. 116 added July 5th

Noragami: Ch. 101 added July 5th

Akatsuki no Yona: Ch. 227 & 228 added since July 6th

Mahou Tsukai no Yome: Ch. 88 added July 7th

Jujutsu Kaisen: Ch. 190, 191 & 192 added since July 10th

Chihayafuru: Ch. 246 added July 14th

Jibaku Shounen Hanako-kun: Ch. 92 added July 14th

Accomplishments of the Duke’s Daughter: Ch. 62 added July 24th

Oresama Teacher: Ch. 161 & 162 added July 30th

#manhua #manhwa #manga #webtoons #updated manga #19 days #tower of god #boku no hero academia #Chihayafuru #owari no seraph #Oresama Teacher #akatsuki no yona #mahou tsukai no yome #destruction flag otome #accomplishments of the dukes daughter #noragami #jibaku shounen hanako kun #Jujutsu Kaisen #sasaki to miyano

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aylinnworld · 4 years

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2) but then Il probably thought he was superior when Yona was born I think Il had an inferiority complex made worse by his religious fanaticism I believe he didn't love Yona as his child but treated her as a reincarnation of a god and that's why he kept her hidden away from the world Perhaps, even Yuhon tried to hurt Yona for his family sake because of the crimson illness

I agree with it too. I had a feeling that Il, who was presented as someone with no achievements and someone who was looked down upon, might have drawn a sense of superiority from the fact that he is Hiryuu’s father. The fact that he told Su-won that he cannot become Hiryuu made me really think. It sounded so childish like ‘my little special snowflake is better than you.’ I also suspect that many things that he may have done to protect Yona that was the source of his feeling of superiority had justification in Yona being Hiryuu. Perhaps that is why he forbidden weapons? Not because he was such a great pacifist at heart, but because he wanted to make sure that no one hurts his little precious Hiryuu?

As for Yu-hon trying to hurt Yona or her family. I really don’t see why would he have done it? Hiryuu died once. Did it change anything for his descendants? Nope. From where would be coming his believe that killing Yona would give a different outcome? In his place I would rather wait for her to grow up to see if she would find the legendary four dragons, also for confirmation if she is really reincarnation and the priests and Il are not selling total bullshit, and maybe then something can be think of to stop the illness. As I said, dead Hiryuu made no difference whatsoever, but perhaps alive Hiryuu would?

#akatsuki no yona #yona 192 #Yu-hon

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rheakrisanta · 4 years

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Ch.192 High Priest=Gobi?!

This may just be another crack theory, but something about the high priest’s vibes and more particularly his eyes remind me so much of Gobi. Perhaps they’re related, or in the same guild, or mutually corrupted by power and maybe mentally unstable.

But the ages sort of line up, if you assume the High Priest is not much older than Yuhon and Il at this time, and the fact that Gobi when we met him in Xing looks like an old man.

Priests were also said to be banished by Yuhon after JuNam’s death or something too, right?! So it wouldn’t be so strange if High Priest (Gobi) and his followers fled to Xing, changed their names, and snuck into Xing society. Maybe he even had a hand in orchestrating the war against Kouka (out of revenge).

It could also explain why it is that this supposedly XING(-ian) priest is so well informed of the mythical 4 dragons of Kouka and their godly powers, given the poor relationship between the two countries.

Maybe their visual similarities are a stretch, but if we look at Yuhon’s own ageing (though the beard certainly changed his appearance significantly) it’s not too impossible.

#akatsuki no yona #yona of the dawn #Chapter 192 #any #yona #gobi #yuhon #high priest #crack theory #or maybe not #king il #yonhi #soowon #suwon #spoilers #the eyes man #idk anymore

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salamander-mp4 · 4 years

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Akatsuki no Yona Chapter 192 & 193 Thoughs

Hehh here I go again...

So I’ve been rereading the Yon-hi’s memoir chapters and find it laughable at the High Priests and ILL’s stupidity...

Like...

Yon-hi knew, before she met Yu-hon, that he was a frightening person...

And that was just from the rumors she heard...

So how come that the people who resided in the same castle as him didn’t think of that...

Since the very beginning (Chapter 12) we know that the priest were a thorn in Yu-hon’s side which he disliked and removed...

