THE COMBATANT||KTH

CHAPTER 11 (PART I)

Her gaze falls on the stream flowing through the back garden of the palace.

Perfect.

She slowly makes her way down the stairs without straining the muscles of her back. As soon as she stepped into the garden, she could feel the smell of fresh flowers and earthy scent of the soil and freshly watered plants greet her. She smiles at the familiar scent of nature. Her hands softly graze the leaves and stems of the small shrubs on her path towards the water body.

She steps towards the stream but a faint noise of dry leaves crunching stops her. She jerks her head backwards to take a look but her head collides with a firm chest. Her breath hitches when she feels her leg slipping but she holds the sides of the man in front of her to stop from falling. One of his arms swiftly wraps around her waist to hold her from falling backwards while the other finds its way to her head.

He pushes her head into his chest as his other arm holds her waist tightly simultaneously trying to balance his legs to protect them from the impact. After a second, when he is sure that they're standing straight without any danger, he loosens his grip on her and she looks up at him.

The familiar eyes from the last night. She remembers his touch. The black orbs stare into hers as she unconsciously reciprocates his action. He looked down at her, and his eyes held a pool of unknown emotions. Something about her was captivating to him. Her wide black eyes, pink lips and upturned nose. The way strands of her hair caressed her face so delicately, something about her was unique and quite different from a lot of women he saw.

She broke her gaze and her eyes went wide realizing the position they're in. She places her hands on his robust chest and gently pulls herself away maintaining a safe distance between them. He traces his hands back to his sides and takes a step backwards.

"Gentleman, what's your identity?" she questions him, her eyes curiously scanning him for answers.

" Kim Taehyung, Avalon's heir." He gave her a slight bow as he said about himself. The princess bowed her head and nodded in response.

"Naaila jung, I represent erewhon." She introduced herself with a neutral expression. He nodded once again, his dark bangs moving on his forehead.

" I guess we have a few things to talk about, princess jung." he gives her a small smile.

" yes and this place looks good enough for a small talk." she takes in her surroundings.

She walks towards the stream while taehyung follows her slowly. She bends down to untie the laces of her shoes but stops in her midway when a sharp pain shoots through her spine. Her eyes close shut and she stands up straight trying to ease the throbbing.

"Are you alright?" taehyung approaches, worry clearly visible all over his features.
'Yes, I was just trying to untie the shoe but I am unable to bend." she clenches her fists trying to avoid the feeling of pain.

"Don't bend, it might open or worsen the pain." his hands itch to reach her back and sooth the pain for her but he bites it back out of respect. She faintly nods, trying to get her ragged breath into normal state again. After a few seconds, she opens her eyes and sighs deeply when the pain eased a little bit.

"Let me untie the shoes for you."he bends down while her eyes widen and she takes a step back.

"Prince, kim. Y-you need not do that." she panics at the sight of him crouching down.

Unbothered, he simply smiles and grabs her foot, his fingers slightly grazing the skin. He unties them and places them on the grass beside. He stands up to his feet and smiles at her.

"That was the least i could do for a beautiful lady like you, princess jung." he whispers playfully and naaila rolls her eyes. She breaks into small giggles and walks towards the stream. She places her legs into the water and sits on the bank of the stream, her body instantly relaxing at the coolness of water. Taehyung watches her actions quietly. She doesn't care about her clothes getting wet. She turns back and motions him to come to her.