Hi readers, I would like to officially thank you for going on this amazing journey with me. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as i enjoy writing it. XOXO

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Ten years had quickly gone by; the tragic events of those nights a decade ago, long forgotten. Jiyong was now a playful boy that everyone knew and loved, although trouble seemed to follow him wherever he went. He was full of life, and indeed Nara’s uncle and his wife saw him their lucky charm; from the minute Jiyong stepped into their house, everything took a turn for the better. Their wine business started seeing profit, making them move into the city to pursue a bigger market, and now they had the best locally made wine in all four corners of the kingdom. Kwon, now fifteen years of age, never left Jiyong’s side, Jiyong was the type that always got in trouble but Kwon was always there to protect him.

“Jiyong, you have to promise to stay away from trouble” Kwon told Jiyong as they walked to the shore. Being that he wanted to be a justice official, he had to go to camp for a few days to be trained.

“Ah hyungim.. of course”! Jiyong playfully shoved Kwon. “I don’t know why trouble seems to follow me around everywhere I go”

Kwon wanted to skip the training process, but Jiyong cried and begged him not to “It’s because you’re nosy, an you feel the need to help everyone” He placed an arm on Jiyong’s shoulder “Jiyong you have to be safe, remember I’m going to make enough money so I can marry you and take you away from this place”. His uncle was a good man but his business was a little dangerous; while he sold alcohol by day, his house turned into a bar at night where high officials often went to drink and cause a ruckus. Since Jiyong had come of age, some of the men couldn't keep their hands off him, and it was worse since Jiyong was a smart boy whose company everyone loved. “Jiyong-ah, just stay in your room at night huh”? He hated it the most when some of the men slobbered all over Jiyong. It was why he had so much marks on his skin; drawing out your sword to someone high up usually cause a few of came, but he didn’t care, he was going to protect Jiyong.

“But hyungim, how would I know what is happening in the kingdom if I don't talk to them? It’s not like I am allowed to go to school” Jiyong whined. Although a lot of workers and elderly people loved him, he was constantly being ridiculed by his peers for not having a birthday.

 “I never should have taught you how to read, or let you read my books.... Maybe I should just not go, I don’t know what I would do if something happened to you”

“Nothing will happen to me.... Also, I cannot love someone who is willing to throw their dream away so easily” Jiyong argued. No one knew, and everyone was surprised at how unfazed he was but he was sincerely going to miss Kwon. “Let’s walk faster, the boat will be leaving soon”

Kwon shrugged, he trusted Jiyong but Jiyong’s beauty could be a little distracting sometimes, and it was what lead him into trouble most of the time. “Okay, walk with me”?

They made it just in time; the boat was about leaving so Kwon quickly got on it. “It’s only for seven days okay”? He yelled from the boat. “SARANGHE JIYONG”!

Jiyong watched with tears in his eyes as the boat sailed away, his protector was leaving him. He silently made his way back to his uncle’s.

“What are you doing? Burn down everything” There was a fight in front of his uncles house; there were men with fire, while a noron was seated in his palanquin watching.

“What is happening here”? His uncle came running out, his wife behind him. His uncle tried blocking the men, while his wife tried pulling him away.

“This is what you get for trying to scam me Yoo So Hyun,” The noron said as he stood up from where he was seated. “You sold my workers stale wine”

“Nari... please save me” His uncle pleaded, on his knees. “Please Nari.. my workers did not know”

Jiyong knew he should stay away, but he couldn’t help it “It is your workers fault” he approached the noron. “Your workers only gave the money that was only enough for the stale ones”

The ruckus stopped immediately, all eyes on Jiyong as he spoke. “The man only gave use one nyang for a gallon of wine”

“And how would you know this” The noron asked calmly, surprised at the boy’s attitude. Most people cowered before him.

“He said he was of the house of Kim. I entered it into our record” Jiyong ran into the house to get the record book. “Look at it Nari” he showed the noron the entry.

“Uhmm” Mr. Kim was embarrassed. His workers were stealing from him. “Is this your son Mr. Yoo”?

“No Nari, but he is like a son to me. It is because of him, I have been able to do all this, please forgive him”

“And yet he can read and write” Kim looked at the boy again “I will... I will spare his life”

“Thank you Nari” Yoo So Kyun bowed again. He’d heard tales of Mr. Kim; his ruthlessness knew no bounds.

