"Kill him!"

Junhui shuddered as he heard his death sentence from the mouths of his so thought loyal adviser and close friends.

He quickly creeped back from his hiding place behind a wall carpet, hanging from the ceiling down to the floor, to the secret tunnel. A single tear fell in the darkness while he crawled back to the royal stable of his castle.

He stood up in the bright light of day and brushed the dust off his clothes. Minghao, his loyal servant, rushed to him with the prince's jacket in his arm, as soon as he saw him appearing behind the food crate for the mounts.

"My Lord! Did they catch you?" he asked while helping him dust off the dirt from crawling in the old and filthy tunnel, slightly pale around his nose.The prince looked at him with sad eyes and shook his head slightly. His subordinate gratefully closed his eyes and sighed in relief. Junhui chuckled at the behavior of his now only friend and patted him on the back.

"Don't worry Ming. You know how quiet I can be. So calm yourself first, alright? We got other problems now at hand. Even though being captured is now a higher possibility."

Junhui looked into his servant's eyes, only to see confusion mixed with a hint of anxiety. He gripped Minghao's shoulders to make him feel safe and to convince him that everything would be alright. Minghao gave him a small smile and nodded to assure him that he would stay with his Lord through thick and thin.The Crown prince let go of his loyal friend's shoulders and turned to walk back through the big gateway of the huge castle with many unused rooms and space filled with dust and dirt throughout the years.

He went up the wide staircase to his room, grabbed the door, swung it open and left it that way. Minghao, who never left his side, closed the with ornaments decorated door and hung the Jacket inside the big closet, filled with traditional garbs, uniforms and costumes. The humble servant glanced at them with sorrow, because he had bought them, everything handpicked and without flaw, but his lord never wore them outside, except for ballroom dances and when he had to visit other surrounding Kingdoms.

Meanwhile Junhui planned their escape in his mind and went to his chair at the window. He knew that every second he stayed longer in this rotten Castle, both of them would surely not survive another day. He stared at Minghao absentmindedly while his friend was staring at the shiny clothes.

A knock at the door caused them both to jump at the sudden noise and they exchanged a nervous glance with each other before the Prince called the visitor in.

The door swung open and a middle aged man strode in with a smug smile on his face. He bowed a bit and glimpsed at Minghao wordlessly, who bowed almost 90 degrees, before his gaze went back to meet the prince's eyes.

"Your Majesty. I am here to report a certain rumor."

Junhui looked at him skeptically and with narrowed brows.

"Since when does the counselor of defense come directly to me to report a...rumor?"

The counselor rubbed his hands, uncomfortable at the sudden confrontation.

"Yes. Indeed. But this could be beneficial for our kingdom, your Majesty! May I explain, your Highness? I'll try to keep it simple and brief!" the advisor said with conviction in his voice to emphasize how important this rumor was. He bowed deeply and waited for a sign of Junhui to let him continue. 

Jun moved in his chair to sit more comfortably, giving a hum of approval. The man looked up, pleased with himself that he was able to bring the prince to listen to him. 

"Your Majesty, this rumor is about the so called Unleashed! They are mystical wild beasts, which are said to have existed since the beginning of our kingdom and even further in the past, where the historians had not started to document everything! They were given mystical powers to slay unknown enemies and to secure peace and freedom throughout the world, well the parts we know of. Your Highness! If we could persuade one of these beasts to choose our side, we would not only secure our land and protect it from the other kingdoms, we could also expand our territory and wealth with it!"

The counselor of defense bowed again and waited eagerly for the answer of the crown prince.

Junhui sat still and waited for the man to look up again. The advisor finally stared up and met the crown prince's eyes. Instead of interest and excitement which was what he expected to see from his Majesty, he looked into a loathing gaze full of disgust and revolt. He gulped and looked quickly back down on the floor to avoid his majesty's penetrating stare.

The crown prince looked at Minghao to see what his thoughts would be about the matter. The servant locked eyes with him, so Junhui could see his friends anger, sadness and frustration over the statement of the counselor. Confused Junhui looked away, back to his advisor, who was still bowing in front of him.

"It does sound promising, indeed. But give me some time to think it over, my dear friend." Junhui said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

The Counselor bowed even deeper and excused himself while walking out of the room. When the door fell into its frame, the prince looked up to his servant Minghao, who stared at the floor, fiddling with the hem of his long sleeved top.

"Care to explain, Minghao?"

Junhui questioned curiously, still observing Minghao and wondering about his friend's expression he noticed not too long ago.

Minghao finally looked back up again and Jun jumped up from his chair when he saw that his servant was on the brink of tears. Quickly Minghao covered up his face behind his hands, but the prince grabbed his arms and pulled them away. His eyes full of concern were fixed on Minghao, waiting for him to say something.

"...nt."

Junhui brought his face closer so he could understand what his subordinate was trying to say. Minghao took a few shaky breaths before he repeated himself louder.

"Please do not seek them, Sire! Anything else, but you cannot pursue them. You cannot!" he pleaded sincerely, tears rolling down his face filled with agony, while he grabbed his masters hand. Junhui looked at him, stunned and wordless, since he had never witnessed his servant behaving like this in all those years they were now together.

Slowly he freed himself out of his friend's tight grasp and walked back to his chair.

He sat down and motioned Minghao to do the same in the opposing chair. Minghao followed the order and sat carefully on the soft cushion while folding his hands in his lap, waiting for the elder to speak up.

The crown prince stared at him, curiosity gleaming in his eyes, unsure whether the information he was about to hear had credibilty or not.

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Thank you to my lovely Co-Author blue_deer who helps me with everything!