Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Matthew is done.

Like done, done .

The thing is, he doesn’t know whether he should be crying or mad at this situation.

Matthew just found out that he will be shipped off to marry someone across the kingdom.

Even worse, he will be sent (yes, like a fucking prize) to that person tomorrow .

“ Calm down ? I can’t calm down.” Matthew shrieks, cutting his rational side that has been saying it repeatedly despite the fact that he knows damn too well that there’s no use having an outburst at times like this. “Is that what I need now? Oh, sorry. No. I can’t do that because no one can stop me from being upset.”

“Matthew.”

Jongwoo’s voice suddenly cuts through the air. Matthew doesn’t even know that he is also inside his room because he is too busy freaking out about his new fate.

“Cousin! Do something!” Matthew exclaims. Jongwoo is his last hope. “You can change your father’s mind, right?”

Jongwoo, who always treats Matthew like his own little brother, sadly shakes his head. He looks as hopeless as Matthew in facing this situation. His father’s words also come as a surprise to him because the king doesn’t say anything to him, the crown prince, about this matter.

“At least, postpone it. Give me some time.” Matthew begs. He is desperate and will try everything even just to get a short-lived freedom. “Not right now, Cousin. Maybe I will accept my fate after some time. Please.”

Liar .

Matthew is telling a lie and everyone knows it. 

Everyone knows that Matthew won’t accept his fate and he doesn’t even want to try. 

Everyone knows that Matthew won’t just sit pretty and nod at the order.

Everyone knows that Matthew will run off to another country if he is given some time to stay in this kingdom.

Maybe that’s why his uncle chooses this way to kick him out of the kingdom. It is because the king knows that Matthew cannot seek help from anyone if everything is done fast like this .

“Your father is a prick.” Matthew spats as Jongwoo’s face darkens a bit. “He must be waiting for this moment all the time just to secure the throne for him.”

Jongwoo keeps silent and doesn’t deny Matthew at all because what his little cousin said is true .

Everyone knows how the current king reigns the throne because Matthew’s dad, the past king, is suddenly dead from a mysterious illness, followed by his wife and daughter. Magically, Matthew is the only one left from this tragedy of this country’s ruler and somehow got voted off from the council from his crown prince position. Then, enter Jongwoo’s family and Matthew’s only uncle who after that ascends the throne immediately.

Matthew doesn’t hate Jongwoo’s family at all because all the time, people are always saying that they’re all that is left for him. He realized that he was manipulated in the name of the word ‘family’ and now it is too late for him to get away from that.

“I’m sorry, Matthew.” Jongwoo chirps in the silence between them. “In the name of my family. My father, the majesty.”

“Sorry doesn’t change anything, Cousin.” Matthew really wants to cry aloud because he is too hopeless. It is too late for him to save himself from this fate. “But, I shall give you the forgiveness because I’m in no position to harbor a grudge.”

Jongwoo hugs Matthew and he doesn’t hug his cousin back. He just silently sobs while his mind wanders to whatever that will happen to him after this.

.

“Take care, Son.”

Matthew doesn’t even smile when he hears that because he knows that his uncle’s tearful act cannot fool him. The queen doesn’t say anything as she only stares at Matthew with an unreadable expression in her face. Then, standing in front of him, there is Jongwoo, the only one who hugs Matthew in this small farewell ceremony.

“We will miss you. I will miss you, little brother.”

“I know. Me too.”

Matthew doesn’t lie. He will truly miss Jongwoo who always dotes on him, the only sincere act that he believes from his only family left.

“I don’t want to burden you with the obligation of writing a letter. But please write me a letter once you’re happy with your life there. It will ease my mind.”

Jongwoo’s word chimes something in Matthew’s mind.

Will Matthew be happy there?

“Just one? Easy, I will write for you, but don’t wait for it. Maybe it will never come.” Matthew slightly jokes with a weak smile in his usually cheerful face. One whole night of crying when preparing for his sudden leave is truly affecting him thoroughly. Look at Matthew right now, he can joke about the situation because he knows that he can’t do anything to escape this. But it doesn’t mean that Matthew will easily accept his fate.

“Farewell, Cousin. Thank you for everything. Good luck to you.”

More like, good luck to me .

Matthew can’t help but laugh bitterly as he rides to the carriage that has been prepared for him to his next forever home, away from his homeland. He doesn’t even want to remember the name of his destination. All he knows is he will be away from all of his memories and what scares him the most is the fact that he won’t be back here because he is stuck forever in an unfamiliar place.

.

The journey is interesting.

No one in this troop dared to talk to him. When they need to rest, all of them silently do their job as Matthew desperately tries to make small talk with them. But all he receives is a polite smile or a nod of acknowledgement as if their number one rule is a no talking policy. As someone who likes to yap, it is pretty infuriating for Matthew to be trapped in this situation. 

Another thing that is fascinating for Matthew is the fact that some of the soldiers in the troop are not human. Back in his kingdom, ninety percent of the population is human. All the prominent figures in the government are also human. It is a rare occurrence for him to see elves, hybrids, nymphs, or any other beings. That’s why this thing is pretty interesting from Matthew’s point of view.  

Just in time when Matthew thinks that the journey is never-ending, the carriages suddenly come out from the boring forest path into the suburban area on the seventh night. He can see some big, uniform but luxurious houses when he peeks from the small window on his carriage. A bit weird? Yes. Back in Matthew’s kingdom, the suburban area usually is inhabited by farmers with much simpler and homey houses with a large farm around it.  But, he quickly brushes off his confusion as his heart suddenly thumps loudly.

New place, new life .

The thought of it makes Matthew shudder in a weird way. Someone like Matthew who never sets his foot somewhere other than his kingdom has to adapt in a new place with no one familiar. He still doesn’t want to accept everything even though he has been thinking about it for the past seven days.

Suddenly, the carriage rumbles.

The view of more modern land compared to the suburban area welcomes Matthew. The neatly stacked up rocks decorates the street that is packed with people on the side of the road. It looks like that the capital of the kingdom doesn’t really have much difference with the city back home. 

Carefully, Matthew sticks his head out through the carriage’s window and his eyes can’t help but sparkle with amusement as he watches a much more magnificent and bigger castle which is probably his final destination. The castle is built with black-grayish stone that makes the building look gloomy, but still beautiful. Again, it is very different from his kingdom’s castle back then. The carriages then pass the tall fence that separates the castle and the city. Matthew quickly pulls his head in when he hears the horse neighing as the carriage slowly stops. 

“Please welcome, Prince Seok Matthew of Magpie!”

The loud sound of blown horns is so deafening in Matthew’s ears. The carriage’s door is opened, showing someone that Matthew suspected as someone important in this kingdom by the number of medals in his uniform. He extends his hand to Matthew and lets him hold onto it as the prince gets off from the carriage.

There aren’t many people who welcome him. It is not disappointing since Matthew believes that he is not that important for this kingdom. He is just a mere human that is gifted by his family to boost the agreement between these two kingdoms. But, by still being called as a prince here, Matthew realizes that he is still being respected here.

“Greetings. Let me introduce myself as Sung Hanbin, the right-hand man of the king.”

Matthew nods politely when the door opener introduces himself. He then follows him with his crampy, shaky legs as he slowly walks on the red carpets. At the end of the red carpet, there are two figures that are waiting for him. 

“This is Prince Kim Taerae of Raven.” Hanbin speaks as he gestures his hand to the shorter man with a wide smile plastered on his face. Then, Hanbin’s hand moves to the taller and younger man beside Taerae whose eyes sparkle with awe when Matthew smiles back at them. “This is Prince Kim Gyuvin of Raven. Both of them are the king’s brother.”

“I’m Seok Matthew. Nice to meet you.” Matthew smiles back to return the enthusiasm that he receives.

“Nice to meet you too!” Gyuvin chirps happily. “Welcome to the Raven Kingdom. We hope you enjoy your stay.”

Matthew can tell by their slightly pointed ears that they are elves, which is widely known as a creature who isn’t the nicest to humans. Of course it makes Matthew wonder about the fact that why Taerae and Gyuvin look so happy when meeting him. As if he senses Matthew’s confusion, Hanbin then says, “Taerae and Gyuvin are happy with the new addition to this castle because it is only them that really live here.”

“What about the king?” Matthew asks about his future spouse curiously. It seems like the figure of the king is really mysterious. He can see Taerae and Gyuvin stare at each other for a split second, as if exchanging known and secret glances that only them can decipher.

“Well, don’t bother about him. Let’s just explore this castle together!”

After the short trip around the castle with Gyuvin and Hanbin–Taerae can’t join them because he has something important to do, Matthew feels more relaxed on his first day here. Mostly, it is Gyuvin who talks a lot about the architecture of the castle, while on the other hand, Hanbin just smiles and checks his watch continuously. 

“Prince Gyuvin, it is almost lunch time. Let’s go to the dining room. The king is already waiting there.” 

Hanbin stops Gyuvin’s rambling to Matthew about the castle’s green house garden immediately after he checks his watch for the nth time. He smiles again in a very polite way when Gyuvin sighs in disappointment. Gyuvin then suddenly puts his hand on Matthew's shoulder in a very friendly way, which surprises Matthew who is still a bit awkward with him and everything around it.

“You will meet my brother shortly. Trust me, he is no fun, unlike me.”

Gyuvin’s goofy smile instantly makes Matthew relax. He giggles to return Gyuvin’s smile as they walk together inside the castle with Hanbin following behind them. Matthew really can’t help but give the same nice energy that Gyuvin’s gave to him despite the fact that he still can’t accept his fate. He has common sense to keep a happy and composed look because he doesn’t want anyone to know that he hates being here. 

All Matthew can do to save his life in the enemy’s den is pretending, pretending, and pretending.

.

“Greetings.”

Hanbin’s voice catches Matthew’s attention from the feast on the dining table. There are many different meats here, unlike in his kingdom back then when mostly they eat vegetable-themed food. Of course, Matthew is already eyeing the chicken who he loves the most since he was a kid. 

“Prince Matthew.”

Matthew blinks when Hanbin mentions his name. His attention then diverts from the chicken that Gyuvin puts in his plate because that boy knows that Matthew has been eyeing it this whole time.

“This is King Jiwoong of Raven.”

Matthew turns his head to the figure far from him, who sits on another side of the dining table. He yelps when their eyes instantly meet because apparently, he is already being watched by him. The king looks nothing like Gyuvin and Taerae–the three of them look really different despite being brothers, courtesy of Hanbin, except their elf features. He has deep, dark eyes that can make you lost when you dive into its stare, paired with a pale white skin that accentuates his dark eyes and hair. This person has a godlike visual who instantly traps someone who sees them.

“Who is this Matthew?” 

The king speaks to Hanbin when he is done examining Matthew’s figure with his eyes. He looks bored and not interested as he glares at Hanbin with a scowl in his face, which makes Matthew sneer because it shows that this King Jiwoong is not good at welcoming a guest. His act, unlike Gyuvin and Taerae who are showing that they care about Matthew, makes Matthew instantly label him as the rude king.

“I’m Seok Matthew of Magpie, Your Majesty.”

The air suddenly turns cold after Matthew said that wholeheartedly. Everyone in the room stops their movements as if waiting for what would happen after this. Even Taerae gasps silently at how Matthew talks to his brother, the king.

Jiwoong blinks slowly a few times after he catches Matthew’s mocking tone. Again, he eyes Matthew with intensity and something that Matthew cannot decipher in his eyes. As if he doesn’t have any fear, Matthew decides to return the stare back with a challenging look and fake smile that is pretty scary on his face.

“He is your future spouse, Your Majesty. The one who King Jongseok sent to you as a thank you gift.”

Jiwoong’s eyebrow moves slightly as he slowly processes Hanbin’s words.

“Another one?” Jiwoong says with a tired look on his face. Matthew recognizes the tone in his voice as if he isn’t surprised with this whole thing. He also can conclude that he isn’t the first person who is sent to the Raven king. But after everything that already happened, it doesn’t mean that he can treat Matthew badly like this.

“Hanbin.” Jiwoong suddenly calls his confidant with a snap of his fingers. He motions Hanbin to come to his side before he stares at Matthew again with the same, confusing, and unreadable stare. “You can marry him.”

Matthew can hear Taerae and Gyuvin gasp as Hanbin’s face turns red because of Jiwoong's unexpected words, but no one dares to talk.

“What? Jiwoong. What the heck? You can’t do this. He is for your guest.” Hanbin’s politeness slips a bit as he mutters to his king. He glances at Matthew who looks angry because he can tell that Matthew hates the way Jiwoong talks about him, as if he isn’t worthy and not a human with feelings.

“And I give him to you, Hanbin. It’s simple.” Jiwoong sniffs as if it is the most obvious thing in this whole world. "Besides, he is not my guest. He is not welcomed here."

It hurts. Matthew is already kicked off by his own family and now he isn’t accepted here? Why are people always so cruel? Is there no one in this whole world who can accept him?

“I have Hao, Jiwoong.” Hanbin tries to rationally break Jiwoong’s stubbornness.

“Then make him your second spouse. What’s new? Again, it’s simple.” Jiwoong calmly answers Hanbin’s excuse.

“If your father were here–” Hanbin suddenly stops mid-sentence. He looks like he regrets everything as Jiwoong’s eyes darts to him dangerously. Seems like that it is a sensitive subject since now, the situation turns into much more uneasy and awkward than before.  

Matthew watches Jiwoong intently. He waits for Jiwoong to break, to suddenly punch Hanbin or something. But it never happens. Instead, he stands and claps before saying, “I will be taking my leave. Have a good lunch, everyone.”

Just like that, Jiwoong then leaves the room.

“I’m sorry, Matthew.” Taerae besides Matthew sighs as he reaches his left hand to stroke it. “Jiwoong is a bit hard .”

“You have nothing to be sorry for, Taerae. Now I know how rude and entitled my future spouse is."

Now, Matthew really hates not only his fate, but also the Raven’s king, Kim Jiwoong and he will stand by this opinion until the world ends for him.

Chapter Text

Matthew doesn’t dream of anything particular on his first few nights in Raven.