Because of a promise he made...

To keep his waifu safe.

After becoming king he wanted to restrict their authority... but not in the way he, cruelly, did...

But...

They found out the secret he didn’t want to be known...

And what I hate the most is how they kept pushing poor Yon-hi... who was told all her whole life to keep her blood a secret...

I know they were happy and excited but Goddamn you creeped me out!!

And then...

The last person they should have messed with came... but he would had let it slide if it weren’t for this chubby dumbass...

Yu-hon did tell IL to speak his mind...

But he really should have though of the place and time and moreover subject of the argument... like what the actual f*ck were you hoping to achieve with saying something like that...

He’s seriously been brainwashed and the only thing that’s going on in his mind is Crimson Dragon King this, Crimson Dragon King that... not even knowing what tragedy her blood caries...

He soo deserved this punch...

And then the Priest... oh... how his stupidity makes my head hurt...

He saw Yu-hon punching IL...

He was forbidden to investigate further in the subject of Yon-hi’s blood...

And yet he had the balls to break in her family’s grounds...

You had a chance... but no you just had to mess with the last person in the whole Kouka kingdom...

Don’t get me wrong, what Yu-hon did was terrible... and I’m not agreeing with his method... although it was the quickest and most efficient method... and he did kill two birds with one stone... but it was still to cruel...

But what I hate the most is how terrible Yon-hi’s family made her feel...

You kept your secret hidden for so long and then it’s all fine when an unknown priest came breaking in into your residence and speaking how sad he was for their short lives...

And just after one meeting with him... oh such a kind gentleman...

Then getting disappointed when the person who promised to protect them and their secret, ended up protecting them... even tho he used a cruel method to do it...

To sum it up, if it weren’t for IL’s stupid mouth and the Priest idiocy, Yu-hon wouldn’t had done what he did... and Yon-hi wouldn’t had hated her self the way she did...

But... oh well... it was all made for the story plott to reach the present situation and most likely for IL to have enough “reason” to kill Yu-hon...

#akatsuki no yona #akatsuki no yona chapter 192 #akatsuki no yona chapter 193 #yuhon #yonhi #il #akatsuki no yona spoilers

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primadonna161 · 4 years

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Akatsuki no Yona Chapter 192 Thoughts

A little heavy of a chapter here.

Basically, we are fast-forwarded to Lady Yon-hi marrying Yuhon and her life in the castle. Yuhon took the news regarding the Crimson Illness pretty well, considering that Lady Yon-Hi’s life might be very short. But I can understand his reasoning, he’s someone that probably wants to live life without no regrets, even he doesn’t know when he will die, whether it might be short like Lady Yon-Hi or long. Another reason why Yuhon could take the news of the Crimson Illness well was revealed later in this chapter, where it shows his strong hatred for the shrine and the divine powers.

Anyways, we also meet the young Ik-Soo (OMG I WAS FREAKING OUT AT HOW ADORABLE HE WAS) and another apprentice, Kashi, at the shrine, along with young King IL. I guess young Ik-Soo and Kashi are going to be key protectors in an upcoming fight, which is probably why they met Lady Yon-Hi. Opposite to his brother, young King IL believes very strong in the shrine and its divine powers, as long as in the power of the Crimson King and his four dragons. This makes much sense to how King IL always knew about Yona being the reincarnation, and protection of the shrine from outsiders.

Lady Yon-Hi visits the shrine with the young King IL, Ik-Soo and Kashi and immediately, from the look of the High Priest and how King IL bows down to him, I can already feel myself not liking the shrine and the High Priest. I can also probably understand why Yuhon hates the shrine and the High Priest so much. This is again reinforced in the confrontation that happened between the High Priest, King IL, Yuhon and Lady Yon-Hi. Basically, besides from Yuhon, now the High Priest, the people from the shrine and the young King IL knows that Lady Yon-Hi is a descendant of the Crimson King and is enamoured by that fact.

King IL’s reaction is completely not expected and this is probably the trigger of the fight between Yuhon and King IL. It’s probably because King IL, being the timid person he is since young, was often being teased and scolded especially by Yuhon for his belief in the shrine and the power of the Crimson King. He probably thought that Yuhon was betraying him by marrying a descendent of the Crimson King and keeping it a secret from him. This is also probably why Soo-Won hated King IL and killed him, it’s becoming more understandable now.

