THE CONCUBINE || TAEKOOK ||

THIRTY ONE

Three days passed like lightning, swift and relentless.

The palace buzzed with frantic energy from dawn until late night. Servants scurried through every corridor, their arms laden with freshly pressed curtains in deep crimson and gold. Others balanced on tall ladders, polishing chandelier lamp until each crystal caught the light like captured stars. The air smelled of beeswax, fresh flowers, and the quiet tension of an approaching storm.

Queen Hara and Yoon-ah were inseparable during those days. They drifted through the finest shops in the capital, inspecting silks and selecting fabrics for Yoon-ah's ball gown. They deliberated over jewellery, menu cards, seating arrangements. Yoon-ah laughed prettily at the Queen's suggestions, and the Queen beamed at her future daughter-in-law. Through it all, they issued a steady stream of orders to the waiting servants, who bowed and hurried off to fulfill them.

Jungkook was forced to accompany them on every single outing.

His mother insisted. "It's important, Jungkook. You and Yoon-ah need time to understand each other. A marriage cannot thrive on formality alone." Her smile was pleasant, her tone gentle, but her eyes held no room for negotiation.

So he walked beside Yoon-ah through markets and dress shops, his hands clasped stiffly behind his back, responding to her comments with monosyllables. She played her role perfectly the gracious, interested fiancée but neither of them pretended anymore. The outings were performances, each one a small, quiet torture.

In these three days, Jungkook did not see Taehyung once.

He searched for him in hallways, lingered near the servants' quarters during his brief moments of freedom. Nothing. It was as if Taehyung had vanished into the walls of the palace. The absence was a hollow ache in his chest, a constant, dull throb beneath the chaos of preparations.

---

The Day of Arrival

The afternoon sun hung heavy and gold over the palace courtyard. Banners bearing the Min clan crest fluttered alongside the royal standard, whipped by a warm breeze. Jungkook stood beside his parents on the grand steps, his formal robes stiff and unfamiliar after days of casual shopping attire. His expression was carefully neutral, revealing nothing of the turmoil beneath.

Yoon-ah stood a few paces away, elegant in a soft lavender hanbok, her posture perfect. She did not look at him.

Then the procession appeared at the main gate.

Five carriages, each more ornate than the last, rolled slowly into the courtyard. The lead carriage bore the Min family emblem in silver and blue. Behind it, four more carried trunks and chests, overflowing with gifts wrapped in silk and tied with fine ribbons. Servants on horseback flanked the procession, their uniforms crisp and new.

When the carriage rolled to a stop directly before the palace doors, the servants were already aligned in two neat rows, their backs straight and heads bowed in deep respect. Not a single one stirred as the guests emerged from the carriage, their faces arranged in cheerful, practiced smiles.

The first carriage door opened. Lord Min descended first a broad-shouldered man with a stern face and shrewd eyes that swept across the palace grounds with quiet calculation. He offered his hand to his wife, Lady Min, who followed with practiced grace.