Since I don't want my characters to use some magic stones, or paper cranes, or another magic spells to contact to eo, here's what we got: LINK - easy to use.
From this chapter, LINK is a type of communication network in Carat Land. ^^

***

Mingyu was tending to check his bruised ribs, a reminder of his recent encounter with the clone, when his magic watch chimed softly. He paused, taking a deep breath to settle the rising discomfort in his chest before answering. Jeonghan's voice, soft yet laced with a quiet urgency, flowed through the magical link.

"Mingyu, we're heading back from Bloomfield. I need your help. Can you check on Seungcheol?"

Mingyu stilled, his mind immediately on high alert.

Something wasn't right.

He frowned, the words hanging in the air before he cautiously asked, "What's going on? Is Seungcheol okay?" From what he could recall, aside from the emotional fallout between Seungcheol and Joshua, everything had seemed normal. But Jeonghan's tone spoke volumes.

A tired sigh came through the line, and with it, a wave of tension that tugged at Mingyu's chest. "We found a temporary solution for Joshua's syndrome," Jeonghan began, his voice holding a heavy weight. "But... it's not just a magical imbalance. It might be... a curse. Dark magic."

Mingyu's grip on the edge of the table tightened, his breath hitching.

A curse. That changed everything.

"You think Seungcheol can help?"

"He has to," Jeonghan answered quietly, but with certainty. "Seungcheol is one of the most skilled wizards I know, and... he loves Joshua. He deserves to know what's really happening."

The line fell into a quiet stillness, only their shared breathing filling the space. Mingyu could feel the emotional strain on Jeonghan's end, the way his usually steady voice now held a quiver, as though he was holding back something far deeper. The weight of their burdens hung between them, unspoken but palpable.

"Alright," Mingyu finally broke the silence. His voice, though calm, carried the gravity of the situation. "I'll check on Seungcheol. Let's hope he's not too shaken by this. At least... it's just a hypothesis. We're not out of options yet."

Jeonghan exhaled, a faint smile touching his lips even though Mingyu couldn't see it. There was always something about Mingyu's calm, unshakable demeanor that brought him peace. It was as if Mingyu could take on the world's weight without flinching, and it made Jeonghan feel lighter just hearing him. Even after everything they'd been through—the pain, the heartbreak—Mingyu remained a constant. Steadfast. Reliable. He had never truly resented Jeonghan, even though Jeonghan had broken his heart once.

"Mingyu," Jeonghan's voice softened, almost a whisper now. He felt the words forming before he even realized he was speaking. "I love you."

There was a pause on the other end, then Mingyu's warm chuckle broke the momentary tension. "You should tell me that face-to-face. You owe me one."

Jeonghan felt a rare warmth spread through him, the teasing lifting the heavy weight in his chest. "You're such a calculating prince."

"I am," Mingyu replied, the humor still lacing his words. "But since I love you too, I'll let you owe me for now. Come back and pay me back soon."

But Jeonghan's smile faltered slightly at Mingyu's playful words, the mention of a debt stirring an unsettling memory in him. The old wizard's cryptic words about debts and the ties of dark magic replayed in his mind, sending a shiver down his spine. Yet, he pushed those thoughts away, not wanting to reveal the dark cloud lingering over him. "Soon," he replied, keeping his voice steady, though his mind was already racing.

He would come back to Mingyu, he promised himself that.

Soon. He would spend as much time with him as possible, make up for everything that had been lost.

Ever since they had gotten back together, time had been their enemy. Jeonghan had been too focused on finding a cure for Joshua, while Mingyu was recovering from his injuries at Seungcheol's place. Their moments together had been brief—fleeting—and there was no time for romantic dates or even the quiet, intimate conversations they used to share.

Jeonghan knew he owed Mingyu more than time. He owed him love. More love than he had given before.

Mingyu had never asked for more than Jeonghan could offer. He never used his royal status to demand, never hesitated to carry the weight of battles that weren't his to fight. Mingyu didn't measure their relationship by what he gave versus what he received. It wasn't in his nature. He was too kind, too generous, too forgiving. Even when Jeonghan had selfishly broken up with him, Mingyu had taken it all without bitterness.

