The loud crack of skin contacting skin echoed through the room. Jiae’s head swerved to her right due to the impact of the slap and her hair covered her face. The spot where Ryung had slapped her stung her skin. It soon grew red and Jiae could feel her left cheek heating up. Straightening herself, she stared at the ground. The slap did not hurt. She had gone through too many grave injuries to even considered a slap as a wound.

While Ryung continued to verbally abused Jiae, her mind zoned out. The first thing she heard when she woke up was that Ryung wanted to see her. She was ready for this and had already mentally braced herself. And it was not like her status allowed her to have a choice to not be punished.

She knew what would be in store for her when she had rejected the Red King. The part where she found the funniest was the fact that she had almost trustthe King. She could not believe that she had been that stupid for a split second. Ryung scolding her only proved that Yongguk was just like everyone else.

None of them were like him. None of them were like her man in white, Do Kyungsoo.

The thought of Kyungsoo brought a smile to her lips but immediately regretted doing so when she received another slap from Ryung. “What are you smiling at?” When Jiae did not reply him, he felt himself boiling in anger. It was like he was being ignored by her. “I guess you need to learn your lesson.”

Nodding to the guards behind him, the guards walked towards Jiae. They chained her with thick, metal cuffs attached to the stone wall. Grabbing a whip, Ryung started his assault. He unleashed his anger on the poor girl.

Jiae had came back two days ago. And last night, the Red King had requested for her again. However, Jiae refused. And Ryung was angry because he could not give his King what he wanted. He was afraid that his King will be angry at him. Ryung had apologised to the King’s messenger for not being able to deliver Jiae. It did not help that the messenger humiliated him by mocking the man for being so useless that he could not even control a slave.

Ryung was the second-in-charge of the association. He believed he did not deserve such humiliation. Especially not by someone of the lowest status.

Jiae did not let out a sound, not even when her skin was starting to tear off from the impact of the whip. She did what she was trained to do: be emotionless. And now, she did not allow herself to feel any pain.

The door to the punishment room was suddenly slammed opened. Ryung’s head snapped towards the door, already thinking of mean words to verbally abuse the intruder. However, when he saw who had entered the room, his limbs grew weak. Kneeling in front of his King, he bowed lowly.

The first thing Jiae felt was the presence of someone all too familiar. She then realised she was no longer receiving blows from a certain weapon.

“This isn’t a place where you should be, Your Majesty. It’s too dirty for you.” Ryung’s voice was barely a whisper. Whether it was because Yongguk’s presence was too strong or that Ryung was overwhelmed from the fact that he finally met his King, Jiae did not really care.

Jiae looked up when she heard Ryung mentioned Yongguk. True enough, he was standing there like the proud and mighty King he was. What was he doing here?

Yongguk’s gaze was on Ryung, before searching the room and finally landing on her. Noticing how Jiae had red marks on her skin and how she was being chained up like some livestock, his gaze grew hard and anger was on his face. He did not care about other slaves, but to him, he felt that Jiae should not be treated like this.

Never lifting his eyes off her, he calmly replied Ryung, but everyone in the room could hear the anger behind his tone. “I hate it when people tell me what to do.”

“Y-Yes, I’m so sorry Your Majesty!” Ryung quickly bowed a couple of times, getting nervous at the thought of displeasing Yongguk.

Yongguk went towards Jiae was and his eyes grew cold when he noticed the red lines across her arms and leg was caused by the whip that was still in Ryung’s hand. Reaching for the metal cuffs that were binding her to the wall, he stared into her eyes. Jiae wordlessly watching his actions, wondering what he was planning to do until she smelt something burning.

The cuffs dropped to the ground and Jiae would have fallen as well due to the impact. However, Yongguk slid his right arm around her waist, easily holding her weight up. “Remove the cuffs this instant.” Yongguk ordered and the guards immediately went to do as told. He did not want to risk her wrists getting burned.

Jiae looked at the cuffs that was on the floor and saw that the tip of it melted, as if Yongguk threw it into lava. Did he just burn the metal with his bare hands? Shocked, she wanted to ask him for answers when she remembered why she was in this situation in the first place. The moment the cuffs were off her, she gently pushed Yongguk away and stood up by herself.

Yongguk ignored her cold attitude towards him. It was not like she could escape his clutches, now that he was here in person. “I asked for an assassin, not an abused worker. How is she going to work for me like this?” Yongguk directed the question to Ryung. Ryung nervously his lips and thought of a reply when Jiae spoke.

“I did not accept your request. I am just receiving the punishment I deserved.”