“So I will take him with me. He will work in my house”

“N..Na...Nari..” So hyun bowed lower till his face touched Mr. Kim’s feet “Please Nari, Jiyong is not a slave. He is like a son to me”

Mr. Kim smiled “Yes, and that is why he should come with me” he looked at Jiyong who was standing on the side “You should come with me if you want to save your uncle’s life”

‘Kwon hyungnim.. I’m sorry I couldn’t keep my promise’ Jiyong said his mind before finally speaking “I will go with you, leave my uncle alone”.

“Who are you to tell me what to do”! Kim was aggravated, he wanted to have the boy killed immediately for his insolence but he had a better idea in mind “But yes you will, you look like your preference is male, so you will be my son’s chamber attendant”

Jiyong gasped; he’d read all about that in the books Kwon always told him not to read. Chamber attendants were men who were only to be used for by their masters, and they were often hurt in the process. Also, a chamber attendant could never get married, and when they got old, they were often killed, or sent off to be a regular slave.

“Nari.... he is only ten years of age. He is just a child, he....”

“I will go” Jiyong said, holding back his tears. He walked over to his uncle whose face was practically at the noron’s feet. “I’ll be fine,” He said briefly before speaking to the noron once more “I will go pack my things”

Mr. Kim laughed, “You are a chamber attendant. You wouldn’t need to wear anything” he said before clearing his throat “Hurry and take him” he ordered his guards.

The Kim house was always lively, with him being  feared in the kingdom, there was always an important guest in the house. Nara was hiding away from her maids again, of all the things she hated, she hated that all her maids were old and boring, and always wanted her to learn knitting. She ran into one of the stalls in the stable to hide, only to see someone curled up in the corner.

“Yah”! She said gently, but the person remained in their position “Yah, are you okay” she moved closer “Are you hurt somewhere by any chance”? She poked him a little, and found herself staring at a boy. Their faces, only a few inches from each other. “Who are you”?

“Jiyong” Jiyong answered. “Whoa you’re pretty”!

“Huh”?

“You’re so pretty” Jiyong stretched to touch Nara’s face. People always said nobles were all good looking, and he thought they were average but the girl before him almost looked inhuman.

“I like you” Nara said as she sat beside him. They bonded quickly, Jiyong told her about life on the outside since she barely ever went places. Leaving Jiyong, Nara went straight to her father’s chambers, where he was in a meeting with her elder brothers. “I want the new boy you brought to be mine”!

“No way”

She sat on the floor and cried until her father gave in “Okay Okay, Jiyong is yours”

“Oraboni has to promise that he wouldn’t try to take him”

“I give you my word. The slave belongs to only you”

8 YEARS LATER

It was nighttime and Nara was waiting for Jiyong, hoping he hadn’t gotten in trouble because of her.

“Nara manim”? Jiyong called from outside Nara’s room.

She opened the door quickly and let him in, “Whoa Jiyong, I thought you had gotten caught” she hugged him briefly.

“Who can catch a cheetah like me”? Jiyong laughed as he dropped the bag he was carrying on the floor. It was filled with delicious snacks, and wine. Things Nara wasn’t allowed to have.

In the eight years since Jiyong moved into the Kim household, numerous things had happened; Mr. Kim became a Soron, his wealth doubled, and the other noble that was to be wed to the crown prince got sick and died mysteriously, making Nara the next best candidate to be the crown prince’s bride. This made Mr. Kim believe the saying that Jiyong was truly a good luck charm. Thanks to Nara, Jiyong got his freedom when he turned sixteen, and was free to do whatever he wanted but he chose to continue to serve her. Although they were of different class, they considered each other best friends, and countless times had Nara saved Jiyong from being by her eldest brother who always seemed to have his eyes on Jiyong.

“Let’s eat”! Nara quickly emptied the bag of food. Ever since she picked to be the prince’s bride, there were a lot of restrictions on all the things she could eat or do.

Jiyong sat beside her but refused to eat. “You will be meeting the prince soon, maybe you shouldn’t eat so much” Jiyong said as he watched her gobble up some of the pigskins.

“It doesn’t matter. A lot of people haven’t even seen the prince yet” Nara said with a full mouth “I heard he is ugly anyways, why do I have to look pretty”

Jiyong laughed “You would look pretty regardless” He had been close to Nara for years, but he still couldn’t get over her beauty, some nights, he found himself wishing he could look like her.

