Chulsoo never stared so hard at someone in her life before. True that she observed Wonwoo when he pulled her with him to the woods, but this time it isn’t any better. It’s a weird case of how grandma Lee knows who Wonwoo is, or asking him how he’s been all this years of being a Prince and he answering her as politely as he can.

 

“My anger suddenly went out the window.” Seungcheol sits beside her. “I seriously have no idea what happened last night.”

 

“Me neither. Where’s grandma?”

 

“Talking to your father.”

 

They watch as several elders laugh at Jeonghan for making a mess on the fields. Chulsoo sighs at that.

 

It’s hopeless having the Princes work on their land when they can’t even touch a single weed.

 

“I bet even his own garden is being tended by his servants.”

 

“A hundred percent true!” She puts a hand under her chin. “I can’t believe this is happening.”

 

“I’ve been fine, Ms. Lee.”

 

“Wait,” Seungcheol stops laughing in an instant. “What is going on?”

 

“Well, this is funny. I can’t believe you really are doing this now.”

 

Wonwoo’s face is slowly going red.

 

“Grandma, what the hell—“

 

“Language!”

 

“Wonwoo?” Jeonghan is so confused. Soonyoung is trying to get more information out of the elderly while Jisoo is putting all the pieces together.

 

For all the years he’s been staying in the Kingdom—even before the third Prince and Princess were born—he always watched Wonwoo. They’re 13 years apart, and he’s been around when he knew of the secret affair between the King and a servant. The second Prince was only 7 at that time, and Jisoo remembers fully well how he snuck out of the servant chambers and into the open, going as far as outside the territory doors and Jisoo never felt so scared his entire life.

 

But then again the King let him do whatever he wanted as they hid him from the face of the people.

 

And compared to Jeonghan, he’s doing a very good job working in the fields.

 

“I’ve... been taught inside the Kingdom.” He mumbled as elders gush at his work. Jeonghan huffs and rolls his sleeve, asking no one in particular to help him.

 

Seungcheol laughs.

 

“Should we make fun of them?”

 

Chulsoo grins. “I think we should.”

 

Soonyoung skips around the field with a smile on his face while Jisoo walks like he’s in another world. He really is. Just like Jeonghan he doesn’t know what to do and the glares of the people on him aren’t helping at all. Absurdly he hasn’t removed the white gloves he’s been wearing the night before, now in a shade of brown, and he doesn’t want to remove them at all.

 

“Young man, have you never touched land before?”

 

He gulps and shakes his head.

 

“I apologize but I haven’t.”

 

“Hey,” Seungcheol whistles. It feels playful, much to the first Prince’s dismay, and he tries to pull out a weed but falls on his bottom instead. “I see you’re having a hard time there.”

 

“You clearly do.” Jeonghan smiles at him. It makes the other’s eye twitch but he continues, crouching beside the Prince and showing him how he pulls the weeds with ease. “I’ll heartfully appreciate it if you teach me how to do this fieldwork?”

 

“No can do, Your Highness!” He stands again.

 

A few feet away Chulsoo puts a hand on , stifling her laughter.

 

“You do this, that, that a few meters away, another that, and then this!” Seungcheol surprises everyone—but not much since they also enjoy the sight—as he smothers the Prince’s face with mud. “Happy cleaning, Prince Yoon Jeonghan!”

 

Hold it in.

 

He gives out another sweet smile.

 

Wonwoo frowns as he witnesses what the other did to his brother. But then maybe that’s something a person from the Kingdom deserves, since they’ve been set aside for hundreds of years now.

 

He sighs and works his way until he reaches the end of the field—around a few kilometers but he still manages to do it.

 

“Wonwoo! Even with your skinny frame you still can do work so far like that!”

 

He gives grandma Lee a small smile.

 

Soonyoung looks like a proud parent with the Exceptions complimenting the second Prince. He’s one loud person himself, so he ushers everyone to even compliment Jeonghan and Jisoo and he does succeed. Seungcheol snorts at him and goes back to his previous position, Chulsoo and he looking at the huge field they’re accustomed to tending being infested with a lot of people.

 

“I’m sorry.”

 

Chulsoo turns to him.

 

“For saying that to you last night.”

 

Seungcheol always expects her to forgive him easily but it doesn’t surprise him when she stands and walks away, sitting beside grandma Lee instead who’s talking to Wonwoo happily. He scoffs standing, approaching Jeonghan once again and watching him do his work.

 

The first Prince’s eyes twitch.

 

“What?”

 

“What what?”

 

There’s no point arguing with him.

 

He shakes his head and continues on with his work even with the snickering in front of him.

 

A few minutes in his job a small fabric dangles in front of his eyes. When he looks up he sees a young woman silently urging him to grab on it, and he does to use it on his soiled face.

 

“Thank you.”

 

“Y-You’re welcome, Your Highness.”

 

He smiles genuinely this time.

 

Grandma Lee suddenly remembers Wonwoo’s injury and she gasps, gripping on his other arm to stop him from the fields. Chulsoo’s eyes widen at her.

 

“Grandma?”

 

“Stop working, Wonwoo. Your cut is going to re-open if you continue.”

 

“I’m fine, grandma.” He smiles. Now that the sun’s shining down she can perfectly see his features for the first time. He has very fair skin but it looks too pale because of the blood he’s lost the night before. “I’m almost finished anyway.”

 

They were forced to get up not even an hour passed when they finally slept in front of Chulsoo’s house. She could’ve been very alarmed that the four of them were lying on soil, using their long cloaks to wrap them warm from the cold weather, but remembering what ensued she couldn’t care.

 

They’ve been attending the fields for 6 hours straight, not having any rest in between because Chulsoo’s father and the captain had warned them.

 

“What do you mean you’re almost finished?” She gestures to the whole field. “This won’t take a whole day. I’ll give you three.”

 

“Three?” Jisoo internally curses.

 

“But—“

 

“No buts, Wonwoo. Sit your down.”

 

He does what he’s told, pulling on his black inner dress falling just above his knees. He takes a seat beside Chulsoo who he hasn’t noticed yet, his thoughts on his garments sticking to his body, his parched throat, the Queen, the baskets the’ve prepared for the following night but how can they get back if they’re locked out.

 

Jisoo must’ve sensed his internal dilemma and clears his throat.

 

“Your Highness,”

 

Wonwoo looks up at him.

 

“We have to find a way to get back. You can’t stay behind because you still have to attend to your district.”

 

“I know.”

 

“The Queen may be the right hand, but Prince Jeonghan and Your Highness still have a bigger part in the kingdom. They can’t dethrone you just like that.”

 

Wonwoo chuckles.

 

“Jisoo, you’ve stayed in the kingdom far longer than I did. It surprises me you know little about being dethroned.”

 

Chulsoo took the hurt of his words, watching him walk away and not listening to grandma Lee shout behind him. Jisoo sighs and takes his previous spot, staring at Chulsoo who glares back at him.

 

“Just because we allowed you out here doesn’t mean I’m friends with you—“

 

“I didn’t mean it like that, miss.” Jisoo smiles. “I was wondering if you know a secret way to the Kingdom.”

 

And she doesn’t. It’s not like it’s going to be any of use if they don’t bother thinking of those inside the walls. But then she remembers Seungcheol talking about a large tree he saw and a small crack on the walls like someone tried fitting inside of it, but she couldn’t exactly remember where it was.

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