Prelude ☀️

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Chapter 1

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Volume 1 – Prelude (序幕)

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1

“Are you Prince Jung? We’re cousins but I’ve never seen your face so I can’t tell, are you?”

The man’s lips twisted into a smirk. The man was intimidating! He was large and tall, and looked hard as a rock. He was covered in a dark substance and smelled of blood.

His hair fell down to his shoulders and his face appeared dark with his back against dim sunlight. His sharp black beast-like eyes shed a dangerous light. He looked like a demon from hell!

All around the boy were the sounds of screams, weapons being swung, and the sounds of buildings collapsing outside. They all collided together into a terrible bizarre soundscape that should only exist in nightmares. All around the boy was the spilled blood of the servants as the terrible man approached him. 

The boy was confused in all the chaos and was breathing heavily, but he got up from his seat and stared at the approaching man. The man tilted his head as he glanced at the boy. 

“This is a surprise! It would be more believable if you were a Princess instead of a prince! Uncle did not have a remarkable appearance, so where did this beautiful white skin come from?” 

Muttered the man to himself as he blatantly stared at the boy, looking him up and down from head to toe. The boy just stared at him as he thought he heard nothing.

The man was wearing thick leather armor and he was holding a sword as long as the boy’s height. Suddenly, he appeared in front of the boy’s nose.

 “Not bad,” said the man.  

The foul smell of blood struck the boy causing him to frown involuntarily, but the man didn’t care. His eyes had a strange gleam to them as he raised the corners of his mouth into a smile.  

Then the man roughly threw his blood-soaked gloves on the floor. He glanced at the boy for a moment, then he suddenly grabbed the boy’s pale young cheeks and blood began to run down his clean smooth white skin. It was the blood of Sanggung, a servant, who was beheaded by this man in the very room as soon as he entered it.

“Look at you, the progeny of the old King, are you still breathing? This is the blood of the Dead King.” 

At the man’s words, the boy’s eyes fluttered. The King was dead? He could not mean his father! He saw him just yesterday, and only a few hours ago he was the sole King who had always ruled this country.

However, the loud gloomy noise all around him deepened the boy’s dread. The man’s cold face was filled with laughter at the boy’s anxiety. 

“You have a look of disbelief about you. Well, that would make sense. The third prince who lived so comfortably cloistered away, not knowing anything about the world….”

“… …”

“But your father’s head was cut off by my very own hands. I’m sorry, but it’s true. Of course, your title of Prince will also be forfeited. The same goes for all of your family who were royalty, that is if you survive.” 

The man spoke freely as he looked at the boy. The boy’s face had turned pale and his mouth went dry. His face was dark, and the boy couldn’t get rid of the feeling that he was wandering through a nightmare. None of the man’s words felt real. 

This man beheaded his father…? He is dead… it was all lies! ….The boy couldn’t help but cling to that thought.

“I was determined to kill the entire royal family… hmm… but it wouldn’t hurt to keep at least one of you alive. It could be fun to have a beautiful precious prince as a lover.”

The man who was muttering these incomprehensible words suddenly bowed his head and bent down. The man’s face was way too close to the boy’s, who had been staring blankly as though he were in another world.

If you’re reading this anywhere other than Foolishtranslationss.wordpress.com, it was stolen from the translator’s website. Reading this anywhere other than the translator’s website ensures that the translator may never translate any other works. Thank you.

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2

Now that the boy could see him close up in the light, he appeared to be much younger than the boy had originally thought when the man’s back was against the light. However, the man’s black eyes that were staring at the boy had a dark and sinister look about them.

The man looked vicious and cruel. The boy couldn’t help but frown at him. He gave the boy an eerie feeling. The disgusting bloody smell coming off the man seemed to suit him, causing the boy to instinctively reject him.

Then a large rake-like hand grabbed the boy’s hair and swung his head backward. In an instant, his small lips, which had been stubbornly closed, opened up, and the man pressed his lips down upon them.

The boy’s eyes widened in surprise. His small body was dragged into the arms of the large man as a hot soft lump rushed into the boy’s small open mouth. For the first time in his life, the boy couldn’t breathe.

He began to struggle with his eyes opened wide. He was shocked by what the man was doing in his mouth. A scream spread from his closed mouth and his skin crawled as goosebumps erupted all over his body. He couldn’t believe what was happening!

It was a shameful sight. The boy struggled frantically, trying to get away from him. However, the difference between the massive body of the man, and the body of a boy who is not yet thirteen was incomparable. The boy felt crushed, he was unable to avoid it, run away, or even close his mouth. He was trembling all over.

