After waking up, Mingi took a moment to stretch and to peek at his piercing curiously. He twisted it dutifully, careful not to tug on the wound too much. Now that the worst swelling has subsided, the blinking silver metal nestled snugly in his skin. Enamoured by its prettiness, Mingi regarded it a while longer while he got dressed. His skin still remembered Yunho's touch on it, how simple and comfortable it had been. When Mingi settled his hand on his waist to replicate it, it wasn't the same.

He wanted Yunho to touch him again, even if just the fleeting touches of their hands brushing as they exchanged objects. No touch Mingi had ever felt made his skin tingle quite as Yunho's did.

Caught up in his daydreams about how the next skin contact with Yunho might occur, Mingi scurried from his room and down the corridor. The kind cooks in the kitchen saluted him with cheerful voices despite the early hour. One of them gifted Mingi a fruit tart before they whisked him away.

On his way up the stairs, Mingi got held up. The demon sprinting up the stairs behind him startled Mingi enough that he nearly dropped his tray. The guy apologised profusely and helped Mingi centre the bowls and plates again. Then he stood stiffly to deliver a deep bow to him. Surprised, Mingi nodded back.

"You are the servant of the crown prince, am I right?"

Mingi took in the man's draped horns and gave a careful nod. It didn't seem like he was in trouble.

"Excellent! In that case, please take this and deliver it to the prince for me!" He pulled a scroll from his bag that was sealed with a red ribbon and a wax sigil. Gently, he placed it on the tray as well and beamed at Mingi.

Before Mingi even got to reply, the courier dashed off again. Like a bolt of lightning, he zapped through the palace building.

Amused, Mingi continued on his path. He arrived at Yunho's door and balanced the tray on his knee and on his tail as he opened the door. Inside, he set it down and neatly put the scroll next to it before he went to wake Yunho. On his way, he unbuttoned his shirt to tie it together under his chest. Like this, his stomach and piercing laid free, but his shirt didn't hang open tactlessly.

In a similar fashion as last time, Mingi woke Yunho. The man was glad to see him hover above the bed instead of San once more and gave Mingi a sleepy smile the moment he recognised him.

"Good morning, Mingi. Slept well?" Yunho sat up with messy hair and ran his hand through it in an attempt to get it into form. When it didn't work, Mingi chuckled at his adorably debauched state.

"Good morning. Yes, I did, no pain in the piercing," Mingi announced with a happy skip. He aimed to step back to let Yunho throw his legs over the edge, but they came down to spread with Mingi in between them, framing him from both sides. Shy, Mingi remained in position when Yunho reached out his hands. They grasped onto Mingi's hips in no more but a wisp of a touch, politely holding him in place. He blinked to focus his eyes on the piercing, humming.

"It looks like it didn't infect, yes. That's the best outcome." When Yunho looked up at Mingi to grin at him, Mingi bashfully looked elsewhere.

"Yes, thank you again. I love it even more than yesterday," Mingi stuttered. When Yunho let go of him again to use his golden claws in getting dressed instead, Mingi was nearly disheartened. At the same time, his heart vibrated with exhilaration. Yunho had fewer inhibitions to touch him, and he also didn't mind the lingering brushes of Mingi's fingertips on his skin as he helped him get dressed.

"That's what I like to hear. Your beauty radiates even more with it than yesterday, too," Yunho sweetly charmed his way into Mingi's heart. When Mingi pretended to be struck by an arrow, Yunho giggled at him.

Once Yunho was ready to start into the day, the two of them sat down on the divans to have breakfast together. For now, the coast was clear of San, so Mingi would selfishly make use of the time Yunho dedicated to him usually.

"A message just arrived for you. I put it on the table," Mingi explained when Yunho's eyes curiously settled on the paper. The prince hummed and reached for it to break the seal and unwrap the silky ribbon smoothly. His eyes flicked over the page as he read.

Mingi already tasted his bread as he watched the prince's expression change. Like a storm cloud, his face darkened with apprehension. His eyebrows drew together in upset. Gulping, Mingi lowered his bread.

