“I can’t ing believing it we’d actually arrived here!” Shindong exclaimed, relieved, throwing his bag on the floor and stretching his arms and back. Heechul did the same, feeling relieved the moment his back was free from the bags it was carrying over. “ this place, man. How can a town be so distant from any sort of civilization?”

“I can’t ing believe it we’d actually crossed a desert!” Donghae let himself fell to the ground, spreading his arms wide. “I miss a bed so much!”

“I need some beer!” Leeteuk said, supportive of his friend’s opinion. “And some women!”

“No brothels, boys.” Taeyeon quickly cut off. Turning his neck and back left to right to stretch them up. All the boys grunted annoyed.

The journey had indeed been too exhaustive. Heechul himself felt his body all sore and tired from the bad sleep nights, the heat on the road and the weight of all their load. A brothel would be nice to reinvigorate oneself, after so many days and nights of solitude and dust. Heechul knew even that bastard flower prince couldn’t be more thirsty for a warm bed. But the shortage of money at their disposal were too precious for them wasting like that. And Taeyeon was the only one in the group sensible enough to cut their urgences and make their money last for so long. So he wouldn't oppose his best friend's words.

“What? Captain, do you know how many days we’ve been walking and rounding like zombies this desert so we could finally find this frickin’ town for?” Leeteuk cussed angrily.

“Five days.” Taeyeon replied, calmly, not bothering his remark.

“Exactly!” He shouted bitterly. “Five in’ days! For five in’ days we’ve been walking and walking and sleeping on ing rocks and sand and not a single tavern at sight! There’s sand and sweat on me on places you’d never expect, Captain!”

Taeyeon just sighed. His face a slight shade of pink due to the heat of the region and all the weight of his belongings.

“I need some ladies to get all the sand off me!”

“Shindong can do that.” Donghae was the one saying it, making some boys chuckle along. Taeyeon included.

“You more than us, Captain, with you fair skin, is having the bad sides of things in this road, aren’t you?” Minho came forward, lifting an arm over Taeyeon’s shoulder. “You know we need some clean up, don’t you?”

Taeyeon cleared his throat, his own forehead wet and the spot above his upper lip producing some bubbles of sweat. The sides of his raven hair were oily and gummy, sticking to the sides of his head. He was as sweaty as everyone else, but he was still trying to maintain their expenses short. Sometimes Heechul takes their leader as a knightly man, and other times a complete dolt.

“Yes, I know.” He answered. “But the money we have with us is short and is not to spend with frivolous things. We still need to reach Midsummar.”

“What’s that?” Donghae asked instantly.

“The capital city of the Red Mountains.”

“What?’ He irked, annoyed, standing up from his position. “I thought this was the capital city! Where the are we, Captain?”

Taeyeon chuckled for his behavior. “This is a village called Stoneguard.” He said, composed enough. “According to my map, Stoneguard is the closest village to Midsummar coming from the south. On foot, it takes a whole day till we reach the gates of the capital city.”

“Are you suggesting that we shall continue walking?” Shindong asked, utterly exhausted.

“No.” Taeyeon denied. “I’m not suggesting anything. What I’m saying is that we shall not spend our money in this town on brothels and as we’ve still not reached our destination yet.” He spoke calmly. “Let’s find an inn and stay for the night. A good night of sleep will do us some good. We can continue our journey tomorrow. Once we reach Midsummar, we can enjoy the capital city at fullest.”

“By fullest you mean booze and ?”

“And whatever else they offer as public services.” Taeyeon added. “I wonder if they have thermal waters of some sort...”

“In a desert land like this? Must be a noble luxury.” Heechul spoke up on his side.

“Yeah, you’re probably right.” Taeyeon sighed. “Anyway boys, let’s get going and stop by an inn for the night!”

“ing hell yeah! Finally we’ll have some beds!” Donghae exclaimed happily.

Taeyeon pulled his belongings back to his shoulders. It seemed to feel heavier this time around as he actually let a whimp of pain being heard. Heechul chuckled at his side.

“What you’re chuckling at?” He asked him lowly, slightly annoyed.

“So much for your prince image.” Heechul joked.

“I’m not a prince.”

