#tielsu

Suho is a very independent boy—he has to be, since he is now the breadwinner in his family. After his father disappeared five years ago, he had to do everything possible to care for his grandmother, grandfather, and his apothecary aunt. And of course, he also has to look after the orphan children his grandmother took in, due to the many that winter caused, and it only got more harsh over time.

At 17, Suho began learning how to hunt thanks to them and the townsfolk; in particular, he learned basic thing like self defense from WooJinchul. His uncle Jinho, son of a wealthy count that abandoned him after marrying a commoner, taught him writing, trade, and mathematics. His aunt often taught him about medicine and deadly poisons. His grandmother taught him how to dismember the food, use every part of the animal possible, and curate it before eating it, and lastly, his grandfather taught him to fish. A very important skill especially during winters.

There was also someone else who used to come and go from his village—the lightning swordmaster, the dragon priestess, the dancer of many names. He usually only called her “mother,” since she was the first woman outside of his family he had ever met, and she raised him in her own way whenever his father wen absent over long periods of time.

She would always stop by to tell him stories about his father and the world of the fae, bring the house some gifts, and in return Kyunghye would even weave her large, comfortable fur garments.

One day, when Suho was 15, he asked her if she really was his mother. But Haein only smiled and said no—that one day he would meet his real mother. “When you turn eighteen. If Jinwoo doesn’t tell you, then I will. Promise.” But she too disappeared around his 17th birthday and never came back. Unlike his father, who was always secretive about the campains he went on, Haein had often told Suho of her adventures, from the most tranquil walks through the faraway cities to the most dangerous battles where death was a constant. Suho felt worried for them both, but when it came to Haein, he trusted her more that one day, she too would come back with a smile on her face carrying the big sword on her back like it was nothing.

By twenty-two, he was regarded as a good hunter. Still, as a butcher and an artist, many mocked him, claiming his talents were useless.

“In this age of war, no one uses the bow anymore! ¡Only guns! Go be a warrior and bring spoils from war! That will actually last us through the winter!”

“In this age of war, an artist doesn’t exist! You’d be better off as an apothecary like your aunt!”

“How could it be that the soldier, son of Sung Ilhwan, disappeared because he didn’t want to die in the war, leaving his sister to bear the whole burden of raising her nephew and taking care of her parents alone!”

“What sadness and misery fall upon the Sung family! The apothecary’s betrothed is an outcast, stripped of his father’s fortune. Mother Kyunghye has to look after the orphans. Father Sung can no longer fish, since winters have grown harsher and the fish are no longer as recurrent. And look at the grandson, he wants to be an artist! But only nobles are in the need for artists. Since he knows no noble or aristocrat, he must use his delicate hands to hunt instead! Truly miserable!”

Still, despite everything, Suho cared only about bringing food to his family. They didn’t suffer as badly as people thought, though winters were becoming harder to predict. In his free time, he improved his artistry, using techniques and studying with Jinchul—who, before becoming a warrior, had once been a noble artist like himself, and it is thanks to his works that Suho can still clearly remind himself of his father's face.

One day, before winter began, Suho went into the mountains to hunt a large prey so all the children could eat. But instead, he found a great beast. The beast bared his fangs and, Suho, not being able to truly make out its shape, fought it in case it was a bear. And when the sun finally rose, he realized the beast was in fact a fae.

“A fae.”

Suho froze, remembering the most important law his mother had told him as a child: “Thanks to the efforts of the six human queens, the fae and their masters—who rule the four seasons and three phases of the day—cannot attack humans, nor humans attack fae. A human soul is never in danger unless they kill a fae. Remember this well, Suho: never, under any circumstance, attack a fae.”

Suho muttered to himself that it wasn’t his fault. No, not at all. He had only defended himself from the monster. The deer was his. He had to live and bring food to his family. It wasn’t his fault. It wasn’t.

But when he returned home with the deer, Suho found his family in chaos. Ilhwan was shielding Kyunghye, who had fainted in his arms. One of his orphan sisters, Choi Hasul, and Jinah were trying to calm the rest of the crying children. And in front of them stood Jinho, holding a sword (Suho never knew Jinho had a sword) pointing it at a tall figure with long white hair, claded in the most radiant giant armor Suho had ever seen, entwined with vines and tree roots that only bloomed in summer, and two horns extending outside of his golden mask scratching the roof of his home.