The last sentence in the chapter warns us of the start of incoming battle that we all knew was coming: the fight between Yuhon and King IL. It would probably explain why all the priests are chased from the castle, why Yuhon lost the title of Crown Prince and became known for his cruelty, why King IL hates violence, why Soo-Won hates King IL and the divine powers (plus the power of the dragons) and how Lady Yon-Hi is the trigger of this whole scene.

I wonder how Zeno fits into all of this. I remembered he said he was close to Lady Yon-Hi, so I wondered what kind of role he played in this battle. I also wonder what Yona would do with all this information once she is done with Lady Yon-Hi’s diary. I’m also starting to really understand Soo-Won and his deeper motives of killing King IL and taking over as King. I never hated him and I always knew that he had even deeper motives, but I never expected his turn of events tbh. I also am starting to feel sorry for Yuhon, who most probably got so misunderstood, and why Yona’s sentence to Soo-Won last time about why Yuhon couldn’t be king affected Soo-Won so much.

(And again, I am reminded of Hak when I look at Yuhon, and especially the way he treats Lady Yon-Hi and his beliefs and the way he does things)

Anways, here’s to the next chapter! Byeeee

#akatsuki no yona #chapter 192 #thoughts #spoilers #yuhon #lady yon-hi #yon-hi #zeno #king il #crimson king #dragons #crimson illness #ik-soo #kashi #yona #soo-won

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yona-chan · 4 years

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Seconded anon! I feel pretty bad (so far at least - things could definitely change) for everyone involved. I’m enjoying, for lack of a better word, that I can see the issue from every person’s point of view so far and understand why they are acting/feeling as they are. I feel bad that Yong-Hi is the cause of the issues occurring when she obviously doesn’t want to be, but understand that she has every right to try and protect her clan given their history and how she left. I feel bad that Yu-Hon can’t just be with the woman he loves without people (read, the priests) he obviously doesn’t like/trust (and whom he already seemingly thinks are preying on his family) butting in and potentially causing the very issues he swore he would protect his fiancee and her family from, but that his attitude and way of handling issues is not the best and likely only fuelling the fire. And I feel bad that Il, who is looked down on by others, but who seems to be genuinely happy with his faith and the place he’s found within it, thinks that his own brother has also turned his back on him and is potentially making a mockery of something he holds in high regard. It’s a sticky situation that would require a lot of discussion (and I doubt even with discussion that an outcome that everyone is happy with could be reached) but I get 100% why all of the characters have been avoiding it and why the story reached the point it did.

Obviously stuff is going to continue to happen and likely go downhill, and though I’m sure it won’t be happy, I’m keen to see where it all goes. I doubt the story will reach Kashi’s death, Yu-Hon’s exiling of the priests and his death, and Il apparently murdering his brother just from what happened in this chapter alone, but it’s definitely building the foundation of conflict, grudges and feelings of ill-will, which I’m pretty certain are all going to come flying back into the picture when Yona is born.

#hi anon I received these two asks at the same time so I'm assuming they're both yours #so I stitched them together #I would go into more detail but I've got a section in the rant I'm working on that focuses on the current flashbacks #and their importance to the story and the characters' current actions #so hopefully this is okay #I'm really enjoying all of these flashbacks #I might be in the smaller camp that wants them to keep going and doesn't think it's been going on for too long at all #I'm very happy not to return to yona and co for a bit if it means continuing to get great backstory and context like this #might just be me though haha #also yay I got something right I had a hunch kashi could hear the voice of god #also what if il marries her to stop her from being exiled with everyone else hmmm #yona chan answers #anime spoilers #manga spoilers #raw manga spoilers #AnY spoils #akayona 192 spoilers

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freewilllife · 4 years

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Maybe this is the reason for King Il, Hiryuu and Soo Won?

Maybe King Il had this in mind and actually feared it...How history repeats...Wow!

That is first the reason why the HIryuu descendants hide and second...A descendant of Hiryuu turned really against the Sky Tribe Royal family ( and was basically a part of them...but not just because he was the descendant...or more Soo Won wished to prove something in contrast to his ancestors? and King Hiryuu?)