He asked himself ‘Why did he have to be humiliated in this way by this ruthless, beastly man’? His mind was a mess, as a mixture of sadness and anger swirled around him. 

The man greedily sucked the boy’s lips and small tongue. The boy was forced to stare at the man as he continued his ruthless assault without any hesitation. The wet sound of the man rustling inside his mouth floated through the air and then back down to the boy’s ears again. 

Their saliva mixed and fell out of the corners of their interlocking lips. As the boy listened to these terrible sounds, he suddenly clenched his fists in anger. Every sound and sensation that the man made, turned to anger in the boy.

After the man had been wandering through the boy’s mouth for a while, he suddenly raised his head and muttered aloud. 

“It’s so delicious, I don’t even think it makes me bent.”

Then he stopped struggling and looked at the boy who was standing there in shock. Then he began to rip off his heavy armor.

“I’ve been itching for the last few days to hold a woman! I couldn’t because of all the battles, but that’s alright. I’ll taste just you for a while to relieve that itch.”

The man’s mocking voice reverberated through the gloomy space. The noises from outside the door were still humming, but the inside the room, alone with this man was just too quiet. Maybe it was because of that, that nothing felt real anymore, or maybe the boy just didn’t want to believe it. 

The silence was so still it was as though everything had died. The boy just stood there motionless like a doll. He pressed his saliva-greased lips tight and clenched his fists.

“Of course, since you’re the ‘Young Prince’ no one has ever touched you.” 

The Man’s eyes gleamed with lust! He began dropping his heavy armor to the floor piece by piece, as he reached out and grabbed the boy’s slender shoulders.

It was just at the moment when the man’s dark red, blood-dried, hands gripped the boy’s fine silk clothes as though he were about to tear them, that a sharp sound hissed through the air.

“… …”

The man stopped moving and stood up tall. It had all happened in the blink of an eye. In one fluid motion, the man’s blood splattered on the floor pouring down like rain. He looked down at the boy as if puzzled. 

Silence as heavy as death flowed between them. The man stared at the boy for only a moment, then slowly raised his hands and touched his face. His rough fingertips were drenched in blood. The man glanced down at his blood and then looked at the boy again.

The boy’s lips were closed tightly, he was not even breathing. In his hand, he was clutching a small dagger as hard as he could. There were bits of flesh and blood dripping down the bluish-blade of the dagger that had mercilessly cut through the man’s face.

The man stared at the boy’s beautiful hand that was holding the dagger, as his face contorted. A long cut from his forehead passing down through his eye to his cheek opened into an unsightly wound that dripped blood down half the man’s face, to the floor. It was clear that the left eye which had been cut with the dagger must have been destroyed.

If you’re reading this anywhere other than Foolishtranslationss.wordpress.com, it was stolen from the translator’s website. Reading this anywhere other than the translator’s website ensures that the translator may never translate any other works. Thank you.

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3

Nevertheless, the man never screamed in pain. He just twisted his lips grotesquely and looked at the boy with his other eye strangely. The boy took a deep breath and opened his mouth slowly.

“I am Jung, Third Prince of the country of Kajang, and you don’t have the right to lay your hands on my body.”  

This was the first time the boy opened his mouth to break his silence, and the voice that rang out was confident and clear. However, his black eyes were as cold as his expression, as he stared down at the man through clenched teeth. 

“I see…..” said the man, “Even though you’re still young, you are a lion cub!”

“… …”

“But what you said is pitiful because it’s a lie! Your father was the king, but now he’s dead so you’re no longer a Prince of this country. How do I make you realize that you are no longer a Prince but a plaything who will live at my feet.”

Muttered the man pitifully. Then he shrugged his shoulders and giggled like a child. The voice of the man laughing eerily filled the quiet room as blood poured down half his face from the wound that he seemed to disregard. 

The man wiped the blood dripping down his cheek with the back of his hand, then stopped for an instant. At the same time as his giggling stopped, a dangerously wild eye held the boy in its sight. 

The boy, who sensed the sudden change in energy, hunched his shoulders without realizing it. Danger! A warning bell rang out in his mind. He wanted to run away. He had a foreboding feeling that if he stayed like this, he would die from being torn apart by that rake-like hand!

” I hate wild cats who don’t know their place!”.

The man approached him with an ugly aura, gnashing his teeth fiercely. The boy instinctively tried to avoid him by backing away. He couldn’t even blink his eyes, and his mouth was so dry it was burning.

