I'm The Boss's Secretary?!

The horses were lined in the mouth of the forest. Sun had begin to shift after the long hour of ride. Haneul squinted her eyes upon meeting eyes with the bright golden King in the sky and she wiped her sweats.

Yeseul who had came to accompany her passed the handkerchief and she took it. But before she turned around, her eyes couldn't stop itself from staring the man who sat on the stallion. His back was straight and although it wasn't wore with his poise and demenour, it felt as though he was prepared for a war and Haneul wondered if it was because he had spent the last two years in the battlefield.

When she saw his head turning to her direction, she didn't know why but immediately her face turned to the direction of the river where she was standing. Bending her leg, she sank her hands to the river, cupping the water to drink while wondering she had done that but it would be embarrassing if he found out she had stared at him, thought Haneul.

She pursed her lips, asking herself again, why should I feel embarrassed? Although Min Hyuk didn't come out to say it, he had shown it through his action that he also love her. Though Haneul didn't want to be too overconfident for the fear of being rejected.

"Miss, I would bring the bottle to be refilled," Yeseul notified and Haneul in trance nodded her head.

She sunk to a contemplation without knowing that a horse had stopped beside her and Min Hyuk who rode the horse jumped down, making his way to her side. 

"Is it tasty?"

"Mhm," Haneul answered and it took her a while to widened her eyes, turning to see him. "Min Hyuk! A-Are you asking about the water?" At her own stutters, Haneul wanted to find a hole to burry herself. 

"I don't think I am asking about you?" Min Hyuk watched how her pink lips gape and her cheeks reddened like cherries all of a sudden.

"You are silly. I am not tasty," she paused and sighed, forgetting the fact Min Hyuk was a vampire and blood was his main dish which mean she could be tasty if she suited his palate. "I want to know..." she then drawled and his eyes curiously look at her as if telling she could go on, "When you were in the battlefield do you often get hurt?"

"Doing otherwise is impossible," of course, thought Haneul in her mind and she heard him continue, "But I am a vampire they got healed pretty quickly except when I am in a brink of thirst."

"What happened when you are thirsty then?" This was the question she had been curious but wasn't able to ask, "I heard pureblood vampires can only drink from humans. I learned from the yellow witch that blood could dry and go stale in hours. It is impossible to preserve them and still drink it freshly."

"I get it," Min Hyuk crouched beside her to meet her eye level. Propping his chin on his arm he rested on his knees, a wily smile crafted over his lips, "I get what your real question is; you want to know whether I ever drink blood from a woman's neck, right?"

Haneul's eyes turned still and in second blood rushed all over her face, spreading over the tips of her ears and neck. "I... I was curious." and when he hummed with the smug smile, her lips pursed. "So did you?"

"Did what?" Min Hyuk teased her, wanting to hear her true question that came from her heart which seemed to made her even more embarrassed. 

Haneul however knew that right now her embarrassment was the second most important thing to her compared to her question. She said, "Did you ever drink blood from a woman's neck?"

"I did," he replied honestly but before Haneul's eyes sink, he replied, "But I have never drink them intimately. Those kind of things are only something which I would do with the woman who I want to be with for the rest of my life."

Min Hyuk's words and the stare he looked at her deeply, shot an arrow to her and though smile wanting to stretched her lips, Haneul tried to keep it down.

"During war, I have more privilege to drink blood."

"From the Queen?" It was almost impossible to Haneul for the Queen to help vampires even if they were her own armies as it was known how she look at vampires with only one eye. 

Min Hyuk shook his head and a grin broke on his lips, "There were many of our enemies in the battlefield. When I got stabbed and my thirst came, I can grab one of my enemies to drink their blood."

Haneul blinked, thinking it was a joke but then it wasn't, "That is very productive..." She didn't know what to say other than that, causing Min Hyuk to laugh at her remarks. 

"But it is up to my luck to drink a fresh good blood, usually their blood taste like bitter medicine tea or a stale sand. I would love to one day drink a tasty blood. One that suited my taste," as he said the words, Min Hyuk reached out his hand and pushed the hair that stick to her face. When he had tucked the hair, Haneul saw the look of satisfaction coming to his face for what he had done and he stood from his face. 