So maybe Il feared an insurrection of Soo Won not only because he killed Yu hon, but also he feared that history would repeat itself? Well...maybe he doesn´t know and still it is ironic.

#akatsuki no yona #soo won #kingil #chapter 192

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oeild · 4 years

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20th May is finally here ! I can’t wait, I’m so excited !!

I hope flashbacks will continue, because I’m in love with Yonhi and want to know more about Yuhon, too.

And maybe that could enlighten us on Soo-Won’s intentions. Maybe. (Let me dream)

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dear-kumari · 3 years

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What's your opinion about the recent chapter of akayona?

So, for context, I got this anon after ch. 197, the last chapter of the Yonhi flashback, was released. For various irl reasons, I haven’t gotten around to answering it until now. Which is fine, I guess, because my feelings on the chapter are a little more nuanced now than they would’ve been before. But I’m still not thrilled about the chapter, and I think it’s fair to say that its content might bode ill for the rest of the series. Let’s get into this.

When it comes to AkaYona, I sometimes have trouble separating how I feel about fan reactions from how I feel about the actual content of the series. The early fan reactions to ch. 197 — including from some infamously opinionated scanlators — lacked a lot of perspective, imo. A lot of people were crowing over Il being revealed as … well, “better than Yuhon” was the label, but really it was just that he had more self-awareness than we’d previously thought. Fans were also taking Yonhi’s understandable but obviously unfair attitude towards her own child from the previous chapter, seeing how 197 took her attitude to the next level, and using it as fuel for the “Suwon is a monstrous little sociopath” fire that’s been building all along in fandom. Pro-Suwons obviously took offense to the viewpoints this chapter seemed to be promoting and the disk horse broke out in full force in certain corners of the interwebs. It wasn’t great.

Now, looking back on the chapter with fresh eyes and a newer, more reliable translation to refer to, I can say that some of the fan reactions were a little bit overblown. This is not The Worst Chapter of Anything Ever, nor is it the worst chapter of AkaYona — heck, it’s not even the worst chapter of this flashback! :D It is, however, rightly criticized for being a flimsy conclusion to an already poorly-constructed arc that had no business being as weak as it was.

[Warning: long post]

There are three major things that I take issue with in ch. 197 that are symptomatic of larger problems within the series: first, the soft retconning of characterization in place of ““nuance,”” second, the biased framing that seems to lack any and all self-awareness, and third, the tangled issue of ��betrayal” and loyalty re: Yona and Hiryuu. (I have some problems with the visual and narrative flow of this chapter as well, but those are secondary, granular issues and I don’t want to bore y’all more than usual.)

To start, the inconsistent characterization is really something throughout this flashback, but this chapter really took the cake in that regard. The retcon of Il’s character is one of the lamest things I’ve had to witness in a while, and it honestly kinda reads like canon-compliant fix-it fanfic. Like, no, you guys, Il wasn’t a pathetic backstabbing cultist with an inferiority complex! He was actually, uh … *checks notes* a pathetic backstabbing cultist with an inferiority complex … who really loved his wife and daughter! And, um, he accepted that Suwon would kill him some day and didn’t do anything to prevent it because trauma or something.

The bookmark note, which presents a sudden well of self-awareness and understanding from everyone’s favorite cowardly king, feels like an attempted Author’s Saving Throw that is “saving” an element no one was particularly upset about to begin with. I call it a soft retcon because, while a character can contradict his own words without it being an actual retcon, the framing and specificity of his outbursts in 192 and 196 does nothing to suggest that these are anything but his true feelings. Kusanagi just takes our most reliable, concrete references for Il’s toxic traits and goes “sike! Here’s half a chapter of him rationalizing why he made those extremely specific statements full of envy and fanatic obsession that he totally didn’t mean. One more time, for the people in the back: He totally didn’t mean them.” I can believe that real people can say messed up things they don’t mean in the heat of the moment, but come on. This is a story. Kusanagi didn’t have to jerk the audience around like this, not with Il’s character and not with the flashback in general. It’s inconsistent and cheap.

