Minho pressed his head in a low bow before the altar, Yongbok at his side doing the same. On the third day they arrived, they were to perform many ancient rituals for the new prince to bless him with a long life and well-being and health.
Minho had placed his offering on the altar and then bowed deeply before backing up and taking Hei-ran from Changbin as Changbin moved forward to join Yongbok at the altar as well, placing his own offering next to Minho's.
"Are we done here?" Bang Chan asked as they stepped away to let more of the royal family give their offerings to the altar. "When do we head home?"
"Tomorrow," Minho murmured back, pulling Hei-ran's thumb from her mouth. "We can get going tonight, if you really want to leave."
Chan glanced at Yongbok and Changbin who were standing side by side whispering and staring at each other, before shaking his head. "Best not keep them apart too long. And best keep them together as long as possible."
Minho nodded and turned away, beginning to walk back towards the palace. "Chan... I have to ask a favor of you?"
Chan looked up. "What is it, Your Highness?"
"Can you watch Hei-ran for a day?" he murmured, looking down fondly at her small face. "I... need to go search for some answers."
"Of course," Chan narrowed his eyes. "But, may I ask what answers you are looking for?"
Minho sighed and shook his head. "Don't worry about that. It's not that important," he looked around, where the sun was rising over their heads. "I have to go. I'll be back past midnight, probably."
"Minho!" Chan cried. "You know there have been more Black Mask assassin attacks! It's not safe to be alone that late at night."
"I'll be fine," Minho whispered back, handing Hei-ran over to Chan and kissing her on the cheek. "Keep safe until I get back!" he whispered, rubbing her cheek, before he turned and walked back towards the main palace.
The stables were close and he was able to run and quickly get Cho before he slid a saddle and bridle over Cho's back and neck and leapt onto his back. "Let's get there as soon as we can," he muttered, before kicking Cho forward.
"Open the gates!" the guards called as they saw Cho charging out of the stables. The gates were thrown open quickly, just missing Cho as he managed to squeeze out. He took off over the hard ground, this time heading south, out of the forest and past the capitol.
He would have to ride half a day like this. He patted Cho's neck under him. He would also have to take a few breaks for Cho to make sure he didn't hurt himself. But he needed to get there fast.
Over the next few hours, Cho and Minho would stop every half and hour or so to rest and get water, before they would run as fast as the wind to get to Master Sang-hyun's neat estate which was in the more southern area of the Han Kingdom.
And when reached the area in which he and Jisung had been attacked when they first passed through, he smiled to himself as they ran by. He had injured his shoulder here defending Jisung's men, and even at their wedding, Minho had taken an arrow to his stomach for the young king. Why was it that Minho was always getting hurt for him?
As they continued to sprint towards the estate that they could now see in front of them, Cho's pace got faster and faster.
"Stop!" the guards in front of the house called as they arrived on the property. "Stop! Name your business here."
"I am Prince Lee Minho. I have to see Master Sang-hyun, quickly!"
"Prince Lee Minho? What is a Lee Prince doing here?" one of them snarled.
"Leave now, before we feed you to the crows!"
"You will do no such thing!" Master Sang-hyun rode up behind them on horseback. Even past his years of thick black hair, the old master was still one of the best horsemen around. He eyed Cho as Minho's horse stomped and pulled at the bridle. "That's one fine horse you have there, Your Highness," his eyes twinkled as he jumped off his horse, scaring the guards into a low bow.
"Oh, be gone with you!" he waved them away.
Minho jumped from Cho's back as well, landing next to Master Sang-hyun on the ground. "Master Sang-hyun... I'm sorry to arrive without notice. You see-"
"I know why you are here," Master Sang-hyun gave him a yellow smile, many of his teeth now missing in his old age. "But I'm afraid that you have come to the wrong person. You see..."
"I can't have!" Minho's eyes were desperate as they trained on Master Sang-hyun's face. "You're the last one! Master Kang won't tell me a thing, and neither will my brother! You're the last one."
"That's where you are wrong," Master Sang-hyun smiled at him again. "There is another who can, and will answer your questions when the time comes for you to go to him."
"What? Who?"
"That is another thing that I can not tell. You must wait and see for yourself."
"What? Master Sang-hyun, you have to help me. I ran all the way here in a manner of hours, and I-"
"I understand," Master Sang-hyun's voice lowered and he gripped Minho's shoulder. "I understand your hurt and your pain, and your confusion. I know that this must be hard for you. But I am not the one that will be able to help you with these. You see," he looked around his home where horses roamed the fields. "This is my life now. I'm in no place to be able to give you what you need."
"Then..." Minho's eyes turned. "Who can?"
The old master chuckled. "Take your horse with you. Let's get him some water."
"Master!"
"I have already told you," Master Sang-hyun chuckled. "That I can not tell you. My, my! You are persistent. When you are ready to know, he will come for you. Then you will know him."
"Who are you talking about?" Minho led Cho with him and ran to catch up.
"He is who he is. And he will show you," Master Sang-hyun walked up to the water stream and nodded for Cho to drink from it. The horse wasted no time and dunked his head in the water, gulping it down.
"He has seen you a few times already. He finds that you are just what he is looking for. And don't worry about you daughter. She will come with you too."