He didn't ask, unsure if he was allowed access to the private information. Mindful of his reactions, however, Yunho set the paper down with a sigh and reached for his bowl.

"Another attack on demons. This time, closer to our borders. It seems like the pixie villain is closing in on our kingdom. He stole the horns of four high-ranking officials."

Mingi glanced at the paper nervously. He didn't like that news. He didn't like that the threat neared and that this pixie had attacked about a dozen demons successfully by now. Pixies were small and fragile. They were not supposed to bestow terror.

"Do you think they might come here?" Mingi asked in a small voice. When Yunho tried to smile reassuringly at him, his grin froze into a grimace. A demon's horns were a dangerous objective to have. Both their ego, and their lives could depend on them.

"I hope they don't. I don't want to hear such dreadful word within my kingdom. I will mention this to my father and San later. We should take measures against this matter as soon as possible."

When Yunho still found the same disturbed expression on Mingi's features, his smile softened. It melted back into its normal form.

"Don't worry, Mingi. I'll do my best to protect everyone."

But if Yunho protected everyone, who would protect Yunho? The man with the most beautiful horns in the five realms and their crown prince? Whatever that pixie was after, he would find it with him.

Mingi nodded shakily. He steeled his own nerves. Jongho would protect Yunho. And all the other guards. San, even. And in the utmost scenario, Mingi would protect him, too, even if he knew nothing about fighting.

A dim shadow hovered over them during the rest of their meal. Not even the warm fire could fend it off, and their conversation was scarce, for both of them kept slipping back into the world of their woes.

After he had finished eating, Yunho leaned back on the divan to think for a while. When his misty eyes found Mingi again later, they held an emotion that Mingi couldn't interpret.

"Say, Mingi, how about we take tomorrow off to explore your homelands? I want a break from these matters before I fully dedicate myself to them and I promised."

His suggestion brought the smiles back to both of their lips. When Mingi instantly nodded cheerfully, Yunho satisfiedly clasped his hands together. Then Mingi simmered down again when he remembered San.

"Ah, will Prince San join us, too?"

He tried to keep any annoyance and jealousy out of his voice. Yet, the little quirk of Yunho's brow gave away that he had picked up on it. The corners of his lips curled.

"Let's go, just the two of us. I can have Yeosang bother San with something else tomorrow. Is that what you want?"

Mingi nodded sheepishly, glad that he could be honest with Yunho without getting condemned. As usual, the prince took it in stride. They continued their breakfast in more peace. By the time Mingi collected their bowls to bring the tray back into the kitchen, the next visitor already rapped their fingers on the door.

As expected, it was San. He came up to sit down next to Yunho coquettishly and linked their arms. When San asked Yunho about his plans, Yunho told him he was unavailable. The crown prince managed a sneaky wink at Mingi before he exited the door.

-

Saddling any horse other than Ave proved to be far easier than dealing with the stubborn hell creature. On the day of Mingi's and Yunho's ride, Mingi arrived at the stables first once more and he had already saddled the mare the stable boy had offered for him to lend. Ave, however, played her game of cat and mouse with Mingi. Just like last time, it took Yunho to arrive and reprimand her lightly for her to give up. Once more intimidated by her intelligence, Mingi had left it to Yunho to deal with her and had led his horse outside by its reigns already.

Despite Ave's size, Yunho had no issues climbing her. With agile movements, he scaled her like a mountain and sunk into the saddle comfortably. Today, he wore a black top that fit his black pants. It was sleeveless, exposing his muscular arms and shoulders. In turn, he wore elbow-length gloves studded with metal plates.

Yunho also wore a sword around his hip. When Mingi eyed it warily, the prince sent him a winning smile.

"Don't worry. I just want to be extra sure if we see something suspicious."

This time, they took only two guards with them. Jongho wasn't among them.

At a leisurely pace, the group descended from the volcano. Yunho kept Ave next to Mingi, throning slightly above, since Ave was just that massive.

"Do you miss your old home?"