Of course, as I’ve made clear before, this soft retconning didn’t actually do Il any favors in my eyes. If anything, I dislike him even more now; he canonically knew Suwon would kill him if he didn’t straighten up and proceeded to do jack shit for ten years, thereby playing a key role in Hak and Yona’s current trauma. That’s so much worse than what I’d previously thought, which was that he was something of a Hiryuu cultist and grossly incompetent, but not actively, knowingly awful. But that brings us to my other hangup with this flashback: the biased framing.

Let me turn this around for a moment to say that, on principle, I don’t necessarily mind Il being self-aware and even sympathetic. In fact, I think that a character like Il could be really compelling if executed properly. Going even further than that, I don’t mind that Yonhi thinks her own son is immoral and dispassionate, even evil, or that she spent her last days extending a hand of friendship to his father’s killer rather than asserting herself as his mother. I don’t necessarily mind that she says she loves Suwon and does absolutely nothing to show it. And I don’t even mind that Yona takes everything she reads here at face value, including the assumption that Yuhon killed her mother. None of these things are necessarily bad narrative choices in and of themselves.

What bothers me is how these things are framed. Ch. 197 is framed as a tragic sendoff to two well-meaning, sympathetic characters who made peace with their own flaws and placed themselves on the right side of history with their words, when that is obviously not the case. Yonhi dies without ever recognizing her true flaws as a mother, as her final act is clearly indicative of those flaws. Il here sounds like the gentlest of souls, but we know he died conveying his utmost contempt for Suwon after Yonhi begged him to make peace with her son. Neither of them helped their children in any way that mattered, and this obvious truth is just … not addressed. Nothing about the visuals, the framing, or Yona’s reaction speak to the hypocrisy and muddied morality of these two characters.

Furthermore, the way bitty Suwon is framed in this chapter is pretty damning, to the point that it’s unintentionally quite funny. The cold, calculating, Evul look on his little baby face next to Il’s narration about how he’ll kill him some day is literally so — like, I can’t. He’s a baby, Il. You were too much of a little bitch to face a nine-year-old? Even Yonhi’s portion gives him the sinister side-eye and the “two-faced” treatment. This is a child we’re talking about here. The fact that a precocious child is capable of contemplating murder should shock no one, but everyone acts like it’s indicative of some deeper darkness within him. It’s weird, and it makes me wonder whether Kusanagi legitimately thinks that the “psycho child” schtick is genuinely scary or if she’s just laying it on thick here to subvert it in a big way later. I sincerely hope it’s the latter, as much as her flip-flopping is starting to annoy me, because the former is just too ridiculous.

And if this still needs to be said, no, Suwon isn’t evil just because he won’t “put Yona first.” Which leads me to the third and final sticking point — that being, hey, are we ever gonna address the whole “betrayal” thing and how it’s holding this story back thematically? And I’m not just talking about how Suwon’s betrayal was actually totally avoidable because Il had all of the information he needed in order to prevent it; no, I’m actually more concerned about the continued emphasis on surrounding Yona/Hiryuu with people who will “never betray” them.

Il’s final wish for Yona is that, rather than attach herself to a boy who won’t necessarily put her above the kingdom, she will somehow end up with someone who will protect her at all costs. Which, ya know, fine. He did a terrible job of trying to make that wish come true, and it’s pretty messed up that he puts that condition above whether she even likes the guy and what ethical lines the guy might cross to protect her (which you think he’d care about more given, ya know, Yuhon), but it’s whatever. I understand why he’d prioritize that given his trauma over losing Kashi.

Buuuut. But. The thing that’s bothering me is that this is yet another echo of the “protect and never betray him” blood pact of the dragons. This keeps coming up and is never once examined critically, and it’s starting to feel weird. The “never betray” stipulation on Yona’s personal relationships is so obviously, terribly wrongheaded considering Hiryuu’s values and beliefs that I can’t believe no one ever talks about it. Because this has been bothering me from the beginning, or at least from the moment we learned about Hiryuu and his motivations. And depending on how Kusanagi handles it, it could be a “problem” as in “something the story is building up to address in a meaningful way” or a “problem” as in “a final nail in the coffin of this story’s self-awareness and potential,” which is what I’m afraid of.

