Kris gazed at the huge crowd that was chattering beneath his balcony. The clothes they wore were unflattering browns and greys and most of the females carried either baskets of groceries or their children. He took a deep breath before he stepped out onto the tiled floors, leaning his arms on the cold, stone railings. “My people, we are gathered here to mourn for the death of our King,” he spoke articulately, “King Wu was a great king, but now we must have a new ruler.” Kris glanced around at the shocked faces and the mumbles of disbelief, “most of you know that I am crown prince, however, today I shall reveal the truth.”

“Please step forward.” Kris beckoned Luhan who was behind the curtains. Luhan’s doe-like eyes widened in confusion as he slowly made his way towards the entrance. “K-kris…what is this…I’ve ne-”.

Ignoring Luhan, Kris pointed to his brother and proceeded, “Luhan here is the true crown prince. I-I am from foreign descent. My blood is not pure.” Gasps came in from all directions. Even Luhan and the people behind Kris were surprised.

“So, as of today, our new King will be Lu-”

“NO!” Luhan stepped closer towards the crowd, “No,” he continued, lowering his voice.

This time, Kris was the one with the furrowed eyebrows and perplexed expression. “W-what, but y-you are the rightful o-”

“Enough!” Luhan exclaimed. “Everyone, as you all know, the prince, the warrior, the braver of us has, and always will be Kris. Even though he may not be of pure blood descent, he is truly more worthy of being King than I am. He, he is the one who will make a difference in our nation.” Luhan tugged on his adam’s apple to clear his throat as he continued. “Does anyone disagree?”

There was a long silence. Only small muttering was heard amongst each other. Kris grabbed Luhan’s shoulder as his deep-set eyes bore into Luhan’s. “What do you think you are doing?” Luhan shrugged his brother’s hands off his shoulder and turned back to the audience.

By then, everyone was facing the princes again and the muttering had ceased.

“I think Kris will make a great prince!” shouted a commoner in the midst of the crowd. He was dressed averagely, but his cheekbones were so prominent that he was instantly recognizable. “I’d like to serve under a King like him!!” the commoner continued. Luhan beamed as the rest of the crowd echoed in agreement.

“Then it’s decided! Our new King will be Prince Kris!”                              

Kris nodded in acknowledgement as the tiniest of smiles crept up his face.