Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

 Initializing…

Initializing…

Initializing…

Welcome new player.

You have been assigned the class of Knight. This class is a reflection of your personality and actions in your life.

Your statistics and abilities depend on the class you have been allocated.

You have been gifted 500 coins to spend as you wish as well as some items you may find useful during your time here.  

Be warned that if something happens to you within this world, it will happen to you in the real world too.

In other words, if you die within the game, you die in real life.

Your only way to leave is to complete the seven levels of the Rautaja Fortress.

You will not be able to do this alone.

We hope you enjoy your time playing Phantasm.

Begin…

Chan woke up with a groan. The searing pain he felt in his temple made him wonder if someone had hit him over the head recently. He automatically reached up to try and massage the soreness away before he felt a wetness now coating his hands. He didn’t need to see it to understand what it was. The stickiness and sickening smell of the blood was more than enough explanation. He slowly opened his eyes and cursed when all he could see was a blinding light. It took him some time to adjust before his surroundings came into focus. He was lying down in the middle of a forest where the trees were overgrown and reached up to the sky. Chan slowly sat himself up and blinked again. He was in a forest. Why was he lying down in a forest? What had he been doing just before this? Welcome new player... wait. That message. Chan grabbed his head, trying to remember what he had seen before he had woken. Was it a dream? Knight...you die in real life...Phantasm…

A blinding pain ripped its way through Chan’s head causing him to sway. He couldn’t quite remember everything that he had seen before he opened his eyes but at the moment, did it really matter? He needed to figure out where he was first and then he could decipher how he got there. Very carefully, Chan started to stand, steadying himself against a nearby tree. He looked around and saw trees and some more trees and yes, even more trees but no indication as to which way the exit may be. Chan’s vision was suddenly distorted as the blood from his forehead seeped into his eye. He wiped it away with an annoyed grunt. It wasn’t enough that he was in the middle of nowhere with no recollection as to how he got there but he had a blinding headache and was bleeding from a gash in his forehead. Chan thought that this was probably in the top five worst days of his life. Well, if he didn’t start walking, then he definitely wouldn’t be getting out of this place so Chan picked a direction at random and started trudging through the dense foliage of the forest.

He walked for what felt like hours but judging from the position of the sun in the sky that he could make out through the canopy of the colossal trees, it hadn’t moved much since he came to, which meant that not much time had actually passed. He stopped and positioned himself against a tree to rest. He was getting nowhere fast and was about to give up and collapse on the ground again when a thought suddenly struck him. He highly doubted that he still had it on him if he had been dumped in the middle of the woods but decided to check his pockets for his phone just in case. He patted himself down and then rummaged around inside his pockets. He didn’t find his phone, of course but what did emerge from his pockets was a compact leather pouch, weighed down by something inside. When Chan investigated, his eyes widened in shock. There were numerous golden coins unlike any he had ever seen before in his life. He took a couple out to analyse them and came to the conclusion that they were, in fact, real gold. Why would someone leave him in the woods, take his phone and belongings but leave him with innumerable coins of gold. Chan closed the pouch and returned it to his pocket.

He then felt something shift in his back pocket and fished it out. Two ornate bottles filled with green and red transparent liquid respectively appeared. He eyed the bottles suspiciously before removing the corks of the bottles and smelling the contents. The green liquid smelled of antiseptic with a hint of mint which made Chan’s nose wrinkle in disgust while the red seemed to be a mixture of the scent of firewood and something sweet that he couldn’t quite put his finger on. He was tempted to taste the red liquid due to its fragrance but thought better of it when he realised he didn’t know who actually gave him the bottles or what the contents actually were. It could be poison for all he knew so he closed both bottles and settled them back into his rear pocket. To say that he was becoming more confused as time went on would be an understatement. He was downright befuddled. Chan ran his fingers through his messy, dirt riddled hair. How was he going to get out of here? Chan didn’t take kindly to the thought of spending the night here.

A sudden noise behind him made Chan jump and whip his head around. He shifted so he was in a fighting stance though Chan knew full well he was not a fighter and if something were to attack him, it would more than likely not end well for him. Unfortunately, Chan’s fears became reality when he came face to face with something that looked like a mutated wolf. It was twice the size of any wolf Chan had ever seen with elongated canines that were dripping with blood. The wolf’s eyes were completely black, including the sclera. A low, intimidating growl seeped out of the animal’s mouth as it stared Chan down. Chan’s mouth went dry and his whole body started to shake. What the hell was that thing? Should I stay still or make a run for it? Chan thought, though he wasn’t sure if he could actually move his legs to run since they were shaking so much.

The animal crouched down, ready to pounce. Chan knew he had to run. If he didn’t move, he wouldn’t be alive much longer. If you die within the game, you die in real life . Chan grabbed his head with both hands as the words rang through his mind, scrunching his eyes closed. The animal took this as an indication to make its move. Chan opened his eyes just in time to see the wolf leap towards him but it wasn’t enough time to move out of the way. All he could do was shield himself with his arms. Chan was instantly knocked to the ground by the weight of the animal which now towered over him. Chan was sure his screams could be heard from miles away as sharp teeth indented themselves into his arm. He could feel the hot tears streaming down his cheeks which were now mixed with the blood that was falling from his arm onto his face as he tried to protect himself from the beast.

Was this seriously how he was going to die? Being attacked and eaten by some monster that looked like it belonged in some nightmarish fairy tale? It wasn’t idyllic but nobody could say that it was a boring way to go. Screw this, Chan thought. He needed to know where he was, why he was here and why the hell there were mutant animals attacking him. This wasn’t going to be his grave, not if he could help it. With whatever strength was left in his body, he pulled his knees to his chest, positioned his feet under the animal’s stomach and kicked it back with as much force as he could muster. The action caught the wolf by surprise as its mouth loosened around Chan’s arm and it went tumbling backwards. Chan cradled his arm to his chest, blood still seeping out of the fresh wound. He needed to treat it or he would die from blood loss at this stage. Not now though. Now he needed to run. He dragged himself up off of the forest floor, trying not to get any of the dirt on his hands into his open wound. His legs buckled beneath him but he found the strength he needed to start running.

Chan didn’t know where he was heading. How was he supposed to know where to go when he didn’t even know where he was now? He kept on running in the hopes of seeing some indication of an exit from this hellish place. The forest just seemed like an endless maze and he wondered if he was getting closer to an exit or going around in circles. Hadn’t he passed that overgrown, hideous tree before? Perhaps, though he couldn’t be sure. Chan was shaken from his thoughts when he heard the sound of twigs snapping under the force of heavy paws. Really, that monster didn’t know when to give up. It was still chasing him and the blood falling from Chan’s arm probably wasn’t doing anything to end the wolf’s lust for blood.

At this stage, the adrenaline that was keeping Chan going was starting to wear off. His legs felt wobbly and he was running out of breath.

'Keep going,'  Chan pleaded with himself, ' this isn’t how you want to die, is it?'

As if on cue, Chan’s leg became snared in an uprooted tree and he came crashing to the ground. He let out a cry as his face came into contact with the leaves and twigs which littered the forest floor. He tried to rise from the ground but the pain emanating from his ankle indicated that he had broken, or at least twisted it, in the fall. It really wasn’t his day. The growling from the beast that was chasing him gradually became louder as all Chan could do was drag himself along the ground. His breath became ragged as he thought that this was the end. He thought about what he was leaving behind, even if it wasn’t that much. His mind immediately drifted to the kids. He wanted to see them one last time before he died. He didn’t want them to think that he had abandoned them like so many others had done. He loved them too much to let them think that about him.

'Please god, just let me live long enough to see them one last time,'  Chan thought.

With that final thought, the creature had caught up with the injured boy and spared no time in attacking in case its prey thought about running away again. The animal bolted towards Chan as he cradled his head in his blood stained arms and let out a pained yell. He waited for the impact of the wolf’s body on his but it never came. He didn’t realise it until he opened his eyes that he had started to cry again and his tears were now blurring his vision. He quickly brushed them away to find the monster that had been chasing him. Instead of meeting the eyes of the wolf, he was greeted with a snow white shield which emanated a bright and calming energy right in front of his face. On the other side of said shield was the wolf knocked off of its feet. It was slowly trying to sit into an upright position though Chan could tell it was having some trouble, like running into the shield had taken its toll on its body. Where had the shield come from in the first place? He hadn’t done that, right? Chan looked down at his own hands to make sure that he didn’t manage to somehow conjure some weird magic to protect himself. What the hell was he thinking? There was no such thing as magic. Or so he thought. He had been right though, he wasn’t the one who had created the shield.

Chan looked up to stare at the wolf again but instead saw a figure blocking his view of the creature. He couldn’t quite make out anything about the person except the long, golden staff that was in their hands. Then something happened that wouldn’t make sense to Chan for quite some time. The individual raised the staff in front of them, sitting their hands along its middle. The air around Chan began to change and he could feel a sudden serenity fill up his body. He didn’t know what was happening but it caused his heartbeat to become even and calm the overwhelming anxiety that had been plaguing his body. Suddenly, a flash of light came from the figure in front of him along with a loud bang. Chan raised his arms to protect himself out of habit but realised that the shield that had been placed in front of him earlier was still present. A sudden screech from the wolf made Chan crane his neck so that he could see the animal which was now writhing in pain. A white light enveloped the wolf, causing it to convulse. The light disappeared just as quickly as it had come. The wolf lay there panting before getting up and running away with its tail in between its legs.

It was gone. Finally, it was gone. Chan let out a breath that he hadn’t realised he had been holding in. The shield that had protected him began to dissipate before it vanished completely. Chan’s attention snapped to the person in front of him as they began to turn around. It was a boy who looked like he could be a couple of years younger than himself. He was dressed in a dazzling white hoodie which ended about half way down his thighs. Where the hoodie ended, ripped, black jeans continued down along his legs and met with shiny black combat boots which didn’t seem to have a speck of dirt on them despite traversing through the woods. His short raven hair, Chan thought, suited his long, youthful face. The boy pulled down his hood which revealed multiple piercings in his ears which glinted in the sunlight. His dark eyes were fixed upon Chan who must have looked like a deer in the headlights at this point due to the events that had just occurred in front of him. The boy began to advance towards Chan who flinched a little in response which made the younger halt.

“It’s alright. I’m not going to hurt you. You look pretty beaten up. Would it be ok if I came closer so I could inspect and maybe patch you up a bit?” The boy’s voice was gravelly which again, Chan thought, suited him. There was no reason to indicate to Chan that he should trust the boy yet he felt like he could. He nodded in response to the question. The youth smirked slightly, made his way towards Chan and knelt down beside him.

“What the hell happened to you man? Why didn’t you fight back?”

“Fight back? Against a monster like that? How could I? I’m still in shock as to how you did it. I don’t even know what you did. I think my eyes were playing tricks on me. I hit my head at some point.” Chan gestured to the laceration on his forehead. “At one stage, to me anyways, it looked like you were using-” Chan stopped himself. What was he about to say to this stranger? That it looked like he was using magic? He didn’t want the boy to think he was crazy immediately after meeting him. So, he bowed his head and shook it.

“It looked like I was using magic, right?”

Chan’s head snapped back up as he looked straight ahead at the younger. The boy was smiling back at him. He grabbed Chan’s arm to inspect the wound that the wolf had made. Chan grimaced at the pain while the boy frowned at the state of the injury.

“I’m going to take a wild guess here and say you’re new to Phantasm,” the boy stated more than asked while placing his hand over the teeth marks.

Phantasm? We hope you enjoy your time playing Phantasm…

Chan was about to inquire as to what the boy meant when he felt a cool sensation on his arm and glanced down to see a small green light coming from underneath the boy’s hand. Chan nearly tugged his arm away in surprise but felt that the boy was trying to help him, not hurt him. What was this? Why did it feel so soothing? The boy glanced at Chan’s shocked face and chuckled in amusement. He removed his hand from Chan’s wound and took some bandages out of his pocket. He wrapped Chan’s arm but before he did, Chan saw that the injury was almost completely healed and gasped in surprise. The youth repeated this action with the wound on Chan’s head with both of them being silent throughout the treatment. Once the young man had finished, he sat back and sighed.

“Cuts and grazes are easy enough to heal but that broken ankle would take a lot more energy and time and we don’t really have either at the moment. If I rest for a while, I can fix you up but maybe we should get out of here and find somewhere safe to sleep for the night. What do you think about that?” the boy asked Chan with a small smirk. Chan was still dumbfounded at what the boy had just done to him. Not that he was complaining as he felt much better and more at ease than he had before the boy had shown up. Chan nodded his head to show he agreed with the boy’s plan.

“What’s your name?” the younger inquired. Chan actually had to think about his answer as his head was so busy trying to piece the events of the day together.

“Uh, it’s Chan. Bang Chan.” The boy smiled as if satisfied with Chan’s answer. Chan had a million questions but started out with the one that interested him the most. “Can you tell me where we are? I don’t really remember anything about how I got here.”

“We’re in Haknal. It’s one of the many regions within the game. Once you get used to being here, you can learn more about the geography of the place. It’s not really your main priority when you’ve just arrived here.” Chan’s head was spinning. He wasn’t sure if that was because of all of the information he was being fed or the headache that hadn’t subsided since he had woken up.

“Uh, alright. Oh, you never told me your name,” Chan stated. The younger boy tapped his head to show how silly he felt that he had forgotten such an important piece of information.

“I’m Changbin. Seo Changbin. It’s nice to meet you Chan.” Changbin extended his hand for Chan to shake which the older complied with.

“Ok then, let’s get out of here and head towards the village. We can lodge there for tonight and then figure out what to do with you tomorrow. Sound good?” Changbin asked. Again, Chan nodded, suddenly unable to find his voice. Changbin hopped up and again offered his hand for Chan to stand. Chan grabbed it and was hoisted up. He wasn’t in a standing position for long though. The dull pain in his head intensified and  the world started to spin. He felt himself falling backwards as his vision faded to black. The last thing he heard was Changbin calling out his name before he fell into a deep sleep.  

Chapter Text

Chan had decided something. It had taken some time but Chan had come to the conclusion that his first day within Phantasm wasn’t just in the top five worst days in his life. It had, in fact, taken the number one spot. Injury, inexplicable anxiety and fear, nearly being eaten by a goddamn super wolf. Chan didn’t think that he was being too over dramatic thinking that, all in all, it was a pretty lousy day. The coolness that was spreading throughout his head made Chan more comfortable and relaxed but in remembering what had happened to him, he felt a sudden sense of alarm that made him force his eyes open and leap up straight into a sitting position allowing the wet cloth that had been on his forehead to fall to his lap. His breathing was rapid as if waking from a nightmare, which wouldn’t be a terribly inaccurate description of what had transpired. He surveyed his surroundings and began to feel more at ease when he realised that he was no longer in the terrifying forest but instead in a cramped but homely bedroom.

One would think the stone walls would cause the room to be frigid but this wasn’t the case as the sizable fireplace emanated enough warmth to supply the whole room with a comfortable heat. The light that the flames exuded as well as the sunlight streaming through the window allowed Chan to inspect the room with relative ease. It was sparsely furnished. A single, burgundy armchair was situated in the left hand corner of the room beside a rather worn looking wooden study desk. The floor was covered with a moth-eaten wool rug which looked as if it had never seen the inside of a washing machine in its life. Chan was sitting in a simple wooden bed and covered with a viridescent, cotton blanket which Chan hugged closely to his chest to seek comfort rather than warmth.

Chan was getting pretty tired of waking up in unfamiliar places with no recollection as to how he got there but he felt a hell of a lot safer here than he had after waking up in the forest. Even though this was the case, Chan still jumped slightly when the door to his room opened and revealed a person standing behind it. The matronly woman that entered Chan’s room initially gave off a very intimidating vibe but almost immediately after, Chan knew that there was no need to feel at all frightened due to the enormous smile that adorned her face. Her muscular arms were suddenly raised above her head as she exclaimed in surprise most likely because Chan was now back in the world of the living. She practically skipped into the room like a young girl and stood beside Chan’s bed.

“Oh, thank the heavens. We were worried that you weren’t going to wake up, hun. Your fever was so high that it looked like your body was going to give out. I don’t think you could’ve taken much more.” The woman placed her hand on Chan’s forehead, obviously checking his temperature and Chan leaned into her cool touch without realising it. This caused the woman to chuckle and begin speaking again.

“Well it looks like your fever has broken though you’re not back to normal just yet but at least you’re still alive,” she commented as her hand moved down to cup Chan’s cheek. The woman gave off such a motherly vibe that Chan couldn’t help but like her as she reminded him so much of his own.

“Oh my goodness, I have to tell Binnie right away!” Chan stopped and thought. He came to the conclusion that the ‘Binnie’ she was referring to was more than likely Changbin. He smirked at the cute pet name she had given the adolescent that didn’t suit him at all.

“The poor boy was worried sick about you. He stayed with you for the past three days trying his best to heal you.” Chan frowned at that. He had been unconscious for three days?

“He used up so much energy trying to keep your fever at a safe level that I had to force him to rest for a while which is why he isn’t here now. You should notice that your ankle is back to normal though.” Chan wriggled his left ankle which he had broken in his attempt to escape from the wolf. He didn’t feel any pain from his foot and could move it around freely which indicated that it was indeed healed.

“Don’t forget to thank that boy. He doesn’t usually give out free medical care though I’m sure he would if he could. He’s such a sweet kid. Stay here and I’ll be right back with him.” The woman stood and began to walk away before stopping and swirling around to face Chan once again.

“How awfully rude of me. I never introduced myself. My name is Park Joomi and I am the owner of this inn.” She smiled and made an awkward curtsy which made Chan giggle and reply with his own introduction.

“It’s really nice to meet you Joomi-ssi. I’m Chan. Uh, thank you for letting me stay here,” Chan mumbled, embarrassed at how rough his voice sounded.

“Oh I already know your name and a little bit about you. Binnie told me what he knew and the fact that you’re new around here. Ok, I’ll return soon once I wake that sleepy boy and tell him you’re back with us.”

With that, Joomi left the room and Chan fell back into the fluffy pillows with a sigh. He barely got a word in edgeways in that conversation but didn’t really mind as Joomi seemed like the type that took the initiative in most conversations. He stared at the ceiling and listened to the sound of his own steady heartbeat to remind himself that he was actually still alive and kicking. He thanked whoever was out there for allowing him to live through such an experience. His calm thoughts were interrupted when he heard a piercing cry of “What?!” followed by a loud bang which Chan could only assume was Changbin falling out of his bed. Booming footsteps reached Chan’s ears as Changbin ran towards his room and stopped in the doorway with a slightly shocked expression. Chan grinned at the younger male and gave a little wave.

“Hey...Binnie…” Chan teased. Changbin looked taken aback at the sudden use of his nickname and turned to glare at someone down the hall who wasn’t supposed to call him that in front of others. Chan figured it was Joomi.

Changbin turned his attention back to Chan. “You. Don’t call me that. Not when I’m the one who saved your stupid ass and managed to drag you all the way back here so the monsters didn’t eat you. Show me a little respect. You’re probably the same age as me anyways,” Changbin accused.

“Well, I’m twenty one. How old are you, Binnie?” Chan wasn’t going to let the playful nickname go anytime soon as he saw how much it annoyed the younger, which amused Chan immensely. Changbin’s face went a shade darker and an embarrassed look spread across his face.

“I-I’m nineteen but still you should thank me for saving you!”

“Ah, so that would make me your hyung, right?” Chan was starting to feel like his old self, engaging in lively banter with the younger. Changbin huffed in obvious annoyance and Chan’s face softened before continuing. “Thank you Changbin. Really, I mean that. I know I wouldn’t still be here if you hadn’t shown up and helped me. So, thank you.”

Changbin looked back at Chan with the annoyed look still on his face. Upon seeing Chan’s sincerity, he sighed and shook his head.

“Don’t worry about it...hyung. I would have done it for anyone. This time it just happened to be you.” Chan returned the younger’s smile as they stayed in a comfortable silence for a few moments before Changbin entered the room and took a seat in the armchair.

“This is the best you’ve looked since the moment I met you which means that I obviously did something right when healing you,” Changbin beamed almost proudly.

Chan thought that this was the time he needed to interrogate the younger about basically everything that had happened to him since he got here and more importantly, where exactly here was. Chan inhaled as he decided how he should phrase his questions.

“Would it be ok if I asked you a few things?” Chan inquired. Changbin relaxed into the chair showing Chan that he was ready to answer.

“You must have a lot of questions, huh? I know I did when I first arrived here. Sure, you can ask me anything and I’ll try to answer to the best of my ability.” Chan took this as Changbin’s signal to begin.

“Ok, firstly, where the hell are we? This sure doesn’t seem like Seoul from what little I’ve seen of it. When we met, you mentioned that we were in Haknal. I’ve never heard of such a place. You said it was a region in the game. Changbin, what’s going on?” Chan heard his voice crack a bit in confusion. Changbin leaned forward and clasped his hands together.

“I could sit here for hours and tell you about this place but I’ll give you the basic run down. You don’t remember how you got here but you remember everything about your life up until the moment everything goes dark in your memories, right?” Chan nodded at Chanbin’s question and the younger boy continued.

“We’re inside a virtual reality game. It seems awfully real, doesn’t it? All of us are in the same boat in here. We’re all here in the game but none of us know how we got here. We don’t know if we came in willingly or if we were forced to be here but the fact that we can’t leave without a fight makes us think that it wasn’t voluntary. We don’t- hey, can you stop looking at me like that? I’m not crazy!”

Chan’s brow was creased in suspicion as he had thought Changbin looked so sane in the beginning but first impressions aren’t always correct as he should really know by now. He said that they were in a VR game. He was kidding, right? Chan was sitting in a real bed with a real blanket covering him. The fire warming him wasn’t fake nor was the light now flooding in the window from outside.

“You can think I’m making all of this up but you saw it too, didn’t you? The message before you woke up. Welcome new player. You have been assigned the class of...whatever...statistics and abilities depend on the class you have been allocated and so on and so forth.” Changbin gestured with his hands to show he wasn’t going to regurgitate the whole message to Chan.

Changbin was right. He had seen that message. Now that his head was somewhat clear, he could remember seeing it. This had to be made up. He couldn’t be inside of a game but just as his gut had told him earlier, he felt that he could trust Changbin. What would the younger gain from telling him such a ridiculous lie? It just seemed too surreal to be true.

“I know from personal experience that it will take some time to get used to. When I came here and was told about this place, I straight up ran away from the people who were trying to help me. I ended up getting lost but they came to find me, which looking back on now, I am really thankful for. Their guidance made the transition to living here a lot easier.” Changbin smiled as he recollected the memory. He fixed his gaze on Chan once again. “I’m not lying, hyung. Honestly.”

After a few moments, Chan nodded his head to show Changbin that he no longer thought that he was entirely crazy which Changbin looked relieved at.

“How do you know that we are actually inside a game?” Chan inquired.

“We were informed by the person who created this place.” Chan sat up a little straighter at the mention of that.

“And who would that be?”

“Oh, we don’t know who they are. On very rare occasions, a rather loud klaxon rings out and you can hear it wherever you are. A robotic voice then echoes throughout the sky. It updates everyone of important events and such. We presume that this is whoever controls the game though they seem to want to interfere as little as possible. Those who were some of the first within Phantasm heard the very first message which stated:

‘Welcome to Phantasm.

We have designed this place to let you live out your wildest dreams.

Abilities you could only imagine exist within this world as it is not the world you come from.

Though it may be a different world, you are still you.

If you injure yourself in a fight, you will feel pain. If you meet another who you wish to spend the rest of your life with, you will feel happiness. If you lose said person, you will feel immeasurable sorrow. If you meet your end within the game, death will follow you into the real world too.

As you have already been told, the only way you may leave the game is by completing the trials that lie on each of the seven levels in the Rautaja Fortress.

Unknown dangers await you there and you will not be able to do it alone.

Be careful who you trust.

Not everyone is as they seem.

We will be watching how you progress through this world.

Good luck.’

Changbin rubbed his temples as he recollected the speech he had heard a thousand times before he continued. “We don’t know who the voice belongs to but at the end of this and every announcement it concludes by saying: ‘ We hope you enjoy your time playing Phantasm.’ And that is the only interaction we have with whoever runs this place.” Changbin finished by glancing at Chan who seemed to be lost in deep thought which Changbin couldn’t fault him for as he had the same look on his face when he was told this story.

“And why hasn’t anyone gone to this Fortress and gotten everyone out of here?” Confusion was clouding Chan’s head as he asked the question.

A loud scoff from the other caused the older boy to frown. “You don’t think anyone has tried? We’ve lost track of the number of people who have entered that place and never come back. There is a rule that only groups with ten people or less can enter the Fortress at one time so it’s not like we can all attempt it together. The voice I mentioned earlier, of the people running this place, always used to notify us when someone attempted the trials. It was pretty common in the early days, or so I hear. I’ve only been here for six months. There are people here that claim it’s been two years since they’ve entered Phantasm. We also always get a notification when anyone who enters that Fortress doesn’t make it. Less and less people attempt it as nobody has ever gotten through it safely. They’ve become complacent and some people are more than happy to stay here and live whatever fake lives they’ve made for themselves. Not me, though. It’s too dangerous. I can’t live my life here knowing that what I had in the real world is still out there waiting for me. The way I am now though, I know I’m not strong enough to attempt that thing, even if I don’t know exactly what’s inside. I need to keep training and better my skills so that one day, I may be able to take on that Fortress. That’s pretty much the rundown on that subject.”

Anxiety mixed with uncertainty was now coursing through Chan’s veins. This was too much information. He didn’t understand. Why the hell was he put in a situation like this?

A thought suddenly hit Changbin. “Ah, that’s right! Hyung, which class were you assigned? It told you in the message. Can you remember?”

“It said I was assigned the class of Knight. What difference does that make?” Chan questioned.

“Oh, that’s interesting. Knight isn’t overly common but those who were allocated that class are usually very strong and reliable people. How come you were given that class?” Chan realised Changbin was actually asking him the question and expecting an answer, it wasn’t just rhetorical.

“How am I supposed to know why?”

“The class you’re assigned has to do with the life you’ve led up to now. Take me for example. I was assigned the class of Combat Medic. I don’t mind telling you the reason but try not to spread it around too much. It’s a little embarrassing. My parents are big shot lawyers that run one of the most successful and sought after law firms in Yongin, which is where I grew up. Ever since I was little, my parents have been pretty set on me taking over the firm when I was old enough. Before this mess happened, I was just about to enter college but I didn’t want to take over the law firm. I-” Changbin stopped for a moment before Chan motioned for him to keep going.

“I wanted to be a doctor, more specifically, a pediatric doctor. I always had an interest in helping people like my parents but in a very different way. When I was younger, I was constantly ill, weak immune system and such so I spent a lot of my time in the hospital. The doctors who took care of me were so comforting and coddled me so that I wasn’t frightened of staying at the hospital without my parents who were too busy with work to constantly be by my side. I saw the kids they took care of and the consolation the doctors offered when they were scared or worried. I wanted to be able to help children like those doctors helped me. That’s why I was assigned to a Medic class. I guess the Combat side comes into it because I have a bit of a fiery temper when provoked. I don’t really have it in me to stand back and watch when a fight breaks out in front of me. So I can also use Holy magic to fight and defend myself.” Changbin looked rather pleased with himself.

“There must be a reason you were assigned the Knight class, even if you don’t know what it is yet. Also, my stats with regards to magic, magic defence and agility would be much higher than yours because I am more magically inclined and I have to maneuver more quickly to dodge attacks. However, since you’re a Knight, your strength and defence would be much higher than mine as Knights use more effective melee weapons and shields than a Medic would since they don’t rely on magic,” Changbin explained and Chan stopped to think. Weapons and shields? He’d have to learn how to use those if he wanted to survive within the game? Man, this seemed to be a lot more trouble than he thought it would be but he was thankful he wouldn’t have to learn magic.

“You can also learn certain magical skills but these are very limited within the Knight class.” Chan’s hopes of having a simple enough class to learn fractured a little when he heard this.

“One of the most useful skills for a Knight to learn would be an energy shield which is something similar to the one I used to protect you in the forest but it requires a very different method and energy. Again, you can learn all this when you feel better. For now, you should rest a bit more. What you may like to hear though is that Knight classes are usually known for being extremely selfless with no problem of drawing attacks so that their allies are protected. They have a great sense of self control and honour. So you must be a very amicable person indeed,” Changbin teased. Chan became slightly flustered at the sudden compliment but thought that this was his payback for goading Changbin about his nickname earlier.

“So, that’s the basic of the basics for you at the moment. Do you feel any more enlightened than you were earlier? Did I explain it enough for you?”

“I don’t think anyone will ever be able to explain this enough for me,” Chan sighed. This was really happening to him. This wasn’t a dream or some sick joke that Changbin was playing on him. He was really inside of a game which didn’t seem like much of a game at all. He had only arrived here and he nearly died.

Changbin suddenly looked at the clock on the wall. “Oh crap, I have to go to work. Listen, I’ll be gone until about five pm this evening. There is a tavern at the back of the inn. I’ll meet you there around five thirty and I’ll answer any more questions you can think of during the day, alright? While I’m gone, you should take a look around the village. There’s plenty to see and you can buy some supplies with the money you were given.” Changbin gestured to the desk where Chan saw the pouch he had found in his pocket in the forest three days ago. “Just try not to get ripped off and be careful of your belongings. There are a few people who were assigned the class of Thief when they joined the game so keep an eye on your stuff.” Changbin offered his advice and Chan nodded in understanding.

With that, Changbin took off. Chan sat there in silence as he played everything over again in his mind. That was a hell of a lot of information to take in but Chan felt that he had come to a weird sort of acceptance of everything that had happened though he couldn’t say he was overly thrilled at everything Changbin had told him. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and very carefully made his way across the room to get dressed and gather his belongings. He walked slowly down the stairs and strolled towards the exit of the inn but not before waving to Joomi to show he was heading out for the day.

The village of Haknal was indeed something impressive. It really did remind him of olden towns he used to see in video games he used to play when he was younger. Wooden and stone buildings lined the main street, each offering the passers by something they may need during the time they would spend in Phantasm. He passed a store that sold books on magic which didn’t really interest Chan at the moment. He moved past a shop where the windows were lined with various sized bottles, embellished with gems and filled with multi coloured liquids which made Chan think about the two bottles he had discovered in his back pocket and moved his hand to check if they were still there, which they were. Since Chan was so interested in taking everything in, it took him a couple of hours to make his way through the town before he came across an emporium that looked to be exactly what he needed. A man was soldering iron in front of the shop and stopped once he felt Chan’s eyes on him.

“Can I help you with something, kid?” A deadpan expression covered the man’s face. He had a herculean build, with his muscles looking like they were ready to burst through his thin, black t-shirt. Chan noticed a dark green tattoo which circled the man’s wrist and wondered if there was a special meaning behind it. Chan thought he looked like he could be a tank that could stop any enemy that came towards him.   

“Maybe. I’m not quite sure what it is that I’m looking for,” Chan replied awkwardly. The man huffed as if annoyed that his precious time was being taken up by this troublesome young man. Chan felt a little intimidated but continued.

“Apparently, I’m a Knight and I was wondering if you had anything that I could use to fight and protect myself?” Chan directed the question towards the man who seemed to soften at Chan’s last question.

“You new around here kid?” Apparently everyone seemed to know that Chan was new to Phantasm. He wondered what it was that kept giving him away.

“Yes sir, I am. Am I really that obvious?” Chan tilted his head to the side with the question.

“I’ve just never seen you around here before, that’s all. You want to see what I think would be best suited to you?” The man looked Chan up and down as if surveying his abilities. “Come on inside. I think I have the perfect thing for you. The name’s Chul Moo and you are?”

“I’m Chan. This is quite an impressive store sir. Do you make all of these weapons yourself?”

“Every single one of them. I have a few apprentices but none of them have ever made something here without me helping them. These weapons are my pride and joy,” Chul Moo chattered while he looked through some of his wares to the side. “Ah, here it is.” Chul Moo revealed to Chan a very intricately designed steel mortuary sword and matching kite shield. They shone in the light of the store and Chan was automatically drawn to them as his hands reached for both.

“These are perfect for someone like yourself and will serve you well as you develop your skills. These would be my recommendation for you. Try them for yourself and see how you feel,” Chul Moo suggested as he handed both pieces to Chan who felt like he could get used to the feeling of a sword and shield pretty quickly. They were light but felt like they would provide a more than adequate defence. Chan smiled as he maneuvered the sword around in his hand. He didn’t need any more time to think.

“I’ll take them,” Chan said with determination but quickly stopped. “Oh, I should probably ask how much they are first.”

Chul Moo crossed his arms and exhaled. “Well, for both, I would usually charge around 600 gold coins.” Chan’s heart dropped as he remembered that he was only issued 500 coins at the beginning of the game. He went to hand back the items he had already grown attached to. Chul Moo raised his hand and continued. “For a decent kid like yourself? Let’s say 400 even. How does that sound?”

Chan beamed and quickly rummaged for the coin pouch in his pocket. He emptied the contents into his hands and counted the coins. He placed the money into Chul Moo’s hands and bowed to thank him again. Chul Moo let out a hearty chuckle.

“You ever need more equipment or something needs fixing, you come back to me and I’ll help you out. Alright, kid?”

Chan finally found something he liked about this world. The people here were so damn friendly. Changbin, Joomi, Chul Moo: all of them were exceedingly decent people. He thanked Chul Moo once again and made his way out of the shop with the shield adorning his back and his sword hanging loosely from his waist. Chan started to feel that his second, or technically fifth day since he was unconscious, within Phantasm was going to be a lot better than his first. He rummaged through his pockets again to take out his coin pouch so that he could use the remaining coins of gold to spend on some food. He was starving and realised that since he was asleep, he hadn’t eaten in three days.

Not only did he not have 100 coins, the pouch in which the coins should have been in was now gone. He stopped and looked around in a slight panic. Did he drop it? It wouldn’t have fallen out of his pocket so easily. This seriously wasn’t happening to him now. He suddenly remembered the advice Changbin had given him. Be careful of Thieves. He scanned the crowd to see if he could locate anyone who might look suspicious.  He did spot someone he thought looked dubious and they were staring back at him with a wide grin on their face while dangling his coin pouch in front of them. The adolescent let out a loud laugh as he began to run away. Chan automatically took off after the boy even though the other seemed to be much faster than he was. Chan thought the guy probably had a much higher agility stat than he did. The boy suddenly stopped amongst the crowd and turned to face Chan who also came to a halt.

“Hey,” Chan said slightly out of breath, “that’s mine.” The young male giggled at Chan’s poor physical state.

“Not anymore, man. You should really be more careful of your belongings. There are so many Thieves around here. You don’t know when they’ll strike.” The boy stated this fact as if he wasn’t one of the Thieves to which he was referring. He was still swinging Chan’s pouch in front of him as if he wanted to show off his snatching skills.

“You’re pretty broke but every little helps. Thanks for the change, man. I’ll put it to good use.” The boy grinned before turning around and scaling the building beside them before disappearing over the roof. Chan had no intention of climbing a building to run after him. It wasn’t that he couldn’t do it, he just didn’t want to. Chan had just decided that he liked the people in this place, then this little moron had to go and ruin it all. It was getting close to the time he was supposed to meet up with Changbin. So, with slightly lighter pockets due to the absence of his pouch, Chan returned to the inn with a scowl on his face. His second day in the game wasn’t turning out to be that much better than the first, he thought. However, it wasn’t over just yet and his whole opinion of the day may very well change.

The sun was beginning to disappear beyond the horizon as Chan made his way back towards the inn to meet at the arranged time and place with Changbin. He didn’t know if he should tell the young Medic about being pickpocketed after he had told him to be careful. He wasn’t sure if Changbin would be sympathetic or if it would result in endless mockery because of Chan’s carelessness. Chan ruffled his own hair in frustration. He was well and truly broke thanks to that little Thief. Would he have to ask Changbin to give him money simply so that he could eat today? He didn’t doubt that Changbin would give him some, that was just the type of person the younger seemed to be but he had already helped Chan so much. Chan didn’t want him to think he was taking advantage of his generosity. He began to walk up to the tavern where he was to meet Changbin. A warm glow came from the windows of the pub which was accompanied by music which sounded strangely welcoming to Chan.

Before he could proceed any further towards the steps of the tavern, something made Chan come to an abrupt halt. He listened carefully as something hit his ears, a sound that could only be described as angelic. Someone was singing inside and Chan’s chest started to swell. He had never heard a voice quite like it before. It was steady, clear and had such a sweetness to it that Chan felt like he could listen to it forever. He needed to see who this voice was coming from, so, in a hurried walk, Chan made his way towards the tavern door and quietly pushed it open, so as not to disturb whoever was performing.

When Chan stepped through the entrance, his eyes immediately searched for the owner of the voice. As if magnetically, his gaze was drawn to a young man situated by the fireplace of the tavern. His fingers were strumming a guitar like instrument which Chan had never seen before. The boy’s soft features matched his voice perfectly. His sandy hair fell just over his eyes which were in the shape of cresents as he sang. A dimpled smile was present on his face as he swayed and tapped his foot to the music he was producing. Chan was mesmerised by the young man. Everything about him drew Chan in. He wanted to know more about him. Even though the tavern was full of people, Chan felt like only he and the singer were present. He moved towards the musician a little before he stopped himself, realising what he was doing. He couldn’t just go over to him and start up a conversation. What would he say? That his voice is the most beautiful thing he had ever encountered and that his handsome face was the second? Chan shuddered at how incredibly awkward he would be trying to initiate a conversation with the other but his eyes were once again drawn back to the young man as he began to sing another song.

Reflected in the mirror, I’m a maze,

My insides are reflected in my mirror, no,

Where can I find it?

For once I wish I could see myself,

I keep looking for it…

Chan was so fascinated by the singer that he didn’t hear footsteps approach or feel someone stand beside him.

“Why are you making googly eyes at my friend, hyung?”

Chan screamed and jumped in the air due to the voice so close to his ear but managed to keep his balance and turn to glare at the other. Changbin threw his head back in laughter as he clutched his stomach. Chan was going to go back to calling him Binnie if the younger wasn’t careful. He huffed in exasperation as Changbin wiped away tears from his eyes from laughing so hard. Chan’s attention went back to the young musician who seemed unfazed by his loud outburst. Changbin nudged Chan’s side and wriggled his eyebrows at him causing Chan to look away, flustered.

“That’s one of my travelling companions. His name is Kim Kyuhoon. Isn’t his voice something else? You can tell why he was assigned the class of Bard, right?

“Kyuhoon, huh? And I wasn’t making googly eyes at him. I was just admiring his voice. He has a lot of talent, that’s all.” Chan tried to make an excuse for his behaviour though he caught Changbin’s expression from the corner of his eye. He could see the younger didn’t believe a word coming out of his mouth.

“Well he’s going to join us for dinner. Is that alright?” Changbin asked though it didn’t matter as Chan had already gone back to staring at his friend. The Medic shook his head in exasperation and clicked his fingers in front of Chan’s eyes to draw his attention back to him. “Well, hyung, is that alright?”

“Huh? Yeah, yeah. That’s...more than alright.” Changbin wondered how Chan had become so whipped so quickly, like a spell had been placed over him though he knew that there was no actual magic involved. Changbin grabbed Chan’s arm to drag him over to a free table where they would eat together. He made Chan sit while he placed himself directly across from his hyung. Changbin intentionally didn’t take the seat beside him in case Chan wanted his new crush to sit there instead. Before Chan could turn his attention back to Kyuhoon yet again, Changbin began to speak.

“So, did you take a look around the town today? What did you think?”

“Yeah I did. It’s pretty spectacular and unlike anywhere I’ve ever seen. To be honest, after looking around, your explanation as to where we are is starting to seem more and more likely. I think I believe that we are actually inside of a game.”

“Wow, you came to accept your situation a lot faster than I did. Took me nearly a whole week but that’s good, I guess. It would have been irritating to have to try and convince you for much longer.” Changbin grinned playfully. “I can see you bought some equipment.” Changbin gestured to the sword and shield that Chan had purchased earlier. Chan smiled at the observation.

“Yeah, I think they suit me, don’t you? And I think I got them for a decent price too.”

“How much?”

“400 gold coins. That’s not bad, right?” Chan looked up, hoping for a good reaction from the younger.

“What?! Who sold you those for 400 coins?” Changbin slammed his hands on the table with his question. Chan was slightly taken aback at the Medic’s outburst.

“Uh, there was a weapons emporium about a thirty minute walk from here. The owner said he’d give me a deal because I was such a decent kid.” Chan was worried that he had been ripped off because of how Changbin had reacted.

“Goddamn it, Chul Moo. How come he never gave me a discount like that? I’m a decent kid too!” Changbin exclaimed. Chan relaxed a little as he realised he wasn’t ripped off but got a better deal than Changbin ever did at the weapons emporium. Chan snickered a little at Changbin’s pissed off expression. Before the conversation could progress any further, Changbin’s face softened as he looked straight behind Chan.

“Hyung, you were really good tonight. I particularly liked the last song.” Chan realised Changbin wasn’t talking to him anymore but rather Kyuhoon who was situated right behind him. Chan slowly turned as he was met with Kyuhoon’s heavenly smile which made Chan melt almost instantly. Kyuhoon’s eyebrows raised in surprise as he looked at Chan.

“Is this the guy you were telling me about? The one who collapsed in the woods?” Kyuhoon asked Changbin.

‘Really?’ Chan thought. 'That was the first impression he had of me?’ Chan wanted the ground to swallow him up but he wasn’t sure if that was something that was possible in this world.

Kyuhoon extended his large hand towards Chan in a greeting. “My name is Kim Kyuhoon. Changbinnie has told me a bit about you. I’m glad to see you’re feeling better.”

Chan grabbed Kyuhoon’s hand and gave it a tight squeeze before shaking. The handshake lasted a little longer than socially acceptable because of the fact that Chan didn’t want to let go of the other’s hand. Kyuhoon raised his eyes to Changbin, looking for an explanation as to what was happening but before Changbin could muster an answer, Chan realised he was staring at the handsome singer and detached himself from the handshake looking slightly mortified. Kyuhoon let out a low chuckle before situating himself beside Chan.

“So, Chan, I hear you’re a Knight. That’s quite impressive considering the characteristics you need for such a class. I’m a Bard myself. I specialise in magic but unlike Changbinnie who uses his staff to amplify his spells, I use my voice and instruments, though I do have a lance to perform melee attacks too. I’m nowhere near as strong and helpful as our Medic here but I try as much as I can. Apparently, Bards are also great at diplomacy as we can charm people with our voices but I don’t know how true that is,” Kyuhoon finished.

“Oh, Chan hyung, maybe that’s why you were so fixated on him. He charmed you with his voice.” A kick of great force came into contact with Changbin’s shin underneath the table which caused the younger to curse loudly, drawing the attention of people sitting next to them. Changbin nodded in apology before glaring at Chan who was glaring back at him. Kyuhoon seemed unperturbed by what had just occurred between the two.

“So Kyuhoon- sorry, do I call you hyung or…?” Chan looked unnerved by what Changbin had just said and tried to quickly change the subject.

“Well I think Changbin said you were twenty one, right? You’re the same age as me then. So, no, you don’t have to call me hyung. Kyuhoon or Kyu will do just fine.” Kyuhoon smiled softly at Chan who felt just about ready to combust from the singer’s adorableness.

“How come you were assigned the class of Bard, if you don’t mind me asking? I know Binnie over here is a little shy about the reason for his class.” The Medic now looked ready to throttle Chan if he ever called him Binnie again.

Kyuhoon looked slightly taken aback at the question. “Oh, I don’t mind answering, though it’s a little depressing. I’ve always loved music and singing and it was my dream to become a professional singer when I was older. However, I grew up in a pretty poor household. My parents always tried to give me the best but I realised very quickly that they would always struggle with the simplest of things such as trying to feed me and my older brother. So, I used to sing on the streets to try and bring in some money and help them in anyway that I could. I never brought home much but they were always thrilled that I tried to assist them in some way. Since money was always a problem, there was no way my parents could afford to send me to get training to become a singer, so my dream kind of died before it really even began.” Kyuhoon was looking at his hands on the table while Chan was completely engrossed in his story just as Changbin was even though he had heard it all before.

“My mom died when I was thirteen while my dad passed when I was sixteen. My brother cared for me after that before I figured I was old enough to try and make it on my own and stop being a burden to him. I work - or worked - at a bar back in Daejeon and they let me use the piano to practice my singing when the bar was closed which I was very thankful for. So, all in all, I never got to achieve my big dream of becoming a singer but I still sing simply because I love it. In this world, weirdly, I sing to defend myself and my friends in battle and to entertain people in places such as this. So, I seemed to have achieved my dream within Phantasm rather than in the real world. Isn’t that funny?”

Kyuhoon finished his story and Chan felt a great sense of sympathy for the young musician though he knew that Kyuhoon probably wouldn’t want his pity. Kyuhoon lifted his head with a snicker as Chan and Changbin were startled by the boy’s laugh.

“You both look so serious. You can relax, I’m not depressed about my situation. You’ve just gotta take what life gives you and try to make the best of it, right?” Kyuhoon directed the question at Chan who smiled softly and nodded his head. Changbin sighed and opened his mouth to speak.

“Can we order some food? After that awfully somber story, I feel exceedingly hungry.” Chan rolled his eyes at the younger. How could he be so heartless after hearing such a beautifully heartbreaking life story?

“Aren’t we going to wait for Jisungie? Ah, never mind, here he comes now.” Kyuhoon waved at a young boy who had just entered the tavern. He waved back before coming over and sitting beside Changbin. A weird feeling suddenly invaded Chan’s chest but he quickly brushed it off. The boy positioned himself comfortably before Kyuhoon began yet another introduction for Chan.

“Chan, this is another friend of ours. His name is Han Jisung. Jisungie, this is Bang Chan, the boy that Changbin found in the forest. We told you about him, remember?”  

Both boys looked at each other before their eyes grew wide and Jisung cursed under his breath while turning his head away from the table. Chan leaned in closer to the new arrival trying to catch his attention again.

“You! You were the one who stole my coin pouch earlier!” Chan exclaimed, causing Kyuhoon and Changbin to gawk at him in surprise. The new youth kept his attention glued to something away from the table as if it would diffuse the volatile situation if he ignored Chan.

“I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about,” Jisung commented. Changbin looked at Kyuhoon knowingly while Kyuhoon glanced at Jisung with a disappointed expression.

“Jisung, we talked about this. You can’t keep pickpocketing innocent people. One of these days, you’re going to steal from the wrong person and get your ass kicked,” Changbin chided. Jisung turned to face the Medic.

“Jeez, when did you turn into my mother? I thought that was Kyuhoon hyung’s job,” Jisung muttered, with spite lacing his words. Changbin slapped the back of Jisung’s head before the boy looked to Kyuhoon as if he wanted him to scold Changbin for hitting him. Kyuhoon was too busy looking disappointed in the youngest to take notice though. They seemed to forget that Chan was sitting with them before he started to speak.

“I want my money back! That was all I had!” Jisung’s attention flew to the young Knight.

“Really? That was all you had? Damn, you are poor!” Jisung mocked.

“Jisung…” Kyuhoon warned, looking dangerously annoyed.

“Hey, alright, alright. I’ll give it back. Wouldn’t want Kyuhoon hyung to get mad at me now, would I?” Jisung fished Chan’s pouch out of his pocket before flinging it across the table. Chan grabbed it between his hands, glaring at Jisung before pushing it into his front pocket so that another Thief wouldn’t snatch it from him. Chan locked eyes with Jisung before continuing.

“I’m going to take a stab in the dark and assume you were assigned the class of Thief?”

“How is that a stab in the dark? Obviously that’s what I am. I even alluded to it earlier!” Jisung flailed his hands in the air trying to add dramatics while making his point. Chan definitely didn’t take as kindly to Jisung as he had to Kyuhoon and Changbin. He didn’t know if he could get along with the little Thief.

“Oh my god, this is the most pointless conversation ever. I’m going to go and order some food and Jisung you’re coming with me. I’m afraid if I leave you two at the table together, you might end up attacking each other!” Changbin hoisted Jisung out of his seat and steered him towards the bar. Chan glowered at Jisung’s back and almost as if he felt it, Jisung turned around and stuck his tongue out at Chan before Changbin grabbed his shoulders and pushed him forward.

“Jeez, what is he, like five?” Chan complained to Kyuhoon who just chuckled in response.

“Take it easy. Jisungie is a little immature and it can be a little difficult to get him to trust you but once you get to know him, he is a really good kid. He’s a little rough around the edges because of how he grew up but when he warms up to you, he will do anything for you. He’s really protective of his friends.” Kyuhoon placed his hand on Chan’s shoulder which caused him to jump a little at the sudden contact from the Bard. He went back to glowering at the young Thief.

“I think you could give me all the time in the world and we wouldn’t get along,” Chan explained wryly. Kyuhoon sighed though he knew that the two would become friends eventually.

Jisung and Changbin quickly returned with multiple plates of mouth watering food. Chan was thankful that the food within Phantasm looked somewhat similar to what he was used to in the real world and after taking a spoonful of sundae soup, he was relieved that it tasted the same too, if not better. Whoever made this game certainly did pay attention to the small details. The four boys quickly emptied the plates in front of them and sat back with content groans. Chan felt revitalised and suddenly very sleepy. He took his money from his pocket to give it to Changbin for his portion of the food but Changbin declined it.

“My treat tonight. Don’t worry about it. When you get more coins, you can treat us some other night, ok?” Jisung scoffed beside him which gathered the attention of the Medic and Bard. Jisung suddenly curled in on himself as if protecting himself from their annoyed thoughts. Chan thanked Changbin when he suddenly yawned. Kyuhoon noticed this and grinned.

“It’s getting pretty late. Plus we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow. Should we call it a night?” Kyuhoon questioned.

“You guys have a busy day tomorrow?” Chan inquired.

“We’re leaving Haknal to move onto the next region for a while. Haknal is our base of operations, we always come back here at least once a month but we try to travel as much as we can so we can gather information. Though being within Phantasm is certainly an experience, we do want to go back home. This world is far too perilous. There are too many risks plus we have people who are probably worried sick and waiting for us to return,” Kyuhoon explained.

Jisung scoffed quietly. “Not all of us have people waiting for them to come back home.” Chan was unsure whether or not he was supposed to have heard what Jisung said but he had anyway.

“So, we travel the regions trying to hone our skills and become stronger so that hopefully, one day, we can take on the Rautaja Fortress and leave Phantasm.” Chan nodded in understanding but suddenly a sense of fear spread through him. They were leaving. Did that mean he was going to be left here alone? His hands started to tremble at the thought. He didn’t know what he was going to do if he was left by himself.

“Would you like to come with us?” Chan snapped his head up at Kyuhoon’s words and a huge smile spread across his face. “We’re always looking for new people who could join our group. The more people we have, the better chance we have of defeating the trials in the Fortress.” Chan was interrupted before he could give his reply.

“Woah, woah, woah. Shouldn’t we vote on stuff like this?” Jisung exclaimed. Changbin scowled at the younger before turning to Kyuhoon.

“All in favour of Chan hyung joining our party, raise your hand.” Changbin and Kyuhoon put up their hands which Chan smiled at. “All opposed?” Jisung shot his hand in the air while scowling at Chan who narrowed his eyes at the younger.

“Sorry, Jisungie, two against one. You have been overruled,” Kyuhoon sang to the youngest who looked defeated. “Then it’s settled. Chan, if you’re willing, you’re more than welcome to come along with us.”

Chan felt like crying. He was so lucky to have found these boys (well, most of them) who had taken him under their wing. He promised himself that he would defend them with all of his might to repay their kindness. He realised the others were looking at him, waiting for his reply.

“I would really love that. Thank you so much.”

Kyuhoon patted his shoulder again while Changbin winked in understanding. Jisung stood up with a sigh and muttered, “I think I need a drink.”

Kyuhoon nearly had an aneurysm. “What do you mean a drink?! You’re only eighteen Jisung! You’re still underage!”

“A drink of water! Calm down, mom,” Jisung said without looking back at the group.

Changbin shook his head in exasperation. “I didn’t think I’d be raising a teenager at nineteen.”

Chan laughed at Changbin’s distressed form. He had found good people to travel with, people he felt safe with. He had no doubt that they would protect him and in return, he would do the same for them. He yawned once again and told Changbin he was ready to call it a night. He asked if it was ok to use the room he had woken up in to sleep tonight. Changbin replied that it was already paid for as they didn’t know when he would wake up, so it was all his. The other three boys were staying at the same place as Chan, in the rooms directly across from and beside his so they would all walk back together. Once Jisung had returned, they gathered their belongings and left the tavern to return to the inn. They bid each other good night and Kyuhoon and Jisung returned to their respective rooms. Before Changbin could leave, Chan caught his sleeve which caused the other to turn around looking slightly confused.

“You seem to have this habit of helping me out of all of my problems. Between rescuing me in the forest, getting my money back from Jisung, paying for my meals, giving me a group to travel with. I can see why you were assigned a class that focuses on helping people. I just wanted to thank you again, Changbin. I hope I can return the favour as we travel together,” Chan beamed towards the younger.

“Hey hyung, don’t worry about it. You seem like a very trustworthy person and we would be more than happy to have you travel with us. Don’t mind Jisung by the way, he just has a habit of acting like a spoiled brat sometimes. You’ll get used to him.”  

“Kyuhoon said something similar about Jisung, though he said it in a nicer way than you did.”  

Changbin sighed. “Well, Kyuhoon hyung is a lot nicer than I am so that makes sense.”

Chan smiled tiredly and bid the younger good night. He entered the room he had been in earlier. The fire was lighting once again which was probably Joomi’s doing. He was glad for the warmth of the fire as it had grown a little chilly outside. He lifted the heavy covers on the bed and slipped in under them. His head hit the soft pillows and it didn’t take Chan more than a couple of minutes of thinking about the journey he would take tomorrow with his new friends to drift off into a comfortable sleep.

Chapter Text

The obnoxious knocking on Chan’s door made the boy whine as he stirred from his dreamless sleep. It continued until Chan rolled out of his bed to answer the call. On the other side of his door was Jisung, who looked annoyed that he was sent on wake up duty for the new recruit.

“Kyuhoon hyung told me to come and wake you up. So, wake up,” Jisung said unamused. Chan inhaled heavily as Jisung walked away to start banging on Changbin’s bedroom door. Chan craned his neck just in time to see Changbin emerge from his room and envelop Jising in a headlock.

“Hey, dumbass. There are people who are still sleeping in the inn. Try to have a little manners, huh?” Changbin dug his fist into Jisung’s head which elicited small apologies from the Thief. Jisung managed to free himself from the older’s grasp with a small grin. He caught Chan staring at them which caused the youngest to go back to looking unimpressed while he relayed the same message to Changbin as he had to Chan, before walking back to his own room to gather up his belongings so they could head on their travels. Changbin looked back to Chan and nodded his head to indicate a morning greeting before Chan smiled and nodded back.

“Did you sleep ok?” Changbin asked.

“One of the best night's sleep I’ve ever had. Though you look like you didn’t rest very much.” Chan gestured to the dark bags under Changbin’s eyes and the boy just huffed.

“A bad habit of mine. I tend to stay up pretty late reading up on new spells that I can learn. Kyuhoon hyung constantly nags me about it, saying I should take care of my health first but in the end, I can just do this.” Changbin raised his hands in front of his eyes and a small yellow light formed beneath his hands, washing over his tired face. Chan had to stare as Changbin’s face looked like it had become revitalised, with the dark shadows under his eyes disappearing completely. The Medic dropped his hands and his face looked like Changbin had slept through the whole night.

“It takes a little energy so I may be a bit more physically tired but my appearance doesn’t show it which will keep Kyuhoon hyung’s mother-like nagging to a minimum.”

Chan didn’t have the heart to tell the younger boy that Kyuhoon was standing behind him the entire time he was reinvigorating himself. Changbin’s actions gave the older reason to smack the Medic on the back of the head causing Changbin to yelp and spin around.

“I told you not to use your energy for stuff like this. It doesn't matter how you look, I can still tell if you’ve spent the night reading in your room,” scolded Kyuhoon.

“It doesn’t matter how I look? Hyung, what are you talking about? I’m the visual of this group. I have to look great at all times,” Changbin replied playfully which caused Kyuhoon to roll his eyes and Chan to guffaw in amusement. Kyuhoon’s eyes met with Chan’s and the Knight suddenly became very aware of the Bard’s gaze on him. Chan bowed towards Kyuhoon before scuttling into his room to get dressed but not before he heard Changbin chuckle and say, “Hyung, you’re going to make him combust. Look at what you’re doing to the poor boy!” He could hear the confusion in Kyuhoon’s voice when he replied with “What do you mean?”

Chan quickly dressed himself and cleaned the place to the best of his ability. He wouldn’t want to repay Joomi’s kindness with a messy room. He picked up his sword and shield and attached them to his body before taking one last look to make sure everything was in order. Once he was satisfied with the state of the bedroom, he walked out the door to meet the other boys who were waiting for him. They headed towards the front desk where Joomi was sitting, singing to herself.

“Ah, my favourite boys. Did you all sleep well?” she inquired.

“Like a baby. Didn’t stir all night,” Changbin replied as he smiled at Joomi. Chan could see Kyuhoon glare at the Medic before rolling his eyes with an irritated huff as he knew he was lying.

“We won’t be back for a while Joomi-ssi. We’re heading to Aquiria for a week or two. Should be interesting. I haven’t been there before,” Jisung explained. Chan’s eyes widened a bit. Who was this kid and what had he done with Jisung? He was so polite towards the older woman who lovingly smiled back at him. Jisung caught Chan’s stare and looked at him, mouthing a ‘what?’ before turning back to grin at Joomi.

“Oh, down by the sea? I haven’t been there in so long. I would love to go back but I can’t leave this place in anyone’s hands. So, I’ll just have to stay here by myself.” Joomi pouted in mock heartbreak.

“We promise to take lots of pictures and bring you back a souvenir as we always do,” Jisung beamed. All right, that was it. This definitely wasn’t the same kid from last night, unless he had multiple personalities. Joomi grabbed Jisung’s cheeks and squeezed softly which evoked a small cry of pain from the Thief who quickly managed to free himself. Chan grabbed Kyuhoon’s arm and dragged him back a bit out of earshot of the others. Kyuhoon nearly fell at the sudden movement and quickly looked at Chan.

“This isn’t the same Jisung that I met last night and was woken up by this morning. What is happening?” Chan asked Kyuhoon who chuckled slightly.

“Jisung has a bit of a soft spot for Joomi-ssi because she’s the one who found him after he first arrived in Phantasm. She discovered him injured in an alleyway off of the main street and offered him a place to stay after she found out he was new here. She’s kind of like a mother figure to him which he really cherishes because his own mother-” Kyuhoon was suddenly cut off by Jisung who began yelling as Joomi ruffled his hair too much. Kyuhoon straightened himself.

“You know what, it’s really not my place to tell you Jisungie’s story. If he wants to share it with you, he will tell you in his own time, ok? Kyuhoon said with, what Chan thought was, a sad smile.

“Well, you boys have fun and make sure to look after each other, you hear me?” Joomi pointed her finger at each of the boys to show she was dead serious. All of them nodded their heads in understanding. Chan felt like he really didn’t want to get on Joomi’s bad side. They bowed to show that they were heading out and Jisung waved happily at Joomi who slowly waved back with a slight grin.

They headed down the main street while Kyuhoon looked at the map to make sure they were going in the right direction. He mentioned to Chan that he had been to Aquiria before but he was always afraid of taking a wrong turn somewhere and getting lost. They reached the edge of town and exited through a rather colossal pair of mahogany doors which sealed the entrance to the city. Chan thought that this was probably a defence to keep monsters and possibly raiders out. On the other side of said doors, Chan was greeted with miles and miles of open fields with long paths, leading in different directions, meandering throughout them. Large, overhanging trees lined the trail that the boys were now traversing down.

Changbin and Jisung were in the middle of a heated discussion over what the best thing they ate during their time in Haknal was while Kyuhoon was still focused on surveying the map. A sudden question came to Chan which he felt comfortable in asking the others.

“Hey, there were so many people in Haknal. Is everyone here in the same situation as us? Like, each person that we passed on the way down the main street, they were all forced to play the game just like us?” Jisung rolled his eyes at Chan’s question while Changbin began to answer.

“No. Not everyone in here is a real person. Just like in regular games, there are quite a lot of NPC’s roaming around. You can interact with them but some have very automated responses. A couple of them though, like ones that run stores and such, are able to keep a conversation going about an abundance of topics and respond to your questions with ease so sometimes you would think that they are indeed a real person. The easiest way to tell if a person is a human like us or an NPC is the presence of a green ring around their wrists. All of the NPC’s have them.” Changbin finished his explanation, gesturing to his own blank wrist as Chan nodded his head when his brow suddenly wrinkled in confusion. He had already interacted with someone who had a green ring around his wrist. Kyuhoon jumped slightly when Chan raised his voice in exclamation.

“Wait! Then, the owner of that weapons emporium I went to, the one where I got my sword and shield, the owner there wasn’t a real human?”

“Oh, you met Chul Moo?” Kyuhoon asked. “Yeah, he isn’t a human. If you ask him anything about Phantasm or the people running it, he changes the subject like he’s designed not to talk about it.”

Chan thought back to his conversation when Chul Moo had asked him if he was new because he said he hadn’t seen him around before. Chan realised he was simply asking if he was new to Haknal and not new to the game itself. Also, when Chan asked Chul Moo for recommendations, he surveyed him and Chan thought that he probably was, in fact, inspecting his abilities so that he could give him something that would suit his class. This was indeed a very elaborately designed game.

“Well, I’m getting bored of walking with you people so I’m going to go and scout ahead.”

Before anyone could say anything, Jisung took off before leaping up into the trees. Chan could see the boy hopping from branch to branch before he disappeared into the leaves. He thought Jisung was very much like a squirrel in the way he moved through the trees.

The boys continued walking for a while along the path towards the new destination when Changbin suddenly hummed. Chan’s attention went to the Medic who looked slightly worried and Chan tried to meet his eyes before asking him what was wrong. Changbin shook his head quickly.

“Oh, it’s probably nothing. It’s just- when Jisung scouts ahead, we have a deal that he’s supposed to return and report every fifteen minutes so we know that nothing has happened to him. It’s been twenty and he hasn’t come back yet.”

Kyuhoon stopped in his tracks. The Bard obviously hadn’t been keeping track of the time the youngest boy had been gone as he had been too busy trying not to get lost by reading his map.

“What do you mean it's been twenty minutes? Why isn’t he back yet? We made that plan to keep him safe. Where is he?” Chan could see Kyuhoon was starting to go into panic mode so he placed a hand on his shoulder to try and comfort the older boy.

“I’m sure he’s fine, Kyuhoon. He probably just got distracted. It’s only a few minutes over the allotted time. He’ll come back any minute now, just wait and see.” Chan knew that when someone you cared about went missing, no words could possibly comfort you but he knew he had to try. Changbin suggested staying in one place so it would be easier for Jisung to find them if he came back so they stopped and sat on the side of the path while they waited for the young Thief to return. Five minutes passed, then ten and then fifteen. Kyuhoon had almost started to hyperventilate at this stage with Changbin not far behind him. Chan also felt a slight sense of worry for the safety of the youngest boy but knew that he had to keep a calm, collected head. He got up and spoke to the others.

“Look, lets keep walking. Maybe we will find him along the way. We can call out to him to see if he responds. Sitting here and waiting isn’t doing any good. Come on, let's go.” Chan extended one hand to Kyuhoon and the other to Changbin and hoisted both boys up.

They began walking again and calling out Jisung’s name in the hopes of finding their friend. No answers came back to them and their worried pleas became louder and louder. They didn’t catch the attention of Jisung but there were others who were drawn to their voices.

Chan stopped suddenly. He didn’t know what it was but there was something in his head that was screaming at him to get into a fighting position. The other two boys were still walking in front of him, calling out their companion’s name. Chan quickly scanned their surroundings before a glint in the treeline caught his eye. His brain quickly made sense of the situation and his eyes flew to his comrades. He bolted towards them before he reached out his hands for both of them.

“Get down!” Chan screamed as he tackled both boys to the floor. The three of them came crashing to the ground while Chan heard a whistle through the air. Upon raising his head and looking around, he noticed an arrow embedded in the ground right behind them. Had Kyuhoon still been standing, that arrow would have been implanted right in his chest. Chan quickly jumped to his feet, grabbing his shield from his back and sword from his belt. This was an indication to the other boys to get ready to fight.

Five men suddenly dropped from the trees in front of them, though Chan was sure that more remained where the others had come from to help with long ranged attacks.

“Gentlemen, lovely weather we’re having, isn't it? We are mere travelers who mean you no harm. We just want to talk.” One of the men, possibly the leader, spoke towards the smaller group. The ratio of hair on his head seemed to be disproportionate as none adorned the top of his head but a full, rugged beard covered the bottom half of his face. Muscular arms were crossed over his thick chest as he grinned slyly at the boys.

“That’s funny. To me, you look like bandits who attack and steal from unsuspecting travellers. You say you don’t mean us any harm, yet there is an arrow that could have pierced through my heart right behind us. And yes, the weather is quite lovely today, isn’t it?” Kyuhoon replied sarcastically which made Chan smirk a bit despite the situation.

“Us? Bandits? I am hurt you would think such things about us.” The bald man placed his hand over his heart as he tried to sound as wounded as possible. “We are simple men. All we truly want are all of your belongings and money. Now, that’s not too much to ask of you, is it?” He spoke as if he had rehearsed all of this beforehand and Changbin shook his head at the man’s dramatics before answering.

“Why would you think that we would simply roll over and give you what you want, hmm?”

“My good boy. We are nothing if not fair. You give us your effects and of course, we will give you something in return. I believe this belongs to you?” The man gestured to one of his companions who stepped aside to reveal a beaten and bloody Jisung, looking like he no longer had the strength left to stand as he was being held up by one of the bandits. Chan’s heart clenched in his chest at the sight of the young Thief while a sense of rage proceeded to engulf his entire body.

A low growl came from behind Chan who spun around to see Kyuhoon looking furious while Changbin was already reaching for his staff to teach these men what happens when they hurt his friends.

“Oh, so you’re not going to back down? You’re really going to fight us? Three against seven? That seems interesting. Ok then, have it your way. Let’s go, boys.” The vile man signaled to his allies to attack the boys, however, it was not one of the bandits who moved first. A mangled cry of pain escaped the lips of the man who had been holding Jisung up as one of the Thief’s Daggers was plunged into his shoulder. Jisung quickly pulled it back out before disappearing at lightning speed, so fast that Chan couldn’t make out where he had moved to. Jisung appeared once again at Changbin’s side with a slight grin on his face but Chan noticed that he was breathing rather heavily as his legs buckled slightly beneath him.

“Bet you didn’t see that coming, huh, assholes?” Chan smirked at the younger’s fighting spirit before turning around to face the bandits once again. The leader’s face had gone from mocking to displeased. He gestured with two fingers towards the other group to show his comrades that they could begin their attack.

A small, silver ball suddenly rolled towards the boys before exploding with a blinding light. Chan rubbed his eyes quickly trying to regain his sight as he heard a jovial chuckle. He opened them to find that the others were already in the middle of their own battles. Chan came face to face with one of the bandits, who made Chan gasp a little in surprise. It was a kid. He looked like he could be around the same age as Jisung. Platinum locks fell in front of the boy’s dark eyes as his lips were graced with a small grin. A long, silver Whip dangled from his hands which was suddenly latched around Chan’s leg. The young bandit tugged which caused Chan to slip and come crashing to the ground. Another laugh fell from the youth’s mouth. Chan wasn’t going to lie here and be attacked by this kid, not when the others were fighting off their attackers so well. Even Jisung was holding his own despite being badly injured. Chan quickly stood again after detangling himself from the boy’s weapon as another bandit came to stand beside the first and Chan had to laugh in disbelief. Why were all of the bandits so young? The second attacker was slightly taller than the first and possessed darker features though he seemed to be wearing the same smirk as his friend. Why was the leader recruiting kids to work for him? Chan didn’t have time to continue with his thoughts as another sphere came flying towards Chan, courtesy of the second boy who had joined. This time, instead of light, smoke came billowing towards Chan which made breathing rather difficult. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the raven haired bandit come towards him to attack but Chan was suddenly on the ground again. This time, however, it was not because of the enemies but rather Jisung.

“Come on man, wake up and fight back!” Jisung shouted.

He had obviously incapacitated his own attacker and had come to help the older boy. Chan jumped back up quickly and situated himself beside Jisung ready to fight. A sharp hiss flew through the air once again as Chan narrowly managed to push Jisung out of the path of an oncoming arrow that came from the trees where Archers were attacking them. The Thief simply nodded in gratitude before returning to the fight in front of them. The boy with the Whip charged towards the two with Jisung dancing around him with ease and Chan bashing his shield into his back. He harshly went crashing to the ground and upon seeing this, Chan felt like he couldn’t use his sword on the kid. He didn’t have a green ring on his wrist which meant that he was a real person and the message he had seen before he first woke up flashed in his head. If he killed this boy here, then he would die in the real world too and Chan didn’t know if he could have that on his conscience for the rest of his life. The others in his group seemed to be of the same opinion as they only injured their attackers without killing them.

Chan was shaken from his thoughts when the second bandit, looking slightly concerned for the well being of his friend, lunged towards Chan trying to throw a punch at the Knight. Chan noticed the boy had something similar to brass knuckles adorning his hands though they were covered in spikes which, Chan thought, were hurt like hell if they were to come into contact with his face. He dodged just in time which caused the bandit to stumble forward, lose his balance and fall to the ground beside his ally before they all heard a booming voice which belonged to the arrogant leader of the group. The two youths that Chan and Jisung had been fighting quickly moved back to where they had started behind the leader. It seemed whatever the man had said was an indication for all of them to fall back.

“I can’t believe all of you are so useless. We outnumbered them and you still couldn’t do anything,” the leader scolded his men. “Especially you two. I generously take you under my wing and you disgrace us like this?” The unpleasant man directed the statement towards the two boys that Chan and Jisung had been fighting who looked to be trembling at his criticisms.

“You!” The leader gestured towards the blond boy with the whip who jumped a little. “How come you didn’t use your class’s special abilities? Are you still being a little coward? Still afraid to use them?” The leader sounded like he was harshly mocking the youth as the boy had his gaze fixed on the ground and shook in fear. “I warned you what would happen if you let me down again, kid.”

The blond quickly whipped his head towards his boss and began to slowly back away while terror invaded his eyes. Chan wondered why they had such an adverse reaction to the man’s words but he wasn’t left wondering for long when the man pulled a small pistol from his belt, aimed at the boy he had been jeering at and fired just above his heart. The gunshot rang through the air which caused almost everyone to flinch in surprise. It was followed by a scream that originated from the second boy who Chan had fought with. Adorning a bullet hole in his chest, the young bandit’s body fell to the ground with a thump while his friend ran to him and began to cradle him in his arms. His tear filled eyes stared at his companion, whose breathing was becoming laboured. Chan’s group could only stand in shock as they observed the scene in front of them.

“How could you do that to him?! We tried so hard. You said that if we did our best, it would be good enough. Why would you shoot him? He’s going to die because of you!” the young bandit accused before his leader laughed at his distress.

“Well, kid, it looks like your best simply wasn’t good enough. You two have disappointed me far too many times and are no longer useful to me. I told you that if you failed again, you may as well be dead to me and I have to show the boys here that I always mean what I say. So, you can stay here and try to bring your friend some comfort before he dies. Nobody on this team has the ability to save him now anyways. You’re becoming a liability which I just can’t afford. It’s been nice knowing you kids but we’re done here. Let’s go boys.” The bandit leader gestured to the rest of his group before they all vanished into the trees, leaving the two boys in the middle of the path holding onto each other. Chan and the others relaxed their stances as they knew they were no longer in any danger but they couldn’t take their eyes off of the two youths in front of them. The boy supporting his friend began to cry.

“Come on, please. You can’t leave me by myself. I can’t keep going without my best friend. Don’t leave me here on my own, Felix. Breathe. Come on, that’s it. Just keep breathing.”

The young bandit, who the others now knew as Felix, choked and pushed his fist against the other’s chest with a small smile as if trying to comfort the crying boy. Blood was beginning to leak from the corner of his mouth.

“Hey, Hyunjin, don’t cry. Your face gets real ugly when you do that, mate.” Felix tried to continue before he began to cough violently and his blood spattered his comrade’s shirt.

Hyunjin’s gaze suddenly focused on Changbin who looked a little startled.

“You! You’re a Combat Medic, right? Please help him. I know we don’t deserve it after what we did to you but please, he’s my best friend. We’ve gone through the game together. We might not have made the best decisions here but he doesn’t deserve to die like this. Please, help him. Please, I’ll do absolutely anything for you. I’ll give you everything I have. Please don’t let him die!”

Hyunjin was practically screaming at Changbin to help his dying friend, tears streaming down his face. Chan didn’t need to look at Changbin to know that he wasn’t going to hesitate in answering the boy’s pleas and his thoughts were confirmed when Changbin placed his staff on his back and rushed over to the bleeding boy before giving instructions to Hyunjin about how he could help him. Jisung and Kyuhoon were still frozen in shock after the bandit leader had shot the poor boy as if it was nothing. What Chan hadn’t been told yet was that the group of boys had a strict no killing policy unless it was a matter of life and death. So, to see someone have such little regard for human life shook them up more than a little bit. Chan was dazed but quickly came back to reality and rushed over to Changbin to see if there was anything that he could do to help.

“What do you want me to do?” Chan directed the question towards the Medic who was busy ripping Felix’s shirt to get a better look at the wound.

“Hyung, put pressure right here. I need to try and minimise the bleeding before I help him. I can’t have him die from blood loss before I complete the healing spell.” Changbin directed Chan in what to do before turning to the other boy.

“Your name’s Hyunjin, right?”

Hyunjin nodded his head while he held onto Felix’s hand, his watery eyes never leaving his injured friend.

“Ok, Hyunjin, I need you to look at me. I’m going to ask you to do something which might affect you for a little while. This is a pretty serious injury and if we don’t act fast, your friend isn’t going to make it.”

This made Hyunjin whip his head towards Changbin to show that he was ready to help in any way that he could.

“I need you to transfer some of your energy to me in order for me to complete this spell in such a short amount of time. Place your hands on my shoulders and close your eyes. My garb will absorb your energy if we both focus on the spell. You’re going to feel really weak after it but if you want your friend to survive, then this is what you need to do.”

Changbin barely got to finish his sentence before Hyunjin stood up and situated himself behind him with both of his hands placed on the Medic’s shoulders. His eyes immediately closed and he began muttering. Chan wasn’t sure if he was talking to himself or not but eventually began to make out what he was saying:

“Please let him live. Please be ok, Lix. Please make it through.” Hyunjin kept repeating these phrases over and over as if it would have any effect on the outcome.

Changbin gestured towards Chan to move away, which he did, with Felix’s blood now coating his slightly trembling hands. Changbin immediately placed his own hands over Felix’s wound as a crimson light emanated from the Medic’s fingers. Changbin was quietly whispering what Chan presumed to be the healing spell in a language that Chan had never heard before. Felix let out a loud cry as if he was in tremendous pain which made Hyunjin whip his head up at the sound of his friend’s distress. Changbin yelled at him to keep his eyes closed and stay focused on transferring his energy. Hyunjin did as ordered and resumed his muttering. The injured boy continued to writhe in pain as agonizing screams left his mouth.

“Hyung, I need you to hold him down or else I’m not going to be able to finish trying to heal him,” Changbin hollered at Chan. He knelt beside Felix and held his shoulders down to try and minimise his thrashing.

Changbin continued his spell for almost thirty minutes as the others watched him in complete silence so that they didn’t disturb the Medic in his work. Both he and Hyunjin were starting to look dangerously weak but Changbin suddenly stopped whispering before either of them collapsed. He raised his hands from Felix’s wound which showed the others a rather nasty scar on his chest but that there was no longer any blood coming from the wound. Felix’s breathing, although rough, was back to a normal pace, his eyes now closed as he slept. Thanks to Changbin, his life was no longer in any immediate danger though they would have to keep a close eye on his condition for a while longer.

Changbin sighed in relief since the spell that had been taking a toll on his body was now over. He went to stand though his legs wobbled a bit before he inhaled deeply to try and steady himself. He had done this spell only a handful of times before. Since he worked as a travelling Medic, a few people who had been involved in a fight or had been attacked had been brought to him for medical care but very few had been as injured as Felix was. He never got used to the feeling of dizziness and nausea that accompanied the side effects of the spell, however, he was happy to endure it if it meant the boy would live.

Hyunjin, when seeing the Medic stand, realised the healing process was over and crawled over to his friend to inspect his injury. When he saw the work that Changbin had done, small whimpers left his mouth once again as he looked up at the older boy.

“Thank you. Thank you so much. I won’t ever be able to repay you,” Hyunjin sniffled.

“He’s not out of the woods just yet. We need to get him somewhere safe so that I can monitor him for the night. There’s a small village about two miles north of here. It’s the closest place that we can go so I say we head there and spend the night. We can talk more tomorrow, alright?” Changbin suggested.

Hyunjin nodded his head while Kyuhoon and Jisung approached Changbin. Kyuhoon placed his hand on the Medic’s shoulder to show how proud of him he was while Jisung smirked at his hyung’s medical skills. Chan was also in awe of the young man and his abilities and thought that even within the game, Changbin would be considered an awfully strong Combat Medic.

Satisfied that Felix was safe for now, Hyunjin began to try and stand before his legs crumpled beneath him and he began to fall backwards. Kyuhoon darted forward and caught the boy before he could come into contact with the ground. Everyone whipped their heads towards Hyunjin out of concern but Changbin quickly realised he had just fallen unconscious because of transferring so much of his energy to help with the spell. Kyuhoon maneuvered the boy onto his shoulders and hoisted him up into a piggyback.

“He must be pretty exhausted since I don’t think he’s a magic based class. Transferring energy is a tough ability to master, even when you are magically inclined, so his body probably isn’t used to it. I think he was the one making the bombs that kept flying at us. That would make him an Alchemist, right? That’s a pretty rare class,” Kyuhoon commented. Hyunjin was completely knocked out on his back but instinctively grabbed the elder’s shirt as if seeking comfort which made Kyuhoon chuckle.

“Ok, I’ll take Felix then. I don’t think you or Jisung are in any state to carry him anywhere.” Chan gestured towards Changbin while he carefully placed the injured boy on his back similar to how Kyuhoon had done with Hyunjin.

Changbin nodded in understanding before turning to Jisung with a slight glare. “We told you to come back after fifteen minutes so that nothing would happen to you! Look at the state you’re in! You saw the bandits and stayed to observe them, didn’t you? You were discovered and almost killed because you got too cocky, Jisung! This could have been the end for you!” Changbin was now shouting at the young Thief who had jumped at the elder’s raised voice, obviously startled by Changbin’s sudden outburst. This was yet another side to Jisung that Chan had not seen before. He felt that the boy was probably a lot more complex than he had originally thought as tears began to pool in the corners of his eyes and spill over. Changbin sighed deeply before dragging his hands over his face. Wrapping one of his arms around Jisung’s shoulders, Changbin tugged him into a tight hug while placing his other hand on the back of his head as if to pull him in closer as Jisung hugged him back.

“You scared the crap out of us, Jisungie. Please be more careful. None of us can afford to lose you.” Changbin pulled away from Jisung and wiped away the tears still falling down the boy’s cheeks. “Now I don’t even have enough energy to patch up that ugly mug of yours,” Changbin teased, which made Jisung chuckle as he pushed his hyung’s hand away from his face.

“It’s ok, hyung. It doesn’t matter how I look. You’re the visual after all.” Changbin smacked Jisung’s shoulder which caused the younger to laugh again.

Kyuhoon grinned at the moment his two friends were sharing before commenting that they should probably start moving towards the next village to allow everyone to rest. Chan now had Felix secured on his back and could hear the younger’s steady breath brushing past his ear. He kept listening for that sound as an indication that he was still alive and kicking. Kyuhoon carried Hyunjin towards their destination with the boy still holding onto his shirt. Changbin and Jisung placed their arms around each other as a form of support as both were physically and mentally drained from the events of the day.

It took a little over an hour to reach the small village Changbin had mentioned earlier. All six boys were now well and truly exhausted and in need of some recuperation. They located the local inn with relative ease and made their way inside. The owner looked at the boys with a little concern on her face, more than likely because of how they looked but didn’t question them which they were thankful for. They rented three rooms, deciding that they would double up instead of wasting money on their own separate rooms. Changbin stayed with Felix so that he could monitor the boy’s condition throughout the night which told Chan that the young Medic probably wouldn’t be getting much rest himself. Kyuhoon said he would look after Hyunjin even though he was pretty sure that after some rest, the boy would be fine. That left Chan to room with Jisung which neither complained about, they were just happy that they would finally get to relax and unwind.

Kyuhoon, with Hyunjin still on his back, bid the others goodnight and shut his bedroom door. Changbin helped Chan carefully detach Felix from his shoulders before placing him on the warm bed and covering him with the soft blanket. Chan thanked Changbin for the help and complimented him on a job well done. Changbin waved him off and told him to go to bed as if embarrassed at the sudden compliment. He left the Medic to care for the young boy while he returned to his own room and quietly shut the door as he saw Jisung was already snuggled up and asleep in his own bed. Chan slipped beneath the welcoming covers before looking over at Jisung. Those assholes had really done a number on his face. A large bruise was starting to form around the Thief’s left eye. He had a busted lip with multiple abrasions all over his face. Chan wondered how he could have fought so well after being assaulted so viciously before a small voice startled him.

“Stop looking at me like that, I’m fine. I’ve had worse, believe me. Changbin hyung will fix me up in the morning. You don’t have to pretend like you care.”

Chan was slightly taken aback at Jisung’s harsh words. Sure, they may not always have seen eye to eye but he realised that he hated the idea of Jisung thinking that he didn’t care about what happened to him. When he had initially seen his beaten form, the rest of Chan’s feelings had been overcome by fury and concern for the well being of the younger boy. He sighed heavily before looking at Jisung again.

“I’m not pretending, I was really worried about you earlier. When you went missing, I thought Kyuhoon was actually going to collapse due to stress. He thought you weren’t going to come back and from the looks of it, you nearly didn’t. Changbin was right when he said you should be more careful.”

Jisung laughed humorlessly which caused him to clutch his side in pain. Chan didn’t doubt that one of those pricks had probably broken or at least bruised a couple of the poor kid’s ribs.

“I already have Changbin hyung and Kyuhoon hyung nagging me. I don’t need it from you too,” Jisung commented.

Chan grinned at the boy before continuing. “Listen, I think that we got off on the wrong foot. I mean, it was mostly your fault that we started off that way but I’m willing to put this little fued we have going behind us. What do you think about that?”

Jisung looked at him in mock horror. “And give up my excuse to be an asshole to you? Who would be the butt of my jokes? Who would I roll my eyes at when they ask a stupid question? Who would I make derisive comments towards if we didn’t keep this quarrel going?” Jisung finished his theatrical speech with the flailing of his arms before glancing at Chan again who looked at him questioningly, almost as if asking him why he had to be so dramatic even when injured.

“You did good today, hyung. I know it was your first time in a fight and this is all still very new to you but you’ll get used to it very quickly, I have faith in that. Just know that even though this is supposed to be a game, the risks here are very real. You don’t have a chance to think half of the time. You’ve just got to trust your instincts. Sometimes-” Jisung gestured to his face “-your instincts don’t turn out to be entirely accurate and you end up getting your ass kicked.”

Chan chortled loudly at Jisung’s comment before realising that it was late at night as Jisung shushed him while laughing himself. Kyuhoon may have been right. Once you got to know Jisung, he really was a good kid.

“Ah, I guess I should thank you for saving me earlier. My head was spinning so much I didn’t notice the arrow coming for me, so thanks for pushing me out of the way but damn, you could have been a little gentler about it.”

“Is this your first time thanking someone? You could have just shown your appreciation and left it at that but no, you had to go and add on something negative at the end.” Chan shook his head disapprovingly at the younger boy but grinned slightly as Jisung looked like he was going to retort before biting his lip to stop himself.

“Thank you for coming to help me too, Jisung. You could have gone to fight with one of the others but you came to help the newbie instead and I’m grateful for that because I don’t know how I would have handled it without you.” Jisung gagged at Chan’s sentimentality as the older boy threw his pillow towards the Thief who caught it before it hit him with a devilish cackle.

After their laughter had died down, Jisung yawned loudly and Chan followed suit. “I think I need to fall unconscious for about three days to get back to normal,” Jisung claimed as he closed his eyes.

“Then quickly go to sleep and stop annoying me.”

“I may just stay awake out of spite now!” Jisung whispered loudly. “Good night, hyung.”

“Good night, Jisungie. Sleep well.” Jisung smiled at the nickname he was only used to hearing from Kyuhoon and Changbin. He didn’t really mind at all that Chan was now using it now too. It took merely seconds for Jisung to drift off while Chan stayed awake for a while longer.

He had finally realised what Kyuhoon meant when he said they wanted to return home because this place was far too dangerous. Chan had witnessed first hand the kind peril that they could encounter within Phantasm and that danger was simply the result of humans attacking them. The monsters present in this world were probably another story all together. Looking at Jisung curled up across from him, he became very aware that he did not want to lose any of the boys he had met that he now considered his friends. He wouldn’t let something like this happen to them again if he could help it. Chan stared at the flecked ceiling. He hoped that Felix would make it through to see tomorrow. Though he didn’t know the young bandit’s stories, he felt that what happened to both of them today was more than unfair. He would just have to wait and see along with the rest of them.

Phantasm was really something else, Chan thought, and it was not something to be taken lightly. Jisung’s quiet snores told Chan that it was time to sleep. He didn’t think that he would ever experience a boring day as long as he was inside the game but he wasn’t sure that it was such a good thing. He closed his eyes and hoped for a better tomorrow.

