One Year Ago

He heard her sudden gasp once he moved closer into the glow casted off from the few torches seemingly fused to the decrepit walls nearby.

Aye, it was a sight to behold, he thought. Daesung was aware of the condition of his body was in after months of torture, or "curing" as his family liked to address it. He was a royal prince born of noble blood and destined to rule his portion of the VIP kingdom from the cradle, but he never expected to be sidelined with a spiritual power. He was aware that his older brothers Jiyong and Youngbae attained special abilities of their own, which meant that not only were these powers heritable but a reason why his family was in control.

Daesung recalled Jiyong's power to serenade fair maidens and laughed at him since it appeared useless during childhood. Once they hit adulthood, it was an entirely different story. At first, he was envious of his elder brother being able to easily woo women until Jiyong got cursed by a witch and trapped in a tower. Their parents hadn't even bothered a rescue attempt since they believed it was a suitable punishment for his dilly-dallyings instead of paying attention to running a proper kingdom.

On the other hand, Youngbae received the ability to summon frost at his beck and call, which wasn't exactly a perfect match for his religious character. He was a devout worshipper of the sun god, Sol Invictus, and had strange markings etched all over his upper body in devotion to the cause. Fire and ice never mixed peacefully, so he spent the majority of his time praying and searching for a way to maintain a balance between the two forces upon his limestone pedestal secluded in his garden. However, he abruptly relinquished his territory of the kingdom one day, packed his meager belongings, and left a note detailing his journey to a distant place in hopes of discovering true equilibrium. Their parents weren't exactly ecstatic at the departure of their son, and it left only three children to govern a  expanse of land.

Seunghyun strangely never developed any signs of gaining powers though. The family assumed he was just a late bloomer, but, the older he got, nothing remotely indicated something supernatural. Which is probably why he's been in such a dark mood for years. His oldest brother may not have exploded with envy over his younger siblings, but Daesung knew that it was bubbling beneath his exterior for quite some time. Their parents' disappointment galvanized Seunghyun into burrowing himself into becoming the perfect prince in charge of his province, which allowed him the opportunity to take over Youngbae's and Jiyong's territory easily. There weren't any protests either when he was temporarily allotted Seungri's kingdom since Seungri was the youngest and still being groomed as ruler someday.

Fortunately, the baby brother of the family received his power early at the age of thirteen, but the relatives weren't as enthusiastic. Seungri displayed similar characteristics of being able to attract women just like Jiyong, and their parents feared the same unfortunate consequences would befall their cherished child. As a result, they had shipped him to another foreign country with herds of advisors and mentors to foster the ideal future king. It was favoritism at its finest.

As for Daesung's situation, he'd much prefer the tower treatment than what he was enduring for the past several months. It all stemmed from his ability to communicate with the dead. Nobody questioned it explcitly at first until his hair began to fade from jet black to alabaster white every time he talked with a spirit or was touched by their weightless hands. He never grew accustomed to the chills that