CHAPTER 4
In the quiet embrace of the palace garden, the soft rustle of leaves danced with the morning breeze as Sihyun and Yuhyun sat beneath a flowering tree. Birds chirped gently above them, and for once, the atmosphere was peaceful—at least until Sihyun exhaled loudly and dropped his head onto Yuhyun's shoulder.
"I'm tired, Yuhyun,"
Sihyun muttered, voice low.
"Every time I see the prince, he's like: 'Be my man, be my man.' I don't even know what to do anymore. It's like a chant haunting me in my dreams."
Yuhyun chuckled, patting his brother's head.
"You did reject him in front of everyone. Maybe he's just... persistent."
Sihyun shifted slightly.
"But… do you think he's also tired of me rejecting him all the time? Is he… sad or something?"
Before Yuhyun could open his mouth, two familiar figures stepped out from behind the hedges like nosy spirits summoned from nowhere.
"Aww, he's finally thinking about his poor little prince,"
Dohyun crooned dramatically, hand pressed to his chest.
"Too little too late, don't you think?"
Taejin added with a teasing glint in his eyes.
"Imagine how heartbroken our dear Muwon must be. Rejected in public! I bet he hasn't slept since."
Sihyun blinked.
"You two were eavesdropping?!"
"We were passing by,"
Dohyun grinned.
"But then we heard the cries of a confused sorcerer, and our curiosity took over."
Taejin nodded solemnly.
"Do you even know what it feels like to be rejected, Sihyun? He might be crying under his pillow every night. He might even…"
"—run away!"
Dohyun gasped theatrically, as if the thought had just struck him.
"Or worse,"
Taejin leaned in, deadpan.
"He might just throw himself into the palace well. Goodbye, cruel world. My heart couldn't take the pain."
Dohyun added,
"All because his demon sorcerer said no."
Sihyun's jaw dropped, guilt hitting him like a cold splash of water. He turned sharply to Yuhyun.
"Is that true?! Do you think he's really that sad?"
Yuhyun opened his mouth to reassure him, but he was already chuckling too much.
Taejin draped an arm around Sihyun's shoulders with a mock sigh.
"You really should say yes, you know. Save a prince. Save a kingdom. Save the well."
"Save our sanity,"
Dohyun added with a wink.
Sihyun shoved them both away lightly, cheeks tinged with pink.
"You two are the worst."
"But you love us anyway,"
they chimed in unison, laughing.
"…Do you really think he'd cry into a pillow?"
Sihyun asked again.
Yuhyun just grinned and said,
"Only one way to find out."
As Dohyun and Taejin laughed over their exaggerated drama, Sihyun suddenly stood up, dusting off his robe with purpose.
"Where is he?"
he asked seriously, his voice startlingly sharp.
Dohyun blinked.
"Who?"
"The prince,"
Sihyun snapped, already looking around like he might spot Muwon curled in a corner somewhere.
"If he really did throw himself into a well, I'm not going to be responsible for the mess."
Taejin and Dohyun exchanged mischievous glances before Dohyun smirked.
"Why? Are you going to say yes now and save him?"
Sihyun turned his head slowly, eyes deadpan.
"No. I just want to make sure he's not doing something stupid."
Taejin couldn't hold in his laugh.
"Oh, how noble. Truly, a concerned citizen."
"You two are annoying,"
Sihyun muttered under his breath.
Dohyun leaned closer, still grinning.
"He might be in the study hall. That's where sad princes go to mope."
Taejin added,
"Yeah, probably crying onto ancient scrolls or dramatically writing letters he'll never send."
Sihyun gave them both a look—part warning, part reluctant concern—before he turned and walked off with a mixture of hesitation and quiet urgency, trying hard not to look too eager.
Once he was out of sight, Yuhyun finally exhaled and chuckled.
"You two are unbelievable."
Dohyun laughed,
"What? We didn't lie. The prince might be in the study hall."
"He better be,"
Yuhyun replied.
"Because if Sihyun finds out you two were bluffing just to mess with him…"
Taejin grinned.
"He's gonna bury us alive."
"And resurrect us,"
Dohyun added.
"Just to do it all over again."
The three shared a laugh, imagining the chaos to come, while somewhere down the hallway, Sihyun's footsteps echoed steadily—equal parts worried and irritated—as he made his way toward the study hall, muttering under his breath.
"…If he actually jumped into a well, I swear…"
Sihyun reached the study hall and halted at the doorway. Quietly, he peeked in, eyes scanning the space.
Empty.
His brows furrowed.
His heart skipped.
"...Don't tell me..."
he muttered, recalling Dohyun and Taejin's teasing words:
"Imagine what it'll feel like, getting rejected... maybe he ran away... or worse—threw himself in the palace well!"
Sihyun's face paled a little as he whispered to himself,
"He didn't actually throw himself into the well… right?"
Just then—tap.
A gentle touch on his shoulder made him jolt, whipping around so fast he nearly tripped.
"Looking for me?"
Muwon asked, smiling brightly, arms folded behind his back.
Sihyun's eyes widened.
"Wha—"
Muwon leaned in with a playful grin.
"Aw, did you miss me already?"
Sihyun scoffed and immediately looked away, trying to shake the embarrassment off.
"Tch, you're okay after all. Good for you."
Muwon tilted his head, still watching him closely.
"Were you worried something happened?"
"I only came to check up on you,"
Sihyun said, standing straighter and brushing imaginary dust from his sleeve.
"That's all. Now I'll be on my way."
But before he could take a step, Muwon slid in front of him with exaggerated drama, grabbing both his shoulders.
"Sihyun… you do care."
"No,"
Sihyun blurted out quickly, eyes darting.
"Oh no,"
Muwon said, clinging to him like a distressed child.
"You don't know how much your rejection wounded me. My poor heart—shattered into pieces—like a delicate teacup dropped from the heavens!"
Sihyun sighed, looking heavenward as Muwon continued to cling, then muttered under his breath,
"He's worse than Dohyun…"
"I heard that,"
Muwon said with a fake pout, resting his chin dramatically on Sihyun's shoulder.
"…You were meant to,"
Sihyun replied, trying to sound annoyed but his voice too calm, too soft. He didn't move away.
They stood like that for a moment longer—Muwon clinging with overly theatrical sorrow, and Sihyun quietly letting him.
"…You did miss me,"
Muwon whispered smugly.
"Keep talking and I'll push you into that well myself,"
Sihyun muttered.
Muwon grinned wider.
"So you do know about the well."
Sihyun sighed again, but a small smile threatened to form at the corner of his lips.