When Mingi waved it off, Yunho curiously tilted his head.

"The palace was a big upgrade for me. I never had much, and my family wasn't around to miss, too. I find living in the palace very comfortable. You could still consider that farm my favourite place, though."

"I see! I never moved away from the place I was born in. However, whenever I travel to other kingdoms for diplomatic stays, I miss all of this here. The castle, my friends there, and our lovely town. I'm glad to hear your heart doesn't have to ache," Yunho said wisely.

Mingi couldn't tell him that the proximity Mingi had to him now and their occasional moments did far more intense things to his heart than homesickness ever could. The internal melody that Mingi associated with homesickness was glum and melancholy, but the one that Yunho played in his chest was full of merry tunes that Mingi wanted to dance to.

They arrived at the outskirts of town near the fields Mingi had worked at every day after a while. Now, too, the farmers tended to their harvest. They dug around in the ashy earth, piled produce on wagons, or took breaks from the arduous labour to rest their backs. Yunho garnered all of their attention immediately.

"Greetings, Crown Prince," a woman cheerily called over from the entrance of her house. Yunho smiled and waved, giving back the same enthusiasm.

"It's the prince, the prince!" A little boy nearly ran over a goat in his hurry to come closer in his awe. When Yunho said hello back to him, the small one jumped and clapped surprisedly.

From everywhere, they hailed blessings on him and marvelled at his aura. Mingi felt invisible next to the mighty personality he had by his side. And yet, Yunho let their conversation carry on naturally.

They didn't halt to greet the people. Their curious gazes vanished as the group passed the next farm further down the path. Soon enough, they halted their horses in front of the hut Mingi had lived in ever since his birth. The lava stream still ran right alongside the street on the other side, and all his favourite playing spots with Seonghwa had remained the same. The fields were freshly dug around. The new family living here already spent their time sensibly.

Mingi smiled at the idyllic scene of his meagre cabin. Yunho didn't interrupt his time with it. Only when Mingi turned his neck back to him, he found the prince already looking at him with a matching serene smile.

"Say, Mingi, is there still part of the harvest you worked for inside?"

"Oh, certainly. I had far more carrots than I could sell at once, so I left large batches behind for the people after me. I hope it helped them into the new start."

When Yunho elegantly slid from Ave's back, Mingi faltered in surprise. Just when he wanted to dismount as well, unsure if Yunho needed him, Yunho knocked on the hut's door.

Perplexed by what he was going to do, Mingi watched.

The door opened to show a young woman with horns that looked like Yeosang's. Her initial wariness delved into an expression of awe when she recognised Yunho.

"Your Highness!" She gasped, just as surprised as the rest of the street's inhabitants by his unforeseen presence.

"Hello," Yunho smiled charmingly. "I would like to pay you for all the carrots you currently have stored. My sudden visit shall not inconvenience you."

She already moved before she even caught up with the thought. It took them some negotiations, but soon she and her brother piled all the carrots on a wooden cart. One guard slipped from his horse without questions asked to steer the cart. He left his mighty warhorse in the shed as a pawn to collect later once he brought back the cart and the horse the new family had brought with them.

The siblings thanked Yunho tirelessly for the sizeable amount of gold he left them, far more than the carrots would have been worth. Yunho gave the same gratitude back, and soon he returned to Ave to mount her again. The siblings retreated into the house, but they still sneaked peeks at the group through the windows.

Mingi glanced at the cart. He believed to recognise some of the vegetables still.

"That's a lot of carrots," he commented, just as surprised. Yunho gave him a cheeky grin.

"Yes, but I wanted to taste them, and in the palace, they get used up fast. Let the cooks prepare a dish for me in the morning using the carrots you grew, yes?"

Shy, Mingi's tail flicked behind him.

"They aren't any better than other carrots," he mumbled. Some of his pride blended into his voice. Yunho's beam made Mingi's heart sing even more.

"To me, they will taste all the better. Because I trust the hands that grew them. Shall we explore more of the river?"

Mingi didn't discuss it with him. He was too warmed by the prince's generosity.