"So what's the good news, Seonghwa?" The king excitedly said but he looked confused when he realized Seonghwa only came back alone. "Where's San?"
"Your highness, I'm afraid San has betrayed us." Seonghwa bowed his head.
This made the king's eyebrows furrow.
"What do you mean?"
Seonghwa told the king everything, igniting a fire inside him. The king slammed his fists on his throne and stood up. "H-how could he!? How could he do this to me!? I didn't raise him only to stab me in the back!"
"It was unexpected, your highness. Even I couldn't believe it."
"That angel. How could she twist him up! Again and again she's ruining everything!"
The look of anger in the king's face was indescribable and scary, but still, it made Seonghwa happy.
Of course it would.
"I'll make him pay for it. That rascal." He said. "We'll use him and give him the taste of the double blade he's holding. I suppose he's already with them, am I right?"
"Probably, your highness."
"Then that makes it easier to find them because of San. Tomorrow, you shall start. And forget about killing that angel. I want her alive. I want her to suffer before she dies."
°°°°°
"I'm so glad you came home safe--" Ravn was the last one to come inside the living room from taking a shower after their training. It was what they did after feeling helpless.
He looked so relieved until he saw an unexpected guest.
"Why is that pie-chart headed thing here?" He said in disgust and confusion, pausing in the middle of the living room while looking at San.
"Sit down." Hwanwoong patted the vacant seat beside him. Ravn hesitated before sitting down but his eyes still never left San. He looked at Gabrielle who somehow looked annoyed at the presence of San too.
The rest of the boys just gave him a look as well, but none of them said a word.
San on the other hand, just fidgeted with his hands as he sat on the other side of the couch, his eyes on the ground.
Seraphiel cleared his throat. "Tonight we failed to find Xion due to an unexpected event, but still we gained an ally. Turns out he's been trying to save Gabrielle from her death."
"An ally!?" Keonhee said as his jaw dropped.
"What kind of nonsense is this?" Seoho added.
"That ghoul took Mingi. How could he become an ally?" Leedo looked angry.
"I apologize for taking him. I had a reason, and I was planning on bringing him back--"
Hwanwoong scoffed. "You think he's a book you borrowed from the library that you could return anytime you like?"
"Don't interrupt him." Seraphiel said. "Hear him out first."
The boys just sighed in exasperation.
"As what I was saying, I was planning on bringing him back, but my colleague somehow ruined my plans. He acted on his own and took another one of you. I'm sorry."
"Why are you even doing this?" Ravn asked. "What are your reasons?"
"Does he have to answer that?" Gabrielle finally spoke, her voice full of annoyance. She already knew the reasons, especially that one specific reason, and not even a bit it'll cheer her up.
"How will we know that we can trust him? We have to know." Ravn replied before sneering at San, also remembering what he did to her back then. "I also want to know a lot of things."
"I don't think you'd even like the reason." Gabrielle muttered with her arms crossed.
San cleared his throat. "Personal reasons. I've never wanted to be the king's servant. It's just like I owe him a lot for raising me up."
"That's not a good enough reason." Leedo quoted.
Gabrielle sighed. "J-Just trust him. I don't even want to but let's just trust him. He doesn't have anywhere to go after betraying his kind. He'll be a benefit to us."
She hated saying those words. It made her sick. Working with a ghoul and trusting it is something she never thought of doing in her whole existence but she doesn't have a choice but to follow Seraphiel's lead.
"I'll help you in any way I can." San said but the boys still looked suspicious.
"Then can you tell us how to go to the underworld?" Seoho queried.
"You can only go there with an underworld being. Without us, you can't go there. Well unless if your souls are destined to be there, then you can go alone, when you die."
"So we can go there with you?" Hwanwoong asked.
"Yes."
"Then let's go!" Hwanwoong instantly replied but Gabrielle raised her hand. "What do you mean, let's go? Are you planning on going inside your own cage?"
Hwanwoong pouted. "I want to have some real fight."
Ravn hit his head lightly, which Hwanwoong dramatically reacted. "Ouch!"