“Flower bastard.” Taeyeon rolled his eyes.

“Honestly, I don’t know which one is the worst.” Heechul smiled, walking alongside him.

~~*~~

“Six mugs of cold beer to the boys, here!” Said the lord owner of the place, showing up with six mugs of beer in his hands. Loud cheers of “Hurray” from six other men roared in the air. “And a mug of cold water for the little man.” He said, placing one mug of cold water in front of Taeyeon. “Weird choice there, lit’le fella.”

Taeyeon smiled, grateful. “Cheers, sir.” He gently said. Drinking up the liquid, he let out a sigh of relief. “Nothing tastes better than cold water in a desert like this.”

“I’m surprised you’ve managed to get here.” The man said, surprised. He was tall and slim, with straight cheeks and chin. His skin tanned from the sun was in a more yellow-ish shade than brown. “Some travelers coming from the south of Joseon end up dead in the desert.”

“We’ve got a map.” Taeyeon replied, cheeky. “It helped us not getting lost on the way.”

“Lucky you, huh? I’ve seen my shares of bones and skulls on this region, perished by heat, dehydration, hunger and illnesses.”

“You are not very used to dealing with people, are you?” Jonghyun asked, uneasy.

“Why do you say that?”

“You make ‘em feel unfortunate!” The man chuckled. “We’ve just crossed a desert, can’t you just congratulating us from getting through it alive?”

“Sorry, us from Red Mountains tend to be too sturdy and blunt, it might not be in taste of others.”

“It’s alright.” Taeyeon came forward, dismissing his apologies. “Every region in Joseon has its own flavor. It’s what makes our land so rich and diverse... no need to apologize for that.”

“Where are you from?” He asked, curiously.

“We all came from different regions.” Heechul was the one answering him. “I’m from a small village in Kangwon’s Estate called Branchpoke. Shindong and Leeteuk are from Vinepledge, the capital city of Kangwon’s Province. Minho and Jonghyun are from Tailwind, deep in the Jeon’s Estate valleys. And Donghae is from Lowswamp, in the division between Jeon’s Province and Namdo’s.”

The man nodded his head. “What about your li’le fella?”

“Taeyeon is from Ironstow.” He replied, calmly. “The capital city in the shore of Jeolla’s Estate.”

“We are famous for our metals and ironware.” Taeyeon added in. “In case the name isn’t that clear.”

The owner smiled. “How did you guys came about together?” He asked moving his fingers to all seven of them.

“Taeyeon and I met when we were on our way to Vinepledge.” Heechul had been really thankful for Taeyeon’s company during that journey. If not for Taeyeon, Heechul would have probably end up dead. “We were looking for ways to get to Hanyang, the capital city. As we were heading to the same place, we decided to go together and stay by one’s side.” He answered, briefshortling their story for that man. “The boys have been joining us in the road one by one since then.”

“So you all are going to the Sacred City?”

“Yep.” Leeteuk answered, gulping his beer.

“That means, you guys are going up to Midsummar?!” He asked, interested.

“Yep.” Shindong seconded.

“You came at the right time!”

“We did?” Taeyeon raised his eyebrows, curious for that.

“Master Shin, Lord of the Red Mountains, is gonna get married!”

“Oh, a wedding is happening in town?” Heechul came forward. “That’s nice! I would give everything to peek a noble ceremony.” It would be amazing if he could witness one so he could write it down.

“Are his feasts opened to the public?” Taeyeon asked, interested.

The man chuckled. “Lord Shin will never let the public step a foot onto his feasts.”

“Just like any other highborn.” Donghae remarked.

“But for winning over his Lady Wife’s heart…” The man continued. “Lord Shin have been arranging all kinds of entertainment shows and performances to impress the lady. A lot of things are happening in the capital city. So it’s a nice time for you guys to arrive here in our little province.”

Heechul was glad to hear about that. Midsummar being the capital city of the region could offer a lot of opportunities. More so than the previous village they stayed in. Maybe it wouldn’t do bad for them if they stay for a couple of weeks, or a month even. They could see a way of getting money of some sort. If he talked to Taeyeon about it, he knew he could convince him.

“Who’s he gonna get married with?” He asked, curious. “A princess or the likes of o