Let’s talk about Hiryuu, then. Hiryuu’s defining trait, the thing that made him “Hiryuu,” wasn’t that he was a god among men, or that he was a warrior king, or that he used badass glares or magic dragon servants to get what he wanted. He was defined by his love for humans — specifically, that he loved humans even though they despised and betrayed him. This, to me, is Hiryuu’s redeeming quality. Considering the fact that the gods in this universe aren’t inherently morally superior to the humans, I think Hiryuu understood that he wasn’t necessarily justified in smiting those who stood against him. He knew that the people would naturally come into conflict with him and with each other, and that that’s okay. And I really think the thing that depressed him was that the other gods didn’t get that and threw him a super special task force that was totally devoted to him instead.

So, if Yona is Hiryuu in the sense of having his soul, his Hiryuu Essence™, then shouldn’t she also share Hiryuu’s greatest quality? If she really is Hiryuu, she must love humans, and love them even though they hate and/or betray her. And who is the most “human” character of the whole series, the one who despises the gods and betrayed Yona? Yuppp … that’s Suwon …

(To be clear, I don’t mean this in an endgame SuYona way, though I’m sure it would’ve made sense at some point before the HakYona took hold. We’re just talking familial love and agape here, maybe even friendship.) To bring this narrative full-circle, Yona must be “Hiryuu” and Suwon must be a stand-in for “humans”; so, she’ll love him despite what he did to her because love is more than an unconditional transaction of loyalty and mutual protection. Seems simple enough, right?

The problem is that this narrative of love in spite of betrayal is at cross-purposes with the Strong Independent Kween narrative and the Found Family narrative we’ve been building for a while, arguably since the very first arc. Because … well, Yona let go of the hairpin. She let go of Suwon, and this letting go was framed as the hard-earned culmination of her character growth. She’ll help him out when he’s sick, sure — as ch. 199 proves, she’ll help out anyone who’s sick because that’s just how she is. But it’s pretty clear, at least in my eyes, that she doesn’t love Suwon anymore. And if anything, this flashback reinforced all the reasons that she shouldn’t love him, from leveling Yuhon’s War Crimes™ up from exile to genocide, making Suwon aware that Yuhon might have killed Kashi, coating Suwon with the Creepy Child brush, and peppering in the HakYona teases apropos of nothing.

Like … I’m sorry, but what is the point of that? What is the point of this narrative? Yona didn’t need a memoir to fall into her hands to tell her that the HHB, the family she chose, was better for her than the family she was born into. Nobody needed to tell her that Yuhon sucked, since she’d well enough made up her mind about that. Nobody needed to tell her that Suwon wasn’t the guy for her because he wasn’t going to put her first — that was pretty fucken obvious from chapter one, yes?

When the sendoff chapter of a vital flashback arc doesn’t clarify what we’re supposed to take away from it and mostly reinforces things we already knew, that doesn’t bode well for the rest of the story. If the purpose of this flashback was to give Yona the information she needed to choose what to do, then what does she even want to do? We’re no clearer on that now than we were several chapters ago, though there is a vague sense that she is taking responsibility for the power she’s been given (good!) and possibly asserting her righteousness and divine position above Suwon as Hiryuu like her father intended (bad!). We still haven’t seen her talk to Suwon about the memoir, so I guess I can hold off some of my judgment until then. Her interactions with him thus far don’t give me much hope, though.

The sticking point for me is this: We already know that Yona is and was loved. We know that her found family would lay down their lives for her and that she would do the same for them. This “protect and never betray” stipulation on all her relationships just … doesn’t build to anything. There’s no change, no catharsis, no drama. I know people will whine about how Yona doesn’t owe Suwon anything, let alone forgiveness, and … yeah, you think? Forgiveness and love are powerful because they are given and given unconditionally. (Also, considering the only status quo shift this flashback established is that she might actually owe him something as Hiryuu’s reincarnation, idk where “she doesn’t owe him shit!!1!” even fits in anymore.)

I’m gonna be bold and go so far as to say that there’s no point to the story, period, if Yona doesn’t love and make up with Suwon in the end. Taking her previous incarnation’s greatest virtue and treating it like a weakness to overcome would be nothing more than a slap in the face, and at this point I feel like I’m standing transfixed as the Backhand of God approaches me at 270000fps. It’s not a great feeling.

