A month passed since the ball, and things seemed to change dramatically after a single night. More people knew who I was and approached me everywhere I went. It was honestly overwhelming, but I was able to meet wonderful people.

I was afraid that I’d come in contact with Hajun again, but he never returned to my shop, and when we did cross paths he simply ignored me, which I was pleasantly fine with.

However, despite everyone being friendly, it was still uncomfortable and weird. They were extremely formal, uneasy, and stiff with me. I guess I should’ve expected it, but I didn’t like it. It made me feel distant from them. I felt like a broken record, insisting people not to speak to me so formally. I wasn’t any different than who I was back in my homeland.

After the ball, my parents stayed for another week. It was such a short week, but one of the best times I’ve had in the Fire Kingdom yet. They were just as amazed as I was by the house Yunho had built for me. My mother was unsurprisingly elated by the kitchen. She practically spent all her time there.

I showed them my shop in which they were highly impressed. They even got to meet Changmin, who was thankfully working the shop while I present time with my parents (which I owe him big time for).

Unfortunately, during that time King Jung had fallen seriously ill. It was worse than before. He was stuck in bed and hardly managed to attend his meetings with the officials and advisors, but even then, he had to eventually stop attending, so Queen Jung and Yunho sat in his place.

My parents stopped by the palace to give him medicine and offer any help.I couldn’t help but feel extreme pride in them. They were knowledgeable and far more experienced and better than me with medicines and herbs. Under their care, the king was able to resume his duties and they left a large supply of medicines before hey left.

Despite their hard work and success, my parents still seemed severely anxious, but they never said anything about it.

“Welcome! How...Oh! Hi Sungha!” I greeted the young merchant who entered the shop.

“Hi Jaejoong. Hi Changmin.” He waved.

Changmin gave him a head nod before heading to the back as he always did whenever a customer came in. In fact, Sungha was the only person he greeted whenever he came into the shop.

“I have your order right in the back. Give me one moment.” I ran to the back and grabbed two boxes full of mixed herbs before returning to the front. I placed the two packages on the counter in front of him.

“Thank you. I really appreciate it.” The young merchant slid a small bag of coins across the counter.

“No problem.” I smiled taking the bag of coins.

“What do you need all those herbs for? Are you going on another trip?”

He nodded. “I have a long one this time. I’m going to be heading to the Water Kingdom.”

My eyes slightly widened. That was more than a long trip. It was basically on the other side of the world. It would take over a month to get there. “So, you’ll be gone for a while, won’t you?”

He nodded, “I’ll be spending no longer than a month over there. I have a lot of items I collected that the people in the water kingdom are interested in. There are a few things that I also want to pick up while I’m there. I’m actually kind of excited. The water kingdom is beautiful this time of year.”

He went on describing his last visit there and the things he got to see and do. It led him to compare the kingdom with their sister nation, the snow kingdom, which was far colder and different, but they surprisingly shared subtle similarities in their culture.

I couldn’t help but feel a tinge of jealousy toward him. It must be wondrous to be able to travel to different kingdoms and explore their unique cultures and people. It would be a completely immersive experience compared to just reading books about them.

“You’re lucky,” I confessed, though he’s probably heard it a thousand times.

The elder shrugged, “It has its risks. It’s costly and difficult to make a living off of at first. And you might end up sleeping in uncomfortable odd places.” He chuckled a little to himself at some of the close memories before becoming serious.

“But it’s not always safe to travel. In fact, it’s becoming more and more dangerous with the increase of outcasts.”

I silently nodded.

Outcasts were the name given to people who were cast out by their kingdoms for committing serious crimes. There wasn’t a lot of them in the beginning, but they suddenly started increasing quickly within the past decade. People willingly castrated themselves out of their kingdoms. They were rumored to be against the Kingdoms as a whole. Some rumors stated that they were against the unity of the nations.

All the kingdoms agreed to work together in peace, in order to keep balance throughout the land. However, there were people who were against this equal balance and wanted power for their own. But, I doubted all of them were like that. Some of them probably felt wronged by the system of their home countries. Nevertheless, you could never know who was who and many continue to commit crimes, making them dangerous to any and everyone, especially more recently to fertile males.

“There’s an area below the water kingdom that’s rumored to be where most of the Outcast reside, kind of like their own city. They call it The Valley. Nayoung is worried about it, but I know I’ll be fine. I’ve traveled that way a few times before. I know my way around.” Sungha continued.

I raised a curious eyebrow, “Is she not going with you?”

He shook his head as if it were obvious, “She wants to, but her father won’t allow her. He doesn’t exactly like me.” He chuckled at the last part.

“Why?”

“It’s a long story.”

I continued to watch him waiting for him to go on. He chuckled a little but shrugged.

“Nayoung and I have known each other since we were kids. We were of two different social classes. Her father never liked me hanging out with her, fearing that I’d ruin her chances of marrying an heir of a wealthy family. But He didn’t do anything about it. I guess he thought I’d disappear eventually, that we’d grow apart. So, you could imagine how upset he was when he found out we were dating.”

“He threatened me several times after that. I didn’t mind them too much, but Nayoung hated it. So, we pretended to break up and have been secretly dating since then.”

I frowned a little, never knowing their story before. They seemed so happy together. I would’ve never thought they were having such problems. “That’s not right.”

Sungha shrugged, “It’s not right or fair, but that doesn’t stop him, and it won’t stop us.” He smiled assuringly to himself.

 “We’re working things out. Once we get everything settled, her father won’t be able to say or do anything about it.”

There was no malice or signs of grudges behind his words. In fact, he presented no ill-feeling when speaking about Nayoung’s father. I couldn’t help but smile at his confidence and forgiving optimism. It was contagious.

“I’ll be rooting for you.” I encouraged, only to earn a laugh in return.

I furrowed my brows.

“It’s an honor to have your support.” He clarified. “And I’m grateful to have it. I think it’ll give us a lot of luck.”

My brows furrowed deeper.

He laughed again before offering me a gentle smile, “You’ve inspired a lot of people Jaejoong.”

“You don’t know how much of an effect yours and Yunho’s relationship has had on the people. It’s hard to explain. You probably wouldn’t understand even if I could explain.”

I blushed at his words. “I don’t’ think it’s anything that special.” I subconsciously rubbed the back of my neck.

He rolled his eyes, a playful smile on his lips. “You wouldn’t be convinced no matter what.” He teased not even bother to try.

“Well, I should get going. I have to finish getting ready for my trip.” He picked up his boxes.

“Will I see you again before you leave?”

“I hope so!” He beamed. “I leave at the end of the week. We can meet up between now and then.”

I nodded, mentally making note of it.

“We’ll definitely meet again.” I promised.

“Great! Thanks a lot Jaejoong! I’ll see you later.” He waved, heading out the door.

I smiled a little to myself. Sungha is a nice guy. I really hoped that their relationship turns out for the better. I know it will.

The rest of the day went by pleasantly. I enjoyed working the shop more tha