CHAPTER THRITY-NINE!
────red spider lilies.

❝SHE PREFERRED PURPLE ANYWAYS.❞

[Y/N] STOOD ON TOP of a tall building that gave her a grand view of the west side of the city.

her [h/c] hair sways slightly with the breeze she looks down at the city.

with her enhanced eyesight and her perception stat, she was able to scan the city from the streets right below the skyscraper to the homes located in far-off locations. 

her hearing was focused on the voices her sun knights picked up, all of them was just useless idle talk. 

'no matter how i look at it, something seems so off about this.' the player thinks, eyebrows furrowing. 'jin-ho's a combat type d-rank hunter. it would be difficult for normal people to take him, even in significant numbers.'

she tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear. 'jin-ho would definitely notice something's wrong if he suddenly left the city.' [y/n] continues to ponder, going over the facts. 'the only clue left behind was that they're with with the scavenger guild.'

she clicks her tongue in annoyance, obviously recognizing the name. just her luck.

'that's the same guild mari was scouted by... could she be playing a part in this?' the [h/c] haired player wonders but shakes her head. 'i doubt it, it seems she didn't keep up with the news about me, from what i can tell.'

[y/n] narrows her eyes as a name pops into her head. she wants to ignore the idea of him being here. but there was so little info she knew about the situation.

'he always wanted to go america and join the scavenger guild, didn't he?' she remembers, as his passionate smile appears in her mind.

what use to be a fond memory was nothing more than something that left a bitter aftertaste.

'if he really is here...' the player thinks, her fear rising at the chance of seeing his face again.

'THEN THINGS MIGHT TAKE A TURN FOR THE WORST.'

she places her palm against her forehead closing her eyes in frustration. 'could it really be him?'

a sickly like feeling was growing in her chest, her stomach was churning at the mere idea of his existence. disgust was enveloping her body, the feeling of being violated was crawling up her legs.

she felt so small again.

she clutches the wrist of her shaking hand. 'calm down. you're better than this...' [y/n] reminds herself. 'he quite literally can't touch you, just remember your strengths, [n/n].'

she reminds herself what her main objective is and clears her head. her eyes narrow as she looks ahead, her eyes glowing a fiery gold.

'right now, i need to find jin-ho...'

her aura grows dangerous at the thought of her friend being hurt.

'IF THERE'S SO MUCH AS SCRATCH ON HIM. I'LL BURN THIS CITY THE FUCKING GROUND.'

───── ⋆⋅ ☽ ⋅⋆ ─────

"ARE YOU SURE this is okay?" a man asks as he looks down  at a unconscious jin-ho.

hwang dong-su nodded, "i'm not planning on doing anything to him. there's just one thing i want to know."

min-hyuk smiles cheekily as he eyes the d-rank hunter, it was impressive that [y/n] knew such a boy. to the point she would call him a friend.

'to think she had such powerful ties... guess my little princess is getting somewhere in the world.' he notes as his azure blue eyes catch a red flower weed in between the cracks of the ground.

thomas warned hwang dong-su not to provoke sung jin-woo but he never planned on messing with him in the first place.

BECAUSE THERE WAS STILL ONE MORE PERSON WHO COULD PROVID HIM WITH ANSWERS.

'i told him that if he told me honestly what exactly happened to my brother, i would let him go without a scratch.' he thinks, his eyes glowing a pale red. 'there was just one thing i wanted to hear. that sung jin-woo killed my brother.'

"oi, wake up " he orders, lightly punching jin-ho's stomach. after hearing no reply, dong-su punched the boy even harder. "i said wake up!" 

jin-ho's brown eyes shot open as he spat out another pool of blood, groaning in pain.

the third man in hwang dong-su's little group began cackling out, "he's pretty durable. i guess he's a tanker after all. any normal person would've been dead by now." 