All he remembers is the same thing.

A pitch-black world that devours his scream because no matter how loud his voice is, no one comes to save him.

He then always wakes up in a cold sweat with an aching throat.

So far, his routine is the same everyday.

After waking up, he eats breakfast with Taerae and Gyuvin. Then, he goes around the big castle together, mostly with Gyuvin but sometimes Taerae joins them. They are showing him off the beauty of this castle and its functional area such as the library and the stable. After that, they have lunch, sometimes in the greenhouse garden rather than in the dining room, and they go back inside to kill time by reading or simply talking until dinner time before they go to sleep in their respective rooms.

Somehow, Matthew is glad that he was placed in the room beside Taerae’s despite his status as Jiwoong’s future spouse. 

Right. 

Jiwoong.

Matthew’s blood is almost boiling in rage when he remembers how Jiwoong treats him.

May God forbid Matthew from meeting Jiwoong again because the thought of meeting him makes his mood turn sour. Matthew almost never sees Jiwoong roaming in the castle after his first lunch here. He doesn’t even join his brothers during the mealtime. Matthew only sees him by accident once when he and Gyuvin pass the back area of the castle. He was there alone and even Gyuvin didn’t want to interrupt him, so they just passed by without saying anything. He even doubts that Jiwoong sees them.

“Let’s go outside the castle tomorrow! I will show you how the city is!” Gyuvin exclaims happily as he sips his tea. Matthew, who has just pondered about his life here, nods excitedly to Gyuvin’s words.

“Don’t go too far since I won’t join you two tomorrow.” Taerae chirps and before Matthew can complain about it, he continues to speak. “I have to meet the elders.”

“Boo, you’re not fun. Let’s just sneak out, Brother. Elders can wait.”

“Sorry, Little Brother. I’m responsible. Unlike a certain someone.”

“Brother! Don’t mock me!”

Matthew just giggles at these two antics as he munches at the delicious carrot cake that was specially made for him because Matthew doesn’t like cheese. Matthew cannot help but notice the small detail that Taerae and Gyuvin remember about Matthew’s preference since his arrival. It warms his heart in an unexpected way no matter how hard he tries to ignore it.

Remember, Matthew. Your goal right now is to go back to your homeland .

“I will let you meet Ricky, Matthew!” Gyuvin suddenly hits Matthew’s back and makes him choke because of it. “He is the prettiest person in this world! If you think that Jiwoong is the prettiest, there is still Ricky above him.”

Matthew just awkwardly laughs at Gyuvin’s remark. Their conversation suddenly goes random for Matthew who doesn’t know anyone in this kingdom other than the Kim brothers. 

“Your opinion is biased because you like Ricky, Little Brother.”

“I’m not . I just find Ricky pretty. That’s all.”

“Liar.”

“Then why were you against the engagement of Jiwoong and Ricky back then?”

Now, this is interesting .

“I-I’m not !” Gyuvin stammers as his face turns as red as a tomato. “I just want the best for Jiwoong and Ricky certainly is not the best for him. Do you see the way he insults me every time we meet? I don’t want a mean brother-in-law!”

Taerae just rolls his eyes at Gyuvin’s excuse. That’s when Matthew inserts himself to the conversation again.

“So Jiwoong has been engaged before?” Matthew asks casually. He tries to pry about this matter to find a loophole from his fate.

There must be a way .

“Well, I can’t say that Ricky is Jiwoong’s ex because their engagement failed before it could start.” Taerae says as he reaches his cup of tea. “The thing is, you’re not the first person that was sent to Jiwoong.”

“I know. It was implied by your brother in our first meeting back then.”

“Oh. You remember that?” Taerae blinks at Matthew’s words. It seems like Taerae doesn’t expect Matthew to remember that point in Jiwoong and Hanbin’s heated conversation two weeks ago. “Raven’s past king has a history of having a whole harem for them. It’s like a tradition for us. That’s why another kingdom usually sends their bestest human gift to the king. I don’t know if you noticed this or not, but the three of us have a different mother each.”

Matthew nods at Taerae’s story and doesn’t say anything as if he is waiting for Taerae to finish the story.

“The king before Jiwoong, our father, was an elf and so was the queen. They had Jiwoong, the crown prince. Meanwhile, my mother is a siren and Gyuvin’s mother is a nymph. Both of them are concubines and part of the king’s harem.” Taerae continues.

“Where is Jiwoong’s harem then? I don’t see anyone other than you two and maids or soldiers here.” Matthew asks curiously. He always wonders why the castle is so silent and not lively like his homeland’s castle back then.

“He doesn’t have it. Maybe not yet.” It’s Gyuvin’s turn to connect his brother’s story. “Jiwoong always rejects human gifts like you. Usually, he lets them live in the castle for a few weeks before the council with the elders to decide its fate.”

Interesting .

“The elders and the king will have a discussion about whether they will keep them as the king’s future consort or not.” Taerae slowly explains to Matthew that intently listening.

“Or what?”

“If the king and the elders agree to not keep them. They will give them two choices, whether to stay at Raven as a commoner or go back to their country.”

Finally, some good news.

“So, there is hope for me to go back to my home.”

Matthew’s face suddenly lights up hearing that. It is like hearing the best thing he ever heard. He doesn’t even realize the way Taerae and Gyuvin’s face falls after seeing Matthew’s genuine reaction.

“Yes.” Taerae agrees with Matthew 's monologue with a halfhearted smile on his face. “You just have to hang on until the council time.”

“I will manage it, Taerae. Thank you for letting me know, you two.”

Matthew then embraces Taerae and Gyuvin in a bone-crushing hug as he shrieks happily, not knowing how two half-elves in front of him are stealing glances at each other as if they communicate in their own way. After Matthew releases them, Taerae then coughs a bit to clear his throat before carefully asking his new friend. “You know, Matthew. Why don’t you try to love Jiwoong? Imagine the power you will hold when you decide to be the Raven’s king consort. It is probably better than being a prince in a small, random country.”

“Me? Loving Jiwoong?” Matthew asks as if Taerae’s words are very absurd. Besides the fact that he is slightly offended with the way Taerae describes his homeland, he decides to brush it off. He knows that Magpie is not as big and powerful as Raven, but Magpie still owns a place in his heart no matter what. “Don’t be silly. I don’t think I can love him. I hate your brother and I believe the feeling is mutual. I have known it since day one.”

Matthew shrugs a bit before continuing. 

“The truth is, everything will be easier if I was sent off to marry you, Taerae. I will probably consider staying here for you. But with Jiwoong? Never .”

.

Jiwoong doesn’t mean to eavesdrop.

At first, he just came back from the graveyard at the hill behind the castle and accidentally stumbled upon one of his brother’s voices from one of the castle’s sitting rooms. He silently walked off from the door when suddenly he heard Matthew’s voice mentioning his name. Something about loving Jiwoong as a person and how impossible it is for him to do that.

It pains Jiwoong a lot to hear that. Especially at how sure Matthew’s voice and how Matthew spits his name like a poison.

Jiwoong runs.

He runs across the castle to his room as his heart breaks into pieces.

He never knows that loving someone doesn’t always rainbows and butterflies.

Now, he learns it the hard way.

Jiwoong, who already decides to love Matthew with all of his heart, is captivated by the Magpie’s prince from the very beginning of an interaction. He doesn’t know that love at the first sight is this intense, following with a feeling of immediate and deep attraction upon first seeing Matthew.

Back on the day of Matthew’s arrival, Jiwoong could only peek from his room’s window as suddenly he was very mesmerized by the human gift from Magpie. It was the way his black hair swaying in the wind that first catched Jiwoong’s attention, then his blinding smile and the way he gracefully moved. There was some part in Jiwoong’s mind that regretted his absence in welcoming the Magpie prince.

You’re not capable of loving someone, Jiwoong. You will never be .

The voice of his dead father was suddenly heard. Jiwoong glared at the corner of his room, especially at the sight of the dead king who sat calmly on the chair.

Don’t you dare to pursue him .

“Shut up!” Jiwoong screamed to stop the voice in his head, but the buzzing voice kept coming and coming. It made his head hurt like crazy.

You are the mad king. No one will love you. The only one who can love you is me .

At the end, Jiwoong couldn't help but believe his father’s voice in his head. He moved from the window and stopped peeking at his human gift as he then contemplated what he should do with his feeling and attraction towards his new guest.

Jiwoong then decided to pretend to hate him for everyone’s sake. Specifically, for his sake.

“I promise I will try to hate him if that’s what you want, Father.” Jiwoong finally gave in to his father’s request.

You’re bad at promises, Jiwoong. You will just break it later. Don't make promises you can't keep.

His father’s bitter laughs couldn’t help but make Jiwoong shiver slightly. He then picked his herbal medications and chugged it like his life depended on it. With that, his head became clearer and the vision of his father slowly vanished along with his laugh.

“I can’t be with him.” Jiwoong slowly spoke to no one. “He deserves to have a happy life, a life without me.”

That was Jiwoong two weeks ago and today’s Jiwoong still stands firmly by that.

“Greetings. Your Majesty King Jiwoong is coming.”

Later on that day, Jiwoong’s appearance at dinner time successfully surprises his brothers.

“Is there something that you want to announce, Brother?” Gyuvin asks halfway through the dinner.

Jiwoong shakes his head. He glances towards Matthew who doesn’t acknowledge Jiwoong a bit as his heart thumps loudly with excitement of Matthew's existence. The Magpie prince looks insanely pretty with slightly long hair although a scowl adorns his face. The meal time is the only way for Jiwoong to see Matthew from a close and safe range. That’s why he decided to join today’s dinner.

Pretending to hate Matthew is tiring enough for Jiwoong. He has to keep his composure as calm as possible as if Matthew isn’t there when all he wants is embracing Matthew in a loving hug and peppering him with many kisses.

Nobody will love you genuinely, Jiwoong. You don’t deserve that .

Jiwoong automatically rolls his eyes when suddenly his father’s voice is heard. He peeks through the corner of his eyes only to see his dead father hovering behind Matthew’s chair.

“Go away. Don’t do anything to him.” Jiwoong whispered, mainly for himself but Hanbin caught it.

“Your Majesty?” Hanbin calls Jiwoong, catching his attention.

“Yes?” Jiwoong answers lazily as he stabs his meat with the fork.

“The elders propose a date for the next council. It’s the day after tomorrow.”

Hanbin’s words suddenly make everyone at the table stop whatever they are doing. Taerae and Gyuvin are eyeing their big brother curiously, when Matthew tries so hard to look indifferent with this new announcement.

“Isn't it too fast?” Jiwoong asks as he plays with a fork in his hand. 

The council with the elders means that they will decide about Matthew’s fate and Jiwoong isn’t ready to let Matthew go.

“So what if it is too fast? Wouldn't you be happy if I vanished from your sight quicker?”

Matthew’s voice is loud and clear. It always pains Jiwoong’s heart every time Matthew speaks to him coldly because the Magpie prince actually believes his whole arrogant and rude king persona.

“No one asked you, Seok Matthew.” Jiwoong continues his rude act. He then gives a small nod to Hanbin and stands to take his leave, leaving over his dinner. He doesn’t forget to look deeply at Matthew that he loves a lot and says, “See you at the council, princeling.”

Chapter Text

Pretending isn’t easy for Matthew. Being two-faced also isn’t easy for him.

But all Matthew knows is that he is a terrible liar.

He doesn’t know whether he successfully fooled Taerae and Gyuvin or they are just following Matthew’s game without him unknowingly.

Forget it, Matthew. Don’t bother about it. You’re going back to Magpie soon enough .

“Greetings, Prince Matthew.” Hanbin’s voice breaks his thoughts when he is not far away from the dining room. The king’s right-hand man is smiling at him and Matthew unconsciously smiles back because Hanbin’s smile is that contagious. “Please just call me Matthew. No need for formality.”

“There are eyes on every castle’s walls, Prince. I can’t afford to be sacked from my position just because I speak informally to you.” Hanbin speaks mischievously as he jokes around with Matthew who laughs at him. 

“Nonsense.” Matthew shrugs and then says. “Are you joining us for breakfast?”

Matthew’s question refers to Hanbin’s whereabouts in this place very early in the morning. Gyuvin once said that Hanbin usually arrives after breakfast except when there is an urgent matter. Matthew believes that he comes this early to talk about tomorrow’s council with Jiwoong. 

“No. I’m here to talk with the king.” Hanbin’s answer is basically confirming Matthew’s suspicion.

“I see.” Matthew nods. “I was wondering, why is the king always absent at meal time? I also barely see him around the castle. Is he that busy?”

“Is that bothering you? Do you wish to meet him more?”

Matthew instantly regrets his question because he knows that the knowing smile and look on Hanbin’s face means there is something that might be a misunderstanding in his head. The truth is, Matthew is just curious . It’s not like his feelings for Jiwoong have changed. He still hates the king. But, there are times when something inexplicable shifts inside him when Jiwoong’s name is mentioned. 

“No. I am glad that I don’t have to always meet him. I’m just curious and I don’t want it bothering me if I don’t know the reason behind it before I come back to Magpie. I wonder why he hates me that much when I am the one who should harbor that feeling more.”

Hanbin stares at Matthew for a few seconds with an unreadable look, the same look that Taerae and Gyuvin give to him when he talks about coming back to his homeland after the council between the elders and the king. After a few seconds of silence, there’s a stiff smile on Hanbin's face as he says, “Well, enjoy your breakfast, Matthew. I have to go now.”

Matthew nods and just like that, Hanbin quickly goes to the opposite direction from the dining room, leaving Matthew alone with thoughts about why people suddenly act weird when he mentions his expected council result.

Matthew quickly brushes it off and goes to the dining room while humming a random song to erase his uneasiness that suddenly sticks to his heart.

“So, when are we going outside?” Matthew asks during breakfast, breaking the silence between him and Gyuvin who keeps silent, unlike the usual Gyuvin who always chats no matter what. This time, only two of them are present in the dining room. 