It made Jeonghan feel small. Petty. And now, standing beneath the starless sky of Bloomfield, Jeonghan realized how deeply he loved Mingyu because of it.

Even if Mingyu never asked for anything in return, Jeonghan felt that debt weighing on him. He had to give it back. To repay Mingyu, not in words, but in action. In the time they spent together, in the moments of love that he owed him, because now, more than ever, Jeonghan believed that Mingyu deserved it.

As soon as the LINK with Jeonghan ended, Mingyu lifted his shirt, revealed the wounds and the bruises were now darkened. He exhaled slowly, every breaths heavy with tension. His hand trembled slightly as he raised his wand, casting a diagnostic spell. The tip of the wand flared with a soft blue light, sending shimmering magical tendrils across his body like water gradually flowing into the canals.

Mingyu's mouth twitched. The pain was sharp, immediate. His jaw clenched as a hiss escaped his lips. The spell triggered the dark magic lingering within his wounds, forcing it out. Thick drops of blackened blood oozed from the cuts, dripping onto the wooden table before evaporating into dark smoke, leaving nothing but faint wisps behind.

From the scars and bruises, his magic was fighting and purifying. The sight of it confirmed what he had feared—the dark magic wasn't just a hypothesis. He had faced it, and now it was seeping into every corner of his being.

Maybe Joshua was attacked by dark magic earlier and he didn't realize it, it turned into a curse. The symptoms, the erratic magical flows in his body—it all made sense now. Nothing but Dark magic could explain it.

The consequences it left on Mingyu's body had become extremely obvious, and he didn't want it to stay in his body for too long. So, he purified the dark magic himself.

Mingyu was the only prince of Carat Land, and with that title came expectations. Spells that would take an ordinary wizard weeks to learn, he had to master in days. It was a burden he carried from birth, one he never questioned. His mother, the Queen, had trained him for moments like these, where the weight of responsibility couldn't be ignored.

As the last traces of the spell purified his wounds, Mingyu stood there, his breath steadying. He waited till the pain dulled to straightened his clothes and left to find Seungcheol.

When Mingyu arrived at Seungcheol's room, it was empty, and a knot of unease twisted in his gut. Instinctively, he pulled out his watch and sent a LINK to Seungcheol, hoping for a quick response.

Seungcheol answered almost immediately, his voice tense as he explained that he was with Joshua in his dorm due to an "unfortunate incident." That phrase alone sent alarm bells ringing in Mingyu's mind. Without hesitation, he teleported himself to Joshua's dorm door in a flash.

Seungcheol opened the door, worry etched across his face. "I have bad news—very bad news," he said, his voice heavy with concern.

Mingyu stepped into the room, keeping his expression calm despite the turmoil inside him. "I have bad news too. But you tell me first."

Seungcheol hesitated, momentarily taken aback, before gathering himself. "Joshua saw me die in his classification test. That's why he rushed to find the Hidden Library."

"Wow-wow. He told you??? For Merlin's sake! I swear, I've been holding it in this whole time, trying to keep it from slipping out."

Seungcheol blinked, completely caught off guard. "Wait, you knew?"

Mingyu's lips curled into a slight smirk as he shrugged nonchalantly. "Since the day I walked through that door and faced off with that evil clone."

Both men sighed in unison, a shared weariness weighing heavily on them. Seungcheol patted Mingyu's shoulder, an unspoken camaraderie in the gesture. "Alright, now what's your bad news?"

Mingyu's easygoing demeanor shifted. His expression hardened. "Jeonghan said Joshua's syndrome might be tied to dark magic."

Seungcheol's eyes widened. The color drained from his face. He glanced over at Joshua, who lay motionless on the bed.

Seungcheol's mind raced, piecing together fragments of thoughts, each aligning more perfectly than the last.

"That's... exactly what I was afraid of," he muttered, voice low and resigned. The shock didn't hit as hard as it should have. Mingyu's revelation only confirmed the worst of Seungcheol's fears, ones he had already started to grapple with.