Yongguk turned his head towards her. “Deserved? I didn’t ask for this to happen to you!” He finally snapped at the end of his sentence. He saw anger flashed in her eyes as she narrowed her orbs at him.

“I am just a slave, Sir. I deserved everything that anyone gives to me. If they think I am good they will reward me by not giving me a hell of a time. If they think I did something bad, then they will punish me as they see fit. Whatever the case is, it has nothing to do with you.” Jiae could have sworn she saw a nerve popped in Yongguk when she finished her sentence.

“Are you even listening to yourself right now?” He raised his voice. He could not believe this girl. He came to her rescue, yet she was telling him off, as if telling him that he had interfered in something he should not have.

Yongguk knew that he need not have to personally come down to the association to demand for her. He was the Red King for God’s sake. He could have everything he needed and wanted at the snap of his fingers. Yet somehow, he had found himself standing outside the association just minutes ago. And he had saved Jiae from the beating Ryung was giving her.

“I know what I am saying. I am just a slave and I belonged to the association, not you. You don’t have to care about me. If it is an assassin you need, there are others who are better than me.”

Yongguk opened his mouth to say something but decided not to as he closed his mouth again. He tried to calm himself down by breathing evenly. The rest in the room could see the anger in their King, yet the small girl still chose not to back down. She was glaring at him in defiance while he tried not to blow his top. Taking this chance to escape the wrath of the Red King, they quickly left the room, trying to be as silent as they could be.

“If you come with me, you don’t have to receive such punishment. Your life doesn’t have to be like this anymore.”

Jiae scoffed and looked away. For a moment, she had forgotten she was talking to the ruler of the Red Empire. “My status will still be the same. I am a slave and will always be a slave. Unless you are going to lift that off me?”

“That’s impossible.” He almost immediately replied. There has not been a record of a slave being lifted off their lowly status. And Yongguk was not planning to risk his reputation for Jiae.

“I thought so too.” A sad smile appeared on her face. She did not even know why she had anticipated his reply when she knew what the answer would be. “I will never follow you. And even if you request for me again I will just keep rejecting you. Don’t waste your time on me.”

Yongguk stared at Jiae. There were a couple of thoughts running through his mind. One of them was to give Jiae a scolding of a lifetime. Another was to just grab the said girl and lock her in his palace. However, he just chose to walk out of the room without saying anything.

Jiae finally let out the sigh that was in her and sat down, exhausted. Leaning against the wall, she shut her eyes. Jiae could have just gone along with Yongguk, but she did not want to have anything to do with him anymore. And it was still unsure when Kyungsoo will rescue her. She knew she had to leave the place soon or they will start lashing out on Jiwoo instead.

Please come to me soon, Kyungsoo.

Jiae had no idea when she had fallen asleep, but when she opened her eyes, she saw that she was in the usual patch of field in her dreams. Noticing that her head was resting onto something on her left, she sat up straight before looking at what it was.

Or who he is was.

“Hello, my little canary.” Kyungsoo gave her a warm smile and she could not be happier to see him now.

“Kyungsoo,” She breathe. There they were again, talking to each other in their dreams, like this place was their secret meeting place.

Kyungsoo reached out to tuck a loose strand of her hair before lingering his fingers on her right cheek. He could see that she did not mind him touching her and he was more than happy to do so. Somehow, it calms him down when he could physically feel that she was okay. “Are you holding up okay?” He asked and she quickly nodded, not wanting him to worry.

“Kyungsoo,” She reached out to grab his hand that was on her face. Their hands dropped down to the grass and Kyungsoo held her hand, rubbing soothing circles on the back of her palm. “When are you coming for me?”

The White King then knew she was not doing okay. She just did not want to tell him.

“I’m already in the Red Empire.” He informed her and she felt hope. He was coming for her soon. “I just need to finalise some things with Sehun then we are good to go. Come meet me at the harbour at midnight. You don’t have to bring anything with you except your brother.”

“Okay. I will wait for you there.” She started getting excited at the thought of finally being free. And she trusted Kyungsoo to keep his promise.

The both of them sat in silence as they enjoyed the peace that the place gave them. It was not everyday they could be this worry free. And while they silently sat there, their hands had interlaced with each other, not wanting to let go.

++

Kyungsoo sat up from his bed. The sun shining into his room indicated that it was afternoon and he went to the bathroom to wash up. Remembering about his dream, he looked at his hand. He had held her hand till she left first, waking up from her sleep. Somehow, he was already worried about her even though it had only been two days.

