what am i going to do? the prince is missing and the only person that comes to mind is kim janghyun is behind all his, i know that kid is shady as hell and probably has his allies planning something against me. i have no resources, no connections. for the first time i'm unable to sleep. one day with the prince made me realize how selfless he is, no matter how annoying. if he's dead i'll be the first one people ask to know what his last moments were. for the first time i go into the back account my guardians gave me.

FOURTEEN million dollars?! in my bank account? since when? okay might as well use it i guess. with a deep breath i call up the names that came to mind, my guardians lee jongsuk and suzy. apparently they are also on the case of finding the prince, everyone with wealth is being notified to help find the missing kim taehyung.

taehyung POV

i'm tied up in a chair. after i dropped off my princess, the car was hit by a semi truck, killing my driver. my ribs and legs felt numb now because of the pain. the room is dark but sparkly, definitely luxurious. i didn't have time to admire the decor when a deep voice echoes-

"don't worry your highness, it'll all be over soon, you just have to agree to one thing."

then there's a woman's voice.

"declare war. you have five days to make up your mind."

y/n POV

pouring over files from the police, all the files my guardians showed me, i couldn't pin point where the prince was left. i'm suspecting he was taken after he left because the palace did not see him return that day. i wanted to blame myself but knew that was only going to distract from the tasks at hand. janghyun is in jail so that rules him out, the car that had the prince vanished into thin air, there's no video footage. whoever took him has power and money. my blood boils thinking how could they take someone as innocent as the prince.

my phone rings from an unknown number.

"is this y/n?" the weak voice asks.

"yes. who is this?"

"min yoongi."

"o-oh my goodness, how are you feeling? still in the hospital?" i'm trembling trying to sound strong.

"yes thanks to you. uh i heard you're looking for the prince, if you need any help, i'm here."

"oh yoongi-ssi, thank you. are you alone?"

"y-yes." he says slowly.

"tell me your room number, i'll visit okay?" i try to sound kind. our relationship is weird, it's only talking to each other whenever we're paired for projects, but we're not strangers either.

at the hospital yoongi has files scattered all over the table that's on his side. he looks weak and has dried lips. instinctively i grab the chapstick by the countertop and carefully apply it to his lips. he doesn't look shocked but has a curious look in his eyes.

"yoongi-ssi..." i look at him again as i'm closer. his pillow is filled with dried blood, tubes were in his arms, his neck in a brace, he didn't look good but his eyes showed his usual determined and focused aura. why weren't the nurses taking better care of him? i found a clean pillow and filled his water bottle, why were the giving him cold water? warm water is better.

"are you hungry?" i ask. he's staring at me in wonder.

"i'm not allowed to yet, they're still running tests." yoongi says weakly. "these papers here are all i have about the prince's case."

i scab over them and see the same photos i already have. but a list of names catches my eyes.

"the suspects?" i ask. yoongi just nods.

i sigh as i scan over them.

jackson wang, park chanyeol, park chaeyoung, oh sehun, jeon jungkook, kim jongin, minatozaki sana, and im nayeon. why were there so many names? and why were they all young? and what the hell? jeon jungkook? i thought they are friends.

jackson wang, he's the royal family from another country, whom we have turmoil with. of course he's a suspect. park chanyeol is a princess who is arranged to marry jackson, they could easily be behind everything. oh sehun has had a grudge with the royal family ever since they put his parents in jail for murder of a prime minister, of course he's still wealthy and in the mafia business, perhaps he's out for revenge. i don't know about jeon jungkook though. kim jongin made his own fortune with trade before turning to the dark side and does human trafficking until the royal family found out and spent his life in prison, he's escaped a couple years ago. sana is a princess rumored to be the stalker of the prince, she's obsessive. im nayeon was born into a wealthy family, the top three but the prince had humiliated her in front of thousands when she confessed to him. their motives played in my mind, they're all capable of doing something to the prince, and they all have grudges.

taehyung POV

"why would i start a war?" i say trying to sound unbothered.

"we need a reason to unite our countries, the only way to do that is to target the wang royal family." the deep voice says.

"not going to happen."

"you wouldn't want anything to happen to your precious y/n now?" another woman speaks, different from the first. i can see their shadows cast in front of me.

"you gave me five days to decide, i'm going to use them all." i struggle against the ropes that tie me against a chair.

"in the meantime..." the woman voice is behind me and i feel a cloth over my eyes. "we never said what we'll do to you in these five days." i feel fingers run over my neck and then lips start sucking harshly on my skin.

"you will pay for this." i say sternly trying to keep composure. a punch to my stomach follows and i black out.

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