Suho had to pay for breaking the fae law. He explained himself sincerely to the fae in front of them, telling him that if the price was his soul, he would give it, but he still wanted to appeal to justice! He had never intended to kill a creature he shouldn’t have; he had only wanted to survive. The terrifying fae said nothing and simply took him away, leaving a hole in the Sung household and erasing all memory of what had happened there.

Suho awoke in an incredibly luxurious room. A canopy bed with thin courtains that filtered the sunlight. The sheets were woven from the finest and comftiest fur. The blankets carried a sweet fragrance. His body felt enveloped in warmth, in fact, the whole room was warm even with the windows opened.

The place was vastly larger than his entire house. One room alone held the finest furniture he had ever seen. Suho had seen such furniture as a child, back when Jinho was still a noble, but with the years he had forgotten how it felt to be in such a place. Quickly, he rushed out to search for his family or answers or both. But upon opening the door he was met a woman with thick black hair and long ears, her beauty rivaling any human he had ever seen so far. She was tall, adorned, hergarments less packed than the ones the humans had at the north. And around her swarmed bees carrying plates, buckets of water, baskets of clothes, and other loads that made Suho step back.

The woman cleared her throat before speaking:

“I hope our dear royal assistant slept well. Today, you must be presentable for your first day of work.” "Royal... assistant??"

"Yes, that is what I said. Do you still remember the day the high lord took you away from the human realm?"

"Yes but-- but I thought he would kill me..."

"Mn. Indeed it would have been the best option for everyone, but cosidering you acted in self defense, the high lord wants to test you, see how you fare and live. For a year you will live under this room, and when it's time he would have known if you are worthy of living or not."

“Alright, but at least can I ask you some questions?” The woman's smile shifted, she wasn't fond of dealing with humans, and not especially those who had the strenght to kill fae, but in the end she relented, and they chatted for an hour as she dressed him. From her, Suho learned of his situation. Thiel was the viceroy of Life, the lord of abundance and harvests, master of spring andd thus was tied to every single life within the spring court in a certain form. His job was to maintain the abundance of spring, and if that order went unsupervised, even those of the human realm would suffer. The magical beast Suho had slain had been one of his loyal servants and thus, Suho was now forced to take a position in the palace. Of course not many liked this, especially the duke of the Boreal forests who was a friend of the beast he killed, Minsung.

Since they knew little about him, he had to prove himself by doing everything expected of him. For this reason, he was being dressed properly, as a servant who would welcome the Lord of Spring and his court.

Suho tried his best, but everything ended in disaster. The food he prepared was fine for humans, but foul and disgusting to the fae. When he cleaned, he caused accidents, touching powerful relics and cursed objects. By the end of his training, Arsha, the duchess and caretaker of the Spring Palace, was already exhausted by the endless repairs she had to make. Suho felt guilty, mostly because of all the weight he put on Arsha, but at the same time he found it amusing to hear how the Lord of Spring grimaced when served Suho’s cooking, for the first time in years showwing a reaction that wasn't a simple cold look, or how the Lord of Spring had been accidentaly cursed when Suho arranged the rings in an improper order.

That night, he was sent to his quarters early, as early as possible in fact no one wanted more trouble in the court. Since everyone seemed so busy, he decided to slip out and began to memorize the palace’s halls and chambers. Yes, he had struck a bargain and he would honor it—but he could not abandon his family. One way or another he had to know how to escape, in case the Lord of Spring ever chose to kill him or break his word too. He had to be prepared for anything really. Just like how his mother taught him to.

He also wanted to see his family one last time. How were they doing without him? Were they safe? How many days had he been unconscious since he last saw them? He knew nothing and his worries grew heavier. Throughout the day, he wore a mask of calm, but inside, he was consumed by fear every passing second.

"You. What are you doing here?"

Suho was suddendly startled at the voice of a fae behind him. It was Lim Taegyu, the one who had been furious with him since his arrival and who constantly urged the Lord of Spring and Arsha to kill him.

“He’s the reason Minsung died! A death must be paid with another death!”

Now, standing face to face with him, without anyone to defend him, Suho felt his hair stand on end.

