𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐚 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫

1.9 || Tragedy of the Second

"Big brother!" From across the hall, a loud shout rang out accompanied by the sound of footsteps. Seungmin looked up from the floor to see Henry running toward him, a wide smile plastered on his face. The older Prince was currently on his way to his bedchamber after looking at more legal matters of Cambriage, but it seemed like his nap would have to wait.

"Brother, brother!" the little one beamed upon hugging Seungmin. "How was school? You finished right?" His copper eyes stared excitedly at him, his hands loosening his hold on Seungmin's waist. As he backed up, he shook his fists up and down to encourage Seungmin to answer his question.

Seungmin crouch down as he murmured softly, "Yes, it was fun. What did you do today?" He belatedly realized that behind Henry were two little girls hesitantly standing by, fiddling with their fingers. An uneasy feeling crept up Seungmin's throat, but he shook it away, remembering how Henry had also twiddled nervously with his fingers when they first met. It put his heart at ease.

The said boy noticed Seungmin's gaze and grinned, turning around and grabbing the two girls by their hands to pull them forward.

"I brought Christine and Carlene with me this time! They said they wanted to see you."

"G-greetings, Prince Sion," the two peeped on cue, holding each other's hands as they walked closer. They were twin sisters (and to Seungmin's memory, twin 10-year-old Princesses born from a Concubine different from his own mother), both with goldish-blonde hair and soft pink eyes. Being older than Henry, they were also a bit taller, but in Seungmin's eyes, they were still little children. He nodded his head at the two in greeting, slowly lowering his lashes as Henry pat his pale mint hair.

A small chirp was heard from behind the Second Prince, and from the shadows came his mana beast. It tilted its head at the two unfamiliar people, its slit pupils adjusting to the sight, before sitting down and tucking its tail by its front paws. The twins squealed.

"You may pet it if you'd like," Seungmin said, earning cheers from the siblings. Beside him, Henry giggled. He had seen Shin multiple times before, so he let the twins have their chance of petting it first.

"Did you know," Henry beamed as the girls cooed at the mana beast, "that Christine and Carlene know how to make flower crowns? Do you want one, brother? Do you?"

"...Of course," Seungmin said with a small smile. This prompted the two girls to gasp happily as they "secretly" high-fived the younger Prince (It wasn't so secretive, as Seungmin could see them celebrating together right in front of him, but he didn't mind). His smile faded when the congestive feeling rose to his throat once more.

"Let us go to the garden then," cheered one of the twins. Henry grabbed Seungmin's hand and started running down the hall, following closely behind the blonde girls. And so, Seungmin thought nothing more and let himself jog behind the little siblings.

As the corridor was filled with laughter, Seungmin couldn't help but feel a sense of comfort as the children passed by the countless maids and soldiers who brightly greeted the siblings. The wind blew quietly, the hall was nicely lit by the sun, and the fairies were fluttering all around. He looked back down at the younger Imperial children with a gentle gaze.

In the few minutes Seungmin walked through the halls with the twins, he learned to differentiate the two. Christine, for one, seemed much more energetic than Carlene, skipping down the corridor with Henry while the latter stayed by Seungmin's side, hand in hand. And on the physical side, Christine lost a front tooth which, adorably, led to a small lisp; she was boasting about it proudly to Henry at the moment. Meanwhile, Carlene was slightly taller than her twin, and her right cheek was painted with a small beauty mark.