“I wish I could see him somehow before the engagement, I wish someone would tell me if he is handsome or not” Nara sighed; her appetite was lost already.

“And what will you do if you find out that’s he’s hideous”?

“I wouldn’t be so shocked on the day of the engagement and hurt his feelings”

Jiyong smiled at how considerate Nara was, “I can sneak into the palace.... I will take a peak at the prince and let you know how he looks”

Nara shoved Jiyong “Impossible, people cannot walk into the palace freely”

“Dare me” Jiyong lived for dares.

“I dare you”!

“Tomorrow then. I will enter the palace in the hour of the goat”. His only way of entering the palace was by going in with the messengers that were to deliver wine from his uncle’s store, but he wasn’t going to tell Nara that. The problem he had was, he was going to have to enter the palace as a female messenger, as men who weren’t eunuchs or royal guards, or officials weren’t allowed to enter.

“UGH”! Seunghyun threw down his pen “Why can’t I see the person I’m supposed to marry”? He complained to the eunuch who was also his personal assistant, and friend. “What if she is ugly, or fat...what if she’s both, or worse…. A man”!! Seunghyun could not understand why men chose to be with other men when women were such beautiful creatures.

“Calm down your highness” the eunuch bowed. “Miss Kim Nara is said to be the most beautiful girl in the kingdom. They say her skin is as white as alum, her....”

“These people always exaggerate. I’ve heard the maids calling me handsome, but I’m not handsome, I am godlike..... look at this face Jongin” Seunghyun pointed at his face “Have you seen a face like this on anyone before”?

“Your highness” the eunuch bowed again, this time to hide his laugh.

“I can see you laughing” Seunghyun said, making the eunuch fall to his feet, begging for forgiveness. “Stand up”

Seunghyun was to be engaged in a week due to his father’s failing health; it was customary that the crown prince had to be married before he could ever become king. “I am going out of the palace to the Kim household, I have to see the girl I am to be married to”! He announced startling the eunuch. “I will leave as a commoner, and if anyone finds out. I will have your head on a platter”. He loved his eunuch, but the man loved his job too much. Threatening him was the only way he was not going to leave the palace.

It was finally the hour of the dog, and Jiyong had successfully entered the palace, he snuck away from the other messengers and went toward the part of the palace he heard belonged to the prince. He hid behind one of the pillars, thinking of a way to distract the guards that were protecting the prince’s chambers.

“Yah”! Some yelled from behind him, scaring him.

“Aigoo”!! He scrunched down, gripping his chest. He was so sure he had been caught; it was a crime that was usually punishable by death if caught spying on a member of the royal family. “Who are you”? He asked when he was sure that a guard hadn’t approached him.

“WHO ARE YOU”! The boy yelled, causing one of the guards to turn in their direction.

The guard suddenly started walking in their direction. “Who goes there”

“Run”! He grabbed the unknown boy’s hand, and ran. “Run faster”! The boy was a little too slow, and the last thing he wanted was to get caught.

“Wait....I can’t breathe” the boy stopped.

“Just a little more till we get to the back gate... Just hold on okay”? He picked the panting boy up, and helped him till they were at the back gate, where they blended in with some other people that were leaving.

Seunghyun wasn’t sure why he ran with the girl, but the moment she took his hand, he felt the need to follow her. He knew he should have listened to his father when he wanted him to train; it was a little embarrassing that a girl could out run him. “If I may ask, what were you doing in the prince’s chambers”? He asked the girl calmly as they were rested on a nearby field, just outside the palace. “Answer me. I command you”!  Her back was still to him; no one ever had their back to him.

“You fool”! Jiyong turned to the boy. “You ruined everything”!!! He was furious; he just lost his only chance of ever seeing the prince. “If I had a sword right now, I will slit your throat. What is YOUR name, and what were YOU doing outside the prince’s chamber”? No words came from his unknown companion, he did however, have a surprised look on his face.

Seunghyun was incapable of moving, or even speaking. He couldn’t decide whether it was the girl’s beauty before him, or the way she addressed him; no had had ever addressed him so, not even the king. “Hy...Hyunseung. Son of Mr. Kwon Jin Hee, palace investigator” He already memorized everything he was going to say, if questioned, “And best friend to the crown prince, and who may you be”?