Matthew is wondering why everyone is acting really weird right now. Unlike him who is sure that he is in a happy mood, the happiest since he is here in the Raven. It is all because tomorrow is the council and the thought of coming back to his homeland always makes him feel giddy. 

Gyuvin, who almost forgot his promise to take Matthew to the city if the Magpie’s prince doesn’t remind him about it, blinks and asks, “Are you still up for it?”

“Of course!” Matthew exclaims. “I have to at least explore the city before I come back!”

Gyuvin just nods slowly at Matthew’s confident words even if it bothers him a bit. “Okay then. Let me ask the servant to prepare the carriage. We will go straight after this.”

After finishing breakfast, Matthew follows Gyuvin to the castle’s gate where their carriage is already waiting for them. They also meet Taerae who waves his hand when he sees both of them.

“Enjoy the trip, Matthew.” Taerae smiles. “Little Brother, remember to not go too far from the castle.”
“Ay, ay, captain!” Gyuvin salutes to his brother as he then guides Matthew to climb the carriage’s stairs. The two of them then wave to Taerae as the carriage takes them away from the castle. Matthew, who is really excited, beams at the sight of the Raven’s capital from the small window on the carriage while Gyuvin just smiles endearingly at how cute a very excited Matthew is.

“Let’s stop by Hao's bakery. Then, we can go further to the suburban area but don’t tell Taerae that I took you there.”

“Sure. It will be our secret.” Matthew makes a promise gesture to Gyuvin who giggles instantly.

When the carriage stops after some time, Matthew can see that some people are curious about the fact that a royal carriage showed up pretty early in the morning. After Gyuvin gets off from the carriage, Matthew can see some of them greet Gyuvin and also eyeing at Matthew who follows behind Gyuvin curiously.

“Prince Gyuvin! Welcome, welcome!”

“Hey, I already told you to just call me without my title!” Gyuvin whines as he embraces the young human that goes out from the bakery’s door. They hug a bit longer before smiling at Matthew who returns the smile with a slightly blushed face and small smile in his face.

“Are you the famous Ricky?” Matthew asks curiously as he blinks innocently to him. The pretty man instantly laughs as there is another pretty person, probably an elf or nymph based on their features, who chirped behind him. “Kim Gyuvin! Are you talking bad again about me to another person this time? What does ‘the famous Ricky’ even mean?”

Gyuvin then groans when the second pretty person hits his back as he curses to the Raven prince. They wrestle playfully as the first pretty person extends his hand to Matthew as a greeting, which the Magpie prince immediately shakes it.

“I’m Zhang Hao. The guy who is headlocking Gyuvin right now is my nephew, Ricky.”

“Oh. Sorry. I thought you were Ricky.” Matthew apologizes before he asks. “Are you Hanbin’s Hao?”

Matthew remembers in Jiwoong and Hanbin’s quarrel, the name ‘Hao’ is mentioned. Hao’s eyes instantly light up at Matthew’s word as he then embraces Matthew in a hug. “Then, you must be the king’s new human gift. Seok Matthew, right? Hanbin told me about you and how he wanted my husband to take you as his second spouse.” 

Matthew nods and apparently Hao’s words catch Ricky’s attention because now he stops choking Gyuvin with his hands and diverts his focus to Matthew.

“You are a prince from Magpie, right? Greetings, I’m the real Ricky. Shen Quanrui from the Crane.”

The name Crane rings a bell to Matthew. He remembers that Crane is a kingdom near Raven when he looked at the map before his journey to the Raven. One question suddenly pops into Matthew's mind. Is he one of the Jiwoong’s human gifts that choose to stay in Raven rather than going back to their kingdom?

“Calm down, I’m here to study. Although I almost got engaged with the king because of some misunderstanding.” Ricky explains as he senses that Matthew is probably confused about it. 

“I’m calm .” Matthew whispers to defend himself before nodding at the explanation as the tension around them unfortunately already turns awkward. 

Matthew truly doesn’t know why he is being like this. Why is he always being curious about Jiwoong? He can’t do that. He is supposed to hate Jiwoong and doesn’t care anything about him. Not just Jiwoong, but all of the things in Raven. 

All Matthew can hope is that nobody will misunderstand this because it is the last thing he wants. So to do damage control, he quickly says, “I’m sorry, Ricky. I don’t mean to be rude.”

“Chill.” Ricky calmly says. “I understand you. Sometimes our feelings can be really weird.”

Matthew decides to shut his mouth and give in to Ricky’s word to simplify things between them. Is there someone in this world who wants to argue with their new acquaintance? Not Matthew of course.

Seeing Matthew and Ricky who have already reconciled after their short and weird conversation, Hao then claps his hands and says, “Let’s go inside and eat some of my delicious pastries! It’s on me!”

“Hell yeah! Thank you, Hao!” shouts Gyuvin excitedly, raising the tension to be less awkward and happier. He pushes Matthew inside the shop, followed by Hao and Ricky who laugh when Matthew shrieks because he almost stumbles upon the door.

Hao then goes to the counter to pick some pastries and tells his employee to make hot chocolate when the rest of them go to the table beside the big window, the most strategic place to enjoy the busy morning in the Raven’s capital. 

“Why do you name this bakery as Amor Verus?” Matthew asks curiously when Hao comes back with a tray of pastries in his hand. Amor Verus means true love and he believes that there is a story behind that name. 

Hao smiles at Matthew’s question, “It is because of my belief of true love. As a fortune-teller, I always love when my clients find joy in my reading, especially about their love life. Do you want to try it?”

Matthew stuns a bit. The thought of reading his life–especially his love life is new for him as someone who never falls in love with someone. All Matthew knows during his twenty something years old life is a platonic love, never a passionate romantic love. Now, he is curious about it.

“Hao is a good fortune-teller. The best in this kingdom. He even reads for the king.”

“I see.” Matthew mumbles as he tries to be indifferent when the truth is, Ricky’s words make him wonder again about Jiwoong. He already lost count on how his mind wanders to Jiwoong today. So, he quickly shakes his head to throw those thoughts away from his mind before smiling at Hao. “Can you do a reading for me, please?”

“Follow me to the back, then.” Hao’s smile blooms while Gyuvin and Ricky excitedly clap at the show that will happen in front of them. The four of them then walk through a long hallway beside the cashier counter to the back of the store where Hao usually does his side job as a fortune-teller. 

Hao then gestures to Matthew to sit opposite him in a medium-sized round table with a crystal ball in the middle of it while Gyuvin and Ricky wait in the corner of the room.

“Your hand?” 

Matthew hisses when Hao pricks his index finger with a needle as he watches the red blood drops and slowly infuses with the liquid inside the bowl beside the crystal ball. Surprisingly, the liquid suddenly bursts as if it is boiled with a fire, except there is no fire used here. The clear crystal ball turns into blue with silver sparkles color as the inside of it rotates for a while.

“What’s going on?” Matthew asks when Hao’s eyes dart at him.

Hao doesn’t answer Matthew’s question when suddenly some fragments of images appear in the crystal ball. Matthew can see that it is the fragment of his past life, starting from his birth, his happy childhood, the death of his family members, until the most recent journey to the Raven after his uncle threw him away from Magpie.

“What an unfortunate life you have here, Matthew. It seems like your luck was wearing out when you were a kid.”

Then, Matthew hears Hao’s gasp when the crystal ball shows another blurred picture of a land full of orange lilies with Matthew sleeping soundly in the middle of it with his head in someone’s lap. The peaceful atmosphere of them suddenly changes when Matthew opens his eyes and gets up just to stab the other man, staining his white shirt with beautiful streaks of blood as he then strikes his own chest with the same blade.

After that, the crystal ball turns clear again as Hao and Matthew stare at each other without uttering a single word because both of them are too surprised with the view from the crystal ball.

“Is there something wrong?” Gyuvin is the one who cracks the silence around them because Ricky and him cannot see what happened in the crystal ball.

“No.” Hao is the first one who wakes up from the confusion. He then describes their session to Ricky and Gyuvin with one word. “Matthew’s future is just… interesting.”

“Orange lilies generally symbolize passion, hope and new beginnings. But, interestingly, it could also represent both passionate desire and hatred.” Hao explains. “You know that there's a thin line between love and hate, right? Both of them reflect the strong emotions, whether positive or negative, that can be closely related and easily convertible. You have to be careful with your feelings, Matthew.”

Why him?

Matthew, who's still half-conscious because of his surprising reading, only nods. He is glad that Hao doesn’t mention the fact that the Raven’s king is the one who is getting stabbed by him in the crystal ball’s vision. That’s why he silently thanks Hao by reaching his hand and holding it tight. He doesn't even realize that his hand is shaking after Hao holds his hand back.

Why must it be him?

.

Jiwoong wakes up early on the day of the council.

He tries so hard to ignore his dead father's existence as he prepares himself to look presentable like a true king. In the corner of his eyes, he can see his father sneering at him as if he is silently judging the way Jiwoong moves.

“Your Majesty? Are you ready?”

Hanbin’s voice is loud enough and can be heard from inside of Jiwoong’s room. The Raven king then slowly controls his breathing to calm himself down before answering, “Yes. You can unlock the door.”

A click–the sound of the door unlocking is enough for Jiwoong to make his heart thumping loudly. Outside the door, there are Hanbin and Taerae who are waiting for him with the same expression.

You don’t deserve to be a king, my son. Just see their pitying look .

Jiwoong shakes his head slightly. He is wondering why his father still shows up at times like this when he has already chugged his medicine. He then made a mental note to remind him to take a higher dose of it after this whole thing ends.

“The elders are already waiting for you. So does Prince Matthew.”

Jiwoong nods slightly. His eyes divert to Taerae who looks like he wanted to throw up at this very moment. Something must be bothering him right now.

“Are you okay, Brother? Is there something you wanted to say to me?” asks Jiwoong gently. His hand strokes his brother’s back slowly to calm him down.

“Are you going to reject Matthew like you reject everyone?” Taerae instantly shoots Jiwoong with a straightforward question. To be honest, it almost makes Jiwoong taken aback but he quickly regains his composure to look calm, almost too calm for this situation. “I know you hate him, Big Brother, but Gyuvin and I have taken a liking to him.”

“So what?” Jiwoong asks coldly to cover his real persona–someone who loves Matthew dearly since the first sight. “Your opinion doesn’t matter, Brother. Let’s just go and finish the council.”

Jiwoong tries to ignore the way Taerae looks equally sad and hurt because at the same time, their dead father is looming behind him with a satisfied smile on his face.

Yes. Just like that, Jiwoong. You deserve to be alone for the rest of your life.

Jiwoong doesn’t blink at the voice in his head, even when his heart begs him to ignore that voice and keep Matthew in Raven, just like his brothers requested.

The walk from Jiwoong’s room to the place where the council happens is longer than he thinks. At the time he arrives at the main court, he sees the group of elders in the jury side of the court and there is Seok Matthew, who immediately looks up at Jiwoong at the moment Hanbin announces his attendance, in the middle of the court.

The Magpie prince looks breathtaking as always and Jiwoong can’t help but steal glances at him as he sits rightfully beside him. Surprisingly, Matthew, who is supposed to hate Jiwoong and doesn't even care about his existence, keeps staring at Jiwoong this whole time with an unreadable expression on his face.

“Greetings. We will start the council shortly.” The elders’ leader opens the council with a knock of a wooden gavel. Just like that, Jiwoong then straightens his position gracefully when he notices that Matthew finally stops staring at him.

“Here we have Prince Seok Matthew of Magpie, the human gift from King Yoon Jongseok of Magpie and besides him there is Your Majesty King Kim Jiwoong of Raven.”

Claps are heard from the whole court. For Jiwoong, the deafening sounds of the claps don’t bother him because all he can hear is how his dead father whispers to his ear about how he should behave during this council.

You have to let him go.

You can’t be with him.

You and him won’t work out together.

You will scare him if you choose to pursue him.

You will be his burden forever.

You don’t have enough love for him .

You will be forever alone, my son.

“SHUT UP!”

Jiwoong accidentally screams to drown out the buzzing sounds on his head and now the whole people in the main court are going silent as they are eyeing him curiously because of this.

Enough with all of this.

Jiwoong is done with his father's act of controlling him even after his death.

“Are you okay, Your Majesty?” The elders’ leader asks straight after knocking the table with the gavel to subside the murmurs of other elders who are surprised with Jiwoong’s sudden outburst. There are a few people that know about Jiwoong’s hallucination problem and the elders’ leader is one of them, along with the kingdom’s head-healer and Hanbin.

“I’m sorry. I’m fine. I am just talking to myself.” Jiwoong clears his throat. He tries to act normal as a way to gain less attention. “Please continue.”

“Okay, then.” The elders’ leader then knocks the table again to continue his talk. “Your Majesty, will you accept Prince Seok Matthew as your official future consort?”

This is the main question of this event.

You know the answer, Jiwoong. Reject it.

His dead father’s voice emerges again. Very demanding but also very weak. Jiwoong then turns his head to face Taerae and Gyuvin behind him and stares at them for a moment, where there is hope in their eyes. He looks at Matthew besides him who slowly keeps shaking his head as if he is signaling Jiwoong to say no.

“I’m sorry, Matthew. Let me be selfish just once.” Jiwoong whispers silently only to Matthew. It is the second time for Jiwoong to speak the Magpie prince’s name and he likes the way it rolls on his tongue.

“With this, I, Kim Jiwoong of Raven, accept and appoint Seok Matthew of Magpie as my official future consort. End of discussion.”

Suddenly, the court is silent after Jiwoong is done with his words. Everyone is shocked with Jiwoong’s unexpected decision because it is the first time for Jiwoong during his reign to pick his first official consort. 

I’m upset with you, Kim Jiwoong. No one will be happy for your careless decision.

His dead father appears again in front of him just to mock him and Jiwoong doesn’t care at all about it because he had enough of him. All he wants is to live fully without any interruptions and fear.

“Served.” The gavel knocks the table to finalize everything. “Congratulations to you, Prince Seok Matthew of Magpie.”

