Park Seonghwa was never made for the throne. Kim Hongjoong was never meant to paint him. But when tragic deaths ravage both sides' lives, their paths collide with a shockwave that will have repercussions. Hired as the new king's royal portrait artist, Kim Hongjoong takes the job that was supposed to be his late mentor's. Unable to hide his disdain for royalty, the young artist's relationship with Seonghwa is frigid at best. His Majesty is much the same, keeping mostly to himself for he hides a secret, one that could ruin his fragile rule. As time goes on, something between the pair blossoms during the long hours spent in Kim Hongjoong's painting studio. Something that could cause terrible trouble within Gaul's high court. 𝙏𝙝𝙧𝙚𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙨, 𝙩𝙬𝙤 𝙢𝙞𝙨𝙛𝙞𝙩𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙩. 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙚. Cover art done by me, no stealing or tracing!

Some places shouldn't be found. Some truths shouldn't be faced. Yeosang has always followed the rules. Quiet, graceful, and careful, he lives in the shadows of his older brother's expectations and the chaos of his best friend's wild spirit. Jongho is everything Yeosang isn't-loud, impulsive, alive. And Yeosang wouldn't change a thing. Until the day Jongho shows him a newspaper clipping. A missing girl. A cursed place. A dare wrapped in good intentions. When Jongho begs Yeosang to follow him into the woods where no one returns, Yeosang says no. But some lines, once crossed, can't be undone. What begins as a reckless adventure spirals into something far darker. And after that night, nothing is the same-except for Jongho, who's still beside him. Still laughing. Still pulling him forward. Still... there. But as Yeosang's world begins to unravel, one question echoes louder than the rest: How far is too far before you can't come back?