“Today might be a little hard for you, Princess.”

I glanced up at my teacher. “Why is that?” I wonder what the lesson plan is for those to be his first words to me.

“We have learned about laws, correct?” he asked and I nodded my head. “Then, it’s time that we learn about punishments.” 

That certainly has been a touchy subject for me. I remained silent as he gauged my reaction and I sent him a small smile. “Is that a must for today?” 

His own lips formed a smile. “Yes, unfortunately.”

“Then, please begin, teacher.” There was slight trepidation. I know I needed to have an open mind but with how everything has been happening lately, it’s going to be hard for me to swallow the information. 

“Do you remember the most important law in our country?” He began, slowly flipping through the book in his hand. 

“A Werewolf must not act against a human,” I reiterated. “Depending on the act, it could be punishable by death.” A law that only applied to the single race– humans weren’t included. 

“A Werewolf must follow the restrictions that were put into place. These restrictions depend on the region and the kingdom,” my teacher continued. “Our kingdom happens to be one of the more lenient ones. The King isn’t too fond of punishments.” 

As my teacher continues, like always, I manage to take away one thing from all the material he is sharing and that is, our country’s laws heavily favor humans and unforgivingly oppress Werewolves. And it is only getting worse. 

“Do you have any questions, Princess?” 

“Are there actually any laws set to protect Werewolves from humans?” I just need one. I have thought about it before but at this current moment, I needed a clear answer. 

“No, there isn’t, Princess,” my teacher replies softly. “There are laws to protect humans from humans,” he continued. “Same law applies when a human acts against another human and then, there are specific laws in regards to rulers and subjects. In the case where a King or Queen does not serve their subjects in a mindful manner, they can be forced to abdicate,” he explains. “But, once they abdicate, that royal family will be no more and the area that was under their control will be passed onto another kingdom.”

“There are other special laws, right?” I suddenly find myself more focused on the topic than I first intended to be. 

“Yes. The ruler and subject was one example and there’s another– Knights acting against their royalty.” 

“Has those situations ever occurred?” 

My teacher thought for a moment. “They haven’t happened or if they did, they weren’t recorded in history. But, if we thought about it-,"

Sudden knocks on the door to my lesson room interrupt our discussion. “Come in.” Normally, no one ever disrupts whenever I’m here and the person standing on the other side of the door further surprised me. “Good morning, Himchan.”

He peered in, now understanding the situation. “I’m sorry for my interruption– your Knight has been causing some trouble and I was sent to get you.” 

“Which Knight?” A question that I felt like I would never get to ask. I figured I wouldn’t have anyone else besides Yongguk. 

Himchan tried to figure out how to say it. “The one that is most like an animal.” 

“Jongup,” I answered under my breath. 

Someone coming down the hallway with rushed steps further caught out attention. “Everything is under control,” Daehyun slightly panted. “What am I? A babysitter now?” he directed the question at me. “I have been forced to run around all morning because your new Knight can’t seem to be civilized,” he continued on in frustration. “Why don’t we just lock him out in the greenhouse?”

What an exciting morning it has been. “Daehyun,” I called out so he would calm down.

“What else do you need?” he sassed.

“Thank you for everything you have been doing.” I sent him a grateful smile and he seemed to have been taken aback by my response.

“Well… I mean- I guess if you know, it’s fine,” he mumbled. “I have to get back to training– see ya.” He promptly walked away, leaving Himchan at the door dumbfounded.

I wonder what he has been up to the whole morning. “Himchan.” He turned back to look at me. “Would you like to join me?” I hated being alone so it was only natural that I also made sure others weren’t.

He ended up coming in and closing the door behind him. I pulled a chair to set beside me before patting it.

Once taking a seat, he finally asked, “What is this, Princess?”

“A lesson,” I answered and I saw the way his expression changed.

“I can’t be here, Princess.” 

There it was again. Just like how he wouldn’t dare to read a book. “Does Prince Kangjun keep you from this also?” It may be too soon to assume but– “Does he lock knowledge away from you?”

Himchan doesn’t readily answer and I wasn’t sure if that was quiet confirmation or if he just didn’t want to explain.

I inhaled a breath. “Well, like I have said yesterday– you’re under my supervision so anything I say goes.” I looked away from him and toward my teacher. “And, I’m telling you to stay.” 

“Should we resume, Princess?” my teacher spoke up.

“Yes, please.” 

“So,” he begins again. “I was saying how if a ruler had broken his or her promise to protect their citizens, they would be forced to abdicate but if we were to be realistic, it probably wouldn’t happen.”

“Why is that?” I doubt anyone is that pure-hearted. I looked over at Himchan and noticed his concentrated look. This was the perfect time to have another understanding of his aptitude. “What do you think, Himchan?”

He blinked back from his thoughts. “Well-,"

“It would be nice if you shared your thoughts.”

He paused for a moment before contributing. “If we are talking about corruption, then there is no way for a royal family to be indicted for it. It would be easy for them to cover it up and no one else has enough power to actually put them on trial,” he explained and my teacher nodded in agreement.

“That’s correct,” he answered. “The way you keep order is by having a hierarchy of power– who is more powerful than a kingdom?” 

“A few kingdoms put together,” I answered.

“That’s right but there are no true alliances. We are in a constant struggle for power, there’s no way such bond could be produced in a world filled with mistrust.”

“Then, why do you insist I develop relationships with other Princes and Princesses if there is no use for it?” Then, why am I even trying to gather support when suspicion is so rampant among the kingdoms?

“It w