Now when the court erupts with claps from everywhere, Jiwoong glances at Matthew who looks like he is still processing everything in his head. What he doesn’t expect is the way Matthew immediately sprung to him and catches Jiwoong’s collar to pull it slightly. Anger and upset are very evident in his face as the situation turns into chaos because their king is getting attacked.

“How dare you, Kim Jiwoong!” Matthew shouts and it makes the soldiers around them quickly turn into attacking mode if Jiwoong doesn’t give a signal to them to back off. He waits for Matthew’s next words but all he notices by being this close to Matthew is the way his eyes clouded with suppressed tears. “I don’t want this ! All you do is decide everything for me as if I’m not someone with the right to speak!”

“Just blame your uncle, princeling.” Jiwoong answers coldly when actually his heart breaks at Matthew’s rejection. He has to keep calm and composed as if Matthew’s words don’t bother him. He believes that his selfishness is the only way to save their relationship that was started with hatred. “You already lost everything the moment after he gifted you to me.”

Jiwoong knows that Matthew probably will hate him more after this, but it is bearable rather than losing him to another person because with this, at least Matthew will be forever his. At least, that’s what he thought between the mocking laughs of his dead father in his brain.

He clearly said that he doesn’t want you, Jiwoong. Good luck on changing that alone.

Chapter Text

“What’s wrong with your brother, Taerae?”

Matthew storms at Taerae’s room after the council happened. He paces around the room while continuing to pour his raging thoughts to Taerae who isn't even surprised with the way Matthew suddenly storms into his room.

“He is supposed to hate me like the way I do. Why does he decide to make me his future king consort? It doesn’t make any sense to me.”

“Matt–” Taerae calls Matthew’s name, but the owner of the name doesn’t even budge or stop.

“Is this one of his new strategies to make me hate him more ?”

“Matt–” Again.

“If this is how you play the game, I also can do that, Kim Jiwoong !”

“Matt–” and again.

“Oh, of course I know the reason! It is so he can continuosly torture me by having me close to him.”

“MATTHEW.” Taerae screams and now it successfully stops Matthew’s rambling.

“Yes?” Matthew blinks innocently. “Why?”

“Calm down. The world doesn’t end just because my brother suddenly wants to marry you.” Taerae tries to coax Matthew rationally.

“I can’t , Taerae. Remember that we’re supposed to be on each other’s throats?”

“Says who?”

“Me, duh .” Matthew rolls his eyes.

Taerae tries so hard to calm his friend down and Matthew obviously doesn’t want to do that. He keeps being dramatic over everything because he can’t wrap his head around why Jiwoong would do that .

“You act like marrying my brother is the last thing you want to do on Earth.”

“Well, it is , Taerae.” Matthew interjects. “I was wondering why you are always defending him.”

Taerae’s face darkens for a few seconds before he is pretending to be calm in front of Matthew who obviously catches Taerae’s changed expression.

“Because he is my big brother.” Taerae answers as he smiles. A kind of smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. “Families always have each other’s back.”

“That’s it? Even when he is doing something wrong?” Matthew is questioning Taerae’s logic because for him, it doesn’t make sense.

“Mind you, Matthew. He is doing nothing wrong now. He just wants to marry you.”

Taerae is being defensive and Matthew knows it.

“Let’s be real right now. By forcing me to do it?”

“It’s not like you have choices to choose for, Matthew!” Taerae screams to drown Matthew’s words. He then sighs slowly when he sees how Matthew’s face falls before whispering slowly. “Right?”

“You know, Taerae? I thought we were friends.” Matthew spats as he frustrates at everything right now. “But you probably will say something like the blood is thicker than water or something like that to defend your brother and keep convincing me to accept this. So then, excuse me.”

Just like that, Matthew leaves Taerae’s room while the owner of the room is left all alone, shocked by his statement.

.

“Why are you doing this, Big Brother?” Taerae protests as he confronts Jiwoong on his way to the graveyard on the hill behind the castle, his daily routine that is known by everyone here. “I thought you would reject him.”

Jiwoong stops walking only to stare at his brother shortly before answering. “And I thought you would be happy with that. Didn’t you try to convince me to accept Matthew before the council?”

“At that time I didn't know that your choice would upset my friend.” Taerae defends himself.

“We can’t please everyone with our decision, Brother.” Jiwoong pats Taerae’s hair when he sees his younger brother frowning. “Don’t worry. Your friend will eventually accept it.”

“But what’s up with the change of mind?” Taerae doesn’t stop digging out Jiwoong’s reason. “And what if Matthew will never accept it? Will you kick him out like anyone else?”

Jiwoong is a bit taken aback with Taerae’s words. He pulls his hand from his brother’s hair and crosses it on his chest just to mentally defend himself as he ignores the presence of his dead father behind Taerae, sneering maliciously at him.

“I have my own reason, Brother. Someday I will tell you about it.”

Jiwoong then excuses himself, choosing to ignore the second question from Taerae because he realizes that he doesn’t even think about that before deciding to make Matthew as his future king consort. 

What if Matthew won’t love him after every effort he will make to please the Magpie prince?

What if the hate stays and never changes to love?

Told you, Jiwoong. Now, you are stuck with hatred from your loved one forever .

.

“Matthew?”

Gyuvin’s voice awakens Matthew from his deep thoughts.

Tonight is a busy day for all of the workers in the castle because it is a big night when dinner is also served to the elders and other important people of this kingdom along with the king. They will discuss the soon-to-be-held wedding which is one of the most important events in Raven after the past king's death.

Of course because of how Matthew acts post-council, the elders don’t allow him to join the big dinner and they make Gyuvin accompany him to take dinner in one of the castle’s sitting rooms.

“Are you fighting with Taerae?”

Matthew chokes at Gyuvin’s question. He coughs a bit before taking a sip of water in the glass beside his plate. He can feel Gyuvin concerning eyes as he then continues to eat his dinner.

“You two look distant nowadays. Is it because of Jiwoong's decision to make you the official future consort?”

Bingo.

Gyuvin truly can see through him easily.

Lately, Matthew, who is still upset about their talk in Taerae’s room, decides to ignore Taerae and the Raven prince just accepts it by ignoring him back. It affects Gyuvin who is always around them and doesn’t know anything about their fight. But, it seems that Gyuvin isn’t that stupid and can easily read the situations between them without them talking to him.

“It’s a grown up matter, Gyuvin. You don’t have to be worried.” Matthew tries to avoid answering the question but it only makes Gyuvin more curious about it.

“Don’t be mad at Taerae. He just wants the best for both his big brother and best friend.”

“Ugh, not you too, Gyuvin.” Matthew shrugs. “Please don’t convince me to easily accept the council’s decision.”

“I’m not!” Gyuvin tries to defend himself from Matthew’s accusation. “Taerae is in a tight spot between you and Jiwoong. He has his own reason.”

“Which is?” Now, Matthew is curious.

“Ask him himself. I’m in no position to talk about it.” 

Gyuvin’s mysterious answer brings Matthew to this situation. After the dinner, precisely after midnight, Matthew decides to go to Taerae’s room and stands in front of it without knocking the door because he is still not sure whether he wants to confront Taerae or not. He even paces around the hallway to calm his nerves and also to make sure that his mind wants this, not just an impulsive thing that happens because he is curious behind the reasoning of Gyuvin’s words.

“What are you doing?”

Taerae’s voice startles Matthew who almost knocks the door in front of him. Now, Matthew is caught red handed and doesn’t have any lie about why he is standing in front of Taerae’s room in the middle of the night.

“I thought you were sleeping soundly inside your room.” Matthew mutters as suddenly the floor beneath him is the most interesting thing in this world. His act instantly makes Taerae snickering as he takes steps near Matthew. “I am about to do that. So, move away from my door.”

Matthew, who finally raises his head to look at Taerae under the dim light of the castle, quickly says, “I want to talk with you. Can you spare me a moment?”

Taerae just nods slightly. He opens his room’s door and Matthew follows him inside. After Taerae closes the door, they silently go to the bed while keeping distant space between them.

“I thought our friendship was done.” Taerae opens his mouth after a few minutes of silence between him and Matthew as they are sitting cross-legged on Taerae’s bed. “I thought you hate me like the way you hate my brother.”

“What? No.” Matthew squeaks. “I will never hate you, Taerae. You and Gyuvin are the first ones who accept me here. I can’t be more grateful for that even though I hate the fate that brings me here.”

“Really?” Taerae’s voice is small but hopeful. It pains Matthew’s heart when he hears the way Taerae perks up when all he said is just him being grateful to Taerae and Gyuvin. “I’m truly sorry for everything, Matthew.”

“Why? You’re doing nothing wrong to me. It's completely understandable to side with your big brother who you've known all your life over your new friend.” Matthew sometimes thinks about their talks at the moment when he ignores Taerae and with a clear mind, he can understand his point because the past Matthew will also do that without a second glance.

The topic of blood-related siblings makes Matthew miss his sister more. He always treasures their memories that are tied up with his homeland. The nostalgic feeling of his memories is one of the reasons why Matthew always wants to come back to Magpie. It is all Matthew has to rely on in this world because he doesn’t have a family to come back to at this moment. Jongwoo’s parents, the reigning king of Magpie, already kicked him off and Matthew is sure that they won’t take him back even though Matthew begs them to do it.

“You’re not mad at me?” Still with a small voice, Taerae asks again.

“Hey, I’m just upset and need some time to accept your stance. I’m not mad at you at all.”

Mad and upset sometimes come together in a pair and Matthew is sure that he is just being upset rather than also being mad at Taerae because what he feels is less intense and just full of disappointment and frustration.

“Sometimes besides being all sunshines, you are also harboring a lot of rage inside you.”

“Really?” Matthew chuckles at Taerae’s words. 

“You are like an open book, Matthew. It’s really easy for us to see your emotions.” Taerae explains. “I tend to ignore your rage, but when you explode and try to strangle my brother at the council, I know that I shouldn't have to do that.”

“Well, when I thought about it again, I’m not even sorry .” Matthew’s eyes sparkle with joy when he thinks about how he almost assaulted Raven’s king with his own hand. Somehow, it is a happy memory for him because after all this time, he finally can express his emotions freely. “You get it, right?”

“I know. But if I were you, I would be too scared to make it happen.” Taerae sighs as he continues to speak. “Jiwoong can be really intimidating when he is serious.” 

“What’s up with you and Jiwoong anyway?”

Taerae suddenly fell silent. He lies down on the back and signals Matthew to lie besides him. Two of them then adjust their position as Taerae lies on his back with his eyes looking at the ceiling while Matthew tilts his whole body to face the Raven prince.

“He is the only thing that I can hold on, Matthew.” Taerae whispers as his eyes turn glassy with tears. “I don’t want to get abandoned by my dearest one again.”

“When my father, the past Raven’s king, died, Jiwoong as the crown prince had to ascend the throne when he was barely legal. The past king was the kind of a tyrant who had a whole harem to satisfy his need.” Taerae starts his story with heaviness in his voice. “As I told you before, my mother is a siren. The great witch of the sea turned her tail into legs with magic before she was sent to my father as a human gift from the kingdom beneath the sea.”

“Just like you, she despised her new life above the sea despite having me as her only son. She longed for her past life and didn’t even try to hide it.”

Matthew strokes Taerae’s hand when his voice suddenly wavers from the sadness that is bubbling in his chest. He moves his hands to cradle Taerae’s in his arms as he makes soothing noises to calm his friend down.

“When Jiwoong rose to the throne, he made the decision to dismiss the late king’s harem of concubines. Some of them were getting exiled back to their origins and some stayed. My mother of course chose to abandon me right away without any word.” Taerae stops talking for a while to rub his eyes that are filled with tears. “She ignored my cries. She didn’t even bat an eye when I clinged onto her. She selfishly went back to her real world and left me, who was old enough to understand everything.”

“That’s why I'm always scared to trust someone. I don’t want them to leave me like the way my mother did. All I have is Jiwoong and Gyuvin and the fear of them suddenly disappearing scares me the most.” Taerae turns his head to face Matthew. “And you. I try so hard to not get attached to you. But I failed. That’s why I’ve been trying to persuade Jiwoong to accept you.”

“You did?” Now, it’s Matthew's turn to speak in a small, surprised voice.

“I did. I’m sorry, Matthew.” Taerae speaks as if he is ashamed of his confession. “But, Jiwoong rejected my request. At that moment, he seemed like he was so sure with his choice. I don’t know what changed him. Something in his mind must be the reason behind it and nobody knows the exact reason besides himself.”

Taerae’s confession stuns Matthew for a bit. It is true that he is slightly disappointed in Taerae, but the fact that Jiwoong suddenly changes his mind haunts him because he needs to know the reason behind it.

.

“Your Majesty, I’m sorry to disturb you.”

Hanbin’s voice instantly breaks Jiwoong’s daydream and he hates when someone creeps behind him to do that. With an annoyed expression, he quickly turns his body only to have Hanbin standing behind him along with Matthew.

“Your future king consort is here.”

“I need to talk with you.” Matthew speaks clearly with a flat face. He then glances at Hanbin as he says, “Can you please go away, Hanbin? I need to speak face to face with the king.”

Hanbin blinks and stares at him and Matthew before nodding slightly, “Only if you promise to not strangle him again, Matthew. I will be far enough for you two so I can’t hear your conversation.”

Jiwoong watches as Matthew giggles a bit at Hanbin’s remarks and suddenly it irks him to see his right-hand man being so friendly with Matthew who seems to hate every single cell in his body.

“Why are you getting so comfortable with Hanbin?” Jiwoong asks as he sees Matthew’s happy face now change into an annoyed one in a few seconds.

“Duh. It’s because I try to seduce him so I can be his second spouse after Hao.”

Matthew’s answer doesn’t please Jiwoong. He slightly raises his eyebrows while keeping an uninterested face to show that he isn’t amused with the way Matthew jokes around.

“You’re not fun. I can’t believe I will marry a boring man like you.”

“Bear with it, princeling.”

Jiwoong is glad that he already took his daily herbal medicines to suppress his hallucinations because it is good for him to be alone with Matthew without his dead father’s snarky comments every single time.

