Kingdom [Namjin]

46

The days were getting colder. The snow was back and Namjoon's mood wasn't getting any better. He knew that it was useless to contact Seokjin if he went out on a mission. Seokjin was on the mission for two weeks and it worried Namjoon because he knew that Seokjin could get hurt. He just wished that Seokjin would call him back. He was sitting in a useless meeting where the elders were discussing something utterly unimportant while the attacker still ran free. Finally, the meeting ended with a result that he knew would come even before going to that meeting. An alert on his phone made his lips lift upwards. His feet quickly turned to the left as he walked towards the special dungeons. He didn't wait for Jungkook to follow him but Jungkook ran after him immediately. As soon as he reached there, he could hear the screams of the prisoner there.

"Who was it?" He heard Taehyung speak.

When he was close enough, Namjoon saw the man covered in blood as Taehyung tried to get an answer from him. The guards in the room bowed down immediately to the prince. He signalled Taehyung to step aside as he sat in the chair in front of the prisoner. The man looked like he was in his 50s. His clothes were covered in blood but his eyes still shone with arrogance. It looked like he was a worker from some other kingdom. He really did not look like someone from Yangsang. But he was proved wrong when one of the guards brought out the tablet to show his profile. He was indeed working for one of the transport companies. That explained how he had a huge trailer with him.

Namjoon leaned back in the chair, "I am pretty impressed by how you tried to kill his majesty. Where did you find that courage?"

The man scoffed, "It is easy. When you have such a shitty king."

Namjoon leaned forward and held the man's face between his finger and thumb, "People like you don't deserve a king like him. Who made you do this?"

The man spat blood on Namjoon's face and proceeded to laugh, "I won't tell you even if you kill me. Do whatever you can."

The guards around Namjoon gasped and all of them pointed their guns at the man. Namjoon raised a hand and everyone went back to their position. Namjoon wiped his face with a handkerchief. He took a little knife from the tray and stepped behind the man. He pulled the man's hair to make him look up. He put the knife to his throat, "Do you know if I cut this vein, you will bleed out in 2 hours." He changed the position to another vein, "And this will take you 8 hours. Which one is it?" There was an irritating scream from the man, but Namjoon cared less. He leaned to the man's ears, "I am giving you 24 hours. Tell us who made you do this. If you don't, then I promise that every cell in your body will beg for you to be dead."

A shiver ran down the man's spine and Namjoon felt it. He smirked, "I hope you have a little brain to think this through." saying this he left the hair with a jerk. He turned to Taehyung, "Don't feed him. Don't give him a drop of water till he confesses. Let's see how fast he breaks." He took one long look at the man bound on the chair before leaving the dungeon.

~

The footsteps on the snow were a little louder than he would have liked. Though the forest was dense, he didn't want anyone to find him there. The trees were covered with snow and there was barely any sunlight coming in even when it was 1 in the afternoon. The surroundings were so silent that he could hear his heartbeat. The cold smoke coming out of his mouth became denser as he went further. His eyes started to water as a strong gust of wind blew right into his face. His grunt echoed in the forest for a good time.

"You are here..."

He stopped right there. "Was it you?"

The man laughed loudly. The laughter echoed in the forest as well. "If it was me, he would have died by now. I don't like attacking like a coward. You should know that by now."

He sighed and turned back, "Sure. What about the army that you are collecting?"

The man hummed, "I think I will need another year to dethrone the king."

"You have already taken up 10 years, appa!" He sounded irritated as he almost yelled back at his father.

"Exactly." The man chuckled, "You have waited 10 years. Just wait one more year." The man looked at the tree above him, all covered in snow, "How is Namjoon treating you?"

"He is good." He calmed down a little, "He is thoughtful and kinder than the king. He knows who I am and still treats me with the utmost respect."

The man breathed out of his mouth, "I know, the prince is gentle. I feel bad for him. But the throne was always mine. And I will get back my throne! No matter what. For me, for you. For Yangsang."

He nodded and bowed to the man, "Take care, appa. Don't get caught."

The man laughed a little, "You too, Taehyung-ah. Don't get caught. The king is far crueller than you know."

Taehyung chuckled, "I know. I have seen it, appa. I will be careful. See you later, then."

He walked past his father and started walking out of the forest. This time, he wasn't worried about his footsteps being heard. The way back to the palace was long but he didn't mind walking all the way there. It gave him a sense of calmness. A break from his duties and fake honour. He looked at the flag that was on the palace. The dragon that was on the flag was supposed to keep them all safe. But what happened to him and his family was just the opposite. No one in the kingdom knew about the unfair ways of the king. No one knew how insulted he felt while working for the royals. No matter what he did, he always felt like he was betraying his mother for working there. He looked at the sky with tears in his eyes.

"Just one year, eomma." A single tear fell from his eye, "I will avenge you. I promise."

As he entered the palace grounds, all the guards started bowing to him. He quickly turned to his room but stopped when he saw Namjoon. No matter how much he hated it, Namjoon was the crowned prince. Someone he would have to fight in the future. He wished Namjoon would leave the king and join forces with him. Namjoon was the only person he genuinely respected out of the entire palace. He bowed to Namjoon as Namjoon came to him.

"Ah, Taehyung-ah. Do you know who attacked abeoji?" Namjoon raised his eyebrows.

Taehyung shook his head, "We are searching for the culprit, your highness."

Namjoon hummed, "How is he doing?"

Taehyung's eyes went wide. He looked away, "I don't know who you are talking about."

Namjoon chuckled, "I am not as clueless as you think, Taehyung-ah. Do you know why I keep you here even after knowing who you are? Because I know what happened was wrong. But I can not leave my duties."

Taehyung gulped a little, "I understand, your highness."

"Was it him?" Namjoon asked directly.

Taehyung looked at Namjoon, "No."

Namjoon sighed and nodded, "Fine. I will trust you on that. You can go now."

Taehyung bowed to him and started to walk toward his room. Namjoon sighed and called Hoseok, "Keep an eye on Taehyung for the coming week. Don't let him meet his majesty alone." As he got confirmation, he cut the call. He did trust Taehyung, but he wanted to be sure. He can't lose the king just now. Not now.

After completing all the work, he finally went back to his room. It was already 1 in the night. He was really tired of everything. And on top of that, he didn't know what to do with Seokjin. Should he call Jimin? Naah, Jimin will tell Yoongi and that will just turn into a huge problem. Nothing was really working out for him. He didn't know when everything would be complete and when he would be able to live peacefully.