With a heavy heart, Dohyun accepted his fate and stepped out of the court. His boots hit the stone path with a heaviness that matched the weight inside his chest. A short distance ahead, two familiar silhouettes waited: both dressed in light blue robes beneath their white uniforms. Their hair was tied neatly into buns… well, almost neatly.

One of them had bangs sticking out in every direction. This was Lee Minho.

And the calmer one beside him was Joo Kangwon.

Who else would wait for him on a day he needed comfort? Even in his misery, a faint warmth filled Dohyun's chest as he strode toward them and wrapped his arms over both their shoulders. The unexpected weight made the two jolt upright.

"You're here already?" Minho asked, his messy bangs flopping into an eye from the sudden movement.

"Yeah, that was quick," Kang added.

"Sir Ahn came by," Dohyun sighed. "You know how he works."

"So? Did you…?" Kang leaned forward with an expression that suggested he was the one competing for the role.

"Of course."

"WHAT? Wait, but you don't look happy…?" Minho muttered, squinting up at Dohyun as if trying to read the disappointment hidden in his blank expression.

"I'm a royal guard… for the princess."

"WHAT?!"

Their voices echoed off the courtyard walls as the two practically leapt in joy. They danced around him like festival drummers, until they noticed Dohyun wasn't moving a muscle. Their excitement died instantly.

Kang coughed. "…You're lucky to be serving the Princess."

"Right! She's the most beautiful in the entire Hwachon Empire!" Minho said, nose flaring with dramatic reverence. "I only saw her veiled once… once! Even with the veil, her beauty could be felt."

"Her chambers are special too," Kang added. "They say the Princess's residence lives up to Hwachon's name - the State of Flowers."

Minho clasped his hands dreamily. "She must smell like flowers as well…"

Dohyun exhaled long and deep. This reaction was expected. They always spoke of the princess as if she were the sun rising over Hwachon. He never joined in because, to him, the princess was irrelevant.… Until now.

"I heard the Princess only takes female maids and female guards," Dohyun muttered. "I'll be the only man there. Why appoint me at all?"

"Hey," Kang tapped his chin thoughtfully, "appointed or not, the prince decides the positions. He decides for the Princess, too. Though she manages the southern province, everything from maids, guards, food, and schedules ultimately goes through him. So if he said a male guard should be assigned to her, she can't really object."

"What…?"

That didn't sit right with Dohyun. A princess with her own province to rule should at least have authority over herself. Why would the prince control even her personal attendants? It sounded less like a royal sibling relationship and more like…

A puppeteer and his puppet.

He dismissed the thought.

Then Minho leaned closer, lowering his voice conspiratorially. "There are rumors that the prince secretly loves the princess."

"What? They're siblings!" Dohyun nearly jumped. His stomach twisted at the grotesque implication.

"They aren't related by blood," Kang said seriously. "Or so the rumors say. When the second queen ascended the throne, she already had a child. That child became the Princess. The queen had been a commoner, and no one knows who the father is. Some say she used to be a courtesan. The king accepted the child anyway, but it was the prince who gave the princess a formal status in the royal court."

"Her position exists because of him. People say he cares for her so much that no one would be surprised if they married one day."

"I'm rooting for the two of them," Kang nodded solemnly.

Dohyun, speechless, blinked at both of them. He had heard vague whispers over the years, but they never concerned him enough to listen. But now… the princess was no longer someone distant. He would be serving her.

"Hey, Dohyun," Minho leaned in again, eyes narrowing with seriousness, "If you ever see her without her veil…"

He towered over Dohyun as if issuing a sacred order.

"You must describe her face to us. Every. Detail."

"Uh… okay…"

"Speaking of which...I don't see that annoying senior today," Kang pointed.

.....

It was nearly dusk. The sky glowed in a soft gradient - yellow melting into orange, orange caressing the edges of pale clouds that stretched across the heavens like the feathers of a dove. The world looked as if it were slowly exhaling, preparing to fall into the night.

The ride to the Princess's chambers was quieter than Dohyun expected. Much quieter. The silence felt almost sacred. They were travelling from the Prince's northern estate, where discipline was strict, and the air itself felt sharp, to the Princess's southern territory.

As the carriage wheels thudded over wooden planks and stone paths, Dohyun leaned slightly toward the window. One glance was enough to see the difference.

The northern domain was rigid: guards patrolling, banners aligned perfectly, the roads swept to near perfection.

But the southern province…

The air felt warmer and softer - as if it remembered laughter, as if the earth itself carried nostalgia. Flowering trees grew freely on both sides of the road, their petals scattering like tiny lanterns drifting in the forming dusk. Children ran between garden walls, their laughter fading as the carriage passed. The scent of blossoms lingered everywhere.

Kang and Minho, who had insisted on accompanying him just for the chance to see the Flower Palace once in their lifetime, had long since fallen asleep. Both were slumped against each other, mouths slightly open, snoring softly with every bump of the carriage. It made Dohyun sigh in disbelief.

As they approached the chambers, the carriage finally slowed and then came to a halt. Dohyun peeked outside to see if they had reached their destination.

His stormy, greyish-black eyes caught the glow of the orange sky, a faint shiver crawling over his skin.

What stood before him was beyond anything he could have imagined.