“Are those the late king and queen’s graves?” Matthew asks as he takes steps to get closer with Jiwoong. Now, they are standing side by side in front of the huge gravestones as they then glance at each other. “Why do you visit them every day?”

“I am the king and I can do whatever I want.”

Apparently, Jiwoong’s sassy saying doesn’t amuse Matthew. Instead, the Magpie prince sneers at him before saying, “What a weird mindset. Bet you are a terrible king.”

“Are you coming here just to insult me?” Jiwoong claps back. He secretly takes a glance to admire Matthew’s pretty face again as he enjoys their fairly civil interactions. All Jiwoong’s focus is given to Matthew’s slightly long bangs and now he is trying to suppress his hand to not touch the fluffy hair on his future consort’s head.

“Tell me exactly why you changed your mind.”

Of course it is about the council decision.

“Taerae told me that you rejected his request right before the council and suddenly during the council you quickly changed your mind? That's weird, Jiwoong.”

“Does it matter to you?” Jiwoong shrugs as he looks away before Matthew catches him admiring the Magpie prince.

“Oh, I also remember you’re also saying sorry about being selfish to me . Why? Just give me one convincing reason.”

Jiwoong blinks as he slowly realizes that during that time, apparently his voice is not quiet enough and Matthew isn't supposed to hear that. Half of Jiwoong’s heart wants him to just say loudly in front of Matthew that he loves him dearly when the other side argues that it is better if he loves Matthew in silence without anyone knowing.

“I will tell you. Not today. Someday in a better situation.” Jiwoong finally speaks after a few moments of silence and Matthew quickly reacts to the answer. “What do you mean? A better situation between us? It will never happen, Jiwoong. Hatred will be carried forever in our relationship no matter what.”

“Are you sure?” Jiwoong asks back to make sure about how far the hate that he implanted to Matthew at their first meeting.

“Yes. That’s what I believe when I know that fate is not on my side. It never will be.”

Chapter Text

The elders want to speed up the wedding preparation and they still think that Matthew should be excluded from it. The reason is obviously to minimize problems and Matthew can’t be happier with that since he has zero interest in his supposedly big day.

“Stop frowning, Matthew.” Taerae chirps when he sees Matthew glares at his lunch. “Your bad energy ruins this peaceful moment.”

Now, the glare shifts to Taerae who calmly ignores it as he enjoys today’s menu for lunch, which is his favorite casserole. As if realizing that his glare is useless, Matthew decides to open his mouth to start monologuing to no one but himself.

“Should I be happy when my future is in danger?”
“What danger?” Gyuvin asks confusedly as he elbows Taerae who shakes his head and of course Matthew ignores both of them.

“I should do something to stop Jiwoong from marrying me!” Matthew exclaims loudly.

“Wait. Is it your priority right now? Don’t you want to come back to Magpie?” Taerae interrupts Matthew before the Magpie prince rambles more nonsense.

“I’ve come to realize that I can’t come back to Magpie whatever it takes because apparently your king traps me here for an unknown reason that I am curious about.” Matthew answers with fire in his eyes. He turns to Taerae and speaks with a sweet voice, “So, dearest Taerae. Would you marry me?”

Gyuvin chokes hard after Matthew is done with his words when Taerae drops his spoon while staring weirdly at Matthew who looks proud with all of this chaos. It doesn’t also help when Matthew is also standing on one knee while holding a bunch of roses that he steals from the vase on the table.

“What are you doing?” Taerae shrieks as he hurries his friend to stand up and sit on the chair again.

“Proposing you . I’m going to make a revolution called platonic marriage when two best friends decide to marry each other without romantic feelings!” Matthew speaks as if he is the smartest person in the whole universe and both Taerae and Gyuvin don’t buy his explanation at all. “I will tell Jiwoong that I will marry his brother when he still doesn’t want to tell me the reason why he changes his mind! I can manage in a marriage with you rather than with your rude brother, Taerae.”

Hearing that, Taerae just rolls his eyes at Matthew’s act. “What the council says is absolute. You can’t easily change their mind.”

Matthew, who now stands up, trashes the roses on the table and buries his head in his folded arms. He looks dejected as if he realizes that his plan is very stupid. “You’re right. I’m just desperate, guys. I don’t want to marry Jiwoong.”

“Anyway, what’s up with your obsession to know the reason, Matthew? Will it kill you if you marry Jiwoong without knowing his reasoning?” Taerae attacks Matthew with his questions and it makes him go silent for a while. Then, he thinks about it while Taerae and Gyuvin are silently eyeing him as if they are giving him time to ponder about everything .

Matthew is naturally a curious person. Since he was little, his sister often called him a nosey kid. For him, knowing everything will make everything better. It gives him control about what will happen and why it happens. He realizes that sometimes he doesn’t like to not be in control. 

Everything happens for a reason and for Matthew, he must know what is behind it to predict the reason. Call Matthew a control freak but it is how his life goes after he lost his family until now. That also explains why he really hates his fate right now because everything makes him hopeless and he can’t do anything to save himself. All he can do is just nod and follow people’s orders if he still wants to survive here.

“What a miserable life I got here.” Matthew whispers, but loud enough for Taerae and Gyuvin to hear it and give him a pitying look that Matthew hates the most.

.

Knock knock .

“Hello?”

Hanbin’s voice breaks Jiwoong’s thought as he sits in front of the window, daydreaming about his happy life after marrying Matthew which is totally a dream-comes-true except with the fact that Matthew doesn’t want that. Call him delusional but it makes him happy even just in his imagination.

“Can I get out right now?” Jiwoong asks when he hears the rustle of a bunch of keys together with Hanbin’s voice. “Yes, Your Majesty. The elders are already waiting for you.”

“Another discussion? I think we already finalized everything for the wedding yesterday.” Jiwoong finally rises from his seat when the door is opened wide by his right-hand man. He even waits for Hanbin to come inside and let some of the maids follow him with a fresh bag of clothes for Jiwoong. “Should I just skip it? I’m not in the mood to face them.”

“I believe that you can delay it. But skip it? I don’t think you want to face the elders’ rage.” Hanbin answers deliberately because he can’t just tell his king to just skip an important meeting.

“Well, then. Let’s go.” Jiwoong walks through the door as he ignores his dead father who is always looming behind him. He even sneers back to that fragment of illusion which makes Hanbin move closer to him and whispers, “Did you forget to take your medicine this morning, Your Majesty?”

There are still maids in Jiwoong’s room so Hanbin has to be extra-careful with their little secret because when the maids know and gossip about it, it will be a weapon for Jiwoong’s enemy to impeach him.

“I already took it.” Jiwoong answers in a hushed voice before speaking in a much louder voice. “Let’s visit the healer on our way to the main hall. I don’t feel really good today.”

“Got it.” Hanbin nods as the maids exit Jiwoong’s room and excuse themselves to Jiwoong and Hanbin. They pretend to have a normal conversation so they don’t look really suspicious. “Let’s visit them later.”

The walk from Jiwoong’s room to the main hall is filled with silence as Jiwoong’s mind wanders to Matthew, again and again. He imagines that his future king consort would be sitting with his brothers as they talk about the future wedding and how he tries to find a way to cancel the wedding. It seems like Jiwoong’s act as a rude and egoistic person successfully tricks Matthew.

“Oh, I remember something.” Jiwoong suddenly speaks to Hanbin when the both of them almost arrive at the main hall. “How is the letter that I told you to send? Any answer from them?”

Jiwoong’s words are referring to the personal letter he sent to the Magpie king about their participation in the wedding between him and their prince and how Jiwoong will postpone the wedding to wait for them arriving on Raven just for this event. Jiwoong instructed Hanbin to send it via one of their owls right after the council meeting so it can get to them faster. Jiwoong at least thinks that maybe Matthew will be happier if there are some of his relatives even if he is forced to marry Jiwoong.

“I will check it later, Your Majesty.” Hanbin answers when they suddenly are greeted with the sight of Taerae who walks hand in hand with Matthew from the corner of the castle while Gyuvin is following them behind. “Those are Matthew and your brothers.”

“Big Brother! Hello!” Gyuvin excitedly waves at them before running towards Jiwoong and hugs him with a bone-crushing hug. “Are you going to have a meeting with the elders?”

“Yes. The meeting will shortly begin.” Jiwoong answers as he pats Gyuvin’s back adoringly and fights the urge to eye Matthew who stands awkwardly beside Taerae with his scowl in his face. Even with a scowl, Matthew still looks pretty as ever in Jiwoong’s eyes.

“Interesting! Can we join?” Gyuvin asks with a mischievous smile in his face that Jiwoong doesn’t miss. “I got something interesting to share with the elders.”

“What?” Jiwoong blinks as Gyuvin’s smile grows wider.

“Because apparently Matthew wants to marry Taerae rather than you!”

“GYUVIN!” Taerae squeaks loudly at Gyuvin’s supposed-to-be-joke.

“What? Matthew even proposed to you befo-OUCH!” Gyuvin groans when Taerae pinches his back to stop him from saying another nonsense. Again, Jiwoong blinks, but this time more confused while Hanbin wears his signature nothing-is-wrong smile.

“Gyuvin is joking, Big Brother.” Taerae tries to clear everything up, his ears reddening as he tries to smile reassuringly. 

“Which part is the joke?” Jiwoong is clearly not amused because he remembers hearing Matthew saying something similar back then. His mind buzzes with the possibility that Matthew really fell in love with his own brother. Is this his instant karma for being egoist by deciding to trap Matthew here in Raven as his king consort?

“I’m just desperate, Jiwoong.” Matthew finally opens his mouth to talk. He seems serious, unlike Taerae and Gyuvin who talk teasingly. “I can’t wrap my head around the fact that you hate me but at the same time, you choose me as your first king consort. It is confusing unless you have an ulterior motive behind it.”

Jiwoong just shrugs when Matthew brings up that topic again. He really doesn’t want to deal with Matthew's stubbornness because this is not the right situation for both of them to talk about it, or maybe never. So, Jiwoong turns to Hanbin and speaks. “Hanbin. Let’s go to the main hall now.”

“Are you going to run away again, Jiwoong? Just one reason and I will leave you alone forever .”

Running away is your speciality, Jiwoong. Everyone knows that.

Matthew’s voice mushes with his dead father’s voice at the same time also with the same topic. It makes Jiwoong’s head a bit dizzy as he ignores both of them while opening the main hall’s door and whispering to himself. “You’ll be fine, Jiwoong.”

.

The wedding is held at the chapel near the lake, which is not too far from the castle. The chapel itself is decorated with many fresh flowers in the entrance and the way to the altar. It makes the beautiful chapel look more exquisite and lively. The beauty doesn’t falter Matthew with his sour mood right now. For him, this wedding really marks the end of his freedom. He realizes that because it feels real now, even though he knows that he lost it at the moment when his uncle sent him away to Raven.

Matthew sits alone at one of the chambers in the chapel, waiting for the ceremony as his mind wanders for a way out from this situation when the reality hits him because there isn’t any way out. The sound of the door opening breaks his thought and Matthew quickly brushes his small tears that unconsciously slips when he is thinking about everything .

“Matthew.” It’s Hao. “Hanbin told me to accompany you.”

“Finally someone realizes that I’m all alone.” Matthew jokes while smiling at Hao who instantly laughs. He then sits besides Matthew who is fidgeting on his seat.

“Are you okay?” It’s a basic and rhetorical question but Matthew appreciates it because it means a lot for him. It is like there is someone who cares about his feelings in this situation. “I don’t know. I think my feelings are already dead inside.”

Seeing Hao makes Matthew remember about the reading back at Amor Venus. To be honest, sometimes it haunts him like the nightmare that replaces the pitch-black dream he usually gets. Until now, he is still confused about why the other person in his reading is Jiwoong, the mysterious king of Raven who happened to be his soon-to-be spouse.

“Are you thinking about my reading back then, Matthew?” Hao asks when he sees Matthew’s face frowned with seriousness and when Matthew stares at him with a how-do-you-know look, he speaks.  “You are really easy to read like an open book. You don’t need a good fortune-teller to read you.”

“Really?” Matthew lets a small laugh at Hao’s words. “I don’t realize that.”

“Well, you shouldn’t worry too much about it, Matthew. Just take it as a sign that you should be more careful with your feelings, like a reminder. Don’t let it consume you.”

Hao’s words make sense to him. It gives him a sense of reassurance about his fear about the future and that’s all that matters for him. Life can be really confusing and doesn't work the way he wants. It makes him realize that hoping for the best is all Matthew can do right now.

“Thank you, Hao. I really meant it.” Matthew smiles.

“Happiness looks good on you, Matthew. Hope you always get that in your new journey here.”

Hao’s kind words makes Matthew wonder whether he will finally be at ease in Raven. Maybe he should start to accept everything first in order to reach that stage. Other than that, who knows?

“Oh.” Hao blinks, his eyes squinting at his pocket watch along with the sound of knocking on the door. “I think the ceremony is about to start.”

Matthew’s hand unconsciously trembles and he quickly hides it in his suit’s pocket. The suit is special for him because he is bringing it along from Magpie, so it feels like a piece of home with him. What makes it different from other suits is the way it is tailored with Magpie’s traditional sign, which is a streak of dark blue in the ordinary black suit.

“Hao. I’m not ready.” Matthew whimpers quietly and Hao gives him a small encouraging smile. “You have to, Matthew.”

When Matthew gets out from the chamber, he is guided by one of the elders to walk from the main entrance to the altar. Suddenly, his courage shrinks because everything is actually scarier than he thinks and when he reaches out to Hao, the fortune-teller is nowhere to be seen.

I’m all alone. I only got me .

Matthew enters the chapel and instantly, all eyes of the guest are on him. He tries to think about anything but Jiwoong that is standing on the altar, like the way it’s an intimate wedding rather than a big party as if it isn’t their king's first time to finally get wedded or the combination of human, nymph, hybrid, and many other beings in the guest area.

One thing that Matthew can only appreciate is the way Taerae’s voice fills the chapel. He is singing a song that Matthew isn’t familiar with, but it doesn't mean that he can’t tell that it is good. The half-siren in Taerae’s blood truly shows right now.