“And I hate people who act out without understanding the situation!” the man murmured.

The boy who had been slowly stepping backward suddenly bumped into a table behind him. With nowhere to retreat, he froze. It felt as though there was a fire in front of him. At that moment there was a loud noise as the boy’s body collapsed.  

In an instant, his cheek was hit hard. If it wasn’t for the table behind the boy’s back, his small body would have flown through the air and onto the floor. The boy managed to lean on the table, but he was barely able to lift his throbbing head.

There was the sound of chimes again as the boy fell backward. Blood pooled in his mouth and he spat it out loudly.

The boy wiped the blood from his torn lips with the back of his hand. Although he was beaten without mercy, the boy stared straight at the man with his sharp eyes. The man frowned at the boy’s gaze.

“What cheeky rude eyes. I’ll teach you how to wag your tail at your new master!” 

The man spoke coldly as he stretched out his hand to the boy. The boy could do nothing but close his eyes as the large hand stained red with dried blood, approached him. He knew he would die like this, fear overwhelmed his mind.

‘I will die like this.’ A dim thought flowed into his head.  

‘This is how you die! This is how you die!’, repeat it in his mind. At that moment when he hunched his shoulders in desperation, someone’s scream echoed loudly from above.

If you’re reading this anywhere other than Foolishtranslationss.wordpress.com, it was stolen from the translator’s website. Reading this anywhere other than the translator’s website ensures that the translator may never translate any other works. Thank you.

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4

“Prince Jung!” 

A single word rang out from overhead. In that instant, something completely unexpected happened! 

Crack-

There was the sound of the ceiling cracking from above his head, and the sound of something bursting resounded through the room at the same time. A cloud of white dust was sprayed in front of his eyes along with a continuous ringing noise. For a moment the boy’s vision was obscured in the fog. 

Suddenly from above the ceiling, a man’s arm shot down in front of him, like a rope from a story about salvation. 

Ahh-

The boy let out a small exclamation. It was at that moment that the boy recognized the young man who had been his escort and guardian since childhood. 

“Shaw!”

The boy temporarily suppressed the overwhelming gratitude in his heart at this miraculous turn of events and hurriedly grabbed the arm offered to him from above. In an instant, the boy’s small body was dragged up into the ceiling. From the room below where the boy had just been, fierce swear words along with the sound of a man’s coughing etched around. 

“Is no one there!? Prince Jung is escaping! Hurry up and give chase!”

The boy’s shoulders shrank as the man’s furious voice reverberated from within the room below. In the next moment, someone hugged him tightly and he opened his eyes in surprise.

“Prince, please forgive my rudeness and hold on tight!”

A sense of relief and urgency was conveyed with just those short words. It was because Shaw was holding the boy in his arms, casting his light movement. Shaw rose from the ceiling and came out onto the roof. He began running swiftly, but gently, on the tiles of the palace roof. 

Inside the young man’s arms, the boy looked around. The palace had turned into hell! Black smoke covered the sky from the burning fires. The dead were piled up like a mountain all around, and the grounds of the castle were stained red with blood

Oh my God!

The boy, who had been staring at the rapidly receding castle with his bloodless tired face, closed his eyes tightly. The trembling in his limbs caused by thinking he was going to die at that man’s hands now trembled for a different reason. 

The boy squeezed his arms and hugged Shaw’s neck. Shaw was dressed in black from head to toe, as were the two escorts following him. They were concentrating on escaping the palace as swiftly as possible.

If you’re reading this anywhere other than Foolishtranslationss.wordpress.com, it was stolen from the translator’s website. Reading this anywhere other than the translator’s website ensures that the translator may never translate any other works. Thank you.

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5

The sound of the wind rustled through the boy’s ears. The surroundings changed in an instant with the speed of their fleeing. The gigantic castles that seemed to be moving away from view finally disappeared from his sight entirely. The city that had turned into a battlefield finally disappeared too. The rice paddy fields that spread out endlessly soon turned into wastelands. 

It was then that he looked at the rapidly changing scenery with bewilderment.

“……. Damn it!”

As Shaw was crossing the field he suddenly uttered a few swear words. The boy raised his head and looked over the young man’s shoulder. A faint movement flickered behind the three warriors. Even though they were using a new evasive technique⁰ they were still being chased!

The warrior’s team that was giving chase to the three warriors and the boy they were fleeing with, was wearing armor while holding spears, driving their steed forward like they were going into battle. They chased so hard and fast that a cloud of dust rose behind them. 

