Kintsugi // ATEEZ [Ishihara Sequel] ✔

13 Visit

News of the rulers visiting town to see the condition of the people have spread like wildfire, bringing in curious and smitten residents coming to town just so they can see a closer glimpse of the couple. People from various backgrounds and blood colours gather in the same place as they've heard of the two coming to spend their day in town, putting aside their differences as all seem to be eager to be in the vicinity of the two 'special' royals.

Everyone throughout the kingdom have heard of the backgrounds of the two royals. One is a famous Lucida occupant; ask a random person from Lucida and it's most likely that her name would ring a bell. Despite it being sooner or later, anyone would have heard the infamous story of the young General Akira Hwang, the story that had incited fear among the public. But now it seems that their perception of her has changed, how they're now considering her as their kingdom's saviour.

Meanwhile her partner has no ties to the royal family at all; his blood is as crimson as it can get. With him marrying Akira, it means that him climbing up the throne should be a natural process; something that they can't deny when taking in Akira as their queen. They now have a nobleman from Nyla as king, with some shamelessly questioning on how he was allowed to even wear the crown meant for Lucida only.

"Your Majesties," Yunho approaches the two of them, putting an arm across his stomach before he bows. "We'll be following you at a distance to make sure you're safe, but please feel free to roam around town. We'll keep an eye on you."

Seonghwa nods. "Thank you." Then he turns to Akira, linking his arm with hers. "Where do you want to go first?"

Their main aim for today is to see the condition of the lives of the people in Lucida with their own eyes, to determine what they can do to improve their livelihood. So far, they haven't experienced firsthand how bad the criminal cases in Lucida have become, but thanks to the intel Yunho had received from some of the soldiers stationed among the people, they had a list on what needed to be tackled. For today, they're looking to be closer to the people, and prove to the citizens that they're not merely getting the throne just for the sake of it.

"We'll walk around and see the businesses here," Akira decides, already walking forward, Seonghwa trailing beside her, hands behind his back.

Akira approaches a seller promoting her fresh fruits first, seeing that the seller is sitting beside the road, the fruits spread out on a thin worn out mat. As she comes closer, the seller who looks like she's approaching 70 hands out some washed strawberries to her, saying that they're the freshest she can offer. She takes it with a smile on her face, immediately kneeling beside the seller. She beckons for Seonghwa to sit beside her, and he gladly follows.

They munch on the strawberries as the people looking on are amazed at how casually they're joining the seller sitting on the ground. If it were the previous royals, they wouldn't be caught dead eating at the same table as commoners, let alone servants. Right now it's an anomaly to see supposed royals sitting together and mingling with the people, being friendly and chatty.

Everyone is speechless by how the couple looks natural and there isn't a single look of discomfort on their faces; they're either really good at faking it or it is all sincere. The people then start whispering and mumbling among themselves, expressing their approval of how the rulers are behaving. With this, the people are more relaxed, seeing how the two look just like a normal couple out for a trip to town rather than a pair of rulers looking to observe their condition.

As soon as they're done, Akira stands up, approaches Jihyun and says, "I'll buy all the fruits the grandma is selling."

Jihyun pauses, her brain buffering trying to understand what Akira is implying. Temporarily she forgets about her own duty to be there - as an advisor, and of course she'll help in doing whatever the queen wishes to. She looks back and forth from Seonghwa to Akira before she realizes what she's supposed to do.