Kyungsoo needed to communicate with her and realised that meeting her in their dream would be the safest way. Although he just woke up, he laid back on his bed and closed his eyes. Jiae was the only thing on his mind, and he kept thinking about her till he found himself in their dream together.

Kyungsoo still had no idea how they were able to communicate through a dream, but now he knows how to see her whenever he wanted.

Washing up, he headed downstairs for lunch. Sujeong and Sehun were already at a random table, starting their meal. The trio had booked rooms at an inn. As Kyungsoo joined them, Sehun went to order coffee for his King.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Sujeong asked him. Today was the day he will take Jiae away from this horrible place and she would finally be happy. Kyungsoo nodded his head determinedly and she nodded back. If it was what he wanted to do, she would follow him till the end of the Earth.

“Has she decided to join us?” Sehun asked.

“I want her to, but at the same time, I don’t.” Kyungsoo ran a hand through his hair in frustration. He then explained to his friends about how Jiae was being forced to kill. He did not want her to keep running. He wanted her to live a normal life.

“What if she is one of the pieces but she does not want to join us?”

Kyungsoo has thought about this question since he had that talk with Jiae in the forest. He was determined to do his best to persuade her and protect her if she chose to join them. But if she really does not want to, he will not force her. After all, he believed in himself that he would be able to find the other pieces. And when he was done with that, he would go to the Yellow Empire and find her to piece the puzzle together.  

“Have you gotten the stuff ready?” Kyungsoo asked Sujeong and she nodded. Sehun informed him that he had gotten an extra horse ready so Jiae can ride it together with her brother. It would take them at least five days to reach the Yellow Empire and Kyungsoo would have to figure a way to make sure Jiae was not being chased. Kyungsoo needed to get a house for the siblings too.

While planning and making sure everything had been settled, the sun was slowly setting.

“Let’s get ready to move out.” Kyungsoo told them and they started packing their stuff. The plan was to have dinner first before double checking their escape route and then heading to the harbour to meet up with the siblings.

The trio hid in the dark while they waited for Jiae and her brother. The cold air brushed past their skin and Sujeong hugged her clothes tighter. Kyungsoo noticed his best friend was shivering in cold and passed her a jacket. Thanking him softly, she wore it and zipped it all the way up.

The harbour was empty as it was late in the night. The only sound that could be heard was the splash of waves colliding with the hard wood of the harbour.

“Why is she still not here?” Kyungsoo muttered mostly to himself as he started to get worried. Looking at the small pocket watch he always kept with him, he saw that it was already five minutes past midnight.

“Maybe she changed her mind? Or that she got caught up?” Sujeong guessed.

Kyungsoo shook his head. He does not know Jiae very well, but he could sense how desperate she was in wanting to escape the Red Empire. She would not give up on this chance. Maybe Sujeong was right about Jiae being caught up, but something deep within Kyungsoo told him that it was not the case.

“We have to go to the association to find her.” Kyungsoo was about to move out when Sujeong grabbed onto his arm, jerking him back.

“Are you out of your mind? There are more people like her in there! There is no way we can fight against them all.”

“I’m not saying to fight them head on.” Kyungsoo sighed. He was not that reckless. “I have a bad feeling about this, Sujeong-ah. She is not safe.”

Sujeong pressed her lips in a thin line as she crossed her arms over her chest in defiance. “I don’t want you risking your life for anyone, Kyungsoo. You are important, and you are the only one who can avenge our fallen nation. You shouldn’t risk it for someone you just met.”

Kyungsoo opened his mouth to say something along the lines of ‘we did not just met’, when Sehun spoke instead.

“You should trust him. He is our King, and he is stronger than anyone we’ve known.”

“I trust him! Of course I trust you, Kyungsoo. But you must know how anxious I am. I don’t want to lose another family member.”

Kyungsoo placed his hand on top of Sujeong’s head and lightly ruffled it. “No one is going to get hurt okay? I need to know if she is safe and if she is really one of the pieces, then we need to get her. I cannot afford for her to die before I know whether she is one of us or not.”

Sujeong thought about it for a while before letting her arms drop to her side. “Fine, but if anything were to happen, I want you out of there immediately. Leave the girl to us.”

Kyungsoo quickly nodded, but he knew that he would break that promise when that time comes. If something were to really happen, he would search for Jiae immediately, instead of making his way out.

But then again, Sehun was right. Kyungsoo was strong, and he will not let anyone get hurt.

Author's Note

These gifs honestly makes me want to do a Kyungsoo one shot >///<