Jiyong examined the boy sprawled on the floor, his robes did look like that the nobles were. “Please don’t report me.... I just wanted to see how the crown prince looked”

“Really”? Seunghyun was being brainwashed by the girl’s beauty before him; her skin was fair, and her lips were full and pink, and her bosom...... she didn’t have much, but she was still a sight to behold. “And what were you going to do with that information, were you going to lust after the crown prince”? He watched as she gasped, “I see you’re a slave... You know you have to chance with the prince right? Even as his friend, I can tell you that the prince is so handsome, that he’s almost godlike”

Jiyong scoffed “Seems like you’re the one lusting after the crown prince.. Also, I don’t care what the prince looks like... Just because I want to see him doesn’t mean i am interested in his facial features, I want to know if he is intelligent, and caring, if he can continue in his father’s footsteps, or even be better”

“What does a slave girl like you know about things like that”?

“I am not a girl”!! Jiyong said before walking away, he was supposed to see kwon soon.

‘She is so stubborn’ Seunghyun thought as he rose to up to follow the girl. He followed her until she got to a house where a lot of people were seated in front, drinking.

“You can’t be seen here” Jiyong pulled Seunghyun to the side “Why do you keep following me”?

“You are rude but I like your company” Seunghyun answered truthfully. “So where is this, and why can’t I be seen here”? He peeked inside; there were drunken people inside, and with women who were less than clothed. “What is this place”?

“Somewhere I’m ashamed of being... argh follow me, I will change, and then walk you back to the palace”

Seunghyun laughed, “A girl walking me.... a man”

“You call yourself a man”? Jiyong laughed “You cannot even run, I bet there are other things you can’t do either... now shut up and follow me if you wan to live to see your precious crown prince again” Jiyong took the boy’s hand and snuck back to his room. “Turn around, I have to change”

Right from the moment he became a man, he always heard about the virtuosity of women, but here, a woman was asking to be before him, openly asking for ual relations. “Do you always sleep with everyman you meet.... I know I’m handsome and all but...”

“I never said I was going to sleep with you, now turn around or I swear I will send you out to be ridiculed by those ingrates”!

Seunghyun did not need to be told twice, “So do you belong to this household”

“I belong to no one” Jiyong said as he changed his attire quickly; if Kwon found out that he was hiding a noble, he would be in big trouble. “You may turn around”

Seunghyun braced himself, he had been wondering what she was changing into, perhaps something seductive, but was faced with a boy. “Huh”? He was sure she was a woman. ‘But she was pretty’

“Jiyong-ah, are you in there”? Someone called from outside the door.

“Hide... I’ll be in so much trouble if he saw you here” Jiyong shuffled his annoying guest behind the wooden partition. “Stay here till I lead him out, then go back out the way we came. You shouldn’t have a problem getting back into the palace... I hope I never see you again”

Seunghyun snatched Jiyong’s arm before he was able to walk away "Wait..... You're just going to leave me to go back by myself" Seunghyun was getting angry, first the slave had deceived him, and now he was abandoning him "why would I"?

"I never asked you to follow me.... And aren't you a noble"? Jiyong pulled his arm away "Don't make a fuss or the person behind that door would not hesitate to slit your throat" He’d never met anyone as clingy as the person before him.

"I would have you killed for your insolence"! They were both yelling albeit whispering. "Do you know who I am..... I am the crown prince, soon to be King"!

Jiyong laughed "Yes, and I am the horse the crown prince rides" Jiyong got serious. "If not that you were a noble, I would have struck you; don't you dare link the precious prince to an aimless person like you. I am sure the prince is big, strong, and brave, while you are...." Jiyong didn't finish his statement before he burst out laughing again. "Don't play around, and leave soon,” Jiyong said before walking toward the door, and walking out to meet Kwon

    Seunghyun remained behind the door, shocked. Everyone in the palace called him 'The brave a mighty prince’; on several occasions he'd killed a bug or two by himself, without calling for help.

He did as he was told; he waited a while before sneaking out through the back. On his way out, he saw the slave boy in the arms of a man who was dressed like an official; they were locked in an embrace ‘What an immoral boy’ Seunghyun thought as he hid past them. He was going to be back, and he was going to make the slave boy eat his words.