Before he left, Haneul said, "I'm sorry." She said and Min Hyuk, who had been staring at her hands fiddling with the others as if to calm down, nodded his head to let her continue, "I didn't know that all this time you have sent me letters. I still don't have the chance to read them and I think my mother might have hidden them somewhere in the house," or worse burn them, "But I blamed you and for that I really am sorry."

She felt foolish for getting angry to him when it hadn't been her fault. Deep down she knew that the order to sent him to the war was from the Queen but she had been disappointed that Min Hyuk didn't sent her a letter about his sudden departure and his condition throughout the past two years but the problem had been resolved as they have found out it wasn't his fault and rather was her mother's who kept silent about it. 

Min Hyuk took swift steps and his movement were natural when he slide his hand on the side of her face, "I wasn't sad or upset when you blamed me. You didn't do wrong and you do have all the rights to get angry to me. I had made that bold declaration to help you from this position which cause other to fear you only to pathetically be sent to the war. That gave you the good reason to get angry to me. But don't worry now. I am here and back to be on your side."

Haneul couldn't tell how much her heart fluttered over those words he said, she smiled, her cheeks softening and her pink lisp widening. She was so happy without knowing how much the man in front of her wanted to kiss her. But Min Hyuk held back because he could sensed the people sent by the Queen ogling sight on them. 

He then pulled away his hand, "We should go now and about the yellow witch."

"What is about her?" Haneul questioned curiously.

Min Hyuk thinned his lips, a frown came on his strong brows, "Don't listen much to her words. She often says things without knowing the gravity of her words whether it is true or not."

Haneul could see herself agreeing with Min Hyuk's words because as he said, the yellow witch was a kind of person who spoke mindlessly because her tongue had no bones. 

The scout in the forest then was resumed. As they were in the mission to find the reason for the disappearance of people inside the forest, it took them time to find leads to the situation. 

But the only inhabitants in the forest were the wild animals and trees that cannot speak. Finding the root of the problem took a long time until the sky had turned orange. With no clue, the head of the scout discussed whether they should resume the search for the next day as it didn't seem like they would be able to find anything anytime soon.

"Sorry, Yeseul. Even though I asked you out to see whether we can go to the market, I don't think we might make it in time." Haneul knew how happy Yeseul was when she goes to the market and the girl was so excited today to go and it must have upset her. 

In contrary, Yeseul shook her head with a blooming smile dancing with joy on her face, "It isn't bad to visit the forest once in a while, miss. And I enjoy many things here."

Haneul raised her brows. Strange, she thought in her mind. While Yeseul do love forest, she was never this happy to be able to go to one and spend time for hours as the market was much more of an exciting trip to the maid than the forest. 

Yet know, she appeared very happy, not the slightest upset. 

"Really?" and in response Yeseul vigorously bring her head up and down. Well that was strange, Haneul spoke in her mind but brushed it away. 

The group had rested down, making camp as the sky had turned dark too quickly than they expected. While Haneul looked around, she noticed from afar the presence of Han Anhye and when they met eyes, the man smiled first before she returned the same politeness. 

Who knew he would be here too, Haneul thought. The scout to the forest had more than over a hundred people. The Queen was known to be a very keen and careful person which was not peculiar for her to dispatch this amount of people for mission that might not be insignificant at times. 

"Would you like the mooncakes, miss?" Yeseul asked and as Haneul was feeling quite hungry she quickly agreed. 

When the maid left, Haneul sneaked out from the camp. Not many people wanted to be with her and sitting in the camp, seeing people on their toes around her had her quite stifled.

She decided to take a walk alone near the forest. "It won't be far," Haneul said to herself, and went to walk over inside the forest.

She noticed how despite the darkness of the sky, the forest wasn't blindingly dark. She could still see the trees around her and hear the soft cry of cicadas. She noted nothing to be out of place at least it was until the fifth minutes of her short trip when all of a sudden she heard a ruffling noise from the trees. 

The sound didn't stop and it continue to play for a good one minute. Wondering who it was, Haneul found the source of the noise coming from the tree where the branch of the leafs continue to shake.

She frowned, her steps went closer and reaching out her hand, she tugged the branch that hid the other person standing there....