Chapter Text
A gorgeous land with vivid flowers, layers of vegetation, colorful buildings, riches, bountiful livestock, and most importantly, the smiling, always joyous people. The kingdom of Hwanho, also known as the land of cheer, is one of the most beautiful places in Korea. Everywhere you look yells happiness; however, over the years, all of this has gone to waste. Instead of having kind rulers, Hwanho suffers from dictators—before, it was the Ryus, then the Lims, and the current leaders, the Songs. The royal family consists of only three, King Song Seungwon, Queen Song Bokeum, and Prince Song Seokjin. With the amount of secrets the royals hide, the civilians make their own theories. From "the King is dead" to "Prince Song is a woman," there are many rumors, but only a few prove true.
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"Have you heard? Apparently, there's a coup somewhere in the kingdom. Goodness, I hope they don't get shut down like the last one!"
Namjoon whipped his head towards the naive voice, and wasn't surprised to see that it came from the gossip grandma of Hwanho. Slowly, he approached her from behind and gently laid his hand on her shoulder.
"Namjoon!" she shrieked. "Dear, you nearly killed me!" Namjoon inwardly rolled his eyes, he would hate to be her grandchild.
Still, he put on a kind smile, "Mrs. Cho, it's so lovely to see you again!" Lowering his voice, "But I would hate for this new...program to be shut down due to someone speaking aloud of it. Afterall, that's how the last group got caught, yes?" A bloom grew on her cheeks and she ducked her head in shame. After offering a small grin, he continued his day, walking down his village and admiring the smiles everyone still managed to put on.
Even after all of the constant taxes, discrimination, rejection, and not to mention the tension between the bordering kingdom, Jeog, the people of Hwanho still smiled. They were still kind. They still knew how to love—and Namjoon adored his kingdom for it. When King Bo passed, all went to shit. At first, people sat around, hoping that the dictatorship would last only a few years. Immediately, they were proven wrong, and forces were created to put an end to such tyranny. However, every single coup was eliminated just before their ‘grand plan.’ Somehow, the royals always knew, but they would wait until the group’s greatest moment to strike. It was cruel—it was entertaining for them to watch the group’s excitement and courage peak, only to shoot it down immediately. The royals were that type of people. Just pure evil.
On that note, there is one group that hasn’t been shut down, yet. And Namjoon was part of it, proud of it, too. His father, friends, and neighbors all joined, and they’ve stuck with the group since. He was glad to be part of Yue.
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“Who is best for the job?” Mr. Bang’s voice boomed throughout the large room.
“My friend, Jimin … Personally, I agree that Yoongi is the best choice … Taehyung is good at such tasks, he will not disappoint … Hoseok is already trusted, why not use him—”
“Enough!” He pounded his fist on the table, silencing the chaotic dispute. “We need to make a decision, now. We need someone of maturity, an intelligent individual who knows the importance of this responsibility.”
As the group stilled, he used the pause to observe the room. Looking around, his people had determined faces, strong, swirling emotions within their eyes, and confident postures. He knew he could trust their judgement. He knew they would make a choice that proved beneficial towards Yue, not their personal pride or pleasure. He was proud of what they had created.
A rich, commanding voice broke the tension, “Mr. Bang, I believe Namjoon is best suited for this job.”
Mr. Bang looked at Mr. Kim expectantly. The man continued, “While I’m aware that there is bias in this decision, afterall he’s my son, I truly believe that out of everyone here, he is most likely to achieve our goal. Yes, he is young, but he is also smart, persistent, and knows the value of Yue. I have no doubt about his success.” Mr. Kim glanced at his shocked son, and gave an assured smile.
“Yue, any objections?”
Only proud smiles were cast around the room.
Mr. Bang grinned and looked at Namjoon, “Are you willing to accept this task?”
“I— Well, um. Yes, sir! It will be my honor.” The group laughed at his outburst, and all congratulated him.
⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡ ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡ ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡ ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡ ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡
“Wow, Joon, I actually have to respect you now,” Hoseok joked.
Jimin pounced on his back, “I think Jungkook clapped the loudest at the meeting, you know.”
“Kid’s totally whipped,” Yoongi sighed.
“I don’t have a crush on Namjoon hyung! I just know when to admire a good man,” Jungkook pouted.
Taehyung rolled his eyes, “Does admiring someone include staying up until midnight just to leave chocolates at his door?”
“Shut up!”
Namjoon grinned at his friends’ antics while walking towards the stables. He should’ve known his father would suggest him for the task, but he didn’t know he would actually get it. This was a big responsibility, and will determine the fate of the kingdom. He was definitely nervous, but excited, too.
Later today, there will be a feast in his honor, and tomorrow he’ll become a spy in the royal palace. However, Yue has implanted spies in the palace before. Take Hoseok for example, he’s one of Prince Song’s “servants”. He was chosen for the role before Namjoon, but when the time came, he said he couldn’t do it. Hoseok never explained exactly why, not even to Namjoon, his best friend.
All he told Yue was, “Even if I tried, I wouldn’t be able to pull it off.” Although, they weren’t too surprised when he said that.
Everyone before Namjoon had failed; however, they never got to actually executing the plan. Those who become acquainted with Prince Song for the mission either leave Yue or grow silent when conversations are brought about such matters. Hoseok doesn’t have problems speaking about how they’ll take down the King and Queen, but the minute Prince Song comes into the discussion, he shuts up (which is rare for the talkative individual). It was odd, and they’ve tried to get answers, but no one seems to carry them. This being said, none of them were Kim Namjoon.
໒꒰ྀིᵔ ᵕ ᵔ ꒱ྀི১ ໒꒰ྀིᵔ ᵕ ᵔ ꒱ྀི১ ໒꒰ྀིᵔ ᵕ ᵔ ꒱ྀི১ ໒꒰ྀིᵔ ᵕ ᵔ ꒱ྀི১
“We hold a feast, to honor our beloved member, Kim Namjoon. You may not know him, but anytime you notice a broken dishware, a lightswitch—and, you swore it had just been replaced, or even a flower that was magically cut off, then you have met him.” The group chuckled in agreement. “His father, Kim Seungwon, is a founding member of Yue, and has displayed his loyalty and love for the group time and time again. Well, it sure runs in the family! … Enough talk, let’s eat.”
And so they did.
The next day, Namjoon said his goodbyes, and began to walk to the palace. It’s not like he wouldn’t be able to see his friends and family anymore, but it definitely wouldn’t be as often. Luckily, he has Hoseok, and some other members in the palace, too. It shouldn’t be terrible, right? I mean, as long as he doesn’t get caught as a spy. Who knows what they’d do—water torture, burn him alive, pour boiling metal down his wounds, chili oil up his nose, hang him, or maybe make his death a public display? No, he just can’t get caught. Simple as that.
And he went over his backstory nearly a hundred times before entering the royal grounds.
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