"Our training is for emergencies. It's not because we really have to go fight, okay? We're not like Gabrielle and Seraphiel."
"Alright, alright! You didn't have to hit me."
"Stop overreacting." Ravn rolled his eyes.
"Anyways," Seraphiel began to stop the two from bickering. "Tomorrow afternoon is when the three of us will go there. In the morning, we'll continue with the training and we'll sort out our plan when we go there."
Everyone nodded, listening intently.
"And for now, we'll rest. Let's save up our energy for tomorrow." Gabrielle added before looking at San. "There's a vacant room upstairs, you're sleeping there."
"Thank you." San shortly replied.
Gabrielle just shrugged her shoulders and left the living room. Ravn gave San one last dark look before following Gabrielle out.
The rest of the boys left, except Seoho.
He looked at San before sighing. "Why am I left with the role of being hospitable?"
"I'm sorry?"
"Nothing. I guess I have to make you feel welcome." Seoho said as he stood up. "Follow me. I'll bring you to your room."
°°°°°
Gabrielle got up from bed and did her morning routine a lot earlier than usual. It was still around six in the morning but she doesn't even feel sleepy anymore. The whole alliance with San just bothers her.
When she made it to the kitchen to prepare for breakfast, she was surprised to see San chopping some vegetables. A bowl of egg yolks were on his right.
"What are you doing?" Gabrielle asked as she entered the kitchen, she leaned on the doorframe with her arms crossed.
San jumped at the sudden voice but luckily he didn't get cut by the knife.
"I-I was making breakfast."
"Why?"
"I wanted to cook for you all. I felt ashamed to be here." San shyly replied, his eyes darting from Gabrielle to the ingredients.
She scoffed and walked towards where San was 'making breakfast' and looked at the bowl of eggs. "You're making us breakfast with scrambled eggs? Omelette?"
"Yes. I'm not good at cooking but I hope you'll like it."
"You're right. You're not good at cooking." Gabrielle picked up the bowl. "The eggs aren't beaten well. Look at the yolks."
"I'm sorry." San said.
"You aren't even chopping the vegetables well." She nodded at the chopping board. "Move. I'll do it. Beat the eggs properly instead."
"Okay." San said as he started whisking the eggs. He glanced at how Gabrielle was chopping the vegetables in a fast pace.
When everything was done, Gabrielle heated the pan and started cooking the omelette.
"I'm sorry, Gabrielle." San began after the awkward silence. "I'm sorry for hurting you and for those other things."
"Stop apologizing. I understood why you already did it. You had your reasons."
"Okay, I'm sorry."
"I said stop apologizing."
"Oh yeah, sorry--"
She gave San a glare making him zip his mouth and tap his fingers on the counter. Gabrielle opened the fridge to cook some bacon, another silence engulfing them. San just awkwardly stood at the side, thinking of something to talk about but nothing just comes into his mind.
Gabrielle soon broke the silence as she cleared her throat. "Thank you though."
San looked at her.
"Thank you for doing it. Thank you for saving me. For deciding to not kill me. It must have taken you a lot of guts to do that. To betray your king."
"It was actually hard, but I felt so free after that. It's not just because of you--" When San said it, Gabrielle started to cringe but she didn't talk. "It has always been inside me. I was once human and never did I want to live in a way under his robe. The human world was a living hell, but at least it's still a happy world unlike down there."
"You were human?" Gabrielle looked so surprised to hear his sudden confession.
"Yeah, I was about to die in the streets but the king took me in and raised me until I fully turned into one of them, even as a first-rate ghoul. I didn't know what I was getting myself into."
Gabrielle, who once looked at San with annoyance and disgust, felt bad for him. He was also a victim of the king. A victim that turned into a puppet.
"Why are you up so early, Elle?" Ravn's voice boomed out. He walked inside the kitchen and found San on the other end of the counter. "Why is he here?"
"He attempted to make breakfast for us. Turns out he's a terrible cook."
Ravn scoffed. "Good that you came in time, he would be putting poison in our food."