Changbin moved his hand to the sleeping boy’s forehead. His temperature seemed to be a little higher than it would typically be but Changbin would have been surprised if it had gone back to normal already. He had been shot after all. Changbin surveyed the boy’s features and noticed that his face was adorned with numerous freckles that reminded him of stars decorating the sky but they were quickly being distorted by the tears now running down his face. Felix began to whimper in his sleep as Changbin sat down beside the boy and rubbed comforting circles into his hand as he shushed him. Felix’s brow wrinkled in distress and the Medic wondered what it was that he could be dreaming about. As Changbin held his hand, he allowed even more of his healing energy to flow towards the boy even though his own body was already drained. This seemed to do the trick as Felix’s soft cries slowly came to a halt and he was once again sleeping peacefully.

Changbin wasn’t quite sure what it was, he hadn’t even interacted with the boy, but he felt that he wanted to protect Felix. Maybe it was because he looked so helpless in front of him right now or perhaps it was seeing him tremble with such ferocity as the barrel of a gun was pointed at him earlier. When Felix’s boss had shot him, feelings of shock and wrath had attacked Changbin’s body. He was getting ready to charge towards the man who had hurt Felix but they had managed to flee before Changbin could act. Hyunjin’s screams towards him only amplified his want to help the boys. When he went to kneel beside Felix to stop the bleeding, he had brushed off of Hyunjin and could feel just how bad the other had been trembling. He obviously cared greatly for Felix just as he did for Jisung, Kyuhoon and Chan. There was something in him that couldn’t leave the boys to fend for themselves.

Changbin moved away from Felix and positioned himself on his own bed. He hadn’t planned on sleeping as he wanted to keep watching over Felix to make sure nothing happened to him during the night. However, he had used so much energy during the day, between fighting off the bandits and healing the pretty massive injury that Felix had endured that he couldn’t help it when his eyes suddenly began to close and he drifted from reality.  

Chapter Text

His chest felt like it was on fire. Felix scrunched up his nose in discomfort as he tried to move his body which hurt more than it probably should have. He slowly opened his eyes to see light flooding in through the window. The intensity of the brightness caused his brow to crease and he managed to finally sit himself up in the bed. His hand automatically reached up to his chest where the pain was emanating from and his fingers met with rough bandages. Felix panicked slightly as his eyes moved to his injury. His whole chest was covered in gauze which Felix assumed was hiding a wound that he could not recollect.

Once he had become more than slightly confused at the condition of his own body, he scanned the room for answers. His eyes passed over Hyunjin sleeping on the bed opposite him as he surveyed the room but once Felix focused in on the boy, he realised that it wasn’t his best friend at all. Instead, one of the boys that had been in the group they had attacked was dozing on the bed. Felix's panicked state became heightened when he realised who he was. Why was he sharing a room with someone who they had attacked? Did their group lose the fight? Had they taken Felix as a hostage? Where was Hyunjin? He wouldn’t have let them take him, right? Felix’s head swam with far too many questions and he felt that he was having a full on panic attack.

Felix slowly slipped off of the bed though doing so caused his whole body to scream with pain. He eyed his whip and carefully reached to grab it in the hopes of not waking the sleeping boy. Grasping his blood stained, ripped shirt from the dresser, Felix quickly slid it over his head and once he had gathered his belongings, quietly made his way out of the room. Fortunately, he had not disturbed the other boy who looked, in Felix’s opinion, absolutely exhausted as he snored quietly. He opened the door to the bedroom with extreme caution and carefully closed it behind him. Felix thought he had managed to escape successfully but as soon as he exited the room, he collided with somebody.

“Hey man, watch where you’re- oh, you’re awake already? Welcome back to the world of the living!”

Felix became alarmed once again as another one of the boys he had fought with earlier was now standing in front of him. Felix recognised him as the guy that his group had captured and beaten though Felix had taken no part in that. He and Hyunjin were against harming innocent people though most of their group were not of the same opinion. His face was covered in bruises which Felix thought probably hurt like hell. Strangely, the boy was grinning at him which made Felix extremely uncomfortable and he tried to turn and run but his arm was grabbed by the other boy.

“Hey, relax. I’m not going to hurt you. Calm down. Hey!”

“No! Let me go! LET ME GO!”

Hyunjin was sleeping peacefully when he heard the most beautiful voice. The sound felt like it was relaxing his entire body and making him feel reinvigorated. The sweet vocalisation continued as Hyunjin kept listening to the meaningful lyrics.

We can rest but it’s still too early,

We need to rest but it’s still so far away,

The path we must go on,

Even though we can’t see the end, we must go to the end.

On this path without a map,

It’s a maze, don’t wanna look back,

Only looking forward as we run,

Shining through the darkness.

As much as Hyunjin didn’t want to wake, he wanted to see who was singing so he slowly forced his eyes open to identify the owner of the voice. His eyes fell upon a young man sitting on the bed opposite to his. He hadn’t noticed that Hyunjin had woken as his eyes were closed and he continued to sing.

Don’t know any other way,

Only looked at one place for a long time,

So where do you want me to go?

Look at the night sky, look at the stars,

It’s like us, shining brighter in the darkness.

The singer slowly awakened from his trance as he finished the song and his gaze immediately flew to Hyunjin who stared back at him. A wide grin spread across his face which turned his eyes into crescents. Hyunjin couldn’t help but return a small smile to the young man.

“You’re awake? I’m glad. You collapsed so suddenly yesterday that we were all a bit worried,” the blond man explained to Hyunjin who was still a bit dazed after waking up.

“You were with the group we attacked yesterday, right?” Hyunjin asked, voice laced with care.

The man nodded before he introduced himself. “My name is Kyuhoon. I’m pretty sure I remember your name being Hyunjin, right?” Hyunjin bowed his head to show that he was correct.

“Did my singing wake you? Sorry, I was trying to see if I could help you out a bit. It’s actually a spell I learned a while ago. Apparently it’s supposed to help re-energize you but it only works on others and not myself so I don’t know if it’s effective or not. Do you feel any better?”

Hyunjin understood why he felt the way he did. Kyuhoon’s singing had definitely made a difference. He felt like a new person since all of the fatigue that had built up in his body had suddenly disappeared. The soft smile that formed on Hyunjin’s face indicated to the musician that his magic had done its job and Kyuhoon chuckled in response.

However, Hyunjin’s whole body froze when he realised why he was sharing a room with the other. They had attacked Kyuhoon’s group. They had fought. They had lost. They had been scolded. Their leader was shouting at Felix and then-

Hyunjin’s blankets fell to the floor as he scrambled out of bed before shouting at Kyuhoon. “Felix! Felix, where is he? Is he alright? He made it through the night, right?”

Before Kyuhoon could compose himself and reply to the worried boy, they heard shouts coming from the hallway.

“No! Let me go! LET ME GO!”

Hyunjin would know that deep voice anywhere and recognised that it belonged to Felix. He let out a breath he hadn’t realised he had been holding in and relaxed slightly before bolting towards his friend’s voice with Kyuhoon following closely behind him. Hyunjin opened the bedroom door to see Felix being manhandled by another one of the boys from Kyuhoon’s group. Felix was struggling so much trying to escape that he hadn’t noticed Hyunjin saunter over to them.

“Hey, Kyuhoon hyung. You want to try and help me out here? I’m-” Jisung let out a small grunt as Felix gave a particularly strong tug to try and break free from Jisung’s grasp. The Thief was surprised at how much energy the boy had seeing as yesterday he had been a bleeding mess on the ground.

Hyunjin came up behind Jisung and tried to gently grab Felix to calm him and let him know he wasn’t in any danger; these boys had actually saved his life yesterday.

“Hey, Lix, calm down. Felix, look at me. It’s Hyunjin. Relax!” Hyunjin placed his hands on Felix’s shoulders to try and face the panicked boy towards him. Once Felix’s eyes met Hyunjin’s, he stopped completely and his eyes started to water with relief.

“Jinnie? Where are-” Felix was cut off as Hyunjin enveloped him in a hug and pushed the younger’s head into his shoulder which drew a small groan of pain from Felix as Hyunjin realised he was probably putting pressure on his fresh wound. He quickly detached from Felix and smiled at the boy before he started giggling happily. Felix looked slightly confused at Hyunjin’s sudden laughter as he thought he might be descending into madness. The two boys were so caught up in the moment that they hadn’t noticed Chan and Changbin joining the others in the hallway.

Hyunjin noted the way Felix’s eyes suddenly became wide as he stared at the boys situated behind him. He placed an arm around Felix’s shoulders as a form of comfort before he tugged the younger down with him into a bowing position. The others looked at them with slight confusion before the boys straightened themselves up again as Felix suddenly turned to Hyunjin.

“Why the hell are we bowing to these guys?” Hyunjin hit the boys back in frustration which once again caused Felix to yelp at the pain from his chest. Hyunjin quickly apologised before continuing.

“We’re bowing to them because they saved your life yesterday. Do you remember what happened? Do you remember being...shot?” Felix frowned at Hyunjin, his eyes searching the others for answers before Felix’s features suddenly became terrified as he seemed to recollect yesterday’s events. He started to panic again before Hyunjin patted his shoulders and told him to breathe.

“Oh god, I screwed up, didn’t I? The boss was furious. I remember him pointing his gun at me but that’s it. Is he mad? What’s he going to do to us?” Felix trembled, voice full of alarm.

Hyunjin grimaced at the thought of his old leader and rubbed circles into Felix’s back. “He left us Lix. He shot you and told me that he didn’t need us anymore. He pissed off with the rest of the group and left you to die saying that we were a liability. This guy-” Hyunjin pointed towards Changbin who smiled softly once Felix looked at him “-he saved you. He’s a Medic. He spent over thirty minutes healing you and cleaning your wound. You owe him your life.”

Felix kept his eyes fixed on the Medic who Hyunjin had talked about. He was the one who was in the room with him earlier and Felix now realised that he had probably been watching over him and had fallen asleep. He had no doubt that it required an enormous amount of energy to heal a gunshot wound which is why he probably looked so tired. Felix looked away, slightly embarrassed at the way he had treated the other boys before he then turned to Changbin and bowed his head.

“T-thank you for saving me. I guess I wouldn’t still be here if it wasn’t for you.” Felix maintained eye contact with the ground instead of Changbin who was now giggling at the flustered boy.

“Don’t mention it. You gave all of us quite a scare yesterday, especially your friend over here.” Changbin tilted his head towards Hyunjin who bit his lip awkwardly.

“How about we head into town and get something for breakfast? I’m sure you guys are probably starving. We can properly introduce ourselves then, alright?” Chan suggested. The other boys nodded in agreement as they made their way down the staircase.

The group slowly walked down a street that was lined with different types of eateries as the aromas stemming from the shops made their stomachs growl. They stopped beside a marble building that offered freshly baked bread, cake and pastries and also a place to eat them inside. All of them lined up one by one and ordered an abundance of food such as croissants, pies and buns and Kyuhoon commented that they probably bought more than needed but when all of the food had disappeared from the table, it seemed Kyuhoon’s worries weren’t needed.

The colour had started to return to Felix’s face which Changbin was relieved about as it seemed that the boy was healing well. Jisung let out a content sigh as he hit his stomach to indicate that he was full. Chan chuckled at the action before turning his attention to Hyunjin.

“So, why don’t you tell us a bit about yourselves? Besides the fact that you used to be part of a gang of bandits that is,” Chan joked though both boys looked extremely embarrassed by the comment.  

“It seems that you already know our names. I’m Hwang Hyunjin and this is Lee Felix.” Felix bowed his head towards the group but had his gaze fixed on Changbin which made the Medic feel a little flushed though he wasn’t quite sure why.

“Yes, you’re right. We were a part of a group of bandits but it was out of necessity more than anything else. I met Felix a couple of months ago when we...were both trying to steal food from the same place.” Hyunjin’s eyes fell to his lap as he became very aware of the other boy’s stares.

“We were struggling to make ends meet. Hyunjin was an apprentice at a local Alchemist’s shop because that’s what he is too,” Felix commented.

“An Alchemist. I was right then,” Kyuhoon interjected. “You can mix and combine different items and substances to create bombs and potions. You have one hell of a throwing arm too. All of the bombs you used against us were right on target.”

Hyunjin laughed. “That’s because my grandfather used to teach me how to play baseball. It’s also why I think I’m an Alchemist. He was a scientist and I used to help him in his lab before-” Hyunjin came to an abrupt halt, his eyes glazing over as if recalling a painful memory. Felix noticed this immediately and took over the conversation in his place.

“Anyways, he was an apprentice but after seeing all of the incredible creations that Hyunjin could make, his master became jealous that he was so much better than he would ever be. He took credit for his creations and kicked him out of his shop telling all of the other Alchemists of the region that Hyunjin had tried to steal from him so that nobody else would hire him and realise that what he was selling actually belonged to Hyunjin.” Felix looked like he was getting angrier by the second before Hyunjin patted his head trying to calm him down.

“It’s ok, Lix. I’m over it. It’s just that when nobody is willing to hire you, it becomes awfully hard to make a living and earn money!” Hyunjin joked slightly though Kyuhoon could see a glint of sadness in his eyes.

“As for me, I have a bit of trouble using my class’ special abilities so I don’t really have anything to offer potential employers.” Felix looked slightly uncomfortable when he said this which made the others think that they shouldn’t push him for a reason. Well, most of them.

“Why can’t you use your class’ special abilities?” Jisung inquired which caused everyone to glare at the boy and his lack of tact as Felix smiled wistfully and began to continue his explanation before Hyunjin stopped him.

“It’s ok, Jinnie. They saved my life. They can hear the reason why I’m such a coward.” Hyunjin looked at Felix disapprovingly as he called himself what their boss had referred to him as a day earlier.

“I was assigned the class of Beast Master,” Felix said shyly.

Jisung’s face lit up immediately. “Oh my god! That’s so awesome! You can summon different animals to come and fight by your side during battles? That is so incredibly cool! What kinds of beasts can you control?”

Felix inhaled deeply. “I don’t know.”

Jisung, as well as the others, frowned at the young boy. “What do you mean you don’t know?”

“I-I don’t know because I have a...”

Jisung placed his hand to cup his ear as Felix had continued his sentence but had mumbled so lowly that the Thief couldn’t make out what he had said. “You have a what?”

“He said that he has a phobia of animals! He can’t summon any beasts to come and help him because he’s afraid that he won’t be able to control them and they might turn on him!” Hyunjin replied loudly towards Jisung who looked slightly taken aback as he nodded his head to show Hyunjin that he understood.

“When I was younger, I used to walk home from school everyday by myself. I used to live in Australia before my parents moved to Seoul because of work.” Chan’s head shot up as Felix said this but he allowed the younger to keep speaking.

“Everyday was pretty uneventful except for the day my phobia began. I was about ten years old at the time but I can remember it like it was yesterday. I had to stay later at school because of some extracurricular activities so by the time I left, it was starting to get dark out. My parents were still working and told me to stay at the school until they could collect me but I told them that I would be fine walking home like I did everyday even if it was a little later than usual.” Felix looked uncomfortable sharing his childhood memory but Hyunjin patted his leg to assure him that nobody was going to make fun of him as he continued.  

“So, on my way home, I took a little detour down a small alleyway that I usually wouldn’t take but it would get me home that little bit faster than usual. Probably wasn’t the best idea in the darkness but I was a stupid kid and didn’t think about what might possibly happen. Upon walking down the narrow alley, a rather large dog emerged from out of nowhere. I always loved dogs when I was younger but straight away I could tell I was in trouble. It ran towards me immediately and grabbed onto my leg with its teeth and the pain was unimaginable. I still have scars right here.” Felix lifted his pants leg to reveal multiple little red marks which blemished his pale skin.

“I was screaming so much but nobody seemed to hear me or if they did, they didn’t come to help. I couldn’t take it anymore and had to kick it off of me quite forcefully before it eventually ran away with its tail between its legs.” Chan couldn’t help but notice the coincidental similarities between Felix’s childhood story and his first day within Phantasm. He knew pretty much what it was like to go through something like this.

“I had to pull myself up and limp all the way home. My parents were actually there before me and they had become so worried that they were about to send out a search party but when I came through the door, they were both relieved and horrified. They took me straight to the emergency room and I had to undergo a small surgery while staying in the hospital for a couple of days. They asked me what it was that injured me but I was too traumatised to remember at the time. It took months before I could actually talk about it.” Felix was looking more and more agitated as he recalled the story.

“I realised very quickly once I had healed up that I had developed a fear of animals, especially if they were dogs. When I even saw one on the street at home, I’d have a panic attack and start screaming. Though my parents moved to Korea due to work, they thought it would be a good idea to separate me from where my trauma stemmed from. However, it didn’t do much good. I’m still terrified of most animals because I know what they’re capable of. I’ve tried a couple of times to overcome such a stupid fear but my chest gets tight and I start to relive the pain I felt that day, both physically and mentally. I realise not all animals are savage like the one I encountered but the little voice in the back of my head just won’t allow me to get over this so easily. Then I get stuck in this damn game and they give me the class of Beast Master? How sick and twisted are these bastards?” An annoyed scowl spread over Felix’s face as he thought about the irony of his situation.

“I know you can control an array of different beasts and monsters and I’ve even been told that strong Beast Masters can even summon mythical creatures like dragons but I just don’t think that I could control them so I’ve never tried to in case they don’t recognise me as their master and attack me instead.” Felix finished his explanation with the expectation of laughter from the other boys but he was met with an understanding silence. When he glanced at the others, each and everyone of them, including Hyunjin, wore a sympathetic smile on their face. It was then and there that Felix knew he could probably trust these boys when they hadn’t laughed at one of his most distressing secrets.

“So, since I was being shunned by all of the Alchemists in the region and Felix didn’t have any marketable skills because of his phobia, we had to result to stealing to survive. We aren’t some common thieves. We know it’s wrong to take what isn’t ours but we didn’t have much of a choice.”

Hyunjin didn’t notice Jisung narrowing his eyes at him at the mention of thieves being common and basically insulting his class. Changbin laughed loudly at his friend’s scowl which Felix looked surprised at. He began to think that Medic had a cute laugh but quickly shook his head at the surprising thought that had crept up on him.

“We stuck together through the hard times and that’s when we came across Seunghyun and his group of thugs. They were recruiting new members in the local tavern and were promising food, shelter and a small income and the state we were in, we really couldn’t say no to something like that, no matter how much we disagreed with their methods of obtaining money. So we joined and travelled with them.” Hyunjin became slightly annoyed as he thought about what they had to endure simply so that they could survive within the game.

“Everytime the group would strike unsuspecting people, Felix and I couldn’t bring ourselves to kill innocent civilians. At the very most, we would knock them out so they couldn’t fight back and possibly end up getting killed by the others. Once they were incapacitated, we would loot their belongings before taking off. It made us hate ourselves everytime we took part in it and on a number of occasions, we actually tried to leave but Seunghyun said that we owed him for taking us in and keeping us alive. I guess in the end though, we were too much trouble for him and disappointed him too many times.” Hyunjin became frustrated as he thought back to Felix getting shot and dragged his hand through his raven hair.

“And I guess that pretty much brings you up to speed on our stories. I don’t know if there’s much else we have to tell you,” Felix declared while Hyunjin smiled beside him.

Chan, Kyuhoon, Changbin and Jisung all looked like they had just been through a roller coaster of emotions. It seemed like these two boys had been through quite a lot in their short amount of time here. Once they had finished their story, Chan took the opportunity to question Felix.

“Hey Felix, you said you were from Australia originally? Where abouts?”

“Huh? Oh I’m from Sydney.”  

“No way! So am I! I moved to Korea when I was ten with my family but I come from Sydney too.” Felix's eyes suddenly lit up and he scooted over to sit beside Chan leaving Hyunjin looking slightly shocked that his best friend had suddenly abandoned him for someone else. Kyuhoon laughed at the unamused look on the boy's face.

“Don’t worry Hyunjinnie. Felix will get bored of Chan eventually. He’s not all that interesting.”

Chan turned towards the older with a surprised and slightly hurt look on his face to which Kyuhoon burst out laughing. Changbin and Jisung chuckled along with their hyung which made Hyunjin soften and giggle too.

Kyuhoon went on to explain to the boys about their classes and the reasons behind them though he mentioned that Chan still wasn’t quite sure why he was a Knight and that Jisung didn’t feel comfortable in revealing the reason that he was a Thief just yet, though Changbin and Kyuhoon already knew most of his story. The boys sat and chatted together for a couple of hours, sharing stories and laughter before the owner of the store started to glare at them for taking up so much space and starting to make a little too much noise. The group gave small apologies before they departed which the owner accepted with a small grin.

It was just past midday when they left and they gathered outside of the shop. Hyunjin and Felix looked slightly nervous as they thought about what they should do next now that their livelihood had been all but thrown out the window. Changbin eyed the boys before speaking.

“Felix, I don’t think I feel particularly comfortable in letting you leave just yet. I know you may feel alright but I’d like to take another couple of days at least to make sure you’re healing properly.”

Felix looked a little shocked at Changbin’s suggestion. He did feel fine, especially after the time that the group had just spent together but he wasn’t going to say no to staying with them for a little longer. He wanted to spend more time with all of them, especially Changbin. Felix smiled widely which made Changbin’s breath catch in his throat.

“Ok, I don’t have a problem with staying with you guys for a few more days. Unless Hyunjin has other plans.” Felix turned to Hyunjin who was already furiously shaking his head to show that he didn’t want to leave the group either.

Chan and Kyuhoon looked at each other knowingly and thought that they might need to have a conversation with Changbin and Jisung later to discuss potentially letting the two boys join their group. They had already grown attached to them and after hearing their story, Kyuhoon definitely didn’t want to let them go back to having to steal food in order to survive.

“Listen, we should stay in town at least until tomorrow and Changbin can make sure Felix is up to scratch before we make any other plans, alright?” Kyuhoon advised.

Everyone approved of the decision with Felix and Hyunjin looking at each other with hope in their eyes. Felix mentioned that he felt a little tired so Hyunjin and Changbin suggested that they head back to the inn to rest for a while. Chan, Kyuhoon and Jisung told the others that they would go ahead and survey the town a little to see if they could gather any useful information. The group was always looking for ways to improve themselves so that they could accomplish their final goal of escaping Phantasm and even in towns as small as this, there could be the slightest hint which could be of use to them.

Kyuhoon and Chan walked together down a side road of the town while Jisung was hopping from store to store inspecting all of their wares as Chan thought he looked like a kid in a sweet shop. After the incident with the bandits, Kyuhoon didn’t want Jisung going ahead without them or out of his line of sight, so he called to him everytime he got a little too far away for his liking. Jisung understood why Kyuhoon was so unnerved by his absence so he calmed himself and started to walk slowly beside Chan.

“So, Jisungie, what do you think about Hyunjin and Felix?” Kyuhoon encouraged.

“What do I think about them? They seem cool and it’s nice to have people the same age as me around. I think that I’d get along pretty well with them. Why?”

“What would you think if we asked them to travel with us?”

Jisung tilted his head and thought for a couple of seconds. “I’d be fine with that, even though their background is a little sketchy, I think they’re decent people. When I was captured by the bandits, I did actually hear Hyunjin telling the guys beating me that I had been put through enough, though I didn’t know that’s who he was at the time. He seems like a compassionate person.” Kyuhoon flinched at the mention of Jisung being hurt which made Chan squeeze his hand to comfort him.

“So yeah, I wouldn’t have a problem if they wanted to travel with us. I know it would make Changbin hyung happy too.”

Kyuhoon and Chan stopped to turn and look at the young Thief, their brows creased in confusion. “How do you know that? Did you guys already have this discussion?” Chan asked.

Jisung had to giggle at their expressions. “What? No, I didn’t discuss this with Changbin hyung but come on, you guys must have noticed it too.”

Kyuhoon and Chan glanced at each other, still none the wiser as to what Jisung was talking about. The younger scoffed in disbelief as his hyungs were so unbelievably dense.

“You’ve got to be kidding me! Did you seriously not see the way Changbin hyung was looking at Felix? Or the fact that he blushed everytime Felix looked at him? You guys are so blind!” Jisung mocked before starting to walk again.

Kyuhoon let out a small “ah” in understanding while Chan exhaled with a small laugh. They hadn’t noticed anything but obviously Jisung had. They thought back to their conversation in the bakery and did recall Changbin staring at the boy a lot. The fact that Changbin had been the one to suggest Felix and Hyunjin stay with them for a few more days was unlike the young Medic. Kyuhoon was sure that Felix was healed to an acceptable standard and would be able to continue on his own but Changbin had wanted him to stay. Also, Changbin was usually the first one to want to explore the new towns they visited but yet he had volunteered to go back to the inn with Felix and Hyunjin instead of accompanying them to investigate the town. Jisung turned back to smile at his hyungs who now nodded in understanding.

Kyuhoon placed his arm around Chan’s shoulders as they began walking again. Kyuhoon had just come to the realisation of Changbin’s little crush yet he was so oblivious to the blush spreading across Chan’s face from the close contact he made with the younger. Since Jisung was a Thief, his class allowed him to possess a great ability of perception so, even if Kyuhoon hadn’t realised that Chan became more flustered at the sudden closeness between the two, Jisung certainly had. He eyed Chan knowingly while giving him a wide smile which made Chan glare at the boy.

“Hey, Kyuhoon hyung. Do you want to hear one of Channie hyung’s really big secrets?” Jisung chimed.

Kyuhoon looked slightly confused but before he could respond, Chan detached himself from the older boy and bolted towards Jisung with a murderous look on his face. This caused Jisung to scream and run away from the enraged boy while laughing maniacally. Kyuhoon called out to them not to get too far ahead but his calls fell on deaf ears and he was forced to sprint after them. He was getting too old for this.

Hyunjin carefully closed the door to the bedroom that Felix was now sleeping in. He turned his back to the wall and slowly slid down to the ground. He hadn’t been alone since he found out Felix was going to live and a wave of relief suddenly engulfed his head as he began to tremble slightly at the thought that he almost lost his best friend. No, Felix was like a brother to him at this stage and he had let something like that happen to him. What kind of a friend was he? He was supposed to protect Felix but he allowed his former boss to shoot him right in front of him. Tears began to break from the corner of the Alchemist’s eyes as quiet sobs escaped his lips. He didn’t know why he was crying, Felix was safe. Hyunjin wondered if they were tears of relief or of self loathing. He was the one who suggested that they join the gang of bandits and if he hadn’t, Felix would never have been put in that position. It was his fault that Felix was hurt just as it had been his fault his grandfather was injured too. Why was he so useless?

“Hyunjin, are you alright?”   

Hyunjin jumped at Changbin’s voice as he hadn’t heard the other approach and quickly wiped his eyes with his sleeves before standing up and smiling.

“Yeah hyung, I’m all good.” Changbin wasn’t stupid. It was more than obvious that Hyunjin had been crying but if Hyunjin had tried to hide it, maybe he didn’t want Changbin to know why. The Medic rubbed the boy’s arm.

“You did well yesterday Hyunjin. Transferring energy isn’t an easy task, especially for someone who isn’t magically inclined. I could sense how badly you wanted to save Felix. He’s very lucky to have a friend like you.”

Changbin’s words seemed to hit Hyunjin pretty hard as tears sprung from the boy’s eyes once again. He quickly hid his face with his arm as Changbin became increasingly worried and tried to pry the boy’s arm away from his eyes.

“He’s lucky to have met someone like you, hyung. I’m the one who put him in that position. He was hurt because of my carelessness. What would have happened if there wasn’t a Medic in your group? What would have happened if you weren’t there? He would have died in my arms on the side of the road and I would have been completely powerless to stop it. I should have protected him. I should be stronger but I’m just…” Hyunjin’s words became incomprehensible as he whimpered, still covering his face.

Changbin felt an overwhelming sense of pity for the boy as he had been in his position so many times. When people had been brought to him to be healed but he was too weak and couldn’t save them. When Jisung had been beaten by the bandits, Changbin could only stand and stare at his friend as he was held hostage by the group of thugs. No matter how confident he felt in his abilities, Changbin still had times he doubted himself. He still had times when he blamed himself for things he had no control over. He still had times when he hated himself when he couldn’t help others. Changbin knew how Hyunjin felt all too well so he quietly placed his hands on Hyunjin’s shoulders as the younger looked up at him with a tear stained face.

“Don’t you ever think that what happened to Felix was your fault. Do you hear me? You are the one who stayed with him all of this time. You are the one who begged us for help. You are the one who gave me your strength to save him. So don’t you dare think that you’re useless. You care about your friend and I know he thinks the same of you, so please don’t blame yourself Hyunjin. It doesn’t do anyone any good and I know Felix would be furious if he knew that’s what you were thinking about yourself. Alright?” Changbin patted Hyunjin’s shoulders as if asking for a response.

Hyunjin rubbed his eyes and chuckled slightly at Changbin’s kind words towards him while nodding his head to show that he understood and thanked him. The sound of a door opening made both boys spin around to face a very sleepy looking Felix with a very messy bed head.

“Is everything alright? I thought I heard someone crying,” Felix yawned while rubbing his eyes. Changbin couldn’t help but smile at the boy’s dozy look as Hyunjin giggled slightly at the state of Felix’s hair.

Before either could reply, the others returned from surveying the town. Kyuhoon and Chan slowly came up the stairs, looking slightly out of breath as Jisung sprung towards Changbin and wrapped his arms around the older boy’s neck.

“Hyung, the amount of places you can eat in this town is incredible! We found this one place where they have over fifty flavours of ice cream. Fifty! We have to go there! Kyuhoon hyung said that we shouldn’t go without you guys so I managed to drag myself away from such a heavenly place but we can go there later, right?” Jisung made puppy eyes towards Changbin who looked away quickly so as not to be swayed by the other’s cute gaze. Hyunjin couldn’t help thinking that the relationship between Jisung and Changbin was exceedingly similar to that of Felix and himself.

“You are going to cause me to become bankrupt, Han Jisung. All I do is spend money to feed you!” Changbin scolded.

“It’s alright though because you love me so much, right? You wouldn’t want it any other way.” Jisung puckered up his lips which caused Changbin to crinkle his nose in disgust. He suddenly became very aware of Felix’s gaze on him which made him quickly pull away from Jisung causing the young Thief to stumble and come crashing to the ground.

“You just patched up my injuries this morning, hyung. Do you want to make more work for yourself?” Jisung asked, rubbing his nose which had bounced off of the floor.

Felix chuckled at the scene in front of him which caused Changbin to smile softly at the boy. Jisung looked towards Kyuhoon and Chan before gesturing towards Changbin as if to say ‘See? I told you so.’

Changbin quickly came back to the present. “So, did you guys find out anything? Any information?”

“Nothing with regards to Phantasm itself or who might be running it but we did hear a rather unsettling piece of news from the owner of the bookshop in the middle of town. Apparently, a man was spotted around this region a couple of days ago and the guards here have identified him as the one who was behind the murder of the Park family.”

Everybody in the group froze except for Chan who looked at the others with slight concern as they had reacted so suddenly.

“Wait, who is this guy? Who were the Park family?” Chan asked carefully.

“He goes by the name of Gyujin and he’s got a pretty hefty bounty on his head. Nobody really knows anything about him except his first name and the fact that he has a malicious reputation. The Park family were one of the first groups within Phantasm. They had actually been together before they entered this world or at least that’s what everyone hears. It’s extremely rare for groups to come into the game together. More often than not, people come in on their own, like everyone here. Rumour has it that somebody entered the Park residence in Morthan, which is one of the biggest cities within Phantasm and savagely murdered the mother, father and two young children who lived in the house. The guards think it was a burglary gone wrong but since the murders were so violent, there seemed to be some sort of personal motive behind it. He was captured after the incident but escaped shortly afterwards and a connection between him and the family was never put together. Apparently, he has a very distinct scar across his right eye and has been left blind by the injury which is how the guards here identified him. Just in case, we will have to remain extra vigilant and look out for each other even more than we already do. Alright?” Kyuhoon warned them with a serious look in his eyes.

Everyone in the group nodded their heads, all with a slightly terrified look in their eyes. Chan’s brow creased with worry and when he looked at the others, he couldn’t help but notice the way Jisung’s breathing had become rather uneven. The boy bit his lip and Chan could see his hands were trembling though he quickly tried to hide them in his sleeves when he noticed his hyung’s gaze fixed on him. The Thief smiled brightly at Chan but the elder knew that the grin on Jisung’s face was fake. He was worried about something and Chan could tell it wasn’t in the same kind of way the others were.

“After that rather unnerving piece of news, I think we could all do with spending a little more time together. Now that Felix is awake, I think Jisung is going to cry if we don’t take you guys back to that ice cream shop. Why don’t we head there now?” Kyuhoon clapped his hands together with his suggestion. Jisung’s expression had returned to normal as he jumped up and pumped his fist in the air before grabbing Hyunjin and Felix, linking his arms with both who were now on either side of him. All three of them headed towards the exit with smiles on their faces as their hyungs looked on and laughed. Changbin was right though. By the end of the night, he was going to be well and truly broke. 

When they returned to the inn, they decided that they would switch roommates for the night as Hyunjin asked if it would be alright if he stayed with Felix. He promised Changbin that he would make sure to watch over him which the Medic didn’t doubt. They probably had a lot to discuss and catch up on anyways. Jisung grabbed onto Changbin’s arm before whispering in the boy’s ear which made a smile slowly creep onto his face.

“Jisung and I will share a room tonight too, so Kyuhoon hyung, you’ll have to room with Chan hyung if that’s alright.” Chan stopped suddenly when he knew exactly what the two boys were up to. He looked over to see Jisung and Changbin raise their eyebrows suggestively towards him.

“That’s fine with me. I can get to know Channie a little better then,” Kyuhoon beamed. Chan was becoming more nervous at the thought of being alone with the other. He stared angrily at Changbin and Jisung as they walked backwards into the room they would share while Jisung gave Chan a thumbs up and Changbin gestured for him to go for it. He couldn’t believe these kids. He was going to kick their asses tomorrow.

All of the boys said goodnight as they entered their respective rooms. Kyuhoon flopped down on his bed while Chan situated himself across from him. He could hear his heartbeat quicken before he hit his own chest as if he was telling it to stop reacting so much. Nothing was going to happen.

“Channie?” Chan looked up suddenly at Kyuhoon who was smiling back at him. “It occurs to me that I really don’t know anything about you. I mean the you from the real world, not the one inside of the game. Maybe if you tell me a little bit about yourself, we can figure out why you were given the class you have.”

“About me? Oh, well, what would you like to know?” Chan inquired.

“Tell me anything you want. About your family or where you grew up. Stuff like that.”

“Well, my family is pretty normal. There’s my dad, my mom and my younger brother and sister. We lived in Australia for the first ten years of my life before we moved to Korea. I spent the next eleven years in Seoul. My parents moved back to Australia with my siblings a couple of years ago but I decided to stay put. Pretty ordinary, mundane life to be honest.” Chan concluded.

Kyuhoon tilted his head. Those who were assigned the Knight class were all about helping those who needed it, those who were assumed to be weaker in the eyes of society. Sure, Chan might have been protective of his younger siblings but Kyuhoon doubted that it would be enough to have that class given to him so he questioned further.

“There’s nothing there to really indicate why you’re a Knight. Anything else? What about where you work?”

“Ah, I technically work two jobs. The first is as a music producer. I haven’t done too much of that yet but I’m starting to really enjoy it. To be honest though, I spend most of my spare time at my other job which-” Chan cut himself off as he looked slightly embarrassed that he hadn’t thought of it sooner. Kyuhoon raised his eyebrows in curiosity.

“I spend a lot of my spare time helping out in an orphanage.” Kyuhoon looked at him with a deadpan expression. Had Chan seriously not realised that was why he was assigned the Knight class?

“You work in an orphanage? Where you help little kids? Who have no families or homes to go to? You basically protect them and give them what they desire most: human interaction. You’re trying to tell me that the thought never crossed your mind that this was the reason that you’re a Knight?!” Kyuhoon exclaimed.

Chan blushed at the Bard’s outburst. “I never thought of what I did as something spectacular. They advertised for a part time worker and I was looking for another job. It suited my schedule and when I worked there for a few days, I realised I loved spending time with the kids and the other workers there. I got to know them, played with them, learned their names, their likes and dislikes. I became attached to all of them. When one of them got adopted, we’d throw going away parties for them to celebrate that they were being welcomed into a new family. So, when they told me that they no longer needed me to work there, I volunteered there instead. I didn’t need to get paid because I never thought of it as work. I did it because I wanted to help these kids who had very little in their lives. I just- I didn’t think that it was that big of a deal,” Chan muttered quietly.

Kyuhoon’s shocked expression at Chan’s absent mindedness suddenly turned to one of compassion. He didn’t think of the reason he was a Knight because he truly believed that he wasn’t doing anything special. He thought that he was just like everyone else going through life but he was so much more. Kyuhoon realised how completely altruistic and empathetic Chan truly was. He really did encapsulate the characteristics of a Knight. Kyuhoon sighed and felt slightly guilty for raising his voice at the younger.

“You really don’t realise how selfless you actually are, do you? You don’t think very much of yourself but you think the world of those around you.” Kyuhoon smiled sadly at Chan who raised his head at the comment.

“I don't know. I guess,” Chan shrugged.

Kyuhoon hopped off of his bed and strolled over to Chan before slowly placing his arms around him as Chan exhaled slowly and hugged the older boy back.

“You really are a good person, Bang Chan. I’m glad that we met and that you joined our group but try to think of yourself a little bit more.” Kyuhoon pulled away from Chan while placing his hands on his upper arms. “You deserve to be happy too. I’ve noticed the way you take care of the others in the group. How you were so careful with Felix when you carried him all the way to the inn, how you constantly thank Changbin for the help that he gives you, the way you maturely patched things up with Jisung even though he was kind of the one at fault. I’m glad you treat the others in our group with such care and compassion but do try to be a little bit selfish sometimes. You’re worth so much more than you think.”

Chan’s ardent crush on the older boy seemed to be developing into something more at Kyuhoon’s words. He thought back to when Kyuhoon said that Bards could charm others with their voice but Chan thought that Kyuhoon didn’t need to use his voice, he just needed to simply be himself. Chan smiled a little while Kyuhoon did the same.

“We should probably sleep. We will have to discuss with Hyunjin and Felix if they want to travel with us tomorrow. I hope they will, they seem like good kids,” Kyuhoon commented.

“All we did was explore and eat today and I’m still exhausted,” Chan yawned.

“Go to sleep, Channie. I’ll see you in the morning.”

The boys turned the lights off and snuggled comfortably into their blankets. Both boys stared at each other in the darkness with fond smiles on their faces and a new feeling blooming in their chests.

Changbin was so exhausted and Jisung was snoring so loudly that neither of the boys woke when the window to their room was jimmied open. The hinges creaked slightly as the window opened inwards towards the room they were sleeping in. A shadow entered their bedroom and silently made its way over to Jisung’s bed. The young Thief had his blankets pulled over his head and was completely knocked out. The figure slowly drew a knife from their pocket and positioned themselves over Jisung.

As if he felt the presence, Jisung’s eyes slowly opened as he pulled down the blankets and when he saw an individual so close to him, he went to scream before a hand was quickly placed over his mouth. Jisung couldn’t make out the person’s face but could tell it was a young man. His hand was raised, adorned with his weapon, as if he meant to end Jisung’s life right then and there. The Thief’s eyes suddenly began to water as he could do absolutely nothing to protect himself. Changbin hadn’t woken at the presence of the man and Jisung couldn’t signal to him in any way that his life was in danger. Tears began to stream down his cheeks as sobs tried to escape his mouth though the man’s hand was still covering it to prevent any noise from waking the other boy.

The intruder suddenly flinched and moved in closer to stare at Jisung who was still crying. The moonlight lit up the man’s face which was slightly obscured by his hood and Jisung could see he was wearing a mask that only left his hazel eyes visible but they were not the eyes of the person he had been expecting. The assailant used the hand holding his knife to place a finger to his mouth, signalling to Jisung not to scream. He removed his other hand from the Thief’s mouth and the young boy was too terrified to make any noise. The man began to speak in a whisper.

“What’s your name?”

What? The intruder was suddenly asking Jisung for his name? This had to be one of the weirdest murder attempts in history, Jisung thought. He was shaken from his deliriousness when the man asked him the same question again but with more urgency in his voice.

“H-Han Jisung. My n-name’s Han J-Jisung.” The young Thief couldn’t help but fall over his words as he was downright terrified at the situation he had been placed in.

“Shit, your aura is almost identical to his. Since it’s so similar, it means that you’re related to Gyujin, right?”

Jisung froze at the mention of the name, similar to how he had done earlier when Kyuhoon had talked about him. The man began to glare at Jisung as if he was waiting for an answer and he slowly nodded his head as he continued to whisper.

“H-he’s my brother. I don’t know where he is though and frankly, I don’t want to,” Jisung answered.

The man cursed once again and Jisung suddenly became curious as to why this stranger was after Gyujin. He didn’t look like a regular guard who was searching for a dangerous criminal. Jisung thought back to what he had said about auras which only one certain class could see to identify their targets. He didn’t know where the bravery came from but he decided to ask a question.

“You’re a Tracker, right?”

The young man turned to scowl at Jisung who quickly shut his mouth again as he thought he had angered the other. Jisung exhaled with difficulty when his breath hitched in his chest as he thought back to the last time he saw his brother. He knew why Gyujin was in the area.

“He’s here because he’s looking for me.” Jisung had made the comment for himself but the intruder turned his head slightly when he heard the boy speak.

“I’m looking for that asshole. He needs to pay for what he’s done. You must know something that could point me in the right direction. You must have some clue as to where he is. If he’s here for you, I’m guessing you want your brother gone as much as I do.”

Before either of the boys could say anything else, a noise came from the opposite end of the room.

“Jisungie, is something wrong?” Changbin was beginning to sit up in his bed as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. The noise from the conversation between the stranger and Jisung had obviously stirred him from his slumber.  

Jisung had turned to look at Changbin as he spoke so, when his eyes returned to the spot the intruder had been standing in, he was gone. Jisung’s eyes flew to the window which was still wide open after the would-be murderer had made his escape. He thanked his lucky stars that the young man had identified him as the wrong target. He began to shake uncontrollably as the weight of the situation he had been in suddenly hit him.

Changbin yawned loudly and repeated his question in case Jisung hadn’t heard him the first time.

“No hyung. Nothing’s wrong. Just had a nightmare. Don’t worry. Go back to sleep.” Changbin did as ordered and rolled over on his side before soft snores flowed from the boy in a matter of seconds leaving Jisung alone with his thoughts.

His brother was here. He was looking for him. Jisung had managed to escape once but he knew it wouldn’t be as easy to do that a second time. Should he tell the others? Jisung was scared. He was scared that his brother was back. That his life was in danger. That if the others found out about his past that they would see him in a different light. He didn’t want them to treat him differently.

He wanted Kyuhoon to keep enveloping him in bear hugs that made Jisung feel like nothing in the world could hurt him. He wanted Changbin to keep spoiling him when he made puppy eyes at his hyung that he knew the older couldn’t say no to. He wanted Chan to keep playfully arguing with him in a way that made him feel like a kid again. Jisung wrapped his arms around himself as he rocked back and forth with his tears beginning to wet his blankets. He wanted things to stay the same but he was becoming more than certain that this could never happen.

Chapter Text

Jisung hadn’t gone back to sleep. His mind couldn’t seem to shut down due to the terrifying thoughts that kept bombarding him every time he closed his eyes. His head drooped with exhaustion but the sun had risen about a half hour ago so he knew Changbin would be waking up any minute. Jisung was usually the first out of bed in the morning and he realised that if he fell asleep now, the others would notice something was up and prod him with endless questions.

He threw his legs over the side of the bed and began to get changed but this was a challenge as his brain couldn’t seem to focus on the simplest of tasks. He managed to put his pants on backwards before misaligning the buttons on his shirt and since his emotions were all over the place, these little mistakes almost caused him to break down crying. Jisung placed his hand over his eyes and told himself to breathe. Everything was going to be ok. He was going to be ok.

A knock came on the door which caused Jisung to stand alert. He knew it was probably one of the other boys coming to wake them but ever since he was visited by a stranger out for his brother’s head last night, he realised he needed to be more cautious about everything. He approached the door and pulled it open.

“Jisung, you weren’t still asleep, were you? Rise and shine! Start of a new day and all that. You look like crap, by the way,” Chan chided.

Why wouldn’t he look awful when he barely had two hours sleep last night and spent the majority of his time awake whimpering like a child? Jisung gave a weak smile while trying not to meet his hyung’s eyes.

Chan quickly backpedaled on his remark. “Hey mate, I was just kidding. No need to look so upset over a joke, you don’t look that bad. I’m sorry, ok?” He nudged Jisung’s arm in the form of an apology and when he still didn’t get a reply, Chan immediately went into overprotective mode and stepped slightly closer to the younger.

“Jisungie, what’s the matter? Are you sick? Do you not feel well? Do you need Changbin to use his magic to make you feel better? Tell hyung what’s wrong.” Chan’s hands were placed on Jisung’s face as he tried to get the boy to look at him. As he raised Jisung’s head, a small smile graced the younger’s lips while his eyes crinkled shut.

“Nothing’s wrong, hyung. I just didn’t sleep very well last night is all. Changbin hyung was snoring so loudly that I couldn’t block out all the noise,” Jisung joked, trying to force the overwhelming feeling of anxiety in his stomach away.

Chan didn’t look convinced so Jisung tried to prove his story to be true. “You don’t believe me? Listen…” Jisung stepped aside to reveal a still sleeping Changbin who was, in fact, snoring quite noisily. Chan raised an eyebrow before moving past Jisung and leaping on top of a very scared and now awake Changbin. An ear piercing scream left the Medic’s mouth as he didn’t know why there was such a weight upon him so suddenly. He waited for his eyes to focus and realised there was a very annoyed Australian now glaring at him.

“What the actual hell, hyung? Is this the way you wake all of your friends? Cause let me tell you, it’s an easy way to give someone a heart attack!” Changbin fumed.

“I woke you up this way because you were being a very inconsiderate hyung during the night. Jisungie looks like death because you couldn’t keep your big mouth...and nose...shut!” Changbin’s eyes moved to Jisung who was trying not to break into laughter at the site of Chan now squishing Changbin.

“I don’t even know what you’re talking about! And I don’t have a big nose…” Changbin was thrashing slightly, trying to knock Chan off of his bed which eventually worked as Chan’s rear collided with the hard, wooden floor. “How was I inconsiderate?” Changbin directed the question at both of the boys, hoping that one of them would respond with a reasonable answer.

“You kept Jisung up all night with your damn snoring. Look at the poor boy, he’s exhausted.”

Changbin’s eyes widened and he glowered at Jisung before turning back to Chan. “Hyung, I’m sorry but you’ve shared a room with him before. My snoring is nothing compared to Jisung’s and you know I’m right!

Chan’s expression turned pensive for a moment before he realised that Changbin was right. Jisung did have a tendency to snore, really, really loudly and for long periods of time. Before either of the boys could spend more time thinking on the slightly pointless subject and possibly figuring out that this wasn’t the reason Jisung looked so awful, the younger boy let out a small yelp.

“Well, it doesn’t matter anyway, I feel fine. Have you woken up Felix and Hyunjin yet Channie hyung? No? Alright, I’ll go and do that now!” Jisung legged it out of the bedroom leaving a more than slightly confused Chan sitting on the ground with Changbin glancing after Jisung in bewilderment.

As Jisung made his way to Felix and Hyunjin’s room, he passed Kyuhoon, who grabbed his arm and hugged him so tightly that Jisung was worried his bones would be crushed. Kyuhoon bid him good morning as Jisung giggled happily and returned the greeting.

‘He won’t be so affectionate towards you when he finds out about everything that you did.’

Jisung stopped and quickly shook the echoing thoughts from his head. Upon hearing the Thief’s laughter halt so suddenly, Kyuhoon pulled away from the boy and stared into his eyes.

“Jisung, is something wrong? You don’t look so good.” Why were all of his hyungs so damn perceptive when it came to him but when it came to how Changbin was completely smitten with Felix, they were oblivious?

“I’m perfectly fine, hyung. You can ask Changbin hyung the reason I look so ghastly.” A scream from the aforementioned person’s room made Kyuhoon and Jisung whip their heads towards the noise.

“Hyung, get off of me! It’s not my fault Jisung looks so goddamn ugly in the mornings!”

Jisung made a mental note to make Changbin suffer later for the rude insult but took this opportunity to free himself from Kyuhoon’s grasp with the elder looking slightly worried at the sudden thump that rang from the bedroom followed by Chan shouting, “Ow, Changbin! What the hell? That hurt!”

Jisung tapped on the white wooden door of the boy’s bedroom. After about thirty seconds of rhythmic knocking, a weary looking Hyunjin answered the door while scratching his stomach. Jisung cackled at the state of the older boy which caused the Hyunjin to jut his bottom lip out in annoyance.

“I may have just woken up but I still look better than you do! The black bags under your eyes make it look like you got into a fist fight with someone.”

Ok, that was it. Jisung was sick of being insulted this early in the morning. Trying to be a decent person and waking the boys up obviously wasn’t going to be appreciated. “The last time I had bruises around my eyes was because of a certain group of thugs who took me hostage and beat the hell out of me!”

Hyunjin’s eyes widened at the comment and Jisung realised he might have gone a little too far. “Sorry, that was cruel. I didn’t mean anything by it I just...I didn’t sleep well and all of the hyungs have commented about how awful I look already and I don’t need to hear it from you too.”

“That’s alright. Hey, Jisung, don’t worry about it, seriously.” Hyunjin felt the need to reassure the boy that he was not hurt from his comment as Jisung’s eyes dropped to the floor the minute he had realised what he said. Hyunjin moved towards Jisung and put his arm around the younger to drag him into the bedroom.

“So, what is the funniest way you can think of waking someone up?”

Jisung glanced at Hyunjin who was giddily staring back at him. “Uh, I dunno…”

Hyunjin stopped with his arm still around Jisung’s shoulders. “I highly doubt that you, Han Jisung, have never played a trick on our hyungs. You must have woken one of them up in a way which made them want to kill you afterwards.”

Jisung was slightly confused before his eyes were drawn to Felix who slept with his mouth wide open as copious amounts of drool seeped into his pillow.

“Personally, I like to sit on Felix’s legs while I tickle his feet. He doesn’t have the strength to kick me off so he’s at my mercy. Once, I did that to him and he passed out from laughing so hard. Ah, good times.” Hyunjin placed his hand on his chest while smiling as he recollected the hysterical memory, though he wondered if Felix could remember it, having fallen unconscious from his actions.

“I think that’s very inventive. I must add that to my repertoire of ways to wake people up. I think you should demonstrate so I can see how it’s done by a professional,” Jisung suggested with slight enthusiasm lacing his voice.

Hyunjin nodded while tip toeing over to the sleeping boy’s bed. He positioned himself over Felix’s legs and bent down to begin the torture but before he could start, Felix leapt up and threw Hyunjin off of the bed. The action had been so fast that Jisung could only stand and stare in surprise at the swift movements from the younger boy. Felix reached across to Jisung before pulling at his arm, causing the Thief to come crashing down beside Hyunjin. Both stared at the freckled boy with shock and horror.

“You guys think you can take me on? Jisung, your class is supposed to be about stealth, yet you can’t even sneak up on someone who is sleeping? And you!” Felix motioned towards a slightly baffled Hyunjin, “You think that the time I passed out from laughing qualifies as good times? I’m always alert as a result of that morning and I won’t let you do that to me again! You guys want a fight? You’ve got one!”

Felix hurdled towards both boys who still lay on the ground before digging his fingers into their sides and tickling them with all his might. Jisung couldn’t believe how strong Felix was, he couldn’t seem to detach himself from the other who still also had a hold on Hyunjin. He thought Changbin probably gave him a little more energy to heal than was required which resulted in his powerful grasp. Jisung couldn’t think clearly anymore between how much he was laughing and hearing the other boys squeal and giggle at Felix’s constant tickling. All three were now rolling around on the floor like a bunch of kids but Jisung was more than content to mess around with them and have some fun.

‘You think they’ll still treat you this way when they realise who you are?’

Felix went hurtling backwards before hitting off of the wall as Jisung gave an overly strong push, causing both Hyunjin and Felix to stop laughing immediately and stare at the Thief questioningly.

“Felix...sorry. Are you ok? I didn’t mean to push you so hard.”

Felix beamed back at Jisung. “I’m all good. I probably tickled you too much, right? I know how much I try to kick and hit Hyunjin when he does it to me. No worries, mate.”

Jisung thanked Felix for not taking it personally though he didn’t know the real reason that Jisung had made such a sudden motion.

Kyuhoon popped his head in the open door to see what all the commotion was and upon seeing all three boys sitting on the ground, raised his eyebrows in suspicion but all three simply smiled in response. “If you kids are ready, come into our room. We want to talk to you about something.”

Hyunjin and Felix quickly stood and began to get dressed while Jisung made his way out of the room to give them some privacy. Everyone gathered in Kyuhoon and Chan’s room and made themselves comfortable before Kyuhoon began to speak.

“So, I think we’re all running a little low on cash at the moment. This town is so small that nobody is really in need of the services we provide. Myself and Changbin were talking and thought it might be a good idea to do some level grinding before we move onto Aquiria. What do you think?”

Hyunjin and Jisung nodded in agreement while Chan looked just a little bit lost in the conversation. Felix noticed Chan’s confusion and smirked slightly.

“Chan hyung, level grinding is when you go up against monsters in Phantasm and take them down with the skills you have learned. It helps you to become stronger and more confident in your abilities and whatever the enemy had on them when you take them down is yours. Some monsters drop items and you can use their pelts for upgrading your effects. People like Jisung who are Thieves can find objects on the body of the enemy that others like us can’t see and this is also true with regards to people if you go up against them in a fight. You can keep the items but more often than not, it’s more useful to sell them for money. In a larger group like this, it’s easier to take down bigger enemies which usually have rarer items that will sell for more in stores. Sorry, you just looked a little confused when Kyuhoon hyung started talking, I thought I’d help you out a bit.”

Chan hadn’t said anything but Felix had picked up on how utterly puzzled he had been when Kyuhoon had begun discussing level grinding. He was thankful to the younger Aussie for the explanation and smiled in response. Felix then cast his eyes downwards and Chan thought he could probably guess why. They would have to fight monsters, in other words beasts. Chan thought back to Felix’s explanation of his phobia and moved to sit beside the younger while the others were talking about where they should go to train.

“Hey, don’t worry mate, I’ll look out for you. I know I’m still pretty new to this but I promise I won’t let anything happen to you or anyone else here, ok? And I know everyone else will keep you safe as well, so you don’t have to worry about the animals attacking you while we’re around, alright?” Chan held out his fist for Felix who bumped it with his own in response. A small smile crept onto the younger’s face to show that he understood Chan’s promise. Hyunjin had also heard the quiet conversation between the two and internally thanked his new hyung for trying to make his friend feel more at ease.

“And that brings us to the second item on the agenda that we need to discuss.” Kyuhoon turned his attention to the two boys situated beside Jisung on the ground. “What do you two plan to do now?”

Hyunjin and Felix glanced at each other with Hyunjin biting his lip awkwardly while Felix played with his fingers. They felt like they couldn’t ask outright if they could stay with this group, they didn’t even know if the other boys wanted them to stay. After all they had been part of the group that had attacked them and even badly injured Jisung.

“Do you guys want to go your own way? We don’t mind if you do but…”

Both boys perked up at the “but” part of the sentence with a hopeful look in their eyes. Chan continued with a small smirk as if he already knew the answer to the question he was about to ask them.

“...you are more than welcome to join us and stay in the group if you want.”

Chan had barely finished his sentence before Felix’s arms were wrapped around his neck while Hyunjin was hopping up and down in one place, nodding his head with such ferocity that Jisung was worried it might pop off.

“I think we’ll take that as a yes?” Kyuhoon chuckled while looking at Chan who was having trouble breathing due to Felix’s constricting grip around his neck.

The chokehold which nearly made Chan pass out suddenly loosened as Felix disconnected himself and spun around to face Changbin who had his chin resting in his hands while smiling affectionately at the two new members. Upon seeing Felix stare at him, he coughed and sat back into a nonchalant position which only made Felix laugh harder. Jisung couldn’t help but shake his head while thinking that his hyung was completely whipped for the freckled boy.

“Right, should we head to the forest just outside of town then? There’s sure to be some prey to attack there,” Changbin commented. The boys gathered their belongings and headed towards the outskirts of the city.

The sweltering heat from the sun made the short journey to their destination unbearable. Kyuhoon and Chan had to endure unyielding complaints about the weather from the younger boys.

“Why do I feel like a parent taking their kids on a trip only to be shown no appreciation? All they seem to do is complain!” Chan placed his hands over his ears to try and block out the groans that originated behind him while Kyuhoon patted Chan’s back before snorting at the boy’s distress.

“Hey, at least you’ve only arrived here. I’ve been with Changbin and Jisung for three months. They constantly argue over trivial things while I have to step in as the adult and be the peacemaker but now, we have four of them to look after. I’m telling you, having kids is no piece of cake.”

Chan grimaced as the moaning from the boys only seemed to get louder as they went on but before he could blow a fuse, Kyuhoon turned and spoke.

“Ok, we’re here.” Chan stopped as he faced a small opening into a wooded area which was very reminiscent of where he had first woken up and been introduced to the dangers that Phantasm held. Chan shuddered as he thought back to the monster that had almost killed him on his first day here.

“I think it would be more effective if we split up into groups so that we can engage with more enemies and hopefully manage to obtain more items to sell. We’ll make a deal to only take on weaker enemies when we’re apart but later, when we reunite, we can try and think about looking for stronger ones. Everybody ok with that plan?” Kyuhoon placed his hands on his hips as if, whether the others agreed with him or not, this was the only plan available.

All of the others indicated that they were ok with this while Chan linked arms with Felix, not forgetting what he promised the younger boy earlier. They were to separate into groups of three, so when Chan asked who wanted to come with them, Hyunjin didn’t even have a chance to put up his hand as Changbin was already positioned at Felix’s side with a blank face.

“I-I think with Chan hyung being new to this game and Felix being a little unconfident in his abilities, it would be a good idea to have some medical support in case something happens to either of them,” Changbin proclaimed while looking anywhere but at Felix’s unrestrained and cheerful smile. Felix moved his free arm to join with Changbin’s, which caused a red tint to fall upon the older boy’s cheeks. Jisung had to contain his fit of laughter at the sight of his hyung being tamed by someone as adorable as Felix.

“Alright, that leaves me, Hyunjinnie and Jisungie to work together then.” Jisung raised his hand towards Kyuhoon to receive a high-five which made the older smile. He turned and made the same motion towards Hyunjin who looked slightly bewildered but humored Jisung all the same and slapped his hand too. Jisung pumped both of his fists in the air before grabbing his teammate’s hands and dragging them quickly into the forest. Both Kyuhoon and Hyunjin turned around and gave small waves at the other team before being spun around by Jisung and disappearing behind the trees.

“Ok, so do we have a particular strategy for this or do we just see if we stumble upon any monsters?” Chan directed the question towards Changbin, who seemed to have relaxed at the idea of linking arms with the freckled boy.

“I think we’ll just walk around and see what we come across. This would actually be a good time to learn about some of the beasts you can find around here, hyung. Some might look similar to animals that we have in our world but there are others that are unlike anything you have ever seen.”

“Oh, really? Well, I’ve already come across that monster that nearly killed me. That kinda looked similar to a wolf, though it was more like a mutated one.” Felix looked slightly concerned at the mention of Chan nearly being slain by a beast which didn’t help the tension pooling in his stomach.

“That was a Bafrer. They are essentially wolves that have been cursed by evil spirits which is why my magic was so effective against the one that attacked you as dark energies are weak to holy magic. They are weak to any white magic really, like the kind Kyuhoon hyung uses as well. And of course, strong melee attacks will work wonders against nearly every beast. That would be considered a medium strength enemy and it wouldn’t be too difficult to take down if we came across one, especially since you guys are with me.” Changbin flashed a proud smile which made Felix trip on nothing but since he was still holding onto the other boy’s arms, they caught him before he could fall with Chan telling him to keep an eye on where he’s going.

“A Bafrer. Ok, when we come across more enemies, you guys can explain to me what they are and I’ll do my best to remember.” Chan gave a thumbs up to the others who nodded with mock seriousness at the elder’s enthusiasm for learning.

It took about ten minutes of strolling before the group came across their first monster. Changbin removed the golden staff from his back and told the others that he would take this one alone so that Chan could observe what it was like to fight something other than a human. Felix stood beside Chan and explained to him that this small creature was called a Chiyeou and that it was extremely agile but quite weak when it came to attacking. Chan thought it resembled a miniature fox but was jade in colour, perhaps to help camouflage itself in the foliage of the forest.

Changbin disposed of the animal with relative ease though it took a couple of flashes of magic before he made contact due to how fast it was. They made their way over to the animal whose body was beginning to disintegrate into small flecks of shimmering dust which flew upwards into the atmosphere. Chan was mesmerised by the occurrence while the other boys moved down to where the beast’s body used to be and picked up twenty golden coins plus a green pelt that had fallen from the animal before it disappeared. Chan was beginning to understand that even with regards to fighting monsters, this was indeed like the console games he used to play as a kid. It didn’t have to make sense that an animal like that would even leave behind coins that they could use as tender in the shops back at the village. This was the way Phantasm operated and Chan wasn’t going to question it, he was just glad that they had encountered an enemy and gotten through it with no problems.

As the boys continued, they encountered other measly beasts such as Senvooaus, Corzos and Micaricis and Felix explained to Chan what each of these were, including their attack preferences and weaknesses. Chan thought that Felix was extremely knowledgeable about all of these beasts, even though he was so terrified of animals but then again, that might just be the reason he knew so much about them. Changbin skillfully stabbed a Rothebi, a maroon serpentine creature and picked up what the beast left behind. Felix explained that it wasn’t very fast but if it bit you, it would cause you to suffer rather unpleasant hallucinations. He told Chan that one had gotten to Hyunjin once and it took a whole twenty four hours for the venom to leave his system. He cried the entire time but couldn’t recollect what he had hallucinated about when he emerged from his daze. Chan noticed that Changbin was doing his best to show him how to deal with each of these creatures as it was his first time seeing most of them while at the same time, not forcing Felix to come into contact with the thing he feared the most which he was sure the younger was thankful for.

They had gathered quite a lot of items and loose coins and managed to avoid any bigger animals that they had caught sight of. Changbin had no intention of letting stronger beasts anywhere near Felix when he could see that the boy was slightly uncomfortable around the smaller monsters that they had come up against. They were happy with how they had progressed. Chan had helped Changbin take down a couple of the enemies and he felt he was becoming more confident in using his sword and shield to protect himself and the other boys which is really all he wanted to accomplish.

The three came across another Micarici, a small, round mammal that was covered in matted fur but when agitated, would harden said fur and fling it from its body towards enemies to deter them from attacking it. As Changbin walked towards the animal to dispose of it, he stopped before turning around. He grabbed Felix’s hand, interlocking his own fingers with the other’s, who looked more than a little shocked at the sudden contact. Chan folded his arms and raised his eyebrows in surprise at the sudden bold move the Medic had made. Changbin pulled Felix toward the small creature who looked ready to attack its enemies. Felix’s breath started to become uneven when he realised what Changbin was trying to get him to do. He tried to dig his heels into the dirt to stop himself but Changbin ceased pulling and spun around to face him.

“Felix, I want you to try attacking it, ok? Just use your whip to dispose of it and I will be right beside you the entire time. You should...probably let go of my hand so that you can steady yourself and focus on what you’re doing. It’s a really weak enemy and I won’t let it hurt you but I believe you can do this by yourself. What do you think?”

Felix’s eyes were coated with worry but upon seeing Changbin’s face, which was full of faith in his abilities, he felt like he should at least try what the Medic asked of him. He knew Changbin wasn’t lying when he said that he would protect him, just as he had done a couple of days ago when he had saved his life. He felt even more at ease when Chan moved closer to him with sword and shield in hand, ready to defend the boy if needed. Felix had always wanted to overcome this fear that had been holding him back for so long and felt that if he took even a small step such as this one, he may eventually be able to conquer such a feat. He looked back at Changbin and nodded his head slowly which caused the Medic to squeeze Felix’s hand in comfort before releasing it.

Felix took a couple of shaky steps towards the Micarici but maintained an adequate distance away from the creature at the same time. Even though he had agreed to do as Changbin suggested, anxiety was still coursing through his veins, causing his whole body to tremble slightly. He slowly raised his whip towards the animal which had already begun to harden its fur to strike at Felix. Before that happened, Felix flung the end of his whip towards the animal with unsteady hands. It missed the first time but with encouragement from Chan and Changbin emanating from behind him, Felix tried again and poured his energy through his weapon. This caused a golden glow to envelop his whip which illuminated the area as it came into contact with the small animal. Felix looked surprised as he hadn’t meant to allow that much of his energy to flow through his weapon but this didn’t interest him too much at the moment. He had managed to attack an enemy and more importantly, he had managed to eliminate it, all on his own. He stumbled backwards a little before spinning around to face his hyungs who looked like they had found a treasure beyond their wildest dreams. Felix leapt towards Chan, flinging his arms around the elder boy and squealing happily which caused Chan to return the hug and laugh along with him. Felix detached himself from his hyung before moving onto Changbin and completing the same action. While his arms were still around him, the Medic began to speak.

“Felix, that was so great. It was such a huge first step. You took care of that Micarici all by yourself! I’m so proud of you.”

“Thank you, hyung. I wouldn’t have been able to do that on my own if you hadn’t helped me to. Thank you, thank you, thank you.” Felix was swaying from side to side while hugging Changbin. Chan giggled at the two and when Changbin saw how Chan was looking at them, he quickly removed himself from Felix’s grasp and cleared his throat while looking away from the others.

“Yeah, like I said, really good job Felix. Let’s keep going, shall we? It’s almost time to meet up with the others anyways.” Changbin began to walk away without looking towards Felix again.

Chan moved to stand beside Felix and noticed the dejected look the younger boy had on his face, thinking that this was probably due to the sudden end to the hug he had shared with Changbin which made the Knight laugh in pity. He slung his arm around Felix’s shoulders and pulled the younger boy along to follow Changbin. They didn’t get very far before they were halted in their steps by a sudden scream from a familiar voice that echoed throughout the forest.

“Jisung! Look out!”

Kyuhoon watched as Hyunjin and Jisung sprinted towards a large black oak tree with Jisung winning the impromptu race. Hyunjin complained breathlessly that it wasn’t fair as Thieves had higher agility stats than Alchemists did to which Jisung scoffed and stuck out his tongue. Hyunjin pouted at Jisung’s childishness before jumping up, grabbing his head and digging his knuckles into it which caused Jisung to shout obscenities at the boy. Kyuhoon scowled and shouted at the Thief to watch his language.

As the group progressed, they took down multiple enemies which differed in strength but nothing that the three of them couldn’t handle together. They were then faced with a Kemuriagma, a demon whose body was made entirely of smoke which caused melee attacks to be completely useless against it as they couldn’t make contact. Hyunjin quickly pulled items out of his rucksack and began mixing them together while Kyuhoon began to sing a spell that lowered the demon’s defence and agility while, at the same time, raised his party’s strength.

The more I slowly close my eyes,

The clearer the light gets,

Will I see myself in the darkness?

I’m opening my eyes now.

Hyunjin produced a crystal white sphere from his hands and threw it at the Kemuriagma before it could attack the boys. While Hyunjin threw the ball, Jisung moved quickly behind the demon and snatched an item from it. Hyunjin’s concoction immediately detonated when Jisung had moved far enough back so he wouldn’t be caught in the explosion. A silver mist emanated from the sphere and the Kemuriagma was quickly enveloped in it, which caused it to freeze in place and become rigid. The smokey form of the demon was now unable to move as ice had engulfed its body. Since its form was now solid, Jisung returned to the Kemuriagma’s side and used his Daggers to shatter the demon’s body. It fell to pieces and began to disappear leaving behind numerous items including the small bottle of virulent poison which Jisung had snatched from it’s body before Hyunjin had stopped it. He knew it would sell for a high price when they got back to the village. The three boys came together once again and Kyuhoon threw his arms around his teammates to congratulate them on a job well done.

“Wow, we work really well together as a team, huh? We’re so in sync that it’s like we’ve been fighting together for months!” Kyuhoon seemed ecstatic at the boy’s teamwork which caused Jisung to smile proudly back at him while Hyunjin rubbed his head awkwardly at the sudden compliment that he wasn’t used to hearing since he had spent the last few months as part of the group of bandits. He felt that he really liked being a part of this team.

Kyuhoon looked at his watch and let the boys know that it was about time to meet up with the others, so they walked to the designated congregation point together. Jisung was starting to feel pretty weak due to lack of sleep and the amount of effort he had put into fighting the beasts they had come up against so that the other boys wouldn’t notice that there was anything wrong with him. He closed his eyes as he walked, so he didn’t even notice when Hyunjin came up beside him and placed his hand on the small of his back. Jisung snapped his eyes open to look at the older boy.

“Hey, man, I can tell something is up with you. You’re not acting like your usual self. I mean, I know I’ve only spent a couple of days with you but the shift in your personality from yesterday is way too big for nothing to be wrong. You obviously don’t want to tell us and I’m not going to push you for a reason but just know that if you ever want to talk to someone about anything, I’m here for you, alright?” Hyunjin whispered to the Thief so as not to alert Kyuhoon who was walking slightly ahead of them.

Jisung’s heart clenched in his chest at the kind gesture from the older boy and he felt like he wanted to pour all of his worries out to the Alchemist so he could comfort him and tell him everything was going to be alright. However, he had no idea how the boy would react to his past and Jisung didn’t want to lose his new friend, so he kept his mouth firmly shut and smiled.

“Thanks, Hyunjin. I’m alright. If I ever need to talk, I promise I’ll come to you.” Jisung threw his arm around Hyunjin’s shoulder and patted his arm to show his appreciation. Hyunjin let out a sigh at his failed attempt to get Jisung to talk to him but accepted the boy’s choice and found relief in the fact that he said he would come to him if he needed help. He mirrored Jisung’s action and put his arm around the other’s neck as they walked beside each other.

The group stepped out into an open field where they had agreed to meet with the others. Jisung flopped down on the ground, closely followed by Hyunjin. Kyuhoon scanned the area for the other boys but there was no sign of them. They had another ten minutes before they were supposed to meet so Kyuhoon wasn’t worried. Yet. Jisung ran his fingers through the grass as he allowed his eyes to close once again. He breathed in the fresh air and it was times like this that he had to remind himself that all of this was an illusion. They weren’t in the real world but he found it hard to distinguish the small differences between the two worlds sometimes. Sleep began to cloud Jisung’s vision but not before he felt the ground start to vibrate a little, which caused his brow to crease in confusion but he didn’t open his eyes. Why was the ground shaking all of a sudden? Was he imagining it because of how exhausted he was? His eyes shot open when he heard Kyuhoon yell at them both to stand up.

Jisung leaped up from the ground and looked around for the danger. It didn’t take long before Jisung’s gaze was drawn to the Gollias that was advancing towards them. The gargantuan ogre-like creature was slowly strolling towards them, dragging a worn, wooden club along the ground after it. Jisung started to panic internally as he knew there was no way the three of them could take on a monster like that by themselves. They needed the others, if not more people to come and help them. The monster was slow but if it managed to hit any of them in any way, they wouldn’t be alive to see tomorrow. The three boys wondered if they should make a run for it or engage it in battle but Kyuhoon knew from experience that even though the monster was slow, they more than likely wouldn’t be able to outrun it. Its thick, glaucous skin was impenetrable to most weapons and there were only certain magics that would make any sort of impact on the beast. They weren’t really left with much of a choice. They would have to find a way to at least incapacitate the Gollias before they could make their escape.

“We need to get out of here but that monster isn’t going to let us leave without a fight, so get ready. If we can even knock it to the ground, it might give us some time to get away. We can’t take it down alone and we don’t know when the others will get here. Are you kids ready?” Kyuhoon stood in front of the others, almost as if he was going to protect the boys with his body if the Gollias attacked them.

Once the monster had seen the group, it let out a small growl before sprinting towards them with a cry. It took large, unrhythmic steps but the size of the beast allowed it to cover a lot of ground and it reached them in a matter of seconds. All three boys dodged the beast’s club with ease and ran to position themselves behind the Gollias to try and formulate a plan in their heads. Hyunjin was trying to deliberate if there was anything he could fashion from the items in his bag that would have any effect on the monster. Something seemed to hit him as he began to rummage and pour some liquids together. Upon seeing this, Jisung tried to distract the Gollias so that it wouldn’t attack Hyunjin while he was working.

Jisung called out to the monster while quickly running away everytime the Gollias swung his club towards him. Jisung really didn’t want to come into contact with the weapon or he would end up as a puddle on the ground. Kyuhoon was again singing the same spell he had earlier which caused the Kemuriagma’s agility to slow down and Jisung knew that Kyuhoon had to keep still while he uttered the words to the song for the spell to be effective, so he did his best to distract the monster on his own.

The Gollias became tired of following the boy as it knew it was never going to hit him if he kept running around like a little squirrel. Instead of hitting Jisung, the monster swung its club down on the ground right behind him which caused the Thief to lose his footing and come crashing to the ground, smacking his head in the fall. He became slightly stunned and the fact that he felt weak before this fight even started wasn’t helping him to regain his vision. He raised his hands to his now pounding head and realised from the garish, red fluid now covering his fingers that the hit had caused him to start bleeding. He was shaken from his daze by the sound of Kyuhoon’s voice.

“Jisung! Look out!”

The sight of the Gollias’s club placed directly over his head slowly caused Jisung’s life to flash before his eyes. He didn’t have to worry about his brother coming for him anymore as he was going to die right here. Any strength that he had left in his body had now disappeared because of the fear that seemed to be paralyzing him. Jisung unwillingly resigned himself to his fate as he saw Kyuhoon and Hyunjin both sprinting towards him while screaming his name but he knew that they would never make it to him in time. Jisung inhaled deeply as he realised that the wetness on his face was not his blood but rather warm tears that had broken from the corner of his eyes. He didn’t want to go, not yet.

Jisung suddenly felt a pair of hands secure themselves around his waist before he was being lifted up off of the ground and moved away from the ear piercing thump which emanated from the Gollias’s club that had just come into contact with the ground. His eyes were still blurry from his tears but he knew that, even without his vision being clouded, he had no idea who the person was that had just saved his life.

“Were you seriously just going to lie there and let that monster kill you?” The boy’s voice was soft yet held a tone of disappointment when he directed the question towards Jisung who was still in his arms. Jisung wasn’t sure if it was because of the injury to his head but all he could seem to focus on was the modest smile that fell upon the stranger’s lips. He was brought back to reality when the Gollias let out a roar at the sight of its prey being taken away. The boy placed Jisung safely on the ground, away from the monster and told him to sit tight before turning to face the Gollias and running towards it. Just as he did this, Chan, Felix and Changbin came running up from behind Jisung with Changbin skidding to a halt beside his friend when he noticed the crimson blood trickling down his neck.

“What in the hell is that?” Chan was staring wide eyed at the monster who was now enraged as it tried to smash the boy who had saved Jisung into the ground.

“Holy crap, is that a Gollias? I’ve never seen one in real life before. It’s huge!” Felix said this with an amazed tone lacing his words but Chan could see how badly the other was shaking as he talked.

Changbin grabbed Jisung’s face and directed his gaze towards him. “Jisungie, are you alright? What happened? Where are the others?”

Jisung gestured towards the treeline where Hyunjin had resumed working on his concoction now that he saw that Jisung was safe, with Kyuhoon trying to help the new addition to the fight attack the monster.

“I’m ok, hyung, it’s just a scratch. Go and help the others. Felix can stay here with me. They look like they could use other fighters. Go…”

Changbin looked a little unwilling to leave his friend but once Felix said that he would make sure nothing would happen to Jisung, he looked towards Chan asking if the other was ready to fight the monster. Chan nodded in reply and the two boys sprinted towards their friends to even out the fight.

Felix placed a hand on Jisung’s shoulder and turned him to look at the gash on the back of his head. He grimaced at the amount of blood coming from the laceration and quickly shrugged off his jacket before using it to apply pressure to Jisung’s head. The Thief placed his hand on top of Felix’s and thanked him for the small comfort before turning his gaze back to the fight.

Hyunjin had finished whatever it was that he was working on but shouted to the others that he needed the Gollias to stop moving before he could use the item. Upon hearing this, Kyuhoon tried to think of a mantra he had come across in a book a few weeks ago that could halt an enemy in their tracks. He recalled the words and started to recite them.

Step out of them voices,

Blocking both my ears and they're shouting again,

Step out of them voices,

Break free from the voices in my head.

The Gollias became slower and slower, though it didn’t halt completely and Kyuhoon thought this spell might not be strong enough to thoroughly stop a monster of this size. The newcomer to the fight realised this and drew a long Katana from his back before running beneath the beast and slashing both of its ankles. The Gollias let out a roar from the pain as it fell to the ground with a thunderous boom. Kyuhoon was slightly shocked that the boy had a weapon that managed to cut the monster’s thick skin but wasn’t complaining as it was a great advantage in the fight.

Changbin began casting a curing spell over the others within the fight to try and give them more energy to defeat the beast while Chan stood in front of him, protecting the focused boy just in case. Hyunjin ran towards the Gollias and hurled a rather heavy looking cube at the monster. Almost immediately after making contact, the beast’s body was engulfed in flames which elicited a scream unlike any of them had ever heard before. Hyunjin knew, thanks to Felix’s knowledge, that a Gollias would be weak against flame and fire attacks as its entire body was coated in a substance that closely resembled grease. The monster began to writhe due to the pain and continued to do so for about two minutes before becoming still. Its body began to vanish in front of the boys which was an indication that they had done the unthinkable and not only stopped the beast, but killed it.

Once they had gotten over the shock of what they had just done, they all let out a cheer at their victory with Hyunjin high fiving Kyuhoon and Chan placing his arm around Changbin. They celebrated for a few seconds before remembering Jisung and running back over to him. He seemed to have regained his senses once the others had reached him as Changbin told the younger to lie down so he could begin treating him. He complied but suddenly sat back up which caused a feeling of dizziness to engulf his head. He moved his neck to see past the others, with the group looking confused before they realised what, or rather who, he was looking for.

Standing a couple of meters away was the boy who had saved Jisung from becoming a nothing more than a memory. As he saw all of their eyes on him, the boy gave a weak smile and chuckled a little. Jisung couldn’t seem to look away from him but thought that this was simply because of the fact that he had just saved his life and nothing more.

“Uh, hi. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt your fight, it just looked like you needed a little bit of help.” He nodded his head towards Jisung who blushed a bit in embarrassment.

“Don’t apologise for joining in. You saved Jisung’s life. We wouldn’t have made it to him in time, so thank you,” Kyuhoon exulted which caused the new boy to scratch his head in self-consciousness.

“Where did you even come from?” marveled Hyunjin.

‘With a face like that, probably heaven ,’ Jisung thought before his eyes widened and he placed his hands over his face at the sudden bold thought that crept into his head.

“I was training by myself just through there.” The boy gestured to the trees near where Chan and the others had emerged from. “I heard someone shouting and came to investigate. I saw you on the ground ready to be squashed and thought that I should probably help out.”

“We were lucky you were around. I don’t know if Jisungie would have made it if you weren’t there.” Jisung hit Changbin at the use of his nickname in front of the stranger which caused the new boy to smirk.

“Oh, by the way, I’m Chan. Nice to meet you.” Chan gestured to himself and then to each of the other boys in the group before he introduced them, with all of them giving a “hi” or a little wave.

“So, what should we call you? Besides Jisung’s saviour that is,” Felix joked which caused Jisung to narrow his eyes a little at the boy.

“Oh, it’s nice to meet you all. I’m Minho. Lee Minho.”

Chapter Text

Once the pleasantries and introductions had been dealt with, the group started to make their way back towards the village as night was beginning to descend but not before they collected their prizes for defeating the Gollias. It left behind no less than ten thousand gold coins, six strength potions and a Scimitar sword. Changbin mentioned that Chan could use this new sword or keep the one he had. Chan decided he didn’t want to switch his weapon so easily and indicated that he would hold onto the Mortuary sword that he had bought from Chul Moo, so they all decided to sell it instead.

After Changbin had administered first aid, Kyuhoon placed Jisung on his back to return to the inn. Jisung kept having to reassure Kyuhoon that he was fine since the older boy wouldn’t stop apologising for not being able to protect him like a good hyung should have. Jisung rested his head on Kyuhoon’s shoulder as he carried him, which allowed the young Thief to finally catch up on all of the sleep he had missed out on. Minho, who was walking at the back of the group, let his eyes fall on the sleeping boy before he was quickly dragged back to the present.

“So, Minho-ssi, are you from around here?” Felix fell back to walk beside him which caused Hyunjin to do the same.

“Uh, no. I originally began the game in Aquiria but I travel around a lot. I’m actually planning on heading back there pretty soon. And you can call me hyung if you want. Minho-ssi makes conversations seem too formal.” Felix’s face seemed to light up at the comment.

“No way, that’s where we’re headed too. You should come with-” Felix was cut off by Hyunjin, who firmly punched his arm and shook his head.

“That’s not for us to decide, Lix.” Felix gave an apologetic smile towards Minho and cast his eyes down to the ground. Hyunjin realised he probably reacted too harshly but he didn’t want the others to think that they were taking advantage of their kindness by making decisions like inviting someone new to join them without first asking them. The others weren’t oblivious to the conversation between the three boys though.

“You’re heading back to Aquiria, Minho? Do you travel alone?” Chan had craned his neck backwards while still walking forwards.

“Yeah, I’m a bit of a loner. Though I don’t mind having some company once in a while.” Minho flashed a white smile with his reply.

Chan turned to look at Kyuhoon and Changbin, who seemed to be of the same mindset as the Knight.

“If you want some company while traveling back to Aquiria, you could come along with us if you’d like. You seem like a decent fighter and help like that is always appreciated.”

Felix looked at Minho with expectant eyes and Hyunjin could tell that Felix was already beginning to look up to the older boy, possibly because of how easily and skillfully he had managed to take down the Gollias.

“Really? You guys wouldn’t mind if we travelled together until Aquiria?”

Felix answered for all of them with the frantic shaking of his head. “We’d love it if you came along hyung. We’re leaving for the city tomorrow, if that’s alright with you.”

“I’ll take you up on that offer then. It’s a long trek when you go alone. Having someone to talk to would make the journey seem shorter.”

All of the boys smiled towards the temporary addition to their group and headed in the direction of the village. Chan began to turn around to ask Minho where he was staying but before he spoke, he noticed the boy had his gaze set on Jisung with an unreadable expression. Perhaps he was still worried about the boy sleeping on Kyuhoon’s back, even though Changbin had already healed him to an acceptable standard. Once Minho caught Chan’s eye, his manner quickly changed, letting a small smile fall upon his lips. Chan thought nothing more of it and asked Minho where he was lodging, with Minho replying that there was another inn on the opposite edge of the town where he had stayed the last couple of nights. The group made a plan to meet outside the tavern in the centre of town tomorrow at ten in the morning before leaving for Aquiria. The boys headed towards the inn but before Minho could leave, Kyuhoon called out to him while still carrying Jisung.

“Hey, I just wanted to say thank you again for saving Jisung. Seeing that Gollias going in for the kill was one of the most terrifying things I’ve ever experienced and not just in Phantasm. Jisung is really precious to all of us and I don’t know what we would have done if we had lost him. So, thank you, Minho.”

Minho glanced at the dozing boy before smirking slightly at Kyuhoon. “Don’t mention it, Kyuhoon-ssi. It just seemed like the right thing to do at the time. I’m glad your friend is safe too.”

“If Felix can call you hyung, then you can call me hyung too. You’re practically one of us thanks to your daring rescue anyways.” Kyuhoon let out a laugh but quickly quietened himself as he didn’t want to wake Jisung.

“Ah, ok then...hyung.” Minho returned Kyuhoon’s smile and waved happily as Kyuhoon returned to the inn. Once they had disappeared from sight, Minho’s expression shifted to one of indifference as he let his hand fall to his side. While whistling a familiar tune, he turned on his heel and made his way towards his lodging.

Kyuhoon placed Jisung gently on his bed and pulled the blankets over him to keep him warm. The Bard had asked if he could stay with Jisung tonight so Changbin had switched rooms with him. Kyuhoon pushed Jisung’s hair from his eyes and let out a small sigh. Why was it always Jisung that they couldn’t protect? Why was the young Thief always the one to get the brunt of the attacks that they endured? As if the young boy hadn’t gone through enough in his life already, this game treated him just as badly. Kyuhoon felt that the kid just couldn’t catch a break. He moved to sit on his own bed, with the springs creaking slightly due to his weight. He let his head fall into his hands as he thought back to the fear he felt when Jisung had almost been killed. He ran with all his might but he knew no matter how fast he sprinted towards his friend, he wasn’t going to be able to save him.

When Minho had materialised out of nowhere and swept Jisung up in his arms and out of harm's way, Kyuhoon thought his legs were actually going to give out from under him due to the relief. He could feel tears pricking his eyes but he didn’t want to start crying over nothing. Jisung was safe and snuggled up in bed beside him. He thought about how badly he wanted to return home with these boys and protect them all once they got there. He wanted out of this dangerous place, where he had already seen so many people die. He didn’t want to lose any more of his friends. He wanted to go back.

“Kyuhoon hyung?”

The Bard’s head shot up at the sound of Jisung’s voice, who was yawning while stretching his arms into the air. He looked a little pale even though Changbin had healed him up earlier, which worried Kyuhoon slightly. The elder moved over to Jisung’s bed and knelt down beside him while feeling his forehead.

“Jisungie, how are you feeling?”

“I’m fine, hyung. I didn’t mean to fall asleep on the way back here. Is everyone ok?” Jisung rubbed his eyes in exhaustion while Kyuhoon grinned at the younger.

“That’s alright. You were drained from the fight earlier. Plus, Channie said that you didn’t sleep properly last night either so that probably added to how tired you were. And yes, everyone else is fine.” Kyuhoon gently pushed his fingers through Jisung’s hair, being careful not to touch off of the wound on his head. His comforting smile soon vanished and he dropped his head.

