◆◆
The scene before my eyes flipped upside down.
In an instant, the horse's massive body surged upward and came crashing toward her. Instinctively, I curled myself into the smallest shape possible and squeezed my eyes shut.
A powerful force yanked me backward.
Then came a heavy impact.
I felt my body hit the ground.
The breath was knocked from my lungs all at once.
For a brief moment, I heard nothing.
Only afterward did the pain arrive.
But something felt strange.
It wasn't the sharp agony I would have expected from being struck directly by a horse's hooves.
There had been impact, certainly.
But not the kind of pain that felt as though my body had been shattered into pieces.
"Oh no! Are you alright?!"
Hong Yeonhwa's startled voice echoed above me.
I carefully opened my eyes.
A man's face appeared within my blurred vision.
Then it sharpened.
Gowon.
His flawless expression had hardened. As he gritted his teeth and endured it, traces of pain became more apparent across his face.
Our eyes met.
The moment he confirmed that I was unharmed, his gaze softened slightly with relief.
Then, in a voice low enough that only I could hear, he said,
"If you're going to keep causing trouble, stop following me around."
I could see people rushing toward us.
His body was tilted protectively over mine, almost shielding me. His hand was still gripping my shoulder.
But something about his posture was wrong.
He was leaning heavily to one side, unable to support himself properly.
His breathing was uneven.
Only then did I realize that the dull sound I had heard earlier had been the horse's hoof striking his body.
My eyes widened.
"Your Highness…!"
People flooded in all at once.
Someone shoved me aside, and I stumbled backward.
"Your Highness! Are you alright?!"
"Call the physician immediately!"
"Get that horse away!"
Voices overlapped one another.
People surrounded him.
Someone supported his shoulders.
Someone else bent down to examine his injuries.
I couldn't get close.
No—
I had never belonged in that place to begin with.
He was the Crown Prince.
No one pays attention to me.
Then why do you keep paying attention to me?
Why would you throw yourself into danger for someone like me?
"Why... would you do that, Your Highness?"
Dust still lingered in the air.
"I heard His Highness fell from his horse."
"No, apparently he got hurt while saving someone."
"Was he saving Lady Hong Yeonhwa?"
"I'm not sure."
The news that the Crown Prince had been injured spread through the palace in an instant.
Physicians rushed back and forth.
Security tightened.
People's expressions changed.
While following Head Maid Kim Sera, I caught sight of Her Majesty the Queen.
I paused briefly and bowed.
Her face was rigid.
Without even glancing in our direction, she moved quickly down the corridor.
Kim Sera glanced at me before continuing forward.
I followed her increasingly hurried pace.
I already knew what was about to happen.
"This incident…"
She finally spoke.
"…crossed a line."
I didn't answer.
I had neither the right nor the reason.
Her gaze sharpened.
"His Highness the Crown Prince was injured."
That single sentence was explanation enough.
The head maid fell silent for a moment.
The longer that silence lasted, the heavier the air in the room became.
I stood with my head lowered.
My fingers slowly curled inward.
"Starting today, do not go anywhere near His Highness's path."
"..."
"Even if you pass him in the corridor, do not raise your eyes. Even if you occupy the same space, behave as though you do not exist."
Her gaze bore down on me.
"If he calls for you, do not answer. If he gives an order, ensure someone else carries it out instead."
I couldn't speak.
Or perhaps I simply couldn't bring myself to.
She continued.
"You are forbidden from meeting His Highness directly."
It was a short conclusion.
An order.
I lowered my head further.
"…I understand."
I left the room.
The corridor stretched endlessly before me.
I began walking.
My footsteps sounded louder than usual.
Or perhaps everything was quiet and I was simply paying more attention.
I saw several physicians entering and leaving the Crown Prince's chambers.
And then I saw Hong Yeonhwa emerging from inside.
Our eyes met briefly.
She quickly looked away and returned to the room.
I inhaled slowly.
My chest tightened strangely.
I wanted to ask if he was alright.
Where he had been injured.
How badly.
Whether he was awake.
Knowing none of it and doing nothing but thinking about it only made it worse.
I pressed my lips together tightly.
The way he had pulled me into his arms.
The look in his eyes at that moment.
I squeezed my eyes shut.
Forget it.
Don't think about it.
And yet the more I tried not to think, the clearer it became.
Strangely enough, now that I couldn't see him, I thought about him even more.
Now that I couldn't meet him, he lingered in my mind constantly.
Only then did I realize something.
This wasn't simple concern anymore.
Hong Yeonhwa set down her teacup.
"His Highness is recovering well, fortunately."
My movements stopped instantly.
"Seonmi, you must have been worried too. After all, His Highness was injured because of you."
I looked at her.
She spoke as though she already knew about the punishment I had received.
"If you continue serving me, there's no way to completely avoid crossing paths with His Highness. But I need you by my side too… It does make things difficult."
"I'll ask to be replaced by someone else."
"I already refused that."
"..."
"I told you. I want you with me."
"..."
