"I live for the dream that my children will be born free," the princess breathes. "That they will be whoever they want to be, and that they'll never ever have to carry a sword wherever they go."
"I live for you," Jeongguk answers. Simply because, he...
Before you start, I just want to say that there's a lot of things going on in this chapter. I can't count how many times I had a headache while writing this but I'm proud of how my baby came out! As usual, enjoy this one, loves.
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"THIS WAY."
A soldier leads him through the pathway aligned with trees that eventually thins out to a wide, open valley. Enormous tents are set up on the vast greenery located in the middle of the woods.
This specific forest is privately owned and protected by the royal family. And it is also one of the biggest forests in the entire kingdom of Elios.
Jeongguk eyes the large number of nobles' escorts with strong builds and fierce expressions, inhaling deeply as he passes them and trying hard to ignore the stares thrown his way. The soldier escorting him leads him to the one of the bigger tents in the middle, using a hand to lift up the flap at the entrance before gesturing for Jeongguk to enter.
As soon as Jeongguk steps foot into the tent, he scans the area until someone grabs ahold of his arm from his side.
"Boo! Shucks, thought I could scare you," Jimin groans, pouting in disappointment when Jeongguk doesn't even move an inch.
"Oh, uh... gah!" Jeongguk jumps back in an exaggerated manner, feigning surprise.
Jimin just looks unamused. "Don't bother. You're shit at acting anyway, but I appreciate the effort. Where were you all day?"
"I was collecting a bow at the armoury and some soldier came to me saying that it was really urgent so I thought something happened."
"Nothing happened, I've just been meaning to find you all day but you've been running around and I don't have the time and energy for that so I got one of the guys to go find you for me," Jimin grins, patting Jeongguk's arm. "Also, my father wanted to meet you but he's not really into hunting so we won't get to see him until after this is over. He sends his regards by the way."
Jeongguk nods.
"Anyway, what do you think about teaming up with us? You know, for the hunt."
"Teaming up?" Jeongguk repeats, confused. He hasn't heard of the details of the Hunt before, so he has no idea how the game is to be played. It sure looks and sounds grand though, judging by how most of the participants will comprise of people from all over the five kingdoms.