"don't know why he's being so stubborn, courage is commendable, but your stubbornness won't lead you to forgiveness." min-hyuk comments, leaning against another pillar.

dong-su's lets out a scoff before pushing jin-ho's head into the pillar behind him, grabbing a fistful of his hair

"listen up," he ordered, getting close to his face. "i don't want to kill you. the guy who's smirking behind me is a pretty decent healer and he's going to save you whenever you are on the brink of death." 

jin-ho let out a shaky breath as dong-su continues, "which means, you will be tortured here forever. that is, until you tell me what i want to hear." 

"and to add to that, we're in a factory that's been closed down for over five years," min-hyuk adds walking over as he leans down with a toothy grin.

the brunette boy knew two things about the black haired s-rank hunter.

one, he knew his best friend, [y/n].

two, it wasn't for the right reasons.

"there's nobody here to save you, no matter how much you scream. so what do you think? does that wanna make you talk a little?" the man continues, the cheeky expression still on his face.

"...off..." jin-ho mutters but two couldn't hear what he had said. 

"what?" they repeat and leaning closer. 

"FUCK OFF."

even though was he beat until he was black and blue, he was confident. because he knows there are two people who most certainly would burn the world for him.

dong-su immediately slams the side of jin-ho's head into the pillar behind him again. 

"mister hwang, be careful. i don't want to deal with murder for money," the non-healer states. 

"...i'll be mindful of that." 

"haven't you found out enough?" the healer questions with a raised eyebrow.

min-hyuk cackled as the other two face him. he only gives them a lopsided smirk.

"WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? WE'VE ONLY JUST STARTED."

───── ⋆⋅ ☽ ⋅⋆ ─────

THE SOUND OF heels clicking against the ground startles the group of hunters.

they echoed throughout the abandoned building like a beating drum. though it only was just sound, all their bodies began to feel extremely hot.

jin-ho almost wanted to laugh, he made a bet with himself on who would find him first.

'guess i owe her a nice dinner.' he thinks, with a relaxed smile.

the sound grew closer and closer to the group. they didn't dare to move their bodies to turn to see who it was.

the presence walks pass them and they're eyes could only widen as she did.

'just what in the hell...' min-hyuk thinks, feeling sweat bead down his forehead. his azure blue eyes following her elegant figure.

'WHAT'S WITH THIS PRESSURE? I THOUGHT SHE WAS JUST ARM CANDY?!'

[y/n] bends down to meet her best friend's eyes. he opens his mouth to speak but she brought a finger up to her lips, signaling him to not waste his breath.

she scans his battered body and the sight only made her angrier, so angry that the temperature in the air began to rise.

her hand reaches to lovingly pat his head. "don't move, woo will be here soon." she whispers lowly, not letting anyone else in the area hear her voice.

the player knows healing potions will do nothing for him, even if she bought one of the highest quality.

jin-ho nods as she stands up straight, facing the group of  men. her once soft features were now stern and dangerous.

"icarus." she calls and the summon instantly appears right at her side. "protect jin-ho until your king arrives."

the summons nods as he stands right in front of the boy, protecting him.

"I WILL DEAL WITH THE THINGS THAT DARE LAY A HAND ON MY FRIEND."

───── ⋆⋅ ☽ ⋅⋆ ─────

"CAN ONE OF you, heal?" she asks, her eyes glowing and narrowed.

though her voice was sharp and dangerous, they couldn't help be entranced by it.

even dong-su, himself, was confused. 'how... how is she doing this?'

"i am willing to show you a drop of mercy, if you are able to heal him." she states, calmly. "naturally, what happens after will be up to sung jin-woo."

"SO, CAN YOU HEAL OR NOT?"

healer of the group sweats. "u-uh... we don't speak korean..."

'what? was i naturally speaking korean?' she wondered, raising an eyebrow.

a part of her hoped they would take the easy way. she wanted to get out of here as quick as possible, there was certain pair of eyes that were trained on her.

she takes a glance and fear racks her body. 'so he really was part of this... did he collaborate with the other s-rank, hoping he would see me?'

"[y/n] [l/n] wants you to heal the kid." min-hyuk translates, somehow finding the courage to speak.

HE EVEN FOUND THE CONFIDENCE
TO WALK UP TO HER.

though her face was clam as ever, the feeling of wanting to run away and hide was growing.