The walk to the altar feels like forever to Matthew. Some parts of him want to run out the chapel but he quickly brushes it off because it will be very humiliating for him. Besides, he has nowhere to go if he wants to run away.

“Seok Matthew of Magpie.” An old elf, probably an elder, who officiates the wedding calls Matthew’s name when he is finally two steps away from the altar. When Matthew stops to stand right besides Jiwoong, he can feel his hand sweating and shaking again.

“Greetings.” The elder speaks. “Today we gather to watch the union of our king, Kim Jiwoong of Raven, with the prince from across the kingdom, Seok Matthew of Magpie.”

Matthew feels dizzy. His mind is clouded with anxiety as the elder continues to speak, making it hard for him to listen and follow the ceremony with a clear mind.

“Sorry.” Suddenly Matthew hears Jiwoong apologizing. He glances at his soon-to-be husband and blinks confusedly because it is the first time for him to hear Jiwoong speak quietly with a hushed voice that isn’t dripping with arrogance. “For what?”

Jiwoong reaches out his hand and lets the elder prick his hand to drop his blood into the basin of water. Matthew silently follows Jiwoong’s action as he is still confused with the way Jiwoong speaks to him, which is pretty unusual.

“I already tried to postpone our wedding.” Jiwoong answers while nodding to the elder who gives him and Matthew each a paper with wedding vows on it. “But your uncle declined the invitation to our wedding. So, there’s no reason to postpone it more.”

It doesn’t surprise Matthew because as expected, his uncle truly doesn’t care about him at all.

“Why do you care?” Matthew asks again with a low voice. Hating someone means that you don’t care at all. Why does Jiwoong, who is supposed to hate him, act like he cares? “Stop confusing me with your act, Jiwoong.”

Jiwoong turns deaf at Matthew’s word. Instead, he reads the content on the paper while facing Matthew. “Seok Matthew of Magpie, I promise to care for you, to respect and cherish you, throughout our lives together. I promise to care for you above all others, to give you my love, friendship and support, and to respect and cherish you throughout our life together.”

Then, Jiwoong pulls a ring from his suit’s pocket, while parting his grand robe to the side. He even kneels down to Matthew while holding the weight of his crown.  “I give you this ring as a sign of our love, trust, and marriage.”

For a split second, Matthew feels like Jiwoong’s words are too real for his weak heart. But, it suddenly crumbles down when Matthew sees Jiwoong’s eyes. Eyes usually can tell everything more than words and all Matthew sees in Jiwoong’s eyes are nothing. It is empty and full of voidness, totally opposite with the way he speaks so dearly through the wedding vow.

Jiwoong hates you, Matthew. Why are you doubting it?

Chapter Text

“I’m quite surprised that you didn’t attack my brother during the ceremony.”

It’s because I almost got fooled by his act.

Matthew silently answers Taerae’s question in his head. He wouldn’t dare to say the truth because it is not so like him to show his weak side, even to his best friend. Instead, he laughs and tries to sound indifferent about it. “I don’t want to embarrass myself, Taerae. I still have a reputation to maintain.”

“To be honest, I was waiting for it. It will be epic and entertaining if you really do that.”

“Hey! Why are you waiting for my downfall moment?”

Taerae laughs happily along Matthew’s. He even shrieks when Matthew tries to tickle him and the two of them end up laying on the bed of fresh grass near the lake behind the chapel.

“Taerae?” Matthew chirps, admiring the clear blue sky with some heart clouds above them. The way nature being this pretty during Matthew’s (probably) one of the worst days in his life, is truly sickening for him.  

“Hm?” Taerae hums and slightly tilts his head to sneak a glance to Matthew.

“Do you think that my marriage with Jiwoong will change my life here?”

Matthew’s question makes Taerae ponder a bit. 

“Of course.” Taerae whispers after a while of silence. “You are the king consort now.”

“Oh. Right. That’s my title now.” Matthew’s voice is small and full of anxiety.

“I hope it won’t burden you, Matthew. But when it does, you can always count on me.”

Upon hearing that, Matthew instantly feels a bit relaxed. He truly appreciates Taerae’s word and he shows it off by reaching to grab Taerae’s hand as an act of thanking him.

“I will always support you except if you suddenly want to organize a treason as your revenge on Jiwoong. I’m not ready for a civil war.” Taerae says abruptly, teasing Matthew’s signature unpredictable mind while continuing to giggle along with him. 

The world doesn’t end at the moment I married Jiwoong. 

Matthew thinks, trying to keep positive because he truly realizes that this is just the start.

The show must go on.

“So, what’s next?” Matthew changes the conversation’s subject as he is still clutching his best friend’s hand. The way Matthew’s hand grasps into Taerae’s hand is weirdly therapeutic for him. It is as if the power of physical touch removes his anxiety instantly.

“What do you mean?” Taerae shrugs.

“I mean, is there any other ceremony after the main wedding? Are we going to have a parade around the city?” Matthew is questioning how the wedding culture works in Raven. Back on Magpie, it will be celebrated for a week during day and night like some kind of big celebration. That’s what Matthew remembers during Jongwoo’s wedding and he is curious about the custom here.

“Nothing.”

Matthew’s jaw drops slightly at Taerae’s answer.

“That’s it?” 

He is confused.

“What do you expect?” Taerae sighs. He moves closely to Matthew before glancing around him to make sure that there is no one that can hear their conversation. “The late king is a tyrant for his people, Matthew. He is a reserved dictator who hates celebration.”

“But he is dead.” Matthew is still confused because Taerae’s explanation doesn't make sense.

“True.” Taerae whispers before pulling Matthew’s collar so his mouth is at the same level with Matthew’s right ear. “Two-thirds of the Elders are still the late king’s people. The only thing that stops them from making the whole situation the same as before by controlling the reigning king is the elder’s leader.”

“Even though Jiwoong is the king, he still relies a lot on the elders because he ascended to the throne before his legal age. Too bad that it continues even after Jiwoong’s coming of age ceremony.”

Matthew instantly nods at Taerae’s careful explanation. The kingdom politics in Raven is fairly complicated. It seems like a big portion of the elders still want to keep their power by painting Jiwoong as the next tyrant like his late father.

“You will help my brother, right?”

Matthew blinks confusedly at Taerae’s sudden plea.

“Why are you suddenly begging me to save him, Taerae?”

“Because I know I can trust you, Matthew.”

.

“Can I just stay in my lovely chamber beside Taerae’s? It is enough for me.”

Jiwoong hears a commotion in the hallway in front of his chamber, so he curiously leans his body to the door so he can eavesdrop Matthew’s voice better.

“It’s an order, Matthew.” Now, he hears Hanbin’s voice.

“From who?” As always, Matthew with his confused yet challenging voice.

“The elders.”

There is a moment of unsettling silence between people outside his chamber before Matthew suddenly speaks. “I don’t care about the elders. I will only move there per Jiwoong’s request.”

Interesting.

Jiwoong can’t help but smile at Matthew’s words. Maybe in the next life, Jiwoong should be an actor because his admirable acting of hating Seok Matthew of Magpie truly succeeded to fool everyone. He even can’t stop the happy giggle as he ignores disapproving looks from his dead father.

“You. Shut up.” Jiwoong points at his dead father after wiping away his happy faces. “I don’t care about your opinion.”

Lately, somehow it is easier for Jiwoong to control the appearance of his dead father at some moments. It seems like finally he will get better after all of these years and maybe his dead father will be really dead for real to him.

Knock, knock.

It must be Hanbin.

“Your Majesty?” Hanbin speaks. “May I speak with you?”

Jiwoong quickly gets away from the door and pretends to be busy with his reading when he hears the rustle of keys. The young king even picks up his reading glasses and says, “Just come in.”

“Greetings, Your Majesty.” Hanbin says after he unlocks the door. He then steps inside the chamber while keeping near the door when he sees Jiwoong in his reading corner. “I am here to let you know about the elders’ new order. It’s about you and the king consort.”

Jiwoong nods slightly while keeping his face flat when in fact, he can’t help but grinning at Matthew who curiously peeks inside Jiwoong’s chamber while keeping himself to stay behind the door.

“The elders give me an instruction to move the king consort’s belongings to your chamber. Do I get the permission from you to do that, Your Majesty?”

Jiwoong acts like he is surprised with the news. Suddenly, his eyes meet with Matthew’s eyes who are still peeking from behind the door. He can see Matthew quickly shaking his head as a sign for Jiwoong to reject it.

“Sure. Do it quickly and don’t disturb me.” Jiwoong hides his smirk when he hears Matthew curses as he glares at Jiwoong who just blinks innocently.

.

“Why is Jiwoong gladly following the elders’ order? It is weird!”

It is dinner time. As always, there are only Taerae and Gyuvin who accompany Matthew in the dining room, listening to his rambling about Jiwoong again and again.

“He hates me like the way I hate him! I can’t even stand to see him, let alone to be in the same room with him every day!

Matthew stabs his steak as he glares at the poor food in front of him.

“Is he applying that famous saying to his life right now?”

“Which one?” Gyuvin asks curiously to understand Matthew’s reasoning right now.

“That one about keeping your enemies close!”

“Oh! Do you mean ‘Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.’ Am I right?” Gyuvin cheerfully asks when he sees Matthew’s eyes sparkle because of his right answer. “Right! That one!”

The two of them then high-fives happily when Taerae calmly eats his salad as he can’t help but smile at his brother and best friend’s interaction. Suddenly, his smirk appears as he nudges Matthew with his legs. “Good luck with the consummation night, Matthew.”

“TAERAE!” Matthew shrieks loudly with red shades visible on his cheeks. Taerae’s words truly catch him off guard.

“What? It is normal for newlyweds to do that, right?”

Now, Matthew really wants to wipe the teasing smirk on Taerae’s face. Maybe throwing his steak at Taerae will make it disappear. It will also make Gyuvin take a note to not copy Taerae’s teasing because Matthew swears Gyuvin will follow his brother to tease him more.

“We’re not normal newlyweds. Your brother and I hate each other. It won’t happen.”

“Want to bet?”

.

“You won’t do anything to me, right?”

The first thing that Jiwoong hears after he finishes his dinner in his chamber. The maid has just picked up his tray of food when Matthew comes from the hallway and storms inside their chamber.

“What do you mean?” Jiwoong tries to sound cool and not be affected by how pretty Matthew is with his messy and slightly shorter hair than when the first time the Magpie’s prince came. It is hard for him to silently yearn for Matthew and now he must get his act together because he will always be physically closer to his consort which happened to be the love of his life.

“We are married.” Matthew mumbles, but it is loud enough to be heard by Jiwoong.

“So?” Jiwoong raises his eyebrow slightly.

It seems like Matthew is too shy to say it because under Jiwoong’s scrutiny eyes, he can’t say anything and just keeps repeating to open and close his mouth without a single word coming through it.

“Talk properly. I can’t understand you.” 

Maybe Jiwoong’s words are too harsh or the way he speaks is too rude because it makes Matthew go to the bed without saying anything again. His new spouse then pulls the blanket to cover his head along with the soft pillow.

“Are you taking the right side of the bed?” Jiwoong tries to prolong his conversation with Matthew because all they speak to each other before always ends with snarky remarks or other bad situations.

“Yeah.” 

Matthew then hums something inaudible for Jiwoong.

“Sorry. I don’t quite get it. What are you saying, Matthew?” Jiwoong tries to make his tone not too harsh as he glares at his dead father who sneers at the newlyweds' interactions. He silently thanks the universe because his dead father doesn’t say anything that will make him have to react in speech. He can’t show it in front of Matthew no matter how hard it is to do because he doesn’t want Matthew to shoot that pity look which he silently receives all this time.

“I will sleep first.” says Matthew clearer. He pulls his blanket only to gasp when he realizes that Jiwoong is standing right beside him on the right side of the bed. It also doesn’t help with the fact that Jiwoong is crouching into him.

“What are you doing?” Matthew shrieks and now his face is flushed hard because of how close his face and Jiwoong’s.

“Stop mumbling, Matthew. I can’t hear you.” Jiwoong calmly straightens his body when the truth is, his heart is beating too fast because Matthew truly looks prettier from a closer look.

“What are you doing? Don’t get close to me!”

“Why?” Jiwoong chirps as he tilts his head confusedly. He doesn’t understand why Matthew acts like this. They are supposed to hate each other and the hating is not hating this time. “I just want you to move. I always sleep on the right side of the bed.”

Interestingly, Matthew’s face flushes more as he grumbles something under his breath and moves to the left side of the bed while Jiwoong is trying so hard to keep managing his signature calm and composed look.

“I will turn off the light. Good night, Matthew.” Jiwoong can’t help but reflexively pats Matthew’s head like he always did before when he visited his brothers’ chamber in the past. As he closes his eyes, he thinks about how it will be hard to keep hiding his hallucinations from Matthew but Jiwoong will do anything to keep Matthew closer to him.

“Good night, Jiwoong. Thank you.”

Matthew’s whispers is the last thing that Jiwoong heard before he drifts to sleep.

Chapter Text

“I knew it! I won!”

Matthew’s loud voice awakens Jiwoong as he realizes that his private chamber is not so private anymore because of the addition of his newly wedded spouse. He glances at Matthew who smiles widely like he has just received good blessing on this lovely morning.

“Matthew.” Jiwoong groans. “Don’t shout.”

“I don’t care!” Matthew replies still with a smile on his face as if Jiwoong’s words don’t ruin his morning. “I won the bet!”

“What bet?” Jiwoong asks confusedly. He rubs his eyes as he sits on the bed, watching Matthew bounces besides him in his silk pajamas. “Nevermind. I’m not interested in it. I just want to sleep more.”

“I see that you are quite grumpy in the morning, Jiwoong.” 

Matthew scoots off the bed while he doesn’t realize that Jiwoong keeps eyeing him in a curious manner. Jiwoong tries so hard to mask his yawns because he wants to keep up with Matthew’s morning energy.

“Yeah. Usually I’m not like this. It’s all because of you.”