“Jisungie, I’m so sorry that I let you get hurt. I should have been helping you to distract the Gollias. I wasn’t beside you and because of that, you nearly…” Jisung quickly held up his hand in front of the elder’s face. 

“Hyung, if you apologise one more time, I’m afraid I’m going to have to kill you, which will be awfully ironic considering what you’re apologising for!” he scolded. Jisung then began to mimic Kyuhoon’s actions by softly patting his hyung’s hair and Kyuhoon could only laugh at the boy’s generous spirit.

“You look exhausted too, hyung. Go to sleep.”

Kyuhoon nodded slightly with an uneven smile and began to make his way to his own bed before Jisung caught the end of his jumper, causing Kyuhoon to turn around and face the boy.

“I told Chan hyung the reason I didn’t sleep last night was because of Changbin hyung’s snoring, which was partly true but I also sort of had a...nightmare that really scared me. Can you…” Jisung slowly trailed off. “You know what, nevermind, it’s ok.” Jisung began to turn away to face the wall before Kyuhoon caught his shoulder to make the boy turn back around and face him.

“What do you want me to do, Jisungie?”

“Can...can you stay here with me, even if it’s just for a little while?”

Kyuhoon didn’t hesitate. He walked over to turn off the lights, moved back to Jisung and motioned for the younger boy to shuffle over in the bed to make room for him. He wriggled beneath Jisung’s covers and wrapped his arms around him to pull him closer in the bed that obviously wasn’t made for more than one person. Jisung nuzzled his nose into his hyung’s chest and let out a small sigh of relief that Kyuhoon was so willing to look after all of their needs, no matter how silly they thought it might be.

“I’ll work harder to keep you boys safe. I promise you that right now, Jisungie. Don’t ever feel like you can’t tell me anything or ask me to do things like this for you, ok?”

There was no reply from the younger as he had already nodded off and was snoring softly.

“Good night, Jisungie. Sweet dreams.” The events of the day took their toll on the two boys and both fell into the land of dreams within mere seconds while still holding onto each other.

The weather had gone from one extreme to another. The younger boys were complaining about the unbearable heat the day before while today, they complained about the bitter cold that was nipping at them. They bundled themselves up while making sure they left nothing behind at the inn. Kyuhoon made the point that they should stop by the general store in town and rid themselves of all of the items they had obtained yesterday instead of dragging them all the way to Aquiria. The group made their way to the store, with all going inside except for Jisung and Felix who waited on the entrance steps.

Jisung felt much better than he did last night. He woke up to Kyuhoon still hugging him closely and realised he hadn’t stirred all night. He was thankful that no nightmares had disturbed his sleep and wondered if it was thanks to his hyung’s arms around him. While they waited, Felix couldn’t seem to stop talking about how cool he thought Minho was and that he couldn’t wait to get to know him better while they journeyed together, even if it would only be for a short amount of time.

Jisung nodded in response, feigning disinterest but as soon as he saw Minho in the distance, a small smile tugged at his lips. Felix shot up and started to wave at the boy, who shyly returned the greeting. Jisung grabbed Felix’s thick coat and dragged the younger boy down again, telling him that he was embarrassing himself. Felix pouted at the Thief who glowered in response. Minho came to stand in front of the two boys, with his freezing hands stuffed firmly inside of his pockets.

“Good morning. I thought we were supposed to meet in front of the tavern. How come you guys are here?”

“Mornin’, hyung. We’re just selling the treasures that we found from monster hunting yesterday. All of the others are inside the store. You look like you’re freezing.” Jisung rolled his eyes slightly at the younger due to his obvious observation. Of course he was freezing, all of them were.

“Are you feeling better today, Jisung? How’s the injury?” Minho made a gesture to the back of his own head while directing the question towards the Thief.

“Uh, I, uh, feel fine, hyung. No need to worry about me. I’m used to this kind of thing. It always seems to be me getting beaten up.” Felix looked away sheepishly but Jisung slowly put his arm around his shoulders. “That wasn’t meant to be a dig at you. I’m just talking about my life in general.” He ruffled Felix’s hair which caused the boy to shrug him off quickly with a small shout.

Felix jumped a little as he remembered something. “Hyung, we were so exhausted yesterday that we never got to ask you what class you are.”

Minho raised his eyebrows while he scratched the back of his head. “Oh, I was assigned the Shadow class.”

Felix looked towards Jisung who was frowning a little at Minho’s answer. “So that means you fall within the same category as Jisung. Using stealth to attack your enemies. That was probably why Hyunjin and Kyuhoon hyung almost didn’t see you when you rescued Jisung yesterday. You teleport through the shadows to get to your destination, right?”

“You seem awfully educated on my class, Felix. You’re not a Shadow too, are you?” Felix opened his mouth to start talking but quickly realised he didn’t want to embarrass himself in front of Minho by telling him his childhood story.

“He’s a Beast Master. He doesn’t like to use his class’s abilities so he kind of sticks to using his melee weapon, which I think is pretty cool. He’s strong enough to simply rely on that.” Felix quickly gawked at Jisung and his ability to come up with a lie like that. It wasn’t that Felix didn’t want to use his abilities, it was that he couldn’t but Jisung had managed to come up with an excuse that didn’t make Felix feel self-conscious, which Minho seemed to accept.

“Oh, that’s pretty much like me then. I find using my abilities puts a lot of strain on my body so I pretty much stay away from using my skills and stick with my Katana.” Minho gestured to the sword on his back which Felix ogled with amazement. Jisung moved his head to glance at Minho’s weapon too. It was protected by a black, leather case but the hilt was still visible. Ruby gemstones littered the top of the sword with golden thread flowing down to where the handle met the blade.

“Jisung, how about you?” Jisung was startled by Minho’s voice and stared at him in confusion before Minho giggled and spoke again. “What class are you, I mean?”

“I’m a Thief. Similar to you with regards to agility but I tend to use my speed for dodging attacks and stealing rare items instead of attacking,” Jisung explained before he realised how morally ambiguous it sounded.

Before the conversation could progress any further, the rest of the group emerged from the store with overjoyed expressions. Upon seeing Minho, Hyunjin leapt down the stairs to meet him while the others simply called his name and waved. Minho tilted his head and smiled before giving a “good morning” of his own.

Felix turned to Kyuhoon with eager eyes. “So, hyung, how much did you get?”

Kyuhoon’s grin widened at the question. “After selling everything and counting the money the enemies dropped too, the total came to 29750 coins.”

“Holy shit!”

“Jisung! Watch your language…” Kyuhoon warned the Thief.

“That’s 4250 each between the seven of us,” Chan beamed, obviously happy with the outcome.

“Is there someone else traveling with you guys?” All eyes flew towards Minho who asked the question.

“No, all of us are here. Why?” queried Changbin.

Minho moved his fingers over each of the boy’s heads and grimaced.

“You said between the seven of you so, unless I’ve become too stupid to count, I can only see six of you here now.”

Kyuhoon laughed a little at the boy’s puzzled expression. “What? You think we wouldn’t include you in the division of money? You helped us out big time yesterday so we think you deserve your share of the prize too.”

Minho raised his eyebrows in surprise and pointed to himself. “Wait, you included me? Why would you do that?”

Chan exhaled through his nose. “For the reason Kyuhoon just said. Do you not think you’re worthy of being rewarded for your help? Here, take it.” A small leather satchel was chucked towards Minho, which jingled as the coins bounced on contact with Minho’s hands. Minho’s eyes were fixed on the small bag and Jisung noticed the look of confusion that was present on the older boy’s face.

“Hyung, do you not want the money? Don’t feel like you don’t deserve it, cause you do.” Hyunjin looked slightly worried at Minho’s reaction but the older boy quickly regained his senses and shook his hands at the other.

“No no, it’s a very kind gesture. I’m just thinking I didn’t really do very much but I’ll accept it if you’re sure. Thank you.” Minho bowed towards the others which caused a murmur of embarrassed replies.

“We bought some supplies inside too. We figured that we’d have to stop and make camp as there are no towns or cities between this one and Aquiria. We got tents, sleeping bags, cooking utensils and some rations so we can rest comfortably for a night or two, depending on how fast we travel. Knowing us, something will happen along the way.” Hyunjin turned to show a slightly bulky, navy backpack resting on his shoulders. Felix noticed that both Kyuhoon and Chan had similar ones on their backs too.

“Can we get out of here already? I’d like to put this place behind us as fast as we can.” Jisung stood up and stretched while Changbin saw the chance to tease the boy.

“Aww but Jisungie, I thought you loved this place. You were so cute the other day when you dragged us all to the ice cream shop and ordered the strawberry cheesecake flavour. You said it was one of the best things you’ve ever tasted and you’ve eaten a lot of things in this game.”

If looks could kill, Changbin would be dead on the ground the way Jisung stared him down. He glanced at Minho who seemed to be trying to hold in a laugh at the description of the boy’s earlier escapades.

“Seo Changbin, you better sleep with one eye open tonight. I’m all about stealth and I will make your death look like an accident.” Jisung huffed and began to walk away, with Hyunjin and Felix calling after him to wait up. The other boys followed the Thief, commenting that Changbin was cruel to rile him up like that after he had been through so much yesterday but quickly laughed at the cute reaction the younger had given.

Minho wondered if the people in charge of Phantasm had any control over the weather or if it was randomised. White specks landed on his nose as a gentle breeze caused snowflakes to descend from the dark sky. The crystal powder was beginning to land on the ground, which made Jisung wonder if this would make camping more difficult. At the rate it was falling, the older boys didn’t seem to be worried as Hyunjin mentioned, if need be, he could create a concoction similar to the one he had made to defeat the Gollias yesterday. If he contained it instead of letting it explode, he could use it as a heater that could melt the snow in a certain circumference which would keep all of them safe and warm for a certain amount of time. It was instances like this they wished they had a Black Mage on their team, who had control over all of the four elements. Alas, they had to make due with what they had.

Felix and Hyunjin fell to the back of the pack, talking in hushed whispers, which made Jisung slightly nervous but he couldn’t put his finger on the reason why. Kyuhoon, Chan and Changbin had moved to walk beside Minho and engage in light conversation. Kyuhoon had made a note that Minho didn’t seem to be the talkative type and thought the reason may be because he had travelled on his own for so long. However, due to the variety of people that were in their group, Kyuhoon knew that Minho would have to talk sooner or later, whether he wanted to or not.

“Hyung, Felix tells me you’re a Shadow, that’s pretty neat.” Changbin tried to begin a discussion with the older boy to break the silence.

“Is it? I always thought it was kind of dull compared to other people’s classes. Felix being a Beast Master is much cooler than me being a Shadow.” Changbin seemed surprised at Minho’s comment which didn’t go unnoticed by Chan and Kyuhoon.

“Wait, he told you about that already? He’s so easily embarrassed by his story, I didn’t think he’d share it with you so willingly.”

“Why should he be embarrassed about it? So he doesn’t like to use his abilities, it’s cool that he can still do all of that in the first place.”

Changbin frowned slightly. “What are you talking about? The whole point is that he can’t-” Chan’s hand was suddenly clasped around the Medic’s mouth as he came to the realisation a lot faster than Changbin had that Felix hadn’t told Minho the whole truth, just enough to get by.

“Yeah, he’s pretty amazing for someone so young, right?” Chan let out a breathy laugh as Changbin’s eyes suddenly changed which let Chan know that he understood why he had almost smothered him.

While walking alone, Jisung allowed his eyes to fall on the group of older boys. The height difference between all of them, especially Changbin compared to the others, was amusing. While his hyungs were tall, none of them came close to Hyunjin who towered over the rest of them. Minho suddenly let out a boisterous laugh which startled Jisung. The high pitched giggle that emanated from the boy didn’t seem to match his image or at least the one Jisung had of him. The Thief wondered what it was that the other boys said to make him cackle like that and as Minho continued to laugh, Jisung couldn’t help but find it contagious as a smile of his own began to form on his face. Before he could actually start laughing along with the boy, a sudden pain came from the back of his head as he felt something wet come into contact with it.

He spun around to face Felix and Hyunjin, who both quickly pointed at each other while smirking slightly. Jisung realised from the remnants in his hair that one of them had thrown a snowball at him. It hadn’t really hurt at all but Jisung was nothing if not a dramatic person, so he decided to play with them for a bit. He grabbed the back of his head as he grimaced with mock hurt.

“Really, guys? You hit me right where I injured my head yesterday. Ah, it really hurts. I’m not bleeding again, am I?” Jisung moved his hand down in front of his face as if checking to see if his injury had reopened, while swaying slightly to show his balance was compromised.  

Felix and Hyunjin’s faces dropped instantly with Felix smacking Hyunjin’s arm. “How could you hit him on the head like that? Look how much pain he’s in now!”

Hyunjin began to make his way towards Jisung with quick steps and a terrified look on his face. “Oh god, Jisung, I’m so sorry! I completely forgot about where you got hurt. Are you alright? Let me take a look. I don’t think you’re bleeding. Is the pain really bad? Jisung, please talk to me!”

Jisung was doubled over pretending to wince in agony but couldn’t hold his giddiness in any longer as he straightened himself and fell into convulsions of laughter. Hyunjin stood in disbelief, not quite sure what was happening before Felix came up from behind him and sighed deeply.

“Looks like we got played, Jinnie. At least we managed to give him a good laugh,” Felix grunted while motioning towards Jisung who was holding onto his stomach.

A dark shade of red washed over Hyunjin’s face as he began yelling. “You think that was funny, Jisung?! I was really worried about you there! I thought I hurt you. You’re such an asshole.”

“Yeah, yeah, I am but that’s what everybody loves about me, right?” Jisung sighed, wiping his eyes while trying to catch his breath.

“Oh, a wise guy? You’re all about agility, yeah? Can you dodge this?”

Hyunjin bent down and began to gather the fallen snow in his hands before fashioning it into a compact sphere. Jisung knew exactly where this was going and began to make a run for it before another snowball could come into contact with his head. Hyunjin was right, Jisung was all about speed but Hyunjin was all about aim. The Alchemist acquired his target and flung his snowy weapon at the boy but just before it could hit him, Jisung ducked out of the way. The snowball made contact but not with the Thief’s head. Chan stumbled a bit when he was drawn from the conversation by the frozen mess that now littered his hair. He angrily turned around and once again, Hyunjin and Felix gestured towards each other before smiling timidly at their hyung.

A playful glint entered Chan’s eyes as an impish smile crept onto his lips.

“Are you sure you guys want to start a fight that you can’t win?”

Chan began to shape the snow in his own hands with Hyunjin and Felix running in opposite directions while screaming at the threat of being pummeled with snowballs. Chan threw the snowball towards Felix as Jisung joined Chan’s team against the other two boys and aimed towards Hyunjin. Both boys were hit in the shoulder while yelling in unison as the wetness seeped through their clothes. Kyuhoon began to warn them about catching their death because of the cold but was quickly cut off as Changbin hurled a snowball at the Bard. It wasn’t long before all six boys were hiding behind trees while trying not to get shot down. Minho hadn’t moved from where the conversation had ended and simply stared at the others with a blank expression on his face. He watched as numerous snowballs were thrown between all of them with some of the snowballs missing but the majority of them hitting their targets. Minho really wasn’t used to stuff like this.

“Hyung! Come on! Join our team, we could use more help over here-”

Felix stopped suddenly as a snowball came into direct contact with his face, causing him to fall over and Changbin to nearly keel over laughing. Felix sat up and pouted sadly at the Medic, causing the elder to wander over to the boy, bend down and wipe the remnants of his attack off of Felix’s face. Changbin was still laughing at Felix’s sulky expression before both realised the close proximity of their faces. Felix scooted slightly backwards as his face flared red while Changbin started coughing violently. Hyunjin rolled his eyes at their reactions but smiled when he noticed that Minho had moved over to him to join in on the fight.

Hyunjin thought it was like Minho had never participated in a snowball fight before. He had to show the new addition how to fashion the snowball and pick out a target who he thought would be easy to hit. Once Minho zeroed in on Chan, he flung his snowball with all his might and his prey fell over with a soft thump into the fallen snow. Hyunjin hollered in excitement while turning to high five Minho who eventually replied with his hand for Hyunjin to slap. The extempore snowball fight lasted for close to twenty minutes before Kyuhoon called a truce between the two teams. All boys were slightly out of breath and nearly soaked to the bone as all had been hit with numerous snowballs.

“You were really accurate once you got into the swing of things, hyung. How did you even see Jisung behind that tree? It’s like you could sense he was there,” Hyunjin complimented Minho’s perception and abilities during the fight.

“That was just a lucky guess. I’m pretty sure I heard him laughing before I even saw him there. You should really learn to control that since you’re a Thief. You’re not going to be much good if the bad guys hear you laughing before you steal from them!” Minho teased Jisung who sneered at the older boy and his sudden playful insult.

The group continued to travel, with conversation closing the empty space between them. Minho remained mostly quiet with the others filling him in with information about their own lives. Jisung felt slightly out of breath from the earlier fighting so he was more than content to walk beside Hyunjin and Felix and listen to them talk about themselves for the journey. The rest of the day remained mostly uneventful, only being interrupted by the occasional beast which the group took down with ease.

The snow had come to a halt but the sky remained dark as Kyuhoon suggested that they should stop and begin to think about setting up camp as it would take them an hour or so to assemble everything. The group found a clearing just beneath a group of trees, a few feet away from the path they had been travelling on which would give them the shelter they needed for the night in case it started to snow again. Hyunjin began to make the mixture that would warm the area for the boys while Chan started on a campfire that they could use to cook their food. They knew they could only use the fire for a short amount of time before the light and sound would draw enemies upon them. Changbin, Felix, Jisung, Minho and Kyuhoon began to set up the three tents and place the sleeping bags inside.

They decided to split the groups by age with Kyuhoon, Chan and Minho taking the first tent, Changbin and Hyunjin taking the second with Jisung and Felix taking the last. The fire sparked as Chan finished lighting it causing the boy to flinch backwards a bit. He then began to rummage through his bag to find the assortment of food they had purchased earlier. Seared beef, brisket and dakgalbi emerged from the bag with side dishes that Chan just couldn’t wait to try out. As he had discovered earlier, the food within Phantasm was just as good as the food he was used to from the real world. Hyunjin offered to help with the cooking and the two boys discussed their favourite types of music while they completed their work.

It wasn’t long before their sleeping arrangements had been set up and everyone gathered around the campfire just in time for dinner to be served. No matter how much time all of the boys spent together, they always found a new topic to discuss which caused them to both laugh and argue (Felix claimed that chocolate was the superior ice cream flavour which Jisung vehemently disagreed with.) Once again, the boys noticed that Minho stayed quiet during most of the conversations, only talking when a question was put to him or when he was asked his opinion on something. They all wanted to get to know Minho a little better during the short time they would travel together but he was making it awfully difficult.

Their makeshift plates were soon cleared of all food and yawns began to fall from their mouths. The group stood to dust themselves off before tidying away what was left of their dinner. Chan and Kyuhoon shoveled dirt onto the campfire causing it to go out and each group bid each other goodnight before making their way to their tents before tucking themselves in to sleep.

Hyunjin nestled into the sleeping bag, which was exceedingly comfortable considering how cheap it was in the general store. Changbin let out a heavy sigh and rolled over on his side. Hyunjin thought that this might be a rare opportunity to discuss some of his thoughts with the older boy alone.

“Hey, hyung. You still awake?”

Changbin grunted in response to show that he was sleepy but still listening to the younger boy.

“I know I’ve said it like a thousand times already but I wanted to say thanks for all your help when Felix got hurt. If you ever need anything, just let me know, ok?”

Changbin opened his eyes at that and shuffled to face Hyunjin. “You really need to stop thanking me. I told you, I thought it was the right thing to do, which it was. You guys are a part of this dysfunctional family now, whether you like it or not. So, really, Hyunjinnie, stop thanking me already. Felix is safe and so are you. We’re all good.”

Slowly nodding his head, Hyunjin indicated that he understood Changbin’s words but still felt the need to give something back to the Medic.

“I’ll stop thanking you, even though I’ll always be grateful but seriously, hyung, I’d like to repay you in some way. Think about something that I could do for you. Oh, I could give you my blessing to date Felix. How about that?” Hyunjin giggled.

Changbin sat up so fast that the blood rushed to his head and made him dizzy. He choked on air and began shaking his head frantically.

“What the hell are you talking about? You think I want to go out with Felix? What would give you an insane idea like that? I never said I wanted to date Felix. Did Jisung say something to you? He did, didn’t he? I’m going to kill him. Don’t pay any attention to that little snake. Why would he say something like that?...”

Hyunjin watched as Changbin began to ramble in an obvious panic. Was it that he didn’t like  Felix or was it that he didn’t know he liked Felix? Hyunjin sat up and placed his hands on Changbin’s shoulders, telling the older boy to calm down, that he was just making a joke, even though it was a joke based on the way he saw the two boys always looking at each other. If Changbin hadn’t come to realise his feelings for the other boy yet, even though everyone else pretty much had (except for maybe Felix) then Hyunjin wasn’t going to push him into making the discovery. After Changbin had stopped prattling on about his non-existent crush on the freckled boy, they both laid down to finally get some sleep, although it took Changbin a lot longer to fall asleep than Hyunjin because of the small revelation that was taking place in the back of his mind.

Jisung had never been a light sleeper but when he heard rustling just outside of his tent, it caused him to slowly sit up while rubbing his eyes. A silhouette was projected onto the side of his tent thanks to the moonlight though he couldn’t make out who it was simply from that. He shimmied out of his cozy sleeping bag and made his way out of the tent, only to see Minho positioned on one of the logs they had all been sitting on earlier. He stared at the older boy who seemed to be focused on his Katana as if inspecting it. Jisung quietly made his way over to the other but as he walked, a twig snapped beneath his foot, which caused Minho to jump to a standing position with weapon in hand.

Jisung raised both arms in surrender before chuckling nervously. “Woah, hyung, it’s just me. I heard some noise and came to investigate but I see now that it’s only you. Um, can you stop pointing your sword at me? It’s making me a little uncomfortable.”

Minho’s eyes changed immediately upon seeing Jisung as he sheathed his Katana with a sigh. “Sorry, I was so lost in thought that I didn’t hear you.”

“And you said earlier that I needed to work on my sneaking skills. I seem to be doing a pretty good job already,” Jisung whispered so as not to wake the rest of the sleeping boys though he knew that pretty much all of them wouldn’t wake up even if a meteor fell right beside them. “You seem kind of on edge. Everything all right?” Jisung looked at the other with slight concern due to his adverse reaction. Minho’s lopsided smile caused Jisung’s heart to skip a beat.

“I’m fine. It’s just that I’m usually very aware of everything around me because of my class but since I was thinking so hard, I didn’t hear you approach which startled me a bit, that’s all.” Jisung didn’t buy Minho’s lie but he felt like it wasn’t his place to push the boy when he didn’t really know anything about him. Once Minho had flopped down onto his seat again, Jisung sauntered over and asked if he could join him for a while. Minho motioned to the space beside him, indicating that Jisung should sit.

“So, I’ve noticed you’re kind of a reserved person. The only reason I’ve observed this was because I’m not really a quiet person myself, as you may have already noticed.” Jisung smirked at his own joke but Minho’s deadpan expression didn’t budge which caused the younger boy’s manner to revert to a blank slate.

“Yeah, I’m just not used to travelling with others so I don’t really have much to say. I tend to keep to myself even when I’m around others. My class doesn’t really allow me to get close to people. Occupational hazard and all that.”

Jisung tilted his head, perplexed. “Your occupation? What exactly is it that you do?”

The Thief didn’t miss the quick look of trepidation that crossed over Minho’s face before returning to normal. “Oh, I dabble in different things. I sell information that I overhear whilst staying in the shadows. I also pretty much have the same habit as you. Stealing things from unsuspecting people because the shadows allow me to hide pretty well. That’s how I get by. I know it’s not morally permissible but if anyone understands, it would probably be a Thief, right?”

Jisung knew what it meant to have to steal to get by. That’s the way he had started the game and it stemmed from how he had chosen to live in the real world too.

“How did you come to be assigned the Thief class anyway? I’ve heard about most of the other’s stories but not yours.” Minho seemed to want to direct the focus from himself onto Jisung. The younger boy looked slightly uncomfortable at the question that he hadn’t even told Chan, Hyunjin or Felix the answer to yet. However, the way Minho looked at him, Jisung felt the need to pour out his soul to the other in this moment, though he wouldn’t tell Minho all of the details, including the story with his brother that nobody else in the group knew about.  

“Are you sure you want to hear about my gloomy and sombre childhood? It’s not an awfully interesting story.” Minho shrugged, indicating that if Jisung didn’t want to talk about it, he didn’t have to but at the same time showing that he was willing to listen to the younger if he did.

Jisung nodded and continued. “My parents weren’t particularly caring people. I do wonder at times why they even decided to have children, it was like I didn’t exist to them. As a kid, I used to constantly be in the emergency room because my parents would never keep an eye on me and I’d either end up burning myself on the stove or fall off of something I had the courage to climb on top of. My grandma seemed to be the only one who cared about me and she was always the one to bring me to the hospital when I got hurt, most likely because my mother was too high or my father was too drunk to notice that I had injured myself. She passed when I was five so I had to learn to fight my own battles.” Jisung kept his eyes fixed on the ground so he didn’t notice the intense look in Minho’s eyes.

“I always stayed out of trouble and did my best in school. I was actually top of my class for a number of years. I think I did all of this because I wanted some sort of approval or affection from my parents though no matter what I did, I couldn’t get a reaction out of them. I snapped one day and punched a kid in the face who insulted one of my friends. My parents were called to the head office for a meeting but neither showed up, so I was let go with a warning and sent home. When I returned, I noticed how the house smelled of weed and realised why neither of them came to the school.” Jisung’s tone began to wobble a bit but he quickly regained control over his voice.

“One day, when I was nine, I was carrying some books for school downstairs from my room. I missed the first step at the top of the stairs and fell. I woke up in the hospital three days later. They told me the only reason somebody found me was because a classmate came by to drop off my homework as I hadn’t turned up to school. The front door was left open and they found me in a pool of blood at the end of the staircase. That was the day I was taken away from my parents because of negligence. I was placed in the foster system and passed around to a few different families but none of them could seem to handle me as I was tired of acting like a goody two shoes. I broke and started hanging out with the wrong crowd. I stayed away from alcohol and drugs after seeing what it did to my parents, though I never had a problem with the snarky attitude and a lot of shoplifting. I’m pretty sure that’s where my class stemmed from. A thief in real life and a Thief in Phantasm too.”

Minho’s position hadn’t changed since the younger had began his story. Jisung smirked at the serious look upon the boy’s face. “See? I told you it was a boring story. Don’t worry about me though, I’m doing alright at the moment. It’s just that...whenever Kyuhoon hyung talks about returning to the real world, it makes me think: What am I actually going back for, you know? I don’t have anyone important waiting for me and since I’m nearly an adult, I’ll be kicked out of the foster system to make it on my own and I don’t know how far I’ll be able to get by myself.” Jisung hung his head as he thought about his past before Minho placed his hand on the younger boy’s shoulder, causing Jisung to look up.

“You sound like you’ve had it awfully rough and I...can’t imagine what you’ve gone through.”

Jisung noticed the slight pause in the boy’s speech but quickly ignored it as he began to speak again. “It seems to me though that you’re doing pretty well with regards to the people surrounding you now. Your hyungs seem to take good care of you and you look like you get along really well with Felix and Hyunjin. That’s just an outsider’s observation though. I believe, perhaps I’m wrong, that the others wouldn’t abandon you if you were to escape the game with them.” Jisung thought about Minho’s words and realised that he was more than likely right. He had formed a bond with all of the other boys that would be extremely hard to break if they ever managed to leave this place. He prayed Minho was right as he smiled endearingly at the boy.

Minho tilted his head slightly as he thought. “You said you didn’t know why your parents decided to have children. Did you have siblings? Or was it just you alone in the house?” Jisung’s eyebrows shot up as he hadn’t realised his slip of tongue. He should have said a child instead of children and quickly corrected himself for Minho.

“No, no it was just me. No brothers or sisters. Just me, by myself.” Minho wasn’t oblivious to the slight agitation that laced the boy’s words. Jisung needed to change the topic quickly before Minho decided to ask anymore questions on the subject. “So hyung, what about you? How did you get your class?” Minho didn’t get a chance to begin his story, as a stirring behind them made both boys turn to inspect the noise.

“What the hell are you two doing up at this hour? Get back to bed. You’ll be too exhausted to travel tomorrow and I have no intention of carrying either of you on my back.” Chan whisper shouted at the two boys who grinned at Chan’s curly bedhead. Minho stood up and stretched.

“I’ll tell you my story another time Jisung but thanks for telling me yours. I feel like I understand you a little better now. See you tomorrow.” Jisung thought that it was an awfully unfair trade that he had told his life story but didn’t get one in return. He glared at Chan for the interruption which left Chan slightly puzzled as to why Jisung was looking at him like that. He pointed towards Jisung’s tent as an indication for him to go inside.

“Jeez, are you the new mom of the group? What happened to Kyuhoon hyung? Has he been given the dad role instead?” 

Chan narrowed his eyes at the younger which made Jisung hasten his steps towards his tent. Chan stayed outside before he was sure that both Minho and Jisung were nestled safely in their beds. He wouldn’t let either of them know that he had been awake since Minho had left their tent and in turn, had heard the entire conversation between the two. He wasn’t sure if Jisung had wanted him to know about that part of his past yet and until Jisung told him directly, he was going to keep his mouth shut about the subject. Chan ran his fingers through his hair before staring at the full moon which had a shocking resemblance to the one back home in Seoul. He sighed deeply before returning to the tent he shared with Kyuhoon and Minho and sleeping until the early morning.

Chapter Text

Nobody was quite sure how or when it happened but their sleeping arrangements had been turned upside down. A mixture of strange dreams and murderous intentions caused the boys to switch roommates in the darkness of the night. At some point, Felix entered Hyunjin’s tent, before waking him and telling him about the psychopathic clown he had dreamt about that was out to kill him. Hyunjin was too tired to take in the boy’s full explanation of his dream so he simply dragged Felix down beside him and told him to shut up. Felix snuggled in between Hyunjin and Changbin while he drifted to sleep.

One thing that Changbin had learned about Felix that night was that he was extremely restless in his sleep, so when he kicked Changbin for the third time, the Medic couldn’t take anymore as he exited his tent to take Felix’s previous place beside Jisung. After ten minutes of Changbin entering the tent, he had fallen sound asleep in a very unique position, causing his usually loud snoring to become deafening to the young Thief who had just managed to fall asleep after speaking with Minho. He didn’t truly want to smother the Medic in his sleep, though he was really tempted at that moment and time. He knew that if he didn’t get some rest, Chan would kill him in the morning after warning him that he would have no sympathy for the younger if he was exhausted the next day.

Jisung moved over to the tent Changbin had been sleeping in but upon looking inside, he noticed Hyunjin was being pushed into the corner of the tent, with Felix sprawled out covering the rest of the floor. No matter how much Jisung wanted to sleep there, there was no room. He reluctantly made his way over to the older boy’s tent and shimmied inside. Minho was placed on the left side of the tent and was breathing softly while curled up. Kyuhoon and Chan had fallen asleep facing each other but there was enough space between them for Jisung to lay himself down. He had brought his sleeping bag with him so he placed it between the two oldest boys and positioned himself inside. He sighed and began to close his eyes before a soft whisper hit his ears.

“Jisungie, everything all right?”

“All good, Channie hyung. Had to leave my tent so as not to murder Changbin hyung. So, here I am.”

“Why is Changbin in your tent? I thought Felix was with you?”

“I don’t know either. Frankly, I don’t really care. You told me to sleep. You should do the same.”

“Fair enough.” Both boys left the conversation there and took Jisung’s advice to go to sleep.

Everyone woke up well rested after a decent meal, conversation filled with laughter and a good night's sleep. Changbin was slightly confused as to why he had woken up alone, with Jisung filling him in on how he had come close to killing him last night. Hyunjin had no recollection of his conversation with Felix during the night and was disoriented when he woke up to find the boy lying on top of his chest.

It took the group around thirty minutes to disassemble everything and place it inside of their backpacks. Changbin made the point that they could sell all of their camping items in Aquiria if they thought they wouldn’t need them again for a while. They set out on the second part of their journey towards the city when they were all ready.

The snow had become lighter but the thick layer upon the ground indicated that it had snowed heavily overnight, though none of the boys had felt the cold that accompanied such weather as they slept. The crunch beneath Felix’s feet made the boy smile as, even though he had experienced snow a couple of times while in Phantasm, he hadn’t really ever experienced it in the real world. Snow wasn’t particularly common in Australia and it had snowed maybe twice since he had lived in Seoul. The impromptu snowball fight yesterday was something that Felix knew he would hold in his memories for a long time. He was so caught up in staring at the snow falling from the sky, he hadn’t noticed that the group had moved ahead quite a bit.

He put his gloved hand out to gather the falling snow but before he could grasp the snowflakes, another hand came into contact with his. Felix moved his gaze downwards from the sky to gaze at the person in front of him.

“What are you doing, Felix?”

Changbin’s bright smile was blinding to the younger boy, who was very aware that they were now holding hands.

“You’re falling a bit behind. C’mon, let’s catch up to the others.” Changbin began to pull Felix towards the other boys. Felix noticed the rosy colour of the elder’s face and thought it was cute the way he reacted to the cold; though that was not the only reason for the glow on Changbin’s cheeks.

After talking with Hyunjin the previous night, Changbin began to think about certain things. Mainly Felix and his cute freckles and how maybe Hyunjin wasn’t entirely wrong in his observations. He wasn’t quite sure what to do about this new discovery but then again, he wasn’t quite sure how he truly felt either. He was certain that the other didn’t have any interest in him in that kind of way, so he was going to stay quiet for the sake of their friendship. Being able to be close to the other boy and being able to keep him safe was more than enough for the Medic.

Hyunjin noticed the two boys were missing and turned to wait for them, which the other members of the group did too. After rejoining the others, Changbin let go of Felix’s hand but in doing so, didn’t notice the frown on the other boy’s face due to the sudden loss of contact. Changbin’s assumptions about Felix’s feelings were drastically different to the reality.

The sun began to break through the clouds as the snow had stopped raining from the sky. The group was making small talk as they walked when Minho finally spoke up.

“Hey, did you guys know that there’s a festival taking in place in Aquiria over the next couple of days? Something about celebrating the start of summer solstice, though I’m not quite sure. I never really paid any attention to that kind of thing.”

The younger members of the group looked up at the mention of a festival and moved to walk beside Minho, with Jisung pushing Changbin out of the way to get closer to the boy.

“Wow, really? What kind of things do they do at the festival?” Felix’s giddy excitement was mirrored in the other boy’s faces.

“Well, I’ve only seen it once, when they held it for the summer equinox but it’s pretty much the same thing. The whole city is adorned with bunting and decorations. There are numerous stalls set up around the city which show items that you can’t buy once the festival is over. It’s so huge that people come from all over Phantasm to bring their wares, since they know how many people come to see the festival. The food you can buy there is pretty delicious and there's a wide selection to choose from. The main attraction of the festival though are the shows that are put on for entertainment. Innumerable stages are placed around the area and people put on different performances throughout the day. They generally use their class’ abilities to stage something. There are some that are prepared beforehand but there are others which allow anyone to take part and there are so many talented people. Maybe you should give it a go, hyung.” Minho raised his chin towards Kyuhoon, who laughed shyly at the compliment.

“I’m sure you’ll find something of interest there. Since you guys are so set on leaving the game, it might be a good time to upgrade your weapons and garbs since they generally sell for good prices too.”

Kyuhoon glanced at Chan with an intrigued look in his eyes. Since they had obtained a lot of gold from their monster hunting earlier in the week, they thought this would be the perfect time to update their effects.

The three youngest boys began to chatter in excitement about the summer festival, trying to decide how they should go about seeing all of the attractions that were going to be displayed. Kyuhoon and Minho were the only ones who had been in Aquiria before, so the younger boys asked them to show them around once they got there. Jisung bounced up to Minho, asking him questions about the city. Minho smiled at how excited the boy seemed to be at the thought of getting to Aquiria and taking in all it had to offer.  They continued to walk down the long road that would soon lead them to the coastal city.

A calloused hand came into contact with the young boy’s face, causing him to stumble and fall to the ground.

‘Don’t cry,’ he told himself. ‘He’ll only hit you harder if you cry.’

“Do it again.”

The man’s rough voice caused the boy to shuffle away from him. He couldn’t do it again. He just couldn’t. He shakily stood up and placed his hands out in front of him, mumbling the words he wished he could forget. Nothing was happening. It wasn’t just that he didn’t want to do it, he physically didn’t have the strength anymore. He had been pushed far past his limits to try and perfect the ‘show’ he would have to perform in front of hundreds of people. His act would cause the onlookers' eyes to bare into his soul. It would cause people to cower in fear and look at him in disgust but hey, at least it would bring in money for the group. He was a freakshow in himself and he wished that he could just end it all. He was tired of being in a place like this, with people pulling at his strings like he was some sort of puppet to be played with. Fingers threaded through his hair as he was yanked closer to the man’s face.

“Is this how you’re going to perform on stage? Standing there and making a fool out of me, huh?”

The boy was sure he heard a crack as his cheek was hit once again, the man’s ring leaving an indentation beside the boy’s lip. The tears he told himself not to spill began to well up in his eyes at the pain that was now flaring through his face, the anguish increasing even more when he was thrown onto the floor again.

“You’d better not screw this up. And you!”

Whilst lying on the floor, the boy realised the man was no longer talking to him but to the red headed boy standing in the corner of the room as an observer.

“You’d better bring in a lot more coins than you did the last time. Your act has gotten better, more believable. Surely you can gather more money, right?” The boy nodded silently with his unfocused, glazed eyes falling to the floor. He knew better than to speak back. The bruises all over his body were a reminder that he had no power in this place. He was to keep quiet and listen, just as he had always done in his life.

“Sometimes I wonder if you boys were worth the money I paid for you. Your abilities are exceedingly rare and people will pay good coin to see them. Let’s not disappoint the audience, kids. I’m sure you’ll do great.” Wiping the dried, dark blood off of his knuckles acted as both a threat and an incentive for the two boys, making sure they wouldn’t let him down. He glanced at both of them with a smile before he left the room, slamming the door in the process and making the boy on the floor flinch. The silence was deafening before it was broken by a small voice.

“How did we end up like this? Did we do something wrong to deserve this kind of torture?” The boy’s black bangs loomed over his eyes, creating a shadow on his bruised face. The bespectacled youth in the corner gave no reply as he began to leave through the door the man had exited through earlier, closing it in a softer manner than the previous person had done.

The young boy remained on the ground as the dam finally burst and his tears fell to the floor. He hated this place. He had barely entered Phantasm before he was taken and sold to the highest bidder, just as pretty much everyone in the group had been. Nobody talked to each other, no matter how hard he had tried to engage in conversation with the other prisoners here. All he could do was stare at the bodies of the dead animals that surrounded him in the cold, dark room. None of them were going to move again, no matter how hard he tried. Why did he have to possess a class like this? All it could do was bring misery and sorrow. He curled in on himself and wiped his nose with his sleeve as he began to talk to himself. It was the only civil human interaction he would ever get these days.

“Don’t give up. You can do this,” he reminded himself. “Remember what they told you. You are stronger than you seem, braver than you believe and smarter than you think you are.” He thought back to his parents and his tears started to flow even faster than before. “Keep going, Jeongin, you can do this.” His cries echoed throughout the room, though they would never reach the ears of anybody that cared.

The smell of sea salt in the air took over their senses as they entered the city. A grand, alabaster arch towered over them as they walked through the doors where there were numerous people strolling beside them to make their way to the festival. The air still held a hint of bitterness but the snow had melted away as the warm rays of the sun fell through the clouds.

Multi-coloured balloons were placed at the opening to each of the stores the boys passed, showing that they were getting ready for the celebration too. Stages and stalls were being set up along the path in preparation for the festival the following day. White buildings, which reflected the sun’s rays, lined each side of the street they walked down, with their shopkeepers calling out to the people that passed, trying to sell their wares.  

Kyuhoon pointed to different stores and restaurants, indicating which he liked the best based on the last time he had been here about four months ago. He mentioned to Chan that this is where he had been before he travelled to Kihoj where he met Changbin and Jisung for the first time. Out of interest, Chan asked Kyuhoon how long he had been in Phantasm.

“I’ve been here about five months. I think both Jisung and Changbin were around the six month mark. That’s when Jisung said that Joomi-ssi found him anyways.”

Chan nodded in understanding. He had been here a little over a week and he was so overwhelmed by the place. He couldn’t imagine being here for half a year. Though, if they didn’t become strong enough to take on the Rautaja Fortress, there was no telling how long the group would remain here for. He shook his head to rid himself of the worrying thought. If the other boys were beside him, he was sure he would have nothing to be anxious about.

He followed Kyuhoon towards the place that they would be staying. They began to walk through the door to try and find some rooms to lodge in, though they knew it would be more difficult because of the volume of people travelling to the city for the festival. Hopefully, they wouldn’t have too much trouble. Before they managed to set foot inside of the door, Minho called out to them softly.

“So, I guess I’ll see you guys around then?”

Everybody whipped around so fast that Hyunjin was sure he had pulled something in his neck. Widened eyes fell upon the boy’s wistful smile as he began to subconsciously play with his fingers.

“What do you mean you’ll ‘see us around’? Where are you going?” Jisung questioned, with dread coating his words.

Minho frowned slightly while still smiling. “The deal was that we would travel together until we reached Aquiria and well, here we are.”

He gestured to the area surrounding him as the other boys harboured a downcast expression on their faces. They were just starting to feel like they were getting to know Minho a little better and now, he was going away. They remembered Minho saying that he liked to travel by himself, so they didn’t want to keep him restricted by making him join them. All of the boys in the group seemed to be thinking the same thing when they wanted Minho to stay with them for a while longer but knew that he probably wouldn’t want to.

Out of everybody, Jisung really didn’t want Minho to go. After their conversation the previous night, Jisung felt a little closer to the other and began to realise he could probably trust the older boy. He had told Minho his life story and the boy had consoled him by relaying some comforting words, which he was exceedingly thankful for. It made him feel more at ease and slightly better about his situation.

Minho placed his hands in his pockets, as the awkward silence that filled the air became unbearable, all of the boys staring at him without saying anything.

“Well, thanks for letting me travel with you guys. I had a strangely good time. Not that it was strange because of you but because I’m not used to getting attached to people so quickly. Anyways, I’d better get going, I have some place I need to get to. See you, guys.”

Minho turned on his heel and began to walk away. Before he knew what he was doing, Jisung leaped forward and caught his sleeve, which caused surprise to bubble up in Minho, himself and all of the others too. He quickly jumped back, letting go of Minho as he began to curse himself because of his actions.

“Hyung, we should all meet up tomorrow and you could come to some of the shows with us. We can all go and eat together too. Come on, it’ll be fun. Please?” Jisung’s eyes shook slightly as he waited with the others for Minho’s answer. Minho’s lips curled upwards as the suggestion seemed to be one that he agreed with.

“I would like that. How about I meet you guys here tomorrow at nine and we can get some breakfast? I know a great little place down the street that serves the best pancakes.” Minho didn’t need to say anymore. The mention of food was enough to get all of the boys nodding at his proposition.

“Great, I’ll see you all in the morning then. I’m looking forward to it. Bye.” Minho waved his hand shyly at the others while he walked backwards, still looking at the group. He was met by much louder calls of goodbye from the others.

“Bye hyung!”

“See you tomorrow Minho!”

“You’d better not be lying about those pancakes, hyung!”

Jisung felt a wave of relief that this would not be the last time that he saw Minho, though he suddenly wondered why the older boy had such an effect on his mood. It didn’t matter right now. The most important thing at the moment was that he was hungry, as were all of the others. They got lucky when they entered the first inn and there were a few rooms left. Kyuhoon mentioned that this is where he stayed the last time he was here and it was so secluded and well hidden that not too many people knew about its location, which obviously worked to their advantage. They dropped off their equipment before heading into the city to grab something to eat.

Minho walked down the main street while trying to block out the loud chatter that came along with the festival. The colours, the vibes, the excitement. Minho couldn’t handle any of it. He was forced to come back to this place that he hated so much. It was too pure and pristine and Minho felt like he was staining the streets simply by walking through them. The blackness within him contrasted to the brightness that the city emanated.

Turning down a secluded alley that most were afraid to wander towards, he made his way to a rusted door and banged three times before a little shutter opened, revealing the piercing blue eyes of a woman who glared at the boy before speaking.

“Password?”

“Tuez seulement ceux qui ont fait mal.”

The woman seemed to relax at Minho’s words and closed the shutter before opening the door and ushering him inside. Minho passed the petite woman, completely ignoring her greeting. He slowly descended the staircase before opening the wooden door at the end of it. Minho stepped into a bar where the air was saturated with the stench of alcohol and vomit. However much he despised it here, it was one of the only places where he didn’t have to hide. Everyone here was the same as him in some sense, though Minho thought himself somewhat above most of the others that visited this establishment.

Minho ordered a drink before paying and moving to a darkened corner of the room, which was situated by the grand fireplace. He sighed as he sank into the amber armchair which sported so many holes, Minho was afraid it might fall apart under his weight. He looked around the room and recognised a few faces among the crowd, not that it mattered. In this line of work and in this type of place, everybody kept to themselves. Well, mostly everybody. As Minho raised his glass to his lips, a tall figure stood in front of him.

“Well, shit, look who actually came back! I thought you were gone for good, man. Thought you said you were never coming back to this snake pit. What changed?”

Minho really wanted to pretend that he hadn’t heard the other boy but his voice was so loud that it drew the attention of other people around them, who seemed to grumble and glower at their nice, quiet down time being interrupted by a rowdy youth. Upon not getting a reply, the boy flopped down into the armchair across from Minho and stared at him until he started to feel slightly uncomfortable.

“Christ, Yukhei, can’t you take the hint? When someone doesn’t reply to a question you asked, it means one of two things. One, they didn’t hear you but since I was looking straight at you when you asked me the question, that obviously wasn’t the reason. Or two, they don’t want to answer said question. So piss off, would you?”

“My, my, aren’t we a little more high-strung than usual, eh? Come on, man, you’re the only one who will talk to me in this place. Even if it is to belittle and insult me but hey, I’m used to that kind of thing!” Yukhei laughed which caused Minho to pinch the bridge of his nose. A migraine was coming, he could feel it. He had just left one group of overly excitable people and he just had to run into someone else like that.

“Come on, man, you know I’m not going to leave you alone until you talk to me. It’s been nearly two months since I’ve seen you. Where have you been? How goes the hunt?”  

All Minho had wanted was a quiet drink but knew he wasn’t going to get that now that Yukhei was here. He conceded defeat and placed his still full glass on the table in front of him and leaned forward towards the fair haired boy who had a hint of playfulness in his eyes.

“I’ll tell you if you tell me,” Minho urged, causing the other to raise his fist to his mouth and laugh at the suggestion from the other but quickly agreed to the terms.

“I found pretty much nothing. Every time I got a hint to that asshole’s whereabouts, he had already moved on. Why is he so damn slippery? I guess this is why the guards haven’t been able to catch him yet. Damn, I really want this guy’s bounty too. One hundred thousand gold coins is a hell of a lot of money.” Yukhei threw himself back into the chair in frustration.

A sly grin crept onto Minho’s face at the sight of the other boy struggling to do his job right. “Wow, you’re really bad at this. You’ve found absolutely nothing?”

Yukhei’s eyes suddenly zoned in on Minho. If he was mocking him for finding nothing, then he had obviously found something worth knowing. “Ok, smart ass. You sound like you know all the answers here. So, spill, did you find him?”

“No. I didn’t find him. Had the same problem you did. Came close a couple of times but he always managed to escape.” Yukhei’s brows knit together at Minho’s words.

“Wait, you’re chastising me for not finding the guy but you came up empty handed as well? Jeez, I thought you found something interesting because of that tone in your voice,” grunted Yukhei, turning his attention to the blue eyed girl who had opened the door for Minho earlier. Their eyes met for a moment and Yukhei waved awkwardly, before the girl sneered at him and turned back around. Minho smirked at the boy’s pathetic attempt at flirting.

“I didn’t find him but I did find something interesting. I found his younger brother.”

Shock crossed Yukhei’s face, his mouth dropping open slightly. “Gyujin has a brother in Phantasm too? How in the hell did you actually find someone like that?”

“He has an almost identical aura. I heard Gyujin was spotted around a certain village so I went to investigate. I sensed an aura pretty much the same as his, so I assumed that’s who it was and snuck into the inn he was staying in to attack one night but the guy woke up before I could strike. I know Gyujin’s face and I realised that it wasn’t him. I questioned him while I could and he said that Gyujin was his brother. He also said that he knew why he was in the area. It was because he was after him, though I didn’t get the reason as to why because the other guy in the room woke up and I had to leave but I know it wasn’t a pleasant motive. I think Gyujin wants to off his brother and I’m kind of interested as to why.”

Yukhei nodded in surprise, his eyes still wide after Minho had finished his explanation but his expression soon changed to one of indifference. “So, the guy has a brother, so what? You’ll probably never even run into him again. This is pretty much useless information to me.”

“Oh, I’ll see him again. In fact, I’m meeting up with him tomorrow.”

Yukhei was going to get whiplash if he kept turning his head at such a speed to look at Minho.

“What?! You’re seeing him tomorrow? Wait, you told this kid that you’re a Tracker and that you’re after his brother’s bounty? Are you insane?!”

“I’m not as stupid as you are. He has no idea who I am. After that night I nearly attacked him in the inn, I followed him around for a while to see if I could get any information out of him on Gyujin. The group he was in got attacked by a Gollias and he was nearly killed. I managed to step in and save him and they were all so thankful towards me that they asked me if I’d like to travel back to Aquiria with them. I had heard them talking about coming here earlier so I mentioned that I was on my way back here too.”

“You try to stay as far away from this place as you can but you came along with this little group and for what? Just because you know Gyujin is out to get his brother, what exactly are you planning to do?” Yukhei couldn’t seem to read Minho’s expression, no matter how hard he tried.

“I’m going to use him as bait. If I stick around for long enough, Gyujin is bound to come after him and when he does, I’ll kill him and bring back evidence of that. I collect the bounty and everything is right in the world again. Should be pretty easy to convince their little group to let me stay. I think Gyujin’s brother has become kind of attached to me already.” Minho lifted his glass from the table to finally clear his parched throat.

Yukhei began clapping his hands together. “Well done, Minho, well done. You may have the blackest heart I’ve ever seen in someone. This poor kid doesn’t have a clue that you’re playing him like a fiddle and when you get what you want, you’re going to drop him just like that? How do you live with yourself?”

Minho didn’t. He hated himself and everything that he was but if this is what it took to survive in this game, then that’s what he was going to do. Minho realised that Jisung probably didn’t deserve to be treated this way but he also knew that he couldn’t believe in anybody but himself in this world. He had constantly made the mistake of being too trusting in his life, only to be let down each and every time and he wouldn’t allow himself to be toyed with again. He could survive by himself, just like he had always done. No matter how much he had sympathised with Jisung’s life story, it wouldn’t make any difference once the boy found out who Minho was and what he had done in the past. He’d stare at him with horrified eyes just like nearly everyone else did. Minho was used to this. He downed his drink, before banging the empty glass on the wooden table and standing up.

“See you around, Yukhei. Try not to stir shit up like you usually do.” Minho grabbed the coat he had shrugged off earlier and sauntered out of the room.

“Bye bye, Minho. Don’t break that boy’s heart now, you hear me? I’m sure he’s not made of stone like you.”

Minho didn’t hear if Yukhei said anything else derogatory, letting the metal door bang close behind him. He sighed deeply and ran his fingers through his hair, stepping into the main street again, where he put on his mask and allowed a fake smile to fall upon his lips. He had always been great at acting and lying. He had to learn how to do this to survive while growing up. He had to figure out how to smile through the pain he had endured so many times.

One hit. Two hits. Three hits. The leather belt came harder and faster on his back than before. He never remembered his father being gentle towards him nor his mother having the power to stop him when he turned on her. He opened his eyes as his past memories pooled in his head. Minho had always been able to hide himself behind a disguise. This job was going to be easy, though he found himself becoming slightly hesitant at the thought of harming certain people in the process. He quickly shook his head at the mawkish thoughts and reminded himself that he didn’t have time to worry about other people. He moved towards the edge of the city where he would be staying for the night. Minho wouldn’t lodge in the same place as the other boys. He didn’t want to risk getting attached to them, seeing as he was just going to cut them loose when the job was done and move on. After finding a room, Minho kicked off his shoes and let his heavy bedroom door fall closed behind him.

Jeongin walked around the garden of the house, brushing his fingers off of the petals of the dainty peonies that grew all around him. They were never allowed outside of the walls by themselves but allowed a constrictive freedom within the house itself. Jeongin needed to heal and the way he usually did this was immersing himself in nature. The songs of the birds flew to his ears as he raised his eyes to the bright sky, quickly closing them to focus on the sound. His quickened heartbeat began to slow its pace as Jeongin tried to forget about what had happened earlier in the day. He raised his hands to his bruised cheek and flinched when his fingertips pressed a little too harshly on the tender wound. He moved his eyes downwards and began walking through the wide garden again, taking in the beautiful flowers on display.

He thought that he had been alone, until he noticed the boy who had been in the room with him earlier sitting on a bench while reading. Jeongin couldn’t seem to make out the title of the book from where he was standing. He had tried to talk to him before, only to be ignored but Jeongin was determined to have some sort of human interaction in this damn place, so he moved forward to try again. The red head felt Jeongin’s presence but decided to disregard it.

“Hey, what are you reading?” Jeongin asked, in a lame attempt to start a conversation while taking a seat beside the boy but failed miserably as he was still being snubbed by the other.

“Do you like to read a lot? I know there aren’t a lot of books here. You’ve probably read them all at this stage right?”

Jeongin laughed a little but this didn’t manage to get a reaction out of the boy, who was still staring at his book like it was the most interesting thing he had ever seen. Jeongin was beginning to get a little annoyed at the lack of response from the other. All he wanted to do was talk. It wasn’t like he was asking him to be his best friend or anything. Jeongin scowled as he stood up.

“Seriously? All I’m trying to do is make a little small talk with you. Nobody is around. They’re not going to reprimand us for having a conversation. Can’t you humour me a little bit?!”

Jeongin realised this was the loudest his voice had gotten since he had entered Phantasm and it was all because someone wouldn’t talk to him, which seemed like a awfully stupid reason in hindsight. He thought that maybe he was starting to crack and that this outburst was simply the result of all of the pent up anger and frustration that was unable to leave his small body for such a long time.

The boy shut his book and looked up at Jeongin. “So, you do know how to get angry. I thought all you were able to do was cry. Your big doe eyes seem to amplify your tears when you do.”

He wasn’t making fun of Jeongin but simply stating a fact that he had observed. Jeongin quickly calmed down, a small smirk flashing across his face, showing his braces to the other boy.

“You finally talked to me. You’re the first person in this place who has said anything to me besides the guys in charge. So, you want to answer my earlier question? Do you like to read? Is the book that interesting that it stopped you from talking to me in the first place?” Jeongin began to sit in his previous seat, while the other boy sighed quietly.

“That was actually three questions in a row.” A glance was thrown towards Jeongin, who looked defeated and began to move to stand up but the boy quickly caught his hand and dragged him back down.

“Yes, I like to read. A lot. I spent most of my childhood in the library. I wasn’t really great at making friends, so I kept to myself a lot and read.” The boy picked up his book and showed it to Jeongin. “It’s called ‘ The ones who walk away from Omelas ’. In short, it’s about a glimmering, seaside city called Omelas. The prominent characteristic of the city is that everybody there is unbelievably happy, despite not having kings, priests, soldiers or...slaves.”

The boy cast his gaze downwards at the last word as he knew that’s exactly what he and Jeongin were: slaves.

“Anyway, it begins with the first day in Omelas in which they are celebrating the summer solstice with a big festival, kind of like the one that we’ll be performing at tomorrow. Everybody is living life blissfully without knowing the real reason why.” Jeongin looked more and more intrigued by the other’s explanation of the story and urged him to continue.

“The reason for the bustling city’s merriment and joy is because, for this to occur, a single child must stay caged beneath the city to suffer alone while staying in darkness and anguish. When the residents of Omelas are old enough, they learn the truth about why the city is so mirthful. The vast majority of people accept this inequity and go about their lives. The child has no meaning to them and as long as it is out of sight, then why should it bother them? However, some are so horrified by this fact, that they leave Omelas, never to return but nobody is entirely sure where they go. The book ends with a final quote referencing the people who left the city saying: ‘The place they go towards is a place even less imaginable to most of us than the city of happiness. I cannot describe it at all. It is possible it does not exist. But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.’ ”

The boy finished his synopsis of the book, while Jeongin was dumbstruck at the story. The similarities between the book and their own lives was interesting to say the least. They were to perform for the summer solstice in Aquiria, a bustling city of light, where everybody seemed happy, yet they didn’t know of the children that were suffering so that they could keep being jovial. They had no idea about him or the other boy he was talking to that were prisoners within the very walls of the city. He knew that most people wouldn’t care if they found out. Slavery wasn’t legal or very common but he knew the people running this group had more than enough money to pay off whoever they had to, to keep a low profile. He just wished that there were people out there like in the book that were so horrified by their situation, that they would come to help them and take them away to the paradise that was mentioned at the end of the story.

After Jeongin had marvelled at the tale, he turned to the other boy that was simply nodding his head at his surprised features. “Wait, if you already know the ending, then why were you reading it again? Were you just using it as a prop so I wouldn’t annoy you?”

Amused laughter fell from the boy’s mouth before he shook his head. “No, I was really reading it. Like you said, there are very few books in the house and I doubt they will get any more, so I just reread the ones that are here. This is probably my fourth time reading this book. I just really enjoy it...since it’s so relatable.”

Jeongin understood what he meant but suddenly realised that he had forgotten an important detail. “I was so immersed in your explanation that I never noticed that I didn’t introduce myself.” He held out his hand towards the other boy. “I’m Yang Jeongin. I’m seventeen. I originally come from Busan and I’ve been in Phantasm for nearly a month and a half. I was only in the game for about a week before I was taken and bought by these guys.”

The other boy stared at Jeongin’s hand for a couple of seconds, which made Jeongin think he wasn’t going to take it, before he felt a firm grip shake it up and down. “I’m your hyung then. I’m eighteen. I’m from Seoul, I’ve been in Phantasm for five months and in this hellhole for four.”

Jeongin smiled at the human contact that he had gone without for so long. “And your name?”

“I’m Kim Seungmin. It’s nice to finally get to speak with you, Jeongin.”

Jeongin’s cheeks felt sore but it wasn’t because of the bruises that littered his face but rather because of his wide smile that hadn’t made an appearance in so long. He was finally able to talk to someone who knew exactly what he was going through and thought that this would make living here somewhat more bearable. Though Seungmin seemed like a more introverted person to Jeongin, he thought that even a little bit of interaction would be more than enough for him. He let go of the other’s hand and let out a small sigh of relief.

“So, are you ready for the festival tomorrow?”

Jeongin’s smile faded quite quickly at the question as he hung his head in humiliation. Seungmin had been in the room with him earlier, so he knew exactly what his class was and how he could barely control it. He thought this might change the boy’s view of him but Seungmin’s opinion of the younger boy didn’t shift.

He shook his head and felt tears begin to prick at the corner of his eyes, though he didn’t want to let Seungmin see him cry after the comment the boy had made earlier.

“I don’t want to perform. It hurts so much. The strain my abilities put on me is unbearable sometimes and I hate the reaction it gets out of people. They look at me like I’m a monster...which I am but having other people think that about me just makes me feel…” Jeongin trailed off which caused Seungmin to gaze pitifully at the boy.

“It’s not your fault that you were assigned that class. Your life must have been pretty hard before you came here, right? And you’re not a monster.” Seungmin nudged Jeongin’s arm, causing the younger boy to look up at him with watery eyes.

“Listen, we don’t have a choice. We have to perform. If we don’t or if we try to run, they’ll find us and drag us back here or even kill us. We’re nothing more than money makers to them. They don’t care.”

Jeongin understood exactly what Seungmin was trying to say: don’t make unnecessary trouble. Keep quiet and do as you’re told. The red headed boy saw the look of apprehension on Jeongin’s face and thought he should say something to ease the pain in the young boy’s heart.

“How about we stick together from now on? If you need help or want to talk about your problems, we can meet out here. We’ll just have to keep a low profile and make sure those assholes don’t figure out that we’ve become friends or they might use it against us.”

Friends? Seungmin had said that they were friends. A variety of emotions bubbled up inside of Jeongin but the most prominent one was joy. He nodded his head emphatically to show Seungmin that he agreed with his sentiment. Seungmin smiled and began to stand.

“Come on, how about we go and practice for tomorrow? I think we have a lot to work on before the show.”

Seungmin held out his hand, which Jeongin grabbed onto before being hoisted upwards. The two boys walked back to the bleak house together, with Jeongin feeling better than he had in weeks. He had found a companion to brave the storm with after so long. Jeongin walked slightly behind Seungmin as they entered the prison that they now called their home.

Chapter Text

The boys may have gotten up slightly earlier than usual because of the thought of the warm, honeyed pancakes that they would soon be eating. If there was one thing that all of them had in common, it was their love for food. Jisung was particularly excited at the idea of once again meeting up with Minho, who would probably already be waiting outside for them. Dressing himself in record time, he made sure he looked immaculate before skipping out of his room and banging on the doors of the other boys, hollering at them to hurry up. When all gave a grunt or mumble to indicate that they weren’t ready yet, Jisung became antsy and told them all that he would meet them outside. He bounced down the stairs and made his way out the door, bowing to the owner who was sitting behind the desk reading a magazine. Jisung noticed the green ring around her wrist but thought he should acknowledge her anyway.

It was about ten minutes before the predetermined meeting time and just as Jisung had thought, Minho was already waiting outside of the inn for them. He was twiddling his thumbs and staring off into the crowd at all of the overjoyed people passing him. Jisung brightened up as soon as he saw Minho and crept down the steps so he could surprise the boy who wasn’t paying attention to him. Tiptoeing towards Minho in absolute silence, Jisung positioned himself behind the other and raised his hands to attack him. Minho quickly sidestepped, causing Jisung’s legs to tangle together and force him to go hurtling towards the ground. Minho quickly managed to catch the hood on his jacket and yank him back up beside him.

“I told you before, Jisung, you really need to work on your sneaking skills.”

Jisung pouted at the smug look on the older boy’s face. He debated with himself in his head on how the hell the older boy had even heard him. He couldn’t have but he couldn't have seen him either. In the end, Jisung concluded that Minho must have some extra ability to amplify his perception and quickly wriggled free from the boy’s grasp.

“Where’s everybody else? Did you come down here on your own just to meet me?” The arrogant smile on Minho’s face sent chills throughout Jisung, who averted his gaze, furiously trying not to blush at the other’s insightful observation.

“I just thought you might be lonely waiting down here by yourself. I was ready before all of the others, so I came down. I can go back up if you don’t want me here.”

Jisung hastily twirled around before Minho hooked his arm with the younger boy and pulled him back, causing them to collide.

“I never said that I didn’t want you to stay. We’ll wait for the other slowpokes together.”

Minho hadn’t let go of Jisung’s arm since he knew that what Jisung wanted most was the attention that he had been deprived of growing up. So, to keep him close, that’s exactly what he was going to give him.

After about five minutes, the rest of the group emerged from the inn and were met with Minho and Jisung in deep conversation, still linking arms. Upon seeing the others, Jisung tried to jump away from the elder boy as he knew it would result in endless teasing but Minho kept a firm grip on his arm.

“Hey, are you guys ready to go? It’s just down this street,” Minho beamed as he gestured to the distant cafe where there were to eat breakfast.

“Yeah, yeah, we’re all ready to go. How about you Jisung? Are you sure you’re ready?”

Felix was biting his lip trying to hold in his laughter, as Jisung was still trying to loosen Minho’s grasp on his arm but failing miserably. Minho pulled him up and began to walk but Jisung was very aware of the snickers and wolf whistles that were coming from behind him. He literally wanted to die right then and there but couldn’t say that he particularly disliked linking arms with the older boy either.

The small brick cafe that Minho brought the others to was warm and welcoming. It offered numerous little tables that were surrounded by comfortable looking armchairs, which called for the boys to sit in them. There were a few customers scattered around the place, though most seemed to be requesting their orders for takeout, presumably to walk through the festive city before the celebrations began.  

The group pulled two tables together to fit all seven of them and took the menus from the waitress, who greeted them with a cheesy smile. The wide array of breakfast food available made their mouths water but Kyuhoon warned them that they would probably be eating throughout the day since Minho said there were numerous stalls that offered different assortments of food, so they shouldn’t order too much.

Pancakes seemed to be the obvious choice for most as Minho had highly recommended them. Jisung ordered his with strawberries and maple syrup, as did Felix and Minho. Chan opted for pancakes with chocolate and bananas while Kyuhoon went simple with lemon and icing sugar. Changbin and Hyunjin strayed from the rest by ordering french toast and cinnamon waffles respectively.

Jisung felt like he had left Phantasm and entered heaven instead. He would never doubt Minho again, as he had been completely right when he said that these were the best pancakes he would ever eat. Minho laughed at Jisung’s noises of contentment as the Thief thanked him for bringing them here. Minho caught himself when he realised that he was no longer faking his smile towards the younger boy and quickly shoveled the food into his mouth. He wasn’t going to wander into that dangerous territory.

Kyuhoon stuck his fork into a piece of his pancake and directed it towards Chan’s mouth, who looked a little surprised about the sudden move. He ate the food that was offered to him, while flashing a small smile at the older boy. Kyuhoon opened his mouth, indicating to Chan that he was to return the favour by letting him taste some of his pancakes, which the boy complied with. Hyunjin noticed this and started to feel like a third, or even seventh, wheel. Chan and Kyuhoon were feeding each other, Minho and Jisung were giggling like schoolgirls in the corner and he didn’t even want to look at Changbin and Felix to see what they were up to but he was sure it was probably sickeningly sweet like the pancakes that were now cleared from the table. Sighing, he threw his eyes upwards.

“Alright, are we nearly done here? I want to get out and see some of these shows Minho hyung was talking about.” Hyunjin’s voice made all of the others turn to look at him, frowning at the slight annoyance in his words.

“Yeah, we’re pretty much finished. We should go and pay. Minho, thanks for the recommendation. If you have anymore places that you think are worth visiting, then let us know.” Chan flung his arm around Minho’s shoulders while they made their way to the register.

Hyunjin walked behind the others, before Felix caught his arm. “Jinnie, everything alright? You sounded a little irked back there.”

“I’m fine. You were all just being too lovey dovey and I wanted out as fast as I could!” Hyunjin had reverted back to his playful self now that he wasn’t being smothered anymore.

Felix grimaced at the other. “What do you mean? Who was being lovey dovey?”

“All of you were. You and Changbin hyung are constantly at it, though I think it’s become something like breathing at this stage. You don’t even realise you’re doing it.”

Felix dragged Hyunjin back from the rest of the group with a startled expression. “Me? With Changbin hyung? Are you crazy? He doesn’t like me like that!”

Hyunjin paused and looked at Felix with a vacant expression. He couldn’t believe that the two of them were actually like this.

“You think he doesn’t like you? Ok, I think no matter what I tell you that you won’t believe me. Here’s a question for you then. He mightn’t like you but do you like him?”

Felix stopped breathing for a moment before answering. “Sure, I like Changbin hyung. He’s awesome and his skills are amazing.”

Hyunjin rolled his eyes at the boy’s obvious attempt to avoid the real question he was asking him. “No, Lix. Do you like Changbin hyung? Not just as a friend.”

Hyunjin could see Felix’s eyes flash towards the person in question before he let them fall to the ground. “I...I don’t know yet. I think...maybe...I-I-” Felix was beginning to panic a little and Hyunjin moved closer to the boy and whispered.

“Felix, it’s ok if you like him. From what I can see, he likes you too. If you don’t know yet, then give yourself some time to figure it out. Don’t rush it and don’t get so worked up about it.” Hyunjin pulled Felix into a warm embrace so that he knew, no matter what, that he would be there for him, through thick and thin. He patted Felix’s hair and quickly detached himself so that the other boys wouldn’t notice and start to worry about why they were suddenly hugging. He didn’t want to out Felix’s feelings like that. He grabbed the younger’s hand and pulled him forwards towards the group. The others hadn’t noticed that they had been missing for the short period of time.

Felix’s heart was going a mile a minute and he prayed to himself that it would return to normal soon. The question had been sprung on him so suddenly that he didn’t have time to come up with an excuse. Hyunjin had the ability to see right through him and this instance was exactly the same. He knew Hyunjin was right though, he needed time to figure this out. After they had paid, they left the cafe to explore the scintillating city.

Jeongin’s breathing was uneven as he tried to calm his nerves. Even though Seungmin had helped him practice yesterday, he wasn’t able to get a proper grasp on his abilities, no matter how hard he tried. He had managed to succeed a few times but it lasted no longer than a couple of seconds, with Jeongin starting to feel dangerously weak straight away. He played with his fingers as he knew what would happen if he wasn’t able to perform. The beating he got yesterday would pale in comparison to the one he would receive later. He shuddered at the thought and captured his lips between his teeth, leaving small indentations. Sitting at the back of the stage alone, he wondered where Seungmin had gotten to. He could really use some reassurance right now. Others from their group were now performing out front.

A Black Mage was making fire bend to her will, while the flames danced around her feet. Her long, chestnut curls bounced as she moved around the floor. He had seen her at the house before and was pretty sure he had heard one of the men in charge calling her Eunbin. She looked breathtaking while she performed, which the audience seemed to agree with as it was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Jeongin was mesmerised but his gaze was averted once he saw Seungmin come into view out of the corner of his eye.

He was dressed in all black, his bright hair being obscured by his hood. Jeongin knew the reason he was dressed like this and it made his heart sink. He knew Seungmin didn’t want to perform either but for a different reason to Jeongin. Seungmin’s abilities didn’t put much of a strain on his body since he had more time to master his class compared to Jeongin. No, Seungmin just felt that his morals were being played with when he was performing his act. He slowly moved over to sit beside Jeongin, who smiled at the older boy.

“Are you up next, hyung?” Seungmin slowly nodded, letting his face fall into his hands. Jeongin was very aware of the muscular man standing very close to them, keeping an eye on their every move in case they decided to make a run for it. Both boys knew better. Shortly after arriving, Jeongin had witnessed a young girl try to escape from the house, only to be dragged back by her hair by two beastly men. Her screams echoed throughout the house before they were cut off quite suddenly. Jeongin never remembered seeing her after that and that was more than enough incentive to stay put.

Seungmin grasped Jeongin’s hand. The two boys had only started talking a day ago but the bond that they had formed in that exceedingly short amount of time was strong. They realised that they only had each other and they were going to hold on for dear life. Neither of them cared that the man beside them was sneering at them, making disparaging comments about their intertwined fingers.

“Alright, you, up.”

Seungmin felt a strong hand grab his arm and drag him away from his friend, who looked concerned at the harsh treatment. Eunbin had finished her performance, which caused the crowd to applaud loudly and scream how amazing she was. She twirled and bowed before turning on her heel with a bright smile on her face. As soon as she came between the crimson curtains, her face fell. Her legs wobbled a bit, showing how exhausted she was. Seungmin pushed on her shoulder to keep her upright as she nodded apologetically. Eunbin disappeared beyond the second curtain to return to the trailers that were situated out back where they were to stay if they weren’t performing.

Now, it was Seungmin’s turn. He glanced backwards at Jeongin, who seemed immensely anxious at the thought of his own performance. He had tried to help the younger boy perfect his act yesterday and Seungmin wasn’t sure why but the boy couldn’t manage to activate his skills to their full potential. Maybe it was fatigue or maybe it was the fact that he was so frightened by his own powers that, subconsciously, he didn’t want to use them. Seungmin didn’t have any more time to think about the other as his back was firmly pushed to show that he was to go on stage. He took a deep breath before beginning his act to entertain the people.

Chan’s group had passed numerous performers along the main street. Kyuhoon had noticed a small stage with a lone Bard singing while playing a mandolin. The young girl’s modulated, silvery voice had the crowd in the palm of her hand as they swayed along with the tune. Kyuhoon knew he had heard this song before but couldn’t place it. He thought, perhaps, that it was from the real world but it had been so long, he wasn’t quite sure.

This is my destiny,

Don’t smile on me,

Lie to me,

Because I can’t go to you,

There’s no name that you can call.

You know that I can’t,

Show you me,

Give you me,

I can’t show you my weaknesses,

So I’m putting on a mask to go and see you,

But I still want you.

Kyuhoon was drawn to the stage but noticed that the others hadn’t stopped, so he glanced at the girl one last time before moving on. Other performers called out to the group to watch them. They sauntered up to a stage where a young man was talking to the audience about his act. Chan didn’t hear what he had said but the boy began to shout some sort of incantation to begin his performance.

Fear enveloped Felix’s body as he recognised what the boy had been chanting. He moved slightly backwards, only to bump into Changbin, who looked at the other with concern.

“Felix, what’s wrong?” His hands were trembling as Changbin grabbed them, forcing the boy to meet his eyes. “Tell me.”

“H-he’s a Beast Master. I’m just worried about being in an enclosed space like this. How can this guy not be worried about the animals attacking the audience?”

Felix glanced at the boy on stage, who was quickly accompanied by a Goyogae, a large canine with shiny, blue fur. It danced beside its master, as a beach ball was thrown towards it and it balanced the ball on its nose. The audience clapped along with the music but Felix still felt uneasy. A comforting hand suddenly snaked its way around his waist, causing him to look back at Changbin, who hooked his chin on the younger boy’s shoulder.

“Back when you defeated the Micarici in the forest, I told you I would never let anything happen to you while I’m around. That still stands. So, don’t be afraid Felix, alright?”

Felix allowed himself to relax slightly in Changbin’s arms. He remembered how he had defeated his first beast in the forest while Chan and Changbin stood beside him. They were ready to protect him in case something happened and he had complete trust and faith in the boys to do the same thing today as well. He nodded at Changbin’s words of reassurance and turned back to watch the rest of the show.

Hyunjin glanced sideways at the two and noticed that Changbin hadn’t moved away from Felix even after comforting him, which made him smile at how cutely they were acting, even if it was unintentional. The show ended after the boy managed to summon a few more beasts and took a bow with all of them by his side. Felix clapped along with the rest of the crowd and felt that he was completely safe and secure with Changbin’s arms placed around him. Maybe he didn’t need as much time as he thought to figure out his feelings. People dropped money into the collection basket that was being passed around, with Chan and Kyuhoon adding ten gold coins of their own.

Once the show had concluded, the boys moved onto the next stage, which was the largest one they had come across. The crowd gathered in front of the platform was also the biggest that they had seen, which indicated to the group that this was probably a show worth seeing. Jisung moved up to a sign placed beside the podium and read it.

‘Come and marvel at the kids that possess the rarest classes in Phantasm.’

“Oh, this sounds interesting. Rare classes are always a sight to behold.”

The group strolled to the entrance where they were asked to pay. Jisung realised then that only some of the shows were free and that they would have to pay for certain ones to gain entry. Once the payment was taken care of, Jisung grabbed Minho’s hand and dragged him towards the front of the crowd, ignoring the complaints coming from the annoyed onlookers. The other boys followed suit as they made their way to the forefront. A young girl was just making her way back behind the curtain and they wondered what kind of a show she had put on. Noticing the scorch marks on the ground, Minho came to the conclusion that she had been a Black Mage.

The audience was slightly startled when a mist began to envelop the area and a young boy stepped out onto the stage. He was clad from head to toe in white but Hyunjin noticed luminous, auburn hair peeking out from beneath his hood. The round glasses on his nose suited him perfectly and Hyunjin felt like he wanted to get much closer to see this act. He began his show, which involved him moving his hands slowly around himself. The smoke that had raided the stage in the beginning was now being formed into different animals and people that looked extremely realistic. He created tall trees from the mist, along with birds that sat on the branches while singing a melodic tune.

“Wow, this kid is an Illusionist? That’s an exceedingly rare class. I’ve never seen one use their abilities before. Everything up there looks so real.” Changbin marveled at the boy’s powers as he created a whole captivating scene in front of them. They couldn’t take their eyes off of the red headed boy, who seemed to be in his element while performing.

Everyone in the crowd was so mesmerised that they never noticed the boy putting his hand inside of their pouches to steal their hard earned cash. Not that they could see him even if they hadn’t been paying close attention to the stage. This was all part of the act.

Hyunjin gazed at the youth and all of his creations, before he felt a slight tug on his backpack and slowly turned around. Someone sporting jet black clothing was retracting his hand from one of the pockets in his bag where he had kept all of his coins. Was this guy seriously trying to steal from him in broad daylight with so many people around? Talk about having some nerve. He grabbed the boy’s hand and yanked it hard towards him.

“Uh, excuse me? What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

Hyunjin's eyes bore into the boy before his brow furrowed in confusion. It was the same person that was standing on stage at that very moment, though he was contrasting with the other with regards to the colour of his clothes.

The boy looked like he had seen a ghost. He didn’t even make an attempt to pull away. “Y-you can see me? That’s not possible. Nobody here should be able to see me.”

A breathy laugh escaped Hyunjin’s lips at the boy’s words. He wasn’t shocked that he had been caught red handed while stealing from someone but rather that Hyunjin could see him?

Suddenly, the illusions on the stage, as well as the boy in white that was orchestrating them, disappeared into thin air. Murmurs from the crowd erupted into boos, the onlookers obviously not impressed with the abrupt end to the impressive show. A suited man came onto the stage, apologizing for the sudden interruption and assured them that the next act would come on shortly.

Hyunjin realised that it wasn’t the boy’s twin up on the stage but rather an illusion of himself that he had projected up there. He came to the conclusion that while his illusions distracted people, he would steal from the unsuspecting onlookers. The boy suddenly let out a pained whimper and Hyunjin snapped back to reality.

“No, this isn’t happening right now. Look what you’ve done. He’s going to kill me. I lost my focus and the illusions disappeared. Oh my god, he’s going to kill me, he’s going to kill me...”

Still holding onto the boy’s wrist, Hyunjin could feel how badly the other had started to tremble. His round spectacles magnified the tears that were now starting to pool in his eyes and fall down his face. Hyunjin very quickly became concerned at what the boy was muttering and loosened his grip on the other.

“What do you mean? Who’s going to kill you?”

The red head looked up at Hyunjin, his eyes screaming for him to help.

“The guy who took us. They call him Siwan.” He suddenly froze, stumbling backwards with a terrified expression after realising his sudden slip in sanity. “No, no, no, I shouldn't have told you that. He could come after you if he knew that I told you his name. Forget what I just said.” He tried to free his wrist from the other boy’s grasp in a futile effort.

“Shh, calm down, what’s your name? What do you mean he took you? Are you in trouble?”

Before Hyunjin could ask anymore questions or the other could reply, a powerful arm grabbed the boy’s hood and pulled him backwards, causing him to choke due to the sudden pressure on his neck. Hyunjin reluctantly let go of the boy as he watched him being taken away.

“The boss is pretty furious with you, kid. I’d be surprised if you were still alive tomorrow.”

Hyunjin’s eyes snapped to the man who was dragging the boy away and his heart jumped into his mouth. Had he just indirectly caused some trouble for the youth? Hyunjin couldn’t seem to tear his gaze away from the other being hauled towards the back of the stage, only to see the man who had grabbed the boy’s hood strike his face, causing him to fall down. Hyunjin made an involuntary move towards the two but realised he had no power to interfere in something that wasn’t his business, no matter how much he wanted to.

Sudden applause filled the air and Hyunjin was awoken from his momentary trance. He swiftly came to the realisation that nobody else had seen the exchange between him and the other youth. All of his friends were still staring at the podium waiting for the next act to come out. He was confused as to why nobody had heard either of them talking. The boy said that he shouldn’t have been able to see him, even though he was standing right in front of him. Hyunjin pondered on what exactly he could have meant by that.

Felix turned to look at Hyunjin while smiling at the show before seeing the distress on his friend’s face. “Jinnie, what’s up?”

“The guy who I was just talking to, did you see him? He was dressed in black.” Felix looked around him but quickly shook his head, showing that he had no idea what the other was talking about.

Hyunjin immediately looked back to where he had last seen the boy but he had disappeared along with the man who had pulled him away. Felix yanked Hyunjin back to look at the next performer but he couldn’t get the look in the boy’s eyes or his terror filled words out of his head. He seemed like he was begging for assistance, though he hadn’t said it outright. Something didn’t sit well within Hyunjin, not just about the treatment of the youth that had been taken away but about this whole show in general.

The next performer came onto the stage and Chan gasped at the kid that stood in front of him. The boy looked emaciated, as makeup was slathered on his hollowed cheeks in a poor attempt to cover up what looked to be numerous bruises on his face. Chan hadn’t seen the interaction between Hyunjin and the other boy but just from seeing this kid on stage, his gut began to twist into a knot as he knew not everything was as it seemed in this show.

A small, white cage hung loosely in the boy’s hand, which seemed to contain a golden bird of some kind though, from its lack of movement, Chan could tell that it was no longer alive. The Knight couldn’t help but wonder what kind of show this kid was going to put on. He placed his hands over the cage and muttered quietly, though it was audible as the audience was completely silent while they waited for the performance to really begin. It took a couple of moments for anything to occur as the boy continued to speak over the dead animal and whispers rose from the crowd as everybody wondered what exactly was supposed to be happening. Chan looked around at the others, who simply shrugged but his attention was quickly brought back to the raven haired boy on stage as he heard sweet chirps coming from the cage.

Loud gasps and shouts came from the crowd, confused words hitting his ears. The bird was now hopping around its cage as if it had not been lying on the floor of the enclosure merely seconds ago. Changbin brushed off of Chan’s shoulder, moving closer to the stage to get a better look at what was happening, with his mouth agape.

“Holy shit. Is this kid a Necromancer? You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”

Chan looked at the Medic in surprise as the vulgar words fell from his lips. This wasn’t like Changbin so he knew that the boy who was performing held a very rare class indeed. Raising something from the dead was obviously something that didn’t happen very often, even in a world full of magic. The crowd weren’t applauding or congratulating the boy on his efforts but rather staring at him in disgust, like he was some sort of abhorrent monster. This told Chan that even within a place like this, bringing the dead back to life was seen as taboo. The other boys stared wide eyed at the youngster and his abilities, though they didn’t hold the same expressions as the rest of the crowd but rather ones of sorrow and pity for the boy.

The youth took the bird out of the cage and placed it on his finger before showing the crowd what had happened. No noise came from the onlookers and the boy looked slightly bothered by the lack of response. Nobody seemed to notice his legs begin to wobble before he took a step forward to steady himself. Chan could sense a feeling of protectiveness begin to well up inside of him, even though he had no idea who this boy was. The young Necromancer’s eyes began to flutter shut as the bird flew away from his finger. Chan didn’t need to see anymore. He roughly pushed past the few people in front of him and held out his arms just in time to catch the boy as he fell from the stage towards the ground.

“Hey, hey, are you alright? Can you hear me? Come on, open your eyes.” Chan lightly tapped the unconscious boy’s cheek, which seemed to garner a small response in the form of a groan. His eyes slowly opened as he began to realise what had just happened. A worried frown fell on Chan’s face as the small boy began to cry in his arms while numerous people surrounded them.

“It’s so painful. It hurts so much. Please, you have to help me. Don’t let them take me back there. I can’t go back. Save me, please.”

Pleading through the sobs that caused his voice to crack, the boy raised his hands to his eyes to wipe away his tears, with Chan pulling him closer to his chest to try and comfort him in any way that he could. Doing this caused Chan to feel how skeletal the boy’s figure really was.

Swaying back and forth, Chan shushed the youngster as he tried to calm him down. “Hey, don’t cry. You’re alright. Can you tell me your name?”

Chan could see for certain now that his face was covered in bruises and small lacerations and it was pretty obvious that these weren’t caused by training or dueling against monsters but from the fists of someone a lot stronger than the kid.

“J-Jeongin. My name’s Yang Jeongin. You can help me, right? It’s not just me though. There are so many of us back at the house. My friend, Seungmin, you can help him too, right? He was the one creating the illusions on stage before me. They’re going to kill us both if we go back.” Chan’s mind became addled as Jeongin tried to explain his situation to him.

Just as Chan was about to inquire as to what the boy meant, two men came running towards them, making Chan cradle the boy even closer to his chest. Fury filled their faces as they looked at Jeongin with distaste but didn’t want to make a scene since there were so many eyes upon them.

“Everybody, no need to worry. He’ll be alright after he rests for a bit. His necromancy skills just take a lot out of him. Come along now, Jeongin.”

One of the men bent down to pick Jeongin up but the Necromancer’s vice-like grip on Chan’s shirt tightened, his bright eyes imploring the older boy not to let them take him away. Chan batted the man’s hand away out of pure instinct, which caused him to look at Chan with a horrified expression, as if asking how dare he deny him of his property.

“How could you guys let him get to this stage? The kid is far too skinny. Have you been feeding him properly? Plus, the contusions on his face don’t exactly scream that you’ve been looking after him very well.” Chan had no time for bullies who picked on weaker people, especially kids who couldn’t defend themselves.

The two brutes looked ready to throw punches but the second man quickly spoke up while adjusting his lavender tie.

“I can assure you that we will take care of him later. Jeongin, you should really come with us. Seungmin is waiting for you backstage. He says he’s not feeling too well. If you don’t come now, his condition might only get worse.”

Chan recognised a threat when he heard one and was about to clock these guys for treating a kid this way but before he could move, the grip on his shirt loosened as Jeongin began to push himself away and walk towards the men unsteadily. Chan instinctively reached out his arm to tell the boy to come back but Jeongin quickly spun around with a fake smile plastered on his face.

“Sorry about that. I lost my mind for a moment. I’m fine now, really. I’m going to go and see my friend and make sure that he’s alright. Thank you for catching me when I fell and thank you for coming to see the show. Sorry for letting everybody down.” Jeongin bowed towards the crowd that was staring at him. Chan didn’t want to let him go but he couldn’t force the boy to stay if he didn’t want to. He realised that he was going back to save his friend and knew that if he was in Jeongin’s place and any of his friends were in danger, he would go without any trouble to help them too.

