Kim Namjoon

Kim Namjoon had served the crown since he was sixteen. By twenty-eight, he had already held the position of Supreme Commander of the royal army, commanding most of the troops and considered the king's most loyal man. He and Jungkook had grown up together, so Namjoon knew him better than most. He had seen him transform from a hot-tempered youth into a cool-headed ruler, and so he understood: Jeon Jungkook never did anything without reason.

Namjoon met Taehyung before he arrived at the palace. After one of his campaigns, he returned to the capital seriously wounded, and it was the young doctor who helped him get back on his feet. Namjoon was first drawn to Taehyung's knowledge, then to his character. He never tried to please, spoke frankly, and wasn't afraid to argue. Over time, feelings developed between them.

When Taehyung was summoned to the palace to treat the ailing king, Namjoon was happy for him. It was a tremendous honor. A few months later, Taehyung became the royal physician, and it was then that Namjoon first felt uneasy.

Jungkook had become too attached to Taehyung too quickly. He summoned him several times a day, refused to allow other healers to treat him, and clearly singled Kim out among the other courtiers. Namjoon tried to convince himself he was mistaken, until one day he noticed the king's gaze directed at Taehyung. He knew that gaze all too well. Jungkook thus looked only at what he considered his own.

After that, everything changed. Taehyung was assigned quarters next to the royal ones, and later his movements within the palace were restricted. Namjoon himself was increasingly sent to distant provinces on endless errands. Northern borders, garrison inspections, diplomatic missions. The orders followed one after another.

Namjoon had never argued with the king, but he knew him too well to dismiss this as a coincidence. He realized he had a rival he couldn't defeat. Because that rival was the king himself. But he wasn't about to give in.