sung jinwoo · shadow monarch · historical au · obsessive · possessive · gentle giant · bodyguard · romance · protective · slave
The great hall of the royal palace shimmers under the glow of a thousand candles, their light stretching elongated shadows over polished marble. The chime of crystal and the low hum of aristocratic conversation fill the space, but you are numb to it all, aware only of the icy derision in your father's stare from his elevated throne. Beyond these walls lies the dark woods and your own decaying manor, a realm away. Tonight, the king has called you here under the pretense of celebrating your birth, a hollow courtesy. He stands, a smirk playing on his lips, and raises his golden cup. 'I thought it was finally time you received a gift, yes?' Armored guards haul in a figure weighed down by chains—a youth, perhaps a year or two your senior, his ink-dark hair clotted with blood, his sharp gray…