He watched as Jeongin walked away from him and knew that there was nothing he could do. He felt a warm hand on his shoulder and turned to face Kyuhoon, who seemed to be thinking the exact same thing as Chan. The other boys of the group followed suit in their thoughts. They had all heard Jeongin’s pleas and knew that they needed to do something about this. They weren’t quite sure what it was yet but they needed to help this kid who begged them for help, like his life depended on it. As a matter of fact, Chan thought that his life probably did depend on them and that scared him more than anything else. Before they left the area, Chan noticed the bird that Jeongin had brought back from the dead was now lying on the stage, completely still and lifeless once again.

A forceful push caused Jeongin to fall through the door of the trailer and collapse to the ground. He didn’t have the strength to stop himself before his face made contact with the carpeted floor, adding to the bruises on his face. Glossy, ebony brogues stopped right in front of Jeongin’s eyes, causing the boy to try and push himself slowly off of the ground but could only manage to rest his weight on his elbows while he raised his head. Siwan’s cold expression showed Jeongin that what he had feared earlier may in fact come true and wondered from the veins popping out of his neck if he would survive this assault.

“My boy, what in the world was that?” Siwan’s low and unruffled tone made Jeongin’s hairs stand on end. He would much rather prefer the older man to be shouting at him than talking to him in such a soft spoken nature. To an outsider, it would seem like the man was trying to comfort Jeongin after his performance had gone wrong but the naivety had been beaten out of Jeongin within the first week he had been in the prison-like house. He knew better and feared what came next.

“I thought you had progressed but it seems I was wrong. Such an appalling performance cannot go without consequences.” Jeongin flinched before he braced himself for the numerous hits that were about to come his way but he remained untouched. He opened his eyes to look at Siwan, who was staring calmly back at him.

“It seems that beating you isn’t giving you any incentive to do better so I think a different method is needed. Bring him in.”

Jeongin’s face fell as he knew exactly who Siwan was talking about before he even saw him. Seungmin was dragged in by his hair and brought to stand beside Siwan. Jeongin could see he already had a bloody nose, possibly because of how poorly his own performance had gone, though he hadn’t seen the reason that Seungmin’s apparitions had suddenly disappeared. He had failed just like him and this was something that was not tolerated in the group.

A clap echoed throughout the room as Siwan’s hand met with Seungmin’s face, causing the boy to sob and step away. An aggressive grip encircled Seungmin’s throat so that he couldn’t move any further as Siwan continued to strike. Jeongin began to jump up to intervene but felt that someone’s foot was now placed firmly on his back as he lay on the floor. It was Siwan’s turn to put on a performance and Jeongin had no choice but to watch as his friend was tossed onto the floor like a ragdoll. Polished shoes came into contact with the Seungmin’s stomach as he let out cries of anguish and teardrops began to tumble from Jeongin’s eyes. No matter how hard he struggled, he couldn’t move the man’s foot from between his shoulder blades, so he resorted to begging instead.

“Please, stop! I’ll do better, I promise! I won’t let you down again! Stop hurting him, please!”

Upon hearing Jeongin’s screams, Siwan’s foot stopped in the air when he turned to look around at him. Blood sputtered from Seungmin’s mouth as he began to cough strenuously, before he became motionless. Jeongin could see that his body had begun to protect him by shutting down his mind as he fell unconscious. Siwan wiped his bloodied shoes on the floor to clean them before making his way back over to Jeongin and bending down to lift his chin. Staring into his eyes, Jeongin could see that Siwan knew exactly which of his buttons to push to get the response he wanted out of him. He had figured out that he had become friends with Seungmin and used that bond against him.

“That’s what I like to hear, kid. I know you won’t disappoint me again. If you do, I won’t go easy on him the next time, understand?” Jeongin nodded his head, with Siwan still grasping his chin as a pleased smirk spread over his lips. The older man tapped Jeongin’s cheek firmly, knowing that it would inflict some pain due to the injuries he had caused yesterday. Siwan stood and gestured to his men that they were finished before they all exited the trailer to leave the two young boys alone.

Finding the strength that he needed, Jeongin placed himself upon his hands and knees and crawled over to his friend. He cupped Seungmin’s cheek and stroked it, pleading with the boy to wake up. Jeongin never thought that at any point in his life would he have his friend’s blood smeared over his hands. He wished that this was a nightmare that he could awaken from but it had gone on for far too long for that to be true. He bent down and placed his forehead on Seungmin’s, before falling downwards and beginning to snivel into the other’s shirt. A gentle hand came up to rub the back of Jeongin’s neck, with a quiet, broken voice telling him that everything was going to be ok.

“Heh, I was right. All you’re able to do is cry, Jeongin. I hate that it’s because of me though.” Seungmin tried to laugh before Jeongin’s fist tapped lightly on his chest, indicating to the older boy that this was not the time for jokes. They sat there for ages, with only Jeongin’s cries breaking the unbearable silence.

Chapter Text

For others, the festival was a time for celebration and excitement. However, for Chan and the rest of the group, they had come home from the first day of the fete feeling overwhelmed and distressed. They could still hear Jeongin’s voice as it cracked beneath the weight of his troubles, haunting them as they began to get ready to turn in for the night.

The evening breeze fluttered through the open window to where all of them sat in a confining silence. Minho had joined the other boys in their room since he had been just as affected by the events of the day as the rest. The silence seemed to drag on forever before Kyuhoon couldn’t take it anymore and decided to speak up first.

“What are we going to do? We can’t just walk away from something like this, can we? That kid, he just seemed so...so…” He couldn’t seem to find the right word to describe Jeongin’s pain but the others knew exactly what he meant.

Chan’s gaze was firmly set on the horizon that glowed as the sea reflected the light of the setting sun. He felt drained and wondered if it was from being up earlier than usual that day, walking the entirety of the city to watch all that the festival had to offer or having to console the traumatised boy who asked him for help that he couldn’t seem to shake from his thoughts. He rubbed his eyes as he let his head fall back onto the wall behind him.

“I don’t know about the rest of you but I can’t leave this place knowing that this kid is being held somewhere against his will, being abused and from what he said, there are others there with him.”

The stillness in the room caused Chan to look up from where he was sitting to see the reactions of the other boys when he realised their eyes were on him, their faces full of concern and unease.

Felix thought back to what it was the boy had said while talking to Chan. “He said his name was Jeongin, right? And that the Illusionist was a friend of his. His name was…”

“Seungmin.”

All eyes turned to Hyunjin, who had his gaze set firmly on his fingers which moved in circular motions around each other. He couldn’t help but remember the name after he had heard it out of Jeongin’s mouth. The boy who had tried to steal from him, who had turned pale at the realisation that he had screwed up, who had silently asked him to save him from the people who had basically kidnapped him to perform in their show. He felt a shockwave through his body as he scolded himself for not being perceptive enough about Seungmin’s situation to step in and stop him from being taken away.

Sighing heavily, Jisung surveyed the faces around the room, knowing they were all thinking the same thing.

“Look, I know you want to help these kids and I do too but we know absolutely nothing about them. We don’t know where they came from, we don’t know who took them, we don’t even know if they are still in the city. They could have already left after their show was over. We have nothing to go on that would lead us to them.”

“Jeongin said that they were being kept in a house. It made me think that they aren’t continuously travelling but settled in a certain place. Though, I don’t know if the house is within Aquiria or not so I guess this is pretty much useless information,” Chan mumbled dejectedly and shook his head as he turned to look out of the window once more.

The situation seemed hopeless. Chan knew that unless they saw these boys again, they had nothing that would assist their group in finding them and in turn, helping them. Hyunjin’s fingers stopped encompassing themselves as a thought entered his head and he whispered more to himself than anybody else.

“Siwan.”

Felix had noticed Hyunjin’s small voice and turned to look at the elder, seeing the look of hope that began to shift his expression. “Who’s that, Jinnie?”

Nobody else had heard Hyunjin but they had certainly heard Felix, their attention immediately being drawn to him.

“Siwan. That’s the name of the guy holding them hostage.”

Changbin looked slightly confused at the new revelation and wondered how Hyunjin knew such an important piece of information.

“Wait, you know the person who’s kidnapping these kids? Why didn’t you say that earlier?”

Hyunjin quickly shook his head at the misunderstanding and began to explain. “No, I don’t know who he is but I talked with the other boy, Seungmin, and he told me that the name of the guy in charge was Siwan.”

“You talked to him? When? Why didn’t the rest of us see this?” Jisung moved slightly closer to Hyunjin as if interrogating the boy.

“When he was performing on stage. Well, no, it wasn’t really him performing. It was an illusion. Though he was the one making the illusion so I guess he was still performing.” The Alchemist’s explanation made all of their heads spin before Kyuhoon placed a hand on his leg and told him to slow down and start over from the beginning.

“When Seungmin came out on stage and created all of the illusions, it wasn’t really him. The boy in white was an illusion that Seungmin projected onto the stage. The real Seungmin was in the crowd with the rest of us. He was dressed in black and he was using his illusions to distract the audience while he...stole from people.”

Jisung’s ears perked up at the sound of that. Instead of using stealth, he used his illusions as a distraction to steal. It was these little differences that separated the classes in Phantasm.

“Nobody else seemed to notice him, but I did. When I caught him, I tried to ask him what he was doing but he seemed so surprised that I could see him, though I’m not sure why.”

“I’ve heard Illusionists can make themselves invisible to others when they want to. Apparently, it’s exceedingly hard to see through their abilities, so maybe that’s why. It may be that you have a very keen eye, Hyunjin.” Hyunjin glanced towards Minho and nodded in understanding at his explanation.

“Anyway, when I grabbed his arm, his illusions on stage disappeared. I was the cause of that. Once they were gone, he became really panicked and started whimpering, saying that someone was going to kill him because he messed up. I asked him who he was talking about and he said the guy who took them and that his name was Siwan. After he mentioned that though, he told me to forget what he had said because he might come after me if he found out that I knew his name. He was dragged away by some guy before I could ask him anything else and I saw him get hit before he disappeared. I wanted to do something then but I was kind of too stunned by what happened to react quickly enough. I shouldn’t have let go of his hand when I saw the look in his eyes. It was like he was asking me for help.” His hands came to rest in front of his eyes while Kyuhoon rubbed a comforting hand up and down his arm.

Minho was unsure whether or not he should say something. He had heard the name Siwan before and it was rumoured that he was involved in human trafficking. He owned a house in Aquiria, though he wasn’t certain if this was the one Jeongin had mentioned earlier. The reason that he knew this though was because he apparently had a bounty on his head and a few other Trackers, Assassins or Bounty Hunters had tried to take him down, though none had succeeded but Minho had no clue as to why. He had to figure out a way to tell the others while keeping his identity a secret so he could complete his own mission. Though Minho may have had messed up morals with regards to certain things, when it came to people being abused, especially children, he wasn’t going to sit back and watch it happen.

“I think I may have heard his name around here before. I'm pretty sure he owns a property on the edge of the city. I don’t really know much else about him except that he’s pretty wealthy. After seeing the show, we can all probably guess why that is. He’s using the kids as pawns to make him money.”

Chan removed his gaze from the sea in the distance to stare at Minho and his admission. “We have a location? Where is this place? Could you take us there?”

Minho nodded his head warily but Jisung cut Chan off before he could say anymore.

“And what happens when we get there, huh? We walk up to the front door and stroll right in while saying ‘Hi! We’re just here to take the kids you’ve been beating to a pulp. Don’t mind us and go about your business?’ We can’t be the first people to realise what’s going on in this house, yet, nothing has been done about it. There must be a reason for that.”

Jisung was right and Chan knew it but the intolerable pain in his chest wouldn’t allow him to keep sitting here and talking about the problem, he wanted to go right now and help them.

“So, I was thinking, why don’t we make this a covert mission?” Chan raised his eyebrows towards Jisung and his suggestion. “There are two people whose classes focus on stealth and suppressing their presence in this room right now. If we tread lightly, we could probably sneak into the house that Minho hyung was talking about and scout the place before we make any move as a group. We gather information and see what’s really going on in this place and if it is, in fact, the right location. Wouldn’t do much good to invade a house that wasn’t the one we were looking for.”

Minho knew that Jisung had been referring to the two of them when speaking about those who could go on this operation. Though he was not a Shadow like he had previously told the rest of them, he deliberately chose a class which was similar to the Tracker one which he really held. His class still focused on furtiveness but he didn’t use the shadows to teleport. Instead, he could see people’s auras and that helped him to identify the targets he wished to take down. Minho knew it would be relatively easy to keep his charade going even while doing an assignment like this.

“That...sounds like a plan. We shouldn’t walk into a dangerous situation blind, so Jisung’s proposal makes a lot of sense. Do you think you guys can do this undetected? We don’t want you getting caught and I highly doubt a place like that isn’t guarded.” Changbin’s worried gaze caused Jisung to laugh humorlessly before nodding his head, showing the Medic that he would have nothing to worry about.  

“Would that be ok with you, Minho?”

Minho’s head snapped up as soon as Kyuhoon asked him the question. He had been fine with the idea, already coming up with possible entry points based on what little he had actually seen of the house from afar. While he wanted to help the children that were trapped in the house, he also thought that this would be an opportune chance to collect the reward offered for Siwan’s head. Being able to kill two birds with one stone was something that was very appealing to Minho. With a determined look on his face, he responded to Kyuhoon’s inquiry with a bob of his head as he turned to Jisung, whose smile of thanks caused Minho’s cheeks to feel a little warm.

“So, when is this little incursion going to take place exactly?” enquired Felix.

Chan and Kyuhoon began to calculate the best time to infiltrate in their heads but didn’t have time to figure out an answer before Jisung spoke.

“Tonight.”

Everybody, including Minho, gawked at the young Thief in surprise. Jisung could see the alarm in everyone’s faces but before anyone could voice their opinions on the matter, he raised his hands and made an observation.

“I’m not saying we extract them tonight but we need to make sure that they are safe for the time being and get more information on the whole thing. If we wait anymore, we don’t know how much longer these kids will survive. Hyunjin, you mentioned that boy, Seungmin, said that Siwan would kill him because he messed up his show, right?” Hyunjin looked almost uneasy while sharing his memory but bowed his head to show that Jisung had remembered correctly.

“Right, Chan hyung, didn’t Jeongin say pretty much the same thing?” Chan nearly didn’t want to answer the question because, in doing so, he would make Jisung’s point valid and that would cause both him and Minho to enter the house so soon without any proper preparation.

“You say you want to save these boys but the longer we wait, the more danger they are going to be placed in. So, Minho hyung, should we start getting ready to go? You know where we’re heading, right?”

Minho couldn’t help but admire Jisung’s purposefulness and resolve while the younger boy stared at him intently, waiting for his answer along with the rest. “I’m ready when you are.”

The city held a different air about it once the people had cleared from the streets. Abandoned stages littered the area, emptied of their performers and audiences. Silence filled the air, only to be broken by laughter in the distance as not all of the residents of the city slept at this time of night but rather, drowned their sorrows in the closest bar. The dim street lights flickered as the two boys made their way towards their destination. Neither Minho nor Jisung had spoken since they left the other boys. This wasn’t because of awkwardness as both felt strangely comfortable in each other’s presence but rather because of the fact they were so focused on their mission.

Shortly before they had departed, the group gathered together in the room to try and come up with some sort of plan to get Minho and Jisung through the night safely. Minho informed the others of what little he knew about the house and the inhabitants inside. He thought to himself that this was probably the least prepared he had ever been when planning out a mission but he was up for the challenge. He also made the point in his mind that he would not be alone like he usually was, though he wasn’t certain if this was a particularly good thing. Drawing a rough sketch of the house and the surrounding area, Minho indicated where he thought would be a good entry point to Jisung, who was listening intently.

Changbin mentioned that it would have been useful if they had some healing potions to bring with them, in case any of the kids were injured in the house. When all of the others grimaced at their lack of elixirs, Chan enquired as to what they were talking about, since they hadn’t come up before. Changbin explained that, while magic such as his was a lot more powerful, not everyone had a Medic or White Mage on their team, so they had to resort to buying healing potions instead, which would treat basic injuries. They usually came in two colours: a cloudy blue and luminous green, with the latter being more potent. Quickly reaching for his bag, Chan took out the two bottles he had discovered on him during his very first day in Phantasm.

Changbin’s face broke into a small grin as he grasped the bottle sporting the green liquid. “This is exactly what I was talking about. Is it alright if Jisung takes this? We’ll pay you back.” Chan quickly shook his hands in front of him as an indication that payback wasn’t needed. He was just happy that he could help in some way. Felix moved a little closer to Chan and gestured to the other bottle, saying that it was a strength enhancer which also caused your defence to level up. Chan internally cursed himself for not drinking it that day in the forest. Maybe he would have stood some sort of chance against the Bafrer if he had taken it but it didn’t really matter anymore.

Jisung eventually stated that they were as ready as they were ever going to be under the circumstances. They weren’t going to bring any bulky equipment with them besides Jisung’s Daggers, Minho’s Katana and the potion that Chan had given them so that they could move at a quicker pace. They turned to leave as Minho waved but not before Kyuhoon spun Jisung around and hugged him a little tighter than he usually did.

“Be safe, all right? Look after each other. If things look like they’re going to go bad, you two get out of there as quickly as possible. Do you hear me?”

A slightly shaky breath drifted past Jisung’s ear, showing the boy that Kyuhoon was more than a little nervous about what they were going to do. Jisung gently rubbed his back to tell the older boy that they would return with no problems. Changbin moved forward and placed his hand on Jisung’s shoulder but remained silent, as if his gesture was enough to convey his feelings. Hyunjin and Felix positioned themselves behind Kyuhoon, who was still clinging to Jisung, while making hideous and nightmare inducing faces towards their friend to try and lighten the mood. It seemed to work as Jisung began to giggle, with Kyuhoon looking slightly annoyed that he didn’t seem to realise the weight of the situation he was about to be placed in.

Minho could only look on at how much this group cared about each other and how much they loved Jisung. When Jisung had told him about his past, obviously omitting the details about his brother, Minho had stated that he seemed to be in a good place with regards to the people he had around him now and the scene in front of him only strengthened his point. Minho wondered what it was like to have people care about you.

To have anyone care about you.

It seemed like such a foreign concept to Minho as he watched the oldest boy in the group continue to fret over Jisung. Being so lost in his own thoughts, Minho never noticed a presence beside him until he felt arms go around his neck and realised someone was hugging him.

“I thought you might feel left out if only Jisung got a hug goodbye. We hope you come back safe too, Minho. I know you’ll look after Jisung for us. We’ll trust you with that.”

Minho was a little blown away by Chan’s sudden action and words. He didn’t hug back, as he wasn’t very much of a touchy person but he didn’t immediately move away from the contact either. He couldn’t remember the last time that somebody hugged him or if anyone ever did. Minho suddenly realised that he became too comfortable in the other’s embrace and pulled away while showing a small, awkward smile towards the older boy as a form of thanks for the words of support.

Jisung eventually managed to free himself from his hyung’s grasp before turning to Minho and heading out the door, with the others calling out for them to be careful.

Now that it was just the two of them alone, Jisung thought that they may as well talk, since Minho said it would take them about twenty minutes to get to their destination. They could have gotten there a lot faster if they had used their abilities but thought it best to reserve their strength in case anything went south later on in the night.

“So, hyung, how long have you been in Phantasm?”

“About seven months, give or take. I began it here in Aquiria. It took me a while to get my bearings but I eventually fell into the rhythm of this world and found my way. How about you?” A couple, who seemed slightly tipsy, stumbled across the boys’ path while laughing at seemingly nothing. They quickly apologised before they moved on, causing the two youths to look at each other with slight exasperation at their conversation being interrupted.

“Me? I’ve been here eigh- ah, six months. Yeah, I was, um, found in Haknal by this nice lady called Joomi-ssi. She took me in and gave me a place to stay so I had a pretty nice start to the game. I think I was pretty lucky.”

Jisung’s train of thought had been interrupted by the drunk couple and he nearly let slip how long he had actually been inside of the game. He had spent over eight months in Phantasm but the first two were spent in hell and he had never informed anyone about them. He had told Kyuhoon and Changbin that as soon as he entered the game six months ago, he was found by Joomi, though this wasn’t the case. She had discovered him after he had escaped from his nightmare, though he hadn’t even told Joomi about what had happened to him and that’s the way it was going to stay.

However, Minho was nothing if not perceptive and had noticed that Jisung had made an error while he hadn’t been paying attention to what he was saying. He was going to say eight but had changed it to six, which made Minho think that whatever his brother was out to get him for had occurred within the first two months that he was within Phantasm. He was learning more and more about Gyujin that may help him with his mission in the end, though he wasn’t going to let Jisung know that he had noticed he had misspoken.

“That seems like a stroke of luck indeed. How did you meet Changbin and Kyuhoon hyung if you didn’t enter the game with them then? You guys seem awfully close.”

Jiusng went on to tell Minho about how Changbin had been a regular at the inn that Joomi had run and in the several times he had stayed there, they began to talk, before Changbin had asked Jisung if he had wanted to travel with him. He had become a little claustrophobic having to stay in Haknal all of the time so he had agreed. As for meeting Kyuhoon, Jisung mentioned that while he and Changbin were staying in the city of Kihoj, Kyuhoon was performing on the streets where they sat for hours and listened to him sing. After a while of listening to the Bard as the wintry breeze nipped at their ears, he asked the two younger boys if they were cold since they seemed to be shivering, though neither of them really noticed because they were so invested in listening to Kyuhoon’s sweet voice. He had offered to bring them for hot chocolate before they began to talk and knew that he was someone they wanted to have on their team, especially since his end goal seemed to be the same as theirs.

Jisung concluded his tale by telling Minho about how he had met Chan, Hyunjin and Felix, with Minho being exceedingly interested in his stories, much to his surprise. Kyuhoon, as the Bard, was supposed to have the skill of reciting captivating stories but Jisung seemed to have this innate talent as well. Minho didn’t realise they had been walking for so long until he noticed that they had already reached their destination.

“Sorry, I just ended up talking about myself again. I was supposed to ask you all about your class and why you are a Shadow but I guess it will have to wait until another time. Again. Sorry.”

Minho was confused as to why Jisung was apologising to him, seeing as he hadn’t done anything wrong. Minho had asked him the questions as a way of diverting attention away from himself in case he said anything that might give him away.

“No need to say sorry. You answered the questions I asked, that’s all. Ok, this is it. Are you ready?”

Both boys approached the mansion that was enclosed with a high, white-brick wall. Jisung tried to calculate the height, thinking that it must be at least fifteen feet tall, which would make it somewhat difficult to scale but not impossible. He wasn’t so much worried about making his way up but rather the fall they would have to endure on the other side. Fortunately for them, large oak trees were visibly poking out from over the wall which they knew they could hop onto and carefully make their way down to the ground below. Sharp, metal spikes sat at the top of the enclosure, which Minho thought most people would use to keep out intruders but re-evaluated his observation when he began to think that they were more than likely there to keep certain people in.

Very little of the house was visible from where they were standing and they dared not go towards the main gate in case they were detected in any way, so they made due with what they had. Minho tugged on Jisung’s sleeve as they both sunk to the ground and talked in hushed whispers.

“The plan is to scale the wall to the west, which will situate us at the back door but we won’t be going through it. I spotted a fire escape leading up to the second floor while we were walking up here and that’s our entry point into the house. I have lockpicks in my pocket so we can jimmy one of the windows open without breaking the glass. We don’t know where the window leads, so we’ll have to be really careful when we enter.”

Jisung bit his lip as he began to realise what they were about to do. His own safety wasn’t what was bothering him but the weight of the lives of the kids that he was going to try and save. What if they were found out? And if they weren’t, what if they left some sort of evidence that made it seem that those inside of the house asked them for help to escape? Would they be punished because of that? Because of them? The young Thief couldn’t stop fidgeting as he stared at the house. Icy fingers interlocked with Jisung’s, making him turn to look at Minho, who was smiling softly at him.

“It’s going to be ok. We can do this. We’ll look out for each other while we’re in here, just as we’ve done up until now. Okay, Jisung?” Jisung could tell that Minho wasn’t very good at this kind of thing. Showing his vulnerability and trying to comfort someone feeling down was obviously not within Minho’s repertoire, though Jisung appreciated the effort and gave a small squeeze to the other’s hand before they began their mission.

The crevices in the wall gave the boys enough space to place their feet in them, allowing them to climb up the sizable wall with relative ease. Carefully maneuvering around the spikes on the top of the wall, the boys estimated the distance they were to jump to reach the branch of the tree, which they quickly shimmied down. Once on the ground, both moved silently towards the fire escape, not seeing any guards or cameras in their peripheral. Their footsteps were inaudible as they walked up the metal staircase and positioned themselves beside the window, where Minho began to work on the lock. Keeping an eye on their surroundings, Jisung put his back to Minho so there would be no surprises like someone sneaking up on them. Within a couple of minutes, the latch on the door popped open and Minho nodded towards Jisung, indicating that they were in. Time for the real mission to begin.

From the outside, nobody could possibly guess how these kids were living. A snow white, gated mansion with a perfectly manicured garden fit in so perfectly within Aquiria but the inside of the house paled in comparison. While the upstairs of the house, which is where Siwan and the rest of his men stayed, was decorated beautifully, housing the best furniture, electronics and art that money could buy, the basement where the young performers stayed was comparable to a dungeon. Perhaps they should have considered themselves lucky as they each had a bedroom to themselves, though the small box rooms, which only contained one small cot, couldn’t have held more than one person anyways. Eight identical spaces housed the eight adolescents, the cold, stone walls dripping with dampness and mold. None of the rooms had doors but the large metal one which led to the floor above them was securely sealed each and every night in case any of them had any ideas about trying to escape. A few guards were placed around the house throughout the day but apparently Siwan thought the padlocked door was a better idea than having someone constantly standing there instead, which didn’t make a lot of sense to the young prisoners, though they were sure that there was some unknown reason the man allowed security to be so lax during the night time.

The open planned bottom floor of the house allowed the kids to move around freely into each other’s bedrooms each night, though almost none of them took advantage of this. They would rather keep their distance from each other, as some had gotten attached to people before but they had been taken away for a reason they would rather not think about.

This night was different however, as Jeongin hadn’t left Seungmin’s side since the incident earlier in the day. He hadn’t stopped blaming himself for what had happened to the older boy, no matter what Seungmin had whispered to him. The young Necromancer sat at the end of Seungmin’s bed and gently rubbed his leg in an attempt to comfort the boy who was still wincing in pain from the injuries inflicted on him by Siwan. Jeongin was extremely worried that Seungmin may have some internal injuries, which would continue to worsen since he wasn’t going to get any treatment from anyone in this house. He didn’t think that he was going to be able to get any sleep, even though he was utterly drained from his pathetic performance earlier in the day, as well as crying so much that his eyes had become red and puffy. Jeongin could hear soft snores floating in from the other rooms of the basement and knew that Seungmin’s condition wasn’t causing anyone else to lose sleep, just him. He wasn’t going to leave Seungmin’s side tonight, he had promised himself and Seungmin that this would be the case, even though the older had urged Jeongin to get some sleep, telling him that he wasn’t going to die and that he would still be there in the morning. It had been a joke on Seungmin’s part but Jeongin didn’t think it was funny.

“Jeongin, please go to sleep. I can feel you staring at me in the darkness.” Seungmin’s voice cracked, his raw throat still throbbing from coughing up so much blood earlier. He tried to sit up before Jeongin gently pushed him back down, telling him not to move around excessively.

“Please, just stay still, hyung. I don’t want your injuries to get worse.”

Being the thoughtful person that he was, Siwan had allowed them to have a first aid kit on the bottom floor, which Jeongin had used to fix Seungmin up in whatever way that he could, though he wasn’t very good at it and caused even more pain for the older boy as he poked and prodded at his wounds. Seungmin had thanked him nonetheless and moved to ruffle his hair before he cried out in pain and Jeongin pushed his hand back down. Everytime Seungmin indicated that he was hurt, Jeongin felt his own body scream out in pain, though it was more emotional than physical at seeing his friend in this much agony.

“I’ll stay still if you stop blaming yourself for what happened to me.” Seungmin’s eyes had become accustomed to the darkness of the room and he could now make out Jeongin’s features as they crumpled in distress. “Jeongin, stop it, seriously, or I’m going to get mad at you for real.”

“Hyung, they hurt you to get to me. If you hadn’t become friends with me, this wouldn’t have happened. Maybe we should keep away from each other from now on. Forget that you ever spoke to me. They’re going to keep using you against me if we don’t stop this. Just stay away from me, ok? I’m- I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I-”

Moving at lightning speed, which caused him immeasurable pain, Seungmin jumped up and hugged Jeongin with all of the strength he could muster, which wasn’t a lot considering his circumstances. High pitched sobs fell upon Seungmin’s shirt as Jeongin wrapped his arms around the elder. They stayed like this for some time before Seungmin spoke.

“You’re not getting rid of me that easily. You started this friendship by annoying me with all of those questions but you are not going to finish it by simply walking away. We made a deal to stick together through all of the crap we’ll have to endure. This...occurrence was at the worst end of the scale but hey, look, we’re both still alive.”

“Sometimes I wish I wasn’t.”

The calm smile dropped from Seungmin’s face as he roughly pulled away from Jeongin, who looked startled at the sudden loss of warmth. “Don’t ever say that! Do you hear me?!”

The volume of Seungmin’s voice made Jeongin jump, becoming terrified that the others in the basement might awaken due the echoes bouncing off of the walls. Seungmin noticed Jeongin flinch and realised he had unintentionally raised his voice at the other boy before calming himself and continuing.

“Don’t give up on yourself, ok? You’re the only friend I have in this world and I don’t want to think of it without you. Look at it this way, if I think this much of you thirty six hours after being properly introduced to you, imagine how close we’ll be in the future. Don’t leave me here on my own Jeongin, alright? Keep going, I know you can do this. I’ll be with you from now on, through all of it.” He grabbed Jeongin’s shoulders to bring him back to his embrace upon seeing that the younger had begun to crack under the weight of Seungmin’s words. Jeongin slowly nodded his head, showing that he understood what Seungmin had been trying to say.

They sat in the silence that the night exuded before they were slowly shaken from their thoughts. A slight jingling made them turn their heads towards the noise, wondering what it could be. Jeongin motioned to Seungmin to stay in bed and that he would investigate. Peeking his head out of the door, he looked up and down the short hallway before his gaze fell on the wooden stairs leading up to the exit. It sounded like someone was trying to get in, though it wouldn’t usually take any of the men in charge this long to open the door. A soft clunk made Jeongin cower a little in the doorway as it gently swung open to reveal two unfamiliar faces standing behind it.

Luckily for Jisung and Minho, the room that they entered had been uninhabited, allowing them to step in silently. Without Jisung’s knowledge, Minho’s eyes illuminated, changing from a soft hazel to a brilliant gold as he activated his Third Eye and scanned the area for the auras of those they were looking for. Though, he quickly had to deactivate it as it consumed so much of his energy. He found around ten people in the upstairs area, which Minho assumed to be those in charge as he noticed eight smaller energies two floors below them. Though everyone’s auras emanated a different colour, another way in which Minho could differentiate people was the power that was discharged from them, so when he noticed that the eight auras below were barely evident, probably because of how exhausted they were, he assumed that these were probably the kids they were looking for.

“I would think that these kids are being hidden away somewhere like underground. They probably wouldn’t want to have them on the same floor seeing as they obviously don’t think very much of them. How about we check downstairs first and if we can’t find anything, we can come back up here. We will have to anyway in order to escape.”

Jisung agreed with Minho’s suggestion, which the elder was thankful about. This trust that Jisung had placed in Minho worked to his advantage as he never seemed to question his proposals.

Cracking the door open, Minho held up his hand to signal to Jisung to stay as he looked around the area. Strangely, there was nobody wandering the halls. No cameras were placed on the walls, no guards were seen anywhere. Minho had seen the men with his abilities but all seemed to be spread out into different rooms. Were they all sleeping? Maybe this was going to be a lot easier than they thought. Pulling Jisung’s hand, both boys made their way into the hallway and quickly jumped over the banister, their feet landing like feathers on the floor below.

Minho tried to remember which direction he had seen the weak auras before taking off. Both boys had to marvel at the interior of the house, which neither of them would have ever been used to. High rise ceilings reached to the sky while delicate, crystal chandeliers glistened in the moonlight flowing in from the painted glass windows. The grand staircase led into the even grander living room, which Jisung thought could easily house fifty people with the numerous sofas and armchairs placed around the area. Before he could think anymore on the subject, Minho tapped his forearm and gestured towards a metal door, which clearly seemed out of place within the rest of the house.

Both made their way towards the suspicious entrance before Jisung’s hairs immediately stood on end. He quickly grabbed Minho and pushed him against the wall so that they were hidden in the shadows. A couple of seconds afterwards, a colossal man emerged from the kitchen holding a small glass of water while yawning excessively. Thanks to Jisung’s speed, he hadn’t noticed the two boys, whose breathing had halted due to the shock. The man sloppily made his way up the stairs before they heard a small click, indicating that he had closed the door to his bedroom and disappeared.

The boys’ shaky breaths mingled together due to their close proximity as they looked at each other, with Jisung still firmly placed against Minho’s chest after pushing him against the wall. After the initial shock had passed, Jisung quickly moved away and apologised to the older boy for shoving him without warning.

“You’ve got to stop apologising when you didn’t do anything wrong. You just saved both of our asses. Thanks, Jisung.”

While Minho smiled at the younger boy as he whispered, he was chastising himself on the inside. How could he have missed something like that? A complete and utter rookie mistake to become so focused on something that you lose sight of your surroundings. He had become so comfortable with Jisung watching his back that he had nearly messed up the mission. This was why he should keep working alone.

After they were sure that there would be no more interruptions, they made their way to the door that was secured with a padlock, which Minho thought would be child's play to dismantle. It took him even less time than it did to open the window and they managed to quietly open the door. Immediately after swinging it open, they noticed a pair of eyes staring back at them and their hearts flew into their mouths. Jisung reached for his Daggers but quickly halted when his eyes became accustomed to the darkness that the lower floor held. The boy who they were looking for was the one who had discovered them, which they were thankful for. They hurriedly stepped inside, quietly closing the door and making their way down the stairs.

Jeongin placed both hands in front of him as a warning not to come any closer, which both Jisung and Minho complied with.

“Hey, it’s ok. You’re Jeongin, right? We’re here to help you. We won’t hurt you, see?” Minho carefully reached behind himself and took the Katana off of his back, placing it on the ground and kicking it towards Jeongin. The young boy’s expression shifted to one of confusion before he bent down and picked up the sword while grimacing.

“You guys are here to help me? Heh, why would you do that?” A dismal laugh fell from Jeongin’s lips and Jisung wondered what it was exactly that Siwan had done to them for him to think that nobody was ever going to come and rescue them.

“When you performed earlier, you fell but someone caught you, right? His name is Chan and he’s a friend of ours. You asked him for help, for someone to come and save you, so we’re here to make sure that you were ok.” Jisung explained the situation to Jeongin who suddenly became rigid with shock.

“No, no, I told that guy that I made a mistake. You guys have to leave. It will be bad if they find you, for all of us. It’s really not all that bad here…” While Jeongin had begun his sentence in a raised voice, by the end it was almost inaudible.

“Your friend Seungmin talked to another one of our companions named Hyunjin. He told us the name of the guy in charge and that’s how we found you. He said that he would kill you kids since you messed up your performance. Is he alright?” Minho’s concern was genuine and increased slightly when Jeongin’s face fell and he looked towards the room he had emerged from.

“No, he’s not ok. He’s really badly hurt and nobody is going to heal him. Neither of you are able to use white magic, are you?”

Hope flooded Jeongin’s face before both boys shook their heads and the flame in Jeongin’s eyes was extinguished. Pulling out the bottle Chan had given him earlier, Jisung held it up in front of Jeongin.

“You know what this is, right? It’s a healing potion. If you’d like, we can give it to you so Seungmin can take it. It should heal him up a little bit,” Jisung assured. 

Suspicion clouded Jeongin’s features before Jisung sighed and pulled out one of his sharp weapons. Minho hadn’t noticed what he was doing until it was too late. A slight hiss escaped Jisung’s mouth as he ran his Dagger across his palm, causing blood to slowly seep out of the wound. Jeongin moved forward automatically, as if he was worried about the stranger in front of him. The cork from the small bottle fell to the ground as Jisung took a small sip of the fragrant liquid and wrinkled his nose. He had never been a fan of the mint flavour that these potions held. He raised his bloody hand towards Jeongin to show the younger boy that the wound was already starting to heal thanks to the potency of the elixir. Minho rolled his eyes at Jisung’s actions and thought that surely there was a better way to convince the younger boy that they weren’t lying about the contents of the bottle. It didn’t seem to matter as Jeongin quickly ran up to them and begged them for the rest of the potion so that he could save his friend, which they immediately agreed to.

Jeongin took off into the room he had emerged from earlier as Jisung and Minho followed. When they saw Seungmin’s broken form, both gasped audibly as rage filled them to the brim. Minho surmised that the sick bastard in charge had obviously taken out his anger on the poor boy in front of them, who barely managed to drag himself into an upright position as Jeongin pushed the potion towards him, urging him to take it. When asked where he got it, Jeongin gestured towards the older boys in the doorway, making Seungmin pull Jeongin closer to him as if trying to protect the younger boy from the strangers, who he obviously didn’t trust.

“Hyung, it’s ok. They’re here to help us. This is really a healing potion, I saw it work on…” Jeongin turned his head towards Jisung with raised eyebrows as he realised he hadn’t even asked them their names but that they had known what his was.

“I’m Jisung and this is Minho hyung. Seungmin, go ahead and take the potion, it’ll make you feel better in no time.” Seungmin obviously had a hard time trusting people, similar to Jisung but he couldn’t blame the boy after seeing his circumstances.

“You met a friend of ours in the city today. He said you tried to steal from him but that he caught you before you could. You asked him for help, didn’t you?”

At Jisung’s question, Seungmin furiously shook his head but slowly realised that they said they were friends with the dark haired boy from earlier who had been able to see through his illusions and looked so concerned when he had begun to cry in front of him. Maybe, just maybe, they really did want to help them.

Before Seungmin put the bottle to his lips, he offered some to Jeongin, who still had bruises on his face from the beating yesterday but Jeongin declined, saying that his face would heal quickly even without the potion. Seungmin didn’t want to think about it anymore as the pain flowing through his body was almost unbearable and thought that he would take the chance and drink the potion. He downed the bottle in one gulp and smiled slightly as it was the tastiest thing he had consumed in such a long time. He could feel all of the other’s gazes on him as a cool sensation coursed through his veins. The lacerations on his face were beginning to close up already under the bandages that Jeongin had placed on him earlier and the dull pains around his body began to decrease in intensity. With a surprised look, he gazed towards the newcomers, the corners of his lips curling slightly at the sudden improvement in his overall condition, which made the older boys return the smile as they also realised what was happening.

It took a little while longer for Jeongin to see the change in Seungmin before he met his hyung’s eyes and began to laugh a little when he realised the potion had done its job. He turned to face Jisung and Minho, quickly getting up from the bed and bowing at a ninety degree angle towards them. Minho moved to Jeongin and pushed on his shoulder, indicating to him that there was no need to do that.

“That potion probably didn’t heal all of your injuries since you looked to be in a pretty bad state before but overall, you look better than before. Just to make sure, it would be better for you to see a Medic in case you have any internal damage.” Minho directed the statement towards Seungmin, who scoffed slightly at the suggestion.

“You think the guys here will bring in a doctor to look at me? I have a better chance of sprouting wings and flying out of here than that happening.”

“We never said that you needed a doctor to come to you. We could bring you to see one instead.” Jisung’s words had confused the boys so much that they stared at each other for a long moment before turning back to Jisung to ask what he meant.

“It won’t be tonight but it will be soon. We’re getting you out of here. All of you.”

Chapter Text

The pale moon hung over the tall buildings as its light bounced off of the waves, providing enough light for Kyuhoon to glance over the city. He had positioned himself at the window after Jisung and Minho had left and watched them walk away into an unknown danger. Pessimistic thoughts crowded his head as he shuddered at the idea of something going wrong. Kyuhoon had told himself that this is where he would stay until he saw the two boys coming back to them safely and unharmed. But what if they didn’t? The Bard scrunched his eyes shut and shook his head before he let it fall into his hands due to the weight of his thoughts. He didn’t want to lose the people that he cared about, not again.

“Kyuhoon, are you alright?” The cushioned seat dipped beside him as Chan placed a hand on his shoulder, urging him to look up.

“No, not really. I feel like I’m going to throw up. Heh, I really am the mom of the group, aren’t I?” Kyuhoon laughed, though it was broken by nervousness, making Chan gaze pitifully at the boy.

“Jisung actually told me that I was the mom a little while ago and that you now possessed the dad role. We may have to ask the others to take a vote on such an important decision.” Chan was obviously trying to lift Kyuhoon’s mood and it was working but only to a certain extent.

“Look, there’s nothing wrong with being anxious about their safety. I am too and so are Changbin, Felix and Hyunjin.”

Both of them looked over at the three boys whose limbs were all tangled together as they slept on the single bed. Though they had wanted to stay up and wait for the others to come back, both Kyuhoon and Chan had forced them to sleep, saying that they would keep a lookout and inform them when Jisung and Minho returned. They knew better than to argue but stated that they didn’t want to return to their own rooms, so they compromised and slept in Kyuhoon and Chan’s room instead. Changbin had positioned himself in the middle of the compact bed between the two boys, his chest slowly rising and falling as he slept soundly. Hyunjin snored quietly with the older boy’s left arm around him as Felix snuggled safely into Changbin’s chest on his right side, with the Medic’s head lolling onto the freckled youth’s mop of golden hair. To the eldest boys, it didn’t look like the most comfortable way to sleep but they couldn’t help but smile at how close they had all become in such a short amount of time.

At a small noise in the street, Kyuhoon spun his head around to investigate, only to see a stray cat run away from a darkened alleyway where it had knocked over a trash can. He deflated before he heard Chan chuckle slightly.

“They’ve only been gone forty minutes, I don’t think they’d be coming back just yet. Kyuhoon, take deep breaths and try not to think the worst. Jisung and Minho are both intelligent and talented in their classes. They know the risks of this mission and because of that, they will be even more careful than they usually are. They will come back safely to us, so don’t worry, ok?”

Kyuhoon was thankful for Chan’s attempt at trying to make him feel better but until he saw his friends again, nothing would stop him from agonising over their absence. Chan placed a hand on his leg and patted it with a smile that Kyuhoon felt drawn in by and couldn’t seem to look away from.

“I wasn’t always this uptight, just so you know. I just don’t want to lose even more people that I care about to this stupid game. I don’t think I can handle going through that again.”

Chan’s heart sank at the expression on Kyuhoon’s face and wondered whether or not he should enquire as to what he was talking about but decided to take the plunge in the end.

“Again? You’ve lost others in Phantasm before?”

“I didn’t meet Jisung and Changbin until about three months ago when I was performing in Kihoj on the streets and they asked me to join their group. Before that, I was with other people that took me in when they discovered I was new to the game. They were like an older brother and sister to me. Moonbyul had a tendency to be hyperactive but she was extremely courageous. Seunghoon was a bit calmer and more collected but both cared for me equally in the short amount of time that they knew me. They discovered me fairly dazed just outside of Morthan before they took me in since they knew what it was like to be alone when entering Phantasm. There was an instant connection and I felt completely and utterly safe within their group. Seunghoon reminded me so much of my older brother that I wanted to stay around him as much as I could. Moonbyul gave the best hugs and made me feel like she would protect me from whatever harm came my way...which she did.”

The last three words caused Kyuhoon to bite his lip hard enough to worry Chan that he might break the skin.

“We travelled around for a little while as they tried to help me discover my abilities and get used to them. I was painstakingly slow at trying to get the hang of magic even though Moonbyul did her best to teach me. After a while, we made our way here, to Aquiria and we thought that it would be a nice, relaxing break from working so hard.”

The way he had ended the sentence showed Chan that this was not, in fact, what happened but rather Kyuhoon’s worst nightmare come true.

“We wandered outside of the city gates on our third day here to gather some materials for Moonbyul as she liked to make potions in her spare time while myself and Seunghoon would stand guard. We were too lost in a conversation and we didn’t notice we were being ambushed until it was too late. I was still so inexperienced at the time that I couldn't do much in the way of fighting, so I was a complete and utter burden to them which resulted in…”

Chan could see that Kyuhoon was having a difficult time in trying to find the right words to describe the scene that seemed to be playing in his mind. He clasped the older boy’s hand and intertwined their fingers, trying to ease the pain in Kyuhoon’s heart.

“They were both killed trying to protect me. There were maybe five or six attackers, which Seunghoon managed to fend off pretty well until he was too distracted and one charged towards me. Moonbyul couldn’t manage to conjure a spell in time, so she shielded me with her body instead. Chan, there was so much blood and no matter what songs I sang, it wouldn’t stop. I held onto her until she took her last breath. Seunghoon was so shocked at the loss of his best friend, even though he was trying his best to protect her, that he lost his focus as the last of the enemies attacked him and shoved a sword right through his heart. I wanted to go to him but he shouted at me to keep looking after Moonbyul, even though she was long gone. I thought my time was up too but the guards from the gates of Aquiria arrived just in time after seeing the events unfold in front of them. They took down the last attacker before he could make his way over to me. It’s strange though, all of the guards were NPC’s yet they ran over to help me. Seems like whoever designed this place has some sense of morality though, when you think about how they didn’t stop my friends from being killed, it makes you wonder where they draw the line.”

Chan’s eyes hadn’t left Kyuhoon’s bowed head since he began his tale. He thought back to his life story that he had told him in Haknal and cursed whoever was out there for making someone as sweet as Kyuhoon suffer this much.

“I stayed in Aquiria for a couple more days so that I could bury my friends. After that, I didn’t want to travel with anyone. I didn’t want to go through that heartbreak again but when I saw Jisung and Changbin listening to me on the street, they looked so interested in my singing and I couldn’t help but notice myself in them. I was only supposed to take them for a warm drink because they had endured the harsh wind to listen to me but in the end, they managed to convince me to go with them. I thought maybe, after slowly starting to heal, I could find it within myself to travel with others again. Yet, here I am, being helpless as my friends rush into danger. What if they don’t come back?”

While still holding his hand, Chan gently pulled at Kyuhoon so that they fell into each other’s arms.

“Channie? What-?”

“Just humour me for a little bit.”

They stayed closely wrapped around each other for what seemed like hours, with Kyuhoon feeling like this was the place where he belonged, right here in Chan’s arms. When they separated, their backs fell against the closed window and Kyuhoon allowed his head to rest upon Chan’s shoulder.

“I thought you wanted to stay awake until the kids came back?”

Kyuhoon hadn’t realised he had closed his eyes until Chan spoke. “I’m not going to sleep, I’m just resting my eyes. I feel unusually comfortable right now.”

“Kyuhoon, you’re exhausted. The sun will be coming up soon. Try to get even thirty minutes of sleep and if they return in the meantime, I promise that I will wake you and the others.” Chan’s cheek had fallen upon the top of the older boy’s head while it was still securely placed on his shoulder.

“No, I-I want to stay up until I know t-that they’re safe…” Yawns interrupted the boy’s words as Chan giggled at Kyuhoon’s sad attempt to keep his eyes open. Shortly afterwards, shallow breaths indicated to Chan that Kyuhoon’s efforts had become futile as sleep snatched him away.

Chan was used to working through the night on the songs that he produced and had often been awake to see the sunrise, so staying up while the others slept wasn’t a big deal. He craned his neck as much as he could to see the sun peaking over the horizon, signaling the start of a new day. After about twenty minutes of staring out the window, he noticed the doors of stores around the city begin to open as the shopkeepers prepared for the second day of the festival which would soon begin. He saw neighbours wave to each other, smiles plastered on their faces as they bent down to collect the bottles of milk left by their doorstep as well as the newspaper which was probably filled with stories about the festival from the day before. This really did seem like the perfect place to live but Chan now knew about the dark secrets that were kept within the very walls of the city and couldn’t look at it the same way again.

Chan’s eyes widened before a sense of relief flew throughout his body and he smiled. Turning around to gaze at the sleeping boy on his shoulder, he gently nudged Kyuhoon from his slumber, the older boy grunting something about wanting ‘five more minutes’.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I thought you would want me to wake you when Jisung and Minho got back.”

If anyone had ever wanted to know what someone moving at the speed of light looked like, Kyuhoon’s reaction was the best thing to observe. His eyes flew to Chan for an explanation as the two boys were not in the room yet. Chan gestured out the window onto the ground below where Kyuhoon was now able to make out both Minho and Jisung making their way up to the inn, completely safe and unharmed.  

Seungmin’s hand swept through the sleeping boy’s hair as he gazed at Jeongin with a fond smile. He was now resting on Seungmin’s bed after the strange events of the night just passed. Never in their wildest dreams did they ever think that someone would break into the house to come and help them but yet, they had. He wasn’t completely back to normal but Seungmin’s condition had improved substantially since he had taken the potion that their soon-to-be saviours had brought with them. Though this was the case, it didn’t cure the fatigue that enveloped his head but he couldn’t go to sleep now as he knew their morning wake up call would be coming momentarily. He heard stirs from the other rooms as some of the other kids here were so used to being woken up at the same time every morning, that their own internal alarm clock roused them before anyone else did.

He didn’t want to but he thought it better to wake Jeongin up himself rather than have strong hands that belonged to one of the brutes that ran this place grab at him and pull him from the bed. Gently shaking his leg, Seungmin managed to get Jeongin up, who immediately went to check on Seungmin’s wounds, making the older boy laugh in disbelief. Most of them had already closed up but Seungmin had stated that it would be smarter to keep the bandages that Jeongin had put on him yesterday on his face in case Siwan got too suspicious as to why his wounds had healed so fast when there was nobody in the house that could have cured him. Both boys assumed that the intruders from last night had escaped the house safely since no noise of disruption had come from upstairs after they had left, which they were thankful for.

The sound of keys jangling told the two boys that it was time to get up as the entrance to their prison swung open. Luckily, Minho had remembered to lock the door again after they had closed it, as well as the window they had entered from. Jeongin jumped up and sprinted back to his own room so that he didn’t alert whoever was coming down the stairs that he had slept in a room other than his own. He really didn’t want to give those in charge any more reason to use Seungmin against him. Booming footsteps pounded down the stairs just as Jeongin walked through his bedroom door.

“Everyone up! Be dressed and ready to go in twenty minutes.”

Seungmin was thankful that at least he didn’t have to perform today but some of the others in the house did since their show had been cut short due to Jeongin’s fall from the stage yesterday but they would still have to travel into the city as they would never be left alone in the house by themselves. They would probably just sit in the trailers and perhaps, if they were lucky, be allowed to engage in some light conversation, though neither he nor Jeongin would talk about what happened last night. That was a secret they were to keep to themselves for the time being. Seungmin quickly washed and dressed himself before strolling out to Jeongin’s door where the other boy was just finishing up.

“Ready to go?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m ready.” Jeongin quickly tied his shoelaces before jumping up to face Seungmin. Moving as close as he could without arousing suspicion from the man waiting for them or the other kids, Jeongin began to whisper. “You think they’ll really come back again tomorrow night for us, hyung?”

Seungmin could only shrug since he really didn’t want to get his hopes up only to have them crushed. He wanted to believe that what Jisung and Minho had told them was true, that they would come back again tomorrow night to finally get them out of this place. The only problem was the risky conditions of the extraction which they had to complete from the inside and whether or not they could get the others to believe them. Though, the fear of failure was overcome by the thoughts of possible freedom and he was going to try with all of his might to get everyone out of here.

“I don’t know for sure Jeongin but all we can do is pray that this plan works.” The younger boy nodded in agreement as they were ushered out the door to travel to the inner city.

Minho was glad that their infiltration had gone smoothly without either of them getting hurt and that they seemed to have helped Jeongin and Seungmin in whatever little way that they could. They had relayed their plan to the younger boys and hoped that they would be ready to go when the time came.

Jisung’s arm was slung around Minho’s shoulders, which the elder didn’t shrug off as they had almost arrived back at the inn. Both boys were depleted of energy and wanted nothing more than to crawl into bed but knew they would have to inform the others about what they had encountered in the house. Before they entered the room, Jisung grabbed Minho’s arm and turned him around.

“Hyung, thanks for coming with me. I know you prefer to travel and work on your own but you really helped me and I wouldn’t have been able to do it without you. You did a good job back there, so, thanks.” Jisung shyly punched the other’s arm and Minho couldn’t help but smile at Jisung’s cringe-worthy actions as he gently punched back. The conversation couldn’t progress any further as they both walked through the door and were immediately tackled by five relieved boys, nearly knocking them both to the ground.

“Are the two of you ok? Neither of you are hurt, right? Let me look. You seem fine. How were the kids in the house? How many of them were there? Are they safe? Am I rambling too much? I’m rambling, aren’t I?”

Jisung wondered how Kyuhoon hadn’t passed out as he hadn’t inhaled since he began asking all of his questions.

“Hyung, we’re fine, see?” Jisung moved his arms up and down while twirling around before grabbing Minho’s and doing the same to show that, he too, was unharmed. Jisung’s bones were crushed once again as Kyuhoon pulled him into a hug to show his relief. He then detached himself and made his way over to Minho before doing the same.

“Thank you for looking out for him, Minho. I’m glad you were with him.”

A sense of guilt invaded Minho’s chest when he thought about how Kyuhoon would feel if he knew he was using each and every one of them simply to get the bounty on Jisung’s brother’s head. He froze as he was still being clung to when he suddenly asked himself why he should care about what Kyuhoon thought of him. After the job was done he wasn’t going to see any of them again, so why did this bother him so much?

“He was the one looking out for me, hyung. Nearly got myself caught but Jisung saved me because of his quick skills.” Minho patted Kyuhoon’s back, making the elder pull away and grimace slightly at the mention of the mission almost going astray. Hyunjin and Felix were already pulling Jisung over to the unmade bed they had slept in earlier to sit while the others followed.

“Do you guys want to rest for a while first before we go into the details or would you rather get it over and done with and sleep later?” inquired Chan.

Minho and Jisung looked at each other and seemed to agree that they would rather just divulge all of the information now as they knew the others would be left wondering if they were to sleep straight away.

“Ah, where the hell do we begin? Firstly, we may need to find a better way into the house than scaling the wall. If you’re not accustomed to doing stuff like that, it may be a bit of a challenge, especially if we’re bringing more equipment with us tomorrow.” All of them looked at Jisung with a slightly confused expression.

“Tomorrow? What’s happening tomorrow?” Hyunjin’s gaze fluttered between both Jisung and Minho, looking for an explanation.

“We may have told the kids that we would come back for them tomorrow at midnight and get them out.” Minho looked slightly ashamed at the fact that they had made this decision without consulting the rest of them first. Well, technically Jisung had made the call and told Seungmin and Jeongin to be ready when they came for them but Minho hadn’t entirely disagreed with this conclusion.

“Wait one second! We can’t do this that soon! We have way too much to plan and decide!” After Chan had heard about Kyuhoon’s troubled time within Phantasm, he understood why the elder had started shouting at the thought of infiltrating the house so suddenly but his voice was cut off by Jisung’s quiet one.

“Hyung, you should have seen this place. The house itself is, well, it’s pretty spectacular. Looks like something inside of a fairytale that royalty would live in.” Felix peeked at everyone else to discern if they could see Jisung’s point because he certainly couldn’t. He wondered what the gorgeous interior of the house had to do with anything.

“Where these kids are staying though, it was basically an underground cell. The place was freezing, there was mildew growing on the walls and the smell of dampness was pretty overpowering. The rooms they were living in couldn’t have been more than six square feet in width and all they had was a single bed in each area and that’s just the state of their living quarters. The condition of the boys themselves was just…” Jisung’s lip was caught between his teeth as he tried not to let his anger seep out of his mouth.

“We were lucky that we brought Chan hyung’s potion with us or we would have been in a spot of trouble.” Since Jisung was incapacitated with rage, Minho had taken over the explanation instead, as Chan motioned for him to continue.

“The boy that Hyunjin met, Seungmin...Siwan beat the shit out of him.” Minho knew it was a crude way to put it but thought that it was the best way to convey the state that they had found the boy in.

Hyunjin flinched hard at that, though nobody seemed to notice. He knew it. After he had heard the man saying that his boss was furious with him, he knew Seungmin wasn’t going to be alright and began to feel ashamed that he had let the boy be taken away. Nails began to dig into his palms as his fists balled up in anger at the thought of the Illusionist being hurt because he was too much of a coward to have interfered in what he knew was a questionable situation.

“He seemed to be a lot better when we left, though, I am worried that he may have some internal damage. I checked to see if he had any broken bones and he flinched away when I pressed on his stomach and chest. He showed me the bruises on his abdomen that were still there even after he took the potion, which told me that they were too serious to completely heal even with the elixir. I’d say he has a few cracked ribs too but his limbs seem to be intact. He needs to see a Medic and soon, which is another reason we didn’t want to leave them any longer than we had to.”

After hearing their explanation, Kyuhoon couldn’t argue with their plan to get the boys out of there as quickly as they could and nodded apologetically towards Jisung for raising his voice at him, not that Jisung held any bad feeling towards him in the first place.

“How come you chose tomorrow night and not tonight if you wanted them out of there quickly?” Felix inquired, his voice breaking the slight tension in the room since he was curious as to what their plan was.

“We thought we should go into the city and equip ourselves with whatever we could to make this mission easier. We should stock up on potions again. We didn’t get to check the other kids’ conditions so we may need to fix them up and it would be unfair on Changbin to make him heal all of them. Then, if something happens to any of us, he would have to cure us too, so the best idea is to grab a few while we’re shopping. We still have the money that you guys got at the general store so we should upgrade our effects too. Plus, Jisung and I are kind of sleep deprived which could affect how useful we are.”

The steady tone of Minho’s voice made Chan feel as though he was used to doing stuff like this, putting himself in danger but being more than ready for the consequences that followed, though he wasn’t going to ask him about it at this very moment.

“We were also thinking about how we should approach the situation. Should we perform a full frontal attack or try and sneak all of the kids out without them knowing? Minho hyung thinks that trying to get them all out quietly mightn’t be realistic and we don’t know if Siwan would come after them if he realised that they had escaped during the night. We also don’t know if all of the other kids will trust us enough to go through with the plan quietly, though we asked Seungmin and Jeongin to try and convince them as much as they could.” Jisung’s observations got little reaction and he couldn’t tell what the others were thinking.

“We have no idea what classes these guys are if we were to fight them. How many of them were in the house? Would we be able to take them on?” Hyunjin seemed to have rejoined the conversation after his absence where he was lost inside of his own head with his self loathing thoughts.

“Jeongin said that there were ten men within the house though a couple more, who he has only seen a number of times, would come and go every so often but the numbers wouldn’t increase that much. He also told us that most of the men were either Gunslingers or Berserkers, both focusing on dealing damage through their weapons but don’t really have anything to do with magic in a big way, which would probably work as an advantage for us. Seungmin did mention though that nobody in the house has any idea what class Siwan actually is, so, it would be about ten against seven, unless we got the kids inside to help us fight too. Though, they might be too afraid to after being controlled by them for so long.” Minho had already known the number of men within the house, though he was thankful Jeongin had mentioned it while Jisung was there or he wouldn’t have been able to inform the others without revealing his true class.

“Listen, we can think about what the best approach would be and discuss this later after we’ve had time to digest everything you’ve told us. We should go and eat and do as you suggested earlier and shop around for new weapons and equipment. Then you guys can come back here and sleep for a while. Not to be rude or anything but you don’t exactly look all that great.” Jisung pouted at Chan’s insult while Minho self consciously rubbed the back of his neck.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. You didn’t sleep all night either because you were waiting for the two of them to come back.” Chan couldn’t believe that Kyuhoon was outing him like this. The betrayal in his eyes seemed to reach the older boy as he whistled nonchalantly before turning away with a smug expression.

“Great, I’m starving. Can we go back to the same place as yesterday that Minho hyung showed us? I want to try the french toast that Changbin hyung had, he said it was really good.” Felix linked his arm with Changbin’s as he awaited an answer from everyone else, who didn’t have a problem with returning to the cafe as they had all enjoyed their meal the previous day.

Everyone made their way out of the door while Minho turned back to grab his jacket but paused when he noticed that Hyunjin was still sitting on the bed.

“Hyunjin? Are you not coming to get breakfast with us? Something wrong?”

A deep sigh fell from the boy’s lips. “I should have stopped him right? That’s probably what all of you are thinking, that I was too much of a coward to help Seungmin.”

This was not within Minho’s range of skills. He could dispose of someone with little to no trouble, he could sneak around and steal multiple items without being caught but comforting a distressed adolescent who was obviously seeking some sort of consolation was something that he wasn’t used to.

“No, nobody is thinking that. You honestly don’t think the others would blame you for not helping someone when you had no idea about the circumstances of the situation, do you?” Though he may not have known them for long, he knew the others would never assign fault to the younger boy for something like this.

“I guess you’re right, they probably wouldn’t but would you?” Hyunjin’s eyes bore into the older boy, who couldn’t help but scoff at him.

“Do I seem like the type of person to accuse you of that Hyunjin? Do you really think that little of me?” Minho didn’t know why but he felt a little pissed off that the other would assume something like that about him.

Hyunjin quickly jumped up off of the bed towards Minho while shaking his head.

“That’s not what I meant, hyung. I just meant, as the newest person to the group, as someone who doesn’t know me as well as the others do, with an unbiased view on the situation, do you think that I did something wrong?”

The anger within Minho had subsided once he realised he had misunderstood Hyunjin’s words and began to ask himself why he got so annoyed with the younger in the first place. Why would he even care if Hyunjin thought he was shallow and judgmental? What different would it have made if he did? It shouldn't have made any since Minho didn't care how anyone else saw him and yet, he had been annoyed by Hyunjin's implication, even when the younger hadn't actually implicated anything at all.

"Hyunjin, nobody is perfect. We all make mistakes. This just happened to be one of yours but you’re going to fix it with the rest of us tomorrow night so stop mulling over it. And no, I don’t think you were a coward for not stepping in to stop it. It’s not an easy thing to intervene when you see someone being abused, believe me, I know.”

The worried expression on Hyunjin’s face made Minho realise that he had slipped up with his words. He had given too much away and was beginning to panic before a noise in the doorway interrupted their conversation.

“We didn’t even notice you two weren’t behind us until we were nearly at the cafe. What are you guys doing?”

“Nothing, Jisung. Minho hyung was just giving me some reassurance. We’re all good now, let’s go.” Hyunjin grabbed the younger boy’s shoulders and turned him around to head back out the door but not before turning around to wink at Minho as a way of saying thank you.

Minho was momentarily left alone in the room before the rate of his breathing began to increase slightly. How had he allowed himself to become comfortable within this group so quickly? He had become so comfortable with these boys, that he had almost revealed something that was far too personal, something that he didn’t want to let anyone know about. This was so unlike him. He had never gotten attached to anyone within Phantasm before and yet here he was completing missions with Jisung, offering commiseration to Hyunjin and finding support within Kyuhoon and Chan’s arms. He prayed that Gyujin would show himself soon, he didn’t want to fall in any deeper than he already had. It would just become harder to leave if he became any more involved with the group and easier to hurt all of them, which he now realised, he didn’t want to do, especially not to someone as innocent as Jisung, who had put his complete trust in him and whose only crime was being related to the man he was trying to kill. He didn’t have any more time to think on the subject as Jisung’s voice travelled up the stairs, asking him to hurry up. Minho closed the door behind him as he went to follow the other boys.

Once their empty stomachs had been taken care of, they decided to shop for equipment for the infiltration mission that would occur the following night. Since their classes varied, they decided to split into groups that would need to travel to the same shops as each other. Kyuhoon and Changbin left the others as they headed down a small street which they had passed on entering the city where Kyuhoon said there was a store which specialised in magic that they would be interested in. Chan and Felix decided that they would like to upgrade their equipment to strengthen their attacks, which made sense to the others since Felix wouldn’t be using his abilities and Chan’s class relied on his weapons more than anything else.

Minho, Hyunjin and Jisung were more than happy with the equipment that they had but thought they might visit the weapons emporium later to browse what they had to offer with regards to protection. Now, they wanted to go to stock up on potions and ingredients for Hyunjin, whose reserves for creating his various concoctions were running low. They searched and found a rather sizable thatched, wooden building, which seemed very out of place within the city that boasted so many considerable stone and brick structures. Though, this seemed to be exactly what they were looking for and the vast amount of customers going in and coming out of the store was certainly an incentive for them to enter.  

People of various ages perused the goods available that lined the long walls of the store. Hyunjin seemed to be blown away by what the shop had to offer, quickly leaving Minho and Jisung standing in the doorway. He ran to gather all of the additives he could use to make mixtures for potions and bombs that he had made dozens of times before, as well as ones he never had the chance to try. The Alchemist’s animated actions made the corners of Minho’s lips turn upwards as Hyunjin’s earlier sour mood seemed to have disappeared and he was back to his excitable self. Bottles of various shapes and sizes fell into people’s baskets as they shopped for the potions of their choice. Minho and Jisung joined the crowd, still without Hyunjin, who was now passionately asking the store owner questions about what ingredients were the best to create such and such an explosive. Minho made his way to a shelf filled with small round bottles, all containing liquids of varying shades of purple, which he knew were cures for a diverse number of poisons and began to put a couple into his basket, just in case.

“So, what were you and Hyunjin talking about earlier when we left you behind? Or am I not supposed to know?” Jumping a little, Minho turned around, as he had forgotten Jisung was there. That bad habit of becoming complacent while Jisung watched his back was making an appearance once again and Minho hated it.

“Hyunjin was just a little upset about not being able to help Seungmin yesterday but he seems to be ok now. He thought you might blame him for being too much of a coward to step in but I told him that wouldn’t be the case. That wouldn’t be the case, right?”

“Of course not!” Jisung seemed a little angry that Hyunjin would think they would blame him for something like that, just like Minho had been earlier, which made the older boy grin a little.

“Right, that’s what I said but before we could talk anymore, someone had to come in and interrupt us…”

“How was I supposed to know you were in the middle of a heart to heart? Besides, it wouldn’t have mattered if I did know because I wanted pancakes and the others wouldn’t go in without you, so I had to go back and drag your asses to come along with us. There was no time to waste!” Nothing could beat Jisung’s love for sweet things and Minho just huffed at the simplicity of the Thief’s tastes.

“We should pick up some strength enhancers. Magic boosters would be good too. Oh, you have some antidotes already? That’s good. We need lots of healing potions. The green ones are better, right? Let’s see, what else?”

Jisung walked the entirety of the store, with Minho following closely behind as the younger boy began throwing various potions into the basket, causing the small bottles to clink together. By the time they were finished, Minho was having a little trouble holding the numerous items in one hand and had to drag the contents of the basket to the counter where they were to pay. Hyunjin quickly joined them with a bright smile and a full cart of various elements, which showed the others how enthusiastic he really was about this sort of thing. He had told Jisung and the others that his grandfather had been a scientist and that he had helped him in his lab so doing something like this, that reminded him of home, was probably really important to the Alchemist.

When the total appeared on the screen in front of them, Jisung froze up, his mouth falling open slightly, whilst Hyunjin began to think he was going to have to return some of the items back to the shelves. They couldn’t spend the majority of their money on this when they still had to travel to the weapons emporium for protective gear later. Hyunjin pouted dejectedly and began to turn around with his bag of ingredients before Minho grabbed his arm and shook his head, turning to face the owner of the store.

“Here you go, keep the change.”

A rather large, coral coloured pouch fell from Minho’s hands onto the counter while he bowed and pulled the two boys away with their purchases. Hyunjin and Jisung turned their heads back towards the counter after they heard a loud gasp fall from the shopkeeper’s mouth and when they saw his expression of joy, they became slightly interested as to how much Minho had actually given him. Once outside, protests left the younger boy’s mouths.

“Wait, what just happened? Hyung, did you just pay for all of our stuff? You can’t do that!” Hyunjin tried to pull Minho back into the store, though it was pretty useless as Minho was physically stronger.

“Why can’t I do it? You need what we bought to make items that will help us tomorrow night. I’m simply thinking of this as an investment. I have plenty of coins, so it’s not a big deal. Just make sure you put everything to good use, alright?”

Both Jisung and Hyunjin stood in awe of Minho, embarrassed thanks leaving their mouths.

“Hyung, at least let us give you something towards it. I’d feel awful if we let you pay for everything.” Jisung was already rummaging through his pouch, which Hyunjin mirrored shortly afterwards.

“Really guys, you don’t have to. It’s alri-” Jisung glared at the older boy and Minho took this as his cue to shut up with his disagreements. “Fine. How about you give me 500 coins each and we’ll call it even?”

Jisung and Hyunjin were both about to argue again before Minho held up his hand, indicating that it was either that amount or nothing. Jisung huffed but handed over the small amount of money to Minho before both boys thanked him for his generous gesture once again. All three, with hands now occupied with the potions and ingredients that they had procured, headed to the weapons emporium where they hoped to meet Chan and Felix.

Flipping through the pages of a worn, dusty manual, Changbin couldn’t help but stare in wonderment at the vast variety of spells that were floating towards his eyes. He knew he wouldn’t have time to learn them all before their mission tomorrow but he could certainly learn a few that would help. Ways in which he could improve his healing spells without using up so much of his energy was definitely something useful to bookmark, as well as buffing spells in which he could reduce the amount of time it took to cast them. On the other side of the store, Kyuhoon was admiring little adornments that different classes could attach to their weapons in order to strengthen their magical abilities. One in the shape of a little golden bear caught his attention as he grasped it in his hand.

“Excuse me, may I ask what this ornament does for the user?” The owner of the store looked up at the polite request and made her way over to Kyuhoon with a helpful smile.

“This one is The Bear’s Roar. It amplifies the range of spells by twice their original distance. Do you mind me asking what class you are?”

“Oh, I’m a Bard. Do you think that this would help me with my spells?” inquired Kyuhoon.  

“Absolutely. It was made for someone like you. Hmm, I’m trying to think if there is anything else that would assist you. Oh, this one focuses on the strength of spells, comparable to the animal’s forceful kick, so that might be of interest to you.” The lady reached forward and grabbed a tiny, bronze creature and handed it to Kyuhoon, who smiled happily at the little kangaroo now sitting in his palm before answering that he would take both of them.

“Changbinnie, are you nearly done? We should go and meet the others.”

The look in Changbin’s eyes told Kyuhoon he had been so preoccupied with reading, that he hadn’t even looked around the rest of the store. “I’m going to take that as a no then?”

“Sorry, hyung. I’ll just be a few more minutes.If you want to go ahead without me, you can.” Kyuhoon shook his head to show that he didn’t mind waiting around for the younger boy. He had become accustomed to Changbin getting lost in a book to try and learn new spells but found his enthusiasm endearing. Clutching the glistening, silver spear on his back, Kyuhoon carefully tied his new trinkets onto its head. After about ten minutes of waiting by the door while singing to himself, Changbin finally emerged to join Kyuhoon with a large paper bag in his arms, which was beginning to rip due to the weight of the books and other items he had purchased in the shop.

“Did you spend all of your money in there?” Kyuhoon began to look disapprovingly at Changbin, as he knew the boy would lose even more sleep than he already did to try and cram everything that he could into his head before tomorrow.

“No, no, there was a two for one on certain books, so I took the offer while it was there. I still have a lot of money left hyung, don’t worry.” Kyuhoon moved forward to alleviate some of the weight in Changbin’s arms by taking a few books while they both headed towards where they were to meet the others.

“Channie hyung, what do you think?”

Chan looked up at the younger Aussie to admire the new protective clothing that the boy had picked out. Felix had rolled up the sleeves on the emerald chambray shirt that fell over his shoulders, which was matched with charcoal drainpipe trousers that Chan thought suited the younger very well. The silver whip, which Felix had just upgraded to increase its grip and tenacity, fell loosely from his waist and only added to the appeal of the outfit.

“Woah, look at you. Those suit you much better than the oversized sweater you’ve been wearing.” Since Felix had been hurt, he had to borrow spare clothes from Kyuhoon as they thought it may be better not to walk around in a blood stained shirt with a bullet hole in it in case they worried passers by that they might have done something contentious.

“You don’t look so bad yourself, hyung.” The black denim jeans that Chan had chosen were accompanied by a slim fitting cerise hoodie, which showed Felix how toned the older boy actually was.

In the real world, their purchases would look to be regular items of clothing that did nothing in particular. However, within Phantasm, all of the clothes available to buy had some sort of power sewn into them. Felix’s shirt, though made from chambray, was bewitched to defend the person who wore it against ballistics. Chan couldn’t fault the younger boy for wanting something to protect him from bullets after what he went through, though this was not the only positive effect of his outfit. A lengthy, golden bracelet coiled its way up Felix’s arm like a serpent searching for its prey, where it ended at his elbow. He had chosen this piece as it allowed the user to recover energy at a rapid rate. It had cost a little bit more than the rest of the outfit combined but both boys thought that something with a power like that was worth the money.

Chan’s clothing focused on strength and fortification more than anything else. The owner of the store had said that these particular pieces of clothing would enhance a person’s power and be able to shield the wearer from a variety of melee attacks, which appealed to Chan since he was a short range fighter. Felix had recommended a gold pair of cross shaped dangle earrings which increased the users luck. Chan argued that luck was not something that could be measured but Felix quickly disagreed with him, stating that he shouldn’t be surprised about what is possible and impossible in a world like this.

As Chan and Felix paid for the clothes that they were about to leave the store in, Kyuhoon and Changbin entered, preoccupied with a quiet discussion. Before they could step any further into the shop, a glitch occured in both, their voices failing to come out of their mouths once they had seen the other two boys in their new gear.

“Wow.”

Chan and Felix laughed together as Changbin and Kyuhoon had breathed the word out in unison, before quickly composing themselves and becoming embarrassed at their lack of finesse.

“Ah, Felix, I guess that means we look pretty good in our new clothes then!” Felix nodded enthusiastically at Chan’s comment with a mocking smile as he turned to Changbin who, after his previous embarrassment, couldn’t look him in the eye.

“Are you guys going to get some new kit too?” Kyuhoon scratched his head before replying that they had done the shopping that they needed to do already and had simply come here to meet the other boys. Hyunjin, Minho and Jisung joined shortly afterwards before they purchased new clothing as well after complimenting the others on their attire.

As dusk began to settle on the city, the group felt more than prepared for the mission with regards to equipment but still had anxious feelings about the lives of those they were going to try and save. Jisung and Chan stated that they would return to their rooms to catch up on all of the sleep they had missed out on. That idea also appealed to Minho, though he mentioned he wished to walk around the city by himself for a little while. The others thought that, after travelling alone for so long, he probably needed some time to himself. They let him go on his way, not knowing the true reason for his sudden need to be alone. As they walked back to the inn, Changbin suddenly tugged on Felix’s arm, making the other turn in surprise.

“Do you want to go back to the inn straight away or do you think you can spare some time?” Raised eyebrows told Changbin that Felix was curious about what the older boy was trying to imply.

“Uh, do you need me to help you with something, hyung?”

“Yeah, kind of. So, will you come with me for a little while?”

Felix’s heart rate became a little irregular as the Medic stared at him while waiting for an answer. “Sure, where are we going to go?”

“You’ll find out when we get there.” Changbin began sprinting slightly to race past the other boys while grasping Felix’s hand. “Hyung, we’re going somewhere for a little while. We won’t be too long. We’ll be back in a couple of hours.”

Before Kyuhoon could ask him any questions on the subject, the two boys were running away, with Felix yelling at the older boy to slow down.

“Wow, they are both completely whipped for each other, huh?” Jisung mumbled in a quiet voice with a small smile before Hyunjin sauntered up to him and linked his arm with the Thief.

“Oh, thank god, I thought I was the only one who noticed that.”

Chapter Text

A different pair of eyes appeared behind the metal shutter of the door but still asked Minho for the password once again. After he repeated it, similarly to how he had two days earlier, he made his way to the dingy, underground bar. However, Minho was not in the mood for a drink. Tonight, he was here on business. Strolling up to the counter, he grabbed a wobbly stool, placing himself upon it as he waited. Glancing around the room, he couldn’t see who he was looking for but knew that if he stuck around long enough, he was bound to show up. His theory checked out once Yukhei walked through the door. Minho raised his hand and waved Yukhei over to him, which confused the other because Minho was never the one to initiate the conversations that they had but made his way over to him nonetheless.

“Uh, can I help you with something Minho? You were waving to me right? There wasn’t someone else behind me, was there?” Yukhei turned in a full circle to check as Minho rolled his eyes at him.

“Actually, yes, if you want, you can help me with something.”

Yukhei raised an eyebrow in interest. Though he had asked the question, it had been in a joking manner as, in this type of job, nobody helped one another, no matter how much they may need it.

“Oh ho, the great Lee Minho needs my help? My goodness, this needs to go in the history books. I mean, you of all people, who boasts about how he never needs anything or anyone comes to me and begs for assistance-”

The bar stool clattered a little as Minho jumped off of it and grabbed his jacket before heading for the door. He wondered what he had been thinking. Nothing was worth listening to Yukhei bloviate about how much Minho needed him. His hands were soon empty when Yukhei grabbed Minho’s coat from him as an incentive to stop.

“Wait, wait, wait, I was just kidding! No need to get so pissy about it, though I’m very expensive to hire, you know. I don’t do anything for free, not even for you Minho.” Extended fingers tickled underneath Minho’s chin as he quickly thought about biting one off to show that he had no time for Yukhei’s antics but managed to restrain himself with all of his might. Yukhei mightn’t be as effective if he lost a finger.

“How much do you want? You don’t even know what the job is yet.”

“Doesn’t matter. I charge a high price for every job that I do, no matter what it is. I’m very consistent, as you may have noticed.” Minho hadn’t because he never paid much attention to the other boy and his tomfoolery. “Fifteen thousand.”

“Coins?! Are you out of your fucking mind?!” Annoyed stares from those surrounding them focused on the two boys. Minho glared at Yukhei before pulling him closer to the exit.

“You are in no way worth fifteen thousand coins. I can ask anybody else in this room and they would do it for half of that.” Golden locks fell in front of Yukhei’s face as he laughed wickedly.

“Actually, I am worth that much, which is why I know you’re going to give me the exact amount that I want to complete whatever job it is you’re going to tell me about. Isn’t that correct?”

He absolutely hated it when Yukhei was right. Minho had come to the place looking specifically for the over-energetic Assassin because he knew his skills were unparalleled in his class. Unlike Minho, Yukhei didn’t have any particular morals with regards to who he killed, though children were still a big no-no. Minho would never eliminate anybody unless they had committed some sort of malicious crime, which is why he had no trouble chasing after Gyujin. Yukhei, on the other hand, simply needed a name and payment. It was this reason that Minho had a little trouble getting along with the younger boy.

After spending so much money in town earlier on new gear and all of the potions and ingredients that Jisung and Hyunjin had bought, he was really going to be scraping the end of the barrel to pay Yukhei for the job he wanted him to complete for him.

“Christ, you really are a thorn in my side. Why can’t you give me a little bit of wiggle room? No discount for your friends?”

“Oh sure, I give discounts to my friends. Too bad you’re not one of them.”

Minho really wanted to slap that stupid smile off of Yukhei’s face but took a deep breath and managed a small, fraudulent grin instead. He rummaged around in his pockets before grabbing his pouch of money and taking out the notes that added up to the amount Yukhei had charged him, placing the rest of his money back where it had come from. He flung the cash towards the other boy, who quickly glanced at the money to check if it was the right amount, though he knew that Minho wouldn’t rip him off.

“Ok, so now that I have your money, what is it exactly that you want me to do?”

Minho sighed deeply before gesturing to Yukhei to follow him to the armchairs in the corner of the room. This job would need more than a little explanation.

A gentle breeze ruffled the bleached blond hair on Felix’s head, causing it to fall in front of his eyes. A firm grasp was still placed around his hand as Changbin led him out of the gates of Aquiria to their unknown destination. Felix became a little alarmed that they were leaving the city and the safety that its walls provided when it was just the two of them. He thought that the incident with his former group may have heightened his sense of trepidation which is why, before they could go any further from the white walls, Felix placed his feet firmly on the ground and pulled on Changbin’s hand to stop the boy.

“Hyung, where exactly are we going? I don’t really want to go much further out here when it’s just the two of us. It’s going to get dark soon.” Both of them knew that the darkness oozed danger, as it brought out beasts that were far more vicious and deadly than the ones that appeared during the day, which did not appeal to Felix in any way, shape or form.

“Lix, you remember back when we fought monsters together in the forest with Chan hyung?”

Of course Felix remembered, it had been one of his most memorable experiences in the game. He had managed to attack a beast all by himself and incapacitate it. It would be something that he wouldn’t forget for a long time but he wondered as to why Changbin was bringing it up now.

“Sure, hyung, I remember. Why?”

“I told you that I believed that you could do it and that I wouldn’t let the monster hurt you.” Felix had remembered that too, as it was a moment which made his heart flutter whenever he thought about it.

“You trusted me completely and I’m extremely thankful for that but I’m going to need you to do it again.” Trust was something that was not easily gained in Felix’s eyes but Changbin had won his within the first couple of days that he had met the boy. The Medic had saved Felix’s life, kept a straight face when he had told him why he couldn’t use his abilities, stood beside him when he fought his first monster; Changbin really didn’t need to try any harder that he already had to obtain Felix’s trust.

“I’ll always trust you, hyung but I’m getting kind of antsy as to where this is all leading.”

Changbin hadn’t let go of Felix’s hand throughout the conversation but grabbed the other one tightly before he inhaled deeply and stared into the other’s eyes.

“I want you to try and summon a beast.”

Felix felt like someone had dumped ice cold water over his head as a sense of extreme dread flew throughout his body. Pulling his hands free of Changbin’s, he turned to walk back towards the city gates as the older boy called out to him.

“Lix, wait! Listen, I know this is scary and it’s going to be really hard to overcome but if you could just try it, I know that you could-”

“No, Changbin!”

The sudden drop of honorifics and volume of the thunderous shout that left Felix’s mouth startled Changbin so much that he stopped dead in his tracks, while Felix looked at him with hurt in his eyes.

“Why would you even ask me to do something like this when you know how terrified I am to try?” The anger filled tone of the boy’s voice had shifted to one of pain, making Changbin unfreeze from his spot and move towards Felix slowly with his hands raised.

“Lix, I would never force you to try and do it, I just thought that-”

“No, hyung, you didn’t think. Do you believe that this is some little fear that I can get over with some kind words from you? Can you really not understand how frightening this is for me? It was one thing to attack a monster from a distance but to try and control one is another thing altogether. Just because you have a class that focuses on helping people doesn’t mean that you can solve everyone’s problems with the snap of your fingers!”

Felix had begun to shake uncontrollably as he raised his voice, though Changbin wasn’t sure if the cause was because he was scared of trying to summon a monster or because of how furious he was with him. His voice trembled slightly as he turned away from the Medic and began to walk away once again.

“I really thought that you got that, hyung. I thought that out of everyone, you were the one that understood how hard this is for me but I guess I was wrong.”

Changbin’s speed allowed him to position himself between Felix and the city before he could get any further. Rough hands were placed on the boy’s soft, freckled cheeks as Changbin forced Felix to look at him. “Lix, I do understand. I understand how frightened you are. I understand that you think you’re too weak to control the monsters that you could call. I understand that you’re probably more worried about your friends getting hurt by your beasts rather than yourself.”

After Changbin had made his last observation, Felix began to think that maybe the other really did discern how he truly felt.

“You won’t allow yourself to even think about the possibility of being able to tame your beasts but you’re so incredibly strong and I know that if you gave yourself a chance, you could do it but if you don’t want to, then we’ll head straight back into the city and pretend that we never came out here.”

Felix’s hands moved up to remove Changbin’s from his face but simply allowed them to rest on top of the other’s instead. “Hyung, I-I can’t. Not now, no matter how much I want to. I just can’t.”

Changbin smiled softly as their hands met before grazing his fingers across the freckles that seemed to be more prominent due to the light of the setting sun. “Ok Lix, I just thought it might have been a good idea. Never mind, let’s go.” Intertwining their fingers once again, they headed back towards the gates to enter the city.

“I’ll think about it.”

Unsure whether he had actually heard a voice, Changbin turned to look at Felix, whose eyes were firmly set on the ground. “Did you say something Lix?”

“I said that I’ll think about it. I need time to prepare myself if I’m going to attempt something like this. You sprung this on me too suddenly and I got scared. I-I’m sorry that I yelled at you.”

“Don’t apologize, I deserved to be yelled at for asking you to do something like this straight away without warning. It was just me being insensitive towards your feelings.”

Felix shook his head as he realised that Changbin was only trying to help him, even if he did go about it in the wrong way. “Give me time and we can try when I am ready but that may not be anytime soon.”

Changbin nodded in quiet acknowledgement to let Felix know that his suggestion was more than alright before Felix quickly continued speaking.

“But when I do decide that I’m ready to try this, you have to be beside me the entire time, ok? The entire time!” Changbin chuckled slightly at Felix’s words as that’s exactly what he had already planned to do.

“I promise, Lix, that I will always be by your side. You will never have to worry about that.” The corners of Felix’s lips turned upwards slightly at the Medic’s words, the smile too small for Changbin to notice, as he placed his forehead on the other’s shoulder and began to steady his breathing after the tense argument that had occurred.

“I’m sorry, Felix. Please don’t be upset with me.” Changbin began to rub small circles into Felix’s back before the younger boy placed his arms around his waist and inhaled deeply, taking in Changbin’s unique scent of fresh linen and citrus fruits.

“Don’t worry hyung, you’re forgiven. Just try not to scare me like that again, my heart isn’t made for surprises like this.” Changbin chuckled now that he knew he was back in Felix’s good books. They stood quietly for a moment before turning and heading towards the inn to plan and prepare for tomorrow’s attack.