So … yeah. I’ll be fair to Kusanagi for a sec and say that maybe, just maybe, she’s laying into Suwon’s character like this to make the reversal more dramatic later on. But idk, the Yas Queen buildup? The biased framing? The fanservice? The tepid last-ditch attempts to make Il likable, to justify Yonhi’s unkindness towards her own son? Forgive me if I don’t have much faith in the mangaka’s abilities at this point. Idk what her endgoal is for this story or whether it’s changed with the manga’s explosion in popularity. I just know that I’m still invested, for some reason, and that this chapter somehow didn’t change that.

And that’s all for my ch. 197 thoughts, anon! As far as where the story is going now with the Kai conflict, I’ll just say that it’s fine. I’m annoyed by this pattern of introducing something sus about Hiryuu/Il/the gods and then immediately getting distracted by a big existential threat, but it’s fine. At least South Kai is an interesting threat. For now, I’m just gonna continue to cross my fingers for some Snapped Suwon content, get disappointed when there isn’t any, and continue to bitch about this series until it’s over. Stay tuned! :D

#Kumari comments #Akatsuki no Yona #Yona of the Dawn #Anonymous #Suwon #Yonhi #Yona #Yuhon #I should make a tag for answering asks #maybe #Kumari answers #?#Anyway thanks for the question!#This is one of two anons I've left hanging for a while #I had Many Thoughts so I hope it's not a slog to read.

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yonae · 4 years

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Kashi from Akatsuki no Yona chapter 192

#akatsuki no yona #yona of the dawn #akayona #shoujoedit #akayona spoilers #any edits

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iluvluvnutella · 4 years

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Yona Chapter 192 SPOILERS

Pls take these with a grain of salt! 😅 There might be some mistakes. With (?) Means I'm unsure.

Kashi(unsure), Iksu, Previous Priest and Hyuri's appearance!

Yonhi let Yuhon meet her mother. Her mom confessed bout their lineage and the disease. Yuhon convince them that they will keep and protect their secrets. So the engagement will be prepared and they were escorted by Hyuri to the castle? One day while Yonhi is alone in the hall, she saw Iksu an apprentice priest in a hurry to meet Kashi? an apprentice shrine maiden? Ceremony will be perform at the temple, Il come over bcoz he sense some crisis? The Priest recognized Yonghi's identity and welcomed the descendants of King Hiryuu. Big fuss! Yuhon suddenly appeared and Il or Priest? asked why he's there, Yuhon said blame it to Il. Il respond that his older brother trying to monopolize King Hiryuu (blood of King Hiryuu from Yonhi).

#akatsuki no yona #akatsuki no yona spoilers #akayona spoilers

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somegirlsnerdywords2 · 4 years

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Updated Manga: May 2020

Owari no Seraph: Ch. 90 added May 1st

Akatsuki no Yona: Ch. 191.5 and 192 added since May 1st

Noragami: Ch. 88 added May 1st

Chihayafuru: Ch. 225 added May 3rd

Tower of God: Season 3, Ep. 60, 61, 62 and 63 added since May 3rd

D.I.C.E: Ch. 329, 330, 331 & 332 added since May 4th

Otome Youkai Zakuro: Ch. 72 & 73 added May 5th

Horimiya: Ch. 114 added May 9th

Haikyuu!!: Ch. 392, 393, 394 & 393 added since May 10th

The Promised Neverland: Ch. 176, 177, 178 & 179 added since May 10th

Boku no Hero Academia: Ch. 270, 271, 272 & 273 added since May 10th

Meiji Hiiro Kitan: Ch. 23 added May 16th

Jibaku Shounen hanako-kun: Ch. 66 added May 18th

Tanaka-kun wa Itsumo Kedaruge: Ch. 119 added May 23rd

Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun: Ch. 114 added May 26th

Oresama Teacher: Ch. 136 added May 30th

Completed this Month!

Kimetsu no Yaiba: Completed with a total of 205 chapters.

#tower of god #updated manga #D.I.C.E #manhwa #webtoons #boku no hero academia #haikyuu!!#chihayafuru #gekkan shoujo nozaki kun #the promised neverland #tanaka-kun wa itsumo kedaruge #owari no seraph #oresama teacher #akatsuki no yona #horimiya #noragami #meiji hiiro kitan #otome youkai zakuro #jibaku shounen hanako-kun

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luchihaprincess · 4 years

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Yona and Kashi

Akatsuki no Yona (110, 192) Colored by me

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broken-endings · 3 years

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Akatsuki no Yona chp 181-192

found this commentary i never formally saved

Wow, so much new information in just 12 chapters.

