King: of The Forest And The Land (COMPLETED)

The Sleeping Handsome in The Woods

"Why is he not moving?"

"What happened to his wings?"

"What have you done to him, Rosie?"

She covered her ears, but she could still hear them.

"Guys, please don't question her anything. She doesn't know anything.", Whisper told the monkeys.

"Oh, yeah, and you do, witchy bird?", one of the monkeys responded.

Whisper sighed, "You can blame me. I told you already."

Roseanne slowly removed her hands, looking curiously at Whisper.

"Whisper, what are you talking about?", she asked, almost begging as she had not yet gotten any answer from the messenger bird. "Can you tell me what is happening?"

With a regretful voice, Whisper replied, "Have Caladrius ever told you about his origin?"

She shook her head.

"Let's go...while I tell you about it.", Whisper said, turning around to fly as it was not strong enough to see Roseanne's face to the story that would be revealed.

With curiosity filling her mind, she told her horses to move, following Whisper's lead to the tree castle.

"It happened a hundred and eighteenth years ago in a magical kingdom called Heavenville. Caladrius no- Jeon Jungkook..."

Whisper told Roseanne the unfortunate incident involving the Prince of Heavenville, a kingdom that no longer existed due to the vanishing of the royal family that ruled the kingdom. She was also revealed to the origin of Caladrius' name, which was taken from the legendary bird that had the ability to absorb sickness from those it laid eyes on. Jungkook chose to use that name after his curse took place, and it forced him to accept his new life in the forest a century ago.

"Since he left the forest, I have to stay here taking care of it on his behalf, but as you can see, as you got deeper, this forest doesn't look the same anymore."

Hearing that, Roseanne observed her surroundings. At that moment, she realized that they had reached the tree castle. However, the sturdy and cosy home of the forest's guardian did not look the same anymore.

The tree castle, once a magnificent structure nestled among the branches, now stood haunted by an ominous transformation. Its charming allure twisted into a foreboding sight, with thorns snaking around its sturdy trunk, ensnaring the once welcoming entrance. The stairs, once a graceful ascent to adventure, now lay in disarray—broken and splintered, a hazardous path leading to peril rather than wonder. Above, the once-sturdy roof that provided a canopy of security, now hung precariously, pieces of wood splintering and crashing down in a chaotic symphony. The beautiful abode now bore an aura of desolation, a stark contrast to its former enchanting presence.

"My god, Whisper, what happened here?!", Roseanne jumped down from the horse, walking closer to the tree castle to inspect it.

"It's the price he had to pay.", Whisper told her. "At first, I didn't know it would be like this, but...that's what a Caladrius would do. They take in our sickness and should fly away to cure us, but he...he stayed with us, and once he left...it all turned back to us.", Whisper explained.

Quietly, Roseanne began to cry, witnessing the ominous scene around her.

"Could this be because he helped my kingdom?", she asked, slightly feeling guilty for taking what was precious in the enchanted forest.

Whisper could not give an answer to the question. In the silence, Roseanne turned around to see the bird and went on to ask it, "Whisper..how- how did you know so much about this? About Cal's origin? How?"