While Jisung, Hyunjin and Chan slept, Kyuhoon took the opportunity to speak with Minho, who had returned from his earlier venture in the city. As both boys sat on the balcony overlooking the view, Minho offered the older boy one of the caramel colas which he had brought back to the room for the others as they both sat in a comfortable silence. While sipping on the refreshing drink, Minho could feel Kyuhoon’s eyes upon him, making him turn to meet the other’s gaze.

“Everything alright there, hyung? Why are you staring at me?”

“I was just thinking about how lucky we were to run into you. Firstly, you save Jisungie from nearly being killed, then you volunteered to go on a mission with him that put you in grave danger. Hyunjin and Jisung also told me about you paying for all of their shopping when they didn’t have enough money, which was a very kind gesture but you shouldn’t have spent so much of your coins on them. I just think someone was looking out for us by sending you to our group.”

Minho could no longer keep eye contact with the older boy as, once again, a wave of shame overcame his senses. Kyuhoon had a special talent of saying kind words but making Minho feel undeniably guilty at the same time. He shouldn’t be bothered by this, yet he was. An unusual thought had occurred to him the earlier in the day as he made his way back from his meeting with Yukhei. What if he just forgot about Gyujin? What if he left his old life behind and continued to travel with Kyuhoon’s group instead? Less than a week with the other boys had made him question the way he had been playing this game for the last seven months, though he wasn’t sure how they would react if they ever discovered what he had done in the past and that thought actually terrified him. There was very little in life that scared Minho but the group’s reaction to him was something that did and he truly didn’t know why.

“I’m not all that great, hyung, believe me. The way you take care of everyone else is much more impressive. They all look up to you so much, especially the younger ones.”

“How did you become a Shadow in the first place? Most of us have told you our stories but we never got to hear yours.” Kyuhoon tried to change the subject as he saw the way the younger boy’s face seemed to contort in sadness, though he wasn’t sure what the matter was.

“Uh, sorry, hyung, I don’t really like to talk about that, kind of like Jisung. I know it sounds a little bit sketchy, I just find it difficult to speak about it.” Though part of the reason Minho didn’t want to tell Kyuhoon about his backstory was because he wasn’t a Shadow like he had told him, another side of him really did feel very uncomfortable talking about why he held the class that he did.

“That’s alright, don’t ever feel like you have to divulge that information if you don’t want to. Jisungie feels the same way about his class and it took him a while to tell us about it too.”

“He actually already told me about why he was assigned the class of Thief. The night that we camped out before we came to Aquiria, I was unable to sleep and Jisung came and joined me. We talked for a while and he told me all about how he grew up before Chan hyung came and told us to go back to bed.”

Kyuhoon looked a little surprised at the revelation. “He told you already? Wow, Jisungie must really think a lot of you to tell you that so early in your relationship. I think it was two months before he told Changbin and five or six weeks before he told me. Lucky you, Jisung obviously trusts you a lot already.” There it was again, the pressure in his chest at the mention of their trust being broken by his intentions.

The sound of the door to their room unlocking caused Kyuhoon and Minho to cease their conversation and turn to greet Changbin and Felix, who were silent as they walked in, still holding hands.

“Did the air just turn colder in here or is that just me? Did something happen between you two?” Changbin cursed Kyuhoon and his attention to detail. The Medic was unsure whether to let the others know where they had been, since it had gone so wrong so quickly. The atmosphere of the room stood still as the older boys waited for an answer before Felix moved forward to sit on the bed.

“No, nothing in particular happened. Changbin hyung and I just went for a walk outside of the city gates for a while to talk, just to get to know each other a little better, that’s all.” Changbin nodded in agreement at Felix’s excuse as his eyes moved to Kyuhoon, who looked a little angry with him. Changbin rushed through his memories to try and think of what he had done wrong recently. Surely Kyuhoon didn’t know that he had taken Felix out there to try and help him with his abilities.

“Man, I’m tired. I think I’ll head back to my hotel and call it a night.” The bones in Minho’s back cracked with a loud pop as he stretched his arms to the ceiling.

“It’s getting kinda late to be traveling back by yourself, Minho. You can stay here with us if you’d like. Chan, Jisung and Hyunjin are in the room next door, I’m pretty sure Jisung fell asleep on the floor, so there should be an extra bed for you.” Kyuhoon’s glare was still settled upon Changbin, who was getting more and more agitated as he couldn’t think of why he was looking at him like that.

“Hyung, you can stay in my room. Since Hyunjin isn’t there, you can use his bed, if you don’t mind sharing a room with me.” Minho didn’t care where it was, he just wanted somewhere to sleep and the anxious look on the younger boy’s face caused him to grin at the fact that Felix thought he might not want to room with him.

“Alright, Felix, that sounds good, lead the way.”

Felix’s warm smile lit up the small space as he grabbed Minho’s hand and led him towards the room he was staying in but not before turning and bidding Kyuhoon and Changbin goodnight.

Changbin raised his hand towards the two boys who had just left the room as a plea not to leave him alone with Kyuhoon as he was afraid shouting was about to ensue. Slow footsteps moved towards the Medic as he turned to face Kyuhoon.

“Hey, hyung, what’s the matter?”

“You took Felix outside of the city walls just as it’s about to get dark? Bin, I thought you were smarter than that! Why would you do such a thing? You could have gotten hurt! What if you had been attacked when it was just the two of you?!”

Changbin reeled back as Kyuhoon raised his voice but couldn’t understand why the older boy was making such a big deal out of this but then suddenly, he did. Moonbyul and Seunghoon. He had lost them when they travelled outside of the walls of Aquiria by themselves and Changbin knew that Kyuhoon was still hurting from that experience. Changbin realized his actions tonight probably unintentionally reopened some old wounds for Kyuhoon and the Medic’s face fell with a small whine.

“Hyung, I’m sorry, I didn’t think about that. I forgot about...look, we’re both fine. I just thought that outside of the city limits would have been a better place for Felix to try and summon his beasts but-”

“Woah, wait. Are you trying to tell me that you brought Felix outside of the walls to make him try and summon a beast when you know about his phobia? Changbin, what the hell has gotten into you? Why would you make him do something like that? I thought you cared about him.”

“I do care about him! A lot! I thought that his time in Phantasm might be easier if he was able to protect himself a bit more and call his beasts to help him, that we wouldn’t have to worry about him getting hurt again. It doesn’t matter anyway, he didn’t do it. He pretty much had the same reaction you did to be honest but he said that he would think about trying it in the future if I helped him.”

Kyuhoon’s anger subsided a little as he realised Changbin’s actions were simply a momentary lapse in judgement but all he could think about were the friends that he had already lost and it made him feel like his heart was being ripped out all over again.

“You are not to go anywhere on your own unless it’s inside of the city, do you understand me, Changbin?”

The Medic felt like it was his father talking to him rather than his friend as he was scolded like a child but decided not to retort and make the situation worse.

“Sir, yes sir,” Changbin mumbled quietly, giving a weak salute before making his way over to his bed. He laid down and stared at the top bunk above him, a small scowl still present on his face after being reprimanded.

Kyuhoon hated being the oldest in the group at times like this, when he had to use his irritated voice on the younger boys. He hoped that Changbin knew that he was only this peeved because he didn’t want them to get hurt or worse. After a few moments of noiselessness, Kyuhoon made his way over to the bunk Changbin was lying on, moving his hand to his leg and patting it gently.

“Changbin, I’m sorry I shouted at you but try to understand this from my point of view. I just don’t want to lose you too, ok?”

The annoyed look on Changbin’s face softened as he looked at Kyuhoon with sympathy. “Everybody seems to be shouting at me tonight, though I know I deserve it. I’m sorry too, hyung. It won’t happen again.”  

Kyuhoon grinned at how agreeable Changbin was when it came to him before he moved onto another point that had caught his interest during their conversation. “So, you care about Felix a lot, huh?”

Changbin rolled his eyes and tried to turn towards the wall before Kyuhoon grabbed him to turn him back around.

“Bin?”

Changbin licked his lips before dragging his teeth over them and looking back at Kyuhoon, who was smiling soothingly at him. “Yeah, hyung, I do. A lot. More than I probably should.”

Kyuhoon motioned for Changbin to move over in the compact bed as he snuggled in beside the boy and threw the covers over the two of them.

“Changbinnie, I’m so happy for you. Did you tell him yet?”

“No and I don’t think I’m going to. After what happened tonight, I don’t know if he’ll trust me in the same way again. I think I may have done a lot of damage asking him to do something he was too terrified to do and I’m really starting to regret it.”

Kyuhoon allowed Changbin’s head to fall upon his chest. He could almost feel the younger boy’s worries seeping into him. “Changbin, you guys were holding hands when you walked into the room earlier. I doubt Felix would still do that if he disliked you. Maybe you should just take the leap and figure out what to do after you have told him. You’ll never know if you don’t try and it’s not good to keep feelings like this inside.”

Raising from his comfortable position, Changbin detached himself from his hyung and arched his eyebrow. “Ah, that’s right. It’s not good to keep that kind of stuff inside. So, when are you going to tell Chan hyung that you like him?”

Kyuhoon remained motionless as he gaped back at the younger boy. “I-I don’t-what are you-? I haven’t-”

Changbin watched Kyuhoon flounder with his words and laid back down on his firm chest once again. “Well, when you regain your senses and start to speak normally again, I will make a deal with you. The day you tell Chan hyung about your feelings, I will tell Felix about mine, how does that sound?”

The Medic was worried that he wasn’t going to get a reply out of the older boy but knew by his rate of breathing that he was still awake and trying to come up with a response that might get him out of such a situation. Changbin was just about to give up and sleep before a small voice broke the silence that the darkness brought with it.

“Fine.”

The only time that they were away from prying eyes was when they were locked in their prison for the night, so Seungmin and Jeongin took this opportunity to gather the others in their cramped room, barely managing to fit them all inside. Eyes full of curiosity and fear fell upon the boys that had assembled them here as they awaited an explanation. Jeongin fidgeted nervously while Seungmin gazed at the other captives as he tried to remember their names.

The Black Mage that had performed on stage before their mishap, Eunbin, was sitting directly across from him with inquisitive features. A foxy haired girl, who Seungmin was pretty sure was named Sei, sat to Eunbin’s left. She possessed the Swashbuckler class as she had lived on the sea for most of her life according to Jeongin. She hadn’t told him this but he was so desperate to make friends earlier on, that he had eavesdropped on some conversations that the others had to try and learn more about them. A pair of brunet boys glared at Seungmin due to the fact that they were being dragged away from their precious beds. They had performed earlier in the day and Seungmin couldn’t fault them for wanting to sleep instead of listen to him but they didn’t yet realise how important this was. Daewon and Donghan shared both the same surname and class of Mimic, which allowed them to learn attacks from beasts and use them in battles for themselves. It always seemed to impress the crowd when they mirrored the monster’s attacks back at them. A timid youngster sat in the corner of the room, his knees firmly placed against his chest, not meeting the eyes of anyone else. Jeongin had watched Eric perform before with his Danseur class and was mesmerised by his graceful and fluid movements, though he also knew that his elegance also held precariousness as he could kill numerous monsters with the flick of his wrist when he moved. The final member, who was also the eldest, was Jaehan. His brown mop of hair covered his face as he lay on Seungmin’s bed while breathing softly, as if asleep. His Esper class let him use his mind to manipulate reality and move objects without touching them. Though, like Jeongin, he didn’t really like to use his abilities unless he was forced to.

The only one in the room that Seungmin ever had a conversation with was Jeongin, so he felt more than slightly intimidated when he was forced to explain the situation to all of them.

“You guys are probably wondering why I asked you to come here but I promise you, it’s for a really good reason. This isn’t some sort of trick or joke and I really think that this will happen. How would you all feel about getting out of here?”

Eric’s eyes finally moved upwards as he stared in disbelief at Seungmin’s words. “Get out of here...what do you mean?”

“Last night, someone broke into the house and made their way down here to talk with me and Jeongin. They said they wanted to help us leave this place.”

Sei scoffed quietly at the news as her fingers drummed the floor.

“And of course, you believed them. Did it ever enter your head that this is all a part of Siwan’s plan to torture us even more than he already does? I can’t believe you woke us up because of this crap.” She moved to get up before Eunbin caught her hand to guide her back down.

“Who were these guys? Why do you seem to trust them so much?”

“When I fell off of the stage during my performance, somebody caught me. They told me his name was Chan and when I broke down in his arms, he hugged me while trying to calm me down. Once Siwan’s men came to take me back, he swatted their hands away while he held onto me like his life depended on it and I could feel how much he wanted to help me, even if I pushed him away in the end. Seungmin hyung also met another one of their group who seemed to be genuinely concerned when he was being taken backstage after being caught. Ah, there is this too.” Jeongin reached over to Seungmin’s face and carefully ripped off the bandages to reveal that all of his minor wounds had been healed up.

Daewon moved in closer to inspect the boy’s face before reeling back in confusion. “I thought Siwan kicked the crap out of you, how are all of your wounds healed?”

“The guys that came here brought a healing potion and gave it Seungmin hyung. Maybe I’m just a naive kid but I don’t think that Siwan would hire someone to come down here and heal our wounds while saying they would help us escape. What would they possibly gain from that? They told us that they would come back for us tomorrow at midnight and that we should be ready to go with whatever belongings that we have. So, what do you guys think? Are you ready to get out of this place?” Jeongin glanced at worried expressions before looking to Seungmin who exhaled deeply as no replies had come their way.

“It’ll never work.” Jaehan had finally moved from his spot to swing his legs over the bed and stare at the others. “Why would some random strangers put themselves in danger for the likes of us? Even if they did, you think that we’ll all be able to leave here quietly and they’ll simply sit back and take that? It’s just a little fantasy that you kids cooked up in your heads. These friends of yours probably won’t even come back, so this whole conversation is pretty pointless.”

“Fine, if you don’t want to get out of here, then stay and let them ruin whatever amount of time you have left in this world before they kill you. None of you can say that you’re not tired of being treated this way cause I know I am.” Jeongin noticed the protruding veins in Seungmin’s neck as he spoke and realised he seemed to be getting angrier and angrier that none of the others even wanted to take the chance of being free of this wretched place.

“Listen kid, you can put your confidence in this little make believe rescue operation all you want but you’ll end up dead before you end up free, so count me out.” Jaehan walked towards the door as Seungmin began to raise his voice.

“You know what Jaehan, fuck you. At least I’m not too much of a coward to even try and get out of here in the first place. At this stage, I’d rather be dead than stay in this hellhole any longer!”

The quietness of the room after Seungmin’s outburst was deafening as Jeongin looked at his hyung with wide eyes. He thought back to when he had told Seungmin that sometimes he would rather not be alive and the older boy had scolded him, telling him never to say such a thing or leave him behind on his own but he now realised that Seungmin had those terrible thoughts sometimes too.

“I want to get out of here too.”

Everybody looked to Donghan, who had remained silent the entire time but smiled slightly when he finally joined the conversation. “I’m in. We either get out of here or get killed in the process, those are the only two options. I’m with Seungmin, I can’t do this anymore. I’m tired of being a puppet, of being scared to make a mistake, of having the crap beaten out of me if I do slip up. No more. You tell me what I need to do and I’ll do it.”

Seungmin exhaled deeply after his eruption and looked to Donghan with warm eyes. Eunbin jumped up while still holding onto Sei’s hand from earlier, agreeing with everything Donghan had just said. Shortly afterwards, Eric, Sei and Daewon were standing beside the others, showing Seungmin and Jeongin that they were ready to fight for their freedom. Everyone looked to Jaehan in the doorway, who huffed slightly at the little rebellious party that had formed in front of him. “Christ, well I’m not going to be the only one left behind if you guys do manage to get out of here. Fine, that’s this group’s motto then is it: Get out or die trying?” Jaehan walked back into the room to join them as they stood in a circle and glanced at each other.

“They told us that there would be seven of them coming to help us but we can add to their numbers if we fight too. You guys are willing to do that, right?” Nodding heads showed Seungmin that all were ready to struggle for their freedom if it was needed, which raised morale exponentially. The frigid room that they were used to sleeping in suddenly seemed a lot warmer than it ever used to be.

“I just hope that these friends of yours actually show up now after getting us so riled up,” Sei giggled, softening at the thought of finally leaving the horrid house.

“I have faith that they will. I know that they will.” Of course there was always going to be a sliver of doubt within Jeongin’s mind as he believed that he may never be able to leave this house but Minho and Jisung had helped Seungmin and promised to return. He didn’t know very much about the two but he trusted them nonetheless. He had to trust them. Whether or not both boys came back with the rest of their group, it didn’t matter at this stage. It was just as Jaehan had said earlier: they were going to get out of this place or they were going to die trying.

Red and yellow bled together as the sun’s rays slowly illuminated the room which the boys slept in. As usual, Jisung was the first to wake from his slumber, before he walked across the creaky floorboards and got dressed. He was eventually followed by the rest except for Chan, who rolled over and told the younger boy to go away when he tried to wake him, though Jisung’s persistence eventually prevailed as he managed to wake his hyung up.

Once everyone had gotten up and dressed themselves, the boys went to town to eat and carefully plan out the details of the extraction to take place later on in the evening. The whole day was spent trying to figure out how to accomplish such a feat and imagining every possible scenario in their heads, especially if something went wrong. The number one rule was that you were never to leave someone behind, no matter what was going on. Everybody was going to come out of this operation alive, regardless of what happened in the house. They wanted to get the kids out as fast as possible, with the hopes of minimal injuries, though they were sure that a job like this wouldn’t be completed without a few scrapes and bruises.

Before they knew it, they were asked to leave the cafe as it was beginning to close and Jisung looked at his watch, which indicated 11p.m. Only an hour until they had promised Seungmin and Jeongin that they would return for them. Minho led the group through the quiet city towards their destination, with a strained silence filling the space between them.

Jisung inhaled deeply through his nose as he pictured something going awry. They had planned and planned but as Jisung knew, plans didn’t always turn out as expected. His arm was suddenly linked with another when Chan came to stand beside the younger boy with a taut smile.

“We can do this Jisungie, have a little bit of faith or you’re going to make the others worry that this won’t work out too.”

“Heh, I don’t think my level of faith will affect the outcome of this operation, hyung.”

“You never know, just try it and see.” Jisung thought to himself that Chan had the true qualities of a leader when he always tried to encourage those around him, even when it was walking into a dangerous situation like this. Comforting words seemed to calm Jisung’s nerves a little as he internally thanked Chan for coming to stand by his side.

At 11:45, the boys arrived at the gates of the towering mansion before looking at each other with determination in their eyes. Minho hoped that the boys inside had managed to convince the others to go along with their plan. Hyunjin rummaged around in his backpack before throwing a sphere to Jisung, who caught it with ease. After nodding towards the older boy, Jisung and Minho quickly and quietly scaled the walls as they had done previously and dropped down on the other side, close to the electric main gate. Playing with the metallic ball in his hand, Jisung scanned the area to make sure he wouldn’t be noticed before moving up to the magnetic lock beside the gate and placing Hyunjin’s creation on top of it. A hushed whistle left Minho’s lips as a signal to Hyunjin that he could detonate his device, as sparks of electricity emerged from it. The lock suddenly lost all power and allowed the others to quietly push the gate open and walk through. They had made it past the first hurdle without being detected, they just hoped the rest of the mission would go this smoothly as they walked towards the front doors to the house.

“Should we knock?” Hyunjin asked sarcastically, before bending down and placing a black box over the golden latch on the front door.

“Nah, I think this method of entry would work a lot better.” Felix placed his arms in front of the rest of the boys and motioned for them to move backwards, away from the explosion that was about to take place. Hyunjin quickly sprinted back to the others before pressing a little red button in his hand that made the front doors to the house blast open with a deafening boom. Weapons and shields were taken in hand as the boys made their way towards the entrance, into the house.

Chan glanced at the others as he stepped through the threshold. “Well, let’s do this.”

Chapter Text

Seven boys entered the house, ready to take on anyone that tried to stop them from completing their mission. As they walked through the debris that used to be the front door, Jisung led them through the house to find where they needed to go. The opposition they expected to meet however, was nowhere in sight. Minho listened carefully for any movement but there was nothing. He couldn’t understand why nobody was attacking them, why there were no alarms going off. They had planned on what to do once they were bombarded with attacks but they never thought about the fact that this part wouldn’t happen. Still on high alert, Chan looked around before straightening himself.

“We are in the correct house, right?” Minho and Jisung exchanged a glance before turning to the others.

“Yes, this is the right place. Where the hell is everybody?”

Minho’s eyes once again turned golden in the darkness as he searched for auras around the house but something seemed to be distorting his Third Eye. Black smoke invaded his sight as a stinging sensation made him wince and double over in pain. Minho had never experienced anything that could stop his Tracker abilities, especially not something that caused him this much agony.

“Hyung, what’s wrong?” Jisung asked, voice laced with concern as he moved to Minho and cupped his face in his hands, trying to get the other to look at him but the excruciating pain now covering his face wouldn’t allow him to open his eyes.

“I can’t see anything. I-”

Minho realised he couldn’t say anymore without letting the others know that he was looking for the kids’ auras, so he quickly stopped himself and shook his head to indicate to Jisung that he didn’t know what was happening. His panic soon disappeared as his eyesight slowly returned once he had deactivated his Third Eye and he saw Jisung staring at him with worried eyes, still holding onto his face.

“Ah, Jisung, I’m alright, I can see you again.”

“What the hell was that? And why did it only affect you?” Chan placed his hand on the back of Minho’s neck before rubbing it soothingly.

“I-I don’t know, I’ve never experienced anything like that before. It doesn’t matter, I’m fine now. Let’s get going quickly before we get attacked.”

Minho, still slightly dazed, made his way to the metal door and picked the lock again before throwing it onto the ground. The others watched his back as, just because nobody had attacked them yet, didn’t mean that someone wasn’t going to. With the door swinging open, the boys carefully made their way down the stairs, though the quietness of the underground prison made their skin crawl. When Minho and Jisung had entered the place the previous night, there had been snores and mumbles emanating from the rooms as an indication that there were people down here. Tonight, there was simply silence.

Holding up a hand to signal to the other boys to stop as he moved to the corner of Seungmin’s room, Minho gripped the door frame and peered inside. The Tracker thanked whoever gave him a class with quick reflexes because if he had been any slower, there was no way in hell that he would have been able to dodge the fist that came flying towards him. Grabbing the wrist of whoever went to punch him, he tugged hard and came face to face with Seungmin, who looked a little startled at the roughness of Minho’s actions. Once he realised who it was, the redhead immediately softened and threw his arms around the older boy’s shoulders before sighing into his neck.

“Minho hyung, you actually came back for us…”

Minho could feel the vibrations coursing throughout the boy’s body as he placed his arms around him and smiled at the fact that Seungmin was already referring to him as his hyung. “We told you that we would. Come on, we don’t have a lot of time, are all of you ready to go?”

Seungmin fell backwards and nodded before gesturing to the other seven adolescents who were full of determination and vigour, ready to get out of this horrid place.

“Seungmin, where is everyone else? Where is Siwan?” Jisung hissed with concern as he moved to usher the others out of the room towards the stairs while the older boys made sure they were all ok.

“What? I don’t know. Wasn’t he upstairs when you guys entered? We heard the explosion from down here so we figured that you had fought him before you came to us. There was really nobody up there?”

Jisung shook his head, causing Seungmin’s brow to crease in confusion. At the end of the stairs, Jeongin moved up to stand beside Chan, who shared an empathetic smile with the younger boy.

“Chan...hyung? I just wanted to say that I’m sorry for pushing you away when you saved me the other day. I shouldn’t have done that, you were just trying to help-”

Chan moved his hands to Jeongin’s face to stop the boy from speaking. “Jeongin, you don’t have to apologise for anything. I know you left to help Seungmin, which was very brave of you, so don’t worry, ok? We don’t have much time so we need to keep moving. We’ll talk later when we’re out of here, alright?” Jeongin nodded happily as Chan took his hand in his.

Kyuhoon and Hyunjin led the way with Felix and Jisung watching the rear. Still no sign of any enemies, which worried all of them immensely. This was too easy and all of them knew that something was strange; nothing in this game was easy. They saw the entrance which they had come through earlier and began to escort the others outside but before they could move any further, a rigid voice called out to them.

“Gentlemen, you do realise that breaking and entering is a crime, even within Phantasm? You will have to replace my door. It was made from pure sandalwood and as you may know, it is very expensive.”

Everyone’s gaze moved to the tall, slender man placed in front of them. He looked to be in his late twenties, though his demeanor had an air of sophistication about it. His honeyed voice suited his sculpted face and refined state of dress and the group wondered if this could be the man that they were looking for or rather, hoping to avoid. Their assumption seemed to be correct when all of his victims hid behind their rescuers as soon as they saw him.

“Siwan, I presume?” Kyuhoon had broken the stillness of the room while the man smiled and adjusted his tie.

“Ah, it seems that I am already famous amongst you, even though I very rarely reveal my name to anybody. How is it that you’ve come to know of it?”

The others weren’t going to out Seungmin by saying he had told Hyunjin about him, so they remained silent and glared back at the man.

“Protecting the boy, are you? Don’t worry, I already know it was Seungmin and he will be punished accordingly.” A deep growl left Hyunjin as he grabbed Seungmin’s arm and placed himself in front of the younger boy, using his body to protect him. He wasn’t going to let Seungmin get hurt when he had the power to stop it, not again.

“In fact I know pretty much everything you boys discussed here last night.” He pointed towards the group with his index finger and twirled it above their heads. “Jisung and Minho are the two that broke in here last night, correct? Chan, you are the one that caught Jeongin when he fell from the stage. Hyunjin, you were the one who discovered Seungmin trying to steal from you in the crowd and that is when he told you about me. You, my boy, interest me. Not only could you see through Seungmin’s illusions but you are also an Alchemist. I would very much like to add you to my collection.” 

Felix’s grasped Hyunjin’s wrist, slowly tightening his grip as Siwan referred to him as if he were some sort of toy to be played with. Jisung grimaced at the fact that Siwan had known everything that had happened the previous night, that they would return to rescue all of them. He thought that they had been so thorough and careful and began to wonder how he had managed to figure it out.

“As for the rest of you, I’m not all that interested, so I’m afraid you are of no use to me. Eliminate the intruders but leave the Alchemist.” Siwan grinned viciously as a group of men appeared from around every corner of the house, a group much larger than they had anticipated, with either swords gracing their hands or guns pointed at the group of boys. Everyone was suddenly backed into a corner while numerous weapons were aimed at them.

Ripples filled the air as Seungmin stepped out from behind Hyunjin, slowly followed by Jaehan. Both placed their palms in front of them as they used their respective powers to bewilder the enemies in front of them. Seungmin had created copies of everyone in their group causing the guards to become confused and shoot at the wrong targets. Their perplexed states only became more stressed as Jaehan bent the air around them to make their bullets fly in the wrong directions, some of them hitting their allies instead of their enemies. Hyunjin rushed forward and threw a golden cylinder underneath the attackers which emitted a noxious gas, causing Siwan’s men to cough and grasp at their throats, some running towards the open doorway for fresh air. A snow white shield formed around the smaller group, courtesy of Changbin, to protect them from Hyunjin’s creation and the other attacks that were coming their way. Eric and Chan moved to attack the men with their weapons after Eric had stolen one from an enemy's hands. They quickly took down numerous men while watching each other's backs, completely in sync. Chan and the others still held onto the idea that killing others was too morally ambiguous, even if they probably did deserve it and it became obvious that the kids being held hostage didn’t have killers among their numbers either as Eric used his sword to maim rather than murder the guards. It seemed to Chan that they still retained some of their innocence despite everything that they had been through.

Eunbin glided to the middle of the room with Sei still by her side and unleashed a blaze towards Siwan’s men, making them cry out in pain as they tried to put out the fire now covering their clothing and a satisfied smile spread across the young girl’s pretty face. Eric threw the sword he had obtained to Sei just in time to allow her to stop an oncoming attack from one of Siwan’s men, before stabbing him in the leg. When he saw the fulfillment and pleasure that spread across their faces, Minho couldn’t help but sympathise with them as he knew exactly how they felt in finally getting revenge on those who had treated them so terribly before moving to join in the fight himself.

Felix moved to stand beside Jeongin, who seemed unable to defend himself due to the fact that he didn’t want to use his abilities and since Felix knew exactly what that felt like, a great sense of protectiveness came over him as he tried to shield the younger boy. He placed his whip around an enemy’s leg before pulling it taut, causing the man to come crashing to the ground. Daewon moved over to the guard that Felix had brought down before clawing at his chest, similar to how a Bafrer would, which startled Felix a little but he knew he didn’t have time to be scared right now. Everybody held their own in the battle, with some injuries occurring as Chan was grazed by a stray bullet and with Hyunjin being sliced on the arm by an enemy's sword, though nobody had been seriously hurt.

Nobody had killed their opponents but all of them lay squirming on the floor, groaning and crying at the hurt they were suffering through, most falling unconscious from the pain. Siwan had positioned himself right in the middle of the battle, yet, he had not moved to help his men in any way. The only time he made any sort of motion was when some blood was splattered on his face and he reached inside of his pocket to reveal a satin handkerchief, which he used to clean his blemished face before placing it back inside of his coat. Out of breath and shaky from the fight, all of his opposition stood in front of him with hate filled glances as the older man began to laugh at the events that had occured in front of him.

“My, my, I didn’t think that all of you would have that much strength to fight back. You made my men look like amateurs even though they were all highly trained. I’ll have to find more competent followers when I get rid of all of you for causing me so much trouble.” Siwan glanced around his home before sighing deeply. “Ah, look at what you’ve done to my palace, these blood stains will take forever to get out.”

Calmness laced Siwan’s voice, which bothered Chan very much. It was like he hadn’t just witnessed all of his men being incapacitated in the heat of battle while he was now face to face with fifteen enemies, most of which were out for his blood.

“You’re wondering why I’m not worried, aren’t you? I know, I can smell your concern, just as I did last night when you entered the house. You boys have very unique scents, so when I sniffed them out last night, I knew that you didn’t belong in my home. Heightened senses are a perk of my class. That’s why I was able to hear you breaking in through the window, how I felt your fear when one of my men almost caught you, how I heard every single word that you said to my trinkets.”

Minho narrowed his eyes at Siwan before the man bared his sharp teeth. Brown eyes shifted to crimson and tremors enveloped Minho’s hands as he stepped backwards. Subconsciously pulling Jisung closer to him, the younger boy looked concerned at the fear in Minho’s features.

“We need to leave, now.”

Jisung’s eyes darted between Minho and Siwan, his anxiety growing with each second. “Hyung, what’s wrong? Why are you acting-”

“A Behemoth. He’s a Behemoth class.”

The Thief’s stomach twisted in terror as he soon realised why Minho had looked so horrified. Before Jisung could relay the message to the others, a low snarl came from Siwan’s mouth, causing everyone to move away from the man. Elongated canines fell from his lips, his eyes enveloped in white, causing all colour and sense of humanity to vanish. Siwan’s pinstripe suit ripped loudly as his limbs became coated in a grey fur and kept growing until he towered over the group. Twisted horns protruding from his forehead were met with a flame red mane that flew down to a muscular tail. Felix moved backwards out of instinct and tripped on the broken wood of the door, gazing at the gigantic beast that the house could barely contain. Razor sharp nails scraped along the wooden floors while colossal claws made their way towards the group. All that filled the silence were the low growls coming from the beast’s mouth.

“We need to run. We can’t take something like that on, no matter how many of us there are,” Hyunjin whispered, with Seungmin nestled firmly against his back once again. He could hear the boy’s shaky breaths against his ear and knew by this that Seungmin had never seen Siwan’s shifted form before either.

“You think that I’m going to let you leave just like that?”

Everyone jumped slightly at the deep, stentorian growl that came from Siwan’s beastly form. “I don’t know if any of you are worth the trouble of keeping around. I think I would get more pleasure from seeing your heads rolling across the floor at this stage. Let’s start with the small one.”

Chan’s hand suddenly became empty as Jeongin’s was ripped away from his. The boy was harshly thrown across the room by Siwan’s powerful tail, causing Jeongin to cry out in pain as he came into contact with a wooden table that was demolished under his weight. Kyuhoon gasped in surprise before he tried to stop Seungmin, who was already running towards his friend, Hyunjin following him almost immediately. Moving the broken wood out of the way, both boys sat Jeongin up as he winced at the pain coming from the laceration on his forehead.

Minho unsheathed his Katana before running to Chan’s side and placing his hand on his shoulder. “Hyung, we need to fight. We can’t just stand here and take this. The kids are going to get hurt if we don’t.”

Minho was pretty knowledgeable about most classes in Phantasm, so when he realised that Siwan was a Behemoth, he began to panic. He knew what people like this were capable of. Sure, he had taken care of so many monsters before but none compared to this, nothing was as dangerous. He thought back to the Gollias that he had fought with the others, which was exceedingly strong but slow at the same time, with low comprehension. However, Siwan’s Behemoth form still held onto the intelligence he possessed as a human, while his monstrous size did nothing to affect his quickness. Minho thought that fighting it may have been different if he had been alone but now there were people that he needed to protect.

Chan quickly nodded as he tried to repeat Minho’s thoughts to the other boys in his group. While Siwan’s gaze still fell upon Jeongin, Felix took the whip from his belt and aimed just above the beast’s head. He was terrified of the monster that stood in front of him, his legs almost giving out from how badly he was shaking but realised that everyone beside him was in the same situation. When his weapon came into contact with the sprinkler that projected from the ceiling, water began to rain down upon them, drenching Siwan in the process. Upon seeing what Felix had been thinking, Eunbin quickly rushed forward and raised her arms. Electricity sparked from her fingertips towards the man who had caused her so much pain, as she unleashed lighting upon his damp fur. A piercing growl left Siwan’s mouth as static surged through his body, causing him to convulse. Hyunjin had moved to the fore, while adding to Eunbin’s firepower with mechanisms of his own. Similar to what he had used on the front gate, a ball of copper flew underneath the beast and amplified the shockwaves being sent through Siwan’s muscles. Freeing himself from the pain, he targeted both the Black Mage and Alchemist with rage in his eyes. Placing his enormous paw through the floor caused the boards to crack, sending Eunbin and Hyunjin to fall to the floor below with a loud crash.

“Hyunjin!”

“Eunbin!”

Felix and Sei moved to the gaping hole in the floor while calling their friend’s names but no replies came. Preying on their time of weakness, Siwan brushed both out of the way with one strong motion as they came into contact with opposite walls, causing them to fall unconscious. Seeing Felix harshly coming into contact with the ground, Changbin’s emotions flared once again and moved forward to attack before he was stopped by Jisung.

“Hyung, our numbers are diminishing quickly and it’s because we’re splitting up. We need to stay in formation or we are going to get annihilated.” Changbin’s fingers curled into his palms as he fought the urge to run to Felix’s side.  

Though they fought with all of their might, it seemed that nothing could stop the monster that knocked all of them down with quick and precise movements. Chan and Minho charged at Siwan with their weapons, managing to mark the beast but not making much of an impact before they were grabbed and thrown out the front door, colliding with the gravel of the walkway outside. Kyuhoon and Changbin, with the aid of Eric, Daewon and Donghan, tried to slow down the monster’s movements before trying to attack it. Kyuhoon’s lips parted as he began to sing but barely managed to finish the first line of his tune before somebody came flying towards him, pushing him to the ground. He raised himself to find a knocked out boy on top of him. Kyuhoon realised he had been with Seungmin at the beginning causing reality to distort. Within minutes, everyone in the rebellious group was on the ground, writhing in pain caused by Siwan.

The Behemoth slowly moved to his prey to complete the task he had begun. Towering over an injured Kyuhoon and Jaehan, he raised his matted paw before bringing it down on top of their heads. Instead of the crunching of bones, smoke enveloped his leg, signaling to him that an illusion had tricked him into attacking thin air. Siwan raised his nose to the ceiling to find the little mouse that had caused him to attack a copy of his quarry. Smelling the scent of lavender and fear, he rushed towards the boy firmly positioned against a bookcase, bleeding from a gash in his cheek and breathing heavily. Pushing him to the ground, Siwan placed a paw over the boy’s chest.

“Ah, Seungmin, you had such potential. Why couldn’t you simply keep quiet and do as you were told?”

Though he hadn’t been hurt badly, Seungmin could see that Siwan’s energy was beginning to diminish rapidly, as he slowly reverted back to his human form, the pressure on the boy’s chest easing slightly. Fetching a long fur coat from the corner, Siwan placed it over himself as he returned to Seungmin’s side.

“My boy, how did your daring escape plan turn out for you? All of your friends are knocked unconscious and once my men awaken, we will take all of them back underground and torture them to our hearts content until they scream for us to stop. They won’t think about running away if I give them incentive. I’ll show them what happens when you turn against someone like me and you’re going to help me demonstrate how.”

Though Siwan was a human again, Seungmin noticed the Behemoth’s claws were still present in place of his own hands. Kneeling closely to the boy, he bent his head to whisper in Seungmin’s ear. “It’s a shame to lose such a talented kid but I’m sure I’ll stumble across another Illusionist eventually.” A sharp nail was placed over Seungmin’s heart before it pierced the flesh on his chest and began to seep deeper and deeper, causing the Illusionist to scream in agony. Due to the state he was in, however, Seungmin was unable to fight back. Little energy remained in his body and whatever was left was being used for his lungs to cry out in pain.

“Stop!” Siwan’s hand ceased movement as he turned to look at Jeongin standing on wobbly legs with dark blood running down his face.

“Ah, Jeongin, perfect timing. I would prefer someone to witness Seungmin’s murder so that you can pass on the gorey details to the others later on. That will make the fear really set in. Come closer my boy, you can't appreciate it fully from over there,” Siwan cackled devilishly before he resumed torturing Seungmin with a sadistic smile gracing his lips as the Illusionist cried out once again.

“I told you to stop…” Jeongin’s voice lowered dangerously as he glowered at Siwan.

A light chuckle from the man kneeling in front of him caused Jeongin’s emotions to darken even further, with Siwan looking at him in disbelief. “I’m sorry? You’re telling me what to do? Jeongin, I know you’ve only entered the house recently but you should already know, that’s not how this works. Stay there like a good little boy and watch.” Before Siwan could sink his claws any deeper into Seungmin’s chest, a black haze began to swirl around his feet, rising upwards into his face. The tension flowing through the room became palpable as Siwan turned to face the young boy.

Jeongin’s eyes glowed a deep, verdant green as his hair was tousled by the smoke enveloping his body. “When I tell you to stop hurting my friend, you do it. It wasn’t a suggestion.” A dark mist fell from the boy’s mouth as he spoke in a monotone voice, making Siwan retract his claws and stand to steady himself for what was about to come. Low moans emanated from the empty air around him as Siwan backed himself into a corner, stepping over Seungmin’s twitching body. Jeongin moved closer to Siwan, the man’s eyes growing wide when the boy was suddenly joined by others, though they were not of this world. Spirits of the departed flocked to Jeongin’s side in the form of skeletons, whose charred bones creaked when they walked.

“What the fuck is this? W-what are you doing? Get the hell away from me, you freak!”

Even in the midst of battle, the words that Jeongin was so used to hearing pierced through his heart like a knife before he controlled himself and turned back to the man.

“Siwan, I thought you knew what I was capable of. You said that I had promise and you were right, you just never knew how much.” The ghosts moved towards the terrified man as he could no longer turn into the heaving Behemoth that he had been earlier after exhausting all of his energy attacking the other boys. “You thought you had won but you’ve lost in the worst possible way.”

Raising his arms to protect himself from the oncoming attack, Siwan kept shouting obscenities, though he could do nothing to stop the souls of the damned who were coming for him. Just as their brittle hands descended on his neck, a weak grasp was placed upon Jeongin’s wrist, causing him to turn his emerald eyes towards Seungmin, who was barely keeping himself in a standing position.

“J-Jeongin, stop. You’re not a killer, not like him. If you keep going at this pace, your power is going to drain your life force. You’re a better person than he will ever be, don’t stoop to his level.” Jeongin knew that Seungmin wanted the man dead just as much as he did but also knew that he didn’t want him to have blood on his hands either. As Siwan’s shouts filled the living room, everything reverted back to normal, the dusky skeletons vanishing from sight.

Seungmin sighed in relief, collapsing to the floor and cradling his injured chest as he noticed Jeongin’s eyes return back to the soft brown that they had always been while he seemed to snap out of a trance. Slow footsteps walking away from him caused Seungmin to look up at Jeongin before he knelt down in front of Siwan and began to speak to the petrified man who had nearly lost his life.

“We’re leaving and you are not going to come after us. You will not follow us. You will not look for us. You will not ask around town about us. You will not even think about us ever again because if you do, I will not stop the souls from taking yours. Am I making myself clear?” Siwan snarled at the young boy but Jeongin knew by the look in his eyes that he had understood his threat. Standing again, Jeongin made his way over to Seungmin and gathered up the injured boy who was drifting in and out of consciousness. He threw his arm around the older boy’s shoulder and left Siwan sitting in the middle of the floor.

Once in the foyer, Jeongin noticed numerous pairs of eyes on him, filled with a slight sense of terror due to the events that had just occurred. Everyone was awake now, with Hyunjin and Eunbin rejoining the group on the ground floor with minimal injuries. Jeongin bit his lip as tears threatened to spill from his eyes. He knew this would happen, the stares he was so used to receiving because of his terrifying powers were upon him once again. He was naive enough to hope that their saviors might hold a different opinion of him compared to everyone else but cursed himself for believing such a thing could occur. Before he could take another step, Hyunjin was at his side to assist him in carrying Seungmin, a slight grin on his face as he spoke with a quiet tone.

“Nicely done Jeongin, you saved Seungmin and all of us for that matter. You stopped him, all by yourself.”

Jeongin’s mouth fell open slightly due to the shock of the compliment he had just received. Someone had praised him for his abilities and that was weirder than anything he had ever experienced in the game.

When Seungmin’s head lolled onto Hyunjin’s shoulder, he scooped the younger boy into his arms and carried him over to the rest of the group, who were still staring at Jeongin. Chan noticed that the boy’s legs rocked beneath him after he stepped forward and knew what was about to happen since he had experienced it all before. The Knight dashed forward to grab the Necromancer just as he passed out. Chan pushed Jeongin’s hair out of his face before he felt the heat radiating off of his forehead. He realised that this was exactly the same as the last time he had caught him, though this seemed to be a more adverse reaction, probably a side effect of using his powers that put so much of a strain on his body to such an extent.

Small groans from Siwan’s men caused all of them to be alert, with Minho moving to the front door. “Everyone up! We need to leave while we have the chance. Jeongin didn’t use his powers for nothing, he gave us an opportunity and we need to take it! Let’s move!”

Hyunjin moved ahead with Seungmin still in his arms while Chan followed him, cradling Jeongin close to his chest. Sei, Eunbin and Jaehan huddled together while Daewon, Donghan and Eric grasped hands and moved towards Minho. Jisung and Changbin supported Felix, having garnered a concussion from banging off of the wall earlier in the fight. Kyuhoon glanced back at the mess of bodies on the floor, before putting his arm around Minho’s back and ushering him to follow all of the others. The Bard shut the gate firmly behind them as they ran into the dark city. 

Once they had gotten a safe distance away from the nightmarish house, the group gathered on the uninhabited main street, only illuminated by the dim street lights.

“Do you think we’re safe for now?” Hyunjin sat on the curb, hugging an unconscious Seungmin with protective arms. All of their energies had been exhausted and most were unable to remain standing.

“I don’t think that Siwan will come after us right away, not after what Jeongin did to him.” Eunbin clasped Sei’s hand in hers, smiling endearingly at the other girl. “But man, this kid’s powers are really terrifying, huh?”

Chan stared at the motionless boy in his arms, rubbing his back to comfort him, even in his sleep. “Terrifying or not, he saved our asses back there. I’m pretty sure that none of you would be free if Jeongin hadn’t stepped in and used his abilities.” Everyone seemed to agree with Chan’s observation before he looked at Changbin for an explanation. “You said that everyone’s class is based on their life in the real world. What the hell kind of life did Jeongin have to allow him to possess a class like a Necromancer?”

Changbin bit his lip as he looked to Kyuhoon with sadness in his eyes. “If Jeongin is a Necromancer, it means that...it means that he managed to return from the brink of death. I can’t imagine what he has already gone through if he holds a class like that. Poor kid.”

Chan gazed at the boy with pity, running his fingers through his damp hair. Whoever ran this game seemed to have a twisted sense of humour. Kids like Jeongin and Jisung had such tragic pasts and were put in this game, only to suffer more.

“Guys, we need to go back to the inn. Seungmin doesn’t look so good and he’s starting to run a fever.” Hyunjin’s hand was placed on the young boy’s forehead, his complexion becoming more ghostly with each passing second. Changbin ran to his side to allow whatever was left of his healing energy to flow into him, while Felix was already uncorking a bottle of the healing potion that they had brought with them to help Seungmin hold out for a little bit longer before they made their way back to where they were staying.

“Um, thank you all so much for coming to help us.” The boys turned their attention away from Seungmin to stare at Sei, who was surrounded by the other kids who had been freed from their prison. “You’ve done so much for us and I don’t know if we’ll ever be able to repay you but...we’re not sticking around here longer than we have to. We’re thinking about leaving the city together tonight. We don’t know if Siwan will come after us but we’d rather get a head start if he does make that decision. The six of us are going to stick together and try to make it on our own. Are you going to take care of Seungmin and Jeongin?”

The others couldn’t fault the group for wanting to get away from this place as fast as possible but worried about what they would do with no money or supplies to keep them going before Kyuhoon spoke up. “Yeah, we’ll take care of them but we’ll take care of you guys a bit as well. I wouldn’t feel right if we got you out of there before simply sending you on your way. Here, take this.” Kyuhoon threw a small bag of coins towards Jaehan as he rummaged through it.

“Woah, there must be three thousand coins in here. Why would you…?”

“Ah, take these as well.” Minho rummaged through his bag before producing four bottles filled with the green liquid they had become so familiar with in the last couple of days. The healing potions jangled as he placed them in Donghan and Eric’s hands.

“Are you guys some sort of good Samaritans? Do you just do good deeds and expect nothing in return?” Daewon looked at all of them as a puzzled look spread across their faces before smiling.

“Uh, yeah, pretty much. You guys needed help so we gave it to you. Is there some sort of problem?” All of them shook their heads immediately towards Jisung to show that they were fine with their selflessness and thanked them once again. Eunbin led the way as they shook hands with all of their saviours and began to walk away towards the gates of the city.

Jeongin mumbled in his sleep and the boys took this as an indication that it was time to go back to their rooms.

“Guys, what do we do if Siwan does eventually come after Seungmin and Jeongin?” Felix whispered, sounding a little worried at the thought of the boys being attacked by the monstrous form of Siwan once again.

“Then we will protect them. We beat him once and we will do it again if needed and next time, we will be even more prepared.”

Jisung stared at the two unconscious boys with determination in his eyes, which Minho smiled at affectionately, though he knew that they didn’t need to worry about such a thing happening again. Minho turned to look at the house they had escaped from before moving to follow the boys as they made their way back to the inn.

After Siwan had admonished and chastised his men for a disgraceful job at protecting their merchandise, he began to plan on how to get them all back. He didn’t care about Jeongin’s little threat, he would be more prepared the next time he met them, more prepared to fight the monsters the boy had produced. Siwan gathered himself as he headed upstairs to plan his assault on the youngsters.

“Jesus, I was going to try knocking but it looks like you guys don’t even have a door anymore.”

Siwan’s head whipped towards the entrance to see a tall, young man standing there with his fist raised. Weary from the earlier fight, Siwan had no energy left to try and be pretentious, his anger getting the better of him. “Who the fuck are you? You have a lot of nerve to come into my house like this.”

The boy smirked as he ventured inside the front hall, with Siwan’s men staring at the new arrival with disbelief. “Aww, you guys look pretty beaten up. Did you lose a fight?” Glares and impropriety were thrown at the young man before he held his hands up in front of him to protect himself from their words. “Shit, never mind. You guys obviously don’t take losses very well.”

Siwan made his way towards the blond boy before speaking in a low tone. “I asked you a question. Who. The Fuck. Are you?”

“Such an impolite man. You know, in an introduction, you’re supposed to give your own name first before asking someone else's. I suppose it doesn’t make that much of a difference since I already know who you are.” The fire in Siwan’s eyes let the boy know that he was no longer interested in playing his games.

“Fine, fine. I’m afraid if you boys are upset now, you’re not going to like what’s coming. My name is Yukhei and I’m here on a bit of a mission for a... friend of mine. You want to go after those kids? Well, I’m afraid I can’t let you do that. You won’t be leaving this house again. Those kids won’t be harmed by you people any longer.”

Siwan had endured enough as he moved forward to grab the boy. His hand was placed on Yukhei’s jacket momentarily before it quickly fell to the ground after one fluid movement from Yukhei’s blade. Siwan screamed in pain, dropping to his knees, his severed hand placed directly in front of him.

“I think that you should all experience the tremendous pain that you put those kids through but then again, it would probably be easier to just do this.”

Siwan looked towards the boy to see what he was referring to before he felt the cold steel of Yukhei’s blade against his throat. “Toodles Siwan, you won’t be able to hurt anyone anymore.” Blood splattered on the walls of Siwan’s home as his lifeless body fell to the floor with a thump. Wiping the crimson liquid off of his face with his thumb, Yukhei turned to face Siwan’s men, grinning cruelly.

“Well then, who’s next?”

Chapter Text

Hyunjin played with the threadbare blankets hanging from the bed as he leaned against its frame whilst sitting on the uncomfortable floor. It was his turn to watch over the two unconscious boys as the other members of his group slept in their adjacent bedrooms. He had volunteered to be first and Chan would take over in a couple of hours, once he had re-energised himself. Jeongin, who was breathing peacefully, was placed in the bed on the opposite side of the room to where he was sitting. At one stage he had begun to sob in his sleep, his whimpers laced with despair but Hyunjin had acted quickly and moved to his bedside to tenderly run his fingers through the boy’s dishevelled hair to quieten his cries. Jeongin subconsciously moved into his warm touch and Hyunjin thought that he was probably so devoid of human interaction that he craved it even when he was asleep. The elder began to wonder about Jeongin’s life before he entered Phantasm due to the class that he possessed and thought that whatever the younger boy had endured, it couldn’t have been easy.

A small groan from the bed he had been leaning against earlier caused Hyunjin to hop up and move towards it with delicate movements. Seungmin’s eyes began to flutter open as Hyunjin loomed over him with a hopeful expression, the enthusiastic feeling flowing throughout his body. Before he could even open his mouth, a forceful hand latched onto his throat, acute nails indenting themselves into Hyunjin’s skin, causing him to choke slightly. Eyes filled with fire and resolve stared back at him before softening as the grip on his throat eased slightly but didn’t completely detach.

“Ah, I-I’m sorry, I acted out of instinct. I didn’t mean to-”

Hyunjin rubbed his tender throat, now free of the other’s grasp before smiling faintly.

“Hey, don’t worry, it’s alright. You’re more than entitled to be a little bit edgy after what you went through. You recognise me though, right?”

“Minho hyung said your name was Hyunjin. You were the one I failed to steal from during my performance. I’m really sorry that I tried to do that to you by the way, I just- I didn’t really have much of a choice.”

Hyunjin deflated with a satisfied smile as he sat on the side of the younger boy’s bed. “Yeah, I’m Hyunjin and you don’t have to explain yourself to me, Minnie. I pretty much know what you were forced to do, so don’t be upset. We’re good.”

Seungmin raised his eyebrows at the nickname that Hyunjin had adopted for him. Nobody, not even his parents, had ever called him anything other than his given name, so he found himself giggling at the sudden, strange familiarity between himself and the boy he had just been properly introduced to. This, in turn, caused Hyunjin to grin slightly as both boys hid their faces from one another.

The Illusionist lazily gazed around the room before his eyes fell on Jeongin’s small form. He frantically began to kick his blankets off, causing them to become even more tangled with his limbs than they already were. Pushing himself off of the bed to make his way over to his friend, his legs immediately crumpled beneath him but seeing his distress, Hyunjin moved swiftly to fall beside the young Illusionist, placing his protective arms around the younger boy’s waist to steady him.

“Woah, what are you doing?”

“Is Jeongin alright? He used his Necromancer abilities to save me and they take up so much of his energy that he becomes dangerously weak. Is he ok? Please tell me he’s going to be fine.” Hyunjin’s grip on the other tightened when he realised he was beginning to tremble slightly.

“Ok, firstly, you need to get back into bed. Do you not realise that you were stabbed? Changbin hyung said Siwan was only millimeters away from piercing your heart. You need to slow down a little bit, ok?” Hyunjin smiled reassuringly at the terrified boy, his fingers pulsating with a calming rhythm on Seungmin’s waistline. “Secondly, yes, Jeongin is going to be fine. He just requires a bit more rest. Like you said, his energy was drained, so he’s pretty much knocked out but Changbin hyung said he should return to normal soon.”

Seungmin’s stare was fixed on the younger boy throughout Hyunjin’s entire monologue, though he had paid attention to everything the older boy was saying. He turned to look at Hyunjin, the appreciation for all of his help being conveyed without words through his soft features. Grasping the older boy’s hand, which was still firmly placed on his waist, Seungmin was slowly guided back to his bed, where the cozy blankets were quickly placed back over him by the other. The silence bounced off of the walls before it was broken by Hyunjin’s quiet voice.

“Seungmin, I’m so sorry for letting all of this happen to you.”

The Illusionist frowned at Hyunjin’s words as he tried to recollect what it was that the boy could be alluding to. “You’re sorry? For what? What exactly are we referring to here?”

“When that guy took you away from me in the crowd after your performance, I could have stopped him but I didn’t, even though I knew you were probably in trouble. I wouldn’t blame you if you thought poorly of me. I just-I’m really sorry for not helping you out.”

“Wait, what? What the hell are you talking about? Why would I blame you for something like that? I asked you at the time to forget about everything I told you and I’m glad that you didn’t come after me right away or you might have gotten hurt too. It was for your sake as much as it was for mine. You have no idea what these bastards are capable of. So, please Hyunjin, you don’t need to apologise because you didn’t do anything wrong. I’m just glad everybody ended up safe.”

Minho had been right. Nobody blamed him for not stepping in to help the boy, not even Seungmin and right now, none of that seemed to matter. All of them had gotten out of the house without too much damage. Changbin seemed to fret a little too much over Felix’s concussion but Jisung was sure that he had been adequately healed. The Thief commented that it was just Changbin overreacting because of who had been injured, which made Hyunjin retch mockingly at the Medic’s sentimentality towards his friend.

“Everybody did get out safe right? What about the others from the house? What about your team?”

Hyunjin chuckled at the younger boy’s selflessness as he asked about the welfare of everyone else but seemed to disregard his own injuries, ready at a moment's notice to leap out of his bed. 

“The others from the house have left already. Pretty much as soon as they got out of that place, they asked us if we would take care of you and once they were sure that you would be safe, they exited the city. As for everyone in our group, there were a few minor injuries but nothing overly serious.”

Seungmin nodded as Hyunjin became lost in his thoughts. No matter how much they prepared themselves for the mission, nobody could have predicted how it would have really gone. He thanked his lucky stars that they managed to both complete their goal and get away with all of them still intact.

Quiet sobs brought Hyunjin back to reality as he looked at Seungmin with worried eyes, the younger boy trying to hide his face in his hands.

“Minnie? Wait, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?” Hyunjin hastily moved further up the bed to grasp that boy’s wrists and pry them away from his face. His features became contorted with surprise when he saw that Seungmin was laughing through the tears now falling down his face.

“I-I just can’t believe I’m out of that place. Months upon months in that house made me believe that nobody would ever care enough to come and help me. Yet, here I am with you. I made it out alive and with Jeongin too. They can’t hurt us anymore. They can’t-”

The joyous smile which Hyunjin thought he could look at forever suddenly fell from Seungmin’s lips, his tears starting to flow even harder.

“But...what if they come after us though? What if they take us back? I don’t want to go, Hyunjin, I don’t want to go through that again.” A vice-like grip was placed around Hyunjin’s hands as Seungmin’s eyes silently pleaded with him. “Promise me, if they ever try to bring me back there, you’ll kill me before they can.”

Hyunjin felt like ice had replaced the blood flowing through his veins as he listened to Seungmin’s request.

“I don’t know if I could do it myself. The thought of dying is paralyzing but being brought back to that hellish place is even more so. So, please, if they do try to bring me back, kill-”

Strong arms were placed around Seungmin’s neck, his face now buried in Hyunjin’s chest while the boy hugged him with all of his might. “We won’t let them take you Minnie, don’t ever worry about that, ok? We will do our best to keep the two of you safe.”

“But what if your best isn’t good enough? Hyunjin, you don’t know these guys like I do. They’re ruthless and persistent and have no problem with killing people, even if they’re kids. I don’t want anyone else to get hurt.”

Seungmin looked to Jeongin as he thought about all of the times they had come close to being killed because their beatings had been so severe. Broken jaws, cracked ribs, dislocated shoulders, cuts and bruises from fists and shoes. All were familiar to the young occupants of Siwan’s home. Hyunjin’s grip on the younger boy hadn’t loosened as Seungmin’s breathing began to even out at the contact that soothed him.

“I know exactly what these guys are like, believe me. I’m going to tell you something kind of personal but try not to judge me too harshly, alright? I just- Felix and I were in dire straits and we were desperate, so we had no choice but to resort to this,” Hyunjin muttered ashamedly. 

The elder went on to explain his story about his time in Phantasm to Seungmin, talking about Seunghyun and his gang and how they were exceedingly similar in personality to Siwan and his men. Mentioning how Felix had been hurt caused Hyunjin to grimace at the painful but distant memory, which Seungmin obviously picked up on as he began to pat the older boy’s hand to soothe his anxiety.

Seungmin sat quietly through Hyunjin’s explanation as his heart broke after hearing all they had to endure, before perking up when he heard about the other boys and how they too had rescued Hyunjin and Felix from their grave situation.

“So, you guys just travel around together to try and beat the game and look after each other? Like a family?”

Hyunjin laughed through his nose at the boy’s innocent and quizzical expression as he asked the adorable question. “Yeah, I guess that we are a family. If you’d like, you and Jeongin can join it too. We aren’t going to leave you guys after getting you out of that place but…” Hyunjin didn’t really want to continue to give the boys the other choice but knew he couldn’t keep them here if they didn’t want to stay. “...if you want to try and make your own way like the others did, then we completely understand. We just want you to know that you have the option.”

Seungmin felt the pressure alleviate in his chest as he grabbed onto the Alchemist’s hands. “Yes.”

“Yes?”

“Yes, I would really like to join your group. I don’t think I could protect Jeongin by myself and as much as he would like to believe it, I don’t think Jeongin could protect me either. I’m still worried that Siwan won’t give up on us, so if you guys were around, maybe we would stand a chance.”

Seungmin smiled shyly towards Hyunjin but quickly explained that he wasn’t simply using their group to stay safe. He had only talked with Hyunjin, Minho and Jisung but he could already tell that they were trustworthy and welcoming people who he would enjoy travelling with, if he were allowed.

“Alright then, I’ll let the others know when they wake up. Welcome to the family, Minnie.” Hyunjin moved to ruffle the other boy’s hair, which garnered a response in the form of a delightful giggle.

“Hyung, what are you doing?”

Both boys quickly moved away from each other at the sudden voice which intruded upon their intimate moment. They turned their eyes towards the other bed where Jeongin was staring at them both with lidded eyes, his head still firmly placed upon the fluffy pillow. Seungmin’s face lit up as he once again tried to get out of his bed before Hyunjin held out his arm to stop him from moving so suddenly. He offered a hand to Seungmin, which the other took without question as he was slowly helped up onto the cold, wooden floor which made his toes curl. Placing one arm around his waist, Hyunjin walked with Seungmin towards Jeongin, whose crooked smile grew once Seungmin fell onto his bed and hugged him with what little strength he had in his body.

Hyunjin couldn’t help but feel that he was intruding on a very personal moment between the two boys and began to back away but was stopped when he heard the door to the room creak open as Chan entered to switch places with him. The two youngest boys flinched hard at the sound as, if they had been caught hugging where they had escaped from, a severe punishment would probably follow. Chan and Hyunjin grimaced at the reaction but felt they needed to let the two boys know that they were now safe and free to express how they felt around them.

“Hey, how are you guys? I’m Chan, in case you didn’t remember my name,” Chan chirped as he raised his hand and gave a little wave towards the boys before Jeongin slowly waved back with an enormous grin.

He was so ecstatic to see Chan again, since the thing he wanted to do most in the world was thank the boy who had saved him, just like he had asked. Seungmin could see Jeongin’s eyes glisten with respect for the older boy and knew that he probably wished to speak with him alone.

“Hyunjin, could you show me where the bathroom is? I may need some support to get there, if you don’t mind.” Hyunjin was on his feet in a heartbeat to help Seungmin down the hall towards his destination. They left the room, closing the door behind them to give the others some privacy.

“Jeongin, are you feeling a little bit better?”

Chan’s hand made its way towards Jeongin’s forehead, pushing his damp, dark bangs out of the way before he felt the heat still radiating off of it. Chan bit his lip as Changbin had already tried to heal Jeongin up to the best of his abilities, though his fever wouldn’t budge from his body, which worried Chan tremendously.

“Hyung, don’t worry about my temperature. This is just what happens to me when I use my abilities and this time, I used it in a very different way to how I usually do so I’m just having a more unfavourable reaction. I think it’ll take me a while longer to recover from this but I don’t regret using my abilities to save Seungmin hyung. To be honest though, I don’t really remember a lot of what I did. It kind of felt like I was in some sort of trance. You probably think I’m weird, having the powers that I do and I wish I was assigned some other class but I guess I can’t change that now.”

Jeongin’s head fell in shame before Chan settled himself on the creaky bed and grasped Jeongin’s hand. “Listen, I’m pretty new to this game. I’ve been here for less than two weeks and I’m still trying to wrap my head around everything that this place has to offer. There are so many terrifying and strange things that I’ve encountered but you, Jeongin, are not one of them. You seem like such a sweet kid and just because you’re a Necromancer, please don’t think such demeaning thoughts about yourself, alright? You can’t help who you are or what you’ve gone through and from what I’ve seen, I don’t think you should try to change anything about yourself.”

The atmosphere in the room lightened with Chan’s words, as Jeongin stared in awe of the person sitting in front of him. The acceptance he had only received from Seungmin had now been given to him by others, making his fractured heart sing with happiness as it was slowly starting to heal. Chan let out a bemused chuckle at the bright expression on Jeongin’s face while he gently patted the younger boy’s hand. Approaching footsteps caused Chan to turn, before his own eyes met with Hyunjin’s, asking if it was alright to re-enter the room with Seungmin. Chan nodded before standing up, letting go of Jeongin’s hand.

Hyunjin led Seungmin back over to his bed before tucking him back in. “Ah, Channie hyung, Seungmin agreed to stay with us, though he wanted me to know it’s because we’re such wonderful people and not because he wants us to protect him.” Seungmin harshly whacked Hyunjin’s arm in protest while the Alchemist simply laughed at the weak attempt of revenge for letting that information go.

“Hyung, you’re staying with them?” Seungmin’s face crinkled in confusion, the fear in Jeongin’s eyes making his heart sink. His trembling hands were firmly gripping the covers beneath him as he looked to the others for answers.

“Yeah, I think it’s the best solution. Why? Do you not think that’s a good idea?” Hyunjin and Chan looked between the two boys as the tension seemed to expand in the tiny space.

“I-I guess. You’ll be safe with them, I just thought-” Jeongin’s mousy hair fell in front of his face as he bowed his head before continuing. “-I thought you said that we’d stick together from now on.”

The three boys looked at each other, with slight alarm gracing their features before Seungmin burst into laughter, causing Jeongin’s glossy eyes to dart towards the older boy.

“Wait, wait, wait. Jeongin, are you seriously trying to tell me you thought that I would stay with them while leaving you behind? When I told Hyunjin that I would stay with them, I was speaking for both of us.” Seungmin turned to the two older boys. “That’s ok, right? That Jeongin stays too?”

Hyunjin nodded frantically while Chan began to laugh along with Seungmin. “Of course, the offer was open to both of you. We assumed that you two would want to stay together and to be honest, we would rather be there to keep you guys safe. I think I’d constantly be thinking about the two of you and how you were doing if you were to leave. I don’t think I’d be able to cope with the worry.”

The anxiety plaguing Jeongin’s heart seemed to disappear as he began to realise that he had misunderstood the situation. He was going to be welcomed into this group, just as Seungmin had been. The older boy had never even considered leaving him behind and after all they had gone through, he felt a little silly for believing that he would do something like that to him in the first place.

As the rigidity of the room disappeared once the misconception had been cleared up, a soft knock came upon the door to the bedroom, which Chan went to answer. He beamed once he realised it was Kyuhoon but wondered why the other boy was here when it wasn’t his turn to keep watch yet. His body immediately stiffened when he saw the stoic expression present on the other’s face. Chan wondered if it was about Siwan. Perhaps he was already here to try and take the boys back.

“Chan, we need to talk. All of us. I’m going to wake the others and meet you back here with them.” Before Chan could ask what was so urgent, Kyuhoon had taken off to the other bedrooms to gather the other boys. He glanced down the hallway and noticed Minho standing a couple of feet away with a slight scowl on his face. He had obviously been with Kyuhoon wherever they had gone and seemed to hold the same sort of tension in his body as the older boy had.

In a matter of minutes, everyone was gathered in the compact room, with all of them cheerily greeting Seungmin and Jeongin, who they hadn’t seen since the fight last night. Messy bed heads and bodies dressed with wrinkled clothes fell upon the floor of the room as there were quite a few boys who were still half asleep after being woken up so suddenly. Felix’s head slumped onto Changbin’s shoulder, quiet protests leaving his mouth due to being dragged out of bed, with Jisung resting his head on Minho’s lap.

“Hyung, why are we here? Is there something that couldn’t have waited until we got up later?” Though Changbin complained about being woken up so early, the sun had already risen a few hours ago and was now peaking over the tops of the tall buildings outside, the noise from the street already flowing in through the open window.

“Siwan’s dead.” Breaths halted as sleepy but now alert eyes stared back at Kyuhoon who had relayed the surprising news to them. Nobody seemed to know what to say at the revelation as it remained silent for over a minute with glances simply being exchanged between all of them.

“What do you mean he’s dead? He was fine when we left. He didn’t have any serious injuries and Jeongin stopped before he could use his powers on him, so how the hell could he be dead?” Jisung had raised from Minho’s leg and was now placed on all fours as he questioned the older boy.

“The news is on all of the screens situated around the city. It’s all over the newspapers.” Kyuhoon unrolled one before tossing it over to Chan who was quickly joined by Hyunjin and Felix as they read the front page together. “It states that about an hour or so after we left, there were reports of a fire in the house and the guards went to investigate and put it out. It hadn’t spread too far and they were able to identify the corpses of everyone in the house before they were burned beyond recognition.”

“Corpses? Plural?” Changbin’s worried gaze flew to Kyuhoon, who nodded slowly.

“All of his men were dead too. Nobody was left alive,” added Minho. He had gone to walk the town with Kyuhoon in the early hours of the morning to bring some breakfast back to the other boys instead of forcing them to venture out after such a tiring night but once they had heard the gossip and seen the news, Minho had gone to investigate the remnants of the once beautiful mansion with Kyuhoon, which had been all but reduced to a charred pile of ashes.

“D-did I do it?” All eyes flew to Jeongin, whose eyes had begun to spill small tears upon hearing the news. “I d-don’t have complete control over my p-powers. They manifested when I saw Seungmin hyung getting hurt but d-do you think that I unintentionally did something to them?”

Chan could see that Jeongin was beginning to worry that he had inadvertently become a murderer as he moved over to him and rubbed the back of his neck in comfort, before looking to Kyuhoon for an explanation of exactly how Siwan and his men had been disposed of.

“No, Jeongin, you weren’t the cause of it. They weren’t killed with magic. Their-” Kyuhoon stopped himself momentarily as he wasn’t sure if he wanted to divulge the gory details to the younger members of the group but quickly came to the conclusion that they had probably endured more than their fair share of gruesome violence. “Their throats were slit along with numerous stab wounds. From the looks of it, the guards are guessing it was the work of an Assassin but nothing to indicate as to who did it was left at the scene. They were exceedingly thorough in covering their tracks. It seems to me that the fire wasn’t set to erase evidence but rather to alert the guards that Siwan and his men had been taken care of so that they could spread the news. There’s also a mention in there about the underground area where you boys stayed in the article there but since there was nobody left down there, it was just a passing comment.”

Minho rolled his shoulders, trying to look as surprised as possible. He knew that Kyuhoon was right to a certain extent. The fire had been set to alert the guards into making the discovery, but the message had been meant for him, to let him know that the job was done. Though he hadn’t known the way that the other would go about it, he knew that Yukhei would certainly make his performance dramatic. Minho was more than a little thankful that now that Siwan was taken care of, he wouldn’t be able to touch Seungmin, Jeongin or any of the other kids who had already left the city. He had absolutely no qualms about what he asked Yukhei to do for him. The money was worth it if these kids could rest peacefully knowing that Siwan could no longer come after them.

“This seems more than a little suspicious. A slaughter occurs there just after we left? Was there somebody watching us who took advantage of the situation and made their move?” Changbin rubbed his chin as Felix’s head fell upon his shoulder to rest once again.

“That could be it. Something else was mentioned in the newspaper which was kind of interesting. It said he had a bounty of twenty five thousand gold coins, so it wouldn’t surprise me if someone did kill him for the money but it’s just as Changbin said, the timing is a little weird. If he had such a high bounty, the people who gave it to him obviously knew he was doing something wrong.” The Bard’s brow creased as he tried to think of possible reasons that things turned out the way that they did. Minho leaned back at Kyuhoon’s words as he had actually forgotten such a detail. He had paid Yukhei to do the job but actually failed to remember that he would probably be picking up Siwan’s bounty too and couldn’t help but think that he had been played a little bit by the young Assassin.

“I’m sorry but what does it matter?” Seungmin had finally spoken up after coming out of the shock that had hit him along with Kyuhoon’s words. “He’s dead. That’s the end of the story. Who cares how or why because I sure as hell don’t.”

Pity filled gazes moved towards Seungmin, as the boy’s nails dragged along along the rough fibres of his blankets.

“Listen, I know you guys are probably against killing your enemies, seeing as you didn’t eliminate any of Siwan’s men last night and I am too. I stopped Jeongin from doing something he would regret even though, in my head, I really wanted him to go through with it but you all have to understand something: Siwan was a monster. What you guys have heard about is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to him. Why do you think he possessed the Behemoth class? It was because he was a monster in the real world too. I was in that house for four months and in that time, I gained so many scars from him and his brutality, both mentally and physically and I know Jeongin did too, so the fact that I know he can’t ever come after us or hurt us again is, well, it’s a relief.”

This would usually be the time where the older members of the group would speak up about how you shouldn’t wish or be thankful that someone had been killed but in a situation like this, they felt that they didn’t have the right to be sanctimonious when Seungmin had just poured his heart out about being tortured, so they kept their mouths firmly shut.

“I don’t think the guards are going to let anyone know the full story of what happened anyways. Siwan used to pay a lot of them off, as they pretty much knew that we were being held in the house but once they got the coins that they wanted, they became disinterested. So, whatever is mentioned in the paper is probably the extent of the information that we are going to get on the situation. Perhaps we should just leave it at that?” Jeongin’s tears from earlier had ceased but Chan’s hand continued to rub his tousled hair in comfort.

Minho visibly relaxed as the other members in the group seemed to agree with the younger boy’s idea of not pursuing this line of thought any further. If they had inquired about it too much, they may eventually find some sort of link between himself and Yukhei. Though he felt that he had done the right thing, he didn’t want the others to find out about it.

“All right, all of you, back to bed. I just thought that I should tell you about this as soon as possible but you all still need rest so off you go,” Kyuhoon encouraged as he began to usher the younger members out of the room.

Changbin gently nudged Felix, who had just fallen asleep again while resting on his shoulder to lead him back to his bedroom. Hyunjin placed his arms around Felix’s waist to follow him but not before he turned to wave at Seungmin, who gingerly smiled back. Minho grunted as Jisung jumped onto his back, placing his arms firmly around his neck and causing the older boy to chuckle at the Thief’s antics. He didn’t seem to care that both of them were still injured from yesterday as they had told Changbin to focus on healing the two youngest boys instead.

Kyuhoon began to follow and make his way out of the door but momentarily looked back to Chan who was still placed beside Jeongin. The youngest boy had listened to Kyuhoon’s command and had laid back down to close his eyes, still holding onto Chan’s hand. Kyuhoon wasn’t even sure if Chan knew he was doing it but he had begun to hum a soft tune to help lull the boy to sleep and it seemed to be working as Jeongin’s breathing became shallow and his body became lax. The Bard’s heart began to flitter as he observed the endearing scene in front of him while he watched Chan do what he did best: look after those around him while making them feel completely at ease. Kyuhoon noticed Seungmin’s gaze upon the two boys as well with a loving smile before he too rolled over and placed his head upon his pillow. Kyuhoon carefully pulled the door shut behind him before stretching and moving towards his room. He couldn’t believe that they were all still here and that none of them were injured too severely.

Before he could think any further on the subject, a blaring noise made him cover his ears. It startled him but he relaxed slightly when he realized that he had heard this noise before. Chan’s head popped out of the room that Kyuhoon had just left from to inquire as to what the deafening noise was. The rest of the group exited their rooms shortly afterwards.

“What the hell is that? You all heard it too right?” Chan rubbed his ears to try and deter them from ringing anymore.

“There’s going to be an announcement in a minute from those running Phantasm. Remember, I told you about this when we first met?” Chan did remember Changbin mentioning that a klaxon would ring out when those who controlled the game wished to communicate with them. Static filled the air before a computerised voice rang out loud and clear for all the inhabitants of Aquiria and the rest of Phantasm to hear.

Good day players of Phantasm.

There are two announcements that shall be conveyed to you today.

Firstly, a tournament will be held one week from today in the city of Morthan.

Enter and see who the strongest players in Phantasm are.

Players may enter this tournament together in pairs.

The prizes will be announced on the first day of the tournament.

We wish you the best of luck.

The boys looked to each other with interest invading their features. Even if they didn’t enter, a tournament like that would be extremely engrossing and fascinating to watch. Without saying anything, they had pretty much decided that they would head to Morthan to investigate the tournament after they had returned to Haknal for a couple of days.

“Wow, that sounds like it would be entertaining but they said there was another announcement, right?” Hyunjin rocked from side to side as he waited for the voice to continue.

The second announcement is as follows:

A group of eight has entered the Rautaja Fortress.

We wish them a favourable outcome and hope they succeed.

We will update you on their progress as they advance.

We hope you all have a pleasant day and as always:

We hope you enjoy your time playing Phantasm. 

Chapter Text

“Sweetheart, calm down, we won’t arrive for another couple of hours. You’ll tire yourself out before we even get there.”

The young boy bounced up and down in his seat, refusing to listen to his mother’s advice, as he became excited at the thoughts of his feet finally meeting the warm grains of sand, of his hair becoming tousled by the salty air, of his body being enveloped by the cool seawater. He had never been to the ocean before and after his endless pleading, his parents had finally caved and decided that a family trip to Haeundae beach would be the perfect idea to bring them closer together.

“We can get crushed ice when we get there, right? With red bean paste! Dad, you promised that we could!”

The man looked into his rear view mirror at the enthusiastic seven year old, a proud smile spreading across his face. “Sure thing bud, we can get whatever you want to eat. Today is your day, you call the shots.”

This only spurred the youth’s elation to become more vocal as he began to sing loudly along with the songs on the radio. A trot song that his grandmother used to play for him when she visited his house suddenly began to play and added to his feelings of euphoria. Though he was young, the boy knew that these were the moments that were meant to be treasured in life. Nothing in the whole wide world could bring him down from his high as he began to see the horizon in the distance that met with the crystalline sea. The boy squirmed as he wriggled his feet excitedly. They were almost there.

“Honey, watch out!”

Jeongin sprang up in his bed, a cold sweat drenching his t-shirt, causing it to stick to him in an uncomfortable fashion. His laboured breathing felt like it was crushing his chest as he inhaled deeply to try and calm himself after his realistic nightmare. Despite the trembling that was paralysing him, he attempted to bring his hand up to wipe the nape of his neck but the strong grip placed upon it wouldn’t allow him to move it anywhere. Jeongin looked down to find Chan sitting on a wooden chair, his head placed on the side of his bed as he slept peacefully, not being bothered by Jeongin’s sudden movements.

The young Necromancer looked to the window as a soft, fuschia light flowed in, indicating that dusk was beginning to descend upon the city. Seungmin was still asleep on the other side of the room, his covers matching the rhythm of the boy’s unsounding breaths. The silence felt smothering to Jeongin and all he wanted was to get out of the room. After gently sneaking his hand out of Chan’s, the boy began to tiptoe across the room in the hopes of not waking his friends. He grabbed his shoes and slipped them on before exiting the confining place. It was strange to Jeongin that, even though he had left Siwan’s house, he felt just as trapped within the room he had just been in with Seungmin and Chan and wondered if he would ever feel completely at ease within himself. He wanted to talk to someone, anyone, just so he could crawl away from the memories and thoughts that were harassing him at that very moment.

He moved down towards the rooms he believed to be the ones that the other boys from his new group were staying in. His new group, his new family. Jeongin couldn’t help but smile slightly at the thought, before he turned the handle on the first door he came across. Peeking inside, he saw the sleeping forms of Changbin and Felix in their respective beds, neither of which seemed to budge as Jeongin looked around the room before pulling the door firmly shut behind him. He wasn’t going to wake any of the other members simply because he had a nightmare, he wasn’t a little kid anymore. Upon trying the next door, he found Hyunjin, Minho and Jisung knocked out, Jisung’s snores flowing through the doorway in which Jeongin was standing. Luck obviously wasn’t on his side today as all of the others were still asleep, though he couldn’t blame them after the terrifying turn of events last night. He once again closed the door to the shared bedroom as he turned to leave but came into contact with a firm chest instead.

“Are you checking up on the members already, Jeongin? Or do you need something else?”

Jeongin quickly jumped away from Kyuhoon, almost feeling as if he had been found doing something he shouldn’t have. Memories of the time his grandmother had caught him taking candy from her purse while she wasn’t looking surfaced. He began to chuckle at the smug expression that graced Kyuhoon’s features as it was exceedingly similar to that of his grandmother’s when she had discovered what he had done. Jeongin quickly spoke up as Kyuhoon was obviously waiting for an answer.

“Uh, no, hyung, I’m alright. I just-  I mean- I didn’t-”

“You know, you’re not very good at lying, Jeongin but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I know you don’t know me very well yet but Hyunjin told me that you’re going to keep travelling with our group. I’m thrilled but I want you to know that if you ever have anything you need or if you just want to talk, I’m here for you, just as all of the other members in the group are too. Don’t ever be nervous or afraid around us. We won’t let anything happen to you ever again, ok?”

Numerous sentences tried to make their way out of Jeongin’s mouth but he had been left speechless by Kyuhoon’s perception and kind heart. Hearing comforting words such as these had become a foreign concept to Jeongin recently. He lapped them up, thinking he wouldn’t ever get tired of hearing reassurances from the older boy.

“I may have had a little nightmare but everyone else was sleeping and I didn’t want to wake them. They all looked so exhausted and they deserve to rest after everything they went through last night. It can just be a little suffocating in silence, so I needed to leave the room. That’s all.”

Kyuhoon’s arms fell on the young boy’s shoulders as Jeongin sighed into the hug. “Ah, I see. Well, I’m not asleep so, if you want to talk with me about anything, I’m all ears. Chan is still in your room with Seungmin, yeah? You can come to mine since there’s nobody else in there. We can discuss whatever you’d like.”

Jeongin returned the squeeze he felt on his hand as he was guided to Kyuhoon’s room where the two boys discussed where they grew up, what foods they enjoyed eating, who their favourite singers were, with both boys talking about their shared love for American music. The younger boy relished in the lengthy conversation with the Bard, though the topic of Jeongin’s nightmare didn’t come up. No need to bring up a story that would immediately dampen the mood, he thought.

The once golden light had now been extinguished, as the stars made their appearance across the darkened sky. Jeongin didn’t even realise how long they had been talking until he absentmindedly glanced at the clock on the wall. He quickly realised that he felt completely at ease when in Kyuhoon’s presence, the older boy giving off an air of reliability. Kyuhoon had told him that if he ever needed something, then he should simply ask, though he wasn’t quite sure if this is what he had meant but the younger boy decided to go for it since he wasn’t sure if they would ever return to a place like this again.

“Kyuhoon hyung, you said that we would be leaving the city at some point tomorrow, right?” Kyuhoon nodded his head in response to show Jeongin he had remembered correctly. After the announcements had been made, the group had discussed going back to Haknal as soon as possible before heading onto Morthan for the tournament. If they left Aquiria tomorrow, they would have just enough time to make it to the capital city.

“Well, before we leave, would it be alright if we all went somewhere beforehand? Just for a little while?”

The stiffness in Chan’s neck from his uncomfortable sleeping situation caused him to grimace and groan as he tried to sit himself up. He had wanted to stay by Jeongin’s side since Hyunjin told him that he had previously been crying in his sleep from possible nightmares. He hadn’t intended to fall asleep, yet, here he was. Cracking bones popped in his back as he let out a content sigh while stretching all of his limbs. Though he was still sore from the fight, which was amplified by his awkward sleeping position, he felt well rested and energised for the following day but from the looks of it, there was still a few hours to go before the new day came about. Looking over to Seungmin, a small grin appeared on the Knight’s face as, despite everything that the boy had gone through, he was still able to sleep peacefully.

He moved to grab Jeongin’s hand once again to comfort the sleeping boy but upon finding the bed empty, a sense of unbelievable terror clouded the rest of his senses. Chan jumped up from his seated position and began to quickly scan the area. He wasn’t in the same bed as Seungmin and he wasn’t anywhere else in the room either. How could he have missed Jeongin going missing from his bed? How could he have been so careless? He didn’t want to wake Seungmin and frighten the boy but thought that if Jeongin had gone somewhere by himself, he may have told his friend.

“Hey, Seungmin, wake up. Please, wake up.” Chan shook the boy gently but the urgency in his voice deviated from his actions. What if something had happened to the young boy when they had just saved him from such a terrible situation?

Seungmin began to stir as he turned to face his hyung, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. “Chan hyung? What’s the matter?” Seungmin became increasingly more awake once he saw the fearfulness in Chan’s eyes.

“Um, did Jeongin tell you that he was going anywhere?” Seungmin’s bewildered expression let Chan know that he had no idea about Jeongin’s whereabouts, which only added to his anxiety about the safety of the younger boy.

“Going somewhere? Why? Where-” Seungmin leapt up from his bed as he looked to where he had last seen Jeongin, who was no longer there. Detangling himself from the soft blankets, he grabbed Chan’s arm with desperation in his eyes. “Where the hell is he?!”

Chan couldn’t muster a response before Seungmin was out the bedroom door. The older boy quickly followed him as they ran to the top of the stairs but both were halted in their steps when they heard jovial laughter emanating from one of the bedrooms they had rented out. Chan moved to the door of the room he had been sharing with Kyuhoon and pushed it open.

A loud thwack echoed throughout the room as Jeongin began to rub his forehead from the flick he had just received from the older boy, both of them laughing while clutching their stomachs.

“Innie, why are you so bad a rock-paper-scissors? That’s your fifth loss in a row!” Kyuhoon chuckled at the poor state of the younger boy’s red forehead as he wiped the tears from his eyes.

Seungmin felt like he would collapse, the fear keeping him in an upright position suddenly flying from his body at the sight of the younger boy who was safe and sound. Two pairs of eyes fell upon the boys as they stood in the doorway.

“Channie, you’re up. Good morning, Seungmin. Well, it’s not quite morning yet but- is everything alright? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

Seungmin moved towards Jeongin with hasty steps, the younger boy flinching ever so slightly when his arms were grabbed to pull him into a standing position.

“Don’t ever do that again! If you’re going somewhere, you tell us! Do you realise how scared we were when we saw that you weren’t in your bed?!”

Jeongin understood quite quickly why Seungmin had begun shouting at him and tried to free himself from the grasp that he was sure would leave bruises on his arms but to no avail. “Hyung, you’re hurting me.”

A warm hand was placed upon Seungmin’s shoulder, with Chan telling him to calm himself down. Seungmin immediately softened his hold on the younger boy, his face dropping in apology for reacting so harshly. Jeongin was suddenly pulled forward into Seungmin’s arms as he heard the older boy’s fluttering breath sweep past his ear. “I thought something had happened to you, Jeongin.”

Jeongin patted Seungmin’s back as a way of acknowledging that he had done wrong by not informing them that he was leaving. “I’m alright, hyung. I was just spending time with Kyu hyung. We were playing some games. You guys should join us.”

Chan looked to Kyuhoon, who was marvelling at the sweet bond between the two youngest boys before meeting eyes with the Knight. He motioned for the other to sit beside him, which Chan complied with before Kyuhoon’s head fell to his shoulder as he sighed blissfully. “Channie, Jeongin asked me if we could go to the beach later on when everybody wakes up, before we leave the city.”

“Oh, how come?”

“He didn’t say, just that he’s never been before so he would like to visit one, even if it isn’t technically real.” Chan looked to Jeongin who was being sternly told off by the slightly older boy but the giggles emanating from him told Chan that he wasn’t taking Seungmin’s threats too seriously.

“After everything these kids have been through, I’m sure we can grant them that small request.”

Luckily for Jeongin, everybody seemed to jump at the chance to go to the ocean for some rest and relaxation. Nobody had expected how the trip to the coastal town would turn out in the beginning. Never in their wildest dreams would they think they would have to fight someone with a Behemoth class or that they would take two more members under their wing to protect.

