"King Seokjin, with all due respect, I don't believe you when you say that Min Yoongi ran away. But, I do not have proof to take back to my people, so for now, I'll debrief you on the protocol," she started. "If, within a week or two, Min Yoongi does not return, I will be taking the role of being the leader."
"And if he returns after you become leader?" I asked. "He is my mate, he's bound to come back."
"If it's not in a week or two, then we have no choice but to follow protocol," she said.
"That doesn't answer my question," I said. "What if he returns after a month? Would he be forced to become the leader when he clearly does not want to?"
"How do you know he doesn't want to?" she asked. I was sure that if Nighter was here, he would have snorted at her stupidity.
"Well, first off, he ran away from the South three years ago because he knew he was going to become leader when he turned of age. Second, he ran away when his mother personally arrived at the palace to 'collect' him. So I am very confident that he didn't want to be the leader," I said. "Why don't you answer the question?"
"Seeing how reluctant he is about being leader, it is obvious that he wouldn't be efficient. So either we kill him off when he comes back, or we just leave him be," she replied.
"What would it take for you to leave him alone?" I asked, ready to strike a deal for Yoongi's safety.
"Resources," she said. "And we want full control over the cemetery."
"Resources, we can discuss. Cemetery is not an option," I rebutted.
"Fair enough," she sighed out. "I want armory. Now I know it's skeptical of me to ask for weapons, but keep in mind that the Southerners stick to the rules. We can keep the peace treaty between the two lands, as long as you give us some weapons."
"Why would you need weapons if there's peace between the countries?" I asked.
"We're not stupid, your majesty. We have been aware for a while now of the merpeople. We need the weapons to defend ourselves," she said. Panic rose in me at the revelation of the extent of their knowledge.
"Everything alright? Should I come?" I heard Jimin ask through the mindlink. I sent him a quick message of negation, all-the-while maintaining the unreadable façade I had been trained to keep.
"Well I'll need you to clarify, because I am not aware of the merpeople," I said, positioning my body to make it seem as if I was intrigued and shocked.
"We know about your connection to Serek, if you don't want the news to reach your citizens, it's best that you stop playing dumb," she warned. "That's the first place we'll be looking to find Min Yoongi."
"Well I doubt he's going to be there," I said, partially caving in. "He knows we would search for him there."
"Yes, but he doesn't know that we would be searching there as well," she said.
"That is true," I said. "We are in the process of forming an alliance with Serek. Since you are considered a part of Hitzor, but with an independent leader monarchy, then you should be safe as well. Why would you need weapons if the safety is guaranteed by the alliance?"
"You never know. Not all of us have superpowers to defend ourselves, " she replied. "This can be negotiable if they're willing to sign an alliance with us as well. The South and North did just go to war, the North having an alliance with another country will be problematic for us."
"I'll see if I can get them to form an alliance with you," I said. "Is there any other alternative?"
"We need clothing and food. It's getting colder, and we don't have enough resources to keep warm," she said.
"I'll arrange that," I said. "Food and clothing and a meeting with Serek's leaders in return for Min Yoongi's freedom. Is that the deal?"
"Yes," she replied. "Print a contract?"
"Follow protocol," I said. "There's a camera with a microphone in this room that records conversation. Only I have access to it... For future reference."
"Fair enough. If you could get the contract, we could sign it," she said.
-
"Get Yoongi out of Serek," I said, barging into the dining room. "Right now. Get him out of there. They know about Serek, they're going to find him."
"How long have they known?" Namjoon asked.
"A long time apparently," I said, slumping down in my seat at the head of the table.
"We need to get Yoongi and Nighter out of there now," Taehyung said, his mouth full of food and panic.
"On it," Jimin said.
"If they've known about Serek for a while," Namjoon started. "They're probably already there."
(I know a lot of people expected the Southerners to be greedy or propose an impossible deal. Just wanted to put it out there that they're still just part of a region.
Also keep in mind that they're very unproblematic. More in comparison to the North.)