long live the king - nct, markhyuck

♕ -3 ♕

it could have been a peaceful and tranquil afternoon, one during which you could take a stroll across the royal gardens in silence, to enjoy the cool spring breeze and listen to the singing of the birds, but unfortunately, it wasn't that kind of afternoon.

that day, the sound of steel clashing against steel accompanied with the grunts of two men was all you could hear across the royal gardens as the two members of the royal family practiced sword fighting together, taking advantage of the nice weather to practice outside and not in the dedicated dojo.

a few more minutes of metallic noises disturbed the atmosphere before the sound of a sword falling to the gravel floor signed the end of the fight.

the two people looked at each other in the eyes, the taller of the two focused on the sword that was pointed at his chest while the smaller blinked in amazement. both were panting hard, taking their time to regain their breaths before the smaller boy lowered his sword and put it back inside its scabbard.

and as soon as the sword was back in his cover, the smaller was engulfed in a hug by the taller male, this time fully knocking the little bit of air he had left in his lungs.

"i'm so proud of you, my son!" the taller spoke, tightening his embrace around his son's body. "you improved so fast... how many times have you been able to disarm me today? at least ten times! and you're still only nine years old!"

the young child giggled, hugging his father back with care before pulling away and bending to grab his father's sword.

"it's because i have the best teacher, father." he replied, handing his father back his sword.

"i'm going to make you the greatest swordsmen of the silver age, that's for sure." the father spoke proudly, ruffling his son's hair. "no one will ever dare defying you or opposing to your future decisions."

their father-son interaction was unfortunately interrupted by a few royal guards who made their presence known with a small cough.

"your majesty, your highness. the queen is waiting for you for the afternoon tea you planned in the royal salon." the guard informed.

"you can inform her that we will be coming shortly." the king replied immediately, barely glancing at the royal guards who simply bowed and left after those words had been pronounced.

the king flashed his son a bright smile after the guards' departure, placing a comforting hand on the younger's shoulder.

"let's stop our training there today. you were amazing, mark."

"thank you, father." the prince replied.

"now, we'll have to tell the queen about all of the improvements you made. and we'll have to celebrate this first time you've been able to disarm me so easily!" the monarch added, his arm now wrapping around his nine-year old son's shoulders before pulling him back inside the castle where they would be able to change clothes and get in proper attire for a well-deserved afternoon tea with the queen, and a small celebration of prince mark's sword fighting exploits. 

as soon as he was changed in proper clothes, the young prince ran across the vast halls of the castle he lived in since his birth, reaching the royal salon in a matter of seconds, and smiling brightly at the sight of his mother seated in one of the beautifully embroidered sofas.

"mother!" he exclaimed before rushing to her side and plopping on the sofa, causing her to bounce on it slightly.

"calm down mark, i'm not going anywhere." the queen replied with a small chuckle, seeing her overjoyed son. "and where is your father?"