"Jeon Jeongguk," Jeongguk said, puffing his chest up slightly. "The crown prince of Jeonseol."
"Huh," was all that the two tall men said in reply and it confused Jeongguk. He was sure the news of the war in his kingdom, the news of him successfully defeating his brother in the battle and the news of him getting crowned as the crown prince must have travelled everywhere. He was sure there wasn't anyone who didn't know his name. Especially not noblemen. So why this vague reaction?
"Yes," he answered nonetheless. He had been travelling, after all. He needed to know why he wasn't in the middle of the ocean out of the blue. "I have answered your query. Now you shall answer mine. What Kingdom is this?" he asked.
"Hanguk," the tallest man, who seemed somewhat sensible and polite among the three of them, said. "Namhan. NamJoseon."
Jeongguk lost his patience again. He had enough of these people. What were they taking him for? Did they think he was foolish enough to take whatever nonsense they spouted at him? He had always been the smarter one compared to his brother, and thus, he knew every single kingdom around his own.
Seeing as the people had similar features as himself, he knew this kingdom wasn't too far away from his own. So he also knew that there was no kingdom named 'Hanguk' or 'Namhan' or 'NamJoseon'. What Kingdom had so many names, anyway?
"I said don't play smart with me!!" he yelled, making the short man scoff and cross his arms at him. "You are in the future, mister!! That is what your kingdom is called in our times. If you don't like it, go back to your own times," he said, making strange gestures with his fingers when he said 'kingdom'.
Jeongguk didn't know why the man made such a comment so suddenly, but it had him frozen. He let his eyes fall on all the things around him, his mind going to a story his mother always told him and his brother whenever they were bored and wanted her to tell them a story.
"Once upon a time, four centuries ago, there used to be a great Prince named Seo Daeshin. He was great at fighting. There was no one who could defeat him. But he wasn't interested in ruling the kingdom. So he gave his kingdom up to his younger brother and went on a voyage to clear his mind and decide what he wanted to do with his life.
One night, when the ocean was violent and the journey was bumpy, he came out of his room on the ship to see the waves dance under the moonlight.
Instead of the waves dancing, however, he saw a beautiful maiden floating on the water at a distance. Her beauty matched none on earth. It put the moonlight to shame.
Her hair and gown flew around as she reached out for the Prince. "Come to me, my Prince," she whispered, but he heard her clearly as if she spoke right in his head.
And he became so mesmerized and drawn to her that without a second thought, he jumped into the raging waves underneath.
He tried his best to swim to her, but he only kept moving in circles with her staying just out of his reach.
She called for him earnestly, but the water around him only grew more intense and faster. It turned into a giant whirlpool and soon, he got sucked into the eye of the whirlpool.
When he opened his eyes, he was in a strange world. Everything was futuristic, people were using coins to trade necessities instead of trading other necessary items in exchange, their clothes were different, their words were different, and his kingdom's name changed...you are right. He came to our times. The magical maiden lured him here."
"But, Eomeonim," little curious Jeongguk asked the first time she told them the story, "where is he? Can I meet him? Can I go to the future as well if I go on a voyage?"
"Legend has it that he is still searching for the maiden and that no one knows what he looks like," his mother said with a gentle caress to his head and a fond smile. "When you become the King in the future, you can find him and talk to him and help him go back to his own kingdom."
"Why him, Eomeonim? I'll become the King and help the Prince instead," Jeongguk's brother said and Jeongguk only smiled. His brother would obviously make a better King than him.
Or so he thought.
His mother just laughed at the two of them and walked away.
As they grew up, both the childish story that was clearly told to pass the time and the childish belief that his brother would make a better King than him slipped his mind.
Until now, when all the futuristic things around him, the futuristic and light clothes people wore around him, and the futuristic weapons the attackers used earlier suddenly brought the story back to the forefront of his mind.
The story was highly fantastical, none of it making real sense, but no matter how hard he thought, he couldn't think of any other explanation for his current predicament.
Before he could think further, however, his eyes fell on the pretty little man talking all by himself without either of the other men in the room replying to him. Regardless of that, he was holding a little box-like thing to his ear and was carrying an entirely one-sided conversation all by himself.
Jeongguk's heart gave a small tug. 'Poor him,' his very helpful mind provided, 'he must not be in a right state of mind. That must explain his strange behaviour ever since I arrived here. It's alright, I shall forgive him for all the indecent words he has used against me along with his inappropriate behaviour. I must not hold grudges against people who are not mentally well. That is not what a good King would do.'
"And you called me a lunatic," he said instead.
He felt pity for the man, but he couldn't help but pull his leg slightly. He looked beautiful, after all. He looked about as beautiful as a little branch of a cherry blossom tree swaying against a light burst of breeze on the banks of a calm lake on a bright moon night.
And he felt as drawn to him as the great Prince Daeshin must have felt towards the magical maiden.
Was this man magical as well?
"What?" the man asked defensively and Jeongguk wanted to chuckle at him. He looked too adorable frowning at him with that little black box clutched tight against his chest.
"Nevermind, Mr...?" he asked instead.
The least he could do was find out what his name was.
"Kim," the man answered, his frown never leaving his face. Jeongguk felt this urge to tease him more. To make him frown more because that in turn would make the man pout. And that pout was what he supposed the man used to lure people into his trap.
What a cunning fox.
"I see. Let us come to an agreement, shall we? You seem to not be in the right state of mind, so I shall go easy on you. I can see why there are no young ladies around you."
He really expected the man to pout. He didn't expect him to start yelling at him instead. Nevertheless, he would have teased him further if not for the fact that the man said 'the entire country strives for me'.
What was that supposed to mean? The Kingdom's new name? But the other men already told him the kingdom's name was 'Hanguk, Namhan, NamJoseon'. He didn't understand why the Kingdom had so many names, but he supposed he could ask them later.
It was quite a struggle to get the beautiful, but unfortunately mad, man to keep quiet before he finally worded his deal to the two sensible men in the room.
"Lead me to your King and I shall not hold a grudge against you for the ill-treatment I've faced," he said. He didn't know what else he could offer them from his side when he wasn't even in his own times.
But he wasn't going to make the same mistake Prince Daeshin made. He was going to seek help from the current King, explain his current situation to him, and do whatever he could to get back home. He had a kingdom to rule, after all.
He analyzed his theory once again. He had gone on a voyage as well, there had been a storm the night he had drowned in the water as well, and he had been stuck in a whirlpool as well.
The woman who had informed him about the atrocity that was happening on the ship was with him, and he remembered grabbing her hand right before all of them fell into the water.
His eyes widened to the size of his pendant again as he suddenly shot to his feet.
Jeongyeon!!
The one and only person he could trust his life with!!
She had indeed tried to save his life on the ship, after all.
He rushed around to the giant bathing area from earlier, ignoring the calls of the three men behind him, in hopes to find his saviour.
He looked around, panicking when he didn't find her anywhere, and panicking even more when he found her lying unconscious at the bottom of the pool instead.
Without a second thought, he jumped into the bathing pool and brought her up, but he didn't know how to get back out.
Earlier, he had used his sword to get out of the bath area, but now his arms were full.
So for the second time that day, he looked at the beautiful man for help, only to find him unconscious in the arms of the short man, who looked like he had seen a ghost.