Chapter 4 : Longing

Jungkook woke up to the sound of rustling fabric and soft footsteps around her. The court ladies had already begun preparing for her day, moving efficiently with trained grace. As she sat up, they stepped forward to assist her, their hands gentle yet firm as they guided her toward the bathing area where warm water awaited.

The morning light filtering through the lattice screens cast an unforgiving glow upon her skin, revealing dark bruises along her arms, marks left by her father’s fury. One of the younger court ladies hesitated as she caught sight of them, but Lady Ji’s silent glance reminded her to say nothing.

The silence was expected. In the palace, servants were trained to ignore what did not concern them.

As Jungkook was dressed in a finely embroidered hanbok, Lady Ji stepped forward, bowing slightly. “Your Highness, I will escort you to have breakfast with Their Majesties, as tradition for a newlywed Crown Princess.”

Jungkook adjusted the sash of her jeogori, keeping her expression composed. “Will His Highness be joining us?”

Lady Ji hesitated. “His Highness did not mention anything, Your Highness.”

The words struck her harder than she expected. She had seen Seokjin only briefly during the wedding ceremonies, and since then, he had vanished entirely from her life. She had not expected warmth, but she had at least expected acknowledgment.

Yet, it seemed he preferred to pretend she did not exist.

Without another word, she nodded. “Let us go.”

The palace was vast, its courtyards and corridors lined with towering columns and golden carvings. Yet despite its splendor, it felt empty.

Jungkook walked through the halls, escorted by Lady Ji, Lady Soo, and Beomgyu, her ever-present shadow. The whispers of passing servants reached her ears, too soft to make out but loud enough to sting.

Then, as she approached the royal dining hall, the guards announced her presence, and she finally saw him.

Seokjin.

Dressed in the formal regalia of the Crown Prince, he stood tall and composed, his gaze distant and unreadable. He did not offer her a greeting or even a glance. Without a word, he stepped forward and fell into place beside her.

They entered the hall together, their steps measured and perfectly synchronized. To an outsider, they must have looked like the perfect royal couple.

The illusion could not be further from the truth.

The King and Queen awaited them. After bowing in greeting, the Queen smiled and gestured for Jungkook to sit beside her.

“Come, my dear,” the Queen said gently, placing a hand over Jungkook’s as soon as she sat down. “You must still be adjusting. If you need anything, know that you are always welcome to come to me.”

The warmth in her voice made Jungkook stiffen. She knew such words were often meaningless in court, spoken out of duty rather than sincerity. Yet, after months of cold indifference from her own family and now from her husband, she found herself grasping onto this fleeting warmth.

She lowered her gaze. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

The King remained silent, barely sparing her a glance before rising. His health was failing, but he still held power, and his presence was enough to weigh down the air.

Seokjin, seated across from her, did not speak a single word. Even after the King left, he merely placed down his cup and stood.

“I must take my leave.”

Jungkook did not allow her disappointment to show as he strode away.

The Queen sighed. “I must apologize on behalf of my son,” she said, her voice softer now. “He has never been good at showing affection, and with the burdens he carries, I can only ask that you be patient.”

Jungkook remained quiet for a moment before nodding. “I understand, Your Majesty.”

The Queen studied her, and for the first time, Jungkook thought she saw genuine sympathy in her eyes.

But sympathy did not change her loneliness.

---

Seokjin had no time to dwell on his marriage.

Inside his study, he sat with scrolls spread across the table, detailing the growing influence of the rebel faction.

They were no ordinary bandits.

They targeted corruption itself.

Seokjin could see the strategy behind their movements, this was not simple thievery. This was organized rebellion.

And he knew exactly who was behind it.

Min Yoongi.

A man whose family had been executed under the King’s orders. A man who should have been dead.

Seokjin’s jaw tightened as he read the latest reports. The chief of police stood before him, making excuses about their failed attempts to capture the rebels.

“Your Highness,” the man stammered, shifting under Seokjin’s sharp gaze. “These men move like ghosts. The people shelter them. It is… difficult.”

Difficult.

Seokjin exhaled slowly. “I see. Then perhaps someone more capable should lead this effort.”

The man paled. “Your Highness, I...”

Before he could finish, a guard entered and bowed. “Your Highness, His Majesty has requested your presence.”

Seokjin’s patience was already thinning. “Send a message to my office, I expect an updated strategy by nightfall.”

He left without another word.

---

Inside the King’s private chamber, Seokjin already knew how this conversation would go.

Lord Seo Won stood at his father’s side, ever the manipulator.

The King’s gaze settled on Seokjin with quiet disappointment.

“You have failed me, Seokjin.”

Seokjin clenched his jaw. “Your Majesty, I only require more time...”