Looking at the sight of more than a dozen pursuers left the boy stunned. Although Shaw and the two other warriors were running with the new method and were formidable in martial arts, the pursuers followed at an unimaginable speed. They had already nearly reached them.

The boy gently grabbed Shaw’s shoulder as the distance narrowed. Shaw then whispered in the boy’s ear in a tone that was serious but respectful.

“Prince, listen carefully, we are about to enter the ‘Forest of Evil Spirits’.”

The boy nodded vigorously. 

The Forest of Evil Spirits was a mountain range that surrounded the city, separating it from everything else. The forest was old and had the largest and thickest trees. However, it was a place where people of the Kajang country would not set foot hastily. 

As the name suggests, evil spirits live there, and rumors have spread that once you enter, no one ever comes back out. But those who were following them were nothing but demons as well, so what choice did they have? The evil spirits that live in the forest might be better than the ones that pursue them.

“I don’t know what will happen after we enter, so you have to hold on to your heart” 

“Shaw…”

“No matter what happens or what I do, you must run to the west, My Prince. Can you remember? You’re going to run West. That will lead you out of the forest quickly.”

The boy couldn’t nod in agreement to this. This was not the way it was supposed to be… he could not even think about being left alone. But Shaw continued in a resolute voice.

“Once you’re beyond this Forest, you will no longer be in Kajang. You will be in a place The Prince has never been to before, it is a desert where Nomads live. You must ask them for help.”

“Shaw! No! Go with me! We need to get away together!” 

Cried the boy in a voice full of exasperation. Just the thought of going to an unfamiliar place alone was terrifying, but the thought of what would happen to Shaw made the boy tremble with fear. For a moment Shaw tightened his grip and hugged him tightly. 

“Of course, I will survive and protect the prince. However, there is always an ‘if’. Even if you are alone for a while, don’t worry. I will somehow find you, Prince.”

“But”-

Instead of answering the boy just bit his lip. Shaw’s words sounded as though they were saying their last goodbyes. The boy’s vision became blurred.

“Unfortunately, The Crown Princes, and the other Princes, have been captured and are without help”.

“….…What?”

The boy’s mind raced. ‘My brothers were caught? After my father, all my siblings suffered too?’ His mind faded to white. But there was no time to be sad, and Shaw’s heavy words continued.

“So The Prince must survive! You must live and get back what’s yours. I will help you do that!” 

Shaw said resolutely to the boy, who was just hugging him blankly as though he lost his mind.

The boy suddenly came to his senses, bit his lip, and nodded. A hot lump in his throat choked him so that he could not answer properly. All he could do was blink his blurry eyes as he clutched the hem of Shaw’s clothes so tightly that his bones could be seen through his fingers.

Swish.- 

Just then, a sharp whistling sound was heard. It was the signal from the two escorts running behind Shaw. As if he were responding to the signal, Shaw’s running speed increased. He ran with all his might toward the dark expansive forest that spread out before his eyes.

However, the two escorts following them abruptly changed course in the opposite direction and started running back the way they had just escaped.

“Ah-!”

The boy looked at the warriors over Shaw’s shoulder and let out a shriek. It was obvious what their movements meant without having to ask. They were heading toward the men who were closely pursuing them.

They pulled out their swords that were attached to their waist, and without any hesitation rushed directly toward their pursuers. It was almost impossible for just two of them to stop the dozen or more men that we were pursuing them. Even knowing that fact, they ran toward their death to buy time for Shaw who was running with the boy. 

The boy stretched his hand out toward them with regret. However, they quickly moved away, getting smaller and smaller. They could not be reached. Unable to contain his emotions, he bit his lip until blood gushed.

“Prince, this is for you. For them, this is a noble mission, so do not be sad” 

If you’re reading this anywhere other than Foolishtranslationss.wordpress.com, it was stolen from the translator’s website. Reading this anywhere other than the translator’s website ensures that the translator may never translate any other works. Thank you.

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6

Shaw’s voice didn’t waver in the slightest, but somehow it sounded even sadder because of it. The boy held the image of the warrior’s rapidly fading backs in his sight. The bitter sadness repeated over and over in his heart until it turned into anger burning in his chest. 

Meanwhile, Shaw rushed to the edge of the forest where the vast fields had disappeared and been replaced by long grass and sparsely growing trees. Just a little further and they would enter the forest, with trees so thick that they blocked out the sky. The thick forest was hard to traverse on foot, so it would be very difficult for their pursuers who were riding on horses, to follow. 

