The palace of Bulgul changed with the seasons, but Yoongi's life never did.
Routine became her world.
Discipline became her language.
And secrecy—her silent companion.
By the time she turned eight, the palace servants had learned something about the young prince:
He never cried.
He never complained.
He never broke.
But only Yoongi understood why—
because breaking was a luxury only real princes could afford.
---
The Flower House
Every morning began with sword drills, but Yoongi's afternoons belonged to a completely different world—the Queen's Garden, known as the Flower House. It was a forbidden place for men, filled with delicate blossoms and soft-spoken women who tended them.
Yoongi loved it there.
Not because of the flowers.
But because, in the Flower House, no one looked at her like a king-to-be.
They looked at her like a child.
The women whispered kindly, offering sweets and giggles, unaware of the truth hidden beneath her robes. Yoongi often sat by the pond, dipping her fingers into the cool water, watching koi fish swim lazily in colors brighter than the royal banners outside.
Here, she felt… something close to peace.
Queen Jihwa would sit beside her, weaving flower crowns quietly.
"Do you like lilies?" she once asked.
Yoongi nodded.
"They're strong flowers," the queen said softly. "They survive storms."
Yoongi looked down at her hands.
"I want to be like them."
The queen kissed her forehead.
"You already are."
But the peace of the Flower House never lasted long. Reality always came knocking.
---
Eyes That Watched Too Closely
In the palace halls, Yoongi felt the burning gaze of the advisors more intensely each year. They watched the prince with suspicion—studying his mannerisms, his voice, the way he walked, the way he held himself.
"The prince's voice still sounds… young," one advisor murmured.
"It's common," another replied. "…but unusual."
"And his body—he is smaller than most boys his age."
Queen Jihwa arrived just in time to silence them with a single sharp stare.
Yoongi walked away before their whispers could become knives.
Behind her, the advisors continued quietly:
"There is something strange about him."
"We must keep our eyes open."
"This prince may bring trouble."
Yoongi felt the pressure like a storm cloud—always near, always threatening to break.
---
Lessons From the General
General Baekron, her father's most trusted commander, took personal responsibility for training Yoongi in combat and warfare. He was a mountain of a man with a voice like rolling thunder.
"Your enemies will not care about your size," he growled, handing her a heavier wooden sword than usual. "They will not care about your age. They will not care about your fears."
Yoongi struggled to keep her grip steady.
General Baekron stepped behind her, adjusting her stance.
"Again."
Yoongi swung.
The force sent pain shooting up her arms.
"Again."
She swung.
Her breath hitched.
"Again!"
Her fifth strike nearly knocked her backwards.
But she did not give up.
General Baekron's eyes softened just barely.
"You possess the determination of a warrior, Prince Yoongi. That is rare."
Yoongi bowed, hiding the ache in her muscles.
She wanted to be strong.
She needed to be strong.
Because she knew strength was her only protection.
---
The Hidden Journal
At night, Yoongi kept a small journal beneath her bed—one no one knew about, not even her mother. In it, she wrote the truth she could never speak aloud.
I am Yoongi.
I am not who they think I am.
Sometimes I am afraid.
Sometimes I am angry.
Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to be myself… even just for a day.
She closed the journal and hid it away.
Kings didn't have journals.
Girls did.
She was neither.
She was both.
She was nothing and everything at once.
---
A Whisper of Hanji
One evening, as Yoongi walked through the palace gardens, she overheard soldiers talking.
"…Hanji's forces are growing stronger."
"…border villages attacked again."
"…the crown will have to respond soon."
Yoongi froze.
Hanji.
The kingdom responsible for her parents' political tensions.
The kingdom whose king hated Bulgul's rule.
The kingdom whose people whispered of conquest.
She did not know that far across the sea, an eight-year-old boy was being trained at that very moment—
to infiltrate,
to deceive,
to kill.
His name was Kwan.
But Yoongi would not meet him for many years.
For now, she only felt the cold shiver of destiny moving closer, slowly, silently—
like a blade drawn in the dark.
---
A Moment of Innocence
Before bed, Queen Jihwa brought Yoongi warm tea and sat beside her on the floor cushions. The queen watched her child quietly, eyes full of something too heavy to name.
"You are growing," the queen whispered.
"Into what?" Yoongi asked softly.
Jihwa swallowed. "Into someone the world is not ready for."
Yoongi lowered her cup.
"Mother… am I wrong?"
The queen cupped her daughter's face.
"No. The world is wrong."
Yoongi leaned into her mother's touch.
For a moment, she felt like a child again—
not a prince,
not a lie,
just a daughter in her mother's arms.
But moments like these were fragile.
And soon, they would become rare.
---
Fate Shifting in the Dark
Outside Yoongi's window, thunder rumbled in the distance. Storm clouds rolled across the sky, hiding the moon behind a veil of darkness.
Yoongi watched quietly, feeling something she could not explain.
A shift.
A warning.
A whisper of what was coming.
For the first time in her life, she felt fear not of herself…
but of the world moving toward her.
At that very moment, across the sea, Kwan's master stepped forward with a final lesson:
"When the time comes, you will kill Bulgul's king."
Kwan nodded once, emotionless.
Two children.
Two kingdoms.
Two futures destined to collide.
And neither had begun to understand the price they would pay.