“What are you doing here, in the middle of the night? Trying to escape?”

“No—” Well, yes.

“Or are you planning to kill another fae?!”

“NO—I’m—” Suho searched desperately for an excuse, then remembered the library down this corridor. “I’m going to the library because Arsha asked me to! I… I haven’t finished cleaning everywhere, and it’s important to leave it spotless.” Taegyu didn’t buy it. For one, Suho wasn’t in uniform. And two, the library was sacred to the former fae lord, so any entrance was forbidden, even to noble fae like him. “Well then… I’ll go with you.” Suho swallowed hard and decided to stick with the lie. As they walked, he already started seazing the opportunities to escape and fast: he would create some distraction in order to lure this fae away and then run back to his kingdom, find his family, and take them all to another realm where the fae could never reach them. It went against everything but with no one that gave him answers to his questions about his famly, he had to find any way possible to know if they are alive. ‘Maybe to the northern or southern kingdom… Didn’t Mother once say that if I ever had problems, I should go to the Palace of the Six Matriarchs and—’

They arrived at the library. Before Suho could do anything, Taegyu knocked on the door.

To their surprise, the doors opened. “Has the assistant arrived?” A subtle, indifferent voice asked. To Suho it sounded like a savior’s call despite how modest and cold the tone was. Taegyu froze, recognizing it immediately. But Suho did not know who it was so he simply replied, eager to escape Taegyu. “Uh! Yes! That’s me!” The voice paused before ordering him. “Close the door and come here.” “Alright.” Suho glanced at Taegyu. Taegyu scowled at him for a moment, then let him go, closing the door. Suho exhaled deeply, feeling he had escaped death on his first day. Then he followed the voice and found himself before the most beautiful person he had ever seen.

His hair was long and white like the Lord of Spring’s, though the lord's reached the floor white this young fae over here only had it wrapped around a low ponytail that ended at it's chest. His skin held no scars or scratches. Beneath his clothes, just as thin and loose like those of the dutchess. Suho could see a strong, athletic body. had it not been for the gold-adorned long pointy ears, Suho would have thought him a porcelain doll or a son of the six queens.

Though Suho had never seen them, the bards often said that the reason the princes and princesess hid in castles were because they were the most beautiful beings alive and looking at them would cause many to lose their composure. Would they look just like the man standing before him?

“What are you doing here?” Suho snapped out of his thoughts, his face slight blushing after he was caught staring. “I’m here to…” For a second he ponderded about the lie, but he grew ever more worried over the consequences of that and decided to tell him the truth, but hidding a few details here and there. “I'm here because I got lost. Im sorry. I might not be the person you are waiting for.”

The Fae took his eyes out of the papers in front of him and turned around to fully look at Suho. He felt his heart pound, those eyes, he's never seen someone with such golden eyes before. So fairies really can look a lot different from humans. “Didnt you say you were my assistant?” The fae smiled back at him, a hidden emotion behind those eyes that Suho caught on. “Yes— Yes but I did it only because—” “Then go on. Fetch me some books while the paint dries, it's in the Theology section, CR-13, here's the names.” The young fae gave him a small note, three books whose names already felt like they would inflict the biggest boredom over Suho. Without question, he walks around the library, the pair of golden eyes watching him figure the direction he has to go through on his own.

Walking around a lonely path of the fifth floor, Suho remeberd getting a glimpse of the paper scroll in the desk as well as the many other things that were around it.

‘A painting.’ His eyes shine, it's the painting of The Last Festivity. He knows that story well, and Harper and Charlotte too, unwillingly, Suho always loved to read the books from Woo Jinchul’s small library again and again. The History of Art was his favorite one because it would put the twins to sleep easily while he stayed all night watching the masterpieces through the renditions of the printing press. They were all stained with age, but Suho tried making out the picture by drawing them in his free time.

After reaching the desigred section and finding the old rugged book covers, he rejoiced, grabbing he books and going back as fast as possible to see the painting.

His smile dissapeared immedeatly as he felt something watching him.

He turned to the side where the corners of the libraries were still dark and found a pair of blue eyes staring back at him. Big. Blue. Eyes.