"little princess..." he greets, standing before her with a relaxed smile. "it's been a while."

his eyes were glowing red as they stared her down. 'spider lilies...' she thinks, she remembers how much she use to loved their color cause it matched his glowing eyes.

once again, such a memory only brought a bitter after taste in her mouth.

she always preferred purple anyways.

"GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY FACE."

she utters, surprising him. but her blunt statement only makes him laugh. his red blood glowing eyes trail her body, noting every shape of it. he looks at the way her clothes hugged her curves.

she takes notice of this and part of her wants to beat him until he's dead.

but the other part of her is scared.

[y/n] was so scared.

she felt so helpless and small against the man who took her advantage of her. her confidence was crumbling, she could tell.

he was nothing like jin-woo, who made her feel she could conquer the world.

"last chance." she speaks, "heal jin-ho or face the consequences."

"what consequences, my little princess?" min-hyuk laughs again, almost reaching to touch her face. "after all this time, you're still trying to be intimating. it never works."

those underhand comments. she heard them all the time when they were friends. [y/n] didn't know it back then, but he's the one who broke down her self-esteem.

LITTLE BY LITTLE.

she sighs as she keeps up the brave face. "you're wasting my time." she replies venomously, walking over to the other two men.

she stops and her eyes land on a familiar orc like summon. a smirk graces her lips and she raises her hand.

guess she didn't have to worry too much.

"hwang dong-su." she calls, lifting him in the air causing him to thrash around. "i've been told you know of jin-woo, wouldn't it be nice if you two had a little reunion?"

she casually waves her hand throwing the s-rank towards the orc summon.

'HE'S ANGRY... I CAN FEEL IT.'

───── ⋆⋅ ☽ ⋅⋆ ─────

BACK IN KOREA...

"i wonder how jin-woo and [y/n] are doing?" kyung-hye says aloud as she has her daughter in her lap, while they sit on the couch.

unknowingly, a purple like shadow figures floats behind the two.

'oh mother of our king and queen,' beru muses, he was tasked to watch over them. 'if there was anything our lord and our lady cannot withstand, nobody in the world would be safe from it.'

then a voice comes from the t.v. "next up, we bring you news on the conference that has been organized by the u.s hunter bureau..."

on the screen, there was live footage of at the airport in the u.s. the camera was recording of two prominent figures in black and white.

"jin-ah, there's your brother and sister."

"really?"

excitement fills beru as he sees his masters on the screen, looking ever so graceful together. 'my king and queen...!'

suddenly, a death chill ran up the summon's spine, alerting him. 'this feeling...! i've felt it once before as well.'

he narrows his eyes, it wasn't just him that felt it. all the shadows felt the dangerous aura of their king.

'THE KING IS ENRAGED.'

───── ⋆⋅ ☽ ⋅⋆ ─────

THE FEMALE PLAYER smiles as she held up the other two men that were part of hwang dong-su's group.

jin-woo punches the s-rank hunter in the abdomen, sending him flying and creating a hole in the building.

"you're late, woo." [y/n] taunts with a giggle.

the two men were being choked by her ruler's authority, their faces turning blue as they were slowly loosing oxygen.

the male player wipes his knuckles on his coat. "sorry, my love. it took me a while. i trust everything is taken care of."

she slams the henchmen down to the ground with an echoing crack. leaving them in critical condition.

"well, for the most part, yeah."

the dark haired hunter walks over to his lover, sliding his hand into her's. the action made [h/c] haired hunter smile and lean into his body.

the two walk over to their friend crouch down as they whisper amongst each other.

min-hyuk could only watch [y/n] grow brighter. suddenly confused on why she seemed so happy with him.

'what? why is she smiling?' he liked that cold look on her face, the underling fear that he could see her in captivating [e/c] eyes.

IT MADE HIM FEEL SUPERIOR.

but why was she smiling? she shouldn't be smiling. she could never be smiling.

"oi, little princess." he calls, grabbing their attention. "you and me have business to take care of."

she doesn't even turn to look at him. "there is nothing we need to talk about. be smart for once and leave."

her voice was devoid of love and softness. he hated that, that tone of voice use to be his and only his.