It seems like Jiwoong's snarky remarks doesn’t falter Matthew’s happiness in this early morning. He even ignores Jiwoong’s accusatory tone and goes up to wash his face. All while Jiwoong keeps his eyes on Matthew as he also ignores his dead father, who is always in the corner of the room with disapproving eyes. Fortunately, he doesn’t say anything so Jiwoong doesn’t have to shut him up.

“Where are you going?” Jiwoong’s tone changes to a cautious one when he sees Matthew walking to the door. He even stands up to stop Matthew from opening the door and now, he is blocking the doorway with his body.

“Outside.” 

“You can’t, Matthew.”

“Why?”

“Just because.”

Matthew makes a loud, confused noise while Jiwoong is staring at him with a dead serious look.

“Don’t be silly.” Matthew shrugs as he tries to push Jiwoong off in front of him and when the young king doesn’t budge, he frowns. “Move, Jiwoong.”

“You can’t go outside, Matthew.” Jiwoong still stands upright, unaffected with Matthew’s attempt to drive him away. “Not right now.”

“If not now, when?”

Jiwoong chews his lower lip anxiously as he tries to stare anywhere but Matthew. Unfortunately, his eyes catch the sight of his dead father who now is standing behind Matthew. His tall figures and stoic face suddenly scares Jiwoong a bit because his dead father is never this close before.

What a useless person you are, Jiwoong.

Jiwoong tries to blink to make his dead father away but his figures suddenly become more and more clear. He believes that all of this happens because he hasn’t taken his daily medication.

“Jiwoong?” Matthew calls with a hurried tone.

“Shut up, Matthew.” Jiwoong, who finally focuses on Matthew again instead of his dead father, suddenly spats in anger. “I said, you can’t.”

“Why?” Matthew’s tone suddenly is getting higher, mimicking his spouse’s tone.

“I said what I said, Matthew.” Jiwoong is unmoved with Matthew’s act. “The door is always locked. You can’t go outside at this time. You can wait until they deliver my breakfast.”

With that, Jiwoong gives up and goes back to the bed, leaving Matthew who tries to process everything in front of the unopened door.

.

“Hello, loser!”

Matthew smiles brightly at Taerae who eats alone in the dining room.

“Where is Gyuvin?” He sits beside his best friend and sighs happily when he inhales the smell of roasted meat.

“He is off to a morning study with Ricky and Gunwook.”

Matthew just nods when he hears a new name from Taerae’s mouth, but his eyes are eyeing Taerae curiously because of the tone difference when he mentions the new name to Matthew.

“I see you, Kim Taerae.” Matthew smiles teasingly. “So, who’s this Gunwook?”

“Gunwook is Gunwook. Just shut up and eat your breakfast, Matthew.” Taerae’s face turns into a darker shade of red as he tries to change the subject.

“Hey! Remember that I’m your in-law!”

“So what?”

“Give some respect to the king consort of Raven!”

“I thought you hated that title.”

“I am.” Matthew nods slightly. “But it doesn’t mean that I can’t use it whenever I want. Tell me about this Gunwook guy.”

Seeing Matthew’s persistence, Taerae finally gives in and pulls Matthew’s chair to his side.

“He is the son of the Minister of War and he is currently courting me with the elders’ recommendation.” Taerae’s voice is getting smaller as if he is too shy to talk about his love life.

“What?” Matthew gasps. “You never tell me about that!”

“Well, you never ask.” Taerae rolls his eyes. “Besides, I am not the kind of person who goes around to tell random people about that.”

“So, I’m a part of your random people?” Matthew speaks with a fake hurt tone in his voice. “I can’t believe it comes from someone that I call my best friend.”

“Shut up, Matthew. I’m just too shy to talk about that subject.” Taerae tries to sound nonchalant.

“You? Shy?” Matthew pretends to be surprised as he mocks his best friend. “You are definitely shameless, Taerae. I think Gyuvin will agree with me when he hears that.”

“Enough about me!” Taerae interjects before this conversation about him turns to be more and more absurd. He raises his eyebrow teasingly as he is also elbowing Matthew’s side,  “What about your first night with the king, Matthew?”

“We just slept. That’s it.” Matthew answers proudly. “It means, you lose and you have to take me to the city and buy me things that I want!”

“Ugh, okay.” Taerae shrugs it off while trying to accept his loss. “Can’t believe that my intuition is wrong. I thought my brother had changed at the moment he accepted you at the council. I mean, why does he still want to marry someone he hates?”

“You know, Taerae, that’s the biggest question I have until now.” Matthew agrees with his best friend’s opinion. “I haven’t cracked that code and honestly, it makes me more curious about him.”

.

“Are you going somewhere?”

Jiwoong asks Matthew politely from his reading corner as he puts his glasses away on the table.

“Why do you care?” Matthew barks unpromptedly to Jiwoong who is just minding his own business. 

After living a few weeks in Jiwoong’s chamber and following his daily life, Matthew comes to the conclusion that Jiwoong is a really boring person with an old-soul personality. He spent all of his time in his chamber while Matthew always tries to be away from their chamber. Basically, Matthew is away from their room from breakfast until dinner time. Today is the first time Matthew returned to their chamber after breakfast.

“I’m just curious.” Jiwoong speaks truthfully.

Living with Jiwoong makes Matthew realize that the young king is really confusing. Sometimes, he acts like he is the nice spouse in this relationship by always caring for Matthew. But at other times, he just lives his life silently as if Matthew isn’t in the same room with him. It is as if there is a switch that controls Jiwoong’s life.

“You know that you can’t go out at this time, Matthew.” Jiwoong glances at the big, antique, old wall clock on the side of the room. “You have to wait until the exact time or wait for Taerae to come with Hanbin to unlock the door.”

One thing that confuses Matthew about this arrangement is the way their chamber is always getting locked no matter what. For him, it is an absurd rule because any reason that comes for it is totally wrong.

“You know, Jiwoong, have you ever tried to open it outside the unlocking rules?” 

Matthew is being Matthew. 

He is curious about everything and doesn’t stop until he knows the reason.

“I have.” Jiwoong answers calmly. “A long time ago and I learned the hard way by that.”

“Have you tried again?” Matthew begs. “Because, this is not normal for a king like you to be treated like this.”

It seems like Matthew’s voice awakens something in Jiwoong’s mind. Matthew can see it in the way Jiwoong just silently stares at him with his big doe eyes. Unlike the emptiness that clouds his eyes like at their wedding back then, now Jiwoong’s eyes are full of something greater that Matthew can’t easily decipher.

“You’re the king and why do you always hide?”

Matthew stares deeply at Jiwoong.

“I’m not hiding. I’m just living my life. This is how my life works.”

Jiwoong’s answer doesn’t satisfy Matthew.

“Do you want things to work that way?”

“Why do you care?”

Jiwoong answers Matthew’s question with a defensive act. He truly seems like he isn't ready to talk about all of this with his spouse. But one thing that is sure is the defensive question makes Matthew ponder a bit.

Why does he care?

Matthew hates Jiwoong because the king is the main reason that causes him to be trapped here in Raven. Not to mention, every interaction of him with Jiwoong also can’t be called a civil interaction. Maybe deep in his heart, there is a part of himself that is starting to care about Jiwoong’s existence.

“I’m just trying to be nice to you. Is it wrong?” Matthew stares at Jiwoong in disbelief. Why does every single one of their conversations always turn into something sour? “You know what, Jiwoong? I don’t want to start my day with this. I’m leaving now.”

Matthew stomps his feet and reaches the door handle to open it.

“Matthew! The door is locked! You can’t open it no matter how.” Jiwoong sounds desperate and Matthew doesn’t care because suddenly the door can be easily opened with a one little push from him.

Creak.

The sound of an old door opening is filling their ears as if it mocks them. Jiwoong suddenly turns silent. There is disbelief in his face as he mumbles the same thing repeatedly. “It shouldn't be able to be opened. It should be locked.”

“Jiwoong?” Matthew calls the young king who currently trembles in his seat.

“Please, Matthew.” Jiwoong’s voice is small and worried.

“Please what?” Matthew tries to mask his confusion.

“Don’t you dare to cross the door, Matthew. If they find out about this, you will be like me.” Jiwoong tries to coax Matthew. “Please stay behind the door and close it again. It’s for our sake, Matthew.”

Chapter Text

The sight of a calm and composed Jiwoong that turns into a scared and worried one haunts Matthew as the carriage takes him, Gyuvin, and Taerae to the city. That moment is the most emotion that Jiwoong showed to him since their first meeting in the dining room.

Jiwoong begs for his life and Matthew ignores that by crossing the door without turning his head to see Jiwoong’s reaction. He then accidentally bumped into Hanbin at the first turn of the hallway and made him drop the pocket watch on his hand. The king’s right-hand man then stared at him with a strange look on his face before quickly apologizing to Matthew and reminding him that Taerae and Gyuvin were already waiting for him.

Now, when Matthew thinks about it, Hanbin’s reaction is also pretty suspicious.

“You good?”

“I’m good.”

Taerae squints his eyes as if he can easily spot Matthew’s lie. But, he doesn’t push him further about it and just asks. “Do you mind if we go to the suburban area first?”

“I don’t mind.” Matthew answers then directly asks because he can’t mask his curiosity. “But, why?”

“I want to meet my mother. It’s been a long time since I visited her.” Gyuvin speaks with a fond and longing tone in his voice.

Taerae, who Matthew thinks that family matters is sensitive to him because of the abandonment by his own mother, nods slightly. “Auntie is nice. I miss her too. She’s like my other mother. You will like him, Matthew.”

Seeing both Taerae and Gyuvin smile endearingly at the thought of Gyuvin’s mother, Matthew can’t help but also mirroring their smile. Now, because Matthew is at ease, he can shortly forget about Jiwoong’s weird behavior this morning.

The carriage suddenly rumbles and not long after that, it stops. When Matthew peeks from the small window of the carriage, he can see the same big, uniform, and luxurious houses that welcome him at his first time entering Raven. He can remember it very clearly because it is really distinctive with the suburban back in the Magpie.

“Whoa.” Matthew is in awe of everything around him as he steps down  from the carriage, following Taerae and Gyuvin. The houses here are totally different from the castle where he lives now. Very botanical and fresh. It’s like stepping into a whole new world outside the main city of Raven, which is stone-based.

“Welcome!” Gyuvin simultaneously puts his hands around Matthew and Taerae’s shoulder as the three of them walk into the opened door with some soldiers on the side. They walk slowly to the garden area which is located in the rear of the house.

“Mama!” Gyuvin shouts happily when they finally reach their destination. Matthew stops near the door as he watches Gyuvin hugging a middle-aged nymph who glows under the sunlight. He can tell right away that Gyuvin’s mom is a forest nymph from his features, especially her greenish skin. “I am bringing Taerae and Matthew with me!”

Taerae then pulls Matthew nearer and gestures at him to follow as Gyuvin mentions them.

“Greetings, King Consort Seok Matthew of Raven.” The way Gyuvin’s mother addresses Matthew with such a formality suddenly makes Matthew realize that his title is that heavy. “So you’re the king’s choice. May you have a blessed marriage with Your Majesty.”

“Thank you.” 

Matthew just smiles and nods because he doesn’t really know how to react when people wish him a blessed marriage when all he hopes is for this marriage to fail badly. 

The truth is, when it looks like Matthew already accepted his fate in Raven, he still longs for his freedom in Magpie. Even if it is his blood-related family who kicked him out, Matthew always tries to forgive them because they are all family he has in this world. He knows that it is so stupid of him to do that, but his heart still harbors the hate that he silently built for Raven. Even with every Taerae and Gyuvin’s action that always warms his heart, there is still Jiwoong who explicitly doesn’t want to accept Matthew since the start but suddenly trapped him into this marriage.

“How do you feel here, Your Majesty?” Lady Kim’s voice cuts Matthew’s thoughts as she now smiles at Matthew who is there silently without any intention to join the conversation around them. He then blinks slowly when all the attention changes towards him.

“Just call me Matthew, Ma’am. There’s no need for formality.” Matthew tries to mirror the motherly smile that Lady Kim showcases in his face. “I am not really sure about how I feel here.”
“It’s okay. You can tell me everything. Whatever happens here, stays here.”

Matthew looks unsure a bit. He glances at Taerae and Gyuvin who nodding in agreement before making a silent gesture of its confidentiality.

“Everything is really confusing.” Matthew starts to speak while trying to look at anything but the other people in this garden. “I don’t know whether I should be happy or not because it is slowly feeling like home here. But, there is still a part of me who longs to be back in Magpie even after all of this. I don’t know what to do. All I know for sure is that I want to be accepted somewhere after my own family kicked me out of my homeland.”

Matthew takes a deep breath.

“But, here’s Jiwoong who clearly hates me. Suddenly, he tied me down to his kingdom for no absolute reason but still didn't accept me at the same time. I can’t understand what’s going on in his mind at all. There are so many questions that I want him to answer for the sake of my sanity. But, he never wants to do it and keeps being mysterious.”
He takes a deep breath again.

“It will be better if I can speak one-on-one with him. So I can understand him better and for him to do so. I’m not really sure how to do this marriage but all I know is communication will make everything better.”

Matthew finally stops speaking when he hears Gyuvin coughs suspiciously and Taerae tries so hard to hide his smiles. He then shrieks as he shoves Taerae’s shoulder. “Hey, you two! Don’t mock me! I still hate Jiwoong the way he hates me.”

“So you actually want your marriage to work, huh?” Taerae says teasingly at his best friend while Gyuvin smiles too widely while staring intently at his lawfully brother-in-law.

“Of course! I am obliged to do that because I realize that I don't have that much power to break it! I said it again, it’s not like I like Jiwoong. It is just for everyone’s sake and convenience.” Matthew tries to justify his action before whining to Lady Kim to stop her sons' teasing. “Ma’am, please tell your son to stop! I can’t handle the attack from the two of them!”

Lady Kim laughs at them before shushing Gyuvin who laughs too loud and Taerae who doesn’t stop elbowing Matthew.