“Time is a luxury we do not have,” Lord Seo Won interrupted smoothly. “The people whisper about these rebels as if they are saints. If the Crown Prince does not act swiftly, faith in the royal family will crumble.”

Seokjin turned his gaze toward Lord Seo Won, his patience wearing thin. “And what would you suggest? That I execute innocent civilians to make an example? That I rule through fear?”

Lord Seo Won’s smile was slight. “You must rule with strength, Your Highness. Or someone else will.”

The weight of the threat hung heavy between them.

Seokjin did not respond.

Because he already had his answer.

---

That night, Seokjin summoned Hoseok.

The gisaeng entered gracefully, his disguise as dancer was flawless. To the court, he was nothing more than an entertainer.

But in truth, Hoseok was a spy.

Seokjin leaned back as Hoseok knelt before him. “I need an update.”

Hoseok smiled faintly. “Yoongi is moving carefully, but he suspects that Lord Seo Won is setting a trap... offering up small victories to lure the rebels into an ambush.”

Seokjin exhaled. “Seo Won is getting desperate.”

“A cornered beast is the most dangerous.”

Seokjin nodded. “Tell Yoongi to be patient. If Seo Won moves too soon, he will expose himself.”

There was amusement in Hoseok’s gaze. “Isn’t it ironic? You fight against the rebels during the day, and at night, you protect them.”

Seokjin smirked slightly. “That’s what makes it work.”

No one, not even the Queen, knew the full extent of his plans.

He played the loyal weak prince before the court while ensuring that the rebels survived long enough to overthrow the real enemy.

His father’s faith in him was fading. The ministers whispered behind his back. Lord Seo Won was waiting for him to fall.

But Seokjin did not fall.

He played both sides.

Because that was the only way to win.

----

Jungkook sat in her chamber, the candlelight flickering softly against the delicate silk screens. The rumors had reached her like a cruel whisper carried by the wind.

The Crown Prince shares his bed with a gisaeng.

It should not have surprised her. From the very first day she entered the palace, Seokjin had made it clear, she was nothing to him. He had never once sought her out, never once given her a place by his side.

Yet still, it stung.

She had held onto the fragile hope that perhaps, in time, things would change. That perhaps her husband would one day look at her not as a political tool but as his wife.

That hope was shattered now.

Lady Ji had been the one to inform her. Though she spoke with measured caution, the truth had been undeniable.

"His Highness has summoned the same gisaeng to his bedchamber again tonight."

Again.

Jungkook clenched her hands, nails digging into her palms.

Her husband had never once come to her chamber since their wedding night. Yet now, the entire palace whispered of how the Crown Prince indulged himself with a dancer while his wife remained untouched.

She had been foolish.

She was nothing but a beautiful vase in the Crown Prince’s palace, a decorative object, acknowledged only when necessary and left to gather dust otherwise.

---

Meanwhile, in the Crown Prince’s chamber…

Seokjin sat on the edge of his bed, watching as the court ladies finished preparing the room.

Silken sheets, scented oil lamps, and delicate decorations had been arranged perfectly, creating an intimate setting.

It was all a façade.

He had ordered it to be this way.

To the palace, she was a vision of elegance, an elite high class gisaeng favored by the Crown Prince, a beauty whispered about in hushed voices.

But the truth was something no one could ever guess.

The moment the doors closed, Seokjin exhaled. “Lord Seo Won will think he’s won.”

Hoseok smile, his sharp, knowing eyes glinting under the candlelight. “He already believes it, Your Highness. The whispers in the court grow louder every day. They say the Crown Princess is nothing but a ghost in your life.”

Seokjin’s fingers tensed slightly. He did not want to think about Jungkook now.

“This deception is necessary,” he said instead, voice steady.

Hoseok nodded. “I know. The court believes you are distracted, indulging yourself in pleasure while Lord Seo Won consolidates power.”

“That is exactly what we want them to think.”

Seokjin needed the ministers and Lord Seo Won to underestimate him. If they believed he was more concerned with his gisaeng than with politics, they would loosen their guard.

Hoseok tilted his head. “But… the Crown Princess?”

Seokjin’s gaze flickered.

“Don't forget she's Lord Jeon's daughter.”

---

Jungkook sat by the lotus pond in the secluded part of the palace, staring blankly at the water. The reflection that met her gaze was hollow.

A discarded wife.

That was what they called her now.

The whispers reached her through the walls, through the servants who pitied her, through the court ladies who hesitated before speaking.

"She is young, beautiful, and intelligent, but what use is that?""The Crown Prince has no interest in her.""It is the mistress who warms his bed."

She closed her eyes.

Even after all that had happened in her life, she had never felt more alone than she did now.