APPLICANT #8

the protector of man and beast, kwon jiyeon

She likes being in the forest. It has always been a place for her to find herself. She has spent countless hours practicing in this forest, during the day or until the break of dawn. She knows it by heart and also knows not to venture too far so as not to bother the creatures residing in between the trees. Tonight is no exception. She wanted to practice a bit more so she decided to come here and train. It is late, she has no idea of the hour but the shadows, and the moon high in the sky are a clear way for her to know everyone in the castle is sleeping by now. Not her. And apparently, she was not the only not sleeping tonight. She hears a growl and turns around. She is not scared; she knows – she feels she is not in danger. She observes as a direwolf emerges from behind a tree and comes closer. The beast is big and threatening but not to the young woman. She just stands here, marveled at the mere sight of its beauty. No. Not its. Hers. She feels it more than she hears it. She smiles. She finally found it, after all. She found her companion, she can feel it deep inside her soul. She knows it is the bond. Zahra knows it too.

It was rare not to see Jiyeon with her direwolf companion Zahra. This particular time was an exception. The wolf had decided to take a walk outside and Jiyeon was left alone in the corridors of the castle. She did not mind, after all, she knew Zahra needed her alone time. The young Tsaheylu respected that. After all, their bond was a lot different than the one between a human and a pet, Zahra had her own conscience, her own free will – if she wanted to go out, then the woman could only wish her to have a nice day. If there was a danger coming her way, the wolf would know it right away – that was the strength of the bond that bound them.

This day had nothing particular. After waking up, Jiyeon had gotten ready to join the Prince of Aques. They had friends ever since she was little and when she grew up, it did not change. Except that now, she was not only his friend, she was also his bodyguard. She was proud of her position. When she was a child, she had watched how her father had risked his life to protect the King and she had always wished to become like him. He was her role model and he had given her so much – love, confidence, strength. Therefore, when she had become a Tsaheylu herself, she had been extremely proud to be considered worthy of protecting the Prince. She took her work very seriously and had done her best to live up to everyone expectations – and as of now, she had done a great job and was respected by all the soldiers.

“Jiyeon!”

The young lady turned around and bowed respectively in front of the Crown Prince, who had just left the King’s chambers. She frowned. It was unusual for the Prince to be up so early (not to say he was lazy but he did enjoy his beauty sleep), and especially to be already talking to his father. Did something happen overnight that she was not aware of? It was very unlikely, for she knew she would have felt it through Zahra’s acute senses. The Prince smiled to her and joined her. He did not seem particularly shaken but she could notice a hint of uncertainty in his eyes. The man gently took her arm and guided her to his room, without the frown leaving Jiyeon’s face. The Prince was not acting like his usual self. When they reached the room, he locked the door behind them and signed the girl to sit before he let himself sit on the bed. As usual, she refused, considering standing would allow her to be more reactive in case something would happen. The Prince did not seem surprised. Jiyeon let out a sigh and her serious expression broke slightly to show her worry.

“What is going on?”

“Will you even believe it?” he scoffed.

She raised an eyebrow, “Are you seriously asking me that?”

“You should not talk that way, I am a Prince,” he joked before letting out a sigh. Then, he smiled and looked directly at her, “I am getting married.”

“What?!”

Saying she was shocked was an understatement. She had known the Prince to be slightly more secretive these days but she certainly did not expect that it would be because of a wedding. She sat down, not trusting her legs for a few seconds.

“Which princess are you marrying?”

“It-It is not really a princess.”

“How can it not really be a princess?”

“What I mean is—“he chuckled, seemingly amused, “I am betrothed to the Prince of Luce. And I know what you’re going to say. Luce has nothing to offer us, we are a lot more powerful than they are and you know that my point of view is different, but no matter what, it is still going to happen. And I want you to come with me to Luce for the wedding and to stay with me.”

Jiyeon could only nod, too shocked to say a word. The Prince did not seem too bothered by the situation, he seemed even excited - by the wedding, or by new adventures, she did not know, and she definitely was not sure she wanted to.

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