The Sun's Muse

IV- Fire

Chapter four- Fire

"You have a scratch on your neck,"

Prince Yeon tilted his head to the side as Lord Han-gyeol examined the small cut on the prince's neck.

Chul slowly paced back and forth behind the two noblemen; they were inside Lord Han-gyeol's quarters, and it has been about an hour since the incident occurred at the market place.

"Ya, Kim Chul, can you stop rambling?? You're making my head spin." Prince Yeon said with a grimace, making the young man stop in his tracks.

Chul looked down at the floor with his forehead creased, a look of guilt plastered on his usually expressionless face.

"My apologies, Your Highness. I should've been there earlier." Chul said with a bow. Prince Yeon, who was lying down on his side, extended his foot towards Chul and kicked his shin playfully.

"Aish, shut up, Chul. The cut is barely an inch long, you talk as if I would've died." The prince said with a scoff.

"Who knows what can happen to you the next time you cause trouble, huh? Cut Chul some slack, the man might die from worry." Lord Han-gyeol sneered, adjusting his reading glasses as he gave Chul a teasing grin.

Chul gave him a cold look in return and sat on the edge of the room, away from the two other men. He took out his sword and started cleaning it; it has become a habit of his to clean his sword whenever he had a lot on his mind.

Prince Yeon gave Chul a quick glance, he knew his friend felt guilty because he thought that he had failed his duty to protect him; it may be not be a big deal, but Prince Yeon knew that Chul paid attention even to his smallest mistakes.

The young prince sighed to himself; he had gotten himself in trouble once again, despite his efforts to stay as low-profile as possible.

However, he knew that he couldn't just watch injustice happen in front of him. He felt like it was his duty to protect people from oppression; he had experienced it himself, after all.

As he recalled the way he intervened the moment the man raised his whip, her intense eyes suddenly flashed in his mind.

"Well if it isn't the bastard from the pleasure house."

He heard those words repeatedly inside his head; he could not forget it because it was followed by the most intense eyes he had ever seen.

Her eyes held an entirely different story from the anger that her face held. It was as if those words had triggered emotion that was far beyond anything that can be explained.

It was an understatement to say that Prince Yeon was intrigued; he had seen her once before, and he could tell that the fire in her eyes played a huge role as to why she glittered when she walked.

His eyebrows furrowed as he wondered,

Who was that girl?

•••

Lord Han-gyeol waved goodbye to Chul and Prince Yeon as they made their way out of the Jang residence.

Chul walked behind Prince Yeon and unconsciously dragged his feet, which caught the prince's attention.

"Ya, Kim Chul," Prince Yeon started as they walked towards the narrow road. Chul looked at his young master with his brows slightly raised, his mouth pressed into a thin line.

"Stop beating yourself up over small mistakes!" Prince Yeon said, then proceeded to hit Chul's back with a wide-open palm, startling the young guard and making him wince.