He pretended not to hear and quickened his pace until a heavy weight slammed onto his shoulder. Fingers curled into his uniform and yanked him back. A hulking shadow swallowed him whole.

Dohyun looked up into a brown face split with a jagged-toothed grin, like a wolf finding its favorite prey. The man's eyes were dark -- like polished blackwood, cold and unfeeling.

"Where d'you think yer running off to?" Goram smirked.

Dohyun swallowed his urge to punch that face straight into the lily pond.

"Oh… Senior!" He forced a smile so stiff it hurt. "Forgive me. I didn't notice you at all- such an unexpected meeting, haha…"

"Ye think ye can fool me, brat?" Goram leaned closer. "I know ye saw me and tried runnin' away without greetin' yer senior."

He held a red box against his chest -- ornate, gold imprints gleaming. A royal gift box. Behind him stood a small mountain of wooden crates.

"See all this?" Goram puffed up. "The Prince personally assigned me t'deliver these. A gift for the Princess."

He jerked his thumb toward the crates. "And that? Her food for a whole month. Why d'ye think I was chosen for these god-chosen tasks?"

Dohyun had no interest in the man's delusions. He averted his gaze, replying flatly, "Why, senior?"

Goram ignored Dohyun's clear disinterest and puffed up even more.

"I believe I'll be chosen as the next Royal Guard of the Prince. Unlike ye."

Silence. Dohyun refused to dignify that with a response.

Goram clicked his tongue and sneered.

"Well, ye wouldn't be chosen anyway. Yer the son of a traitor. And yer mother? hah! just some lowly bitch who ruined yer father's life."

Something inside Dohyun snapped.

He didn't mind insults aimed at him, but his parents was something he could not overlook.

He straightened, a cold smirk curling his lips.

"Well, well," Dohyun said softly, "if it isn't a senior using playground insults to provoke his junior."

He leaned in just enough to let Goram see the disdain in his eyes.

"It is shameful that someone like you holds a senior title. My pride must have sensed it ahead of time, no wonder it refused to let me greet you at all."

It was as though boiling water had reached its final, furious peak.

The surface trembled, then burst.

Goram's fist shot forward and crashed into Dohyun's face.

A clean, merciless hit.

Dohyun staggered backward, vision jerking, and collapsed onto the ground. A warm wetness slid from his nose. He touched it; scarlet streaked his fingers.

Not enough.

He forced the pain down. He needed this.

He lifted his head, fury burning in his gaze.

Goram, unable to endure a shred of disrespect, snarled and drove his foot straight into Dohyun's chest. Again. And again. His heavy boots slammed into Dohyun's ribs, stomping with the weight of ego and cruelty.

Dohyun gritted his teeth. He held it in. This was exactly the opportunity he had been waiting for.

He curled his fist tighter.

Endure. Let him take the fall.

But before the next hit could fall-

"What is this unsightly commotion?"

A voice smooth and clear, neither fully male nor female, cut through the courtyard like silk drawn over steel.

"You dare to disrespect my chambers like this?"

Dohyun blinked through half-open eyes.

An...Angel?

Had he died? Was this the threshold of heaven?

No.

Before him stood the ethereal Princess of Hwachon, the one and only Flower Princess.

Radiant skin pale as first snow, cheeks tinted with a dusting of petal-pink, and lips a natural rose hue. But most striking were the cognac eyes-- reddish-brown, warm and intoxicating, reflecting the sunset's orange glow as though the sky itself had fallen drunk under this person's beauty.

Long, silken hair flowed behind the Princess like liquid gold, shimmering beneath the fading sun. And the cream-gold robe draped over that slender frame only made the complexion glow even more.

"P-Princess!" Goram jolted into a bow.

"Forgive my impudence! I was merely teaching my junior proper manners- his disrespect and misbehavior-"

Miye didn't spare him a glance.

Those cognac eyes rested instead on the boy coughing on the ground.

"Stand. Up."

The command, soft yet absolute, made Dohyun rise at once, even as his legs trembled. He straightened, placing his hands behind his back, and stood at attention.

In the Princess's gaze, he was a striking sight:

A well-built youth with peach-tinted skin bronzed by sunlight, a defined jaw, thick brows, and grey-black eyes like a misty dusk-- eyes filled with stubborn resolve. Dust only sharpened the lines of his face. His lips, now scratched and bleeding, showed no hint of weakness.

Miye found himself pausing, caught off guard.

What a… presence.

"Who are you?" Miye asked, ignoring the ragged, hulking man kneeling beside him.

"I'm Lee Garom!" Goram burst out. "Senior to this dishonored boy. Please forgive us for causing a scene, Milady--"

"The Princess did not ask you," a firm voice cut in.

A tall woman stepped from behind Miye. Lean but lithe, clad in a maroon uniform and bearing a sword at her hip, she radiated authority. Her hair was short, tied back under a brown headband.

Miye's only Royal Guard, Shin Haerin.

In a low voice, she whispered, "Milady, that boy is the son of Han Dojin. He served the king twenty-one years ago before rumors claimed he betrayed the kingdom. The boy's name should be… Dohyun."

Miye's eyes returned to him.

"You there. Explain."

Dohyun bowed deeply.

"Forgive me, Princess, for letting you witness such an improper sight on our first meeting. I was appointed by the Prince to be your Royal Guard. My senior here confronted me for not greeting him. He insulted my parents, who lived with dignity. I replied in anger. Please forgive my impudence. I am prepared to accept any punishment you deem fit."

Miye looked at Goram. He looked ready to burst like an overripe fruit.

"Princess, yes, I picked on him, but only because he disrespected me first--"

"That is enough." Miye exhaled, "I will write to the Prince. Officials can resolve this."

For now, their eyes narrowed.

"Tell me why you both came here."

"Princess," Goram said quickly, offering the red chest, "I am delivering an important gift from His Highness, Prince Yugwon. He ordered that you must open it alone and only alone."

Miye took the box. A strange shiver, cold and sharp, ran up his spine.

What could Yugwon possibly…

He raised a hand. Haerin stepped back immediately.

Miye opened the chest.

A wave of pain, dark and suffocating, crushed straight into his heart.

He slammed the lid shut. His fingers trembled.

"Haerin," Miye said, voice suddenly hollow, "write a dismissal order for Lee Garom. I do not tolerate men with superiority complexes in my chambers."

"M-Milady? But I--"

"Do not object to the Princess," Haerin snapped, stepping forward.

Goram's face twisted. "Princess! It wasn't my fault-- this brat twisted everything in his favor-"

"I did not twist anything, senior," Dohyun replied calmly, "I already stated I will accept any punishment if proven guilty."

"Fuck-" Goram cursed, but a sword pressed cold against his throat.

Haerin's eyes narrowed, "Enough. Leave before you worsen your fate, Lee Garom."

Jaw clenched, pride shattered, Goram stormed away.

"...."

Miye looked at Dohyun. His expression was unreadable.

Then quietly, the Princess spoke:

"I do not need you. You may leave."