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When we last left Yona in Yona of the Dawn, Vol. 1, she was basically a frightened, confused mess. Mostly because of this guy on the left:

Su-won, love of Yona's life, murders her father the king and essentially is a shoe-in for the throne now. Meanwhile, Yona flees the palace with the help of Hak, her bodyguard and a former general. AKA this guy on the right:

Volume 2 of this series focuses on Yona waking up from the shock of losing her father and her home. While hiding out with the Wind Tribe (Hak's hometown), she sees the suffering the Wind Tribe endure because of their refusal to accept Su-won's ascension to the throne.

Because she doesn't want to drag the Wind Tribe into further trouble, Yona decides to leave—and she asks Hak to come with her! Of course, in typical Hak teasing (?) fashion, he questions how Yona will be paying for his bodyguard services:

Which brings us to the main point—how long will Yona not get that Hak likes her?! I mean, we're going to be meeting dragon warriors and stuff, so the girl's gonna have a lot on her mind… But I gotta say I feel sorry for Hak right now. Carrying a torch for someone who's oblivious to your affections is such torture. But perhaps it's sweet torture for Hak. ;p

I don't want to give too much away, but I really enjoyed Yona's "awakening" in this volume. Her desire to protect Hak brought forth a strength that might never have come out had she stayed a palace princess.

I can't wait to see what other adventures are in store for Yona and Hak! In the meantime, maybe this is as much verbalized love Hak is gonna get from Yona for a while…

Let me know what you think of Volume 2! You can read a FREE preview below.