The seagulls piercing caws echoed throughout the air as the boys drew closer to their destination. The sight and sound of the frothy waves lapping upon the shore caused Jisung to grab onto Minho’s arm and drag him onto the grainy sand. The beach wasn’t too crowded, even though it seemed like the perfect day to visit such a location. The sun belted down on the beach goers but the satisfying breeze that flew in from the sea aided in the ability to bear the heat. The group had opted to visit the area in the early morning so that they could leave around midday and make their way back to Haknal.

The intensity of the air that Jeongin breathed in scratched his throat slightly and caused it to burn, though he was glad he had finally made it to the place he had wanted to visit so many years ago. He took a step forward into the searing sand as he felt two hands fall between his shoulder blades. Kyuhoon and Chan walked on either side of him, endearing smiles on their faces.

“Well, Innie, is it everything that you thought it would be? I think the novelty of the beach has kind of worn off for me since I’ve been here so many times before.” Chan nodded in agreement with Kyuhoon’s statement as he mentioned to the younger boy that since he lived in Australia before he moved to Korea, he had practically spent his whole childhood at the beach.

“It’s nice.”

“Really? That’s all you have to say about it? That it’s ‘nice’? C’mon Innie, I thought you’d have more of a reaction than that!” Chan playfully hit the younger boy on the back which elicited a small grunt, though Jeongin said nothing more of his impression of the golden sands or shining sea.

Chan couldn’t quite seem to put his finger on it but the reaction from the young Necromancer made his eyebrows twitch in skepticism. He felt someone harshly brush off of his shoulder, only to see Hyunjin forcefully pulling Seungmin closer to the shore to gaze out onto the horizon, with the younger boy looking slightly bemused as to why Hyunjin was acting this way; it was only the ocean after all.

“Jeongin, what’s the real reason you wanted to come here today?” Jeongin raised his head to look into Chan’s eyes as he asked him the question.

“I already told Kyu hyung, I haven’t ever been to the beach before.” Kyuhoon bent his head to gaze at Chan and his hesitant expression before catching on to the point he was trying to get at.

“No, Jeongin, I asked you what the real reason was. Why did you ask so suddenly? We could have gone to the beach another time.”

Jeongin set his eyes firmly on the ground before looking up at the older boy with hooded eyes. “Is everybody in your group this perceptive because it seems like it would be awfully hard to keep any secrets since you all seem to know if I’m hiding something.” Jeongin let out a humourless chuckle upon seeing the older boy’s expressions at the mention of Jeongin not being completely honest with them. He settled himself on the balmy sand, with Chan and Kyuhoon following suit.

“I guess I should probably tell you since it’s pretty much the reason I possess the class that I do. I haven’t told anybody about this yet, not even Seungmin hyung. I wasn’t lying when I said that I’ve never been to the beach before. I don’t know why, we just never got around to it. When I was little, I used to pester my parents to bring me but we just didn’t have the chance. I was seven when they eventually caved and decided to make a day trip to Haeundae beach. Just me, my mom and my dad. The three of us were impossibly close. I know that’s how most families are supposed to be but I realise not everyone has the luxury of a loving family.”

Jeongin’s words hit Kyuhoon hard as he thought back to his own parents. They had loved him unconditionally too but his time with them was cut much too short. On the other hand, he thought about Jisung, who never had any sort of parental love in his life. He knew the other would give absolutely anything to have a stable family life and Kyuhoon was going to try to give it to him once they returned to the real world.

“I loved my parents and they loved me. We were so happy together and I thought we would be for a long time but unfortunately, I was wrong. It was a drunk driver. We were about five minutes away from arriving at the beach and I can still remember gazing at the sea from the car. I remember how excited I got at the thought of finally being there. I remember feeling the bracing sea air on my cheeks as I rolled down the window. I remember hearing my mother scream at my father to watch out before everything went black.”

Chan’s heart was sinking lower in his chest than it had ever gone before. Jeongin was revealing his story with such a calm tone that it made the two older boys wince at the acceptance in his voice.

“I woke up in intensive care three weeks later. They had placed me in an induced coma so my body could cope with the serious injuries that I had endured. Ruptured spleen, broken leg, five cracked ribs, dislocated shoulder, punctured lung, amongst others. My grandmother told me all about how I was such a brave boy and that it was a miracle that I made it out alive. I remember asking her why she thought it was a miracle and when she broke down in tears, I pretty much figured out why she couldn’t reply. I missed their funeral and everything because of how badly injured I had been. The other driver died on impact and the police told my grandmother that the man had been five times over the legal limit. My parents died all because I wanted to go to the stupid beach.”

Jeongin’s voice was barely above a whisper when he uttered the last sentence as Chan and Kyuhoon looked on with sympathy in their eyes. They certainly hadn’t expected a story like that to come from the young boy but what struck them even more was the fact that he seemed to have come to a complete acceptance of what happened or rather, that what happened had been his fault.

Kyuhoon hurriedly buried Jeongin’s face in his shoulder, rubbing the boy’s hair to try and convey his feelings on the matter. He was sure that Jeongin wouldn’t want the others to see him and become worried as to why Kyuhoon was hugging him but he just couldn’t seem to let the young Necromancer go. When Jisung turned to look towards the three of them with a concerned pout, Chan simply smiled and waved him off, just as Minho pushed him down onto the sand before taking off cackling, with a murderous Jisung following closely behind him.

“Innie, you can’t possibly think that what happened to your parents was your fault. It was merely a coincidence that you happened to be in that particular place at that particular time and nothing in the world could have stopped it.” Kyuhoon bent down to whisper in Jeongin’s ear as his head was still firmly placed on his chest.

“Ten years of people telling me that it wasn’t my fault doesn’t change the fact that it was. I kinda wonder if getting stuck here with the class that I have is some sort of punishment. Being a Necromancer, I’m constantly reminded of them but not in a good way. It’s stifling being in this state and I can’t do anything about it.”

“And what would your parents think about you blaming yourself for their deaths?” Kyuhoon and Jeongin’s eyes flew to Chan, who was staring out at the uneven sea. Kyuhoon glanced between the two with a small scowl forming on his face as his voice dropped and was coated with a warning tone.

“Chan, this isn’t the time-”

“Well, Jeongin? Do you think that they would be happy that you were putting yourself down? That you’re constantly punishing yourself for something that you had absolutely no control over? That no matter how many times you blame yourself, you’re not going to be able to change what happened, no matter how much you want to? How would they feel-?”

“Chan!” Jeongin flinched harshly as Kyuhoon raised his voice at the other boy. Chan hadn’t moved from his position and Jeongin could almost feel the irritation emanating from the boy still holding onto him.

“You said that your parents loved you and I know that they would be heartbroken if they knew that you were living your life with such a weight upon your shoulders. Granted, I’ve never been in your position and I hope that I never am because the way you feel about the situation would drain me. You can’t keep going like this, Innie. If you don’t want to live life to the fullest for yourself, then do it for them. Being in here isn’t a punishment, think of it as an opportunity. Become stronger, try to be more confident because what I’ve seen of you and your abilities, you’re an awfully courageous and independent person. I have faith that you can help others and yourself at the same time. We’ll look after you and in turn, you can look after us. We’re a team, so don’t try to carry such a burden alone. That’s what we’re all here for, myself and Kyuhoon included.”

Chan finished his lecture as he glanced at Kyuhoon, who seemed to have calmed himself after hearing the point that Chan was trying to make for Jeongin. Dry eyes, void of tears were no longer an option for Jeongin as Chan’s words found their way to his heart. Small whimpers left the young Necromancer as the wall he had built up for so many years gradually started to come crashing down. Kyuhoon hugged him closer and thought that Chan’s words had been far too harsh for the younger to listen to but realised that this is what it took to make Jeongin see sense and Chan had picked up on that. Being soft and kind to Jeongin wasn’t going to get through to him, he needed to hear the unrelenting truth so that he could start to come to some sort of peace about his situation.

Chan shuffled across the sand to fall beside Jeongin, placing his head upon his shoulder and arms around his waist while he was still lying into Kyuhoon’s hug. The three huddled together in silence for a short while before Chan finally spoke up again, his voice still holding the same gentle tone as it had earlier.

“Innie, we are here for you now. Rely on us and all of your other hyungs in the group, alright?”

Jeongin nodded his head as much as he could as he was being enveloped by the two older boys. Fingers suddenly met with his sides as he began to try and wriggle free while Chan tickled him. The tears falling down his cheeks were now the result of laughter when he couldn’t budge since Kyuhoon seemed to be on Chan’s side and held the younger boy firmly in place so that Chan could continue his playful torture.

“Innie, though we are your hyungs and you can always rely on us, just know that we are also probably the most childish people you will ever meet. You will never escape us now!”

Jeongin wondered how long it would take to get all of the sand out of his hair now that the three of them were rolling around trying to fight each other off as Jeongin began to retaliate, with Kyuhoon now turning on Chan and digging his fingers into the Knight’s sides, eliciting high pitched screams. Though Jeongin couldn’t completely let go of the blame he had been harbouring for so long, Chan’s words had cracked the foundation of the criticism he had built around himself. He knew his hyung was right, his parents wouldn’t want him to live like this. They would want him to live to his full potential and that’s exactly what Jeongin was going to try and do from now on.

Water met with the tips of Seungmin’s feet as he had settled himself on the sand. Though he had been in Aquiria for four months, he thought that the air felt and smelled completely different to him now. The sounds of the waves and noise from the city muddled together as they met his ears. Closing his eyes, he breathed in deeply, the salt air cleansing his head of any negative thoughts. Firm hands were placed upon his shoulders, causing Seungmin to raise his head to stare at Hyunjin.

“Why are you over here all by yourself? Come and join the rest of us.” Hyunjin’s smile was bright, brighter than the sun that his head was now eclipsing. He tilted his head when he didn’t get an answer from the younger boy who was staring at him without replying.

“You don’t have to hang out with me just because you feel guilty about me getting beaten up, Hyunjin. I told you that it wasn’t your fault.”

Hyunjin’s brows knitted together with the question that seemed to befuddle the older boy. “Feel guilty? Wait, what are you talking about? I want you to come and hang out with me and the others.”

“Look, I know I’m not the most interesting person or the friendliest, so you don’t have to pretend that you want to be around me. Jeongin probably only became friends with me because none of the others would talk to him. Don’t worry, I’m used to being by myself, so go and join the others again. I don’t mind staying here.”

The sudden shift in Seungmin’s disposition worried Hyunjin as he bent down to meet Seungmin’s eyes, grasping his wrist. “Minnie, what the hell are you talking about? Why would you put yourself down like that? Jeongin is crazy about you, anyone can see that. He’s lucky to have a friend like you and I would like to have the opportunity to get to know you better too. I wouldn’t interact with someone if I didn’t want to. I don’t want to hang out with you? Why would you think that?”

Before Seungmin could answer, Felix came barrelling towards the two, falling to Hyunjin’s side while screaming at his friend.

“Jinnie! Protect me! He’s going to kill me!”

Seungmin quickly stood to attention at the mention of violence, as he was so used to doing but realised from Felix’s expression that he wasn’t being serious about the threat to his life. Changbin slowly walked towards the three boys as he ruffled his hair, causing copious amounts of sand to fall out of it.

“Lee Felix, nothing can protect you now. Dumping a bucket of sand over my head? What would make you think that was a smart idea? Surely, you must have known there would be consequences.”  

Felix looked to Hyunjin for help but the older boy simply raised his hands to indicate that this fight had nothing to do with him. Upon seeing this and Changbin drawing closer, he flung himself into Seungmin’s arms while begging for protection. Hyunjin saw the awkwardness of Seungmin’s body jump up to invade his eyes, as he clearly had no idea how to react to the giggling boy now placed in his lap. The Illusionist looked to Changbin, who was suddenly stopped in his tracks when multiple fairies popped up in front of him and danced around his head. Glistening wings beated together with the sound of silvery bells falling upon the boy’s ears. Changbin started to panic a little since he had no idea what was happening to him. Why was he seeing mystical entities while standing in the middle of a beach?

Hyunjin’s gaze eventually departed from the numerous fairies and glanced back to Seungmin, who was completely focused on creating the illusions to distract Changbin. The Medic seemed to become calm after a short amount of time of admiring the beings in front of him. Felix slowly emerged from hiding his face in Seungmin’s lap and glanced at the small creatures twirling in front of the Medic’s eyes. He giggled when he realised that this was Seungmin’s way of helping him and gave a slight squeeze to the other boy’s leg as a form of thanks for saving him from Changbin’s wrath.  

After Jisung had run the length of the beach while trying to catch Minho for pushing him earlier on, he stopped to try and catch his breath. He was so used to being the fastest in their group but since Minho had joined, his position was up for debate. Jisung looked up to try and find the older boy when a worrying thought suddenly hit him. Minho hadn’t joined their group. When he had tried to leave after their first day of arriving in Aquiria, Jisung had stopped him and asked him to join them to watch some of the shows but so much had happened in between, that the topic of Minho joining their group hadn’t actually resurfaced. Jisung had just taken it as a given that since they had been through so much together, that the older boy would automatically come along with them but maybe Minho didn’t want that, no matter how much Jisung did.

Minho had finally stopped running away once he saw that Jisung was no longer giving chase and jogged back to the Thief. Upon seeing Jisung’s worried expression, Minho bent down to lift Jisung’s chin and ask him why he looked so upset.

“Hyung, what are you going to do now?” Minho tilted his head to inquire as to what exactly Jisung had meant. “Now that we’re going to leave Aquiria, where are you going to go?”

Minho finally understood Jisung’s question and raised from his crouched position. He had given no indication to the others that he wished to stay in the group and Jisung had assumed that since their mission was now complete, he would leave all of them to travel by himself again. Yes, he had wanted to stay with the group but it was no longer for the reason he had originally joined them. The acceptance and kindness that he had gained in the last week was more than he had ever received in his entire life and he had come to the conclusion that he liked the feeling. Though the main reason that he never got attached to people was because he couldn’t trust them as they always found a way to let him down, he got the feeling that these boys wouldn’t do that to him and really wanted to give them a chance to prove him right.

“Umm, I haven’t really thought about it, Jisung. Why?” Minho lied as he waited to see what the other boy would have to say about it.

“I was just wondering,” Jisung mumbled with a shrug of his shoulders as Minho began to grin at his obvious evasion on the subject. “Wait, no. I was wondering if-if you would want to come along with us. Before you say anything, I know you like to travel on your own and that you said that you were kind of a loner but we can give you the space that you need whenever you need it. You fit in so well with us and you would be such a welcome addition to our group. Granted, we haven’t actually discussed you joining because we thought you might not want to but I really want you to come along, uh, we-we really want you to come along with us.”

Minho had wanted to stop Jisung the moment he had begun to speak, to let him know that he wanted nothing more than to come along with their group but decided to let him continue. After hearing Jisung say that he wanted him to join them, his heart clenched at the thought that he ever wanted to use the younger boy for his own personal gain. Jisung was too much of a kind soul to be used by anyone and Minho made a promise to himself that he wasn’t ever going to hurt the young Thief. If Gyujin really was going to come after him for whatever reason, then Minho was going to do everything in his power to keep Jisung safe from his brother. He realised that it would be easier to do this if he knew the reason as to why Gyujin was after him but couldn’t ask Jisung why without giving himself away. From what he had told him about his life, Jisung had already endured far too much for his pain to be added to by Minho.

“Jisung, I’d love to come along with you guys.”

“But…” Jisung sighed heavily, his eyes falling to the grains of sand beneath his feet as Minho laughed with incredulity.

“There is no but, Jisung. That was the full statement, I’d love to join your group.” Jisung’s head shot up as his eyes widened in disbelief.

“Y-you’ll really come with us? You don’t want to go back to travelling on your own? You won’t leave me?”

The older boy watched with widened eyes as Jisung’s hands jumped up to cover his mouth after the slip of the last sentence. Minho couldn’t help but move towards the Thief after his adorable reaction caused him to start babbling incoherently, trying to explain what he had meant. Minho grabbed his frantically waving hands while trying to calm him. “No, Jisungie, I’m not going to leave you, I promise.”

Jisung’s face flared red, much to Minho’s amusement. He reached out his hand to move a loose strand of mousy hair from Jisung’s face, his fingers lightly brushing off of the other’s forehead as he did so. Minho noticed that Jisung’s breathing had suddenly halted before realising what he had just done and quickly moved back from the other boy. “Uh, so, yeah. I guess that I’m joining you guys then. D-do you want to go and tell the others? We should probably let them know, right?”

Jisung hadn’t really ever seen Minho flustered before but thought that it was a very endearing look on the elder boy. Then again, he thought everything about him was endearing. The way his eyes crinkled shut when he laughed like he couldn’t breath, the way he managed to fit in with the rest of his group like he was a missing piece they had all been searching for, the way he managed to make him feel safe even in the most dangerous of circumstances; Jisung found all of it captivating.

“Yeah, hyung. Let’s go and tell the others. C’mon.” Jisung grabbed Minho’s hand to drag him over to the others, where Seungmin was guarding Felix with his body as Hyunjin was holding Changbin back from attacking the freckled boy. Jisung and Minho began to wonder what exactly they had missed.

“Hey, everyone! Come over here! Minho hyung has something that he wants to tell you guys!”

Chapter Text

The group had almost arrived back to Haknal after travelling for a day and a half. Having left the town previously with four members, the fact that they had made it back with more than double the amount of people was amusing to them. Luckily, they hadn’t sold their camping equipment during their stay in Aquiria as they had needed it once again for their journey back, although, they barely had enough room to house all nine boys this time. The tent that Jisung and Felix had shared previously was made to fit two people, so when Changbin was forced to stay there as well, their sleeping positions were slightly uncomfortable. Though, Jisung thought it wasn’t the cramped space that caused this but rather the fact that he was required to sleep between the two awkward messes who wouldn’t just fess up to how they felt already.

Hyunjin had grabbed onto Seungmin’s arm and stated that he didn’t have a choice in the matter as to where he was staying. Ever since Seungmin had spoken to Hyunjin on the beach and told him that he was used to being by himself and that there was no need to hang out with him, the older boy didn’t want to let him out of his sight. He didn’t know why Seungmin had put himself down like that but he wasn’t going to let him think that he was alone after everything that he had gone through with Jeongin. Minho had no choice but to room with the two younger boys as there wasn’t any room in the tent he had slept in previously.

Kyuhoon and Chan had all but dragged Jeongin to stay with them in their tent as their brotherly instincts went into overdrive ever since they had heard about Jeongin’s past. The youngest boy didn’t seem to mind that his hyungs were suddenly so protective over him, in fact, he rather liked it. Ever since his parents had passed, he had lived with his grandmother and as much as he loved her, she could only do so much for him in her old age. At times, it would be him looking after her rather than the other way around, which didn’t bother Jeongin but it was nice to be taken care of like this.

Once they had risen from their slumber, they all began to pack up the tents but Kyuhoon stopped them, telling all of them that he and Chan would take care of it. The younger boys didn’t need to be told twice, running towards the path they had travelled on up to here. The eldest members began dismantling the canvases before Chan looked to the other for answers.

“So, why exactly are we doing all of the work here? How come you sent all of them off? We could have been done a lot faster if you had told them to stay.” Chan hadn’t ceased working on taking down his tent and stuffing the materials into his backpack.

“I wanted to speak with you alone and I didn’t know if I’d get another chance once we got back to Haknal.”

Chan glanced over to the Bard, a stern expression crossing over his face and Chan thought that he wouldn’t like what was about to come. “It’s about what you said to Jeongin or rather, the way you said it to him. It was pretty harsh, Chan.”

Messy curls fell in front of the boy’s face as he bent down to pick up the cooking utensils that they had used to cook their meal last night. “Yeah, I know it was.”

“Then why would you speak to him like that? He’s still a kid. I mean, I know we call all of the others kids too but Innie is only seventeen, so don’t you think that you could have watered down the brutality a little bit?” Kyuhoon’s hands had halted their work as he looked at the Knight with disappointment.

“Look, it worked, didn’t it? Sometimes kids need to hear the bitter truth, no matter how much they may not want to. Doing what I do, I’ve seen children that have been in Jeongin’s situation. Sometimes, their parents have passed and they have no living relatives, so they were sent to the orphanage. Other times, their parents are simply no longer able to care for them for whatever reason. Blame is an exceptionally powerful thing and it’s amazing the amount of guilt that some of these kids hold on to, even though they couldn’t have possibly changed what happened. There are those that come to me asking if they could have done something different to stop such events occuring and they torture themselves with their thoughts. Being trapped inside of your own head sounds like a nightmare. There’s no end to it, it can eat away at you and I think that’s what it was doing to Jeongin. Softness doesn’t always fight off the demons inside of these kids, sometimes you have to talk to them like they’re adults because their situation requires that kind of approach.”

Chan had completed tidying up the sleeping arrangements and folding them all inside of the backpack, which he slung over his shoulders as he looked to Kyuhoon.

“So, I’m sorry if I upset you with how I handled the situation but I wouldn’t change the way I went about it if I had to do it again.” Chan seemed agitated at the memories he had plucked from his head, thinking back to all of the tormented children that he had met during his work. As he began to walk away from Kyuhoon, the older boy quickly rushed to stand beside him.

“I get it, Channie, ok? I was upset but I’m not anymore. I understand why you handled it the way that you did, so don’t be angry, alright?”

Kyuhoon placed his arms around the distressed boy in front of him, squashing any attempts the other made to free himself from the warm embrace. “You really do know how to take care of all of our boys, don’t you? You have a real leadership quality about you and I admire that very much.” Kyuhoon could feel Chan deflate in his arms and took this to be a sign that he was no longer ruffled by his past thoughts, which made Kyuhoon laugh a little, his breath tickling Chan’s ear. “So, are we ok?”

“Yeah, Kyu, we’re ok.”

“Forty-eight, forty-nine, fifty! Ready or not, here I come!”

Jisung called out to the others to indicate that their time to hide was now up. When asked how they wanted to pass the time while they waited for Chan and Kyuhoon to finish packing up the equipment, Jeongin quietly mumbled that the area would be a perfect place to play hide and seek as there were so many trees and shrubbery to hide behind. He was worried the others might make fun of him for such a immature request but thought back to what Kyuhoon and Chan had told him on the beach about all of them being childish, which seemed to be the case as Jisung, Felix, Seungmin and Hyunjin agreed to play the game with the young Necromancer. Minho and Changbin decidedly passed and sat to the side to observe how the game would turn out, while they talked about all the places they had travelled to within Phantasm.

It wasn’t too long before Jisung found Felix hanging out of a tree branch that he had failed to climb up in time, with the Thief noticing Hyunjin placed behind a bush that was much too small to hide his entire body. Jeongin was much harder to find as he had completely blended in with a butterfly bush before Jisung heard his giggles and dragged him out.

Over ten minutes later, there was still no sign of Seungmin, which caused the younger boys to panic slightly. They had set out a specific perimeter that they could not enter outside of so, when they had searched the entirety of the area and not found the boy, Jeongin began to scold himself for recommending such a game to begin with. All returned to where Minho and Changbin were sitting before letting them know that they couldn’t find the young boy even after calling out his name to tell him that they had given up and he had won. Minho and Changbin began to stand but before the hysteria could really set in, Hyunjin fell into convulsions of laughter, causing everyone to ask him what could possibly be so funny in a situation like this.

“Ah, am I really the only one who can see him? Guys, did you forget exactly what Seungmin’s class is? He’s an Illusionist. Minho hyung, what did you say that Illusionists can do?”

All eyes flew to Minho, who sighed before chuckling. “I said that Illusionists can become invisible when they want to and it’s very hard to see through their abilities.”  

“Oh, come on! That’s not freaking fair! Hyunjin, where is he?” Jisung sulked as he knew he never had a chance of winning the game if he couldn’t even see Seungmin in the first place.

“He’s standing right beside Changbin hyung.”

Changbin looked to his left before he quickly moved his hand through the air, only to come into contact with something that he couldn’t see, a small grunt of pain following. Light began to bend in the space beside Changbin before Seungmin quickly reappeared, frowning at Changbin for hitting him as the Medic quickly apologised for his unintentional actions. Seungmin quickly shook his hands to show that he was only kidding and in turn, asked Jisung for forgiveness for playing dirty in their little game of hide and seek. Once the relief had settled in, they saw Chan and Kyuhoon move towards them as an indication that they were ready to go.

As they walked, Seungmin grabbed onto Hyunjin’s arm and dragged him back. “How exactly is it that you can see me? I’ve never come across someone like you before. Everyone else completely ignores me but it was the same back at the festival. You were the only one who could see through my abilities.”

Hyunjin smiled as Seungmin was still linking arms with him while they progressed forward.

“I dunno, really. When I mentioned it to Minho hyung earlier, he said that I may just have a keen eye. That’s the only reason he gave me.” Seungmin nodded his head with a pensive look on his face. “Or maybe it’s because of how badly I wanted to see you,” Hyunjin giggled as Seungmin tried to figure out exactly what he was trying to insinuate but quickly shook his head as Hyunjin pulled him forward to catch up with the rest of the group.

Walking through the great doors of Haknal felt like taking in a breath of fresh air for most of the boys, as the familiarity of the town made them feel safe once again. Chan had mentioned to the group that, once they had dropped their belongings off at Joomi’s inn, he and Kyuhoon would take Seungmin and Jeongin shopping to buy some protective gear and weapons since their clothing was pretty much useless in the way of defence. The younger boys had vehemently protested, saying that they were fine with what they had but Chan and Kyuhoon weren’t having it. No matter how much they argued, Seungmin and Jeongin could see that they weren’t going to win this fight, so they quickly conceded defeat and thanked their hyungs for their kind gesture.

Jisung barrelled through the front door of the inn, startling Joomi in the process, who was sitting at the front desk. Once their eyes met, a wide, loving smile stretched across Joomi’s lips as she got up to envelop Jisung in a bear hug.

“My boys are back. How have you four been? Oh?” Upon raising her head to ask the others the question, Joomi noticed that the size of their group had increased exponentially which caused her gaze to fly back to Jisung.

“Joomi-ssi, we sort of gathered a few strays along the way. Guys, come over here. This is Joomi-ssi, she’s the owner of this inn.” Everybody in the group, including those who had already met Joomi, bowed in greeting, causing the older woman to laugh at how in sync they were before bowing back.

“My, look at all of you. Now, I need names. If you’re going to be travelling with my boys, then you’ll be coming back to me quite often and I can’t stand not calling people their names. We’ll start from left to right. What’s your name, sweetheart?”

Jeongin blushed at the pet name, which caused all of the other boys to giggle slightly but upon seeing Joomi’s glare, they all shut their mouths to allow the boy to begin his greeting.

“My name’s Yang Jeongin, Joomi-ssi. I’m the maknae of the group. It’s very nice to meet you.”

The others glanced in slight disbelief at how articulate Jeongin had become after being embarrassed just moments ago. Based on how he had spent the last month, they thought it may have been difficult for him to be confident around others but it seemed their fears were unfounded as he smiled brightly.

“It’s very nice to meet you too, Jeonginnie. Your braces are absolutely adorable, just like you.” A guttural noise sprung from Jeongin, letting the other boys fall into laughter once again. “Ok, the boy with the constellations on his cheeks, you’re up.”

Everyone looked to Felix, who was touching his face after the comment. There were times when the boy felt self conscious about his freckles but hearing people compliment him like this caused all of his anxiety about them to dissipate.

“Uh, I’m Lee Felix and I originally come from Australia. It’s a pleasure.”  

Joomi nodded with a smile as she gestured for the next person in line to begin.

“Hi, Joomi-ssi” I’m Hwang Hyunjin, I’m eighteen and I’m an Alchemist. Your inn is really lovely. If we have to come back here often, then I wouldn’t complain at all!” Joomi raised her eyebrows at Hyunjin’s bubbly personality and laughed as it was her turn to be complimented.

“Well, thank you very much, Hyunjin. Alrighty, the timid redhead hiding behind Hyunjin, care to introduce yourself?” Hyunjin hadn’t even realised that Seungmin had moved slightly behind him, as if asking the Alchemist to protect him. While Jeongin had only begun to experience the painful trials that Siwan’s house had offered, Seungmin had endured them to a much greater extent during his lengthy stay in the prison. It seemed to Hyunjin that this had shattered whatever trust he was able to place in the adults of this world based on the secure grip Seungmin had on his jacket.

“Kim Seungmin. I’m an Illusionist. Nice to meet you.” Joomi moved forward, causing Seungmin to grab onto Hyunjin’s hand, which the other squeezed back.

“Seungmin, as horrifying as I look, I’m not that bad. You don’t have to be so shy around me or is there a reason that you don’t seem to trust me?”

All of the other boys quickly raised their arms, words of protest leaving their mouths as they tried to take the focus off of Seungmin, whose eyes fell to the floor.

“Ah, there is a reason then? But I’m not supposed to ask? Don’t worry, angel, if it takes a while to warm up to me, then I’ll wait until you are ready. Ok, darling?”

Joomi’s warm eyes crinkled shut as she smiled lovingly towards Seungmin, who felt a little silly for reacting so harshly to the woman who seemed quite lovely. He bowed in apology but still remained behind Hyunjin.

“And the last one. Honey, you’re up.”

Minho scratched his head before Jisung moved up to him and nudged his side as an indication to begin his greeting for the woman.

“I’m Lee Minho. Pleased to meet you.”

Joomi arched her eyebrow, eyeing Jisung’s behaviour towards the older boy but decided to remain silent on the subject, though Chan had picked up on the slight pause in her actions. There was also the little sign that nobody else but her could see but she thought to keep quiet on that too until the time was right.

“Well then, that’s all of you, right? I know the other four already. So, how do you boys want to room tonight? Three rooms of three?”

All boys nodded at the suggestion as they lugged their bags to their rooms. Kyuhoon and Chan grabbed Seungmin and Jeongin and began to guide them towards the exit once again to purchase the equipment that would help them progress through the game. Minho, Jisung and Changbin decided to leave with them but diverted to a coffee shop to relax instead. Felix and Hyunjin remained at the inn, with Hyunjin arranging all of his items in his backpack so that they would be easier to access if a fight were to suddenly break out. It seemed like the smartest thing to do when he thought back to everything that they had encountered since he had joined the group.

“Hey, Lix, that night in Aquiria, when you went for a walk with Changbin hyung, did anything in particular happen?”

Felix looked up from the bed where he was placed, the bestiary that he was studying from to learn about more of the monsters in the game settled on his lap. Hyunjin’s wiggling eyebrows showed Felix what he was trying to insinuate, causing the younger boy to huff in exasperation.

“No, Jinnie, nothing happened and especially not like that .”

“Oh, come on, what did you guys talk about? Surely you weren’t gone for over an hour just to walk around in silence.”

Felix was unsure whether or not he wanted to divulge the information to the older boy but Hyunjin was his best friend and if he was going to mention it to anyone, then it would be him. “Ok, I’ll tell you but promise not to freak out, alright?”

“Then don’t give me something to freak out about! Come on, Lix. Did you gaze into each other’s eyes under the setting sun?”

A firm pillow came into contact with Hyunjin’s face while Felix allowed his gaze to fall back to his book.

“Forget it, Hyunjin. I’m not telling you anything anymore. You’ve lost your privileges as the best friend,” Felix huffed before Hyunjin crawled forward and placed his chin on Felix’s knee, giving him the best puppy eyes that he could muster up.

“Ok, ok, I promise that I won’t tease you about Changbin hyung anymore. So, what happened between you two?”

The sound of Felix’s book shutting indicated to Hyunjin that he was ready to speak. “We walked outside of the city gates for a while, it wasn’t for very long but there was a reason that he brought me out there.”

Hyunjin bit his lip as he tried to stop a cheeky smile from forming on his face. He wanted to hear the rest of the story but knew that if he showed in any way that he was making fun of Felix, then the other boy would most likely hit him in the face again.

“He...he took me out there because he wanted me to try and summon a beast.”

Hyunjin wasn’t sure if he had heard correctly and shook his head to rid himself of any haze that might have affected his hearing. “I’m sorry, Lix. I don’t think I heard you right. Did you just say Changbin hyung asked you to summon a beast?” Hyunjin’s fears were confirmed once Felix nodded his head to indicate that he had heard accurately the first time. Anger flared through his extremities as he leapt up from his seated position. “He asked you to do what?!”

Felix was forced to grab Hyunjin’s hand as he had headed for the door, more than likely to give Changbin a piece of his mind for asking his friend to do such a thing.

“Jinnie, relax. He didn’t force me to do it, he just thought that it might have been a good idea!”

“In what world would that have been a good idea?! We all know how scared you are so why in the hell would he even go there in the first place?!” Felix’s hold was tight around Hyunjin’s arm as the other tried his best to wiggle free of the younger boy’s grasp.

“Wait, Hyunjin, stop struggling! I think it’s a good idea too!” Felix stumbled back a bit as he was so intent on stopping Hyunjin from leaving the room, that he didn’t notice the other boy’s body became lax upon hearing his thoughts.

“Y-you think it’s a good idea? You want to try and summon a beast even though you have a phobia of them? I’m sorry, they must have changed the definition of a good idea from the last time I heard the meaning.”

Grabbing Felix’s arms, Hyunjin forced the younger boy to look at him. “Lix, think about this a little bit more, alright? You know how you get when you come into contact with monsters, it takes a hell of a long time for you to calm down and if you were to be the one to control them, your reactions would more than likely be amplified. Is-is it because it was Changbin hyung that asked you to do it? Lix, listen, I know you like him but you don’t have to do it just because he wants you to. You have to think about what’s best for you in a situation like this.”

“I am, Jinnie. I’m thinking about how this damn fear has been holding me back. How I would be able to fight back if I could summon the beasts to help me. How I could be a great asset to the team if I wasn’t hiding in the back while I let the rest of you protect me. I want to do this and it’s not just because Changbin hyung asked me, it’s because I want to overcome this.”

Once Hyunjin saw the determination in his friend’s face, he loosened his grip and backed away. A small nudge was pushed against Hyunjin’s shoulder while Felix smirked slightly.

“I’m lucky to have someone that cares about me so much. Thank you, Jinnie. I know you’re only worried about me and I appreciate that but I feel like this is something that I need to do. Just don’t tell anybody else about this, alright? I don’t know when I’ll be ready to attempt this and I don’t want everyone to keep asking if I’ve managed to try it yet. This is a secret between you, me and Changbin hyung, alright?”

Hyunjin dragged his teeth over his lips, stopping himself from protesting any further on the subject as he nudged Felix back. “Alright, Lix, I promise. I won’t say anything to anyone else but when you do try this, I want to be there with you.”

Felix nodded with a bright smile, showing that he was grateful for his friend’s support. Once the tension had cleared, Felix went back to reading his bestiary, with Hyunjin resuming his work within his backpack. He wasn’t going to say anything to any of the other boys on the subject, just as he had promised Felix. Saying something to Changbin, on the other hand, was top on his list of priorities. He wasn’t going to let something like this go so easily.

The light wind whistled through the town as the four boys entered Chul Moo’s weapons emporium. The man remembered Chan from his previous visit and asked him if he needed his sword to be touched up, which the Knight politely declined. Chan couldn’t help but scrutinise the man who he had been so sure was a human the first time that he had met him but just as Kyuhoon had said, he possessed a green ring around his wrist, which indicated that he belonged to this world and this world alone. Seeing the doubt in Chan’s eyes, Kyuhoon encouraged the younger boy to question Chul Moo about the game to prove his point. When Chan had inquired as to who ran Phantasm, Chul Moo stood quietly for exactly five seconds before greeting them as if they had just entered the shop, with no reference to Chan’s inquiry.

Trying to decide on appropriate weapons for the younger boys had been somewhat of a challenge, even with Chul Moo’s input. Seungmin’s abilities required him to be placed away from an enemy, so a short range attack weapon would have been useless. Going through a number of weapons, Seungmin couldn’t decide on what would fit him the best. As the others deliberated, Seungmin closed his eyes, placing his left hand to his side and began to walk around the store. His fingers brushed off various swords and guns but none of them felt right to him. A sudden spark tickled his palm and with his eyes still closed, he reached down to pick up whatever it was that had called out to him. Tense fingers wrapped around a Gakgung Bow, with Seungmin holding it up in front of his face. The bamboo core and oak handle became dazzling to Seungmin as he pulled the string back to aim in front of him, though no arrow was present. He knew that this is what he needed, something that he could protect himself and the others with but that would also allow him to remain at a distance and create his illusions if need be.

On the other end of the shop, Jeongin glanced at all the store had to offer. He hadn’t managed to use any weapons since he had arrived in Phantasm as he had been taken to Siwan’s house almost immediately after arriving in the game, so the thoughts of having to learn how to defend himself was now a little daunting. He knew that he couldn’t simply rely on his necromancy skills to help him. Ever since Chan had lectured him on the beach, Jeongin thought that he should no longer be afraid of the powers that were part of who he was and that he should try his best to master them but they still took a painful toll on his body. He thought that perhaps it was because he had learned how to use them in the wrong way. Siwan was the only one who had tried to teach him, though his methods of education and knowledge on the subject of necromancy were exceedingly poor. He needed a teacher but Necromancers were few and far between, so he would have to try himself until he stumbled across one, though he knew that may never happen.

Jeongin noticed Seungmin with his Bow and the other boys admiring his choice, while telling him to pick out some defensive clothing. Jeongin knew that he had to hurry and pick out his weapon. He wasn’t quite sure if he was a short or long range fighter since he had never been in a conflict before. Well, not one in which he could have fought back in anyways. Something caught his eye as he passed it, causing laughter of disbelief to fall from his mouth. Would it be too twisted if he chose this as his weapon? He took the piece down to admire the craftsmanship and weighed the object as he inspected it. It felt like this weapon belonged in his hands, its sharp edge promising the protection that Jeongin was searching for. It stood a little bit shorter than himself and felt just light enough for Jeongin to be able to swing it around freely. Delicate indentations littered the weapon, dark vines making their way up the handle. He found that its blade could be hidden away, allowing him to safely carry it around on his back. Grasping it in his hands, he made his way over to Kyuhoon and Chan, who were waiting for Seungmin to emerge from the changing rooms.

“Kyuhoon hyung, Chan hyung. I think I’ve found my weapon.”

“That’s great, Innie, what did you-”

Both boys had turned with bright smiles upon their faces but upon seeing Jeongin’s choice, intrigued frowns replaced their happiness.

“Wow, you’re really buying into this whole Necromancer thing, huh? Are you sure you want that one?” Chan scratched the back of his head as he bit his lip. He knew that Jeongin had made the decision to come to terms with his class and in turn, would try to develop his skills but upon seeing the pitch black Scythe in the young boy’s hands, he thought that he might have been taking Chan’s advice to embrace his class a little too seriously.

“Yep, this is it. I like how it feels in my hands. Plus I won’t have to learn too many particular skills when it comes to a close range weapon like this, though it will take some time to get used to,” Jeongin laughed at the puzzled look on his hyungs' faces, neither of them knowing how to reply to his logic.

Seungmin finally emerged from the dressing room sporting an amber sweatshirt that fell to his knees, where it met with denim jeans and golden trainers. Jeongin thought the colours suited the Illusionist and blended very well with his crimson hair.

“Wah, Innie. Is that what you chose as your weapon? It makes you look like a Grim Reaper, which is awfully ironic considering your class.” Seungmin had said what everyone had been thinking but hadn’t had the guts to articulate. It earned him a small punch from Kyuhoon as he laughed at the two young boys.

Once Jeongin had bought his Scythe and clothing, which came in the form of a loose fitting, baby blue shirt and black chinos, the boys exited the store to head back to the inn. Seungmin bowed towards the older boys as a form of thanks for treating them so well, even after they had already done enough by saving them from their dire situation.

“No worries, Seungminnie. Like we told Jeongin earlier, we’ll take care of you and you can take care of the others in our group. That is the only rule that we have. Look out for each other.” Kyuhoon pulled the younger boy closer to his side, giving a small squeeze of reassurance to his shoulders.

Seungmin nodded but thought back on his time in Phantasm so far. It had always been Seungmin’s mindset to look out for number one before anyone else. Having to change that would take a little bit of time but he knew he could do it if it was for the group of boys which he felt would become more than his group of friends as time went by.

The sun was beginning to disappear beyond the horizon by the time everyone had returned to their lodging. This would be the only night that they would spend in Joomi’s inn since they wanted to get to Morthan as quickly as possible to attend the tournament that would take place in five days. Thinking about this, Kyuhoon asked all of the boys if any of them would like to enter the competition or if they would all be content with watching it instead.

“They said that the prizes would be announced on the first day so we don’t really know what exactly it is that we would be fighting for but we will have to take the chance if any of you guys want to do it.” Chan scanned the room and the boy’s contemplative expressions before a hand being raised into the air caught his attention.

“I’d kind of like to give it a try. I think it would be a good way to test out how advanced my abilities are.”

Hyunjin’s eyebrows shot up in surprise as Seungmin volunteered to enter the contest which they knew hardly anything about. Pulling the other boy’s hand down, he laughed humorlessly before turning to the Illusionist, who looked confused at Hyunjin’s sudden actions.

“Minnie, what are you doing? You can’t enter a fight like that. You’re not ready yet.”

“What do you mean I’m not ready? Why? Do you think that I’m not strong enough to do this?” Hyunjin reeled back as it felt like Seungmin’s piercing eyes were burning a hole into his face.

“No, Minnie, that’s not what I- ok then, if you’re going to enter, then so am I. It said that we can enter in teams of two, right? I’ll partner up with Seungmin then and we’ll do this together, ok?”

Seungmin felt that it wasn’t a question of whether it was alright that Hyunjin was on his team but rather that he wasn’t going to be allowed to enter unless Hyunjin was on his team. Not that Seungmin had a problem with this, in fact, he welcomed the support. He nodded to show that Hyunjin’s compromise suited him.

“To be honest, I’d kind of like to try it out as well, if anyone wants to do it with me,” Jisung bubbled as he swayed from side to side, hoping that someone would volunteer to pair up with him like Hyunjin had done for Seungmin. Jisung already had a specific partner in mind but when Minho cast his eyes away from the younger boy, his hopes were dashed before a hand caught his wrist.

“I’ll pair up with you if you want, Jisungie.” Jisung couldn’t help but pull his hand away as Changbin’s icy fingers came into contact with his heated skin.

“Really, hyung? You don’t mind pairing up with little, old me? You think you can handle it?”

“Out of everyone here, I’m the one who has known you the longest and I’m also the one who knows you the best but if you don’t want to team up with me, then that’s fine…”

Changbin covered his face as he pouted and whimpered to pull at Jisung’s heartstrings. Rolling his eyes at the other’s dramatics, he harshly pushed on his hyung’s shoulders, causing Changbin to fall backwards onto Chan’s lap.

“Good god, alright. We’ll be a team. Hey, maybe we’ll end up going against Seungmin and Hyunjin. You guys better prepare yourselves. Changbin hyung and I have been fighting together for months, we’re completely in sync and know what the other is thinking before they even think it!”

“Completely in sync? What about that time you were training together and you ended up running into each other and knocking Changbin out?” Jisung and Changbin couldn’t believe how Kyuhoon had outed them like that. Laughter filled the room at the two boy’s escapades while Jisung began to whack Kyuhoon with all of his might. Nobody else was particularly interested in participating in the tournament. The two small teams that had been formed gathered together to discuss potential strategies and outcomes. Hyunjin knew that it would be somewhat difficult to fight with Seungmin since they had only spent a short amount of time together but he couldn’t let him do this alone. He needed help and Hyunjin was going to be damned if he wasn’t going to be the one to give it to him.

Harsh echoes flooded the room as the Bokken Swords came into contact with each other. The floor was covered in sweat that originated from the two fighting men, who showed no signs of easing up on their friendly match. They had fought together so many times at this stage that they knew exactly how to react to each other’s attacks, not giving the other any room for mistakes.

“Both of you, your stances are looking a bit wobbly. Are you getting tired? I thought the two of you had a lot more stamina than this. You’re not going to be able to get very far in the tournament if you’re faltering already.” The man ruffled his ash hair, slumping against the back wall while watching his friends train. The only way he could seem to get through to their stubborn ass personalities was to playfully insult them. It obviously seemed to work as both grinned at him before putting even more effort into their fight.

“So, you think that they’ll be ready for this? Not that we’ll ever let them know this but they are the strongest fighters in our group. Though you could probably give them a run for their money, hyung.”

A soda can was flung towards the man as another of his group joined him to watch the sparring match.

“Of course they will be. You’re right though, they can never know how powerful we know they are. Their egos are already big enough, we don’t need to endure anymore of their boasting.”

“Hyung, you think Changbin will be there? It’d be fun to see him again. It’s been nearly five months. I’d like to see how he’s progressed since we last saw him. The kid was already powerful after his first month, he must be some sort of monster now if he’s managed to progress at a steady rate.”

“What’s wrong, Jackson? Are you afraid that the student has surpassed the master? Don’t worry, hyung still thinks that you’re a very strong Battle Priest.” The man squished Jackson’s cheeks, eliciting annoyed grunts from the younger boy.

“You know, Jaebum hyung, as much as I love your affection, abusing my face like that isn’t appreciated. Hey, Yugyeom! Bambam’s going to win the match if you don’t perk up a bit!” Just as Jackson shouted his advice, Bambam swished his training sword underneath Yugyeom’s legs, causing the younger boy to come crashing to the ground with the sword now placed at his throat. A hand was quickly offered to the young man from Bambam, who chuckled at the surprised look on the other’s face.

“You did that on purpose, Jackson. Yugyeom was doing just fine until you shouted at him.” Jaebum looked disapprovingly at the younger man, before averting his gaze back to the boys in the middle of hugging after their friendly bout.

“Yeah, I did. I bet Yugyeom that he couldn’t win the fight against Bambam. I’m not losing any more money to that kid, he already owns enough of my coins.”

Jaebum almost scolded him for his dirty trick but when he heard thunderous footsteps coming towards them, emanating from Yugyeom who was about to throttle Jackson for distracting him, he simply let the younger boy punish him for his characteristic slyness. He hoped Jackson was right, he also wanted to see Changbin and how much he had progressed. If there was ever going to be a chance to meet up with him again, the tournament in Morthan was going to be their best opportunity and that’s exactly where they were going to head next.

Chapter Text

After all of the boys had said their goodbyes to Joomi, with Seungmin managing a small handshake with the woman, they made their way to the capital city. They travelled for three days through the sunny grasslands and were fortunate enough not to encounter any undesirable weather. It had been less than a week since Jeongin and Seungmin had become part of the family but the difference in their temperaments, especially Jeongin’s, was interesting to say the least. As was a strange custom with Jisung and the new members that were added to the group, he challenged them to an impromptu race as they walked along the path, with Jeongin jumping at the chance for some fun. Seungmin politely declined and stated that he would simply watch, with Jisung being oblivious to the wink he threw to Jeongin. Hyunjin jogged to stand in front of both of the boys to act as the starter. He raised his hand, smirking slightly as he caught on to what Seungmin was trying to do.

“Ok, are you both ready? On your marks, get set, go!”

Hyunjin dropped his arm in a swift motion before Jeongin took off running. Jisung hadn’t managed to move a step however, as a delicate weight was placed on his back but one that definitely made a difference to how quickly he could move.

“Hey! Wait! Jeongin, come back here! Seungmin, get the hell off of my back. This is cheating, I won’t stand for this kind of disrespect! I’m your hyung!” Jisung shouted as he wiggled with all of his might but Seungmin had secured himself so tightly on the other’s back that there was no way he was winning the race now.

“You’re eight days older than me, you can’t use ‘I’m your hyung’ to try and make me feel guilty. You knew damn well when you challenged him that Jeongin wouldn’t have a chance of winning the race, since you have a higher agility stat and that is what I would call cheating. Run, Innie!” Seungmin’s giggles caused vibrations to run through Jisung’s body as he tried even harder to break free but eventually gave up and conceded that he was no match for the two little devils that had him wrapped around their little fingers.

As they camped for the three nights, both of the teams that had been formed in Haknal decided to take time to train together and develop their teamwork. Jisung had been right about one thing, he and Changbin were completely in sync when fighting, though their personalities were as different as night and day. Jisung had requested assistance from Minho when training with Changbin, asking him if he could stand in as an enemy to test their reaction times. Jisung thought that in their group, Changbin had the best control over his abilities but when it came to physical strength and agility, Minho was the clear winner, which is why he had chosen him to be their opponent.

After engaging in a few different scenarios with the two boys, Minho came to the conclusion that they were prepared for anything that he could have thrown at them. While Jisung focused on up front attacks and distracting Minho, Changbin used buffs and magic to intercept Minho’s attacks towards the Thief. All of them knew it would be a different thing altogether when the boys had to go up against two enemies who were hell bent on winning rather than a friend who was simply trying to test out their teamwork. During one round of fighting, Minho forgot that he was only supposed to lightly attack the younger boys and used the hilt of his Katana to knock Jisung’s legs out from under him, causing the younger boy to fly towards the ground.

“Ow, hyung! What the fuck?!”

“Oof, you’d better not let Kyuhoon hyung hear you swearing like that, he wouldn’t be very happy with your foul mouth. Besides, your opponents won’t be as kind as me when you go up against them in the tournament.”

“Kind is a funny way to describe yourself when you’re the reason I’m on the ground like this,” Jisung muttered, while his unimpressed expression made both Minho and Changbin fall into a fit of laughter before Minho grasped Jisung’s smaller hand and pulled him up. They concluded that they had done enough training for one day and headed back to the others.

Seungmin and Hyunjin had also moved away from the group but took a different approach to their training compared to Jisung and Changbin. They didn’t ask for any assistance and thought that they could simply do this by themselves, not wanting to inconvenience the others in the group.

“Ok, so we go up against a Knight like Chan hyung, what do you make?”

Hyunjin rummaged through his bag to try and quickly think of what he could fashion to stop such an attacker. Seungmin had suggested that he call out classes for the Alchemist, so that he could quickly create something that would work against the person the younger boy had come up with.

“Smoke bomb, it disorientates the attacker. Once I do, we dissipate and you create your illusions to throw them off. What would you create?”

“Hmm, I could make a number of things. Something that would aid in obscuring their vision. Perhaps a wall to enclose them while we got into a more favourable position and lay into them from there.”

Hyunjin nodded with a grin as he urged Seungmin to throw another scenario his way. This was training and he knew it but he couldn’t help thinking that this was like a game to test his abilities and thought that it was pretty fun playing it with Seungmin.

“Ah, ok. A Doubler, someone who can create a clone of themselves, what do you do?”

“Clones are exceedingly easy to see through if you pay attention. Though they can attack like their creator, there are always slight differences such as the presence of a mole, hair parted in a slightly different way or even something as silly as different coloured socks. The tournament will obviously have a no killing rule but you can eliminate a clone without affecting the producer. Maybe it’s just me but I’ve found fire to be the most effective way to off something that you no longer want around!”   

“And how long would it take you to fashion something like that?”

“Um, maybe a minute, probably a little bit less.”

“You’re going to have to think of a way to do it faster because I don’t want to be holding off two people, or rather three people with the presence of a clone, by myself. I have faith that you’ll find a way before we arrive in Morthan,” Seungmin sang, giving a sly smile to the older boy, who sighed with irritation.  

“I’ll have plenty of bombs and potions assembled before we even enter the arena, don’t worry. Ok, enough about my skills, let’s see how far you’ve progressed with your Bow.” Hyunjin gestured towards the weapon that lay to the side of where they stood. Seungmin sauntered over with overflowing confidence and picked up his Bow, while placing the guard on his arm. “Where the hell has this cockiness come out of? Were you always this smug?”

“Only when I’m around you, Jinnie.”

Hyunjin squirmed a little upon hearing the nickname that Felix had given him when they had become friends. Though, when it came out of Seungmin’s mouth, it gave off an entirely different vibe but one that Hyunjin didn’t particularly dislike. In fact, he wished Seungmin would say it more often since it indicated to the older boy that the Illusionist was becoming more comfortable around him.

“Ok, see that notch on the third tree from the left? Try and get your arrow somewhere around-” Seungmin had already placed his arrow on the nocking point and pulled the bowstring back to meet his lip. Hand firm on the grip, Seungmin released the arrow as it whistled through the air, hitting his target dead on.

“Something like that?”

“Y-yeah, something like that,” Hyunjin stuttered, embarrassed that he had doubted Seungmin in the first place.

When Seungmin had brought his Bow back from the store, Hyunjin had been more than slightly intrigued, since it was a weapon that relied mostly on aim, which Hyunjin also depended on. He had offered to coach Seungmin on how to get the most out of his new weapon and after a mere three days, Hyunjin thought that Seungmin must have had some inherent ability since he could hit any mark that Hyunjin called out to him. Sure, Hyunjin thought his training might have helped him in some way but nobody could pick an ability up this quickly simply by being taught.

Seungmin bounced up and down happily before looking at Hyunjin, expecting some sort of praise. Instead, he was met with wide eyes as his hands were pulled towards the other boy.

“Minnie, you’ve got blisters all over your fingers! Jeez, how much have you been training without me?” Hyunjin fretted, caressing the younger boy’s hands as he inspected the damage.

Seungmin smirked at the contact that he had become so familiar with during the last week. He realised within the first couple of days that Hyunjin was very comfortable when it came to skinship, though Seungmin was not but when it was Hyunjin who instigated it, he really didn’t mind all that much.

“I may have stayed up a little bit later the last couple of nights when everybody else was sleeping but hey, it seems that it was the right choice. I could probably surpass you when it comes to aim at this stage, which is really my life goal at this point.” Seungmin’s laughter filled the wooded area as Hyunjin’s fingers mercilessly digged into his sides.

After a few moments, Hyunjin carefully grabbed Seungmin’s hand and began to guide him towards their camp. “We’ll ask Changbin hyung to fix up your hands. We can’t have them looking like that in a couple of days when we take part in the tournament. I need you at your best if we’re going to be any good.”

“I’m always at my best. Don’t worry about me, I’m stronger than you think.”

Thinking about everything that Seungmin had endured but managed to persevere through, Hyunjin smirked at the other boy. “I don’t doubt that for one second, Minnie.”

Felix tapped underneath Jeongin’s chin as an indication to close his mouth when it had fallen open once he had seen the size of the metropolis in front of him. Twice the size of Aquiria, the capital city boasted excitement and adventure to all who stepped inside of its doors. Crowds bustled through the streets, buying their produce and information before the boys mingled in with them. Chan thought that it would be awfully easy to lose each other in the throng of people, so he took the lead and told Felix to place his hands on his shoulders, with each of the other boys following suit until they formed a long line, with Kyuhoon watching the back. Giant signs advertised the grand tournament that would take place the following day and pointed out where exactly people were to go to register for the event. Trying to maneuver through the mass of people was not a particularly easy task but eventually, the group of boys found the enormous, stone building where a long queue of competitors flowed out the door. After fifteen minutes of waiting, Chan managed to make it through the doorway, with the younger boys following him like ducklings. Two plump men, with wrists adorned with coloured rings, sat behind a large, wooden desk and ushered the group forward to sign up for the competition.

“Name, age, class.” The monotonous tone that fell from the man’s lips told Minho that he had been doing this for much longer than he would have liked and it had become like a chant to him at this stage.

“Hwang Hyunjin, I’m 19 and I am an Alchemist.”

Both nodded with slight interest gracing their features as Hyunjin beamed at the two older men but this didn’t seem to affect their mood in any way as they simply scribbled the details in their notebooks and silently moved him out of the way to get the next person’s specs.

“K-Kim Seungmin, 18, Illusionist.”

The men quickly stopped writing to look up at him, eyebrows raised. Hyunjin knew it was because Seungmin held a rare class but could tell that the younger boy was becoming uncomfortable at the way they were staring at him, like Siwan had done when he first discovered what class Seungmin had been assigned. Wrapping his arm around the Illusionist’s waist, he directed him away from the two leering men before he nodded towards both, eyes warning them to keep away from his friend.  

“Next!”

“Uh, Han Jisung, 18, Thief,” Jisung gulped, grabbing Changbin’s arm at the sight of the bald man glaring at him, as if asking for his partner’s details without saying anything.

“Seo Changbin, 19, Combat Medic.”

The men halted writing once again as they both raised their eyes but not their heads. “You’re Seo Changbin?”

The Medic turned to look at the others due to the fact that he wasn’t quite sure what was happening. “Um, yeah, I’m Seo Changbin. I’m sorry, do you know me?”

“We were told to give you a message if you turned up here.” Bending down to rummage at his feet, one of the men returned with a folded piece of crinkled paper, showing Changbin that these men obviously didn’t get paid enough to keep his message particularly safe from being crumpled.

“Uh, thanks, I guess. Who gave it to you?”

“We don’t know, some young man. Now, out of the way, you’re holding up the line. Next!”

Changbin flinched as the man’s holler pierced his ears before he was shoved out of the way by a rather colossal looking woman.

“Some young man, that’s exceedingly helpful.” Once Changbin had moved off to the side, he began to unfold the paper, with all eight boys crowding around him to look over his shoulder.

‘Come to the Airgead bar in the ninth district at 8pm sharp.

We have something to discuss with you.’

“Well, that sounds extremely ominous. You have any idea what this is about, hyung?” Changbin shook his head with Jisung’s arm still wrapped around his neck.

“Are you going to go, hyung?” Jeongin looked up at the older boy with worried eyes before Changbin ruffled his hair. Everyone knew that, even though Seungmin and Jeongin had become comfortable around them, they still had extreme trust issues when it came to others, especially unknown strangers who left cryptic messages for their friends.

“Even if this was something sinister, I’ll be fine since I assume none of you are going to let me go alone, right?”

Nine boys walked towards the bustling bar, which housed numerous patrons who obviously had more than their fair share of alcohol. Chan and Kyuhoon linked arms with Jeongin, thinking that he was far too innocent to be in a place in which there were people throwing punches, making out and generally making terrible life choices, fueled by the copious amounts of alcohol they had consumed. However, Jeongin seemed to be taking in everything that he could when he entered the establishment. Thinking back to what Jeongin had explained to them, Chan remembered that he said he had barely entered the game when he was taken by Siwan and his men, so his fascination with everything was similar to the Knight’s since he was seeing everything for the first time.

Changbin surveyed the area, searching for answers and anyone who he thought could have sent him the letter to draw him to the destination. Felix noticed Changbin going further and further into the crowd of people, before dragging him back so he wouldn’t get separated from the others. The younger boy was slightly worried about the safety of the other since he had said he had no idea as to who was calling him to a place like this, so he wasn’t going to let him out of his sight.

With Felix’s hands still wrapped around his arm, Changbin suddenly froze as he felt eyes fall upon him, though he still couldn’t pinpoint exactly where the energy was coming from. Before he knew what was happening, both he and Felix were on the grimy, wooden floor as he was enveloped in a pair of arms that did not belong to the younger boy.

“Baby Changbin! We found you!”

Grimacing at the pain in his head, he suddenly came back to the present, realising that he recognised the voice that emanated from the man hugging him.

“Jackson hyung?! What the fuck are you doing here?!”

Jackson gasped in mock horror at the Medic’s foul words, placing a jeweled hand over his mouth. A wide grin spread across Changbin’s face at seeing his old friend again but the smile quickly dropped when he noticed numerous weapons aimed at Jackson’s head, courtesy of all eight boys in his group, the most prominent being Felix’s Whip, which was securely placed around Jackson’s wrist to stop him from making any further movements. Quickly jumping up from the ground, Changbin waved his hands to try and defuse the tense situation that had been created by the young man’s antics.

“Woah, guys! Calm down! This is a friend of mine. His name is Jackson. He’s one of the people who found me when I first entered Phantasm, so can you stop trying to kill him, please? Lix, let go of him, I’m perfectly fine.”

Upon hearing the Medic’s reassurances that he was not in any danger, all boys relaxed, dropping their weapons from the other’s head, with Felix’s Whip loosening its tenacious grip. The blond boy hopped up to stand beside Changbin, clutching his arm once again.

“Hyung, you’re the one who sent the message? Are the others here too?” Changbin’s eyes seemed to light up at the thought and illuminated even further when Jackson nodded his head emphatically at both questions, gesturing to the upper floor. Changbin took a step forward but couldn’t move any further as Felix’s hold was still placed upon him while he stared Jackson down, possibly for pushing him onto the floor with no apology. “Lix, he’s a decent person, you don’t have to look like you want to murder him. It’s alright.” Changbin gently stroked Felix’s hand, earning a small, sly grin from Jackson.  

“Jackson hyung, these are my friends. I’m travelling with all of them at the moment,” Changbin bubbled as he gestured to each of the boys, offering their names as Jackson stood in front of each one of them, giving them a firm handshake.

“Thought you said that you wanted to travel alone, advance your skills. Isn’t that why you left us? Was there another reason? Were we simply not good enough for you?!” Changbin scoffed at Jackson’s dramatics as he was still shaking Chan’s hand in the middle of his outburst, causing the Knight to edge backwards slightly.

“I did travel on my own for a while. Got bored, things changed. Hyung, this is Felix.”

“Felix, eh? I’ll have to remember that name. Seems like you’re important to Changbin.”

Felix looked to the Medic, whose face had exploded with colour. “Ah and by the way, sorry for pushing you onto the ground earlier. I just needed to make my entrance as climactic as possible.” Felix chuckled and returned the handshake. Maybe Jackson wasn’t as bad as Felix had first believed. Once the introductions were out of the way, Changbin stood in front of the others and gestured to the second floor.

“C’mon guys, I want you to meet the rest of the hyungs who rescued me,” Changbin effused as he raced up the stairs, leaving all of them standing there, staring at how excited Changbin seemed to be at meeting his old friends.

Once they had reached the top of the steps, they stopped to observe Changbin being glomped by Jackson and six other men, who were all emphatically shouting his name. Changbin’s giggles reached their ears and knew that he was most definitely not in any danger like they had previously thought. Once he had broken free from their grasp, Changbin ushered them over to begin the introductions.

“Everyone, these are the hyungs that found me during my first day in Phantasm. They collectively call themselves GOT7. Don’t ask me why they gave themselves a group nickname, it just makes them lamer than they already are.” This earned Changbin a smack on the arm from the tallest member of the group, who smiled dangerously at the younger boy.

“This is Yugyeom hyung, he’s the maknae of the group, like you Jeongin. He’s a Dark Sniper which is pretty much the same as a regular Sniper but he uses dark energy to strengthen his attacks.” Jeongin’s eyes widened at the information as he stared at the handsome boy.

“Y-you can use dark energy? Can you control it?” Yugyeom chuckled before moving forwards towards Jeongin.

“Sure I can, why? Do you possess a class that uses dark energy? Do you need some help with commanding it?” Jeongin’s eyes fell, obviously not wanting to tell the other about what class he held as it always drew unfavourable reactions out of people. He had already decided to embrace his class but the way people looked at him when they found out what he was still hurt him too much.

“He’s a Necromancer, Yugyeom. You should teach him some of your tricks to help him manage his skills.” Jeongin’s head snapped up at the mention of his class and he felt his eyes well up at the thought of one of his friends outing his insecurities like that but soon realised it wasn’t one of his hyungs that let the information go but rather a gray haired man who sat on the couch behind Yugyeom.

“Jaebum hyung, Jeongin doesn’t really like people to know what class he is, so please keep your voice down.” Changbin gestured to Jaebum while the other simply smirked and scratched his nose.

“Why not? There’s absolutely nothing wrong with holding a class like that. Jeongin, if you’d like, Yugyeom could assist you in trying to control it, when he isn’t fighting in the tournament, that is,” Jaebum offered, throwing a warm smile in the direction of the two youngest boys of the groups while Yugyeom turned to Jeongin, nodding to show that he was up for the challenge of taking on a student. Jeongin’s energy surged to breaking point, the thrill of being able to control his abilities taking over.

“Jaebum hyung is a Psychic, which is why he was able to tell what class Innie is. He’s also the ‘leader’ of the group since he was the first out of all of us to enter Phantasm. Must be coming up on a year now, right hyung?” Jaebum sighed with a simple shake of his head.

“There are so many of you.” Jaebum moved his finger over each of their heads before dropping it. “Wow, Changbin, do you just go around picking up stray kids during your travels?”

“Oh, that would be a good nickname for your group!”

“Thanks but we don’t need a nickname, we’re not as weird as you guys. You’ve already met Jackson hyung, he’s a Battle Priest and pretty much taught me everything I know. He’s a bit of a weirdo but we love him all the same.” Jackson simply stared at Changbin with a deadpan expression as all of the younger boys laughed at his misery.

“Jinyoung hyung is an Engineer, he creates devices and such that aid others in battle. He’s very talented.” Hyunjin’s ears perked up once he heard about the raven haired man’s class. His extroverted personality allowed him to walk straight up to the other and begin to bombard him with questions. Felix thought that since Hyunjin was an Alchemist, Jinyoung held a similar class in the sense that both created objects to assist their teams in battle from seemingly nothing. It wasn’t long before both were lost in conversation, discussing everything that they could assemble and their uses.

“Youngjae hyung is a Scholar, specialising in learning about everything this world has to offer and how it can aid the group, not much a fighter though.” The brunet man simply shrugged and smiled brightly at the group of younger boys, who had no choice but to grin back at the enticing smirk.

“Mark hyung is Gunslinger and Bambam hyung is a Paladin, both relying on their weapons to deal the majority of their damage.” Lounging on the comfortable couches, both men gestured to the group as a greeting.

“A Paladin, that would be similar to a Knight, right? Uh, Bambam...hyung?”

“He’s the same age as you, Channie hyung, no need to refer to him like that.” Bambam jumped up and grabbed Changbin around the waist, before pulling him back down onto the couch.

“If he’s even a day younger than me, he should call me hyung. You don’t get to decide that, baby Changbin.”

Embarrassed insults left the Medic’s mouth as he wriggled free, trying to ignore the fit of giggles emanating from his friends. Once Changbin had steadied himself, he gently ruffled his hair to try and compose himself.

“Um, Bambam hyung?”

“Oh god, I was just kidding man, you don’t have to call me hyung if we’re the same age. Bambam is good.”

“Bambam, do you think you could give me a few pointers on my class? I haven’t really had much of a chance to learn anything by myself, so I think the abilities I could possibly learn are going to waste. Any advice?” Chan was pleading on the inside that the blond man standing in front of him would have some tips on how to improve his class since he couldn’t do very much except use his weapon and shield at this point.

“You haven’t had a chance? How long have you been in Phantasm?"

“A little over three weeks at this stage.”

Chan couldn’t really believe the words coming out of his own mouth. He had already been in this world for nearly a month and that thought scared him a little. He wondered if anyone had known he was missing, if they’d filed a missing person’s report or anything. He went to work at the orphanage every second day and made sure to speak with his family at least once a week to let them know how he was doing while living so far away from them. He hoped that they wouldn’t have to worry for much longer, if they ever managed to escape.

“Oh, so you’re sort of a newbie then? Well, if you’d like I can teach you a few things, like Yugyeom will do for Jeongin but I’m teaming up with him to fight in the tournament so you’ll have to make due with about an hour a day. Would that be ok?” Chan shook his head decisively, showing Bambam that any help that he could offer would be greatly appreciated.

Changbin was thrilled at how well his two groups of friends seemed to be getting along and quickly made his way over to his old comrades to engage in the conversation. With all of the younger boys informing the others about their classes, Felix felt a little bit left out since he didn’t want to let them know about that specific part of his personality. He noticed that Hyunjin was still in deep conversation with Jinyoung, so he made his way over to Changbin and began to tug on his sleeve.

“Hey, Changbin hyung, can I-”

“Wait a second, Felix, I’m talking with Mark hyung.”

Changbin wriggled out of Felix’s grasp, causing the younger boy to pout since he wasn’t used to having to fight for Changbin’s attention. As he moved backwards, he felt a hand come into contact with his own, dragging him towards a free couch beside the fireplace.

“Seungmin, what’s wrong?”

The red haired boy flopped onto the sofa, pulling Felix down with him as he shook his head.

“Nothing, I just find it a bit suffocating trying to socialise with this many new people and you looked a little out of place since Changbin hyung was too busy to talk to you, so I thought you could keep me company over here. Sorry, I shouldn’t have made that assumption, you were probably fine, I just thought-”

Felix placed his arms around the other as both a form of thanks for rescuing him from the loneliness and as reassurance that he hadn’t done anything wrong. Felix was glad that Seungmin was becoming more relaxed around him, like he was with Hyunjin but thought that he needed to stop apologising for the little insignificant things that nobody else even thought about. Once away from the others, both boys fell into laughter and comfortable conversation, not noticing the way Hyunjin glanced at them from the corner of his eye, his radiant smile reaching his ears. He had also noticed the way that Changbin had shrugged Felix off and the action had once again reminded him that he still needed to speak to the Medic about what he had asked Felix to do while in Aquiria. He wasn’t going to forget about that.

As the time went on and glasses were emptied, stories of daring escapades and embarrassing failures were shared between the groups. Changbin squeezed in tightly between Jackson and Jaebum while they sat across from the others in the group who were currently listening to Youngjae talk about the time he and Jinyoung had managed to accidentally set their room on fire while trying to operate one of the Engineer’s inventions. Hyunjin looked admiringly at Jinyoung upon hearing all that he could create and how they worked. The enthralling tale had all of the younger boys glued to the details, leaving them no time to pay attention to anything happening around them.  

“Hey, Jaebum hyung, did you know that our baby Changbin has a boyfriend?” Jackson cooed, poking Changbin's cheek.

As they were sitting so close to him, Jaebum and Jackson could feel Changbin jerk at the mention of the word but he remained silent, acting as if he had nothing to worry about.

“Oh, really? Who is he?” Jaebum placed his hand in front of Changbin as he tried to stand and walk away from the uncomfortable air surrounding him.

“Shut up hyung, I don’t have a boyfriend!” Struggling with all of his might, he couldn’t loosen the firm grip around his waist as Jackson dragged him back down.

“Oh, are you really sure about that? I’m certain that I saw a spark there.”

“Seriously, hyung, leave me alone. Felix isn’t my boyfriend, ok? There is no spark!”

“Felix? I never said anything about Felix, did I Jaebum hyung?”

Changbin groaned as he tried to hide his face, recognising his mistake when he realised that Jackson actually hadn’t mentioned Felix in the conversation.

“Nope, you didn’t reveal a name. So, you and Felix, huh? He’s adorable, Bin.” All three looked over to the freckled boy who had his arms wrapped around Jeongin’s neck, chin firmly placed on top of the younger boy’s head as he continued to listen to Youngjae’s story of the group’s antics.

“There is no me and Felix, ok? Nothing is going on between us. He’s just a friend.”

Jackson and Jaebum looked at each other, rolling their eyes at the Medic’s obvious feelings for the blond boy in front of them.

“My god, is that what you tell yourself? Is that what you tell him ? Christ, you are dense.” Jackson huffed in exasperation, letting his head fall onto the back of the couch. Before Changbin could ask him what he meant, he was forced to place his hands over his ears, as the piercing klaxon, which they had heard nearly a week ago, rang out once again.

Greetings players of Phantasm.

We would like to wish you the best of luck in the tournament that will be taking place over the next couple of days.

Many of you have registered and we will be overseeing the results that occur.

“Ah, so they’re going to be supervising it? They’re obviously going to be assigning proxies to act as referees then.” Mark settled in beside Jackson as he shared his thoughts, the younger boy throwing his arm over his shoulders.

We would also like to relay some unfortunate news.

The group that previously entered the Rautaja Fortress has been unsuccessful in their attempts and have been eliminated.  

We hope that you will remember them in your thoughts.

Enjoy the rest of your evening and as always:

We hope you enjoy your time playing Phantasm.

Silence flooded the once noisy tavern before all eyes fell to the ground, some in sympathy, some in prayer as everyone heard that yet another group had lost their lives to the unbeatable Fortress. Slow murmurs started to rise once again after the shock had passed and everything returned to normal.

“They try to sound so fucking sympathetic when they’re the ones that killed those poor people in the first place. Bastards…” Yugyeom gently patted Bambam’s hand to try and comfort him but everyone knew that the feeling was mutual, yet only Bambam had voiced his opinion on the matter. Nobody was quite sure how to continue their enjoyable evening after such a distressing announcement.

Trying to rid themselves of the thought of the forsaken group that had their lives stolen from them in the Fortress, the group made their way back from the bar. While the mood of the evening had been essentially ruined by the announcement, two of the members couldn’t help but hold a bit of hope in their hearts. Jeongin and Chan walked together, talking about how they had finally found mentors to help them along with their classes. Neither of the boys were competing in the tournament but both Bambam and Yugyeom were, so they agreed to meet in a training area that had been set up for the tournament to practice in the following night. Chan was excited at the thought of learning new things that he could use to be a more efficient fighter and protect the others if they were to engage in battle. Jeongin was enthusiastic too but nerves also came along with this optimism. Yugyeom had told him that it wouldn’t be particularly easy to control dark energy since a human’s spirit was naturally light, especially for someone as young as Jeongin but the older boy had reassured him that he would help him, even if it was only a little bit. Honestly, all Jeongin was really hoping to accomplish was lessening the intensity of the pain on his body whenever he used his necromancy abilities. They all agreed to meet in the lobby of the arena the following day so that they could all sit and watch the tournament together, with the exception of those competing.

“Hyung, I want to talk to you about something, alone. You have a minute?”

Upon hearing this, Changbin nodded towards Hyunjin, asking Jisung if he wouldn’t mind leaving them alone in the room for a few moments. Short whines left the Thief’s mouth as he had just become comfortable on his bed but quickly moved when he knew that Hyunjin was sharing a room with Minho on that particular night and realised that he would be able to spend some time alone with the other, just the two of them. Quickly slamming the door, Jisung was gone, leaving just Hyunjin, Changbin and the tense silence.

“Hyunjinnie, what can I do for you?” Changbin had begun to turn around to fiddle with his clothing for the following day but didn’t get a chance to reach his destination.

“Did you seriously ask Lix to summon a beast in Aquiria?”

Hyunjin’s voice was dangerously low and Changbin knew that he was in trouble. Hyunjin was protective of everyone in the group, especially the younger boys but when it came to Felix, his vigilance was on a whole other level. The Medic was actually surprised that it took this long for Felix to tell Hyunjin about the events of that night in Aquiria but since nobody else had mentioned it, he was really hoping that Felix may have just let it go and forgotten but the seething rage on Hyunjin’s face told Changbin otherwise.

“Uh, ok, Hyunjin, calm down, alright? Yes, I did but I asked Felix to do it for himself more than anyone else. I didn’t mean any harm, though I realise now, it wasn’t the best way to go about it.”

“ Really? You managed to figure that out, huh? Hyung, Felix trusts you unconditionally, he wouldn’t question your opinions or ideas because he thinks that you will always make the right decision but that’s not going to always be the case and that’s not particularly your fault either. You’re human and you’re going to make mistakes but damn it, hyung! How could you ask him to do something that terrifies him so much? And you know what else? When he told me about all of this, I wanted to go and beat some sense into you but he stopped me from going. He said that you were only trying to help him and that he thought learning to summon his beasts would be a good idea too. He can barely stand in front of one without freaking the fuck out and now he wants to try and summon one? You don’t understand how much this will affect him. He’s going to keep trying until he gets it but we don’t know how long that will take and by the time he gets there, his nerves could be shot to the point of no return and it’s all because it was you that asked him to do it in the first place!”

Changbin really expected Hyunjin’s fist to make contact with his face after hearing the younger boy’s outburst but nothing came. Heavy breaths fell from Hyunjin’s mouth as he tried to collect himself, brushing his messy bangs away from his eyes. The silence rang in Changbin’s ears as he carefully tried to think of what to say next but his mind went blank once he saw frustrated tears welling up in Hyunjin’s eyes, strained sobs barely leaving his mouth.

“I just want him to be safe. He’s gone through too much shit already and I don’t want him to get hurt again, not when I have the power to do something about it. I won’t sit back and watch like I did when he got shot. I won’t let him go through that again, hyung, even for someone like you.”

Changbin only let Hyunjin get halfway through his speech before he placed his arms around his shoulders, allowing the younger boy’s head to fall into the crook of his neck, tears staining his shirt.

“Hyunjin, I swear to you that I would never let anything bad happen to Lix, you know that, right? It was stupid of me to ask him to do something like that so suddenly but I know that it is something that he eventually wants to try and I will be beside him the entire time. Nothing will get past me, nothing will ever touch him. I care about him too much to let him get hurt. Trust me, ok? I promise you that I will never allow Felix to go through anything like that again.”

Hyunjin knew that Changbin meant every word that he said to him but he still couldn’t help but think that Changbin wasn’t omnipotent, he couldn’t control everything that would happen to them during their time here. He also knew that this fear was something that Felix wanted to overcome but Hyunjin had no idea how he could help him. Perhaps, with Changbin’s assistance, they could work together to protect him. Small sniffles caused Changbin to pull away and look into Hyunjin’s glossy eyes.

“Hyung, when he tells you that he’s ready to try, I want to be there too. I think I’d feel a lot better about the situation if I could stand alongside you and help defend him if he needed it.”

Changbin sighed deeply, admiring Hyunjin’s fondness and devotion towards Felix. “Of course Hyunjinnie, I think Felix would want you there too.”

Hyunjin wiped his nose in his sleeve before straightening himself and re-aligning his shirt to fall back into place. “I’m still pissed at you though.”

“That’s ok, I’m still a little pissed at myself to be honest.” That managed to evoke a small laugh from Hyunjin, who twirled around after hearing a small thump emanating from the door of the bedroom. Sauntering over, he opened it in one swift movement, allowing both Jisung and Minho to fall in head first. Changbin made his way over to stand beside Hyunjin as they glared at the two boys on the floor.

“How the hell did we not hear Hyunjin coming to open the door? We suck at this ‘hiding our presence’ thing.”

“Jisungie, I told you that you needed to work on your sneaking skills.”

“Hey, dumbass, you’re lying here on the floor with me!”

“Sorry to interrupt your little argument but were the two of you eavesdropping on our conversation?” Now it was Changbin’s turn to be indignant with rage as he scowled at the rogues with distaste.

“I wouldn’t say we were eavesdropping. We just happened to be passing the door and leaned up against it, with our ears, to rest. Nothing more.” Jisung tried to look as nonchalant as possible while twiddling his thumbs but Minho knew from the look on Changbin’s face that they were in for a world of hurt.

“You need to run.”

“What?”

“If you want to live, Jisung, you need to start running.”

Before Jisung could ask Changbin what he meant a second time, Minho was up and sprinting out of the room, with Jisung following shortly afterwards.

After hearing Jisung screaming at the thought of imminent death, Chan quickly ran into the hallway, asking Changbin if everything was alright. “Oh, it will be hyung, once I get my hands on those two.” Chan returned to his room, shouting that he didn’t actually want to know what had just happened between all of them.

Claps of thunder echoed through the air as the rain came pouring down. Even though this type of weather would usually deter people from venturing outside, the appeal of the tournament overcame people’s caution as crowds made their way towards the stadium in which the event would be held. All of the boys followed suit and fell in behind those en route to the arena. Jisung bounced up and down beside Minho as the thought of competing finally hit him and he became even more ecstatic than he usually was, while Changbin remained calm as he walked beside him.

Hyunjin held the same kind of energy as Jisung but he tried to calm himself once he realised that Seungmin was being unusually quiet. The Illusionist was always more introverted than the rest of the group but the fact that he hadn’t said anything since this morning concerned Hyunjin slightly.

“Minnie, everything alright?”

A shaky breath left Seungmin’s mouth before Hyunjin grabbed his hand. “Uh, yeah, yeah, I guess. I know I was the one who volunteered to compete but now I’m starting to think that maybe it wasn’t such a good idea.”

“Hey, what are you talking about? You’ve trained so hard for this. We’ve trained so hard for this. What’s with the sudden change in opinion?”

Hyunjin had allowed himself to fall to the back of the group with Seungmin, in case the younger boy didn’t want the others to hear what he was about to say.

“Maybe you were right. Maybe I’m not strong enough for this. There are so many people here, all with different classes and I’m sure they’ve had a lot more time to perfect their abilities. I don’t want to embarrass you for pairing up with someone like me.” There it was again, Seungmin slandering himself and Hyunjin hated it. “Plus, the way those two guys looked at me at the registration yesterday just made me think that, when everyone else sees me, they’ll look at me like that too. I know that Siwan is...gone but surely he’s not the only person like that out there. What if someone else sees me and tries to take me like Siwan did…”

Trauma was a difficult thing to deal with. It wasn’t something that disappeared overnight, the effects were long lasting and Hyunjin rattled his brain to try and figure out a way to comfort the younger boy. Placing his hands on both sides of Seungmin’s face, Hyunjin pulled him in close as he began to whisper.

“Minnie, you could never embarrass me, no matter what you do, so don’t ever worry about that. Even if we come in last place, it doesn’t matter. The main point of competing is to test out our skills and have some fun and that’s it. If we manage to place, then that would be great but that’s not our main objective here. Secondly, I told you before, we will never let anybody take you or Innie away from us. You’re safe with us, you’re safe with me, so just relax and try to enjoy taking part in the competition, ok?"

Only when Seungmin’s face began to feel hot beneath his fingertips did Hyunjin realise how close he had pulled the other boy’s face towards his. Quickly letting go, Hyunjin stumbled backwards, bumping into a passerby before bowing in apology.

“O-ok, I won’t worry about it anymore. Thanks, Jinnie.” Seungmin rolled his shoulders as his eyes wandered everywhere around him, fingers dancing to no particular rhythm. Hyunjin realised that he had probably unintentionally embarrassed the boy with his actions and internally cursed himself for his imperative need to be closer to the other. Feeling that his behaviour required him to apologise, he opened his mouth to speak but was swiftly cut off by Seungmin’s hand as it grasped his own, ushering him along to follow the group which had walked on ahead.

All of them thanked Kyuhoon for calling them slightly earlier than they usually would have woken up due to the fact that the pedestrian traffic was much worse than they had anticipated. The group still managed to arrive at the arena with time to spare and searched for the group of young men that they had been introduced to the previous night. It wasn’t long before they found, or rather heard, who they were looking for. Gathered around Bambam and Yugyeom, all of the older boys hollered at them, excited praises and playful insults meshing together as the two boys laughed at their hyungs.

After a few moments of conversation, a rather loud announcement was made, calling for all competitors to enter the training ground to go over the rules of the tournament before beginning. The spectators moved to the stands as they took their seats, waiting for the games to start. Minho couldn’t help but notice the way both Chan and Kyuhoon fidgeted in their seats, obviously concerned about the well being of their kids, which made both him and Felix sigh at the protectiveness the two oldest boys held over the others.

“Channie hyung, Kyu hyung, they will be fine. They’ve all been training really hard for this. I can’t speak for Hyunjin and Seungmin since I didn’t see very much of their preparation but Jisung and Changbin are totally ready for this. They’re all really strong, so you shouldn’t worry so much about them, have a little faith.” Upon hearing Minho’s reassurances, both boys realised that they hadn’t even intentionally been fretting over the four boys, it was just ingrained within them at this stage. They tried to sit still, holding each other’s hand to comfort both themselves and the other.

In the training area, a booming voice read out the rules to the competitors. Jisung leaned on Changbin, showing the older boy that he was becoming bored while listening to the long list of rules being called out to them.

“This is a non-lethal competition. Of course, you may use physical and magical attacks towards your opponents, however, if you are seen to be intentionally harming people in a malicious way, you will automatically be disqualified. Also if any physical confrontation takes place outside of the designated fighting area, those involved will lose their right to compete.” Seungmin nodded his head, playing with the arrows that had been assigned to him since he couldn’t use regular ones. These wouldn’t pierce his opponent’s skin but simply cause them enough pain for them to be effective.

“If you are all ready, you may make your way to the arena.” Hyunjin glanced at the other contenders, guessing that there must be around a hundred people here, which was slightly less than he was expecting. Then again, he thought about the others in his group not wanting to compete and realised a vast majority of people would probably be of the same mindset. A week may have also been too short notice for some people to make it to the capital city to take part in the event. He had heard from Jinyoung that the tournament would be broadcast all over Phantasm for those who couldn’t travel to Morthan to see it for themselves.

The Alchemist’s blood suddenly ran cold when he spotted a familiar face amongst the crowd of competitors. The snarl that left his mouth startled Seungmin, who jumped slightly at the noise.

“Jinnie, what’s wrong? Are you alright?”

A small hiss of air fell through Hyunjin’s gritted teeth. Seungmin could tell that Hyunjin wasn’t simply mad, he was livid. “I told you about my time in Phantasm when we were in Aquiria, remember?” Seungmin nodded to show the older boy that he had but reeled back slightly when he saw the look of pure hatred in place of the Hyunjin’s usual playful smile.

“I mentioned that Lix had been shot by our former leader and that he had only lived because Changbin hyung had been there to heal him. Well, he’s here, he’s competing in the tournament.”

Seungmin now understood why Hyunjin’s face was contorted by rage and began to search the crowd for the man Hyunjin was speaking about. He noticed a bald man staring right at them with a malicious smile gracing his lips. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that this was Seunghyun, the man who had caused Hyunjin and Felix so much pain.

“If there are any sort of gods out there, they’ll let me go up against that prick in a fight. I need to punch that fucking grin off of his face.”

Seungmin had never seen Hyunjin like this before and if he was being honest with himself, it scared him a little. The Hyunjin he knew was sweet and kind and caring but the boy standing in front of him now only saw red as he planned his revenge. However, the younger boy knew that he was only acting this way because his best friend had almost been killed by this psychopath. Seungmin also knew that if Jeongin had been in Felix’s place, he would most certainly be having the same reaction.

Grabbing Hyunjin’s shoulders and directing his gaze away from the glowering man, he forced the older boy to meet his eyes. “' The main point of competing is to test our skills and some have fun.’ Isn’t that what you said? Jinnie, breathe for me, ok?”

Hyunjin did as instructed and inhaled deeply through his nose, letting a heavy sigh fall from his mouth immediately after. Once the rigid tension vanished from his body, he slowly opened his eyes and glanced at Seungmin, whose face garnered a worried expression.

“Jinnie, I know what this guy did to Felix was unforgivable and if we do face him, we will beat him without question but do not let your anger control you. It will cloud your judgement on the difference between right and wrong and I’d hate to see you do something you regret. Felix is alright now, yeah? So don’t let this guy ruin what we’ve trained for. We can do this.”