“Um… Hello.” Suho said, clutching the books as he stared back at the being. And so it seemed as though, this small, practical job was going to end with him fighting something and causing more chaos in the long run once more. In the dark the ghostly blue eyes crawled towards him slowly, and Suho could see a humanoid ant three times his size attempting to get closer to him, crawling to his stature, fending it's huge claws away from him. Suho blinked, and the next second that grotesque ant monster was gone, replaced with the small shaped ant head pop out of the shadows, as though the monster he just saw was a mere figment of his imagination.

“You…You are the young monarch aren't you?!?” The ant head said, a small finger (?) pointing right at him.

“What? Young wha—” The nt didn't give him time to let him finish. “I can't believe this! Oh! I must tell Igris, Bellion, Iron, Tank, Tusk, Beste, Kaisel! Look at how much you've grown — Oh you were just a larva when I first saw you!”

Suho let his cheeks get pinched by this weird insect shadowy spirit that seemed oddly friendly, and definetly more happy to see him than any other fae had been throughout the day. “Oh. But what are you doing here shouldn't you be at home? Nevermind that how did you even manage to awaken yourself?”

"Awaken?"

A voice suddenly came out of nowhere. “Who are you talking to?” Suho looked back, the young man was waiting for him with a curious expression. Suho was about to explain himself that he got caught up by this ant but the next moment he couldn't find the shadow anywhere. “There was this cute ant…” The young man clocked his head. “Insects? That can't be… seems like a cleaning is due.” "No no I mean... Nevermind, here are the books you wanted."

Suho quickly goes to give him the books but the other tells him to put it beside the table while he goes to clean his utensils. Does he need to go to higher floors to clean everything? Well that seems like an inconvinience but who is Suho to tell him that. He does as told and waits until the other comes back. In the meantime he finally takes the chance to eye the painting and appreciate all its details.

It was so much more beautiful than he expected. The Last Festival depicted the 7 lords and 7 queens all around the table, with two thrones empty that fused into one, that of the earth and dawn at the center of the illustratiom, while the rest of them sat around happily drinking and passing each other the food. This occasion marked the last day of peace between them. Since then they would fight each other until for some reason the faes and the humans had broken contact with each other and created an illusionary border between them. Suho's eyes then landed on the small signature at the bottom. Bjorn Niermann.

“You seem to like the painting.” Suho was snapped from his thoughts as he saw the fae walking closer. Suho tells him about said painting and a bit of his story as well. As he trails off from sharing his memories, the fae listens and continues to paint some strokes, bringing back the color to the faded spots in the painting. Suho passes him one of the books before asking.

“You're an artist too?” “Im merely conserving the painting. Many of these are originals so every few decades we have to restore them.” The fae put the pencil away. “Are you?”

Suho’s face turned a bit pink. “Somewhat. I've learned everything I could from my master but I have no noble as my patron and I've only used my skills for fliers or new printing books. But I've had to find money through other means since artists aren't that useful now... I'm by no means great.”

“I'll be the judge of that.” The fae says, grabbing a graphite pencil and giving it to him. “There is some paper on the third desk on the counter over there, bring them to me so I can show you what you will do.” Suho’s eyes shined before he suddenly remembered. This isn't his place. “Look. I'm really grateful for you saving me back then but I really shouldn't be here. I need to go back or else your lord will be angry. I’ve left in the middle of the night and if the faes don't know where I am they will all get suspicious. I don't want to cause any more trouble so please I must leave.” “…If you are so scared of that lord then there is nothing to worry about. I'll see to it later.” “Huh?” “So long as you manage to please me with your work tonight.”

Suho smiled, he was ready to repay being saved by this fairy, even if it meant he would have to spend the whole night in the library drawing with him. It didn't seem like a bad deal.

The next morning he woke up to being in the same room from before. He certainly remembers this time he had fallen asleep after finishing the drawing of the former Lord of Winter, but afterwards he doesnt have any other memories of that night. While hearing the knos on his bedroom, he half expects to be greeted with Arsha's fuming face, after all Taegyu would have likely called her to fact-check if he really had been called to the library, but to his suprise she (her bees) opened the door with a nervious smile. “It seems youve managed to find a job when I least expected… and in the worst place too. Oh well. I guess you’ll now be the Niermann's Library's Art Conservator. And under the duty of…” Arsha turned to another bee carrying fresh toast “ What did he say his name was?”