Soobin just stared indifferently at the sword that came speeding to behead him. He didn't move. He couldn't move. The shock of defeat and the sadness and pain of losing his best friend was too much... It was all too much. He could not find a reason to live or fight. He's just... Tired.
Closing his eyes, accepting his death. He waited for the sharp metal to cut his head off his neck, but a flash of red behind his closed eyelids made his eyes snap open.
"What....?"
He looked down at himself, stupefied. His hands, arms... everything was red. Not just any red, but Dawn's familiar red magic, and it was like protecting him.
"What kind of trickery is this, Archer?" A knight of the King questioned him angrily, his sword already back in position.
"I..." Soobin couldn't answer because he, too, had no idea how this happened—Wait. He gasped quietly when he remembered the protection spell Dawn had placed on them. He had forgotten about them.
"Well?" The guard snapped, getting impatient.
"Don't press him into answering. He gets stuttery and jittery under pressure."
Soobin's head snapped up, along with the knight before him. There, standing behind the knight, was the person he thought was dead.
"HYUNG!" He exclaimed in disbelief.
"Yes. That's my name. Don't wear it out." Yeonjun grinned smugly at the stunned look on Soobin and the Knights' faces. "Surprise, surprise! Look who's back to save the day."
"How are you... Alive?" Soobin asked, still shocked and speechless.
"You use the Quill, remember?" The Swordsman shook his head, sighing playfully. "Honestly, Soobin. You have a little faith in me." But before the Archer could voice his protest, he continued his speech. "And as much as I would like to stay and elaborate further on my awesome resurrection. We still have some damsels to rescue and a kingdom to save."
As he said those words, Soobin instantly remembered they were in the middle of an execution. Well, failed execution since they got interrupted halfway through.
"Wait! But the Knights..." The Archer looked as he once again failed to realize that no one seemed to attack them on sight when he saw Taehyun with his spell book out and chanting spells with his palm pointing at the Knights.
"I've got it covered when you're at your little reunion. Now, are you done?" Taehyun asked exasperatedly, while keeping his attention on the frozen knights. "Because as much as I love hearing you profess your undying love for each other, we have a more pressing matter on hand. So if you two don't mind, will you get rid of them already? Thank you."
"Okay, okay. Geez. Someone would've thought that you aren't happy to see me alive, Taehyun." Yeonjun pouted, getting his sword out of his sheath.
"Oh, I am happy that you're alive, Yeonjun hyung. Jumping in happiness, indeed.""Don't need to be sarcastic."
"I'm not!"
✦
"What do you think I should wish for first? For the world to see me as their only King or to have all the priceless and most valuable treasures in the world?" The King pondered aloud, twirling the Sacred Quill in his long fingers.
"I think the latter would be a better choice, my Lord," Black suggested, watching the King fiddle with the feather.
"Should I? I mean, the thought of those precious treasures and jewelries in my grasp is exciting, but the thought of being the King of this world sounds more appealing." He sighed dramatically, shaking his head.
"You should've just written what your heart desires the most, your highness. The Sacred Quill wouldn't be getting out of your hands soon." The loyal advisor stated, eyeing the powerful writing tool in the King's grasp.
If the King could just look at his advisor for a second, he would see the scheming gleam in his dark brown eyes. There's no doubt that he was plotting something.
"Then I choose the riches! Because my smart advisor told me so." The King grinned widely at his servant, making the man laugh slightly under his breath.
"I suppose it wouldn't be bad having a lot of wealth and power in your possession." Black schooled his expression back to its usual blank facade.
"Now nothing can ruin this day for me." The King declared confidently.
✦
Swiping the sword, killing the last of the knights, Yeonjun stabbed his sword to the ground, panting heavily. He thought it was normal since he had, after all, just come back from the dead.
"You good, Yeonjun hyung? You took longer than usual to kill them." Soobin spoke with concern written over his features.
"Oh geez, I wonder why?" Yeonjun sassed, shooting him a fake smile.
"Do you think the poison's still affecting his attitude?" Soobin whispered at Taehyun, who smirked in response.
"Honestly, Soobin hyung. You wouldn't think that you've been living with him for years now. That's him alright. He's just being cranky." The Sorcerer explained with an amused tone.
✦
Dawn woke up with a splitting headache. Her hand flew to her head, wanting to massage it in hopes of easing the pain, but she found her hands bound together by a familiar object.
It's that blasted handcuffs again!
Looking around her surroundings, she felt like her head wasn't going to tear itself apart in agony. She was suddenly hit with Déjà vu seeing the grimy walls, prison bars, rusted pipes, the damp floor, and the dim lighting. Was she in a dungeon cell again?
"Hey there, sleeping beauty." A voice greeted. Looking away from her surroundings, she realized the sound was coming from the prisoner opposite her, chained to the wall.
"Why does this keep happening to me?" She grumbled in annoyance.
"Who knows? Maybe you've always meant to be a prisoner of war, or maybe it was destiny. Who cares anyway? What matters is we finally meet again, Dawn!" The man, whose name she still has no clue, grinned, winking flirtatiously.
She grumbled incoherently under her breath, deciding to ignore the crazy guy. Unfortunately, the man didn't seem to understand that she did not want to talk to him.
"Come on, Dawn. How would you even be able to escape this place? And did the King ever ask you if you'd like to help him? Oh yeah! Or did you refuse to cooperate?!" He continued, ignoring her attempts to silence him.
"Can you please shut up?" She glared at him.
The man let out an exaggerated gasp and clutched his chest dramatically. She wanted to smack him badly, but that would be considered animal abuse.
"Now, now, darling. You're really starting to scare me." The man suddenly leaned forward, looking right into her face. "And I've never been scared."
She blinked and backed away slightly, feeling uneasy with what the crazier man wanted from her. There's something off about him... Something sinister that made her feel unsettled. Like she wasn't talking to the real person.
"Who are you? How did you know my name?" She demanded, glaring at him coldly.
"You can ask me questions, but I can't? That's not how this work, princess." He answered, looking at her innocently. "If you want answers, answer my questions first, Dawn." He smiled, knowing that she'll take the bait.
She hesitated, but eventually decided to humor him. "Fine. Ask."
"Tell me, Dawn. What was it like traveling to a different world?"
Her head snapped towards the man, having difficulty stifling her surprise. What did he just say?"How about your magic? When did you get those? How do they exactly work? How could you destroy a magical item like it was nothing?"
It might be her imagination, but she saw his eyes darkening with anger. A dangerous aura emitted from him, and not even the air seemed to give the illusion of it being safe.
"Who are you?" But instead of answering his questions, Dawn asked him one of her own.
She couldn't answer his questions. They were too personal, something someone couldn't know unless she told them of it...
She gasped in realization.
No, no, no, no, no! He couldn't be, right? How could he?
She didn't want to believe it. But she spoke of her adventure to no one but the boys.
"Ah! It seems like my little trick had been found." The man suddenly stood from his position, and the cuffs in his hands were disintegrating into black shadows.
As he walked towards her, shadows on his face shifted until they formed into a face that she knew perfectly well. The light from the torches illuminating his face showed him a cruel sneer, almost mocking her.
"Beomgyu....?" She whispered in disbelief. Her eyes were pricking with tears. She felt her heart clenched at the pain of betrayal.
The man in front of her had the same hair and eye color that he had before, but he didn't have that smile on his lips anymore. His whiskey brown eyes that used to reflect happiness and warmth, were now dark and void.
『• • • ✎ • • •』
*gasped dramatically* It's been Beomgyu all along!?
But on a positive note... YEONJUN IS ALIVE!!!