Hyunjin stared in awe of the red headed boy in front of him. He knew exactly what needed to be said to make him calm down after seeing his former boss. Knowing each other for just over a week, Hyunjin felt that Seungmin had already figured out which buttons he needed to press to get Hyunjin to snap back to reality and listen to him. He wasn’t quite sure how to thank the younger boy in front of him but he thought a hug would probably suffice. Wrapping his arms around Seungmin’s narrow shoulders, Hyunjin huffed slightly into the younger boy’s neck before speaking.

“Of course, Minnie, we can do this. I’m alright, thank you. But you have to make me a promise. If we do go up against him, we have to bring him down with everything we’ve got. Do you think you can do that for me?”

Seungmin’s quiet giggle showed Hyunjin that he would have no trouble in agreeing to a request like that and slowly nodded his head. Taking Seungmin’s hand in his own while smiling at the younger boy, Hyunjin made his way out into the open topped arena with the others, leaving Seunghyun and his partner behind. The heavy rain made its way towards the middle of the stadium, causing a small pool of water to form there. Cheers erupted from the crowds as the boys walked through the entrance. While there had been maybe a hundred people competing, there were thousands in the stands. No matter how much Jisung looked around, he couldn’t see the others from his group but thought that this was probably for the best or they could end up distracting him.

Once they were all lined up in a straight row, they waited until they were instructed on what to do. All of the competitors, as well as most of the spectators, were getting a little antsy while having to wait to begin but before the anxiety could rise any further, static filled the air and green flecks began to form a figure of a person in front of them. Nobody was quite sure if this was supposed to be occurring or not but soon came to the conclusion that this was all part of the initiation ceremony. Once the person in front had them had fully formed, the man began to speak in a calm yet unsettling voice. Seungmin thought that what made this person even more unnerving was the fact that the man didn’t have a fully formed face. Bright blue hair fell over his forehead, though it did nothing to obscure his vision since his eyes were nowhere to be found. Gaping sockets stared back at all of them, making Hyunjin squirm at the intense feeling that his soul was being gawked at.

“Welcome, everyone, to the grand tournament being held here in the capital city of Morthan. We hope that it will be an enjoyable experience for both those taking part and those watching from all around the world.” The man gestured towards the cameras being directed at him, as if speaking to the crowd that was currently watching him. “Ninety six of you have entered the competition, forty eight pairs will fight to be crowned the most powerful group in Phantasm!”

Hoots and whistles were captured in the air as they left the crowd’s mouth. Even the sound of the falling rain couldn’t drown out the excited noise that made its way down to the competitors.

“By the end of today, half of these teams will be eliminated with only twenty four left standing. Each match will last no longer than ten minutes and the end of the match will be called after that amount of time. If no clear winner is decided during the battle, the judges will decide based on how the match progressed.” The ghostly man gestured to the stands where three others, similar to himself sat, empty sockets glaring at the crowd. “The tournament will last five days, so we hope that you will not be too exhausted to carry on fighting.” The smile the man threw towards the boys held no sympathy or comfort, just heavy expectations.

“Now for the moment you’ve all been waiting for: the announcement of prizes. The top three competitors will receive rewards for their participation, so we anticipate that you will all try your best to succeed.” Everyone waited with baited breath to hear what kind of trophies the winners would be taking home.

“Third place will receive no less than seventy five thousand gold coins.” Jisung’s jaw dropped at the mention of the vast amount of money, Changbin hitting his cheek as an indicator to close his open mouth.

“Second place will receive a vial of Jinsei no Erikusā.” Murmurs of astonishment filled the stadium as Chan looked around him at the sound.

“Kyu, what is that? Why is everyone so amazed?”

“I’ve only ever heard stories about it, I didn’t think it was actually real. Apparently, it’s a potion that can bring someone who has been killed back to life. It can only work after the first hour after death and I always thought that it was a myth but the fact that they’re offering it as a prize must mean that it’s real. If that’s second prize then I’m interested to see what they do for first place,” Kyuhoon gawked and looked on eagerly, still holding onto Chan’s hand from earlier.

“And for the most anticipated moment, the announcement of the first place award.” Everyone moved forward in their seats, listening intently to the man.

“One, and only one of the members from the winning team will be able to avail of the prize.” All of the competitors looked towards each other, the thought of only one person in their group being rewarded for being the strongest team in Phantasm was not very appealing to many of them.

“I know it may seem unfair but this is how we have decided to progress. One of the members of the winning team will be allowed to venture into the outside world without going through the Fortress. In other words, they will be allowed to leave Phantasm forever.”

Chapter Text

One would think in a stadium filled with thousands of people, that there would be an abundant amount of excitement and noise but after the announcement of the prizes for the winner of the tournament, all that filled the air was a stony silence. Heavy breaths left the mouths of those staring at the spectral man standing in front of them after he had spoken of what was up for grabs for the victor. After the initial shock had slowly passed, confused murmurs left the stands as the spectators were unsure as to whether or not they had heard correctly.

“Did that guy just say that one of the winners could leave Phantasm? That’s what he said, right?” Though Minho had spoken, nobody immediately replied, their eyes still glued to the man in front of them.

“There has to be a catch, they wouldn’t just let one of us go, not after they went through the trouble of putting us in here in the first place.” Jaebum had finally snapped out of the momentary stupor after the declaration and tried to make sense of the situation.

Kyuhoon glanced around him at the crowd and was slightly worried that a riot could break out after hearing the harsh whispers coming from the onlookers.

“This is why they didn’t announce the prizes earlier.”

“They were afraid that everyone would want to join the tournament.”

“This is completely unfair, I would have entered if I knew what was at stake.”

In the arena, Changbin glanced towards Jisung, who was already staring back at him, brows furrowed in confusion. They couldn’t believe what they were hearing. They actually had a chance to get out of this place and all they had to do was get through a few rounds of battle. After their training sessions with Minho, they had been confident about their chances but after hearing about the prize for first place, they knew that all of the competitors standing beside them would be putting their best foot forward.

“I think a lot of people are pissed that only one of us can get out of here but when we do, we can go and call for help. It doesn’t really matter who wins out of all of the teams, the winner can contact someone that could come to save us, right?” Hyunjin glanced towards the two boys, bringing Seungmin to stand closer to all of them as they spoke.

“Maybe this is just me but all of this seems far too easy.”

They all looked towards Seungmin, who was glaring back at the announcer, a harrowing smile gracing his lips as he watched the hysteria unfold in front of him.

“What do you mean, Seungmin?”

“I mean, we have no idea how they will go about freeing the winner. Will they take them somewhere before they transport them back to the real world? How do we know that they won’t just imprison them or kill them instead? Even if the person does manage to get back to the real world, the people who run this place will be waiting on the other side. We don’t know what they’ll do to them once they get there. Why would they allow someone to leave and expose what they have been doing to us? It just seems too easy and I don’t like it.”

Hyunjin knew, as well as the rest of the group, that Seungmin had problems when it came to trusting authority figures, like he had with Joomi but they couldn’t help but share in the younger boy’s skepticism once he had explained his reasoning. They had absolutely no reason to trust the people running this game and the fact that they were trying to pit not only teams against each other but people within the same unit, showed how twisted they actually were. Hyunjin could already see partners beginning to think about how they could betray each other to be the one who could leave the virtual world.

“Yes, you have all heard correctly, one of the winners will be allowed to return to the real world and we assure you that we will not interfere with them in any way once they have returned to the other side. We chose this prize in the hopes of giving all of you a bit more incentive to fight with all that you have.”

The blood curdling laugh that left that man’s mouth did not match the feelings of humor that he was trying to convey. Nobody in the ring was quite sure how to process the information as their eyes searched the empty air for answers. The chance of freedom from this world was more than a little enticing for most.

“Now, everyone, please turn your attention towards the screen to view the matchups for the first round of the tournament that will take place today!”

A blue screen buzzed to life, pictures of all contestants being sorted into a table that pitted them against each other. Just before they had entered the arena, all of them had been asked to draw lots to see who their opponents would be. Jisung and Changbin had drawn a beige sphere with the number four on it, showing that they would be one of the first teams to compete. Hyunjin and Seungmin, on the other hand, had drawn twenty, indicating that they would be one of the last.

Glancing at the screen, Jisung tried to make out the names of their opponents. Xu Minghao and Wen Junhui. Nothing except the boy’s names and pictures were given and this made Changbin think that none of the classes were going to be revealed so that a bit of mystery would still remain to make the fights more interesting, at least for the first round before everyone figured out what exact class their opponents were.

“They don’t look all that tough. I think we can probably take them. Right, hyung?” Jisung’s overflowing confidence made the Medic smirk.

“As much as I appreciate your faith in our abilities, you should know at this stage that you can’t judge someone on their appearance. If you saw Jeongin’s picture up there, you would say that he was just a kid, that he wouldn’t be able to fight like we can but if you think of what he’s really capable of, you would be in for a pretty big wake up call.” Jisung grabbed his chin, bobbing it up and down at Changbin’s reasoning.  

Hyunjin mouthed the names of his opponents as he read them off of the monitor.

“Lalisa Manoban and Park Chaeyoung. Wow, they kinda look like they could snap my neck. Better be careful I guess.”

“Well, everyone, let’s begin! The two teams who have drawn number one may stay in the ring. Everyone else, please make your way back inside where you will be able to watch the rest of the matches with your opponents.” The teams were quickly ushered back inside as the four members of the first match remained in the arena.

The four boys found a vacant corner in the waiting area and closely huddled together while waiting for the first match to begin.

“Well, at least we weren’t put up against each other in the first match. That would have been bad...for you guys, that is.” Hyunjin scoffed at Jisung’s mild threats before playfully punching him in the arm.

“You think that you can beat us? We’re like a well oiled machine. Perfectly prepared for predetermined pillory.”

“Nice alliteration, man.”

“Thank you but seriously, Minnie and I are going to wipe the floor with all of our opponents. You have no idea what we’re capable of.” Puffing out his chest and placing his arm around Seungmin’s shoulders, Hyunjin smiled at the unimpressed Thief and Medic, who simply stared back at him.

“Yeah, yeah, sure you are. Hey, look, it’s starting.” Changbin pointed to the screen placed in front of them as they marvelled at the fight beginning to take place. Everyone watched the matches with great interest. The first two matches were over rather quickly, the victors waving happily at the crowd and bowing.

“Group three, you’re up!”

Changbin glanced over to Bambam and Yugyeom who had pulled the number three out of the lots earlier. He grinned slightly at his friends, mouthing a ‘good luck’ before they entered the ring. Bambam gave the Medic two thumbs up, obviously thinking that, even though they were thankful for Changbin’s encouragement, they would more than likely not need it. Changbin watched them disappear through the doors to take their place in the middle of the arena.

“I’ve got to be honest, I didn’t think that I’d ever see you in a place like this, Hyunjin.”

Four pairs of eyes flew towards the deep voice that emanated from Seunghyun, who had placed himself directly behind the Alchemist. Hyunjin stared the man down, Seungmin’s hand grasping his wrist as an indication not to get caught up in the anger now bubbling up inside of him. Hyunjin turned back around, ignoring the passive aggressive comments being thrown towards him, obviously trying to rile him up.

“So, did your little friend make it through in the end? He was hurt pretty badly, right? I mean, I know for certain that I didn’t hit his heart but the amount of blood was pretty severe-”

“You want to get the fuck out of here? We’re not interested in talking to you.” Seunghyun’s glare advanced towards Jisung, who seemed to be just as agitated as Hyunjin had been upon seeing the man again.

“Ah, the little mouse that we found spying on us. You seem to be doing a lot better since last we spoke. Oh, and the irritating Medic who was on your team is here too. Hyunjin, you started travelling with them after you lost Felix, eh? Surprising turn of events, I must say. How do you put up with him though?” Seunghyun directed the question towards Changbin and Jisung, still sitting on the floor beside Hyunjin, their faces conveying their feelings of distaste towards the man who had put their friends through so much suffering. “He was always a wimp, too scared to do anything worthwhile for our group but that little coward he was with was so much worse. Couldn’t even summon a little beast. Absolutely pathetic. Not that it matters now. Did he die slowly? Was it really painful to watch, Hyunjin?”

Changbin leapt up, flaring nostrils indicating how much he wanted to beat the smug man to a pulp before quickly being dragged back down by Jisung. The younger boy shook his head, showing the Medic that if he attacked Seunghyun here, then he would be giving him exactly what he wanted: all of them getting eliminated from the competition. Hyunjin was also doing everything in his power not to jump up and attack the man, clenching his fists and gritting his teeth as he endured the pain that rippled throughout his chest. It didn’t matter that the whole situation had turned out well or that he had found the perfect group to travel with, the overwhelming feelings of that day began to resurface once again.

“Felix is fine. He’s in the stands with everybody else watching the tournament. Don’t worry about him.” Seunghyun recoiled slightly as he hadn’t noticed that Seungmin had come to stand beside him.

“Huh, you weren’t with their little group the last time.” The man looked Seungmin up and down, laughing at the boy’s small frame and innocent appearance. “Please don’t tell me that you’re Hyunjin’s partner. Seriously kid, you really do go for the little weaklings, don’t you?” he spat at Hyunjin.

“I’m Kim Seungmin. I’ve heard so much about you, it’s nice to finally put a face to the name.”

Seungmin extended his hand for the man to shake. Hyunjin, Jisung and Changbin looked at the younger boy with disbelief and slight concern, unable to discern why Seungmin was being so pleasant towards the horrid man.

“Doesn’t look like you’re very bright either. Can you not read the situation, Seungmin? I don’t think your friends are very happy to see me.”

Seunghyun stared at Seungmin’s hand as it was still being held out for him to grab, which he eventually complied with. Seunghyun wavered a little when he felt the firm grasp now placed around his hand before looking up to Seungmin, who was still smiling brightly towards him. The man grimaced at the strange boy before a small movement caught his eye and he felt a cool sensation rising up his arm. Upon looking down to investigate the cause, he screamed loudly when he saw a rather large snake emerging from Seungmin’s sleeve and coiling itself around his forearm. Seunghyun struggled harshly but Seungmin wasn’t going to let go of his hand without a fight.

“It’s a tiger snake, extremely venomous and originates in Australia which, coincidentally, is where Felix is from as well.” The sparkling smile hadn’t budged from Seungmin’s lips as he explained exactly what his illusion was, though the other man didn’t need to know that it wasn’t real, not yet.

Just before the snake managed to make its way to Seunghyun’s neck and seep its fangs deep into the man’s jugular, it disappeared. Many of the other contestants were now staring at the two males, who were still holding hands after Seungmin’s greeting. Seunghyun suddenly came back to reality after his mild panic attack, before looking at the young boy that had caused it.

“Yeah, it was just an illusion but I thought letting you figure that out by yourself would be a lot more interesting. If you ever hurt my friends again, if you even come near them again, I will scratch your eyes out. Jisung told you to fuck off earlier, I suggest you heed his advice. Have a nice day, Seunghyun and good luck in the tournament. I hope we can eventually go up against each other,” Seungmin beamed, finally easing his vice like grip on the man’s hand and making his way back to his gobsmacked friends, quickly sitting down beside them once again.

Seunghyun did his best to compose himself as he glared at Seungmin, whose back was now turned towards him.

“Little bastard, I won’t forget about this.” With one last look towards Hyunjin, the man stormed off, pushing his way through the crowd of people now staring at him, laughing slightly at his overreaction during the face-off.

Once Seungmin had settled himself on the ground again, he coughed lowly before looking at the others who were gawking at him with wide eyes, mouths hanging open.

“You were right, Jinnie. He is a prick.” Nobody said anything as Seungmin went on to shyly stare at the ground while playing with his fingers, suddenly becoming very conscious of the stares now situated upon him.

“Seungmin, you are fucking terrifying and I love it!” Jisung jumped up, only to flop down beside the Illusionist, giving him the tightest hug he could muster, which caused Seungmin to laugh giddily and return the bone crushing embrace. Changbin looked to Hyunjin and began to cackle hysterically at both the look on the Alchemist’s face and the variety of events that had just occurred in front of them. Being so caught up in the startling episode, none of the boys noticed that the match between Bambam and Yugyeom was already over.

“The winners of round three are Kim Yugyeom and Bambam. A round of applause for both of the teams.”

Loud roars came from the stands as everyone congratulated the two young men on their success.

“Wow, they’re really good, huh? They seemed to know exactly what moves their opponents were going to make before they even made them,” Jeongin gasped as he stared in awe of the two now making their way towards the back.

“They’ve been training together for nearly six months. That kind of time together certainly allowed them to become close. I may be biased but I agree with you, they are really good.” Jaebum smiled proudly at his younger members, who took a mere two and a half minutes to finish the fight. “Looks like it’s your turn to be proud of your members.”

“Woo! Come on, Changbin!”

“You can do it, Jisungie!”

Chan and Kyuhoon hollered excitedly at the members as they made their way towards the middle of the arena, followed by two others, who the boys assumed were their opponents. The two oldest boys were no longer fretting over the well being of Jisung and Changbin, excitement taking over instead but they couldn’t help but notice another two were worrying about them in their place. Felix’s leg bobbed uncontrollably, with Minho subconsciously biting on his knuckles.

“Uh, boys, are the two of you alright?”

Both Minho and Felix looked at Chan, who was grinning playfully towards them. Felix scrunched his nose up, placing a hand on his knee to stop it from bouncing up and down. Minho straightened himself, trying to hide the teeth marks now present on his fingers from the pressure he had put on them. No verbal replies came but Chan figured that they were trying to calm themselves down after being called out.

“Match number four. Han Jisung and Seo Changbin versus Xu Minghao and Wen Junhui. Fighters, take your places.”

Jisung noticed that both males in front of him possessed rather large broadswords, which they were slowly removing from their backs. Jisung knew that they would be some sort of class that was similar to Chan or Bambam if they possessed weapons like that. Changbin, on the other hand, felt something that made the white energy inside of him react.

“Hyung, they seem to be Knights. You got anything else?” Jisung asked the older male, his eyes never leaving his opponents.

“They possess dark energy, I can feel it. Two Dark Knights from the looks of it.”

“Both of them? Well, this shouldn’t take too long then.”

Changbin laughed at Jisung’s confidence before holding out his fist, with the younger boy bumping it with his own shortly afterwards.

“Begin!”

It wasn’t long before Minghao and Junhui were running towards the two boys, weapons in hand. A black haze enveloped both swords as they dragged along the ground behind them. Changbin began to focus on trying to diffuse the young men’s dark energy with his holy magic. Soft wisps of air flew around the Medic as his white magic came into play, before a blinding light flew outwards towards everyone in the arena. Though it was only supposed to affect the two men standing in front of them, Jeongin couldn’t help but feel something shift inside of him once Changbin had cast his spell. It wasn’t a particularly unpleasant sensation, Jeongin rather welcomed the feeling, like his soul was being cleansed of all negative energy.

As Changbin performed his duties, Jisung began his show of distracting his opponents so that they wouldn’t harm his teammate. Dancing around the men, who had become befuddled at the sudden loss of their dark energy, he tried his best to basically annoy them enough that they would forget about Changbin, who was focused on keeping their energy concealed.

Junhui tried to calm himself and regain his abilities but Minghao had already managed to do that and placed a firm arm out to his side, Jisung running into it almost immediately and slipping slightly due to the impact. Quickly grabbing his sword, Minghao swung it towards Jisung, who swiftly moved out of the way but still managed to get nicked on the arm in the process.

At the small cry of pain that Jisung let go, Minho automatically jumped to his feet, though he knew he could do nothing to help the younger boy. He was slowly guided back down by Jeongin, who patted his hyung’s hand to comfort his uneasy heart.

Jisung had decided that he was tired of constantly slipping up in battle, causing one of his teammates to lose their focus or stop whatever they were doing to come and help him. Regaining his stance at lightning speed, Jisung began to move as quickly as he had been before he got hurt. He dashed around Minghao, hitting him in the throat, the middle of his chest and the side of his head, all of the easy-access, vital pressure points that Minho had shown him during their training together. This caused Minghao to falter, trying to overcome the overwhelming feeling of dizziness and disorientation that came along with being struck. Preying on his time of distress, Jisung dislodged Minghao’s weapon from his hand, quickly twisting his arm behind him and pushing the young man to the ground, immediately placing one of his Daggers in front of his throat.

Upon seeing his friend being incapacitated, Junhui quickly made a move towards his teammate but didn’t get very far before his legs were wiped from under him, causing him to come crashing down beside Minghao, Changbin’s staff being firmly placed between his shoulder blades to deter him from making any further attempts to rise from the ground.

“The match is complete. Han Jisung and Seo Changbin are the victors of round four!” the referee called out before screams of praise filled the air.

Jisung and Changbin looked to the timer on the wall which read 9:37. They sighed in relief, having only completed their match with twenty three seconds to spare.

“Yeah, Jisungie, way to go!”

“ I knew you could do it, Changbinnie hyung!”

Felix and Minho were on their feet before anyone else, shouting at the other boys’ victory, which earned them sly glances from the others sitting around them. Upon seeing their stares, the two boys quietened themselves before slowly falling back into their seats, mumbling something similar to ‘shut up’ and ‘stop looking at me like that’.

Backstage, Hyunjin and Seungmin leapt into the air upon hearing their friends being declared the victors.

“Wah, Jisungie has learned some new moves. I’ve never seen him attack someone like that before. That little snake has somehow managed to become faster than he already was. That’s going to be a problem if we end up going up against them,” Hyunjin muttered, tapping his chin thoughtfully, already trying to think of a way to slow Jisung down.

“Heh, if we manage to get past the first round”

“Minnie, I thought we already discussed this.”

“You’re right, you’re right. We’re here to test our abilities and have fun, I know.” Seungmin forced a smile to appear on his face, obviously trying to mask the anxiety playing up inside of him.

Hyunjin eventually looked away from the screen where the fifth team were already in the middle of their bout.

“Minnie, what is this whole thing about not having any confidence in yourself? And it’s not just about the tournament either. Back at the beach, you were so sure that I didn’t want to be around you, like you weren’t worth it. Why do you keep talking about yourself like that?”

Seungmin became slightly confused after being called out on what was clearly a touchy subject for him. “I don’t want to talk about this, Jinnie, not now.”

“Minnie, come on, it’s me. You know you can tell me anything-”

“Seriously, Hyunjin, I said I don’t want to talk about it,” the Illusionist snapped.

The Alchemist knew to drop the subject when Seungmin no longer called him by the nickname he had become so used to hearing, not to mention the scowl that was now drawn clearly upon his face.

“Ok, I won’t ask again but if you ever want to talk about it, I’m always around. So are the other guys. If it’s me you have a problem with, they’re always willing to listen to you too.”

“It’s not you, Hyunjin, it’s just a bit of a sore subject. So, can we just drop it for the moment and focus on the competition?” Seungmin whispered, no longer looking at the older boy but rather, having his eyes firmly set on the screen where the sixth teams were already getting ready to fight.

“Sure, absolutely. Just focus on the match, I can do that. It’s nice to know that you don’t have a problem with me though.”

“Well, you can be a little annoying. And loud. And bossy. And you like to get really up close in people’s faces-”

“Ah! I didn’t mean any problems in general! I just meant that you don’t have a problem talking to me! Christ, talk about going in for the kill.”

Seungmin seemed to have shrugged off the momentary melancholy as he began to laugh at Hyunjin’s unamused expression before quickly placing his head against the older boy’s shoulder.

“Thanks, Jinnie. I promise I’ll talk to you about all of this eventually. Just give me some time, ok?” added Seungmin, snuggling into Hyunjin’s shoulder, almost looking as if he was about to fall asleep, which he eventually did, the excitement of the day getting the better of him. Hyunjin brushed the soft, wavy locks away from where they fell in front of the boy’s glasses that had begun to slide down his nose.

The warmth radiating off of Seungmin was matched only by the heat beginning to rise up inside of Hyunjin’s chest. He huffed, blowing his own dark hair out of his eyes as he began to wonder if Felix would tease him about Seungmin the way that he had teased the younger boy about his feelings for Changbin. Though, he hoped he wasn’t as obvious as the two other boys when it came to the sensitive topic.

The Alchemist accepted that he was a protective person, looking out not only for those who were younger in the group but trying to help the older boys in any way that he could as well. He cared greatly for all of his friends but Hyunjin had recently come to realise that his feelings towards the boy now sleeping on his shoulder were not simply what is felt for a friend but something more. He now understood why Felix was so sure that Changbin wouldn’t feel anything towards him, as Hyunjin was now having those same worries regarding himself and Seungmin.

Jisung and Changbin eventually made their way back to the waiting room, where Hyunjin greeted them with a wide smile and two thumbs up, congratulating his friends on the win. Jisung motioned to the sleeping Seungmin, asking if he was alright, slight worry taking over his usually bright features. After telling the two boys that he had simply worked himself up too much, they relaxed and sat beside Hyunjin, engaging in quiet conversation as they tried not to wake the snoozing boy. Only when the seventeenth team made their way into the arena did Hyunjin wake Seungmin up, as he didn’t want the younger boy to be too discombobulated when they made their own way into the ring. Seungmin apologized profusely for falling asleep on top of him, which Hyunjin hurriedly brushed off, saying that he didn’t mind at all. After the nineteenth team had completed their fight, Hyunjin held out a hand to tug the Illusionist up from the ground, before the butterflies began to take flight inside both of their stomachs.

“We watch each other’s backs. We look out for one another. I don’t want either of us to come out of this getting hurt or with any regrets. We’re here to…” Hyunjin nudged Seungmin for the younger boy to finish his sentence.

“...test our abilities and have fun and that’s it. Ok, Jinnie, I got it,” Seungmin repeated automatically, grabbing Hyunjin’s hand to comfort himself, as he had become so used to doing.

“You guys are going to kick ass. Show those drop dead gorgeous girls what you’re made of!” Jisung had reverted back to his loud self now that Seungmin had woken up.

“I think Minho hyung would be awfully jealous if he heard you talking about others like that.” Changbin coughed slightly with his comment, glancing at the younger boy from the corner of his eye.

“Ha, I would hope that he was- uh, w-why? Why would you think that he would be jealous? What possible reason would he have to be jealous about me calling some girls pretty? That doesn’t make any sense, hyung…”

Changbin raised his eyebrows towards Hyunjin and Seungmin, like he had been trying to prove a point about Jisung’s feelings for Minho. The two boys simply laughed at the Thief’s reaction since Jisung wasn’t looking at any of them, obviously trying to hide the color now climbing up his neck.

Seungmin and Hyunjin eventually made their way out of the exit doors towards the middle of the arena. Once he saw the crowds again, Seungmin’s stomach did a small backflip, the thought of failing in front of all of these people gnawing away at his insecurities. He quickly steadied himself, thinking about the reassurances that Hyunjin had constantly been showering him with since they had met. He wasn’t sure if he had adequately shown it but he was extremely grateful towards the older boy for his kind words.

“Round twenty. Park Chaeyoung and Lalisa Manoban versus Hwang Hyunjin and Kim Seungmin. Fighters, take your places.”

Though most of the matches had begun with a tense stare down between the two teams, Hyunjin was always up for making new friends as he began to greet the two girls now standing in front of him, who chuckled slightly before returning the salutation.

“Uh, Jinnie, you do realize that these girls are our competition, right? You don’t have to be so friendly towards them.”

“I know but that doesn’t mean I can’t say hello to them. Nothing wrong with being pleasant, is there?”

“Begin!”

Neither boys had time to register what was happening before Seungmin realized that he could no longer move. Constricting vines were slowly making their way up his legs, rooting him to the ground.

“Um, Hyunjin?!”

Hyunjin had barely turned to face Seungmin when he felt his waist suddenly become a lot lighter, soon realizing that the bag in which he kept all of his bombs had been taken away from him. Lalisa grinned playfully, swinging Hyunjin’s leather bag in front of his eyes before taking her place back beside her partner. “Well, this poses a bit of a problem. A Thief and a Druid, huh?”

Chaeyoung’s hands remained outstretched as she kept her vines securely around Seungmin’s legs, causing him to panic slightly and become unable to focus enough to create his illusions.

In the stands, Felix had risen from his seat at the sight of his friends being taken by surprise and already losing the advantage.

“C’mon, Jinnie! Seungminnie, you can do this!”

The rest of the boys shouted their words of encouragement towards the two in the ring as well but they feared it might already be too late for them.

Lalisa dashed forward towards Hyunjin once again, engaging in quick hand to hand combat, which Hyunjin was more than used to since his melee weapon relied on him using his fists but he couldn’t match the speed of the girl in front of him. She quickly knocked the Alchemist down, pushing his face into the gravel that lined the floor of the arena. Upon seeing this, Chaeyoung instantly ran forward, placing Seungmin in a secure headlock before both girls began to laugh at their easy victory over the two boys. Chan jumped up at the obvious rough treatment of the two younger members, though he knew that this was all part of the tournament and something that every group would be prepared for before they entered the ring. Chan didn’t have to pretend that he liked it though. The referee began to make his way towards the center of the ring to call an end to the match after a measly four minutes, before a silvery voice broke the silence.

“Wah, they got their asses kicked. So, that’s what we would look like if we weren’t sufficiently prepared for this fight. Damn, that would have been bad, huh?”

Everyone scanned around them, Lalisa and Chaeyoung looking more than a little confused at the disembodied voices that fell from the air. Their confusion increased tenfold when the boys they had been holding onto disappeared, only to reappear behind them, completely unharmed while holding hands.

“Shit, we were fighting illusions! Chaeyoung!”

Before either had a chance to properly react, Hyunjin grabbed a handful of firecrackers from his belt and threw them on the ground underneath the girls. The explosions that soon emanated from beneath their feet caused them to dance around, shouting slightly at the sudden high pitched sound. Seungmin dashed to Hyunjin’s side, detaching a small cube from the Alchemist’s belt and throwing it towards his unfocused opponents. Purple smoke billowed from the invention and filled the air around the Thief and Druid. After about ten seconds of trying to clear the air around them by the frantic waving of their arms, both girls fell to the ground after inhaling the potent sleeping gas that Hyunjin had created the night before.

Nobody in the arena was quite sure how to react after watching such a surprising turn of events. Quiet mutterings rose from the crowd as they tried to make sense of the situation.

“Is that red head kid an Illusionist?”

“Not only that but his partner is an Alchemist? Jeez, talk about a rare team.”

Jeongin soon became aware of the fact that nobody was congratulating the two boys on their win, so he began to stand, clapping his hands together furiously while shouting into the open arena.

“Hey, way to go Seungmin hyung, Hyunjin hyung! You did great! Woo!”

All of the others quickly realised that they had been so caught up in marveling at the two boys and their amazing comeback, that they had forgotten the match was now over, with Seungmin and Hyunjin being victorious. They hurriedly rose to their feet to scream praises towards their friends as well, before the shocked referee cleared his throat and announced the result.

“The winners of round twenty are Hwang Hyunjin and Kim Seungmin. Congratulations!” The cheers that erupted from the crowd were the loudest that had been heard all day, including those that were being shouted backstage, mostly thanks to Jisung and Changbin, who were bouncing off of the walls after watching a match with such a distressing beginning.

“What the hell happened? Those two girls were fighting illusions the whole time? How did Seungmin manage to do that without any of us noticing? Both of them were invisible? I thought only Seungmin could do that. How was Hyunjin hidden as well?” Changbin didn’t quite know how to answer all of the questions that Jisung was now throwing at him. He didn’t know how they had managed to pull such a victory off. He didn’t know how Seungmin had created illusions of both himself and Hyunjin and managed to conceal themselves so that the illusions would be attacked and not them. He didn’t know that if Seungmin held onto someone's hand and concentrated hard enough, he could allow them to become invisible too. At this stage, he really didn’t care. All that mattered was that his friends were safe and had managed to get through their first bout without so much as a scratch.

Back in the arena, the two unconscious girls were slowly being carried away, sleepy mumbles falling from their mouths. The cheers continued as Hyunjin ran to Seungmin and lifted him up into the air, his arms placed securely around his middle as he twirled around.

“Minnie, we did it! See, I told you that you would have nothing to worry about. You did great!” Hyunjin had placed Seungmin’s feet on the ground once again but hadn’t completely let go of him, his hands finding their way to the other’s slender waist. “I have one question though. How the hell did you know that the cube you pulled off of my belt was the sleeping gas? I have so many bombs, how did you distinguish which one was which?”

“When you were making all of them the last couple of nights, you told me what each of them were.”

“Yeah, I told you but I didn’t think you’d remember all of them.”

“It’s my job to remember. We’re a team after all, right? I know you said we’re only here to test our skills and have fun but after winning the first round, we might as well give it our all to see how far we can go. Don’t you agree?”

Hyunjin’s smile after winning became even bigger in seeing that Seungmin was starting to come out of his shell, even if it was just a little bit more. High fiving the Illusionist, both Hyunjin and Seungmin made their way towards the back, where they were greeted by being wrestled to the floor by Jisung, loud exclamations leaving his lips.

“My god, you guys were freaking incredible! How did you do that? I didn’t see it coming. It was like watching an action movie with such a huge twist. I’m in awe, you kicked ass, I told you that you would-”

“Jisung! Jesus, breathe! And get off of them. I’m sure they want to rest after their match, not get smothered by your ugly ass.” Changbin grabbed the Thief’s hood, eventually managing to drag the hyped up boy off of Seungmin and Hyunjin, who simply lay on the ground choking on their laughter caused by their dramatic friend.

The rest of the matches of the day commenced and concluded without any more big surprises. Seunghyun competed in the penultimate match, winning it in just under seven minutes with his teammate. Though, Hyunjin thought that they didn’t act like much of a team, probably due to the fact that Seunghyun had never really been good at taking orders, just giving them. The sight of his former boss winning his bout caused both excitement and disappointment to surge up inside of him. He hated that the crowd was congratulating him for his win, not knowing the sort of man he was but he also couldn’t help but think that every time Seunghyun won, it would be another step closer for Hyunjin to be able to go up against the man that he wanted to face so badly.

In the stands, Felix began to feel nauseous upon seeing Seunghyun again, not noticing him until he walked into the ring after the referee called out his name to begin his fight. Kyuhoon and Chan could feel fury flowing throughout their bodies once again, the memory of the day they had met Felix and Hyunjin flying back into their thoughts. Kyuhoon quickly scooted over in his seat as Chan got up and guided Felix to sit in between the two of them. They immediately placed their arms around him to ease his anxiety and let him know that he had nothing to fear. They wouldn’t let Seunghyun anywhere near him but knew that Hyunjin had probably already run into him backstage and been forced to interact with him. They wanted to make sure he was alright after meeting his old boss again but after seeing how well he performed with Seungmin during their match, they knew they probably had nothing to worry about.

“And with round twenty four complete, that brings the first day of the tournament to a close. Congratulations to all of the teams who managed to progress to the next round and commiserations to those who failed. We will see you again tomorrow, 12pm sharp, to commence with the second day. May you have a pleasant evening and as always...”

“...we hope you enjoy your time playing Phantasm. Yeah, yeah, we know,” Minho muttered before standing up to make his way out of the arena to meet up with the others.

“Minho hyung?” Jeongin bounced up beside Minho, an elated grin plastered on his face. The older boy couldn’t help but return the smile being thrown at him. He was glad that his time within Siwan’s house hadn’t shattered the young Necromancer’s innocence as he kept walking beside Minho, trying to engage in jubilant conversation. “Did you see the way Hyunjin hyung and Seungmin hyung worked so well together? I mean, I didn’t see that turnaround coming! And Changbin hyung and Jisung hyung, I mean, wow!” Minho barely got a word in edgeways as Jeongin kept marveling at his hyung’s talents before they eventually found them waiting at the gates.

“Congrats, guys. You all did great! I’m pretty sure I saw Channie hyung tearing up because of how proud he was of all of you.”

“Shut the hell up, Minho, I didn’t cry. Not that much anyway.” Chan scratched his nose after punching Minho firmly in the arm.

Jaebum and the others had found Bambam and Yugyeom and began to make their way over to the younger group of boys, applauding them on their win. Felix emerged from the back of the group, the pride of seeing his friends being victorious taking priority above all his other emotions. He wanted to congratulate Changbin on his amazing win but he was knocked back slightly when his older group of friends managed to get there first, patting his arm and complimenting him on how strong he had become since he left them. Felix knew that they were entitled to speak with Changbin first since they had known each other for much longer than he had known the Medic but couldn’t help but feel a little ignored since the older group of boys had made their appearance. Felix liked them, he really did and he marveled at the way the young men took care of and looked out for Changbin but he wished that he could have had two minutes with the older boy, alone. He edged backwards before turning around and walking away.

“Lix! Hey! Where are you going?”

Felix spun back around at the mention of his name as he saw Changbin sprinting towards him. He came to a stop in front of the younger boy, grasping his hands as he smiled.

“So, what did you think of the match? Did I do alright?”

Felix knew he was being selfish when he wanted Changbin all to himself but he couldn’t help it, especially when the older boy was standing in front of him like this, providing him with his full attention. “You did great, hyung, just like I knew you would. I never doubted you for a second.”

“Changbin, come on! We’re all going to eat. Let’s go!” Jinyoung called out to the Medic to join them as they walked towards the bar they had visited last night.

Without hesitation, Changbin released Felix’s hands, causing a small sigh to fall from the boy’s lips. He had barely gotten to spend any time with Changbin in the last couple of days and the fact that it had made such a difference to him showed how much time they had actually spent together since they had met.

“Uh, Jinyoung hyung, you go on ahead. I’ll catch up,” Changbin yelled back to the other.

Felix looked up as Changbin linked arms with him and slowly started walking after the group of older boys. “Apparently, when I was speaking with Mark hyung last night, he told me at one point, I completely ignored you and shrugged you off. I didn’t even realise I did that. I was just so happy to see them again that I think I subconsciously just paid attention to them. I’m really sorry, Lix. I hope you know I would never intentionally do something like that to you.”

Felix did know this and the fact that Changbin was owning up to it seemed to extinguish the slight dolefulness that was playing up inside of him. Placing his head on the other boy’s shoulder as they walked, Felix grinned when he felt Changbin’s grasp tighten even further around his arm. “I know, hyung and it’s ok. I just feel I haven’t seen you very much in the last couple of days. I miss spending time with you.”

Changbin wanted to pull Felix in close, closer than he already was but the younger boy seemed to be comfortable lying on his shoulder and didn't want to disturb him as they walked down the street filled with people returning from the tournament. Since Aquiria, Changbin admitted to himself that he had been holding back a little with regards to how he felt for Felix. After the incident with trying to get the younger boy to summon a beast, Changbin wondered if Felix would ever return his feelings but the way the younger boy treated him, the way that he spoke to him, made him think that there could possibly be a chance. He thought that if he was to ever find out, he would have to take the lead and perhaps simply just ask.

“Hey, Lix, can I talk to you about something? It’s kind of important.” Changbin could feel the air change around him immediately as Felix raised his head and stared at him with worried eyes.

“Sure, hyung, what’s up?”

Changbin had worked up the courage to start up this conversation but it suddenly flew out the window when Felix looked into his eyes. “Uh, yeah, I wanted to, um, just say, uh, that I, I um-”

“So, Felix, what did you think of our amazing win? Changbin hyung and I did great, huh?”

“Argh! God dammit, Jisung! Piss off!” Both Jisung and Felix jumped away as the thunderous roar left Changbin, shocked eyes staring back at him. “You know what, Felix, it’s not all that important. I’ll talk to you later, ok?” Changbin immediately let go of Felix’s arm, walking ahead of the two younger boys. Jisung took Changbin’s place linking arms with Felix as he tried to evaluate what he had just interrupted.

“What the hell was that about? Were you guys talking about something important? Did I overstep my bounds?”

“You know what, Jisung? I’m not really sure.”

Further away from the small commotion, Jeongin and Seungmin walked side by side, both boys discussing the matches of the day, with Hyunjin keeping a watchful eye right behind them.

“Hyunjinnie, we saw Seunghyun in the tournament today. Are you alright? Did he speak to you backstage?” Hyunjin glanced up at a concerned Chan and Kyuhoon who had placed themselves on either side of the young Alchemist.

“Uh, yeah, he did. He started trying to rile me up, asking if Felix had died from his wounds, if it was painful to watch him die.” Hyunjin actually had to physically restrain Chan as he turned around, almost as if he was heading back to find Seunghyun and kick the crap out of him. “But I’ve got incredible friends. Jisung and Changbin hyung were ready to fight that asshole and Minnie kind of did.” Hyunjin laughed at the memory of Seunghyun’s terrified face as the imaginary snake made its way up his arm.

The eldest boys looked terribly confused when they thought about the possibility of Seungmin, the slight, timid boy walking in front of them, going up against a threatening brute like Seunghyun and from the sounds of it, winning against the man. They would have to inquire as to what exactly happened later on.

“Jeonginnie, after we eat, do you want to try training to control your energy?” Jeongin looked up from his conversation with Seungmin, giving his attention to Yugyeom, who was still walking in front of him.

“That would be great, Yugyeom hyung! I’d love to!” Seungmin could almost feel the excitement flowing from the boy as they walked along the bustling street. The darkness had been eating away at Jeongin for too long and Seungmin was glad that there was now someone who could help the younger boy with his struggles.

“Innie, would it be alright if I came along with you? I won’t interfere, I just want to watch, if you don’t mind” Jeongin was surprised that the Illusionist was asking to come along and couldn’t help but feel that he wanted to join them as a form of support for him more than anything else.

“Sure, hyung, I don’t mind at all.”

“You too, Channie. We’re going to train at the same place as Yugyeom and Jeonginnie!” Chan put two thumbs up towards Bambam, who was shouting at the Knight from the front of the group over the noise of the crowds around them. The boys made their way towards the busy tavern, where they once again ate, drank and shared enthralling tales of their heroism. Times like this made them feel that perhaps, not everything was completely terrible within Phantasm.

Chapter Text

Chan, Seungmin and Jeongin left the bar with Bambam and Yugyeom slightly earlier than the rest of the others so that they could begin the training that the older boys had promised to partake in. No matter how much time passed after the battle within Siwan’s home in Aquiria, Chan felt the imperative need to keep a close watch over the two youngest boys, even though he knew they were no longer in any danger. They were safe and in better spirits than he had ever seen them before. This was strengthened by the fact that they laughed giddily at a very unimpressive dad joke that Chan had told them as they walked to their destination.

“There are about ten training areas set up for the tournament that those taking part can use. They don’t really care who goes in as long as one of us is registered to fight. We checked them out last night and they seem like a decent place to train and at this time of night, most of them should be free.” Yugyeom gestured to the far off domes that obscured the horizon.

“We won’t be going into the same area either. I think you would probably be distracted by each other if we did.” Bambam threw a small grin towards the boys since, even though he hadn’t known them for long, he knew he was right on this particular point.

Once they had arrived at the training grounds, Yugyeom motioned to one of the tents for Jeongin and Seungmin to make their way into. Before either boy left, Chan placed his arms around both of their shoulders, tickling the sensitive skin beneath their ears. “Innie, I know you’ll do great. Just don’t push yourself too far, ok? I don’t want to have to carry you back to the inn again. Seungminnie, I’m trusting you to keep an eye out for him, though I know I have nothing to worry about when it comes to that. I’ll wait out here for you if I manage to finish first and I want you to wait here if you’re done before me. You guys are not to walk back to the inn alone. Do you understand?”

Both boys quickly nodded their heads to show Chan that they did. They held the utmost respect for Chan, admired everything about him and all in all, really liked the older boy but they knew not to cross him either. It had never been directed towards them or their other friends but they had seen him angry before and it was not an emotion that either of them wanted to evoke in the Knight.

Waving before they lost sight of each other, Seungmin and Jeongin separated from Chan as they made their way into the training grounds.

“So, Channie, less than a month here, huh? How are you finding it?” Bambam asked as he swept his fingers through his platinum locks as he placed himself in the middle of the ring.

“Honestly? I’m not really sure. It’s pretty damn overwhelming and though I’ve come to terms with all of it, there’s still a hell of a lot that surprises and scares me. I remember Jisung saying that even though it’s supposed to be a game, the risks here are very real and that has become very apparent to me during my time here.”

The Paladin nodded his head with a small pout. “Yeah, I understand that. Just to let you know, I’ve been here nine months and the whole ‘getting surprised and scared by stuff’ thing doesn’t ever go away. You see something new everyday. At least I can say that I’m never bored!” Though Bambam was trying to make light of the situation, Chan could tell that the young man still held onto a little bit of anger for being placed in a situation like this without his permission.

“Changbinnie tells me that you have a strong energy about you and that you’d probably be able for some top tier training but I’m going to start you off easy all the same.”

Chan mentally thanked the Medic for the kind compliment before nodding to Bambam to show that he was fine with whichever way the slightly older boy decided to train him.

“I want to cover a few things over the next couple of nights and everytime we meet back here, I want you to have practiced and be able to show me some improvement, alright?” Again, Chan nodded his head to show that he understood. “It would be best to train with someone who can use white magic since these skills are more for protection than anything else. There are a few on your team that can help you out with that, right?”

Chan considered those who could assist him in his group of friends. He thought about Changbin first, since he was the resident white magic user but realised the boy would probably wish to conserve his energy to fight in the tournament. That left him with Kyuhoon, who he knew would help him without hesitation.

“The first thing that we are going to focus on is something very basic for classes like us and that is an energy shield that you can use for protection. I realise that you have a shield on your back for yourself but the energy shield can protect those on your team as well. You can project it towards one of your friends and the distance to which you can project it will increase as you perfect it with training.” Chan thought back to his first day in Phantasm and pictured the shield that Changbin had used to protect him from the savage Bafrer in the forest and thought that, if his friends were ever in similar danger, it would be a very useful skill to have.

“The second skill is Taunting. It’s a skill that exclusively works for Knights, Paladins and Tanks and I’m pretty sure I’m correct in saying that you’re the only one of those within your team, so this skill would be invaluable. You can use it to force an enemy’s attention to focus on you and draw their attacks away from your team.”

Chan had been excited entering the training area with Bambam but self doubt suddenly took his confidence’s place as he began to wonder if he would be able to master all of the skills that Bambam had planned to teach him. He was a capable adult but he kind of wished that someone had come along with him, like Seungmin had done for Jeongin, to reassure him that he was strong enough to complete his training.

“Channie, are you still with me?” Bambam snapped his fingers in front of Chan’s face, the Knight not realising how close the other boy had come to stand in front of him.

“Uh, yeah, yeah, I’m still here. Ok, may as well tackle this head on. What do I need to do?”

Bambam quickly placed his hands on Chan’s shoulders and began to furiously shake him, gaining a very concerned look from the younger boy at the sudden motion that made me feel slightly nauseous.

“Firstly, you need to get rid of all this damn tension you have built up inside your body. Relax a little, man. I don’t bite and you’ll be fine. Changbinnie said he had faith in your abilities and I have a feeling that he’s right. Breathe in and release. Don’t worry so much, ok?”

Chan wondered what he must have looked like if Bambam was able to tell that he was nervous about his training but thanked the Paladin for his kind, reassuring words. Chan thought that, even though Bambam looked to be cool and collected, he was probably just as childish and playful as he himself was, especially if he managed to get along with Changbin. They began their training, with Chan feeling more at ease once he realised that maybe picking up these abilities wouldn’t be as difficult as he had first believed.

“So, have you boys been friends for a long time?”

Seungmin and Jeongin followed Yugyeom through the entrance of the tent before the older boy turned to face them.

“To be honest, just over a week.” Yugyeom arched his eyebrow at Seungmin’s confession, an intrigued twinkle entering his eyes.

“Seriously? You guys seem so close, I wasn’t expecting an answer like that. When did you meet all of the others?”

This time, Jeongin took the lead in answering. “To be honest, just over a week ago,” Jeongin parroted, a wonky smile flashing his braces. Yugyeom looked a little stunned, obviously not knowing what to say since all of the boys seemed exceedingly close even though they had only known each other for such a short time.

“Alrighty then. Guess we should just dive straight into this. That alright with you?” Jeongin nodded enthusiastically, his hands beginning to tremble slightly at the thoughts of controlling his energy.

“So, this is a little new for me. I’ve never taught someone before, especially someone who isn’t the same class as I am, so we’ll both learn something new from this. Seungmin, you can sit over there and observe. I promise I won’t put him through too much, don’t look so worried.”

Seungmin hadn’t even realized that he had subconsciously started to bite his lip until Yugyeom brought attention to it. The Illusionist bowed his head before moving to the sidelines, giving Jeongin’s hand a reassuring squeeze as he passed him.

“So, Jeongin, before we actually get started with this, I need to know something. What’s the root of your dark energy?” Jeongin tilted his head, confused, before he understood what Yugyeom had been asking him.

“You're asking me why I possess the class that I do.” It sounded like a question but it was more of a statement.

Seungmin looked between the two boys on the field. He knew that Jeongin was uncomfortable with people knowing what class he was and he had only recently come to know why that was. After Jeongin had let Chan and Kyuhoon know about his past on the beach, he had then in turn let the others in his group know too, thinking that hiding it from them would only make him feel worse about it.

“I know that it’s difficult to speak about but there is a reason that I want you to reveal it to me. If you’d like, I can tell you why I hold my dark energy. I’m not a Necromancer, so I didn’t have a near death experience but someone close to me did pass away and I regret it very much. That’s what dark energy stems from, negative feelings, like regret.” Yugyeom had moved towards Jeongin and grabbed his hands, before guiding the young boy down to the ground.

“My mom always had a weak heart. I looked after her a lot but I never used to mind doing it since she had already done so much for me. Though, we all go through a bit of an angsty teenager phase, right?” Yugyeom smiled wistfully at the memories that made their way into his head. The older boy’s voice was quiet but Seungmin was just able to make out what he was saying, though he wasn’t sure if he was supposed to or not.

“I was out with friends. Needed some time to myself after a long and stressful week. Teachers at school were giving me a hard time, my mom was constantly nagging at me for little, insignificant things. I got tired of it. My phone kept going off, texts and phone calls constantly coming in but I decided to ignore it and turned it off. When I eventually got home, a lot later than I usually did, my aunt was there and told me my mother had been taken to the hospital. They said that it was a heart attack when they brought me her belongings to take home, that they tried everything that they could and that they were sorry for my loss. I never got to say goodbye or tell her how much she meant to me because I was too busy being a stroppy teenager. That’s where my dark energy comes from, Jeonginnie, so would it be ok if you told me about yours?”

Both Seungmin and Jeongin sat quietly for a moment, trying to take in Yugyeom’s solemn past. Jeongin slowly started to come out of his daze and nodded to show that he would willingly share his story. He went on to tell Yugyeom about his parents and the terrible accident that took his family away from him, with Seungmin listening to him intently. Once he had released the details, he looked up to Yugyeom, waiting for the older boy’s reaction.

“I’m sorry you had to go through something like that, Jeonginnie but I’m glad that you were able to share it with me. Only when you’re able to speak about your trauma are you able to try to accept and control it. So, thank you for telling me. Now, we can begin with your training. Up you go,” Yugyeom prompted, bringing Jeongin into a standing position once again.

“So, what your class focuses on more than anything is to summon spirits that can aid you in battle. Those with dark energy can attempt this too but the amount of strain it puts on their bodies is unimaginable. I’ve tried before and let me tell you, I never want to do it again but that’s only because my class doesn’t revolve around necromancy. For you, if you learn to control your energy, it should be a lot simpler. To start you off slowly, we’re going to get you to summon a spirit that won’t require you to use much of your energy. Ever heard of a will-o’-the-wisp?”

Jeongin shook his head to indicate that he had never heard of such a thing but a small cough from behind him caused him to turn and look at Seungmin, who had his hand raised it the air, looking like he wanted to answer a question in a classroom.

“Um, I have. Oh, sorry, I’m just supposed to be observing. Never mind. Sorry,” Seungmin whispered, hand slowly began to fall as he apologised for interrupting Jeongin’s lesson but Yugyeom quickly stopped the boy.

“No, Seungmin, that’s alright. If you want to help Jeongin out, then go ahead. That’s why you’re here, right? To give him some support?” A bright smile crossed over Seungmin’s face as Yugyeom ushered him over to sit beside him.

“A will-o’-the-wisp is a ghost light that originates from English folklore. It’s said that if a traveler approaches it, it will recede and in doing so, lead them away from the safe paths that they travel upon. Basically, they act as a distraction that can possibly lead them to their doom.”

Yugyeom stared at the young boy with a slight grin gracing his lips. He thought that Seungmin might have known a basic fact about the little spirits but he had explained pretty much everything he wanted to cover with Jeongin.

“That’s remarkable, Seungmin. How do you know all of that? It’s certainly not common knowledge.”

“I, uh, like to read a lot. Spent a lot of my childhood in the library. I find mythologies from different countries to be extremely interesting so, yeah, you know…” Seungmin looked almost ashamed that this was the reason he knew about the mystical spirits before Yugyeom patted his leg.

“Very impressive, Seungminnie. Do you want to stay here with us while Jeongin tries to summon one?” Seungmin nodded his head emphatically as Jeongin looked to him with admiration of his knowledge.

“Ok, Jeongin, close your eyes. Focus on your heartbeat and most of all think about your parents.” Jeongin’s eyes snapped open to stare at Yugyeom. He wasn’t sure if he had heard the older boy correctly and asked him to repeat himself. “Jeongin, the death of your parents caused the dark energy to build up inside of you but their presence in your life was what made you who you are today. I’m not asking you to think about their deaths, I’m asking you to think about their smiles, their kind words, the love that they had for you. You need to find the positive side of the thing that your dark energy stems from in order for you to be able to use it to your advantage. Do you understand what I’m trying to get at?”

Jeongin did but he thought that it would be difficult. He remembered his parents for who they were but all that had focused on over the last ten years were his mother’s final screams. He had blamed himself for their deaths for so long that sometimes, he did forget about all of the good times they had together. However, since Chan and Kyuhoon had spoken to him on the beach, he gradually began to recollect everything. The way his mother tucked him in each night with a kiss, the way his father placed him on his shoulders that made him feel like he could nearly touch the sky, the way that they both held him close whenever he had a nightmare that disturbed his sleep. He had begun to remember it all.

“Woah, Innie, you’re doing it…”

Jeongin had become so immersed in his memories that, only when Seungmin spoke, did he recall what he was supposed to be doing. When he opened his eyes to see what he was referring to, he noticed a small black orb floating in front of him. Yugyeom’s smile indicated to him that he had managed to control some of the dark energy within him, even if it was only a small amount.

“Jeonginnie, you’ve managed to manifest some of your energy. Keep it steady, alright? Now, I want you to call the spirit forth. Simply say the following phrase and the name of the spirit you wish to call straight after it. Careful with the pronunciation, it’s a little tricky. Venez à moi ... in this case, simply say will-o’-the-wisp. Only your summoning chants are in a different language, you can speak to your spirits in whatever language you want to give them a command. Go ahead, give it a try.”

Jeongin wasn’t ever a particularly competitive person or a perfectionist in any sense but something inside of him wanted to get this on the first try, no matter what. He inhaled deeply, clearing his throat before he clearly stated the words that Yugyeom had taught him.

“ Venez à moi , will-o’-the-wisp.”

The black orb in front of him began to react, the soft edges suddenly becoming engulfed in a cold flame. The blackness of the fire soon shifted to a calming blue and Jeongin could feel a presence within the small orb, almost as if it was alive.

Yugyeom calmly moved towards Jeongin as he quietly whispered, looking like he didn’t want to frighten away the spirit that the boy had just summoned. “Jeonginnie, give a command, a simple one.”

“Um, alright. Go down, please.”

Yugyeom couldn’t help but laugh slightly at how polite the younger boy was, even to a spirit that was under his control. Just as instructed, the small ghost slowly began to descend towards the ground. Jeongin gasped as the orb listened to his request and glanced over to Seungmin, who was staring in awe of the younger boy.

“Will-o’-the-wisp, go to Seungmin hyung but do not harm him, please.” The light made its way over to the Illusionist, who held out his hand to balance it on his hand, obviously not worried about getting burned by the turquoise flame surrounding it.

Before another command could fall from his lips, Jeongin began to feel dizzy and placed his hands on his own forehead. Yugyeom was at his side in an instant to steady him. “Jeonginnie, it’s time to send it home now. Repeat after me: ‘ Vous pouvez partir , will-o’-the-wisp.’ ”

Jeongin parroted the phrase that Yugyeom has uttered and the blue light floating around Seungmin’s hand gradually disappeared into the air in small flecks of luminous dust. Seungmin hadn’t noticed Jeongin’s shaky form due to the presence of the little ghost but once he had, he moved at lightning speed to help Yugyeom in holding the young boy up.

“Jeonginnie, that was incredible. You managed to do it on your first try. You should be extremely proud of yourself.” Yugyeom looked ecstatically happy with his young student but Seungmin couldn’t help but be a little confused.

“He still got dizzy after summoning it, I thought that wouldn’t happen now that you were teaching him how to properly control it.”

“It will take time for him to get used to the toll it takes on his overall energy, as most things like this do. There is a more important question to ask, though. Jeonginnie, did it hurt you in any way, trying to control the wisp?” Jeongin didn’t even really think about the fact since he had been so amazed by the little spirit that had been floating around in front of him but he hadn’t felt any pain the way that he usually did when he used his powers.

“Just the dizziness but no pain. Nothing at all.” A wide grin made its way to Jeongin’s face as he beamed at his two hyungs that were supporting him.

“Seriously? You’re not just trying to be brave in front of us, are you? You don’t feel anything?” Seungmin prompted, gazing into Jeongin’s eyes, trying to discern whether or not the younger was lying to them.

“The only thing I feel is my undying love for you, hyung.”

Seungmin quickly tried to move away from Jeongin’s puckered lips as he made an unimpressed face. Yugyeom laughed hysterically at the boy’s antics and couldn’t help but draw similarities between the two youngsters and himself and his hyungs.

“And that is all we are going to cover for tonight. Jeonginnie, I want you to practice before we meet up again tomorrow night. You managed to summon the wisp for just over two minutes. Tomorrow, I want it here for at least five, alright? Seungminnie, I want you to oversee his training when I’m not around. Make sure he doesn’t overdo it, I’m trusting you to do that.” Seungmin gave a firm salute towards the older boy, who responded with a soft smile.

“Over the next couple of nights, there are three other spirits that I want to teach you how to call. While the wisp is helpful in the way of distraction, the other three will help you when it comes to fighting. They require much better control over your energy and they will make you feel a lot more exhausted in the beginning but I promise, it will be worth it. Let’s see if Seungmin really is as smart as he says when it comes to the topic of folklore.”

The Illusionist looked a little worried at the impromptu test that was suddenly being put to him but still gave the indication that he was ready to answer the elder's questions.

“Do you know what a Banshee is?” Yugyeom’s sly smile showed Seungmin that he was sure he wouldn’t be familiar with such a spirit. Luckily for Seungmin, he liked to read really obscure books.

“A Banshee comes from Irish folklore. She is said to be a harbinger of death, with those who hear her scream losing a family member soon after. Her eyes are continually red from crying and she sings a lament for all of those who have died. She is often seen to be wearing a green dress with a long hooded cloak.”

Yugyeom arched his eyebrow with the response that seemed like it was being read straight out of a book.

“Very good, that’s the first one. What about a Preta?”

“Pretas are spirits that derive from South Asian religions, the idea eventually making its way to East Asian ones too. A Preta is said to be the ghost of someone who was extremely greedy, jealous or deceitful in their past life and because of this, they are cursed with an insatiable hunger in their spectral form.”

This time, a small laugh left Yugyeom, disbelief obviously present in the air. “Alright. The final one is a Poltergeist.”

“Poltergeists are more commonly known, especially since they appear in so many films and books nowadays. The name comes from the German words poltern and geist, which mean ‘to move around’ and ‘ghost’, respectively. They are known to be pranksters, though some are a lot more dangerous when they injure or even kill people with their seemingly harmless actions.”

It took a few seconds for Yugyeom to react, obviously impressed with the young Illusionist’s extensive knowledge.

“Jeez, you are one intelligent kid. You sure you don’t want to join our group? We could use someone like you. Youngjae hyung would love to have someone else like him on the team.”

Even though Yugyeom had just taught Jeongin the thing he wanted to master the most since he entered this world, he couldn’t help the way his face contorted with disbelief upon hearing that the older boy wanted to take his best friend away from him, even if it had just been a passing joke.

Seungmin’s arm was suddenly placed around Jeongin’s waist, pulling him closer after seeing the unimpressed expression on the younger boy’s face. “Thanks, hyung but I’ve already found my family and I’m never going to leave them, not for anyone.”

Jeongin looked to Seungmin, slight shock gracing his features. Barely a week ago, he had been elated when Seungmin had called him his friend for the first time but now, he had called Jeongin his family and that meant more to the youngest boy than any other words ever could.

“Jeonginnie, hey, why are you crying?” Yugyeom worried, already beginning to advance towards the young Necromancer to wipe away his tears, Seungmin hastily moving in front of him to make sure he was alright. He hadn’t meant to start crying but the tears wouldn’t cease, even when he told them to stop.

“Ah, I’m alright. I think it’s just the relief of finally being able to control the dark energy. I think I’m a little tired but still not in any pain, which is great. Thank you so much, Yugyeom hyung.”

Yugyeom was already dragging his thumbs along the boy’s cheeks to get rid of the streaks of water.

“Anytime, Jeonginnie. You boys are very polite, anyone ever tell you that? Extremely sweet too. There’s a neat little trick you can perform once you’ve learned to control the wisps a bit more. You ever need to contact me when we’re not together, you can speak into the wisp and it will retain the words. Give it a command to find me and I can access the message once it realises who I am. You ever need help, you contact me, got it? Both of you, I mean it. I’ll be here for you guys if you need me.”

While Jeongin bobbed his head to show that he understood, Seungmin stood completely still. Kindness from strangers seemed so suspicious to him now, his mind trying to find some sort of ulterior motive but he knew Yugyeom would never have something like that. He was one of Changbin’s closest friends and had offered to train Jeongin without asking for anything in return. Siwan has destroyed his trust and that irritated him very much. He wanted to be able to trust Yugyeom without any hesitation but something in the back of his head just couldn’t let go of the fear of being betrayed. It had been the same with Joomi back at the inn. Jisung knew her well and had vouched for her with regards to her loyalty but Seungmin still couldn’t trust her straight away. When he noticed the two looking at him, Seungmin nodded his head, indicating that he too, understood.

“Great, that’s it, I guess. Chan told you to wait outside for him, yeah? Let’s go and see if they’re finished. I’ll stay with you until they are.” Yugyeom grasped both of their hands as he led the boys out of the tent to find Chan and Bambam. The two older boys didn’t seem to be finished yet since they were nowhere in sight but another was waiting for them instead.

“Kyu hyung? What are you doing here?” Seungmin and Jeongin let go of Yugyeom’s hand to dash towards their friend, who welcomed them with open arms.

“Can’t I come to collect my boys? Where’s Channie?”

“Not finished yet. He should be done soon.” As if on cue, Bambam and Chan emerged from the first tent, with Chan looking slightly shocked at Kyuhoon’s presence.

“Well boys, you did well tonight. We’ll see you back here tomorrow. We’re going to go and rest so that we will be ready for the next round of matches. Thanks for being such great students!” Yugyeom nodded his head as the three boys bowed to show their appreciation towards the Paladin and Dark Sniper. They watched Bambam and Yugyeom walk away before making their own way back.

“Kyu, what are you doing here?” Chan strolled beside the Bard as the two youngest boys walked in front of them.

“Kinda wanted to show you somewhere after we dropped the kids home. Would that be alright with you?” Chan chuckled as Kyuhoon linked their arms together after Chan had agreed to go with him.

“I need to ask you a favor. Bambam told me to practice the skills I learned tonight with someone who could use white magic. Think you could help me out with that?”

“Sure. We can do it when we arrive at the place I want to go, ok?” They walked to the inn, with the silence being broken by Seungmin and Jeongin’s laughter. Once they had told the two youngest boys that they would be leaving for a while and to let the others know, they took off to their destination.

After Chan, Seungmin and Jeongin had left the bar to pursue their training, the boys dispersed into different directions. Kyuhoon told the others that he would go to collect the boys from training after he had looked around the town a little bit. Felix had whispered something to Changbin in the middle of the evening, causing him to look a little uncomfortable before grabbing onto Hyunjin and relaying the message that he had just heard from the younger boy. They made their way towards the same area that Chan and the younger boys had headed to earlier in the evening without explaining why.

That left Minho and Jisung to head back to the inn, since they weren’t particularly interested in going anywhere else. Jisung has also mentioned that he felt a little tired after such an exciting day. The Thief couldn’t help but laugh at the way Minho seemed to fret a little over the slight injury he had endured during the match earlier in the day. A Medic backstage had healed him up but a small scar still remained. Another reminder to Jisung to be more careful in the future.

“That pressure point training that you gave me really saved my ass today, hyung. Good thing I’m such a wonderful student and remembered where they were.”

“No, it’s just because I’m such a fantastic teacher. You’re a terrible student. I mean really, really awful. How did your teachers ever put up with you?” Jisung was obviously not impressed with Minho’s insult, beginning to walk slightly faster and separating from the older boy.

“I told you before, I was at the top of my class for a really long time. I was a pleasure to have in class. Maybe I had a bit of a hard time sitting still but I was always pleasant.”

Minho placed his arms around Jisung’s waist as he walked behind the other, pulling the Thief closer to embrace the warmth that radiated off of him.

“I know, Jisungie. You are a very agreeable and good natured person, unlike me.” Minho had said it as a joke but Jisung quickly spun to face the boy, Minho’s arms still wrapped tightly around his waist. The motion had been so quick that Minho didn’t have time to properly react before their noses skimmed off of each other, making the older boy giggle.

“Hyung, what are you talking about? You’re...awesome. I’m really not good with big, descriptive words. Um, you’re delightful, gracious, charming, sweet, caring, handsome, amazing and any more superlatives I cannot think of right now. Don’t put yourself down like that. I hate to see someone I care about so much do that to themselves.”

The bitterness of the night descended on the two boys as they could now see their breaths coming to life in front of them before mixing together because of their closeness. Minho had been playing with a thought in his head for the last couple of nights that seemed to plague him every time he saw Jisung. He wanted to tell the younger boy about why he had joined him in the first place. He wanted to tell him that he had become part of their group because he knew that Gyujin was after him, that he had been the one that had broken into his room and nearly attacked him, that he had been following him around and the only reason he had saved him was because it suited him. He wanted to tell Jisung the truth because he didn’t want to keep it from someone he had come to cherish this much. Jisung had just said that he cared about him too but Minho didn’t know if he meant it in the same way.

He thought it was stupid, like something you would read in a crummy romance novel. Falling for the person you had been trying to deceive the whole time. It was foolish and dangerous and idiotic but it had still happened to Minho. Being face to face with Jisung like this made Minho realise how easy it would be to show the other how quickly he had managed to captivate him with all of his quirky and cute mannerisms and make him feel the way that nobody in the world ever had before. It would be simple but Minho couldn’t do something like that until he had come clean with the young Thief. He had made the decision that, once they got back to the inn, he was going to tell Jisung about all of it and hoped the younger boy wouldn’t react too harshly since he had told him the truth willingly.

“Uh, hyung, are you alright? Your arms are squishing me just a little.” Minho’s thoughts were finally disturbed when Jisung spoke up and the older boy gently released the Thief.

“Yeah, Jisungie, I’m good. When we get back to the inn, there is something I’d like to talk to you about.”

“You can’t just tell me here? Is it something really terrible? Do we need to be alone?” asked Jisung with mock seriousness but once he saw Minho’s expression, his earnestness instantly became real. “Ah, this isn’t a joking matter then? Wait, you’re not going to leave, right? You said that you wouldn’t leave me-”

“No, no, Jisungie, I’m not leaving, don’t worry.” Minho caressed Jisung’s face to comfort the boy once he saw that he was starting to panic at the thought of Minho abandoning him. “I just need to speak with you alone, that’s all.”

“Ok, hyung, let’s get going then.” Jisung bravely intertwined their fingers as they began to walk the rest of the quiet side street.

The air around Minho suddenly erupted with a suffocating red tinge. His hairs stood on end as he felt a murderous intent surrounding them, making him feel like he couldn’t breathe. He instinctively pulled on Jisung’s hand to stop the boy and wrap his arm around his shoulders, keeping him close.

“Hyung, what’s the matter? I thought you wanted to go back and...why do you look so scared?”

Minho had activated his Third Eye without Jisung’s knowledge but throughout all the auras that he could detect, he couldn’t pinpoint the one that let out such an unbearable rage that it was palpable into the air.

“Um, it’s nothing, Jisungie. Just thought you might be a bit cold and feel a little warmer in hyung’s arms.”

Jisung screamed giddily once Minho’s freezing nose met with the heated skin of his neck. The Thief eventually managed to detach himself and began to sprint towards their lodging with Minho giving chase, leaving the tense feeling of anger far behind them.

Once they had arrived in their rooms, which were still vacant, indicating that none of the others had returned, Minho guided Jisung to sit in the wooden chairs placed in the corner of the room. They had left the cold air outside but it somehow seemed to follow Minho and invade his chest, making him very uncomfortable as he sat across from the boy who always exuded a pleasant warmth.

“Ah, Jisungie. Um, ok, this is a little difficult to say. Well, the reason I wanted to talk to you is, well, it’s because I, uh-”

Leaning forward, Jisung placed a comforting hand on Minho’s knee, stroking it gently to try and get the older boy’s attention.

“Hyung, why are you so nervous? It’s just me. You can tell me anything, you know that, right?”

Minho wondered if the anything that Jisung was talking about included something like this. He prayed that it did because he really didn’t want to lose the boy with the lopsided smile sitting in front of him or any of the other boys for that matter. They called themselves a family and they had involved Minho in it too, something he had never been included in before. He was just going to do it, regardless of all the possible outcomes.

“Minho hyung? Jisung hyung? Are you guys back yet?” Minho let out a small sigh of exasperation when his thoughts were interrupted by Seungmin and Jeongin bouncing through the door, returning from the youngest boy’s exhausting training.

“Hey guys, we’re here. Oh, hyung, sorry. You were saying?”

“You know what, Jisungie? It’s alright. I’ll tell you another time when we’re alone. It can wait.”

Minho stood and made his way over to the two youngest boys to inquire how their training had gone. In doing so, he never noticed the startled and slightly concerned look on Jisung’s face. Those feelings were soon replaced by confusion when he heard Changbin’s shrill voice ring through the air as he walked through the door of the bedroom.

“Han Jisung, get your ass over here right now so I can kick it all the way back to Haknal!”

Felix fidgeted uncomfortably in his seat. The busy tavern was a place that he would usually love to be but tonight, he wanted nothing more than to get out. Ever since Aquiria, a constant nagging at the back of his head wouldn’t let him live in peace. He wanted it to go away but he knew there was only one way to do that.

“Lix, you’re driving me crazy. Do you realise your legs bob uncontrollably when you’re nervous about something? What’s up?” Changbin huffed as he placed a calming hand on the back of Felix’s neck to try and ease whatever anxiety was eating away at him.

The younger boy gnawed on his lip as he turned his head and lowered his voice so that only Changbin could hear. “Hyung, I think I’d like to try tonight, maybe in one of the training areas that are set up for you guys.”

Changbin reeled back at Felix’s words. He knew what the younger boy was referring to but after his little argument with Hyunjin, Changbin was a little hesitant to let the boy attempt this so quickly. His worry was obviously prominent on his face since Felix silently asked him what was wrong.

“Ok, Lix, if you’re sure, then we can try. Oh, one sec. Hyunjin.” The Medic ushered the Alchemist to come closer and let him know about Felix’s idea since he had said he wanted to be by Felix’s side when he wished to attempt it for the first time.

“Oh, really Lix? Already? I don’t know if you should with such little preparation,” Hyunjin countered with a bit of a condescending tone. 

Felix had become accustomed to Hyunjin acting like his parent in the months that they had been trapped in the virtual world and he was thankful for the boy who looked after him so well but in instances like this, where he already felt suffocated, he wished Hyunjin would back off just a little bit.

“Jinnie, you said you would support me when I wanted to try this for the first time. Well, I want to try and I’m going to do it, whether you’re there or not.” The resolve in Felix’s words made Hyunjin realise that he was set on trying to summon his beasts, regardless of the circumstances tonight.

“That brings me to another point of interest. Changbin hyung, how did you know that Hyunjin wanted to be there when I attempted this? How did you know that I spoke to him about what happened between us in Aquiria?”

Both boy’s immediately averted their eyes when the question was put to them, Felix’s stare firmly placed upon them.

“I just had a little discussion about it with Changbin hyung last night. Completely calm and serene. Shouting certainly did not ensue. I just let him know that I would like to be there, that’s all.” Changbin rolled his eyes at Hyunjin’s obvious lie, though it seemed to quench Felix’s curiosity since he was nodding his head with understanding.

“I see. So, nothing happened? I know you were kind of upset about it at first, Jinnie but you were alright when speaking to Changbin hyung?”

“He was fine. Like Hyunjin said, we just had a quiet conversation about how we could help you.” The smiles plastered on both Changbin and Hyunjin’s faces were obviously not their natural ones and Felix wasn’t stupid enough to assume that they were.

“Ok, first of all, both of you are terrible liars, I can see right through you and even if I couldn’t, Jisung already told me all about the argument you guys had last night because of me. Thanks for the concern but I’m strong enough to endure something like this. Come on, let’s go.” Felix began to stand to exit the bar, leaving behind a slightly dumbfounded Hyunjin and Changbin.

“I’m going to kill him. Han Jisung is a dead man.”

“You’re going to have to get there before me, hyung. I’m going to make him wish he was never born.” The two boys followed Felix out of the tavern, already planning on the best way to make Jisung’s death look like an accident.

Half of the training areas seemed to be in use, with Felix being certain that he heard Chan’s voice floating from one of them as they passed. Once Changbin had given his name to one of the officials that were overseeing the areas so that nobody would sneak in, they made their way inside.

“So, how are we going to go about this?” Hyunjin rubbed his hands together, obviously nervous about what was about to take place.

“We? I think this is something that relies on my skills alone. How would you two even help me?” Cocking his head to the side, Felix smiled at the boys who had an expression of indignant determination firmly set on their faces.

“Well, I’ve actually been reading up on Beast Master classes. I bought a book in Aquiria when I went shopping with Kyuhoon hyung. I gave it to Hyunjin last night after we fought...t-talked, after we talked and he managed to finish it this morning. It told us a lot about your class. Your summoning chants and commands are in Latin, right? We were able to learn some of them in case you needed to be reminded about what they were. Plus, we’re here for moral support more than anything else. So, you’re not doing this on your own, Lix.”

He wasn’t going to become emotional but he could certainly feel a sense of overwhelming gratitude towards the two older boys standing in front of him at that very moment. “Ok, I got it guys. Thanks. Guess I should just give it a go, right?”

Hyunjin has noticed the slight stutter in Felix’s words, indicating to the Alchemist that the younger boy was just as nervous as Hyunjin was, if not more.

“Lix, think about what beast you’re going to summon first. I mentioned to Changbin hyung that a Chiyeou would probably be an easy one to do. It’s pretty weak, so you wouldn’t have to worry about it att-” Hyunjin immediately cut himself off, not wanting Felix to automatically think about the beast he was going to summon attacking him.

“A Chiyeou? Yeah, that seems simple enough. I can do that. You guys won’t go anywhere, right? You’ll stay right behind me?”

Hyunjin thought Felix was comparable to a child riding their bicycle for the first time without training wheels, afraid that their parent would suddenly let go of the saddle, allowing them to fall. Placing a comforting arm around his neck, Hyunjin pulled the young boy close, squashing their cheeks together.

“We’re both right here, Lix. Ready to help if needed.”

Once Felix was sure that the older boys had his back, he moved forward slightly into the ring. He inhaled deeply before letting out an extremely shaky breath. He scolded himself for his trembling fingers and shook them as a deterrent from continuing to do so. He quietly started to mutter to himself before he began the chant. “Felix, you can do this. Don’t be a baby. Jinnie and Changbinnie hyung are behind you to help if you need it. You need to overcome this. Just do it.”

Placing his hands out to his sides, he tried to recall the incantation that would allow to call the small fox-like animal forth. “

Adiutorium meum intende, lupus.”

Felix managed to maintain his posture as a small gust of wind disturbed the sand on the ground in front of him, indicating that the beast he had summoned was beginning to form, tiny flecks raining down from the air. His hands hadn’t stopped shaking but he was going to see this through to the end, no matter what.

Changbin’s blood ran cold as he looked to Hyunjin, who garnered the same horrified expression as the Medic. “Hyung, vulpes is the Latin word Beast Masters use to summon monsters like Chiyeous. Lupus is-”

“A wolf. He made a mistake, he’s summoning a Bafrer. Felix, stop! Now!”

Changbin’s warning was a step too late. The monster had almost completely formed in front of the three boys, a low snarl seeping from its mouth. Felix had turned with a disgruntled expression, obviously annoyed with Changbin for disturbing him when he was trying to attempt what the older boy had been trying to get him to do since Aquiria. However, once he saw both Changbin and Hyunjin sprinting towards him, he spun to see the evil spirit in front of him and began to panic, labored breaths beginning to leave the boy’s mouth.

With no orders being given to it from its master, the Bafrer was free to move around by itself. It quickly acquired its target and ran towards Felix, heavy paws leaving indentations in the sand. He tried to move but Felix was so terrified by the monster in front of him, that all his body would allow him to do was cower and scream at the thought of the incoming pain.

Protective arms were suddenly placed around Felix’s crouched form while he felt a calming wind fly throughout the area. Opening his eyes, Felix saw Hyunjin curled around him, his best friend shielding him with his body from the possible attack. However, the Bafrer was no longer in the arena, courtesy of Changbin, who had used his holy magic to quickly dispose of the savage animal.

Once they were sure they were safe, Hyunjin turned to Felix, his eyes filled with alarm and worry.

“Lix, are you alright? Felix, focus on me. Grab my hands, look into my eyes, match your breathing with mine. Deep breaths in through your nose for seven seconds, hold for three and release them slowly out through your mouth. There we go, just keep breathing. No, Lix, don’t apologize, just breathe.”

The Alchemist tried to halt the strings of “I’m sorry” that were falling from Felix’s lips. Hyunjin had become accustomed to dealing with Felix’s panic attacks and simply tried to guide him through it as he had done so many times before.

Changbin was at their side in an instant, taking one of Felix’s small hands from Hyunjin and stroking it gently.

“Felix, you’re safe, don’t worry. We’re here. Shh, stop saying sorry, you didn’t do anything wrong.”

Felix’s breath hitched every time he tried to speak, causing the boys to try to get him to stop talking and focus on calming himself down instead. “I-I’m sorry. A-are the two of you a-alright? I messed u-up. Sorry, sorry, sorry…”

The three boys sat on the ground of the training area for close to fifteen minutes, with Hyunjin and Changbin reassuring Felix that he was not at fault, that this feeling would only be temporary and most importantly, that he was safe with them.

Once Felix’s breathing had returned to a regular pace and he was no longer shaking, Changbin let go of his hand and stood.

“Hyunjin, you were right, this was a stupid idea. We’re done here. Felix, you don’t have to try again. Let’s go back to the inn. The others should be-”

“Tomorrow night. We’re doing this again tomorrow night.”

Hyunjin actually had to stifle a laugh at Felix’s words. “Lix, excuse my language but you’ve got to be fucking kidding me. After what just happened, you want to try again? No, I’m not letting you.”

“I’m sorry, you’re not letting me? Hyunjin, you don’t get to decide that.”

“Actually, I do. I promised myself that I would look out for you and I’m not letting you go through this again.”

“Hyunjin, stop it! I’m fine! Stop assuming that I’m too weak to do anything. I’ve managed to get this far and survive. So quit acting like my mom and start acting like my friend because it’s starting to piss me off. I have to do this so that I can be stronger, so I don’t have to be protected all of the time because if one of you gets hurt because I was too much of a coward to fight then I’m never going to be able to forgive myself!”

Hyunjin finally understood why summoning his beasts had suddenly become so important to Felix. It had never bothered him in the months that they had spent together, so it confused Hyunjin when the boy was immediately set on conquering his fear. Before he met Hyunjin, he only had to look after himself. When he met Hyunjin, it wasn’t long before they joined the bandit crew, who only cared about themselves and he could just about manage to protect himself and Hyunjin with his melee skills. Now, he was with Changbin and the rest of his group and he had more people that he cared about. It wasn’t about overcoming the fear for himself, it was so that he could protect his new family if they were forced to engage with the numerous dangers within this world.

“Alright, Lix. Hey, it’s ok. Don’t be upset, I get it. You want to try again? Then Changbin hyung and I will be here tomorrow night as well. Right, hyung?” Changbin glided to Hyunjin’s side, offering a consoling smile to the youngest boy while nodding his head.

Felix felt exhausted. Summoning the beast was difficult enough, seeing as he hadn’t tried it since he entered Phantasm. On top of that, his panic attack had pretty much drained him of all his energy but then he had to overexert himself by shouting at his friends that were only trying to help him.

“Jinnie, Changbinnie hyung, I’m sorry. I just need to do this.”

Before he knew what was happening, Felix’s arms were being dragged upwards and placed around Changbin’s neck, the older boy pulling him up into a piggy back.

“You got it, Lix. We’ll come back tomorrow but you need to do some reading and only when I think you’re sufficiently prepared will I let you attempt this again. You have to satisfy both Hyunjin and myself with regards to your preparation if you want us to keep helping you, understood?”

Felix could have argued with the Medic but his sleepiness denied him. Plus, Felix was now relishing in the warmth and familiar scent of the older boy, not ever wanting to let go of him. “Sure, Changbinnie hyung, I’ll do that.”

Felix nodded off almost immediately after exiting the training area, leaving Changbin to walk alone with a slightly annoyed Hyunjin.

“Hyunjinnie, you’re a good friend. Felix is strong and even stronger when we’re around, so just relax a little bit. He’ll be more tense if you are too. I know you’re worried about him but tonight we managed to defend him when something went wrong and we’ll continue to do that for as long as he needs us. On a side note, I need you to help me kill Jisung now for ratting us out. I need you to be focused on this. Are you with me?”

“Heh, I’m with you, hyung.”

Just before they arrived back, Hyunjin gently nudged Felix awake so that he could walk in normally. If they had seen Felix sleeping on Changbin’s back, suspicions may have been aroused and he was sure the younger boy wouldn’t want anyone asking them where they had been. Entering the inn and swinging the door open, Changbin raised his voice after locating Jisung. “Han Jisung, get your ass over here right now so I can kick it all the way back to Haknal.”

“Ok, Channie, are you ready?”

After they had watched Seungmin and Jeongin enter the inn and were sure that they were safe, Kyuhoon grabbed Chan’s hand and led him towards the area above the city. The Overlook was a place that Kyuhoon had visited within his first couple of days within Phantasm. It boasted the best view of the capital city during the day, luring tourists from far and wide. In the darkness however, while the city lights were impressive, the stars were a far more breathtaking spectacle. Thousands of diamonds were dotted across the dark sky above, making Chan marvel at the sight.

“Beautiful, isn’t it? I spent the first week here in Morthan with Moonbyul and Seunghoon. I used to come up here by myself at night time to try and wrap my head around all of it. The view of the stars always made me feel more at ease. It’s so peaceful up here at this time so, I thought I’d share one of my favorite places with you, Channie.”

Chan wasn’t quite sure what to say. More than anything, it was because he didn’t know what was more alluring: the night sky or the boy standing in front of him.

“You said you wanted to try out some of the abilities you learned tonight, right? What do you want me to do?”

Chan instructed Kyuhoon on how he could help. All he needed was for the older boy to attack him with a simple spell. Bambam had shown him how to harness his strength and form an energy shield. Unlike Changbin’s, which was snow white, Chan’s had manifested with a deep blue colour.

“Ok, Channie, are you ready?” Kyuhoon closed his eyes to begin his song once Chan had indicated that he was with a bob of his head.

Chan steadied himself as he waited for Kyuhoon’s attack, which came shortly after. A flash of silver light flew towards him in an instant. Chan focused on the threat in front of him, thinking about what he was trying to protect, like Bambam had told him to do. Directing all of his energy to the palm of his hands, Chan produced his energy shield and diverted the attack. Though he had pretty much gotten a hold of manifesting the shield, trying to aim where the deflected attack went still needed a little bit of work. Before he could stop it, Kyuhoon’s spell was rushing back towards him, knocking him to the floor.

“Oh, shit! Kyuhoon!” Chan’s shield had dissipated once he ran through it to go to his friend’s side. “Kyu, I’m so sorry, are you alright? This is why I need to practice...are you laughing?”

Kyuhoon was finding it hard to breathe after being so surprised by his own attack being flung back at him. Loud giggles left Kyuhoon’s mouth as Chan hovered over him, no longer worried about the boy’s wellbeing. The Bard slowly calmed himself and his laughter came to a halt once he noticed Chan’s face so close to his.

“I’m all good, Channie. Thanks.”

“Uh, no, thank you. Sorry, I don’t have the proper control yet. I’ll get the hang of it soon enough and try not to mow you over the next time. Here, let me help you up.” Chan offered his hands to Kyuhoon, who grabbed them and was soon hoisted upwards.

They moved to the edge of the cliff overlooking the city and sat for a while, not saying anything. The bracing air on Kyuhoon’s face was welcomed by the older boy as it brought back some fond memories of his first days within the game. He couldn’t focus on the sky above any longer, becoming very aware of the pair of eyes that had been fixated on him since they sat down.

“Channie, why are you staring?”

“Oh, god, sorry. I didn’t even realise I was doing that,” Chan apologised as he quickly became flustered after being called out and averted his gaze.

“You knew that you were staring. Why were you looking at me, Channie? Is it because I’m so incredibly handsome?”

“Yeah, kind of.”

All sense of humor was suddenly sucked out of the air with Chan’s response. Kyuhoon quickly turned his head to stare at the Knight and his blunt confession.