'she use to obey me.'

the hunter clicks his tongue in annoyance and walks over to her.

'she use to hang on ever word i said.'

he reaches his hand out to her as he grew closer. he was clearly angry that this little reunion wasn't going as planned.

'SO WHY SHE IS NOT EVEN LOOKING AT ME?'

just as he was about to touch her shoulder, a hand stops him. min-hyuk's glowing red spider lily eyes meet with raging glowing pruple ones.

"and just who are you?" jin-woo asks standing up as he slightly towers over the hunter, still holding onto his wrist

a feeling of dread begins to seep in.

but, as always, men are stupid. so he answers.

"she hasn't told you, has she?" he replies, raising an eyebrow. "she's a little thing of mine."

'THING..?'

the male player squeezes his wrist and this gets the hunter laughing, acting as if he's unfazed by it. "protective? that's cute. i wonder how she seduced you?"

"i didn't do anything. don't speak of things you clearly don't know of." [y/n] suddenly speaks, getting up from the ground but never facing him.

"oh, my little ever so innocent princess." he taunts, causing her to freeze up. the tone of his voice, she's heard it multiple times before.

it was the voice that made her follow his ever whim, it had her putty in his hands. she never knew how disgusting it felt to hear it again.

before min-hyuk could speak again, jin-woo butted in. "i'll ask again, who are you?"

"i'm her boyfriend—"

"you were never such a thing."

the female player interjects, this time she only glances at him.

"you disgust me, i never had that kind of relationship with you." she starts, fulling turning to face him. "you delusional piece of shit, what were you hoping to get out of this?"

she takes a step towards him. "did you think i would come crawling back to you?"

it took her everything it had in her to not get emotional. she couldn't show weakness to the man in front of her.

"AFTER WHAT YOU DID TO ME?"

───── ⋆⋅ ☽ ⋅⋆ ─────

NOT WASTING IN any time, jin-woo slams min-hyuk to the ground, causing an echoing crack.

"what did you do to her?" he asks, his voice cold and empty.

he wasn't just angry. nor was he just furious.

HE WAS ENRAGED.

forget hwang dong-su, there was a much more pressing matter to attend to.

he steps on his chest cause the man to groan again. "what did you do to her?" he repeats and min-hyuk laughs.

this only gave him the confirmation he needed.

not having enough patience. jin-woo uses ruler's authority
to twists his left arm, breaking it and ripping it off. causing the man scream in agony.

but that scream turned into insane laughter. "oho~ so you do know! she must have you wrapped around her hand, doesn't she?!"

"WHAT WAS SHE WEARING?"

the male player's voice caused him to stop and hum in confusion.

"what was she wearing? answer me." he asks again, the aura of death was hanging in the air.

min-hyuk gives him a wicked smile. "a pair of leggings and a hoodie."

HE IMMEDIATELY
RIPS OFF HIS OTHER ARM.

the man screams again, with the added pressure of jin-woo's ruler's authority, it felt like the life was being sucked outta him.

grabbing the man's skull and slamming to ground again, creating a crack in the ground as he then starts throwing punches.

blood was flying everywhere. it splattered across jin-woo's face, his screams didn't even faze him.

[y/n] only watched, there was no point in stopping him. he was doing what she couldn't bring herself to do.

'spider lilies...' she thinks again.

THEY WERE THE OMEN OF DEATH, WEREN'T THEY?

it was funny how death incarnate was beating up the man that represented the color of death.

───── ⋆⋅ ☽ ⋅⋆ ─────

JIN-WOO WASNT THINKING straight.

the thought of his other half, his whole world, being violated in such a way. if there was one thing he hated it was that he hated seeing his girl cry.

he needed to eradicate this man's life if it's last thing he'll ever do.

"SUNG JIN-WOO."

another voice joins the conversation. and all head turns to side to see hwang dong-su, alive and breathing.

he takes off his jacket as he faces the players. "would you be so kind as to let go of my junior?"

"why should i?"

