Prince of Hearts

Chapter 5: Not a Son

[Jimin]

They were surrounded.

Seven men, clothed in black, their faces covered.

Jimin watched them--their feet, their eyes--waiting for one of them to make the first move.

It didn't take long. He heard movement from his left as one of the attackers lunged towards him. The rest of the group soon followed.

He danced away, his left boot swinging in an arc. Dust rose to the air in thick brown clouds.

Jimin whirled around under its cover, his sword finding its target. Metal dug into flesh with a sickening squelch.

One down.

He heard the clash of steel against steel, a scream and a then thud. He smiled. His squire was improving.

The dust was settling.

He saw a blur of black, and then the flash of steel. He parried, knocking it back with the force of his blow. His sword cut through the air in a high arc. Blood trickled down the neck of his enemy, his eyes still wide with shock.

Three down.

They took up their stance again, back to back. The four remaining circled like vultures.

"To the right", one of them cried.

This time, all of them rushed at Jungkook. Jimin caught one of them mid-run, slashing across his legs. The man went hurtling through the dirt, his weapon clattering away from him.

Next to him, Jungkook was struggling. His breath came in hard pants as he tried to fight off three at once.

Two men engaged him on the front, while the other circled to the back--

No.

Jimin raced forward.

He felt pain flaring up, the sleeve of his coat darkening with blood. The blow that was meant for Jungkook had fallen on him instead.

Grabbing his sword in both hands, he drove it into the masked man's belly with all his weight. He shrieked, clawing at the air. Jimin kicked him down, drawing the blade, now slick with blood, from his lifeless body.

His brow was beaded with sweat, and there was a fury in his eyes that burned like hellfire. He turned his gaze on the others.

Jimin raised his sword and advanced. The men stepped back.

There was a sharp whistle from among the woods. They stopped, listened. There was another, shorter blast.

A signal.

They turned and ran.

Jimin threw his sword after them. The man on the left let out a howl, the blade sticking out from his shoulder. He fell to his knees, and then went face-down to the ground.

The other didn't even look back as he disappeared behind the treeline.

Jimin gripped his bleeding arm as he walked back to the bodies.

"Your Highness!" Jungkook cried, running after him. "You're injured."

He dismissed him with the wave of a hand, kneeling beside one of the bodies.

This one was still alive. He had cut him across the back of his calves. The wound wasn't too deep, but he wouldn't be joining his friends in the woods anytime soon.

Jimin reached out and pulled off the black cloth that covered the lower half of his face.

There were just the faint beginnings of a moustache on his upper lip. His large brown eyes darted around in terror, his face as white as a sheet. Jimin cursed.