"How do you know about Hei-ran?" Minho asked, crossing his arms in front of his chest.
"He came and told me! He saw her too, you know. Has a thing for children, I think. He only had one of his own before-" he stopped. "Well, I'm sure you'll figure that out too. Anyway, Your Highness," Master Sang-hyun turned to face him. "You are wasting your time here. Go home and wait for him there. When the time comes, he will find you."
"How?" Minho asked, having more questions now then he did when he arrived. "I have so many questions. Why did you-"
"Don't ask me!" Master Sang-hyun laughed. "I can not tell you! Wait."
"But-"
"I find that the ride home will be more dangerous than the ride here," Master Sang-hyun pulled a sword from his side. "You might need this."
Minho stared down at the fine blade that was being handed to him. "Master..." he looked up at Master Sang-hyun's wrinkled, smiling face. "Did you know I was coming?"
"There are things that I know, and things that I don't know. That was one of them."
"A thing you did know, or a thing you didn't know?"
"Both!"
Minho rolled his eyes.
"You must get going now, Minho. Make sure you make it back," Master Sang-hyun brushed his hand over Cho's strong neck. "May you carry him quickly back home," he murmured.
Minho hesitated, before he sighed. "I guess I came all the way here for nothing," he turned away and re-mounted Cho.
"Not for nothing!" Master Sang-hyun waved as he turned Cho around the way they had come. "I will tell him you came. Be careful!"
"Yes, yes!" Minho waved over his shoulder as he and Cho began to ride back off into the land once more. That had been all for nothing... he shook his head at the thought.
They rode on as the sun began to set. Minho kept a good eye out for people that might be hiding, especially as the sun went down. It was a good thing that the moon was full, so that he could see where he and Cho were going.
They were nearly back to the capitol when the first arrows were fired at him.
He heard them before he saw them, being loaded and flying through the air. None of them hit him, or Cho for that matter as they were running too fast.
"Steady!" Minho cried as Cho bucked as he ran, nearly throwing Minho off. He reined his horse in before pushing even faster. "I didn't even see where those came from!" he cried as they pressed on.
More arrows soon arrived, this time one hitting the saddle, right behind his leg. It did not hit him, and the material had stopped the arrow from hitting Cho, but they were getting closer.
"Hurry!" Minho called as the capitol gates loomed in front of them.
"Open the gates!" the guards must have recognized the Lee prince's famous horse as he got nearer.
"WOOSH!"
That was all Minho heard as an arrow flew right by his ear.
Unfortunately, that arrow had a twin, which hit him right in the side of his shoulder.
Minho doubled over and nearly fell off Cho with surprise as they made it through the gates. But he had been hit. He looked over at his shoulder, where the blood was already soaking through his clothes. But it hadn't been deep as the shot had been taken from far away. Just enough to lodge in his skin. He pulled it out quickly and threw the arrow to the ground as Cho continued to run through the streets, knowing the way back to the Han Palace.
Minho clutched his shoulder to keep the blood from spilling out of his wounds as fast as they ducked under buildings and hanging lanterns and made their way to the small, broken-down door that led to the outside forests around the capitol.
The single man on duty here glanced at him before opening the doors wide as Cho charged through.
The trip through the forest was quick, usually a fifteen minute walk to the tunnel to the Han Palace, a two minute ride.
Of course, Cho was sprinting as well.
Captain Kim Mingyu was standing outside the gate as Cho appeared out of the forest, an injured and bleeding prince atop him. "What happened?" he cried as the doors were opened and Minho jumped from Cho's back, landing beside the shocked captain. "We have to get you inside!"
"It's not deep," Minho said quickly. "Let's just get inside."
The two ran into the main entrance with Cho to find that Changbin and Yongbok were waiting for them there.
"Don't ask," Minho muttered as Yongbok gave him a look, between 'why were you out so late, you know that's dangerous' and 'oh no you're bleeding, we need to get help!' which summed up what he was feeling at the moment.
Minho shook his head and walked towards his room, Yongbok and Changbin running after him.
"Where were you?" Yongbok demanded as they reached his room, Minho throwing the doors open.
"Where is Hei-ran?" he asked, looking around.
"She's asleep in Chan's room. Don't worry, I posted extra guards," Changbin told him as he plopped down on his bed and began to take off his hanbok.
"Here," Yongbok handed him a bunch of white cloth to press to his shoulder. He took it gratefully and began to stop the bleeding. "You didn't answer me. Where were you? You just took off like that without telling anybody anything, and we-"
"I was at Master Sang-hyun's estate," Minho muttered, hanging his head. "Which proved to help me with nothing."
"Why were you there?" Changbin asked as he watched Minho begin to patch himself up.
"For answer. Answers that he wasn't going to give me," Minho ripped the cloth apart and began to wrap the wound.
"And what did he say to what questions?"
"He didn't even let me ask! He said he knew why I was here and understood my pain and hurt and confusion or something like that, and then he said that he wasn't the person to give me answers and that I had to wait for HIM to come and get me."
"Who is HIM?" Yongbok asked, sitting back with his arms crossed and his eyes narrowed.
"I have no idea," Minho muttered, finishing his job of patching up his arm. "But he said that we had to just go back to the San Palace and wait."
"For what? For HIM?"
Minho sighed. "Yes. For HIM to arrive."