The Makings Of a Prince | Changlix

| VII |

As a prince living under his father, Yongbok didn't expect to live very long. He expected that an assassin would come for him eventually (maybe to exact revenge on the king or for some other reason, Yongbok didn't know). Or maybe he would grow old within the confines of the palace, living miserably so. Or maybe his people would overthrow him for being such a horrible monarch.

Either way, the monarchy already planned every moment out for Lee Yongbok. There were only brief moments of freedom he could have.

However, what he didn't expect was to wake up with a sword pointed at his face.

He tries to reach for his own, but his hands were free of anything—they were bound, actually, behind him as he glances around.

At first, Yongbok thought this was Changbin's doing. He could totally see the farmer betraying him like this. After all the rebuttals the two have gotten into, it only surprised Yongbok at how long it took Changbin to snap.

But glancing at his side... Nevermind, Changbin was tied right beside him.

"Yah! Yah!" Yongbok exclaims when the group of bandits ravage through his belongings, ignoring his yells and profanities. No, Yongbok had nothing special or expensive on hand. He knew better than to bring even a minuscule fraction of the palace, so he kept it a minimum, except for the money he brought along for supplies.

But still! It was quite rude for people to go through others' things without consent.

"Shut up, will you!" One of them barks back, Yongbok scoffing at him and turning to Changbin, who shrugs.

"I'm just a simple farmer, what more can I do?" he asks, nonchalantly. It bothered Yongbok how Changbin wasn't bothered by this situation at all. They were bandits, for crying out loud! Just parasites that steal off of people who work!

"Yah! Put that back! Yah!" Yongbok yells when the bandits throw the sheets of Yongbok's report to the river, damaging the articles to unreadable messes as the water ravaged them. Well, there goes his only responsibility.

"Hey!" Yongbok groans as he scrambles to his feet, swinging his leg and kicking the bandit closest to them. Before the man could recuperate, Yongbok kicked his head into the dirt, stumbling back when another bandit tries to lunge for him. Yongbok glances at Changbin, who shrugs at him, before breaking out into a sprint, the other bandits chasing after him with swords and sticks.

"Seo Changbin!" Yongbok shrieks, turning a corner around a fallen tree, jumping over it to continue running. Yongbok had never been so grateful about running his entire life—running from his responsibilities, the handmaids, the scholars. It's trained him to this day. But when Changbin didn't answer his pleas for help, he thought that maybe he had to take this into his own hands—as much as he can with them bound behind his back. And it's not like he could run forever!

"Seo Changbin!" Yongbok cries again, running back to their campsite. But the farmer was nowhere in sight. "Help me!!"

Yongbok stumbles over his feet, catching himself before he hit the dirt. Even though the bandit was right as his tail last time he saw, he jumps at the sound of swords clashing, scrambling away. He turns to see Changbin—that good-for-nothing farmer who only stepped in now that he got his fill of entertainment, fighting back with the bandits, swords clashing. There two against him, though despite the unfairness of the fight, Changbin continued to hold up his own.

Of course, Yongbok couldn't do much but stand and stare. He, after all, still had his wrists bound behind him.

"Changbin! Behind you!" Yongbok calls out, the farmer noting the younger's warning and ducking under a sword before it could contact his back. He swipes his sword at a bandit's legs, successfully slashing his knees as he cries out in pain and falls backward.