By Zephyria 
Since it was so unexpected, I was shocked and looked into how it happened. Our appearance in the video was a coincidence. We happened to be captured in a video taken by someone who was filming their own family at the beach. Once the scuffle escalated, the person started filming us instead of the sea, and they said they only realized later that it was the Emperor and his spouse.
Wait, is it okay to just upload a video of other people like that? Joo Min-hyeok began handling the situation with the secretaries and aides who had come along, while I secretly scrolled through the comments on social media before the video was deleted. Upon checking, there was only one scene where my face was shown from the front.
My figure was mostly hidden by the company, barely visible, until the moment I demanded my hat back; that brief moment was captured and began spreading across social media. My face was shown from the front just once, and they didn’t miss it?
The speed of people’s hands is truly impressive. There’s nothing people in our country can’t do. Thanks to that, I was able to see the reactions of those who recognized me almost in real-time.
“…So that’s the Grand Imperial Concubine from the rumors. He’s terrifyingly beautiful. Truly the textbook definition of an Omega? What, this is embarrassing.”
What? The textbook definition of an Omega? And a terrifyingly beautiful one at that—it’s an expression so cringeworthy I feel like I might collapse from embarrassment. It’s too cheesy to read. Still, wanting to know what people usually thought of Joo Min-hyeok, I read the rest of the posts with my eyelids trembling.
@asdf%* Look at the Emperor taking care of his concubine. So human. He’s totally smitten. The concubine is so loved.
@tiramisu-cake0 In this day and age, why hide a face like that so tightly? A face like this should be shared.
@apple16 Does the Emperor live with an Omega like that just because he’s the Emperor? I guess you have to be at that level to become the Emperor’s concubine… Lucky Emperor.
@samsung24 Look at the bodyguards running because the Emperor is running. What are they doing, unable to protect a single concubine?
There were too many to track them all, but the reactions were generally like that, and my face grew red with embarrassment the entire time I read. Who’s being loved? I guess in people’s eyes, I looked like a very loved concubine. It’s a total frenzy, a total frenzy.
Though the comments were embarrassing and awkward, once I started reading, I couldn’t stop. Among the many comments, a significant number focused on Joo Min-hyeok’s behavior toward me. It was an explosive reaction, to say the least. In particular, people reacted enthusiastically to the scene where Joo Min-hyeok grabbed the man’s face who had been harassing me and snatched the hat away.
@khkxnnpt Hul, is that really the Emperor?
@kim-commute-k5x Wow, the world has become a great place. I can see the Emperor running while lying at home.
@jkw5567 The Emperor is insanely cool. How big are his hands to grab that face all at once? He should have just crushed it.
@iilliil The way he pushes the Palace Lord behind him is so heart-fluttering. How wide is his back that he completely hides him? lol. I want him to hide me too.
@bhclove So damn cool. I didn’t expect him to grab the face as soon as he ran up lol. He’s freaking fast too. Like he has a motor in his legs. He runs so well on the sand.
@sodke867 So that’s how he is with his own Omega. Fascinating. But does the guy who harassed the Grand Imperial Concubine die? Like, for insulting the Imperial Family?
…But these people are really something. How can they have such poor judgment? What is so cool and sexy about Joo Min-hyeok’s violent behavior? A person should be kind and warm; that’s the best. They don’t realize that a face isn’t everything in this world.
“But what do they mean by ‘runs well on the sand’?”
Wondering what that meant, I found that the video also captured the scene of Joo Min-hyeok running toward me. Unlike my own perspective as someone experiencing it, the video was shot from a wider angle, allowing a third party to see the scene.
“…He really does run well.”
Joo Min-hyeok started running toward me the moment the man hid my hat and started playing around. He ran straight for me without looking anywhere else. He really runs well. Ah! Oh boy, his knee buckled once. Right, it is hard to run on sand.
Regardless, Joo Min-hyeok ran fiercely, grabbed the man’s face, and snatched the hat. Seeing it like this, it actually looks cool. It was like a scene from a commercial. Joo Min-hyeok ran to me without a moment’s hesitation. Watching that gave me a very strange feeling. The fact that he ran for me—even though I had experienced it firsthand—didn’t feel real.
So I watched that scene over and over. Until the video was taken down by the Imperial Family. I kept playing it on repeat. Whatever his sincerity or reason was, I liked that he ran for me without thinking of anything else.
I had been so focused on the Joo Min-hyeok from the novel before I came here and the overall situation that I couldn’t be faithful to my current life. In the end, the Yeonghwa Palace did appear, but the timing of its appearance and the way things are flowing now are all different from what I knew.
Just looking at how Joo Min-hyeok has been taking care of me lately proves it. He clearly said he would help me, and so I trusted him and asked for help. And he kept his word.
He was always there whenever I was sick and made time for me. So, a hope emerged that perhaps there was no need to worry too much just because the Yeonghwa Palace appeared. Just like Joo Min-hyeok’s appearance in that video, the story is clearly changing.
“Right. At the very least, Joo Min-hyeok probably doesn’t have feelings of hatred toward me anymore. So I can watch the situation more positively. As for the Yeonghwa Palace… well, it’ll work out somehow. For now, my survival and my brother’s survival come first.”
Thanks to the Imperial Family’s swift response, the video was taken down from all sites, and those who had played with my hat were summoned by the authorities for a brief investigation. The original uploader was also quickly found, and the matter was settled at an appropriate level.