Mingyu clenched his fists at his side, feeling the unrelenting tension that had gnawed at him since the day began. Red signals had been flashing in his head non-stop, warnings that something was terribly wrong. And now, standing in this dimly lit room with Seungcheol, even with his brother right in front of him, the alarms hadn't quieted.

"Cheol, hyung," Mingyu's voice came out more quietly this time, "is there something... you're not telling me?"

He knew Seungcheol well enough to read between the lines. Mingyu had always been sharp, especially with those he cared about. He could pick up on the slightest odd behavior—every shift in expression, the flicker of uncertainty in their eyes, a hesitation in their voice. And Seungcheol was hiding something.

Mingyu's attention shifted back to Joshua, who hadn't moved a muscle since he entered the room. There was something unnatural about how still he was, how quiet. A growing unease gnawed at Mingyu's insides.

"Did you cast a sleeping spell on him?" His voice was measured but laced with suspicion, eyes locked on Seungcheol.

Seungcheol wiped his brow with the back of his hand, his fingers trembling slightly as they brushed over his forehead. His appearance was more disheveled than usual, and Mingyu didn't miss the way his eyes darted nervously before finally settling on him.

"I... I had to. Shua told me he saw something in their meeting room. He was too on edge. I just wanted him to rest, so I cast a spell to make sure he slept." Seungcheol's voice wavered, betraying the anxiety that had been simmering beneath his composed exterior.

Mingyu's gaze hardened as he processed Seungcheol's words. There was a heaviness between them now, thick with unspoken tension. It was clear Seungcheol was hiding more than he let on. His nervousness, the sleep spell, the fragmented explanations—it wasn't adding up.

"How many sleeping spell did you cast on him?" asked Mingyu.

"The first time was after he confessed about the classification test in the meeting room. He said I died in his vision. At that moment, his body was freezing, soaked in sweat from trying to cast a spell. He looked terrified, Mingyu. And I didn't know how to deal with it."

Mingyu remained silent, his gaze unwavering, waiting for Seungcheol to continue.

"The second time," Seungcheol's voice wavered, "was when he was lying in bed, saying he saw something after casting the spell. I'm not even sure if he was fully conscious or if it was a hallucination caused by the backfire of the magic. He wasn't making sense."

Mingyu sighed, his frustration simmering just beneath the surface. "You can't keep casting sleep spells to shield him from the truth, Cheol. He'll always figure it out, on his own."

Seungcheol's eyes darted to the floor, guilt seeping into his expression. His voice grew quieter, more vulnerable. "Do you know why Shua has been avoiding me?"

Mingyu shook his head slightly, confused but listening intently.

"He found out about the dark side of my family." Seungcheol's words hung in the air, heavy with a bitter truth.

Mingyu frowned as he processed Seungcheol's confession, his eyes narrowing as a flicker of understanding dawned. As a prince, he was no stranger to the darker undercurrents in Carat Land, the dirty secrets whispered in shadowed corners. Yet, like Seungcheol, he had stood silently, never spilling a word about those hidden truths.

Seungcheol's voice dropped, the confession tumbling out as if it had been locked away for too long. "Shua uncovered the truth—the awful reality of where I came from. The darkness that shaped me... the things I'm bound to, things no one should ever be a part of." He paused, his throat tight. "He saw the truth—that I'm nothing more than an ugly soul, raised by one of the most wicked people on this land."

His voice cracked slightly, but there was no anger in it, just raw self-loathing.

"But he told me, he didn't blame me," Seungcheol said softly, almost to himself. "Even after everything, he fought for me, just because of a vision—a vision that might not even be real. He risked everything on something that could be wrong."

Seungcheol let out a bitter laugh, one that echoed hollowly in the room, mocking the depth of his own insecurities.

"What did I ever do to make him love me that much?" His voice trembled with a mix of confusion and disbelief, as though the weight of Joshua's unwavering devotion was something he couldn't quite carry.

Mingyu could see the cracks in Seungcheol's stoic facade, the vulnerability hidden beneath layers of guilt and regret. It was clear that Seungcheol wasn't just afraid of losing Joshua—he was afraid of being unworthy of the love he had already received.

***

"What did I ever do to make him love me that much?" oh Cheol.
ToT !!! srsly, I nearly broke my own heart while writing this...