"Don't be so frightened. I simply like having you around."
"I'm not frightened."
"…That's a relief, then."
She smiled kindly.
Yet every time her gaze brushed across me, I felt strangely suffocated.
"Even when His Highness is present, stay by my side."
Hong Yeonhwa spoke casually as she lifted her teacup, as though she were offering me a simple kindness.
"It's fine if you speak with His Highness. Preventing you from even answering him would be excessive, wouldn't it?"
I replied quietly.
"Yes, My Lady."
The corners of her lips lifted ever so slightly.
"But."
Her voice dropped.
I carefully raised my eyes.
She was looking directly at me.
Her smile remained unchanged.
But her eyes were different.
The atmosphere had undeniably shifted.
"This rule only applies when I am present."
For a brief moment, my breathing stopped.
She tilted her head slightly and added,
"You understand, don't you?"
It wasn't a question.
The answer had already been decided.
I answered once more.
"Yes, My Lady."
She said nothing else.
Only after that moment passed did I realize something.
The words that had sounded like kindness were, in reality, a line being drawn.
The sky had long since darkened, yet I continued turning restlessly in bed.
The conversation I had overheard among the maids earlier that day resurfaced in my mind.
"I heard His Highness finally woke up."
"Thank goodness… Apparently the impact was still pretty severe."
"They said he was almost hit head-on."
"I heard someone was standing right in front of him."
"My goodness. What if something terrible had happened to His Highness?"
"Exactly. They say Her Majesty was furious."
"But His Highness is really alright now, right?"
That final question struck my chest unexpectedly hard.
I sat up abruptly.
I pulled on a coat from the wardrobe and quietly slipped outside.
What do you call something you know you shouldn't do, yet do anyway?
Was it gratitude because he had saved me?
Simple concern because someone I served had been injured?
No.
I wasn't the type to feel duty that deeply.
Then what was this?
My footsteps stopped outside Crown Prince Gowon's room.
The situation itself felt absurd.
Like I was sleepwalking.
Before I realized it, I was standing in front of his door.
The door was nearly closed, but not fully latched.
I took another breath and carefully pushed it open.
Creak—
The sound seemed deafening.
I froze.
But there was no response.
No sign of anyone noticing.
I stepped inside.
The door slowly closed behind me.
The room was quiet.
Soft golden light illuminated the darkness.
As my eyes adjusted, his figure gradually became clearer.
Half-reclined against the bed.
Disheveled clothing.
I took another slow step closer.
Trying to make as little noise as possible.
His face came into clearer view.
It was the first time I had ever seen Gowon from this close.
The man who always stood at a distance.
The man I always had to look up at.
Seeing him from above felt strangely unfamiliar.
His expression was peaceful.
Yet not entirely.
The faintest tension remained in his brow.
I stopped breathing.
Was he still in pain?
That thought came first.
I stepped closer.
My hand rose toward his face naturally.
"If you're going to keep causing trouble, stop following me around."
His voice from earlier echoed in my mind.
My heart pounded.
The hand reaching toward his face stopped.
Then—
Grab.
Gowon suddenly seized my wrist.
"I'm not asleep."
My eyes widened.
He was staring directly at me.
I immediately pulled my hand away.
Apparently my startled reaction amused him.
A faint smile touched his lips.
"So you're my attendant tonight?"
"…Yes, Your Highness."
"Is that so?"
Beneath his long lashes, his gaze moved slowly.
Then stopped directly on me.
I swallowed hard.
"Yes."
"I see. Strange. I was under the impression that my attendant had already finished work and gone back. I wonder who exactly is lying."
"..."
"Regardless. Since you came to attend to me… water."
"What?"
"Water. Bring me water."
The water sat well within his reach.
Yet asking me to bring it was only the beginning.
He lazily lifted one finger.
Crooked it.
And just like that, I had to move again.
"This way."
At that single quiet command, I silently obeyed.
I moved things.
Closed windows.
Adjusted lamps.
None of it was urgent.
And yet he deliberately kept making me move.
It wasn't exercise.
It wasn't training.
It was simply making me walk back and forth.
Knowing that he was doing it on purpose only made him more irritating.
I glared at his back.
The blanket in my hands tightened.
I had just shaken it out moments ago.
Now I was carrying it back again.
Finally, I couldn't take it anymore.
I strode forward.
Then tossed the blanket onto the bed.
Only then did he look up.
"No, really. Who shakes out blankets in the middle of the night?"
I stood there with my teeth clenched.
He remained propped against the bed.
Watching me.
For a brief moment, something seemed to shift in his eyes.
Then it disappeared.
"Good question."
He spoke slowly.
Then leaned slightly forward.
"And who, exactly, would come all the way to my room in the middle of the night unless they had a reason?"
The moment the words left his mouth, I fell silent.
His eyes remained fixed on me.
Calm.
Yet subtly amused.
I couldn't say anything.
He raised his hand again.
Placed a finger beneath my chin.
Then quietly said,
"You came because you were worried about me."