Two Kingdoms | Park Sunghoon

28

THE NEXT AFTERNOON.

"Your Highness, your bath is ready for you. Which selection of flowers and essential oils do you prefer today?" The maid spoke as the others began to undress the Queen.

"Peony and musk." The Queen said calmly, his favourite.

She sank into the bathtub, revelling in the scent. She felt as though she was ascending into the heavenly skies, her thoughts not shifting off Sunghoon for even a split second. Slowly rubbing the scent deep into her skin, she heard the guard from the other room faintly, saying something about Sunghoon's arrival within five minutes. Upon hearing so, she rushed out of the bath, only to be chased after by the maids.

Collaboratively, they all multitasked in getting the Queen ready. Some dressing her, some doing her hair and one powdering her face. Aeri had ensured that everything was to be according to Sunghoon's preferences, despite his words being to wear something she felt beautiful in, his favourites became hers. If he liked one thing, so did she. If he disliked one thing, so did she.

After getting ready, she admired her reflection once more in the mirror and headed outside to see her horse next to Sunghoon's, Sunghoon himself waiting next to them with a beaming smile.

"Are you going to say anything or are you going to gawk like that the entire day?" Aeri whined.

"Your beauty seems to have made me mute. Sincerest apologies, my Queen." He gave her a delayed reply. Only for her to laugh at his response. Without another word, Sunghoon grabbed her wrist and assisted her onto her horse, holding her waist as she climbed up.

"So, what do you have planned for me?" Aeri asked curiously.

"It's a surprise last time I checked." He tutted at her in response.

"Cut out the attitude before I turn this horse around."

"No No! I'm joking, please stay." He pleaded with stars in his eyes, irresistible to Aeri. He knew what he was doing to her yet he never batted an eye to how it was going to wreck her in the end.

The two continued ahead in pure quietude, glancing at each other every now and then, only to see the other completely focused on riding their horse or assessing the environment despite seeing it almost every day. Every now and then, Sunghoon peered over behind him, almost strangely waiting for something or someone to arrive.

The two lovers neared the gate to the fountain. The gate was enclosed with patches of emerald green moss and vines of ivy crawling up all corners of the gate, small leaves sprouting from certain branches. An earthy aroma reached both their noses as they dismounted their horses, tying them unto nearby trees.

"Allow me," Sunghoon peeped as he reached for his sword to cut away the ivy covering the door knob. Aeri quickly grabbed her dagger and threw it towards the handle, causing Sunghoon to flinch backwards in fear. He turned around sending a flabbergasted expression only for her to cackle at his cowardly state.

"Coward. Move aside, let the strongest do it." She said pushing him aside slightly.

"Since when were you the strongest?" Sunghoon asked mockingly.

"Ever since I was born. Now quit arguing with me, isn't this meant to be romantic?"

"I would have to disagree, I think our love language is bickering with one another."

"Now I'm going to have to disagree. I believe our love language is this," she said before pulling him in by the hand and pecking his cheek. His face immediately brightened into a pink tone as he placed his hand where she had just kissed him.

"You can't do that without telling me!" He whined at her as she cut away the ivy.

"What's the fun in that? Is it not you who kissed me suddenly when we shared our first? Get your facts straight, Park." She retorted, still mocking his flustered reaction.

"You're impossible to argue with," Aeri glared at him upon hearing his sentence only for him to continue saying, "but I love it."

After entering the garden, Sunghoon explored around the garden in speechless awe at its hidden beauty. The fountain was beautifully covered in plants, nature thriving on the fountain. The vast gardens of tulips was a pleasant array of red, white, lilac, pink and a few yellow ones scattered round.

"Wow.. Aeri this place is absolutely gorgeous. How did you manage to find it?" Sunghoon sputtered, his eyes still glued on the tulip fields.

"When one is lonely all the time with only themselves and nature, they can find the most heavenly of treasures."

"So that must be how I found you," he said whilst walking towards her, pulling her in front of the fountain.

Both standing hand in hand, staring endlessly in each other's enthralled eyes. Aeri's pulse raced through her veins, her body feeling pleasantly numb in love. Sunghoon's heart beating even faster with what he had planned. The Princ abruptly placed both his hands on her hips, guiding her forward closer to him only to engulf her figure into his 'loving' embrace. She immediately hugged him back, rubbing his back with one hand and placing one hand on his neck pulling him as close as possible. Close was never enough for the two.

Pulling away, Sunghoon once again took grasp of her hands

"Aeri, from day one I have endlessly loved and utterly adored you. You are my sole purpose to wake up every morning and get on with my status' duties, to impress you and give you a foolproof army to protect you whenever. To give you a reason to never have to fight or risk your life in battle, and I myself will always be number one in that army to protect you. Ever since I heard the very first story about you and your valour, I was thinking about marrying you one day. After I saw you at your coronation, I knew I had to marry you. I've never fallen quite so hard as I did when I stared into your alluring hazel eyes." Sunghoon confessed proudly. As she heard him speak, Aeri's eyes filled with tears and they overflowed with pure joy. She had broken one of her top rules for him and him alone: never let anyone see you weak.

"Yi Aeri, Her Royal Highness the Queen of Silla, bless me and make me the happiest man alive. Will you marry me?"

"Sunghoon... ye-" Just as the special moment had peaked, lightning fast horse trots just outside the gate, interrupting the situation, only for the gate to swing open revealing Aeri's Army Commander, Kim Daeho.

"What the fuck Daeho? What is it now for god's sake why do you-" Aeri spoke, irritated to her core.

"I am terribly, terribly sorry Your Highness. But... another one is dead. Sir Yeom Taeyang. He was killed." Aeri's heart dropped upon hearing the news once again. No matter how many times she heart the word of someone's death among her council, she couldn't bare it. It only meant a loss of a powerful member, meaning a loss of her personal power. Sunghoon however did not even flinch, unlike last time after hearing of Secretary Choi Jinho's murder.

"I am so incredibly sorry Sunghoon my love. But this has to wait." Aeri said, halfway out of the gate, blowing a kiss to the unfazed Sunghoon.