Yu hon was known to be cruel. To him he only cared about his family and his country and had absolutely no regards or mercy towards anyone out of these boundaries. His cruelty didnt run on just killing the enemy it went to extents of torture i can imagine and severing heads to make it memorable even though it was completely unnecessary. I most certainly believe that same cruelty would definitely go around and come right back to bite him in the 🍑. As we all know very well, karma is very charming. Doesn’t necessarily have to be him, it can be future generation as we have already seen with Xing which is the best example. and i also see that some in Kai have a grudges towards yu hon since that general mentioned him and it almost sounded like he was aiming towards “an eye for an eye” type of thing. U sever heads? Well how about we send ur people flying towards their death in front of u.

Someone said “a ruler has to be cruel.” “ a ruler has boundaries”. I disagree. That to me gives the ruler right to be a tyrant. Ur the kind of ruler u choose to be. A ruler can change laws to help his people if he so wishes, he has allot of power. How he uses that power is key. Now let me make something clear. Im not saying Il was in any way a better ruler, nop. Even he himself knows what a shitty ruler he is. Im saying that both of them were flawed and both of them would have in one way or another ruined the country. As both had no balance in their ways.

Now though i am a huge fan of hak which i established many times but far from that yet one of the reasons why i love him is that i truely believe that hak carries that balance. Yona carries allot of kindness and she still has allot to learn about war and being a ruler though she is not her father she does carry a part of him which is natural same as soo wan carries a part of yu hon. Again, how soo wan handled Xing was a great example. Though he had the chance to negotiate and avoid huge losses he still chose war and ignored their wish to make a deal until yona convinced him by her sheer will. Hak understands that a world without war is a pipe dream, and I quote. But he also would not fight unnecessary wars. He understands the cruelty of war but would go through huge lengths to save both sides. Hak sets examples and inspires strength as well as goodness in people.

The advisor might look down on hak and some might look down on him for saving an enemy, but that same action might be the reason this war shifts to Koukas favor. I believe that haks principle in life would be “why have enemies when we can have friends”. He fights when he has to and goes beyond to save those important to him. He understands when there are loses and morns for them. He fights with dignity and respect to both sides of the battle. He understands that innocent civilians shouldnt have to pay the price over two children fighting over milk. As well as weaponless soldiers Who raise the white flag should not be killed just cause they are enemy. Even in battle when u show respect it will be returned one way or the other. This same mentality along with his incredible strength and his influence on people i truly see that hak would become a great ruler. He would not only strengthen Koukas army but he would also strengthen Koukas relation to other countries. Not with fear or weakness but with a strong bond of friendship and respect. I truly see Hak and yona as a power couple cause they think the same but they also complete each other where the other person is lacking. Cant say the same for soo wan in the mix with yona he would only hold her back and dismiss her, which is the opposite when it comes to hak. We all know how much soo wan admires hak, he is soo wans goal and weakness. Thats why i would love it and I believe its only right that hak is the one that teaches soo wan that important lesson. Slap him in the face and show him where his father was lacking!

Okay, this had me melting inside. When did gramps figure out that Hak has feelings for Yona? (I mean it's been pretty obvious for a while). But I want to know the exact moment that gramps figured it out. Because he's literally never alluded to it before right? So this is really sweet imo. I took it as:

"Don't worry about us and be happy with her "

And I fucking love that for Hak. It's grandpa's blessing.

Side note, if Hak marries Yona, who will become Queen, then Hak will definitely become part of the sky tribe through that as well.

I have been asked multiple times why i want King Hak, when the obvious choice is Soo won or Yona, when being a king is not a reward or something good in the story’s narrative. It because I see Hak as the answer.

The story unravels to show us the fallacy of extremes. The questions are clear from the very beginning, do we surrender to the divine guidance, choosing a passive, fragile peace? Or do we seek our own power and will, pressing forward through blood to grow and prosper? These ideas are represented and challenged through the characters and their conflicts. And after all this time, you see none of them is correct. Not Yuhon with his single-minded focus on power, not Il with his fear and surrender.

The answer is the balance, the balance between power and surrender, between war and peace, between violence and protection, the balance remanent of Hiryuu’s reign. It was absent between Yuhon and Il, and threatens to be absent between Soo won and Yona. Both showed a part of Hiryuu, Yona having his soul, while Soo won his blood, but none has his beliefs, the balance of his ideals. Or so we thought for a long time, until this parallel is complete:

The story is edging towards Yona and Soo won accepting each other, realizing the imperfectness of their ways, ways they did not choose for themselves, but are remanent of a past, wrong generation. Soo won and Yona are not, and should not, be their fathers. The story urges them to think and choose for themselves, to end the cycles of extremes and wrongs before them, It edges them to come together to create balance, to create what Hak stands for. This is so fitting and so foreshadowed considering their relationship with Hak. To them both, he is the goal.

Other points against Hak as king I read yesterday

- he'd be uncomfortable/ he'd be more comfortable as general

- he needs freedom

- he has no interest in diplomacy and politics (no storyline for it)

- he hates royals

- it'd undermine Yona's growth (it'd be better if Yona rules alone and Hak just her general husband or prince consort)

But Yona didn’t want him to kneel, right? There are definite points of progress from both sides. I get you anon, I too would hate master servant / queen general end, and I am hoping we won’t go there.

For the other points,

1. Hak was uncomfortable about many things. Being honest about his feelings with Yona, letting go of his anger, learning to trust again, and he changed in all of them. This keeping Hak in his comfort zone instead of letting him choose to do better and grow as a person isn’t the best for him or even for the writing quality.

2. Was this not specifically addressed before? When Yona was concerned about it and told him to leave them, that she will set him free? We learned from his anger then that what matter is his freedom to choose.

3. This interest is a vague word. What to ask is does he has the talent and aptitude? And does he want to get involved? Yes he has what it takes. Wanting to get involved can come anytime, just as Yona decided on it only very recently.

4. Is this about 15 yo Hak saying he hates nobles? Was it not an undue prejudice that got addressed? In the same episode we seen him not only appreciate Yona on a personal level, but also gain respect for king il.

“no need to be the king even if capable” could be applied to any of the trio atp. The fact that they are all developing to reach their full potential means the story peaked as it should, and who to be king right now is quite subjective. Anyone could do it, even an outsider like Tae Jun.

So, some want Hak as the king not because he is the only one who would do, but because he is an interesting option compared to Yona and Soo won, especially as they are shaping to be roughly the same type of ruler.

Your connection with Kalgan.. after today’s ch... anon your brain and apollo’s gift of prophecy..

that’s an interesting quote. at the time i only took it as yona needing to see how the people felt and to get closer to them but yesss i see

I reallly think Soo won is no way near Yuhon’s level of ‘yay murdering yay warmongering’. So, i think in that scene he was defending his father more than believing that behavior was absolutely acceptable. That’s why Yona has one on him, she was willing to admit her father did many wrongs no matter how painful, while he still goes my papa did nothing wrong uwuuuu. But that is the extent of his sins, not that he is pro war crime or warmongering. Even Hak is sure of that.