They entered the forest to outrun the chase.

Shaw’s breath had become rougher and more ragged for a while and his light footwork had slowed considerably. Because of this, the boy’s anxiety increased because there was nothing he could do about it. 

The boy was sweating like rain as he buried his face in Shaw’s neck, who was running hard. He held his breath while staring straight ahead, his eyes were wide in amazement at the faint sound of horseshoes approaching. Despite the fact that the two warriors gave their lives to block their pursuers, they were already following close behind them.

The boy padded Shaw’s shoulder and shouted to him.

“Shaw put me down! I can run too! Let’s run together, okay? Put me down!” 

Shaw’s pace had slowed considerably. He must have run out of energy after having run from the palace with all his might. It seemed to the boy that it would be better for him to run with him, rather than Shaw carrying him in tow. But Shaw just continued running toward the woods without stopping or answering. 

The boy squeezed his sweat-soaked hem with his fingers as his chest tightened. It was fortunate that the trees were growing denser, and he prayed that he could somehow escape the pursuit. Just then at that moment…. 

Shhh~

… An arrow shot from behind him and pasted his ear creating a sharp wind. The boy was surprised by the arrow, which had barely been deflected, but soon after that, arrows started pouring down like rain with a loud sound. 

Shaw clicked his tongue and pulled the boy tightly into his arms, hugging him. Shaw’s pace which had begun to slow down a bit, accelerated as he ran to and fro, through the trees. The arrows pierced sharp and loud over the trees as they passed. The sound of horses’ hooves kicking the ground gradually got closer as they ran through the dense trees. 

The arrows pierced the trees fiercely as they passed. The sound of horses’ hooves hitting the ground gradually got louder as they got closer. As they ran through the trees, the number of flying arrows also increased innumerably.

Then, an arrow pierced Shaw’s right arm. A low scream escaped the boy’s lips as red blood squirted into the air, and a thick bloody smell spread to the tips of his nose.

“Prince, will you remember what I said earlier?”

Shaw asked in an urgent voice. The boy nodded vigorously as he grasped the hem of his rope tightly.

“Great! The moment I let go of you Prince, run straight in the direction we were running. Can you do that?”

“……What!?”

“Run quickly without looking back! Once you enter the Forest of Evil Spirits, there will be many rocks and trees so the horses will not be able to chase you. Never stop, even if you fall, get back up straight away and run! Once you find a safe place to hide, go in and don’t come out until the forest is completely quiet. After the forest calms down, head West again. Do you understand?”

His words passed quickly through the boy’s ears like incomprehensible ideas just rattling around his mind.

“N…no……”

“I will find the Prince as soon as I shake them. “

Shaw took a rough breath and hugged the boy tightly, as the boy hung from his shoulders and cried.  

“I promise I will definitely go find the…”

Shaw’s words were interrupted by an arrow that flew by and landed in his shoulder. Swallowing a low moan, he quickly lowered the boy to the ground and pushed his back. Then he grabbed the arrow stuck in his shoulder, pulled it out, and threw it on the ground. Then he pulled out the two swords he was wearing around his waist.

“Run!” 

Shaw shouted as he ran in the opposite direction without looking back. The boy watched as his figure rapidly disappeared in the direction of their pursuers. The boy took a step backward, clenching his trembling fist. He hesitated for a moment, he couldn’t run away without him. When Shaw was nearly out of sight, he heard him shout out.  

“Hurry…!”

At the wretched sound of his voice, the boy clenched his jaw and started running back away from it. The corners of his eyes were wet as he ran frantically through the trees, bushes, and brush. The world seemed to be spinning and was blurry, but the boy did not stop running. 

‘You just have to run a little bit more, he kept saying to himself. Then just as Shaw had said, the deep forest surrounded him. Shaw would shake the demonic horde and follow him. He would search for him and he would find him. Surely he will! Obviously, Shaw would survive.

He’ll live… he was sure that Shaw would come to find him. Reflecting on that, believing it, the boy was able to run without looking back. He ran without sparing even a moment to wipe away the tears that were dripping down his face,  or to let out a cry held in the bottom of his throat. He ran and ran until he couldn’t breathe. 

He ran towards the dark forest with his arms outstretched before him. He ran towards a life that he couldn’t even imagine, it was the only hope the boy had now.

If you’re reading this anywhere other than Foolishtranslationss.wordpress.com, it was stolen from the translator’s website. Reading this anywhere other than the translator’s website ensures that the translator may never translate any other works. Thank you.

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Chapter 1

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