“You know, Matthew. All you talk about is how Jiwoong hates you. Have you ever thought about whether he loves you?” Lady Kim reaches Matthew’s shoulder to stroke it gently. “It’s not impossible, right?”
With that, Seok Matthew turns silent as his ears redden in defeat. He realizes that he never ever tries to think like that and the possibility of it suddenly makes his stomach curl weirdly at that feeling.

.

“Hanbin?”

After telling Hanbin to follow him to his daily graveyard visit at the hill behind the castle, Jiwoong who keeps silent during the walk suddenly calls him.

“Yes, Your Majesty?” His right-hand man answers formally.

“Tsk, drop the formality.” Jiwoong flicks his finger as he silently faces the big painting on the wall of one of the larger sitting rooms. One of the things that Jiwoong always does when he can go out from his chamber other than going to the graveyard is seeing the painting of his mother. His mother, who is an elf from a reputable family that got matchmaking to the late king, died when she gave birth to Jiwoong.

“Okay. Anything bothering you, Jiwoong?”

Jiwoong keeps silent for a bit. Suddenly, he wonders what would happen if his mother did make it when she gave birth to him. Would it make a difference in his life? Would his father still hate him until his sudden heart attack?

Yes. I would still hate you, Son. The whisper from the figure of his dead father who is silently following Jiwoong and Hanbin suddenly heard. Don’t be cocky and think that I hate you only because you killed her.

“I was wondering.” Jiwoong stops speaking to once again stare at the portrait of the late queen. She was really pretty with a soft smile on her face. Suddenly, it reminds him of Matthew who always smiles when he is with Taerae and/or Gyuvin. “Why can Matthew open the door while I can’t?”

Jiwoong can see the way Hanbin blinks that he is thinking hard about an excuse to answer Jiwoong’s question. Dead silence now is engulfing them as Jiwoong turns his body to face Hanbin who is behind him.

“Why, Hanbin?” Jiwoong smiles menacingly as he demands an explanation. “Why did nothing happen to him when he crossed the door?”

“Jiw–”

“You know that I was really worried for his sake! I can’t bear the thought of losing him!” Jiwoong is frustrated. He doesn't care that his hostile façade he has always shown towards Matthew is now shattered. “What kind of games are you playing with the elders to me, Hanbin? I thought that you got my back.”

Love is indeed scary.

Jiwoong doesn’t remember that he ever acted like this in the past and suddenly, he experiences things because of the existence of Seok Matthew, his lawfully wedded spouse. In the past, he endures everything that the late king did towards him, including not letting him to grow as a normal kid because of his status as the crown prince of Raven.

Now, Jiwoong even doubts his right-hand man who basically grew up together with him and is the person he trusts the most just because he is falling in love with a human gift from another kingdom.

“I can explain everything, Jiwoong, but not here.”

.

“Welcome to Amor Verus!” Hao greets them cheerily when he sees the royal carriage stop in front of his bakery. He then fakes an angry face while playfully hitting Taerae’s arm. “We have been waiting for you guys since forever! It’s already noon and you said that you will visit in the morning!”

“Sorry, Hao. We went to the suburbs first before stopping by here.” Taerae answers. “Blame Gyuvin. He is the one that suddenly wants to visit his mom.”

Hao squints his eyes to Gyuvin while the youngest prince just grins from ear to ear. He proceeds to embrace Hao as an apology while Matthew and Taerae giggles at them. They then enter Amor Verus and Matthew can see Ricky and someone unfamiliar at the table beside the big window. They even smile and wave at them happily right at the moment they see them.

“Gunwook! I miss you!” Gyuvin roars and runs towards the tall boy so they can hug each other. He teases Ricky who fakes a gag right away. “Ricky, you too! Don’t be jealous. Want a hug too?”

“Stupid Kim Gyuvin.” Ricky mutters under his breath as he rolls his eyes. The Crane’s aristocrat then gestures to Taerae and Matthew to take a seat. “Sit here, please.”

“You’re Taerae’s Gunwook.” Matthew speaks as he elbows Taerae who instantly glares at him while a shades of crimson showing on his cheeks.

“Yes!” Gunwook’s eyes sparkle at Matthew’s word. It seems like he really takes pride in being Prince Kim Taerae of Raven’s fiancé. “Greetings, Your Majesty King Consort. I’m Park Gunwook.”

Gunwook formally extends his hand as a form of greeting and Matthew gladly answers while smiling. “Just call me Matthew. I’m not a big fan of my formal title.”

“Matthew.” Hao who suddenly shows up at their table with a tray of breads and cakes calls Matthew’s name. “Hanbin wants to talk with you.”

“Sure.” Although he is confused, Matthew still agrees because he can see the seriousness in Hao’s voice. “Where is he?”

“At the back. Do you still remember the way to my room? Just walk through a long hallway beside the cashier counter and you will find it.”

“Okay, Hao!” Matthew stands up, but not before telling his friends to wait for him. “Please spare me some of your delicious cakes! I will be back!”

Did I do something wrong?

Matthew is still deep in his thoughts when he reaches the back of the store. Being here reminds him of the vision on Hao's crystal ball which is starred by him and Jiwoong.

“Matthew?” Hanbin calls him out with urgency in his voice.

“Yes?” Matthew sits in front of Hanbin as he can see the seriousness in Hanbin’s face.

“Can you please not try to open the door again? Please. It’s for everyone’s sake, Matthew.”

Chapter Text

It’s almost evening when Jiwoong hears the way Hanbin opens the door for Matthew to enter their shared chamber.

“Have a good day, Your Majesty.” 

“Thank you.”

Jiwoong nods at Hanbin while muttering his words. His eyes then roam at Matthew who is standing in the middle of the room as Hanbin closes the door. Something must be bothering him because Jiwoong can see it the way Matthew throws himself to their bed.

“How was your day, Matthew?” Jiwoong tries to sound like he cares but he can hear it himself that his words sound like he is just trying too hard to please Matthew.

“Good.” Matthew’s answer surprises Jiwoong a bit because the normal Matthew will bark at him with words to belittle his effort in his attempt to make a conversation with his spouse. “You know, Jiwoong. I want to ask you something.”

“What?”

Matthew sits on the bed while staring at Jiwoong who can’t help but stare back at him.

“I don’t understand you. I can’t.” Matthew stops speaking a bit. “It’s not like I want to understand you, but I have to understand it. Your life is a part of my life too at the moment after we stood together in the altar.”

Jiwoong, who is aware of the sudden deep talk that is coming from Matthew, nods. He can’t help but stop staring at Matthew and glancing at the fragment of his dead father who sneers at them. As always, the late king never approves anything about this relationship that blooms because of Jiwoong’s egoistic act.

“I think it is your time to finally tell me everything.”

Jiwoong hums as he is aware of Matthew’s cautious way of speaking. It’s not so like Matthew. Something must have triggered this sudden heart-to-heart talk.

“What do you mean by everything?” Jiwoong speaks as he stares back at Matthew with curious eyes.

“Everything.” Matthew quickly responds. “Your act doesn’t make sense to me since the start. I have to know what makes it make sense to understand you better.”

Weird.

Matthew is being weird right now.

“Why do you suddenly try to understand me? Don’t you hate me for everything I did to you?” Jiwoong attacks Matthew with his questions. This Matthew in front of him is not the ordinary Matthew that he knows and he must be careful of it.

“I hate you, yes it’s true.” Matthew whispers. “But, do you really hate me?”

Matthew’s last question stuns Jiwoong a bit. Will his everyday cover be revealed? Will Matthew finally know that Jiwoong actually loves him? Suddenly, Jiwoong can’t think of anything other than that possibility. For him, this is not the right time for Matthew to know his true self.

“I’m now your ally, Jiwoong.”

Then it drops.

Jiwoong could tell right away that Hanbin is the one behind Matthew’s change today.

“I don’t need your pity, Seok Matthew.” Jiwoong coldly speaks. Pity is the last thing that Jiwoong wants from someone that he loves. “I don’t need your sympathy.”

This morning, Jiwoong is already messed up by implicitly telling Hanbin that he can’t live without Matthew and his love to him is too dearly to be wiped. He can’t afford to make the same mistake in front of Matthew himself. He can’t let his emotions control him at times like this.

“I’m not!” Matthew stubbornly shouts at Jiwoong. “Even though I hate you, I can relate to you, Jiwoong. Hanbin told me that a big part of the elders plan to dethrone you from the beginning. I’m here to support you because I know how bad it is based on my experience in Magpie. I also can lose to getting kicked out somewhere again. That’s why I decided to be on your side.” 

Now, Jiwoong understands.

Matthew still hates him, yet he tries to support Jiwoong for his own sake. 

Of course it’s never about Jiwoong.

Why are you so stupid, Son? Just because you can trick him to marry you, it doesn’t mean that he will love you.

The voice of his dead father is ringing in Jiwoong’s mind as the Raven king makes a gesture to reduce his head’s dizziness. All he wants right now is to scream so every other voice will turn down but he can’t do that in front of Matthew.

“Hanbin told you that?” Jiwoong tries to change the subject. A safe one that won’t turn into the topic of Jiwoong’s real condition and feelings. “What did he tell you other than that?”

“Is that important right now?” Jiwoong still doesn’t budge when Matthew asks back in disbelief. “You should be grateful that I’m not choosing the other side and stabbing you from the back, Jiwoong.”

This time, Jiwoong finally stares at Matthew with a seriousness on his doe eyes. With a sincere voice, he says. “I know you won’t, Matthew. I know you.”

Matthew frowns in confusion. “You know me? What a joke. You don’t know me at all. You can’t trust someone while also hating them.”

.

“Greetings, Your Majesty.” Hanbin formally addresses Matthew when the Raven’s king consort is already waiting for him behind the door this morning. The crackling sounds of keys who jumble together is like fresh air for Matthew who hates being stuck in his shared chamber with Jiwoong.

“I’m going outside.” Matthew tries to open the conversation with Jiwoong this morning after their heated talk yesterday that ended with a silent treatment from the king. “Do you care to join me?”

“I’m good.” Jiwoong answers as he gestures to the maid to put his breakfast in front of him and Matthew takes that as a sign to go out from their chamber as quickly as possible.

“Hanbin?”

Matthew instantly pulls Hanbin's elbow when the door finally closes. He even tightens his grip when finally they walk side-to-side after the maids aren’t behind them anymore.

“Jiwoong won’t talk to me.” Matthew tells Hanbin about his situation. “I already told him that I am on his side but I can’t crack him easily. Why can't I find out about everything directly from you?”

Hanbin smiles reassuringly at Matthew as they slowly walk on the hallway to the main dining room. “It is because I respect his privacy, Matthew. I’m sure that he will finally talk to you when he is ready. I can only talk about things that are less private.”

“Such as the evil plan of some of the elders?”

“Yes. I also just told him about it yesterday.”

All Hanbin told to him when they were in Amor Verus after he begged Matthew to not always open the door was the situation between the elders. Lately, the elders are divided into some groups because the bigger portion of it, which consists of the late king’s people, tries to impeach Jiwoong on the next council. This information is obtained from the elders’ leader who is still on Jiwoong's side, along with a small number of people behind him.

Hanbin also told Matthew that the majority of the elders are the one who instructed him to always lock the door of Jiwoong’s chamber, just like how they do it before the late king died. But lately, Hanbin only pretends to lock the door after Matthew moved inside it because there is a big rumour between the castle’s inhabitants that there will be a sudden treason someday near the full moon.

“Yesterday? But, he seemed okay.” Matthew chirps slowly.

“I think he kinda predicted it. So, it’s not that shocking for him.”

Hanbin’s words make sense for Matthew. When you ascend the throne immediately after the death of your father and are barely legal, you have to be more mature and cautious about everything, even your trusted one.

“Do Taerae and Gyuvin know about this?” Matthew stops in front of the door when he can hear the playful voices of Taerae and Gyuvin. He can’t imagine their reaction when they hear about how some of their trusted people will betray them.

Hanbin shakes his head. “Not yet, Jiwoong will tell them when the moment is right.”

“Which is when?” Matthew asks slowly. “We can’t wait until they strike before telling them.”

“Only Jiwoong knows.”

.

“Are you really going to always keep silent? Don’t you get tired by always keeping everything alone under your hat?”

“Not now, Matthew.” Jiwoong frowns in annoyance. “I have to finish my book.”

Liar. You’re running away as if it is your speciality.

His dead father casually comments from the corner of the room and if Jiwoong can’t collect himself, he obviously will throw the book on his hand to him.

Jiwoong knows that he is being a coward right now. He just isn’t ready to have a proper conversation with Matthew about everything. He spends everyday in their chamber when Matthew isn’t there, worrying about Matthew’s change and how everything will turn out when Jiwoong tells Matthew about his story.

Just call Jiwoong a lovesick. Instead of worrying about his throne, he is rather worried about how Matthew will look at him after this. Love is something that is really precious for him, since he doesn’t get it much when he grows up and he promised to always treasure it more than anything.

“Until when will you act like this?” Matthew barks harshly. “You’re Raven’s king, Kim Jiwoong. Man up and act like one, please.”

You’re a coward as always, Son, even your so-called love of your life also said that.

“SHUT UP YOU TWO!” Jiwoong screams to Matthew and the blurred vision of his dead father. He doesn’t even care at the way Matthew is going dead silent and confused with Jiwoong’s words. “Stop messing with my head! I’m not sane enough to deal with the two of you together!”

Jiwoong gets up and harshly pushes the small table in front of him so the book and the set of teacups fall to the floor.

“Jiwoong….”

“Shut up.” Jiwoong says harshly at Matthew’s call. His ears are ringing as the world suddenly spins. The laughter of his dead father also worsen everything as if it is mocking him. With his wobbly legs, Jiwoong falls on his knees and at the same time, his head throbs as if there is someone who hits it repeatedly. With his last strength, Jiwoong, who barely can open his eyes, sees the way Matthew froze and panic is evident on his face.

“Jiwoong? Can you hear me? Should I call help?” Matthew sits closer to him while moving Jiwoong’s head to his lap.

“No.” Jiwoong tries so hard to speak. “Don’t open the door. Let’s just wait.”