An Ode to Maehwa | kth

Chapter 6: The Junk Collector

Being a palace maid, having a job to do was a good thing, you thought.

You asked Jungkook to take you to the sacred tree the very next day of your arrival, hoping to get a hint on how to go back. But there was nothing. You hoped the golden circle would emerge from the ground, but it was silent.

It had been a week since you started living in the past. A week of vanishing without a trace? What would have Jimin thought? How worried will your parents be? With every day passing by, your fear of not being able to go back ever grew.

You needed something else to occupy your mind.

Jungkook coming around often also helped. He'd be chatting to you about random gossips going around in the city, or showing you how his junks worked. With no familiar person around, his existence made you feel at ease.

However, you'd think having a prince lurking around the servants' courtyard, the cuisine and etc would be odd, making them nervous, but that apparently wasn't the case for Jungkook.

They seemed to be too used to his existence, and worked practical as they usually do.

This Prince didn't really appear like one, and that was perhaps why you called him 'Jungkook' rather than 'Your Highness', as he insisted.

You were walking around the palace collecting the leaves that would be decorating the dinner plates, just as assigned by the cook. Jungkook was following you, explaining his junk of the day—wooden sandals that had turf on the surface which could make the one wearing it feel the green at its feet.

You gave him the 'I don't get it' look, but he didn't give up and explained how it was useful when he was confined in a study room for hours. A self-saving measure in which at least his feet could feel like they were outside.

Walking around, you reached an open field. On one end was a wide pedestal, and on the other, approximately 70 metres away were ten targets. Out of those, six of them were shot in the middle, and just then, the seventh arrow pierced the bull's eye.

"Slay!"

Jungkook blew a whistle.

You turned your head to the person standing on the pedestal; a young man in purple robe, preparing to draw an arrow again.

"Practicing?" you asked Jungkook.

"Yeah. We normally do, but I think it's also for the Martial Arts Tournament coming up soon."

"Tournament?"

"Yeah that's the name, but it's basically a festive event where our royal palace performs martial art skills."

The Martial Arts Tournament was what the royal palace held once a year. The royal guards and the Crown Princes were the participants, and would compete in sword fight and archery. The top scorer of both groups will be rewarded, and it was a highly anticipated event, also to the common people, as it was a rare occasion where they could step in the royal territory to watch the show.

What's more, there would also be music and dance to watch, free food and drinks offered. It was truly a festival.

"No one beats my hyung in archery," Jungkook said proudly, as his eyes beamed looking at Taehyung drawing a shot.

You glanced at the targets, and sure enough, you could see that all of them were pierced in the middle—actually, when you looked at it closely, you noticed that there were arrows that hit right at the middle, and some that hit an inch further from the middle. What was strange was that it happened alternately.

You shifted your eyes at Taehyung, and noticed, "is he shooting it with his right hand?"

By now you knew every royal member's dominant hand—that was one of the first things you had to remember as a palace maid, and you remembered Taehyung's was left.

"Ah, yes. He shoots better with the left, but he practices both," Jungkook explained.

No wonder the shots of his right were a little less precise, but nonetheless they were almost close to the middle and this result was nothing short of brilliant.

"Have you had enough staring at your brother?"

A low horrifying voice was heard from their back.