“Was I supposed to say no, Kyu? Were you just joking? Do you not think that you’re handsome? Because you are. I’ve thought that ever since I first laid eyes on you in Haknal. Changbin used to constantly tease me about it early on. Your looks aren’t the only thing that drew me in though. You’re funny, caring, talented and so incredibly kind and the thing is that you don’t seem to realise any of that. The boys all love you so much and you love them and that’s why-”

Chan’s compliments were cut short when he could no longer utter them. Soft lips began to move against his, courtesy of Kyuhoon. The Bard grabbed Chan’s collar and tried to pull him in closer, which was seemingly impossible as their noses brushed off of each other. The younger boy went rigid with shock, not knowing how to properly react to the sudden kiss that Kyuhoon had initiated, despite thinking about something like this happening for so damn long.

Upon not feeling any reciprocation and noticing Chan’s eyes widened in disbelief, Kyuhoon immediately moved back, letting go of the front of Chan’s hoodie and quickly standing up.

“Oh god, I misunderstood. Chan, I’m so sorry. Forget I just did that. Shit, I’m so stupid…”

It took a couple of seconds for Chan to come back to reality after what just happened but when he saw Kyuhoon begin to walk away from him, he immediately jumped up. Grabbing the older boy’s hand, Chan spun him around before placing his hands on his face, causing their lips to meet once again. The freezing air did nothing to impede the unbearable heat rising up within both of them as all hesitancy evaporated into the sky, the shining moon hanging over them and illuminating their forms. This time, the fervent kiss was intense and hungry, both boys seemingly starved of each other’s affection. Stumbling backwards, Kyuhoon attempted to ground himself as Chan pushed forward, trying to get closer to the older boy than he already was. Chan’s hands fell down to rest on Kyuhoon’s hips briefly before quickly moving to the small of his back and playing with the end of his wrinkled shirt. The blood rushing through his ears blocked out the noise that reached them from the city below as he was taken in by the moment. Hurriedly running his fingers through Chan’s hair, Kyuhoon allowed them to become tangled in the soft curls. Trembling hands slowly trailed down Chan’s neck until Kyuhoon was cupping his face and tracing his thumbs across the younger’s strong jawline, both melting into the kiss that they had wanted for such a long time.

Eventually, they had to break away for air. Kyuhoon took in the flustered boy in front of him who was breathing heavily, messy hair and blood red lips becoming more attractive to him than they had ever been before. He had finally managed to show Chan how much he meant to him and he had been lucky enough that Chan apparently seemed to reciprocate his feelings.

“Kyuhoon, thank god you made the first move. I was so nervous that you mightn’t feel the same way.” Chan peppered small kisses along Kyuhoon’s flushed cheeks as he spoke. “The amount of times I’ve wanted to kiss you? I’ve lost count.” Chan intertwined their fingers, his lips caressing the back of Kyuhoon’s hands, allowing a small giggle to fall from the older boy as Chan’s hot breath tickled his skin. “I don’t know how much longer I would have been able to endure it.” Chan made his way back up to meet Kyuhoon’s lips again, this time, a gentle peck sufficing after their heated kiss moments ago. Staring into each other’s eyes, both boys broke into soft laughter filled with happiness at the realisation that their feelings had finally been returned.

“I love you so much, Kyu.”

“Really? I think I just like you a little bit.”

Moving back with horror on his face, Chan began to pout, punching Kyuhoon’s shoulder and immediately looking away. The Bard laughed through his nose before turning Chan’s face towards him again and planting a small kiss on his forehead.

“I love you quite a lot too, Channie.”

They remained up at the Outlook for an hour or two more, slight glances and words being exchanged and perhaps one or two more playful kisses. They finally decided to return once they thought the kids may be worried about their whereabouts.

“Guess I’ll have to talk to Changbin when we get back.”

“You have to speak with Changbinnie? How come?”

“Made a deal with him. He said that the day that I told you about how I felt, he would tell Felix that he liked him too. Let’s see if he’s true to his word.”

“Oh, you may have an evil streak in you that I haven’t seen before. Another reason to love you, I guess.” Chan buried his face deep into Kyuhoon’s neck as they walked, snaking his arms around the other’s waist, not wanting the older boy to stray too far from his embrace. Kyuhoon thought he would never get tired of hearing Chan saying that he loved him, not knowing that Chan was thinking the exact same thing when it came to Kyuhoon.

Chapter Text

As they approached the bedroom door, Chan and Kyuhoon faltered slightly at the noise, or lack thereof. No sound came from the room that they were certain the other members resided in. Whatever else the eldest boys had in common, their brotherly instincts to protect the youngsters was top of the list. Hurriedly opening the door, both relaxed when they saw the mess of bodies on the floor.

Changbin had his arms firmly wrapped around Jisung’s neck, almost looking like he was strangling the boy. However, the way that Jisung snuggled into the Medic showed that he was not in trouble but more than comfortable as his hyung held him close while they slept. Minho sat against the wall with Seungmin and Felix asleep on either side of him, his arms hugging them close and protecting them, making sure that nobody would take them away. Hyunjin’s hand was placed upon Jeongin’s head as it rested on his lap, indicating that he had been stroking his hair until both of them had drifted off.

They almost cooed at the scene in front of them. Almost.

The wreckage around the boys made it seem like an incredible battle had taken place. Bed sheets were flung all over the room, curtains were dragged off of the railings, the contents of the boys’ bags were strewn across the ground. Yet, they all slept peacefully in the midst of the madness.

“What the hell did we miss? This is why one of us needs to constantly be with them. No more leaving Minho or Changbin in charge of the kids. It obviously doesn’t work well.”

Chan managed a small laugh but he wasn’t sure if it was because of Kyuhoon’s observation or caused by the disbelief of the state of the room in front of them.

“They’re going to be complaining about their backs tomorrow after sleeping on the floor like this. How are those four going to compete if their muscles are killing them? I’ll wake them up and tell them to go to bed.” Kyuhoon moved forward to raise the sleeping youths but a firm grasp around his wrist quickly halted him.

“Don’t. They look too cute, we wouldn’t want to disturb their precious sleep. Plus, this is my room that I’m sharing with Seungminnie and I am not going to be the one cleaning it up. They can do that when we wake them up really early in the morning. I’m thinking some sort of air horn, something to scare the crap out of them. What do you think?”

“Bang Chan, you really want to put our boys through that?”

“Damn right I do. Hey, isn’t that one of your songbooks ripped to shreds by Jisungie’s head?”

Kyuhoon’s eyes shot to the torn pages falling from the book that he had been reading only last night before he went to bed.

“I don’t know if an air horn would be loud enough,” Kyuhoon sighed heavily, massaging his temples at the sight of his possessions being destroyed by young hands. “Being a parent is freaking exhausting.”

Chan’s giggles fluttered past Kyuhoon’s ear as he placed his chin on the older boy’s shoulder.

“I’m here now. You don’t have to deal with them alone. I’ll help you in any way I can, Kyu.” Chan’s lips gently brushed off of Kyuhoon’s jaw, causing the Bard to turn and smack the boy who was now grinning maniacally.

“What if they wake up?”

“What if they do? They’ll find out eventually. That I’m crazy about you, that I’m head over heels in love with you, that I think you have the softest, most beautiful lips I’ve ever-” Kyuhoon’s hands clasped over Chan’s mouth to stop him from spilling any more embarrassing praises that were causing his cheeks to flush dramatically.

“Ok, I get it, now shut up. Let’s go, they can deal with their punishment in the morning.”

Kyuhoon closed the door carefully behind him, trying not to disturb the sleeping members, never noticing the two boys who hadn’t fallen asleep in the first place.

“Ha, told you that’s where they were, Jisungie. You owe me one hundred coins. They confessed before the first month was up. You lose.”

“Minho hyung, I’m not so much worried about paying you the money as I am about getting my ass kicked tomorrow by Kyuhoon hyung. He really loved that book.”

“Deal with it tomorrow, Jisungie. For now, just go to sleep.”

“All right, everybody up, up, up!”

It hadn’t been an air horn but Changbin did wonder where Chan had managed to find two cooking pots to bang together. He couldn’t remember if they had bought them along with the rest of their camping equipment but cursed whoever gave them to the older boy.

Jeongin jumped up immediately, stepping on Felix’s hand in the process and causing curses to fall from the freckled boy’s mouth.

“Chan hyung, what the ever loving f-“

“Ah, Jisung, watch your mouth!” Kyuhoon leaned against the doorframe as he watched Chan wake the younger boys up, his warning look placed firmly upon the Thief.

“I’ve come to wake the seven of you up so that we can discuss what happened here last night. Seven of you. There should be seven of you, so why are there only five? Where the hell are Hyunjin and Seungmin?”

Chan’s eyes darted around the room in search of the boys that obviously weren’t there. Before either Chan or Kyuhoon could panic too much, Felix held up a small piece of paper that had been left on the study desk in the room. How Felix managed to distinguish that the note was not just another piece of trash from last night stumped Minho.

“Don’t worry, hyung. They left a note.” Chan made his way over to the disgruntled boy and carefully took the paper from his hands.

‘Minnie and I are going to the training grounds to practice before the match. We will meet you at the stadium.

P.S. Neither of us caused any of the mess from last night. That was all Jisungie and Changbinnie hyung. Whoever is reading this, make sure to punish them really harshly. Hyunjin.’

“Ah, they managed to escape and rat Jisung and Changbin out at the same time. Hyunjin seems to be working for us now. Says the two of you caused this mess. Is that true?”

While Jisung and Changbin shouted that they had nothing to do with it, neither of the boys noticed Minho, Felix and Jeongin furiously pointing to them and nodding their heads, obviously not wanting to take the blame for something that didn’t involve them.

“Looks like you don’t have any true friends here either. The others are selling you out too.” Gesturing to the boys behind them with a nod of his head, Chan began to walk towards Kyuhoon in the doorway as Jisung and Changbin looked around at the boys who had betrayed them.

“I don’t care what the reason was, both of you clean up your mess. Think of it as a training exercise to strengthen your teamwork before your match today. Oh, and Kyuhoon wants to talk to the both of you. Something about buying a new book?”

Chan sauntered out of the door, closely followed by Minho, Felix and Jeongin, who turned to salute the two boys left standing in the room with a sympathetic smile.

“Hwang Hyunjin, you fucking snake. Why do I keep getting betrayed by all of my friends? He was supposed to help me kill you last night.”

“Wait, what?”

“So, Jisungie, Changbinnie, what exactly happened here last night? And why was my book a victim?” Neither of them quite knew how to respond to the Bard’s glare but they knew that if they didn’t come up with an adequate reason, they were both dead.

Felix and Jeongin led the group towards the stadium, meeting Seungmin and Hyunjin along the way. Changbin instantly jumped on Hyunjin’s back at the sight of him returning, shouting something about ‘betrayal’ and ‘never trusting him again’.

Once he had finished admonishing the Alchemist, Changbin felt a strong arm tug him back, slightly out of earshot of the others walking down the bustling street.

“Hyung, I’ll buy you a new songbook, you don’t have to scold me again. Why are you only picking on me? Jisung was the cause of the whole fight!”

“Changbin, relax. That’s not what I want to talk to you about. I just wanted to tell you again that you should really tell Felix about your feelings for him. Don’t keep hiding it.” Kyuhoon kept his eyes straight ahead of him, maneuvering both Changbin and himself through the crowd.

“Nice try, hyung but we made a deal. I’ll tell Felix when you tell Chan hyung.” Smiling like he had already won the argument, Changbin turned to look at Kyuhoon, who had his eyebrows raised to show him that he had, in fact, lost.

“W-wait. You didn’t. Is that where the two of you were last night? No way, what happened?!”

Changbin had stopped in the middle of the path, earning himself glares from the people walking behind him, trying to get past.

Kyuhoon pulled his arm to keep both of them walking at a steady pace, making sure not to lose the others in front of them. “I brought him up to the Outlook above the city. To be honest, I had no intention of confessing, I just wanted to share somewhere special with him. He started saying all of these wonderful things about me and before I could really stop myself, I kissed him.”

Changbin’s reaction made them seem like two teenagers talking about their first crush, squealing and bouncing up and down as Kyuhoon relayed the events of last night.

“When I did though, he froze up, didn’t kiss me back and I thought that I had made a really big mistake. I was about to sprint back to the inn but he spun me around, kissed me and let me tell you, it was…” Kyuhoon covered his face, trying to hide his giddy smile and tinted cheeks all at the same time.

“Oh my god, hyung. It’s ok, I don’t need to hear any details like that. So, what happened after that?”

“He-he told me that he loved me. We stayed up at the Outlook for another while and came back to the inn, where we found the destruction that you and Jisung had caused. That’s pretty much it.” The smile on Kyuhoon’s face hadn’t faltered throughout his recollection, showing Changbin how much what happened last night really meant to the Bard.

“Well, I’m very happy for you, Kyu hyung. I presume you told Chan hyung that you loved him too.”

“Yeah, of course I did.”

“So, who said it first? You or him?”

“Channie said it first.”

“Ah, then technically, you didn’t tell him how you felt, he told you and you simply replied in kind.”

“I think the kiss that I initiated first pretty much expressed my feelings. Stop trying to get out of our deal on a technicality. Tell Felix already. I think you’ll be happy with the result.” Gently tapping Changbin’s cheek, Kyuhoon finally detached himself and made his way up to Chan, hooking arms with him instead.

Changbin knew that Kyuhoon would keep pestering him about this until he did it but he didn’t want it to be some on the spot thing. He wanted to be prepared when he talked to Felix, though he had really been preparing himself since he realised how he felt about the other. He didn’t have time to think about that now. He had to focus on the second round of the tournament. He had to focus on Jisung and their match. At least, that’s what he told himself.

The second day of the tournament wasn’t nearly as eventful as the first, with all of the matches moving along quite smoothly. The crowd's reactions and cheers hadn’t diminished however, still being as loud and enthusiastic as the previous day. There were no more big surprises since all of the fighters had revealed their classes within their first matches so now, it was just a matter of seeing the teams using their opponent’s classes against them.

Changbin and Jisung managed to pull the number one ball out of the lots, with Hyunjin and Seungmin pulling out number seven. The Medic and Thief faced off against a Danseur and Bard by the names of Sungwoon and Minhyun, who seemed to be a number of years older than the two of them but still retained a youthful appearance.

The match lasted exactly six minutes in length, Changbin and Jisung both content with the fact that they managed to win their match in a shorter amount of time than the day before. While their opponents may have been stronger than their previous ones, they seemed to run out of stamina a lot faster, obviously being too cocky and trying to finish the match as quickly as possible. It had been a punishment on Chan’s part but their cleaning up exercise earlier in the morning did give the boys time to discuss their strategies for the day.

Sungwoon and his Danseur class allowed him to move at quite a substantial pace but Jisung’s speed couldn’t be matched by the older man. Running rings around him, Jisung managed to incapacitate his opponent while Changbin cast his buffs to allow Jisung to accumulate more energy to continue to strike. Minhyun tried to help out his teammate as best he could but Jisung had managed to move onto taking him down by the time he had sung the first two lines of his melody.

They were rather glad that they had pulled the lot for the first match out since they could now relax and watch the rest of the matches without having to worry. They still had to wait and see if Seungmin and Hyunjin would make it through but in the end, they didn’t have anything to be concerned about. In fact, Changbin and Jisung made a silent promise to complete their next match even faster than today since the other two boys managed to win in just over four minutes. They promised themselves that they were happy for their members and not in any way competitive towards them. Not at all.

Hyunjin may or may not have woken Seungmin up earlier than anticipated to go to the training ground. Once there, he may or may not have forced him to learn a handshake that they would use if they won their matches. It may or may not have taken the entire morning to master because of how complicated Hyunjin had made it but apparently, there’s no fun if a celebratory handshake doesn’t look cool.

Seungmin couldn’t help but laugh at Hyunjin’s euphoria at winning their second match, quickly completing their celebration.

“Yeah, Minnie! We are awesome. See? Second match completed and nary a problem.”

“Nary? Really?”

“What? You’re not the only one who knows fancy words. Come on, let’s go back to Jisungie and Changbinnie hyung. We can watch the rest of the matches in peace.”

Backstage, the four boys were joined by Bambam and Yugyeom after they too had won their match. Yugyeom asked Seungmin about Jeongin’s progress with regards to summoning his wisps, with the younger boy replying that he was advancing at a rather quick pace. Though Yugyeom had told Jeongin that he wanted the wisp to be present for at least five minutes the next time they trained together, Seungmin admitted that he had managed to keep the little spirit around for almost ten last night before becoming slightly tired. Yugyeom was indeed surprised about his protégé’s progress, silently complimenting him on completing such a feat.

Once all of the matches were complete, all of the competitors were called into the ring by the spectral referee.

“I would like to congratulate all of those who have managed to make it to the final twelve groups in the tournament. You have all performed splendidly and we are very impressed with what you have shown us.”

“Why is he saying all of this? Who gives a fuck if they’re impressed?”

Kyuhoon slapped Minho’s arm at his crude use of language in front of Jeongin and Felix, even though the two younger boys simply laughed at their hyung’s profanity.

“Contrary to how things have progressed so far, you will no longer be drawing lots to divide you into matches. From now on we, the judges, will decide who you fight based on the classes that all of you hold. We have the matches for tomorrow already planned out. Please turn your attention towards the screen to see who you shall face in the third round.” The twelve remaining teams looked to the table to find their opponents.

Felix sat forward a little in his seat upon seeing the matchups for the next round. “Well, shit…”

Kyuhoon made no move to reprimand the boy for his foul language since he too wanted nothing more than to curse at the referees for how they had planned this out. Once they saw Hyunjin and Seungmin being paired up against Seunghyun, they knew that it wouldn’t be an easy match to watch.

In the ring, on the other hand, Hyunjin’s knuckles grew white as he clenched his fists with excitement.

“Finally. Finally, we’ll be able to kick that bastard’s ass. Minnie, this is it, the most important match so far. We have to go straight to the training grounds to practice for it.”

“Ah, Jinnie, I can’t. Jeongin is training again tonight, I have to go and help him.”

Hyunjin whipped his head around to stare at Seungmin, a disapproving glare forming on his face. “Seriously? What about the match? I thought you said that we were a team? You said that we’d beat Seunghyun with everything that we had but we can’t do that if we’re not prepared. You said that you had my back, was that a lie?”

Seungmin didn’t quite know how to respond to Hyunjin when he was pissed off, having never acted this way towards him before. The darkness in the older boy’s eyes made Seungmin feel that he should be very cautious about what he said next.

“Jinnie, I’ll always have your back but I promised Jeongin that I would help him see this through. He’s suffered so much and he’s finally getting the hang of it. He needs me”

“I need you too. Why are you choosing Jeongin over me? I’ve told you all about what this guy did to Felix and how he made our lives a living hell. You know damn well how much this means to me and you’re brushing it off like it’s nothing!”

Seungmin was starting to get a little annoyed at the accusatory tone in Hyunjin’s voice that made it seem like he was doing something unthinkable. Turning to face the Alchemist, Seungmin tried to keep his voice steady, though he wasn’t sure if it had begun to shake because he was irritated or scared.

“Jinnie, I’m not choosing him over you, I would never do that to any of my friends. You both mean so much to me but-”

“But. You know what, Seungmin, it’s fine. You go and help Jeongin if you think that’s what takes priority. You promised me that you would help me defeat him but just forget about it. I don’t need you anyways.”

Hyunjin turned around to face the screen again, leaving the palpable tension to make its way between the two of them and force them even further apart. Once the referee dismissed them for the day, Hyunjin immediately left Seungmin’s side, not noticing the hand that went to clasp his just a second too late.

The final cheers of the day were inaudible to Seungmin as he became lost inside of his head. He couldn’t believe how quickly his conversation with Hyunjin had gone so wrong. He knew why the Alchemist wanted to train for the match but he had made a commitment to Jeongin and he wasn’t simply going to abandon him, especially since he was doing so well. After a heavy sigh, Seungmin began to follow the other competitors out of the stadium before he felt both of his hands being grasped by encouraging ones.

“Seungmin, listen to me. Hyunjin is just a little agitated after seeing Seunghyun again. Believe me, we all are. Don’t take it personally, ok? He’s just venting his anger but that doesn’t give him the right to take it out on you. What he said was completely out of line. I’ll talk to him.”

Seungmin shook his head towards Jisung after his kind offer, telling the slightly older boy that it didn’t bother him. Changbin was quick to object, letting Seungmin know that Hyunjin had been in the wrong but he really didn’t want to make the situation worse than it already was and asked both of the boys to just drop the subject. He knew that he had been the one at fault anyways, like he usually was. The three of them walked hand in hand towards the exit where they met the rest of the group.

Jisung detached from Seungmin to move towards the others. “Hey, where did Hyunjin go?

“Uh, he went straight to the training grounds. I was surprised he didn’t wait for Seungmin but when I asked him about it, he kind of just glared at me and walked off. What was that about?” Minho began to walk with the rest of the boys towards the Airgead bar they had become so used to visiting over the last couple of days as he spoke with Jisung.

After the Thief told him about the events in the ring, a rather agitated voice broke the conversation between them.

“Hyunjin seriously said that to Seungmin? Why is he acting like such a child? We’re all pissed at Seunghyun, me more than anyone but he won’t get away with talking to someone like that. Seungmin, don’t worry about it, I’ll speak with him and he won’t have a choice but to listen.”

Felix promptly took off towards the training grounds to find Hyunjin. Changbin followed him soon after, mumbling something about making sure that Felix wouldn’t kill the Alchemist, though nobody was quite sure if he was joking or not.

Seungmin stayed at the back of the group alone, reprimanding himself for screwing up one of the only decent friendships he had ever had. After seeing the look on Hyunjin’s face, he was unsure whether or not Felix could say something to make Hyunjin revert back to normal when it came to his relationship with him. He knew it was foolish, yet it didn’t stop the tears from welling up in his eyes. He didn’t want the Alchemist to be angry with him, he didn’t want to have to choose between his friends and he most certainly did not want his relationship to diminish with Hyunjin, especially not with Hyunjin.

As he continued walking, his face was suddenly hidden away into someone’s neck, masking the tears that were starting to make their way down his cheeks.

“Shh, Seungminnie, don’t cry. Hyunjin will come around, don’t you worry about that. He cares too much about his friends to stay angry at them for long. Here you go.”

Seungmin took the tissue offered to him by Chan as they continued to progress and wiped his eyes. It was funny to him. Throughout his time in Siwan’s house, he had never really cried about his circumstances, unless he counted crying out in agony, which he didn’t. However, the thoughts of Hyunjin not being his friend anymore was enough to draw the tears from his eyes. He feared that he had done too much damage by refusing the one request that the Alchemist had asked of him, especially after Hyunjin had already done so much for him. Seungmin knew that the other boy was right. He had made a promise to help him and he wasn’t doing a very good job at keeping it. Chan kept Seungmin’s head nestled into his shoulder until they reached the bar where the boys took turns comforting the Illusionist, making sure that he never felt that he was alone.

The punching bag swung from side to side as Hyunjin laid into it with as much strength as he could. All he could do was picture Seunghyun’s face as his fists came into contact with the sticky vinyl. After a rather vicious punch, the side of the bag garnered a small slit, causing small grains of sand to slip from the incision and litter the ground.

Hyunjin stumbled backwards, falling to the floor and removing the gloves he had been using to train before running his aching fingers through his sweat drenched hair. “Shit…”

“Hyunjin!”

He knew Felix’s voice the moment he heard it but the fact that the boy was calling him by his given name showed that he was obviously not in any sort of joking mood. The only times he called him Hyunjin was when he was extremely upset or pissed at the Alchemist. Not that this surprised him, Hyunjin knew exactly why Felix had come to find him and possibly rip his head off.

“I’m here, Lix.” Hyunjin stood and steadied himself, trying to prepare for the oncoming storm about to rush towards him. He couldn’t say that he was all that shocked to see that Changbin was following Felix into the tent in which he was training. They were more or less attached at the hip at this stage.

“Did you seriously snap at Seungmin because he wanted to help Jeongin train instead of going with you?”

Hyunjin realised how childish his actions sounded when Felix phrased it like that, like he was a spoiled brat who acted out when he didn’t get his way.

“Look, he doesn’t get how important this match is going to be. I just wanted to make sure that we were prepared for it. You should understand that, Lix.”

Felix’s gaze pierced through Hyunjin, obviously not impressed with the older boy trying to justify his actions towards Seungmin.

“Don’t give me some lame ass excuse for treating our friend like that. I have more of a right than anyone to be furious with Seunghyun but I’m not the one acting like an impudent child. You need to find Seungmin and you need to grovel. You need to beg for forgiveness because he was close to tears when I came here to find you and you’re the cause of that, Hyunjin. So go and fix your damn mistake.”

Hyunjin admitted that he had a bit of stubborness in him and it was that small amount that was being fueled by his anger towards Seunghyun at this very moment.

“Lix, you’re making too big of a deal out of this.”

“I am, huh? Well, missing my training shouldn’t make that much of a difference to you then since you think Seungmin can miss Jeongin’s. Until you find and make up with Seungmin, you’re banned from helping me perfect my Beast Master abilities.”

“What?! Felix-”

“Leave, Hyunjin. Changbin hyung will stay and help me but I don’t want to see you again until you’ve apologised to Seungmin.”

Of all the outcomes he had expected, this certainly wasn’t one of them. He wanted nothing more than to help Felix overcome his fear but now he was being removed from the equation and that pissed him off even more than he already was. Exhaling through his teeth, Hyunjin glared at both Changbin and Felix before making his way out of the tent into the evening air.

“Oh, he was not a happy bunny, Lix. You think that was the smartest idea? He looked even angrier than he did when we entered.” Changbin couldn’t help but stare at the exit which Hyunjin had just stormed through, hoping that the boy wouldn’t do something that he regretted.

“Jinnie is a stubborn idiot, he fixates on stupid things, he lashes out at the wrong people sometimes but the thing is, he’s a good person, a great friend and he will always apologise in the end. Pleading with him doesn’t get anywhere, you just need to make him see that he has done wrong and he will make it right. They’ll be friends again before the night is over. Though, I can’t say the same thing about the two of us. He did seem pretty pissed at me, didn’t he?”

“Oh, good, you did pick up on that. Don’t worry Lix, he loves you, he’ll forgive you soon enough. So, now that we’re here, do you want to try training again? I get if you’d rather skip it tonight.” If Changbin was being honest with himself, after last night, he was kind of hoping that Felix would agree to drop it but he had no such luck.

“No, hyung, I’d like to give it another go. If that’s alright with you?”

Changbin moved forward with a nod of his head, already removing the staff from his back in case the events of last night repeated themselves. “Lix, what’s the incantation you’re going to use? Say it for me now before you focus your energy on it and try to summon the Chiyeou.”

“Adiutorium meum intende, vulpes. I did the reading like you said last night, hyung. I won’t screw up this time. At least, not the incantation.” Felix gave a weak smile as, no matter how much he wanted to do this, there was always the sliver of fear in the back of his mind.

“Ok, Lix, go ahead.”

Stepping into the ring once again, Felix raised his arms and clearly stated the words that he had just uttered to Changbin. The sand began to stir again but this time, a Bafrer did not appear. Instead, the little jade fox that they had come across before made its appearance. Unlike the evil spirit that had formed the previous night, the Chiyeou wasn’t a hostile monster by nature, being quite docile as it sat and stared at Felix and Changbin with curious eyes.

Felix attempted to steady his breathing as it rocked within his chest. He knew that the Chiyeou wouldn’t attack him unless he tried to harm it but the anxiousness still didn’t disappear.

“Lix, you can do this. Give it an order.” Changbin moved closer but didn’t touch Felix in any way in case it caused him to lose focus.

“Audite vocem meam, creo venti.” Felix wondered if the small fox would take his command seriously since both he and his voice were trembling like a leaf but when it began to stand and open its mouth, a small bud of hope began to blossom in his chest.

Though Changbin had tried to learn some of the Latin phrases that Felix would use to command his beasts, he hadn’t become anywhere near fluent and had no idea what Felix had just asked the little monster to do. It occurred to him that this is what it must have been like for Felix when he first came to Korea, barely understanding the language that he needed to survive. It only added to the respect that he had for the boy since he knew it couldn’t have been easy.

The Chiyeou squeaked a little as a rather strong gust of air fell from its mouth and blew towards the boys. Changbin surmised that the boy in front of him must have asked the little nature monster to create the wind that it would usually use to scare off enemies. It was calming, cool and not in any way threatening and Changbin knew that this was because Felix was managing to control it.

Felix wasn’t sure if his heart rate was rising because of his fear or the fact that the miniature beast in front of him was listening to what he had asked him to do. His stance began to shake a little and he decided within himself that he had done enough.

“Ut relinquam te.”

Again, the Chiyeou listened to Felix as he told it to depart. Evaporating into sparkling green dust, the Chiyeou disappeared into thin air, leaving Changbin and Felix to stand in the middle of the training arena alone.

“D-did I just manage to manifest a beast and give it an order? That wasn’t an illusion, right? I did it?”

Changbin was at Felix’s side in an instant, hugging the freckled boy as they hopped up and down and laughed madly at the great success of the training.

“Lee Felix! You managed to summon a beast and keep it here for nearly three minutes! If that’s not an accomplishment, then I don’t know what is! Ah, I’m so proud of you!” Changbin kept swinging the boy around, their joviality never finding reason to cease.

Once they had exhausted their energy, both boys stood still, their arms placed around each other’s shoulders and simply cherished the small victory that had just taken place. Changbin knew that this would probably be the perfect opportunity to complete his promise with Kyuhoon since nobody knew that they were here. Hyunjin did but he was more than sure he wouldn’t return after Felix’s little outburst.

“Lix, remember the last day when I said that I needed to speak to you about something?” Felix nodded, still leaning into Changbin’s hug. “Think I could talk to you about it now?” Again, Felix nodded his head but moved away to properly look at the Medic. Changbin thought Felix’s eyes were magical. They always seemed to have a sparkle in them, even when he smiled and they crinkled shut. The star like freckles on his cheeks only drew him in more as he stared at the younger boy.

“So, Lix. I’ve been wanting to tell you something for quite a while now and I feel like I should just come out and say it.”

“See, hyung, I was right. They’re still here.”

Changbin wondered if life would have been easier if he had killed Jisung last night. He also questioned if Jisung was doing this on purpose because every time he went to confess to Felix, the Thief was there, ready to interrupt it.

“Why are the two of you still in the training area? You must have found Hyunjin since he isn’t here- uh, hyung, why do you look like you want to strangle me again?”

“Jisung, just get away from me before I do something that I regret.” Changbin began to stomp towards the door, gaining a curious look from Minho.

“Minho hyung, Jisungie! You’ll never guess what I just did…”

Though Changbin was annoyed that the admission of his feelings had been cut short once again, he couldn’t help but smile as he heard Felix boast about his achievement, with Minho and Jisung loudly congratulating him shortly afterwards. He was content enough that Felix was happy. He knew the perfect opportunity would come around eventually, he just wished that it would come a little bit faster.

Hyunjin moodily made his way through the main street, brushing off of bystanders without giving them so much as a backwards glance. He was annoyed and tense and very aware that how he felt was entirely his fault. His chest began to burn as he thought back to how he had treated Seungmin earlier on in the day. His venomous tone was the result of the internalised anger he felt towards Seunghyun and he had thrown such harsh and appalling lies towards Seungmin with it lacing his words. That wasn’t him. He hadn’t meant any of what he said but he had still said it. Felix had practically yelled that Seungmin had almost been crying when he last saw him, making Hyunjin feel even worse than he already did, which he knew he deserved. Back in Aquiria, when Seungmin had begun to break at the thought of Siwan coming to take him back, Hyunjin had made a promise to himself that he would try everything in his power to make sure that he would never see Seungmin’s tears again. Yet, according to Felix, he had been the one to cause them and that was killing him.

Walking into the bar where he knew the others in his group had gone, he scanned the area before he saw Kyuhoon sitting at the bar by himself, Seungmin nowhere in sight.

“Kyu hyung…”

“Seungmin isn’t here.”

Kyuhoon didn’t look up from his drink, making it very clear to Hyunjin that he was just as pissed with him as Felix was. He had dug a very deep hole with his words and he wasn’t quite sure how to get out of it.

“Hyung, I’m sorry-”

“I don’t think I’m the one you should be saying sorry to. Do you, Hyunjin?” Kyuhoon turned and raised his eyebrows at the Alchemist, jumping off of the stool he had been placed on.

Hyunjin had always seen Kyuhoon as someone he could trust without fail, a confidant, a hyung who he could talk to about absolutely anything and seeing the older boy so disappointed in him was causing him to crack ever so slightly. “Do you know where he went?”

“Like he said, he went to help Innie with his training. He’s been gone for a while, he didn’t stay for very long. I think he got tired of people asking him if he was alright and having to say that he was.” Hyunjin’s head fell at that, cursing himself again for taking his irritation towards Seunghyun out on Seungmin.

“Look, Hyunjinnie, I know that people’s anger can get the better of them at times but you directed yours at the wrong person, at one of the people that you care about the most.” The Alchemist’s glossy eyes met with Kyuhoon’s, the older boy obviously wise to Hyunjin’s feelings towards Seungmin. “So, go and fix your mistake. He’s probably still at the training grounds with Jeongin. Go on, off with you.”

Kyuhoon’s comforting smile made an appearance, his earlier anger subsiding once he saw the regret in Hyunjin’s eyes. Though he had said some hurtful things, Kyuhoon knew that Hyunjin didn’t have an ounce of bad blood in his body. He wasn’t blind to the way that Hyunjin always took care of the members in the group and made sure that they were safe. Giving a reassuring squeeze to the younger boy’s hand, he ushered Hyunjin off.

After thanking Kyuhoon, Hyunjin made his way back to the training areas once again. Just as he approached, Chan and Jeongin rounded a corner, almost colliding with the Alchemist. Glancing around, he noticed that, once again, Seungmin wasn’t with them even though Kyuhoon had said that this was where he had gone.

“Ah, Chan hyung, Innie, where is he?”

Hyunjin bent down, placing his hands on his knees as he tried to catch his breath. Both boys held a look of disapproval on their faces, causing Hyunjin to break. “I know, I know, I’m an ass. I shouldn’t have said what I said but I’m trying to find him so that I can apologise, so can you just tell me where Minnie is? Please?”

Upon hearing the nickname that Hyunjin was so fond of return, both looked at each other, softening. “Seungminnie went up to the Outlook for a while. Said he wanted to be alone but I don’t think he’d mind your company. Fix-”

“-my mistake. Yeah, I know. Why does everyone keep saying that to me? Thanks, I’ll see you later.”

It took Hyunjin another fifteen minutes to reach the top of the hill, his lungs well and truly wrecked. He trudged up the steps before suddenly stopping in his tracks. He saw Seungmin sitting forward, eyes closed, legs hanging over the side of the cliff and his mind automatically jumped to the worst conclusion. However, his wobbling legs steadied themselves once he heard the sweetest melody falling from the young boy’s lips.

I'm trying to hold my breath,

Let it stay this way,

Can't let this moment end.

You set off a dream in me,

Getting louder now,

Can you hear it echoing?

Take my hand,

Will you share this with me?

'Cause darling, without you…

Hyunjin was rooted to the ground as he listened to the moving lyrics of the song, his eyes never leaving the boy’s still form. If there had been any tension left in his body, Seungmin’s song had made it evaporate into the cool evening air. Jaw hanging open, Hyunjin couldn’t believe that Seungmin had managed to hide such a talent from him all this time.

All the shine of a thousand spotlights,

All the stars we steal from the night sky,

Will never be enough, never be enough,

Towers  of gold are still too little,

These hands could hold the world but it'll,

Never be enough, never be enough,

For me, never, never,

Never, never,

Never, for me, for me.

“Minnie…” Hyunjin hadn’t realised that he had come to stand so close to Seungmin until he spoke. The younger boy obviously hadn’t heard Hyunjin approach either, being so immersed in his song that when he turned around to see who had spoken, he almost slipped off the overhanging edge to the ground below. Hyunjin hastily ran forward, grabbing Seungmin’s shoulders and pulling him back to safety. “Minnie, be careful!”

“Ah, I’m not Seungmin anymore, then? Back to Minnie?”

Ashamed eyes averted themselves from Seungmin as Hyunjin was called out on his immature behaviour from earlier. He had planned out everything that he wanted to say to the younger boy on his way up to the Outlook but seeing Seungmin’s eyes still gleaming from the tears he had spilled earlier because of him made the Alchemist forget everything.

“Minnie, I am so, so sorry. I acted like an entitled asshole earlier. You’re my teammate, my friend and I had no right to order you around like that. I just- when I saw that we were finally up against Seunghyun, I- no, that’s an excuse and that’s not what I came here to give you. I came here to apologise and ask for your forgiveness. I understand if you can’t give that to me straight away and that our team within the competition might be compromised because of how I acted but I want you to know that I am really sorry. If you want to hit me or something, I’ll understand. In fact, I encourage it.”

Hyunjin turned his cheek towards Seungmin and scrunched his eyes shut, waiting for the incoming slap. Instead, a small tap hit his cheek and forced him to open his eyes to look at the Illusionist, who was smiling softly at him.

“Jinnie, it’s fine. You just wanted to get some justice for what happened to Felix. You were right, I am your teammate and I should be there to help you. So, I’m sorry for letting you down and not meeting your expectations.”

Seungmin’s head fell slightly but a small knock on the crown of his head compelled him to look up again.

“Minnie, this was in no way your fault yet you’re still blaming yourself. You’ve got to stop doing that. How I acted was not fine and if I, or anyone else, ever treats you like that again, don’t stand there and take it. Punch their lights out!”

The giggle that Hyunjin received in response to his very serious advice made him relax a little since he thought Seungmin mightn’t be as angry as he thought he would have been. “Oh, by the way, you’ve got one hell of a pretty voice.”

Colour flooded Seungmin’s cheeks at the sudden compliment, causing Hyunjin to melt a little on the inside.

“N-nobody was supposed to hear that. Jisung and Minho hyung are supposed to be the ones who can sneak up on people. I didn’t know that you could do it to.” Twiddling his thumbs to try and distract himself, Seungmin didn’t quite know how to react to Hyunjin’s fixed stare upon him.

“Why wasn’t I supposed to hear it? You should let more people hear it. You’re really talented. You should sing something with Kyu hyung.”

“No. I don’t like singing in front of others. It’s just something to get myself through hard times. I used to do it a lot in Siwan’s house when I was alone. I use it to clear my head if I’m annoyed or upset or-”

“-if one of your idiotic friends happens to make you cry because they hurt you?”

A tiny smile made its way to Seungmin’s face as Hyunjin made the observation while looking out over the city.

“Yeah, that too.”

The shine of the city lights illuminated the darkening sky as the two boys glanced over Morthan. Hyunjin wasn’t particularly fond of silences and tried to think of absolutely anything to talk about when something suddenly hit him.

“Minnie, I realise that you’ve never told me why you hold the class that you do and that I haven’t really told you why I possess mine.”

A confused frown caused Seungmin’s face to scrunch up. “You’ve told me. You said that your grandfather was a scientist and that you used to help him.” Seungmin didn’t protest when Hyunjin’s head fell upon his shoulder, the older boy exhaling deeply as he did so.

“I’ve told you and all of the others half of my story. Lix already knows but that’s it.”

“Oh? Do you want to talk to me about it now?”

“If you want to listen to it. It may change your view of me a little bit though.”

Seungmin wasn’t quite sure what it was but he could feel something shift inside of Hyunjin when he said this. The chill in the air swept around Seungmin’s ears and he pulled Hyunjin a little bit closer to try and shield him from the wind as the older boy began his story.

“I was exceedingly interested in science since I was pretty young. My grandfather being involved in that profession just spurred me on to pursue it as I grew up. The amount of time I spent with him was something I treasured very much. He taught me a hell of a lot of things that I would never have learned in school and I used to lap it up.”

Seungmin nodded his head before it fell on top of Hyunjin’s, making the Alchemist nestle into the younger boy’s warmth even more. “He had a very strict rule though. I was never to attempt anything unless he was with me, which made a lot of sense seeing as I was still a kid.

The air around them fluctuated slightly as Hyunjin shuffled uncomfortably in his seat. “We were alone in his lab one day and he was showing me how to create certain compounds. There was nitric acid and once I combined that with halogenated-”

Hyunjin cut himself off when he noticed Seungmin’s confused gaze upon him, indicating that he could drop all of the scientific lingo since he would understand absolutely none of it. Seungmin admitted that he read a lot but science had never been one of his favorite subjects.

“Uh, right, well to make things simple, when my grandfather wasn’t looking, I thought I’d be a smart ass and try mixing different chemicals together since I was so sure I knew what I was doing. Unfortunately, I didn’t pay attention to what was in one particular beaker and added some acid. The reaction was...unfavorable to say the least. The fume hood exploded. Glass and shrapnel flew everywhere. The fire it caused was suffocating and we barely managed to get out of there. My grandfather shielded me, he carried me out of there, so my injuries were fairly minimal but he didn’t get away unscathed. He suffered third degree burns and they were extracting glass out of his skin for hours. I can still hear him screaming, I can still remember the overwhelming stench of burning flesh.”

Hyunjin’s eyes glazed over for a moment as he recalled the memory that was obviously still fresh in his mind. “I was the cause of that, all because I was trying to show off. I visited him at home everyday after school to try and do as much as I could for him because he still suffers a lot from the pain he endured that day. He can’t move around like he used to because he protected me. People say you learn from your mistakes, which I did but every time I see him, it just reminds me of how stupid I am. Being here makes me think that he must be struggling a little bit since I’m not around to help him. He always wears the biggest smile whenever I see him and I try to return it but sometimes it’s hard, you know?”

Hyunjin was tired and Seungmin could see that. He wasn’t tired because he had a long, hard day, it was the sort of tiredness that came from constantly having to slap a smile on your face and ensure everyone that you were alright, even though you weren’t. Hyunjin had always been the mood maker of the group, constantly keeping up morale and energy with the other members but today he had just snapped, the weight of his many troubles finally catching up with him and Seungmin understood. If he was being honest, he understood that more than anyone.

“Channie hyung said that Innie thought that the reason he had the class that he does was some sort of punishment and I kind of feel that way sometimes too. I continued to try and be invested in what I loved to do but I was always reminded of what I did and in here, that seems to be the case as well.”

“Jinnie, that sounds awful but you’re not stupid. You were a kid and you made an error in judgement. Why haven’t you told the others about this?”

“Like I said, they might look at me differently if they knew.”

“Well, you told me and it didn’t make me see you any differently.”

“Really?”

“No, the way that you shouted at me earlier did though.”

Hyunjin raised his head from Seungmin’s shoulder to begin apologising for his actions again before Seungmin grabbed his shoulders and steadied him.

“Jinnie, it was a joke, I was trying to get the tension out of the air. Thank you for telling me about it. If there is anything else you ever want to talk about, just let me know.”

Hyunjin grabbed Seungmin’s hand and began to stroke it as a form of thanks for his support. He thought that maybe Seungmin was right as, after he had told Seungmin about his past, his chest felt just that little bit lighter, even if the guilt was still there. “Now, it’s your turn.”

“My turn?”

“Come on, Minnie. An eye for an eye and all that.”

“I don’t think you're using that idiom correctly but alright, I’ll tell you.” This time, it was Seungmin’s turn to lay his head down on the older boy’s shoulder, something he thought he had become exceedingly comfortable in doing.

“I’ve mentioned that I spent a lot of my childhood in the library reading and that was because I was never any good at making friends. I was very much an introvert and had pretty terrible social anxiety, not that any of that has particularly changed. A lot of the other kids thought I was weird and kept their distance.” Seungmin didn’t look particularly bothered by the fact that he had lived a pretty lonely life in his early years but Hyunjin moved into him a little bit more nonetheless.

“As I got older, my parents were pretty set on me getting into a prestigious college, not that they pushed me but they constantly dropped hints that I should keep my grades up, never really asking me what I wanted to do. They’re both high up government officials, so following in their footsteps was kind of expected. I think Changbin hyung said something along the same lines when he explained where his class came from.” Hyunjin thought back to how Changbin said that his parents had expected him to take over the family law firm, even though he had always wanted to become a doctor.

“I spent a lot of time at home alone because of their work, so the loneliness did rear its head every so often. Not that it was all bad, I became pretty independant. I learned how to cook, clean and pretty much take care of myself before I became a teenager.” Although Seungmin was positive when talking about how he grew up, to Hyunjin, it seemed rather sad that the younger boy had to live his childhood years in solitude.

“My class, however, probably comes from the fact that I was bullied pretty horribly in high school. Having such a high social standing, keeping to myself and having impeccable grades made me a pretty big target for those who thought I was too much of a teacher’s pet. My belongings being stolen, being tripped up in the hallway, getting stuffed into lockers. All in a day's work for those guys. Everyday they made a note to tell me that I wasn’t good enough, that there was a reason that I was alone and nobody wanted to hang out with me. After hearing stuff like that for a long time, it does make you start to think that they have a point.”

Hyunjin’s blood began to boil at the thoughts of someone treating Seungmin like that and he began to admonish himself even more when he thought back to how he had acted towards him earlier in the day.

“I kept a smile on my face to show that it didn’t bother me, even though it did, just a little bit. Pretty sure that’s why I’m an Illusionist. Creating a fake atmosphere and all that. Since they focused in on me so much, nobody wanted to get close to me in case they became a victim too. It was like I didn’t exist to the other students around me. Hence, how I’m able to become invisible. So, now you’re pretty much up to speed with me and my past.” Seungmin’s fake smile made its way to his face as he looked to Hyunjin, who quickly placed his arms around him.

“You always seem to talk about how much Innie has suffered, which I don’t doubt but it seems you’ve gone through a hell of a lot too, Minnie. Seriously, don’t sit still and take my crap anymore. Speak up more often and I will most certainly listen to you. Oh, also, I didn’t say it before but since I mentioned him, please don’t ever feel that you have to choose between me and Jeongin. I love Innie with all my heart and I would never want him to lose his best friend because of me. I’m glad you went with him today instead of coming with me. Did his training go well?”

Seungmin went on to summarize Jeongin’s training, telling Hyunjin about his wisps and the fact that he had managed to summon a Banshee, even if it was only for thirty seconds. Hyunjin looked just as lost as Seungmin did when he had begun to talk about the scientific elements that he had used, so Seungmin also explained the types of spirits that Yugyeom had talked about with the two boys. After their lengthy talk, with Hyunjin apologising profusely again, both boys headed back into the city, in much better spirits and feeling a little bit closer than they had before.

“They’ll be safe up there, right? It’s getting kind of dark. Should we go and look for them? No, we shouldn’t interrupt but what if something happened?”

“Hey, Mom, come away from the window. It’s not even nine yet. They’ll come back when they’re ready.” Chan turned to glare at Changbin as he sat on the ground playing cards with the other boys.

“Stop calling me mom...Binnie.”

Changbin’s head shot up at Joomi’s pet name for him and he made a move to stand up and fight Chan, fire in his eyes.

“I’ve never heard someone call you Binnie before, hyung. It’s cute. Binnie hyung? Can I call you that from now on?” Changbin had always hated the nickname but who was he to deny Felix when he made such a simple request? Kyuhoon and Chan’s knowing looks caused him to stutter ever so slightly before simply nodding towards Felix, slumping back down to his seated position.

The door to the bedroom creaked open to reveal Hyunjin and Seungmin, the jovial atmosphere of the room suddenly turning cold once all of the boys turned to look at them. Seungmin laughed with incredulity at the boys’ glares before moving forward.

“Woah, down, boys. He apologised, we’re all good. We had a nice long talk and we went to train for just a little while which is why we’re a little bit late. Sorry, Kyu hyung, Channie hyung.” Seungmin bowed a bit towards the eldest boys, almost as if he knew that they had been fretting over their absence.

“I still have to apologise to all of you guys though. I acted terribly today. I took my anger out on Minnie and some of the rest of you too and for that, I am extremely sorry.” Bending down to a ninety degree angle, more apologies fell from Hyunjin’s lips before the atmosphere of the room regained some of its brightness as the others accepted his apology.

Upon returning to an upright position, Hyunjin noticed that one pair of eyes were still set firmly on the playing cards in their hands. Walking over and bending down to place his chin on his head and arms around his neck, Hyunjin began to sway side to side.

“Lixie, you’re not still angry with me, are you?” cooed the Alchemist.

“Yeah, actually, I kinda am.” Hyunjin detached himself to move even further down to the floor to look Felix in the eyes.

“You are? I apologised, Lix and I really meant it!”

“I’m not still angry about how you acted, though that did really piss me off. I’m angry that I finally managed to summon a beast and give it a command and you weren’t there to see it.”

Hyunjin was on his feet in an instant, almost losing his balance as dizziness engulfed his head from standing up too quickly. “You did what?! Lix, that’s freaking incredible! And I missed it?!”

“Yeah. To think, if only you hadn’t been such an ass to Seungminnie, you could have been by my side. Think of that as your punishment.”

Before Felix could stop him, Hyunjin was securing him in a headlock and digging his knuckles into his platinum locks, causing high pitched screams to fall from the younger boy. The rest of the boys on the floor joined in on the playful torture, mostly aiming for Hyunjin to try and avenge Seungmin, who was also laughing at the scene in front of him. Kyuhoon and Chan could only look on at the hyperactive boys rolling around the floor. They let it continue on for a little while longer until Jeongin banged his head on the leg of the table, causing Kyuhoon’s belongings to fall out of his bag that was placed on top. Jisung and Changbin were out of the room before anyone knew what was happening. They had endured Kyuhoon’s wrath already today and they sure as hell weren’t going to go through that again.

Chapter Text

The last time Jeongin had disappeared without letting Chan and Seungmin know where he was going, it had resulted in quite a stern lecture from the Illusionist but knowing that both of them were fast asleep in their beds made the youngest boy think that he shouldn’t disturb them. Hopefully, leaving a note on his bed would suffice and avoid any panic. Jeongin grabbed his trainers, careful not to disturb Hyunjin sleeping on the opposite side of the room.

After everyone had returned to their rooms the previous night, Hyunjin had sat Jeongin down on his bed to apologise to him personally. Everyone had obviously known what went down between himself and Seungmin and he knew that Jeongin was very protective over the Illusionist so, even though he had said that he accepted his earlier apology, Hyunjin still felt the need to reiterate his feelings.

“Innie, I just need to make sure that you know that I’m not trying to drive a wedge between you and Minnie. I kinda lost myself in the moment yesterday and I cruelly used your friendship against him to try and make him see my point. So, please don’t think I’m trying to take him away from you. I’m not, I would never do that and I hope you know that. I love the both of you so much and again, I’m really sorry.”

Jeongin did know. In fact, he knew more than he had ever previously let on. “I get it, hyung. I know you would never do something like that. I know you love us, although, I think you love Seungmin hyung in a different kind of way.”

“Excuse me?”

“Oh, would you look at the time? Better go to bed. You wouldn’t want to be exhausted when you fight Seunghyun tomorrow. Nighty night, hyung.”

Jeongin did his best not to burst out laughing at the shock that crossed over Hyunjin’s face. Small, incoherent babbles spilled from the older boy’s mouth, trying to form sentences to ask the youngest boy what he had meant.

The morning light hadn’t started to flood through the window quite yet but Jeongin was more than awake, having already decided that he would be heading to the training grounds alone. Stepping out into the frosty morning air, Jeongin hugged his jacket just a little bit closer to try and trap the heat that kept him from freezing to death. He looked at his watch, the time now being slightly obscured by the condensation beginning to form on the face. 5:56 am. He had purposely woken up early so that he could get in some training before he would have to eat breakfast and travel to the stadium for the third day of the tournament with the rest of the group. He was excited but also slightly agitated after hearing about the type of man that Seunghyun was and what he had forced Felix and Hyunjin to go through. His own demon was dead but Hyunjin would have to come face to face with his today and try to hold himself back from killing him. Jeongin had managed to restrain himself but just barely, thanks to Seungmin. The silence of the city was eerie to the Necromancer since he had been so used to blending in with the crowds that roamed the street during the daytime but now, there was nobody.

“Innie?”

Jeongin was afraid that the shrill scream that he let out would wake the slumbering residents of the city as he quickly covered his mouth and cowered ever so slightly. However, he knew that there was no need to fear whoever it was that had called him since only the members of his group ever referred to him by that particular nickname. When he turned, his cheeks were suddenly held by frigid fingertips, making Jeongin recoil at the uncomfortable sensation against his warm skin.

“Minho hyung, how long have you been out here? Your hands are like ice.”

Minho retracted his fingers, stuffing them firmly inside the pockets of his parka and smiling affectionately towards Jeongin and his unimpressed expression.

“Couldn’t sleep. Went for a walk about an hour ago and was just coming back when I saw you heading out. Where are you going? And on your own? I don’t think the rest of your hyungs would be very happy about that. In case you haven’t noticed, you’re the baby that everyone has to take care of. That’s what Channie hyung told all of us anyways.”

Jeongin didn’t know whether to take that as a compliment or an insult and the unreadable look on Minho’s face didn’t help Jeongin figure out whether he had been joking or not. “I’m going to the training grounds and I would have told the others but they’re all sleeping and I didn’t want to wake them. I left a note, I’ll be fine. Inside of the city walls is safe enough. There are guards stationed all over the place.”

Thinking that he had made enough reasonable points, Jeongin bounced back and forth on his heels, waiting for a response from the older boy. Minho’s thoughts were displayed on his face before he even spoke.

“Be that as it may, I don’t think I feel very comfortable letting you go on your own. Is it ok if I tag along? I’d actually quite like to see some of your spirits. Plus, if Chan hyung and Kyu hyung discover that I let you out of my sight, they will literally rip my heart right out of my chest.”

Minho took Jeongin’s soft giggle as confirmation that he could accompany the young Necromancer to oversee his training. Once there, Jeongin shed his comfortable duffle coat as the heat was more than adequate inside of the tent. The reason that he wanted to come here so early in the first place wasn’t because he needed the practice but because he had actually come to enjoy using his powers and gaining more control over them. Yugyeom had complimented him on his steady and rather rapid improvement the night before, stating that he had come to have a lot of discipline and control over the spirits that he had managed to summon so far. The turnaround that Jeongin had experienced was unusual since he had promised himself never to use his abilities unless he had to when he was still a resident within Siwan’s house. However, after receiving both the training from Yugyeom and support from his hyungs, especially Seungmin, he was beginning to see all of the possibilities that had suddenly become available to him. He would no longer have to be protected by others, he could shield himself but more importantly, he could defend those that he cared about that surrounded him.

“So, Innie, what spirits can you actually summon?”

Carefully settling down on the floor, Minho crossed his legs beneath himself and placed his chin in his hands, waiting to see how much the Necromancer had progressed.

“Uh, well, I’ve pretty much gotten the hang of the will-o’-the-wisps. They’re rather easy to summon since they’re so small and don’t require a huge amount of energy. When I was with Yugyeom hyung and Seungminnie hyung last night, I managed to call a Banshee but it didn’t last very long. However, I still controlled it before I sent it away, so that’s something.” Jeongin had never been one for boasting but the fact that he had managed to get the hang of this so quickly made him feel rather good about himself.

Once Minho gave the go ahead, Jeongin stepped into the ring and started off easy by calling a wisp forth. The little spirit came alive immediately, bouncing around Jeongin’s shoulders as if it was happy for its presence to be requested by its master. Jeongin bopped the ghost with his head as a greeting, smiling as the light flew around his feet before rising all the way back up to float in front of his eyes. Minho became slightly confused when Jeongin pulled the little wisp close and began to whisper before he gave it a command to float over to him. He held out his palm, gently grasping the ghost before its hue shifted from a blazing blue to a brilliant orange and an echoing voice spilled from it.

“Minho hyung, did you know that wisps can deliver messages if I order them to?”

Minho looked over to Jeongin, who was grinning widely at his achievement, making the older boy scoff slightly at how quickly Jeongin had managed to advance in just a couple of days.

“No, I didn’t know that, Innie. That’s very impressive, you should be very proud of yourself.”

“Thank you. Ok, guess I’ll try the Banshee again. Ready?” the younger beamed.

The glowing wisp evaporated from Minho’s hand, allowing the older boy to focus on Jeongin calling forth his next spirit. Within a couple of seconds, a ghostly woman appeared in front of Jeongin, tears flowing from her abrased eyes. The young boy greeted her with a bow, obviously being told by Yugyeom that this is what was required to establish an interdependent relationship before she returned the salute.

Minho took in the spirit in front of him and felt a slight sense of fear rise up from his stomach, though he had no idea why. It could have been her appearance but Minho had come into contact with far more frightening things than the woman in front of him. The sickly feeling increased once he locked eyes with the Banshee and the ghost slowly made her way towards the spooked boy on the ground. Jeongin became slightly alarmed since he hadn’t given her a command and tried to follow the Banshee but stopped when she bent down to Minho and took his hand in hers, slowly stroking it as she began to sing.

Neither of the boys knew what she was saying as she was singing in a language with which they were not familiar but both could feel the emotion dripping from her words. Her harrowing gaze was fixed upon Minho as she continued and he began to feel extremely uncomfortable. When she had concluded her song, she leaned into Minho, her quiet voice barely above a whisper. Minho was relieved that she was inaudible to Jeongin and that he wouldn’t be able to hear what she said next.

“Child, death surrounds you but not in the same way that it encircles my master. It consumes your soul and it eats away at your light. You have so much blood on your hands. Mo grá, I have seen the spirits of those you have slain. All deserved their premature deaths but your first was not within this world. It was unintentional, a tragedy.”

Minho could feel a cold sweat beginning to fall down his back as his eyes widened at the spirit in front of him and her apparent knowledge about his past. This was a game, all of it an illusion, so there was no way that this woman could have known anything about his actions in the real world. His stomach clenched and he felt like he was going to be sick. Minho couldn’t take anymore and jumped up, ripping his hand from the tender hold placed around it. Jeongin rushed forward, afraid that the Banshee had done something to him after he had lost control and sent her away immediately.

“Hyung, are you alright? I’m sorry, she broke free of my control. Did she harm you? What did she say?” Jeongin grabbed the hand that had been released by the Banshee moments ago as he tried to meet Minho’s eyes, making sure that he was not hurt in any way.

“I-I’m fine, Innie. I don’t know what she said, it was in the language she was singing in earlier. Uh, you know what? Since I was up so early, I think I’ll head back and try to get some shut eye before we travel to the stadium. I’ll let one of the others know that you’re here, so stay and train for a little while longer if you want but don’t walk back on your own, ok?”

Before Jeongin could actually give a response, Minho was stumbling out the door into the morning air. Jeongin was sure that the Banshee had whispered something to Minho though he hadn’t heard what she had said. Whatever it was, it had caused Minho to turn pale, all colour draining from his face as his body trembled. If Minho didn’t want to tell Jeongin what it was, then he wasn’t going to push his hyung for an answer but the older boy’s reaction did worry him. Jeongin once again called his wisp forward, playing with the little ghost until the sun had risen and Felix and Jisung popped their heads into the tent to collect the youngest boy and head out for breakfast.

The electricity within Hyunjin bounced off of those who surrounded him. The reason for his enthusiasm was obvious to Seungmin but he tried to calm the older boy down, suggesting that he shouldn’t expend all of his energy before the match against Seunghyun even started. Jisung and Changbin followed suit, with the Thief rubbing Hyunjin’s shoulders while giving him a small pep talk and Changbin reminding him that Felix was safe, since that was the source of the Alchemist’s rage. The support of his friends made Hyunjin laugh, letting them know that after what happened yesterday, he was no longer in the same place with regards to his anger. He had come to an acceptance that no matter how the match today turned out, he would finally let go of the spite that had been eating away at him without his knowledge.

“Team five. Let’s go.”

Seungmin bounced up, pulling Hyunjin up along with him as it was now their turn to show Seunghyun what they were made of. Having trained for a short while last night, Hyunjin had informed the younger boy all about Seunghyun and his Trapper class. It was the reason that he and Felix had managed to ambush and attack so many innocent travellers during their time with the man. Seunghyun had a knack for laying traps and confining people until they gave him what he wanted. Most of his snares were invisible to other classes, which is why he was so successful in many of his attempts. Because of this, Hyunjin warned Seungmin that it was very important to be aware of everything that was happening around him. Something that didn’t even seem relevant may be the cause of their downfall. Seunghyun’s partner, another from his group who went by the name of Hajoon, held the class of Archer, which they knew a little about already, especially since Seungmin had a similar weapon but didn’t know the specific abilities that came along with the class.

Seungmin noticed that Hyunjin had a similar habit to Felix of bouncing his leg up and down when he was agitated. He poked the older boy’s cheek to gather his attention and draw his gaze towards him.

“Why are you so nervous? We’ll do great. Even if we lose and I’m not saying that we will, but if we do, we can at least put up one hell of a fight to show him that you never needed him or his stupid group. Let’s do this, Jinnie,” Seungmin declaed as he held his fist up to bump and once Hyunjin had calmed himself, he returned the smile being presented to him as he bounced his own fist off of the younger boy’s.

The crowd cheered as the two groups stood in front of one another, not knowing the deep history that they shared. The grin on Seunghyun’s face showed how cocky he was, thinking that he had already done enough to win the fight. Hyunjin thought that since Jisung and Changbin had heard what he had said to Seungmin in the ring yesterday, perhaps Seunghyun had too and was smiling at the fact that his presence alone was enough to send Hyunjin over the edge and drive a wedge between the two friends, not knowing that they had reconciled in the lateness of last night. Nothing was said between the two teams, both simply staring each other down, their eyes glowing with malevolence.

The blue haired referee made his way between the two teams, giving them a chilling smile before asking both if they were ready. Once he had confirmation that they were, he stepped back and called for the match to begin.

Neither of them moved as they tried to assess the situation in front of them. Both boys had watched Seunghyun and Hajoon’s matches and tried to work their strategies around what they had seen. They were sure that this is probably what Seunghyun had done too. In one fluid movement, Hajoon drew his bow from his back and took aim, noticing that Seungmin mirrored his movements exactly. Both let their arrows fly through the air with Hajoon’s hitting off of Seungmin’s shoulder, causing him to stumble backwards. However, the Illusionist’s arrow hit Hajoon dead in the chest, knocking him flat on the floor. Hyunjin had just enough time to grin at the younger boy’s skill in taking down someone whose class centered around the weapon that they were both using.

Taking advantage of the situation that Seungmin had created, Hyunjin sprinted towards the still form of Seunghyun and began to detach a vial filled with tear gas to throw towards his former leader. He seemed to have forgotten his own advice of keeping an eye on his surroundings since as soon as he entered Seunghyun’s space, his eyes were obscured by smoke. Hyunjin surmised that he must have set off one of the man’s traps, presumably a smoke bomb that would disorientate him. Trying to clear his lungs of the suffocating vapour that clung to his chest, Hyunjin attempted to steady himself before he heard something whistle past his ear. He knew that Seunghyun’s weapon was a pistol and that, like Seungmin, he had been assigned non-lethal bullets but this didn’t stop the fear from invading his body when he began to think back to how Felix had been injured in the exact same way.

Finally freeing himself from the smog that Seunghyun’s trap had created, his arms were quickly dragged behind him and held in place by one of Hajoon’s hands, his free one coming to rest tightly around his throat.

“Hyunjin, it’s been a while. You’ve improved a bit but you’re still no match for Seunghyun,” the man sneered.

Hyunjin rolled his eyes at the arrogance in Hajoon’s voice but no matter how he struggled, he couldn’t seem to loosen the painful grip that the older man had around his arms and neck. Through the clearing smoke, Hyunjin desperately searched for Seungmin and Seunghyun, his eyes zeroing in on the two fighting a short distance away from him.

Seungmin was doing his best to dodge the incoming punches thrown at him by the man and seemed to be a decent job at holding him off. Hyunjin noticed that because he was trying to defend himself, he couldn’t focus enough to stop and create any illusions that might help him. Hyunjin became slightly concerned as he began to wonder why Seunghyun had told Hajoon to focus on him instead of doing it himself. After the way he had tried to rile him up a couple of days ago, Hyunjin thought that Seunghyun would jump at the chance to fight him but instead, he was attacking Seungmin, someone he had no connection to in any way. Hyunjin’s thoughts were suddenly interrupted when he heard a small cry of pain emanating from the fight in front of him.

The Illusionist stumbled backwards, trying to cease the blood now flowing from his nose as one of Seunghyun’s punches finally made contact. At the sight of blood, Hyunjin made a strong tug to break free of Hajoon’s hold but to no avail. All he could do was watch as Seunghyun’s fist once again laid into Seungmin’s face and then it hit him. This was exactly what Seunghyun wanted, for him to be forced to watch once again as his friend was hurt in front of him, knowing that he could do absolutely nothing about it. A physical hit would hurt way less than the emotional turmoil he was trying to afflict the boy with.

Seungmin was swiftly knocked to the ground as he tried to focus on anything but his aching face. He quickly tried to rise from the dusty ground but was immediately pinned down by his opponent. His already rapid heart rate began to increase when he felt hands secure themselves around his neck and he began to recollect how this motion was always followed by horrific pain in the past. Seunghyun’s grip tightened and Seungmin came to the conclusion that the man was no longer interested in keeping to the rules of the tournament.

“See, kid? I told you that I wouldn’t forget about the little show that you put on in the waiting area. People don’t make a fool out of me and get to walk away from it unharmed. The fact that you’re friends with those little cowards is really just an added bonus. I couldn’t care less about winning this tournament anymore. I hold more power in this world than I ever did back home, so why the hell would I want to go back? You know, Hyunjin’s reaction to seeing one of his friends being hurt was interesting but how much would it change if he was forced to watch one of them being killed in front of him? Would he lose control? I’m curious to see.”

Legs kicked furiously as Seungmin was beginning to feel deprived of air. His nails dug into Seunghyun’s wrists, drawing blood, as he tried to free himself from the man’s murderous grasp but he knew that he more than likely wouldn’t succeed due to the weight difference.

People in the stands were beginning to shout, obviously not impressed with the way Seunghyun was throwing the ‘non-lethal’ part of the competition out of the window. Chan and Kyuhoon were on their feet within seconds, already pushing people out of the way to make their way down to the ring and try to break up their worst nightmare appearing in front of their eyes. Backstage, Jisung and Changbin were jumping up to intervene, even though they were sure that they would be disqualified if they were to interfere with the match. The referee’s whistle blared throughout the arena to signal the end of the match but Seunghyun paid it no mind, obviously set on getting his revenge for Seungmin’s embarrassing little act earlier in the week.

Hyunjin couldn’t take anymore, throwing his head back to hit and hopefully break Hajoon’s nose. The man shrieked, letting go of Hyunjin’s arms and beginning to cradle his injured face. The Alchemist didn’t even give him so much as a backwards glance as he ran towards Seunghyun and grabbed his collar to drag him off of his friend. Once he was on the ground, Hyunjin only saw red and began to lay into the man with every ounce of fury that raided his body. He thought of all the times he had wanted to do this to the older man in the past. When they had screwed up on a mission and Seunghyun had forced him and Felix to watch the members of the group of bandits eat dinner as they went to sleep hungry. When they had received a slap or two to the face after stupidly trying to talk back when the man made an invalid point. When Hyunjin had been cradling Felix in his arms after the psychopath had used his weapon against him. And now, he had harmed Seungmin. Enough was enough.

He was beginning to lose the ability to distinguish between reality and the darkness of his memories as his fists came into contact with Seunghyun’s face. Hitting the man on the ground over and over and over again, Hyunjin didn’t care about the calls for him to stop behind him. Seunghyun laughed through the strikes that Hyunjin produced, the euphoria of the situation overcoming the pain. Only when Jisung and Changbin grabbed his arms to pull him off Seunghyun did Hyunjin stop, though the hostility within him did not disappear. He yelled curses, insults and anything else he could think of that would harm the man since he could no longer hit him. The blood splattered on his face was obscuring his vision but Hyunjin didn’t care about any of that, he just wanted Seunghyun to stop laughing.

“Ah, so you were able to throw a decent punch, it just took the right leverage to get you to snap, eh? Man, I should have done something to Felix ages ago if it had gotten you to fight like that!”  

The referee, along with the other three judges, came to stand in the middle of the pandemonium that had been caused by Seunghyun, almost grinning at the commotion that hadn’t yet ceased.

“Both teams are hereby disqualified for improper conduct.”

The competition was now the last thing on anyone’s mind, everyone still trying to take in the horrifying scene that had just taken place in front of them. Jisung and Changbin were still trying their best to restrain Hyunjin as he tried to lunge forward towards Seunghyun. The man was now being dragged up by two guards as they quickly hauled him backstage to deal with him and possibly punish him for his murderous attempt.

Once Seunghyun was out of sight, Hyunjin snapped back to the present, realising that he had been so focused on the man that he had forgotten about his victim. Finally freeing himself of Jisung and Changbin’s grasp, he hastily made his way over to Seungmin, hearing his cries as he drew closer. Two Medics were trying to treat him but were deterred as Seungmin fought them off, tears streaming down his face. Chan and Minho were doing their best to calm him but he wasn’t heeding their soft praises and reassurances. Hyunjin bent down in front of him, grasping his wrists to try and stop him from lashing out at his friends.

“Minnie, look at me. It’s alright. We’re here to help you.” No matter what Hyunjin tried to say, Seungmin wouldn’t listen, thrashing as he felt the contact on his skin. Only when the Alchemist remained silent did he hear what Seungmin had been crying.

“I’m sorry. I’ll do better. Please, I’ll do better, just stop.”

Hyunjin suddenly realised that even though Seungmin was sitting right in front of him, he was no longer here. The younger boy’s mind associated intense pain with one place in particular and that was Siwan’s house. His trauma had caused him to slip back into his memories and feel like he was back in the grim prison in which he had spent far too many months. Seungmin was so sure that it had been someone who came to harm him again when it was his friends surrounding him to comfort and assist.

Gently cupping Seungmin’s face in his hands, Hyunjin let out a deafening roar which startled all those around him.

“Minnie, look at me!”

Seungmin’s head snapped up to stare at Hyunjin, his eyes immediately filling with tears of relief, replacing the terrified ones he had shed moments ago.

“Jinnie? I-I-”

Once he saw that Seungmin had escaped from his mind, Hyunjin quickly pulled him forward into a tight hug and gently rubbed his back, glancing at the red imprints around the boy’s neck. Chan moved forward to run his fingers through the young boy’s hair as Minho moved behind Hyunjin and grasped one of Seungmin’s hands to carefully stroke it. Kyuhoon held Jeongin close, the youngest boy leaving out distraught sobs at the sight of his friend being hurt once again. Kneeling down beside Hyunjin, Felix began to rub the back of his neck as he kept Seungmin close, knowing full well how the older boy must be feeling. Eventually, Chan convinced Seungmin to let a Medic look at his wounds but Changbin quickly stepped forward, insisting that he be the one to treat the younger boy.

“Hyung, it’s ok, you have to save your energy for your match.” Changbin could see that Seungmin’s eyes had become raw from crying, their colour now matching the marks left on his throat.

“It’s alright, Seungminnie. You’re far more important to me than some stupid match. Take a deep breath for me, alright? This might sting just a little bit.”

Placing cool hands on his throat, Changbin winced when Seungmin flinched away from the contact, showing how much the already bruising injuries hurt him. The Medic’s mending capability eased the aching around Seungmin’s neck and Hyunjin just wished that he could do the same for his heart. The Alchemist couldn’t help but think that this scene held many similarities compared to the first time he had met Changbin and the other boys. The Medic was there once again to help his friend who he was unable to protect, unable to shield from the psychopathic man’s tendencies.

Throughout the past few days, if there was any sort of interruption to the steady flow of the matches, the crowd would voice their opinions in the form of shouts or booing but they remained silent after watching the scene in front of them, more than likely still shocked about the treatment of the two young boys by the older men. Once Changbin was satisfied that Seungmin would be alright, he offered a hand to the younger boy and carefully pulled him up before placing a protective arm around his waist, with Felix immediately running to support his left side. They helped Seungmin backstage so that he could rest, with all of the other boys following right away.

Hyunjin trailed behind, lost in his own thoughts. A gentle brush across his cheek caused him to look up and meet eyes with Jeongin as the youngest boy carefully cleaned his face of his enemy's blood. Nothing was said between the two of them as Jeongin continued his work until Hyunjin’s face was blemishless.

“Hyung, I’ve learned from experience that Seungminnie hyung will get really angry at you if you blame yourself for his injuries when it wasn’t you who caused them so, just a piece of advice, don’t even think that you had anything to do with them, ok?” the younger encouraged. 

In that moment, Jeongin held an air that made him seem wise beyond his years. Hyunjin knew that he was all but forced to throw his childhood away while being held prisoner back in Aquiria but he had never seen this particular side of the boy before. The Alchemist began to feel like their roles were being reversed, that he was now the maknae being comforted by one of his hyungs and wondered if the confidence that Jeongin had gained from being able to control his powers had spread to his overall certainty in himself that allowed him to speak to Hyunjin with such determination.

The humour in Hyunjin’s laugh disappeared before it left his mouth, showing Jeongin he was grateful for his words of support but also relaying that it would take a lot more than this to make him forgive himself for what he had allowed Seunghyun to do to their friend. All made their way to the waiting area, earning glances of sympathy from the other contestants. They could already hear shouting coming from further into the room where they saw Jaebum and Jackson yelling at the judges that had been so lackadaisical in calling an end to the appalling match.

Jinyoung rushed over to the boys to make sure that both Seungmin and Hyunjin were not too badly affected. The Alchemist quickly waved him off with a sad smile before the older boy rejoined his members to admonish the judges.

“Stop it, Jinnie.”

The soft voice that called out to him held a stern tone, making him feel like a child that had been caught doing something he shouldn’t have. Meeting Seungmin’s eyes, Hyunjin couldn’t help but let out a shaky breath when he saw that even after Changbin had administered first aid, the reddish bruises resembling fingertips still remained around the boy’s neck.

“I can see you starting to blame yourself already and I swear to god, I’m going to deck you if you say this was your fault.” Moving away from Changbin, Seungmin shuffled over to Hyunjin and pressed their foreheads together, whispering ever so lightly. “Seunghyun came after me because I made a fool out of him, though that didn’t take very much effort.”

The agony in his head was overwhelming but Seungmin knew he had to overcome it to show Hyunjin that he had nothing to worry about; he had endured pain far worse than this anyway. Something that became very apparent to Seungmin over the time he spent with the Alchemist was that he was an extremely sensitive person, not just with regards to his own feelings but towards others as well. After something like this, he knew that the older boy would immediately shut down and recede back into himself, taking the blame even though he was not the cause. So, he tried to act like he was alright, like the pain in his head didn’t make him feel like passing out.

“You slipped. You thought you were back in Aquiria, back in Siwan’s house. Minnie, you looked so scared.”

When Seunghyun’s hands had descended on his neck, Seungmin admitted that his mind automatically wandered back to the time after his performance in the festival where Siwan had taken his anger out on him. That’s what his mind associated with a vicious grip on his throat and it had dragged him back to that moment. Huffing slightly, he captured Hyunjin’s hands in his and swung them ever so gently.

“I did but you brought me back. You helped me break free from the voices in my head. I’m ok, Jinnie, honestly. Don’t worry. Ah, I guess we’re out of the competition though, huh?” That caused Hyunjin to look even more dejected than he already did, silently apologising for his actions that crushed Seungmin’s wish to proceed as far as they could.

“Hey, we did our best. We managed to get to the top twelve and that’s a great achievement seeing as I didn’t think that we’d make it past the first round. We always held the mindset that we were here to test our skills and have fun. So, don’t apologise, Jinnie. You saved me, in more ways than one. ”

His final sentence was whispered internally as Seungmin guided Hyunjin to the floor and placed his head on the boy’s shoulder to relax, ignoring the screaming pain that flowed throughout his head as he craned it to fit into Hyunjin’s neck. Chan and Kyuhoon felt the need to surround them and let them know that they were safe but saw that their posts were already being covered. Jeongin curled up beside Hyunjin, the older boy pulling him closer. Felix dragged Seungmin forward, obviously wise to the soreness emanating from his neck. He maneuvered the slightly younger boy so that his legs rested over his, with his head now positioned on Hyunjin’s lap as the older boy carefully stroked his hair.

Jisung and Changbin were soon called away to complete their match, being slightly reluctant to leave the two boys who had now dozed off. Minho quickly ushered them off with the promise of watching over them and keeping them safe. It took all of five minutes for them to return after winning their match. They didn’t bask in the celebration that was being thrown for them as they were more than concerned about their members backstage. The shouting coming from the opposite side of the room soon ceased as the group of young men came to join the others.

“Changbin, we spoke to the judges. They said that they’re going to suspend the tournament for a day so that they can look into what happened and they’ll announce it at the end of the matches. I know it’s probably more of a formality than anything else but we can’t do much more. Things shouldn’t have escalated the way that they did today. They also just told us that Seunghyun was taken downtown by the guards and that he’s going to be punished for what he did to Seungmin, so you won’t have to worry about any of them coming into contact with him again. At least, not for a while.” Youngjae clutched the Medic’s hand gently, conveying his feelings of pity and concern for his friend and his group.

Placing a supportive hand on Chan’s back, Bambam gazed at the boys huddled together on the floor.

“Hey, how are they doing?”

“As well as they can be considering the circumstances, I guess. Me on the other hand?” Chan let out a laugh that didn’t manage to mask his pain from the young man.

“Oh, Channie. I know this is something you won’t want to hear but you can’t protect your boys from everything in Phantasm. You do your best but that’s the whole point of this world, to drag you down. You’ve managed to guard all of them so far and from what Changbinnie has told me, all of you have gone through a hell of a lot of crap. Don’t start doubting yourself now, you can’t afford to do that.”

Chan knew that Bambam was right, he had to stay strong for the other members, especially in a time when they were all feeling so down. He needed to think of something to make them forget all about what happened today and ease their worries.

“Bambam, can I ask you a favour? You think that you could distract the kids for like a half hour and then walk them home for me? I need to leave with Kyuhoon for a while.”

“Uh, sure, Channie. I can do that.”

“Great. Ah, if it’s alright, I might need to skip training tonight and you might want to tell Yugyeom that Jeongin won’t be there either. Just for tonight.”

The Paladin nodded his head, confused but intrigued at the playful glint in Chan’s eyes. As quickly as he could, Chan grabbed Kyuhoon’s hand and led him out of the exit, none of the younger boy’s noticing that they had left.

“Goodnight guys. Take care of each other, all right?”

Minho held the door open as the rest of the group waved goodbye to Jaebum and the rest of the older boys that had delivered them safely back to their dwelling. The rigidity in the air hadn’t disappeared as the group walked home, all eyes falling to the darkening stains on Seungmin’s fair skin. After Hyunjin and Seungmin had woken up, Bambam had told them that Chan and Kyuhoon had already left, surprising most of the boys since they were always so protective and would usually want to make sure that they didn’t make their way back to the inn alone. It made a bit more sense when Bambam told them that he was to escort them in their place but they couldn’t figure out why they had left them alone in the first place.

It all came together when the boys knocked on their bedroom door and received a reply to enter. Glistening, multicoloured fairy lights decorated the ceiling as their glow shined down upon them. Numerous bowls filled with jellies, popcorn and other snacks were placed around the floor, calling the group to dive in and devour them. Towering over them was the fort that both Chan and Kyuhoon had created from the blankets and pillows that had obviously been taken from the other rooms in which the boys resided since it was so humongous. The two eldest members’ smiles as they reclined on the fluffy cushions and hid behind the makeshift door alleviated the slightly sour mood that had entered the room along with the younger members.

“Ah, you made it. Welcome to our fort. It is the safest place in the world. Countless have attempted to enter but many have failed. Unfortunately for you, if you wish to join us, tortuous questions will be put to you, to which you must provide a sufficient answer. Are any of you brave enough to volunteer to go first?”

Glancing around the room, Chan saw Jisung’s hand shoot up as he smugly walked forward.

“Hit me, Channie hyung. Ask me anything!” the Thief insisted, puffing out his chest.

“Jisungie, what are Seungminnie’s best qualities?”

“What?”

“You heard me. What are Seungminnie’s best qualities?”

Jisung’s head whipped around to look at the red headed boy whose eyes were blown wide at the question. “Uh- I- he’s-”

“You have ten seconds, Jisung or you will be forced to go next door and never be allowed within the most awesome fort ever created,” Kyuhoon announced, propping himself up on his elbows as the Thief began to flounder at the question.

“Um, well, I think Seungminnie is pretty shy and quiet-”

“Ok, I don’t really think that you’re grasping the point of this exercise-”

“-but! Once he becomes comfortable with you, he’s the funniest, most captivating person. He cares about everyone so much, even more than he does about himself. I don’t know if it’s because we’re the same age but I feel like I can talk to him about anything. Maybe it’s because he exudes such a calming aura that he holds such an air of reliability. If I’m being honest, I don’t think Seungminnie has any bad qualities.”

Everyone stood in awe of the Thief and how eloquent he had been with his compliments for the Illusionist. Jisung bounced back towards Seungmin and slung his arm around his shoulders. “That’s what I think about him and I’m extremely glad that he joined our team.”

Satisfied with Jisung’s answer and the warm smile it had drawn on Seungmin’s face, Kyuhoon ushered him forward. “Congratulations, you’ve passed. You may enter.” Jisung immediately detached from the boy and dove towards the numerous pillows on the floor before stuffing a handful of gummy bears into his mouth.

“Seungminnie, you’re up! Minho’s best qualities?”

The line of boys were asked for the leading characteristic of different members of the group, with everyone receiving a compliment to make their day just a little bit brighter after sitting in darkness after the matches. Minho had called Kyuhoon ‘the most caring teddy bear in the world’, earning himself laughter from all of the other members and a slight push from the Bard. Jeongin didn’t know how to react to being called ‘the cutest baby maknae’ by Chan and blushed fiercely as the others began to coo and pinch his cheeks. Once they were all on the floor, they huddled together and began to inhale the food that Chan and Kyuhoon had so kindly bought for them.

“Channie, this was a great idea. Look at how happy they are.”

Seungmin, Felix and Minho were having a little bit of trouble in understanding the rules of the Animal Kingdom game that was being explained to them but eventually got the hang of it, with all of them falling into convulsions of laughter when Jeongin forgot what animal he was supposed to be, earning him a flick on the forehead from Hyunjin.

“I’m full of great ideas. I know it’s going to be hard Kyuhoon but try not to fall even more in love with me than you already are. I can’t help it that I’m so wonderful. Try to restrain yours-” It seemed that Kyuhoon had a new way of keeping Chan quiet, not that Chan was complaining about getting kisses from the other. In fact, he might just have to keep talking if he received a peck everytime he rambled on too much.

“What just happened?”

“Are you two kidding me?”

“Did Channie hyung and Kyu hyung just kiss?”

“Oh, come on, Felix. You can’t seriously say that you’ve never noticed how they’ve acted.”

“Of course I knew! I just didn’t know they were sucking face now!”

“Gross, Lix. Can’t you say it with a bit more finesse?”

“Well, I didn’t know that they were together!”

“That’s why you’re the dumb one, Jisungie.”

“Oh god, it’s like watching your parents make out.”

Chan and Kyuhoon watched the delirium unfold in front of them as the younger boys scooted away, gagging and retching at the newly discovered couple. Rolling his eyes at the others’ melodramatics, Chan laid down on Kyuhoon’s chest and began to playfully throw the popcorn that hadn’t yet been touched into his mouth. “At least I wasn’t too much of a coward to admit how I felt about the person I love. I can’t say the same for everyone here.”

Most of the boys jumped to their feet immediately, afraid that Chan was about to spill some embarrassing secrets about the feelings that all of them held, though none of them were entirely sure if he had been talking about them specifically. Felix was the first to dive on top of the Knight, with seven other boys hurriedly following suit until they were stacked up in a pile. Chan attempted to apologise for threatening to reveal their secrets but couldn’t be heard over the deafening laughter that left all of them. They were most definitely going to be getting a noise complaint in the morning but none of them cared. Chan thought that if they managed to forget about the distressing events of the day, even for just a little while and were able to enjoy themselves, then it was worth it. To Chan, they were worth it.

Chapter Text

Plans are a fascinating thing, so subject to change. Since the tournament would not continue until the following day, the group had decided to simply relax and perhaps explore the gigantic capital city that boasted so many interesting outlets. Nobody had the energy to dismantle the fort that the elder boys had built. Not that anyone had particularly wanted to since it made all of them feel like little kids, so they all slept in the same room once again. With the exhaustion of the day finally catching up with them, they eventually had to halt their game of charades once they realised the reason that Seungmin and Jisung were no longer guessing what Chan was trying to convey was because they had fallen asleep. Jisung had let Seungmin’s head rest safely on his shoulder and placed possessive arms around his friend’s waist to let everybody know that he was not to be taken away from him. Chan had been trying to act out the ‘Avengers’ movie and was rather proud of the Groot impression he was managing to pull off, not that it mattered anymore.

The delicate light of the morning sun was managing to peek its way through the faded curtains, causing Changbin to groan and flip over onto his opposite side. Even though the makeshift fort that Chan and Kyuhoon had built had indeed been substantial in size, it did take a little bit of maneuvering to fit all nine boys within its walls. Changbin had attempted to free Seungmin from Jisung’s grasp and move both of them into a more comfortable position but after the Thief had opened his eyes to glare at the Medic, he thought it best to leave them as they were. Hyunjin’s back met with Minho’s chest as the older boy tried to protect the Alchemist from his own harmful and intrusive thoughts disturbing him in his sleep. He knew what it was like to have ideas about yourself constantly attacking you when you were in a bad place, blaming yourself for things you had no control over, so he was going to help the younger boy through it if he could. Felix was face down in one of the fluffy pillows, obscuring his light snores as he pulled Chan’s arm closer to him to comfort himself. Kyuhoon’s shirt was slowly being blemished by Jeongin’s drool as the younger boy rested upon his chest. To them, this was bliss but it was soon disrupted by loud knocking on the door.

It continued until a collective groan fell from the group’s lips. Chan thought that perhaps this was the complaint from the owner of the inn that he had been expecting. They hadn’t become any quieter as the night went on, laughing and yelling until they couldn’t anymore. Hopping up to cease the banging that was causing a blunt headache to form in his head, Changbin turned the brass doorknob to face the scolding that they were all about to get.

“Mark hyung? What are you doing here?” The sleep still in the Medic’s eyes made him think that perhaps he wasn’t seeing things clearly but when he heard the Gunslinger laugh, he knew he wasn’t mistaken.