DragonHeart | Minsung

V

"Where do you think you're going alone?"

Jisung couldn't fully see the man's face. It was dark, and on top of that, his face was partially covered by the hood on his black cloak. He didn't recognise his voice right away either, so he wasn't sure if it was someone that he knew or not.

His mind raced. He should have come up with what he'd say to if he got caught earlier, but he had stupidly not thought of that when he was preparing to leave.

"I'm...I just wanted to go for a ride tonight...to clear my head, ya know?" He tried to come up with an excuse that was believable.

The man scoffed. "We both know that's not true."

Jisung tried to stick to his story. "I don't know what you're talking about."

The man continued, "..and we both know you won't stand a chance out there on your own."

Jisung knew there was some truth in his words, but he wasn't about to let this strange man take a hit at his abilities like that. "And what's that supposed to mean? Do I even know you?"

The other man chuckled. "Listen...I won't go running back to the castle to alert them that you've snuck off, and I'll tag along with you to protect you if you need it. A thousand crown and I'm all yours."

Jisung didn't have much time to think about it. If they stood there for much longer they'd likely be spotted by someone else. "Okay fine." He impulsively agreed. 

"Hurry up, we'll get caught if we stay here for much longer." Jisung growled, growing even more anxious and frustrated.

The man in the black cloak nodded. "Yeah, yeah." He said, clicking his tongue to have his horse move out of Jisung's way.

Jisung quickly guided Bbama around the other's horse, and continued towards the gate to leave. The stranger followed close behind.

Once they got to the gate, Jisung could see that the guard was asleep. As he usually would be.

Jisung turned to him, putting his finger up to his mouth to let him know that he needed to be quiet. "He's sleeping." He whispered.

They both slowed to a walk, knowing that the horse's hooves clanging on the stones below them would wake the guard up if they didn't move past him carefully.

They walked past the guard without difficulty. He was clearly a deep sleeper, or maybe he was just very tired, but he didn't stir once.

They continued along quietly until they were at a comfortable distance from the gate. Jisung finally lit the lantern that he brought along. They needed light, and it would no longer bring unwanted attention.

They weren't out of the woods yet. Incheon's  territory stretched on for quite some more time, but they were less likely to be caught now that they were out of the kingdom walls.

————

Jisung was clearly determined to get as far away from the castle as he could. However, they had reached forest, and it was extremely dark. Their lanterns didn't allow them much visibility.

"Jisung, we should stop and rest."

Jisung.

His parents and close friends were the only people that called him by his actual name. Everyone else referred to him as "Prince," "Sir," "Your Highness."

He pulled Bbama to a stop and turned back to face the man. He was taken aback, not sure if he should take it as a sign of disrespect. "How do you know my name?"

The man had a confused expression painted on his face. "You're a Prince, how would I not know your name?"

Jisung let out an embarrassed chuckle. "Yeah, fair enough...let's stop."

The two went deeper into the woods, off of the path. There they would be less likely to be spotted by anyone travelling by.

They both dismounted from their horses. Jisung knew how uncomfortable bits could be, so he replaced it with a halter before hitching Bbama to a branch.

Jisung rummaged through his belongings. He took out his small tent, bedroll, and blanket. He struggled to set up the tent. It was dark, and honestly, he had never done it before. By the time he was finished, the other man had already gotten a fire going. He had also created a ring of sticks around their settlement, so they'd be alarmed if someone or something came too close.

Jisung rolled out his bedroll and placed his blanket on it, finishing setting up his sleeping arrangements.

He walked back over to Bbama, reaching into another bag to grab some bread and dried meat. He then sat beside the fire.

"Do you want some?" He asked, reaching out his hand to offer the man some food.

He looked hesitant, but took a piece of bread from the prince's hands. "Thanks." He mumbled.

They sat in silence once again, just eating their food and warming themselves up by the fire.

"So if I'm going to help you, I need to know where you're going and why."

Jisung could finally get a good glimpse of the man's face now that he had removed the hood off of his head. The fire illuminated his face enough that he could see his soft features and brown hair more clearly.

"I'm going to Gimpo...to get my mother." Jisung replied.

"Gimpo, really?" He asked, confusion painted on his face. "You know that's dragon territory, right? Why is your mother there?"

Jisung nodded. "I'm well aware of the those fucking traitors. They took her."

"And you thought you'd be able to go there and fight dragons...alone?"

"Whatever. Do you want to get paid or not?"

The man rolled his eyes. "Fine, I get it."

The two eventually settled on their own beds. They left the fire burning, it would eventually go out on its own while they slept.

It wasn't comfortable, but it was something that he'd have to get used to.

Jisung was about to fall asleep, but his mind wandered, and he realised that he hadn't learned the name of the mysterious man.

Hs sat up and peaked his head out of his small tent. "I..uh..what's your name?"

The man, who had been looking up at the stars. turned his head to look in his direction once he heard the question.

"Minho...Lee Minho."

Jisung nodded and settled back under his blanket. "Goodnight, Minho."