The concepts of good and evil are blurry. If a man does one good deed, will he be considered a good man? If another does evil, will he be an evil man? What should the ratio between good vs. evil be before you are considered one or the other? And how much does the reasons and intentions matter in the grand scheme of things?
In the year of 953, during the great Goryeo Dynasty, the Im family was in close relation with the royal linage. The lord of the house was in excess of wealth and power, living as if royalty himself while serving the emperor as one of his ministers. He was granted a palace and wives, and in turn, sons to continue his bloodline.
Im Jun was born as the 4th son to the minister, and was raised to become a leading man in military politics. As soon as he began speaking, he was put in separate classes from his peers, just like his older brothers, and started his training. Although he grew up in luxury; as a child, his curiosity of the other children playing in the palace courtyard was always greater than his desire for material things, and often resulted in trouble when he'd try to sneaking away to join them. His caretakers thought it to be cute, but his mother, who wanted him to exceed to abilities of other wives' sons, would not take it lightly.
The other boys in question did not make matters better, targeting the smaller and weaker Jun to prove some kind of point. Everyone wanted the favours of the father, and anyone who could not stand up for themselves would be cast aside. So each time he came home with another bruise, his mother would give him two more for embarrassing her.
Despite all this, Jun managed to make a friend - the son of a military general that lived on palace grounds - and kept him as close as possible to break the daily cycle of responsibilities and punishments. The mundane days of friendship, filled with simple trips to the lake to throw stones, or making up wordplays in the corner of Jun's room, kept him sane and genuinely happy during his childhood. They would often fantasise about escaping the palace and live in a village far away from the main city, were no one would know who they are.
tbc