Through the Looking Glass (TXT x Itzy)

thirty-nine

The week flew by, much as she hated it, she sort of anticipated it too. As Yeji escorted her to the gathering venue, trying to soothe her nerves with words of encouragement, Ryujin thought dryly how this felt like she was readying for her execution.

The remaining royals were gathered in a small, circular room, with walls painted red that gave a suffocating feeling. Nervous, they conversed in hushed tones, eyes studying the guards and servants in an attempt to guess the next and final test.

An announcer who had ascended a raised platform, lightly cleared her throat as she waited for everyone's attention. Once she was satisfied, she raised the microphone and spoke in a lovely, soothing tone, "The final test is simple. It is called 'hide and seek'. A very well-loved game from your childhood, is it not?" A ripple of murmurs filled the area, many finding the name suspicious and too good to be true. After all, it can't be that easy, right?

"But of course, it's not that simple. It is with a twist, a game of trust and betrayal."

The announcer's grin was sly and suspicious, something a little off about her.

"You will be partnered at random, and labelled A and B. A must hide well and B must find them before time runs out. Whoever fails will be eliminated immediately. If B has found A and there is still time, B may find a different A from another pair, and successfully eliminate the duo. A can retaliate with any method of their choosing. B will use these fae cords to tie A to themselves. The cords would prevent A from wandering far from B. A will be momentarily stunned for the first five minutes, before A can attempt to break free."

The clarification momentarily stunned many, it was an interesting and strange test to end off the mess they had been in. Ryujin scanned the crowd, noting the obvious decrease in competitors, as the tests slowly and surely weeded out those deemed unworthy.

"Also, the location of this test is the whole castle."

That caused many exclamations among the royals, mostly due to how it gave them all diverse advantages. After all, they were raised in different parts of the castle and were familiar with various nooks and crannies.

Those who lived on the top floors knew the way around the roofs and labyrinth of doors since the guest rooms and bedrooms were littered up there. Those who resided on the lower floors knew the servant halls and passages like the back of their hands, due to ample time for observing and memorising routes.

Well, this was going to be interesting.

A maid was walking around passing out scrolls from a basket, each neatly tied with a ribbon bearing their name cards. She dropped one into Ryujin's offered palm and bowed slightly before moving on to the next person.

Ryujin unfurled the small scroll and released an anxious breath that she had been holding in. B. The seeker.

And her pair would be announced in a while.

The announcer plucked the microphone from its stand and began rattling off the lists of pairs, causing eyes to nervously meet their opponent's.

"Ryujin and," The announcer paused, grinning wickedly as if she couldn't wait to watch the drama unfold, "Our crown prince, Jinyoung."

As everyone's heads swivelled over to the pair, Ryujin wondered if they were thinking the same thing, that this was really the endgame for the two of them. The others already seemed as if they didn't want to fight any longer, which was pretty sad. Or perhaps the same thing from the previous test would happen, that Ryujin loses because of her foolish kindness.

Ryujin's fingers curled tighter around the thin scrap of paper, hoping that she could do her best and prove her worth.

Once the announcer was finished, she gave another polite smile and stepped off the platform. Immediately after that, all the servants and guards withdrew from the room they were in, causing much confusion until a light bell rang.

Deciding that that must be the signal, Jinyoung dashed forward towards the door, the sole exit, and the other hiders ran to catch up, leaving behind the seekers.

Ryujin noticed Hyunjin, with determination all over his face, not once tearing his eyes off the door the rest had fled from. That caused a slight smile to creep up her face, and she too turned her attention to the door. At least there was still some fun, friendly competition.

A basket of sparkling threads was slid through a cleverly camouflaged hole in the door, and they all took one for themselves eagerly. After some time of waiting, another bell rang cheerfully, and the seekers bolted to the door.

Let the game begin.

an: sorry it's been really tough to squeeze out something  for this part since ryujin needs to do a lot of thinking which is not my forte so I might not update in a while, I'm sorry :(((((