Perhaps because of that video, which had heated up everything from social media and portals to famous overseas gossip sites, crowds gathered wherever Joo Min-hyeok went during the schedule, and he received cheers from the people. They said they saw the Emperor in a new light after seeing his domestic side, which had felt so distant. He’s not particularly like that, but people are so simple.
And thanks to that video, one piece of work was removed from my schedule. I was supposed to meet the market head and have a meal with Joo Min-hyeok without media exposure, but that schedule was canceled. They said it was canceled for safety reasons because my face was partially exposed.
Furthermore, I had to suffer through Joo Min-hyeok’s endless nagging and warnings. He had been repeating the same words over and over without rest.
“When you go back to Seoul first, you must stay only in the palace. Understood? This is unavoidable, so please cooperate.”
“Yes, but, Your Majesty. I have a pheromone test scheduled. I have to go to the hospital in person for that….”
“I will assign more security vehicles and guards. You must return to the palace immediately after the hospital. Since the Palace Lord’s face has been exposed, there are many more things to worry about. It makes me uneasy that I cannot return with the Palace Lord.”
Joo Min-hyeok suddenly had a business trip to New Zealand. So, I ended up returning to Seoul and entering the palace first. He said it was very important work, but he seemed stressed, closing his eyes and frowning occasionally while speaking.
What on earth is going on? Having no choice but to send me back first, he kept pestering me like a parent watching a child go on a long journey.
“The Queen Mother won’t be displeased, will she?”
“About what? This incident was an accident. There’s nothing for the Queen Dowager to say anything about, but if she does, just talk back. You’re good at that.”
Is he crazy? I’d probably get slapped if I did that.
“I’ll be careful and stay only in the palace. Have a safe trip.”
“…I’ve explained it well to the Queen Dowager, so don’t worry. I’ll see you when I return.”
Joo Min-hyeok seemed unusually preoccupied. I should just stay in my room and not cause any trouble.
∗ ∗ ∗
I don’t know how a single video leaked on the internet compromises safety, but I returned to the palace under security that was practically like a spy movie. And because of this incident, Joo Min-hyeok forbade anyone from disturbing me, banning entry to the Grand Imperial Concubine’s quarters. This included the Queen Dowager. Seeing this reveals Joo Min-hyeok’s personality.
“Hae-joo.”
Because I was so tired, I had my eyes closed on the sofa to clear my head when a cautious voice called me.
“Huh? Kang Hyun-wook! When did you get here? Are you really my personal bodyguard? If you had gone with me, I really would have at the beach!”
“I’m sorry. I was shocked when I saw the video. I’m just glad nothing serious happened. The place here was in total emergency mode because of it.”
“…Forget it. It’s already over. But are you not busy anymore?”
Hyun-wook fell silent and sat in front of me, hesitating repeatedly as if he wanted to say something.
“Can you make some time to go outside with me for a bit?”
At Hyun-wook’s question, asked with a serious face, I thought of Joo Min-hyeok, who had strictly told me to stay in my room. What should I do? I feel like I should stay quietly in the palace this time. But Hyun-wook looks quite serious too.
“His Majesty told you not to go outside, right?”
Hyun-wook asked calmly, as if he had guessed.
“Yeah. It’s better to keep a low profile. But why suddenly outside?”
The way he fidgeted with his interlaced fingers was unusual. Did he cause some kind of accident? I felt frustrated, wondering if that’s why he needed help.
“What is it? Even if it’s something troublesome, tell me quickly! That way I can help. Nothing huge happened, right?”
“Hae-joo, you see.”
What is it, really? Stop hesitating and just say it.
“Actually, I found Seo-joo.”
…?
“The thing is, I had already seen and known about Seo-joo before I met you. I saw Seo-joo first. But….”
Wha—what? What is he saying right now? So, our Seo-joo is here? That means Sa-joo was here too? Just like me, just like us?
Unable to control my trembling hands, I clasped them together and stared anxiously at Hyun-wook’s mouth, waiting for the next words. To think Seo-joo was here—I had been searching, but it was a shock. I was confused as to why we were all meeting in this place.
But how did Hyun-wook know about Seo-joo in advance? And why didn’t he say anything until now? Knowing how desperately I was searching for Seo-joo, why wasn’t there a single hint all this time?
“Hey…. Kang Hyun-wook. What the hell are you? What is this? Knowing how much I’ve been looking for Seo-joo, how could you find him and not tell me? Then, the reason you were busy….”
“It’s not that being busy was unrelated to that matter…. I wanted to tell you quickly too. But there was a reason I couldn’t. …I was afraid you’d be very upset, Hae-joo, so I kept putting it off.”
“Upset? Why would I be upset about meeting Seo-joo? I’m not angry. It’s fine, so tell me quickly.”
Right. Hyun-wook isn’t the type to hide things from me for no reason. He knows better than anyone how desperately I’m searching for Seo-joo; he’s not the type to intentionally keep it a secret. Is Seo-joo sick somewhere? Or did he possess some strange character? Like a gangster or a drug addict or something…
“Seo-joo didn’t recognize me. Seo-joo says he doesn’t know me. He doesn’t remember us at all. Hae-joo, we aren’t in Seo-joo’s memories.”
“…Huh?”
We aren’t in Seo-joo’s memories. I stared blankly at Hyun-wook’s face, like someone who couldn’t understand his words.