"well, i did promise him he would meet
that little eye candy of yours."

jin-woo grits his teeth. 'she's not an item. why are they treating her in such a way?'

"YOU DEAL WITH HIM, WOO."

the dark haired player turns his head to his lover who put her foot against her min-hyuk's neck.

their eyes meet and they had a silent conversation. though jin-woo against the idea of leaving her alone, he trusted her.

he lets him go, letting [y/n] take the helm.

"coward." min-hyuk mutters, splatters blood dripping out of his lips as he spoke.

the female player digs her heel into his neck, adding her ruler's authority.

"SHUT UP AND DON'T MOVE."

she commands, the air growing hot. the dark haired player gives her one last look before walking off to the other pest in the area.

[y/n] watches him walk off before turning back to the piece of trash that was under her foot.

"YOU WANNA TALK? FINE THEN, LETS TALK."

───── ⋆⋅ ☽ ⋅⋆ ─────

THE TWO ADULTS look at each, both silent.

[y/n] did not have a reason to be so scared of him, did she?though the sight of his face still does want to make her throw up.

but as of right now, he was nothing more than a mere bug that she could squash under foot.

WHAT WAS THERE TO BE SCARED OF?

"you're a whore, you know that." min-hyuk starts, but she gives him no reaction.

"look at you, all pretty and perfect. having the most powerful man at your hand and foot." he continues, with a strained laugh.

BUT IT ALMOST SOUNDED LIKE JEALOUSY?

"there's not even a stain of blood—" without a moment of hesitation, [y/n] digs her dagger right inside his stomach, causing a mouthful of blood to escape his mouth.

she could feel the blood stain the sleeve of her white jacket, not bothered by it, she looks down at him, her eyes glowing gold.

"you were saying?"

min-hyuk scoffs, shaking his head. "you won't actually kill me. i know you still care about me, little prin—"

"and whose says i won't?" she interrupts, a dead serious tone lacing her voice.

she tilts her head, her expression blank. "you seem to be caught up in your delusions to not realize the situation you're in right now."

"WELL YOU WERE ALWAYS STUPID."

she digs her dagger deeper in his stomach. "there was a lot of things i wanted to say to you before. but now that we're here, i realize that you aren't worth the conversation."

before he could even interject, she continues, letting her angry emotions take over. "you left to me die not before taking away something i found valuable, you knew that. because i told you multiple times in the past."

"YOU WERE ASKING FOR IT."

"LIKE HELL I WAS."

"that's always your excuse, isn't it?" she scoffs, rolling her eyes. "i never asked for anything. i never asked you to do that to me. you may have a pretty face, but you are far from it."

[y/n] takes the dagger out of his stomach, she crouches down as she points the weapon near his face.

min-hyuk felt his body burn up, the air felt cold around him, his body felt like it was on fire.

"i spent so many relentless days, asking myself why you'd do it." she continues. "after a while, i stopped, realizing that your mind is beyond human reasoning. it was crazy to think that i would risk my life for you. i use to think the world of you."

she furrows her eyebrows, feeling guilty once more. "it's my fault for being so naive and trusting."

"that's because you were hopelessly in love with me."

"back then, maybe. now, in your fucking dreams."

the man almost wanted spit in her face as he growls, "i gave you a place to stay, i brought food on the table for you! i was there when no one else was! and this how you repay me?"

the female player perks up at his words. repay? for what exactly? she didn't need repay him when all he did was give her nothing but false hope and love.

BUT SHE DID HATE ONE SIDED THINGS.

"i've been thinking about that." she adds. "you like to use that against me, didn't you? you made me do all sorts of things because of it."

min-hyuk smirks at her answer. he liked to take advantage of this quirk of hers. he had his little doll on her knees for him every time.

but his face falls when the dagger that was by his neck was now pointed at his eye. the blade itself started tinting red, like the color of red spider lilies.

the blade inched ever closer to his left eye.

"this my way of paying you back." she says, lifted the dagger up in the air.

"AS THE OLD SAYING GOES, AN EYE FOR AN EYE."

CHAPTER THRITY-NINE! END!
────red spider lilies.