I hadn't continued reading since chapter 180

But man, the things at play here. Soo-won's illness makes so much sense why he's taking such drastic measures and moving quickly. He doesn't have the luxury of time. He has no idea how much longer he will last. Or maybe he does have an idea and it's not much.

I hate that Hak and Yona haven't gotten to have a real conversation about themselves since Yona said she was jealous of the wind tribe girl. I hate the whole "circumstances forcing them to remain apart" but not hating it like it's bad writing or anything. It's excellent writing and storytelling I just can't effing stand it. I need them to talk again. The whole Soo-won thing will make Yona choose to avoid Hak. But I'm glad that Zeno already knew about the illness, so the pressure isn't entirely on Yona (she just doesn't know that. I hope she gets to learn it)

Getting to see how Soo-won's parents met, I feel like we're getting close. One day we'll see the flashback of how Soo-won's father really died, if he was indeed killed by Il. Based on Soo-won's dream I think it might be true since Il spoke the words "so you've come" as if he was always expecting Soo-won to kill him one day. But even if it's true we need to know why, especially since he was so anti-weapon.

And man, something about Soo-won's reaction to Hak's choices reads almost like longing. Not that I think this is what's going on or anything, but it struck me that it would be really interesting if our main three characters were at one point a true love triangle. Yona loved Soo-won who loved Hak who loved Yona. I distinctly remember a flashback scene between Hak and Soo-won where Soo-won basically said he wanted Hak, and Hak told him to become king by marrying Yona and he'd have him. I know it was in relation to as working, serving, fighting, but from Soo-won's reactions of seeing Hak in the castle, my mind went a different way. Maybe my assumptions are faulty from reading waaaay too much yaoi and BL but from a storytelling perspective it felt like Soo-won was longing for Hak but holding himself back. Like "what are you doing, you're not supposed to be here while I'm doing important things." as if there's a certain facade he must maintain as king that he knows will drop when he's around Hak.

And Soo-won babbling in a sick haze to Yona about Hak just reinforces it that he's talking about him fondly as if none of the events of the manga have occurred.

Also, the conversation where Soo-won says that he doesn't need an heir and the next king doesn't need to be related to him and could be of any status. His men then ask him if he has someone specific in mind, and Soo-won looks thoughtful. the NEXT PAGE cuts to Hak and what he's doing. If this was a movie that exact moment would be foreshadowing of Soo-won intending to give the throne to Hak. A man not related to him and of lower status because neither matters in his mind. And that brings all kinds of nostalgia to me if that was intentional. I hope it was intentional. This mangaka, she plants many seeds early on and then develops them. I mean, Soo-won has said things about not having enough time or "there's something important I must do" since he first encountered Yona in Awa and she tried to take his sword. 100+ chapters later we find out he has a fatal disease.

I think the illness is what makes Soo-won so unpredictable to his enemies. They don't expect swift retaliation. They expect him to be like most other people and take lots of time and planning, not make instant decisions in the blink of an eye and react with the tenacity to outmaneuver them despite the extensive planning they did to try to beat him or surprise him.

Also, for the first time it feels like this story's "final boss" won't necessarily be Soo-won. For some reason it feels like Soo-won will become a piece that Yona can use to some ultimate goal. I don't know what that goal might be or how they'd come to those circumstances but that feels like a distinct possibility as we get more glimpses of Soo-won with Hak or Yona around.

There's also such a potential for parallel here. That because of Soo-won's assassination, Yona will know how Soo-won felt when his dad was killed.

I'm also not forgetting that Yona's now doubting the circumstances under which her mother was killed. She's becoming more and more aware of the political climate of manipulating information and controlling appearances to imply things without stating them outright.

two things from ik-soo's foretelling are still unclear. The sword and the shield for Yona. Like of course it's assumed Hak is one of them, but the way I remember it being described is that they would appear. Unless I'm remembering wrong and it was "make themselves known"

#akatsuki no yona #soo-won #princess yona #my commentary

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