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Cheerful shouts and appetizing smells drifted through the air of that particularly warm spring day, as was common for every day in the weeks preluding the Astrea Spring Festival.

For the Astrea Empire, ever since the little princess had been born, the season of bright flowers and sunny skies held a more sentimental meaning for the King and Queen. For 19 years, the Spring Festival had not only been a celebration of the Empire's victories, but also a harbinger for yet another wondrous event: Princess' birthday.

This year, for the Spring Festival and the weeks before Princess' 20th birthday, the Astrea Empire was in an uproar of glee. 

The vibrantly colored petals of freshly bloomed flowers covered the streets like a thick carpet, their intoxicating scent wafting up to mingle with the scent of the perfumes that lined the shelves of decorated stalls all over the city. The vendors called out the cheap prices of their wares, attempting desperately to secure a bargain, but their voices were drowned out in the excited chatter of commoners as well as nobles who had gathered from all across the empire to attend the Spring Festival at the capitol of Astrea: Daor, the City of Opportunity.

Crowds constantly thronged the streets of the busy city, bustling and milling from stall to stall, picking up and examining the colorful and bright merchandise before moving on, usually losing interest and not buying anything unless the stall vendor was selling food.

And there were indeed many food stalls to chose from — kind elderly ladies selling pastries from a family-owned bakery, a young man promoting freshly picked fruit in hopes to earn something for his hard work in a relative's orchard, a seasoned chef daring to cook his mouth-watering meats right there on the side of the street before skewering them, ready to be eaten.

All these people, the kind and cold faces alike, the nobles and commoners, made a certain person nervous. Not only the cheerful mobs of strangers and crowds that made getting through the streets of Daor almost impossible, not because it would be the easiest thing to get lost while simply attempting to travel home.

Jisung was nervous because everyone, rich or poor, noble or not, vendor or customer, needed tailored clothes for the festival.

"Sir, please stay still—" Jisung hissed back a curse through his teeth as he pricked himself with the sewing pin. Quickly taking his finger to his mouth for a second, the shock of pain wore off and he withdrew his thumb, sticking the pin into the stiff fabric of the suit as he had originally intended. "I should cinch the waist a bit and sew down the lapel as well, no?"

The taller and older man, peppered hair matching well with a silver embroidered suit, nodded in affirmation. Breaking eye contact with the man and lowering his gaze back to the suit, Jisung pinned the cloth again, being careful not to prick his customer.

This quaint little tailor's shop near the centre of town, owned by himself, was Jisung's home away from home. And he was quite far from home, having traveled across desolate lands and countries years ago to secure a quiet and simple life in Astrea. 

However, although he had come to accept and live with it, he realized that Astrea wasn't as pleasant and as enviable a place to live as he had thought, despite the hope that the coined name "City of Opportunity" brought. Jisung strived since his arrival to stay low and stay out of others' business. 

It seemed as if that was the only way to not get involved in something and ruin everything for himself, for the "City of Oppurtunity" was indeed, underneath the guise of wealth and riches, a dark and dangerous place if you were in the wrong alleyways at the wrong time.

As the young tailor retrieved a piece of chalk, slipping the remaining pins between his teeth to free his hands and mark the suit, the elder man looked down at him and inquired with a polite and cheery smile: "Are you going to the Spring Festival? Or Princess' Birthday Festival?"

Jisung froze for a second, his eyes darkening to contrast the bright and ignorant smile of the man, his hand hovered before the chalk could leave a white trail on the black fabric.

Just the mention of such joyous events sent a chill of dread down Jisung's spine.

The young tailor hated festivals and all such large-scale events.  All the people, the crowds, the chatter, how all the noise filled his head and made it seem like if he tried to scream then no one would hear him. All the deafening sounds of others' happiness and excitement made his mind spin.

And a whole three month period of celebration for just one victory so many years ago? And for a Princess' birthday? Better things could be done with the resources and supplies that were poured into these events, so many of which were carelessly wasted.

The whole season could be damned.

"I guess I should, shouldn't I?" Jisung chuckled dryly, not wanting to dampen his customer's spirits. Forcing himself to return a smile, his hand again moved to flick the chalk, but his breath wasn't as steady as before.

"Yes, indeed you should," The elder chuckled with him heartily. "It's quite a big fuss."

The cheery customer went on to ramble excitedly about the Princess' birthday and how it was rumored that her face would be revealed for the first time, but Jisung's mind lingered on the former observation as the rest of the man's chatter became a low buzz: A big fuss. It was exactly the opposite of what he wanted to be involved in. He didn't want to be involved in anything, in fact. How he just desired a normal, peaceful life, void of any social interaction, if possible.

But that wasn't his fate.

Motioning for the elder man to step down from the platform and take off the suit, Jisung only gave a nod. "I'll definitely consider going, then."

If I'm not too swamped with adjusting clothes for those who are going, he added under his breath. Although the business in Astrea, especially at this time of year, was somewhat overwhelming, he appreciated it in a weird way. All the work did well to keep him distracted from what he was here for.

The man thanked Jisung and left the suit with the young tailor, walking out soon after, which left Jisung to think alone.

He glanced out the window during the break in customers, when the small tailor's shop was for once empty and quiet, almost as if it was abandoned; just another shop lining the streets that was ignored in favor of more exciting things, like the temporary stalls outside.

Looking out into the street, he watched with a melancholy sigh as people passed hurriedly, scurrying all over the town, either finishing with the decorations and completing the banners that were to be hung from the houses, or they were foreigners who were only there to enjoy what the empire had to offer these months.

As he watched the people laughing and dancing in the streets, tossing pretty flower petals and chatting about their exciting plans for the festival to come, a part of Jisung tugged at him. A small piece of him wished to join in the merriment.

He sniffled slightly, not due to emotion, but just his pollen allergy.

He had lost emotion long ago, when the incident had scarred the small child that he was, when the nightmares of the lifeless bodies and empty eyes of those he loved started, when the purpose for the rest of his life was established in stone. 

When the crimson blood, slithering threateningly towards him through the cracks in the stones, was diluted by the pelting rain and washed away like his dreams and hopes, like the memories of his former family and his destined heritage.

That was when this journey began.