Honor and Glory | ATEEZ

027

It was almost unbearably hot inside the temple but I was too distracted by the beautiful symbols and images that had been cut into the stone of the columns to let it bother me.

That, and being a fire elemental, of course.

Mingi was complaining more loudly than the others.

But with a quick snap of his fingers, he ended up creating his own personal breeze that could follow him along as we moved through the temple, his purple eyes glowing excitedly.

Just like Hongjoong's tent, the temple had been decorated with numerous shades of coloured glass, both as mosaics in the windows, and in the shape of statues and vases that lined the path toward the center.

When the sun's rays hit them, a series of colourful lights covered the walls and columns surrounding them with every colour of the rainbow.

The light elemental was trudging a lot a little further back than everyone else, clearly not satisfied with the situation that he had been put in.

I fully understood him, though, looking regretfully at the beautiful temple that stretched out in front of me.

If the Citrine of Solas really was the source to the light within the city of District 6, then what we were currently about to do was going against everything the man stood for.

But, of course, it is difficult to oppose a member of the Royal Family when they give you a direct order.

I felt a wave of guilt wash over me, and I slowed down a little as we walked, waiting until we were side by side.

"Hey," I mumbled, unsure of how to start the conversation.

"Your majesty," Hongjoong answered, though he didn't really seem to be in the mood to talk.

"I really hate it when people call me that," I muttered, feeling a little sad that he had opted to use my title instead of my name like he had done earlier.

"Why?" Hongjoong asked, finally looking up from the floor to meet my eyes.

"Isn't it the entire point of being royal to be recognized by your people?"

I shook my head, "I've lived my entire life in secret, hidden away from the public eye behind the solid stone walls of the palace, unknown to those people." I hesitated for a moment, but I realized that I might as well keep going.

"I'm not sure if I liked it better that way. After all, people still don't know who I really am. That man in the marketplace, for example."

"But there were definitely less evil villains barging through the doors of the palace back then, much less fleeing for your life. I guess that was quite nice."

"I see," Hongjoong said, his golden eyes flashing brightly.

"I guess I'll just stick to Kang y/n, then."

"Yes please," I said, letting out a breath of relief. At least this was progress.

"That would be very much appreciated."

A short moment of silence passed between us, but I couldn't ignore the fact that Hongjoong was obviously still troubled about the whole situation.

In a way, his current situation was a lot like San's had been, except that the Temple of Ice hadn't done much when it crumbled other than creating the worst avalanche I had ever experienced, and the first one, at that.

At least it hadn't made all of the ice in District 8 disappear as it went down.

"You'll get it back, I promise," I said, nudging Hongjoong softly with my elbow, "You have my word."