HAE MINJEONG

DISCLAIMER: MUSE IS HEAVILY INSPIRED BY THE DRAMA "SCARLET HEART RYEO," HOWEVER THE HISTORY THAT DESCRIBES WHERE MINJEONG CAME FROM MIGHT BE A LITTLE INACCURATE AS I'M TAKING A BIT OF CREATIVE FREEDOM ALONGSIDE MY ~RESEARCH.~

FIRST AND FOREMOST, THIS IS ONLY HAN MINJEONG'S SECOND LIFE. IN HIS FIRST LIFE, HE WAS ONE OF THE MANY WEALTHY PRINCES IN HIS FAMILY DURING THE GORYEO PERIOD. HE WAS NOT NEXT IN LINE FOR THE THRONE, IN FACT HE WASN'T EVEN CLOSE. HE SPENT HIS LIFE PLAYING AROUND HAPPILY WHILE HIS BROTHERS BEARED THE BURDEN OF PROTECTING THE THRONE.

HAN MINJEONG WAS BORN IN BUSAN, SOUTH KOREA, WHERE HE HAD A PRETTY NORMAL CHILDHOOD AND ENJOYED SWIMMING. IN MINJEONG'S FIRST LIFE, WHERE HE LIVED AS PRINCE BOYOUNG, MINJEONG OFTEN SWAM IN HIS FREE TIME. HE ENJOYED THE WATER SO MUCH AFTER ONE OF HIS ELDER BROTHERS TAUGHT HIM HOW TO SWIM, WHICH DIRECTLY TRANSLATED OVER TO MINJEONG'S CURRENT LIFE, AS HE BEGAN GETTING RECOGNIZED FOR HIS IMPRESSIVE SWIM SPEED AND TECHNIQUES BY THE ADULTS AROUND HIM. MINJEONG ALSO LOVES TEACHING KIDS HOW TO SWIM BECAUSE OF HOW HAPPY HE FELT WHEN HIS OLDER BROTHER (IN HIS PREVIOUS LIFE) TAUGHT HIM. HE'D LIKE TO BE THAT SOURCE OF HAPPINESS FOR KIDS NOW TOO.

ON ONE PARTCIULAR FRUSTRATING DAY, MINJEONG WAS TRAINING BY HIMSELF IN THE AQUATIC CENTER. HIS COACH HAD GONE HOME FOR THE DAY, BUT MINJEONG STAYED TO PUSH HIMSELF. PUSHING HIMSELF TOO FAR, MINJEONG ENDED UP RUNNING OUT OF BREATH WHILE DIVING DOWN TO THE BOTTOM OF THE POOL. WATER ENTERED HIS LUNGS, BUT HE'D BEEN SO EXHAUSTED FROM HIS TRAINING THAT HE COULDN'T BRING HIMSELF UP FOR AIR. LUCKILY, HE WAS ONLY OUT FOR A FEW MINUTES BEFORE AN EMPLOYEE FOUND HIM. HOWEVER, THOSE FEW MINUTES CAUSED HIM GREAT DAMAGE.

MINJEONG SUFFERED AMNESIA AFTER THE ACCIDENT AND THUS FORGOT ALL OF HIS MEMORIES LIVING AS HAN MINJEONG. EVERYTHING HE COULD REMEMBER HAD BEEN FROM WHEN HE LIVED AS PRINCE BOYOUNG OF THE GORYEO PERIOD. HE HAD SINCE BEEN TOLD HIS NAME WAS MINJEONG AND NOT BOYOUNG, HE'S DEFINITELY NOT A PRINCE IN THIS DAY AND AGE, AND HE LIVED IN AN APARTMENT INSTEAD OF A PALACE. ALTHOUGH MINJEONG'S MUSCLE MEMORY REMAINED UNHARMED (AND HE COULD CONTINUE SWIMMING AND COMPETING AFTER A FEW WEEKS OF REST), HIS MANNERISMS AND MODERN KNOWLEDGE REMAINED... OUTDATED.

OF COURSE, VERY FEW PEOPLE WOULD BELIEVE HIM EVEN IF HE DID SAY HE WAS SECRETLY A PRINCE LIVING IN A DIFFERENT BODY. BECAUSE OF THIS, MANY PEOPLE MINJEONG COMES ACROSS JUST READ HIM AS VERY INTERESTING AND THINK OF HIM AS SOMEONE WHO'S MAYBE A LITTLE TOO INTO HISTORY. MINJEONG DOESN'T EASILY PICK UP ON SLANG AND HAS TO ASK WHAT PHRASES USED ABSENTMINDEDLY EVERYDAY MEAN. IT'S ALSO SAFE TO ASSUME THAT HE'S VERY VERY VERY BEHIND WHEN IT COMES TO POP CULTURE. IDOLS? WHY DON'T PEOPLE IDOLIZE THE KING? WHY DOESN'T KOREA HAVE A KING? NONE OF IT MAKES SENSE TO HIM.

DESPITE THIS, MINJEONG DEFINITELY GETS BY. BY THIS TIME, HE'S PICKED UP ON A GOOD AMOUNT OF THE MODERN CULTURAL NORMS. HE CAN PRACTICALLY FUNCTION AS A NORMAL HUMAN BEING IN MODERN DAY 2021 SOUTH KOREA, BUT WHEN IT COMES TO USING SLANG OR (GOD FORBID) TECHNOLOGY, HE NEEDS AS MUCH HELP AS HE CAN GET.