"Take him easy, Ravn. He's human like you."
"Human? Who? Him?"
"He used to be." Gabrielle said but Ravn just raised an eyebrow. "Are you defending him?"
"I'm not. I'm stating facts and I'm looking at both sides of the story. You should too. Don't be too rude on him."
San just gave Ravn a look but the older one just took it the wrong way. He gave him a dark look. "You."
"Why did you do that to her?"
"Which one?"
"You know."
"I don't." San looked so confused at what this mortal is pertaining. He's never had any interactions with him so he has no idea what he's mad at.
"You stole her first kiss!" Ravn finally said it. "That was supposed to be mine!"
Gabrielle let out a sigh at how he still hasn't gotten over it. He was being childish but she knows deep down that it's one of the things that makes him cute, and she loves it.
San just looked at him in disbelief, his lips parted. "I-I did that to lose her consciousness. That's the only way for me to not hurt or kill her. It didn't mean anything."
Surely.
"You could have covered her eyes and blow something to her ears like what your colleague did to our youngest one."
"I didn't think about that." San said. "I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry." Ravn mimicked his voice, a lot more exaggerated.
So damn childish, Gabrielle rolled her eyes.
"In case you both forgot. I'm here just near you, guys." Gabrielle sighed in exasperation. "And Ravn, didn't I tell you it didn't mean anything?"
"But--"
"Stop being jealous."
"I'm not!" Ravn felt like he was shot. Bullseye.
"You are." Gabrielle gave him a look and which in return, made Ravn zip his mouth. "Go prepare the table and call the boys."
Ravn huffed, but still he obeyed her and took out the plates. "Yes, ma'am."
°°°°°
Breakfast ended and after resting for an hour they began training with San. Fortunately, the boys slowly got along with San already and they were having fun training. The training even seemed better with San. After mastering the hand to hand combat, they have moved on to using weapons.
When the training finished, they all gathered to begin planning their strategy.
"I want you to know that when we get there, it doesn't mean we go straight inside the king's palace. We still have to go through the ruins before we get inside."
"The ruins?" Seoho asked.
"Where the beings live. And it's literally ruined there. Everyone is usually wild, and tricky. And if you're lucky, some won't care." San replied before he continued to explain.
"But since two angels are coming with me, I'm sure they would really care. With that, you would need to conceal yourselves and keep your identity hidden until we can finally get out again."
Gabrielle and Seraphiel nodded, understanding the whole situation. "And after we go through the ruins?"
"There are no more beings beyond the palace but there are guards around. From the main gate and inside the palace. Almost every corner. Even at the isolated room where your friends are locked in."
"How do you think will we go through the main entrance?"
"I'm sure you wouldn't like it but I'd prefer you two to act as a ghoul and as a snake."
"What--"
Keonhee let out a stifled laugh. "Gabrielle as a snake? Just like back then?"
He remembered their first encounter where he almost slept with a snake, and having Gabrielle look and act like one would give her a totally new vibe.
"Shut up, Keonhee." Gabrielle rolled her eyes. First she has to work with a ghoul, now she's going to act like one of them.
Amazing, right?
"Are you going to slither?" Hwanwoong innocently asked. "How can you pretend to be one? You look more human than a snake though...?"
"I'm not explaining that so just leave it be." Gabrielle replied, not answering him. She didn't like the idea but what else could they do?
She faced San. "Alright. We're in. Next plan?"
"Omg." Keonhee covered his mouth with his hands. You can tell by his face that he looks so excited.
"Lee Keonhee, if you don't stop--"
"Shutting up." Keonhee zipped his mouth, but still a smile still couldn't be kept from him.
When the angels and the ghoul continued in making their plan, Ravn leaned towards Keonhee's ear. "What is a snake? You didn't mean an animal, right?"
Keonhee stifled a laugh before whispering back, afraid of getting heard by Gabrielle. "I'll tell you when the meeting is over--"
Just as they were getting deeper into their meeting, they unexpectedly heard a loud knock on the front door.