From July to December 554, the battles fought between Baekje and Silla ultimately ended in Baekje’s defeat when King Seong was killed at Gwansanseong管山城. The first act undertaken by King Wideok upon his accession in 555 was to dispatch prince Hye惠―the king’s younger brother―, to Japan. Although Hye’s mission was nominally framed as a request for military assistance, its substantive purpose lay in alleviating Japan’s growing sense of disappointment and anxiety regarding Baekje and thereby maintaining bilateral relations. However, since Japan’s primary interest continued to center on whether Baekje could still transmit advanced cultural and technological knowledge to its court, Baekje ultimately failed to dispel these concerns. A rift thus emerged between the two polities, resulting in a suspension of diplomatic intercourse for nearly twenty years. Focusing on restoring King Seong’s prestige and reasserting royal authority, King Wideok resumed diplomatic engagements with the Chinese Southern and Northern Dynasties in 567. He negotiated not only with the Southern Chen陳 dynasty but also with Northern Qi北齊 and Northern Zhou 北周, thereby checking Goguryeo’s influence while simultaneously creating an opportunity to absorb Northern Zhou’s political experience and advanced cultural institutions. Meanwhile, during the period in which Baekje’s relations with Japan were severed, both Silla and Goguryeo sought to initiate diplomatic contacts with Japan as a means of overcoming their respective isolation on the Korean Peninsula. Owing to Japan’s passive attitude, Goguryeo’s overtures ultimately failed, whereas Silla succeeded in establishing amicable relations. This shift in Silla-Japan relations, in turn, prompted Baekje to attempt a reconstruction of its ties with Japan. Although Baekje had previously devoted its diplomatic attention almost exclusively to the Southern and Northern Dynasties of China, it too resumed negotiations with Japan in 575. Lastly, attention has been directed to Prince Hye as the figure who played a leading role in the Baekje-Wa negotiations of 575. Drawing on his earlier experience in Japan in 555, Hye is presumed to have been responsible for the transmission of Buddhist culture and related institutions. On the basis of this role, he later ascended the throne as King Wideok’s successor.