Prince of Flour

1. A Stormy Day

The skies cried on that fateful day.

Seonghwa's hair was plastered wetly against his forehead; his head bowed in retaliation against the strong winds pulling at his frame. He guided their horse with one hand; the other one held the palm of his mother, keeping her in the less windy security behind his frame.

They had long since given up upholding their conversation, every breath needed in the suffocating storm. Their boots were unstable on the slippery and muddy path.

The dark twilight of the sky had not lifted yet; the sun was just about to rise and shoo all the clouds away. A market day never was fun when the weather toyed with the merchants' health.

Without a signal, Seonghwa's mother stumbled and let out a warning yell. Seonghwa whipped around to catch her before she could tumble down into a ditch. After he made sure she had regained her balance, they kept going; their hands cold and clammy in each other.

Seonghwa could already see the town wall growing closer, like a looming shadow. He pitied the few soldiers that manned the ranks, their torches dancing like little fireflies under the dim and angry sky.

Lightning was seen in the distance, splitting the heavens above the ocean in the east, and thunder followed soon after. Seonghwa cursed under his breath and threw his dripping hair back. Cold, the rain seeped into his collar.

When Seonghwa and his mother passed the open gates, and the rhythmic pitter-patter of hooves on the rough paving accompanied them instead of the dull thumps on the earth, Seonghwa sighed.

He absolutely loathed having to travel through the rain with his mother. She would get sick again and work too hard, making Seonghwa worry incessantly.

The rain pattered down on them ruthlessly, but the sky started to clear up after a long night of feeding the earth. Through the thick blanket of clouds in the distance, some rays of sunshine peeked through, like God's grace coming to earth. Maybe it could become a beautiful day still.

Seonghwa's clothes were soaked and stuck to his to his limbs as he led them under the roof of some inn. With murmured praises, he patted the horse while his mother wrung out her wet locks. Her eyes were pleased as she met Seonghwa's gaze. Relieved by her delight, he smiled distortedly. They were wet and still at risk of getting sick, but they had made it to the town in one piece.

"We made it, don't look so downtrodden." She had to stretch a bit to pinch Seonghwa's cheek, lifting his mood again. With a bigger smile, he copied the gesture. His fingers on her cheek were even more tender than hers.

"Don't you dare get sick. I won't be able to work more than I normally do," he warned her, not mad at the weather, and gripped the cold reins securely in his hand.

"I won't, dear. Come on; we still have to set everything up and bring our beloved Jimmy to Jimmy."

Jimmy was their indulgent horse, but Jimmy was also the stable boy the family entrusted Jimmy with every Friday.

Seonghwa led the way again, walking close next to Jimmy, who still had to pull their heavy cart. Few people roamed the streets; just some cloaked figures rushing through the rain with heavy curses on their lips.

Seonghwa was positive that the clouds would disappear soon.

They arrived at the central marketplace not long after. As soon as they did, Seonghwa's mother wandered off to chat with the nice butcher lady from one village over. Seonghwa relieved Jimmy of his burden and rewarded him with an apple. Once the horse was calm and happy, he took him to the other Jimmy.

Jimmy loved Jimmy (both did), and the human one promised Seonghwa to take care of the horse until the day was over. He gave Seonghwa a sympathetic glance, wishing him luck with the weather and their sales for the day.

Seonghwa returned to their mud-caked cart and busied his hands with setting up their cosy little stand. Soon, he sorted the thankfully dry loaves of bread into a neat order as a display on the cart. They had been baking them all week long, preparing for Friday in order to sell them here. It was a lot of work, rolling bread all week to trade them all at once. The trek from their home to the town was long, about 3 hours on foot, but it was rewarding all the same.

Also, Seonghwa had grown to like this place; the bustling market with its colourful stands. Each time they came here, he saw interesting people in curious clothing travelling from the sea.

Putting everything together did not take long, and soon the last faint rain stopped to let the first rays of sunlight touch upon the wet streets.

Seonghwa shook out his drying hair while his eyes searched for his mother. She had greeted all of her friends by now and returned over to him to thank him for his help.

"Now, shall we get to work? I've heard there are a lot of ships this week, the chances are good for us to sell a lot." She seemed delighted, nudging Seonghwa over with her hip to get to the middle of their cart. With a chuckle, Seonghwa plundered their bags for their breakfast.

"I can't wait. Here, your meal." He gave her a share and nibbled on his moist portion himself as he entertained his eyes with the first people that milled around on the place. As bad as the day had started, right now, it looked as if it still might become a good one.

-

"Oh, I forgot! A nice naval gentleman asked earlier whether we could bring one loaf of bread to the docks for him! Can you hurry there, Hwa? I will finish up here."

The day had been a success, as Seonghwa had predicted. Most of their pieces of bread had been sold, and the last few they had exchanged with other merchants for their goods. They now had fresh vegetables, fruit, and meat, enough to last them through the week. Seonghwa was quite content. Fridays made all the hard work worth it.

"Sure, did you put one aside for him?"

"Yes, take it." She handed him another loaf. "He told me his ship was a merchant one as he was just travelling these days. You should find it on the main docks. He already paid and will expect the loaf by the end of his busy day."

He saluted, amused by her skill to collect gossip and hastened off to catch the man before it turned completely dark out. The way home was a long one, after all.

The way down to the docks was enclosed by inns and shops. Delicious smells wafted to Seonghwa from all around him and had his mouth water. His stomach rumbled in question and urged him to go just faster. On their way back, he could eat some of their fresh goods. He looked forward to that and to returning home to sleep for about five days.

Down at the docks, there was only a single ship anchored in the main area. It was a sleek schooner with neatly reefed sails. Since it was a beautiful vessel, Seonghwa declared it was fitting, not knowledgeable enough about seafaring to identify if this was a merchant's ship. He saw no flag indicating otherwise, so it had to be the right one.

With quick steps, he scaled the plank and peered around on deck. No soul around. Seonghwa did not know who he was looking for, but if the man had paid, he could just leave the bread in a dry place.

After a glance at the treacherous skies, Seonghwa strode over to a scuttle leading down to a storage area. The ship's belly was dark; four steps disappearing in the dark steeply. Seonghwa left the hatch open as he cautiously stepped onto the creaking boards.

"Anybody here? I am supposed to bring bread!"

He saw nothing in the obscure darkness, just the silhouettes of several hammocks and barrels. Then, at once, something moved in the blackness.

A moment later, it dashed in his direction.

Seonghwa fell backwards with the bread lifted in defence, yelling out a warning.

A just as panicked yell answered him, and then a tall man emerged from the shadows into the ray of light falling from above. He held a wooden mace above his head, ready to strike. His anger-drawn features scared Seonghwa.

Seonghwa screamed as the weapon came down upon him with no signs of halting. Pain flared in Seonghwa's temple as it hit him, hard.

Dark spots danced in front of his eyes, and he stumbled around his whitened sight. The stairs met his back before he fell to his knees and lost consciousness.