In which Prince Wooyoung has three days to break the spell of an evil wizard who turned his family to stone. When he meets San, the son of a blacksmith, he decides to let him in on his mission - and maybe in his heart too.
But is Wooyoung enough to...
A/N: Happy to announce that I'm over the absolute worst two weeks of my life so now hopefully I can continue living like a normal person lol
Side note: oooobviously my Carat ass can't write a book without Svt in it but I'll add the picture of the character in this chapter so non-Seventeen stans will know how he looks too. I just felt like his personality fits this character wayyyy to much that I had to include him.
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'Call me pretty boy once again and I'll break your kneecaps!'
'As you wish pretty boy.'
'This little fucker.'
'Hey! I'm older than you!'
'Yeah, by three months! And I'm your prince! Have your manners!'
'Oh, so now you want to be my prince?'
'Shut up, Choi!'
'You started it, Jung!'
Well, yes, to anyone who was naive enough to believe that after the encounter in the Forbidden Forest Wooyoung and San instantly became besties, I have other news for you.
Currently the two were sitting on horsebacks (San on his horse's and Wooyoung on Yeosang's back with his polar bear on his lap) and kept arguing over even the smallest things. Yeosang really started to grow impatient with them, but at the same time he still found it entertaining and definitely shipped his brother and San.
Meanwhile Wooyoung learned that San was learning to become a blacksmith so he can work with his father, and was the same age as the prince - only months older as you already know. But when he asked him about why was he in the Forbidden Forest alone, the other boy just stopped talking. So he decided to switch topics.
They were traveling for the whole afternoon and even overnight. It would've been easier if Yeosang could fly but San didn't want to leave his horse in the Forbidden Forest because god knows what could happen to poor thing there.
It was dawning when they got out of the forest and San stopped his horse.
'We're here' he announced. As Wooyoung looked in the direction the other was looking, he tilted his head unsure.
'This is what we travelled for overnight?' he whined, getting off of Yeosang's back. San did so too. In front of them there was a small old cabin. It looked like it's going to fall apart any second, as if it wasn't used since forever. The only thing that signalled them that someone lives here was the smoke coming out of the chimney.
'I know what I'm doing, ok?' said San calmly. 'Jeonghan calls himself the master of gems. I'd simplify it to a thief, but if there's something he is good at then it's gems. He could help us with that Gem of Ice. Trust me.'
'That coming from you doesn't make me feel less worried about this but let's go' shrugged Wooyoung.
They left Yeosang and San's horse (and supposedly Jongho but he didn't seem to care and simply followed them) outside and went to the door of the cabin. San reached out and turned the doorknob. The door opened slowly with a loud creak. Wooyoung cringed at the sound. San let him go inside first.
'Umm... hello! Is there anyone here?' asked Wooyoung unsure.
The cabin's interior was a mess, to say the least. There were all kinds of stuff, not only gems but also clothes and other items being crammed on the shelves and tables. On the other side of the room stood a counter with and even bigger mess behind it. Wooyoung could also see a shadow moving there so he stepped forward.
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(A/N: Okay but you can see that my man is up to no good lmao)
The shadow was a man who was sitting behind the counter and looked up at the newcomers. The first thing that came to Wooyoung's mind was that the man was beautiful. He had reddish colored hair that was nicely styled and his whole attire looked neat - nothing like the cabin he owned. He also wore round glasses which Wooyoung wasn't sure whether he actually needed them or they were just for his image. Seeing the guests the man's eyes lit up and he stood up from his place.
'Welcome, welcome to my gem store~' he singsang with a kind smile, but San quickly cut him off.
'Quit it, Jeonghan hyung' he said. He left the door behind them open. Wooyoung believed it was definitely for a reason. The man's smile turned into a grin.
'Oh, San-ah! It's been a while, long time no see!'
'I said quit it' rolled his eyes San. Jeonghan pouted.
'Ouch. Are you still mad at me?'
'We could say that but that's not the point. We need help. We are looking for a special stone' he said as they walked up to the counter. Jeonghan gasped and quickly reached under the table.
'Ah, I see! I knew this day will come! Choi San's getting married, oh I wish I had a camera with me... not like we have cameras here of course' he quickly added before your know-it-all Author would break the fourth wall again... oh wait she just did. 'Oh, I have so many different rings, you guys need the best one, jeez, I have to tell about this to Cheol and Jisoo, they are going to freak out-'
'No no no no no! You misunderstand!' started defending San. Wooyoung felt a bit offended at the sudden protest but agreed nonetheless.
'We are looking for the Gem of Ice lit by hope's eternal flame' explained Wooyoung.
'Oh' Jeonghan put the boxes with the rings on the counter disappointedly. The sparkling stones caught Jongho's attention in an instant. Wooyoung had almost forgotten about how his bear cub is attracted to anything that shines.
'The Gem of Ice' muttered Jeonghan. 'I might have heard about it.'
'And?' asked San impatiently.
'...or I might haven't' finished the gem dealer.
'So which one?' groaned Wooyoung. Jeonghan smirked. Wooyoung felt goosebumps from that smirk. He could tell he's up to no good.
'Maybe some payment could help me get back my memories...' said Jeonghan.
'We don't have money' said Wooyoung as he readjusted the small bag he had on his shoulder. It contained everything that he had at the moment... so almost nothing. Almost.
Jeonghan eyed the both of them up and down, then his eyes caught the sword that was hanging on San's side.
'That sword could do' he said. San gulped. He contemplated but slowly reached for the handle of the sword. Suddenly his hand was stopped when Wooyoung grabbed his wrist.
'That sword is not for sale... but I'll sell you this' he raised his other hand with his pair of ice skates in it. Jeonghan eyed the item that was put on his desk.
'Looks like it's an old pair' he muttered as he checked them out.
'Well, do you want it or not?' asked Wooyoung impatiently. Jeonghan quickly grabbed the pair of skates.
'So what do you know about the Gem of Ice?' asked San. Jeonghan turned back to them and leaned on the counter.
'One day this really weird dude came to the shop' he started. 'He said something about this very rare and very precious gem' he said and put something on the table. It was an old piece of paper. As Wooyoung took a closer look he saw that it was a map. 'The man said that the place where it is is being guarded so much that it's almost impossible to get there' added Jeonghan.
'Wait a second' interrupted San. 'Why wouldn't you look for a precious stone like this?' he raised an eyebrow. Jeonghan copied him. 'Knowing you you wouldn't just let an opportunity like this slide.'
'Let that be my secret' the dealer said finally. San and Wooyoung exchanged a look. Jeonghan sighed. 'Anyways, if you ever need that engagement ring, you know who to contact' he said. Wooyoung pulled a face and picked up the map from the table.
'Is that all?' he asked. Jeonghan just nodded and picked the ring that was put on the table up before Jongho, who meanwhile managed to climb up onto the table somehow, would snatch it away.
'We'll see if that was helpful or not' sighed Wooyoung. 'Let's go' he gestured to San. The two took one last glance at the gem dealer, then San picked Jongho up from the counter and the small trio left the shop.
Jeonghan waited till the door closed behind them before walking to the back of the store to send a message.
