Into The World of Royalties | Stray Kids

S2: 1: Meet her

"Prince Christopher Chan, there you are!" A butler ran up to Chan and Seohyun as they entered the castle. He looked serious

"What's wrong Hyun?" Chan asked calmly.

The butler named Hyun inhaled deeply before replying. Alas, a high pitch voice interrupted him.

"Ah! There you are, my prince" a woman said far behind from the butler.

She walked gracefully towards Chan. Then, she bowed politely. Seohyun stared at her beautiful red dress. Her long brown hair shines radiantly in the moonlight.

When the woman straightens her posture, Seohyun could see her beautiful smile and her sparkling eyes, shining brightly. She awed at her beauty. The woman shifted her gaze towards her and quickly her smile fades.

"Please bring this to my room" She demanded and shoved a suitcase to Seohyun.

Seohyun who was stunned by her sudden changed of talking, accepted the luggage. The journal that was in her hands, falls to the ground. She realized, the lady must have thought she is a maid working here.

Seohyun was going to speak about the confusion when the lady started talking again.

"Prince Chan, I've been looking everywhere for you," she said and linked her arms with him

Chan smiled and tried to push her arms away from him but her grasp was really strong.

"Oh, your highness, you look so tired! Did you have a rough day? Shall we rest in the study room?" The lady started to pull him.

"Lady Eunji, what an honour it is to have your presence here" Chan forced a smile and gently pushed her away from him.

"What may be the reason for your sudden visit in this late hour?" Chan asked as he finally managed to push her away.

Lady Eunji pouted when Chan did that. She huffed in annoyances.

"I've come here by an invitation from the king to stay in the castle for some time to help to finish the Queen's new dress" She replied while crossing her arms as she looked away from Chan.

Chan slowly bent down and picked up the journal. He pats the dirt off the journal. He takes the suitcase from Seohyun and exchanged it with the journal.

"I didn't hear the news you were coming. If so, I would have welcomed you properly" Chan replied half-heartedly as he looked at Seohyun and asked her with his eyes if she was alright.

Seohyun nodded. Lady Eunji saw their interaction and gave a deadly glare.

"May I ask why are you holding my suitcase when your maid is right next to you, your highness?" Lady Eunji asked, there are traces of jealousy in it.

"Ah, as you can see she's not a maid. I thought her attire already signified that" Chan said awkwardly.

Seohyun looked down at her dress. A plain pastel blue dress with a dark navy blue ribbon tied around her waist. Chan told her to use the dresses in the guest room.

She was surprised at first, seeing how magnificent each dress looks. Chan replied to her that those dresses are considered usual and mostly used by commoners.

"I see, she's not wearing the maid uniform. May I asked once again, who are you miss?" Lady Eunji asked Seohyun.

Seohyun was caught off guard by the sudden question. She was deep in her thoughts. Lady Eunji was annoyed and asked her again.

"I am just a scholar, my lady" She replied and quickly bowed at Lady Eunji just like how Chan taught her.

They had practised what to say and what to do if these kinds of events occur in the future especially if the king asks her one day.

"A girl? As a scholar? Since when did this kingdom let women as you study?" Lady Eunji scoffed. She rolled her eyes as she smirked.

Her questions made Seohyun shocked.

"What do you mean by a woman like me can't study?" She asked in a serious tone, emphasizing 'me'.

Lady Eunji laughed hysterically. Seohyun eyebrows furrowed as she tried to understand what was so funny about. Meanwhile, Chan's face turns red. His smile has turned into a frown.

"You foolish girl, clearly think she's a scholar when she doesn't even know the basic rule of this kingdom? Pathetic!" Lady Eunji laughed again.

"I clearly don't know anything. It would be better if you could enlighten me with this 'rule' you are saying" Seohyun remarked as she stared at Lady Eunji.

Lady Eunji was taken aback by her tone of voice. She was going to be mad but let it slide when she saw how serious Seohyun's face.

"Women, peasants women, in particular, can't have any education" Lady Eunji replied in a mocking tone.

Seohyun furrowed her eyebrows again. She was speechless. She turned her head towards Chan who looked away in shame. His face is still red.

Seohyun remembered a couple of nights after she arrived, she talked about what her dimension was like, how her life was, and a bit of her school life to Chan.

Chan was fascinated listening to her stories about her dimension. He asked a lot of questions and curiosity fills his eyes. When Seohyun's asked about how Christark is like, Chan would laugh awkwardly and changed the subject

She tried asking again but Chan keeps avoiding answering the questions. Now, she had a glimpse of what kind of kingdom Christark is. Now, she understands why Chan keeps avoiding telling her about his kingdom.

"I see. Well, not in Seortell. That is where I came from if you are not aware" Seohyun lied calmly.

"Ah, Seortell... I can see it better now. Now, I am not surprised at how ill-mannered you are" Lady Eunji said mockingly.

"Ruled by a Queen? I understand she is the firstborn but is it necessary to do that? If I had to say, it was a horrible decision to let her rule. A lady ruling? That wasn't a bright idea. They do have a prince though," Lady Eunji continues mockingly.

Seohyun clenched her fist as she forced a smile. Her teeth clenched tightly. She had met the Queen of Seortell when visiting the kingdom during their quest to find the journal.

She is a very kind and smart Queen. Seohyun kept awed at her vast knowledge from all aspects. She is also a polite person who speaks in a modest tone at all times and changed into a stern voice when she needed to.

Lady Eunji's comment made her blood boil even more. Seohyun wasn't really into fights but at that moment she felt like she wants to punch the lady in front of her.

"First, educated woman is a problem and now women as a leader is also a concern to you? You had been living under a rock, I see" Seohyun looked at Lady Eunji up and down in a mocking way.

She learned that from Hyunjin and Areum. Lady Eunji scoffed as she fake a smile. Lady Eunji was going to reply to that when Chan told them both to stop.

"Lady Eunji, I must ask you to not disturb Miss Seohyun any longer. She is just a scholar who's studying the dark forest. I hope you respect that" Chan started to lose his composure.

Lady Eunji huffed in disagreement but Chan ignored it. He turned to Seohyun, his face tightens. Seohyun was surprised to see the usual smiling Chan make such a face.

"Hyun, please escort Miss Seohyun back to her room. I will deal with Lady Eunji myself" Chan said.

Hyun who was witnessing the intense catfight hurriedly walked towards Seohyun. He gestured for Seohyun to follow him. Seohyun followed Hyun with a bit of hesitation. As she walked a bit further, she turned back to see Chan sighing and Lady Eunji still sulking.

She continued walking with a heavy heart. For some reason, the fight she had earlier left a bad taste in her mouth. She doesn't know why she felt that. Maybe she was sleep deprived. She remained silent for the whole time. She looked up at the dark sky. The moon is gone, hidden behind the clouds.

"That was Lady Eunji, Prince Christopher Chan's ex-fiancee if you were wondering, Miss Seohyun" Hyun breaks the silence.

"Ex-fiancee?" Seohyun asked.