They knew something was wrong as soon as they set foot in the Castle unscathed. After the confrontation with Black and the tragic death of their newly found friend, they ran to the Castle, intending to end this battle once and for all.
They didn't leave Dawn unsupervised. Taehyun performed a protection spell, making her invisible, and sealed the surrounding area with a barrier to prevent anyone from entering the premises. He just hoped that no meddling Sorcerer or any magical being stumbled to the place.
"What the hell happened here?" Yeonjun had voiced what the others were thinking. It was quiet, that it was eerie.
"Something's off, especially with the monsters. It's like they just disappeared without a trace."
That too.
They expected monsters to come running and attack them at every angle, but found none. As if they magically vanished.
It was the same case outside the Castle, in the Square. The only proof there was bloodshed was the splatters of dried blood on the asphalt and walls, and the destroyed buildings.
"We won't know what's going on unless we check the situation inside." Soobin vocalized, clenching his fist tightly in anticipation. "Let's go." Then they marched forward, entering through the large main gate.
It's a little odd seeing the place almost... Empty. Lifeless. Usually, a guard or two would be seen by now.
"Where is everyone?" Kai's whispers echoed in the vast space.
"Hopefully somewhere else... And preferably alive." Taehyun answered with an uneasy tone as he scanned his eyes around the deserted Castle.
As they reached the entrance hall where the King's throne was located, they heard noises coming from it. Some kind of scuffles and groans. They carefully approached the noise and froze in their tracks when they saw a broken entrance and a body slumped on it, half dead from blood loss.
The five exchanged glances before stepping closer to the body in a single file. The person's features became visible as they got near.
"King Revon?!" Kai gasped in disbelief.
The others share the same reaction. They never expected to find the King almost dead in the ruined throne room. There wasn't a wound visible in his front, only his roughly tussled clothing. But his back was a different story. Especially the back of his head.
"What do we do?" Beomgyu was conflicted, gazing up at the Archer anxiously. Even if the person in front of them was the villain of their lives, Beomgyu was still a Healer. He can't ignore the injured man's condition.
But Soobin didn't have much time to ponder their dilemma when the King stirred weakly, his head jerking slightly from side to side. He must've noticed their presence.
"H-help me..."
But the King's pleading fell on deaf ears as the five stood rooted in their spots. They don't know what to do. Why would they help the person who made their lives miserable?
Soobin was the first to snap after a few moments of utter shock. He gritted his teeth, frustration filling him. No matter how many times he thought about the horrible things that the King had done, his heart just couldn't bear to see a poor creature in a horrible state, laying helplessly on the ground. They're not monstrous as him.
"Beomgyu, help him." He ordered stiffly, ignoring the disbelieving looks from his friends except for Beomgyu, who was quick to assist the King.
"What?!" Yeonjun hissed, glaring daggers at their leader. He couldn't help but question his sanity. "Have you forgotten what he had done to us?!"
"If he died, who would pay for his crimes? If he dies, everything will be meaningless!" The Archer looked at them in the eye, hoping to get his point across. "If he died now, then we're no different from him... A merciless monster." His words struck a chord within them, even Beomgyu, who had been healing the King.
"I've done something terribly wrong, haven't I?" The King's feeble voice got their attention. He lifted his head weakly. His eyes were glazed with unshed tears, and a look of despair was written on his face.
"Yes. Yes, you did." The Swordsman hissed coldly, wanting to smack himself for even feeling guilty for the cruel King in front. He should be happy! Celebrating even!
"This is all my fault..."
Yes! All of this is your fault!
"I should've stopped my greed..."
I can't believe you have the audacity to cry!!!
"I should've stopped myself..."
Stop crying already! Don't you go acting like you're the victim in all this!!!
"... I should've never listened to him..."
Yes! You shouldn't have listened to— Wait, what?
The five were taken aback at the revelation the King had confessed. Does this mean...?
"Who?" Soobin demanded, stepping closer. "Who's the person you shouldn't listen to?" The King raised his gaze towards him, his blue eyes meeting Soobin's golden brown eyes.
"Beomseok..."
"Who?" They weren't familiar with the name. It was the first time they had heard of the name. Who was Beomseok?
But their unspoken thought was answered immediately. They weren't aware that they were holding their breath until...
"It's your brother, Beomgyu. Your twin bother. A brother that you're not even aware of from the start..."
"My what...?" Beomgyu choked out, feeling his world stop spinning.
How? Why? When?! What...!?
Questions flew past his mind, leaving him utterly shaken. "But I don't have... I can't have..." And then he realized something important. "Then does that mean he is a...!?"
"Yes. He is a Black Mage. Why do you think he has been doing all of this? It's because of revenge."
"Don't tell me you're going to believe everything he said?! We can't just trust everything that he says! What if this is all a trap, and right now, his loyal advisor is out there and ready to strike as soon as we let our guards down!?" Yeonjun argued. There's no way he could trust someone like him.
"I think he's telling the truth..." His head snapped towards Kai, who spoke hesitantly.
"What? Why?! Why are you siding with him?! Didn't you say that he controlled your mind or something!?!!"
"Well, technically, it wasn't him but his advisor—"
"Who is HIS loyal advisor, might I add..."
"Yes. I'm well aware." Kai snapped lightly, throwing the stubborn oldest a quick glare. "But hear me out. The reason why I thought that Beomgyu hyung was a traitor was that—"
"He looked exactly like him!" Taehyun cut off his Summoner friend's sentence, eyes widening at the discovery.
"Exactly..." Kai nodded, not minding that he was cut off. "He revealed his face to me and tricked me into believing that he was Beomgyu hyung."
But Yeonjun wasn't backing down, making Taehyun roll his eyes at his iron-willed personality. Taking a deep breath, the Sorcerer plastered a patient smile while addressing the Swordman again.
"Yeonjun hyung..." He started slowly and gently, his voice sounding like he was talking to an insolent little kid. "Look at King's eyes and tell me what you see." Yeonjun frowned at his use of tone but did what he was told.
"I saw the eyes of an evil, manipulating, lying b*stard—"
"Not that, hyung. Look at his eyes, carefully..."
"They're... Blue." He murmured after a few moments, frowning deeply before his eyes widened comically as he processed what he said. "What the f*ck, they're blue!?"
His shriek caused the others to flinch. But Taehyun remained unfazed, expecting his reaction from miles away. "Yes, indeed. Now tell me, why is it blue?"
"You couldn't possibly mean..." Soobin's eyes widened in recognition. Although he wasn't a Sorcerer or a magical guy, he knew about one being controlled by other people.
But the question was, why didn't he know until now?
"Yes. The King is a puppet all along. He was being tugged on the puppeteer's strings, whom we were unknowingly playing along to." They couldn't believe it. They thought after defeating the King, it would be happily ever after. Still, the reality was far from what they imagined.
"What happens now?"
"I don't know... But we sure as hell couldn't let him win."
As soon as those words were spoken, they heard a series of loud explosions outside, shaking the entire palace violently, followed by a mighty roar.
It seemed like they didn't have to search for him because he had already brought the battle to them.
『• • • ✎ • • •』
I know the villain story wasn't elaborate much, but I'll try to explain it in the following chapters.
You'll know why Beomgyu's newly found evil twin has been hellbent on getting revenge for a long time.
Anyway, this is the King just dropping to them that Beomgyu has an evil twin: